Time for my favorite season of the year! Summer time!
Don’t let the SoCal location fool you. Although we have good weather most of the time Summer is still the most glorious season here, too. There are rainy times of the year, chill-i-er (low 50’s) and always an ocean breeze that sometimes is more like a blustery Chicago day. Time to celebrate summer no matter where you live! I’m making my way back to the Midwest and East Coast over the next week and will get a taste of summer across the country before I head back to my California home.
This summer a new fitness venture is occurring at our household – P90X. Yesterday morning was spent perusing through enclosed materials. It included a workout guide and journal, a nutrition guide and the DVDs. What we weren’t expecting was all of the additional purchases that would need to be made in order to be ready to start, including weights, a mat, chin-up bar, nutritional supplements (ehhhh in my opinion… I won’t be joining in on this part of the diet) and clearing out any remnants of potential junk food in the house. We made a few of the recipes in advance to combat the busy week ahead, including a large batch of wild rice, pesto sauce (w/o any olive oil! gasp!) and cutting/chopping/dicing fruits and veggies.
If you’re planning to try a new fitness plan or tweaking aspects of your diet make sure you have everything the plan entails or modifications to the plan. This ensures there are no excuses from the beginning.
And if your friend or other half plans to start something, be as supportive as you can 🙂 I’m going to try to do the workouts with the other half when I can. Finding someone to motivate you when you’re making positive changes (lifestyle, behavioral) is really a huge component of your success. I love teaching because my students motivate me as much as I motivate them. Reciprocity in motivation is good!
Tonight I’m going to tackle some of the intro P90X DVD after a RealRyder class. Abs. Maybe some push-ups. I’ll give my opinion of it tomorrow and also post part of the meal plan (stay tuned). The meal plan comes in a book form, but I used Google Docs to keep tabs throughout the day since I’m mostly at my computer.
In the meantime, here’s a quick workout from Women’s Health to celebrate the first day of summer – perfect for the midsection and to get your heart rate up in under 20 minutes. I’ll add something for the guys later tonight, although these are completely appropriate and useful for men, too.
Try 8-12 of each set, with 2-3 sets. Feel the soreness tomorrow! And love it 🙂
Squat, holding a medicine ball next to your right hip (a). Keep your arms straight and raise the ball up and across your body until you’re standing and the ball is above your left shoulder (b). Lower back to start. That’s one rep.
Hold a dumbbell and raise your right arm, keeping your elbow close to your ear (a). Step forward with your left foot, lowering until your thigh is parallel to the floor (b). Push off your left foot to stand. That’s one rep.
{{These make my arms SHAKE! Love’em!}} Get into a push-up position (a). Shift your weight to your left hand and rotate your body, raising your right arm into the air so that your arms and torso form a T (b). Hold for one or two seconds, then return to start. That’s one rep.
Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, bend your knees, and lean forward from your hips (a). Brace your abs and pull the weight up to chest height without rotating your torso (b). Return to start. That’s one rep.
Well in L.A. 