Kettlebell love

You may know I love my 20 minute work outs. That's all I had time for this morning and my kettlebells were collecting dust so I decided it was time to pick them up. If you don't have kettlebells go get a set! They are great for the all important STRENGTH TRAININlG and they are a good way to mix it up so you don't get bored. I love mine and I love FitnessBlender and I love this short but effective workout which includes strength training and cardio.

Recovery from surgery is going well! I can still feel it in my stomach which is a strange feeling-hard to describe. I'm working hard, though, trying to get back into a routine and being careful when I need to. Many days I can feel several muscles in my body crying out to me, but it's a happy cry. ;)

Ahhhh, exercising again.

Yesterday I rocked my Yoga Booty Ballet: Hip Hop Abs video. The first exercise - other than walking and a few lame attempts at yoga - I've done in 6 weeks and 3 days. Recovery from a hysterectomy is long. Not bad. Not too painful. Just looong. I'm still not fully recovered but my doctor gave me the ok with the admonishment, "Don't go too crazy," so I am ready and very excited to get back to work! I was smiling and happy all the way through the routine. :)

So I don't have any new exercise ideas for you right now (other than go do it!), but I do have some valuable tidbits from Robyn Openshaw's (The Green Smoothie Girl's) 12 Steps to Whole Foods Course Manual. After my surgery I did pretty good with my healthy eating, but as time went on my sugar intake increased and I'm reminded again how much better I feel when I am taking in good foods. For me, exercise and healthy eating go really well together. One always makes me feel like doing the other. This excerpt I'm about to share once made me stop eating sugar for a whole summer, which is saying a lot for me because I have a sweet tooth for sure. Really I'm posting this as a reminder to myself, but I believe everyone should have this information!! These are only 10 of the 30 reasons listed in the Course Manual. If you want more information, ask me! Click HERE to order the course and peruse around to find more great stuff.

Why should you stop eating sugar now? Because sugar....

1. Is more addictive than cocaine.
2. Makes you fat.
3. Ages you perhaps more than anything else, decreasing tissue elasticity.
4. Makes you tired.
5. Controls your behavior, making you moody or anxious.
6. Destabilizes your blood sugar, notably causing energy crashes.
7. Feeds cancer cells.
8. Increases your risk of Crohn's disease and colitis.
9. Makes you dizzy.
10. Causes deficiencies in copper, calcium, magnesium, chromium, and your overall mineral profile. 

Remember every healthy choice matters! If you make a choice you feel is wrong, just make sure your next one is better. You got this and so do I. (I need that encouragement too!) Have a happy day!

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Not really MIA and Yoga

I haven't been around here much lately and I'm sorry I haven't posted any ideas! I have been dealing on and off with some anemia and I had another little bout recently. I could tell it was happening because I could feel my muscles and body and stamina weaken. No fun when you enjoy pushing yourself! I decided with that and other things occupying my time (Christmas and all that entails..........) I would take a little break. I'm still in a routine. I do my "comfort" videos, the ones I know and love and feel nice and easy with. I've also had a chance to do a lot more yoga. Yay! I am finding joy in respecting my body and what it needs right now. I am listening and following inspiration. I might also be writing this for myself but it feels good to acknowledge that I can take care of my God given body and know what it needs. I don't have to listen to popular culture or the girl with the perfect figure. Yes, I can study and learn, but after that I can listen to me and feel happy with my choices.

Here's a great 30 day yoga camp for you to try. She is great but be warned that occasionally she puts in a "colorful" word :/.... just a heads up.

30 DAY YOGA CAMP

P.S. If you are a brand new yogi, you can watch her foundation videos first. A great place to start.
Foundations of Yoga - Yoga With Adriene

Here's another few!

I am a big believer that a lot of our achievement originates in our brain. What we think and how we think plays a big roll in our lives. Our words are powerful. If you think about it, what we say to ourselves is what we hear all day long! So be nice to yourself and remind yourself that you are strong and you can do this! He talks about using our brain in this 20 minute workout.

(FYI, he does use one swear word.)

This is a fun kickboxing one for you.

(No swear words. ;))

Confessions of a Yoga Lover

Today I heard my 5 year old daughter excitedly talking to a friend in the next room "That was a pose! Did you see that?!" Then she yelled in to me, "Mom! I held a pose for a long time! You can see it when you get in here!" And went back to teaching her (somewhat disinterested) friend how to do it. I went to find her, very curious to see what pose my sweet little yogi had just accomplished. I was surprised and quite impressed to see my baby teaching her friend how to do crow pose. That's right, crow pose. She might not have really been holding it, but she was pretty darn close.

Life lesson for October 8th: There are no yoga lessons at my house except a few that my kids specifically ask for, but I do do a lot of yoga here as you might have surmised. Really, truly, kids learn from watching their parents. We lead. We are examples. Whether we like it or not!

Just Walk it Off

I'm not sure why I'm so excited to find these videos, but I am. I think these walking videos are great for beginners and anyone wanting to start an exercise program. You can really slow it down if you need to and pick it up as you get used to it. They are low impact and easy to follow. I've only tried these 15 minute one mile ones, but I've seen some that are longer! I still think taking it outside is more favorable, but not always accessible, plus these videos hit spots you wouldn't hit just on a normal walk. I found this one when my morning PE walk with my kids was rained out. We were all smiles as we did this together... yes, really... but do not tell my boys I told you that!!

Click HERE to find more Walk at Home videos.

Brutal is right

I heart my mornings. They are my personal time for exercise, checking my email, studying scripture, and drinking my green smoothie. The house is quiet, the sun is rising, the weather is cool. I just love this time of day. The earlier I wake up the better, because the more time I have for said activities. The problem is I also heart SLEEP. I need sleep. I need all of these things. Sometimes, to assure I get the much needed sleep, I sleep later than I really want to, cutting into my special time before the kids wake up. Some days this has a negative impact, but mostly I've learned to let it go and savor whatever time I can carve for myself. This is why these 20 & 30 minute videos work so well for me. When you HIIT, that's all the time you need anyway! This one is only 20 minutes but it's intense! There is no cool down so be sure to leave a little time for that because you will need it. Now go work it!