totally random workouts

so, I like to exercise. like, a lot. unfortunately, it’s not always easy or affordable to do what I really want to do. I have a long list of all of the different activities I really want to do, but it’s not really feasible for me to do all, or even most of them at this point in my life.

• yoga
• ballet
• figure skating
• crossfit
• barre 3
• hiking
• swimming
• cycling
• weight training
• pilates
• gymnastics
• soccer
• long walks
• etc, etc, etc… I’m sure I could add to it.

but, even the most active person, with unlimited funds, no children, job, or other responsibilities could not make all of that happen. boo hiss, that’s life.

my main restrictions are money and kid-free time.

as much as I’d love to return to skating, money is going to be the biggest factor there. just for starters, I don’t really have 500 spare benjamins to drop on a new pair of boots that I can actually get my feet into without wincing, squishing, or swearing… that’s assuming I can remount my old blades. and then there’s awesome stuff like ice time and coaching, and I’m just not really seeing that happen. skating is not a cheap sport.

so, I do what I can do.

there’s a church close by to me that has a great workout program going on called ‘revive and thrive’. I started going in the fall because 1) it was close, 2) it was free, and 3) they offered childcare. awesome. it’s basically a jazzercize kind of class. I go now because of all of the above 3 reasons, but also because I have several friends who go as well now, and it’s fun. I enjoy the dance element of it. even though it’s one of those relaxed, as long as you’re moving, it’s good kind of situations, I like the challenge of getting all the steps right. it’s a workout for the brain as well. plus there’s some weight training and straight muscle work as well as stretching after all the dance/cardio. probably not my first choice, but super convenient, and also fun.

I also like to find different workouts on the ‘on demand’ feature on my cable. lots of times they have different barre 3 (or the like) type workouts that I can do in my living room. I had to find one today because my class was cancelled due to the snow. after I finished that, I decided to go through a series of other random body weight-resistance type exercises. planks, sit-ups, and jumping squats. threw in a few burpees as well, but one set of those wore me out quick.

but I do this all the time. I’ll just get a totally random bee in my bonnet to work a certain area, or do a certain kind of exercise. and why not? is there any law that says you have to do the same thing at the same time every day? actually, there is a lot of evidence to show that giving your muscles a little bit of a surprise every now and then is actually more effective than the same old routine. mixing it up is good!

so anyway, over the weekend, I got one of those totally random bees buzzing around in my bonnet to see if I could do handstand pushups. well, I tried it, and I guess I sort of can. I’m going to practice and see if I can get stronger to do more reps and deeper dips. it was fun though.

I’ve also been challenged to do the splits. it’s been awhile, and I’m nowhere even close right now, but I’ll work on it. flexibility is big on my list of fitness goals right now, so that works in perfectly.