Fitness Friday - Eagle Yoga Pose

My fitness focus has been on adding more workouts to my weekly gym routine and I have found that I have a lot more work to do in the leg and core strengths areas.  One of the best ways for me to grow strength in certain areas is by adding new yoga moves to my practice and then adapting them into my gym workouts.  One of my least favorite yoga poses is Eagle pose, a pose that I have struggled in my before due to lacking strength in the above-mentioned areas.  

When I first started working lunges into my leg day routine, one of the first things that this exercise reminded me of was Eagle pose.  In both the pose and exercise, core strength is needed for stability and leg strength is also needed.  I will be forcing myself to work this yoga move into each and every one of my upcoming Vinyasa sessions in the hopes that I can grow my strength in both of these areas.

The steps for a proper Eagle pose...

- Stand in Tadasana.  Bend your knees slightly, lift your left foot up and, balancing on your right foot, cross your left thigh over the right.  Point your left toes toward the floor, press the foot back, and then hook the top of the foot behind the lower right calf.  Balance on the right foot.

- Stretch your arms straight forward, parallel to the floor, and spread your scapulas wide across the back of your torso  Cross the arms in front of your torso so that the right arm is above the left, then bend your elbows.  Snug the right elbow into the crook of the left, and raise the forearms perpendicular to the floor.  The backs of your hands should be facing the floor.

- Press the right hand to the right and the left hand to the left,  so that the palms are now facing each other.  The thumb of the right hand should pass in front of the little finger of the left.  Now pass the palms together (as much as is possible for you), lift your elbows up, and stretch the fingers toward the ceiling.

- Stay for 15 to 30 seconds, then unwind the legs and arms and stand in Tadasana again.  Repeat for the same length of time with the arms and legs reversed.

I have seen my yoga teachers do squats in this position but that is definitely a goal for once I have conquered this pose.  I will start by working Eagle into my Vinyasa routines and continue to add more reps to my lunges with leg day!

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Walking Lunges

One of my goals for Winter Break was to expand my workouts and improve on my leg day moves.  I started with learning and perfecting traditional lunges and now I am moving on to learning Walking Lunges.  I have seen people doing this move all over my gym for the past few months and they have paired this move with weights to help grow upper body strength, I would love to be able to work some minimal lifting into my leg days and see how it improves my back and shoulders.

Walking Lunges are considered to be a "basic lunge with a boost", as stated by the Pop Sugar Fitness website.  They also state that this move works your glutes, hamstrings, and quads plus it helps to stretch your hip flexors.  I tried this move a few times before at the gym and I really need to work on my balance before doing Walking Lunges when there is more than five people present during my workout...

Pop Sugar Fitness also provides a step by step How To for this move...

- Stand upright, feet together, and take a controlled step forward with your right leg, lowering your hips toward the floor by bending both knees to 90-degree angles.  The back knee should point toward but not touch the ground, and your front knee should be directly over the ankle.

- Press your right heel into the ground, and push off with your left foot to bring your left leg forward, stepping with control into a lunge on the other side.  This completes two reps.

- Do three sets of 20 reps each.

This move helps to slim down the legs and build lean muscle, it also helps to increase mobility and overall hip function.  The article states that you can add light weights to increase the difficulty of the moves and I will need to improve my balance before I can try to add weights.

Walking Lunges are my newest workout challenge and I will be adding these into my upcoming leg days!

photo courtesy of Pop Sugar Fitness

Fitness Friday - Triangle Yoga Pose

Today we are back to another Fitness Friday and I have decided to return to looking at yoga poses.  Triangle pose is my current favorite yoga pose and has been one of my favorite poses since I first did yoga last summer.  Triangle pose is one of the standing postures that is contained in the Primary Series and one of the first standing postures that is learned in a Level One yoga class.

The following steps are used when getting into Triangle pose...

- Stand in Tadasana.  With an exhalation, step or lightly jump your feet 3 1/2 to 4 feet apart.  Raise your arms parallel to the floor and reach them actively out to the sides, shoulder blades wide, palms down.

- Turn your left foot in slightly to the right directly over the plane of the right leg, bending from the hip joint, not the waist.  Anchor this movement by strengthening the left leg and pressing the outer heel firmly to the floor.  Rotate the torso to the left, keeping the two sides equally long.  Let the left hip come slightly forward and lengthen the tailbone toward the back heel.

- Exhale and extend your torso to the right directly over the plane of the right leg, bending from the hip joint, not the waist.  Anchor this movement by strengthening the left leg and pressing the outer heel firmly to the floor.  Rotate the torso to the left, keeping the two sides equally long.  Let the left hip come slightly forward and lengthen the tailbone toward the back heel.

- Rest your right hand on your shin, ankle, or floor outside your right foot, whatever is possible without distorting the sides of the torso.  Stretch your left arm toward the ceiling, in line with the tops of your shoulders.  Keep your head in a neutral position or turn it to the left, eyes gazing softly at the left thumb.

- Stay in this pose from thirty seconds to one minute.  Inhale to come up, strongly pressing the back heel into the floor and reaching the top arm toward the ceiling.  Reverse the feet and repeat for the same length of time to the left.

Blocks can be used to modify this pose as needed and the hand can be placed anywhere from the shin to the floor.  I tend to prefer wrapping my hand around my ankle and playing with my balance.  I will admit that I fell backwards the first few times that I tried this version of the pose and trying this variation of the pose was actually harder than initially learning the pose itself.  I have been all about playing with my balance lately and trying to deepen poses so I really enjoyed challenging myself with that modification.

Another modification to challenge your balance is leaning backwards in the pose versus keeping yourself with a straight back.  I have tried doing a slight back bend while in this pose but I don't love this type of modification.

I think that I will be back on the yoga pose train for the next few Fitness Fridays...

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Java Pro Protein Shake

I have been focusing on many different yoga poses and workout moves on my last few Fitness Fridays and today we are going to look at one of my new favorite things of the month.  I have tried certain different kinds of protein shakes and none of them have been all that great.  I have found that the vanilla flavors tend to be way too sweet and the all the chocolate flavors just taste fake.  My boyfriend decided to give me a different brand of protein shake, he wanted to find me something that he thought that I would enjoy based on my love of Starbucks.  I am happy to report that I have finally found a protein shake that I can actually drink and enjoy every single morning!

The Java Pro protein shake tastes like Starbucks iced coffee and I was excited to see that I can order this shake in a bunch of different coffee flavors.  "Each serving of Java Pro consists of 'roughly' one and a half scoops of powder, which amounts to 110 calories, 2g of carbs, 1.5g of fat, and 20g of protein.  Plus the oh-so-lovely 80mg of caffeine sourced from real coffee.  Java Pro includes whey protein concentrate, isolate, and hydrolysate.  Aside from the protein powder and vitamin-mineral-amino acid blend, the only other ingredients in Java Pro are coffee, sucralose, and soy lecithin.", states the company's website when describing this protein powder.

This company recommends using 1 and a half scoops of this powder for every 12 ounces of water.  The website recommends using this shake in a shaker bottle or a blender, I find the shaker bottle method to be the easiest way to use this product.  I mix it up before I go to sleep each night and then put it in the refrigerator for drinking in the morning.  I typically drink two or three cups of coffee every single morning and I found that I will substitute this shake for one of those cups.  I am not affected by caffeine in afternoon or evening but I can imagine that not everyone could use this product depending on how they are affected by caffeinated beverages.  

Java Pro is a great choice for anyone that loves the taste of iced coffee and wants to add whey protein into their diet.  I can see how this wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea but this is the best protein shake that I have ever used.  There are a few flavors available in this product: Expresso, Hazelnut, Mocha, French Vanilla, and Caramel.  The best flavors are the French Vanilla and original Expresso.  I find that the Caramel and Hazelnut are slightly too sweet for me to drink every morning, I always order two different flavors of this product and then the I alternate them each day.

I think that I have finally found my perfect protein shake and I will be ordering bags of this product for as long as I can!

photo courtesy of Google

Fitness Friday - Bolthouse Farms Blue Goodness Juice

It is the dead of winter and I have been feeling that lack of ready fruits and vegetables available at my grocery store, this is the hardest time of the year for me to keep up with my diet and exercise plan.  I have been missing all the fresh fruits that I eat all throughout the summer and I have been trying to find new juices and smoothies to tide me over for the next few months.  I have used a lot of Bolthouse Farms products in the past and I visited this area of my local grocery store when I wanted to start my search.  My favorite drink from this line is the Strawberry Banana and I wanted to find more colors in these juices as to mix up my diet.

The Bolthouse Farms website provides the following description of this juice, "Blueberries, blackberries and black currants are often described as super foods. Our Blue Goodness is made with the juice of these fruits and gives you an excellent source of 11 essential nutrients."  Each bottle of this juice contains 3 and 3/4 servings of fruit therefore less than one bottle of this juice per day would provide me with all needed servings of fruit.  

Contained in this juice are: Apple Juice, Banana Puree, Blueberry Juice, Lemon Juice, Black Currant Juice, Purple Carrot Concentrate, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B9, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B7, and Vitamin B12.  This juice will provide a whole host of vitamins and anti-oxidants and I hoping these juices will make me feel better during the winter months.  

I think my favorite part of this juice is how great that it tastes, blueberries are one of my favorite berries to eat when they are in season and now I can drink them all year long.  I will be drinking this juice all throughout the winter and I will be trying even more juices from this company.  I will be reporting back once I have tried more from this company and I will be reporting back once I find more juices worth posting about.

photo courtesy of Bolthouse Farm

Fitness Friday - Seated Twist Yoga Pose

I am starting off these year's coverage of Fitness Friday with another new yoga pose, yoga has become a huge part of my life ever since I first started practicing it and I fully anticipate that I will keep improving and growing in my practice this year.  I make no secret of the fact that my favorite poses are nearly all standing poses and I feel that I have the most area of growth in my practice with any poses other than these.  I have often tended to feel that seated poses were more of a "cool down" and practiced them after standing poses however I took a class the other week that consists of all seated poses and I struggled more than I thought possible.  I decided that I needed to grow my practice in this area in order to really grow in my overall yoga practice.

Today we are looking at Seated Twist pose (also know as Half Lord of the Fishes pose), a pose that literally twists the spine.  Yoga Journal states that this pose is designed to "energize the spine and stimulate the digestive fire", I have never tried this pose after eating a meal and I don't think that I ever plan too...

The Yoga Journal website provides the following step by step instructions on how to achieve this pose.  This is one pose that few teachers expect students to be able to get into on their first try and it will need to be practiced before the spine is capable of the full twist.

- Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you, buttocks supported on a folded blanket.  Bend your knees, put your feet on the floor, then slide your left foot under your right leg to the outside of your right hip.  Lay the outside of the left leg on the floor.  Step the right foot over the left leg and stand it on the floor outside your left hip.  The right knee will point directly up at the ceiling.

- Exhale and twist toward the inside of your right thigh.  Press the right hand against the floor just behind your right buttock, and set your left upper arm on the outside of your right hip near your knee.  Pull your front torso and inner right thigh snugly together.

- Press the inner right foot very actively on the floor, release the right groin, and lengthen the front torso.  Lean the upper torso back slightly, against the shoulder blades, and continue to lengthen the tailbone into the floor.

- You can turn your head in one of two directions: Continue the twist of the torso by turning it to the right; or counter the twist of the torso by turning it left and looking over the left shoulder at the right foot.

- With every inhalation lift a little more through the sternum, pushing the fingers against the floor to help.  Twist a little more with every exhalation.  Be sure to distribute the twist evenly throughout the entire length of the spine, don't concentrate it in the lower back.  Stay for 30 seconds to 1 minute, then release with an exhalation, return to the starting position, and repeat to the left for the same length of time.

I can hold this position well on my right side but I still have more work to do on my left side.  This deep twist really works the muscles in my back and has become my new favorite seated yoga pose.  I will keep growing my practice with seated poses and will write up a few more in my upcoming Fitness Fridays!

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Side Lunges

I had stated right at the end of finals season that one of my goals over winter break was to visit the gym more and try new exercises with every visit.  I had featured lunges on one of my previous Fitness Fridays and today we are looking at another variation on the traditional lunge.  Side lunges are a move that I have been trying out since the beginning of winter break and one that I am finally beginning to improve at.

I pulled all of the information on this exercise from the Pop Sugar website and I have included detailed steps to follow when performing this exercise.  "Side lunges offer a new take on regular lunges. They allow you to work your hips, glutes and thighs a bit differently than traditional squats and lunges while still targeting the major muscles of the lower body. They offer a really good workout and are friendly on the knees, reducing the risk of injury. First, start with your body weight. Once you get the movement down, add dumbbells for more of a challenge. "

Here is how to do them:

- Holding a pair of dumbbells, stand with your feet and knees together.
- Take a large step with your right foot to the right side and lunge toward the floor.
- Make sure your right knee does not extend past your toes and keep your left leg relatively straight.
- Push off through your right foot to return to the start to complete one.
- Do three sets of 10 on each side.

I am still doing these side lunges without weights and I have to keep my hands on my waist to try and remain stable.  I find it hardest to remain stable when doing these and I have fallen over many times already over the past two weeks.  I can feel these in my thighs the next day but they are starting to get easier and I have finally worked up to the 3 sets of ten on each side!

photo courtesy Pop Sugar

Fitness Friday - Bananas

I have decided to highlight one of my diet staples and favorite fruits in today's Fitness Friday.  I eat a banana every morning for breakfast and this is one of the few fruits that I can easily get all throughout the year, I usually change my diet with the changing of the seasons but bananas are a staple of mine and I wanted to highlight the health benefits they offer.  I have eaten a banana every single day since college and this is a practice that I plan to continue for many years to come.  I will admit that I sometimes enjoy a frozen banana covered in milk chocolate and peanuts but we are going to ignore that fact for now...

I found some details about the health benefits of bananas from livescience.com and I am glad that I have been in the habit of eating bananas for so long.

"The curvy yellow fruits are high in "potassium and pectin, a form of fiber," said Laura Flores, a San Diego-based nutritionist. They can also be a good way to get magnesium and vitamins C and B6. "Bananas are high in antioxidants, which can provide protection from free radicals, which we come into contact with every day, from the sunlight to the lotion you put on your skin,"

"Bananas are known to reduce swelling, protect against developing type-2 diabetes, aid in weight loss, strengthen the nervous system and help with production of white blood cells, all due to the high level of vitamin B6 that bananas contain."

The website also lists the following benefits of this fruit...

- Bananas are good for your heart. They are packed with potassium, a mineral electrolyte that keeps electricity flowing throughout your body, which is required to keep your heart beating. Bananas' high potassium and low sodium content may also help protect your cardiovascular system against high blood pressure, according to the FDA.

- Bananas can be helpful in overcoming depression "due to high levels of tryptophan, which the body converts to serotonin, the mood-elevating brain neurotransmitter". Plus, vitamin B6 can help you sleep well, and magnesium helps to relax muscles.

- Bananas are high in fiber, which can help keep you regular. One banana can provide nearly 10 percent of your daily fiber requirement. Vitamin B6 can also help protect against Type 2 Diabetes and aid in weight loss. In general, bananas are a great weight loss food because they taste sweet and are filling, which helps curb cravings. They also help sustain blood sugar levels during workouts.

- Bananas may not be overflowing with calcium, but they are still helpful in keeping bones strong.  According to a 2009 article in the Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry, bananas contain an abundance of fructooligosaccharides. These are nondigestive carbohydrates that encourage digestive-friendly priobotics and enhance the body's ability to absorb calcium.

The article goes on to further state that people should eat no more than two bananas per day.  Excessive amounts can cause sleepiness and headaches.  They also contain a higher amount of sugar than most other fruits and this could quickly cause damage to teeth (if proper oral hygiene is not in place).

Bananas are a staple part of my diet in the morning, they are easy to find and can be purchased any time of the year.  A banana at breakfast helps hold me over until lunch and kills many cravings for mid morning Starbucks snacks...

photo courtesy of Google

Fitness Friday - Supported Shoulderstand

Today is another Fitness Friday that will be focusing on yoga poses, I feel that many of my Fitness Friday posts have been all about yoga and I know that many more will be about yoga.  One of the most exciting parts of the semester end was signing up for a few more yoga classes over the next few weeks and knowing that I will have some time to start up a home practice.  One of my goals over this vacation is to create a special night flow that I can use before going to bed at night.  I will post that flow once I have come with the pose sequence.

Today's yoga pose is the first inversion that I ever tried, Supported Shoulderstand is the pose that starts most students' experience with inversions.  I still struggle with an unsupported version of this pose, so we will look at the supported modification of the pose.  This pose can easily become unsupported by pulling the blankets away and using no support on the shoulders. 

Yoga Journal provides details on the pose and the steps to follow in order to safely start working up into Shoulderstand. 

- Fold two or more firm blankets into rectangles measuring about 1 foot by 2 feet, and stack them on top of each other.  You can place a sticky mat over the blankets to help the upper arms stay in place while in the pose.  Then lie on the blankets with your shoulders supported (and parallel to one of the longer edges) and your head on the floor.  Lay your arms on the floor alongside your torso, and bend your knees and set your feet against the floor with the heels close to the sitting bones.  Exhale, press your arms against the floor, and push your feet away from the floor, drawing your thighs into the front torso.

- Continue to lift by curling the pelvis and then back the torso away from the floor, so that your knees come toward your face.  Stretch your arms out parallel to the edge of the blanket and turn them outward so the fingers press against the floor (and the thumbs point behind you).  Bend your elbows and draw them toward each other.  Lay the backs of your upper arms on the blanket and spread your palms against the back of your torso.  Raise your pelvis over your shoulders, so that the torso is relatively perpendicular to the floor.  Walk your hands up your back (toward the floor) without letting your elbows slide too much wider than shoulder width.

- Inhale and lift your bent knees toward the ceiling, bringing your thighs in line with your torso and hanging the heels down by your buttocks.  Press your tailbone toward your pubis and turn the upper thighs inward slightly.  Finally inhale and straighten the knees, pressing the heels up toward the ceiling.  When the backs of the legs are fully lengthened, lift the balls of the big toes so the inner legs are slightly longer than the outer. 

- Soften the throat and tongue.  Firm the shoulder blades against the back, and move the sternum toward the chin.  Your forehead should be relatively parallel to the floor, your chin perpendicular.  Press the backs of your upper arms and tops of your shoulders actively into the blanket support, and try to lift the upper spine away from the floor.  Gaze softly at your chin.

- As a beginning practitioner, stay in the pose for about 30 seconds.  Gradually add 5 to 10 seconds to your stay everyday or until you can comfortably hold the pose for 3 minutes.  Then continue for 3 minutes each day for a week or two, until you feel relatively comfortable in this pose.  Again gradually and 5 to 10 seconds onto your stay until you can comfortably hold the pose for 5 minutes.  To come down, exhale, bend your knees into your torso again, and roll your back torso slowly and carefully onto the floor, keeping the back of your head on the floor.

Supported Shoulderstand is usually the first inversion that a yoga teacher will start to work their students into.  I will say that I fell out of this pose many times before my teacher decided that I was going to learn this pose in a different way.  The only way that I could learn how to straighten up correctly was to do this pose with my feet against a wall.  Once I mastered being able to hold that for 3 minutes, I then worked on doing this pose with the blanket supports and holding it for a minute.  I have worked up to holding the pose for three minutes and I am still working on holding it for longer.

I have yet to try this pose in the unsupported fashion and I will be working up to this in the next few weeks.  I plan to use this winter break to practice yoga as much as possible...while pushing myself at the gym.  I have four weeks until class starts again...time to use it wisely!

photo courtesy of YogaJournal.com

Fitness Friday - Yoga Bridge Pose

We are back on yoga poses for this week's and next week's Fitness Friday.  Today we are looking at Bridge Pose and then we will be looking more at Shoulder Stand next week.  Bridge is one of the preparatory poses for Shoulder Stand and belongs to the family of Backbend Poses.  Bridge is a very versatile pose, I have done it to get ready for Shoulder Stand and to begin preparations for more inversion poses.  I have also done this pose in a more supported fashion using well placed blocks during a  restorative yoga session.  Nearly anyone can perform this pose in the supported fashion, we will look at the true pose and then I will provide details on how to modify the position as needed. 

Yoga Journal provides steps to safely get into the pose...

- Lie supine on the floor, and if necessary, place a thickly folded blanket under your shoulders to protect your neck. Bend your knees and set your feet on the floor, heels as close to the sitting bones as possible.

- Exhale and, pressing your inner feet and arms actively into the floor, push your tailbone upward toward the pubis, firming (but not hardening) the buttocks, and lift the buttocks off the floor. Keep your thighs and inner feet parallel. Clasp the hands below your pelvis and extend through the arms to help you stay on the tops of your shoulders.

- Lift your buttocks until the thighs are about parallel to the floor. Keep your knees directly over the heels, but push them forward, away from the hips, and lengthen the tailbone toward the backs of the knees. Lift the pubis toward the navel.

- Lift your chin slightly away from the sternum and, firming the shoulder blades against your back, press the top of the sternum toward the chin. Firm the outer arms, broaden the shoulder blades, and try to lift the space between them at the base of the neck (where it's resting on the blanket) up into the torso.

- Stay in the pose anywhere from 30 seconds to 1 minute. Release with an exhalation, rolling the spine slowly down onto the floor.

To modify the pose into Supported Bridge, place a block under the sacrum and rest right on it.  This modification makes the pose more restorative and is a wonderful addition to a nighttime routine.  The modification is best used to start the position and by anyone that feels any type of twinge or pain in their lower back when getting into the full pose.  I have been trying to deepen my pose by getting my shoulders closer and closer together each time and then lifting even higher to deepen the back bend. 

Bridge is one of the most versatile yoga poses, it can be relaxing or challenging based on how deep you wish to get into the pose.  I have found that this pose helps to work out the cramps that I can get in my shoulders when writing blog posts and graduate school papers and I have been using this pose more and more as the semester is coming to a close.  Next week, we are going to look at how to start in Bridge position and then begin to experiment with yoga inversions by pushing up into Shoulder Stand.

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Reclined Spinal Twist Yoga Pose

I was on the fence about what to look at this Fitness Friday, yesterday was Thanksgiving and there was a part of me that wanted to look at a high intensity cardio exercise and another side that knows that there are very few people that have the motivation to hit the gym today.  I was fully planning on hitting the gym this morning and then I woke up later than usual and did not want to move out of my bed.  I have decided that I will be skipping both the gym and the mall today so I am hanging out in my favorite sweatpants and I have decided that I will not be writing a post about cardio activities until I return to my normal routine in the next few weeks.

Today we are going to be looking at a restorative yoga pose that I have done in both the beginning and end of many yoga classes.  This pose also helps with stomach issues and bloating, two common problems that occur after the Thanksgiving meals.  This would be a great yoga pose to try today and I enjoy doing it as many nights as possible before bed.

The Yoga Outlet website provides some great background on the benefits of the pose and how to reap the benefits of it.  "Twists are a great way to decompress and squeeze out the anxiety and frustrations of your day — just like wringing out a sponge. They also stimulate and detoxify the organs of your torso. If you’ve ever felt worn out at the end of a workday or after a weekend of over-indulgence, Reclined Spinal Twist is a great pose to help restore balance."  This pose is great for back or stomach issues but today we are going to focus on how it helps to relieve bloating

Reclined Spinal Twist helps to "wring" out the digestive organs and simulate digestion.  It will help to send fresh blood to the digestive system and keep them functioning in a healthy manner.  It will help move excess gas out of the stomach and reduce bloating, while keeping digestion flowing in the correct fashion.

- To begin, lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. You can rest your head on a pillow or blanket for extra neck support. Let your arms rest at your sides.

- On an exhalation, draw both knees to your chest and clasp your hands around them. This is Knee-to-Chest pose.

- Extend your left leg along the floor, keeping your right knee drawn to your chest. Extend your right arm out along the floor at shoulder-height with your palm facing down.

- Shift your hips slightly to the right. Then, place your left hand on the outside of your right knee.

- Exhaling, drop your right knee over the left side of your body. Keep your left hand resting gently on your right knee.

- Turn your head to the right. Soften your gaze toward your right fingertips. Keep your shoulder blades pressing toward the floor and away from your ears. Allow the force of gravity to drop your knee even closer to the floor. If your right toes can touch the floor, allow your foot to rest.

- Hold the pose for 10-25 breaths. On an inhalation, slowly come back to center, bringing both knees to your chest in Knees-to-Chest Pose (Apanasana).

- Exhale, and extend your right leg along the floor. Repeat steps 3-6 on the opposite side.

- When you’re finished with the pose, hug your knees to your chest for a few breaths in Knee-to-Chest Pose (Apanasana). Then, slowly exhale as you extend both legs along the floor.

The digestive benefits of this yoga pose as easy to understand on the day after Thanksgiving but this pose also will help with back muscles and wringing tension out of them.  It also helps to tone and refine side abdominal muscles, which is how I will be using this pose the majority of the time.

Hopefully this pose helps to make yesterday's Thanksgiving dinner a fond memory and I am sure that all of us will get right back on the exercise bandwagon next week...

photo courtesy of Yogaoutlet.com

Fitness Friday - Squats vs. Lunges

Lunges were our topic of choice for last Fitness Friday, I started thinking more about this subject after writing that post up and it lead me to wondering if lunges are better than squats or vice versa.  They both work similar muscle areas and I have found that lunges are much harder for me to do.  Is it a better use of my time to work to better my lunges or is it more useful for me to continue my squat routine?  I set out to find the answer to my question and decide how to best use my time during leg day, I have limited time until the end of finals and need to maximize every moment that I have at the gym.

I found a great article from Pop Sugar Fitness that addressed this topic and gave me a much better idea of how I should be using my time at the gym.  The article agrees with me that squats seem to be much easier for beginners and lunges are a more advanced exercise.

We will start with Pop Sugar Fitness' thoughts on squats.  "If you're just starting to get your backside into shape, then consider squats your go-to exercise. Because they are a functional movement, squats are a good introduction to the weight room; it's easy to add weight or resistance to the exercise, which quickly helps to increase strength. Since the weight is distributed onto your heels when doing squats, the exercise requires less balance than lunges. Instead, doing a squat is much like sitting down in a chair, making them a great exercise for working the glutes and hamstrings. Turn squats into a quick cardio workout by adding jumps, or challenge your core with the addition of a BOSU ball. Whatever you decide, expect to build a firm backside in no time!"

I do add weights to my squats but I have never tried adding jumps or any type of BOSU ball.  I have squats pretty well mastered but I was excited to see ways to make them harder and to burn more calories working through them

Lunges work many of the same muscles but in a very different way.  "Rather than the up and down motion of a squat, lunges require a step forward or backward with one leg, lowering your hips until both knees are bent at about a 90-degree angle. Because lunges involve the transfer of weight to one leg, they are a test of balance, especially when using weights, meaning your core gets a workout too! And depending on the variation, lunges can also allow for an increased focus on the glutes or inner thighs; do side lunges to work your hips or reverse lunges to counter the forward movements of everyday life. Bonus: lunges offer something that most exercises don't — a good stretch! Depending on your depth and range of motion, lunges help to increase flexibility in your hips"

Pop Sugar is very correct when they state that lunges require much more balance than squats do, I tend to lose my balance at least once or twice during a set of lunges.  I also can feel the core work that this exercise does and I love that they work two muscle groups at once, I can get double the bang for my buck once I get better at these exercises.

Reading over this article, I feel that my best bet for gym will be to spend some time working more cardio into my squats and then deciding how it balances out with reducing my time spent on the treadmill.  I need to continue to improve on my lunges and keeping my balance while doing them so that I can do a bit of extra core work on leg day.  I'm not surprised that this article didn't give a clear answer as to which exercise is better and I agree that doing both of them will be more beneficial than trying to only do one.  It will be easier for me to work the cardio into my squat routine now and then I will need to take more time at the gym after finals in order to put the time into perfecting my lunge formation.

photo courtesy of fitwirr.com

Fitness Friday - Lunges

The semester is over in a month and I need to really start hitting the gym as I did during the summer months.  I have a month until the break starts and my goal is to add more time and reps to my current cardio and weight lifting moves and also start to work new moves into my daily regime.  I decided to start with adding more moves to my leg workouts, squats are usually my workout of choice and then I end with multiple reps on many of the leg machines at the gym.  While flipping through an old issue of Women's Health, I saw that lunges are among the best workouts for the lower body area and this is the first move that I want to add to my leg workouts.

There are traditional lunges, side lunges, and walking lunges.  Today we are starting with traditional lunges and then I may start trying the other moves once I have these down to a science.  Traditional lunges work the butt and thigh area, two of the largest muscle groups in the human body.  Tightening both of the those area certainly won't hurt me and we will see what the results start looking like in a few weeks.  If I can master the simple version of the lunge, then I will learn and report back on the other versions.

How to do a forward lunge...

- Start by standing up straight with your feet hip-width apart and flat on the ground. Relax your shoulders and allow your shoulder blades to sink down towards your hips. Keep yourself in this position by flexing your abdominal muscles to keep your spine straight and stable.

- Place your right foot on the ground, heel first. Lean your body forward so that about 70% of your weight is on your front foot. Keep your back and upper body straight. Hold this position.

- While keeping your upper body and back straight, continue to move your body forward until your right upper leg (thigh) is parallel to the floor. You may need to bend your hips slightly to stay in this position, but keep your back straight.

- Once in the lunge position, your left (back) knee should also form a 90-degree angle, but your lower leg (shin) will be parallel to the ground while your upper leg (thigh) will be perpendicular to the ground.

-  Use your right foot to push yourself upwards. Return your body to the position you started in, standing straight with your feet hip-width apart.

- Once you’ve completed a lunge with your right leg, you can either switch sides and perform a lunge with your left leg, or you can continue to work your right side. It doesn’t matter what order you do lunges in, but try to do an equal number of lunges using both your left and right side before you finish.

I have seen people at my gym doing lunges and putting their knee on the ground instead of keeping it level with the ground.  I tried it the first way and found that I could barely hold myself upright doing the exercise.  The way that was outlined in this article from Wiki How is much easier for the beginner to maintain position while doing reps and I would recommend following the steps exactly while you are learning how to do this exercise.

I find that alternating legs is my favorite way to do more reps of lunges, I started by doing ten on each side and am want to see how I am able to work up to more.  I am looking forward to seeing what the results are in a month or two...

photo courtesy of Gethealthyu.com

Fitness Friday - Kind Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars

One of my favorite store-bought healthy snacks come from the Kind Bar company, I first started buying these bars in the summer of 2011 when I did my first big weight loss using the Weight Watchers program.  I needed some type of healthy snack to eat in between meals and needed to completely change my eating habits.  I did very well that summer with changing my habits and I haven't stopped buying Kind Bars ever since.  I know throw a few of these bars into my gym bag and use them for both fuel before and after a tough workout.

The first type of bar that I tried from Kind is still my absolute favorite bar, the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars are a group of the Plus line of bars and have additional health value added to them.  I first started with this bar because I love to eat cherries in the summer months and I began buying these at the end of the summer of 2011 when cherry season was coming to an end.  I purchase these bars all throughout the fall and winter and still keep buying them during cherry season.

The Kind website describes the bars as following, "KIND Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants* combines rich dark chocolate with tangy cranberries and cherries and crunchy cashews and almonds. Whether you’re at the gym, at the office, or on-the-go, Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew bars satisfy from the first bite till the very last."

I love the combination of the dark chocolate and dark cherry flavors in this bar, the nut content of the bar helps to fill me and give me energy for the rest of the day.  This is one of the few healthy snacks that I actually can look forward to eating and can kill my chocolate cravings.  I also love the amount of proteins and anti-oxidants that I get from every single bar.  In fact, one bar contains 50% of the daily amount of recommended anti-oxidants and Vitamins A, C, and E.  This Kind bar might easily be my favorite snack of the moment and I always keep one or two in my school bag to eat throughout the day.

photo courtesy of Wal Mart

Fitness Friday - Child's Pose

Today is the official start of the holiday season for me, we have been looking at holiday collections for the past month but I just can't accept the holidays until Halloween is over.  Today starts both the holiday and finals stress and I will be turning to the gym and yoga as much as possible this holiday season.  I have six weeks until finals and eight weeks until the peak of the holiday season so I will be adding as many yoga sessions a week as possible.

Today I wanted to get back to the basics of yoga, we are looking at one of the most effective rest poses today and one that can be adapted to everyday life during stressful times.  Child's Pose is gone often during any yoga practice to bring the heart rate down after harder flows or working into peak positions.  I have also taken to holding this pose for a minute before going to bed to help relax and de-stress after my day.  Whether or not you practice or have any interest in a yoga practice, this pose with help you relax and de-stress as needed throughout the season.

Yoga Journal provides the details on how to maximize this pose...

- Kneel on the floor. Touch your big toes together and sit on your heels, then separate your knees about as wide as your hips.
- Exhale and lay your torso down between your thighs. Broaden your sacrum across the back of your pelvis and narrow your hip points toward the navel, so that they nestle down onto the inner thighs. Lengthen your tailbone away from the back of the pelvis while you lift the base of your skull away from the back of your neck.
- Lay your hands on the floor alongside your torso, palms up, and release the fronts of your shoulders toward the floor. Feel how the weight of the front shoulders pulls the shoulder blades wide across your back.
- Balasana is a resting pose. Stay anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes. Beginners can also use Balasana to get a taste of a deep forward bend, where the torso rests on the thighs. Stay in the pose from 1 to 3 minutes. To come up, first lengthen the front torso, and then with an inhalation lift from the tailbone as it presses down and into the pelvis.

The arm position is really up to you in this position.  During a yoga practice, I like to place my arms out in front of me with my palms touching the floor.  I will use this position to push myself back up for the next flow and use it as a quick rest.  When I am using this pose to relax at night, I will place my arms along side my body with my palms up.  This allow me to relax faster and stay in the position longer instead of using it as a quick resting position. 

Relaxing in this pose allows me to breath deeply and relax most of the muscles in my body.  I will continue to use this position each night to help get rid of the day's stresses...

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Squats

Squats are a core part of every male and female's fitness routine, these were once considered an exercise that everyone suffered through twice a week but have come to be one of the hottest exercises for females.  With the changing trends in female body shape, Beyoncé and Kim Kardashian are the now the ideal body types and many females are adding/increasing the amount of squats they perform on a weekly basis.  There are very few exercises that are both as simple and effective at working the major butt and leg muscles as squats and they are the topic of today's Fitness Friday. 

I decided to look up how to best do squats as ladies, we hold weight in different places then men do and shouldn't be trying to do these exercises in the exact same fashion as they do.  I pulled my information from Pop Sugar Fitness as this is one of the best websites for women's fitness and health.

- Stand with your head held facing forward and your chest up and out.
- Place your feet shoulder-width apart or slightly wider.  Extend your hands straight out in front of you to help you keep your balance.  You can also bend the elbows or clasp the fingers.
- Sit back and down like you're sitting in an imaginary chair.  Keep your head facing forward as your upper body bends forward a bit.  Rather then allowing your back to round, let your lower back arch slightly as your descend.
- Lower down so your thighs are as parallel to the floor as possible, with your knees over your ankles.  Press your weight back into your heels.
- Keep your body tight, and push through your heels to bring yourself back to the starting position.

The website recommends starting with three sets of ten squats each then working up to twelve or fifteen as needed.  They stress that form is more important then amount and I can agree.  I still am doing the three sets of ten and making sure that I have my form correct through the whole process.  By the last set, I need to really concentrate on my form so I know that I am not ready to start adding more reps yet.

Why should women do squats?  This is a common question that many women ask.  This is not about building up huge butt and leg muscles but rather keeping them tight and toned.  When searching for a picture for this post, I found a lot of VERY NSFW pictures about women that do squats but the major point in doing this exercise is to keep those huge muscles in shape and looking tight.  This will improve your appearance in everything from skirts to skinny jeans. 

I have read that squats can be done at anytime as they only require your body weight to be done correctly.  That being said, I only do mine at the gym as of right now.  I don't yet have the form and the endurance to do them while brushing my teeth or cooking but I would like to work up this one day.

photo courtesy of Pop Sugar Fitness

Fitness Friday - Boat Pose

Today's Fitness Friday will be going right back to my yoga obsession...we are going to be looking at Boat Pose today.  This is one of my favorite and least favorite poses all at the same time, I love how it works my core but hate how it feels when working my core.  This pose is very similar to doing forearm planks and the focus can be on holding the pose for multiple breathes or on using core strength to go up and down in the pose.  I am trying to hold the pose for five breaths and I haven't even began trying the latter way of using it to build my core.

The version of the pose that I have pictured with this post is the full pose, I can't hold the full pose yet and I use the variation of having my legs up but bent at the knees.  My problem with trying to hold the full pose is balance, I tend to fall backwards when bringing my legs all the way up.  I need to work my core more in the variation before I can work to the full pose.

Yoga Journal provides instructions on how to work into and achieve the pose.  The instructions are for the full pose however using a modification in the second step is a great way to work into the pose slowly.

- Sit on the floor with your legs straight in front of you. Press your hands on the floor a little behind your hips, fingers pointing toward the feet, and strengthen the arms. Lift through the top of the sternum and lean back slightly. As you do this make sure your back doesn’t round; continue to lengthen the front of your torso between the pubis and top sternum. Sit on the “tripod” of your two sitting bones and tailbone.

- Exhale and bend your knees, then lift your feet off the floor, so that the thighs are angled about 45-50 degrees relative to the floor. Lengthen your tailbone into the floor and lift your pubis toward your navel. If possible, slowly straighten your knees, raising the tips of your toes slightly above the level of your eyes. If this isn’t possible remain with your knees bent, perhaps lifting the shins parallel to the floor.

- Stretch your arms alongside the legs, parallel to each other and the floor. Spread the shoulder blades across your back and reach strongly out through the fingers. If this isn’t possible, keep the hands on the floor beside your hips or hold on to the backs of your thighs.

- While the lower belly should be firm, it shouldn’t get hard and thick. Try to keep the lower belly relatively flat. Press the heads of the thigh bones toward the floor to help anchor the pose and lift the top sternum. Breathe easily. Tip the chin slightly toward the sternum so the base of the skull lifts lightly away from the back of the neck.

- At first stay in the pose for 10-20 seconds. Gradually increase the time of your stay to 1 minute. Release the legs with an exhalation and sit upright on an inhalation.

I like how Yoga Journal describes the best way to get into the pose and then ways to work into the full pose.  I know very full people (other than yoga teachers) that can work all the way up into the full pose so I am working on this and wondering how long it will take until I can get into it. 

I currently hold Boat Pose for three breaths and my small goal is to get up to five breaths.  The goal is to do the work from your core and strengthen all of these key muscles. I will report back over the next few months as I grow into the core crunching pose.

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Almonds

Today's Fitness Friday returns to healthy snacks and alternative sources of protein.  One of my least favorite aspects of the cooler weather is the lack of fresh fruit that I can easily buy.  I am making up for this by turning more to juices and trying to work seeds and nuts into my diet on a more regular basis.  Almonds have long been my favorite nut to snack on so we will tart with showcasing their benefits today and then I will start trying more out and featuring them in upcoming Fitness Fridays.

Many people tend to avoid almonds because they are very high in fat but many of the health benefits that they contain will overweigh the fat content.  Eating anything in moderation is the key and is the balance between the high fat content and the rest of the health benefits that are reaped from the nut.  I found an article about the nine health benefits that can be reaped from the regular consumption of almonds.  One of the best articles that I have found is from www.authoritynutrition.com and I am pulling the nine major points from the article.

Almonds deliver a massive amount of nutrients.  This nut contains a good amount of fiber, protein, and Vitamin E.  Protein is essential to my diet and I always need new ways to find plant-based proteins as I do not eat meat.  Fiber helps one to feel full and will reduce the amount of the nut that is needed to be eaten.  Vitamin E helps with skin and hair health.  All in all, there are some great health benefits to be reaped from this tasty nut.

Almonds are loaded with antioxidants.  Antioxidants help with cell health and work to stave off oxidative damage to the external and internal organs.

Almonds are high in Vitamin E which protects your cell membranes from damage.  Vitamin E also works to prevent and reduce the effect of oxidative damage for inner and outer cell membranes.

Almonds can assist with blood sugar control.  This food contains a high amount of Magnesium which helps to regular blood sugar control and reduce the probability of Type 2 Diabetes.

Magnesium also have benefits for blood pressure levels.  Lowering blood pressure reduces the probability of heart attack and other cardiovascular disorders.

Almonds can lower cholesterol level.  This food helps to lower levels of LDL in the blood, leading to a reduction in the risk of heart disease.

Almonds prevent harmful oxidation of LDL cholesterol.  Lack of oxidation of LDL will help to stave off heart diseases.

Eating almonds reduces hunger, lowering your overall calorie intake.  Foods with high fiber and protein contents help you feel full longer so you will eat less and take less calories in.  This helps with weight loss.

Almonds are incredibly effective for weight loss.  Even though they have a high fat content, the fiber and protein contents overshadow this aspect of the nut.

I am working a serving or two of almonds into my day routine and using them as an afternoon snack right now.  I tend to go right to school or the gym after work and need something that will keep me feeling full for longer than most foods so that I am not binging on junk food in the later hours of the night.  I will keep adding more nuts into my diet and deciding what ones I like the most.

photo courtesy of authoritynutrition.com

Fitness Friday - Chair Pose

This week we are back to yoga poses for Fitness Friday, I have been doing yoga two to three times a week and keep looking to improve and deepen all of my poses.  I have been able to work my way through the whole Primary series while being guided by my teacher and now I am working on being able to do the Sun Salutations with no guide.  The start of the second Sun Salutation is Chair Pose, the pose that we will be focusing on today for Fitness Friday.

Chair Pose is the first pose from the second series of Sun Saluations, this pose is a standing pose that works the inner thigh and core muscles.  Today we will focus on learning the basic pose and then in the coming weeks, we will look at the more advanced variations that can be done to deepen the pose.  Beginning yoga students will feel their core working when they begin doing this pose and it will give beginners a good idea of what this type of work will feel like on their bodies.

Yoga Journal gives an advanced step-by-step instruction on how to enter and hold this pose. 

- Stand in Tadasana. Inhale and raise your arms perpendicular to the floor. Either keep the arms parallel, palms facing inward, or join the palms.

- Exhale and bend your knees, trying to take the thighs as nearly parallel to the floor as possible. The knees will project out over the feet, and the torso will lean slightly forward over the thighs until the front torso forms approximately a right angle with the tops of the thighs. Keep the inner thighs parallel to each other and press the heads of the thigh bones down toward the heels.

- Firm your shoulder blades against the back. Take your tailbone down toward the floor and in toward your pubis to keep the lower back long.

- Stay for 30 seconds to a minute. To come out of this pose straighten your knees with an inhalation, lifting strongly through the arms. Exhale and release your arms to your sides into Tadasana.

The benefits of the pose are as follows: Strengthens the ankles, thighs, calves, and spine; stretches shoulders and chest; stimulates the abdominal organs, diaphragm, and heart, and reduces flat feet.

Beginners will find it easier to keep their thighs at a 45 degree angle and then sink deeper into the pose as they work on it more.  My goal is get my thighs parallel to the ground and "sit" into the invisible chair.  I can feel this pose in my core and in my inner thighs, working these muscle groups at the gym will help one to hold the pose deeper and longer. 

My next goal to work toward in this position is to twist during it and add more core work.

photo courtesy of Yoga Journal

Fitness Friday - Tricep Dips

I have spent several Fitness Fridays talking about my new love of yoga and some of the positions that I am trying to learning to get comfortable in.  I am hitting the point where I want to try some of the more intermediate poses but I know that I need to increase both my core strength and my upper arm strength.  This Fitness Friday will focus on helping my improve the strength in my triceps, getting me to the next step in some of the yoga poses that I want to try and improving the look of my upper arms.  One of the trainers at my gym has suggested that I work my way up to Tricep Dips and that will be today's topic.

I have started to do Tricep Dips with a bench on the floor and am working up to being able to do them as pictured here.  They remind me very much of a reverse push up, another move that I am working up to doing the full pose of.  The Pop Sugar website has provided a series of instructions that I will share here for anyone that wishes to work this move into their fitness regime. 

- Position your hands shoulder-width apart on a secured bench or stable chair.
- Slide your butt off the front of the bench with your legs extended out in front of you.
- Straighten your arms, keeping a little bend in your elbows to keep tension on your triceps and off your elbow joints.
- Slowly bend your elbows to lower your body toward the floor until your elbows are at about a 90-degree angle. Be sure to keep your back close to the bench.
- Once you reach the bottom of the movement, press down into the bench to straighten your elbows, returning to the starting position. This completes one rep.
- Keep your shoulders down as you lower and raise your body. You can bend your legs to modify this exercise.

A rep is 15 to 20 of these dips and I am working up to doing two or three reps on every arm day at the gym.  I am currently at one full rep and then I try to add as many more as possible.  I can feel it in my biceps and triceps the next day after my workout however I am already seeing improvement in both the number of reps that I can do correctly and the amount of weights that I can lift when doing other exercises.

My goal right now is to work as many of these in as possible at least three or four times a week.  Tricep Dips can be done anywhere as they require no equipment and only a minimal amount of room.  I bet that I could even work these into my work day as long as none of my co workers are around!

I will continue to work on my upper arm and core strength for the next few weeks and then we will head into some of the more intermediate yoga poses at the beginning of the new year.

photo courtesy of Pop Sugar