5 Minute Office Exercise Routine

For those of us who work full-time sitting at a desk, avoiding "office butt" can be rather difficult. In order to prevent our backsides and mid-sections from getting fluffy, we have to keep active during the work day. I have created a short 5 minute exercise routine that can be done all throughout the day when you have a few minutes to spare. I try to do this routine once per hour but at the very least, I do it when my coworker goes out for his smoke breaks. He's taking years off and I'm putting them on!

20 chair crunches











20 squats










                             20 side lunges (10 per side)














                             20 side leg lifts per side













                              20 reverse leg lifts per side












                           40 side bends (20 on each
                           side) without weights

My Exercise Routine at the Gym

As I have said in previous posts, I am NOT a fan of spending endless hours in the gym. First because I just simply do not have that kind of time and second because I do not believe it is necessary. If you have a consistency and make your workouts count and eat a whole food, organic diet you should be fine spending an hour a day on exercise. I know a lot of people focus on one part of the body each day; I do not do this. I like getting a complete workout everyday so I'm not crippled the next day. Slow and steady is how you are going to obtain goals and be able to maintain the results without getting burned out and reverting back to couch potato status.

So, here is what I do on the regular:

Begin with 20-30 minutes walking on the treadmill at a 3.5 speed and 6 incline. You should be able to walk just over a mile in this time. Honestly, it is really all you need. I used to be a runner but running puts so much stress on your joints and I have neck and back injuries from an accident. Walking is a great way to warm up and burn fat. *I also suggest just walking to the gym if your gym is close enough and weather permits.

Next I work my arms by first using 7.5 lb dumbbells. I do 20 curls on each side. 20 arm presses using both arms at once. 20 bent over rows on each side. 20 extensions using both arms (I use 15-20 lb dumbbell for this one). That is it. Remember, we're ladies, we don't want guns, just toned arms.

Then I grab a 20-30 lb barbell and do 20 deadlifts. 20 overhead presses with a deadlift. 20 barbell squats. Put the barbell away and grab 5-10 dumbbells. Do 40 walking lunges.

After that head over the machine area and hop on the outer thigh machine. Do 3 sets of 20 at a weight that is heavy but you don't have to strain. I do 70 lbs. Switch to the inner thigh machine and do the same.

Then grab a mat and a balance ball. Do 20 regular sit-ups, 20 right-side sit ups, 20 left side sit ups, and 20 lower ab lifts. Stretch your back! Continue with 20 side flexion on each side. Stretch your sides! 20 regular leg lifts and 20 small leg lifts (only lift and lower halfway, foot should not touch the floor) on each side. 20 butt lifts. 20 inner thigh squeezes. Put the ball back.

Lay flat on your back with legs and arms extended on the mat. Raise right knee to chest and swivel ankle. Rotate right knee to left side, extend right arm out and turn head to the right. Hold for 10 seconds. Repeat with left leg. Sit up and put your legs in a butterfly position. Move knees up and down. Extend legs outward in a straddle. Extend right arm over head toward left foot. Hold for 10 seconds. Repeat on left side. Place legs straight out in front of you and extend arms toward feet. Hold for 10 seconds.

And that's all folks. Not too bad and you aren't going to die getting out of bed in the morning but you will see great results if you stick with it and eat right. Good luck!!!

 

Prepping to Tie the Knot...25 Days to Go!

Well, I haven't updated as much as I was hoping to but I do have some good news! I am making some really good progress...finally.

A few changes occurred since my last post. 1.) My fiancé has moved to a more local driving job in which he is home most nights and on the weekends!!! Yay! 2.) We joined a gym.

With that being said, lets discuss what these changes mean.

Having my fiancé home more often means all the burden of the house and child care do not fall on me. I have more freedom and time to focus on my own health and well-being. I have more time and incentive to prepare well-balanced and complete meals.

Joining the gym has given me accountability. I now make it a point to go at least 5 days a week so I'm not wasting my money. I hate wasting money! We decided to go with MUV Fitness. Mostly because it is located about 1/4 of a mile from my house but also because they offer new equipment, pool, sauna, a variety of classes, and I get to meet up with a trainer once a month (for free) to see my progress and go over what I could do better. They also offer more access to trainers for a fee if you're needing that. Oh, did I mention they have a child care center for my little one? This is huge because my fiancé isn't always home when I want to go to the gym or he wants to go at the same time as me.

I am not a workout for hours on end kinda gal. I like quick consistent workouts. I'm not an arms one day and legs another kinda gal either. I do a full body workout and cardio everyday. I'll post by the end of the week about my routine. I also have a quick 5 minute workout I do every hour at my desk at work. I will also do a follow up post on that too.

Going back to meals. I have started meal prepping for my lunches instead of heading to Subway and spending at least $6 everyday on lunch. I am able to choose the best ingredients for my meals as well. I am keeping it really simple right now to boost the weight loss. I pre-made a weeks worth of food for the morning and at work.

 

Breakfast: pre-boil hard-boiled eggs and place them in a sealed Ziploc bag. Eat one each morning with a handful of raspberries.

 

A.M. Snack: Banana.

 

Lunch: Baked Chicken with seasonings of my choice and steamed sweet potatoes Mon & Wed

Baked Tilapia and broccoli on Tues & Thurs

 

P.M. Snack: Side Salad

 

 I just make these up on Sunday and freeze for the week. Friday I'll go to Subway because I just love them! I am also ensuring I am drinking lots of water throughout the day and I am not having my Pepsi with lunch anymore. If I need a little caffeine, I make a cup of tea.

 

At night I am back to actually preparing an actual dinner. I use whole and mostly organic foods. I switch it up a lot but for example, last night I made Sausage & Spinach Stuffed Shells, tonight I'm making Ham & Bean Soup.

Prepping to Tie the Knot...the beginning

 

Well, here I am 81 days until I say I do in Fabulous Las Vegas and I need to lose a good ten to fifteen pounds for me to feel my best in the dress I have chosen. I decided that since we are doing Vegas, I have to have a very sexy and glamorous dress. I also plan to be at any one of the many pool parties each day I am there, we plan to be out on the town every night so I'll need to dress up for that, and it will be hot in May so I want to be able to wear cute dresses and shorts while we're doing the tourist thing. I also want to do a boudoir photo shoot for my fiancé to give him the morning of the wedding.  I'm overwhelmed already!
 

 

 

By the time the wedding comes around, our daughter will have just turned two so I really have no excuse as why I have not already lost these last pounds. The only excuse I have is simply that I have not put forth the effort to exercise. That is it. I am truly disappointed in myself for this. I was a size 0/2 and 103 pounds before conceiving my beautiful little surprise. I am currently a size 4/6 and  127 pounds. Now, I understand to most people this is hardly cause for concern. I understand that I am not overweight. However, I am carrying excess fat around my stomach and hips and butt. I am not used to this. I do not like it. I want it gone. I long for the days of a toned tummy and butt. The days when I could literally close my eyes and pick what to wear and look amazing in whatever I threw on. I miss feeling healthy. I miss feeling confident. I miss the carefree woman I used to be. 

 

In order to reach my goals I know my habits must change. I have to get my brain back into the mode it used to be in. I have to get back to the point where daily exercise is not even a question. I also must make time to prepare my lunch for work everyday instead of eating out.  I need to create a dinner menu instead of eating ramen noodles over the sink because nothing is thawed.  Dinner is going to be a tough one. My fiancé is an over-the-road truck driver so making a full meal every night for me and an almost two year old seems a little ridiculous. When I do cook a full meal, I end up eating that same meal for three or four nights in row in order to get through it all.

Knowing how to exercise to get back to my ideal body is not the problem. I did it before. My problem is having time to do it when I'm basically a single mother who works full-time. I know millions of single moms do it, I just have to learn their tricks. I am not a group fitness kind of girl so I will not have to schedule my workouts around a gyms class schedule. That is good! Years ago I gained some weight due to stress in a relationship; when I was ready to get back to myself, I walked. And walked. And walked some more. I walked until I got to a comfortable weight and could then feel good about trying new workouts and try out running. My plan is to walk every night after dinner now that it is getting nicer out here the Northwest. This will eliminate needing to worry about childcare and losing more precious time with my kiddo. I'll just toss her in the stroller and get to it. I sure hope it will be that easy! I also have many workouts I have used over the years to tone all the areas I am worried about. I am a huge fan of balance balls. They give a full range of motion that you may not get if you are just doing a floor exercise. I like hand weights no heavier than 10 pounds for arms. I'm a lady, I want toned arms, not guns.

 

 

As it is March 1st, I feel this is as good a day as any to get to it already.

I will be posting updates, recipes, and workouts soon so check back!