You gotta look the part...

in order to sell me the package.  At least that's my opinion when it comes to personal consultants: life coaches, AVON Reps, Mary Kay consultants and especially fitness trainers. 

I had this argument with my on/off workout partner. I said I would strive to be a fitness coach if I was in better shape. Her argument is that many ppl look fit but aren't. True enough. But that's not the point. If I am going to sell this, I gotta look like I know what I'm doing and talking about.

I am amazed that the folks at one of the gyms I visit has a good number of out of shape employees ranging from front desk check in to sales floor to the child care.  With a free membership as an employment perk, how could that be? I mused that I am surprised at the number of memberships this gym sells because their employees don't look the part of being fit. No, you don't have to be super thin to be fit and I realize you don't have to workout in order to sell me a gym membership.

But would you buy makeup from woman who never wears makeup or applies it in such a garish way that it screams Halloween each day?  Would you invest your money with an investment banker who is broke?  Would you pay for a life coach whose own life is out of sorts? 

When seeking out a fitness trainer, I want to see someone who appears fit, muscular with little to no jiggle. I want to train with someone who has a body shape similar to my personal goal. Yes, I would love to look like Donna Richardson Joyner! She can sell me a gym membership any day!



Photo from Cafe Mom

And I ran...

Ran not too far, but at least I ran.  I've completed week 1 of C25K. Today was easy. I even bumped up my run speed on the treadmill from 4.4 to 4.5. Whoa!!! Watch out for the speedster!

I know that the treadmill is no real challenge for running outside, but man oh man, it's  just too damn hot. Kim and Merry - big ups to ya'll for running outdoors. I will be there once the temps start to fall. I also know I'm pushing myself by doing this back to back. But I am trying to find my groove with my workout days.  Yesterday, my heart rate monitor claimed I burned 1400 calories combining my run and kickboxing class.

Yeah, that's bad-ass.

But what makes this C25K appear easy this week is the podcast. I downloaded 3 separate podcasts so that I don't have to listen to the same mix each run. The music is good and I find myself singing along and I found myself getting peeved when the voice from beyond told me it was time to my brisk walk!

I'm not a runner - just playing one 3 days/week at the moment. But I will keep ya'll posted.

Do you run? What do you listen to when you workout?

Do you C25K?

I did last night!  After my TKB workout, I found an empty treadmill. Of course, it took me a few minutes to get my heart rate down to a normal range (those burpees in this TKB round are challenging).

But in straight-up LTD style, I didn't pay attention to the rules (who reads the instruction packet anyway?) I didn't realize the podcast was for 30mins and instead set my treadmill time to 20mins. I did manage to get in 6 runs and was interrupted by my TKB instructor.  That's a great interruption!

So Saturday, I will do Wk1 Day 2 and Sunday will be Wk1 Day 3!!!

Yeah baby!

You did what?

Um, well, ok...I...I...I said I would start the Couch to 5K. Yeah, I think I hit my head and in a fit of amnesia, I posted on FB for all the world (my few friends) to see that I planned to start the C25K.  Oh yeah, and to top it off I challenged my cousin who started her C25K a week ago to a race (luckily, we haven't picked which one - hence, no date set - YET).  OOOOO and to add insult to injury, I e-mailed Kim who's blog I read as soon as she posts to tell her. 

Woozers!

So after boasting that I would start, I found a few podcasts (dance and rap) to add to my iPod (I don't own a smartphone or iPhone and refuse to pay for apps). My game plan was to start yesterday - 20mins on the treadmill because it's like the 4th ring of Dante's Inferno outside and a quick 20 minute upper body workout (I even printed out the moves). I was prepared! I was pumped! I was all gung-ho!

Enter the bubbly Group X instructor with her shiny disco ball and perky attitude. I dislike bubbly, perky, ultra thin aerobic instructors (not really). I secretly want to be one (perky and bubbly - not ultra thin).

Ahhh hell - out the door went my plans for yesterday. I ended up doing 45mins of Nightclub Cardio!  And let me tell you - this low-impact aerobic class aint no joke. We squatted, party-pumped, booty-pop it till we were all dripping in sweat. We did so many chest flies that after the class all I wanted to do was get on the bus and head home!!!

Luckily, today is a new day.  Today is Zumba day (thank goodness no party-pumps in this class).  That means I can get in the 20-min Week1 Day1 of C25K AFTER Zumba. Plus, there should be available treadmills at 8pm tonight.

So wish me luck. Pray that I don't say (in my best Cartman voice) F* this, I'm going home!

Tune in Tokyo

Yesterday was an eye-opening day. I arrived at the gym well before the 8pm kickboxing class with the intention of getting in some extra cardio and possibly a round of weights. Low and behold I forgot my iPod. Grrrr....So out the window goes my plan of shimming down the runway a la America's Next Top Model, oh I mean struttin' my stuff on the treadmill while moving and grooving to my super awesome workout playlist. No biggie - I grab a bike and start to pedaling.

It's an odd feeling working out sans the closed-in comfort of headphones. I felt exposed, sort of.  So I took the time to let my eyes wander around the gym.  Have you ever noticed how people lift weights. I do. I'm not a trainer, but have had several over the years. I know there is a wrong way and right way to lift. There's also this thing called mind-muscle connection. It's very Ghandi-like - having to visualize the muscle contracting as you use i. I like that concept because I visualize slimmed thighs and Angela Bassett-esque guns!  So while watching various men/women going about their gym activities, there's a wide range of conscious and unconscious lifters in the world.  The unconscious ones remind me of drones.

So while I sat spinning away, listening to the piped in music over the clink/clack of weights and whirling of treadmills and ellipticals, the drones reminded me that I need to stay on the mind-muscle track. But I still have a tendency to check out the hot muscled bodies as they roam about the gym.

Watch it wiggle

and I can see it jiggle...Not in a good way, mind you.  Then again, anything that jiggles on the body isn't really good - is it?



I was wide awake at 420am this morning thinking: I'm 2 years away from the BIG 4-0 and I don't want to jiggle. I don't mind getting jiggy with it - whatever 'it' is...but I don't all my goods shaking, rattlin and rollin with it. Ya know.  This sleepless thought probably crept in while I was thinking about walking the hills in Seattle and marveling over how my rear would never be saggy if I walked hills all day.

So what's a girl to do about jiggle spots on her body?  Botox? Nip/Tuck? Ummm, yeah - I can think of better things to spend that kind of money on. Shoes, glorious shoes!

Thanks to those potty-break push-ups, I'm beginning to see some change in my arms - woo hoo. Now, my next trouble spot is the hardest spot to workout (in my opinion) - those inner thighs.  What to do, what to do?

Here's what I'm thinking (list of easiest to stay on top of to hardest).

1. Add pile squats to my potty-break push ups.
2. Add lunges to the end of each workout.
3. Do abductor/adductor machines each Sunday weight train day.

#1 starts today! Hopefully in the next 6 weeks, I can crack walnuts with my thighs! Well maybe not that powerful, but close!

Oh the places you will go...

So I am back from my trip to Seattle/Puyallup/Tacoma.  Say that 10 times fast - I double dog dare you.

It's been 10 years since my last trip for the same purpose - the High School reunion - and I still had the same feelings of: 1. I don't want to go. 2. I don't remember any of these people. 3. I don't want to spend $100 on tickets and stay 10 mins with people I don't remember. 4. I'll sign up for the check-in table, it will be fun. 5. I don't want to go.

 
And you know what? I went to the mixer the night prior. I recognized 3 people! Maybe a few other faces in the crowd looked familiar, but I don't mingle well, I don't like crowds, I don't do small talk without the aid of a glass of wine and I HATE small spaces. Suffice it to say that even without alcohol (I was driving since the Fella would have fallen asleep standing up), I had a good enough time chatting with a few old friends. My 1 true friend and I had dinner the night before since she wasn't planning to attend the festivities. And I am truly glad that I did not attend the reunion functions the following night.

The highlight of my trip to Seattle was definitely Mt. Rainier. My mom swears we went way back in 1987 or so, but I have no recollection of the trip. So thank goodness for modern technology because I was able to record the 2010 trip in all it's majestic glory (let's hope the rolls of film I shot came out as well as, actually better, than the digital shots).