Fit Villains: Selfish, Shameless, Sassy, Fitness.

Do you have trouble taking a rest day? Me too.

I’ve always had a hard time with rest days: it’s not easy for me to ‘relax’ and I get antsy. Crawling up the walls, jumping from ‘A’ to ‘B’, sometimes emotional ‘antsy’. While most people have trouble working up the motivation TO workout, I struggle with having the discipline to hold myself back. It wasn’t until I ended up with a double stress fracture in my hip last year that I seriously started focusing on ‘recovery’ days as part of the “routine”.

I’m a self-proclaimed fitness addict and the ‘high’ I get from my workouts is something I crave almost daily. Holding myself back & taking time to recover is something I have to actively work on & involves listening to my body closely. There are days when it needs me to go easy, even if I don’t feel like it. That’s okay since we need to be making decisions based on ITS needs and not our ego’s. It’s hard sometimes, but I do it. I love this bod of mine and I express it by treating it with care.

The amazing thing is that once I started focusing on getting enough rest, my body started to repay the favor. I had more energy. I was less sore. I dropped a little body fat that just wasn’t budging before. My performance went UP. Even today, I continually see better results by making sure at least 1-2 days a week don’t include a ‘workout’.

I don’t schedule my rest days (it gives me the flexibility to decide if my body needs one on the fly). Some weeks I take more than others & I usually rest on Sundays. Some people prefer to have set rest days, but you should listen to your body FIRST and stay flexible: it’s not advisable to push through a workout ‘day’ when your body is telling you otherwise.

When to take a rest day…

• If you haven’t had one in awhile (you should have at least one a week and more if you’re training harder than usual).
• If you’re unusually sore or suspect a possible injury (twinges count).
• When you’re sacrificing sleep or other priorities in order to workout (sometimes, we just have surprisingly busy days. And sometimes we may be falling into dangerous fitness ‘addiction’ territory. Make sure your sleep, life, and obligations still come first. How to spot signs of fitness addiction.).
• If you are experiencing symptoms of overtraining.

If you have trouble taking rest days (guilt, fear of losing momentum etc.) try an active recovery day instead. Walks, light yoga (not all yoga is ‘light’) & serious stretching can help you feel as though you’ve gotten a workout while letting your muscles recover & rebuild. My ‘rest’ days are usually full of distractions: making plans to keep your mind off “missing” your workout is a big help. Keep things light though: people like me can easily turn that walk into a ‘power’ walk. Conventional wisdom says you should take a rest day on your ‘lazy’ day. It’s up to you, but I’ve found better success taking it on a day when I’ve made other plans & commitments. If you’re a fit freak, experimenting with when you take your rest day can help you through it.

Remember: workouts are body DAMAGE. Results come from making enough time for our bodies to rebuild stronger than before. The more intense your workouts, the more rest days you need: take them. :)

Rest days: they’re part of the program TOO.

xo

Stretch Out Sundays: Try this 20 minute yoga/stretch routine on your rest day.  It’s a great way to “recover” while still feeling as though you’re moving.

Stretch Out Sundays is a new feature, and each Sunday I’ll post a follow-along video or printable routine that you can add to your workouts or do on its own.

If you’ve been training HARD all week, it’s important to take some time and stretch out your muscles. Flexibility is a fitness component many people ignore, but it’s every bit as vital as your cardio & resistance training. Yoga is a great way to challenge your muscles while getting DEEP in your tissue and relieving tension you didn’t know you had.

This is a beginner/intermediate routine. It’s about 30 minutes long, and will leave you feeling loose, limber and energized. You’ll need a mat & yoga blocks if you have them.

Listen to your body! Some of these poses may be challenging. Modify them when you need to and feel free to swap them for others.

Get stretching!

Last week’s Tone It Up stretch routine.

Did you try the Weekend Workout? It’s not too late!

Desperately needed a good foam rolling before bed! Tough training weeks mean oh-so sore muscles. Just finished rolling out to ‘Roll Out’ by Ludacris: my new favorite thing to do. :)

This video from Tone It Up has great ideas if you’re new to foam rolling. If you’re really sore, it can be painful, but the good kind of painful. You’ll feel great afterwards, I promise.

I had a cheap roller at first, and it worked well. As my workouts got more intense, I needed something with a little ‘oomph’ to really dig into my muscles. Beginners can expect to spend $20-$40 bucks on a simple roller. If you want more of a ‘grip’, you can try the model below (I have the long & short models at home, and my neck/back/IT band loves me for it). It can run you about $45-$75 or so.

Roll OUT!

RumbleRoller, Foam Roller for Myofascial Release

Hey there,

Stretch marks are normal: almost everyone has them and some are more visible than others.

Proper hydration and moisturizing can help, and most stretch marks are visibly reduced over time. Stretch marks react like scars and can be treated with certain creams and lotions: but it’s not a guarantee they’ll go away. Vitamin E cream, a diet high in Vitamin C & A, and plenty of water can help naturally. If you’re not sure, talk to your dermatologist about what products they recommend.

Like elastic, skin stretches and if it’s stretched too much it doesn’t always bounce back to it’s original form. Loose skin & stretch marks can occur in those who are overweight, and tend to be more visible as we slim. Remember that skin is resilient, especially the younger you are, & it can take a few years for it to bounce back as much as it can on its own. Try not to focus on the parts you hate: focus on gaining muscle, strength and getting fit & healthy instead.

Importantly: stretch marks are nothing to be ashamed or, or to hide. They’re normal, common and almost every woman will have them at one point or another. Even thin people who’ve never been overweight have stretch marks, many women have them on their breasts, hips and thighs, and tummies. Not everyone will get them, and they are slightly genetic. Those with darker pigments may notice them more, but the bottom line is that they aren’t something you need to be worried about.

As for arm flab, the same rules apply as normal fat loss: we lose fat at the same rate everywhere. Women tend to have shallow ends and deep ends: your arms may be your deep end, which means it’s where your body loses fat the slowest. Adding muscle all over, eating clean, reducing your overall body fat percentage and lifting heavy can help dramatically, but it takes time and effort! Fat loss is a combination of diet, exercise and general health (sleeping enough, reducing stress and hydrating). You can’t spot reduce; you need to burn fat everywhere in order for your arms to slim down. Excess skin may be an issue, but you can still reduce fat and add muscle to tighten and tone.

Don’t stress about it too much! Just be as healthy and happy as you can. In the grand scheme of things, you’re perfectly normal. Models, athletes and celebrities all have stretch marks too. :)

xo

I love yoga, but after an intense run, or Insanity workout the LAST thing I wanna do is stick around for the stretch. It’s the only part of the workout that consistently feels like work to me (which is funny I know, but this girl likes to move!).

I make some of these mistakes all the time, but it’s good to remind yourself every now and then to make some simple changes. I put a lot of time & effort into this body and I’ll be damned if I let it go to waste! So check out this list of the top 8 stretching mistakes via Huffington Post and see which ones you could improve or add to your routine.

1. Not stretching at all, or forgetting to stretch after a workout.

I can relate to this one because although I love yoga, I hate stretching at the end of my workout. After sweating it out & pushing hard, sometimes the LAST thing I want to do is hold a few stretches. But stretching is just as important as strength & cardio. Squeeze it in!

2. Stretching inconsistently.

Once a week? Not enough. In fact, stretching in short 5 minute bursts throughout the day will boost your energy, get blood flowing & keep you limber. It might sound like a lot if you’re not used to it, but aiming for 2-3 quick stretch breaks throughout the day will give you energy.

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