This morning after Eric left for work, I buckled down and tried a new workout. I’ve not been making it to the gym with the teaching schedule and everything else and have been feeling quite lazy and in need of exercise. I’ve been trying to figure out a workout that I can do quickly and at home to minimize the amount of time I’m spending on working out. If I go to the gym, it’s at least a 2 to 2.5 hour time commitment with travel time, parking, etc. I really want a workout routine that I can sustain over a long period of time, instead of doing it for a few months and burning out because it takes so long and life gets in the way. When I took a few of the students from my class to the pig sanctuary a few weeks ago, I was lamenting the problem of carving out time for working out and one of my students recommended Jillian Michaels’ workout videos. They are only 20 minutes per workout and she said that it was so hard she could barely make it through one. Usually I am NOT a fan of workout videos because they’re long, boring and the same every time. But I thought, “what the hell! I’ll try anything at this point!”. Before leaving for New York, I ordered two of the videos online and they arrived while I was away. I bought the “Thirty Day Shred” and “Ripped in 30”. Each DVD contains 3 or 4 20-minute workouts (respectively) and the workouts get progressively more intense as you progress and build up stamina and strength. I started with the first workout on the “Thirty Day Shred” and it practically killed me. The workout is designed on the 3-2-1 system, which means 3 minutes of strength training, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs. You do 3 sets of 3-2-1 and then you’re done. It’s been so long since I’ve done a tough workout that it completely wiped me out. I took a nap and then made some chia pudding, which made me feel a million times better. Here’s the recipe below. Eric thinks the chia pudding looks nasty and maybe it does. But it tastes damn good and it is very stabilizing and filling! Note: chia seeds can be purchased online, at health food stores, or at places like Whole Foods or food co-ops. The jury is still out on the workout system–it’s just been one day, afterall–but I’m going to try to do it for 30 days and see how it goes.
The Recipe
Serves 1
1/4 cup chia seeds
3/4 cup rice milk (or other nondairy milk)
1/2 banana diced
sprinkle of cinnamon
1/4-1/2 tsp agave (optional)
Stir together the chia, cinnamon, and rice milk. Stir in diced banana. Add agave if you want it a bit sweeter (totally up to you). Wait for 20 minutes or so, stirring occasionally until the seeds turn into a pudding texture. Eat up!
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