Dance Dance Dance!!!

Hiiii!

Just to let you know, yesterday was the national "Sports day of your dreams"-day in Finland. It was  a new nation wide cmpaign to get people to move more and try new things with discounts to gyms and other sports. I measured my body composition in one of the gyms. Huiiii :D My body-mas index is normal (23 normal lying anywhere between 19-25)! So yeeyy :) But hehe, could still lose some kilos... Or gain some if those would be muscle! (I guess you already knew that muscle weights double the mass of fat?) 

Anyway, if there was any extra in my hips, I hope those were burnt in the dance lesson that we tried with my friend :D Hihi, we started with lady Marmelade. It is great to see when people really fel the music and express themselves and let them free^^ Respect! Dacing is also super awesome sport, burning almost as much calories as running, if you really dance "hard". I would also like to point out, that I have burnt 1000-2000 calories when clubbing, if I have been constantly dancing for several hours (which happens quite easily...) So, partying and especially dancing are good for the soul and body :)

Burn baby burn

 And for those moments when you feel like dancing, but there are no dance lessons offered next to you:

There are some really nice Youtube dance-lessons! 

One of my favorites is Keaira LaShae :) Try this out and see it yourself! 11 min, yeah yeah^^

Best,
Sara

Choosing Your Gym + Full-Body Workout in the Gym

Hi!

Today is an interesting day, since we go to the gym first time together! We are going to the test a new gym, in order to check if it would be beneficial to take a monthly card there. I love it, that usually you can test the gyms before, sometimes even a few times, before you have to decide. Since, if you are going to invest your tiem and money for going to gym, better make it worth the value.


Most of the times, the gyms would like you to commit for a long time. this would mean a yearly contract or even 2-year contract. It is a very good decision adn commitment, if you will make it, but it is also decision that should be seen as an investment. So, when you are thinking seriously about a gym with a nice smiling trainer who has just offered you a nice cup of coffee and maybe even 2 personal trainer visits vwith the contact, keep in mind the facts:

• Distance from home/work
• Athmospehere
• People
• Price
• Any friends there?
• Equipment
• Space
• Any lessons offered (les mills)
• Changing rooms
• Music
• How to get there (parking lot, easy acces with public transport)

Or even if you need a gym, maybe you would prefer crossfit or working out at home?

If you are choosing a gym, remember, that if it is a new place, it will take some time to form a habit of going there regularly. Therefore, the closer to you it is, the easier it is to go there. If you have already friends there, they might motivate you to go there too. You need to also know, what you really value, the lessons together with a trainer or a big gym area. Of course, the whole athmosphere affects your decision. I think price should be compared to the quality offered and therefore it is relative.

You can test your gym for example with this simple but effective workout.

The Full-Body Workout that we did with a classic movements for all the major muscles:

1. 10x 3 Squats
2. 10x3 Deadlifts
3 .3x10 Bench Press
4. 3x15 dips
5. 3x12 Dumbbell presses
6. 3x30 Standing calf rasies
7. 3x15 hanging leg raises
8. 3x12 Barbell curls

Check the movements here

Good luck with choosing your gym :)

First day of 12 week Half-Marathon Project -link to the program

Hi!

I found a plan for a beginner, like me, and now going to make the first run! I just wanted to post the already now. I can't say how excited I am, since it sounds something achievable, but challenging. Secondly, many of my sisters and friends have already successfully run the 21 kilometers, so I would be happy to join that group! :D I guess, this will greatly support also my summer body wishes! It will also be convenient program, because even though I will be travelling back and forth between Finland and Germany, and having irregular schedules, it does not matter, since one can do running anywhere. :D

I found this free training plan from running.competitor.com The instructions can be found from the website, but for the first week, you need to only know the meaning of strides, which is: "Strides are 20 to 35-second sprints at 85 to 95 percent of top speed. Strides help you work on your running mechanics in short increments and serve as a speed maintenance session."

So, here we go! First run is only 6 km and 4 sprints, so not so bad! Join me now, and run a half marathon in 12 weeks!

Best,
Sara
H

Decrease stress, run faster

Hi,

I was (once again) busy and stressed. It was also raining and icy outside, so the weather was not the motivation for my jogging. My motivation was to be a faster runner.  Robert is faster than me, with his long legs, so I have to little practice, if I want to keep up with my boyfriend's speed :D  Secondly, I read that the sprints not only make you faster and increase your metabolism, it is also good for the stress hormone cortisol levels (National Institute of Health) When compared to my normal 5km jogging route with a steady speed, sprinting does not raise the cortisol levels, whereas steady speed does according to the studies. (Long, 1-2 hour running does not increase cortisol levels)
(KuntoPlus)

Stress fools your brain to think that you need to save all the energy that you can get and store it to your stomach area "just in case". So... Not so good, when thinking about the goal to be healthy and fit! Haha, and already having enough stress :D Just leaving to Germany and packing my stuff.



So therefore I did today a simple running workout consisting of:

Warm up 5-10 jogging

10 times 
1 minute sprint + 1 minute slow jogging
(=16 minutes)

5 minute cool down

and strecthing afterwards.


Huh! Sometimes one minute can feel extremely long! :D This is also funny exercise, because you can again test your limits and then there is the slow minute to recover. 

For the people who are interested in calories:

Burnt about 375 calories during this time :) Should have measured also the after burn, because it is supposed to also contribute quite a lot! ( I did 12 minute HIIT training and burned 125 calories and then afterwards another 200kcal in 30 minutes just by chilling!)

HOw did you feel like after your run?


Best,
Sara

Faster! Stronger! Harder! I bet u can do this 12 min arm +cardio workout!

Hi,

writing my thesis, but then got distracted. Seriously needing some sports now! I want to make it intensive, to gain the benefits but also to save some time today (In a hurry, so less than 15 minute workout really beats the +2 hour "go to gym -do sports -come back" project.

Since you are only competiting against yourself, you decide your pace. Try your max! :)



So do this twice, altogether 12 minutes :) 50sec work per movement with 10 sec break.

1. Jumping jacks

2. Push ups and side plank

3. Burbee

4. Push ups with narrow grip


5. Shadow boxing

6. Hindu push up


During the first round, try to set your bar to the max. The second round you already know the movements, so break the record from the first round! Okay, if your hands are not dead... Do one extra round :D

Best,
Sara

Effective upper body workout

Hi dear,

Today is upper body day! It is so important to train the body evenly and keep the whole body strong. For example the Women Running.com commented how the elite runners use their whole body to run faster, therefore, strong upper body improves also your running performance. Aaaaaand, for guys, chest, shoulders and abs are the hottest body parts. Yes, true story. So, let's do it.



I have been talking with lots of friends, and the friends who do not like gym, most probably are not sure what to do. If you haven't been in the gym, you can test these movements first at home, to check how does it feel to do them :) You can do this workout also at home, if you have 3-10kg dumbbells.


So!

1. 3x 12 clean and press with 30-60s breaks

2.4x 10 squats with 30-60s breaks


3. Alternate these two movements for three rounds

a)12 push-us
b)20 bicycle abs

4. 12x3 Incline bench press
 

5.Alternate these two movements for three rounds
a)12 arms raise (front)

b) overhead extensions


6.Alternate these two movements for three rounds
a) 10  bicep curl

b) 12 arm raise (sides)




Last thing!

Alternate for 3 rounds (altogether 3 minutes)

a)side plank (left) 30s
b)side plank (right) 30s



Yey :D

And stretching 2-3 hours after :)

Perfect!

by,
Sara

Workout bingo

Hey there!!!
Use your full name, and choose a movement for every letter in your name.  That's the workout of the day, and repeat if necessary :)

A- 50 jumping jacks

B- 20 crunches

C- 30 squats

D-15 push ups

E- 1 min. wall sit

F- 10 burpees

G- 20 sec arm circles

H- 20 squats

I- 30 jumping jacks

J- 15 crunches

K- 10 push ups

L- 2 min wall sit

M- 20 burpees

N- 25 burpees

O- 40 jumping jacks

P- 15 sec arm circles

Q- 30 crunches

R- 15 push ups

S- 20 burpees

T- 15 squats

U- 30 sec arm circles

V- 2 min wall sit

W- 20 burpees

X- 60 jumping jacks

Y- 10 crunches

Z- 20 push ups

If you have to do the same movement twice, you can also choose another ;)

Have fun!!

Upper body workout in gym (or at home with some modifications)

Hi!
I went to gym, and did an arm workout that you can use as an  example for your upper body workout. I did this when I was thinking how important the upper body is for most guys. These exercises are for the arms, chest and back, to get some 3D improvement! Hehe, have fun Robert! I enjoyed it too, since usually I always train only legs and therefore my arms are relatively weak compared to the rest of my body. So ladies and gentlemen, regardless of your gender,  let's start lifting :)

I did:

for warm up:
10 min with cross-trainer
30 kettlebell swings (12kg)

Start with muscle groups and proceed to smaller ones:

(Optional: 4 x 10 squats)

3x12 Bent over barbell rows 

Bent over row, instructions from Bodybuilding.com

3x12 Overhead barbell press

3x15 Lateral pulldown (or pull-ups, or modified pull-ups)

Like in Samsfitness.com.au

3x12 Bench press

3x12 Dumbbell bench press

3x15 Back extensions

3x 12 Close grip push ups

3x15 barbell curls

3x15 abs

Huh huh!

Remember stretching :)

Challenge 2. 15 minutes Pilates-inspired workout for legs

Hi!

Having a serious flu (maybe because of the -20 degree weather) so, therefore did not want to do anything that we move too fast and jump around. So, this is quite nice workout also fot those days that yo don't want to sweat too much, but still want to feel the burn in your butt! :D

So dear Robert and all the other readers, let's get started! Hehe, no excuses, do it now!

Do 1-2 times through or put a timer and do 15 minutes so many times through that you can :)



-5 pistol squats
-15 squats  
-15 leg raises per leg

leg raise

1 minute sitting against the wall

- 15 butt raises
-15 single leg raises per side

hold your butt for 1 minute up

first with both legs and then with only one

-20 from squat position to lunge position -stay low all the time!
-16 side squats (stay low and change from side to side)

Photo from http://blog.finishline.com/

-15 back-movement ( lay on your tummy and raise simultaneously arms and legs. )

Me doing the last thing at home :D

-hold yourself in one minute on all fours without letting your knees to touch the floor


Haha, have fun! I bet u can do it ;)

Best,
Sara

Challenge 1.

Today was a long day, for both. We had so much to do, and still didn't finish. Therefore, today's challenge will be a short but (hopefully) hard pilates session. Easy to do, because you can practice at home, and the only thing you need is a yoga mat and your body.

We will do three sets, with four different plank positions.
Every position 60 sec, 10 sec rest time. If you have enough time, repeat the whole session ;)

Set 1
- Normal Plank
- Side Plank (lift hips) left
- Dolphin Plank
- Side Plank (lift hips) right


Set 2
- Plank and bring knee to elbow, alternate left and right
- Stand with legs in 90° without touching floor and rotate 3x one direction and change
- Plank and bring knee to the opposite elbow (left to right, right to left)
- Swimming, laying on your belly and raising arms and legs at hte same time



Set 3
- Side Plank arm in the air and go down until elbow touches floor (left)
- Lying on your back on the floor make circles with straight legs in the air
- Side Plank arm in the air and go down until elbow touches floor (right)
- Lying on your tummy, lift arm and leg (e.g. left arm, right leg)


Have fun :D