School Holiday workout ...

There's only so many times that you can use the excuse that you can't fit your workout in because it's school holidays ...

You just have to make the time and sometimes think outside of the box ... or maybe just outside, at the playground, or at the park.  Get the kids out of the house, into the sunshine and let them run off what seems like an endless supply of energy!

And just so that you can't use the excuse you don't know what exercises to do ... here's one I prepared earlier!  You can do this workout outside at the park with the kids, at the playground or if all else fails and the weather is yuck like it is here today ... at home!

Let's call it the School Holiday Boredom Buster ...

Warm up ... if you are outside at the park or playground go for a light jog or brisk walk around the play area where the kids are.  Do this for about 5 minutes as you want to be nice and warm, especially in this chilly weather.  If you are at home some jogging on the spot or skipping will warm you up nicely!

Each set consists of 4 exercises.  Complete each exercise for 20 reps, resting for 10 seconds between each exercise.

Set 1

Squat ... watch your alignment.
Push ups ... choose your level, knees or toes. 
Star Jumps
Plank hold ... choose your level again, knees or toes and hold for at least 30 seconds

Rest for 1 minute

Set 2

Walking lunge ... be sure that your front knee does not travel past your lead toe
Tricep Dips ... on a bench or chair if at home
Skater Jump ... just step it wide rather than jump if you need
Mountain Climbers

Rest for 1 minute

Head off around the playground again for a light 2 minute jog or brisk walk. 

Repeat Sets 1 and 2 again.  If you are feeling like a third round, go for it!

Make sure you warm down and have a stretch.

Be aware that the kids may want to join you in this workout!  What better way to tire them out keep them active!

Have a great workout!

 

Do you include your kids in your exercise routine while on the holidays?

Football Food .. Fit Mum Style

So if you live in Queensland or New South Wales you may be aware that there is a very important game of Rugby League on tonight. No, oh well, read on anyway I'm sharing a family favourite recipe!

The State of Origin clash between Qld and NSW tends to stop many .. but not all .. households in the respective states. There will usually be quite a bit of yelling at the television, cheering and possibly tears ( if you live in NSW of course ... ). Of course if you are actually at the game then, well, aren't you the lucky ones!

My house is no different. Personally I don't tend to do much yelling, unless the ref is a clown or Qld are scoring. Sometimes I may not even watch the game ... I mean it's the same night as Offspring, surely someone could have planned that better?

Anyway, moving on .. Apparently because it is such an "important" game we are required to eat football food ... More specifically, hot dogs.

As you can imagine, I'm not the biggest fan of the hot dog. Yes, I will agree that it can taste rather delicious but I do sometimes wonder what is actually in it .. I'm not sure if there is really meat in there, is there?

So I decided to compromise and I make chicken dogs ... I think maybe I need a better name ... Suggestions accepted ...

I won't tell you that they are the most healthy option but they certainly get the thumbs up from the family.

Here's what I use ...

Chicken tenderloins crumbed in spiced panko crumbs .. You choose your favourite spice. I use Sumac for just a little citrusy bite. Then I bake them in the oven.

Of course, hot dog buns ... I try to buy wholemeal / whole grain but I can't always find them

Red onions, caramelised
Pancetta .. Diced and fried in a little of the oil used for the onions
Grated cheese
Your choice of condiments ... The usual mustard, sauces etc ...

Remember, I didn't say they were the healthiest choice but they do include real food ... And I made them myself so they are super yum!

What do you have for your special "football food" on big game nights?

Training Update ...

It's been a while so I thought it might be time for a training update.

I had a great training week last week! I bounded through my planned runs ( well, I sort of felt like I bounded anyway, just go with it! ).  I even included my scheduled strength training on Tuesday.

My longest run of the week was on Saturday.  I even had a training partner for this one.  I've never had a training partner, particularly for a longer run.  It was my sister so maybe that's why I didn't feel too bad!  We managed to talk our way through the first 5km ... until we got a little misdirected ( I did not say we were lost .. ) ... then we talked a little less but I was really happy with our 12km.

I have started including a run with Mr 7 on Sunday afternoons while Mr FitMum does his long runs with Miss 11.  Mr 7 scoots along on his bike and I try to keep up!  It's kind of like tempo training ... 

By Sunday night I was starting to feel the effects of a few more kilometres run over the last week .. and possibly not enough stretching.  No real soreness, just some stiff hips.

I decided to give my legs a break from running yesterday and did a strength type circuit instead.  Here is what I did ... Each exercise was done for 45 seconds with a 15 second rest between. 

Kettlebell swings
Jump onto Bosu ( a bit of extra stability training )
Push press
Lunge with Single arm Row
Single leg glute bridges on Bosu ( working on my glutes and hamstrings )  
Ab exercise .. leg raises

Repeat 3 times ...

Fast forward to this morning when I am struggling to get out of bed and walk around after I injured my hamstring .. the other one this time ... whilst doing some high jump drills with Miss 11 on a local oval.  All rather innocuous really, I few strides, then a few more a bit faster until I step on some uneven ground and oops there goes my leg.

The physio has advised that I not run for a week and just focus on some upper body strength, presumably to keep my mind off the fact that I cannot run even though I have entered a half marathon whose date is only 9 weeks away! I'm not even allowed to go for a walk .. it hurts to walk too fast and it doesn't look very pretty either!

Apparently I will not lose much fitness as I have a great base ... what about if I lose my mojo?  I'm not sure if I had a great base of that! 

Maybe this has been sent to make me stronger?  I hope I will be stronger because I was just starting to feel like I was getting into a great training routine. You will note that my strength circuit had my glute and hamstring exercises included!

In other related news, I entered the half marathon in Melbourne later this year! 

But I think my focus right now might just be on getting my legs moving again in the next week or so and see if I can get my mojo back!

How is your training going? 

Have you had to have time off lately for an injury that has really put you in a bit of a spin?

Healthy Eating Workshop & Challenge ...

Do you "eat clean"?  Do you know what "eating clean" is all about?

There is so much hype about different types of "diets" and how you can lose 30lbs in the blink of an eye that it really is just confusing.  To be honest, I just switch off a lot of the time when someone starts talking about how they are a "clean eater" and couldn't possibly even look at a coffee made with milk let alone have it pass their lips!  And let's not even mention pasta or rice .. oops did I just say a bad word?

Personally, I prefer to call my "diet" healthy, balanced eating.  Please note that I am NOT on a diet ... A "diet" as defined by the Oxford dictionary ...

Definition of diet

noun

•  the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats

 

therefore, I habitually eat healthy, balanced foods.  I am so over people using the word diet like it is a contagious disease, it is an entirely basic description of the foods you consume over a period of time.  As such I do not use the word unless that is the only word that describes what I am talking about.

 

OK, now that I have cleared that up, I'll move on ...

 

Clean eating, according to me, in my most basic description, goes like this ...

 

 

* Eat foods as close as possible to their natural state

* Eliminate processed foods

* Eat every 2 - 3 hours

* Eat a balance of food groups including carbohydrates, proteins and good fats

* Be aware of what the ingredients are in the foods that you are eating .. don't assume

 

This of course is just an abbreviated version of clean eating.  Everyone has a different version and everyone who "eats clean" may do so with different ideas or even "levels" if you will.  I personally am not extremely "strict" to the point of rigidness when it comes to my healthy, balanced eating.  I love food and I will enjoy different types of foods even "bad" foods ... I just choose not to eat them everyday or even every week.  Here is the general guide that I follow.

 

In July, I will be hosting a Healthy Eating Workshop & Challenge.  I know that some of you won't be able to attend in person, but you can still take part in the challenge!

 

The workshop will not be a lecture ... it will be more of a support group where wer can get together, sit down and discuss how we are going with our Healthy, Balanced eating.

 

We will be able to discuss all things healthy eating including

* tips on how to lose weight, maintain weight or even put on weight

* how to eat / fuel yourself before or after a workout

* tips on menu planning and being organised to ensure you are able to stick to healthy, balanced eating

* excuse elimination

 

I will share some of my own tips and recipes that work for me and my family. 

I hope that everyone else will also share their tips and tricks as what works for one may not necessarily work for another .. we are all individual!

 

You can find a little more about my Healthy Eating Workshop & Challenge here and here.

 

If you have any questions or would like to join me send me an email at 

 

 ascentfitness@live.com.au 

 

 I would love to have you join us and share your tips, tricks and experiences!  The more we support each other the more fun we will have!

 

 

 

Monday Motivation ....

Good morning!

This is going to be my motivation for this week. 

I headed out for my long run on Saturday morning .. OK so it was only 12km but it felt r-e-a-l-l-y long.  Not that I'm going to whinge heaps but this run hurt and I was feeling pretty negative about it for most of the weekend.  I ran a bit slower than I had done this run before but I still ran the whole way. 




Mr FitMum decided that the best way to get over this run was to head out for another run on Sunday ... of course it is!  It was such a gorgeous day yesterday that I actually wanted to go too!  So I knocked over a 6km run with Mr 7 on his bike ... a little bit stop start and a little bit tempo run!  Don't tell Mr FitMum but I actually felt pretty good .. no sore legs at all!

Don't let a bad session get you down.  Get back out there and remember all the sessions that make you feel great! 

Have a great week!

What I'm Eating Wednesday ... Berry Yummy Smoothie

Last week I received a delivery of Chobani yoghurt, which is more than OK because we love it here! 

On the other hand, I'm going to have to find some exciting ways to use it all!

A regular weekend snack for the kids in our house is a smoothie.  Usually hubby buzzes one up so that we can get rid of the bananas in the fruit bowl that are coming to the end of their usefulness! 

This week there are no bananas ... just yoghurt!  This is the one I threw together for the kids yesterday for some after school yumminess ... frozen berries, honey chobani yoghurt, skim milk and 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder.  I added some extra protein powder because I wanted a little bit extra for my afternoon snack and besides, it won't hurt the kids! 

 

Don't tell Mr FitMum but apparently this one was nicer than his!  AND, it tasted like the thickshake you get at the cafes!  Aren't I just the best smoothie maker?!

 

 

There are so many combinations of smoothies that you can whip up! 

What is your favourite?

 



Monday Motivation ...

We all have some tried and true excuses.  This week accept no excuses, just get the job done because you will only be letting yourself down!

It's Friday! Wrapping up the week ...

This week seems to have gone by quickly!  I started out the week with lots of grand plans to do this and that ... now it's Friday and many of those plans that I had seem to have been brushed aside.  Ooops! 

I did manage to get some things done.  All the important things, like the hairdresser, you know! 

I also managed to fit in a couple of runs.  Last Saturday's long run I'm trying to take all the positives out of that one so that I can get myself in the right frame of mind for tomorrow's run.  I'm just not feeling the love at the moment!  It will come back, I know!  Maybe when the sun comes out here ... we all know I don't like winter!

Monday       I do a recovery run on Mondays.  My legs felt really heavy and quite stiff still after Saturday.  I put that down to a long pull up a hill that worked my hamstring / glute just a little more than I would have liked.  It was the first real hill that I had run since straining my hamstring a little while ago.  I also managed my yoga stretching which I have been missing ... I promised myself I would do this! 

Tuesday       I was running errands most of the day but I still managed to fit in a really short strength workout.  Working on the concept that a little bit is better than nothing at the moment! 

Wednesday   I started out early this morning with a client and then had time for a quick speed session before taking the kids to school and getting to the hairdresser!  It was freezing!  And the speed session hurt! My poor legs!  Yes, my hamstring / glute was really sore for the rest of the day.  It is possible I ran just a little too fast, but I did it!

Thursday       I was out and about again and with some niggles in my hamstring I really didn't want to push another run before I head out for Saturday's long run. 

Friday           Today is my usual rest day.  Some light stretches for my legs will be called for today! 

On Monday I did a post here challenging myself and you to spend some time quietly with yourself, not reading or watching TV.  Just focusing on you .. meditation, stretching, whatever you wanted to include.

I'll be honest and say I haven't done the best job this week.  I have done one yoga session .. a bit pathetic really!  My meditation has been a bit half hearted, however I have been doing it as I get into bed each night.  I have been taking time to focus on my breathing and relaxing my body ... not perfect I know but I've tried to still my mind even if it's just 5 minutes!

How did you go this week? 

Did you get in all your training sessions and are you happy with them?  

Did you find some time to focus just on yourself? 

Monday Motivation ... Taking time for YOU!

When was the last time that you stopped, sat down and did not even think?  I will admit that it is not something that I do regularly .. but I should.  We all should. 

Now, I will freely admit that I am not the busiest person that I know but there always seems to be something to do.  In fact I admire some of the people that are busier than me because they seem to fit in a whole lot more than I do in one day!  When do they switch off?  You know, stop thinking about everything.  My mind in constantly thinking, making lists, making lists for lists.  I truly believe that we need time to stop thinking, to stop and not do anything except be alone with yourself.

By this I don't mean the workout that you do by yourself, or sitting in front of the TV or reading.  I run by myself and I workout alone but lately I haven't been taking time for me .. no thinking allowed.  Is this you too?

Is there something that you could do this week to spend some quality time with yourself?  Meditation, yoga, your own stretching routine?  Something that will allow your mind and body to relax and slow down.

I always mean to practice more yoga and meditate each week but here's my excuse ... I always find something that is "more important" to do.  Really, what is more important than my time with myself?

This week I'm going to try to practice yoga / meditate each day.  Even if it's 15 minutes of yoga and 5 minutes of meditation, I'm going to make the effort this week to stop and allow my mind and body to relax.  I know one week is not long enough to develop into a habit.  It just might be long enough to remind me how much I really enjoy it.  The family just might appreciate it too!

You challenge for this week, should you choose to accept it, is to join me with your own form of yoga / meditation / stretching ... even if it's 5 minutes.  Choose something that will allow you to sit quietly for some time to appreciate yourself and how important you are! 

If you are keen to try the meditation thing there are a number of apps that will guide you through a meditation.  I use these occasionally so that I can really block out what's going on in my head!

Please drop by and let me know what you will be trying out this week and let me know how you are doing.  We can keep each other honest!

It's all about YOU this week!