Fitness: Favourite 'At Home' Workouts

For various reasons, sometimes you just don't feel up to going to the gym. It may be the weekend or you may only have 40 minutes or so to work out and don't feel like trekking all the way to the gym.

In my uni days I used to buy a new workout video (yes video!!) each year and do it in my room in halls as I couldn't afford the gym as a lowly student. I think some of these thrifty habits have stayed because I still like to do the odd workout in my living room now and again.

My favourites at the moment are...

Jillian Michaels: Banish Fat Boost Metabolism Workout



Oh Jillian. I shouldn't love you but I do. Ever since her days on Biggest Loser USA and then the ever popular '30 Day Shred', which I actually bought on DVD she has been my at-home fitness guru of choice.

This workout, for those familiar with Jillian's methods, runs along the same lines. There are different routines, each focussing on various parts of the body. This isn't for the faint of heart as it's very high intensity but if you're after something intense to do in your living room, this is the one for you!

Denise Austin: Ultimate Fat Burn Workout



Now this is a great one if you haven't got a lot of time and don't want anything too intense. There is a lower intensity workout and only lasts just over 20 minutes so is a great option if you need to squeeze it in in a hurry.

I found this one on the Be Fit channel on You Tube, which has some great fitness videos and they're all FREE!

What are you favourite 'at-home' workouts?

Katie xx

Fitness: Starting over

My fitness journey is a long a bumpy one and, as I finished a run at the gym tonight, I thought I'd document it in an attempt to keep myself on track (we'll see!).




As you can see from the photo above, 5k in almost 40 minutes isn't the best time but given that this was only my second gym visit in the last 3 months I'm pretty pleased I made it that far (small goals).

A few years ago I lost about 20lbs by really getting into treadmill running. I was training for a 10k (my first) and by the end of my training I was running around 30k a week. I got down to the lowest weight I had been since leaving university and felt amazing. Lean, toned and with bags of energy. I was even eating pretty much what I wanted because I was running it all off and more.

Then inevitably some of the weight crept back on and I was 7lbs heavier by the time we got married in late August 2011. Our honeymoon in Canada and the US saw another 14lbs go back on (cant resist that Mac & Cheese!) and since then the cosy, newly married weight has been creeping on and on and on...you get the picture!

Now I'm at the point where I am giving clothes to charity because I just don't think I'll ever fit into them again and that made me really sad.

I think the key to turning this around is to get back to some semblance of a routine where the gym is concerned. Whilst i would love to get back to the weight i was after training for that first 10k I also need to be realistic. If I can make it there 3 times a week, I'll be happy and hopefully putting this out there on my blog will help me stick to it

I'll keep a log of my progress (if there is any!).

Katie xx