Amazing Stickie and the Bottom Up Kettlebell Press

The Amazing Stickie is fond of kettle bells because their shape creates opportunities to challenge her muscles in different ways.  Today, she is doing the kettlebell bottom up press.  She begins holding a kettlebell with the handle underneath and the weighty part pointing up at her shoulder.  Then, keeping the heavy part up, she presses the kettlebell overhead.  (Of course she keeps her shoulder blades down and against her ribcage the whole time!)  She lowers the kettlebell back to the starting position to complete the rep.  Five reps on a side is a good number to start with.

Brrr

Exercising when it is cold can be a challenge.  Heck, getting out of bed when it’s cold can be a challenge.  However, I have some ideas to share about how to deal with freezing fitness.

 

First of all, we need layers.  Maybe lots of them.  I was slow to adapt to the whole purpose-built fitness clothes thing, but the fabrics are worth it for the way they breathe.  We stay warm, the sweat “wicks” away, and we don’t end up dragging a fifty pound soggy t-shirt over our head at the end when it’s time to shower.  (I personally run hot these days, so I’m kind of minimalist on the layers and I take them off pretty soon, but I understand that I am at one end of the spectrum.)  Hats, gloves, and warm socks can make a huge difference, as can a layer that stops the wind/rain/weather from attacking us.

 

Second, we need to take a little longer on the warmups.  I hate warmups.  I want to get to work.  But they’re useful, especially when it is cold.  Our muscles need a chance to get used to moving.  Do a gentle cardio warmup and then some stretching before the real deal.

 

Finally, even though it is cold, we need to stay hydrated.  Drink that water.

 

Now go play.

Use Our Powers

Change can be hard.  It’s also inevitable.  (This is not one of those nasty, suck-it-up posts, I promise.)  Time passes, we get older, they discontinue our favorite brand of sports drink, our best pair of workout pants wear out.  But also, we have friends who get a new puppy, or we get a spiffy new haircut, or we finally figure out how to do pushups.

 

Given that we’re going to have to deal with change no matter what, we might as well seize the opportunity to direct the change in good ways as much as we can.  We can choose, say, working out so our bodies get stronger instead of choosing couch potatoing so our bodies get to look like maybe we need to be upholstered (no offense, flower prints…).  Stuff happens to us, of course, but we have some power.

 

Let’s use our powers for good.

Monday Workout: Still Compounding

I am, as always, really into the efficiency of compound exercises.  Deadlift to curl is the new one this week, so we need to choose a weight that is appropriate for the curl; it will probably feel pretty light for the deadlift.  Three rounds.

 

plie bend extend	30
deadlift to curl	20
pushups	10
reverse lunge twist	30
bench press	20
lateral raise	10
woodchoppers	30
skullcrushers	20
brains	10

 

The Return of the Amazing Stickie: squat to leg lift

The Amazing Stickie has a very busy life, so she loves exercises that meet multiple goals at once.  Squat to leg lift is one of those exercises, working lower body strength, lateral movement, balance, and cardio.

 

She begins with her hands on her hips (or, if she is feeling extra strong, she can hold a dumbbell in front of her breastbone), feet about shoulder width apart.  She does a little squat and on the way up transfers her weight to her left leg, lifting the right leg straight out to the side.  When she lowers her right leg, she returns to a squat position.  Then she rises up, transferring the weight to her right leg and lifting the left leg straight out to the side.

 

Sets of 30 will get Stickie and everyone else warmed up!

Plan A May Need Some Friends

I plan my workouts every week, just like I plan workouts for my clients.  But sometimes things change.

 

I may have a plan to play pickleball for cardio and wake up to pouring rain.  At that point, I have choices:  I can pout and pull the covers over my head, or I can choose another workout that doesn’t involve going outside.  Guess which one is the better choice.

 

Even if everything goes according to plan, and I turn up in the studio ready to lift weights the way I scheduled it, I still have to be flexible about how things go.  Some days I’m just stronger than others.  Sometimes I have had a terrific night of sleep and I can lift like crazy and other times I have to choose lighter weights and a shorter workout.

 

It's great to have a plan.  It’s even better to have a plan and a backup plan and a willingness to adapt in the moment.

 

We can do this.

This fish is feeling judgy, but I understand

Like everyone else, I have times when I’m working out more and times when I am working out less.  I get enthusiastic about a particular kind of workout and I ignore some other kind.  That said, my recent experience has reinforced the idea that consistency is really a virtue.

 

Now when I say that we need to be consistent, I definitely do not mean that we pick a workout and we do it every day for the rest of our lives.  Among other problems, it would bore us to death.  What I do mean is that we need to make sure that we get in all our different kinds of work.

 

Lately, I’ve been super excited about playing pickleball.  It’s fun, it’s social, and it gets my heart rate up.  I may have let my enthusiasm distract me from the fact that I need to do my strength training and my core/balance/flexibility work.  I got back to doing Pilates last week and oh dear do I have some ground to regain.  I returned to my weight lifting earlier, but again, I noticed the difference.

 

Of course, everyone else is probably way more organized and conscientious than I am, so this might not be a relatable problem.  Worst case, y’all get a good laugh at my expense and I’m cool with that.  However, if you, too, have slipped a little, let my example gently encourage you to get back to balancing out the workouts you’re enthusiastic about with the other ones you need to be doing, too.

 

Go play.