Inspired by a friend’s Facebook status, I decided to add some jogging to our traditional morning walks on the trail. It was the first time I’ve actually used our BOB Revolution Jogging Stroller for jogging, and I must say – I absolutely LOVE it. Love.
Here we are, 3.6 miles later.
Ugh, sometimes I am completely drop-dead exhausted by the time I put C to bed at 7pm. The last thing I want to do is wash his bottles, and I certainly don’t have the energy for P90X. Last night was one of those nights. I melted into the couch and watched The Bachelor, my Monday night trash TV of choice. By the time that was over, it was 9pm and I just felt like cruising Twitter or flipping TV channels.
But I pushed myself. I popped in the 60-minute Legs & Back workout and got to work. I was cursing Tony Horton during the millionth lunge, but by the time it was over I felt so awesome. I felt energized, empowered and accomplished. My muscles felt stronger and looser. I physically felt less stressed. It was wonderful. Now I know that I need to push myself on those nights, because the end result is so worth it.
I sprained my hip. That’s right – my hip. With that information, you might be led to believe that I’m sitting over here with a wrinkly body and white hair. No, I didn’t turn 90 with Betty White this month. I’m 24.
*sigh*
I can’t believe that years of athletics and kickboxing didn’t cause me any injury, but I do ONE yoga workout and I hurt myself. I’m officially swearing off yoga. No offense to yogis; it’s just not for me. Give me a kickboxing workout any day of the week, but yoga? Never again!
Hubster and I have decided to take the P90X
We’re doing the lean version (more cardio-based) to work into it. I think I’ll try the classic version after we finish this. We did the first workout last night, Core Synergistics, and I felt awesome afterward! I’m still feeling awesome today, which makes me really excited for what is to come. I know it will be challenging and we’ll probably get pretty sore, but I’m beyond excited to see the results we’ll get.
Have you ever tried P90X? What did you think of it?
I’ve completed #24 on my 25 Before 25 list! Last night I completed my first 5k!
After much convincing, Hubster decided to run it with me. I’m so glad that he did. He was in cross country and track in high school, so I consider him my running expert. If it wasn’t for his tips along the way, I probably would have thought I was going to die. Then I wouldn’t have achieved one of my 5k goals: Don’t die.
Hubster had awesome tips for me, like opening up our stride going down hills. Or when I thought my shins were going to explode, he told me it was okay to step to the side and stretch them out. I learned that, while doing the Couch to 5k was helpful, practicing on a zero incline treadmill was NOT helpful. The course had a ton of large hills, which made me feel like my preparations were useless.
I had three goals for this race:
1. Don’t die.
2. Don’t be the last to cross the finish line.
3. Run it in less than 45 minutes.
I’m happy to say that I achieved all three goals, with a time of 41:46! I’m so excited. I’ve never been a distance runner, and have never run 3.1 miles in my life. In fact, I’ve never run more than one mile in my life.
My next goal is to bring my time down to 30 minutes. Now I know that I need to throw some inclines into my workouts in order to properly prepare myself. I think that cutting 11:46 off of my time between now and spring is a pretty attainable goal. :)
Woohoo!
I was excited to notice how loose the jeans are that I’ve been wearing since having C. So, I thought I’d test my luck and try on all of my old jeans. Um…yeah, that was a bad idea.
My pre-C jeans fit perfectly everywhere except the waist. C killed my mid-section! Ugh. It’s terrible. I need to lose probably another 2-3 inches on my waist before I can fit into those old jeans. Somehow I’ve managed to shrink my thighs and butt back to their pre-C level, but that ol’ waist is hanging tough. C stretched it to the max and I hope it’ll someday shrink back up.
I’ve been doing a TON of cardio – elliptical, biking, running. What worked for you? I’m particularly interested in hearing from any fellow c-section mamas out there. Thank you!
I had the most fabulous Sunday. C slept until SEVEN O’CLOCK! This is huge – he’s been getting up between 5 and 6:30. I had the opportunity to bask in the glow of his smiles before heading over to the gym, where I started doing the Couch to 5k! Since I’ve been working out for weeks, I’m starting on Week 3 (2 minutes of walking, 1 minute of running for 24-30 total minutes). It amazes me how your body gets used to the workouts that you typically do, because running was HARD! I haven’t done any running since C was born.
When I came home, Hubster was out for a walk with C. I decided to make french toast. Cooking, sipping coffee and reading a magazine was SO relaxing! I’ve never made french toast before, but it turned out AMAZING! We had fresh cardamom bread that we purchased at the local Farmer’s Market yesterday. Here’s my recipe creation:
1 cup half and half
3 eggs
4 Tbsp butter, softened
dash of cinnamon
dash of vanilla extract
8 pieces of whatever type of bread that your heart desires
Combine ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth. Dip piece of bread in mixture, saturating both sides. Place two pieces in a large frying pan and cook on medium-low heat until browned (about 2-3 minutes per side). Serve immediately or keep warm on a baking sheet in oven at 200 degrees. Serve with maple syrup.
I was really hoping that by now I’d be able to comfortably fit into my pre-pregnancy pants. I can button them! I just can’t breathe.
I’ve been working out once/day (sometimes twice!) for the past few weeks and have lost inches…but not enough off of my waist.
This waiting period between wearing maternity clothes and being able to wear pre-pregnancy clothes is getting really frustrating. In some ways, I still feel small considering I was carrying around a ginormous belly during the last few months of pregnancy. In other ways, the fact that I can’t yet wear my regular pants is depressing. I purchased a pair of jeans about a month ago to tie me over, but now that the heat of summer is really setting in I think I need to suck it up and invest in some “in-between” pants. Yoga pants and that one pair of jeans just won’t cut it anymore.
*sigh*
I keep reminding myself that it’s only been 3 weeks since the doctor gave me the clearance to workout after my c-section. Perhaps one of these days it’ll sink in so I can stop being hard on myself. :-p
Have you tried the 30-Day Shred workout DVD by Jillian Michaels? I first tried it before my wedding and it definitely delivers. I figured that since I’m in much worse shape post-baby and c-section, I might as well give it a shot.
I completed day two of level one today and my muscles are screaming for mercy! My ab muscles have never burned so much during a workout. I find myself cursing my c-section during every ab-focused portion. Argh. I’m glad that I’ve done this before, because I remember that days two and three are the most difficult.
Here’s to whipping myself into shape!
If you’ve been reading my posts for a while, you’ll know how excited I was to start working out again. It was pretty much a standard answer to the “What are you looking forward to” question in my weekly updates. :) Well…this week, I signed up for a 7-day pass to a 24-hour gym in my town and decided that I will join. When I was given the tour, I was practically drooling over the exercise machines. I was so excited.
Last night, I had the opportunity to go for the first time. OMG, my 30-minute workout on the elliptical was t.o.u.g.h. Basically every surface of my body was sweating and saying, “Huh?!” But it was delightful. I slept like a rock last night and this morning, I have so much more energy. Granted, I still have that new-parent, could-sleep-for-days feeling; but, considering that is never a legitimate option, I feel fantastic.
Now for my gym vent:
At every gym I’ve ever attended, there’s always the same type of men. You know, the ones that hang out by the weights, lift twice, then stand around puffing out their chests for 10 minutes like they’re so tough and strong. Repeat. Last night there were about 10 of these guys and it was driving me bananas. While the rest of us were having a legit workout, these guys were walking around like they owned the place. I would’ve loved to say – hey you with the Powerade, bet you can’t run for 30 minutes like that real man up front. Lame-o-nade.
Vent over.
Maybe I shouldn’t feel bad anymore that I’m too tired now to do some of the prenatal workout DVDs that I purchased a few months ago. I discovered a new aerobic workout!
Bending over.
Laugh if you will, but every time I bend over to reach for something; pick something up off the floor; put on socks, shoes or pants; or, um, anything that requires bending, I end up breathing heavily. It’s a difficult workout. Perhaps you need to have a 5-pound+ baby in your uterus to reap these benefits. I’m not sure.
A while back, I purchased three prenatal workout DVDs with the intention of working out daily to stay fit and keep my muscles loose. I did them for a while, but once I hit my third trimester, it has been very difficult to work up the energy to work out. I often put on my workout attire and then end up sitting on the couch for a while, unable to work up enough energy. Eventually, I give up and take a shower.
Has this happened to any of you? How do you get enough energy to work out?