Week 8

February 18- Full body circuit

It’s Monday and my workout schedule has been flipped due to skipping my rest day yesterday. I added walking on the stair climber to my leg workout and it felt really good! I could feel my legs burning and I loved the little motivational blurbs the machine gave. By the time I was done, I had climbed the equivalent of the Pyramid of Giza! It was cool to compare my progress to a real life equivalent.

February 19- Bike

Today I opted to bike instead of run. I biked for about 20 minutes and called it a day. I was sweating, got my heart rate up, and the legs were burning. Overall, I would call this a good enough workout for the day.

I am looking forward to having a rest day tomorrow. My body is starting to feel like it needs one. I also can’t wait to get this finance midterm over with tomorrow and have the rest of the week to relax and catch up on other class work.

February 20- Rest day

I was happy to choose today as my rest day. I got through my midterm, got some other class work done, and took some time to relax.

February 21- 3.4 mile run

Today I went to Lake Padden to run. The sun was shinning and I couldn’t wait to feel the crisp air on my face and in my lungs.

I was a little disappointed about half a mile into this run. The trail turned into an ice rink. For the next two miles I was forced to walk, as it was way too icy and dangerous to try and run. There were a few time times where I almost fell and when finishing my run I could tell my left knee felt strained from the ice.

From the 3.4 miles, I probably only ran about 2.25 and walked the rest. It still felt good to get out, but I do wish I was able to have run the whole thing without all the ice. Below are some photos I took as I made my way around the lake.

February 22- Full body circuit

I got through my arms and legs workout. It feels good being back on a solid schedule after last weeks snow days. I was a little sore after my run yesterday, but it still felt good to go to the gym.

February 23- Rest day

Alex and I took and hour and a half road trip over to Fort Casey today. I am hoping to post some photos this upcoming week. Because of this day trip, I wasn’t able to go to the gym before it closed. I will be going tomorrow instead to get my last run in for the week.

February 24- Full body circuit

In order to get my workout routine back on track, I decided to make today another full body circuit. I believe this will help keep me motivated as well to go to the gym each day this week and complete the task laid out before me.

Today I focused more on arms, I have been trying to get to the point where I can do a pull up on my own. As of now, I am using an assist machine and can do it with about 90 pounds on my own and 40 pound assist.

I also utilized the stair climber, man was that a workout! I like being able to use different machines every now and then to get a good workout in. I’m a fan of the stair climber and want to try to start using this more often.

Week 6

February 4- Snow day!

This morning I woke up to a 7:30am text stating classes were cancelled for the day due to snow. It was the best feeling rolling over knowing I had no where to be and a whole day to study for my marketing midterm on Tuesday morning.

I laid in bed, finally got ready for the day and headed out with Alex and his roommates to Lake Padden and Boulevard Park. We spent about an hour out and about enjoying the snow and all the white ambiance that engulfed the trees and ground. I’m hoping to get around to posting these photos sometime this week, depending how busy classes get!

Before I knew it, it was about 1pm and time to study for that midterm tomorrow… Because campus was closed for the day, that meant the gym was too. I didn’t feel comfortable running outside not only because it was so cold out, but it was also pretty icy and not a challenge I wanted to endure for a long distance run. My hope is to hop on the treadmill tomorrow at the gym for a mile and a half and then start my full body circuit. I also might cut out the bike on Friday and make sure I get my mileage in for the week. I don’t want to lose the progress I’ve made so far endurance wise by not keeping up with 3.5- 4 mile runs. We will have to see how I feel as the week goes on, and it may also depend on the weather and access to the gym.. I’ll keep you updated!

February 5- Prolonged rest day

I didn’t make it to the gym today. Between all my classes and having to volunteer tonight from 6-7:30, I wasn’t able to make it to the gym.

Instead, I opted for an in-home workout. I did a little bit of core with planks, bicycle crunches, and regular crunches. I also did 10 push ups with 3 sets. For me legs, I decided to a wall sit. I haven’t done these for a while and I could definitely feel the burn run through my calf and up to my thighs.

I’m hoping to get back in a solid routine tomorrow!

February 6- Continued rest day

Man, I am not doing well this week on the whole hitting the gym thing. Today I ended up not going to the gym either… I really need to break this cycle tomorrow after my marketing class.

I am for sure going to hit the gym tomorrow around 10am to do my full body circuit. I need to make sure I also run at least a mile to keep up with my endurance.

February 7- Full body circuit

I MADE IT!!! I finally made it to the gym this week. I feel guilty for it taking me so long, but between midterms and the cold weather I just couldn’t bring myself to get out of my apartment and make time for the gym.

It is really interesting how much my motivation has changed with the weather. I think the winter blues are starting to hit, making me more lethargic than usual and not motivated to get out and be active.

I am happy I made the time in my day to go to the gym and complete the body circuit. As mentioned above, I still felt really unmotivated- almost like I was just going through the motions to get the workout done. I didn’t feel like I was really enjoying it… maybe it’s time to switch up the routine?

I think next week I will switch up the order I do my workout in. I will start with arms and then move to legs. Hopefully this little change up will help get me in the right mind set again and get my motivation back.

February 8- 3.8 mile run

I couldn’t believe how good this run felt. I hopped on the treadmill with my headphones in listening to reggae. I just started running and continued until I felt I had run a long enough distance. Without looking at the mileage, I decided to stop and noticed I had gone over my anticipated 3.5 miles!

My head was in the game and my body was feeling well rested from not running earlier this week. It felt really good finally getting a run in. I think I broke my funk of not wanting to go to the gym! Can’t wait to get on a solid routine again next week.

February 9- Full body circuit

I spent about 45 minutes at the gym today and got my full workout in. The gym wasn’t too packed, so I got to take my time and complete a really good workout.

It feels good being back at the gym and wanting to go. I’m glad I broke my negative mindset. I’m excited to get back into the full swing of things next week. It seems like midterms took a lot more time than I thought they would.

Now that they are over, I am looking forward to focusing on the gains to be made at the gym.

February 10- Rest day

This day was full of studying and getting ready for classes this week. I have one more midterm and can’t wait to get it over with this Wednesday.

I need to remember when I’m feeling stressed to not make excuses and go to the gym. This will help me stay focused, but also give me the mental motivation I need to study and retain the information at hand for the finance test.

Week 5

January 28- Run 3.5 miles

It seems like the longer the month goes on, the more I fall away from the calendar I put together for myself. More specifically, the mileage I am supposed to increase by each day has seemed to be a longer-term goal than I thought. Today I ran 3.5 miles and it felt fairly easy.

I want to make sure I’m increasing mileage to maintain that distance, not just a goal I hit once or twice a month. So, I think for February, I need to make my goal to run 4 miles two times a week and bike on Fridays to recover from the longer distances.

There’s so much to add to the February calendar, and I only have three days to do it! Wish me luck.

January 29- Full body circuit

I ended up going to the gym around 8pm tonight… what a mistake. The place was PACKED! Every time there was a machine open I needed to use, I would hurry up and clean the one I was on. Before I could get over there someone else had already claimed it.

This was super annoying, so instead I modified my workout: stairclimber for 10 minutes, bicep curl machine (10 reps, 5 sets on 25 pounds), shoulder press machine (10 reps, 4 sets on 25 pounds), and finally bench press machine (10 reps, 3 sets, 50 pounds). I opted to do my core workout at home, due to lack of space on the mats.

Although this isn’t my normal routine, it felt like enough to get a decent workout in. Glad I was able to compromise and come up with another circuit to try!

January 30- Run 3 miles

Today I got strategic with my schedule, and actually think I might change it for the rest of this quarter. I ended up going to the gym around 5:20 tonight and got in a 3 mile run while waiting for Alex to get done with his class around 5:50. I usually pick him up from campus anyway, so it was nice to still be able to pick him up but squeeze a run in after homework and before dinner.

I took this run a little slower, with a mile pace of 9:13. It felt good to slow it down a bit and feel in control of my breathing. I was surprised how much easier the first couple of miles were. Usually I start off with an 8:40 mile time and am winded about a mile and a half in. I’m really bad at pacing myself, especially when it comes to running longer distances. But tonight I felt in control and it felt good!

January 31- Full body circuit

After my 8am marketing class I hit the gym and got an hour workout in, focusing on arms and legs. I tried a few new arm machines this time around, working on pull ups with an assist. It’s always really intimidating to try new machines, I always seem to think “what if I mess up and do it wrong, everyone’s going to notice and judge me…” This mindset KILLS me! I hate getting in my head like that, but somehow it happens every once in awhile. I was able to talk myself out of that negative mindset and actually really enjoyed using the new machines. I’m going to continue to use these and work on my pull up form.

February 1- Bike

I am so sore from my workout yesterday. I can barely lift my arms above my chest and my legs feel so sore. After my test this morning I made a quick stop at the gym to bike for 20 minutes and used the stair climber for about 5 minutes. I can’t believe how tired my body feels!

Today was definitely an easy workout day, as I want to make sure I’m giving my body enough time to recover and heal itself. Hopefully I’m not too sore tonight for The Green concert!! Can’t wait to head down to Seattle and see them at the Showbox later.

February 2- rest

Today I ended up taking a rest day. My arms were so sore I had a hard time sleeping last night because of it. I haven’t been this sore in such a long time! I’m definitely not complaining, but I was a little worried about how sore I was.

I need to start making sure I stretch after my workouts, hopefully this will help aid in the shorter recovery period. I can’t wait to hit the gym again and try the new machines I used last time!

February 3- Rest

Today was a rest day as well, with so much homework to catch up on and balancing meeting with a couple different people to study I wasn’t able to make it out to the gym. Not to mention the snow down pour all day today, making it a little harder to get to and from campus.

It felt really good taking an extra day to recover and rest from the gym. Can’t wait to get back at it tomorrow and run for a bit!

Week 3

January 14- 3.5 mile Run

After class this morning, my boyfriend and I went to the gym in between our classes. While he biked, I ran 3.5 miles. After two days of hitting 3.5 miles, it is starting to feel like I need more of a challenge… So, on Wednesday my goal is to run 3.75 miles and see how I’m feeling. I’m hoping I will be able to push through an extra 0.25 of a mile and hit 4 miles on Wednesday. I will for sure try to hit 4 miles on Friday and hope to be around there on Wednesday as well!

January 15- Full body circuit

I am so glad I decided to go to the gym last minute tonight! It was 8:30 and I had gotten carried away on practicing for the VITA advanced test. Passing this test allows me to volunteer to help others with filing their taxes. Before I knew it, it was way past 7 (the time I had planned to go to the gym). I debated whether or not it was worth still going… I talked myself into it and I’m so glad I did!

There were a few of my friends who also happened to be at the gym late tonight. It was so much fun learning their workouts and talking as we did our own things as well. I got to learn a really fun and intense ab workout. One I will try and incorporate into my full body circuit.

January 16- 4 mile run

I can’t believe how much I missed running outside!! After getting over the mental block of “do I really want to run today? I am pretty busy…” I got all my running stuff on and started running toward Fairhaven’s Boulevard Park.

This run was BEAUTIFUL. The sun was getting lower in the sky, almost ready to set, creating a soft pink and baby blue sky. It was amazing to be running right next to the water and seeing all the vibrant colors and hearing the waves of the water crash around me. I wanted to take a photo to post on here, but also didn’t want to run out of daylight and therefore opted not to stop on my run.

This run was exactly 4 miles with many hills to get over. It took me about 36 minutes to complete this route. I was amazed at how much ground one can cover in 4 miles. I’m so used to running in one spot on the treadmill that I forgot how freeing running outside can really be! I can’t wait for nicer and warmer weather to be running outside more often! I am starting to find some fun spots around Bellingham to run to and can’t wait to find more this spring.

January 17- Full body circuit

I had one class today from 8am to 10am. I hit the gym right after class and it put me in a better mood for the rest of the day! Today I realized how much I like going to the gym and completing more workouts in the morning. It makes me feel productive and motivated for the rest of my day.

After getting home from the gym, I sat down to work on homework and was shocked at how much more focused I was. It made getting through my work more enjoyable and I felt like I was retaining the information way better than I would have without going to the gym.

This schedule of going to the gym in the mornings is something I am hoping to keep up on Thursdays and Fridays as these are the only two days that this works with my schedule. As for the other days, the afternoon will have to suffice!

January 18- 2 mile run

Today I took it easy on my run. I ran 2 miles and it was a good break from running the 3.5 to 4 miles I had been doing this week. I woke up feeling under the weather and was worried about pushing myself too hard and getting more sick.

I am glad I went to the gym, and it felt good to take a little breather on the treadmill and only go the two miles. I can’t wait to get back up to 3.5 or 4 miles next week though!

January 19- Full Body Circuit

This workout didn’t feel as satisfying as it normally does. I felt off doing the dumbbells and leg machines. I think it might be time for a rest day. Thankfully, that day is tomorrow!

Today was one of those days where it felt like I was just going through the motions to get my workout done. This feeling sucked! There wasn’t any passion or heart in what I was doing. It felt like it was just one of those things I needed to finish to check it off the to do list. I’m hoping after my Sunday rest day, I will get back into the right mindset of why I go to the gym.

January 20- Rest day

This day was much needed. It was nice to give my muscles and body a rest from the other six days I worked out this week. I have to admit, it did feel weird not putting on my gym clothes, lacing up my shoes, and heading to the gym. Instead, I got to relax, catching up on some Netflix shows, and finishing up the majority of my homework. My boyfriend and I also got out and drove up to Birch Bay. I’m hoping to take some time this upcoming week to post some of these photos to the photography part of my blog. As classes start to pick up, I’ve noticed it has become a lot harder to write on here each day. I’ve slacked off a bit and have been writing these posts a couple days after the fact. Next week, I will try to stay on top of it and write one each night after going to the gym.