Hello My Dear Darling Friends!
Today I noticed that my mind was wandering away from the task at hand… A lot. I have been feeling a little tired and I know that it is because my body is adjusting to new changes. I did the same workout routine for 4 weeks using methods of progressive overload and this week was the week that I switched things up!
It is an exciting time as my body becomes familiar with new exercises and different levels of intensity. For the first 4 weeks I was utilizing the 5×5 method for my upper body workouts. Now I have increased my amount of repetitions. I enjoyed 5 x 5 and in the future I might go back, but I think I need to strengthen my wrists and joints before I think about lifting much heavier. I noticed that my right wrist was very tender throughout and it has just recovered.
My heart is all in, but I can tell that my energy levels are affecting my motivation. Thankfully I know the cause. This week I decided to give up coffee for two weeks. I am drinking green tea instead and it is definitely a different more calm kind of energy boost.
Workout of the Day: Chest & Biceps + Treadmill hiit
- Standard Push-ups 3 x 15
- Reptile Push-ups 3 x 10 per side
- Dumbbell Bench Press 3 x 20
- Dumbbell Flys 3 x 20
- Hammer Curls 3 x 20
- Standing Dumbbell Curls 3 x 20
- Single arm Bicep Curls 3 x 12
- 21’s Bicep Curls 7 half up, 7 half to top, 7 full
*Between each set I did 30 seconds of active rest in the form of 25 push-ups*
I enjoyed the variety and amount of movement in this workout. Those reptile push-ups really kicked my butt and I am looking forward to getting better at them! After lifting I went on the treadmill I did 5 sprint intervals 1 minute sprint + 1 minute easy. After that I did steady state cardio on varying inclines for 30 minutes.
Word of the Day:
abecedarian– adjective
- Of or relating to the alphabet.
- Alphabetically arranged.
- Rudimentary.
That is one of those words that I take a double-take, listen to the pronunciation and have to ask “this is a word?” I like it and I am glad I have learned a new word!
I am toying with the thought of moving again in the near future. I would like to go somewhere that gets a lot of sunshine, but does not turn into a burning inferno throughout the summertime.
While I like the sound of that, the thought of having to switch gyms again is intimidating. I like this little townhome gym that is very low-profile and rarely ever crowded. There is a small handful of regulars and I am proud to be one of them. I think I would miss that, but I am also open to going with the flow!
On another note, what do you think of air-popped popcorn as a snack? I know some very fit people who eat it on a regular basis and I even got myself one of those popcorn air-poppers. Please comment below with your thoughts and also your favorite snack ideas!
❤ Alana
I love pop corn as a snack! Good job keeping up on your work outs and challenging yourself! Me personally, I hate being on the ground doing any exercise (Lol) although I do stretches & gentle yoga movements on the floor. You know me … Dance is life. ❤️
Hi April! Thanks a bunch! I think dance is the best workout and I always get into my best shape when I dance. Keep it up!!! Xoxo
That is a funny word
– and my only take on popcorn is to stay away from GMO
Ugh
And so I like Trader Joe’s brand but actually because I don’t have very many grains (just veggies and lots of foods with fats and oils with meats for my blood type – which is red meat) so I skip the popcorn
I thought so too 🙂 I was planning on going to Trader Joe’s today. I am glad you mentioned blood type. I need to find out what mine is so that I can eat accordingly. I know both of my parent’s, but not mine. I need to get with the program!
Well I am not sure I believe all the blood type info out there – but I do people our heritage plays a part and I do believe we need some animal products for health.
And you are with the program ! You sure are – it there is so much to learn as we grow – right?
Yes that is true there is so much to learn every day 🙂
And check out my husband’s site (if you want) but he is big into the food part of working out because he used to workout six days a week and could not get results he wanted – it was until he changed his eating and so now he shares a Friday Video and other tidbits about what he learned
The optimized life .net (Chris Prior)
And I think he recently covered popcorn!
—
And be sure to check out
Mark’s Daily Apple blog for awesome posts about food –
Thank you for telling me about your husband’s site and Mark’s Daily Apple. I feel like I could be in a similar boat with working out a lot and feeling like I am not getting great results. I really appreciate it 🙂
❤ Alana
😉
And the bullet proof blog is another awesome resource where the motto is “live strong – not hungry” or something like that because Dave asprey learned first hand about recovery foods and the best for nurturing cells etc
I really appreciate the resource recommendations. I often get a little overwhelmed because there is too much information out there. It is nice to have some good starting points. I am definitely eager to learn and continue to get healthy 🙂