This Week in Workouts: The Beach!

Happy Sunday! Do you have anything planned for this long weekend? So far, I do not, but we will see. My biggest goal would be to go out to brunch either today or tomorrow- somebody get me some breakfast noms on a pretty patio stat!

As for workouts though, it went pretty well, especially after hardly working out at all last week. Sadly, I was not able to accomplish the running in the park goal, but we did walk it a bit before dinner one night- it was nice :) This week also included no hot yoga or Orange Theory since it just seemed like a bit much with my (still swollen) face.

Oh, and yes, these pictures were taken on our beach walk! We were able to walk an area of our hometown that I have never known existed. Yay for new adventures! Also, yay for a husband who did not let me do this after my surgery!

Sunday: Rest day :)

Monday: A nice walk on the beach and this yoga flow for core- I love it!

Tuesday: easy Yoga flow before bed

Wednesday: 2.5-mile jog. It was the first jog since have oral surgery and I am so happy that it went well.

Thursday: Rest day

Friday: Walk around the park

Saturday: 1.5-mile jog followed by my favorite kettlbell mixer workout ever!

Next week's goal will be something simple since we have a conference and a pretty busy time leading up to it. Let's just get to one Orange Theory or hot yoga class, shall we?

Let's Talk Core

Did you know that this will be the first fitness post of the week?! My, how this week and these posts have flown by! Well, we can, at least, end the work-week with some fantastic core workouts that I know we all are dying to have. Whoever said the a sore core is a bad thing was definitely wrong! That hurt-to-laugh bit is the part I sweat for :) And, speaking of sweat, these workouts are sure to make you.

Yoga for Core

I found this video by stumbling upon Candice's blog, Yoga by Candice. She of course, also has a YouTube channel and updates it with a complete yoga video once a week. The Yoga videos are wonderful, informative, and the yoga flow is fun. Her blog is also fantastic and I am super addicted now!

This yoga video was how I welcomed back working out after my long break. It is great! The core work at the beginning is super helpful and the balances make the flow seem short and fun. I would highly recommend this video to anyone who is an intermediate yogi or higher :)

Belly Bootcamp

Does you belly need a bootcamp? Mine sure does! Funny, but a mashed potato diet does not really do much for chiseling those abs... Neither did the 16+ hours of sleeping/laying around I was doing every day.

Anyway, this belly bootcamp looks like lots of fun and has moves all of us can do at home. It also seems perfect to do after a run or before yoga as a nice warm-up. This could even be done in the morning for a quick wake-up to get that metabolism going :)

4-Minute Abs

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Yes, I just spoke the words that every person loves to hear. Abs in 4-minutes may be a pipe dream, but Brooke Burke-Charvet's ab plan  (in the September issue of Shape) could get us those abs a wee bit faster than otherwise. This 4-minute plan is a well-rounded ab routine that will work all areas of your core. It is also way easier to do in the morning upon waking, before a big meal, or while watching some TV.

I hope your weekend is absolutely wonderful and you have something super fun planned! We will be checking out a local Mexican restaurant with the family and maybe even making it out to the beach for the second time this week! Ahh, going to the beach twice in one week makes me feel like it's high school again. Hey, with weather this nice, there is really no reason not to :)

Happy TGIF!

This Week in Workouts: What a Week!

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Man, people told me how painful getting my wisdom teeth removed would be but I really had no idea they were right. Unfortunately, this week's This Week in Workouts is not too eventful because I have not been able to really workout since last Tuesday. The side of my mouth that had the simple extraction have been fine the whole time and hardly swelled, the other side, however, has become the bane of my existence. First off, did you know your cheek can swell so big that it impairs your vision? Well, it can!?! Also, that whole "you'll be able to eat anything normal two days after surgery" thing is a lie- at least for me. Getting my mouth to open more than a centimeter is, possibly, the hardest thing I have ever done.

This whole oral surgery was worse than I thought it would be thing is just a big way of me excusing and apologizing for the radio silence all last week... and the fact that this post is a day late. I am sorry. Let's be super good friends again :)

Hopefully, today will be my first day back to working out. I am thinking something simple with no hard impact or inversions that will hurt my giant cheek. Maybe even making a working that can be posted in the coming weeks? I will probably also go back to a liquid diet for a few more days so if you have any great juicing or smoothie recipes, send them my way :)

Even though I did not get my two Orange Theory classes or one Hot Yoga class in last week, I did get to go on some pretty great walks! The hubs took me to the beach at sunset on Friday to cheer up my mood. Seeing the sunset and being outside was wonderful! All the beach walking was also great for my joints and stamina considering that the only walking I had done was from the couch to the bed for three days.

Saturday we were able to go to the nearby HUGE park and rowing facility for a walk during sunset. The walk ended up being about 3-miles and saw some pretty beautiful birds. Both of us have made a goal to go running there this week! And, now to the actual workouts...

Sunday: Simple 2-mile run

Monday: Arms and Back Yoga Flow

Tuesday: Morning ab workout and evening Orange Theory class- it was my first one in a while and I have so missed it!

Well, that is it for the workouts. My plan was to hit-up Orange Theory again on Friday and the Advanced Hot Power Yoga class I love on Saturday; neither happen. This weeks goal is simple, run/walk the 3-mile park walk we did the other day. I am hoping to also get in 5+ workouts this week, but make no guarantees... Taking things easy and letting this face heal is my number one priority!

Happy Monday!!!

Shape Magazine Workout Review: Brooke Burke-Charvet's Abs

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Man, it is a bit crazy to be talking about the September issue of Shape magazine- can 2014 be that close to ending already?! Apparently so.

This issue of Shape magazine has uber caught my interest. Not just because of the usual great workouts, or the fact that they have a workout by a celebrity and trainer, but also because of the recipes. I am so happy that my first look at this month's (or should I say next month's) issue was after a hearty lunch. There are some incredible recipes in this issue, like the seafood paella, that I am simply dying to try! There are also some fantastic articles that will probably go against those preconceived notions of the breakfast pastry. 

But, what we are really here to talk about is Brooke Burke-Charvet's abs. Most of us ladies, and a few men, would kill for Brooke's incredible abs of steal. At 43, her super toned physique is not minor accomplishment and one that I admire her for. Brooke is a mother of four, TV host, and fitness instructor twice a week. In her interview she talks about being let go from DWTS, family, and how her workout has changed over the years. It is a very humble, very informative article that I was happy to read- especially since I really knew very little about her before reading it. 

In the interview, Brooke said that she focuses a lot of her attention on abs. This made me super excited since the whole workout is some of her favorite (and most grueling) ab exercises. Whether you love ab workouts or could drop them like a sack of potatoes, we all know how important they are and how tough, long, and unsuccessful they can be. This ab workout is only about 4-minutes and includes one set of each exercise geared to work the upper, lower, and oblique abdominal muscles.

The Workout

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This workout is pretty straight forward with 6 moves, two of which uses a weight. I completed mine in the morning just after waking up and before having my breakfast. It was a great way to start the day and ended up taking me 4 1/2 minutes to complete! I am not sure how this would be as a workout on it's own, but together with another workout or as something you do as a quick heart rate raiser during the day, it is pretty great!

Since the whole thing took 4-minutes and was mainly floor work, I decided not to wear my HRM. Not sure about how your HRM works, but mine never seems to get it right when I am horizontal... Because of this, I do not know the calories burned, but I can say that it definitely raised my heart rate in the first 30-seconds!

The workout did not leave my abs quaking or my muscles sore, but it is something I would love to do with another workout or as part of my wake-up regimen :)