Sunday, June 22, 2014

sometimes I really suck

Ugh. You guys, I'm really sorry that I haven't posted a workout in...what has it been? Two weeks? I have been slacking so much, and not just on the blog. I started my second summer school class (it's online), so I've been totally swamped with reading 60 pages, taking a quiz, writing a discussion post, replying to two different posts, completing an assignment, and taking a test. I do all of this within a four day period, because of how condensed the summer sessions are.
ANYWAY...realizing how much I suck at the blog has made me think about all of the things I really suck at. So, here it goes:


Blogging. Obviously I already said that one, but it's definitely got to be mentioned again.

Self-Motivation. Sometimes, getting to the gym is literally the most difficult thing in the world, and it is way too easy for me to talk myself out of it.

Studying. It is physically impossible for me to study more than 48 hours before an exam, even if I'm super interested in the topic.

Committing. Okay, not like in a relationship sense. Obviously. I'm talking more in the sense that I like to change my mind very frequently. Like, way too frequently.

Controlling myself around my mother. I'm sorry, but sometimes she just doesn't think before she speaks. The other day she told me that my arms "look big, but not, like, muscular". Oh really? Thanks, mom. I mean, I know she didn't mean it like that, but oh my good lord. Sometimes I just can't handle her, as much as I love her.

Dieting. Actually, I never call it a "diet". I just try to eat healthier, but I just love chocolate and chips and Chipotle and Goldfish and Dunkin' (etc) way too much #sorry

Multitasking. You know those people who can study and listen to music at the same time? That's not me. Like, at all. I can barely even text and walk, so I obviously have issues multitasking.

Texting. When I'm not doing anything else, I'll text you back within seconds. But, along with the multitasking issue, if I'm doing something while texting you, you'll probably be waiting minutes, hours, maybe even days before I reply.

Welp, there are probably a million more things that I suck at (actually, I know there are), but I'm currently watching Grey's Anatomy while writing this post, and you know my issue with that. So, that's it for now. I'll hopefully be posting more frequently, but at the very least, you will have next week's workouts by next Sunday!
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Thursday, June 12, 2014

I'm taking a vacation...whaaaaat?!

YOU GUYS. Do you know how hard it is to get approved for leave from the Military? At Davis Monthan Air Force Base? As a firefighter? Well, manning is down, so apparently it's really, really difficult.
But, guess what?
TOBY GOT IT!!
These are our happy faces :)
 (Okay, so they're not exactly in reaction to the leave approval, but they're still our happy faces)

He hasn't been home (and when I say "home", I mean Ohio) since he got stationed here in Tucson in mid-July of last year. He and his brother are best friends (literally, they talk more frequently than Brianna and I do), and he lives in Colorado Springs, CO with his wife. So, I am so excited and happy to tell you all that, come August 1st, we will be flying to CO to spend a week with his brother, and then to Ohio to spend a week with his family.

I know, I know. I'm supposed to dread meeting his parents, especially because it will have only been five months that we've been together. But seriously, I cannot contain my excitement about it. I am so smitten with this boy. And I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to meet the people who raised him to be the man that I adore so much.

Anyway, I just had to share the good news with you all. We legitimately thought he was going to be denied, because one of his friends had applied for the same two weeks months ago and they're really low on manning at the moment so basically no one is getting leave right now. I was working when he found out, and of course my phone died, so when I charged my phone and read the message, I was beyond ecstatic.

Sorry, okay, I know you don't really care (especially because it's not someplace like the Caribbean or Alaska or something cool) but I just had to let you all know because I literally cannot wait! Eeeek! Okay I'm done. Yay. Kbye

PS, I just ate 18 pizza rolls while writing this post...and I hate myself a little bit for it but #yolo
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Monday, June 9, 2014

weekend update + $25 Starbucks giveaway!

Hi friends! Since the past few posts have been gym-related, I'm gonna switch it up a little bit and talk about my weekend...even though there wasn't much that happened. Because I'm lame. And my best friend/boyfriend is in Montana for the summer.

Anyway. Friday was THE LAST DAY OF SUMMER SCHOOL!! I am officially done with Spanish classes FOREVER, woo! Seriously, after 9 years studying the language and culture, I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to be done with it (unless I can go to Spain next summer...then whatevs). After class, I hit up Dunkin' (um, National Donut Day...duh.) and Wells Fargo and opened up a bank account all by myself! I still have my account under my parents' names, but I wanted to branch out a little bit. I also found out I got approved for a credit card, woo! Gotta rack up that credit sometime, right?

Saturday morning, I had to open the Rec. But, since it's a weekend we don't open until 8am, which is a LOT better than 6am on weekdays. After work, I met Toby on base so that we could get a workout in before I had to go back to work to close! When I got home, we just kind of hung out and watched some It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and went to bed early (we're literally 75 years old when it comes to bedtime, and I blame him).

Sunday, I opened the Rec AGAIN, but on Sundays we open at 10 so it's totally doable! After work, I stuck around and worked out (since I slacked, yet again, this week) and then went home to lay out and get muh tan on. Let me tell you, it is not fun sitting outside in 110 degree weather. I sweat more in 30 minutes than I did in an hour and a half at the gym...

Welp, now you know exactly what I did this weekend, which I'm sure you didn't care about before reading this and you probably still don't. But yolo, I do what I want! Anyway, thanks for reading :)

ALSO, here's a fun $25 Starbucks giveaway, hosted by Brianna!  It goes live today, and will be up until the 14th!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Sunday, June 8, 2014

This week's workouts 6/9-6/14

You guys. My shorts don't fit me...AGAIN. Literally, this is the third time since, like, September that I've had to buy new shorts because my thighs and my butt are too thick. Usually that wouldn't really be a problem because it's all muscle. But three times?? That's a little excessive. So, I'm still doing legs, but I'm trying to lean out, so you'll see a difference in the routine for leg day! You can find this week's workouts HERE
Have fun!
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Friday, June 6, 2014

why you should train with a buddy

Don't get me wrong here; I love working out alone. I'm all about that "running is cheaper than therapy" mentality, and using my workout for "me time", but there are some insane perks to having a workout partner that you just don't get when you go solo.

Gym Tips

When you go to the gym with a partner, you have that extra set of eyes that can easily tell exactly what you're doing wrong. Yes, it may be annoying having someone tell you everything that you're doing wrong, but it'll probably prevent injury and help you get dem gainz, bro. They can also bring new workouts into your world, which is never a negative thing.

Spot

This is definitely a plus for anyone who lifts weights. While it may not be awkward to ask a random other patron for a spot, I always feel kind of bad taking them away from their workout to help with mine. In this instance, it's really nice to be able to have someone always ready to help you lift those last couple of reps.

Motivation

Ah, one of my favorite parts about working out with someone else: you can use them as your own motivation. It always seems silly when you see those big dudes yelling at each other to "PUSH IT, MAN, ONE MORE! WOOF! WOOF!", but it really does help. Just knowing someone is rooting for you to finish that rep basically lifts the weight for you.


Friendly Competition

Whenever I workout, I compare myself to everyone else in the gym. This isn't necessarily a bad thing; I'm not doing it out of shame for my body or anything else, I'm simply just using it as a way for me to push myself harder. This is even better with a partner, because you can sh*t talk and push the competition that much further!


Accountability

Honestly, this is the best part. Sometimes, you just really do not want to go to the gym. And that's okay. SOMETIMES. But it's a lot harder to bail on a good workout when you know that someone is already getting ready to meet you there and hold you accountable for your promises.
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Monday, June 2, 2014

pet peeves of a consistent gym-goer

I understand that I'm not the most fit person in the world, nor do I know even close to everything that there is to know about working out. But, I do know my way around a gym, whether it's a "bare-bones" one or a fancy "fitness club", and I know that there is a certain etiquette in every gym that usually people understand to follow (most of the time, this etiquette is usually posted on the walls at the gym, called "rules"-what a concept!!).

Unfortunately, not everyone understands and follows these common-sense guidelines. This is where my biggest pet peeves live.
  • People who don't re-rack their weights--this is literally my #1 pet peeve. If you follow me on Twitter, then you've probably seen at least 5 tweets this year about people who don't re-rack. If you can lift the weight to do the exercise, you can lift it enough to put it away! It's really not that hard.
  • People who slam their weights down after using them--okay, I understand if you're cleanin' and pressin', but that's about as much as I can handle. If you are throwing down dumbbells, it's time to cut back on the weight, honey. You obviously can't handle that much weight, and there's no shame in reducing; you're drawing more attention to yourself by throwing them on the ground than you would by simply switching them out!
  • People who drip sweat everywhere then don't wipe off the equipment--good for you for working up that sweat and feelin' the burn! But I don't want to experience your workout by sliding around in your sweaty mess. (Not to mention the smell!) Please, please, please wipe off the bench/machine after use; it only takes a minute!
  • People who sit at a machine/bench/station for 20 minutes on their phone--woohoo, you're popular! Awesome. Now either get off of your phone and workout, or move. If you're changing the song (or even a quick tweet...we wouldn't want you wasting a workout by forgetting to tell the world about it), cool. If not, get your stuff together so we can all move along with our lives.
  • People who stand in front of a machine/bench/station for 20 minutes and chit chat with their friend--like the phone thing, this is just a little bit ridiculous. Everyone is here to workout, not listen to you talk about how drunk you were last night while waiting for you to finish "using" the incline bench. Please, talk on your own time.
  • People who shamelessly take selfies every five seconds--but first, let me take a #selfie. No, please don't. Even worse than the Outstretched Arm Holding the iPhone selfie is the Flexing in The Mirror selfie. No. Just, no. Save yourself (and everyone else) the embarrassment and wait until you get home to prove that you #GetSwole.
I understand that a lot of these may be because I work at the gym and I've seen all of these happen multiple times a day (I've only worked 5 shifts, so what does that tell you??), but I am also an avid gym-goer, so I'm giving myself the authority to be annoyed with the above people.

What are your biggest pet-peeves? Bonus points if they include the gym!
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Sunday, June 1, 2014

This week's workouts: 6/2-6/7

You guys. This week was a rough one for me, motivation-wise. For some reason, I found it really difficult to get my butt to the gym once I hit the halfway mark for the week. But, I'm so glad that I did; it was well worth it! This week's workouts were pretty tough, but so good!

Enjoy!!
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