Fitness Fast- Bootcamp Intervals

I l o v e working out! Yes I'm being serious, not sarcastic, but before you stop reading and never come back to my blog again, please hear me out! I'm not one of those "holier than thou" fitness fiends- I also love chocolate, pizza, brie cheese and frozen Trader Joe's pie crust....wait, what?! So my fitness love may be due in part to the fact that it enables me to eat the things I crave, in moderation of course...(sometimes)....haha! But I also love working out for the way it makes me feel: refreshed and renewed, empowered, healthy, focused  and confident!

I vary my workouts a lot and I'll be posting my different adventures here- the first one being my recent encounter with "Barry's Bootcamp."

Barry's is THE hot workout to do here in La La Land. From Kim Kardashian, Jessica Alba and AnnaLynne McCord to Jake Gyllenhaal basically any celebrity who's body you have been impressed by is a fan of Barry's Bootcamp. So when my boyfriend's sister (who also has an incredible body) asked me to join her the other day I jumped at the opportunity!

Going into it I was honestly pretty intimidated, but going with a friend helped a lot! In addition to all of the modelesque and perfect people, there were also some not-so-perfect people who were working really hard! Yay! And the workout did not disappoint!

The key is INTERVALS. Interval training is the fastest way to burn fat and lose weight- and Barry's pairs it with strength exercises so you gain muscle. This equals slim, sculpted and sexy FAST. The workout consisted of 4 minute circuit training with alternating 30 second sprint/jog intervals on the treadmill and then alternating strength exercises like lunges, curls and planks. I LOVED it- having the group atmosphere and the trainer pushing you to sprint faster and sqaut lower gave me one of the best workouts of my life- but the best part is it is really easy to replicate on your own! (Thank goodness, because with my budget right now Barry's on a regular basis is not an option!) Here is a similar bootcamp interval workout you can do and all you need are some weights and a treadmill- you could even do it without the treadmill, but it helps to know your exact speed. This is easily adjustable to any level of fitness- so please adjust the speeds to your own needs- this is merely the pacing I did.


Minutes 1-4 Alternate jogging at 6.0mph with sprinting at 7.0 mph every 30 seconds
30 second break
Minutes 4:30-8:30 Holding 5lb weights: left leg lunges 30sec, right leg lunges 30sec, squats 60sec repeat once
30 second break
Minutes 9-13 Alternate jogging at 6.0mph with sprinting at 7.5mph every 30 seconds
30 second break
Minutes 13:30-17:30 Holding 5lb weights: Bicep curls 30sec, Bent arm lateral raise 30 sec, overhead press 30 sec, Tricep press 30 sec repeat once
30 second break
Minutes 18-22 Alternate jogging at 6.0mph with sprinting at 8.0mph every 30 seconds.
30 second break
Minutes 22:30-26:30 Plank hold 60sec, Side plank left 30 sec, Side plank right 30 sec repeat once
30 second break
Minutes 27-31 Alternate jogging at 6.0mph with sprinting at 8.5 mph every 30 seconds

Now- you can either be done here and have gotten a GREAT workout in after only 31 minutes OR you can repeat once and get an AMAZING workout. Trust me both will leave you satisfied! I chose to do it again, but slightly change up the exercises while keeping them in the same muscle group- like Donkey Kicks instead of lunges, pushups and different raises for arms, and crunches, bicycles and flutter kicks for abs. I kicked my sprints up to 9mph, but subsequently went back down because I wasn't comfortable any faster than that (I recently had a knee injury).

Whew! Long post sorry, but I'm just so excited! Try it and let me know what you think! Also, if you don't live near Barry's you can buy their Dvd's here

xoC

photo credit: weheartit

No Complaints Here :)

My local "Borders" bookstore is going out of business. Normally, I would be complaining about this. However, I am not complaining for two reasons:

1- Everything is at least 30% off- so I bought my very first cookbook and will now be attempting to explore cooking (posts on THAT to come later!)

2- I stumbled upon and thumbed through this incredibly inspiring book:

Buy the book here

 The premise behind this book is that we spend too much of our time and energy focusing on the negative: complaining, criticizing and gossiping. Mr. Bowen's big message is, "Our thoughts create our lives and our words dictate what we are thinking."
So by taking complaints, criticism and gossip out of the equation we talk more about things we do want in life instead of the things we don't want. It seems like a happier and more productive way to live!

Although it is a fabulously simple and inspiring idea, it wasn't actually something Mr. Bowen said that truly struck a chord with me, but rather a quote he included from philosopher Earl Nightingale:
  
"We are all self-made, but only the successful will admit it"

WOW! This really resonates with me, I love it! So, with that said...I have decided to take Mr. Bowen's challenge: 21 days without complaining, criticizing or gossiping.

Here's how it works:

• Take a bracelet, rubberband etc (Official bracelets are available for purchase here but you can easily use something you have already and save some $) and do your best not to complain, criticize or gossip.
• WHEN you c,c or g (because you will, he estimates 4-8 months on average before you can successfully go 21 days without it) move the bracelet to your other wrist and start over immediately on your 21 day journey.

That's it! Easy, right? Hahaha yeah right! We'll see :) I am taking this journey starting now! Let me know if you take it too and how it works out for you!

xo C

Palm Springs Chic with a Traditional Twist

Palm Springs Hotel Lobby

So I have been obsessing over what I call "Palm Springs Chic" for the past few months! I have this vision of an era of elegance- with the "Rat Pack" sitting at a *gold* dining set in sunny Palm Springs, sipping on martinis near the pool of their country club. They are surrounded by Palm trees, Hollywood elegance and "Mad Men" fashion.

Researching for a bit and it's official- what I adore is "Hollywood Regency!" I love the luxury and sophistication of that Dean Martin era. This is somewhat of what is going on in my head!

L O V E epitome of style

Beautiful Jayne Mansfield

The Beverly Hills Hotel OBSESSED

Perfect palate Italian glasses

via Jonathan Adler

Awesome Poster- can't find artist!

Luscious Green Pillow: Z Gallerie

Whimsical Birdcage: Z Gallerie

Classic White and Gold Trunks: Z Gallerie

via Supreme Design

I am convinced that I will somehow be able to transform my 1920's Spanish style apartment into this fantasy that is floating around my mind. Step one was re-doing my $25 garage sale coffee table from an elegant but boring *black and gold* to what I feel is a *pastel Palm Springs peachy coral* Since I'm new to the blogging game I failed at taking before and after pics- boo!- but I will be be posting the finished product in the next few days.

PS- since this is my first entry I'm learning and after I snagged these pics I lost the original sites they came from to link to or give credit. Oops! If I have omitted something you know the origin of please let me know! xo C