Mel Runs

I’m headed away for the weekend, so I’ll leave you today with a reminder of how to think about fitness in a way that’s manageable. You got this, friend . This post was originally published on December 5, 2011.

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Two things happen when people I meet find out I’m studying to become a personal trainer. First, they immediately look me up and down, sizing me up to see if I fit the bill, as if they expect to see my abs shining through my shirt or something (shyeh right). Second, they start confessing to me how much they’ve been slacking with working out, but have seriously been considering making a commitment to getting back to the gym (and I think: shyeh right).

It’s funny how being in the presence of an “expert” immediately makes people judge themselves and throw out excuses. Of course it’s only natural, but the reality is that I’m not judging anyone! And most likely, no one is judging you either–at least not as much as you think they are. I struggle with the same challenges everyone else does: a really comfortable couch, being tired after a day of work, and an insane weakness for chocolate and Teddy Grahams. I don’t always win against the cards stacked against me, but often times I do. Some nights, an empty box of Teddy Grahams appears in the garbage pale (fail), others involve sweat sessions at the gym (victory).

In my experience working out over the past twelve years, switching from running, to weight training, to you name it, there are a few things I’ve learned about battling the couch-feels-so-good-on-my-behind battle. Here’s a list of my top four realizations, or mantras to live by. Hopefully they help you on your journey. Feel free to steal, print, and reproduce this by the 100′s so you can tape it up around your house .

1. Sweat once a day. I love this rule. It’s so simple, and gets to the basic point of exercise. It could mean walking around the block twice, knocking out some push-ups, or doing an intense full body workout at the gym. No matter what the method, the goal is to kick our body into gear every day. Raise that heart level and get the blood pumping for a sweet dose of endorphins, and a kickass attitude to carry around with you all day. If you break a sweat from washing the tub, it counts .

2. Something is always better than nothing. When I was very into running, I would envision a four mile, forty minute run, and immediately not want to go. Forty minutes sounded so long and laborious. And if I didn’t have time? Forget it. Now I realize that it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. A twenty minute sweat is better than no sweat at all. Always. So if you’ve only got ten minutes in the morning, make the best of it and hit the floor for some lunges and push ups. Every little thing counts.

3. Make yourself proud. At the end of the day, this is a challenge between you and yourself. I used to have an ad that I ripped out from a magazine hanging on the back of my front door that said MAKE YOURSELF PROUD in all caps, and it helped me think of the bigger picture that I wanted to achieve. It’s not just about immediate gratification, it’s remembering the long term goal that you always daydream about achieving, and recognizing that it’s the everyday resolution that will build the road that takes you there. This goes way beyond just fitness-you should strive to make yourself proud with everything you do.

4. Set attainable goals. Envisioning your end goal and the bigger picture is awesome, but Rome wasn’t built overnight. You can’t expect too much too fast from yourself, because all you’ll end up with is a load of resentment towards another failed fitness plan, and a bout of depression to boot. Instead, make goals that are reachable on a short term basis–like two miles of any kind of cardio this week, three more push ups in your sets next week, or two pounds gone in two weeks. Give it a time limit, a realistic result, and make a plan you know you can follow. Smaller, attainable goals will help motivate you every time you reach them, too.

Have anything to add to the list? Share it in the comments!

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• Categories Austin Living
• Author melruns

I happen to love all things coconut, so naturally when coconut water first blew up on the market two years ago I was extremely excited. Coconut water is the kind of thing I only expected to get when on vacation in the Bahamas from a street vendor (which I always do, except I add a little rum in there, heh).

If you’ve never had coconut water, I’ll try to describe it to you: it has the consistency of water, with a coconuty taste–but not at all like the super sweet artificial coconut flavor that you might expect. It’s a much more delicate, subtle taste, almost as if you were smelling it instead of tasting it, if that makes sense. Because it’s not overwhelming, it’s actually quite refreshing, and as it turns out–BONUS!–an awesome post-workout drink.

Let’s look at the factors of awesome:

• The juice is packed with simple sugar, electrolytes, and minerals to replenish hydration levels in the body. Could that mix be any more ideal? It’s like a natural gatorade.
• The electrolyte content is more than double that of traditional sports drinks with about ½ the carbohydrates. Bam.
• Research studies suggest that cytokinins (e.g., kinetin and trans-zeatin) in coconut water showed significant anti-ageing, anti-carcinogenic, and anti-thrombotic effects. So if I drink a serving a day I’ll turn back time? Sweet, no big deal.
• Coconut water has been generally offered to patients with diarrhea in many tropic regions to replace fluid loss from the gastrointestinal tract and reduce the need for intravenous therapy. Upset stomach, diarrhea? Move over pepto. Actually… you can stay.
  
• If the coconut is ripe the nutrient composition changes and becomes less desirable therefore most commercially available coconut water is extracted from young coconuts to retain the most advantageous nutrient content. Aw, so we’re eating coconut babies?
• Source, and source, and source

After my workouts, I’ve become addicted to drinking coconut water. Back when I first started doing high intensity interval training workouts, I used to be a slug around work all day after the gym. Coconut water used to really help me pull myself up over that body exhaustion somehow and help me recover into mid-morning aliveness. True story. And in case you’re wondering, no this is not a sponsored blog post, though I wish it was. Coconut water companies, if you’re out there, get at me .

20 Minute Cardio Workout

Here’s a great workout to do when you’re short on time, and want to focus on a solid cardio sweat. If I have days when I’m too sore to do anything else, or I just don’t feel like doing any push ups, this is my go-to. I gave it to Dave to do once too, and he said it was a solid workout. So, male and female approved.

This workout was inspired by Fitness Sista. The basic idea is to spend the first half at a steady pace will raising the incline for an uphill, lower body & cardio workout, while the second half focuses on a faster pace–working your legs in a different way while still getting in good cardio. You can use any type of cardio equipment you want–treadmill, elliptical, stairmaster, bike–you name it. You can also go walking or running outside with this in mind as long as you have a little watch to keep time (and if you don’t have a hill to run on an incline, just focus on raising your pace a little every minute).

Here’s a treadmill version:

• minute 1-2: run at 4.5
• minute 2-3: bring it up to a speed of 5 (you’ll be steady there for a while), and up to an incline of 1
• minute 3-4: Raise the incline to 2
• minute 4-5: incline of 3
• minute 5-6: incline of 4
• minute 6-7: inlcine of 5
• minute 7-8: incline of 6
• minute 8-9: incline of 7
• minute 9-10: incline of 8
• minute 10-11: incline of 7
• minute 11-12: incline of 6
• minute 12:13: incline of 2–TIME FOR SPEED NEXT!
• minute 13-14: raise the speed to 5.5 and lower to an incline of 1
• minute 14-15: speed of 5.7
• minute 15-16: speed of 5.9
• minute 16-17: speed of 6.1
• minute 17-19: hold at a speed of 6.3
• minute 19-20: speed of 5.7

Annnnnd done. After burning out your legs on the incline, the speedwork for the last half of the workout will feel really nice (I swear). You’ll feel like a rockstar, and all it took was 20 minutes. No need for 40 on the treadmill–you hear me? Spend that time reading an awesome book or getting a drink with a friend .

How do you get your cardio in at the gym? I’m not opposed to long workouts, just prefer to get in and get out.

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• Categories Just Sayin', Product Reviews, Running, Workin It
• Author melruns

Hey Friends. I wrote this song for a friend of mine who is going through a hard time. But I can relate to it, also. Recorded in my living room this afternoon. I spent a lot of time trying to get really, really good at guitar, and it kept me from being able to write songs. I went months–maybe 6?–without being able to complete anything. It sucked. A lot. Then I finally decided to head back to the basics so I could get some words down, and it felt so, so good to finish it. And more importantly, my friend said it helps her everyday. I’m so glad .

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• Categories Just Sayin'
• Author melruns

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