Boot Camp Day 5

Boot camp was great as expected...thank lord! For some reason I was really tired today, and I'm glad I had boot camp to give me that extra push. Otherwise, the laziness in me might have talked me into skipping today. Instead, I reminded myself that it was my second to last day of boot camp and I freaking paid for this. Trust me I have no money to spare, so wasting it is a big "NO NO!"

I noticed today that we've done liners almost at every session. And all I could think to myself was, I'm not on a basketball team WTH! I guess it's a good workout, since I was cursing at myself. (lol...That was a reference to my blog "It's Only a Workout if...")

And I also noticed that my energy is coming back. Even though I was really tired today, after my workout, I felt like I could do more. I was pushing myself even harder and doing more reps than normal. I was even doing more pushups, which is a big accomplishment for me b/c my upper strength SUCKS! Woo hoo for progress!

It's not unnatural for me to stay behind after my workouts to get more stretching done...I actually do it every time. It's important to stretch before AND after, and I make sure to get a really good stretch in. Not to mention it feels sooo good. But, after boot camp I've found myself doing some "nostalgic" (well for me) stretches and exercises. It may be that we are on the basketball court that brings the feelings back or the thought that I was at my most fit as a cheerleader. But, I've been doing some stretches and exercises that we did at every single cheer practice. I have both surprised myself and made myself feel old. I tried a toe touch today and it was the ugliest thing ever!!! (hahaha DON'T JUDGE!). But I can say my kicks are still beautiful! Wanna see?!

I'm ending boot camp in two days and I'm a little scared. Again, I don't know the teachers that have taken over my favorite classes and I'm not too sure I'll get the workout I want. I guess I'm gonna have to work on giving myself that extra push and doing more on my own. I guess if you want it done right, do it yourself, right?! Wish me luck!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

getting reacquainted w/the lake

I got my weekend run in today b/c I know I won't be able to get a run in tomorrow.

I've been running fairly fast on the San Andreas Trail, but there are a lot of down hills so I wasn't too sure if those times would apply to other trails. I decided to test it at good 'ol Lake Merced.

Holy moly I haven't been to the lake in so long. It was a pretty rough run. It seemed like it was harder to breathe than usual, but with all the cars around it makes sense.

Well as I expected I wasn't as fast as the other trail. I finished the 4.5 mile run in 50 min 46sec. Just over 11min/mile. Nonetheless, that's about the fastest I've gotten around the lake, and what counts most is that I actually went out and did it. So, all in all I AM HAPPY! #OperationMelanie


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

It's only a workout if...

I always complain about not having a good workout or I rant and rave about how good the workout felt. So here are my signs of a good workout.

It's only a workout if one or more of the following happens:

(in no particular order)
-sweat is dripping down my face or better yet a constant stream
-I have to wipe the salt off my face/body when I'm done
-I'm sore for the next couple of days
-I'm cursing out the instructor or myself in my head
-I hit at least a 8 - 10 rpe (rate of perceived exhaustion <- for an explanation check back on "interval running on the treadmill")
-I'm breathing hard and making weird noises to get the set finished
-I'm saying motivational phrases to myself to get through

Feel free to add your signs of a good workout in the comment section.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Woo hoo! Looks like I'm getting faster!

Today was a pretty lazy day, but I managed to motivate myself enough to get out of bed and head to the San Andreas Trail, 5.2 miles, again.

I ate pretty bad this weekend and I haven't been on a run in a couple of weeks, so I felt really heavy as I started out my run. I actually didn't think I was going to have a very good run. Nevertheless, I was there and needed to get this run in. Operation Melanie in full effect!

As always, I started slowly and picked up as a went along. To my surprise, I fell into my stride less than half way through. And on my way coming back I was actually running fairly fast and taking the hills pretty fast too.

Here's the time I ended with. Needless to say I was really happy to see I beat my time again. I was running at about a 9min-mile pace.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

boot camp day 2

yesterday was day 2 of boot camp. it was thursday, so lisa was the instructor. i hadn't had a class with her before yesterday either. again it was interval training..but she had us do some exercises i had never done before.

one was putting your hands on the floor and walking up the wall with our feet 10 times. so you are basically doing a handstand and walking your feet up the wall up and down 10 times.

another was doing a push up and then jumping your feet out and in 4 times, and repeat. so you are basically doing like a jumping jack motion with your feet in a push up position.

and the next couple of exercises were with these circles she called gliders. you put them under each of your feet or hands depending on the exercise. a variation to mountain climbers, where you start in a push up position and bring one knee in towards your chest (placing the foot on the floor) and then the other, switching as fast as you can. so, instead you are doing this with the gliders under each foot. and then, we brought both feet in with the gliders under each foot. mountain climbers are hard is it is, so adding the gliders added a big challenge. we did other exercises with the gliders, but those were what i remembered.

boot camp has been great so far i'm excited to see how much i progress. i'm even thinking of signing up for another.

oh it hurts so good

last night was my first session of boot camp. i wasn't sure what to expect as this was my first boot camp ever and i'm not too familiar with the instructor.

we did some jogging around the basketball court to warm up and then went into what i would describe as basketball running drills, running sideways in a squat position and such. then we basically went into circuit training where we would run a little and then do a drill and run and then do another drill. we even did some bosu work, which i was really excited about b/c i love working with the bosu.

bosus are those things that look like a half exercise ball. bosu stands for both sides up. you can use these for so many exercises I LOVE IT! b/c it's not a flat surface you have to use your core more to balance you out. you can use it with the ball side up and use it to do some step drills. you can use it to do planks. stand on it and squat and then jump. you can place it ball side down and use it to do push ups. you can even just stand on it on either side and do free weights. this tool is so versatile, if you've never used it, i recommend trying it.

all in all i had a great work out. sweat was dripping all down my face and unfortunately, into my eye. ouch, but what a great feeling to know the workout was good. as i wound down to go to sleep last night i could feel my muscles aching slightly, so i knew i had a great workout.

this morning i could feel my muscles were tense which hurts a little, but puts an even bigger smile on my face. i'm probably going to me in more pain tomorrow b/c remember the worst soreness comes 2 days after. and lucky me i get to do it all over again for day 2 of boot camp.

8 tips to boost your metabolism

i read articles all the time..all types, a lot of the sex tips and exercise tips usually have the same tips over and over again, but this article on boosting your metabolism had a couple of new ideas i never heard of and found interesting. it's a short read so i've included the link if you are interested.

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/8-tricks-for-boosting-your-metabolism-2433543/

workout amendment

Continuing with Operation Melanie, today I took the core class and went back to total body conditioning for the first time in a REALLY LONG time. I was expecting to work my ass off, be dripping sweat and having every limb of my body feel like noodles hanging from my core....ehhhh WRONG!

Core class was great, but total body conditioning was a bit of a let down. I guess having such a good teacher to begin with makes me a little spoiled. After class a few gymmates were talking about this three week boot camp that starts next week. I figured why not? I can do the boot camp on Tuesdays and Thursdays instead of my regular classes. It's for three weeks, which ends right before my birthday, so maybe I can shed a few more pounds and look a tad bit more sexy for my bday and trip to New York.

I don't know what to expect from this boot camp or this instructor but I sure am excited.

Wish me luck!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

"a brand new me, a brand new you. a brand new day, sky so blue"

The other day my cousin asked me what my new year's resolutions were. Later on that week, my friend asked me the same question.

My answer to them was, "I don't have any. I make goals throughout the year."

Now, don't take that answer as a rude or smart-alecky remark. I don't think you need to wait for a brand new year to set your goals. I am one of those types of people that gets an idea to do something and figures out a way to get it done. Now, it may not be a priority or realistic to do at the moment, so it may take a couple of years but it'll get done. For instance, I want to get my credit cards to zero. This is definitely going to take a few years, but I've already put them out of site so that I won't use them and all I'm doing right now is paying them off.

Right now, Operation Melanie is in full effect. That's my way of saying I am officially on a mission to get back down to a size 4. (Yes, I did put that out there.) Now I've been working on this for quite some time and it didn't take a new year to make me get my ass active again. But, I've been really fickle about it. In an earlier post, I called myself consistently inconsistent. So, I was losing weight and gaining a few pounds back and losing it again. And, now I'm at a plateau. I've loaded an app my sister introduced to me called "lose it." It's actually really helpful with keeping your caloric intake and you can input your exercises to keep track of how many calories you lost too! And, I've set a goal for myself to workout at least 3-4 times a week. Here's the plan: Tues - treadmill run & core, Wed - spin, Thur core & total body conditioning, Weekend - run at least 5 miles.

And, each time I run a marathon, my goal is to beat my last time.

Another goal I've been trying to maintain for a couple of years is eating breakfast. Sounds simple and stupid, but I was never a breakfast type of person so this is a challenge for me and I'm a lot better at it now.

Those are just some goals that came to me off the top of my head, of course I have many more, but I'm sure you don't have time for my long list. Your goals can be to travel more often, find a new job, or to try being a vegetarian or whatever it is you desire. And, though you might falter and fall off, it's ok. Just, have enough determination to try again and again, you'll get there eventually.

These are your goals, be it big or small. You do not have to justify what makes you happy. The feeling of accomplishment is yours to revel in, revel you shall.

With that, I leave you with a picture of a shirt that I randomly saw at a store. It wasn't drifit and the colors weren't really appealing so I didn't buy it. But, I loved the message, so I took a picture instead.




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

interval running on the treadmill

i work out at the gym here at my work. thankfully the membership is FREE for employees and super duper convenient. it's actually really good for me b/c right after work i can go straight to the gym. that way i don't have any downtime to get lazy and change my mind about working out.

on tuesdays, there's a core class i like to take. it focuses on working out your core, so your abs, back...basically the core of your body. but, i get off of work at 4pm and the class doesn't start until 530pm. what i usually do is stretch and get on the treadmill to kill time before class. well, if you've read my blogs you know that i absolutely HATE running on treadmills. it's just so monotonous. so usually my runs on the treadmill are grueling to get through.

yesterday, while going through a couple of articles on fitsugar, i found some interval trainings for the treadmill. interval trainings are actually really good to help you get faster, especially if you are looking to make a new personal record on your next event or just faster in general. and according to fitsugar, "Intervals increase your metabolism and help you lose belly fat." for me, the interval training actually made running on the treadmill much more pleasant than normal. i was so concentrated on when i needed to change pace that i wasn't bored out of my mind.

here's what i followed yesterday:

this i a 41 minute workout on the treadmill. ran 1mph lower than suggested b/c i wasn't sure how it was going to be. but, i intend on building up to the suggested mph.

here's a 30 minute interval treadmill workout if you don't have that much time.

in my opinion, this one starts a little high for having a rpe (rate of perceived exhaustion) of 1-3, so adjust this as needed.

RATE OF PERCEIVED EXHAUSTION (explanation)
it's just that...your perceived exhaustion. but, let me break this down for you a little more. b/c if it's your first time hearing the term, it's kindda hard to grasp

0 would be like sleeping or sitting
1 - 2 would be like walking
3 - 4 jogging, you can still carry on a conversation
5 - 6 would be a fast paced jog, you can probably say a few phrases
7 - 8 would be running, you can only say a few words at a time
9 - 10 you are pushed to your limit, you can't say anything

hope that helps clear things up. and if you choose to follow the interval training you can totally use these for an outside run too. you'll just need a watch to let you know the time and follow the rpe instead of the mph, unless you have some type of device that tells you how fast you are running like a garmin or polar.

Blazers...so sexy!

i used to live in blazers. working at bebe for some time in college, i was granted the privilege of a 40% discount. oh how i wish i still had that privilege, it's so hard for me to buy things from there knowing what i would have paid for. little cousins, someone get a job here. lol

anyhow, working there and getting an amazing discount, i bought my share of suits. there's just something about a a blazer and slacks or better yet a pencil skirt that just makes me smile. i love the look and the feel i get when wearing these pieces. i would wear the pieces separately when going out or going to a nice dinner and sometimes together for a really nice event. and then i started working at oracle and wore them almost everyday. as I moved up, i didn't have to dress up so often so slowly i drifted out of wearing them...not to mention, i gained so much weight i didn't fit into them anymore. lmao! don't worry i'm working on getting back into those suits. i am determined to fit back into all my old but classic clothes.

i know people usually dress the way they feel...trust me i do the same. but every once in awhile there's just that power suit or power outfit that helps you do the opposite....feel the way i dress. or maybe you are having an awesome start to the day and you dress real good b/c you feel real good and then you feel even better. that was the type of day i was having yesterday. to be honest with you i should do this more often.

putting the blazer back on yesterday made me remember how much i loveeee them. looks like the two blazers i bought right before christmas are definitely going to get put to good use.

here's the power outfit of the day:

blazer: H&M $49.95
necklace: 3 tier necklace with black and white pearls and flowers from for love. i got this some time ago, so i don't remember the price maybe around $10
blue tank: racerback tank from express $19.90
pants: black skinny jeans made by jolt. around $30
ring: this has often been called my hello kitty ring, which is fine by me b/c we all know i LOVE hello kitty, but it's actually from H&M. around $5
watch: it's my daddy's (this is my new outfit staple along with my radio ring)

a closer look:

you can barely see this bracelet on my other arm, but it's one of my favorites and i've had it for years. yep, that's a LV flower. my mom bought this for me for me many many many years ago. i wish i would've got the other style they had too b/c they don't have these anymore.

these were my earrings, from H&M. i'm pretty sure these were around $5

shoes: by anne michelle $36

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Closing out 2010 with a BANG ... literally

BANG BANG BANG! i've been wanting to go shooting for about umm...10 years now. my bf in high school is actually the one that got me interested in shooting and guns in general. he and his family are actually really big into hunting and of course along with the rifles, own a few pistols as well. my little taste of shooting was going paintballing with him and his dad. forest not speedball...i would have never survived at speedball. and honestly, being in the forest with all the make shift bunkers really added to the fun. that's the closest i'll ever get to a war field. lol

we would go to the range but for some reason we never rented a lane. and i would always go to the gun/knife shows when ever they were in town. so in all that time, i actually got really comfortable being around guns.

during our christmas get together my sister was talking to my uncle about her fantasy gun...a kimber. and so we all made a date to go to the range.

i'd say i did fairly well for my first time!

totally fun and totally addicting. adding a gun to my wishlist of items will probably come soon. but for now i'll borrow my uncle's browning. and perhaps my sister's kimber once she gets hers. all i know is i've just been formally introduced to my new addiction. looks like visiting the range will be a AT LEAST a monthly affair.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

last run of 2010

so it's 2011 already which means this post is kindda late. better late than never and i'm really proud of myself for this accomplishment so i just had to share.

everyone knows that eating "right" during the holidays is a hard task. although, for me, i'm not so concerned with WHAT i'm eating, rather HOW MUCH. i've actually been really good and i don't think i overindulged too much. but, i definitely wanted to get a run in during my long weekend.

so, the day after christmas, i willed myself out of bed (b/c getting out of bed is a task everyday of my life), ate a little something and went on my new 5.2 mile trail. i was excited for this run b/c i wanted to try out this running app on my phone. too bad for me, the trail i love to run is a bit in the woods and there's no service. so 13 seconds into my run, the app stop working...booooo!!! and of course, b/c i don't like looking at a clock when i run, i didn't notice this until i finished. butttt, the app did record the time i started and i got a text message the very instant i finished so i was able to calculate my run.

i started at 123pm and finished at 213pm, which means i ran the trail in 50 minutes flat! i averaged 9.62 minutes/mile. HOLY MOLY!!! even i thought i was trippin. i know this isn't majorly fast but it's definitely an accomplishment for me.

there are some rolling hills, so i'm wondering if the downhills are what have me running so much faster...so my plan is to run good ol' lake merced again to compare. let's hope i'm really faster and this is not just a fluke! lol