The high intensity, zone 4 exercises have been my exercise of  choice for sometime now, but over the past six weeks I have been hobbling around with a calf strain. This annoying obstacle has my routine limited to low impact, cardio exercises that I might have continued to avoid under normal circumstances.  But after several attempts to get back at it along with re-aggravating my calf a few times over, I gave way to this new, carved out path that I stubbornly resisted. It was not a smooth transition by any means!   I now include 1-2 swim and 1-2 spin classes into the plan each week…of course I have my buddy the ice pack there to help things along.  With this steady regiment of low impact exercises I have actually started to enjoy the variety and find myself more rounded physically.

A typical week might look like this:

Mon- 20/20/20 (20 min. cardio, 20 min. body exercise, 20 min. cardio)

Tue- One hour swim along with some core

Wed. Boot Camp -

Thurs. One hour spin class, along with some core and

Fri. Total Conditioning- One hour full body work out with HR in zone 3 and 4

Sat. Rest?

Sun. One hour spin followed by one hour of swim

I do modify Wed and Friday keeping it low impact.

Some lessons I have learned (AGAIN) recently:

-More often much growth comes from setbacks…I try to take them as learning experiences.

-Don’t knock it until you try it!

A quote to sum it up…

“I don’t really think in terms of obstacles. My biggest obstacle is always myself.”
-Steve Earle

It is Link Love Friday. I thought I would start the first Link Love Friday of 2010…with some friends that I visit regularly:

Dr. J will see you now: Original weight now reduced

Blake -Kitchen Fun

Cathy – A Life Less Sweet

The Jungle of Life

FatFighter

.

Thanks for stopping by…Keep the journey moving forward!

The Holidays are upon us! It seems that during this time of celebration we find ourselves busy, full of stress and always in a hurry.  It could be finances,  an abundance of obligations or a thought of a lost loved one. What do you do, what do I do to keep a healthier approach to the season?

Holiday Thoughts

• Prioritize the activities-no need to “do it all.”
• Set aside a specific time to process sad and lonely feelings. Don’t let the feelings control you..YOU decide to move onto the positive thoughts, take control.
• Maintain the healthy habits
• Set a budget and stick with it
• Don’t dwell in the past, use those experiences to keep the journey moving forward with strong resolve!
• Do something for someone else…maybe volunteering some time to help.
• Try something new…make a snowman, snow fort. No  snow? Make a sandcastle
• Always schedule time for yourself-read a book, movie etc.
• Keep up the fitness routine or start a new one.

Maybe a useful thought or two?  What do the holidays do for you? How do you celebrate?

.

Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living! -Bradley

.

With the weather turning cold and colder, brrr… we tend spend more time indoors.

To help me keep active,  I usually turn towards my Cardio Friends to get the burn on.  Some friends over a long winter…

Do you like to spin? A 60 minute high resistance for some solid muscle endurance.

.

.

The Stepmill? Low impact,  nice lower body exercise, 20-60 minutes does the trick!

How about the Elliptical? Full body, I will occasionally hit this one for a light low zone workout for about 60 minutes.

A Treadmill is always a solid burn! I visit this one regularly. Sprints and/or long slow runs!

The Rowing machine is one of my favorites for a full body burn. Try this for 30 minutes…results!

.

.

Often I will mix it up with some variety.  A good solid burn could be to tackle two or three machines at 10-30 minutes each.

Keep it interesting. Call on your Cardio Friends for help…don’t let the cold stop you!

.

.“Above all challenge yourself. You may well surprise yourself at what strengths you have, what you can accomplish.” -Cecile Springer

.