Tag Archives for Working Out
Yoga Videos
One of my goals for this month was to do more yoga. I always have a hard time finding videos that I like because I’m picky like that. I want them to be challenging, not too cheesy, and to move at a fairly quick pace. ExerciseTV was my go-to for workout videos, but they shut down this month (why!?) so I had to branch out and find a few videos I liked which was harder than I imagined. I did end up finding a few that I really enjoyed and wanted to share. If there are any yoga videos out there that you recommend please let me know about ‘em!
In a Heartbeat Vinyasa Yoga. I really liked this one because you move through poses quickly, but not too fast. Sometimes I get really annoyed with the instructors voice and instruction, but hers is good. There were a couple of times she said downward dog in this funny way and I started laughing which made me enjoy the workout even more because it wasn’t so stuffy and serious. The only downside is that this is on Hulu so you’re interrupted every so often with commercials which sucks.
Detox Yoga. You’d think this one would be extremely cheesy by watching the intro, but it’s not, I promise. It’s straight forward, a good stretch, and modifications are shown which I like. I loved listening to the instructor’s voice as her accent is so nice even when talking about constipation. Haha :]
Detox Yoga with Clara Roberts-Oss. I found this video on Healthy Diva Eats and was happy because it is by the same instructor from the first video and I really like her. I love how quickly this moves and that the instructions are very clear and easy to follow without having to keep looking up at the screen.
I also have Jillian Michaels’ yoga dvd and really love it. My arms are always so sore the next day after doing so many chaturanga push ups and I love how strong I feel. I’ve been doing really well with my yoga goal this month and I am definitely seeing the benefits of adding more yoga to my routine. My arms look more defined, my core feels stronger, and I’m getting better at certain poses which is great and super motivating.
Jump Around
One of my favorite cardio workouts to do is jumping rope. It’s perfect on those days the gym and workout videos don’t sound appealing and it burns serious calories in a short amount of time. What I usually do is jump rope for the entire duration of a song and then take a break for a minute or two and repeat for a few songs. I did this over the weekend and used my heart rate monitor to see how many calories I burned during each song.
Gillie Da Kid – Get Down on the Ground: 41 calories
Cadillac Don – Peanut Butter & Jelly: 45 calories
Dead Prez & The Coup – Get Up: 42 calories
Big KRIT feat. Ludacris & Bun B – Country Shit (remix): 44 calories
Kid Sister – Get Fresh: 33 calories
I left my heart rate monitor going through the breaks I took and burned a total of 291 calories with a time of 30 minutes. If you need some music for this try one of the pregame playlists on 8tracks. I’m addicted to almost all of those because they’re perfect for working out.
Body Rockin’, Veggie Burgers & Baking with Tofu
I woke up early yesterday and was still sore from taking Flow & Body Attack (so.much.jumping) classes with my sister-in-law on Saturday. I wanted to do something quick so I finally did a workout from BodyRock.tv.
If you’ve never heard of BodyRock, it’s a really neat site with tons of free workout videos. Each workout is different as some have timed rounds or are just how many sets you can do in a specific amount of time. All you do is watch the video where you are shown exactly what to do, any modifications and the proper form to do each exercise.
I did a five minute warm up and then started the For the Haters workout where you see how many sets you can do in ten minutes. I didn’t have the fitness ball so I used a couple of three pound weights for the overhead press. I was able to do 27 sets for a total of 100 calories burned. It was nice to get a strength and cardio session finished so quickly. I know that ten minutes a day won’t cut it every day, but it was a nice change up and at least I got some activity in.
For lunch I knew exactly what I wanted to make! I got all my ingredients together and made tiny squash pizzas that I’d seen on There She Goes. They were so good and made me think of bagel bites which I used to eat like crazy in high school.
I was craving something sweet so I made tofu fudge bars that I’d seen on the Twin Oaks Tofu site. They turned out really well and were exactly what I needed to satisfy my sweet tooth.
Greg had been wanting black bean burgers for dinner for awhile now so I finally made some last night. I sauteed some onions, garlic and carrots in safflower oil until the onions were translucent. I drained and rinsed a can of black beans, mashed them and then added the sauteed veggies along with an egg, cumin, hot sauce, liquid smoke and a slice of Ezekiel bread crumbled up.
Form patties and be really careful with these or they’ll fall apart. I formed the patties on my cutting board and carefully moved them to an oiled pan with a spatula to make sure they wouldn’t break on me. It’s important to cook them very well on each side to make sure they stay together. I heated mine on medium-high heat for about ten minutes on each side. Once finished, I served them with field greens, tomato, avocado and mustard.
Here’s the nutrition facts for each burger (minus the bun & toppings). If you track your food and use The Daily Plate you can find the recipe here.
R.I.P. (Rest In Plank) Workout
I came across Blogilates the other day and absolutely love her blog! There are so many great (free!) workouts there. This particular ab & arms workout caught my eye and I decided to give it a try.
This is no joke! I was sweating like crazy and my arms were shaking afterwards. I love it! Here’s my time & calories burned:
Time: 12:04
Calories Burned: 88
That’s amazing for strength training! This was a serious workout that only took twelve minutes and it’s over before you know it. If you do this share the time it took you to complete in the comments!
Food Diary
Breakfast: Two slices of toasted Ezekiel bread with three egg white and iced coffee with unsweetened almond milk.
Morning Snack: Apple
Lunch: Kale salad (recipe from Oh She Glows). Stir-fry using a bag of frozen mixed veggies and this sauce I made the night before. The sauce was really good! The recipe called for anise stars which I didn’t use and it still turned out fine. I had never heard of that spice before, but it is beautiful! Check it out:
Pretty neat, huh?
Here’s me enjoying my lunch at my messy desk. Stir-fry.. MMM! :]
Afternoon Snack: Banana
Late Afternoon/Pre-Workout Snack: Ezekiel pita bread with almond butter. I ate half the pita with almond butter when I got home and when I realized I forgot to take a photo. I knew the right thing to do was eat the other half in order to take a photo so you all could see. :]
I wanted to work out but I didn’t feel like strength training or intense cardio so I went with Bob Harper’s yoga DVD. I’ve had this for awhile but never done it. Hour long workouts are just so hard for me to get into unless it’s a group exercise class with someone really there to motivate me.
This yoga workout was really awesome though. It’s a bit of strength, but the stretches are so good and there’s modifications for all the moves. The hour actually went by quickly which was great because…
I wanted to catch up on Secret Life! I always bring my laptop in the kitchen to clean or cook while watching tv shows so I feel productive. I got to work on dinner and followed along with the drama while chopping onions, garlic and ginger.
Dinner: Chickpea & eggplant curry from Appetite for Reduction that was enjoyed on the front porch with Greg & Pepper. I wish I could share the recipe with you all because it is amazing! I’ve loved every recipe I’ve made from this cookbook so far, but I think this is my favorite.
After dinner we went on a walk around the neighborhood so Pepper could get some energy out. After every walk, the minute we take the leash off, Pepper goes crazy and rolls and rubs his face all over the carpet. It’s pretty funny but kinda weird. Does anyone else’s dog do this?!
I’m off to pack lunches and get my gym bag ready because I’m going to try and make a strength class after work. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!
Be sure and check out what everyone’s eatin’ at the What I Ate Wednesday party!
