The return of Workout Wednesday!!!

Good evening all!  Well, my resolution of posting every day didn’t last very long. I’m in the midst of transitioning Bubber to the preschool that Little Gronk attends, but I’ve been trying to introduce him piecemeal – an afternoon here, a morning there. I will say that Bubber seems perfectly happy there and it’s more my own anxiety trip that has led to my crazy driving back and forth and commuting.

Also, there’s gardening.

Also, multiple book reviews.

Also, at least one film review of a movie that I thought was just plain awful.

Also – Workout Wednesday!!

So, I’ve run exactly one 5K in my life: the Wounded Warriors / Operation Giveback run/walk/roll on May 11, 2013. I ran it in a hair under 30 minutes, which made me super-happy. And obviously it was for a great cause.

A month later I got pregnant (again). A month after that the fatigue hit me HARD, and I went from doing three miles on the treadmill to panting when I walked up stairs.

And so, yet again, I’m starting the Couch to 5K training app. This is the app I used to get me up to three miles; and then again, after I had the stupid foot injury take me offline for a YEAR; and then AGAIN, once I had recovered from birthing Little Gronk. Slow and steady makes one able to race!

Before I introduce this week’s songs, I would like to state for the record that if you’d told me my favorite radio station would be Christian Rock, I would have laughed in your face. Laughed so hard I choked. Laughed so hard I’d be rolling on the floor. Laughed so hard they’d have to sedate me and cart me away for observation.

But I *DO*. I love it.

My station is 106.3 The Rock – “positive rock alternative.” What that means to me is:

1) No commercials

2) Really great rock music that I don’t hear anywhere else

3) No swear words when I’ve got kids in the car. (Bitch, whore, sex, etc.)

And it really is VERY good music.

So here are your three songs to inspire sweating this week: (Just listen to the music. I’ve no idea what the videos show.)

1) “Unless” by Everfound:

2) “Electric Ladyland” by Kingsdown

3) “Off with her Head” by Icon for Hire

Happy Exercising!!

Workout Mix Wednesday *UPDATED*

Good morning all! My computer is apparently as sleepy as I was, seeing as how it’s frozen Firefox twice so far. I’ll update this post later with this week’s songs, but I gotta run off to the gym now!

UPDATE: Poof!  Mike wasn’t kidding, the second week is noticeably harder than the first week.  Week 1 was almost like a gimme — perhaps because I haven’t *actually* just been sitting on my couch — while Week 2 made me puff.  Add that to the fact that I haven’t worked out since Friday and I fought a stitch in my side with every running segment.  On the upside, I increased the running segment speed to 8:34 miles, with the last segment going at a 8:00 mile pace.  Week by week, that’s how we’ll get it done!  

Five more songs for you to run away with:

1. Istanbul (Not Constantinople) by They Might Be Giants – such a silly little song!  Ahh, the 80s . . . (Didn’t these guys also do Triangle Man?  I distinctly remember that cartoon.)
   [apologies for any repeats — I don’t have access to my song log right now]
2. Say It Right by Nelly Furtado
3. Lady Marmalade from the Moulin Rouge soundtrack (a movie I have never seen; anyone particularly love it or hate it?)
4. Magic Carpet Ride by Steppenwolf
5. Still Frame by Trapt

Happy Exercising!

Workout Mix Wednesday

Good morning everyone!  Today I’ve got two Official LookingForLissa product endorsements for you!

1) The Vibram Five Fingers.  I’ve only done two runs with them so far, but they don’t hurt my feet (my biggest worry) and I’ve noticed a lot less tension/pain in my shins and my arches.  They also make me notice the clunkiness of my gait — I feel like I’m going WHAM WHAM WHAM instead of smoothly transitioning from one foot to another.  Something to work on!

2) The C25K (Couch to 5K) program.  Again, I’ve only done two runs so far, but I really like the clear aural cues for running/walking, the simplicity of the program’s layout, and the fact that I can import my own music.

And speaking of music, here are the five songs rockin’ my iPod this week:

1. Bodies by Drowning Pool – Rawrrr!  ANGRY music! RAWR!!!
2. Dragula by Rob Zombie – This one makes me think of The Matrix and how I want a body like Trinity’s.  (And remember — there was only one Matrix movie.  The others didn’t exist.)
3. Feel Good by Gorillaz – Great beat, and if you’ve ever seen the video you can think on the weird-and-funky gorilla cartoons.
4. Te Aviso, Te Anuncio (Tango) by Shakira – Don’t ask me why the Spanish version is better than the English version; I don’t know why, it just is.
5. Hey Jealousy by Gin Blossoms – If you’re around my age, you know every word of this song without bothering to think about it, and you can sing along even when you’re completely out of breath.

Happy Exercising!

Workout Mix Wednesday

Good morning everyone!  Man, my bed was sooooooo warm and cozy this morning and Mike hadn’t woken up and The Rajah was pinning down my legs and the LAST thing I wanted to do was get out of bed and throw on my sweats.  But alas, time and tide and bikini season wait for no woman, though sloth and laziness wait with pleasure.

So what’s on your iPod this week?  Here are my top five:

• Misery Business by Paramore – Yeah angry-girl-music-that’s-not-really-angry!
• Walk the Walk by Poe – Found this one on a Food Network ad
• Don’t Stop the Music by Rihanna — PERFECT beat for fast-and-hard ellipticaling/pedaling/whatever
• Boom by P.O.D. – This was used in an ad for the US Open back in ’02 or so, and every time I hear it I slam my feet down to the rhythm of aces and forehand winners.
• Rag Doll by Aerosmith

What songs are making you shake your bonbons this week?

Workout Mix Wednesday

Good morning everyone!  Are you drinking your coffee and perhaps nomming a piece of fruit?  Are you ready to head off to the gym for some weightlifting or cycling or elliptical-ing?

Need a hand getting that heartrate up?  Try these five songs:

1. Hey Mama by the Black Eyed Peas — You don’t need a butt or legs like Fergie Ferg to use this song, but it might help you get there!
2. Paralyzer by Finger Eleven — Rather than paralyze you, it’ll get those feet pounding!
3. Crazy by Gnarls Barkley
4. Gloria by Laura Branigan — ahhhh, the 80s!
5. Last, but one of my personal favorites: Malaguena Salerosa, performed by Chingon.  I’ve watched the extras of Kill Bill II a bunch of times; Chingon’s live performance of this song generally makes me dance and skip about the living room, perhaps shadow-boxing as I go.  Sadly, it looks like it’s now only available on Amazon if you buy the whole album.  (But that album does rock!)

What’s in your headphones today?

Workout Mix Wednesday

Good morning all!  So, as is my wont, I went through a lovely period of going to the gym every day — including weekends — before falling back into sloth.  However, with Mike’s return I am bound and determined to make another stab at habitual exercise.  Charge!!!

I’ve found that the right songs make all the difference to me when it comes to working out.  Fill up my MP3 player with new, fast, fun songs, and 45 minutes on the elliptical goes by like nothing.  Listen to old, stale songs, and I wash out before 30 minutes.  Likewise, I’ve found that listening to the same song too often reduces its butt-kicking usefulness.

So what’s on your workout mix?  What songs do you use to keep you upbeat and sweating?

Here are the top five on my list this week:

1. Shipping Up to Boston by the Dropkick Murphys — if it’s good enough to make Papelbon dance, it’s good enough to make you run!
2. Dig by Incubus
3. Say It Right by Nelly Furtado — something about this beat is perfect for elliptical-ing
4. It’s the End of the World As We Know It by R.E.M. — you don’t have to know all the words to make this an effective gym song, trust me.
5. Black Betty by Ram Jam — bam-a-lam!

What songs get your heart kicking in the morning?