Month: November 2014

Working Out Week 47 of 2014

November 22, 2014 kimberlee

This past week I decided to cut back to four workout days per week instead of five like I have been doing. This time of year is so busy with the holidays I decided that I need try out a different schedule and see if I can accomplish some extra things on non workout days.

Also, this past week my computer died – the mother board and processor totally quit and I had to get a new laptop and I am still learning it and reloading my programs on it. What a week it has been! I was upset for a couple of days about my computer dying but thankfully my husband is a computer expert and helped me get a new one and get all my data off of the old one – at least it wasn’t totally lost or I would have been even more upset.

Workouts this past week:

Monday- Cathe – Low Impact Circuit Total Body Sculpt premix – 47 min.
Tuesday – off
Wednesday – Cathe – To the Max – Less Impact premix – 39 min.
Thursday – off
Friday – Cathe – Cross Fire – Circuit Blast premix- 36 min.
Saturday – Shiva Rea Surf Yoga Soul – 25 min.

The Low Impact Circuit workout is a combination of cardio and weights but I did the premix that was just the weights and total body workout. There are lots of great exercises to really challenge your muscles on this dvd. As you can see the cat was around – see his ears and little head in the bottom of the one photo?

The Cathe Cross Fire workout I did on Friday was a fun circuit workout that has cardio and weights. Lots of sweat after this 36 minute session. As you can see the cat sat in the same spot for most of the workout watching me.

The yoga workout I did today, Saturday, was the Shiva Rea Surf Yoga Soul dvd – the first dvd I ever bought of hers years ago. I did three segments of this workout – the Mandala Namaskar, Flexibility Flow and Shavasana. I love doing yoga on Saturday mornings- I think I have mentioned that before. It is a great way to begin the weekend.

Weekly Fitness Tip – Use portion control when eating holiday meals

– Use a smaller plate so you are less likely to overeat

– Remember to eat more vegetables and fruits – especially green vegetables and go easy on the potatoes, stuffing and breads

– Eat foods without gravy or heavy sauces or have a very small portion of them

– If cooking the meal yourself try using lower fat options in some recipes to cut back on the fat and calories – for example use 1 or 2 percent milk instead of whole milk

– Do not go back for second helpings

– Don’t skip dessert but make sure it is only 1 piece of pie and not 2 or 3 – also, skip the whipped cream or use a small amount

I hope everyone had a great week and that you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving next week. Also, don’t forget to get some workouts in – especially the day after Thanksgiving day – even if it is just a good long walk – keep moving and you will stay fit.

Have a great weekend!

– Kimberlee

Categories: Exercise Health

Tags: fit tips, fitness, fitness tips, weekly workout, working out

Handmade Holiday Giveaway

November 21, 2014 kimberlee 1 Comment

Today I’m over at Skip to My Lou as part of the Bake Craft Sew & Crochet Along. I am sharing a wonderful crochet pattern perfect for holiday gift giving.

Click HERE to take you to Skip To My Lou blog for the pattern.

In fact, you won’t want to miss all the handmade gift ideas! I have joined over 100 bloggers to share some amazing homemade gift ideas……..AND I get to be part of an amazing giveaway too. Keep reading…

You can enter to win a $300 Michaels gift card. Yes, you can buy yarn until your heart is content! Follow along with us and you can enter to win each day!

Just wait for the rafflecopter to load and get ready ……

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Categories: Crochet Giveaways

Tags: Crochet, crochet cowl, gift card giveaway, handemade holiday

Working Out Week 46 of 2014

November 15, 2014 kimberlee

The workouts I chose to do this week focused on weights and then yoga on non weight days. Workouts were as follows:

Monday – Cathe High Reps Upper Body Premix – 39 min.
Tuesday – off
Wednesday – Cathe – Drill Max Total Body Mix – 52 min.
Thursday – Shiva Rea AM Daily Energy – 28 min.
Friday – Cathe – High Reps Lower Body Premix – 35 min.
Saturday – Shiva Rea AM Daily Energy – 28 min.

The Cathe High Reps workout dvd is a total body workout with weights and you do a lot of reps of the same exercise but with some count variations or holding. The workout has several premixes and I did the upper body premix on Monday and the lower body premix on Friday, so I used this dvd twice this week. You definitely feel this workout the following day – excellent for muscle conditioning.

Drill Max is an older Cathe dvd and is another total body conditioning workout. It actually has cardio mixed with various drills of weights but there is a premix that is called Total Body that I used which is just the weights and no cardio. You can see my personal trainer – the cat – cheering me on while sitting on my workout step in the one photo above.

I used the same yoga dvd twice this past week – the Shiva Rea AM Daily Energy. I did different sequences on the dvd – on Thursday I did the Core Awakening and Body Mandala and had both of my cats join me for that one – they were both waiting for me on either end of the mat before I started. On Saturday I did the Vira and Shavasana sequences. I love starting my Saturday morning with a little yoga early in the morning.

I have been buying fresh cranberries in large quantities lately from Aldi since they are so inexpensive there. Anyhow. I made some cranberry sauce the other day and have enjoyed it a couple of times this past week in my morning oatmeal with a little honey. It is a great way to start the day and the oatmeal keeps me full for hours. Also, it has been quite chilly here in Texas this past week and having something warm for breakfast is important on chilly days, in my opinion.

CranApple Juice with cider spice and honey — Fresh Cranberry Apple Juice with 1/2 tsp cider spice mix and 1 tsp manuka honey

I have been using my juicer but not quite as much this week – probably due to the colder weather. I did decide to heat up a juice I made with fresh cranberries and apples and then add some cider spices and a teaspoon of manuka honey – it was a delicious warm drink on a cold day. Also, the whole combination made me feel very healthy.

As the holiday are quickly approaching I am going to try my best to workout at least four or five days per week. I am thinking of cutting back to four for the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas just because there is so much going on between family, church, friends, baking, cooking and shopping. I have decided that I can’t do it all, all of the time. Therefore I may even skip a week of my weekly workout post if I am just too busy – I am sure everyone can relate.

Weekly Fitness Tip: Change your schedule or routine as needed

– This is a busy time of year – don’t completely quit working out but adjust your schedule to fit in at least a few workouts per week or maybe two 10 minute workouts per day – one in the morning and one in the evening

– Do circuit training or Hiit – high intensity interval training – to get the most out of your workouts in a short amount of time

– Working out will help you deal with the stress of the holidays better and keep you focused on being healthy during this time of year

– Remember to include some yoga or stretching workouts to de-stress and balance you

I hope everyone had a great week and is staying warm – winter seems to have come early in most parts of the United States this past week. Let me know what your workout plans are for the next week or for the Thanksgiving holiday week coming up.

– Kimberlee

Categories: Exercise Food Health

Tags: cranapple juice, exercise, fitness, oatmeal, weekly workouts, working out, workout with weights, yoga

Knitting Project Blue Lace Cowl

November 13, 2014 kimberlee 1 Comment

Life has been so busy lately it seems. I look back at the past month and realize I have not really accomplished much in the crochet and knitting department. One of the reasons may be because I have a lot of projects going – two crochet and three knitting – and I work on one for a day or two and then on another one. I think I am going to have to start focusing on finishing one thing before starting another. The problem with that plan is I get tired of working with the same yarn so I switch – or I think of some great new idea or find a new yarn that I want to use. The dilemmas of crochet and knitting, I guess.

I did recently finish this pretty blue lace crochet cowl. I love how it turned out!

I designed this knitting project myself and I am really pleased with the finished product. I showed it to my knitting friend today, who I meet with twice a month to knit and have coffee, and she really liked how it turned out. She had seen me knitting it a week ago when it was still on my needles.

The cowl is versatile and can be worn long – as show above – or doubled for warmth as in the top photo. The yarn I used to knit it with was something I had bought over a year ago and had in my stash – Red Heart Boutique Midnight. The yarn color is called moonlight and has shades of dark blue and some silver sparkles in it. It was easy to knit with and has a nice drape.

The above photo gives you a close up of the lace stitch and you can kind of see the sparkles in the yarn. I designed this cowl to be knit in the round so there is no seaming. I will eventually be offering the pattern available in my etsy shop and on craftsy in the future.

Next week I plan to share a crochet project and pattern on my blog and as a guest post on Skip To My Lou blog. I hope you are having a great week and getting more projects accomplished than I have lately.

Take care,

– Kimberlee

Categories: Knitting

Tags: blue cowl, knit cowl. knitting project, knitting, lace knitting

Working Out Week 45 of 2014

November 8, 2014 kimberlee

The first full week of November has gone by – hard to believe it will be Thanksgiving soon. My workouts this week were cardio and yoga workouts. The workouts I did are listed below:

Monday – Cathe Friedrich Party Rockin Step 2 – Step Mix – 46 min.
Tuesday – off
Wednesday – Cathe Intensity Timesaver #6 Step + Hiit Lo – 47 min.
Thursday – Shiva Rea Yogini – Backbend sequence – 30 min.
Friday – Cathe Party Rockin Step 2 Timesaver 1 – 33 min.
Saturday – Shiva Rea Yogini – 19 min.

Intensity is a Cathe workout that I have had for several years but had not used in a while. I really like this dvd and there are lots of premix options so you don’t have to do the entire dvd. The workouts are fast paced and fun and as you can see even my cat likes to watch them – he sat there right on the TV stand and watched the video for at least 5 minutes. After I was done using the step and doing the stretch at the end he decided to jump on and off and try to go under the step – which was too low. I guess that was his version of the step workout.

The yoga dvd I used this week was the same for both days but different sequences. The dvd was Shiva Rea Yogini. This was another dvd I had not used in a while and was so glad I pulled it out this week. It is more of a female yoga routine and I love all the backbending sequences – I really felt this in my core on Friday.

The Party Rockin Step 2 dvd is a little over a year old and I have used in the past. I chose to do this one twice this week. This is another dvd that offers a lot of variety and different premixes so both of the mixes I did were different. Lots of sweating with this step dvd. As you can see the cat is once again photo bombing in the one picture.

I created a new oatmeal recipe for breakfast and ate it a couple of mornings this past week. The weather is cooler now – especially in the morning – and it is nice to eat a warm bowl of oatmeal. I found this Jif Whips Pumpkin Pie Spice at the store the other day and decided it would be good stirred into a bowl of plain oatmeal and I also added a teaspoon of Manuka honey for added health benefits. This was really good and I will be making more in the weeks to follow.

I am still using my juicer but not as much in the past week. I guess with the weather cooling down I am looking for warmer things to eat and drink in the morning. I have found a few juice recipes though that taste good warmed. One of my favorite recipes lately is cranberry orange juice which is pictured above. I drink this one cold, not warm. Now that cranberries are in season I have been buying them frequently and using them in my juice recipes. Cranberries are so good for you.

Weekly Fitness Tip: Eat More Fiber

– Fiber makes you feel full longer and helps you maintain a healthy weight

– Fiber is good for your digestive system and keeps you regular

– Fiber is very healthy and good for lowering your cholesterol

– Fiber controls your blood sugar levels

I hope everyone had a great week.

– Kimberlee

Categories: Exercise Food Health

Working Out Week 44 of 2014

November 1, 2014 kimberlee 1 Comment

The first day of November has arrived along with much cooler temperatures here in Texas. I am glad though – I am ready for a seasonal change. It seems like the weather was cooler for a few days here and there in October but for the most part it still seemed like summer.

Workouts this week were all from my Cathe Friedrich X-train dvd set. They were as follows:

Monday – Cathe – Hard Strikes – 46 min.
Tuesday – off
Wednesday – Cathe Supercuts premix 10 – 39 min.
Thursday – Cathe – Legs – Barre, Ball and Chair and Floorwork – 48 min.
Friday – Cathe – Tabatacise – premix 2 – 37 min.
Saturday – Cathe – Bi’s and Tri’s – premix 6 – 32 min.

I once again changed my pace of workouts from the past week. The X-train dvd’s are all great and provide a challenging workout for your body. I also like how these dvd’s have so many premixes on them so you can do a longer or a shorter workout.

Hard Strikes is a super fun kickboxing workout that uses weighted gloves or actual boxing gloves. I don’t have any boxing gloves so I just use the weighted gloves. As you can see the cat likes this workout and is making sure I get it done.

The Supercuts workout is a total body workout using weights and the slide and glide discs. Another cat approved workout.

The Cathe Legs workout was one I had not used in a while. I chose to do the Barre (uses a chair), Chair and Ball and Floor portions of this dvd. This was certainly an excellent workout for all parts of the legs and rear. I was feeling it well into the next day. The cat loves the chair and has to sit on it whenever I have it out.

I usually do yoga on Saturdays but decided to stick with the X-train workout dvd’s and chose a heavy weight workout called Bi’s and Tri’s. As the name implies it is a bicep and tricep workout. You alternate and do a bicep exercise and then a tricep. There were a couple that used the band with the handles and also a 5 pound weight with the band – those were pretty tough. Once again my faithful workout cat is there to cheer me on.

I am so glad fresh cranberries are in the stores again. I use the above combination of apples, cranberries and a lemon to create a really tasty juice in my juicer this past week. I juiced 2 apples, one granny and one gala, 1 lemon, and about a cup of cranberries. I also tried this recipe heated and it was really good for a warm and healthy drink on a chilly morning. To make it even more healthy I stirred in a teaspoon of manuka honey that I recently bought at Trader Joes. The manuka honey has lots of health benefits and is also suppose to strengthen your immune system.

Weekly Fitness Tip: Don’t Weigh Yourself So Frequently

– Quit obsessing over how much you weigh – everyone fluctuates a little for various reasons

– Consider getting rid of the scale -mine broke years ago in moving and I never replaced it, one less things to have in the bathroom

– Measure your progress in how you feel, how your clothes fit and in measuring inches lost not a number on a scale

I hope everyone had a great final week of October and you were able to find some time to workout and create some healthy meals. Remember it is important to plan meals and stay on track especially during the holiday season – which is now here since all the stores are stocked with Christmas decorations!

Take care,

– Kimberlee

Categories: Exercise Food Health

Tags: exercise, fit tips, fitness, juice, juicing, working out, workouts