Home Workout enthusiasts - week of July 14

[cniles]

Ack!! Middle of July!:eek:

Sam had his first tournament game on Saturday - it must have been 115 degrees! SOOOOO hot! They lost but he played well - he had one of the teams two hits:) Next game is Tuesday night.

I did Cardio Overdrive yesterday - my parents were here this weekend and we tend to focus on food (and wine):cool: So needless to say I needed to work it off!!

Today will be some sort of a weight workout. Jack's at full day soccer camp all week so it's just Sam and I during the day.

Happy Monday all!!!

[Valerie226]

I'm back from a short time out. we tried to do a backpack and dutifully hauled our fully loaded packs up to where we planned on being, but there was too much snow yet. we thought this might happen after we got on the trail and hit snow immediately. Lots of route finding problems too but we were hoping it would be more melted out as we got up into sunnier areas above treeline, but no. plus clouds blew in and visibility went to zip. I guess true hard core people would have stayed but I didn't feel like battling through 100% snow so we came back down, drove home, switched to day packs and did a really favorite day hike the next day. . it was a toughie with loads of elevation gain but a gorgeous view and long snow slopes to glissade down. there was quite a big of snow on the way up but enough clear spots that it was fun. about 9 miles and 4000 foot gain. took us about 8 hours with an hour of lounging on top in the sun. on the way up I found a half of a ptarmigan ( large grouse-like mountain bird) egg shell. it was as big as a hen's egg!. never saw one before!
saturday we took off. pooped. sunday we did a 35 mile bike ride in record time. I bought some new bike shorts and they are fabulous. I did not get even slightly sore and did the ride in about 20 minutes less than usual. They are Terry shorts and I am extremely impressed with the cushioning. very nice. I've never paid $80 for shorts before either but they are worth every penny.
That wine will get you charisse.... If I didn't like wine so much I might actually be thin!.
Michelle.... glad to hear you are back and hitting the exercise circuit again. Take your time, fitness goes away quick and takes a while to build back up.

I love my granite even more ( if possible) than I did last week. This was such a good choice!! and undermount sinks! I had no clue this would be such a huge improvement! I'm so happy with this so far. it's worth all the inconvenience and hard decision making.

[srahndennis]

Hi, Charisse - Happy Monday!! Sounds like a busy weekend. Hope you enjoyed your parents' visit. It's way to hot to be watching baseball outside. Hopefully Tuesday will bring cooler temperatures and a win!

Saturday I did Slow & Heavy Bis & Tris. Then opened and poured the 122 bags of rocks. We celebrated with Mexican food afterward! Sunday I did LIC Timesaver. I'm really proud of myself -- I made all of my six scheduled workouts last week! Let's hope I can keep it up. :D

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

[srahndennis]

Valerie -- I missed your post trying to type mine! Sounds like you really did have a great weekend. I still can't imange snow --- it was 102 here yesterday! Funny that you say hardcore folks would press on.....I can't imagine more dedicated than you all! Bears, downed trees, heaps of snow, etc.

I'm so tickled that you love your granite even more. That's the way it should be. An undermount sink is in my plan, too. Can't wait!

[Valerie226]

Tee hee.... we wanted scenery and gorgeous vistas and if it gets socked in, we get neither. spring flowers would have been nice too. we knew there'd be snow but did not expect that much. It would have been fine if we'd stayed as it was clear the next morning but sometimes if gets low clouds and fog blowing in and out and it can be too socked in to see anything at all, and it's especially confusing if it's total snow. sort of like being suspended in a glass of milk!. patchy is fine but it was still solid in this location. the next day's hike was patchy and that would have been fine but there is no over nighting in that particular area. but we got in plenty of exercise and covered a lot fo ground instead of being in one place for two days.

gotta go do some kind of work out today , not sure what.

[engineer]

Hey everyone well another week to work for improvement and boy can I use some of that. My knees are so sore! Sunday I did treadmill and I did 60 minutes but I went slow thinking I could offset the slow by going longer. And there was no pain at that point (or minimal). Then I did the old Firm Abs day 3 followed by the old Firm stretch day 4. Then we went out to get the trees that had blown over on the fence taken care of. By the time we went in for dinner I could barely walk. I got up this morning and they felt pretty good. Of course riding on the new motorcycle I end up sitting like a frog and then sitting at my desk for any length of time and I can barely walk. Frustrating.

Today I’m not sure what I’m going to do, but I’m going to do something as I think I need to keep them moving so that they loosen up.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and that the week looks promising.

Valerie - Sounds like you had a great time and from everyone I know who ride seriously and they all agree that spending money on the shorts is so worth it! Glad you made the investment.

srahndennis - So how does it look now that you got all that rock down? And big ol' high five for getting in your workouts and getting that rock down. Oh I miss that about the SW, you can keep the heat but I soo miss the mexican food!

Charisse - glad to hear that Sam played well even though they lost and you were dying of heat exhaustion. I'm sure you'll work that food off in no time. Keep it up and thanks for starting the thread.

[engineer]

Good Tuesday morning to everyone. Well last night I still was having trouble walking, my knees were so sore. :( So after a short discussion with DH, I decided to crawl in the IR sauna for an hour. By bed time I felt good and this morning I felt great. :D My biggest problem appears to be my desk chair; I can feel them starting to tighten up. But tonight I have to be active, dang nab it. So it will be interesting to see what I decide to do.

Take care and have a super Tuesday.

[cniles]

Michelle - hope your knees survive the work day!!! Mine creak on me everytime I'm doing abs - the pull in crunch and push out - constant creaking!! It's kinda scary. I definately modify to low impact where I can - I also find when I don't do the fannylifter exercises for awhile and try to come back - my knees really hurt. Here's hoping as you get back into your routine so will your knees!!!:)

Valerie - I sometimes think you live in a whole different world when you describe your hikes!!;) snow??? ice???? Uff da - 87 today and we're supposed to be going into a 5 day heatwave. I know it's not like that where you live but I love hearing about the difference in the weather!! You amaze me with the distance you cover!!:)

Stacy - I must have missed the rocks post - ummmm what are you doing with 122 bags of rock? Way to get all of your workouts in last week!!!

Yesterday I did BSS4 with Pam - weights and today I did Cathe's Cardio and weights. It's been a long time since I did Cathe - I was bumbling over some of the steps in the routine :rolleyes: She definately lifts heavier weights than my FIRM workouts!! Had to bring some of it down a weight. Oh well.

Sam has a game tonight. It's hot but not humid thank goodness so I think we should "weather" our way through it!!:)

[Valerie226]

I haven't reported much on actual exercise lately.. today I did cathe's GS chest/triceps and then GS back/biceps, and then coremax 3. I only did 30 minutes on the elliptical yesterday. thought I needed to take my aunt to the doctor but her son came thru at the last minute so I didn't have to do the 50 mile drive. tomorrow is hike day so I didn't do cardio. I need to skip cardio the day before a hike. Charisse, it's 75-80 degrees and sunny down where we live but the mountains hold lots of snow. We grow tomatoes, basil and corn. plenty of high places don't melt out until late summer in an average year and we had a huge snowpack this winter and spring so there's more than usual. There are some really hardcore people who make our hikes look absolutely wimpy!! but then, there are plenty of others who couldn't do what we do so it's all individual...

What I don't understand is how you all can work out AT ALL when it's 90 degrees! I always work out in the basement where it's usually 60 or less. after 70 I refuse.
Michelle, does bicycling work for you? you need an alternative that doesn't hammer your knees so much, even if only to alternate activities. Biking is not hard on the knees ( if the bike fits well) and builds the quads like crazy.

Stacy, you will love granite. Hope the landscape project is goin well. That's a lot of rocks! make sure you consider an undermount sink. wait on backsplash decisions until the granite is in. I didn't care for the granite look there and am not sure yet what we'll use. It looks so different on the counter than it does sitting in a warehouse of vertical slabs. There...that's what I learned!

[engineer]

Good Wednesday morning to all. Well last night I decided to do some weight work. I pulled out Ripped Slim and Lean. I went pretty light on the weights (although my shoulders are a little sore:rolleyes:). And for most of the squats and lunges I used the bowflex. I did do some of the single leg lunges and those were pretty pathetic but I did do them – feeling positive about that.:) Tonight will be some sort of cardio. I’m not sure if it will be a video or treadmill, have to see about that.

Remember today is hump day and we can make it!

Valerie - You got in a great workout day even with cutting things short. Thanks for the inspiration. Oh and being from Denver I understand how altitude can affect temp, etc.

Charisse - Glad to hear that the weather was somewhat cooperative for Sam's game. Don't you find Cathe's coreography is so much more complicated than the Firm? I love the challenge but some days I have 2 left feet.;):rolleyes:

[cniles]

Happy sweaty day all!!

Uff da! Just got in from mowing the yard - I'm dripping. I try to push mow all that I can but again the lawn is much smaller now that the pool is in. It still takes me over an hour to do.

It's my day to be soccer mom :D so I have driving duty both am and pm for the boys.

Michelle - It's funny b/c I've gotten used to the FIRM's add ons and repeats - and Cathe just went through the whole routine! Not a problem when I'm doing the workout regularly however yesterday.....:rolleyes: Good to hear you're feeling better!!!

Valerie - I usuall workout in our basement too where it is very cool - however we are still in the middle of our basement project and I'm still upstairs in my bedroom. The house is usually airconditioned on hot days so I'm ok.

Happy Wednesday everyone!:)

[srahndennis]

Hi, all! Checking in with Pyramid Upper yesterday and Step Heat this morning. Yeah!!

Michelle -- Way to go with the workout plan! You're doing so well. As long as it's not too bad, you're right about working through the sore knees.

Valerie -- What a way to make up for lost time! 2 GS workouts plus Coremax?? Wow! Thanks for the tip about the backsplash. I'll have to keep that in mind. The undermount sink is non-negotiable. The sink I have now is starting to seep plumbers putty (I think) but it's yucky. I hate the way I get pieces of sponge stuck under the rim, too.

We have A/C so it's not too bad when we work out. We're pretty conservative with our temperature but we do lower it while we work out. We'd never make it, otherwise. I have my ceiling fan and another fan running, too.

Our rock project turned out very nice. I thought that 122 bags was too much but no, it was right on the money. DH brought them from the garage to the backyard and I opened and poured them. We took a corner in our yard that was having errosion issues and make a bed for plants in the center. Then we rocked the rest of the area. Now we just have the fun part left -- the plants! It will be wonderful when it's finished. Seems like we've been working on it forever.

See y'all tomorrow!

[Valerie226]

even here in the cool northwest we have air conditioning. we only need it a few days a year but it was part of the heating/cooling system and it's worth it. I'd give up heat before I'd give up air! we still put our gym in the basement so it's quite comfy down there year round. I am so uncomfortable in the heat ( 80+) that it's impossible. I've always been this way and actually moved here because I thought it was the coolest( temp wise) part of the country so maybe I'd be able to tolerate it.

I got a little sore frpm the two GS workouts but not bad really. I hadn't done chest/triceps for a while so I didn't push the weight level and did the pushups on my knees. but did everything.
Yesterday was hike day and we did a gorgeous hike. it's a tough one, 4 miles but with 4000+ feet elevation gain. oddly I have more trouble on the downhill than the uphill. I never walk downhill well and it takes me as long to go down as up. about half the trail was snowfree but then there were some big patches with lots of flowers showing up in between. whoops, gotta go, more later.

[Spotted Pony]

Hi everyone! Busy week here. I've been doing my walk/jogs outside this week. There is a BIG difference between the treadmill in the AC and the gravel road in the heat and humidity! I like the heat, but it's definately a challenge. Valerie, it would really be neat to hike like you do!

Tomorrow is library day, so I'll see what DVDs they have this time. Maybe one for clumsy people unable to follow instructions? :)

Well, off to help my nieces with their PhotoShop 4-H projects. They take beautiful pictures but always wait til the last minute! Monday is the deadline!

[engineer]

Good Thursday morning to all my exercise friends. Last night I felt pretty good so I thought I’d try Cathe. I pulled out Low Impact Step and did the premix Cardio and Weights. Can I say I was pretty pathetic?:(:mad: But I did my best and kept moving and sweated so I guess I’ll say I was a success. Not a fabulous success but a success nonetheless.:) I put ice on my knees afterward and that seems to have helped but they are stiff today. Just keep moving forward, right?

Hang in there, remember tomorrow is FRIDAY!!!!:D

Spotted Pony - I hear you on the difference between indoor and outdoor workouts. Good job and getting in your walk/jogs. Hope you find something good at the library and with the 4-H projects.

Valerie - High five on the GS workout. You did great with that and the hikes. I'm with you I like the cool/cold weather much better than the warmth ... well -40 is a little tough but doable with proper clothing, take from one who lives here.

srahndennis - Good job on those two workouts and I am so happy to hear that you are really liking how your project is coming together. So when do the plants become a reality?

Charisse - you crack me up with uff da. I thought that was only around this odd little portion of the world. I bet the yard looks great and you got a heck of a workout mowing that lawn.

[Valerie226]

It's so funny... we stopped at our granite supplier yesterday after our hike. we need to drive right past on our way home. when we went in we obviously had been outside all day. somewhat sweaty and dirty, wearing hiking clothes. so someone asked where we'd been and we told them, but no one knew anything about it. people who LIVE RIGHT HERE, right at the foot of mountains, not 15 minutes away, never hike and know nothing about it. I have no idea why. I moved 2000 miles to get away from the flats of the mid west( intend no offense, but I lived there for 25 years and could not wait to get somewhere else) and here are people look out their windows at gorgeous mountains but aren't curious enough to go look. I went to colorado when I was about 20, to a dude ranch no less, and I was hooked on mountains. Admittedly, DH and I are pretty hard core, but I can't imagine not trying something is right under your nose.

Anyway, we ordered another piece of granite for a divider wall between kitchen and family room. we weren't sure about it until we saw the kitchen and now think it's the only good choice. it's a small piece so not too big a deal.

I'm pretty tired today but will think of something to do. If I can't walk downhill, you can imagine how great I am at Step workouts!! OMG, that's horrible :eek:

[cniles]

Charisse - you crack me up with uff da. I thought that was only around this odd little portion of the world. I bet the yard looks great and you got a heck of a workout mowing that lawn.


It's the Iowa Dane in me, Michelle!!;)

I did Burn and Shape this morning. And spent the rest of the afternoon in the pool with kids:p Tomorrow will probably be the same - 98 HHH.

Valerie - that really is sad. Even if you don't like hiking you'd think they would at least be aware of these activities in that area!

Stacy - the landscaping project sounds really cool!! Do you have a plan for your plants or will you just go and pick them out? Great job on your workouts!

CJ - Good for you! Keep on truckin'!! Good luck with the DVD's - let us know what you get!:)

Gotta go make dinner!! See ya tomorrow.:)

[cniles]

OMG the humidity is 76% right now - ugh. Thank goodness it's Jack's last day of camp and it's a half day!!!

I decided to give the new FIRM Hi-Def Sculpt another try. Nope. This will go to the bottom of the pile. First half is very boring - second half are some really good exercises but it's a mess. The reps change up without a cue... you're down on the floor then you get up and do some exercises then down on the floor again! I don't know about you guys but my body is trained to think if I'm on the floor then I'm almost done!!! Oh well.

What are weekend plans? Sam's game is at noon tomorrow - HYDRATE!!!! Then later that night we're going out for italian :) Basically we're hanging this weekend.

Hope everyone stays cool!!! Happy Friday!:)

[engineer]

Happy Friday, folks. Last night DH set the sauna up for me when we go home. Which means he laid out the towels and got it turned on to warm up and put a large glass of ice water in there with some soothing music because he said I was walking like an old lady.:eek: So instead of doing a work out I spent an hour in the sauna and it did wonders for me.:D Tonight however I have no excuse I must workout and I plan on doing Ripped to the Core.

If I don’t ‘see’ ya all before next week have a super weekend and I hope the weather cooperates for all your activities.

Charisse - Uff Da, up here its the scandanvian farmers (Norwegian and Sweds). Good girl on getting in that work out and then spending a great afternoon with the kids making memories in the pool.

Valerie - Sounds like the hike was a good challenge. I was born and raised in Denver but DF and DM made sure we spent alot of time in the mountains camping and stuff. Now because of jobs I am in the flatest place in the world (ok according the the Canadian government this is the 3rd flatest place in the world). But because of the latitude I have the aspen and pines and the way our property is, you can pretend you are in a high mountain valley - which is what I do:o.

[srahndennis]

Hi, all! Happy Friday! Yesterday I did KPC and this morning was Pyramids Lower -- I'm feeling it!! We're childless most of this weekend as we'd planned to go to a jazz show Saturday night and now the grandparents have stolen DS tonight, too. So, I'm hoping for a few adult beverages! Should be a fun weekend.

Michelle -- It's great when our spouses "gently" remind us that we may be overdoing it! I'm sure it felt nice to be pampered and it sounds like it was exactly what you needed.

Charisse -- I hate it when I spend $$ on an exercise DVD and then don't really like it!! And I so agree that when it's time for floorwork, I'm almost done. I don't want to get up & down, up & down. That would be too much like church! Enjoy the baseball this weekend! I'll just be winging it with the plants or letting DH pick (he's better at that stuff than I am). It's a shady area so I thought maybe some hostas and impatients or caladiums.

Spotted Pony -- I hope you find some other DVDs to try. I so agree about indoors vs outdoors. DH would like to run outside some but we think the air quality -- not to mention the heat -- is prohibitive.

Valerie -- I think most people these days just watch TV and shop! And they certainly don't get much exercise.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

[Valerie226]

Charisse, the 'HYDRATE" comment made me think of a backcountry ski video we have where everyone is chanting "Hydrate or die...Hydrate or die" . True in summer as well as winter!

It's about 58 degrees out now and cloudy although the sun will be out later. It's nice but it's not good for the tomatoes or zucchini.

spotted pony, don't feel bad... the choreography on some is impossible for lots of us. I bought a Kathy Smith one years ago and tried it a few times and finally threw it in the trash. I want to exercise.. not stress or obsess about where my feet are supposed to go. Just keep looking. I flat can't do "dancey" routines... it's not an uncommon complaint.

Michelle, I didn't know Minnestoa was that flat... would have thought Iowa, nebraska, kansas,indiana are flatter. I haven't been to very many places in minnesota. Pretty much just thru MSP area.

Stacy, I love rocked areas with plants growing here and there. It looks so neat ! We have too much blowdown and weeds around here so I haven't tried it, but I love that look. and I just might do KPC today. It's late and I need to do something.

[engineer]

Sunday and I have most of the chores done - except laundry which never seems to end:rolleyes:

Firday I did Ripped to the Core and it went pretty good, guess the sauna on Thursday really did the trick. Saturday I did 45 minutes on the treadmill keeping the speed down to see if that helped the ol' knees. I followed it up with Firm 5-day abs day 4 and Firm 5-day stretch day 5. Last night I could barely walk as my legs were so stiff but I'm feeling good this morning.

If I can fit it in I'm going to do another Ripped workout but there is the F1 race and grocery shopping and going to pick up the bob-sleigh that DH bought at the auction yesterday:eek:

Well hope everyone is gearing up for an awesome week. Take care.

Valerie - Only the NW corner of the state is this flat, of course the part I have to move to.:mad:Oh well can't have everything right? Hope those tomatoes and zuch's recover.

Sarah - Great workouts and I hope the adults only weekend went well;)