BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE: WEEK 2 (5/26 - 5/31)

Mentally, week 2 was much harder than week 1.

I got so caught up in wanting to see my body change, that I got stressed over the little things.

I had to tell myself to kick the "quick fix" attitude; I should know better than that!

Naturally, I vented out to Simon about my struggles and he said some very meaningful things that switched my thinking back around. He told me that the woman I was 4 years ago would be so proud of who I am today. It really helped and I'm really glad I have someone to support me emotionally during this contest.

It's really important to have someone or a group of people who will be able to support you emotionally. Because it will get tough and it won't be easy, but it will be worth it!

I truly believe that nutrition is key to losing weight/body fat. I've always ate a clean diet but when this contest started, I switched it up; I'm carb cycling now.
My low carb days are harder and I'm not all sunshine and rainbows. My high carb days are all sunshine and rainbows. However, I'm not miserable on either days because I still eat enough food to fuel my body for workouts. Some days I find myself more hungry than other days, but isn't that anyone who likes to eat?

You'll read in a few moments under my proud moment that I lost 1 pound and 1/2 an inch off my waist, that happened in only 1 week!! My waist has not changed in at least the last 6 months and BAM, it suddenly changes. How? Nutrition, that's how.

Oldie but a goodie: You can't out train a bad diet.

You can see the full workout here: Angel's BodySpace Track Page

What I learned this week:

Set small goals and conquer them. When I conquered small goals I was able to feel proud of myself and keep moving forward towards my big goal!

Proud moment:

Losing 1 pound and 1/2 an inch off my waist! Take that, body fat!

Boxing three, 3 minute rounds (9 minutes total)
Deadlifting 75 lbs.

Personal record:

Running 1 mile at 9 minutes and 12 seconds!
Adding 70 lbs. to my calf raises (180 lbs)
Adding 75 lbs. to my squats (180 lbs)

What I could have improved:
Stretching more after workouts

WEEK 2

Monday: Upperbody (heavy lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Sitting Crunch Machine
• Chest Padded Crunch Machine
• Upperbody
• Bicep Curls
• One Arm Dumbbell Row
• Pushups
• Bent Over Weighted Pick Ups
• Tricep Pull Downs
• Chest Press
• Wide Grip Lat Pull Downs
• Cardio
• Boxing 15-30 minutes

Tuesday: Lowerbody HIIT

• X Jumps
• Weighted Step Ups
• Donkey Kicks
• Deadlifts
• Sumo Jump Squats
• Split Squats
• Goblet Squats
• Burpees

Wednesday: Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Mountain Climbers
• Planks
• LIIT Cardio, 9 minutes (1 mile)

Thursday: Upperbody (light lifting) + Cardio

• Upperbody
• Push Ups
• Standing Military Press
• Side Lateral Raises
• Reverse Flys
• Incline Dumbbell Curls
• Dropset: Tricep Dumbbell Kickbacks
• Cable Hammer Curl
• Dropset: Overhead Cable Tricep Extensions
• Bicep Curls
• Dropset: Lying Close Grip Barbell Tricep Extension aka Skull Crusher
• HIIT Cardio, 10 minutes

Friday: Lowerbody (heavy lifting) + Abs

• Abs
• Decline Leg Raises
• Chest Padded Crunch Machine
• Decline Reverse Crunches
• Sitting Crunch Machine
• Hanging Leg Raises
• Lowerbody
• Weighted Calf Raises
• Abductor Machine
• Adductor Machine
• Clean Deadlifts
• Padded Squat Machine
• Lying Leg Curls
• Leg Extensions
• Leg Press
• Prowlers

Saturday: Upperbody (HIIT)

• 1:00 minute warm up jog
• Hanging Pull Ups
• 1:00 hour boxing

There you have it, all of my workouts posted for week 2!
I'm ready for week 3 and can't wait to see what other changes I will happen. I have approximately 4 more weeks of this competition.

I'm having a difficult time accepting that progress is progress, no matter how small.
Simon has a favorite quote that says "progress is never swift nor easy."
I'm trying to keep that in mind.

xo,

BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE: WEEK 1 (5/19 - 5/24)

Last week, I announced in this post, that I entered into a competition on BodyBuilding.com

I remember Simon telling me "if it'll help bring you closer to your goals, do it."
He's so supportive and I'm so thankful.
I'm extremely excited & determined.

What I kept thinking about while working out was winning. Not just winning the prize, but fulfilling my goal, which is a toned body. I know that might sound a little self centered, cocky, or materialistic, but I know I'll gain more than just a nice body. It is natural to want a nice body after putting all that effort into working out.

Our workout split changed from what I had posted last week and I'm fine with that. The important thing to me is that I get my daily workout done. It's also good to change things up so that you don't get bored and you keep your muscles guessing.

For the next 6 weeks, I'll be doing a weekly recap of what I did the previous week.
I'll be writing the workouts on the blog each week but if you go to my BodySpace track page you can see the workouts live in action with reps, sets, and pounds (adjust accordingly) and do them too!
If you have a BodySpace, add me as a friend! :)

I make sure that all of my strength and focus goes towards weight training, and then do my cardio last.

WEEK 1

Monday: Upperbody (heavy lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• HIIT Cardio, fasted, 15 minutes
• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Stability Ball Crunches
• Knee to Elbow Crunches
• Upperbody
• Preacher Curls
• Barbell Curl
• Elevated Cable Rows
• Incline Dumbbell Press
• One arm Dumbbell Row
• Triceps Cable Pull Down
• Band Assisted Pull Up
• Machine Bench Press
• Machine Preacher Curls

Tuesday: Lowerbody, HIIT

• Weighted Squats
• Donkey Kicks with Resistance Bands
• Weighted Side Lunges
• Weighted Calf Raises
• Weighted Butt Bridges
• Deadlifts
• Jumping Jacks
• Speed Skates
• Burpees

Wednesday: Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Bicycle Crunches
• Mountain Climbers
• Reverse Crunches
• Heel Taps
• Ab Roll Out
• LIIT Cardio, 11 minutes (1 mile)

Thursday: Lowerbody, heavy lifting

• Hamstring Curl
• Calf Raises
• Smith Machine Squats
• Padded Squat Machine
• Quad curls
• Sprints
• Crab Sprints
• Hops
• Butt Bridges with 10 lb. medicine ball
• Lying Machine Squat

Friday: Upperbody (light lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Bicycle Curls
• Mountain Climbers
• Reverse Crunches
• Heel Taps
• Stability Ball Crunches
• Upperbody
• Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns
• Close Grip Lat Pulldowns
• Tricep Pulldowns
• Seated Cable Rows

Saturday: Full Body (mostly upper body, legs were still recovering from leg day)

• 30 Minute boxing
• Upperbody
• Push Ups
• Bent Over Dumbbell to Chest
• Abs
• Crunches
• Knee to Elbow Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Reverse Crunches
• Bicycle Crunches

Sunday is my off day and I really reccommend a rest day! If you overwork your body you won't be putting 100% into your next workout. You can even do damage to your muscles. It's okay to take a break when you need it.

What I learned this week:

If I believed that I could do something, then I could certainly do it. Don't sell yourself short, you are stronger than you think!

Proud Moment:

When I couldn't do one more rep or felt like I couldn't lift a certain weight, I proved myself otherwise.

Personal Record:

Cut exactly 1 second off from my 10 second prowler run.
Squatted 105 lbs.

What I could have improved:

Going to sleep earlier.

6 WEEKS TO YOUR BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE

What was I thinking?
Okay, here it goes.....

As a health and fitness blogger, I'm actually quite embarrassed to post these pictures;

I'm embarrassed that I don't look like other female athletes who promote fitness.

I'm embarrassed that after 4 years as an avid athlete, I still haven't toned up.

I'm embarrassed that I still have extra body fat sitting in most women's trouble spots.

I'm embarrassed that I still have a "belly pooch, jiggly arms, big thighs, and a flat butt".

But I won't let that stop me.

Since starting my fitness journey 4 years ago, I've learned a lot about myself;

I learned that I could set personal records.

I learned that I could finish a 1 mile run in under 11 minutes.

I learned that I could lift a 20 pound dumbbell with one arm.

I learned that I could calf press 110 pounds.

I learned that struggle is the path to success.

I learned that the body can achieve so many wonderful things.

I learned how to push myself when I wanted to give up.

And I will continue to strive.

I am proud of myself.

I have lost a grand total of 43 pounds. While the number on the scale is not everything, it is something. I have sweat, cried, laughed, and tried for the past 4 years. The funny thing is, that one day, health and fitness just became something I did; it became who I was. There was no question whether or not I was going to workout or eat right, I just did it.

I still have stretch marks on the inside of my thighs.
I still have stretch marks on my "love handles".
I still have stretch marks on the back of my underarms.

I am not perfect.

I could sit here and shame my body, hate it, show absolutely no love towards it. Or I could appreciate what it can do; I can love my body and I can take care of it.

I am the daughter of God.

Simon loves all of me, including my beauty flaws. He likes to remind me that my stretch marks are there to let me know how far I have come because I am not who I used to be.

He is the backbone to my confidence.

I decided to enter into this competition because it was the added umph to my daily triumph. I've been working out extremely hard and I had plans to get in tip top shape before my summer vacation.

I got my first gym membership on May 12, 2014 and I started training with my boyfriend. It was only 3 days later that I would receive an email from BodyBuilding.com, reminding me to join their Best Self contest sponsored by BPI Sports.

I didn't want to enter it at first. I didn't want to embarrass myself and show the world my imperfect body.

But than I started thinking...

I could 1) use this as an added incentive to achieve my summer goals 2) I could show myself and others what we can do for ourselves if we stick to the goals we set in our minds.

Plus, that added winning prize incentive looks pretty nice too.

So I talked to Simon about it and he said he would train me, if I really wanted to enter. He was very supportive about it and that's something I have always loved about him. He's always been supportive when it comes to my dreams and goals.

We decided to stick to our workout split and would obviously train harder. Sometimes we have to switch around days due to work schedule but we never skip a workout.

I have to stick to a nutrition plan for the next 6 weeks.

I am not going to count macros, calories, etc.

I will continue to eat healthy and nutritiously.

WORKOUT SCHEDULE

• Monday (High Carb): Legs, heavy lifting // Abs
• Tuesday (Low Carb): Upperbody, light lifting + HIIT
• Wednesday (Low Carb) Heavy Cardio, 30 mins // Abs
• Thursday (High Carb): Upperbody, heavy lifting
• Friday (Low Carb): Legs, light lifting + HIIT // Abs
• Saturday (Low Carb): Full Body
• Sunday (Low Carb) Light Cardio 20 mins

NUTRITION SCHEDULE

• Minimum 1 gallon of water a day (that is SO hard)
• 6 meals/snacks every 3 hours
• Carb Cycling: Low/High

Some of you might wonder why I decided to enter.
Some of you may think I look completely fine.
Some of you may think I don't look like what I preach.
While this entire post pretty much explains all of why I entered into this competition, it all boils down to one thing- I want to push myself, mentally and physically.

I want to see just how much I can achieve mentally and physically.

I want to see all of my handwork and dedication in and on myself.

There is nothing greater than setting a goal and coming out of the long, hard working, & sweating challenges, as a completely new person.

I love living an active lifestyle and whether or not I "win" this competition, I will always be an active person.
This is my lifestyle, this is who I am, and I don't care what anyone else has to say about it.

The registration for the challenge has ended but that doesn't mean you can't challenge yourself.
Take a moment to think about what areas in your life you'd like to improve on and for 6 weeks, commit.

What will you do with 6 weeks?

xo,

Booty Call Workout!

Happy Monday!!

How are you?? I hope you're doing awesome! I've been so inspired by all of the requests pooring in on Facebook and Instagram! Now you can follow me on Twitter and subscribe to SUTWU's YouTube channel!

Use #shapeuptowakeup on both twitter & instagram so that I can see all of your pics! :)

So many amazing things are happening this year and I can't wait to share my journey with you!

You can become a Shape Up To Wake Up Girl and receive all the latest posts, news, recipes & so much more! Did I mention giveaways?!

All you have to do is email angel.redefiningbeauty@gmail.com with the subject line "SUTWU GIRL". It's free, fun & fiercely fabulous!

I'm so excited today because today is the day I release my very first workout video! All the ladies spoke and mostly wanted a booty workout!

Click the video above & begin your Booty Call Workout!

Click "Read More" to get the Booty call Workout printable & a delicious post workout recipe!! :)

Happy New Years!

First and foremost, Happy New Years!

I've made many new years resolutions, all of which never happened. That seems to be very common.

As I write this I sit here & reflect back on the one time I conquered my new years resolution. Then after that, everything seemed to click & fall into place.

New Years 2010: Lose Weight ✓
New Years 2011: Keep off the weight ✓
New Years 2012: Keep off the weight & tone my body ✓

New Years 2013: Keep off the weight, tone & define my body even more, eat better

I can't believe how much has changed in those short 3 years of my life. In 2010, I promised myself to change my life for the better and it has been the best decision I have ever made. Do you have a New Years resolution for 2013? If so, what are they? 

Most people laugh at that resolution, mostly because people dive head first into the goal early in January and by mid February they've given up.

You will mess up, you will fail, you will feel like you are losing, you will feel like the world is against you. Well I'm here to tell you something...
IT CAN & WILL HAPPEN!

I lost 31 pounds and guess what? I've kept it off. A lot of people ask me how I did it and I think they're always expecting a "real answer". Like..."I was on so & so diet" when in reality I was just altering the kinds of foods I was eating and working out. I'm sometimes at loss for words when I've explained how I did it and I know it wasn't the answer they expected. Here are 10 realistic advices that I'd give to anyone who wants to shed a few pounds:

1. Love yourself

• If you don't love yourself now, losing weight won't make you love yourself. This CAN NOT come from the image we see but from who we are and what we love to do that makes us love ourselves. This comes from within. I learned this when I lost weight and was still not happy. YOU MUST LOVE YOURSELF FIRST!

2. Eat at least 6 times a day

• Constantly eating (healthy stuff anyway) keeps your metabolism working. This means that your body is constantly burning fat for energy. This is what they mean when they say "Eat what you want & lose weight while doing it."
• Breakfast
• Snack
• Lunch
• Snack
• Dinner
• Small pre & post workout meal (counts as one)

3. Find motivation

• Workout with friends, siblings, parents. This is a good way to interact with people who have the same goals as you.
• Read motivational quotes (my favorite) Nothing gets me more motivated than reading a few uplifting quotes.

4. Ditch the sodas

• Water, un-sweet tea & coffee are the only drinks I drink on a daily basis. On special occasions I'll have an alcoholic beverage.
• Still miss the sodas? Try drinking flavored carbonated water. Try this until you're able to say bye-bye for good.

5. Portion/Self Control

• You need to know your portion sizes!
• This does not mean you need to restrict yourself to anything you want to eat. Want that chocolate cake? Have it, just remember to workout extra hard and/or swap out the next thing you eat with something much healthier.

6. Set realistic goals

• Chances are, you won't lose X amount of weight in X amount of time, especially in a week or two (like most crazy weight loss programs promise)
• Set goals like beating the time on your last run or lifting more weights every month. If you are watching your weight, aim for 1 pound every 1-2 weeks.
• If you're a beginner, try not to set a time frame on yourself.

7. Realize that this is a healthy lifestyle

• There should be NO time frame whatsoever. This is a lifestyle you have decided to live. You can't expect to stay healthy if you are putting yourself on a time frame. What's supposed to happen after your done with your highly talked about "10 week bikini bod" program? Chances are you'll gain back the weight.
• Every change you make should be a change for the rest of your life; until your last dying breath.

8. Cook at home

• Get rid of processed foods and start cooking fresh, real food.
• With the internet to powerful these days, all it takes is 5 minutes to look up a healthy recipe.
• If you're going out to eat, look at the menu ahead of time or check out the restaurant edition of the "Eat This, Not That" book.

9. Sleep

• Seriously, who doesn't like sleeping? Staying up late makes you grab for dirty greasy foods.

10. Exercise

• Abs are made in the kitchen but you also need to workout to tone your body if you ever want to see that six pack that we all have but is hiding under our FAT.

Remember to live your life & to love every second of it, most importantly, love yourself. You'd be surprised how much happier you can be if you just learned to love yourself. Loving yourself should be a sign of respect for yourself and to others, from there you and others will know your worth.

Good luck ;)

Make 2013 your year!

Bringing Sexy Back Workout!

I am not perfect. Even though I workout and work really hard at staying healthy, I still have certain areas about my body that I don't like. One of them is my back. 

I've never really even paid attention to it until I did start working out. I've been doing these workouts lately to have a more toned back. A lot of people seem to forget & neglect their back because who really thinks about that? Most of the time us ladies are more concerned about our abs!

Bringing Sexy Back Workout!

50 Dead Lift Upright Rows

Starting in standing position with feet hips width apart and slightly bending your knees, weights in front of your thighs. Bend at your hips to lower your torso until it’s almost parallel to the floor, keeping the weights close to your body but close to the ground. Return to standing while pushing up through your heels and squeezing your butt. Once in standing position, lift elbows to side so that weights are lifted towards your armpits. That's one rep.

25 Renegade Row

Get into a pushup position with your hands resting on dumbbells and your feet slightly more than hip-width apart. Brace your abs as you pull one dumbbell toward the side of your rib cage (b). Pause, lower the weight, then repeat with the other arm. That's one rep. 

25 Lat Pulldown

Sit at a lat-pulldown station and grab the bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip, arms straight and torso upright. Without moving your torso, pull the bar down to your chest as you squeeze your shoulder blades together. Pause, then slowly return to start. That's one rep.

Maybe with these workouts, I can finally wear shirts & dresses with pretty detailed backs!

Love, Angel xo

Strong Arms Workout!

I am officially back home from my trip to San Francisco! I'm happy to be home but I miss SF! Their weather is just absolutely different from Texas, it's foggy, cold, windy & wet. At least when I was there!

San Francisco is a tiny tiny land & it's jam packed. Everywhere you turn, theres people, buildings, cars or more people. There's hardly any land at all. To my surprise, since there's not much land available, their parks are built all within each other. So I saw a ton of people working out. It seemed like SF was a very fit place with all these people running and working out but it makes me wonder if it's only because everyone is at one park since there are hardly any parks. Either way, they're running & more power to them!

I wasn't lucky enough to get a hotel with a fitness room, I was practically crying all week. Now I'm back home and will hit the park as soon as possible, I need some rest first from my vacation...a little weird to ask for a rest from my vacation ain't it?? ;)

GOOD NEWS, I searched high and low for pictures that would demonstrate the workouts since I don't have the videos yet. I hope they suffice for now & I will definitely let y'all know when I have the videos up!

Strong Arms Workout!

50 Bicep Curls

Hold a pair of dumbbells at your sides, palms facing forward, and keep your back straight and chest up. Without moving your upper arms, bend your elbows and curl the weights toward your shoulders. Slowly lower the weights back to the starting position, straightening your arms completely. That's one rep.

25 Row with Triceps Kickbacks

Hold a dumbbell in your right hand and place your left knee and hand on a bench so your hips and shoulders form 90-degree angles with your legs and arms. Keeping your back flat and core tight, bend your right elbow to lift the weight to the side of your chest, then raise the weight behind you until your arm is completely straight. Reverse the move to return to start. Finish all reps, then repeat on the other side.

25 Overhead Dumbbells

Take object overhead, holding it with both hands. Keeping elbows pointed up, lower forearms behind your head, then straighten again. 

20 Stability Ball Chest Presses

Grab a pair of 8- to 15-pound dumbbells. Lie on a stability ball (positioning it underneath your mid to upper back) with your feet flat on the floor, knees bent about 90 degrees, and abs pulled tight. Hold the dumbbells by your chest, palms facing forward, and press them straight up toward the ceiling. Lower the weights and repeat, using your abs to keep your body still.

10 Push-Ups

I think everyone knows how to do these, if not, let me know!

1 minute Plank

Start to get into a pushup position, but bend your elbows and rest your weight on your forearms instead of on your hands. Your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles. Brace your core by contracting your abs as if you were about to be punched in the gut. Hold this position for 1 minute while breathing deeply. 

Let me know if you need any more details!! :)

Love, Angel xo

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

HIIT is a workout that works best when trying to lose the excess weight that you have left. Also, if done properly, it can make your muscles stronger. HIIT is a burst of intense workouts done in a short amount of time.

If not done properly, you can cause damage to your bones and could really hurt yourself. So be safe & only do them as many times as stated in the calendar. If you are doing this on your own, make sure to space out the times you do them within a week.

Love, Angel xo

Sunkissed Abs

As you can see, my abs are not all there but they are forming.

I strength train almost everyday for 1-2 hours after my 2-4 mile runs. There are days I don't workout at all so I use that as my rest day.

A lot...and I mean A LOT of women get a misconception of gaining abs. They think they can eat a bunch of junk food, sit around and do nothing. When really, they should really be eating clean and training dirty. They also think they don't have to run but can do 1,000 crunches everyday and get abs.

Let's get one thing straight, abs are the muscle that lie underneath your stomach fat. So the more fat you have, the less your abs will show. If you're not running AND strength training, chances are, your abs will not show. Think about it, have you ever seen a woman who has rock solid, nice & toned abs...with extra fat? Not likely.

I still have fat to lose and I am not afraid to admit that. It actually makes me work harder to shed off the extra fat that I still have and tone up every inch of my body.

Don't be ashamed of your body. Love your body & it will love you back. Care for your health and it will care back.

Lets get rollin with these sunkissed abs shall we??

Have a workout calendar? Go back & check out the Booty Call workout so that you can do both of them together! :)

Sunkissed Abs!

50 Hand-to-Toe Criss Cross

Laying on your back, leave your right leg bent and left leg stretched out straight. Leave left hand holding head & right hand above your head. As you crunch and bring your leg straight up, bring your right hand straight up towards your leg too. Your leg and hand should meet in the middle of your crunch. Do 50 reps on one leg then switch legs.

25 Mountain Climbers

In plank position, tuck your right leg into your chest while contracting your abs (suck it in!). Release leg back into starting position & repeat with the left leg, that is one rep. Do 25 reps on each leg.

25 Criss Cross Climbers

Like the original mountain climbers, instead of tucking your knees into your chest, this time you will cross your right knee to your left elbow and vise versa. (Criss Cross) Release leg back into starting position & repeat with the left leg, that is one rep. Do 25 reps on each leg.

50 Stability Ball Crunches

With your back laying on a stability ball, do one basic crunch while contracting your abs. Do 50 crunches.

25 Reverse Crunches

Lie on your back and bring your knees up into a 90 degree angle (crunch position) With a slight tilt up and hands behind your head for support, bring your knees towards your head and into crunch position. Do 25 crunches.

25 Russian Twists (Works well with 5 lb. dumbbells or 5 lb. medicine ball)

Sit on the floor with your feet planted on the ground and knees pointing up. Slightly lean your body back into a comfortable and bearable position. (When you get used to this workout, the more you lean back, the harder your abdomens will work.) With your hands, dumbbells or medicine ball, hold your arms straight out in front of you. Begin twisting your body to the right while keeping your feet planted on the ground. Next, twist your body to the left & alternate sides. One right twist & one left twist is one rep. Do 25 reps on each side.

Booty Call Workout!

Bare with me.

If you follow me on Facebook you've probably seen me talk about filming workout videos. As exciting as that sounds, it's nearly impossible right now with my schedule. What's a busy girl to do?

So for now in the month of August, all of the workouts will have to be read & you'll have to work on your imagination skills. It's not that tough, promise! Then when September rolls around, I hope that I have the majority of my workout videos up that will be on the calendars!! If not, you can yell at me and I'll cry...but I'll try to take it.

Each day, there will be a new post so that means you will have to find some time in your busy day to head over here so that you can check out the blog & your daily activity! Unless it says cardio or gives a specific workout, you'll most likely be over here on the blog.

So today we'll be doing workouts that are great for the Butt & Legs...but mostly the butt. No, this isn't going to give you a bigger booty and make you look like JLo or Kim K, but this will give you a nice booty that is more firm. Nothing wrong with that now is there??

Booty Call Workout!

25 Squats & Bicep Curls

Stand shoulder-feet width apart with 10 lb. dumbbell in both hands. Bend knees and go into squat position while curling up the dumbbell with arms. Release squat & bicep curl and go back into starting position. That is one rep, repeat until finished. 

25 Kneeling Leg Pumps

Get down on all fours, with your knees under your hips and wrists under your shoulders. Pull in your abs, draw your shoulder blades back and down, and lengthen your spine. Keeping your right knee bent, lift that leg behind you, keeping your thigh and knee in line with your shoulder. Both legs should be at a 90 degree angle, one down on the ground and one lifted up. Press your foot up to the ceiling, giving your buttock an extra tight squeeze at the top of the movement. Do 25 reps on one side then switch legs.

25 booty bridge

Lie on your back with hands at your side and knees bent. With your feet steady on the ground & arms guiding, slowly lift your entire body off the floor until you have created a bride out of your body. Slowly release your body back on the ground and repeat.

1 minute Booty Blaster

Stand on both feet with knees slightly bent. Without moving, keep knees slightly bent, step your right leg back behind you then bring it back to starting position then step it out to your right side then bring back in to starting position. Remember to rely on the balance of your alternate leg. This move should be done one step right after the other & not slowly. Do for 1 minute then switch legs.

1 minute Roller-skaters

With knees bent, extend hips back. Step your right leg to the right and your left leg extends behind to the right then step to the left with left leg and right leg extending behind the left. (Imagine a roller-skater & copy that exact move)

I know it can be confusing because there are no photos or videos but if your imagination just isn't that wild, shoot me an email and I'll find some photos for you!!

Work it! ;)

Love, Angel xo

Challenge #3, HIIT

So if you're frequently read my blog, you'll remember this story I wrote about beating the standard fitness score as an FBI agent. It was also challenge #2 that I'm constantly training for. 

How am I supposed to beat the 1.5 mile run in under 10 minutes you ask? Well...

I've been doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)!! HIIT is about mixing high intensity bursts of exercise with moderate intensity recovery periods. It’s brutal but has incredible advantages. It’s the quickest way to get fit, lose fat and supercharge for sports performance.

Before I give you the challenge, it's important for me to provide you with some safe pointers, especially if you're a beginner.

WARM-UPS:

The warm ups bring blood and energy into the muscles, the muscles realize they are being called on and prime themselves for doing work. In interval training, the cool down is also important, it starts your recovery off on the right foot. It's an excellent idea to do a few stretches after your warm up. 

SPRINTS

Be kind to your body and learn to distinguish what it feels like between pushing it hard and pushing it over its limit. Go as fast as your body can handle. 

RESTS

During your rest phase, do not fully stop but keep jogging at a steady and moderate pace.

Mountain Climber!

I really love this workout. There's so many different ways to do the mountain climber and I'll show yall all the possibilities soon. I do these almost every time I work out. First, lets start out with the original.

I started this about a month ago but only did 10 reps (5 each leg). I am starting to challenge myself to do 30 reps (15 each leg). It's tough but it's a challenge, I'm glad to say that I've been conquering this challenge. It isn't as tough as it used to be but when it becomes too easy, I start doing more reps! Keep that in mind!!

Targets: Abs and quadriceps

• Start at the top of a pushup
• (A) Keeping your abs braced, pick up your right foot and slowly bring your knee toward your right shoulder
• (B) Hold for two seconds, then return to start. Alternate legs until you've done 12 to 14 reps (six or seven per leg)

Harder: Instead of bringing your knees towards your right shoulder and setting on the floor, keep your foot off the floor and slightly out to your left (for left leg, right for right leg) and touch your knee to your elbow.

Easier: Instead of palms on the floor, hold on to dumbbells against the floor as your support. 

Climb that mountain like there's no tomorrow!!


Love, Angel xo

The 3 C's of Life

CHOICE, CHANCE, CHANGE

You must make a choice 

to take a chance

or your life will never change.

I have always been a firm believer in taking chances. Wouldn't you rather know that you tried instead of sit and wonder what could have been? I realized within these past couple of days that this applies to all areas of life. Because in the end, you're the person who makes all your decisions, no matter what anyone tells you, you're the only important one in making a decision for your life.

6 Reasons to Start Running

Okay, so its obvious that running is great for you, always has been. That's why they start torturing training you to run in grade school and middle school. The more I run, the more I realize that they were very much on to something!

Well, I'll say it now that I don't have a gym membership. Never did. I'm lucky enough to have parents who have an old treadmill they bought years ago and I used/use that. I believe that having a treadmill there and seeing it all the time made me more motivated to get on it after work. I like to believe that if I did have a membership to the gym, I would have still been highly motivated to get my butt to the gym!

YES, it was painful at first, I hadn't ran in over 4 years and I was this overweight person trying to conquer jogging...but I had wanted to get healthy. You know what they say, "No pain, No gain." I believe that quote a ton. You get what you work for, so if you're going to work hard, you're gonna get results, plain and simple.

Too busy to run? 

Here's how my schedule went and still goes today:

• Wake up at 8:00 a.m.
• Eat a champion breakfast!
• Get to work at 10:00 a.m.
• Lunch around 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.)
• Snack healthy all day
• Eat when I'm hungry (4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.)
• Get home at 7:30 p.m.
• If I'm hungry, I'll eat a light meal
• Workout when I get home (8:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.)
• I like working out at night because its so much more peaceful. I'm done cleaning, everyones sleeping and I have everything to myself

"If it is important, you will find a way. If it's not, you will find an excuse."