DIY Workouts on a Budget

Savvy — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:06:44 +0000

One of my New Year’s Resolutions (like half the country) is to shed a few pounds. But another New Year’s Resolution is to stick to a budget! A third New Year’s resolution is to keep things simple. That’s means I’m not going to pay for a gym membership that I will barely use, I will take exercise seriously, but I’m not spending half the day doing it. What I have been doing lately is a combo of cardio on my elliptical machine at home, along with a series of DIY workouts I’ve cobbled together from my new favorite hangout Pinterest. I’ve actually been doing twice-daily workouts of at minimum, 25 minutes, and usually max 40 mins.

I really don’t have a lot of time (or money) I can spare right now, so this works for me.

So far, this method, along with eating healthier, keeping a food diary and counting calories I’ve been able to drop about 5 pounds since the beginning of the year. Yaaay!!

So here’s what I do:

In the morning I do ONE of the following workouts:

Level 2 or 3 of Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred – It’s like 22 minutes of P90X or Insanity but it’s less reps, without all the screaming…and like $200 cheaper.

OR I do a combo of one of the following workouts for 25 minutes:

Then in the evening, when I get back from work, I “wind down” by watching one of my favorite shows for 30 mins straight on the elliptical machine going at a moderate pace, or, if I have the energy, rolling hills or intervals.

That’s it! I’ve been doing this method at least 5 times a week since December and right now it’s working for me, because I totally have exercise ADD. I get bored easily, and I really need to mix things up in order to stay motivated. Also, even when the workout gets hard, I keep going, cuz I’m like “It’s only 20 minutes, come on!” I happen to already have free weights and an elliptical machine), but if you’re really on a tight budget, just start by doing one of the calisthenic workouts above.

But GET MOVING!

My goal is to lose 20 pounds by July. Wanna see my before pictures?

Nope. Not gonna happen. Nice try though.

For more workout ideas, check out my Workout Page on Pinterest. (Check back often, I find new stuff all the time!)

My gear:

Eco Workout Mat

Free Weights

Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred
Elliptical Machine

What’s your budget DIY workout?

(Oh, and if you want to join Pinterest, just leave me a comment below with your email address, and I’ll send you an invite!)

12 Ways to Fight the Holiday Crazies Don’t let the holidays make you crazy, broke or gain...
Simple Vegetarian Stuffed Pepper Recipe This is a great weeknight dish to make and is...
Sweet Vegan Cornbread I’m always looking for recipes that can make enough to...

10 Things You Can Do to Help Your Heart By the End of This Week

Savvy — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:34:52 +0000

As we get to the end of “Heart Healthy Month” I want to hit you with some sobering statistics.

Men have the highest rates of heart-related illness in this country.
8 million women in the US are currently living with heart disease; 35,000 are under age of 65.
435,000 American women have heart attacks annually; 35,000 are under 55.
42% of women who have heart attacks die within 1 year, compared to 24% of men.
Under age 50, women’s heart attacks are twice as likely as men’s to be fatal.
Of all the nationalities of women who suffer from heart disease, women of African descent have the highest rates of coronary related deaths.

So here’s a list of 10 Things You Can Do to Help Your Heart By the End of This Week

1. Exercise 15-30mins a day- How many times have you skipped a workout because you “just don’t have an hour”. I bet you have 15 mins though. Try doing one exercise at a time. Like sit-ups when you get out of bed in the morning, squats in the shower, or push ups and lunges while you’re watching TV. If you get a longer workout in then great, but if not at least you’ve done something.
2. Eat more fiber, but less bread – Try eating more dark green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale. Eat one less slice of bread and 3 more vegetables today.
3. Avoid high-fructose corn syrup -Consumption of fructose causes a significant increase in the concentration of uric acid. An increase in uric acid can be an indicator of heart disease. It also increases lactic acid in the blood, especially in patients with diabetes. Avoid soda, and juices that don’t say “100% fruit juice on them”
4. Avoid Hydrogenated oils period- It doesn’t matter if it says soybean oil, vegetable oil, coconut oil, or palm kernel oil. If the word “Hydrogenated” is attached to it, don’t eat it. Hydrogenation changes the very molecular structure of oil into a form that the human body cannot properly digest. It raises bad cholesterol.When cholesterol is too high, the insides of large blood vessels become narrowed or clogged. Stop eating microwave popcorn, cook more, eat more fresh foods vs. fast foods. Don’t eat Cool Whip.
5. Watch your sugar – It doesn’t matter if it’s brown or white, “raw” or refined, honey or agave. Although some of these forms of sugar are more easily digested than others, they are still sugar. And too much sugar causes problems like hypoglycemia and diabetes. Having diabetes can make your blood cholesterol level too high. And just like hydrogenated oils, your arteries can become clogged. Especially if you have a history of diabetes in your family. Try drinking your tea with sugar, don’t add more sugar to your cereal, eat fruit instead of drinking fruit juice.
6. Take a break and get some rest – Take a few minutes in your day to just sit. No TV, no computer, no twitter , no Facebook no phone and just breathe. Set a timer for 5 minutes and just breathe. Take a nap if you can! Also getting more sleep really does help with achieving your weight loss goals. For more information on how sleep affects weight loss, check out Dr. Daemon Jones’ article “Not Getting Enough Sleep Can Make You Fat”.
7. Reduce Salt and Sodium in Your Diet- Did you know that the current dietary recommendation is to consume about 1 teaspoon of table salt a day? High-sodium diets are linked to an increase in blood pressure and a higher risk for heart disease and stroke. Eat more fresh fruits and beans and less canned ones. cut back on eating anything that comes out of a package.
8. Limit Alcohol Intake – Doctors say a little red wine every now and then at dinner is fine, but drinking too much alcohol can raise blood pressure and can harm the heart. Alcoholic drinks also contain calories, which matter if you are trying to lose weight. If you drink alcoholic beverages, have only a moderate amount — one drink a day for women; two drinks a day for men.
9. Quit Smoking – Smoking injures blood vessel walls and speeds up the process of hardening of the arteries. This applies even to filtered cigarettes. If you smoke, quit. (I know this is much harder than it sounds) If you don’t smoke, don’t start. Once you quit, your risk of having a heart attack is reduced after the first year. So you have a lot to gain by quitting. Look into alternative ways to quit smoking like acupuncture. Take some time this week to do some research.
10. Know your blood pressure – Don’t wait for that annual visit to the doctor to find out your “pressure’s up”. A lot can happen in a year! Your systolic pressure is the top number and your diastolic pressure is the bottom number. The American Heart Association definition of normal blood pressure is less than 120 / Less than 80. In other words 118/78 is excellent. I bought a blood pressure monitor for my mom and dad and they now check their blood pressure regularly. When it starts risig above those numbers, they know they have to make changes in their diet, exercise more, or stop getting on each other’s nerves in order to lower it. This one’s really cool, because it just wraps around your wrist!

Sources:

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4708

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4786

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=2222

My favorite high-protein, high-fiber low-cal snack I’ve fallen in love with greek yogurt. There’s a few...
“Cool Whip can Kill You…” I heard someone say that on the subway one day....
What’s the Deal with High Fructose Corn Syrup? Part 1 There’s a lot of debate going on in the media...

Savvy Brown » Health Tips

DIY Workouts on a Budget

10 Things You Can Do to Help Your Heart By the End of This Week