Keke’s BodyBlog

I’ve often wondered if it is best to refrain from exercising when I’m not feeling 100%. My philosophy I’ve adopted is to listen to my body and even at that, I don’t know if that’s the best way to go either.

So, I seek counsel from articles on the Net. The common theme I see is that it’s best to exercise restraint when sick. It’s best to take a break rather than breaking a sweat. The myth about €˜perspiring your way back to better health’ is apparently exactly that : a myth.

Our bodies don’t €˜sweat out’ toxins and germs during exercise. That’s the responsibility of our immune system and that system works best when it’s not stressed. The general advice is to listen to our bodies when we are feeling sick, and need to rest. A hard workout could impair the immune system and allow €˜unwelcome guests’ to make the illness worse.

Unfortunately, I read all of this later than I should have and did go to the gym for a workout yesterday evening. I was well medicated, and had slept a lot during the day, so I thought it’d be okay for me to workout. While training, I’d have to say I felt weaker. However, at the end of the workout, I felt good that I made it through … but I was physically very tired as I made my way home.

For me, I find it’s a mental thing when it comes to taking a day off from the gym. I feel guilty, and I feel I’ll lose all that I’ve achieved. I have to shift that thinking to realizing that taking the time when you’re body is telling you to do so is better for the body and won’t impede the progress that I’ve made.

As such, I am glad today is my non-training day. I’m going to reschedule my Fitness Assessment Test for next week, get home early today and aim for 8 hours sleep tonight. I need to shake this feeling and quick. Tomorrow is a leg day, and I definitely don’t want to miss or postpone it.

Here are some good gym precautions that I found while surfing.

1. Wash hands immediately after your workout.
2. Bring your own water to the gym to avoid touching the water fountain. The water is OK, but the fountain itself has many users.
3. Bring two towels, one to wipe the equipment, the other for your face and hands.

It’s all about getting better, so lots of Vitamin C, fluids, and sleep!

Have a good day and see ya tomorrow.

Cheers,
Nke

For those of you that know me well, I’m about to tell you something that you probably should be sitting down for : Ready??? :. You’re girl here has is sick and:. Going to stay home and::.. REST!!!! Shocked??? I’m shocked! My hubby’s shocked! I just can’t fight the feeling. The first indication I got this morning that I needed to rest, is when the alarm went off : and then 15 minutes later I woke up: I did get up, and I did start getting ready but while making breakfast I just felt like I was struggling way to much and that it would do me soo much good to not fight the feeling and stay home and get my rest.

I have a sore throat and my head is feeling very heavy. E says he can hear the cold in my voice. So, I’m hoping that by resting up today I can feel better and refreshed by tomorrow.

Before I sign off and head back to bed, I have to tell you about my kickass Back, Delts and Ab workout yesterday.

Slightly feeling under the weather, I managed to kick ass with the Deadlifts (bending knee ones). I started with 185 lbs for 12 reps, then moved up to 205 for 12 reps, and then did my last set at 215 for 10 reps. It felt wicked!!! Gosh, I love that exercise soo much! Following that, I did 3 sets of undergrip pulldowns. Man, my forearms were burning by my 3rd set. It was crazy!!! I had a couple of supersets after that which felt good to do. Hey Shaun, you need to demonstrate your overhead cable crossovers again. I’m so used to how I used to do it from the back, that I’m still unsure of the form for the way you’ve shown me to do them.

For my abs, I did an amazing Ab roller superset. You start by putting a 10 lbs weight underneath the head flap of the ab roller. Then complete 30 reps of crunches on the ab roller, then immediately turn your body to face the other way. So, your legs are where your head just was: get it? Then hook your legs into the top of the ab roller and bring your head down and hold onto to the foot bar with each hand. Then, using your feet, curl in. If you can visualize what I just explained, try it out and tell me you don’t feel the burn! Following that, I did the crazy Ab and Pushup ball routine that Jully demo’d for us on one of her blogs titled €˜I’m Back’ posted February 15th. It’s CRAZY!!! My abs were killing for days after the first time I did it!

So, the medication is now kicking in, and I need to get some rest before my 9 AM conference call. Yes, I said I was staying home to work : but did not say I would not be working from home :. There’s always a catch huh! Ha-Ha.

“The greatest wealth is health

Cheers,
Nke

I much prefer my switch to waiting to eat my first meal until after my Saturday morning workout. It unfortunately does mean that my body has been starving for a long time from last meal Friday to first meal Saturday, but my meals on Saturday stretch and align better with my waking hours.

E and I are going out tonight to a house party where there’s going to be food. I’ve planned it so that I’ll be eating meal 4 and 5 while I am there. I obviously be looking to taking home a €˜doggy bag’ for my cheat day tomorrow!! Haha

After my hour on the Step Mill today, I worked Glutes and Calves and got a really nice burn on both.

I tried the following Glute exercise today :. I found it very effective! Try it out!

Ball Squeeze and Lift

Lay on side. Place a medium sized exercise ball between your ankles and squeeze tightly. Then lift the ball straight up 6 inches or more and hold. Hold the ball up for 5-30 seconds or more depending on your fitness level and repeat 6-15 times. Make sure to do both sides. This exercise targets inner & outer thighs & glutes.

Now, back to blogging :.

E joined me at the gym today. He has this wicked routine that he goes through on Saturdays. He does an interval of Wide Grip Pullups, Pushups and Dips. For each exercise and each interval he works each to failure and he repeats this for 10 intervals! It’s wicked and extremely tough.

Lastly, I forgot to mention that Shaun’s trick for Wide Grip Pullups is WICKED!!!! Unfortunately, unless you work out at R.Hill Goodlife you’ll be unable to see how it’s done. However, you can always contact Shaun at www.shaun-campbell.com for more details : and I’m going to plug him now : discussion on how he can help you achieve all of your fitness and nutrition goals. He is a phenomenal trainer and lifestyle coach! Hey Shaun, I peeped the exercise to E and he liked it : it just may show up at Strictly Fitness!! Ha-ha.

Well, it’s time for me to sign off and start cooking my protein for the week : low fat brownies for the party tonight : I do plan on keeping some for myself for tomorrow!!!!

Have a great Saturday!

Cheers,
Nke

So my weight did not change this week. Not sure if I should be concerned and will talk to Shaun about that. I weighed in again at 149.5 lbs. Good news is that it did not go up!! Ha-Ha. I have to wonder how much water retention is due to Creatine. Side effects indicate that there is some, so perhaps that is accounting for some of the weight. I definitely feel leaner, so I am working away the layers of fat, which is good.

It is not even 10:00 AM yet, and I’ve finished prepping all my meals. The trick this time was to cook and pack the meat yesterday. So, the only thing I had to do this morning was steam my sweet potatoes, choy mui and spinach and add to the containers.

There’s a wicked sale going on in Markham today at a store where I buy casual bags and summer shoes from. They are selling everything in the store for $5. The sale is on for today and tomorrow. I’m going to swing by, and see if I can pick up an €˜everyday’ type handbag that I can sport for awhile.

I went to Lululemon yesterday to get the pants that Easton bought for me hemmed. I tried, but could not resist buying something. I got this wicked white workout tank. Love it!! I also bought one of their hats, which fit very nicely. While that store is pretty expensive, it’s hard not to get addicted to their clothes. Because I train so much, I need quite a bit of workout gear so I usually just pop into Walmart and pick up some stuff there. They have some pretty cute things, and you can always find something under $10 so that’s cool. However, if you’re into looking fly at the gym, then there’s the Running Room, La Senza (a.k.a Victoria Secret now), Jacob and a whole heap of other places that have nice things and still reasonably priced.

For all your 24 fans, would you agree with me that season 2 is one of the best ever!!! I borrowed the CD’s from Cath and Rol, and E and I are just glued to the TV. We got through quite a few episodes yesterday and it had us on the edge of our seats : literally. I’m going to have to invest and buy all seasons for my own personal collection!

Here’s a closing tip to those that inquired about how they can make wise choices when they eat out. I think I may have touched on this in an earlier blog, but I’ll repeat just the same:

1. Choose grilled or broiled foods.
2. When choosing a sandwich, skip the sauces, cheese or bacon. Instead choose lettuce, tomato and onion.
3. Eat on a portion of your plate, and ask for the rest to go. Or share the meal with your companion.
4. Watch the salads … if they are not on the closer side to plain, then they can have as much calories and fat at other meals.
5. Baked Potatoes are a great choice, just make sure to ask for all of the toppings on the side and use them sparingly.
6. Pizza … can be a wise choice if you opt for thin whole grain crust, easy on the cheese and avoid the fatty meat toppings. Go for chicken and other low-fat toppings. Try to eat on one or two slices.
7. Side dishes … main restaurants now have an extensive healthy offering. So try and stay away from the French Fries, unless they are fresh cut and fired in trans fat free oil (yes, that’s my tip and I’m sticking to it!!! )
8. Avoid Soda, so choose water or fresh juices
9. Don’t be afraid to ask for the nutrition facts before you place your order. If you’re good at planning at head, you should be able to browse on their website before you even get to the restaurant :.
10. Ask for no to minimal salt to be used in cooking your meal.

So, those are my top ten : what do you think?

Speaking of fries, today being a cheat day and all, I think I’m going to cheat by picking up an order of Swiss Chalet fries when I head out on the road today :. That will be a nice treat for me!!! They are fresh cut, and supposedly fried in trans fat free oil. Their serving size is 168 gr, which is 470 Cals, 25 gr of fat, 45 mg of sodium, 5 gr of fibre and 7 gr of protein : All in all, not a healthy food, so definitely allowed on a cheat day!!! Ha-ha.

Have a blessed Sunday!

Cheers,
Nke

I am trying something different today. I slept in until 7:00AM, and now getting ready to head out to the gym. I’m going to try cardio today on an empty stomach. Gonna be grueling, because it is the Step Mill and I’m on there for 60 minutes. Gotta take a fat burner this morning for that extra ummph. I’ll eat my first meal when I get back and then again every 2 ½ hours after than until I finish all my meals. Normally, on Saturdays, I am finishing my last meal by 6:30 PM and I’m still up for 5-8 hours. Makes no sense to start eating early then : So, I’ll let you know how that goes…

Well off to the gym I go :. I finish up this blog when I get back.

I am back. I got to the gym in good time and beat everyone to the Step Mill. Man, that 60 minutes was hard, but I got through it on empty belly and all. Imagine my last meal was 6:30 PM last night. I just finished eating meal one, and it has never tasted better!! It’s now time to get showered and head out on the road.

I was alittle stumped on a subject for today’s blog : well luck would have it that it came to me at the gym in the form of a compliment…at least I think he was trying to give me one. It’s one of those things my Mom always says, “If you have nothing to say, talk about the weather” :. So this guy, whom I see at the gym ALL the time for years now, whom I think has acknowledged me all of about once… he’s one of those people that I swear has the uncanny ability to look through people. So he’s the last person I’d expect to say something to me : least all something complimentary :

I have these pants I wear to work out that say ‘Paws Off’ on the booty. Had them for a while too : Anyhoo, I’m working my calves today and he walks up to me and says “Man, what happened to Paws Off. I’ve been waiting to see that for awhile. Boy, can’t wait to see that again.” :. Weird right??? All, I could do was give one of those fake laughs and reply, ‘I’ll be sure to wear them again soon” : dry response, right?? I was totally caught off guard and that rarely happens to me : Anyhoo : I thought about it, and figured I’d just chalk it up to one of the weirdest compliments I’ve ever received : perhaps original even:

If you are an Oxygen reader, pick up the Winter Fat Loss issue. It is packed with great articles and a lot of motivational stuff that could help kick start you on your road to a healthier lifestyle.

Can’t write much more today, coz’ I’ve really got to get out and get going : so you’ll have to tune in tomorrow for more :

Have a great Saturday!

Love this quote : “You’ve got to take the initiative, and play your game. In a decisive set, confidence is the difference.” … Chris Evert

Cheers,
Nke