Weekly Roundup

Quote of the Week: “Don’t set the rest of your life of your life up on a downhill slope because of one hard season.”- Rachel Hollis, Girl Wash Your Face

When we’re going through something unpleasant, whether that be difficult, disappointing or depressing, it’s easy to get caught up in thinking that the way we feel now, and the situation we’re in currently will last forever. This quote reminded me to think of the many instances in my life in which I faced something tough; often times I did feel as though I was ‘stuck’. Yet I’m able to look back today and realize that the pain did not last, that I was able to move forward.

Something New: Thanks to my hubby, I’m catching up with the rest of the world in technology. I received an Apple Watch for Christmas and I’m now able to make calls, respond to texts, and listen to podcasts all from my wrist! One of the main features of the Apple Watch is its ability to track activity, specifically time spent exercising, standing, and general movement. Between walking my dog and going to the gym, I’m already fairly active so I haven’t believed an activity tracker would do much for me. One thing that’s come as a surprise though is the amount of time I spend sitting at work. I have the Apple Watch programmed to send a reminder for me to stand for at least a minute every hour. This may not seem like much, but with some heavy computer work this past week, I forced myself to stand a lot more than I otherwise would have without the reminders.

Training: I subscribed to 4-time Figure Olympia Nicole Wilkin’s membership site for some workout ideas and have been following her Holiday Challenge. This past week’s workouts have included many more sets and reps than I’m used to (15-20 reps), as well as other intensity-building techniques such as supersets and giant sets. This increase in training volume has been a humbling experience to say the least. I’ve been winded during workouts and sore for a couple days afterwards. My takeaway- Seek out workout ideas whenever you’re in an exercise funk. Paid membership sites, or free options such as bodybuilding.com or even Instagram offer lots of ideas to help you get back in the groove.