Just One Little Thing … Just For Today …

I’ve been preoccupied with oil posts and recipes. I don’t think I’ve done much to help INSPIRE you lately and for that I ask your forgiveness!

Life gets pressing, overwhelming, sometimes downright oppressive. Don’t get me wrong – life is beautiful! The sun is shining, the dogs’ tails are wagging, I have a roof over my head provided by a dear friend and the people who I have in my circle are all amazing, each in their own special way! But as I move into *another* year of digging out from a financial hole (from two major episodes, in 2006 and 2010) I find myself allowing frustration to take a little bite at me. Just as I get moved to the point of tears of despair, Life reminds me of the beauty in the friends around me. And I am strong again, ready to move forward.

Yesterday was one of those days where I just…can’t…take…it. And another Angel in my life hands me Hope and Smiles. That story is a part of my DoggieBlog Post today.

And today is another day. Another day where I am strong. Where I am hopeful. Where I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

So what can I do to make today better than yesterday? What ONE Little Thing, Just for Today, can I do to make just an inkling of a step towards a better me?

I have been very bad about taking my own advice. I haven’t been doing a short 10 minute workout every day. I am in Santee, CA. In the Summer. The last day it was below 90 degrees was 7 days ago! (Check it yourself at Weather.com – my zip code is 92071. I have fun playing around on that site – yes I can be a weather nerd!). And my room (bedroom/office) in the house is easily the hottest one in the afternoon, even with A/C. 10 minutes of movement in these conditions are about 9.5 minutes too many!

So Just For Today my One Little Thing was: to take an early morning walk with the Cockers. I live in an industrial area and my “block” is 1 mile around. I was awake without the alarm clock by 5:30, so by 6:15 we were on our way. It was only 63 degrees and started off perfect. By about half-way I realized the humidity was going to be a bear today. When we arrived home I took a look at my WeatherBug app and saw that it was already 100% humidity! Oh my! But – we made it, the dogs had a blast and I got my fresh air and more exercise than I had yesterday. Yay!

Tell me … for you, what is your One Little Thing, Just For Today?

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10 Minutes to Lose Belly Fat (Part 3 of 3)

This month I’ve been introducing you to the HASfit series of Belly Fat 10-minute workouts.  Part 1 and Part 2 were easy enough to find on the HASfit.com web site, but I had a heck of a time locating Part 3!  Rather than sending you on the hunt, here is your link to it:  HASfit.com Part 3 of 3:  10 Minutes to Lose Belly Fat.  Coach K leads this installment, just like Part 2 and keeps the pace up while reminding you that it is OK to not be as flexible or fast as he is (but he does urge you to keep it up and push through if you can).  All in all, I enjoy this three part workout – each segment really does target the whole body nicely!

And  I have to admit – today I didn’t want to do the workout … but I did anyway!

10 Minutes to Lose Belly Fat (Part 2 of 3)

A year from now you’ll wish you had started today.

If you tried last week’s Part 1 of 3 ten-minute Belly Fat Blaster workout from Hasfit.com, have you moved on to try Part 2?  I did!  This time it is hosted by Coach Kozak and I have to tell you – he’s a bit more of a task-master than Freddie was in Part 1.  But it works for me.  The encouragement tempered with the countdown (the light at the end of the tunnel!) and Coach’s regular shout-outs of motivation helped me push myself just a little more than I did in Part 1.  I partnered this with the same warm-up and cool-down stretches offered in Part 1.  All together this had me feeling like my little slice of time working out might really be making a difference each day!  What differences did you find between Part 1 and Part 2?

Click HERE to try Part 2 of the 10 Minutes to Lose Belly Fat Workout from HASfit.com.

10 Minutes to Lose Belly Fat (3 part series)

Today’s workout comes from the folks at HASfit.com (HAS is Heart and Soul – I like that!) – it’s a basic video, but it resonates with me.  I like that they give you a separate warm up (5 minute) and cool down (15 minute) session, separate from the 10 minute workout.  You can choose to do (or not do) them – but I urge you to give them a try.  Coach Kozak taught me something new (I haven’t verified his theory, however):  for warmup routines he preaches dynamic stretching warm up exercises and for cooldown routines he prefers shorter static stretches.

Some of the things I like about this video:

•  it targets belly fat (I am ready to take mine off!)
• Freddy keeps reminding us – nicely – that it’s okay to modify the moves to our own current fitness levels
• during the workout and the pre- post-stretching routines, both Freddy and Coach let us know which muscles we are attending to with each move.
• I can do these!
• At the end, I feel like I’ve worked out, but I’m not wiped out and covered in sweat.

Those reasons along with my “regular” requirements (workouts that can be done in a limited space, not too many floor moves since I have a tile floor and no mat yet, 10 minutes in length) has this one high on my recommend list.  I’m actually looking forward to parts 2 and 3!

CLICK HERE to go to today’s chosen workout video.  Let me know in the comments section below what YOU think about it!

Today’s 10-minute Cardio Workout (at home)

In my quest to do something healthy, just for today, I’ve decided to find some at-home 10 minute cardio workouts on YouTube.  I have beyond-limited space to move about, so this one fit perfectly with that annoying restriction.  I found my brain was a bit bored with the video itself, but some good music ought to fix that.  The presenter didn’t make me feel like a total loser (grin!) even tho by the end I was going slower than she was.  And I liked that she reminded us to cool down at the end, offering inspiration and a pep talk while we all slowed the pace down together.  Take a look – what do you think about this short cardio workout?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E63OUoRuCSU