{"id":1025,"date":"2011-01-25T04:01:50","date_gmt":"2011-01-25T04:01:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookiescupcakesandcardio.com\/?p=1025"},"modified":"2011-01-25T04:01:50","modified_gmt":"2011-01-25T04:01:50","slug":"week-4-endorphins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookiescupcakesandcardio.co\/?p=1025","title":{"rendered":"Week 4? Endorphins!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is this week 4? \u00a0Aren’t I supposed to be keeping track of these things?<\/p>\n

I honestly hit a bump<\/strong> in the workout schedule last week . . . I was overly tired. \u00a0Like so tired, that one day at school, I had to go to the staff lounge and lay down on the *clean couch. \u00a0* I’ve been at this school for 4 years now, and I’ve never seen anyone clean it.<\/em> I still taught spinning for my 6:00am Wednesday class, but I just wasn’t feeling IT <\/strong>last week.<\/p>\n

Paul and I went out for a couple of hikes on the weekend and after he had dragged me kicking and screaming out the door (all I felt like doing was sleeping) I felt so much better. \u00a0Fresh air, sunshine, Paul time, Ruby time.<\/p>\n

I had a terrible day today.<\/p>\n

I’m not trying to be a Debbie Downer<\/strong>, I am getting to a point here. \u00a0Stick with it if you can!<\/p>\n

All day at school it seemed my kids had forgotten everything<\/strong>, and I was starting over at square one. \u00a0When I got home from school, I tried to hurry and bake Angel Food Cookies<\/strong> for a party that I am hosting tomorrow night, ended up under <\/strong>baking all of them . . . except seven. \u00a0I sure hope only seven people show up tomorrow!<\/p>\n

I have time and time again learned DO NOT BAKE IN A RUSH!<\/strong> Why did I not listen to my own advice today?<\/p>\n

THEN (because I’m not done yet), I went down to the gym to teach a class that I was subbing for, and the regular instructor was there. \u00a0So basically we had to play rock, paper, scissors<\/strong> to see who would get the class. \u00a0It obviously isn’t a big deal, but you know when you’re just having one of THOSE<\/strong> days that it seems like such a bigger deal. \u00a0Anyway, my coworker let me teach the class, since my name was on the schedule, even though it was his regular timeslot. \u00a0Thanks \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Here is where the day got GREAT<\/strong>. \u00a0I taught a fabulous class, worked myself and everybody hard. \u00a0The class was full, 14 bikes were taken and as an instructor it is so much fun to teach to a big group. \u00a0I got to feed off of their energy . . . and as they peddled along, cranking their tensions, changing their speeds, I felt the stressors of the day fade away.<\/p>\n

That is the best ENDORPHIN<\/strong> there is. \u00a0A fresh, clean start. \u00a0Feels. \u00a0Oh. So. Good.<\/p>\n

So that was the spin class, I’ll post the play list later in the week.<\/p>\n

Week Four (weight increase)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I took the Reverse Drop Sets out this week, and I traded them in for 3 sets of 12 reps <\/strong>for all moves.<\/p>\n

Lower Body <\/strong><\/p>\n

Quadriceps \u2013 Squats with stability ball again the wall<\/span> <\/em><\/p>\n

This week I am using 3 different squat positions<\/p>\n

Regular <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

(feet shoulder width apart)<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Pil\u00e9 <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

(feet shoulder width apart, toes pointed out at 90 degrees)<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Knees and Feet Together<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

(one tight line from your feet to your hips)<\/p>\n

<\/em><\/p>\n

Hamstrings- Leg Curls with the Stability Ball<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Lay on your back, place heels up on the ball, lift bum off the ground and pull heels and ball toward you bum.<\/p>\n

\n

Reverse Leg Curl<\/span><\/em> (works butt and back)<\/p>\n

Laying prone (on your stomach, arms crossed in front of you) with stability ball between your lower legs, squeeze the ball and curl up towards your butt. \u00a0Hold for 2 counts, and lower back to the floor. \u00a0For an extra challenge, lift hips off the ground during the 2 count hold. \u00a0Another extension of this activity is to hold the ball above your butt and squeeze the ball with your legs 4 times before lowering it back to the ground.<\/p>\n

Calves \u2013 Calf Raises on Step<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

This move, I did 3 sets of 25.<\/p>\n

So if you read my Debbie Downer note to start the post, I hope you were able to see what a difference a simple workout can do for your mental health. \u00a0Obviously working out provides you with a physical change, but what we sometimes forget is how great it can be for us mentally.<\/p>\n

Do you have days like these?<\/strong> What do you do about it? <\/strong>I’d love to hear from you.<\/p>\n

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