Category Archives: Fitness

Getting Closer To The Leaderboard (or I’m Almost In The Top 5)

Instead of focusing on my week of workouts at Orangetheory, I want to focus on what happened on Monday.

As I mentioned last week, there are now Monday challenges every Monday. And it’s my plan to do the challenge each week (I will be doing one today).

I missed the very first challenge because the trainer forgot to do the challenge in my class (it was a new thing so I’m not too upset). The second week I did the rowing challenge. And I walked in this past week with every intention of doing whatever challenge happened.

Then I found out what the challenge was.

It turns out that the challenge this past week was a treadmill challenge. You had to be at 15% incline (which is what I do when I do the “all out” segments on the treadmill) and you had to be at 6 miles per hour for the speed. And the goal was to be on the treadmill at that speed and incline as long as possible.

That’s not a reality for me.

I’ve been doing 3.1 or 3.2 miles per hour most of the time. Sometimes I can push myself to 3.3 or 3.4, but it’s tough. And as soon as I hear what the challenge was, I felt defeated. There’s no way that I can run at 6 miles an hour.

In class on Monday, we had a unique treadmill workout. The first and last segment were each 7 minutes long and we had to be at a push pace (which for walkers mean about 6% incline). For those 7 minutes, we were supposed to go as far as we could go.

The first 7 minutes I made it to .392 miles. I thought that was pretty awesome. Between the segments there was some regular interval work on the treadmill and then it was time for the next (and last) 7 minute treadmill segment.

I started at 3.1 miles an hour. I like that speed because it means if I maintain that for an hour, I can do a 5K. And my goal is to get my 5K time to an hour or less.

Then I decided to see if I could make it to .4 miles in those 7 minutes. So I decided to increase my speed every minute. I was fine up until 3.6 miles an hour. That was tough, but I felt like I was cutting it close to my goal of .4 miles.

So I decided to increase my speed every 30 seconds for the last 2 minutes. And shockingly, those last 30 seconds I was going 4 miles an hour! I can’t maintain that for very long, but I did it!

Those second 7 minutes I made it .408 miles.

I finished up the workout and while I was so proud of what I had done on the treadmill earlier, the challenge was still making me feel defeated. I joked to everyone that I will go 1 second on the challenge.

Finally, it was time for the challenge. I started to bug the trainer that it was completely unfair that there wasn’t a walking option for the challenge. After bugging him and the owner, they decided that my challenge would be 15% incline and 4 miles an hour.

The fact that I had just done 4 miles an hour on the treadmill for the first time in forever seemed to be fate.

I got it in my head that maybe I could make it a minute. So I decided that unless I fell off the treadmill, I was going to stay on there for that minute no matter what.

The first 15 seconds seemed easy. Then my legs started to feel like lead. But I was so damned determined not to quit until that one minute mark had passed.

As soon as the clock passed one minute, I thought for a moment about going more and then my hip popped out (it happens quite a bit and pretty regularly during workouts). It was clearly a sign that I had done all that I could do for that challenge.

I ended up making it 1:02. That’s passed my minute goal.

The next day, the results were posted. I didn’t make the top 5 for women, but I was only 30 seconds away. And shockingly the men did not do as well as the women. On the men’s top 5, I was tied with #5!

I tried to see the lesson in this. Obviously, I shouldn’t feel defeated until I try something. But I feel like there’s something more.

I’ve been looking at these challenges as something to do for me and not to be competitive. But both weeks I have not been that far away from making the top 5 list. If I really tried to push myself and not just do it to do it, I might actually make the list soon!

So that is my intention for the challenge today. I’m going into it with the mindset of a competitor. I want to see myself closer and closer to making it onto the top 5 list. And I know that sometime soon, I will be there.

Dri-Tri (or Suffering From Fear Of Missing Out)

This past Sunday was a really busy day for me. I started my day with a doctor appointment (post about that to come tomorrow) and I ended my day with a shift at one of my day jobs.

I did have an appointment to get weighed in for the Orangetheory Weight Loss Challenge and that was squeezed in in-between my other obligations.

While I was there for my weigh-in, the first Dri-Tri was going on. The Dri-Tri was a challenge that consisted of rowing, strength workouts, and a 5K on the treadmill (or 1.5 miles for power walkers).

I originally planned on doing the Dri-Tri. It sounded awesome and even if it took me forever to finish it, I knew that I could do it. But once I saw what my schedule was like for Sunday, I realized that it was going to be impossible to do the Dri-Tri.

I wasn’t too upset at first. I figured that I would totally do the next one. And since it was happening during my weigh-in, I was able to go inside the workout room and cheer on a friend of mine who was doing it.

On Sunday, I was fine when I got there. I did my weigh-in and then waited until there was an empty treadmill next to my friend so I could go and stand next to her and cheer her on as she finished the event.

And as soon as I got in there, I had a feeling of instant regret in not figuring out how to arrange my schedule so I could do the Dri-Tri. While everyone looked exhausted when they finished, they also looked so happy. And I wanted that too.

I stayed in there until everyone had finished and was getting ready to walk back to my car when I was asked if I wouldn’t mind taking the group photo so they could post it on Facebook. I was happy to help out.

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I’ve never felt such regret in not doing something. I’ve missed parties, movies, and other events because I couldn’t attend or I just didn’t feel like it. And I’ve always been ok with my decision. But this time, I still can’t shake the feeling that I was meant to do this event.

I know that there will be another one, and there’s no question that I’ll do it (and my dad might come down to do it too). But I’ll always know that I missed the first one.

Hopefully this feeling of missing out and regret will go away after I complete my own Dri-Tri.

Doing Some Challenges (or Mondays Are Going To Be Tough)

It’s been another week of workouts at Orangetheory, and this past week also marked that last week for the weight loss challenge. I had my weigh-in for the challenge yesterday and there will be a party next weekend where they will announce the male and female winner of the challenge.

Honestly, I don’t think I won. I had some setbacks over the past 6 weeks and my food has not been as good as it could have been. But the key for me is that even with all my setbacks (and some unexpected weight gain from the heat), I’m still a few pounds lower than I was when the challenge started.

This past week of workouts has been all about challenging myself.

This started with the newest thing that Orangetheory is doing: Monday Challenges. Every Monday at the end of each class there is a challenge that you can choose to participate in. I was exhausted after the Monday class, but I’m always down for a challenge.

This week, the Monday Challenge was a 500 meter row. I got off to a great start, but I overdid it. I was so tired by 300 meters and I had to take a few second break. I ended up finishing in 1:56.8, which I think it pretty amazing. My goal is to be at 30 seconds per 100 meters or less. So my time definitely fit into my goals.

They posted the challenge winners (the top 5 men and top 5 women) on Tuesday so I got to see it on Wednesday. I didn’t make it to the top 5, but I was happy to see that I was only 20 seconds away from that top 5. That’s not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

On Wednesday, it was another challenging workout. I always do the cardio portion of the workouts first because my hip issues seem to get worse after the weight training. So on Wednesday, I hopped onto the treadmill at the beginning of class like normal. Except this class it wasn’t going to be 30 minutes on cardio and then 30 minutes on strength. The cardio people went to strength after the warm up. Then after the first strength block, the sides switched (strength to cardio and cardio to strength).

I tried to go back to the treadmill but my hip kept catching. So after the second block of strength when we were sent back to do cardio, I tried the spin bike that they have in the workout room. I actually used it for 2 cardio blocks. It wasn’t bad, but it’s wasn’t as good as it could have been.

The pushes and all out moments in cardio are not as easy to set on the bike. And I didn’t have my spin shoes so I couldn’t clip in (there were straps to strap my feet into, but it’s not the same).

For the final cardio block, I sucked it up and used the treadmill again.

The workout week felt like it came full circle on Friday. It was a run/row day (which I love because it means less treadmill time). The first row section of the run/row was a 500 meter row.

I was a little scared to do that 500 meter row, especially in the beginning of the workout, because I knew how exhausted I was on Monday doing the challenge. So I tried to take it easy and I managed to do all 500 meters without taking a single break! It took me a little longer than 2 minutes to do it (I don’t exactly remember my time), but it’s almost more important to me to do the row without stopping than it is to do the row quickly.

I’m looking forward to the next Monday Challenge. As long as it isn’t a timed treadmill thing, I know that I can do it and have a decent chance on making it to the top people board. I guess I’ll find out what today’s challenge is when I go to workout in a few hours!

Training For A 5K Without Planning On Doing Them (or I Think I’m Only Doing 3 5Ks This Year)

I’ve been thinking a lot about 5Ks lately. I was on such a streak with them last year. And I’ve talked about why I’ve eliminated 5Ks as part of my goals for the year.

But I’m thinking about them a lot because I keep getting emails to sign up for them. Some of them are races that I did last year, and some of them are just random ones from one of the various mailing lists I’m on now.

The only 5K that I have planned to do the rest of this year is the Hard Rock one. I signed up for that as soon as it was available because it was a good race to do. And I was planning on signing up for the weSPARK race, but I got a phone call a few weeks ago to let me know that that race was cancelled.

But to be honest, I wasn’t sad that it was cancelled. It was almost more of a relief that I don’t have to do it if I don’t want to.

I am signed up for one race already for next year and that’s the Hollywood Half 5K. Again, it’s a fun course (or at least it should be) and it has a nice medal so that’s always a plus in my book.

But I am doing more training, or at least what I consider training, for my 5Ks this year than ever before. Pretty much ever class at Orangetheory I’m spending about 30 minutes on the treadmill. That’s about half the time it takes me to do a 5K. The only times I don’t spend that long on the treadmill are run/row days. But a majority of the time, I’m getting in my 30 minutes.

Since I never trained on a treadmill for the races before, I’m not sure if it’s helping or not. I know it isn’t hurting, but there’s something different when the machine is forcing you to go a certain speed. I know that I have my bursts of speed and my moments of slowing down in a race, but you can’t really do that on a treadmill.

I’ve got some time before the Hard Rock race so I won’t know how the treadmill training will have worked out for a while. But I am curious to see how my body reacts to the next race. And maybe if it’s a really positive response, I’ll sign up for more races for the future.

But for now, I’m just focusing on my regular workouts and not stressing about the 5Ks yet. I know that when the Hard Rock one gets closer I will have the same fear about not being able to finish and getting picked up by the sweeper van. That’s the risk in doing a 5K only race (there’s plenty of time for me to finish when some people are doing 10Ks or 1/2 marathons).

And I am considering finding alternative types of races or competitions to try. I know another blogger who does stair climbing races, but that’s not really a possibility for me with all my hip issues. But if any of you have suggestions for other race types events, let me know!

Another Week In Workouts (or Finally Able To Do Some Jumping Jacks)

First of all, if this post is a little crazy, I apologize. I’m writing this after having been up for 38 hours straight. I’ll write about that soon, but for now, I’m doing another weekly recap of workouts!

In my sleep deprived state, I really can’t remember a ton of specifics about each workout this week. But there is one thing that totally sticks out in my mind.

Pretty much since 2005, I haven’t been able to do jumping jacks. 2005 is when my hip issues started. And honestly I don’t know the time prior to 2005 that I ever did any.

Before my hip surgery, everything was just too painful to try any higher impact activities. And right after my surgery, I had to avoid them as the bone healed from where the bone spur was removed.

I had been warned for several years in follow-up visits that high impact activities can cause my other hip to go bad quicker or to need a hip replacement quicker. So I did modifications for most high impact things (or avoided them all together).

When I used to workout with Richard Simmons, modifications were easy to find. He would always do several types of modifications (including some for the people who worked out while in chairs). So I was fine doing them there.

At SoulCycle, it wasn’t as much modification, but more avoiding specific motions that aggravated my hips. Since I didn’t have to find a new way to do something, that was easy too.

But at Orangetheory, modifications aren’t always given (they are given a lot though). And sometimes I have had to remind the trainer that I’m not able to do that specific motion that they have asked us to do.

But as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been pushing myself to do more and more things. Part of it is that I’m getting stronger, and the other part is that I’m no longer living in fear of hurting my hips quicker (but I still am avoiding things like skiing or ice skating that are really dangerous for me to do). I’ve done jump squats (and it turns out I can jump pretty high!), plank jacks, and mountain climbers.

And for the first time this week, I did jumping jacks!

They weren’t pretty but they were done. I think we only had to do 10 at a time so that wasn’t too horrible. And I did take it easy on the second round of them.

But the point is that I did them! I’m sure if my hip surgeon is reading this he wouldn’t be thrilled about it, but like I said, I can’t live in fear of hurting my hips. I’ve pretty much been told that these other surgeries are going to happen eventually, so I can’t put them off forever.

I wish I could tell you more about the workout this week, but honestly my mind is so foggy right now (I’m writing this at 9pm on Sunday night and I’ve been awake since 7am Saturday morning). But I wanted to make sure that I got my Monday Workout Recap out to you all!

Mini College Reunion And Restricted Activity (or My Week In Workouts)

This week my workouts had some really awesome moments and some pretty annoying ones.

Let’s start with the bad so I can end on a positive note. Due to being sick this past week, my workouts became very tough to do. Not only was I feeling off, I had to restrict my activities to make sure that I was safe and not preventing myself from getting better.

First of all, the fluid in my ear was causing some dizziness. So I had to be super careful on the treadmill because I didn’t want to fall off. I reduced the speed I was walking and made sure to hold on to the handrails extra tight. Monday wasn’t too bad (because that’s when I was starting to have problems), but Wednesday and Friday were very tough. There were plenty of times I had to stop on the treadmill because the room was spinning around me and I was terrified I’d fall over. I had some issues during the strength portion as well, but it wasn’t as bad as the treadmill. For the strength, I only had issues when we transitioned from standing to sitting (or laying down) exercises.

I took it easy and I’m finally starting to feel better. Hopefully this week I will have much less dizziness.

The second problem was due to my throat. The ulcer/canker sore was extremely painful. And breathing heavily made it feel much worse (probably because my throat was getting dry). Trying to drink water felt like I was being stabbed in my throat, so I had to be careful with drinking water as well. So that prevented me from working out as hard as I could.

Even with these issues, I still averaged about 500 calories burned in each class, so that’s good. Going there and doing reduced activity is still way better than not going at all.

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Now for the fun thing that happened in my workout. On Monday, I went to a morning workout. This was due to the holiday (so there were no afternoon workouts that day). And in that workout, I ran into someone I went to college with and hadn’t seen in at least 10 years!

I thought I had seen her before, but not in the same class as me. I saw her name on the heart rate monitor screen (and she has a unique name so I was pretty sure it was her) but I didn’t see her when I was looking into the workout room.

So on Monday, when she walked in to the workout room, I stopped her to ask her if she had gone to LMU with me. And I’m shocked that she remembered me!

She was a couple of years ahead of me, but I met her in the first few months of college. I was in a student film I think in September or October of my freshman year, and she was in that film as well. We knew each other a bit through college since we were both in the theater world.

So it was so awesome to see her and get to catch up for a minute after class after not seeing each other for so many years! I’m not really in touch with a lot of people I went to college with so it’s nice to see people again randomly like that!

Overall, this week in workouts had its highs and lows. But like I keep telling myself, the most important thing is that I had a week of workouts!

First Week of Workouts After The Challenge (or Weird Workout Times)

So even though my Orangetheory challenge is over, I still think I’m going to blog about my workouts occasionally (or maybe continue the tradition of blogging about my workouts on Monday?). The only thing is, now that I don’t have to post photos on social media after every class, I have no photos from any classes this past week! It’s just so much easier to leave right after class to go home and shower instead of struggling to think of a pose for a photo.

With few exceptions, I’ve been working out at the same time every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. And I’ve only worked out on those days. But this week changed because life kind of took over.

This past Monday was the Primetime Emmys, and I knew I would be live-tweeting them. Since the show started at 5pm here in Los Angeles, I knew that going to my usual 4:15 class wouldn’t work. So I took the 12:15 class. That class was taught by Megan, who I had never worked with before. But JZ, who teaches the Wednesday afternoon classes I go to, happened to be working out during that class! So JZ and I worked out together during the strength section. That was pretty awesome!

Wednesday was a workout as usual during my usual time. Nothing special except that I was super sore from Monday’s workout and it seemed like all the strength exercises we had to do on Wednesday were working out the exact muscles that hurt. I struggled, but I pushed through as much as I could.

And this past Friday, I didn’t work out! Shocking, I know! I had a full morning of work and then an audition in the afternoon that I found out about on Thursday. When I called Orangetheory to move my Friday class to be later, they told me that the later classes were full and had full wait lists! This is why I sign up at least a week in advance for my classes!

But I did have some free time after my work shift on Saturday morning, so I had my Friday workout on Saturday. It felt pretty weird, but at least I got in my three workouts for the week.

What this past week proved to me is that I really am willing to find a way to get in my workouts, no matter what other scheduling issues that come up.

I know that this week will also be a little weird because of today being a holiday (there are only morning classes). But besides that, I think I will be able to make my other usual classes. And I know I’ll get in my three workouts!

After all, I’m still in the weight loss challenge and I want to win that!

The End Of My 8 Week Challenge (or The End Is Really Just The Beginning)

Last week was the end of my Orangetheory challenge. Well, it’s the end of my first Orangetheory challenge. I’m in the middle of the weight loss challenge they have going right now.

I remember the beginning of my challenge being so scared that I wouldn’t be able to finish or that I would somehow hurt myself. And I’m so happy to say that I did all 24 workouts in my challenge and I didn’t get hurt!

Monday’s workout was tough because there was a lot of lunge work. That’s a tough one for me because my hip flexors don’t always work the way that they are supposed to. Fortunately, the lunges were done while using the TRX straps, so that helps me keep my balance and takes a little pressure off of my hips when things start to hurt a lot.

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Wednesday’s workout was another killer. It had to be a killer because somehow my mind has blocked out that day! But I do remember that at the end of class, I was thinking about how much flexibility I’ve gained recently (I lost a lot of flexibility after my hip surgery), so that inspired my picture for that workout.

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Friday’s workout was a super awesome day. Not only was it marking the end of a challenge that I thought I’d never be able to do, my parents got into LA that day, so my dad decided to join me for the workout!

My dad has joined me for a couple of unique workouts. He came with me a couple of times to work out with Richard Simmons, he tried SoulCycle, and now he’s tried Orangetheory.

My dad works out pretty regularly, but he doesn’t really use a rowing machine. So he had been training on the rowing machine at the gym that he goes to to make sure he was ready for class. Of course, Friday’s class wasn’t a run/row day. There was a little bit of rowing, but not much.

My dad found the class really good and tough. There were several strength moves that he had never done before (including using the TRX straps) so he now has some new ideas for his own workouts.

It was super awesome to have my dad come to class with me. I wanted him to see what I had been doing for the last 8 weeks and I know that he likes checking out new and unique workouts. He’s not necessarily set in his ways with working out, but he is pretty traditional.

And of course, since my dad was in class with me, he had to be in my workout photo!

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Now that my first challenge is over, I have an unlimited membership to Orangetheory. I’m planning on still going every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and sticking with my usual 4:15 class unless there is a reason that I can’t be there in the evening (like tonight when I will be live-tweeting the Emmys!).

I’m not planning on adding a 4th Orangetheory class each week yet. But I am going to start using my exercise bike at home again (I was scared to use it before I was comfortable working out so often).

I really do see this as a lifestyle change. And that’s the best thing that could have come out of this challenge.

And if any of you want to come check out Orangetheory with me in LA, let me know. People can still take a free class to check it out!

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The top row of photos is 2 months ago. And the bottom is from this morning.

Stronger And Stronger (or Week 7 Is Done!)

Week 7 of my Orangetheory challenge was another week where I tested myself to see how far I could go.

First of all, I did get myself signed up for a membership so that I can continue to go 3 times a week once my challenge is over after this week. My plan is to continue with the Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule. That seems to be working well for me and it will fit in with my upcoming work schedule for the new day job.

To be totally honest, this past week of workouts was a bit of a blur for me. There were some run/row days that were tough and made my legs feel like jello. I tried to go faster on the treadmill, but my body wasn’t having it most of the time (I was able to push myself for a minute here and there, but not ongoing).

I continued to see how my body could do with trying to not to the modified workouts. I did burpees the right way (jumping my legs back and forward instead of stepping back and forth). I also did jump squats for the first time. Not only were they jump squats, they were unassisted (or without the TRX straps) jump squats. Those weren’t easy, but that workout only required doing 5 at a time so I managed.

I’m also picking up heavier and heavier weights. With the exception of some of the shoulder work, I’m no longer grabbing the 8 pound weights (which is what I started with). I’m now using the 10 or 12 pound weights depending on what strength move it is and how tired I’m feeling.

I’m doing better core work as well. I did some planks without shaking and did some crunches were you moved your legs and not your shoulders (I don’t remember what those were called) without having the do the modified workout.

I know that this isn’t the most interesting update about my challenge, but the fact that it isn’t interesting is what makes it interesting to me.

In the beginning, I remembered every single detail about every workout because everything was so new and weird to me. Now, it just feels like a part of my routine. I go in 3 times a week and put in my 1 hour. And during that hour, I push myself so hard that sometimes I wonder if I can make it through the workout. But I always do and I know that I’ll be back there doing the same thing again soon.

This is starting to become my new normal. Even with SoulCycle I never got this consistent. It never felt like a usual part of my day. Then, it felt like something special and unique. But to have it feel normal is so much better and makes me optimistic that this new habit of mine is something that I will continue to do for a long time.

Even though I don’t have specific stories to say about each workout, I do have my 3 photos to share with all of you.

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Getting Weighed In (or A New Orangetheory Challenge)

On Sunday, after recovering from my birthday parties, I went in to Orangetheory. This time, however, I was not there to work out.

I was getting weighed in for the start of the Orangetheory Weight Loss Challenge!

I’m still in my personal 8 week Orangetheory challenge (that goes through next week), but when I found out that there was a 6 week weight loss challenge, I wanted in. And when I found out that the male and female winners get $1000, I was totally in!

Because my weight loss has been slow, I’m trying to be cautious and just lose at my 2 pounds per week usual. The goal that was set for me was 15 pounds in 6 weeks. So that’s a little more than I’ve been losing, but it gives me something to strive for.

There are about 20 other women in the challenge (and only 7 men total), so there is a lot of competition. But I’m going to try my best and hardest and maybe I’ll come out victorious!

The weigh in process on Sunday was pretty simple. I had some paperwork to fill out and then I waited my turn for the scale.

I would have totally taken a picture of the weigh in, but it was done in the bathroom so you would have seen me standing on a scale next to a toilet. Not the prettiest picture.

The scale measured our weight (obviously), our body fat percentage, and the pounds of lean muscle mass that we have. For me, I want all of those numbers to be lower. I’d like my body fat percentage to be cut in half (the trainers there think that that is a very realistic long-term goal). And I’d like to keep as much lean muscle mass as possible (right now, I have 130 pounds of lean muscle).

After weighing in, there were some before photos taken (fortunately, not in the bathroom) and a quick interview about why I signed up for the challenge.

And that was it!

The rules of the challenge are that you have to work out 3 times a week (which I already am), be a member of Orangetheory (which I will be after next week), and pay a $25 entry fee (which I was fine paying because I don’t pay for classes yet and maybe I’ll get $1000 in return). Not too tough.

While I know that the weight will play a lot into who wins, I do want to see what I can do with my body fat percentage in 6 weeks. I did a little research online and it says that it’s recommended that people lose 1-2% of their body fat in a month. So I’d like to see maybe a 2-3% drop in my body fat percentage this month.

My scale at home only does weight. I used to own a fancy scale, but it died. I wanted something cheap, so I didn’t get one with a body fat measurement on it. I know that the scales with body fat and other measurements aren’t always accurate, but they are accurate against themselves. So maybe after these 6 weeks and getting weighed in on the Orangetheory scale, I’ll look into a nicer scale than the one that I own.

I’m halfway through the first week of this challenge, so I’ve got 5 1/2 weeks left. And in my original challenge, I’m coming up on the end of week 7! Holy moly! Time did really fly by!