Month of Thanks Day 4

Day 4: My Legs

Despite having just had meniscus surgery today, I am thankful for my legs. My legs have allowed me to enjoy the beautiful scenes while trail running and mountain biking. My legs have allowed me to climb multiple 14ers during my time in Colorado, including the famous Pikes Peak. My legs have walked the streets of Europe and experienced the amazing waters while snorkeling at the Baths in Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands. My legs have crossed a number of finish lines, from 5Ks to half-marathons and run more laps on a track than I can count. My legs have taught me to push beyond what my mind thinks is capable and by allowing my heart to take over, my legs can soar. Whether its hopping on my road bike, pounding a few miles on the asphalt or playing a little game of tennis, my legs have provided me a healthy outlet to relieve stress and clear my mind. So while I may be laid up today and the next several days from surgery, I am thankful for my legs and am looking forward to where else they will take me!!

Motivation to Workout

Ever have those days, or maybe even weeks, where you just can’t find the motivation to go from your desk, to your car, to the gym?  Or once you make it home from work you just can’t seem to muster the energy to lace up your running shoes to hit the pavement? Here are 5 tips to help you find the inspiration to get your workout in!

1. Visualize your Future Achievements

            Whether it’s crossing the finish line of your first triathlon, hitting a PR in a 5K, losing 30 pounds, or just fitting into your favorite pair of ‘skinny’ jeans, picture what that achievement will look like, how great you will feel, and the massive smile that will be on your face when you meet your goal.

2. Positive Self-Talk

            Ever tell yourself you are “too out of shape”, “too slow”, “too old”, or “this will never work” before a workout? Fight that negative self-talk with positive self-talk, focusing on your strengths, and remember, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”  Remind yourself that fitness is a journey; take it one day at a time, putting one foot in front of the other.

3. Focus on the Why

            Write specific, attainable goals, and post in a place which you will see every day, to encourage you to get your workout in. If you are lacking motivation prior to a workout, spend 5 minutes writing down why you workout and why you won’t give up. Remember, the secret to success is not will-power, but rather “want-power”. Choose to be active because you want to be!

4. Choose Activities you Enjoy

            There a multitude of ways to incorporate fitness into your life. If you don’t currently love your routine, mix it up! To allow you to look forward to your workout choose activities which you enjoy. Use your workout time for catching up with friends if you are a social butterfly or reserve the time as ‘me-time’ if you prefer a quieter workout.  

5. Look Around and Within

            Look for others who are working towards similar fitness goals. If you don’t find any friends or colleagues who have similar training goals and workout routines, check the internet, because chances are there is someone out there working toward similar goals. There are thousands of fitness blogs, along with sites such as DailyMile, DailyBurn, SparkPeople, and numerous others which allow you to record and track your workouts, while interacting and allowing others to see what you are doing.

            If outside sources of inspiration don’t fuel you, then look internally. Remember back to your last workout and how great you felt afterwards, whether you felt refreshed after a yoga class, completely spent after a high-intensity interval session, or energized after a lifting workout. Chances are, thanks to the release of endorphins, you felt better about yourself after the workout, then when you started! So whether its personal improvements or that drenched in sweat feeling, focus on how great you will feel and you will be out the door in no time!

Terrieha Romer is co-owner of RYP Performance, a company specializing in outdoor bootcamps, small group training, one-on-one personal training, program design, and athlete performance training. Terrieha has a Bachelors in Applied Physiology & Kinesiology, a Masters in Sports Medicine, and holds several nationally and internationally recognized fitness-related certifications. She is also a former Track & Field Coach and Strength & Conditioning Coach at the High School, Division I, and Division II levels, in addition to working with elite athletes as a volunteer at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

It's Official!!

Its Official....I have torn my right lateral meniscus, just as I had suspected. See, my Masters in Sports Medicine can come in handy at times. After a full history, x-rays, and several special tests, it was confirmed and a plan of attack was devised.

I took the 25gauge needle in the knee like a pro, while my ortho aspirated 43cc's of fluid off my knee and injected a steroid shot. I left the office with a script for anti-inflammatory, 3 weeks of PT, and an appointment to evaluate and discuss surgical removal in August. I also left with strict orders to do no activity which causes any discomfort either during or after activity. So unless the cortisone shot was a miracle drug, I will be sticking only to upper body workouts.

**As a side note, I cannot say enough good things about the orthos at Andrew's Sports Medicine Institute and Orthopedic Clinic. I knew they were truly the best, but the fact that they not only involved me and my wishes in the treatment plan as well as the fact that I felt as important as the NFL star in the other room left me with all smiles!

To celebrate the fact that I will not be doing any high-impact activities, here's a butt-kickin' lower-body circuit for you to do in my place!! Complete 15 reps per exercise, doing all 6 exercises in a row. Take a 2-minute break, then repeat two more times!! *For single-leg exercises, do 15 reps per leg*

Box Hop w/ Squat

Mountain Climbers

Lateral Box Lunge
Burpees
Partially Supported Single-Leg Squats
Squat Jumps
This workout requires no gym-membership and the only equipment you need is a step (a park bench also works great). Workout should take 15-20 minutes total!! 


Let me know your thoughts if you try out this workout, as I love to hear your feedback!!

Five Fitness Myths Debunked!

MYTH: More protein = big muscles.

Increased protein does not correlate to extra strength or muscle size. In fact, just like carbohydrates, excess protein can be stored as fat. Exercise, rather than excessive protein intake, is the key ingredient to increasing muscle size. While our bodies do require protein to repair and build lean body tissue, the quantity required is much lower than most think. The general recommendation is 0.8 – 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight. Thus, a180pound male would need 65-98 grams of protein per day.

MYTH: Women who lift weights will get bulky.

Women do not have enough testosterone to develop bulky muscles. On average, women produce at least 10 times less testosterone than men. If it were easy to “bulk-up” every male at the gym would look like a body builder!

MYTH: Longer low-intensity exercise burns more fat than high intensity.

Weight-loss is a simple equation: calories in versus calories out. While it is true only a small amount of fat is utilized when exercising at higher intensities, it is also true the rate of caloric expenditure and the total number of calories burned are much higher compared to exercising at lower intensities. Therefore, the total amount of fat utilized (‘burned’) during higher intensity exercise is greater than the fat burned during lower intensity exercise.

MYTH: Abdominal exercises lead to a flat stomach.

Despite the late-night infomercial propaganda and the countless gym-goers who devote 20 minutes a day to crunches, a flat stomach is not achieved from abdominal exercises.  For most people, the key component to getting that desired 6-pack, or greater definition of the abdominals, is a reduction in body fat. Everyone has a 6-pack, it’s just a matter of it being covered by a layer of fat, as unfortunately the human body finds the midsection an ideal spot for fat storage. Numerous studies have shown that when enough calories are being burned to lose weight, fat is reduced from the entire body, not just in the area being exercised.

MYTH: Late-night eating causes weight-gain.

Weight-gain is only achieved through consuming more calories than you burn. Studies have shown there is no correlation between weight-gain and the time of day we eat. If your daily intake of food results in a caloric surplus, you will gain weight. Whether you eat your final meal at 5pm or midnight, it all goes back to a simple equation: calories in versus calories out.

Terrieha Romer is co-owner of RYP Performance, a company specializing in outdoor bootcamps, small group training, one-on-one personal training, program design, and athlete performance training. Terrieha has a Bachelors in Applied Physiology & Kinesiology, a Masters in Sports Medicine, and holds several nationally and internationally recognized fitness-related certifications. She is also a former Track & Field Coach and Strength & Conditioning Coach at the High School, Division I, and Division II levels, in addition to working with elite athletes as a volunteer at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.