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Starting anew in 2010

Angela C. — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:00:29 +0000

Well, kettleviewers… so far, I’m starting 2010 off with a clean slate. Like many, the new year brings a sense of “I can do it!” to everything I’m taking on.

I think 2010 is going to teach me discipline. My health and overall fitness goals are just part of the whole picture. In every aspect, I’m learning to tackle a little bit each and every day, consistently.

I could focus on nutrition, exercise, saving money, connecting with friends, or even my business goals, and keep myself motivated by doing something — even just a little — every single day.

It’s like the adage of saving for a rainy day. If I put aside a dollar for every day this year, I’d have $365 on December 31st that I wouldn’t have otherwise.

I know, some of you would like to put aside TEN dollars a day — and if you have it, by all means, do it — however, for me, taking bite-sized pieces really works.

I find that setting my sights on a realistic goal, like “get some physical activity in,” or “no sugary sweets today,” allows me to focus on a small choice or activity that will pay off over time. Check it out:

I think that my scale(s) are a little off, so let’s not get excited about losing 5.5 pounds in one week, people. I didn’t starve myself, and I haven’t started my cleanse yet.

What I am really tracking here are the inches on my body. Last week, I dragged myself into training, pretty upset. My clothes weren’t fitting the way they were, even a month ago.

My trainer challenged me and my partner again — lose a pound a week, or pay up! Jerk!

I mean, here’s a picture of him teaching us how to do “the jerk.”

So my workout partner, Ty, and I decided to keep eachother accountable over e-mail/text/harrassing phone calls:

“Eat healthy today?”
“What did you do to workout?” ”
“Put that mini Reeses’ Peanut Butter cup down! Two pounds a week!”

Jerk!

Just kidding! Every little bit helps, really.

I’m keeping my eye on my one year goal– to have lost 80 pounds, and over 12 inches in my waistline — through discipline, consistency, and a sense of humor.

Not to mention, I have an even bigger goal; that is, to be a healthy mom.

Happy New Year, everybody! Leave me a comment!

P.S. I’ll be tracking my progress starting from January 2010. Feel free to look at past blogs under the category “Measurements” to see how I’ve fared since May 2009.

Leaving 2009 in the dust!

Angela C. — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 14:09:01 +0000

Hey, kettlepeeps!

Have you ever looked back at small pieces of your life and felt pretty good about it? I find that I usually don’t give myself kudos for small accomplishments, but today, I am.

I’m happy that I haven’t given up on myself in my quest to lose weight and gain healthy habits. I moved my goal date from October 30,2009 (with a 55lb loss) to June 30, 2010 (with a 70 pound loss) and I believe I will do it.

I’ve always lacked a sense of confidence (if you couldn’t tell) when it came to physical activity. I avoided competitive sports, even bowling, until I was well out of college.

I’ve always held at least two jobs, or a job and a side-job, which kept me perpetually running around. I “worked out,” but usually that meant a group class, like high impact aerobics, or my own mix of cardio and body weight training. I’ve only felt comfortable in my own skin with dance, or more specifically (non-competitive) hula.

I started and stopped Weight Watchers after moderate success. I really gave up on working out and meal planning when I was pregnant with my son.

Not surprisingly, these things took a toll on my overall health and well-being.

As of May 2009, I decided to take on something new, set a goal, and strive for it publicly.

I don’t have to be perfect, in fact, who is? But I can hold myself accountable and have some fun while I’m at it. Enter kettlebells.

I started training at FitPro Hawaii, and made some solid gains (or losses) over the past 8 months. It’s been a bumpy ride, and I’m back in the 190s, but I’m still progressing:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FePDEmEL9Rc

My new workout partner, Ty, and I have decided that we are going “ballistic.” To him, this means being able to hike up a mountain wearing a weight vest. For me, this means getting off my tush and making sure I do something, even a little thing, each and every day.

And, there’s friendly competition there. No, I’m not aiming to do as many push ups as he does. But I am working hard to be consistent and show up where I need to be, no complaints.

In 2010, I’m tackling my eating habits. It will be a challenge, Lord help me. But it can be done.

And you-- I’m really curious-- what are you leaving behind, and what are you looking forward to?

Leave me a comment! And thanks for joining me on this journey. Aloha!

Kettlebell Bench Press, Swing and Jumping!

Angela C. — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:57:27 +0000

I started working out daily again. It feels great!

I decided to focus on the workout rather than making a great video, or even timing myself. Today’s workout looks like this:

Warm Up
1 mile walk

Circuit (x3)
Bench Press with 12kgs, alternating x 10
20 Swings with 16kg
10 modified burpees (only horizontal jumps)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s6C0_Z9pgY

Here are some random things I noticed: 1) My pants are saggin’. I need some new workout clothes! 2) Although I’m distracted, I also enjoy having my son with me when I’m working out. It makes it more fun! 3) Too much time off from working out in between training sessions makes me slower and less happy.

How ’bout you? How’s your workout going?

Leave me a comment! :)

FREE 6 WEEK KETTLEBELL WORKSHOP IN HONOLULU

Angela C. — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:01:50 +0000

Sponsored by FitPro Hawaii and WarriorHardware.com

New to using kettlebells? This workshop series will help you learn basic kettlebell exercises and provide a solid foundation for your kettlebell training. Bill Maeda (CPT, LMT) will guide you through a progressively challenging six week course at no cost to you.

Wednesdays, 5:30pm – 6:30pm

Queen’s Surf Beach (across from Kapiolani Bandstand)

September 16th – October 21st

Requirements. Participants must:

Consider themselves a “beginner” to kettlebell training
Be in good health
Bring their own kettlebell (appropriately sized for your level of fitness)
Commit to six weeks of training
Be willing to practice during the rest of the weeks
Be able to communicate via e-mail
Sign a waiver of liability and indemnification

There are only 12 spaces available! Please e-mail me directly at angela@kettletell.com to reserve your space.

Kettletell's Updated Blogroll!

Angela C. — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 14:24:37 +0000

Hey, folks!

We finally put together a much more comprehensive list of websites of all things kettlecool. As you can see from the picture, I had a little help.

If you have a blog or website that’s related to mine, and you would like it to be featured here, just e-mail me at info@kettletell.com. Conversely, if your site is linked, but, hey, you don’t want random people checking you out, you can e-mail me, too!

Have a wonderful weekend, with lots of aloha!

Cleanse Day One and Fun in the Sun

Angela C. — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 09:44:01 +0000

Aloha! And a great big good morning to San Francisco, Austin, Washington D.C. and Raleigh!

My first day using the Isagenix Cleanse for Life was bearable. I wasn’t as hungry as I thought I’d be… but boy, do I miss food.

I like eating. I realized today that one of the consistent sources of satisfaction in my life is a good meal. Add good company to that meal, and it’s a great day.

My family and I plan our LIVES around food. Any occasion worth celebrating is an occasion to eat something yummy. When I visit with my friends, chances are, I’m bringing food, or we’re going to eat. That’s just the way it is!

Today, I concentrated on spending time with my son and staying active. We went to the park, I did a brief workout, I gave myself a pedicure-- I tried to stay busy. Ultimately, I succumbed to sweet sleep next to my napping child. But heck, I was tired!

Here’s a quick recap of my day:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Kh9ZJ6OLHo

The song in the background is India.Arie’s “Strength, Courage and Wisdom,” something I hope I’m gaining over these eleven days as I shed some tears… I mean pounds.

When I reviewed the video, I started to feel a bit discouraged. And then I took a closer look at one of my before and after pics:

I can see a difference. And who knows? In 9 days from now, maybe I’ll see an even greater difference. Curiosity alone is enough to keep me motivated.

At the end of the day, I saw coffee brewing, and I had the experience of missing coffee. I can’t say I’ve missed drinking coffee, since I’ve become accustomed to having it whenever I want. I guess it is true- absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Well, tomorrow (Thursday) is my second cleanse day. On Friday, it’s back to meal replacement shakes and one luxurious meal, yahoo! I’ll need it, since I’m hitting the gym again on Friday.

Thanks for joining my journey. Feel free to comment here or on youtube! Mahalo!

Pre-Cleanse Day #2, Kettlebell Workout #1

Angela C. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:08:06 +0000

Hola!

So as you know, I’m completing a 9-day cleanse with the Isagenix program. (No, I’m not a distributor, and I’m not reppin’ the brand. I just want to keep you informed.)

Today is day two of my “pre-cleanse.” Essentially, that means, get ready, here it comes! A pre-cleanse day is a “shake” day. I drink a chocolate meal replacement shake for lunch and dinner. Today, I had grilled ahi and a salad for lunch. I snacked on cashews and sunflower seeds this afternoon, because I wanted something crunchy.

I have given up drinking my iced non-fat 3-shot espresso latte cold turkey. For that, I got a massive, and I do mean, terrible headache. It lasted only an hour, thank goodness, and then I was able to rest.

I’m drinking my last chocolate shake of the evening, but I’m having a hard time finishing it. Frankly, I’ve had a lot of water. I’m full. I’m usually dehydrated– and now– I’m full.

I’d love to hear your tips about how you’ve been successful during a cleanse.

Today, I got back in the gym. I haven’t managed a workout since last Friday. Knowing that I’m pre-cleansing, my trainer gave me a little room today. I started with one-handed thrusters with the 8kg (unlike the usual two-handed), and counted down the ladder from 10 to 5 thrusters on each side.

A “fun” game we played? Let’s swing perfect swings! I completed 20 swings in between my thrusters, but I found that I kept shifting backwards. I do a little hop thing; it seems that I’m allowing my hips to push forward a bit, thereby hyper-extending my back and displacing my weight.

So the game was, “Do perfect swings in one place, or start over again!” Sigh. The first time we played this game, I did a hop back after 13 swings. So, I had to start over again. Let me tell ya– this was the last time I moved out of place!

I was having a hard time controlling my movements; we traced the source to my abs (of all things)! The way that Bill puts it– my abs are not connecting the energy from my lower body into my swings. So, we stopped mid-course to work on abs.

Typically, we don’t do isolated exercises, but today called for it. I started with forearm planks on the rubber ball.

Next we did the “Warrior Goddess” move, which is really a plank and then a turn onto the sides of your feet. Bill asked us to hold it for 5 seconds in each position. I couldn’t do it for more than a few reps.

So, we switched up to very isolated crunches on the ball. We got into a “table” position, lying with our butts and our heads hanging off the ball, and our stomach and thighs flat, like a table. Then, lifting my hips up off the ball, I curl up so that my rib cage area shortens. This isn’t a huge sit up, it’s really a small, but painful, crunch. I could do about 3 of these each time.

We finished our thruster-swing sets, I did a few stretches with the chest expander, and I was pau!

At 10pm tonight, I’m starting to feel a headache coming on. Rather than suffer in silence, I’m going to go ahead and take 2 ibuprofen. It’s allowed. Tomorrow- the cleanse begins!

Thanks for following me! I look forward to hearing from you!

Friday's Workout

Angela C. — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 06:55:28 +0000

Hi there!

The last time that I worked out was 4 days ago, and then, as you may recall, I was laid out with the flu.

I was pretty out of it when I was working out, and I thought it strange that I didn’t have the strength or stamina that I usually do when I set my mind to it.

The other unfortunate result of me working out when not well is that I let the kettlebells down on the back of my arms a little harder than usual. Can you see my bruise?

Over these past 4 days, my bruises healed, the antibiotics kicked in, and my strength returned. So, I went back to FitPro Hawaii to train with Bill and my partner, Liz, who happened to be sick this week as well.

I also brought my little workout buddy with me– my 2-year old son.

We did a new warm up/stretch with the 10lb kettlebell, which also worked my obliques; taking a lunge stance, holding the kettlebell in front of me and pushing it away from my midline, to the left and right. Unfortunately, I kind of didn’t know what I was doing.

I also “wiped the glass” with the kettlebell, making a circle directly in front of me on an invisible pane of glass, followed by a circle above my head.

All was well… until we started getting into the real deal: cleans and presses with two 8kgs and swings with the 12kg. Two sets in, I had to run out of the gym. I thought I was going to throw up!

False alarm. This wasn’t one of those “work you out until you puke” kinds of days. I think it was a “you’ve been taking antibiotics mixed with vitamins” kind of day.

After some exercises with the chest expanders, we completed some presses while lunging and pushing down, punctuated by more swings. I took it down to an 8kg so I wouldn’t actually puke. We finished with one minute of cleans.

All in all, it was a good day! I’m just glad I got my butt back in the gym.

Stay tuned for the next adventure– “the cleanse!”

Friday and Saturday's Workout

Angela C. — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:44:32 +0000

Hola! Yes, I am doing some serious back posting today, however, if I don’t back post, I won’t post at all. I apologize to the 14 people who come to the site regularly!

Friday’s workout at FitPro was killer, just in the sense that Bill timed me on the circuits that I’ve learned over the past few weeks, and set goals for each. For some reason, I conveniently didn’t know that building up to your highest weight and counting your reps while timing yourself is actually part of kettlebell training.

See, I’m one of those folks who, for better or worse, learns best in the “classroom.” In this case, the studio. I’m not going to do a lot of extra research once my curiosity’s been satisfied. I guess that’s why I was a “B” student in college.

Anyway, back to my workout. I was timed with the 12kg and two 8kgs, depending on the exercise. For those of you just joining us, 1 kilogram is just a little more than 2 pounds of weight.

I walked away with this worksheet:
Warm Up: Stretch deadlift with 12kg for 2 minutes, swing for 1 minute; Thrusters with two 8kg for 1 minute, Cleans with two 8kg for 1 minute
Exercise 1: Alternate Cleans with two 8kg (15, 20, then 15) with Chest expander exercises
Exercise 2: Long cycle (clean and press) with two 8kgs: 10, 10, then 8 reps in 1 minute, with 1 minute of rest in between

It’s no wonder I felt like I had a good workout!

Saturday, I got my “wakey wakey” wake up call from Lia, my power partner. I got up to “544,” but realized that I had started to fall asleep again, and I could not keep my eyes open. That was a sign.

I asked and was granted an hour extension. We met at the Farmer’s Market at Kapiolani Community College, two kiddos in strollers.

Our walk downhill to my favorite cafe was uneventful, and once we got our lattes, we were ready to roll… Well, we were ready to roll, but my nephew decided to tell me he needed to “544″ when we were halfway up the hill.

Rather than chance it, we rolled back down hill, went to the restroom, did a quick change, and then meandered back to the Farmer’s Market. According to Lia’s pedometer, that turn-around added about 1/2 mile to our walk, so we did about 2 miles that morning:

View Larger Map
I had a great Friday training and Saturday morning walk, and I’m actually eager to get back in the gym and kick these flu blues in their behind!

Thanks for joining me… and feel free to comment about what you do to get rid of the flu!!!!!

Fit and Fun

Angela C. — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 07:12:20 +0000

Workouts with kettlebells can be challenging, but I would never say that my workouts are boring.

On Tuesday, we took our workout to another level. Not in terms of fulfilling the rite of passage or anything like that. I would say, in my trainer’s words, it was “funner.”

Since the workouts have become more strenuous for me, I am constantly challenging my own perceptions of my abilities. I’m slowly building endurance and breaking my mental barriers. One effective way of doing that is to LAUGH.

Yeah, I said it. If I take myself too seriously, I’m bound to get stopped. If I’m enjoying what I’m doing, I can do it longer!

Our workout at FitPro Hawaii started with deadlift stretches and swings with the 12kg. We also learned how to pound a fish. Actually, I think it’s called a “slam.” Orbiting the kettlebell around your head by the horns, pause at your midsection to pretend-pound a fish on a table in front of you. Switch directions.

We progressed into a “fun” oblique exercise: seated with feet together over your friendly 12kg kettlebell, hold your 8kg kettlebell to your midsection. Now, using your lower abs to pull your feet over to the left of the kettlebell, twist your obliques to bring your 8kg kettlebell over to your right side. Repeat in the opposite direction.

We completed these exercises intermittently with a stretch that looks like a combination of a yoga pose and the warrior pose-- on the floor.

The video shows the end of our training session. For a five minute period, we will complete as many 5 cleans/push presses with two 8kgs and 10 swings with a 12kg as possible. On with the fun!