Take a break - Rest Days

Hi guys!
August is here - I read somewhere that August is like the summer's Sunday and it is true! Slowly we start adjusting to everyday life again, school, work etc. I'm a lucky one, I'll be leaving for Greece next week to celebrate the last working year for me is official over! I'll be starting university this September. Freaked out much?

Well, this post is not about important things like Greece, but it is about something important though! I guess the headline sais it all? Yep, we're talking rest days! I chose this subject because it is very relevant for myself these days. The active girls I'm following on Tumblr keep mentioning this and I know if you just started working out or haven't started yet a rest day sounds like the best thing in the entire world! But I am this far in my addiction to exercising that I have a really hard time going just one day without it. Especially now when I'm leaving for Greece in a week, things need to speed up and I don't feel like I can miss one day's workout. This is bulls***! Pardon my French. Rest days are so important and I need you all to remember this! Because many people forget this when they start feeling the addiction of exercising!

Some days you need this more than the gym - and it's okay!

So do something else on your rest days - make them fun! Go to the beach, go shopping, see some of those friends you haven't seen in a while because you had to work out! Go go go have a life! Or you could, like me, watch all the tv you normally can't!

"Well, why are rest days so darn important then", you might ask. There are a million good reasons and I'll give them right now:

TISSUE REPAIR:
The first reason to stay home from the gym! Like it or not, when you are lifting weights your body is actually making damage to the muscle tissue and this is not a bad thing because that's what makes them grow - but after damage follows repairing and you need to respect your body for that. You'll be feeling those sore muscles for days if you've been doing it correct and hard enough.

REPLENISHES ENERGY STORES:
What the hell does replenish means, right? Don't worry, I had to google it too. It basically means rebuilding something - in this case energy stores. This makes perfect sense to all I hope! If you take a rest day your body will be even more ready to a H.I.T class, crossfit, weight lifting etc. the day after tomorrow.

KEEPS THE MOTIVATION:
Yep, you might end up hating exercising if you keep pushing yourself every single day! Don't get me wrong, people do that for a living - but for us just doing it as a hobby you need to take a break or else you'll have a bad time. I myself are definitely not there yet, but I think you really need to be careful. Make your workouts a reward, not a punishment and these rest days will also come more easily.

DECREASES RISK OF INJURY:
Also pretty simple. Don't push your legs/arms/stomach to maximum every single day, your body don't like that! You can push yourself, I love people who push themself, but keep it realistic. People who run 10 km a day, every day - it's a fact that their knees are ruined as they hit 40. Not cool! Respect your body!

So yeah, I think those were some pretty awesome reasons to keep it down - how many restdays you need I actually can't tell. It depends on your workouts and how long you're at it. But just always use your brain. If you feel your knee is stupid or your body is impossible to work with take a break that day.
Go easy on yourself!

Help I'm Going On Vacation!

Happy holiday my beautiful friends!
I hope you're having a smashing summer and the weather is with you wherever you are in the world! I myself just got home from a three weeks stay in Italy so I'm all rested and tanned.
What I wanna talk about today is very relevant for my three weeks vacation and I know that many of you have the exact same problem when you're on your holiday. How to squeeze that workout in now and then and keeping the clean path in eating healhty - because it can be so hard! Especially if your family is keeping up the holiday spirit with sugary drinks and wonderfull (not so healthy) food all day long. Luckily my parents are as healthy as me so the food they're making are not as damaging for the diet. But this is not the case for everyone and I know, BOY do I know how hard it is keeping away from tempting food when it's right in front of you!
I'll try to write down some simple steps you can try to follow both with eating healhty and exercising.

So this post is for the people feeling panicked about going away on holiday and staying fit and healthy at the same time!

Mental preparation:
My vacations doesn't start the day we leave - it starts weeks before! Not only with my intensive workouts but also mentally. If you, like me, are going away camping or staying at a hotel or something else like that where a lot of tempting food and candy-licious treats are standard, you should start preparing. Start telling your brain you're not gonna eat ice cream everyday and it will be just a little easier saying no when finally there. Find some good tactics that works for you. Basically just think about it and you're already one step closer because you've acknowledged the fact that it's there, but not necessarily something you should eat everyday just because it is.

Cutting:
This step is kinda under the previous step, since it begins before the vacation begins. Four or three weeks before start cutting sugar from your diet. I do this on a regular basis, not eating sugar or high fat snacks like chips from Monday to Friday - do this a couple of weeks before, maybe even do it all week if possible. Your body will get use to it and after some weeks I promise you that you will crave sugar less and less. If you're able to do this, it will be a lot easier saying no when the vacation starts!

Alternatives:
Find alternatives for sugar to eat. I love watermelon and apples, well basically any fruits! Yogurt with fruit makes a great dessert.

Workouts:
This is also problem for some. How to workout if you're not in a hotel with a gym? There's so many things you can do to get active and it doesn't even have to be that creative.

Running
I'm a runner so of course I was up every morning going for a run in the mountains, but if you can't run due to injuries or other things that's of course out of the question.

Walking
Never underestimate the power of a good walk! Bring some good shoes (running shoes are great shoes for a good walk) and maybe even put on your workout clothes because you'll feel more comfortable sweating and therefore you might even walk faster. Plus get one of your family members or friends or boy/girlfriend to join you - it'll be much more fun and you'll probably chose a longer route.

Swimming
Most of the camping spots we've been to have had a pool. Maybe not a big one, but if you're lucky to have a big pool where you're staying then go for a swim! Swimming is so good for you, people wouldn't believe! It is the most healthy thing you can do for your body since there's almost no injuries to it. Do a crawl, a breaststroke whatever! It'll built muscles like you wouldn't believe!

If you have the chance to surf - do it! It is SO MUCH fun!

Cycling
Maybe this is a bit far out, but many people bring their own bikes on vacation. My parents ride racing bikes, but you can do mountain bikes too - even just ride any bike and it'll be great exercise for you! You can rent bikes so many places, search for them and see the landscape a whole new way!

Portable equipment
Bring some stuff to built or maintain muscle mass - I brought a big rubber band. You can find them in many sizes and they are great to do exercises with. Both for arms, legs and stomach. Of course weights and stuff like that are stupid to bring, but I used huge waterbottles for my stomach workouts for example.
But feel free to use benches, stairs, play grounds and other things to intensify your workout.

Guilt
Talking about all these things can be difficult. People are not the same and sometimes it can start arguments and maybe offend someone. Just because you decided to eat healthy does not mean you can go around and preach about how other people should eat on their vacation. Just be polite and respect other's opinions. But don't you EVER apologize for going running in the morning or going swimming or basically just being active on your holiday! Some people do not understand why it's needed to be this active and I don't want anyone feeling guilty about it. People can be mean whe they are jealous. It all goes both ways.
And don't ever be guilty for eating that chocolate ice cream anyways - it is vacation and you don't want to walk around sad, because you're gonna have a bad time then! I ate tons of stuff too you stuff have to think about it a little.

All these steps are built if you're going away from your usual everyday life like a vacation or visiting family in another city or whatever. But of course you can use them as guidelines for a holiday at home too if that is what you're doing. Just remember to use your brain a little and it can't go wrong!

The Real Push-Up

Hello my beautiful friends!

Today I want to shed some light on a problem I see way too often in the gym! The push-up. Because there are so many people doing it wrong in the classes I'm taking. Wow. And if done repeatedly wrong a push-up can do more damage than it can do good. So I decided to show you guys how a proper push-up is done! And because I work out I am a lazy sloth the rest of the day and it will therefore not be me showing you guys how to do so, but more likely pretty girls on my Tumblr! Okay? Okay!

Now, there's severeal ways to do a push-up depending on how experienced you are. My gym teacher in High School use to call the push-up on your knees for a "girl push-up" which is just so wrong. Wrong,wrong, wrong! There is nothing girly about it! A push-up on your knees (if done correctly) are just to take the pressure of your lower back - if your arms can't take the weight. It is impossible to do a push-up on your feet correctly if your arms can't hold it. Therefore a push-up on your knees are way better because you'll get the right result. And I don't see anything "girly" in getting your stuff right!! But then again, how would my High School Teacher know that? He didn't get anything right!

What I am trying to say is this.. Do not do push-ups on your feet if your body isn't ready! I don't care how many of your friends can do it, you'll get injuries in your back and if your technique isn't right it will do no good for your muscles! So please start off small and work your way to the top! I do a lot of weight lifting and I myself can't take more than five-ten push-ups on my feet before it starts to hurt my back. And it's just not worth it! 

Whether it's up a wall, on your knees or just a push-up on your feet it will do great things for your arms, but it is so important to do it right!

You need to start out as a plank. Either on feet or knees. Your hands should be right under your shoulders or a little wider if you like. 

Your neck has to be even and on line with your spine, meaning you should look down the whole time. 

You can not let your center body sack down, meaning your abs are at work too! Tighten that stomach and straighten your back.  

Like a plank, your butt has to be down so your body doesn't create a reverse V.

I hope you guys got something out of it? Because push-ups can be God's gift to your arm! Well, your entire body if done right! We like!

The Tough Tabata

Hi guys!
Summer is all over us and if you are (like me) inspired to touch up that body before bikini season kicks in, here's something!
I've been going to a lot of classes lately and my favourite at the moment is High Intensity Training - also known as H.I.T class. This is a class where you focus on both cardio training and core strengthening. I love it and it is super hard and super effective!
In this class we have a pass called Tabata. This is a killer! It is various rounds of exercises you're doing over and over again within a planned amount of seconds. Sometimes you're doing the exercises for 30 seconds and sometimes 40 seconds, it depends on the instructor and songs.
I found an amazing instructor on Youtube called Amanda Russell who's going to show you guys the most effective workout! I just love it! ... And hate it a little bit too. Tabata is a challenge. It's all about getting your pulse sky high! In this video she does the exercises 20 seconds at a time and a wicked 8 rounds of them! Usually in my classes we only do 6 rounds, but if you're doing it as a total workout, you can easily do 8 rounds. And it is all about testing yourself! Please remember that. It's all about getting you out of the comfort zone and that's why a class is better for me. I need an instructor to yell at me when I'm stopping or doing the exercises too slow. So if you're doing this home alone, please have in mind that you need to push yourself. Not to the limit, but over! A little sweat never hurt nobody!
So get yourself going with this gorgeous girl Amanda Russell! She is truely amazing! Click for her Youtube channel here!

Get Them Legs Moving

Happy Wednesday!

It is time for a workout! I'm gonna make this post about legs today. I know we've been around it a few times with the thighs and the butt, but it is my problem areas so we're going to see a lot of it. I have very strong legs and I leg press about 127 kg when I'm at my best, but my legs just won't show! There's still a lot of fat around them and I just can't seem to lose any of it! I know there are people out there with the exact same problem and then there's people out there with problem areas like their stomach or arms. Basically it is all the same. Three key ingredients - cardio workout, weight training and dieting. 

Cardio workout is important when talking about our problem areas. Of course if you have skinny arms or legs and just want them toned, this is not a crucial element in your workout. But if you, like me, are haunted with a lot of fat, it is important to burn a lot of that. And lifting weights is going to get you a long way, but please keep in mind the process will be faster and better if you mix it up. So go run or ride a bike or hit zumba class a few times a week!

The pyramid in the upper picture is a great total workout for your legs. It is of course hard to lift weights when it comes to your legs so usually you're gonna use your whole body weight. Of course there's machines in the gym too, but if you're not a frequently gym user, this is much easier. 

And last, but definitely not least your diet. I said it before and I'll say it again! A good workout rutine can not beat a bad diet! It is that simple. You got to look out with what you eat. I am not saying you should cut out everything fun in your life or you should eat all the cake and ice cream you want, but everything in moderation! Portion control and sugar control. Let yourself have a treat every now and then, but make it a reward. From monday to thursday I will not eat candy and unhealthy snacks, but I will look forward to the weekend where I am allowed to. It is a great way and also the easy way! But get your food under control. My problem is over eating. I got to start getting my portions under control, I eat like a grown man! But start small and work your way up!

Good luck! <3 

When The Budget Is Low

Hello beautiful friends!
Summer is getting closer, can you smell it? I am so excited! Tanned skin, beach hair, long nights - why not a killer body too? Well, at least what you define a killer body! It's all about being comfortable in your own skin even though your friend is losing weight faster than you or is getting much more toned than you. Don't compare!

This is not particular a "summer post", nothing with bikinis and beach hair today. No, I stumbled over a post on my Tumblr and I laughed so hard! The girls creating this are truely amazing and they understand what it's all about! When the budget is hitting a low, the priorities may not concern a gym and some of you guys lose interest when it has to be done at home. It's easy going for a run, but exercising might be more difficult especially if you don't have much room or maybe missing the right gear? Fear not! This is such a funny way to do things and of course some people might find it a little dumb, but the idea is brilliant! Use what you got!

A Workout For Book Nerds

#1 - The Book Curl

#2 - The Book Up

#3 - The Brunch (Book Crunch)

#4 - Cool Down

Do like these awesome girls and use what you got! It only takes some books and some yarn rope and voila!

It All Counts!

Hello guys!
Today I wanna talk about all the little shortcuts you can make in your everyday life to just get that extra kick. It's some pretty simple stuff, giving you some disguised exercise and now where summer is getting closer, the weather is helping us a lot! Enjoy!

1. Use your bike as transportation

There are a lot of people joining spinning classes or going for a ride in the sunny weather occasionally, but that's not what I'm talking about here. I'm talking about using your bike to get to work, to go shopping, when hanging out with a friend, going to the beach etc. Of course within reasonable distance - but if the weather's good, you can go a pretty long way without dying. If you ride your bike to work, let's say a distance of 3 or 4 km and you do this everyday, it is great exercise for you! No one says you have to beat a new record or anything, take it slow, put some music in your ears, enjoy the ride!

2. Take the stairs!

This is simple. Very simple. If there's an elevator and there's stairs, take the stairs. My ear doctor (bizarrely a place I visit very often) has both and it is such an easy choice to go in the elevator, I know! But arrive a little early and jump on those stairs! This can also be a place you cross when going to the bus stop maybe - just take some minutes to go up and get that puls up for a few seconds!

3. Be creative on your run!

You're going running? Getting a little bored from time to time? Wanna work those muscles too, but you're too tired when you finished your run? Fear not! There are a million ways to make that run a lot more fun! Use the bench in the park to do some exercises or whatever you can find! 

4. Go for a walk!

This is a thing which I think is highly underrated! This is how I started to run. In the beginning where running seriously seemed impossible to me I started going for long walks. I powerwalked and slowly increased the pace for every walk. Then I started to run some of the way and it slowly turned into running in the end. If you're not a big fan of running or if you have injuries, of course a walk doesn't have to end up in running. It is a great way to clear your head and just get some fresh air. Move the legs a little. If you find it boring, put some music in your ears or bring a friend!

5. Motivate yourself!

Motivation isn't going to appear out of thin air, it's going to come from inside of yourself! You are the one creating the motivation, not anyone else. And there are plenty of ways to get it! I have a few favourites myself! 

Put on some workout clothes. Doesn't matter if you're not going to work out, put it on anyway! Especially if you've had a bad day. Put it on! The prettiest outfit you have! With lots and lots of colors! Walk around in it. Eat in it. Watch tv in it. Feel comfortable in it. I feel I am a lot closer to a workout when the clothes are already on! 

Buy some new workout clothes! I work out much better knowing I look good and that's a fact! Buy a fun water bottle, bright shoes and tiny shorts!