There is nothing easy about finding a balance for working out while healing if you’ve gone your whole life loving intense workouts.
Tabata Workouts
These days I train with Tabata workouts because they are much less than I have ever done before.
They are hybrid because the way in which I create them is sort of CrossFit meets Tabata. According to my severe adrenal fatigue I should probably not be working out at all, but given that I have been learning how to re-live my life in so many ways these past couple of years, I simply am not willing to give it up for good. In fact, I’d argue that by giving up these minimal things which make me happy, thereby reducing stress, I might suffer even more.
I’m not here to justify my Tabata workouts. Today I’m here to share the new ones I created for January.
In December, I shared with you three x 29-minute workouts. I like to change up my workouts every 4-6’ish weeks, so it was time for a new set to begin.
The workouts I’m currently doing (as opposed to these awful workouts of the past) leave me feeling empowered, strong and simply healthy all around (even though the adrenal test didn’t show it). Furthermore, I have gone from this:
To this….
(Funny thing is that in the first picture I think I was technically 5 pounds lighter than I am now.)
I have no idea, though, because I have completely given up the scale.
What I know for sure is that these workouts make me feel alive, and I am (literally) moving only 28 minutes, 3 days a week (except for the daily activity mentioned HERE plus maybe, maybe, maybe one extra day of 12-16 minutes).
Exhaustion is not a badge of honor.
Healing is.
And with that, grab my workouts if you’d like to join along.
Tabata Workouts
Click HERE to save this post for later.
Tabata Workout 1
Note: For the cardio sprints, we have usually been running.
Tabata Workout 2
Tabata Workout 3
Like these workouts? Click HERE to pin this post to your Pinterest to have on-the-go for your next workout.
Xox,
SKH
29-Minute Workouts
My current philosophy with working out is the shorter the better. Today I have three 29-minute workouts to share with you.
Day 95: Make Time
The hour you give yourself for self-care pays you back three. Think you’re too busy? The busier you are, the more effective and energetic you need to be, and the less time you have to get sick. Revolutionary Act #95, powered by Experience Life
{This post builds off of “Because We Can’t Do It All,” so if haven’t read that one yet, go check it out.}
I am in the season of life when working out is, once again, super fun for me, but I no longer have 1-2 hours to spend in the gym (plus, working out a lot is not good for healing severe adrenal fatigue). Now that I am at home with Samarah full-time, it’s just not possible, and the gym I train at (currently) does not have daycare.
I figured it out this past week how to make time (per the above) for myself to be in the gym, but also how to do it effectively and minimally.
As I am just coming off of Spartan Race training, that style, I have learned, suits me best. The gym I train at is not a CrossFit gym, but instead an athletic performance one in which many people train CrossFit-style.
A week ago from today, I was telling my friend Bethany how I tend to do the gym early in the morning or I can’t do it all. She said, “I’m in. Let’s do it together.” I am typically not the person to train with anyone else, but she and I started together this past week and it ROCKED! As I mentioned in my last “What We Did Wednesday” post, she also has small children, so we like to get it done and be home by (or around) 7 am.
We have a plan to go Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. We leave our house (she lives next door to me = bonus) around 5:55 am (gym opens at 6 am) and leave the gym to return home around 6:45 am. Our workouts are no more than 29- minutes long, and we do 6 rounds of Tabata followed by a final 5 minutes of either stretching and/or “cardio.”
What I learned from last week? Whoever said a killer workout cannot be achieved in less than 30-minutes, 3 days a week has never worked out like this. And for the record, that used to be me!
Here were the three 29-minute workouts we did last week.
29-Minute Workouts, Tabata Style
Tabata Circuit 1
I did 5-minutes on the stair master at the end of this workout for a total of 29-minutes.
Tabata Circuit 2
Again, did 5-minutes on the stair master at the end of this workout for a total of 29-minutes.
Tabata Circuit 3
We stretched at the end of this workout.
Each time I do the exercise again, I try to “beat” my last numbers. I bring a simple pen and paper to record numbers each time. I love the challenge of competing against myself!
I was sore all week long + I have been sore all weekend long. Just as I felt after I completed my first Spartan Race, there are muscles in my body I never even really knew existed.
You really, truly do not need to spend hours in the gym. In fact, all of the above workouts could be tailored to do in your home, at your convenience.
We cannot do it all. And while working out just isn’t a top priority these days, it is something I truly enjoy and I know that when I make time for it and for myself, my family benefits because I’m healthier and happier.
{If you enjoy my posts, recipes, our adoption story + the blog in general, be sure to place it in your feed or subscribe to my email list.}
Xox,
SKH
To get involved in the #MyRevAct campaign, follow @ExperienceLifeMag on Instagram and post your own revolutionary ways to be healthy using #myrevact. In the meantime, read the best in healthy living at ExperienceLife.com.
Spartan Training Week 8
Spartan Training week 8 is in the books, which means that this is the final week before the race on Saturday.
Day 54: Reframe Exercise as a Privilege
You don’t have to exercise. You get to exercise. Visit a person whose mobility is severely limited, and you’ll appreciate the distinction. Do what you can, and count yourself lucky. Revolutionary Act #54, powered by Experience Life
I learned 2 things during this past week of training:
- I enjoy short, intense workouts, as long as they are never really the same.
- I enjoy running. (I am still not convinced I’d love it if I had to it 5 days a week to train for a half-marathon again, though.)
These 2 ideas are so conflicting on many levels, but I was reminded today to “reframe exercise as a privilege.” The only rules I have around my workouts these days are the ones made to help my body continue to heal. Too many people get caught up in the idea that, like diet, if you don’t follow a specific way to a “T,” you don’t really fall in that category workout line.
The only way workouts work in the long run, though, is when we do them based on the idea that we get to vs. have to.
I know with certainty that even after the race on Saturday, I will continue working out like this – without rules.
Spartan Training Week 8
Monday: Spartan 300 + general upper body + abs circuit
Tuesday: Legs + abs circuit
Wednesday: OFF
Thursday: OFF
Friday: 6-mile run
Saturday: 6.5-mile run
Sunday: OFF (It was our 7-year wedding anniversary, so we went to the city for dinner and had the most amazing gluten-free, seeded bread, appetizer, entree and desserts HERE.)
I did a leg circuit on Tuesday that left me sore until Thursday. I am doing again today because it was incredible. Here is what I did:
- BB Squat x 20
- High Box Step-Ups x 20 (10/leg)
- Deep Walking Lunges x 20 (10/leg)
- Uphill Sprints x 2 the first set, then 3, then 4, then 5, then 6 (total 20)
I repeated that circuit 5 times. I really loved it!
Saturday is the day, and I am getting super nervous, mostly because I feel like I have no idea what to expect. We found out our start time, which is 8:30am, which means we will have to be on the road likely by 5am-ish. I will really owe Ryan and Samarah for coming to support me! Wish me luck….I can’t wait to tell you all about it.
Are you ready to race, too? Click HERE to learn more about becoming a Spartan.
{If you enjoy my posts on the gut and/or healing + true wellness with food and lifestyle click HERE to subscribe to my e-newsletter.If you enjoy my posts on life, inspiration, passion, entrepreneurship, adoption, love, thoughts, faith and living in a way that gives us purpose, daily click HERE to subscribe to my e-newsletter (a different one). To follow the blog in general, be sure to place it in your feed.}
Xox,
SKH
Spartan Training, Week 7
Spartan Training, Week 7 felt much better than week 6.
{This post is part of my 101 Days of Blogging series, inspired by Experience Life magazine’s 101 Revolutionary Ways to Be Healthy, authored by Pilar Gerasimo.}
Day 46: Be Human
Cut yourself a little slack now and then, and forgive yourself your unhealthy trespasses. Learn what you can from them, and then move on. Revolutionary Act #46, powered by Experience Life
I mentioned last week that 4 vs. 5 days is more optimal for my body (an average of 3-4 days per week is the most optimal, so I’ll be scaling back to that for awhile after the Spartan Super).
I proved that this week, as I felt much stronger and better overall.
I am still doing one workout per week with the uphill sprints toggling between bodyweight and a 35-pound plate, and they are still super hard (but I’m feeling much better about them). This is my place of uphill destruction.
I can’t believe that the race is less than 2 weeks away!
I still don’t have my outfit for the day, so if you’ve run the race, can you tell me what is best to wear?
My weekly workouts:
Monday: OFF
Tuesday: Spartan 300 + general upper body + abs circuit
Wednesday: Legs + 20 uphill bodyweight sprints (10 with 35lb plates + 10 without) + 1/2 round Spartan 300 “Cardio” Circuit
Thursday: OFF
Friday: 4-mile run (8:11/mile pace)
Saturday: 6.5-mile run
Sunday: OFF
Xox,
SKH
To get involved in the #MyRevAct campaign, follow @ExperienceLifeMag on Instagram and post your own revolutionary ways to be healthy using #myrevact. In the meantime, read the best in healthy living at ExperienceLife.com.
Spartan Training, Week 4
I learned something pretty awesome during Spartan Training, Week 4.
{This post is part of my 101 Days of Blogging series, inspired by Experience Life magazine’s 101 Revolutionary Ways to Be Healthy, authored by Pilar Gerasimo.}
Day 27: Have Breakfast
Let there be protein, produce, healthy fats and fiber in it. A good breakfast wards off energy dips, brain fog and afternoon cravings.. Revolutionary Act #27, powered by Experience Life
For many years, I trained for my workouts and half-marathons with very little fuel. Several weeks ago I told you that training for a Spartan seems like the right and perfect fit for me because of four reasons. Reason number three was my rockstar this week!
With my newly-formed relationship of embracing food; high-quality food, food as fuel, no restrictions, I am strong enough to do this.
In the past, hard workouts (heck, even fairly simple workouts) left me drained and physically exhausted for a day or two (or sometimes even longer).
I will never forget the time when I was training hardest for a half marathon, and I’d run 6-12 miles, then come home and “recover” with the following breakfast:
- 2 blocks of tofu
- 1/2 c. Greek yogurt
- 1/2 c. blueberries
- coffee, coffee, coffee
- a small apple (but only sometimes)
Despite the fact that those foods were doing my Colitis, Adrenal Fatigue and Thyroid no favors, they also kept me feeling drained and miserable.
Instead of feeling empowered, strong and confident, I was left feeling weak, tired and hungry.
My workouts this past week were hard, and Saturday I resumed my weekly long run (since the ankle sprain). And on Sunday? I rested, but that was the day when my ah-ha moment arrived. Resting was the only option, but my body was fully capable to workout. No longer do I allow too much work without enough rest or fuel. The payoff is incredible!
My weekly workouts:
Monday: Spartan 300 + 10 uphill bodyweight sprints + 10 minutes spin
Tuesday: Upper body + a new Spartan 300 “Cardio” Circuit
Wednesday: 20-minute run
Thursday: Lower body + Spartan 300 “Cardio” Circuit
Friday: OFF
Saturday: 6.5-mile run
Sunday: OFF
I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m getting nervous for the race. I think it’s mostly because I don’t know what to expect, and I don’t exactly know if I’m training right (running always seemed so intuitive for me).
But I can be certain that during this time of training I’m finally feeling strong enough to do anything.
Xox,
SKH
To get involved in the #MyRevAct campaign, follow @ExperienceLifeMag on Instagram and post your own revolutionary ways to be healthy using #myrevact. In the meantime, read the best in healthy living at ExperienceLife.com.