happy groundhog day!
YOU GUYS! i am so dang busy~ i feel like i am running around like a chicken with its head cut off. and while we are on the subject, it is pretty freaking gnarly that chickens will still run around after their heads have been cut off. fairly certain i was traumatized as a child when i witnessed this during recess when in elementary school.. some people who lived behind the school yard whacked some heads off their chickens for all to see through a chain link fence.. why anyone would expose a plethora of children to such horrific situations is beyond me. and it is pretty crazy that cockroaches can live for up to a month without a head.
yes, these are the things that go through my head. which is still safely attached to my neck in case you were wondering.
quick post today! with lots of copying and pasting from a super sweet article. here we go.
meal 1: 1 cup egg whites + reduced sugar ketchup & a peach chobani & french press javaaaa @ 9:30 AM
i love it when i have time to make coffee at home. much, much better than coffee from the mister coffee maker at work.
fluffy whites.. microwaved on 70% power for 4 minutes..
creamy chobani.. no description needed. yum.
work work work work.. seven thousand impromptu meetings that i did not have planned. ahhhh!
meal 2: the last of the pulled chicken (sad face) on a salad with honey mustard @ 12:30 PM
mark my words, i am making a big pot of this chicken when i get back. IT. IS. SO. TASTY.
side note: i hate the new olive garden commercial. the one with the boy and his grandpa.. it is on now.. it is SO lame. just show us some steamy breadsticks and carby pasta and call it good. no sentimental jibber jabber required. oh and while we are on the subject, what the funk is up with the olive garden only putting ONE ollive in their “never-ending salad bowl”?! olive garden my eye.
you guys.. this is how i get when i am turbo busy.
snacktime was among piles of papers and lots of work. go figure.
meal 3: chocolate banana protein shake @ 3:30 PM
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1 scoop chocolate EAS whey protein
- 1/2 banana
- ice
i don’t have xantham and guar gum at the office. UGH~ how did i live without them? i can never make a protein shake without them again. yes, they make it that much better. deb and heabs~ you were right. my life is changed.
this tasted good but it was so runny. sigh. i have become a smoothie snob, it’s official.
WORK IT!
since my triceps heybabies were killing me from sunday’s workout, i went with lower body workout today.
oh, wonder what “heybabies” are? i will let natalie dee tell you:
natalie dee, you make the world go round.
OH.. did you wonder about my title?! here we go.
soooooooo.. i have those soccer player/snowboarder/big, muscley legs. call it genetic, call it athletic, call it what you want.. i have big legs. there is no denying that.
the more i work them, the bigger they get~ it seems. well, the lovely and fantassstic lindsay sent me an article from muscle+fitness hers and it was all about leaning out the bulky, muscular legs!
paraphrased from the article..
women who put on muscle very easily, such as athletes, tend to have bigger legs. kalani (the girl in the article) started this workout routine and after two weeks she could see her legs were leaner and after four weeks, she had lost an inch from her thighs. her legs used to be 4-5 inches bigger than they are now! the workout incorporates the moves shown below and sprints.
what pleased me the most about this article is that it had a combination of moves that i already do on a regular basis! so~ i took the moves from the article and put it to use in my workout. first i will show you the moves it suggests for leaning the legs and then show you the format i used for my workout.
*note: all sources for photos credited to muscle + fitness hers
move #1: reverse lunge with pulse
position A:
position B:
move #2: lying butt bridge (that is what i call it. the mag called it “glute pulse”)
position A:
position B:
move #3: squat
position A:
position B:
i held a 20# dumbbell in my hands during this move.
move #4: donkey kicks
position A:
position B:
move#5: step up with leg curl and knee lift
position A:
position B:
position C:
position D:
knee up. i added a knee lift after the leg curl. it was not in the article.
move #6: switches (not shown)
here is a description of what switches are:
here is my workout.
- warm up 10 minutes on the elliptical:
| minute # | resistance |
| 0-1 | 5 |
| 1-2 | 6 |
| 2-3 | 7 |
| 3-4 | 8 |
| 4-5 | 9 |
| 5-6 | 10 |
| 6-7 | 11 |
| 7-8 | 12 |
| 8-9 | 13 |
| 9-10 | 14 |
i averaged 7.5ish MPH the whole time and went about 1.25 miles.. i think. don’t quote me on that.
i did the following table three times through:
|
move |
weight |
reps |
| reverse lunge w/ pulse | body weight | 30 (15 each leg, alternating) |
| switches | body weight | 30 seconds intense |
| lying butt bridges | 10# plate on hips | 75 |
| switches | body weight | 30 seconds intense |
| squat | 20# dumbbell | 30 |
| switches | body weight | 30 seconds intense |
| donkey kicks | body weight | 40 (20 each leg, consecutive) |
| switches | body weight | 30 seconds intense |
| step up w/ leg curl +knee up | 20# dumbbell | 30 (15 each leg, alternating) |
| switches | body weight | 30 seconds intense |
i finished the workout with two sets (until fatigue) of hanging leg raises. fun fun.
total time: 60 minutes, calories burned: 340, max HR: 168, ave HR: 128
not bad for a strength training day, eh?
hopefully these techniques help lean out my muscley legs! i have learned to embrace my body type and don’t let those big legs get me down.. but if there is something i can do to help lean them out, i sure am going to try ;)
came home and had my muscle armor recovery protein shake which i usually mix with crushed ice and water in my shaker bottle. well.. today i got classy and blended it in the vitamix and added the gums.
meal 4: another life changing protein smoothie @ 6:45 PM
in the mix went 1 cup water, 1 scoop vanilla protein powder, 1 scoop EAS muscle armor, ice and some xantham & guar gums. the result? creamy limesicle goodness! YUM! the muscle armor is lime flavored and the vanilla protein along with the creamy-factor of the gums made it taste just like a lime ice cream shake. WINNER.
annnnd i just got done blogging. and it is 8:18 so i am going to go make myself something for a late dinner. i am thinking chicken and veggies! i will let you know~ since you are probably not going to be able to sleep if you don’t find out what i decided to have for dinner. right? right.
well loves, that is all she wrote. i will be back tomorrow with some more ramblings. thanks for hanging out with me for a little part of your day~ hope you are doing well.. i wouldn’t know since i haven’t had time to actually READ blogs.. sorry :) love you still!
i have had almost 2 gallons of water today! WOW.
Qs~
1. what is your favorite body part and/or muscle on your body? i have learned to embrace my big legs. to the point that my hamstrings are officially my favorite part of my body. maybe that is why i love dead lifts so much.. yes, i am totally masochistic ;)
2. happy groundhog day! would you prefer 6 more weeks of winter or do you say bring on the heat?! winter for me, please!!
xo. janetha b.
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I’ve been dancing for over 25 years, so I have the same problem – huge legs, so I was equally as excited when I saw that routine in M&F Hers. My downfall will definitely be the sprints though. With a bad knee, I have a VERY hard time doing any treadmill running, so I do intervals on the elliptical instead – hopefully it’s along the same lines!
Your lime/vanilla mix sounds like a taste of summer in the middle of winter – and I’m all over that! I’m so over this cold weather!
Ok – I’m going for the gums.
I have big legs too, and I’m short. Lean would be good.
Am I the only person in the world who can’t translate a written exercise into moves without pictures? I seriously cannot do it. I haven’t the faintest idea what they’re saying about Switches. I’m so lame!
Like scissors, only on a step/bench etc. They are hard! But yeah, I much prefer pictures. That’s why I love Japan- they have pictures of the food :-) Off topic, but whatever!
waaait you put HONEY MUSTARD on the pulled chicken!??? Honey mustard is MY FAVORITE condiment. Like i want to lick the screen right now. Gaaah I need a crock pot
You know girl, I’ve always had big legs too. It’s a pain when trying to find jeans, because they either don’t go up over the thighs, or they’re too big in the waist. But I began to love my legs – they showed my true athleticism! Such muscles :-) And now that I haven’t been running, or done cardio in almost a month (yes – soooo hard for me), I especially appreciate how big and muscley they were. I miss those muscles!!
1. I think I covered above how much I loved my legs. Especially my calves :-)
2. Hmmm i feel like we haven’t had much of a winter over here. It’s been cold, but not for very long. I’m find to still be cold for a while. The heat will come soon enough!
I’ve always had big legs too! It’s all from doing gymnastics for 15 years.. you gotta have big leg muscles to flip around like I did! I also have big arms.. well muscular (or that’s what i like to think). I hate trying on shirts in stores because when something doesn’t fit, it’s usually too tight on the arms! Annoyingggg.
1. I’ve started to love my legs! Distance running has done wonders for making my legs a little skinner and more toned!
2. WARM WARM WARM!! Bring on the HEAT!
girl sry u are so busy! rest up!!
i think i like my abs the best?! i havent thought about that in a while!
question: when u make a shake do you use both guar gum and xantham in a shake?? or just one ?? if so ..how much do you put in a smoothie ??
thanks :)
Yes, I don’t know how I lived without the gums either- but it’s been about a decade that I’ve been using them, so I really can’t remember!.
Holly- you need both! Honest!
I like it hot hot hot! The hotter the better. Just no humidity please, thanks.
Such a funny cartoon! I love my legs…both my parents still have good gams in their 60s, so hopefully they stay this way!
And I’ll take summer, please!
Natalie dee = hilarious! I like my shoulders, toned from many years of swimming I think!
haha great cartoon! and don’t you dare apologize for being MIA this week, i know how insanely busy you are! don’t be a goob about not commenting, i love ya the same, comments or none :)
Wow thanks for the pics ;)
And I love the cartoon!
Janetha,
Sorry this is a little late but I have the best author recommendation for you. It’s chick-lit but snart, TRUE and hilarious. The author is Jen Lancaster. She has a killer blog and her books made me laugh so hard I almost peed myself laughing. I recommend Bitter is the new black- and then you will have to read everything she’s ever written. I usually read serious books, and stumbled into hers in the non-fiction/bio section. I think her site is jennsylvania.com
Barbara
I love the “heybabies”! lol I have always called “bingo wing” you know when the old people at bingo put their arm up and yell BINGO! they are showing off their bingo wring… (I’m sure I did need to explain that) anywho love the smoothies! and that chick in the pics if BUFF!
I think my favorite body part might be my legs… or maybe my abs… or wait no my arms! haha well I guess it’s good that I can find more than one part I like! ;)
bahaha that is hysterical! I’ve always called them flags :)
“i love it when i have time to make coffee at home. much, much better than coffee from the mister coffee maker at work.”–
Aint that the truth!
The gums, just saw your comment on elise’s blog. I have talked to deb bout this but i cant get the gums right…i either over-add it and texture is freakish and i ruin the food OR i dont add enough and nothing happens. Your exact measurements, frozen fruits or not, ice and water or not, etc would be lovely!
When you’re back from paradise of course :)
xoxoxo
Great workout, thanks for posting it!!
Hmm.. I’m not sure what I like best. I think my body’s overall pretty ok but I don’t have any favourite parts ;).
I love me some winter but I also like the HEAT!
Ooh I love peach chobani, so good!
to answer your Q – I love my arms. I have been working them for a long time and am finally seeing some major definition. I love muscles and am jealous that you have super muscular legs! I’ve been trying to bulk mine up a bit. But genetically, legs are twiggy in my family. Can’t win ’em all I guess!
Have a great day!
I love working my chest. I’m not gonna say I love my boobs ;) I do like the defintion since I don’t have cleavage. I call them my chesticles.
Warm for me! Lucky you’ll have it sooon!!
Yea, 2 more days till Jamaica, sweet!!! So I have to know, where did you find reduced sugar ketchup. I can go through a bottle a week, yikes!!
OMG LMAO because I HATE that commercial too!!!! All Olive Garden commercials are super cheesy!!! :)
Girl I love you!
I love my back and triceps! They are also my favorite body parts to work. I like shoulders, too … but not really a fan of working them. :)
hope things slow down for you asap!! you sound so busy!
aha i can’t make smoothies anymore without the gums..just isn’t the same.
Yeah, Olive Garden, not so much. I think I have told you I used to work there and now, nothing about it really appeals to me AT ALL. Yep, my legs are big too, but they are pretty much solid muscle which makes me not hate them as much. I love to see that little muscle pop out on the back of my thigh–it’s my goal :) Maybe you can just make pulled chicken for my birthday. that looks so good! Love you! xoxo
Thanks for sharing the leg workout, looks intense!! U go girl!!!!
My favorite part of my body is m stomach, no abs, lol, but just a flat tummy!!
Almost vacation time for you!!!!!
Haha, I call “heybabies” “bingo fat” and it’s one of my favorite terms evahh. My heybabies might even be my fave part of my body too – they aren’t super-ripped, but they are nice and I like ’em!
And I agree, that would be pretty jarring for a child to see a headless chicken. Glad your head’s still attached – only a few more days!
those are great tips for more muscular legs – thanks for sharing!
I can’t believe your trip is so close :) and I keep forgetting to send you a guest post!!! Do you still need one? Sorry for being so forgetful!
I love the term heybabies. Hey, I love MY heybabies.
I definitely have a case of big leg too. I’ve always always had big legs. I’m used to it, sometimes it irks me a liiiittle but at least they are strong as an OX heck yes. That being said, totally saving those leg slimmer exercises. I do some of them already! I’ll just have to step it up and see what we can get out of it ;)
As for fav body part, I’m still struggling to figure that one out although I do like how quickly my arms firm up. They work with me and that works for me.
As for groundhog, NO MORE WINTER. Maybe one day I’ll learn to share your snowboard love and thus learn to embrace winter but right now, spring pleeeeease!
LOL I love that you took us through your train of thought with the whole chicken thing. Poor chickies :(
Never heard of the term heybabies!
My favorite muscle on my body would have to be my abs…rectus to be exact. I carry my weight in my thighs/butt, but my tummy’s my fave:) Most days ;)
And oh you know I say bring on the heat!!
I’m the opposite.. I have teeny legs! I’m currently working on getting a butt!!
Oh babycakes this post was written for me. You are like my twin…well I guess I would be Arnold and you would be Danny DeVito. Moving on, I am very much a pear shape and after 10+ years of basketball I too have big legs. The only time they get smaller is when I am painfully thin and the rest of my looks guant. Grr. I am stealing your workout to the T and doing it on my lower body day.
AHHHH I am going to miss you when you go to Jamaica! Don’t go!!!
The only way I ever got my legs a little leaner were to quit working them for awhile. I cut out all leg work and stuck with treadmill and inclines, and the stepmill!
seemed to help a bit!
I like my small boobs because I don’t even need to wear a bra. I like looking like an 8 year old boy wanna fight about it?!
Your chicken sounds yummy. I need to make that!
Janetha–it is so great to “hear” you say that you love and embrace your muscular legs. I also have bigger legs because of the quad and hamstring muscles that I developed from gymnastics and running. Even though everyone comments on how great the muscles look and even though I know my legs aren’t fat, I usually feel frustrated/disgusted by my athletic legs because nothing ever fits around them. How do you overcome this problem? Have you found any brands that cater toward smaller waists and bigger legs? I would LOVE to feel about my legs the way you feel about yours.
When it’s hardcore running season, I like my calf muscles. They seem to get toned quicker than any other body part and in a short amount of time.
I like my collar bone. Don’t ask me why, I just do. I’m weird. One of the things I hate just so happens to be my lovely set of forever lingering heybabies. HA!
BRING ON SPRING! I welcome it with open arms!
On a side note, WHY oh WHY do they always seem so HAPPY in Olive Garden commercials? Everyone is always laughing. Te-heeee. So funny to eat with you all here in fake Italy. Ha-ha-ha. My salad is SO hilarious. (I apologize, I happen to loathe their commercials…) HA!
I read on Twitter about your reader and it just sounds like you are so busy preparing for your trip, and you are so sweet to still respond to my email! Thank you!
I haven’t seen that Olive Garden commercial yet, but now when I do, I will think of you ;)
I NEED SPRING!!! :)
Microwave eggs Are the way to go!!
I must make a protein shake asap!
Oh my gosh cockroaches can live without their heads. That about the freakiest thing I’ve heard since I don’t know but it’s freaky.
I have the thigh issue too and it drives me (almost) crazy. My abs are my fav body part. However I rarely do ab workouts. My fav body part to workout is my shoulders. Someday I will have lovely little capped shoulders.
I’ve finally started experimenting with the gums and they’re like little magic powders!! How do they doooo it!? :P
1. My favourite body part is actually my legs. I’m pushing 5’7″ and all my height comes from my long, lean legs. But at the same time, that means I have a very, very short torso, which is where I happen to carry all my body fat. I’ll always be thick middled, but that’s okay, I’ll just wear mini skirts to detract from it ;)
2. It needs to be June NOW! I miss cycling!
Heart ya JB!
Haha, I totally giggled aloud during your Olive Garden rant. I totally agree. I need more olives in my life!
Hmmm…. fave body part would have to be my legs, but not sure which exact muscle. Maybe the quads?
I like it hot, hot, hot!!
Hope your Wednesday is going wondefully dear. Love ya!!
first of all I am built like that too and I am only 5’2 so im a shorty….my legs are muscular, athletic yeahhhh so first of all I do all those moves and LOVE them! I just try to focus on doing lots of body weight exercises for my lower half or very light weights, walking lunges with 15lb body bar, squats with 8lb weights by my sides, shizz like that. I saw that routine and love it !! side lying leg lifts on the bosu ball are amazing for working the outer thigh! you just lie on it sideways, with your oblique resting on it, legs off. Raise one leg up to the ceiling keeping your toes pointing forward and lower. Do 20-25 each side, these will change your life.
My fav body part to work would be my shoulders and legs!! Love the burn I get from working shoulders!!
I WANT SUMMER SO BADDDDD
on another note, I really never knew that chickens could run around with their heads off! that painted a freaky picture in my head!!
love youuuu :)
OMG! What a traumatizing experience! I am so sorry you had to experience that. It is pretty gnarly, though ;)
I have legs like that, too. When I gain weight, they get bigger. When I lose weight, they hardly get smaller and when I work out, they get bigger again! It’s a lose-lose situation. BUT I have also grown to love my legs, big or not. They have carried me very far at this point- 10 miles, 13 miles, and hopefully more some day! I also need to try that workout =)
Bring on Spring!
xo
K
Bring on the heat!!! I need warm sunshine on my face.
I love my arms ever since I started doing yoga. They look much more toned…but still got some heybaby action going on. :)
Once you go gums, you’ll never go back!
I love the flavored Chobanis too, but I tend to mix them into the plain as the sugar content is a bit high — what are your thoughts?
mmmm heybabies. i like that term a lot.
i don’t really have a fave muscle – i am very un-toned but i do love working my back and shoulders in yoga because they seem to be the strongest part of me! yay.
i say BRING.ON.SUMMER.NOW.PLEASE. thank you.
That pulled chicken still looks ridic good. The countdown to your vacay is ON!
Hey! So glad you liked the article! I know what you mean about being busy, I don’t have a tropical vacation on my horizon, but I am running around like a chicken getting chased by a guy with an ax, if that counts ;) Lime is my favorite flavor…lime protein shake would be awesome….
I am sick of being cold! I need jeans and a tank top weather pronto! Also my favorite part of my body is my booty…very proud of the ass God gave me :)
1. up until a month ago I would have said my stomach, I’ve always had a lot of ab muscles with little effort. Now, sadly, I’m not too thrilled with any bits of myself, maybe post half marathon…..
2. Bring on the heat!!
a. when I met you I didn’t think you had big legs but I will say that I totally noticed the legs on the model in the workout shots, holy thigh muscles batman!
b. I need to purchase gums so bad, your smoothie pics/descriptions make me crazy jealous.
http://eatventures.wordpress.com
are you sure you just didn’t dye your hair black for those pictures? because i’m pretty sure you did dude.
hmmm i think my fav part is for sure my shouders. i work hard on them babies ;)
i neeed my xanthum to come in the mail! i’ve been using guar but i need the whole combo shibag!
WEIRD! I was thinking about how much I needed a good lower body workout today! I’m totally using these moves tomorrow! Thanks!
haha I love your random musings..they make me feel more normal ;) And I really do appreciate that you are still keeping up posting while getting ready for Jamaica, that’s dedication girl!
1. I love my upper arm/should region. It’s the most fun to work out, and it’s the part of my body that shows results the fastest.
2. Bring on the heat!
GREAT post!! Reaaalllyyyy liked the pics, it’s hard for me to visualize the mooooves just by reading the description! I completely agree with you about the muscle thing! I can squat 170lbs for 6-reps but my legs r still chickeny…and now that winter’s been here for too long they are pale! :) I would LOVE if spring came tomorrow! hehe. And my favorite body part is my Abs!! I hope you had a great day despite the rush rush! Don’t worry soon you will be LOVIN’ the sun and completely relaxing! xoxo!
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