Strong Sexy Shoulders

It's finally summertime! Time to wear shorts and flip flops; tank tops and halter tops! And nothing looks better in a sleeveless top than strong sexy shoulders.  Michelle Obama has great arms!

The shoulder muscle consists of the deltoids (lateral, medial and anterior) and the rotator cuff (provides stability).

Want to know how to get sexy shoulders like Michelle Obama? Here are some exercises to add to your routine:

• Push Ups:

Push Ups are a great exercise for your chest, arms and shoulders.  If the plank position is too challenging, you can do a modified push up on your knees until you build your upper body strength.

• Lateral Raise

Lateral raises help to shape the medial deltoid. Using dumbbells, raise your arms out to the side, lifting the weight no higher than your shoulders.

• Front Raise

A front shoulder raise is similar to a lateral raise. This will work the anterior deltoid. When raising the dumbbells, remember to not raise the weight higher than your shoulders.

• Shoulder Press

A shoulder press can be done on a machine or with dumbbells. I prefer dumbbells for most exercises as I think the machine doesn't allow me to use as many of my muscles. For an added challenge, try the shoulder press on a stability ball.

These exercises will help to shape your shoulders. Reward yourself with a sexy tank!

Turn it Up Tuesday

A friend of mine got me Kelis' CD. Since it's almost 4th of July, I thought this was an appropriate song. I am using in my spin classes this week.

Kelis-4th of July (Fireworks)

Leaving a fitness legacy

I have always enjoyed fitness. Of course when you are younger "fitness" includes playing outside and going to the playground. When I was in elementary school, my grandmother and I did a Jane Fonda aerobics album in the basement and joked about doing the first grandmother/granddaughter workout video. Ha! In high school I played tennis. In college I began to workout and lift weights. Being healthy is apart of me. As I raise my son, I hope to leave a fitness legacy. Being a parent is about leading by example. I want our son and future children to see me and my husband being active. We take family walks now (of course he is only in a stroller, but still) and I look forward to when we take family bike rides and hikes.

Who was your fitness motivation growing up?

Fit Momma Fridays

I am so inspired by other mothers who find time for taking care of themselves with all of the responsibilities of motherhood. Every Friday I will feature a Fit Momma who makes time for fitness. Let's meet:

Erika from Black Girls Guide to Weight Loss

Name: Erika Nicole Kendall


Children: One little Mini-me, aged 4... but I also have two giant dogs

Occupation: Blogger, www.blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com


Favorite Fitness Activities: Running, Yoga, Pole Fitness, Rollerblading

How do you find time for fitness?: I schedule it in just like I do everything else! If I can take an hour a day to tend to my daughter, I can take an hour to tend to myself!

Tips for other moms: Give yourself the opportunity to calm down, relax, breathe and focus on yourself for a little while. Spend time doing an activity that'll let you laugh, smile and regroup so that there's not a constant barrage of family driving you nuts!

Blog address: www.blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com

Are you a Fit Momma? Contact me to be featured!

Turn it up Tuesday!

Another different tune, but it has a fun beat. Enjoy!

Florence and the machines-Dog days are almost over

Hair raising workouts!

This post is for my African American sistas who love to workout and sweat! I have always worked out but now that I am teaching classes 5-6 days a week, I feel like I am sweating so much. And my hair...oh goodness my hair!

What to do with it? Now, I know this isn't a natural hair blog or beauty blog but my hair is crazy because of fitness, so I say it fits (hey, my blog, my rules!). I currently have natural hair that is to the base of my neck and I have been wearing it in a rod set. This is ok, but I need something new that will fit my active lifestyle. Cut it short? Add some extensions? What are the other sistas doing out there for their hair? Not working out is NOT an option.

Happy Fathers Day

Dedicating this post to my husband who is a great father to our son, Blake. Thank you for being a wonderful example to our son! This is a picture from last summer, but it's one of my favorites!

Fit Momma Fridays

I am so inspired by other mothers who find time for taking care of themselves with all of the responsibilities of motherhood. Every Friday I will feature a Fit Momma who makes time for fitness. Let's meet:

Amber from The Yeyo Diaries

Name: Amber

Children: Natalie, 6 months

Occupation: Meeting & Event Services Coordinator at a University

Favorite Fitness Activities: Right now I’m loving Zumba!

How do you find time for fitness? Luckily for me there’s a really nice gym at my job, so I try and take full advantage of that! I go right after work and try to get a good workout in at least 3-4 times a week.

Tips for other moms:

1) Change your mind set about getting in shape. Look at it as doing something good for your body and rewarding it for all of the hard work it does all day, every day!

2)  Take things slowly and start off with simple things like going on a 20 minute walk. Even when you don’t feel like it, you can stop and tell yourself, “It’s only twenty minutes!” Something is better than nothing!

3)  Understand that it takes time. The weight didn’t pile on overnight and it certainly won’t fall off that way (especially after having a baby)! Once I took the pressure off of myself, it became a lot easier to get used to being active.

4)  Don’t obsess over the scale. Granted, I do want to lose weight, but it’s more important to me that I live an active, healthy lifestyle for the long term…not just until I see that number go down.

Blog address:  http://theyeyodiaries.wordpress.com/

Are you a Fit Momma? Contact me to be featured!

Becoming a Fitness Instructor

If you love group fitness classes and have a passion for fitness, becoming an instructor might be for you. Of course teaching and being a participant are very different.  I have been teaching group fitness classes for about 3 months now, so I am not an expert. I have talked to some different twitter friends about becoming a fitness instructor so I thought I'd share the process I went through.

• Decide what classes you would enjoy teaching-I have always enjoyed spinning classes so I thought that would be a good place to start. I also enjoyed boot camp and strength classes. I checked to see what certification was necessary to teach these classes.

• Obtain a certification-Ask around at local gyms and other fitness instructors to find out what certifications are well respected in the industry. I got my Group Fitness Instructor Certification through ACE.  The program was a home study program. The test was taken at a local testing facility.  I also got my Spinning certification through Madd Dogg.  The spinning certification was done at an athletic club and involved classroom and on the bike learning. It was an entire day and the test is taken at home. Certain classes (spinning, yoga, etc) will require an additional certification. 

• Start applying for group fitness instructor jobs-I started with my local gym. I let them know that I was in the process of getting my certification. Most gyms are typically looking for subs. (You will typically start as a sub before being given your own class). I also found opportunities through Craigslist .

 Being a group fitness instructor is a great job to me. I get to workout and get paid! It is the best! If anyone has any questions, feel free to contact me.

Turn it up Tuesday!

I like a lot of different types of music. This one is a lot of fun, great energy!
The Ting Tings-That's not my name

A cry for help!

I am putting myself out there. My blog is called Fit Momma V. I love to workout. It has always been a passion of mine so I even decided to make a "career" of it by teaching group fitness classes. I am teaching about five times a week, so I am doing pretty good with my workouts. I try to squeeze in some workouts for me to run or do some strength training. However, my eating habits....sigh...could use some improvement. My appetite is crazy out of control!

My husband calls me the inferno because I eat so much but seem to burn everything off. So, yes, I am blessed with a great metabolism but I know I need to do better. I am asking you for your help! I need healthy recipes! Healthy snack ideas..anything. And I am not into those snacks that I have to get from super healthy stores and I need them to keep me full! Oh, and quick dinner ideas. I have an active 16 month old so not a lot of time in the kitchen.

Are there any blogs you like or any websites you go to for healthy recipes? Thank you for your help!

Fit (Greedy) Momma V

Fit Momma Fridays!

I am so inspired by other mothers who find time for taking care of themselves with all of the responsibilities of motherhood. Every Friday I will feature a Fit Momma who makes time for fitness. Let's meet:

Tiffiany Moore from Trainer Tiff

Name: Tiffiany Moore

Children: Garrison and Grant, 11 month old twins

Occupation: Certified personal trainer

Favorite Fitness Activities: I love to lift weights! I am continuously amazed by how lifting speeds up your metabolism, increases your strength, makes your bones strong and gives you a sexy physique! Recently, though I've been mixing up my workout routines. In addition to lifting, I also do Bikram hot yoga, Zumba and cardio on various cardio machines (my favorite being the StairMaster) and I love doing all of it!

How do you find time for fitness? I make my workouts a priority just like I make taking a shower a priority. Once I make it a point to get to the gym, I find time. My biggest challenge is making sure I have someone to look after my twins while I go to the gym. I usually leave early in the morning before my husband and the boys wake up. Other times, my husband will watch the boys while I'm working out. I even use the daycare at my gym when all else fails.

Tips for other moms: Schedule your workouts just like you schedule other activities for the day. If daycare is an issue, take your child(ren) with you -- take a walk or ride to the park, let the kids play while you find a spot to do a workout. If you chose to workout at home, do it before the kids wake up, after they go to bed or while they nap. If you have a baby, you can set the baby in a bouncer chair and let them be entertained by you while you do your workout.

Blog address: http://www.trainertiff.com/

Are you a Fit Momma? Contact me to be featured!

New Playlist!

I created a Beyonce/ Lady Gaga playlist for spinning this week and it was so much fun. We worked in the Interval Energy Zone and it was a great workout. People were singing along and smiling (and grunting!) Enjoy!

Song Title	Artist	Time	Comments	RPM
Alejandro	Lady Gaga	4:34	Pre-Workout
Crazy in Love	Beyonce	3:56	Warm Up	80-110
Poker Face	Lady Gaga	3:58	Add resistance. Running w/resistance during chorus	60-80
Single Ladies	Beyonce	3:15	Seated flat/Standing Flat (quick pace, cadence check)	80-110
Just Dance	Lady Gaga	4:02	Jumps	80-110
Upgrade U	Beyonce	4:33	Seated/Standing Climb	60-80
Bad Romance	Lady Gaga	4:21	Jumps on a hill	60-80
Get me bodied	Beyonce	3:26	Seated Flat, sprints, add resistance, sprints on a hill	80-110
Telephone	Beyonce & Lady Gaga	3:41	Seated Climb,  At 0:46 add resistance  2nd, 1:02 into 3rd. At 1:21 come back into 2nd, 2:10 normal pace in 2nd,2:41 go into 3rd	60-80
Run the World	Beyonce	3:56	Medium resistance, 1st minute in the saddle (increase cadence), isolation 1:21-1:41, standing flat, isolation 2:44-3:04, standing flat	60-80
The Edge of Glory	Lady Gaga	5:21	Seated Flat, Standing flat,	80-110
Déjà vu	Beyonce	3:25	Seated Climb, Standing Climb	60-80
Lovegame	Lady Gaga	3:41	Seated Climb (keep speed…add in 3 times)	60-80
Check on it	Beyonce	3:08	Sprints	80-110
Halo	Beyonce	4:24	Cool Down/Stretch
Dangerously in Love	Beyonce	4:53	Cool Down/Stretch

All about me!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU for your support of the blog these past three months. I am enjoying sharing my love of fitness with you and have enjoyed your comments and even reading some of your blogs.

This blog post is all about me! I am taking the advice of my fellow blogging momma and dear friend (and sister in love, Jasmine), who recently posted about Blogging for M-E.  So many great things have been going in my life with group fitness classes and I wanted to share. I have experienced an overflow of opportunities to teach classes. I remember in April I was excited that I had 9 classes to sub. Now, at the beginning of June, I am teaching 21 classes this month. Can you say abundance? I have 4 regular classes (be sure to check out the classes page to see where I am teaching  each week) and I typically sub at least 1 additional class a week. The biggest surprise to me has been the fact that I am teaching an aerobics class. I started out thinking, I am only teaching spinning, maybe boot camp, but I want something to hold on to. I am NOT moving across the floor! Well, God laughed at me and presented me with an opportunity to teach aerobics (I talked about this in Leotards, leg warmers and headbands, oh my!). At first, I will admit...I did not like it. I watched the clock, I felt uncomfortable and it wasn't fun to me. Then, I decided I would make it "my" class. I stopped using the mic (couldn't get comfortable bouncing around with that thing on) and got music I REALLY liked and we got it. People tell me they like my class and the energy is so awesome. This has become one of my favorite classes. I even am teaching another cardio class on Mondays at 8:30am at the Dearborn Racquet and Health Club.

Ok, its not that bad. But, this picture is hilarious!

Another class that has been a lot of fun is boot camp. I have subbed a few boot camps for one of my buddies at The Summit in Canton. Boot camps are a great total body workout and incorporate lots of different moves to get your heart rate moving. You move quickly from exercise to exercise and feel exhausted at the end of class. Canton is doing some outdoor boot camps this summer (I posted Sundays workout on Outdoor Boot camps). They are FREE so check 'em out!

I have also found with teaching so much, it can be tough to find workout time for me. I have been attending a running group with the Forum in Westland. They are doing the couch to 5K plan. It is nice to roll out (yes, I roll!) of bed on Saturday mornings for a 3-4 mile run at 7am. I am home by 8am before my son is even awake. Calories burned for the day? Check!

Thanks for reading and I will update you on me soon!

Turn it Up Tuesday!

I am not a huge Chris Brown fan after the assault with Rihanna, but I really like this song. I like the lyrics and it has a great beat. Can't wait to add this one to a spinning playlist soon.

Outdoor Boot Camp

 Canton Leisure Services is doing a Big Green gym promotion this summer. There are outdoor boot camps and sunrise yoga. This morning, I had the pleasure of teaching one of the outdoor boot camps at Preservation Park in Canton. There is a cute Farmer's market afterwards.

Walking Lunges



Mountain Climbers



Triceps Dips



Jumping Jacks





Here is the workout we did:

Circuit #1 (10-15 mins)

Run to barn
Walking lunge back
Run to barn
High Knees back
Run to barn
Butt Kicks back
Run to barn
Shuffle back
Repeat

Circuit #2 (10-15 mins) (do in a circle)

Jumping Jacks (30 sec)
Mountain Climbers (30 sec)
Down and Out (30 sec)
Football shuffle (30 sec)
Walk out Plank (5)
Run (barn and back)
Push ups (10)

Repeat 

Circuit #3 (10-15 min)

Crab Walk to barn Butt Kick back
Run to picnic tables
Triceps dips (10 dips)
Step Ups (10)
Run back to grass
Push Ups (10-diamond)
Skater Jumps (30 sec)
Repeat

Circuit #4 (7 min)

Plank
Plank with knee pull in
Swim/Superman
Plank with toe tap
Bicycle
Basic Crunch
Crunch with circles

Stretch (5-7 mins)

Great workout this morning!





 

Fit Momma Friday's!

I am so inspired by other mothers who find time for taking care of themselves with all of the responsibilities of motherhood. Every Friday I will feature a Fit Momma who makes time for fitness. Let's meet:



YumYucky, from Yum Yucky

Name: Josie, the Yum Yucky

Children: Greedy Kid #1 (18), Greedy Kid #2 (15), Greedy Kid #3 (6) and Greedy Baby (2).

Occupation: By day I pose as an administrator at a private financial firm. And by night? I blog and focus on my upcoming e-Book until the caffeine surge wears off. I’m also an Independent Team Beachbody Coach.

Favorite Fitness Activities: Plyometrics are my absolute favorite, but I’m also (finally!) finding my love for long runs by incorporating High Intensity Intervals, which helps to combat the boredom of a straight run at one steady pace.

How do you find time for fitness? It’s a decision. As a mom, there is never enough time for anything, let alone fitness. But I’ve created the healthy habit of getting up early to fit it in. I look forward to it. And my commitment to fitness continues throughout the day by making healthy food choices.

Tips for other moms: Make yourself a priority and have personal goals aside from work and family. Be good to yourself. Treat yourself well. Know that YOU deserve goods things. And then go after your goals with a relentless heart.

Blog address: http://www.yumyucky.com/

Are you a Fit Momma? Contact me to featured!

June Product of the month

Whew! It's June! Summertime is in full effect, finally! Can't believe it! Hopefully you are staying hydrated and are happy with your fitness progress you made over the spring.

The June product of the month is Nutrilite CLA 500. CLA stands for conjugated linoleic acid.  CLA helps to increase lean muscle tissue. I know many of you have been working hard and strength training. CLA can be a huge help to those who are all ready resistance training.

The product of the month is 10% off. Click here to order!