ballercize, smoothie adjustments, and a bit of poking

As I think I already mentioned, I got an exercise ball (size medium) and a yoga mat this past weekend.  Purpose:  toning at home.  Thus far I am pleased to note that this has been quite helpful in motivating me.  Every night I have taken a few minutes to do a variety of situps and pushups, using the ball in the fun ways I've been learning at kickboxing class.  I do enough that I "feel the burn"...altogether something like 75 situps and 30 pushups...but I do them in little batches.  10 of these, 15 of those, and just keep switching up until I've done a whole big bunch of 'em.  What I like about doing it this way:  it doesn't feel burdensome.  I don't have to change clothes or go anywhere.  Don't need some big special "routine."  It's somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes of goofing around on the ball and mat, and I don't even break a sweat while doing it.  I know for sure it's helping with 1 of my 2 goals:  it keeps me from having horribly sore abs etc all the time.  Hopefully it is also doing some strengthening and toning work on me as well. 

I was interested to note yesterday that my smoothie kept me fuller longer than it was doing before.  I don't know if that's the changed recipe or what.  Here's my current method:

• plain kefir into the blender first...enough to almost cover the blades
• half a chopped apple
• 2 tbsp cherry concentrate
• 2 tbsp locally grown honey
• very small handful of frozen banana slices
• handful of frozen peach slices
• sprinkle of frozen tangerine bits
• couple of frozen strawberries

It's almost too much flavor - I don't like it quite as well as the ones I made last week.  I think the main difference is all that cherry concentrate REALLY flavors the batch, and the apple doesn't sweeten as much as my cantaloupe and more banana slices did last week (they are tart, crispy apples).   Nonetheless it's a pretty good sweet frozen drink to be nursing for the first hour and a half of my workday.  And it was nice to be less hungry than usual at lunch. 


So last night I was sitting in my bed watching tv and I absent-mindedly poked my gut and then had this "HUH?!" reaction where I had to poke it again, and again, and shift and turn and be all confused until I finally figured out...there is less of it there.  Thaaaat's why it seems so different.  Quite a bit less.  Less than when?  I don't know.  Less than the last time part of me was paying attention when I absent-mindedly poked my gut, I guess.


I reckon that's maybe too much a window into Karen's goofy little ways, but hey, YOU'RE the one reading a blog with the word "naked" in its title...


:-)  Thanks for reading!