Blogger-Made Home Workout Challenge - Day 1

Today was the first day of the Blogger-Made Home Workout Challenge. I was nervous about how or at what intensity the workouts would be done at but after doing the workouts - I felt that I had a really good workout. I did the workout at Level 3 for each exercise which immediately followed the 30 minutes of cardio. Can you see how drenched my shirt was after the workout. I really felt like it was one of the best workouts I've had yet this year. I still will hit the treadmill later tonight b/c I am not satisfied with that distance (I still am working towards my goal of 1,010 miles for the year - only twenty something away from 200 for the year thus far).

Below is the workout for Day 1 of the Home Workout Challenge. If you are participating - be sure to post below letting us know your thoughts and how you did with the workout!

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Monday

Formula for max heart rate: (208 – (.7 * age))

Formula for target heart rate: 50% - 70% of Max heart rate (MHR *.5 or .7)

- Stretch -

30 Minutes Cardio: This can take place any time throughout the day and should consist of an intensity level that can promote and create weight loss.

Exercise 1 – Side Plank Upper Body Twist (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeK3I45rx7E)

· Level 1 = 3 sets of 8 reps (one rep equals from start to finish of twist)

· Level 2 = 3 sets of 10 reps (one rep equals from start to finish of twist)

· Level 3 = 3 sets of 12 reps (one rep equals from start to finish of twist)

Exercise 2 – Jump Lunge Squats (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7Gld30m53o)

· Level 1 = 2 sets of 8 (one rep equals one lunge per leg)

· Level 2 = 2 sets of 10 (one rep equals one lunge per leg)

· Level 3 = 3 sets of 8 (one rep equals one lunge per leg)

Exercise 3 – Round the Clock Pushups (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjOPuUUqrvo)

· Level 1 = Knees on Ground pushup after every third hour. 3 sets. (one set equals one time around the clock)

· Level 2 = Full pushup at every third hour of clock. 3 sets (one set equals one time around the clock)

· Level 3 = Full pushups at every hour of clock. 3 sets (one set equals one time around the clock)

Exercise 4 – Plank (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHQmRINu4jU)

· Level 1 = hold plank for 20 seconds. 2 sets (one set equals 20 sec. hold)

· Level 2 = hold plank for 25 seconds. 3 sets (one set equals 25 sec. hold)

· Level 3 = hold plank for 30 seconds. 3 sets (one set equals 30 sec. hold)

Exercise 5 – Wall Sits (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDjKeOCgisw)

· Level 1 = hold sit for 20 seconds. 2 sets (one set equals 20 sec. hold)

· Level 2 = hold sit for 35 seconds. 3 sets (one set equals 35 sec. hold)

· Level 3 = hold sit for 40 seconds. 3 sets (one set equals 40 sec. hold)

- Stretch -

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If you would like to jump in the week's challenge...post your email below in a comment!

Blogger-Made Home Workout Challenge

You will have to forgive my weak attempt at looking fierce and strong on the treadmill. Ha. My wife snapped it a couple weeks ago while on the treadmill.

In my attempt to have you all create my home workout for one week - I had the idea of challenging you all to do it with me. I've been given some really good ideas for exercises to perform and have some ideas of my own. Do you think you have it in you to try this challenge?

The Blogger-Made Home Workout Challenge will start on Monday. The workouts will be listed by days with your choice of day for one to two rest days (not sure yet - suggestions?). The workouts will be sent via email the night before for the next day's workout. It will go from Monday to Sunday.

The idea is that we can workout without having to spend money all of the time. We use what we have in front of us and make due with what we have. Life can be hard sometimes and we don't always have the luxury of time to make it to the gym. If right now you do not have a membership to a gym - this is perfect for you. It should not take much time and I hope it pushes your body's limits and imagination. Exercise instructions will be given in the email - hopefully along w/a picture or link to further explain if questions remain.

This challenge will cost no money and all that participate will be entered into a drawing to win a $15.00 Walmart gift card. If you are out of the U.S. - we will figure something out around the same value for you to receive.

How to join this Blogger-Made Home Workout Challenge: (two things)

1. Comment below giving your email address (for ex: thetrickshot at hotmail dot com)

2. Link this Post to your Blog. (comment letting me know that you have done with a link back to yours)

Extra entry for tweeting this challenge - comment letting me know that you have done so.

@MistrTyler

I challenged you to challenge me - I have now returned the favor.

Get off of the couch and lift the couch!

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Updated Photos & A Workout Created by You!

I wanted to thank everyone for the kind words and all of the prayers that you offered in regard to the passing of my grandmother. Thanks so much!

I have really taken to this idea of taking pictures of my workouts, food, and just life. I wanted to share some more pictures of what my workouts consist of and a little of my life. One of those pictures is of me lifting the couch for a workout – suggested by Jeremy from Stellar Path. It was not as hard as it looks as it has a pivoting point with the back legs of the couch.

My wife and I made some homemade pizza tonight. I saw a recipe on a blog (I read lots of blogs) and forgot what the recipe said. We improvised and went to the produce isle at the store for some pizza toppings. I had little sauce, little cheese, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, and turkey bacon. We wanted to add some meat and I did remember that they used turkey pepperoni but the local store had none; we used turkey bacon. The pizza was really good and did not sit heavy. I would have rather had whole wheat dough though. I couldn’t find any. Any help with that?

I was looking forward to running at the park but then remembered that I have basketball tonight and thought I keep myself fresh for ball. The weather was so nice though I could not pass it up. I asked my wife if she wanted to take a walk at the park and of course she said yes. We didn’t get a long walk in b/c of some storms coming in but it was nice to include her in my workouts and have fun. She took some pictures of me today that I want to include.

CLICK HERE TO SEE SOME MORE OF MY COMPARISON PICTURES!!

On a different note --- it is time for you to create my next week’s resistance workout. I will attempt to do what you all tell me to for my workouts. I am leaving it up to you and am willing to try anything. I will continue to do my cardio either outside or on my treadmill but would like for you all to create my body resistance workout. As you can see from some of my workouts…I’m open to anything.

Leave a Comment posting your idea for a workout that you want me to do for one day. I will group the workouts together and take pictures of me doing those workouts. I will give you and your blog a shout-out in the process with a link back to your blog. Get challenging too – I want to challenge myself.

Home Workout Photos and a Sad Day

I got a call about 2:00am this morning letting me know that my grandmother passed away. We did know that it would happen soon but it still isn't easy. She was a goofy, fun loving person but she was ready to move on. She was 92 years old.

I didn't get much sleep after that and was dragging all day long. I came home and took a nap hoping to get some much needed rest and energy and it was awesome. I slept so well after teaching today. I woke up and my wife said, "let's do Subway tonight"; good idea! We did Subway and I don't remember the last time it tasted so good. We ate it while watching the Biggest Loser. I have to admit that I have been going for the underdog black team to lose the most weight because they have lots going against them. It's always fun to watch and it's inspiring to me.

I took some photos of one of my home workouts today. I thought they looked pretty cool. Who knew that a chair and my weight would work as an effective workout?!

Chair dips = 3 sets of 12 dips

Inclined Pushups = 2 sets of 15

Chair lifts = 3 sets of 20

Chair squats = 3 sets of 12


1 MILER ATTEMPT # 2 -- 10 min 52 sec. (lap 1 on pic)

That's cutting 30 seconds off of my last attempt!

Check my other successes here!

Calories: 1739 cal.

Workout: 1.52 miles

Nothing Less! Workout Advice & More

The mind can be the largest inhibitor of growth, both physical and spiritual, and can lead to either a positive or negative form of self-discipline.

The ability to control ourselves is beyond what most of us have ever experienced. This is why I was 70-80 lbs overweight. I lacked the self-discipline to control what I ate, things in life, and essentially - whatever I was given to do. I would not go as far to say that I was a failure because I do not believe that for one bit. I have done many things in which I am proud of and consider successes; it has taken me a while to learn that I must be in control of myself though.

Today, I was reminded of the importance of self-control. This year has, thus far, proven to be a year of expanding my limits and fitting into the body that was made for me. I've stretched this one out for too long.

I attempted a 5k again today and I was very intimidated before I tried it out. That treadmill had me nervous and it's only 3.1 Miles. I do that almost every day walking/running. The thing that made me nervous is that I was trying to run the whole thing. My last attempt for the 5k ended at 2 miles or roughly 3.2k. I procrastinated the run and finally, finally got the focus to do it. I had to be disciplined and I did not want to be. Why so much focus on one silly run? I understand that it's just a silly run, I do -- but I have not been able to conquer it. I will though.

The way I overcame it was through four little pieces of paper with some words written on them. You've seen them already in the picture attached and they really did help. Between the 1 mile and 1.5 mile marker -- I was beat. I'm not sure why but I was so ready to quit. At 1.47 miles I yelled out, "Oh my GOSH!". Here are the thoughts that were going through my head:

"Stop for thirty seconds and walk."
"You just can't beat the 2 mile marker today."
"Ahh."
"Stupid mp3 player" (it died and my iPod didn't have much juice and I was using it for a timer)
"Don't stop - just slow down to a 4.7 mph"
"If you stop now - you might as well quit the attempt b/c you can't say you ran it all at once."
"Give me strength."
"Up the speed - you hit the two mile marker"
"(@2.15 mile) - what will my legs feel like when I stop?"
"2.25 Good job Seth - quarter mile cool down"

Yes - I do talk to myself when I run. Heck, I talk to myself when I don't run. I think it's okay to do!

A friend asked me if I had any advice on working out or running. I am not really in any position to give out any real advice concerning these two aspects of better health. I will do my best to give you some real talk.

1. Visit the people on my blogroll. I check all of them out but two that I specifically look for and have plugged before were Andrew @ Andrew is getting fit and Mac @ getfitslowly. They have been doing this for a long time and can offer some awesome advice. I seriously doubt that they would have me stop plugging them.

2. Make your workouts intentional and with purpose. Get invested in yourself. You do not have to spend lots of money to get fit. Being willing, devoted, and disciplined equals success.

3. Record everything. I would say to count calories in the beginning. Some live by it and some despise it but I think that it has helped in controlling how much I eat and what I eat. Record your workouts and runs. Make a spreadsheet, join a online fitness network - somehow & some way keep track of your successes. This will provide for you to see how much you've grown.

4. Be honest and accept the position you are in. Because this is your journey - there is no one else to blame but yourself for lack of quality decisions (diseases and such are the exception unless they were brought on by us). We all have a past and it has brought us up to this point; the circumstances do not define us but rather how we choose to react to those circumstances does.

5. Push yourself. Know your limits -- and then attack those limits. If you stop at the limits that you have set...you will never exceed them. Do not expect to get big results if you are not giving big effort.

6. Have accountability. My accountability has been this blog. This blog and those who read it go through my head while I'm working out. I need to bring my 'A' game every time. I know that I will inspire people to be better only if I am giving my all. Use your family members, friends, blog, or whatever as an accountability partner. Necessity.


Optional Help: Create a playlist for when you run. Don't worry about time or distance but be active until your playlist is over. It is an easy way to get a workout in and not cut it short for any reason.

I hope this helps!

Thanks all for stopping by!

Calories: 1761

Workout: 2.5 treadmill (w/o 1); 1.52 treadmill (w/o 2)

Weekend Warrior Wannabe

Okay, so I didn't officially sign up to take on the Weekend Warrior Challenge but I was active all weekend! Sundays eating wasn't quite up to par but it was not bad foods - just not enough food. I almost gave up on Saturday with finding a time to workout. Here's my weekend:

On Saturday I woke up early (not typical) and did my regular morning routine. I blogged, read other blogs, and then got off the computer. My plan was to get on the treadmill and do my workout before I left town but for some reason -- I was moving at a frantic pace but was getting no where. My wife was out of town with some friends in Springfield and I decided I would straighten up the place for her for when she got back. That took longer than I thought it would.

We had also been cleaning out some closets and had loads of stuff to donate -- that meant a trip to the local donation place...then the post office...and then Wally world real quick. All of which, was not real quick. Subway was my last stop before leaving town and it was the quickest stop of them all. Did I mention that I failed to workout before I left the house?

My reasoning for not working out is that I knew of a fitness place in the town that I was going too that would probably let me use a treadmill for a small fee. I was okay with that but once I got into town, got my room, and made it to the place - they were closed. This is the point when I would normally just give it up and workout the next day. Saturday's were never my favorites days to work out anyways. That did not happen. As I was driving through town I noticed a couple walking on a high school track. I stopped at a gas station for a water and asked them if it was open to the public - they said yes. That was it, my mind was made up to hit that track.

That's 3 days out of last week that I was able to workout outside! It was nice. I tried to take a picture of the track for you but I didn't get the whole track. On the left of the picture is some of the bleachers that I ran as well. I walked 1/2 lap, ran 4, walked 1, ran 1, walked 1/2, ran 1 1/2, walked 1/2, ran 1. After the running I did two sets of regular push-ups separated by one set of T push-ups which were followed by running the stairs of the bleachers. Ah. Bleachers were not kind to my legs.

Sunday's workout was more normal. I played basketball last night as I normally do.

Workout: Saturday = 2.5 miles; Sunday = 3.14

Faculty Vs. Students : Battle of the Year

Last night was the faculty vs. students basketball game. I...was...tired once I got home. Of course, I didn't let them know while we were playing that I was tired. All of those nights playing with the big boys at the gym (and might I say my picking the fastest guy) really paid off. Those kids did not think that Mr. Tyler could run for that long. That made me smile. I told them during the day that I was going to outrun them - I think I did a few of them. Their team had one eighth grade boy that could probably outrun the whole school. These were middle school ages (that just got done playing their regular season).

You know, it was really nice to hear our "coach", the girl's b-ball coach and Language teacher, say to a parent, "Well, it was nice having the energizer bunny on our team" while pointing at me. That also made me smile. I am not trying to brag but I am going to soak up the encouragement.

Anyone that is trying to reach a new level of health NEEDS encouragement.

Anyways...if you have not guessed it - we won. It was a really fun night. we actually ran the faster paced game then the kids did. It consisted of me taking off down the court and the others throwing me the ball - ha. Lots of fast breaks. I think I got about 10 points alone doing fast breaks. The score ended at 36-35 teachers. It took us all back to high school.

Our principal was running down the court as well. He's in his 60's but he is active on the treadmill every day. That was cool to see. This game was a benefit game for our music teacher and athletic director. She was in a car accident earlier in the year and just escaped with her life. She has recovered like crazy and has lost 60 pounds in the process! She just made it back to school last week and she was able to make it to the game. The crowd gave her 1000+ dollars to see the fun game. I'm really proud of the contributors and of the kids.

On a different note...I have been busy all morning and I still need to get a workout in before I leave town. I didn't officially take on the Weekend Warrior Challenge but am trying to make sure I stay busy each day of the weekend. I'm off to get a couple miles in.

Less than 50 miles and I have another giveaway. Also, Chelsey - your prize is on its way!

Calories:

Workout: Basketball - 3.3 miles --- that's what playing the whole game does for you :)

I also wanted to route you guys to Jeremy's blog Stellar Path --- he is currently having a GIVEAWAY!! CHECK HIM OUT HERE!!!

Outdoor Running & Temptations

Another beautiful day today. Winter can stay away for good, at least until December - we all like white Christmas'.

I took advantage of the weather and went to the local park and worked out again. My goal, via Twitter (MistrTyler) was to run for 20 minutes non-stop. It was a success! I opened up with some stretching and some walking to warm my body up and then was off. I wore my pedometer on my shoe as usual and from start of walk to end of run was roughly 23 min 45 sec. I took a picture of my watch which says 24:25 (I forgot to stop it because I wanted to take a picture of the water fountain that was not giving me much desired water!).

I also took a picture of my shoe that read 1.64 miles.

To be honest, I didn't map anything out and just started running. It is a lot different with all of the hills but I also attacked those hills -- I actually changed direction to run into a neighborhood that looked hilly. I need to learn how to run on the different surfaces that I don't get with my treadmill. Don't get me wrong...that treadmill has been a life-saver but I won't be running my 5k on the treadmill.

I played tennis again and came out with the win again. We played the best of 7 games. I won the set 4-3. It was a bit tougher playing after the run than yesterday when we played before the run.

I still have some a couple more miles tonight to do but will put some time in between the two different workouts. I'm feeling pretty good.

As for the temptations. Today was another teacher's birthday and they had a counter full of sweets and goodies. Can you guess which snack I had?








Calories: 1943 cal.

Workout: outdoors - 1.64 miles; indoors - 1.44 ; total = 3.08 miles