fitness – Page 45 – 2 Chicks and a blog

family, fitness and nutrition, friendship

Spiked

April 27, 2020April 27, 2020 2chicksandapen

I got spiked. I spiked others. Of course this was done playing the game of Spikeball and has absolutely nothing to do with spiking drinks. After playing this game I realized how much I missed sports, athletics, competition, people and so on. Thank you corona for this time to appreciate my surroundings and the valuable people in my life.

What is Spikeball? Four players (2 per team) strategically or frantically bouncing a ball off a springy circular net about 2 inches off the ground. If you haven’t played this game it’s a fun activity for a small group to play in the yard, at a picnic or even at a work outting.

You can get a little workout if you move around as a bonus. My Apple Watch indicated I had a brief workout. You can work as a team with your partner or you can play solo within a partnership and see how you fare. That’s part of what you have to figure out as a duo.

I played this game in the past with friends and it was a ton of fun. I had said I was going to buy the game but never did. Life keeps me on the go go go so I just never got it. Then guess what? Corona hit.

When in corona time it seemed I had almost too much time. What did I do to escape the boredom? One of the first things I did while on lockdown was hit up amazon. What do I need? What do I want? What have I had on a pending list to snag? I ordered Spikeball of course. It took a while to arrive since it wasn’t essential but I got it and wasted no time putting it into action.

Not hard to set up and boom just needed to find me some family members to get to four players. It was a lot of fun.

Just hearing the giggles was good. Then the competition came and I was thrilled because I had been missing that in so many areas of life. Then the crazy came out. It was either the awkward faces or body movements or even the oops I completely missed the ball!

Spikeball will be my game of choice for a while and I hope to get many different players to try with me. I guess I will have to wait a little longer to get with my friends for a game but I can be patient.

If you are looking for a fun game that includes fresh air, give Spikeball a try. I rate it a 9 out of 10. I’m not hard to please and they don’t pay me to rate their product. I just thought it was a good filler to break up the crazy of the day. My counterparts had fun too.

What’s something new you picked up during corona isolation?

dare to be different

Life is Tricky

April 23, 2020April 25, 2020 2chicksandapen

What does one do when they have extra time? For me I have cleaned a ton. I shopped more than I should online. I made headway on many house projects. I did many arts and crafts projects. I worked on my budget planning and even took a financial survey (results below). Kept up with workouts including group challenges virtually and so much more. The point is I’m still planning ahead with the actions I’m taking! I’m not living in the past or in the darkness. I’m looking at what’s ahead on the horizon.

One area that has caught my eye a bit is slowing the life pace down. Smelling the fresh cut grass. Listening to the birds chirp. Playing games and adjusting to a much slower work pace. By no means am I not working but everything seems in slow motion of sorts. It won’t last forever but it’s given me time to pause and appreciate surroundings. Microsoft even told me my email chirps have been slowed the last 14 days so I have confirmation from big brother!

My pause could be a walk outside during a work day. It could be doing 30 sit-ups an hour in between phone calls because working at home nobody cares if you do a workout at your desk, right? It could be hand written note from a friend I get in the mail or writing one to a person in need.

As I’ve adjusted to a new normal, a new routine has set in. I stay up later. I sleep in later and everything in between is arranged in alternate ways. There are many things that I do differently or less of, etc. in lockdown. There are things I thought I would miss that I don’t. There are people I miss greatly and some I don’t. How will I re-enter society when bans are lifted? That’s the big question and why I think life is tricky.

45 days ago I was on a fast-paced rigid path. Now I’m on more of a yellow brick road skipping down the path in a more carefree manner. Where will I go tomorrow? I’m leaning toward climbing a hill or mountain of sorts.

Time to change it up and see what sticks and what doesn’t. Time to broaden the horizon and be thankful for the new or refreshed look on life. Post-corona will look different for many. I plan to adjust to my surroundings, truly live more in the moment and focus on what’s in front of me while keeping an eye on the big picture.

I plan on helping those around me weather the storm. There are many young people coping with real struggles now. There are many elderly with different struggles and everything in between. Just like my days look different so do others. What was normal before corona will not be the same. In time life will adjust but in the interim I plan to adapt and help many in my own way.

I’m getting excited to see how high the mountain is along with the terrain. I never choose the easy route. I always look for the bumpy road with twists and turns. The terrain will make me stronger in my mind and hopefully in body and spirit. What tools will I need or have for my journey?

Hang tight! The all clear will come soon for many in stages. We just need to continue to exercise our patience muscles.

What will you do different post-corona? Life can be tricky. How will you adapt to life’s curveballs? I can’t wait for the fresh start. Maybe I will see more of you on the other side of corona or maybe not.

adventure, balance, inspire

Nature Therapy

April 20, 2020 2chicksandapen

If you recall we posted a digital doomsday blog and noted all the negative vibes around what’s missing these days from the school experience from a teen daughter’s perspective. All the time stuck with eyes glued to a laptop. No time to move between classes. No friends to laugh with.

However, after reflecting on the extra time available to take a walk with my daughter outside because of the “downtime” in our schedule and her lack of spending time with friends or at sports activities, a different vantage point appeared. Again a negative turned positive. Below is a great pic we snagged on a late night stroll together. We are embracing nature in a way we never have before. Just listening to birds chirp in the morning is a new kind of peaceful way to start the day. Very different than how life started a month ago and hopefully different than next month but for today we are embracing what options one can celebrate.

One wish for us is that the vast majority of people would or could look past themselves and their immediate discomforts during this pandemic and see the sunshine that is around the corner. It may not be the brightest sunshine but even every sliver of light can be embraced in the darkest hour.

If even just a few people out out there choose nature as a stress relief today it can spread. Think about others as well. Your aura reflects on others. A joyous smile is infectious when you pass somebody at the park from 6 feet way. It’s free and simple and may be the one interaction that person has that day. It could be mind altering that day. There is always somebody in a worse situation than you despite what you see right in front of you. Pass on the positives during this dark time.

As we write this, Spring is springing forth in the USA. Color is starting to dapple the landscape. Flowers are beginning their parade of blooms. Here’s a tip: find some local flower growers and follow them on social media. If your feeds are full of gloom and doom, trim those folks back (mute them or unfollow) and add some beauty to your screen.

Even better, reach out to flower farmers near you and see if you can connect that way. Farmers near us, used to relying on farmer’s markets or florists, are now offering porch deliveries or pre-orders to open air markets. These small local farmers are suffering from the breakdown of routines and supply chains just as many other businesses are. They are forced to innovate on nature’s timeline. Many can offer you bunches of exquisite little treasures that you can enjoy and share with others. Here’s a recent pickup we enjoyed, and supported a couple of small businesses in the process.

As we have said in many ways at many times, you become who and what you surround yourself with. Get out and surround yourself with fresh air. Bright, warm sunshine. Sweet breezes. Walk your feet on fresh grass. If you’re having trouble getting out of your head or you’re feeling anxious, do a 5 senses countdown exercise out in the world. Clear your mind and notice what is happening in nature. Surround yourself with reminders that time continues on.

New life is coming. Even though part of nature is going haywire at the moment, much of it is marching in its usual rhythm. Bees are buzzing. Baby ducks and bunnies will soon appear at local parks. The earth is waking up from its yearly nap. Let this reassure you that this dark season will also pass. In the mean time, don’t miss the things we are often too busy to notice.

This post is dedicated tho those full of raw emotions relating to Coronavirus. We all have them. We opt to share ours with the world via a blog. Our posts are edited multiple times and viewed by others subjectively before going live. Although only one vantage point, it may help somebody reading along.

Nature therapy has worked for us during this crazy time. Walks in our community. Short jogs. Bike riding. Gardening. Swimming. Kayaking. Hiking. All activities that allow physical distancing while embracing nature. Chick 1 even climbed a few trees.

We don’t need to be confined to our four walls to be safe. We can be distant and enjoy nature. Opt outside when you can.

awareness, fitness and nutrition

Chad

April 15, 2020November 13, 2021 2chicksandapen

We’ve written about CrossFit Hero WODs here on the blog before.

The subject of today’s blog is one of the more recent ones, known as “Chad.”

Read the story. It’s a worthy one.

The workout seems seems simple enough. 1,000 box step-ups with a weighted vest. Not much movement. Same thing over and over again. Just counting and moving, moving and counting.

1,000 of anything, though….I’m not sure CrossFit has any other workouts that reach into 4 digits.

My mindset: It would take a while. I knew that. It would be grueling. I would keep going until it was time to stop.

So, before sunrise in the middle of the quarantine, I started counting and moving, moving and counting.

As with many hero WODs, there are lessons to reflect on. The story of Chad made me think about mental health throughout most of the reps.

Here are the lessons I learned, 50 reps at a time. As many face mental health challenges in our current coronavirus situation, some of the lessons seem more important than ever.

-It is ok to set your weight down sometimes. You have to pick it up again eventually but it is ok to take a break sometimes. This was easy for me to say with my dumbbell in a backpack, but what about those who can’t put their weight down?

-I had choices. I brought out dumbbells, plates, and more. But in the end, it seemed like too much trouble to switch even though it might have brought relief to do things a little differently. Lesson: Sometimes even our best advice or tools aren’t useful to people who are consumed with just getting through whatever it is. People will often default to what is familiar because it is familiar. When you are enduring hardship, change can be too much of a challenge even if it might help.

-Good music helps. Drowning out the discomfort and having a little to sing along with makes a big difference.

-After a while I lost my form and was just flailing. I also took extra steadying or stutter steps on the ground between each step up after about 500. I thought to myself I should be more efficient and tried to skip the extra steps and keep my form together but my body just wasn’t doing that. It needed the extra break or correction in between. Sometimes we can see a problem and think our way into fixing things, other times not.

-I would have sudden bursts of energy, seemingly out of the blue. I’d just push right through 6 or 7. Then, it would go back to the same slow rhythm. Unpredictable energy levels happen. I may seem ok, but then slow down again.

-Coming down was just as hard as going up. You’d think the up would be the challenge, but I noticed myself coming down harder and harder as the reps went on. I knew my knees were under pressure. Even the easier things require effort and concentration.

-Sometimes, the only way out is through.

Surprises:

-My heart rate was SO high and I burned so many calories. To a passer by, it would probably not look that complicated or taxing. Just up, down, up, down. What’s the big deal? I couldn’t believe how out consistently high my heart rate was. Sometimes we can’t tell the effort others are putting in to things that may look simple.

-Sometimes my body just refused to step up even though my mind told it to. A few times I barely missed the top of the box. Other times my body just stopped like a stubborn horse refusing to jump. Just no. Sometimes our bodies and minds don’t work together.

-I ran the full gamut of emotions. Bored, Anxious, Determined, Giddy, Frustrated, Relieved. All over the map.

I thought to myself:

-I wish I was not by myself. I wished it was a partner WOD at one point, then I thought I would have settled for a buddy or even a FaceTime friend. CrossFit is built on community and shared suffering. It was REALLY hard to do it alone. It just lifts you up when you see others engaged in the same task. But, sometimes in life going it alone is the choice you have. I had many partners in my thoughts cheering me on.

-I need a coach. When I felt my form and motivation slipping, a coach watching me, helping me, encouraging me, barking at me would have meant a lot. Someone who knows what they’re doing, knows me, and knows what to do is a good companion.

-I had a huge case of the “I don’t wannas” between 300-600. Not at the beginning, not at the end, just the long, wide middle. Monotonous. Boring. Is it over yet? I just kept pushing but it was mentally and physically taxing when I wasn’t in the excitement of the beginning but couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. The middle is hard. What about situations where we don’t know where the end point is?

-I was hard on myself. I “no repped” myself many times when I didn’t stand up completely on the box. But really, does it matter that much? How many people do we know who are just really hard on themselves when it’s not entirely necessary?

-At times I lost count or had repetitive thoughts. I got so tired things didn’t even make sense anymore. I was taking a break every 50 reps to have water and write. But, sometimes I would go to write things and I had already written them, or I couldn’t remember what I was thinking about when I got to the paper.

-Toward the end, I had a burst of “I Think I Can” and Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb” in my head. It was almost time for me to go to work so I also got a little flustered toward the end thinking I wouldn’t finish in time. But getting toward a goal can be motivating.

The aftermath:

-Pain that went all throughout my body in waves for about 48 hours. Just gotta keep moving to keep the real pain of immobility from setting in. Pain is real.

-I was one of the first to do it in our gym group. So, I was able to encourage people who came after. This is one of the most important parts of being on the path, and being a survivor. Help those who are with you or coming along after you.

Finally,

The first thing I wrote was,

-What is my mountain?

I am still thinking about that. There are many. Short term, long term, distant future. This was a metaphor for many challenges in life and living. I’ll keep thinking about it and I wouldn’t be surprised if I do it again some day.

What is your mountain? Who can be your partner on the path? Your inspiration? Who can you encourage today?

fitness and nutrition

My Dumbbell Museum

April 2, 2020 2chicksandapen

A few days ago I shared about some “vintage” Easter treasures that have found new life in our home during the coronavirus pandemic.

There’s another area in our home that has found some new life as we have become more and more isolated. All the members of my family have lost access to our gym and fitness facilities / practices, so our makeshift basement gym space has become a hub of activity on and off from 6:30 am (my exercise time) on throughout the day.

As with many things in this new “normal” we are making do with what we have. Stuff is coming out of corners, emerging from piles, being excavated after years of gathering dust. Most of our gym stuff is old, inherited, or has other stories. Here’s a glimpse of my fitness lives through my gallery of dumbbells. And these are only the ones that I use(d)…those above 25 just aren’t on my radar at the moment.

Starting with the smallest:

Empower handweights: 2.5 lbs

I used these when I was trying to walk my weight off. Before running, before CrossFit, before any of it. I would pump my arms up and down as I walked. Not sure how to use them in my current routines but anything is possible!

Reebok coated baby dumbbells: 5 lbs

These are from my “aerobics in front of the TV while the kids are napping” phase. Seems like not that long ago, but it really was. I showed these to my son this week and he remembered watching me do my little routines with them from the stairs. Now they are paint-splattered and worn. But, I remember holding the weights over my head and lowering them behind my head to feel my triceps burn. They work for T-raises and other isolated accessory movements.

Super Star Orbatrons: 11 lbs (yes, 11 pounds which makes them extra awesome!)

These babies, with their sand-filled copper sheen, date back to my childhood. They’re almost as big as my head! And I use them almost every day. I know, you’re jealous. They’re fabulous. My dad would sit and do curls with these at the dinner table while he was reading the paper. He was always fighting to retain any bit of strength he could on his ultra-arthritic arms. So these have sentimental value. They are big and clunky. They are round, which adds a challenge when I am trying to balance on one in pushup position while picking up the other. But they make me smile in all their 1980’s style glory.

(Pause to note: I am reallllyyyyy missing 15-pounders right here. I often used those in weighted situps and some of the slower accessory movements. I keep scanning the internet for used ones almost daily!)

Metal Hex Dumbbells (on bench): 20 lbs.

These came from my in-laws. They at least have flat sides so they don’t roll around like the 10s do. These are my go-tos for overhead presses and many other movements. Not much to say about them but they are durable and well used.

Rubber Hex Dumbbell: 25 lbs.

Finally, the only “new” dumbbell in the bunch. I bought this when I was at my first CrossFit gym. That gym had nothing between 20 and 35 pounds, and that span was too big of a jump for me. So, I bought myself *one* 25-pound dumbbell. I hid it in the ladies dressing area when I wasn’t using it. It was not too long ago that picking this up was a feat! I remember doing my first 25-pound single-arm snatch with it only a couple of years ago. Now, I mainly use it for snatches. Using it still gets me winded.

I don’t have 30-pounders which stinks. We have 35s but they are metal. I’m not especially confident (and I am truly clumsy) so I tend to leave everything over 25 alone, especially since I don’t have a coach watching these days. But that’s ok.

I move every day, I lift weights, and I’m making do with what I have. I guess that’s a motto for me at this point fitness-wise. Making the best with what I have, and hoping for the best as time goes on. It’s not glossy or shiny or perfect or new, kinda like me. As with these dumbbells, there are many ages and pages to my fitness story. This chapter will be a memorable one.