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Nike Training Club Workout in Georgetown!

By on May 21, 2013 in D.C., excuses, exercise, workout

So I had hoped to get out of this. I tried every excuse in the book: “I’m tired,” “my legs will be too tired from the 10k!,” “It’s so late and I will just want to go home!” to no avail.

I mentioned the free bootcamp class held at the Nike store in Georgetown to my roommate and she was all about it. We planned to go a few weeks ago and as the date got closer I became a bit nervous. I’ve read about the class and everyone pretty much agrees it’s one of the toughest workouts they have been through.

My escape attempts were futile as my roommate knows me well enough to call out my BS and tell me to suck it up. So after work on Monday we met up in Georgetown for smoothies and a stroll before class.

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Fortunately we arrived at the store a bit early. I say we were lucky as they only let the first 100 people in the door. After that, the class is considered full and they turn people away.

My roommate grabbed a pair of shoes from the nice women working the desk and was told she could try them out for the workout and to return them afterward. I think it is really great Nike allows you to try out their gear. That’s the right way to make a sale in my opinion. :)

We roamed around the empty store before settling into our spots toward the middle of the pack. Soon enough the live DJ started blasting music (in a good way) and we got excited.

The class was a circuit format. 4 exercises completed 2 times through for 60 seconds each. The exercises were all body weight/ cardio-endurance type moves that ranges from the running man (seriously) to kickboxing moves.

It was painful and I was definitely humbled by the endurance level of the trainers and the people around me. But as hard as it was it was also a great time! The energy in the room was electric and between the music and the trainers you have no choice but to give it your all!

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(Before the sweatfest!)

I am so glad my roommate pushed me to go. I would not have wanted to miss out! We are definitely planning to go back to the Nike Training Club workouts in the future and if you are local I definitely recommend you check it out!

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Total Upper Body Workout in 30 Minutes!

By on April 30, 2013 in exercise, workout

Sunday I found it pretty challenging to motivate myself to do any sort of physical activity. That is pretty status quo after my long run on Saturday. That said, I know I should take advantage of the free time while I have it (i.e. not in between working/sleeping hours) so I came up with an upper body circuit and just sucked it up.

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The workout is definitely challenging if you use high enough weights. I went with 12lbs on the bicep curls and woodchoppers (click the link for a demonstration) and a 25lb kettlebell on the swings. I felt decent Sunday night and about half-way through Monday until the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) set in. Holy burn! I didn’t anticipate being so sore but that in itself lets me know that this workout needs to go into regular rotation.

I hope you try it out!

Question: What is your favorite upper body exercise?

PS There is still time to enter the Bestowed Giveaway! Check it out!

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Upper Body Burner + Cooking Dinner on the Weeknight

By on April 16, 2013 in cooking, exercise, workout

I haven’t turned off the news or stopped stalking Twitter. Staying up to date on this horrible tragedy seems to be the only thing I can focus on this week. I just cannot fathom what all of those people are going through.

It leaves me in this weird place where I don’t want to focus or care about anything else. It all just seems insignificant but I know that we will all have to move forward.

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It was a somber day at work. Nothing of consequence happened and the day passed in a haze. Once I arrived home I headed for the gym for a tough upper body workout that I came up with on the fly.

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My arms, back, and chest hurt today, not going to sugar coat it. I used a heavy weights and pushed hard through the sets so my DOMS is well deserved.

I came up with dinner on the fly as well last night. I am really trying to actually cook after work rather than throw random contents of the fridge/freezer on a plate and call it a meal. I think it is an important part of work/life balance. I enjoy cooking once I actually start…I just need to remember that.

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I sautéed kale in olive oil with salt, pepper, and nutritional yeast, and added in a bit of shredded chicken while the pasta was cooking. Once drained I added the pasta to the kale mixture, added in a bit more EVOO, and sat down to a lovely meal.

One last thing before I go…

It was a big day for my plus one! After a long hiatus he tied up his new Nike’s and headed out for his first run in years. I am beyond proud and so excited to welcome a new running buddy.

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This is the beginning of a beautiful career for him! :)

Question: Do you cook dinner during the week or rely on quick staple foods?

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Leftovers and Little Old Ladies

By on April 9, 2013 in D.C., food, rest day, Washington, weather, workout

I awoke to the sound of birds chirping at my window Monday morning. It was lovely. The sun was streaming through my open window, I just had a lovely 10 hour sleep and the day held so much promise. Cheery thoughts, no?

That doesn’t happen often with another workweek looming ahead but it is hard to be sour when the weather is so beautiful. I woke up a few minutes early to do some yoga since I knew my body was going to hurt from the race. Boy was I right. I can tell the weak-spots in my legs and will be working to incorporate new exercises into my strength training routine. Beyond my legs, I also seem to have a very stiff back. This is due either to the exercises I did on Saturday morning or my bad posture.

Sitting all day certainly does not help the stiff situation so I made a conscious effort to take lots of walking breaks and get out of the office during lunch.

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Along the way I saw the cutest little old ladies carrying their grocery bags home. My friend and I joked that we could be just like them one day, so I snapped a picture. It’s not weird if you take pictures of strangers because you think they are cute, right?

For lunch I incorporated Sunday night’s dinner into leftovers.

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I made a steak salad with organic power greens from Trader Joe’s, steak, asparagus, and tomato. It was delicious paired with a few pieces of the fresh baguette I picked up at the market on Saturday.

After work I had a nice little dinner on the balcony.

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It is truly amazing what the proper lighting can do for food photos. Dinner included Trader Joe’s lentil chips, 1/4 avocado with sea salt, hummus + salsa, carrots, and 1/2 vegetarian chili. It was the perfect combination of crunchy and satisfying.

Afterward my roommate and I went on a nice long walk on the Mt. Vernon trail and caught up on each other’s lives. With big changes on the horizon we are making a sincere effort to hang out as much as possible. The night reminded me of the lazy days of summer and kind of felt like a weekend. It was so nice to step away from the grind and do something different!

Questions: How do you take advantage of beautiful weather? What was the best thing you ate yesterday?

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Fit Things Friday

By on April 5, 2013 in running, workout

Let’s talk about fitness n’ things. This article, in particular. Sometimes I feel like Thought Catalog is the cooler, more well-written version of my thoughts. Insightful, yet amusing is usually what I am going for when I post but I am well aware that  I rarely, if ever, comes across that way. I will soldier on! I realize the article I linked to is a bit counter-intuitive as it is all about feeling out of shape and NOT working out but we all have those days. And when we do, I just want someone or something to relate to, you know?

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(This was one of those days)

And on the opposite end of the spectrum is a fun little workout I made to share with you guys. Lately, I am all about getting the most out of the little time I allocate to my workouts (damn you, snooze button!). So I try to come up with workouts that incorporate a pinch of cardio, a dash of weights, and a little cool-down. It may not look like much, but remember that something is always better than nothing!

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This was the perfect early AM sweat session. I’m still on the fence about working out before work. On the one hand I love having it out of the way but on the other hand I find that I am definitely more tired throughout the day and often more hungry if I ran. I think I will stick to mixing it up for now and just do what I can when I can.

Questions: Do you prefer AM or PR workouts? Why do you prefer one over the other?

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Quick Cardio Workout and Coffee Winners!

By on March 22, 2013 in giveaway, workout

I only have a few things to share today so I will keep it snappy.

- Apart from a long run on Saturday morning I plan to keep things low key this weekend and I could not be more excited. I’ll be hanging out with this guy doing the family bonding.

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He looks thrilled.

- I did a great treadmill cardio workout yesterday morning that I can’t wait to share with you guys. It works on speed and endurance simultaneously which is great for those workouts when you’re short on time.

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Adjust your speed according to your ability but be sure that the 2 minute sprints are all out! You want to be breathless by the end. I mean, you’re already on the treadmill so you may as well make it worthwhile, right?

- Finally, the winners of the Keurig Coffee Sample Wellness packs are (according to Random.org):

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Savannah, Ashley, and Logan please send me an email with your mailing address to jennifer@knackfornutrition.com so I can pass along your information to Green Mountain!

Question: What are you most looking forward to this weekend?

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