I know, I know, I said I was going to run on Monday night, but the truth is...I didn't.
It was cold. It was raining. My knee ached. I'd just run on Sunday. I could come up with all kinds of excuses. But what it really comes down to is that while I wanted to see my running group friends I just didn't feel like running.
*GASP*
In the past month I've read several articles and blog posts about the benefits of strength training and weight lifting. Charlotte at The Great Fitness Experiment is doing a weight lifting experiment for the month of November. And then I read an article in Self Magazine touting the benefits of weight lifting.
So instead of going and running when I didn't feel like it, I ripped the weight lifting moves out of the Self magazine and headed to the gym.
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For the most part I followed the workout exactly. The only change I made was that after the first round I upped the squats to 40 pounds from 30. Dealing with changing the weight amounts two times instead of three was easier and I already know I can squat more than 30 pounds. Some of the other weights felt too light but I didn't want to overdo it the first time. Next time I'll up the weights.
The whole routine took about 30 minutes and afterward I did 100 sit ups (25 regular crunches, 25 bicycle crunches, 25 oblique crunches, and 25 crunches with the stability ball), held a plank pose for a count of 60, did 5 push-ups (I hate push-ups), and a few other assorted things before hopping on the stationary bike for 25 minutes.
It felt good to break up my usual routine. Today I'm sore in a few spots and looking forward to lifting again. I think I may be one of those weirdos who likes strength training.
What about you? If you had to chose, would you choose cardio, strength, or something else?
My hamstrings and shoulders are a little sore today and I have a sore spot where I rested the bar while doing squats but otherwis
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2 comments:
I usually choose running above anything else.
I am considering this winter the off-season and cutting back running and upping my strength training.
I will have to give that workout a try! Because I think strength training is SO SO boring. I sometimes wonder if I would like it more at home. I feel rushed in the work gym becuase it is sometimes crowded.
Do you use those little scan things (for your smart phone) in the magazines? We look them up every once in awhile, and they often just go to the main site, when you would expect them to go to a specific article. Is that what this one did?
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