Summer is ALWAYS the worst for me when it comes to working out. Last summer, I thought working at a summer camp would be the weight-loss secret to end all weight-loss secrets -- spending each day in the woods, chasing kids around a camp with a swimming pool on campus. The long, hot days ended up sucking the energy out of me and it was all I could do to drag myself to Zumba twice a week. The summer before that, I thought "summer vacation" meant all of the time in the world to work out, and while I did maintain a pretty good gym routine, I got burnt out pretty quickly.
So, this summer, my first "real" summer vacation that doesn't involve panicking about the job and money situation everyday, I've decided to force myself into a routine. A good friend of mine (let me rephrase that, a FEW good friends of mine) are BeachBody coaches, something I had tried to do ages ago but -- like everything else -- I got burnt out. I decided to purchase Hip Hop Abs since it was on sale for $19.95. Basically, it's a collection of several workouts that are between 25 and 45 minutes, primarily focusing on the abs, obviously. The set came with a workout calendar, so I'm doing my best to stick to it, keeping in mind vacations and junk that falls in between the days. (I wish I could be, but I'm just not the type of person who wants to take my laptop and DVD set on vacation.. I'd rather run on the boardwalk or go for a long walk.)
The morning after my first workout, I was SORE -- so unexpectedly SORE. I loved it. My core is my weakest part of my body -- besides my arms -- and it needs all of the work it can get. Over the last three weeks, I've found it really easy to stick with these workouts. The only modification I've had to make is that the days where I'm supposed to do two workouts per day two days in a row, I have to rotate the calendar and do a double day, single day, then the second double day because my back starts to bother me after awhile.
Basically, I'm finding that with a set routine and schedule and 30 minutes a day, I'm able to get my workouts back on track. I'm taking a break from running for awhile because my right foot has been bothering me again and these workouts allow me to modify the impact to my needs while still feeling like I'm getting a good workout.
I'm actually planning on checking out the new Focus T-25 stuff after my birthday hits here in July. It might kick my butt, but I can handle anything for 25 minutes a day. ;)