Dumbbell Only Workout Routine: Weeks 3-4

It has been a while since I’ve posted about my new workout routine, so I figured I would share with you what I’ve been doing the last couple of weeks. I already explained in my last post that I am loosely following Jamie Eason’s Live Fit Program from bodybuilding.com. I am using her program for ideas on how to progress, but most of the actual exercises I found from other sources. For weeks 3-4 an extra day of exercise is added for the muscle group/body part you want to work more. For me, that is definitely legs, so I have been working them twice a week now instead of just once. This also means I am working out 5 days a week now instead of  4. This has been kind of difficult because I had to arrange my split so that my off days are on Tuesday and Thursday because I just don’t usually have the time or energy to do anything on those days.

This is my routine for last 2 (or more like 3) weeks. I haven’t really been following the number of reps strictly, but I did try to increase the weight I was using for each exercise, so I usually can’t do much more than 10 anyway. There are still some exercises that I am pitiful at and can barely handle more than 8 pound dumbbells. Mostly I’m referring to my puny triceps! I will be adding some cardio in the mix starting next week, so that should be fun.

The Melt Method

I also wanted to share with you guys a new experience I had today. I took a Melt class this afternoon. What the heck is Melt, you ask? Well, I didn’t have a clue really either until after today, so I will do my best to describe it. Melt stands for Myofascial Energetic Length Technique and it is basically a connective tissue self-treatment. In the class you use tools like foam rollers and balls to work out your connective tissue. Melt helps to improve pain, increase range of motion and mobility, and helps with issues like arthritis and plantar fasciitis. Anyone can benefit from Melt, even if you don’t really have any aches or pains like myself. It is kind of like a massage you give to yourself.

Check out this video that shows some of what we did.

 

Melt was a totally new experience for me, but I really enjoyed it. I will definitely be doing it more and will probably add foam rolling into my stretching routine.

For more details about Melt please visit this website.

Hope you all are having a fabulous weekend. And as always, thanks for reading!

Bows and Arrows,

Ashley

Dumbbell Only Workout Routine

As I have mentioned before I really prefer to workout at home. I had access to a really nice gym all throughout college, but because I have graduated I no longer have that luxury and I don’t want to pay for a gym membership. In the past I did a lot of workout DVD’s and did most of my cardio outside on the trails near my house with my dog Rose. In my last post I told you guys I wanted to start a new workout challenge that was more focused on weight training. I came up with a workout schedule that I really like so far. I wanted to try working out without a DVD to guide me, so I made a schedule for myself by gathering inspiration from a couple different sources. Because I don’t have a gym to go to I started my workout planning by first looking at what equipment I already have so I know what exercises I can/cannot do. Luckily, I have access to my boyfriend’s weights and weight bench in addition to the “girl” hand weights I’ve purchased over the years. We also have an exercise bike! I set everything up in the garage and now we have a designated workout space. Pretty awesome!

Because I only have dumbbells I knew that my workout needed to require minimal equipment. I found this great dumbbell only workout schedule from the Muscle and Strength website that I tweaked a little, but ended up using pretty much all of the exercises in my schedule. I also came across this really great blog post written by a female college athlete about this program she did from Bodybuilding.com called Jamie Eason’s LiveFit Program. The introductory video struck my interest, so I decided I would somewhat follow the LiveFit program too, but by doing different exercises using my own equipment. Jamie’s hatred for tons of cardio is what really won me over, I think! I plan on combining these two sources to create my own workout schedule that will vary every few weeks.

This is the schedule for the first two weeks.

It looks very similar to the 3 day split I found on the muscle and strength website with a few slight differences. I decided to combine chest with biceps (instead of chest/triceps) and back and triceps together (instead of back/biceps). I tried the chest/triceps and back/biceps combination at first and I did not like it, so I changed it. I also gave legs a day to themselves and added a fourth day for shoulders and abs. Demonstrations of all of these exercises can be found on Youtube or the muscle and strength website.

I am on week 2 and so far I am really loving these workouts. I look forward to going in the garage, cranking up the music (Pandora workout stations!) and dancing around like a fool in between sets. And now some dorky selfies….

I am not an expert at designing my own strength training schedule, so if you see something I have left out (or neglected to workout effectively) PLEASE let me know. I will not be offended. I will be back in a week for another update! Thanks for reading!

Bows and Arrows,

Ashley

 

A New Fitness Challenge

Hey guys! So, I have to confess that I am a failure. I gave up on my last little fitness challenge because I realized towards the end that I was not really getting the results I wanted. This realization lead me to thinking about what I was really trying to change about my physique in the first place. I really thought hard about what my fitness goals are. I have always just said to myself, “I just want to be fit and more toned,” but what does that even look like?

To some people that looks like this:

For others that statement may look more like this:
In my opinion all of these women look healthy, beautiful, and “fit” on some level. But, what do they all have in common? The answer, CONFIDENCE! 

Now, I know confidence is a state of mind, but I also think that you are the MOST confident when you feel comfortable in your own skin/body. Not the body that society tells you that you should have, but the body that YOU feel comfortable with. For me, confidence equals feeling strong and feeling strong equals MUSCLES! I’m not talking Ms. Schwarzenegger strong (not that there’s anything wrong with that), but a little muscle makes me feel pretty badass, not gonna lie.

😉

The thing is, I like doing cardio workouts occasionally, but I have always felt the best when doing strength training. BUT, for some reason for years I had it in my head that women can’t train the same as men. I remember discussing weightlifting with my boyfriend some years back and he would always encourage me to try the workouts he did. I would always say no, because I didn’t want to have huge, manly muscles. I just wanted to be “toned” and in my mind that meant tons of cardio and long drawn out total body workout DVDs. Don’t get me wrong, I still love my workout DVDs! Even though I have read many articles in the past that tried to convince me that my fear of becoming Incredible Hulk was unwarranted, I was stubborn. Throughout the past year or so I have spent some time researching exercises, workout programs, and fitness in general. Even though I had heard it many times before, it wasn’t until I read up on testosterone (and physiological differences in men and women) that I started to actually believe it. It has been a long process, but I now know that weight lifting is something I should have been incorporating into my workout routine a long time ago in order to achieve my fitness goals.

I have gotten great results from DVD’s in the past, but I feel like I need to do things differently to see the change I’m looking for. Most DVD’s I have done have focused more so on muscular endurance while never really progressing to muscular hypertrophy (Enlargement of skeletal muscle fibers in response to overcoming force from high volumes of tension). To build noticeable muscles you must put down the 8 pound dumbbells and pick up something a little heavier. Heavier weight and fewer repetitions and you’ll have muscles popping up in no time (well, it will take some time). :-p

So I have decided to switch things up completely and do something out of my comfort zone…no DVD’s, just weights, a weight bench, and my body. I hope you all will follow me on this new little workout challenge. I will continue to post weekly updates about my workouts and progress. My next post will describe what I am doing in detail, so be sure to check back for that. If you want to read more on weight training for women here is an article that breaks it all down for you and is an easy read.

Thanks for reading!

Bows and Arrows,

Ashley