Does your fitness routine need a little more fireworks to get you going again?

Since it is so close to the 4th of July I figured I would see how everyone is doing with their fitness routines.  It is about half way through summer now and some people might be noticing their fitness goals are not where they want them to be.  What is missing is it motivation, lack of time, commitment, accountability, knowing what to do?  All these things can cause people to panic and throw out their entire fitness routines.  I have included some great motivational quotes to help you push through and try to get those fireworks back into your health and fitness goals!!!

1. Fear is what stops you... courages is what keeps you going.- Unknown 
2. Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going. -Jim Ryan
3. The only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. ~ Steve Jobs
4. Often we don’t try because then we can’t fail.
5. Start small when trying to make big changes. Going to big to start will only leave you discouraged.

 Let those fireworks begin!!!

Staying in shape on the road

Summertime often means vacations and getting out of your routine.  Summertime often means you are loosening up on your diet as well when on vacation.  So what can you do when you are on your vacation or traveling for work to stay in shape? Well most people do not want to bring equipment with them which is understandable.  If you do have a band-go head and pack that in your suitcase if not no worries.  If you do have a band exercises you can do are-bicep curls, triceps ext, squats, shoulder exercises, rows, chest press.

If you are going without equipment here are the exercises for you:
20 Dips (see picture above)
40 Mountain Climbers
15 Push-ups
15 Burpees
20 Squats
30 Crunches
12 Jumping Jacks
15 Oblique Cruches
10 Triceps Push-ups
10 Lunges
End with 1 minute Plank Hold
30 Second- Side Plank Hold
*Have a wonderful and healthy vacation- That workout can be completed once or 2-3 times if you want to really vamp it up or burn some calories.  If you only have time to do it once it is better than doing nothing at all remember.

Find you fitness niche

Everyone has a fitness niche you just might not have found yours yet.  If you don't like working out and have never found something you enjoy to do while working out no wonder it is no fun for you.  There are SOOO many opportunities now to try different classes such as yoga, pilates, kickboxing, zumba, bootcamps, PiYo, ballet classes, running classes, spin classes.  So if you think your not someone who works out try to re-think about what your likes are.  Have you really tried every fitness niche out there?  If not try something new, step outside your comfort zone and you might discover a lifelong passion.

Running without the gadgets

Today I  went for a run in the country without any gizmos or gadgets.  Meaning no I-pods or heart rate monitors.  I ran on the gravel roads without any distractions just my thoughts.  I enjoyed thinking about my upcoming day, planned a to do list.  Than my inner yoga kicked in and I stayed present with what I was doing.  I noticed my hip started hurting and my breath.  I pushed through those pains and thought what great stretches I could be doing for my hip when I was done with my run.  I noticed the smell of the farms around me as well as the wind picking up in certain spots on the run.  I was overall very connected to myself on the run.  I ran until I thought I was done. I didn't do it for a certain amount of time or calorie burn.  How freeing to not do that!  Once every couple weeks I can see myself running like this and would recommend it to try even if its just once.