Burn Out

When you feel as if throwing yourself in front of an oncoming train is more appealing than continuing with whatever line of work you pursue day in and day out. This is how I define “burn out.” It’s not technically the correct definition but I claim creative license.

I realize that’s what I’ve been experiencing these last two weeks. And by revealing my human “mishaps” to the world, I’ve thrown off the weights with which I’ve been encumbered. As a friend of mine reminded our Circuit Fusion instructor today when Kelly admitted (apologetically perhaps?) that she had been sadly lacking in balance during the class, “No one’s perfect. Even Mary Poppins was only practically perfect.”

I am not perfect.

Wow. There’s a big confession. Does this surprise anyone?

…………………..

The constant ringing in my ears is unimpeded by outside noise. How very deafening.

There are times I do quite well with my diet. But I can never make it a week without slipping with gluten or dairy. Each Monday I try anew only to be tripped up on Friday or Saturday (at the latest). I like pastries. I like those morning buns at Starbucks. And despite having both dairy and gluten in them, I don’t suffer noticeable side effects. Except maybe extra fat but obviously that’s something I can live with as I eat one nearly every week.

With time I’m sure I’ll come to be cool nixing those from my life like I have with ice cream and cake but until then I’m happy as I am. Especially now that I’ve had to dump the chocolate Larabars from my diet. “May contain milk particles” seems to translate into “Does contain milk particles” and I end up sick to my stomach with nasty heartburn and indigestion.

Sigh. Oh well. It was nice while it lasted. My taste for the other Larabars has increased again though so I’m happy having the fruity ones again.

I’m usually pretty good with the fitness side of life. But, as I’ve just been reminded, sometimes you just need to slow it down and relax a bit. Coincidentally, I read the chapter in my Foundations book for my group fitness instructor class that talks about instructors continuing to motivate themselves as well as others etc. Even instructors need to be reminded to take time off when they start to wind down. Sit back and relax. Take a breather for a week or so. When it’s time to go back you’ll be refreshed and ready to go.

Everyone can experience burn out. Some more than others; some sooner than others. I’ve taken my break and I was happy to get back into the swing of things this morning with my friend’s Circuit Fusion class. I’m weaker than before, true, but I pushed myself and had fun just being there again. Kelly asked if the class seemed harder than usual because she was tired from it too but I couldn’t tell her because it was bound to be extra difficult for me. However, I like to think it was difficult for everyone because another regular in the class got a hip cramp just like I did during a core move at the end.

The lesson I’ve relearned today is this:

Always listen to your body. If you’ve been working hard for a long time and your body tells you it needs a rest, you might think of obliging it. You don’t have to, of course, and sometimes it’s best to soldier on through it. You know your body better than anyone else. Pay attention to it and you should be able to know what’s best for it.

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Confession

What do you say when you’re supposed to be motivating others to exercise and get healthy but you can’t seem to stick with it yourself?

The Truth I guess.

What’s my truth? I’ve spent the last 2 weeks (ever since my migraine) doing nothing. I’ve skipped my friend’s Circuit Fusion classes. I’ve dumped my October Challenge. I’ve skipped my other friend’s Zumba classes. I’ve even skipped my son’s Zumba classes because I haven’t wanted to leave the house and move around. I did go for a family hike last weekend but I don’t count that as exercise because it was our weekly family outing. That’s just extra fun stuff that I should be doing on a normal basis anyway. Added benefits.

Why have I been doing diddly squat?

I’m tired. I’m tired of trying to be healthy and not being able to eat the stuff I want. I want pizza! But it’s a no-go because it makes me sick. I want brownies! No-go for the same reasons. I lose weight to get healthy and I am healthy now. But because of it I can’t eat gluten or dairy products. Yet everywhere I go there are delicious recipes full of gluten and dairy. I’m going to a potluck later today and I had to bake gluten/dairy-free blueberry muffins just so I know I’ll be able to eat something without getting bloated or sick there. I have a ton of healthy and delicious meal recipes that I used to eat that I could’ve made but I can’t eat them anymore. I currently have no meal recipes that would work for a potluck so I went with muffins.

I’m not annoyed or irritated by this anymore. I’m just very tired.

Do I feel guilty for not exercising? Surprisingly, no. All I want to eat is junk food (I don’t but it’s what I want). Food is so boring lately. So I’ve been indulging in chocolate almond milk and dark chocolate bars. Not huge amounts or anything. Pistachios are my newest indulgence. They’re so yummy. At least those are healthy. Do I feel guilty when I indulge in the chocolate? Again, I have to say I don’t.

Enjoying life is not a crime. It’s not something to feel guilty for. Living your life over-indulging isn’t a good thing but periods of indulgence isn’t something to feel guilty about I think. Who am I to judge someone else’s decisions?

Ick! This post is partially depressing. Maybe this confession is enough to pull me out of the mud and get me going again for this last week of October.

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Learning Hula by DVD

For most of my fatty little life I was a tomboy. I dressed like a boy, a lot of times I wanted to be a boy. I was still very much a girl when it came to having crushes though. I wondered if perhaps I was a lesbian after awhile but I wasn’t attracted to women. Then sometime in college I lost a ton of weight and some of the girly girls I hung out with made me their Barbie doll. Makeup, tight clothes, hair style, etc. I was still very much a chunky monkey but for the first time I actually had something of a waist and could fit into Gap clothes. At first I didn’t care much about any of it but I guess being female finally caught up with me and I began to enjoy it.

Then came the day when I learned I actually had…HIPS!

Wow! I have hips? Who knew?

Three women taught me about my hips. Not my mom, no.

Kili, Neena, and Veena.

To many those names would sound familiar. But to many more I think they’d be a mystery.

Neena and Veena are twin sister belly dancing instructors of whom I will speak later.

I started with Kili’s Island Girl Dance Fitness Workout For Beginners DVDs. With Kili as my instructor, I discovered my hips and that I could move them!

Hula Abs and Buns with Kili was her first DVD that I bought from Natural Journeys. She teaches outside in Hawai’i with two women as her backup. The dance routine you learn is demonstrated first so you know what you’ll be in for. Then she’ll guide you through a warmup and into the routine itself. Each move is broken up and practiced before adding in another move and another and another till you have the entire routine. She’ll go through the routine in its entirety once or twice with instruction before doing it in silence about two more times and then ending in a cool down.

Among the moves taught in this DVD are the:

• kaholo
• hela
• double hela
• ka’o
• ‘ami

It can be difficult for the ultimate beginner in fitness and in hula. It was super difficult for me on both counts but mostly because I was new to hula itself and had to learn how to move my hips. After trying the DVD a few times, not only did I know the dance well enough to never make a mistake but I had also discovered my hips.

Her other DVD that I have is Cardio Hula with Kili. Harder than Hula Abs and Buns but also more fun in a way. She employs the same teaching method and teaches many of the same moves in a different pattern.

Some different moves taught in this DVD are the:

• ‘uwehe
• lele ‘uwehe

When I first tried these DVDs I wasn’t in shape so I huffed and puffed and sweated like an Irish guy I knew for a time awhile back. Now, however, the constant movement warms my body and gives me a light sheen of sweat but that’s mostly because I sweat rather easily. The workouts are meant for beginners and are not intense. Kili also sways down to the ground a couple times and my knees can’t take that (nor can my thighs for that matter) but I go to my limit and stop there, swaying at my level till she comes back up and we go on with the routine. You can get both DVDs at Natural Journeys.

On each DVD is a bonus dance performed by Kili in full garb. It’s…different. I’ve seen more interesting dances on youtube but no complaints. I’m sure people are asking, “Is Kili teaching real hula dances, etc?” Honestly, I don’t know. It could be more of a fitness and basic moves thing for beginners. I have no other hula teachers with whom to compare her. However, I do know of someone who learned hula in a professional class setting for I don’t know how many years. She’s competed with her group in more than one competition and made lasting relationships with the others in her school/group.

I’ve lost touch with her since she moved but she can be found on twitter @HulaSan. Her name’s Amanda.

*DISCLAIMER: Always check with your doctor first before starting any new exercise programs. I’m not a certified trainer or group fitness instructor and will NOT be held responsible should any injury occur while trying something posted here. These DVDs are merely two dance fitness DVDs I enjoy and wanted to share.*

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Banana Rice Cakes

Here’s my favorite snack recipe that actually works nicely for my breakfast as well. This recipe is gluten-free, non-dairy, soy-free. Whatever else free it is, I don’t know. Maybe free of all allergens. Definitely free of eggs. Check the labels to make sure.

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 2 plain salted rice cakes
• maple almond butter

Smear the almond butter on the rice cakes then slice up the banana and add that on top. Voila! Very simple and nutritious.

I stick with plain rice cakes that have been lightly salted because they’re gluten-free and non-dairy as per my dietary needs. I don’t mind plain almond butter. It can be super yummy as well depending on the brand you get. My brands of choice is MaraNatha and Open Nature. For me, the plain almond butter from Open Nature is tastier than MaraNatha but I hear it’s usually more expensive. I must’ve gotten it when it was on sale. My maple almond butter is from MaraNatha and is super good. The maple flavor does not come from maple syrup so the sugar content isn’t as high as you’d think. It comes from maple sugar.

I find this recipe very filling either for a snack or for breakfast. Although perhaps for people with better diets than mine would find one rice cake sufficient for their appetite. If that’s the case, slice up part of the banana for the one rice cake and eat the rest on its own. Actually, that fills me up very nicely as a snack too.

Or, of course, you can leave the rest of the banana for another time. I got this recipe from a friend of mine who teaches Zumba. I was hard up for healthy snacks and needed new suggestions so she told me about this recipe that she uses for a snack. I loved it and months later still am not tired of it!

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Breakfast Smoothie

I’m not a nutritionist and I know very little about correct nutrition. I eat the types of things I’m advised to eat and I substitute foods particular to my dietary needs. I’m not a picky eater – I’ll eat almost anything that’s put in front of me. That is, I used to do so. Now, however, my body has changed with the last 15lbs I’ve lost and I can no longer tolerate gluten or dairy products. In the attempt to lose more weight, I decreased my sugar intake so much and for so long that I can no longer handle sugar the way I used to either.

Some people may think this is a bad thing but I can only say that I’ve gotten used to it and have found that gluten-free and non-dairy food can be just as yummy if not yummier in some cases. Here’s one recipe I found that not only caters to my dietary needs but is also a very healthy meal to have for breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 1/2c – 1c strawberries
• 1-2 handful fresh spinach (probably 1-2c)
• protein powder
• 1c unsweetened almond milk

Add ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Pour in a glass, drink, and enjoy! The amount of protein powder differs with each kind of powder and on your own taste of how much you want added. I use a chocolate soy protein powder. It recommends adding 1 scoop (comes with own scoop) to 8oz of milk but then says 1 serving size is 3 tbsp of powder. The scoop is about a tbsp I think though I’ve never measured it. I add about 1-2 scoops because my drink usually comes out to almost 2c.

Also, peaches are a really good substitute for strawberries. Blackberries too. Those are my fruits of choice but any desired fruit can be used in place.

I’m probably going to be changing this recipe soon because my body is telling me that I need to tone down on sugar yet again. I’ll probably limit the amount of strawberries/peaches to 1/2c. Lately I’m feeling sick in the mornings after breakfast. No, I’m not pregnant. It’s my body’s reaction to too much sugar. Dehydration and then sugar on an empty stomach can do wonders.

In the words of Mort from Madagascar 3, “My tummy is speaking to me!” And then he throws up pink frosting. Very gross. My son and I love that scene. In fact that’s what happens to me when I eat more dairy and sugar than I should (ex: 1-2 cookies). I have paid the price on multiple occasions.

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Oct Challenge: Week 2

WEEK 2:

I’ll be completely honest: I was a slacker this week. Well, in a way I might be termed lazy this last week. Except I wasn’t…at all. Just with the October Challenge. Why? Because, although I was very good Monday with my planks, I only did one set Wednesday and none at all Friday. And Rowing was thrown out the window entirely.

Does this mean I failed this week? Not at all. Here is my schedule as proof that in no way did I fail or slack off with my exercise:

Monday:

• 5 Powerful Planks: 2sets
• Circuit Fusion Class: 35min
• Stretch: 5min

Tuesday:

• Rowing: 10min 1.2mi
• Run: 9:53min 1mi
• Walk: 17.13min 1mi
• Stretch: 6min

Wednesday:

• Circuit Fusion: 30min
• 5 Powerful Planks: 1set
• Stretch: 5min

Thursday:

• Run: 15min 1.25mi (hill program lvl 5)
• Stretch: 5min

Friday I spent cleaning the house for company. Then I did some social exercise. I’m not anti-social – I love hanging out with friends. However, I’m introverted and being in company is one of the most exhausting things I’ve ever had to experience (other than studying). I had more energy after running my first 10k some weeks ago than I did after spending 1-2 hours with my friend on Friday.

Now why didn’t I do the rowing/strengthening on Tu, Th? Because the circuit fusion class works the entire body and my muscles desperately needed a break from strengthening exercises. Why not do the rowing? I was bored and wanted to run. Tu I wanted to see if I could beat my mile PR…I couldn’t. But not from lack of trying! Wanted to throw up the last minute of running but pushed through it and still made it under 10min. Woo! I’ve achieved that “elusive 10-minute mile” from Rose and the Slipper. On Th I was more interested in running than rowing.

I wanted to run hills rather than row so I did. It’s as simple as that.

If you’re challenging yourself to do something but you’d rather do something else that works just as well after awhile, don’t feel obliged to continue.

After finishing a race that I’ve trained a long time for, I like to change things up so I started the Oct Challenge. I didn’t count on it colliding with my Circuit Fusion class which I quite enjoy doing for both the social interactions and the physical challenge it provides me. After a little while of not running though, I got bored. Then we accidentally visited a favorite park right during the town’s marathon and half-marathon. My son was super excited and ran through what was supposed to be our walk. It was fun for me too though and I found myself envying the runners because it’s a course I’ve wanted to do for awhile now. I wasn’t fit enough before to do it but I have the potential to be now so I was eager to start running again. But where did that leave the rowing part of my challenge?

Alterations:

Dumping the Rowing/Strengthening on Tu, Th. Replacing it with running. There will be hills, tempos, intervals, etc. Whatever i’m interested in doing when I get on the treadmill. I can run 3mi 3x a week but I don’t. In order to start the half-marathon training in summer, I should be running that much every week so I’m going to try to make it a habit. I’m going to keep it to twice a week for awhile and then increase it as I see fit later in the winter or spring.

Plank Improvements:

1st Day 1st Week: Extreme fatigue, resting often, 2 sets 10min each, mostly modified on knees, couldn’t do more than 2 sets, extreme soreness next day

1st Day 2nd Week: Mild fatigue, resting a few times, 2 sets 6.30min and 7min, mostly on toes, wrist pain prevented 3rd set, mild soreness next day

• Wrist Pain – not an ache put an actual pain from the pressure of putting my weight on the joint for so long. I’m not sure if this is something I can fix with strengthening exercises. I know there are wrist/forearm strengthening exercises but I don’t know if they’d do anything for this particular issue. I’ll ask around but I think it may just be something that’s unique to people.

*IMPORTANT NOTE: As always, consult your doctor before starting any new exercise. Listen to your body and modify everything you do based on what it tells you. The exercises I do may not be a good fit for you so I would highly recommend considering a certified personal trainer when creating an exercise plan for yourself. If you crave social interactions with your exercise, consider going to a group fitness class. If you don’t like something, look for something else.*

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Covering Butt

It’s been brought to my attention that I could perhaps be setting myself up for a law suit with this blog by showing and explaining exercises etc despite not being certified as a group fitness instructor or a personal trainer. The same goes for nutrition stuff though I haven’t written about food yet. So I’ve gone through my old posts and added a disclaimer that I believe should cover my butt and I’ll continue adding it forevermore.

But I want people to know that, though I’m currently undergoing training to be a group fitness instructor, I am NOT qualified to teach or train others. I am NOT a personal trainer. I am NOT a group fitness instructor. I do NOT have qualified in depth knowledge of the machines in any gym.

I’m not saying people should do everything I do when it comes to exercise or nutrition. I’m merely inviting people to try things with me if they want. If someone wants to try something I mention, good for them.

*IMPORTANT NOTE TO ALWAYS REMEMBER: Always consult your doctor before you do any new exercise. Always listen to your body and modify what needs modification or stop entirely if that’s what your body is telling you. If you feel pain, stop. If you feel sick, stop. If you’re not having fun, stop.*

I think to cover my butt even more, I’m going to refrain from suggesting any moves or routines to people until I am completely certified. Any exercises/routines that I post until then will be things I’ve done personally. I will not suggest that you do them. I will merely be stating what I did and how I did it. Hopefully this protects me from any liabilities.

October Challenge: Week 1

Week 1:

5 Powerful Planks Routine:

Before this week was over I realized I’d need to modify the planks. There’s no shame in this; my core just isn’t strong enough to do it all. I have no doubt that, by the end of the month, I’ll be able to do much more.

*Modify what you need to modify. Stop when you need to stop. Listen to your body and work up to it all. Baby steps. Life is all about baby steps.*

Modified Plank: 

Modified Plank

Modified Side Plank

It came to my attention while doing these moves that other people might have my “problem” with a too-weak core. If you find you can’t stay on your feet in plank position, switch to your knees. Switch back to your feet when you’re ready or remain on your knees as long as you want. This is a modified plank and can be used in place of the side plank as well.

Child’s Pose: 

Child’s Pose

To stretch and rest your shoulders, my go-to move is Child’s Pose from Yoga. With your legs bent underneath you and your face toward the floor, stretch your arms above your head on the floor.

Rowing/Strengthening Routine:

I’m glad I decided to stick in this routine every other day. The description of this plank routine says it gives an all-over body workout. This is true insofar as it works part of the upper body, the core and part of the lower body. So, yes, it does work “all over” your body, but it doesn’t give a truly full-body workout. The strengthening portion of the rowing routine will cover some of the other parts of the body that the plank routine misses such as the thighs and biceps.

*DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a certified professional. I will NOT be held responsible if injury occurs while trying any exercise, stretch, or routine that I post here. I am currently undergoing training to be a fitness group instructor. Always consult your doctor before trying any new exercise.*

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Body Comp

Checking your body composition isn’t the same as checking your body fat although both are shown as percentages. Here’s where my lack of qualification as a fitness professional comes into play – I have no idea what the difference is or how body fat is checked. All I know is what is checked for body comp in the Jackson Pollock method. I also have no idea how to use the calipers. My go-to professional is Kelly Weatherman who works at my local Y. You can get your body comp checked with some kind of electronic blah blah blah but it requires fasting and showering etc planning beforehand and I just don’t have time or inclination to make sure I haven’t eaten or drank water within a certain amount of time before doing this. I don’t even remember how the shower comes into play but I remember it did when I looked up the info at the Y last Spring.

Forget that. The Jackson Pollock method of checking the skin fold in three spots on the body with calipers seems to be the most accurate method. It’s all done on the right side of the body while the person is standing with their weight equally distributed and arms hanging at sides. The tricep, belly, and thigh are checked three times each with the average number used. I’m not going to put the equation used to determine the percentage here because different sites list it differently. Daniel, at the Y, set up the whole process on the ActivTrax site that they use so we didn’t do it by hand or by any other site this time. I can’t guarantee result-consistency if I suggested any particular equation or site. So if you’re interested in getting your body comp checked, you can go to your local gym or maybe to your doctor and have a trained professional check it for you.

My Results!

4 months ago – 28%

NOW – 25.58%

GOAL: 24%

I didn’t believe I had made so much progress when I hadn’t seen much progress in my measuring tape results so Kelly checked me with a measuring tape too.

My Measurements!

Bicep: 11.78 in

Chest: 38.78 in

Waist: 30 in

Hips: 38.5 in

Thighs: 23.5 in

Calf: 15.5 in

Holy Guacamole, Batman!!!

Chest, Waist, and Hips have really gone down! I’ll have to check with old measurements later at home to see how much but I know they’ve gone down. My calves aren’t losing size but the fat is being replaced by lots of muscle. Even I can see that. Arms almost never change in size but the muscle is much bigger than before.

Body comp should be checked about every 3 months. So my next check-in time will be…next year! Cool. Tape measurements should be checked once a month. Weight should be checked once a week. By the way, my weight has stabilized at 165lbs. Yay for me! 5lbs left to reach my main goal!

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Day 3 Update

Day 1:

I wasn’t able to do all 3 sets of the 5 Powerful Planks. I didn’t foresee the strain on my shoulders and my shoulders are not the strongest. But, what a lot of people don’t realize, is that doing 10min of exercise at 2 separate times during the day gives the awesome benefits as well. One set took me 10min so I did one set in the morning and then another in the afternoon. It was super hard while I was doing it but about 2 seconds after I was done I felt completely fine.

Here’s where others can learn from my mistake:

I felt fine after each set and decided to stop after just 2 because I was lazy and waited too long in the day to do the last set. I’m a morning exerciser, not an evening exerciser. If I wait till the night, it’s not going to get done. Even waiting till the afternoon makes it a little iffy.

Because I wasn’t sweaty, didn’t ache and wasn’t tired after each set, I thought I wasn’t getting a very good workout and consequently forgot to stretch.

Can anyone tell me what my mistake was?

Please learn from my stupidity and stretch even if you feel like you haven’t gotten a good enough workout. Maybe your body is deceiving you like mine deceived me.

Day 2:

As my husband would say:

Oh! My! Holy! Cow!

My obliques felt as if someone had attacked them with a baseball bat. And my shoulders did more than scream in protest. I felt like I had given my 35lb son a shoulder ride the entire day and this was my price to pay.

I no longer feel like I was being lazy not doing that third set of planks on Day 1. Unless you have washboard abs, I have a feeling 2 sets is plenty for most people. Don’t put yourself down if you only manage 1 set even. One set is still 10min and 10min is a respectable amount of core time.

Problem: Does anything else on me ache like it’s been worked? No. hmmm…

However, there’s the Rowing/Strengthening routine scheduled for Day 2 so that should get lots of legs and arms in.

The 8 and 10lb weights were being used and 12lb is too heavy for my shoulders and knees so I went with a pair of 7lb dumbbells. My logic: I’ll test out the moves and weights today and upgrade as I see fit the next time. Yeah, after awhile of rowing (and the planks from the previous day), my legs and butt were protesting. My butt in particular from that leg-lifting plank. But I did the whole thing. It’s a very doable routine and moves quickly simply because you’re constantly changing what you’re doing. By the end I was glad I had 7lb dumbbells instead of even 8lbs because I was seriously feeling the shoulder press. My arms/shoulders were very tired.

Did I stretch? You bet your butt I did!!!

Day 3:

Now for today. My shoulders/core/butt/thighs ache but nothing hurts as badly as it did yesterday. I’m going to stick with 2 sets of planks instead of 3 mainly because I know 2 is plenty for me. Here’s where I want to shoot myself: I’m not dropping any of my usual exercise schedule for this challenge. So not only do I have 2 sets of planks to do today, I also have Kelly’s Circuit Fusion class to do.

Circuit Fusion: Mixes cardio and full-body strength-training to get a maximum amount of calorie burn. And when I say “full-body” I mean “FULL-body.” Kelly is a stickler for getting as many muscle groups worked in one class as possible. So after my planks are done, I’ll probably get more with her or at least 5min of some other core exercises.

It’s doable. It’s all doable. The problem is going to be tomorrow when I wake up…

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