Monthly Archives: September 2012
Back to Strength Training!
Today is JAM-PACKED with festivities so I had to set my alarm clock (on a Saturday?!) to get a jump on the day bright and early. I ate a banana on the way to the gym, excited and nervous for my first weight lifting session in a couple of months!
Since swimming seemed to go okay, I decided to test my exercising limits and see how some strength training would go (hoping that it didn’t cause any swelling). I got to the Rec Center Gym at 8:30am, disappointed find that it didn’t open for another half hour… Impromptu walk time! I made a couple laps around upper campus, returning at 9 to a DEAD gym:
Why so empty? 9am is a lonely time to workout in college.
The 30 minute walk had me nice and warmed up so I hit the weight racks and proceeded to pick out my wimpy dumbbells.
Macho Macho!
The last time I had any sort of strength training workout was early July, before New York. My dad calls me “olive oil” for my not-so-muscular upper body, and I was afraid I’d lost any progress I’d made in the gym for the last 2 years! So I opted for a light set of weights, primary 5 lbs but I did use these hefty 3-pounders for shoulder raises ;) It took me all of about 20 seconds of lifting to remember why I love working out so much. Even though I wasn’t sweating or struggling, it’s SO motivating to get in some quality exercise at the start of your day, making progress and challenging yourself. I wanted to wake my whole body back up today so I didn’t stick to one muscle group like usual; instead I alternated between upper body and lower body: (3 sets of 12 reps each)
- Alternating between: Bicep Curls / Overhead Tricep dips
- 12 Forward lunges
- 12 Backward lunges
- Alternating between: Lateral Arm Raises / Shoulder Press
- 12 Forward Lunges
- 12 Backward Lunges
- Alternating between: Shoulder Raises / Single-Arm Standing Row
- 12 Forward Lunges
- 12 Backward Lunges
- Alternating between: Torso twist w/ weights / chest press
- 12 regular squats / 30 calf raises / 12 regular squats / 30 calf raises
- 3 x 12 glute lifts
- End with 15 minutes stretching
The reason I alternate between two exercises is so I don’t have to waste time “resting” in between sets. I can work my biceps, let them rest while I work my triceps and so on. I’m constantly working, constantly using some muscle group but giving the individual muscle its rest. It works out well and combines strength with endurance! I was able to complete the whole thing in 35 minutes and get back to my room for the busy busy day ahead!
Meditation and Starbucks <3
A couple of weeks ago, I shared my excitement for my “Stretch & Relaxation” class. My love for it continues to grow! Every Tuesday and Thursday, we leave our shoes at the door and enjoy 50 minutes of stretching in the dark with peaceful music. We’ve done new leg and back stretches, given ourselves foot massages, even given each other back massages (with tennis balls…which is a lot less weird than a semi-stranger giving you a shoulder rub!). It’s easily one of my favorite times of the day and almost always ends too soon!
Yesterday, though, we lined the walls of the fitness room to do a Meditation exercise. Meditation is not something I’ve ever tried before, mainly because I get the giggles any time I’m required to be serious and silent. Sitting in lotus pose and chanting a mantra just makes me feel so silly and ridiculous, that I can’t focus on the actual exercise! But yesterday, I actually tried. Our teacher read us a mantra: “I am a peaceful soul. I wish peace to others.”
I confess: I kept peeking out of the corner of my eye at the clock. Normally this class flies by, but meditation seemed to slow things down. If I thought repeating a mantra was a little odd, the next exercise was totally outlandish. We had to picture all of our family members and friends, and “say” to them “I wish you peace.” This just felt like some hippy shenanigans…
Next we wished peace upon our enemies, and then the ENTIRE WORLD. I understand that meditation is a mental practice, and a lot of people have found it to help them relieve stress and gain clarity. But the only thing I could think about while sitting against the wall with my palms open on my knees was going on a nice long run…
Running is my meditation. To each his own!
I treated myself to a post-meditation caffeine fix with a Starbucks Skinny Vanilla Latte – Lady Starbucks knows how to meditate too!
“Ommmmmm”
Enjoy your weekend!
My Week on Almond Milk
Like fashion, there are always trending ingredients and current food fads. Among the “Popular Crowd” right now would be chia seeds, Nutella, Greek Yogurt, Pumpkin (as with every fall), and Almond Milk. I know it has been around for a while, but it seems like more and more people are making the milk-swap, vegan or not!
What’s the fuss about?
I was intrigued, and decided to forego my skim dairy milk for a carton of Silk Unsweetened Original Almond Milk. Since then, I have been told that Vanilla flavor is the way to go. Anyways, I poured myself a glass with dinner that night, a little apprehensive about the gray-ish color…(No one thinks it’s weird that it sits on the shelf in the cupboard until opening?!)
I gave it an honest try but I couldn’t get past the ‘bitter water’ flavor. It may be 1/3 the calories of skim, but I think I’ll stick with the Cow’s milk.
I still had a carton of almond milk left, and I wasn’t going to waste it! I made a cup of hot chocolate with the almond milk next:
Pure deliciousness in a mug! The almond milk was definitely a hit with hot chocolate (6 oz. Almond Milk, 2 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 Tbs sugar, 140 calories). Also a fan of almond milk over cereal and in fruit smoothies. When it was combined with other flavors, the wateriness wasn’t as obvious. I think it’s worth it to go for this low-calorie, high-calcium substitute in baking and other dishes. Next I’m excited to try Coconut Milk.
Now, I would never consider becoming a vegan or vegetarian; however meat is not a big part of my diet. I probably have meat 3 times a week, predominantly chicken or fish. I get most of my protein from milk, yogurt, garbanzo beans, peanut butter, peanut butter, peanut butter, protein bars and peanut butter ;)
My favorite Vegan in my life is quite a character. You may recognize her from some previous posts…
It’s Missy! Missy loves her carrots, and practically any veggies. She’s got some food allergies and is sensitive to a lot of dog food. No she’s not really Vegan (I think her food is lamb-flavored?) but she does LOVE her dinnner-time vegetables. This dog eats canned carrots like nobodies business, my little bunny dog. When we were all out of carrots, we discovered she is equally as excited about beets, peas, green beans, potatoes, and ALMONDS. She will literally scarf down a bowl of steamed, sliced carrots in 3.6 seconds – if only we ALL were as excited about a bowl of veggies :D
Thoughts on dairy-substitute products?
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