February Fitness with Ash

It's the end of the month (bring on the Spring!), which means that it is also time to have an update with Ash!  Just by looking at her instagram posts (@ashyness), and fitbit stats, she killed it in February.  Go Ash Go!

Ash is back with her take on how the month went...

The beginning of February was a bit of a struggle… I was working for a week in Montreal! Yes, it was a fitness conference BUT, I don’t get a lot of time to workout and let’s be honest, the food in Montreal is unbelievable (confession: I did have poutine… more than once #SorryNotSorry LOL)

Alright, I decided to change it up this month with more dance workouts!! I LOVE to dance and if you can get an amazing sweat on while dancing, then hey, count me in!!!

First was a freestyle dance class that myself and another presenter presented at the Montreal Conference I was working at… (so yes, I guess I got one workout in!!!).  It was a mixture of Latin, Jazz, House, Modern and an all out dance battle!! SO MUCH FUN!!!

I also decided to grab my buddy Kyle and do some Sh’bam workouts when I got home. Haven’t heard of Sh’Bam?? It is a dance class at GoodLife Fitness! There is also a mixture of styles that our sure to make. you. sweat! (and, nope… no dance experience is required for sh’bam, just show up and have fun!!)

Time Out: another note about me, I have started getting REALLY bad shin splints a few months ago!!! During a 10k race last September I pushed myself, they were unbearable but on top of that, during the last km a pain I can’t even describe shot through my left foot and up my leg (I did finish the race BTW… CH said she would carry me to the finish line if I wasn’t so much taller than her!! LOL). A few days later the pain didn’t go away, I was diagnosed after a few x-rays with a Stress Fracture, DOH!!! So, now I have to be careful that my stress fracture doesn’t turn into a full blow fracture…

Back to February…

After two weeks of dance workouts as well as some basic bootcamp workouts, CH and I decided to order Shaun T’s new T25 program!! (I love me some Shaun T – I have done Hip Hop Abs and Insanity in the past and LOVED them!!! Why not try this one???)

T25 is a high intensity program that is only 25 minutes a day, totally doable!! CH and I received the DVDs on Feb 20^th and promptly started the program on Feb 23^rd… we are one week in and loving every minute of it and I feel great!! (1 week of T25 down and 9 weeks to go… hoping this will help with my body transformation!!) I am still adding cardio (low intensity – damn stress fracture/shin splints) and bootcamp 2-3x/week!! 

2 months down, 6 to go until my 30^th birthday and to be in the best shape of my life… EEK!!! Bring on March… I am ready for you! (and warmer weather… come on Mother Nature!!)

Peace,

Ashy xx

[Fit Friday] Introducing, Ashy!

So, as I mentioned in my first post, I never was one to make resolutions.  But, after talking to my bestie about my personal goal of hitting 265 meals this year, she revealed some of her own fitness goals.  Together, we started brainstorming on ideas and how to help each other reach them.  So - we decided to work together on them.  

Ashy has been a long-time bestie of mine.  We met in 2002 in college, when it seemed so easy to stay fit - all the while eating whatever we wanted (hello, pizza pizza and shanghai noodles!).  

Our plan is that while I am posting about food and new recipes (and perhaps introducing some other lifestyle goodies into the blog), she is going to do a monthly guest post on her fitness from the month, which will allow her to reflect on the past months workouts.

This idea was, of course, discussed over a delicious greasy breakfast at our local all-day breakfast spot.  Mmm mm. 

So, introducing Ashy.  Long-time bestie and partner in crime!

I am turning 30 this year (*sigh*) and have decided to up my fitness game to hit my goals by my birthday on September 1^st… 

A little background on me; I have done sports all my life (baseball, basketball and dance – yes, dance is a sport), studied fitness and lifestyle management in college, am a Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor, teach CPR and work for the leading fitness certification organization in Canada! 

So, up’ing my fitness game should be easy, right?! WRONG!!! I am stuck in a rut and feel that I have done everything under the sun already but then a light bulb clicked when discussing this with a co-worker (her name is CH and yes, she has become part of the fitness game now).

We have decided that on our lunch hours, instead of going to the gym everyday to lift weights or go run the treadmill, we will try the old fitness trends and see what they were all about!!

In January, we tried Richard Simmons: Sweat and Shout and Tae Bo!!

Richard Simmons – LOVE, LOVE, LOVED IT!!! I have met him before, but never actually tried a workout! We searched YouTube (because who has a VCR anymore to play his videos???) and found a few options… we choose Sweat and Shout, which had a great mix of motown and fun moves! We thoroughly enjoyed the 1 hour workout, laughed, sweat and made the decision to do Richard Simmons workouts more often!! Such a great time!!!

Tae Bo – HATE, HATE, HATED IT!!! I seriously don’t know how anyone got in shape or motivated by these videos (sorry Billy Blanks). We started the workout with an optimistic outlook but about 5 minutes in, I wanted to shut it off… there was minimal music and they all just counted to 8 over and over and over again! But, CH said we have to push through and finish the workout (nice, thanks CH…) However, 20 minutes in we couldn’t take it anymore and went to the gym to run on the treadmill!!! Decision made – no more Tae Bo ever again!!

January is off to a great start and I am happy to say, I am 4 pounds down (sorry, not ready for an unveiling of the “before” picture just yet!!!)

Stay tuned for February’s post – CH and I plan to include more old school videos and hopefully, I drop a few more pounds!! WOOP WOOP!!! Having fun and getting one step closer to my 30^th birthday “be in the best shape of your life” goal (The name is still a work in progress – feel free to leave a comment with another option! lol) 1 month down, 7 to go!!! 

Peace,

Ashy xx