Father’s Day and Weekly Workouts

Good morning!  Hope all of you had a lovely weekend, and for any dads out there I hope you had a fabulous Father’s Day.  I went to Newburyport for the afternoon with my parents and siblings to celebrate Chuck.  We did lunch at Michael’s Harborside Restaurant and then walked around a little bit.

Father's Day

Father's Day

Father's Day

I know for Mother’s Day the past two years my mom has written a guest post, but my dad’s version of inspiring fitness is a little different.  It includes calling me after he umpires our hometown baseball games to tell me how many squats he did over the course of two games (1400).  Calculated of course by averaging the number of times he had to squat in one inning and multiplying by 18.  Where do you all think I learned to love doing squats for endurance?

Anyways, hope you had a great day yesterday, dad!  Thanks for all you do for us.

Time to get in to weekly workouts…

Weekly Workouts

Last Week’s Workouts

Here’s another fab workout week under my belt:

Sunday
2 mile run + abs with Tim

Monday
I went to the gym with no plan as to what I was going to do for a workout, but I left feeling amazing and accomplished.  OH, and super sweaty.  Funny how that happens sometimes.  I ended up doing the following circuit three times through, but I added 10 minutes of steady cardio before each round:

15x10 Circuit

So the workout ended up looking like this:  10 minutes steady cardio (elliptical) > circuit > 10 minutes steady cardio (arc trainer) > circuit > 10 minutes steady cardio (bike) > circuit > stretch.  For the win.

Incline Pushups

Tuesday
On Tuesday I taught outdoor bootcamp in the rain, followed by my interval training class.  In my second class we focused on muscle endurance.  I chose six different strength moves and we did 5 reps of each move, then continued with the same exercise through 6 reps, 7 reps, 8, 9, and up to 10.  You end up doing over 50 reps of each exercise!  I threw random cardio blasts in between each strength set.

Side note:  What has happened to our Tuesday night party crowd!?  It’s making me sad.

Wednesday
Active rest!  30 minute walk for Walking Wednesday at work with Sheila and Dawn.

Walking at work

Thank you random man on the side of the road for taking our picture.

Thursday
Taught my 6am class, which was a bit smaller than usual due to the late Bruins game the night before.  That’s okay though – those of us who were there worked through some serious upper body intervals — 10 reps of strength followed by 20 seconds of either mountain climbers or bench popovers 4x through each set.

I was also up a little later than usual on Wednesday night, so I opted for a neon outfit that morning to get me through class.  I love my Reebok Love Fitness shirt.

Reebok Love Fitness Shirt

Friday
I kept things simple with 30 minutes on the elliptical followed by a standing abs workout.

Ellipticals

Saturday
I busted out a workout DVD, something I rarely do!  I did Mindy Mylrea’s Booty Camp — the gliding disc and bender ball version, followed by the Tabata version to really finish things off.  Tim came in from his run as I was huffing and puffing through these torture moves:

Mindy Mylrea DVD

I also walked at least a few miles on Saturday as we strolled through Boston.  It was such a beautiful day, but my legs were sore and tired by the time we went to bed.

This Week’s Workouts

Here’s what’s on tap for this week’s exercise:

  • Sunday:  Rest day
  • Monday:  Cardio + abs
  • Tuesday:  Teaching 6:15pm bootcamp, teaching 7:30pm Interval
  • Wednesday:  Active rest
  • Thursday:  Teaching 6am circuit
  • Friday:  Morning workout TBD
  • Saturday:  Morning workout TBD

Are you someone who likes to plan your workouts before heading to the gym, or would you rather make it up as you go?

I definitely like to plan my workouts in terms of plotting them into my weekly schedule, but sometimes it’s nice to go without knowing what exact exercises you are going to do when you get there.  Since this method clearly worked for me last Monday, I’m keeping some of my workouts a little more vague this week!  We’ll see what happens.

Have a good one, friends!

Father’s Day in Marina Bay

Greetings from the sky! 

I am currently on a plane heading to Colorado.  Tim was out there this week for work (in Vail), so we decided to make a long weekend out of it.  He is meeting me at Denver Airport, we will be spending two nights in Boulder, one night in Denver, then flying home on Monday.  It’s a nice little getaway, especially since all we have to pay for is splitting the cost of my flight home.  And whatever activities we decide to do of course.  Our hotel nights are all free because we’ve racked up enough Marriott points from traveling for work in the past year.  It’s pretty awesome!  Plus, I have two $50 American Express gift cards that I’ve won as part of the Around the Plate Writer’s Club.  I can’t wait to put them to good use.

That being said, no live blogging for me, but don’t fret!  I do have my usual Words for the Weekend post, a new recipe, and my Weekly Workouts post all scheduled to run while I am out-of-town.

And this one, of course!

Father’s Day in Marina Bay

As you guys know, this Sunday was Father’s Day.  In case you missed my gift ideas for healthy dads post, check it out here!  Maybe it will come in handy next year or for another occasion.

This year for Father’s Day, my family spent the afternoon in Quincy.  I have to laugh because my parents are known to go to the same restaurants over and over (think Aegean, Grassfields, and Luigis), but I have to give them credit because this year it seems like they’ve branched out a lot more!  A couple of weeks ago I know they went walking around Marina Bay, and they had such a nice time that my dad wanted to go back for Father’s Day.

So to Marina Bay we went!

First on the itinerary was lunch at a restaurant called Port 305.

We sat outside with a really pretty view of the water.

It was nice, but our table was in the shade and by the end of our meal I was FREEZING!  Seriously shivering.

For my meal, I ordered a grilled chicken club on wheat with no mayo.  And a side of grilled asparagus instead of fries.

Was pretty much what you would expect for a chicken club.

After we finished up lunch, we needed to warm up!  So we walked around the dock for a bit and enjoyed the sunshine.

That’s me with my dad!

After my dad opened his presents right there on a bench (haha!), we couldn’t decide whether to get a drink or get some ice cream.

Clearly I was happy with our decision.  And my fat-free, sugar-free black raspberry was delicious.  Uncle George, if you are reading this, my mom told me at least five times during my eating of my single scoop that you love black raspberry too.  So here’s to black raspberry!!

After we finished up at Marina Bay, we drove over and parked at Wollaston Beach where we proceeded to then walk off our ice cream.

I’ve driven by Wollaston Beach before to get to Nantasket, but I’ve never walked along it before.  It was nice!  Especially with a nice view of Boston in the background.

I’d say we got about 1.5 miles of walking in.  It was a nice time.  Hope you enjoyed your day, Dad!

How did you guys celebrate Father’s Day last weekend?  Have any of you been to Marina Bay or Wollaston Beach?

Have a great weekend, everyone!  I’ll be hiking, sightseeing, and exploring Colorado!  I can’t wait!

Father’s Day Gift Ideas for the Healthy Dad

Happy Father’s Day to all the fabulous dads out there!

If you are scrambling for a last-minute Father’s Day gift today for that special dad in your life, here are five healthy themed gift ideas that he may like!

1.  Grilling Tools
For that dad that loves to grill, these are essentials!  This kit is only $23.96 from Williams Sonoma, and consists of a spatula, fork, tongs, basting brush, spoon and turner tongs.

 

2.  Magazine Subscription
Whatever your dad’s interests may be, send them his way!  This is not only affordable, but it’s nice because he will have something to look forward to getting in the mail every month.

 

3.  A Healthy Gift Basket
This one shows that you are willing to put time and effort into your dad’s gift.  Fill a basket up with items that promote healthy living.  Some ideas:  Almonds, fruit, granola bars, athletic socks, golf balls, a healthy living magazine on its own, a gift card to a sports apparel store, healthy marinades, a sweatband, you get the idea!  The possibilities are endless.

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4.  Exercise Equipment
No, I’m not talking about a treadmill or something big.  Think — something easy, portable, manly, and different.  Maybe a jump rope, a set of weights, or a kettlebell.  Something to get him moving that’s fun to use!

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5.  A Massage
Perhaps that hard-working dad in your life could use a massage or some other form of relaxation this Father’s Day.  Treat him!

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How are you celebrating Father’s Day this year?  Any other health related gifts you can think of for the active or foodie dads out there?

On a more personal level, tonight I’ll be celebrating CHUCK at a Father’s Day dinner with my family.  But until then, here are some pictures to celebrate!

Happy Father’s Day, Dad!  Thanks for all you do for the family!