getting fit with aaptiv

You all know how much I love being active and fit, and you especially know how important it is to me that I teach my boys the value of hard work and discipline. Making sure my workouts are always included in my week is a big part of that, and as any mom knows, that's not always the easiest thing to do. Enter Aaptiv, a personal training app that's seriously redefining your fitness routine.

Aaptiv is a fitness training app that offers users high-energy audio workout classes in the comfort of your own home. With the motivation of trainers, great music and programs ranging from ab workouts to quick hit cardio and more, it has seriously upped my workout routine lately!

Most of the workouts range between 7 and 10 minutes - just enough to really get your heart pumping, your blood moving and your muscles going - all of which means you're getting a good, all-over workout. And, because these workouts are quick, there's really no excuse. We all have a few minutes here and there during our day that we can easily squeeze in a quick routine, and that really helped me on the days that I couldn't (or wouldn't) run during this deployment.

Also super exciting is the new maternity program that Aaptiv has to offer. They've recruited top-tier talent to lead the program including Kira Kohrherr of FitBump, yoga guru and author, Kristin McGee, and certified trainers to help you in both your pre- and post-natal journeys. This is huge because, should we decide to expand our family down the road, I know I want to stay fit. What better way than a workout in your own home?

What's my personal favorite workout right now, you ask? Easy. I'm obsessed with the Sweet Home Savasana yoga with Caeser B. It's just under 8 minutes long, and it's the perfect way to end a long day of work, momming and working out. When I'm going for something a little more difficult, I've found that even the full marathon training workouts are awesome - like the Race Training Interval Run. Just about 31 minutes, it gets my heart pumping, and I don't even have to pick my own playlist...perfect!

headband here 

The best part is that Aaptiv is just $9.99 a month, which is far less than a lot of costly gym memberships, and it gives you the tools (literally) right at your fingertips. But for my readers - they've generously offered up two weeks free for you to try out (and no, you don't have to enter a credit card to do so!)

To sign up and try it for yourself today, visit Aaptiv here and enter code: AAPTIV2WEEKS.

What sort of workouts do you love to do? Do you think you'd want to try something like Aaptiv?

Find Aaptiv on instagram.

This post is sponsored by Aaptiv. All opinions are my own.

august workout wrap-up

I can't believe it's the last day of August! Fall is just around the corner, and that's truly my favorite season to run. The air is cooler, the trees become beautiful, and running outside is downright pleasant. It's still super hot here though, so I'm grateful I've been able to accomplish anything this past month in terms of running. I used to do monthly running wrap-ups before I got pregnant with Porter, and I'd like to transition it to "workout wrap-ups" instead, since I'm doing a lot of swimming, too. 

I started working out at about 4 weeks postpartum with the okay from my OB since I had a remarkably easy recovery. I was still feeling pretty weak and wobbly, but I got out there and I started with light runs about a mile long. August was supposed to be my big push month for running, but I ended up hurting my calf. I was in the middle of my longest postpartum run - 3 miles - when I felt my calf lock and then pull sharply. I could barely walk.

I had to give it about a week off, then I started back up again right at one-mile runs. I'm sticking around two to two and a half miles right now, and I'm just going to stay at that point until I get comfortable. 

In terms of swimming, it was a landmark month for me in August! I finally got back in the pool. I don't think I've been in the water since Spencer was about 7 months old. As someone who competed for 17 years in the sport, I find it really difficult to motivate myself in a pool unless I'm training for something. So, getting a race in the books was a huge help, and now I have my sight set on my next race - Swim Miami 10k in May. It's a long way away, but I think it will give me adequate time to train, especially through Ryan's deployment.

Needless to say, it was a pretty good jumping off point for me this month in terms of working out. I have a long way to go, and I have a bunch of weight I hope to lose through healthy diet, using Weight Watchers again and working out. But, all things considered, I'm pretty pleased. I look forward to making even more progress in September because I truly believe one of our biggest needs as parents is to set a good example for athleticism and hard work for our children.

August Stats:

Number of Runs - 8

Average Distance - 2 miles

Fastest Running Pace - 9:26

Number of Run Races - 0

Number of Swims - 6

Average Swim Distance - 2,000 meters

Number of Swim Races - 1 (6th Overall, 1st of Women, 1st in Age Group)

the first-time triathlon

Before Ryan left, we decided we wanted to do another athletic event on post since we're always looking for 5 and 10k runs to try out. Unfortunately, we couldn't find any good runs, but we did see that our MWR was hosting a First Time Tri for all active duty and families on post. Doing triathlons is a life-long dream for both of us, and we figured that it was the perfect time to do it because, hey, who doesn't do rigorous physical activity at 20+ weeks pregnant.

So, two weekends ago, we participated in the most ridiculous little baby triathlon event, and it was so. much. fun. The event basically consisted of 15 minutes each of swimming, stationary biking and running. Each athlete would receive an individual score based on the distance per event, which would then be based off of the furthest distance done by men/women and ranked accordingly. It sounds convoluted, and it kind of was, but it was a great little intro to the sport.

^^^ it pays that we are both swammers (that's the past tense of swimmers)

Anyway, Ryan and I both killed it on the swim. I swam 1100 meters in 15 mins and Ryan swam 850. On the bike, Ryan did 12.4 kilometers, and I did 9.2 (clearly, we know my weakness now)…plus this baby was sitting right on my bladder the whole time. On the run, Ryan did 2 miles, and I did just over 1.5. We were pretty darn pleased with how we did.

^^^ I reprimanded him for breathing into the wall like this

In the end, we both did surprisingly well - especially because we weren't expecting anything. Ryan got first overall in the men's division for his age group (and a special congratulations from Major General Ashley), and somehow (I think just because of the swim), I got first overall for all the women…at 20 weeks, 3 days pregnant.

So, yes…I'm still running…slowly. But seriously, working out through this pregnancy so far has been a godsend, and I'm so lucky to have such a supportive and motivating husband to keep me on track! 

small victories

^^^ sleep. my new favorite hobby.

I may be speaking too soon here, but barring the insane fatigue that continues to plague me,

my morning sickness seems to be lessening a little bit. 

That means I'm not feeling as sick 24/7 as I was before,

but I still have those fun food aversions as before, 

and I have a feeling those might stick with me for a little while longer. 

I've been doing a lot of reading and research lately to discover what is normal about my symptoms,

and what might or might not just be in my head.

My mother is uber-European, and she told me, sweetly, that morning sickness is an American thing.

Have I mentioned I love her a freaking lot?

But seriously...I'm just ready for this first trimester to be over already.

I know that I'll be gaining weight like crazy from the second on, 

but I figure I haven't gained anything (except bloat and water weight) yet, 

so maybe I'm on the right track.

That's been alleviating my fears about that aspect of pregnancy thus far.

I'm not looking forward to going through this alone with Ryan headed off to WOCs.

He might bear the brunt of most of my moodiness, 

but he's been a godsend, as well, and he's kept me mostly sane throughout.

I've been fighting my own psyche to get in the gym most days right now, 

simply because I feel like I got hit by a truck then run over four times...on a good day, that is.

I'm forcing myself to do my workouts earlier and earlier in the mornings, too,

because by 12 PM, my body is slowly but surely melting down, 

and by 2 PM, I could totally go to bed for the night.

We've bought one thing for the baby, and that's a crib.

The only reason we bought it is because I knew exactly what I wanted,

and Ryan, being the saint he is, gave into my pleadings and said we could buy it before the other stuff.

It now sits in a box in the garage waiting to be assembled.

In November, I'm sure.

working out without a gym

One of the crappiest things about not having moved yet is that I no longer have access to a gym.

I quit CrossFit after injuring myself, 

and I had a gym membership through the first two weeks of January, but that's up now, too.

I'm moving in just 8 short days, 

but not having a proper place to work out is honestly driving me certifiably insane.

Working out is my stress-reliever.

I would run outside, but with sub-zero temperatures this whole week,

as well as snow in the forecast for this weekend, it's been physically impossible.

Plus, let's be honest, there are only so many workout DVDs you can do on your own.

I was so frustrated the other evening that I decided to just do an EMOM 10 of 20 air squats.

For those that don't do CrossFit, that's 10 minutes, with 20 squats every minute on the minute.

I could barely walk yesterday, and I'm walking even worse today.

But honestly, that's what I love to feel...

that crazy muscle burn that makes you well aware you did work.

Once Ryan and I are living on post, 

we're going to have our choice of not one, but three different gyms.

I told him last night that I'm so excited that I'm going to circuit from one gym to the other...

just because I can.

But for now, I'm doing little workouts like these gems, 

which are actually harder than they look. 

^^^ workouts via here, here & here

Tell me, friends...what do you do when you don't have access to a gym,

or you can't run outside?

I'd love some more suggestions because I still have a week to go!

we work out

Ryan and I have pretty much felt like dirt after the holidays because,

and let's be completely honest here,

we ate like crap. 

There was just so much good food around that was super high in cards and super low in nutritional content.

So, we've been hitting the gym every day this week,

and I have to say that it's felt wonderful to go to the gym with him and leave there feeling accomplished.

In about 6 months, Ryan is heading off to Warrant Officer Candidate School (WOCs),

and he wants to be the fittest he's been in a long time.

I, too, want to get to a place where I'm fit, healthy, happy and comfortable, so we're enjoying this time a lot.

It's so easy for us to get bored in the gym though, so we've been working on being more creative.

The past two days, we've done a lot of running and some light weights.

Today, we're hitting the pool, where I can finally be better at something than him...boom!

We've also been adding in some tabata training, as well, to mix things up and get more balance.

This is what we've been doing:

I've missed workouts like these since I quit CrossFit,

so it's felt good to get a bit more of this fast, short and really intense training back in the mix.

Ryan enjoys it, too, because it leaves him winded, but he's able to finish it and finish it well.

Plus, it doesn't hurt that we're starting to feel leaner and meaner just in time for our wedding in less than a week!

learning how to run

I've been an athlete my whole life, but I'll be the first person to say that I am a terrible runner.

I've never been particularly good at it, 

and I figured that so long as I was swimming, it didn't matter.

Fast forward 5 years post-college and swimming is a lot less convenient than running.

But when I run, I pretty much always end up looking like this:

^^^ holy death. image via Jordan Samuel Photography

I thought that by doing CrossFit, I could forgo running.

Well, I was wrong, and when I destroyed my knee, I learned really quickly that I had to make some adjustments. 

I'm just barely getting back into running, and I have a little bitty goal of 12-15 miles a week.

As my knee continues to heal, I have to be careful and pace my progress.

This is not my forte.

I've come to the fact that I will never be a great runner, by Ryan runs all the time for PT and the Army,

so it's something I'm passionate about doing with him.

We have a plan for 2014...

We are going to sign up for a 5k, a 10k and a half marathon. 

Here's the thing though...my shoes are shot, and while coddling my knee,

I have come to the realization that I desperately need new shoes.

My Saucony shoes are too heavy and cause wicked shinsplints, as do my Asics.

I've been running in my Reebok Nanos because they're lighter and they don't kill my muscles, but they obliterate my feet. 

I put out a call for advice on new running shoes on Twitter, and I got some great advice.

I've narrowed it down to a few choices per the running store and some lovely runners who spoke up.

^^^ images via here. here. here.

The Free Bionic shoe is probably the most minimalist of the three, but I've heard great things about it.

The Free 5.0+ is apparently lightweight and flexible, plus it has great reviews.

The Free Advantage shoe is marketed as a trainer, but I know distance runners who swear by its lightweight fit.

When did running shoe shopping become so difficult?

It's seriously making my head spin, and I really, really need new shoes so I can keep running.

Runners - or anyone for that matter - any advice about new running shoes for someone with a bum knee

and a history of wicked shin splints?

Also, have you tried any of these shoes? 

I'm desperate!