Blog posts : "fitness"

Curves... I Have a Confession

After weeks of being pestered by my sister and my mother, I gave in and went to curves to give it a shot. I had a few misconceptions before going: First, it was for people trying to lose weight only. Second, it wouldn't be that great of a work out. While it certainly wasn't a replacement for tossing around the barbells and dumbbells, it did provide a good upper and lower body work out -- core included.

It consists of a full circuit which alternates between resistance machines and resting areas (forget what they're called). You take 30 seconds on each area before the pre-recorded voice (playing overtime of upbeat music) tells you to change stations. Every few minutes, that same recorded voice will ask you to step aside and count your pulse so you can tell how hard you're pushing yourself.

You make your way around the stations twice and you are all done. This takes about 30 minutes, then you go into the stretching contraption they have to stretch out your muscles. I'm not really a fan of that thing. A lot of the stretches don't feel natural, but I have really strange tendons and ligaments that are flexible in all the wrong ways.

All in all, it is a really fun way to work out. It's a very supportive environment and I didn't feel at all out of place being a slim, semi-fit 25-year-old there. Out with the misconception that it's just for older people trying to lose weight! It's for everyone :)

That said, I'm still on the fence about whether I would like to return to a regular gym or continue with Curves once my 30 days for 30 dollars is over... If you're interested, most Curves locations will offer you the first day free.

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Getting Fit - Some Helpful Tools

The toughest part of getting fit is eating right. You can exercise all you want, but if you're slacking off in the kitchen, you won't see much progress, if any. Some helpful things to have on hand are pre-made meals. What can make this easier? Tupperware. I kid you not.

I went ahead and purchased a full set of Vent'N'Serve containers, the stack cooker for the microwave, and a set of midgets containers. Use the stack cooker to fully cook the chicken with some water (4-20 minutes) in the microwave, then pack one cup of frozen vegetables on the bottom of a smaller Vent'N'Serve container, cut up the chicken and place on top of the veggies and you have your main meal for on-the-go, or for when you're too tired to cook a proper meal for yourself. If you're aiming for more calories, just add more veggies and more chicken -- these containers can hold a lot!

As a snack, I use the water-tight midgets containers for packing some natural peanut butter! I love natty PB, especially smothered on a rice cake. The midget container is the perfect size for packing some along without having to worry about peanut oil leaking all over your lunch bag.

Another thing that helps is... An ice cream maker. Maybe it's just me and my insatiable addiction to ice cream, but being able to make my own at home using So Good soy milk, protein powder, and low calorie sweeteners, I can take the guilt out of my must-have treat :)

I'm not too much a fan of the size of Tupperware's sports bottle, but I am a fan of its nifty little container on the bottom of it. Slip your locker key into the bottom of the bottle (removable bottom acts as a storage container!!) And all you need to carry around with you at the gym is your water bottle. Zing!

Grab your own Tupperware goodies at http://my.tupperware.ca/NurseJoc You can also host an online Tupperware party through me -- just visit that website or contact me to make an arrangement.

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Bored?

Put on shorts/sweat pants and a t-shirt or a tank top. Okay, now put on your shoes. Go for a walk! The weather on the Island is absolutely amazing today. I just got back from a super-short run (15-20 minutes... I have to work in a few minutes here) with my dog... The sun is shining, but the air is crisp yet mild. It is perfect running weather. I wish I had more time to spend outside, but I'm off to work inside a building until 2300 hrs.

I'm really not a fan of evening shifts, but work is work :)  I'd much prefer to have my plate filled up with night shifts. I won't complain too much -- I really appreciate the job and how my boss is giving my nearly full time hours as a casual nurse.

Oh yes, I passed my licensing exam :D  Hurrah!

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Running Races on the Island - Help

Help me compile a list of running races on the island! I'm trying to find as many as I can and intend to sign up for a handful of the 15 k and under races with my sister. Once I have a list of races, I'll provide details about registration and so forth.

Let's continue on with the great start to the new year and get our fitness levels up to a point where our hearts thank us for making them stronger ;)

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Running

I am a fan of running. That's no secret. I haven't been running as much as I should be lately, though. I'm getting back into running and I have to hit it full force. I have a measly 5 Km run on October 4th - the CIBC Run for the Cure, which you can find a link to on the right.

I am going to start slow as I ease back into running... Assess where my level is at and go from there. From here on out, I'll be doing interval running, starting off as such: Run for 3, walk for 2.5, run for 5, walk for 2.5, run for 3, walk for 1.5, run for 5, walk for 5 (cool-down). I always start off with a 5 minute walk to warm my muscles and joints up.

 

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