by Amy | Jan 14, 2015 | Blog, The Art of Fitness
For many of us the new year brings on one major goal…fitness. For me, January brings on a wave of guilt as I look back in awe at all the sugar I’ve consumed over the last few months. Even when I’m trying my hardest, that time span between Thanksgiving and January 1st can often mean lots of cookies, salty meats, heavy meals. It’s a time of substituting raw, green veggies for cheese coated casseroles.
Before I go on, let me be clear. I’m not trying to guilt you. I love vegetables cooked down and covered in cheese. I love ham and cookies and eating at places you only get when you visit your home town. I’m not anti-indulgence. I’m pro-balance. Now is a great time to bring our lives back into balance: our jeans are a little tighter, our stomachs are still not sure they want more starch, and we are eager to bring a fitness goal to fruition.
I’ve spent years working out and working in gyms. {In fact, not teaching fitness classes any more feels most weird at this time of year.} Over time I learned some things that helped me and my clients keep on track. This year, hopefully I’ll be taking my own advice as I attempt to reenter the fitness game—very gently. {For those of you wondering why…I’m still recovering from a summer back surgery. Turns out those take a frustratingly long time to fully heal.}
Decide what your objective is. There is a big difference in the way you’ll approach a one-time, concrete goal {more on concrete goals here} verses a lifestyle change.
This fitness goal: “I want to lose weight and look better,” is actually a lifestyle change. You can diet for a while, lose a few pounds and have a little short term success. However, if you really want to keep weight off and live inside a a healthier body you’ll need a lifestyle change. {More on that in a moment.}
On the other hand…this fitness goal: “I’m going to run the Crescent City Classic,” is a concrete, one-time goal. The approach here requires putting together a training timeline and exercising in a specific way. The first step in fitness success is deciding on an objective.
Success in a lifestyle change will require…change. It’ll require change in diet, activity, and mindset. These changes are hard because we have to fight against habit to get there. At first the choice to say “no” to that Diet Coke and “yes” to a glass of water might seem painful and backwards. But the more you make that choice, the easier and more natural it will become. A lifestyle change is all about retraining your mind to naturally choose new, positive choices.
Something that I’ve seen really help folks make a big change, is to turn the broad, lifestyle goal into smaller more concrete goals. Take it a week at a time. {Examples in this post.} Don’t look ahead at your whole life and all the hard work it will be. Instead, focus on the coming week. Make good choices for the next seven days. You can do it. It’s only a week.
I believe in the power of group mind. It’s one reason I became a fitness instructor. Teaching kept me accountable to my fitness routine. As an instructor I kept others accountable as well. Once you start going to a class, and make some friends, it becomes a lot harder to start skipping. You know your friends will ask where you were, or the instructor will say, “We missed you on Tuesday. Is everything okay?” When those comments arise, deep down you want a better excuse than, “I skipped.”
All that said, I definitely recommend joining a gym and finding a class you love at a time that works for your schedule. The accountability there can be key.
However, if you really hate classes {but I don’t know how you can} or they don’t work for you…find another system of accountability. Get a friend or spouse on board who can encourage you and check in on your progress.
Don’t be a closet dieter. There is no reason to be ashamed, embarrassed or secretive about your fitness goal. This is exciting and something to be proud of. Make your goal known. Nothing will crush your fitness dreams faster than being surrounded by un-supportive friends and family. Make your goals known so that those closest to you can support you—instead of offering you a second helping of potatoes.
Spend some money on your goals. You know I’m pretty darn thrifty. For me to tell you to spend money is very rare. But in this case, I’ll tell you to do it. When you invest your hard earned dollars into something, chances are you’ll utilize it.
It doesn’t have to be a lot of money. Even a modest investment can be enough to keep a goal on the right track. Buy a gym membership, register for a 5K, join a community accountability group like Weight Watchers.
Know that most of your success will come in the kitchen. It’s just a fact. You can work out all day and still not get the results you want if you aren’t fueling your body with the right foods. On and off– even when I was teaching four classes a day—I would hate the way I looked. Every time, it boiled down to what was happening in the kitchen.
Be mindful of the season. I ran into a friend a few weeks ago. When we started talking about health and diet, she reminded me that lots of our diet success can come from choosing the right approach for the right season. She told me that last winter she tried a raw diet. It didn’t go well. Icy veggies and raw smoothies are hard to stomach when you are facing a brutal Practically Canadian wind chill of -50˚. Pick an approach that fits the season.
Don’t drink and start drinking. Cryptic, yes. But here’s the thing…one of the quickest changes you can make to your diet is simply swapping your drink choice. As you take steps toward a fitness goal you can expedite your success by eating your calories instead of drinking them. Cut out soda and carbonated beverages. Unless you are an actual athlete, of college or professional level, cut out the sports drinks. They won’t do you any favors. Look at the calorie count on those fancy coffees…it’s nearly a whole meal’s worth. Cut them too. And lastly, cut out alcohol. It slows your whole system down.
Instead of those things, buy a bottle you love and start drinking water like it’s going out of style.
I know you can do this. Take it one step at a time. Remember to look over the first two posts in the series for more inspiration on setting and reaching goals. This post specifically touches on setting deadlines and timetables in regard to fitness goals.
Amy
by Amy | Jun 13, 2014 | Blog, Devotional
It’s been a while since I’ve given you an update on my back situation. {You can see the beginning of the ordeal here.} So I’ll be quick. I really don’t like to dwell, or complain, or belly ache about my circumstances. I hope you don’t see this post as any of that.
I have a pretty nasty herniated disc. To fix me, I’ll need a quick, minimally invasive surgery.
Now, the doors and windows thing.
The news that there was something seriously upset in my spine was pretty life altering. I thought that I’d be able to go back to, or keep teaching {at least the low impact} classes at the gym. The news of surgery and serious disc issues led to immediate orders that I stop teaching all classes…and the major blow that I will {most likely} never be able to go back to that line of work again.
With time, and rest, and following the doctors orders, in the future I will be able to return to exercising. Just not for a long time. And probably never like I had been.
But God is good all the time. Even in the crummiest, poopiest, poop pile. God is good.
Before the initial injury, I had been praying about what I should be doing. With my life, my time, my talents. See, God made a real grab-bag when He whipped me up. I have a million interests and a skill set that is as diverse as the big box of Crayolas. I was feeling like a change was coming. Like I needed to hone in on a few things. However, in order to do that, I would need to cut something out. So I prayed. I prayed about leaving the fitness game, because somewhere deep inside, I felt like I was using the job title “fitness instructor” as a mask. It was an easy thing to tell people when they asked what my job is, or “what I do…” Easier than telling them I’m a bit of a jack-of-all-trades who loved undertaking giant projects, I work really hard at lots of things but bring home less money than a teenager working the Taco Bell drive through, I kind of do photography, and design, and I write this blog…I volunteer, and really I just do the things that I see need to be done–if I can.
But that title is gone now. And I’m at peace about it. Folks keep asking me how I’m doing with the loss of my fitness career. And, honestly I’m fine. God shut that door. And that’s cool. I asked Him if I should close it and He went ahead and did it for me. But, He is always faithful…and with that direction gone, He was quick to give me other opportunities. Opportunities I didn’t seek out, or even knew existed.
After I got the news that the gym was out of the picture, I started getting calls. One invited me to be an artist as a summer concert series…I’ll be doing visual arts–not musical arts. Nobody panic. Another invited me to be a vendor at our local jazz festival…where I could sell pieces that I’ve made. Another call ended with a freelance writing gig {I love to write.} And another lined up an ongoing commercial multimedia project.
God is so good. And while one door has closed, like the Reverend Mother told Maria as she left the convent, “When the Lord closes a door, somewhere He opens a window.” I’m feeling very blessed…like I better be sure I’m always fully clothed…because God has surrounded me with lots of windows.
Have you had doors close lately? Have you found your windows, or are you still looking? I’d love to hear from you and know how I could pray for you.
xo
Amy
Pssst! The nifty art in this post is some stuff I’ve been working on since I’m not working out. After the initial sales, you’ll find those and items like it for sale right here at the website!
by Amy | Jan 27, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Fitness
It’s the end of January. The “resolution” gym crowd is thinning out. At the gym I work at our membership forms have stopped flying out of the folder.
{Image from Women’s Health Magazine}
So if you are still sticking to your 2014 plan to get fit and shed those pounds that have haunted you…well done.
If you are new to the workout game {or even if you aren’t}, you might be getting bored with your routine by now. This month I’ve had a few days every week that I’ve taught four classes at the gym in one day. It’s a bit above average for me. All the time at the gym, all the classes have caused a couple people to ask me: Where do you come up with this stuff?
This is the truth. I write out every workout I teach. Then, at the end of class I throw it away. I do it simply because I like doing something new and different each time. So, where do I get so many ideas? Today I’ll show you my go-to sources for fitness inspiration. **Be warned…these are links to fitness sites. There will be images of tones up girls in sports bras on these pages. These pages advertise their workouts by showing results. I advocate conservative dressing…and working out while covered up.**
Some of my very favorite workouts come from The Daily HIIT. {High Intensity Interval Training.} These moves are way hard. They inspire my hard core classes. I usually do a workout, or just browse around for moves that I’d like to pair together.
For pilates inspiration I love Blogilates. She’s got good posts about clean eating, recipes, and workouts that will kick your booty. Most of her workouts are categorized by body focus and they are short {12-15 minutes each}. Usually all you need is a mat and a bit of space.
My last go-to source {I’m not giving you all my sources, just the ones I frequent most} is Women’s Health Magazine. The magazine is okay, but I’m a bigger fan of the web version of the source. That way I don’t have to week through ads, clothing advice and articles. I can go straight to the workouts. They have a great variety of moves to try out with basic equipment that you’ll have at your local gym.
I can go months without looking anywhere other than these three sites to bust out of a fitness rut. Hopefully they’ll help you too. The hardest part about fitness is always starting. So if you haven’t started: Go for it. And if you have: Keep it up!
Amy
by Amy | Nov 1, 2013 | Blog, Devotional, The Art of Faith
Here’s the thing. Yesterday I bought seriously ugly shoes. No offense to anyone else in the world that owns this pair of shoes. They are great shoes. I just think they look a little ridiculous.
See, I’ve been sporting these bad boys for a year now. I got constant compliments on them. Every time I taught my 8:30am senior fitness class, this one woman called them my “sexy shoes.” She’s in her 80’s. She told me that every time she came to class. And I didn’t mind. Because these are sexy shoes.
These are not. I mean, really, look at that thick sole thing? It’s so big. So weird.
But I went and bought these shoes {not even on sale.} Why? Because it turns out I’ve got some issues. A few weeks ago my back stopped working. It stopped producing movement and started producing a high volume of pain. Before that I’d had some trouble with my knees and my ankles, but not pain that I couldn’t continue to work out through. Because why would I stop working out because of pain? If you know me, you know that I wouldn’t and didn’t. Until I couldn’t move. Or sleep.
So I saw a doctor, who put me through to a physical therapist, who looked at the issue and told me that it started with my feet. My feet. Actually, my shoes. The shoes weren’t putting my feet level, which meant that every time I ran I jarred my ankle at a weird angle, which impacted my knees at a bad angle, which caused my hips to come out of alignment, which forced my back to pick up the slack…until it gave out. Shoes. Feet.
So I’m trying something new. These new, very unsexy shoes. I’m trying to take time to give my body what it needs, even if it’s not what I want. Isn’t it funny how something so small, at the bottom of our totem pole can ripple all the way up? It’s amazing how even the most mundane occurrences in our lives can point back to God and His Word. This whole ordeal just reminds me that He values the lowly and seemingly insignificant. Feet are gross and smelly, and weird to look at…yet He chose them to carry our whole body. I find it totally fascinating that everything, I mean everything in this world, in this creation points back to the amazing Creator.
Amy
by Amy | Sep 23, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of the Moment
This is it. Our final day in Glacier. Tomorrow we will move on to other things. I won’t say better things, because after our short trip to Glacier National Park, I really don’t think there are many things better than this…but I’ll move on nonetheless. {Also, isn’t it crazy that nonetheless is an actual word?}
On our final day we got up nice and early and made the long drive from West Glacier all the way to the opposite side of the park to the stunningly preserved Many Glacier Hotel. It was built in 1910 and sits right on Swiftcurrent Lake. When you finally get there it’s like you’ve walked into a postcard. The hotel is idyllic, if a little surreal. The lake is pristine. The mountains are so gorgeous they couldn’t even be dreamed up by Bob Ross himself.
{Above photo: Swiftcurrent Lake}
{Below bottom: Many Glacier Hotel, other photos in the collage: along the Grinnel Glacier Trail}
We left from the hotel and headed to the Grinnel Glacier trail head. Now, next time we visit I think I’ll try to plan things out just a bit better in the time department. You see, there is a boat shuttle that leaves from Many Glacier Hotel that will take you across the lake where you can catch another boat that will take you up the trail a bit. All in all it will shave off a good 1-2 miles off your total hike.
We did not catch the boat.
So that meant another long day of hiking. However, I am very, VERY glad we decided to save this one for last. While the hike was strenuous {a steady incline over 5 miles…then a very steep, rocky climb at the end} it was the biggest payout of any of the trails we hikes while visiting the park.
Along the trail you’ll climb steadily until you are high enough that you look down upon Lake Josephine and eventually Lake Grinnell. You can see Lake Grinnell in the collage above. It’s that brilliantly teal body of water next to the pine tree. Then far, far in the distance you’ll notice a waterfall. As you continue it will become clear that the waterfall is simple melt from Grinnell Glacier, and it is this fall that feeds the lake.
You’ll pass falls closer to the trail and you’ll smell all these amazing smells. You know how men’s fragrances are called “Glacial Waters” and “Mountain Pass” and stuff like that? Well, there is a reason. This whole corner of the world smells like the manliest, best ever, cologne ever made. Forget Axe Bodywash. I want a man who smells as good as the woods around Glacier.
Now, I’m getting off topic again.
Anyway. Remember that steep climb I mentioned earlier? It’s rocky and lasts for a good stretch. Like climbing a rustic stone staircase. Up, up, up. Your quads will tell you to stop. Don’t listen. Keep climbing. Because eventually you’ll get….here.
You’ll walk right up to Grinnell Glacier. Yes, this is what a glacier looks like in summer. And the photo really stinks. It’s breath taking. The water is clear right to the bottom. The ice bergs are so white they sting to look at. And that water, oh the water…it’s a color even Crayola envies. All the fatigue you feel walking up, up, up will be gone as soon as you see the oasis before you.
Before making our descent, we were lucky enough to spy this beauty. Who, even though I was pretty scared, let me get close enough to nab this awesome portrait.
Needless to say, we were left pretty darn tired at the end of our last day. So, after dinner, instead of going for another walk, or finding something else to do…we simply pulled off and waited for the stars to come out. It’s so dark you can see the Milky Way and constellations become a blur of millions of tiny lights in the sky.
I think these few short, exhausting days away were just what we needed.
Amy
by Amy | Nov 30, 2012 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
Most of you have heard me lovingly refer to my new home of Minot, ND as “Practically Canada.” It is. The boarder is only a stone’s throw away. People here are silly-friendly and sometimes they drag their “oos” and “ohs.”
But that’s beside the point right now. Today I’m just itching to tell you about how I, Amy Allender, became Practically Canadian last night.
Derek and I….went curling!
Yes, Minot has a curling club. And, let me tell you…it’s awesome. {More awesome than it looks on TV.}
Let me describe the set up for you. Our friend Zach was cool enough to introduce us to the curling club and let us crash their exhibition practice.
I’ll be honest. We drove around for a while looking for the right place. First we actually missed the mark and ended up at a gymnastics studio. Lots of little girls in leotards. Hmmm…I was looking for teenage boys and middle aged men dressed in sweatpants and ski caps. Guess we were in the wrong place.
A second try landed us in the right place: The commercial building at the fair grounds, if you’ll believe it. Zach told us it would be cold…but this was really insane. They literally froze the floor. You could see your breath. Like a walk in freezer, but more fun. {Freezers aren’t that much fun. All the food is frozen solid and there isn’t enough room to play games.}
We were coached on by a curling pro. Do you believe that? I didn’t. Yeah, he’s so legit. He’s been to nationals. {Whatever that means.} And his son competed on the junior Olympic team. Legit. I don’t think he understood at first just how little we knew about the sport. As in “Umm…okay, so what is the point of the game?”
I’ll be honest, I change the channel when I see curling in the winter Olympics. I was clueless.
Here’s the brief on how the game works. Players take turns shoving heavy granite rocks down the ice toward a bulls eye. The rocks closest to the center score. You wear one slippery shoe to help you glide across the ice. Your teammates can sweet these little brooms in front of your rock to melt the ice a bit to help it keep moving further. Get it?
Now, here is the best part of the night. Kebly the curling pro said this to Derek:
“So…Amy must be pretty athletic. Did she play lots of sports in school?”
Yep. He said that. About me…B-Team Allender. Yes, I played lots of sports…poorly. Anything that required skill or coordination was pretty much out of the question. On the tennis team I got “most improved” {we all know that’s what they give the worst player. I went from awful to…pretty bad.} I was so bad I wasn’t even a real part of JV. I played exhibition. So if the opposing team had extra players that didn’t match up with ours, they could hit around with me. Pretty bad, right?
Anyway. The curling pro said this could be my sport. He says I’m a natural.
{Leave it to me to brag about something this weird and awkward.}
It was amazing. We are joining the curling club. I’m practically Canadian. Done-dundee.
Amy
by Amy | Oct 12, 2012 | Blog, The Art of Fitness
Let’s start Fitness Friday with a quick fairy tale.
Once upon a time there was a princess. The princess lived in a castle in a kingdom called Practically Canada. She and her prince went on a long journey to a far away place called Dover. While they were there they feasted day and night on the most delectable foods this new kingdom had to offer. The princess knew that eating late at night was a bad habit. She knew that eating ice cream every day was also a bad idea. She knew that staying away from the gym would make her very weak…but she didn’t care. She was too distracted by the awesome fun and friendship to be had.
Then…after seven days the prince and princess returned to Practically Canada. Then an evil queen called Reality made the princess teach Trim and Tone twice in one day…less than 24 hours after she arrived back home. She was sore and she regretted her bad choices…but the real bummer came when she had to teach again the next day…Trim and Tone–again.
The end. {Or the Beginning of a very stiff weekend.}
Okay. Total transparency. The princess is me. I went on vacation. I ate a lot. The most exercise I got was walking. No one is perfect.
Let’s all get back to it. If you’ve never used my circuits before check out the instructions here. Get fit this weekend. Click through to see the circuits. (more…)
by Amy | Sep 28, 2012 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of Fitness
Happy Friday everyone. Today is Friday, I hope you have all been taking advantage of the awesome fall weather. I hope you are ready to get out and be active.
Last night’s Trim and Tone class used steps…so the circuits were not equipment free. So instead, I thought I’d share a bit about my recent experience at an Urban Adventure Race. It definitely got us out and running. It’s fitness, exploration, and adventure in a creative way.
We participated in the Great Urban Race in Minneapolis, put on by Red Frog Events.
At the start of the race each team {of 2-4 participants} gets an envelope with 12 clues inside. On “Go” everyone opens the clues and starts racing. Clues can be in the form or riddles, puzzles, etc. Each riddle leads you to a location in the city…usually a cool small business, art gallery or other local treasure. One clue was required a sudoku’s solution to discover an address. Another was deciphered by solving a cryptogram.
Once you know where you need to go, get there as fast as possible. No cars, taxis or bikes. Go on foot or bus. Locations are spread across the city and can be miles apart. Upon arrival, your team needs to complete another puzzle or activity. Then snap a photo to prove completion.
1. After arriving at indie art gallery we were lead to the basement. Then we had a choice…tarantella or cockroach? Well, you see what we chose. Then lay down, put it on your face and snap a photo.
2. Once arriving at Hell’s kitchen Derek needed to paint a mustache on me with chocolate frosting, then I dipped my face in dry cake mix. And…photo.
3. One challenge required taking a photo with a bald stranger. That was an awkward request to make…
It was crazy fun. We jogged/walked about 8 miles…in addition to performing other feats of strength. Like scaling a boulder wall, jumping off scaffolding onto an air bag, biking an obstacle course, and talking to lots of strangers.
1. At a local sporting goods shop we scaled a bouldering wall.
2. At a local artisan showcase we had to make a craft for each other.
You can find a race near you here. But there are lots of event organizers that put these kind of events on. Like Urban Dare, Gulf Coast Adventure, and Merrell Oyster Races. Any way you cut it…now’s the perfect time to find a creative way to get out and get fit…before the winter traps us inside.
Amy
