Tag Archives: Five Minutes for Fitness

Pushing It Through Pregnancy

Posted on by Run DMT
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I have this love-hate relationship with push-ups. I hate doing them, but I love the results. While pregnant, I am a still pushing out the reps.

 

At first, I was worried about attempting push ups while pregnant, so I modified my push ups with wall push ups, which I thought was so creative and clever until I discovered that wall push ups already exist.

 

Wall push ups are a great way for beginners to build up to regular floor push-ups and they are a great recovery exercise when you are injured.

 

 

Remember, as with floor push ups, form is very important. And, I don’t recommend listening to Rod Stewart while wearing a Flashdance outfit. Now, that’s really bad form!

 

Is it me or does this guy look like Neal Patrick Harris?

 

 

But if you’re feeling brave with your baby bump, you can still perform alternative floor (girlie) push ups while pregnant. Should your belly get in the way, simply spread your arms a little wider than your shoulders.

 

 

Whatever your style and comfort level (off the wall or on the floor), push ups are still a great way to keep your upper body tone while pregnant. But like with any fitness program, take cues from your body and know your limits.

Mamaste Yoga

Posted on by Run DMT
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Since my running days are few and far between, I thought I would bring back “Five Minutes for Fitness” as a Thursday feature.

 

Running has become very laboring (no pun intended) and increasing difficult, so I have to find alternative ways to stay fit.  Since most aerobic activities causes difficulty breathing for this pregnant mama, yoga is a great way to keep my muscles in shape and ready to run again once the baby arrives.  Plus, it’s a great way to help prepare my body for the delivery.

 

Have I mentioned how much I love yoga? I love the way it conditions and tones my body using my own weight as resistance.  I love feeling my muscles lengthen with each stretch.  And even though my range of flexibility might be slightly restricted these days, yoga help keeps my body just a little more limber, as odd as that might sound for big belly mama-to-be.

 

While searching YouTube for prenatal yoga videos, I found this tutorial which introduces the basics found in the full length video found at www.beYOU.tv.

 

 

If you’re yearning for more mamaste yoga, you can watch the 30 minute Prenatal Yoga Vibe video here.

Namaste for National Yoga Month

Posted on by Run DMT
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September is National Yoga Month, so how about celebrating with some stretching with a Warrior Pose?

 

I love yoga, but any runner can appreciate the value it adds to his/her training.  Yoga helps strengthen and lengthen muscle groups and minimize chances of injury.  With the aid of yoga, runners can increase core strength and improve overall performance.  Plus, adding yoga to a rest day following a long run will help with recovery. 

 

If yoga is not part of your work-out routine, I highly recommend that you try it for the next 30 days for National Yoga Month to see if you notice an improvement in your performance. 

 

To honor National Yoga Month, many yoga studios are offering a free trial class or even one free week, however, if you can’t find a studio, try the following video segments from a DVD entitled Yoga for Runners produced by MommYoga.

 

 

 

 

 

***Thanks to my BFF Running Betty for sending me the tweet about National Yoga Month. ;-)

Stay Seated

Posted on by Run DMT
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Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve done a lot of sitting.  Although I’m finally back on my feet and running again, I’ve retained a lovely leftover spread on my backside from all the sitting. 

 

It’s such a great spread.  It should have “Land O’Lakes” written all over. 

 *Insert rim shot*

 

But, sitting upright and staring at the computer seemed to be the only position that caused little pain.

 

Being a SAHM on the run, (like so many other moms) I rarely have time to sit, but my recent injury forced me to sit on my ass A LOT.  Even back in my teaching days, I rarely sat.  I constantly moved around the classroom to assist my students.  I don’t know how my DH and other poor saps in Cooperate America sits and stares at a computer all day.  Just thinking about it numbs my badunkadunk again.

 

This week, I’ve gradually started running again starting with slow and short distances, but from all that sitting, my muscles feel flabby and mushy from a lack of any physical activity.  I need to recondition them again.  Which made me wonder…Are there any sitting exercises to help tone and shape muscles?

 

Well, of course there are! 

 

This work-out video would have been very useful a few weeks ago when I felt so antsy and wished to work-out again.  The leg lifts would have helped conditioned my muscles, however, I might have skipped the triceps dips depending on how badly they impacted my ribs and torso.

 

So, sit up and get ready to make it burn from the comfort of your own computer chair for this week’s Five Minutes for Fitness.

 

Waisting Away Again in Margaritaville

Posted on by Run DMT
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My bags are packed and I’m ready for the beach.  I’ve got a towel, sunblock, my cute little sundresses and my very teeny bikini. 

 

For me, long days spent on the beach brings lots of beer drinking, which leads to a big ‘ol beer belly bulging over my itty bitty bikini bottom.  Well, that simply won’t do!  So, do I cut back on the beer while at the beach?  *gasp* Heck no!  Instead, I found a way to keep my girlish good-looks without giving up the beer. 

 

For this week’s Five Minutes for Fitness, I present to you Fitness Beach: The Abs Work-out.  I can do some crunches while reaching for my beer.  I’ll drink to that!

 

See, you really can find time for fitness.

 

Yahweh Yoga

Posted on by Run DMT
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When I mentioned the other day about attempting yoga on Sundays before church, I playfully called it “Yahweh Yoga”.  I thought I had made up the phrase until I searched the Internet for images for my post.  I soon discovered Yahweh Yoga and Holy Yoga were as real as Downward-Facing Dog.  However, in Holy Yoga or Christoga, the names of your favorite yoga poses have been replaced with religious references.  

 

So, for this week’s Five Minutes for Fitness, let’s get centered with Christ.  

 

I know this video is not meant to be humorous, but I found it pretty comical.  It reminded me of an SNL sketch and I am probably going to hell for thinking it.

 

 

 

A less comical Christian yoga, Holy Yoga offers a more familiar yoga and soothing instruction style.

 

 

Did you know there’s Yiddish Yoga, too?  Oi vey!

Five Minutes for Fitness: Noggin Workout

Posted on by Run DMT
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Rainy days usually bring a lot of television viewing in our house.  I’m not proud of the fact that I use Noggin and Nick Jr. to entertain my children on rainy days, but some times a mom can only play so many rounds of Candy Land and Hi Ho Cherry-O.

 

Too much television will cause my little one and I to get a bit antsy.  Thankfully, Noggin offers music videos between programs to motivate little couch potatoes to move.

 

One of our favorite Noggin music videos is Move Your Feet by David Weinstone.  When his funky beats start tapping, it always forces us to tear up the floor.

 

 

 

Emmalynn loves Dora the Explorer.  Of course, her We Did It will have you twisting along, but Dora’s Bate, Bate Chocolate song sticks in my head and makes me mix it all day long.  I’ll add a few squats while mixing my chocolate.

 

 

The Backyardigans are known for their rad moves, but I love to follow their foot steps in the theme song.  A good lasso can do wonders for your upper body and core!

 

I searched all over YouTube to find a decent Backyardigans theme song video in English, but it seems to be obsolete.  ”Will” and the gang is the best I could find.  ”Will” isn’t doing much dancing, but you get the idea.  It’s a pretty entertaining video regardless.

 

 

Then, there’s LazyTown.  We’re not really LazyTown fans.  Honestly, the wannabe muppet puppet characters scary me, but Sportacus makes for nice eye candy.  When Bing Bang blasts through our boob tube, my girls and I jump up and dance along.  Unfortunately, I still haven’t mastered my Russian jump or backflips.

 

 

If you can tolerate the tunes without wanting puncturing your eardrums, then give my Noggin workout a go.

Showing the Shins Some Love

Posted on by Run DMT
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Since I needed to find some stretches and exercises to strengthen my shins, I thought it would make a great topic for this week’s Five Minutes for Fitness.

 

After my extensive Internet searching, I learned that ankle curls help strengthen your shins.  If you don’t have weights, you can also a bucket filled with sand for the same effect.  

 

 

(Don’t you just love the music? :-) )

 

Of course, yoga is always a wonderful way for runners to help strengthen and stretch their muscles. 

 

Rolling with Five Minutes for Fitness

Posted on by Run DMT
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I’ve been slacking a bit, but it’s time to get things rolling again with Five Minues for Fitness.  

 

Obviously, there are numerous health benefits to dancing.  It’s a great cardio activity to burn calories, strengthen and tone, but no night clubs or dance studios or formal training required for this fun, simple work-out.  You can shimmy and shake it in the comfort of your own living room.   

 

Since I love to dance, I tore up the dance floor at my sister’s wedding.  I even rocked out my best Tina Turner dance moves when The Stick Martin Show played Proud Mary.  When I popped my Proud Mary, I used a variety of muscle groups trying to dance like Tina. 

 

So, for this week’s Five Minutes for Fitness, I encourage you to try the Tina Turner work-out.  Keep those legs moving!  Work those legs like your doing football drills through tires! Dance like no one is watching!  Keep on burning!

 

Six Pack Abs in Six Minutes

Posted on by Run DMT
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Since I flaked on last week’s Five Minutes for Fitness post, I thought I would make it up to you with an extra minute dedicated to building a better belly.  Of course, for me, five minutes of an abs work-out feels like 10 minutes of torture.

 

As I mentioned in previous posts, I don’t belong to gym.  Instead, I use household objects to help with my muscle conditioning.  Well, you have to love any work-out that incorporates your couch into the routine.

 

 

During the rest periods, I would add a knee sway or a trunk rotation.  It would be a welcomed stretch after an intense number of cruches.  While lying on the floor, bend your knees and twist you torso. Turn your knees to the left.  Extend your arms and stretch in the opposite direction.  Turn your head in the same direction as your arms and hold for 10-20 seconds.  

 

Here’s Denise Austin demonstrating the knee bent roll stretch with a pilates ball.

 

 

I would also highly recommend using a towel or mat under you.  How can that guy doing all those cruches on a tile floor?!  No pain, no gain, I suppose.