Category: Exercise

DDR Dance Dance Revolution – Fun way to lose weight!

Morning,

It’s not just for your kids, you know!

One of the most funnest (to quote my children) ways an adult can lose weight is to indulge their inner child’ and participate in Dance Dance Revolution.

Now, what is DDR, I hear you ask? It’s simply a game that requires a dance pad, a Playstation or Wii or Xbox or whatever, and the DDR games. Basically, the music plays and you have to move your feet to the correct arrows in time with the game.

Let me tell you, boy, does that burn up calories and really make you break a sweat! I got DDR for my kids last holiday season when I wanted them to get into better shape…and it wasn’t long before Mom decided to indulge as well too. I was floored at how much exertion it requires! It’s lots of fun.

Here are some great Dance Dance Revolution resources:

Do yourself a favor and check out this excellent method of exercise – it’s something you can do with your kids and make as a family-centric activity as well.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – Some DDR goodies include:

2 chinups, 1 mile walk and weak thighs – oh my!

Morning,

Well, I’m absolutely thrilled to announce that I can now do 2 (count ’em, two!) unassisted chinups! This is 1/2 more than my last record of 3 days ago. Yay!

My right thigh muscles are still somewhat weak from the surgery. So I’ve been spending some time stretching and today, decided to try a small walk. Instead of my beloved 2.4 mile circle walk, I simply walked one mile up and down my town’s sidewalks…and managed to complete that with no problem at all. Yay! It does look like I’m on schedule for my healing, although I will admit, I really wish I could participate in my karate and kendo again. Wah. Oh well, that will happen, some day….

In other news, I’ve come to realize that exercise becomes a “need” instead of a “have to do” after awhile. I just don’t feel right when I neglect my exercise – my body tells me, ahem, you’re stalling! Do something, anything, just get up off of your rear and make things happen.

So I did. :)

In 10 days, I will have been on my get-healthy plan for officially one year! I will certainly look forward to posting about my accomplishments – it’s been a great ride that will continue in 2008.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – want a pedometer?

New P90X+ – P90X Plus, coming out soon!

Morning,

Well! Wouldn’t you just know – after finally getting my P90x a few days ago, I hear the latest and greatest will be P90X Plus, coming soon! To wit:

… With the arrival of P90X®+, many of you might be wondering how we could improve upon the “most extreme home fitness system ever.” The simple answer is, there’s always new training, new techniques, and a new way to look at things to take them (and you) to the next level. P90X is the step from fitness to extreme fitness. The Plus takes it to yet another level. Our focus was to give you more options to maximize your fitness experience. P90X+ is not trying to top the X but to enhance its efficiency for those who have reached the peak. Let’s take a brief look at the science behind P90X and why you’ll want to add X+ to your home fitness arsenal…..MORE….

Here are some more resources to help you learn about it:

And here are some great clips:



Weighted Warrior

P90X+ Fly Blasters

What is the P90x+ L chinup?

Looks pretty good so far, eh?

Enjoy!

ps – and of course, if you’re looking for P90x goodies, consider:

Protein bar recipes – lots of goodies out there!

Morning,

You know how you cannot open a forum or bbs or chat group without hearing about What Protein Bar Should I Buy?

Now, I, being the cost-conscious mom from heck, have a slightly different question. Come January, I plan on starting P90x, and there’s lots of recommendations to use protein bars for some of the food intake. And while that’s simply peachy to the extreme, I started wondering, gee, wouldn’t it be great if I could make these protein bars myself?

‘course it would! So here’s what I’ve found for you!

I don’t know which ones I’ll be trying myself, but it certainly is nice to have all of those choices!

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – and if you want to buy, consider:

Amazing how the muscles need to recover after chinups

Well!

Yesterday saw me having a dandy time trying out my new chinup bar (which I’ll be using for my P90x workouts that will most likely start in Jan 2008).

I probably did at the most, oh, hmmmm, 12….spaced over 3 hours. That’s all, only 12!

And this morning, I can’t even do 1/2. So I’ve taken that wakeup call to say, okay! Time to rest the arms.

But you know, you really wouldn’t think that something soooo simple like 12 chinups over 3 hours would still leave you with effects the next day.

I think my enforced inactivity due to my surgery recovery probably has something to do with this. Ah well, these things happen…I’m sure I’ll recover completely when the time is right.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – want pullup bars?

Went back to karate yesterday and…

Morning!

Yes, I have proven it to myself – I am capable of returning to karate and actually NOT doing any of it but simply sitting it out, observing my kids, and enjoying it greatly. My gosh, I didn’t realize quite how much I have missed participating in it these past 8 days!

I watched 2 advanced classes and then my beloved kendo/swords class. It was truly a pleasure simply seeing the other students and senseis go thru the moves and trying to secure them in my mind for when my recovery is complete.

This showed me that even when you are incapable of doing a favored sport or activity, you can still simply witness the class and feel part of it again. It’s a great feeling.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – more karate goodies!

2008 Resolutions – Kids Academics, Karate Improvement, P90x Review

Morning,

It’s getting close to that time of year again – New Year’s Resolutions!

I’m very pleased that my New Year Resolutions of last year (get healthy) have happened most swimmingly. My goal back then was 135 pounds – I’m now bouncing between 131 and 133.

This year, I have the following New Year’s Resolutions.

  • Kids Academics. I want to still keep my kids valuing strong academic performances, and helping them continue to grow. With one child going on 18 (okay, at least it seems that way with said child’s uncanny maturity), two children paralleling my own childhood personality, and one child growing faster than a 747 speeds by, it will truly be a hero’s journey to validate all of their concerns while retaining the “I’m not your friend, I’m your mom” philosophy by which I live.
  • Karate/Kendo Improvement. I am woman, hear me roar, and if I’ve learned anything from my surgery and recovery, it’s that I can do ANYTHING I choose. It might take time, it might take practice, but I WILL prevail. In this case, I want to take my karate skills to the next level and beyond, and really improve on my balance, relaxation and coordination.
  • P90x. Yes! I admit it! I succumbed to the utter delight of imagining conquering P90x and got meself a bargain from eBay! True…I’m not yet healed enough to tackle it…but soon, soon, perhaps in January I can do so. I’ve found some great resources for P90x including:

I’ll admit it – I’m pretty psyched about trying it out (when I’m totally healed, of course!). In the meanwhile, the husband installed the chinup bar in our guest room, and I’ve been having a blast doing unassisted chinups every half hour or so.

And people think I don’t have a life. Hah! :-)

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – P90x goodies include:

The ultimate of Star Wars humor!

Now, as anyone who knows me will testify, I adore Star Wars – I find the whole series to be a marvelous melding of self-knowledge, inner strength and the ultimate fight between good and evil. I even built a sales site for Star Wars long long ago, and came up with a rather nifty color-coded plot description as well, the Evolution of a Jedi.

That being said, I’m a sucker for truly superb Star Wars humor. I managed to inhale my soup a few moments ago when my daughter showed me:

OMIGOSH, it’s hysterical!! I couldn’t believe how hilarious they were. Definitely check them out!

And of course, one cannot forget

Star Wars mythology is an extremely fascinating area to explore. Some of my favorite sites are:

For me, I’ll always remember the time when I was 14 years old and played Luke’s theme virtually perfect in concert band (I, who was shy beyond belief), and then later in college, when I entered a different time-space continuum during our Star Wars marching band performance. I’ve always equated Star Wars with one’s own personal hero’s journey….and the way that brings peace to one’s life.

It’s truly a masterpiece.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – want great Star Wars stuff? Consider:

Standing at a crossroads in life

I’ve been learning so much about myself during this past week of recovery that my head is spinning. Some of the knowledge includes:

  • No matter what got thrown at me, I could handle it
  • I’m in better health now than I was in my 20s – my standing heartrate is 65 or so
  • My recovery rate is extraordinary
  • Even when faced with fear, I refused to cower and tackled everything I had to to the best of my abilities

What does this mean for me?

Well, personally, Barbara Ling wise, it means that I can still master physical activities that I had never given myself the permission to succeed in before.

So I’m wondering…on what should I focus?

  • Earning a black belt in karate?
  • Getting skilled in aikido?
  • Mastering kendo?
  • Learning Brazilian Jui-jitsu?

I now know without a shadow of a doubt that I can excel and overcome any physical challenges in any of the above.

Side note here – I’m debating about getting the p90X package. Everyone raves about how difficult it is, and how you need to take their “test” first to see if it’s for you.

I found a copy of that test and while I can’t go thru it now, I asked myself how I would have done before surgery. I can do:

  • 3 pullups (minimum is 1)
  • Vertical leap is 5″ (minimum is 3)
  • Toe touch is 0″ (minimun is -6)
  • Wall squat is 1.5 minutes (minimum is 1 minute)
  • Bicep curls is at least 18 with 25 pounds (min for women is 10 curls with 8 pounds)
  • Abs Ins and outs are 35 (minimum is 25)
  • And I easily did the jumping jacks thingee in karate class awhile back.

So…methinks I could probably handle this program. And that got me thinking about the whole, what art do I want to master?

It’s kinda sorta great to have the confidence to think this way.

Enjoy,

Barbara

ps – p90x can be found like so:

Pizza Hut, Isometrics, and Stretching, Oh My!

Morning,

Today is Day 7 after my surgery! And my leg seems to be healing quite nicely indeed.

One of the exercises for which I had been given a go-ahead is isometrics (that of tensing and releasing your muscles). Thus, yesterday saw me, and my husband and my kids sitting at Pizza Hut for a treat. The children were having a blast playing with the menus, and I decided to start isometricizing my surgerized leg, contracting and releasing my thigh muscles ( rectus femoris and vastus lateralis and satorius ) for counts of 5 seconds. This worked out rather well.

At home, I practiced balancing and stretching my good leg. Hey, I can’t do my usual gym workouts, so anything that gets me vaguely moving I view to be a good thing!

This goes to show you, even when you’re physically in lousy condition, you can still turn on a dime and find something, anything, that will give you a bare minimum of exercise. I’m pretty pleased with my success.

Time to make the donuts,

Barbara

ps -Want some thigh workouts? Consider: