30-day workout challenge, part II

More than a third of the way there--my 2nd attempt at a 30-day workout challenge (to work out for at least 45 minutes, every day for 30 days). Here's what I have so far:

day 1 (march 19): pilates (45 minutes), bodypump (60 minutes)

day 2: zumba (60 minutes), bodycombat (35 minutes)

day 3: volunteered at a college fair to represent my alma mater (walked in heels, carrying heavy boxes of publications...)

day 4: walked outside for 1.5 hours (it was a glorious day!)

day 5: went to a park to walk, but ended out falling asleep in the chair while Andy fished--NOTHING

day 6: helped at a clean-up at a National Wildlife Refuge (walked more than a mile--I know, i'm totally stretching here)

day 7: had our wedding tasting, walked the grounds for about 30 minutes

day 8: pilates (45 minutes), bodypump (60 minutes)

day 9: elliptical (35 minutes), core strenghtening (10 minutes)

day 10: yoga (1 hour, 15 min) [i'm not even sure what kind of yoga this was. not the kind of yoga that i'm really into though...]

So, yeah, I'm totally stretching a lot of these days, and to be honest, I'm not doing very well. I have so much motivation, but I'm completely wiped out (maybe hot yoga this weekend will get me out of my funk). My parents are staying at my place for the night in three weeks, and my house is a total mess. This program is pretty ambitious for me, I feel. I know this sounds like an excuse (and it is), but I'm working 40 hours a week, spending 10 hours a week (at least) on the road to and from work, trying to get some wedding things together (because it's creeping up REALLY fast), and trying to keep my house in some semblance of order (and by that I mean barely maintaining the piles of laundry and dishes, and pretty much nothing else). Oh yeah, and actually trying to enjoy some time that I can spend with my fiance, because hey, I just like bein' with the guy. And I guess, I'm leaving out the eating and sleeping part of things.

I don't know how people do it. Do they not work full time jobs? Do they not have hour long commutes? I get up at 5:15am, am on the road by 6:20 and don't get home until just after 5pm, and then when I head to the gym/somewhere to work out, I'm home somewhere between 7-8pm. And I need to be in bed before 10 (to barely get 7 hours of sleep--which is certainly not enough). I feel like I should feel accomplished for planning a wedding with that schedule (and my other volunteer things that I get myself info), and manage to get the laundry done (sort of).

Wow. I'm exhausted just typing that. If you're wondering why I haven't been blogging a lot, it's that.

Hopefully you're lives are a little less jam-packed then mine! :)

30-day workout challenge re-cap

so far, i had posted the first half of my 30-day workout challenge, and now we've past the 30-day mark, so here's  a recap of how it went.

day 1: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 2: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 3: zumba (45 minutes); core strengthening (15 minutes)
day 4: NOTHING
day 5: pilates (1 hour)
day 6: at home gazelle and ab work out (45 minutes)
day 7: NOTHING
day 8: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 9: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 10: walk/jog at a local park (45 minutes)

day 11: zumba (55 minutes), BODYCOMBAT (30 minutes)

day 12: pilates (1 hour)

day 13: a little weight-lifting, a little abs (probably 15 minutes)

day 14 -NOTHING

day 15: i spent the day as a "runner" for a regional National Ocean Sciences Bowl. so from 7am to nearly 7pm (aside from a lunch break), i was on my feet, and briskly running/jogging/sprinting on occasion every half hour or so (on average).

day 16: hot yoga (90 minutes)

day 17: NOTHING

day 18: NOTHING

day 19: NOTHING (unless navigating an airport counts)

day 20: cardio/weights (1 hour)

day 21: cardio/weights/abs (1 hour)

day 22: NOTHING (walked a large mall in Texas--everything's bigger in TX, right?)

day 23: cardio/abs (45 minutes)

day 24: NOTHING (walked through the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo)

day 25: NOTHING (walked the Houston airport--for nearly 2 hours)

day 26: pilates (1 hour)

day 27:  cardio (45 min); core strengthening (15 min)

day 28: NOTHING

day 29: hot yoga (90 minutes)

day 30: NOTHING (and this day is only filled with excuses...)

So, overall, i did at least 45 minutes of exercise 19 days out of 30. That's not a bad start... I think that's pretty good, considering I had a week of vacation thrown in there (and prepping for and returning from vacation really throws me off).

I had high hopes of finishing strong on day 30 with another round of hot yoga, but my upstairs neighbors struck again--resulting in us getting about 2 hours of sleep on Saturday night. I had errands and other things planned to do, I got some accomplished, but I also spent most of the day being just downright exhausted.

So, I'm going to do my best to start again, because I really feel great. This push is really making a difference in my body, and since I'm pushing myself to go to the gym more, I'm pushing Andy too, and  I can see a difference in him as well [this was secretly part of my motivation].

And maybe I won't reach 30 days right away, but I'm going to aim to beat 19 days. It will be pretty tough this next 30 days--we have a lot of wedding/work/volunteering things going on.

Don't worry, I'll post about my dress fitting, and my Texas rodeo adventure soon! :)

oh yeah, and we're under the 5 month mark!

monday, monday

so, i'm not doing as well as i had hoped for my 30-day challenge, and this week will probably be the nail in the coffin. but i'm still trying nonetheless to work out as much as i can, even with a little here and there. (it has to help somewhat, right??)

day 12 - pilates (1 hour)

day 13 - a little weight-lifting, a little abs (probably 15 minutes)

day 14 - nothing.

day 15 - i spent the day as a "runner" for a regional National Ocean Sciences Bowl. so from 7am to nearly 7pm (aside from a lunch break), i was on my feet, and briskly running/jogging/sprinting on occasion every half hour or so (on average). i'd say that counts. [this is my 4th year as runner for this competition. i love it!]

day 16 - hot yoga (90 minutes)

day 17 (today) and day 18 (tomorrow) - are not looking promising. excuses excuses. like having to work late, and wedding-related errands. and maybe that i also have to eat some food out of our fridge and freezer, which doesn't really happen when i workout later than normal, because then i don't want to eat dinner. see, excuses excuses.

anyway. work is very busy, in general things are very busy.

BUT. today i will get to have MY dress on for the first time. since it's a custom dress, i've never had a sample of it on, so i'm so nervous, hoping it will be right and everything that i've wanted. my appointment is in 2 hours, and these will be some long, slow two hours. as long as everything is fine when i put it on, i think i will be able to breathe a little easier for the next 5 1/2 months.

hope you all had a fantastic weekend!

30-day challenge update & a nightmare

shortly after i wrote of my commitment to my 30-day workout challenge, it went out the window. andy's parents were visiting, but not staying with us, instead staying up where the wedding will be. andy was off, and was staying with them, i was at work. i stayed with them the night before, and drove 1.5 hours to get to my office for a 7:30am start time. i was planning to go home (and go to the gym for day 4), but they tugged at my heartstrings, and i turned the car in the opposite direction, drove 2 hours up there, and then turned around and drove back to work the next morning. (ugh, that was a lot of driving).

so day 4 -NOTHING
but, day 5 - pilates (1 hour)
day 6 -  at home gazelle and ab work out (45 minutes)
day 7 - NOTHING (oops. andy got home late from work, and we just went to dinner instead of working out)
day 8 - hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 9 - hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 10 - walk/jog at a local park (45 minutes) -- it was nice outside, sort of. a little chilly by the time i got home and out there.
day 11 - zumba (55 minutes), BODYCOMBAT (30 minutes)--i just wanted to test this class out, i couldn't stay the whole time.
day 12 (today) - pilates is planned.


and i had my second wedding nightmare. my first happened just after we got engaged. i had a dream that it was my wedding day, and i had everything figured out, except that i forgot to get a wedding dress*.

the other night, i had a dream that on the directions card we sent out with the invitations, i missed a turn, and people were calling me on my wedding day, just before the ceremony, trying to figure out where they needed to be! [our place is tucked back, off the beaten path, so i have to make sure the directions are right!]

*this is not going to be an issue because my dress ARRIVED today. i'm so nervous to see it--it's a custom dress, so i just hope and pray that it is everything i dreamed it would be!

hope this rain isn't getting you too down! only 2 days left this week! [thank goodness, today was a little crazier than i was able to handle.]

varied or unfocused?: a 30-day workout challenge.

i love my hot yoga studio. but they are always pushing for me to take on more classes/monthly unlimited/extra programs. i'm barely making it once a week on a consistent basis, what would make you think that it would be reasonable for me to pay for something that is equivalent to 3x a week for a whole month?

a lot of the yogis there participate in a 30-day challenge. which for them, is partaking in a hot yoga class every day for 30 days. now that's a little intense for me, considering going to hot yoga eats up a minimum of 2 hours of my time, not counting travel time to get there, and showering after class. needless to say, i only make it on the weekends.

also, i'm not going to pay for monthly unlimited for hot yoga, when i also pay monthly for a gym membership elsewhere, and have paid for pilates classes at a different place. and i like my varied workouts. some may feel that i am unfocused, by dabbling in so many different types of exercise, but i think they all have their benefits.

for example:   

hot yoga gets my blood pumping and strengthens and stretches every fiber of my body.

hot yoga

but pilates is an intense strengthening and stretching opportunity, but the focus and the vibe are totally different than hot yoga.

pilates

bodypump is my weight lifting class. i get to build muscle in all of those parts that i've toned and stretched in my other classes.

bodypump

and then throw in some of the cardio, whether it be the elliptical, or zumba, or spinning.  

 i think all of these work well together, my own version of p90x-the well-known muscle confusion workout, preventing the body from getting used to the workouts and plateauing. 

so, as saturday marked SIX MONTHS until my wedding day, i've kind of gone into panic mode that i haven't been focusing on working out and losing weight. my dress will be in around april for my first fitting, and i need to be pretty much to my goal by then--it's better to lose more now, than having to constantly take in the dress.

so i've decided to take on my own 30-day challenge. i am challenging myself to partake in some form of exercise (for at least 45 minutes) EVERY DAY for the next 30 days. that's a lot to take on, considering some of the things on my plate in the next 30 days. but i'm going to do my best, and not beat myself up if it doesn't happen.

so far, this is what i've accomplished:

day 1: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 2: hot yoga (90 minutes)
day 3: zumba (45 minutes); core strengthening (15 minutes) [hooray for being off on monday so i can go to zumba!]


today is day 4, so who knows what today will bring!? :)

what is your favorite form of exercise/routine?