Welcome Back to Me!

Oh welcome back to me. Haha.

Anyway, after nearly three weeks of being absent from the gym and doing only brisk walking exercises for almost a week now, I'm back to doing workouts.  I started at home. It feels good to shape up! THERE SHOULD ALWAYS BE TIME TO DO SOME EXERCISES.  

No time to drop by the gym? Exercise at home.

Schedule too hectic?  Sleep early, wake up earlier than usual. At least do a 20 minute high intensity workout after freshening up. Or you can do it before you sleep after a few minutes of rest. 

Exercising boosts my energy. It motivates me in all aspects of my life. I feel refreshed after every workout. It just makes me feel good.

Not a day  (excluding my one day rest) will pass by without working out no matter how busy my life is. Exercising is already a part of who I am.  :)))

Exercise should be treated like breathing.  It is essential. It should be second nature a part of our system, ingrained in us. The feeling is just awesome when you know you have done something good for your body, for yourself. 

I followed this 30 minute cardio workout this morning.  It's great! I love it! The instructions are straightforward and the steps are easy to follow. Crystal clear. I'll be doing this for the next couple of days.  

I have to admit it's quite hard to get back on track if you have stopped working out for a while. And I'm only talking about nearly 3 weeks here and to think that I've been doing a lot of walking to compensate for the a absence at the gym and the laziness to pump it when at home. 

I see it from other people who used to work out and stopped. It's really hard to go back and start all over again, and finally throwing the towel and just stop. Why? Because the progress to reach their goals is too minimal to notice. And they keep on back sliding and they keep on telling themselves they'll definitely start the next day. And the next day they make the same promise. Until they stop and just accept it's alright. They are alright. 

Well whatever floats your boat.  But a progress is a progress no matter how minimal. You have to challenge yourself if you want big changes.  Remember though a process is step by step.  It's not magic. I keep telling that to myself.

That's why "no time" is not an excuse for me. I won't quit. I will not give up.  I will do my best. 

Isn't that right! :) 

*I got the image above from Google and it says there in the picture, MotiveWeight. I guess it originated from that website. Giving credit. :) 

Lower Abs Exercises

I just have to save this video tutorial here. I will be incorporating this in my daily exercises. 

Don't be fooled. Some look easy but when I start doing them, they prove to be challenging. Or maybe it's just me. But I will do all of these. :) 

From shape(dot)com..

Getting Back On Track

I did a back to back to back workout today. 30 minutes of Hardcore, an hour of Body Pump, an hour of Body Combat.  It's so great! Hard, yes, but worth it. 

It's true though that a few hours spent at the gym will be put to waste if the rest of the day you do things not which will hinder you in achieving your fitness goals. Eating for one. I am struggling on this again. I'm getting back on track though. I started today, August 1.  

My food management today may not be perfect because of the white rice and pork tocino with scrambled egg I just consumed at this time of the night.  BUT looking at the bright side, I did not over eat the whole day.  The past months since summer saw me over eat with lesser workout. 

Day by day, I'll bet back on track. 

I'll stick to my food list.  

I want to be lean and mean again. I gained weight but I'm still in the ideal weight range for my age and height. But the stats I want to achieve are quite far from where I am now. I need to work on this again. 

If I was able to do it then, I can do it again now. Nothing can stop me, not even the busy schedule.

October 2013. I'll be at my desired body stats - total weight, muscles at the right places, lean and mean.

 :) 

A Commitment

I just have to say this.  I am back to moderate eating (read: no sweets, chips, less carbohydrates) tomorrow. It's like I couldn't sleep without committing myself to it before I go to bed tonight.

So there. Starting tomorrow I will chronicle my journey to being 128 lbs to 112 lbs, and will pack more muscles. I will be posting tomorrow my specific goals and the action steps I am taking.

So help me, God.

What I Am Working On Now

More on protein, veggies and fruits.

I am enjoying dancing as my cardio exercise the past weeks.  I join Zumba and Body Jam.  I am loving the moves! 

I am also working on my triceps and core - my belly specifically.  I do strength training after my cardio.  

And here's one video I just discovered from the YouTube channel of Steadyhealth.  I have started giving time again on my belly exercises and will start on these tomorrow. 

This I learned/validated after all these years at the gym:

1.  Maximum duration of exercise should be one hour and a half. More than that, muscles are wasted because cortisol are produced which eat away muscles.  - Please just browse Google if you want to know more about this. :) 

2.  It's better to take a bath right after an exercise because pores are open.  Skin are thoroughly cleansed. (I read about this before I know but I still rest a while before freshening up after a workout.)

Anyway, here's the video to flatten your belly. LET'S DO THIS! 

Back to Monitoring

Just a quick post. 

Yes, I was able to lose 1 lb in the last two weeks but my fat percentage also decreased by almost 2 lb.  Good enough but there are still lots to do. 

DISCIPLINE. 

I already bought veggies and fruits to munch on.

Target: 2 lb by November 13. 

DISCIPLINE. :)

Getting Back on Track

I went to the gym yesterday, a Saturday.  I took the opportunity of a few hours at the gym because my daughter has a tutorial class at school for two hours. And the great thing is she also wanted to go to the gym after.

I did my core exercises in the morning because I know my time at the gym after lunch won't be all mine as I will be assisting my daughter with her very first visit at the gym.  :)  I'll be talking about her gym experience in my other blog, Life Bliss.  

What I wanted to share here is how I appreciate one of the trainees at the gym.  He's new and I am guessing he is a trainee.  I am also thinking Fitness First has a new program which is more customer or client friendly.  I don't know if this is only a local (meaning just in the Philippines) customer program or it applies to FF world wide.  The shirt of the new PTs have a print which goes like they can answer questions if there's anything we (clients) need to ask. I forgot the actual print.  I'll check tomorrow.

Anyway, one trainee observed what I did using the triceps pulley.  He said I was doing it wrong. The load is too heavy for me.  I set my load at 12 kilos.  The PT said my back gives all the unnecessary push.  He asked me what I am working on.  I said I want to build upper arm muscles.  

I want toned arms and body. I need to do my exercises properly. 

He taught me the proper way to tone my arms.  

He set the load at 5 kilos.  He made me do 24 reps, 5 sets. Oh boy, yes, I felt the muscles really working.  He taught me the proper way of doing it - upper arms on my side, forearms moving up to chest level and bringing them down straight.  

Thank you. He said I'm free to ask. Oh, yes, I will. :)

Here's what I did yesterday using the triceps pulley. 

I want toned arms.

24 reps, 5 sets, triceps push down

I can't wait to reach my desired weight of 112 lb with fats and muscles in all the right places.  But patience and discipline are important ingredients in reaching my desired weight.