Workout updates

Saturday's workout:

Turkish get-ups - four per side

Short bridges - three sets of six

Today's workout:

12 one-arm swings with the left arm (x 15 pounds = 180 total pounds lifted)

12 one-arm swings with the right arm (x 15 pounds = 180 total pounds lifted)

13 DARC's (swings switching from the left arm to the right, so 24 alternating one-arm swings x 15 pounds = 360 total pounds lifted)

This workout's total: 750 pounds in 50 swings

Grand total: 3630 pounds in 242 swings

I'm discovering that getting up early consistently can be a challenge when your kids wake up during the night! Rhys has been working on a molar, and for a few days there, he was up a couple of times a night. There was no way I was dragging myself out of bed early on those mornings - sleep took priority over working out. But the tooth seems to have worked its way in, and for now, he's back to sleeping all night. So I'm back to the workouts on a regular basis!

Workout review

Yesterday's workout:

11 one-arm swings with the left arm (x 15 pounds = 165 total pounds lifted)

11 one-arm swings with the right arm (x 15 pounds = 165 total pounds lifted)

11 DARC's (swings switching from the left arm to the right, so 22 alternating one-arm swings x 15 pounds = 330 total pounds lifted)

This workout's total: 660 pounds in 44 swings

Grand total: 2160 pounds in 144 swings - hooray, I've lifted over a ton!

Today's workout:

Turkish get-ups - three per side

Short bridges - three sets of five

It may not be very intense, but I'm doing my best to be consistent! I'm not losing weight or inches just yet, but I do notice a little difference in the way I feel. We went to Hawaiian Falls yesterday, as we've done so many times this summer, and I felt like it was a bit easier to walk around the park. That's progress!

Consistency trumps intensity - I'm working on that

Brian found a saying somewhere: "Consistency trumps intensity", and it's true. I'm trying to make that my motto and be consistent with my exercise, even if to some, it wouldn't seem like much of a workout.

Wednesday's workout:

8 one-arm swings with the left arm (x 15 pounds = 120 total pounds lifted)

8 one-arm swings with the right arm (x 15 pounds = 120 total pounds lifted)

8 DARC's (swings switching from the left arm to the right, so 16 alternating one-arm swings x 15 pounds = 240 total pounds lifted)

This workout's total: 480 pounds in 32 swings

Grand total: 1500 pounds in 100 swings


Thursday's workout:

Turkish get-ups - three per side

Short bridges - three sets of four (this is supposed to help strengthen your core muscles and is supposed to help with/help ward off back problems)

Brian and I have a deal - if I get up early to do my workout, he'll get up early to fix me a glass of chocolate milk when I'm done.

And today was a rest day, woo hoo! Tomorrow it's back to swings again.

Enter the kettlebell, again

I said some time ago that I was going to start working out with my kettlebell. I didn't really follow through on that. But now I'm starting again. Brian found this workout:

http://giryastrength.com/pdf/Vitalics.pdf

The woman in the article lost 100 pounds in a year with the workout listed. I'm not sure my schedule allows for me to follow as strict a diet as she did, but I'm going to do the workout and eat sensibly (not much soda, cut back on sugars and processed foods, eat more fruits and veggies and whole grains), and see where I end up in a year.

I like numbers, so I'm keeping track of how much weight I lift with my workouts. Here's what I've done so far. I use a 15-pound kettlebell right now.

First workout

7 one-arm swings with the left arm (x 15 pounds = 105 total pounds lifted)

7 one-arm swings with the right arm (x 15 pounds = 105 total pounds lifted)

7 DARC's (swings switching from the left arm to the right, so 14 alternating one-arm swings x 15 pounds = 210 total pounds lifted)

Workout total: 420 pounds in 28 swings. Brian has been keeping track of his numbers this way for his kettlebell workout, and when you see the sheer amount of weight lifted in a relatively short time, it's impressive. I like impressive numbers, so that's my motivation - that and the before and after pics of the woman who used this workout successfully. I like playing with weights, and it helps that Brian is doing something similar.

Last night's workout

10 one-arm swings with the left arm (x 15 pounds = 150 total pounds lifted)

10 one-arm swings with the right arm (x 15 pounds = 150 total pounds lifted)

10 DARC's (swings switching from the left arm to the right, so 20 alternating one-arm swings x 15 pounds = 300 total pounds lifted)

Tonight's total: 600 pounds in 40 swings

Grand total: 1020 pounds in 68 swings

I'll have to post some "before" pictures soon (I haven't really lost a lot of weight after two workouts!).

Enter the kettlebell!

My sweetie (whose blog can be found here) has talked me into starting a kettlebell workout.



This should be interesting, as my body strength probably closely approximates that of the proverbial 97-pound weakling, except that I weigh a whole lot more than 97 pounds. Go to YouTube and search for "kettlebell workout" if you want to get an idea of what I'm talking about. This apparently has the potential to make me toned and stronger than I ever thought I could be. Heck, if it shrinks my butt a good bit and helps my upper arms not flap in a strong breeze, I'll call it a success.

I'm starting out with a 15-pound kettlebell (the little red one in the picture - the other two are Brian's).



One of the exercises I'm supposed to do is called a Turkish get-up. It involves lying on the ground holding the kettlebell over my head and working my way up to a standing position, holding the kettlebell over my head the whole time. Well, right now my arms are nowhere near strong enough to hold a 15-pound hunk of metal over my head and get up off the ground from a prone position at the same time, so I'm doing it as a body weight exercise. It's still quite the challenge for this short, rotund woman, I'll tell you that.

I guess at some point I should take my measurements. I have an idea, but still - the actual numbers will probably be a bit depressing. But I'm starting the process of changing those numbers for the better, so that's encouraging. Julian was quite enthused to hear that I plan on becoming a hot mama. LOL I'll catalog my progress here, small and slow though it may be.

Tonight's workout: five minutes of around-the-backs (just what it sounds like - passing the kettlebell from hand to hand around my body) and halos (holding the kettlebell and rotating it around my head without getting my arms too far away from my body). It's a start!