April 12, 2012

Guest Post: How To Avoid Making A Butt Mold In Your Couch


Crabby is off camping again, slacker that she is, but she will be back in a few days.  (Assuming she doesn't fall off a cliff or choke on a S'more or something).

In the meantime, we have a guest post from personal trainer Taylor Ryan with some motivational advice, as well as some practical tips and a cool video.

Crabby will be back soon!  She might even return with.... [cue scary music
]... photos from the trip! 


How To Avoid Making A Butt Mold In Your Couch
by Taylor Ryan

I want to thank “Crabby” for letting me share some awesome info today! I love reading Cranky Fitness, so it’s an honor to be able to write for it and share my training “know-how”.

We all have those days where all you dream of doing is getting off work, walking in your front door, being greeted by the smell of dinner already being prepared (a gal can dream, right?) and then plopping your tush down on the couch for the remainder of the night.

So long in fact, that when you get up for a glass of water there is that perfect concave imprint left from your tush as a reminder that you just spent over two hours on the couch without budging... not even once.

No shame in that, we have all been there but it doesn’t mean that because we’ve all been there that it is okay to do it on a day to day basis. The sad thing is that this is what over half of Americans do each night.

So how can you find the motivation to lift your tush off the couch and do something a bit more rewarding, I don’t know... like getting your workout done?

I was recently given a picture with the quote that read “No One Ever Regretted Doing A Workout” and it’s so true. I remind my boot campers of this all the time! Your feet may drag to get started but think of the feeling of achievement and satisfaction you get once the workout is over!

You feel like a rock star! Better yet, you feel like Super Woman!

So that is your first tip! Imagine the feeling of getting it done! Also picture the feeling of not getting it done, that feeling of slight guilt you get when you know it was your day to workout but you chose American Idol over your exercise plan.

Second, Leave no room for excuses. Instead of going home before the gym (if you workout at a gym), keep a packed gym bag in your car. Better yet, put it on the front seat, not in the back seat or the trunk. When you go to start the car after work it’s the first thing you see... and how can you deny it?


Third, who says you can’t have the best of both worlds? Some people workout great during their favorite shows, it helps to keep the workout moving. Simply write down a 15-20 minute interval style workout) and do it right there in the living room.

Here's an example:



(Editorial note from Crabby: Holy Crap! It's not complicated but it's totally kick-ass, check it out!)

Then when it’s time for the show to wind down, its time for your cool-down.

Fourth, if no matter how hard you try to tell yourself you are going to follow these tips but just can’t seem to make it happen it’s time for a change. Change the time you workout to make it better on you and your schedule. If you can’t seem to make it happen after work, then it’s time to try morning workouts. And if you keep saying you will workout before work, perhaps it is time for lunch time or evening workouts.


And finally, working out doesn’t have to take up your time. You can get in an amazing heart pumping, muscle toning, belly melting workout in less than 30 minutes! All it takes is planning, walking into your fitness area (gym, garage, streets, etc) knowing what you want to do and doing it. Personally, on the days where I don’t have all the time in the world I lean towards interval workouts or circuits.

Just to give a quick idea, I may choose 6 exercises (all total body and all with free weights or body weight) and I will do each exercise as quickly and efficiently as possible for 60 seconds, then have a 10 second rest before moving down to the next exercise.

These are intense, help increase your metabolism and burn fat but if you do it just for 2 complete rounds, you’ll feel as if you worked out for an hour but you will see it’s only been 15 minutes! No excuses, just do it.

And remember, “No one ever regretted a workout!”

Who is Taylor?

Taylor Ryan is a NASM certified personal trainer and nutrition consultant. She currently lives in Charleston, SC with her husband where she runs a successful women’s boot camp as well as the online fitness community, The Art of Weight Lifting.


22 comments:

  1. I know it can be hard to motivate yourself once in a while, I've been there! But I always managed to go again to the gym after some time off. Now I'm 54 and already hitting the gym for over 30 years. the result is that people think me to be much younger and I've still got a very muscular body.

    ReplyDelete
  2. bahaha, google reader window in igoogle shortened the title of this post to "How to avoid making a Butt Mold in Your..."

    So much suspense!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lol, Stephocracy, that's funny! Hope the suspense was worth it! Enjoy the workout!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good workout, love the simplicity/challenge of it. I think the key is; keep it simple, and know that, with proper planning, you can crush yourself in as little as 15 minutes! So, time is no longer a factor.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Awesome title to this post! I had to comment just for that. Very funny and very creative. Motivation is a big key for us and it is for our kids too. We're always asking ourselves in our head. "What's in it for me?" That's when we need to remember all the great benefits to exercise and after all, fitness is fun right!

    ReplyDelete
  6. It's radical, but i just quit watching TV and have my computer at a stand up desk. My tush hasn't seen my couch in forever.

    Also, i exercise in the morning, partly to get away from bottle raising kittens and needy time-greedy children. It's extreme, having kids so you will be motivated to leave the house to work out, but it's my only time alone, so it worked for me!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks Taylor and Crabby for getting her to guest post!

    I love your ideas. it is def. harder to get off the couch once your butt has mind melded with it!

    I recently switched up the time I exercise and it made a HUGE difference in attitude and determination. I told myself I hated to exercise in the AM but that turned out to be a big fat lie! The rest of the day is free for more outdoorsy fun! Yay Spring!

    And

    I once burned my tong on a roasted marshmallow because I was to scarfy to wait for smore action. Don't tell anyone 'kay?

    ReplyDelete
  8. LOVE IT! Pinned the workout too!

    I am with you here! When I was working 60++ hours a week, I always scheduled it in. Before the 24 hour gyms, I went right from work to workout. If I went home, I knew I would not leave again. With 24 hour gyms, it was always before work because I did not have to worry about anything getting in the way later or being too mentally tired. I am stronger in the morn anyway. I never stopped it & NEVER regret a workout! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. oooh I may be joining messymimi in the STAND UP DESK!!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great article, motivation is key to having a great workout. A lot of people have the desire to workout and get in shape but are lacking the motivation. I find listening to music (or like mentioned) watching tv at the gym while exercising helps the time go by. Im a strong believer in high intensity interval training, and anyone that has tried interval training knows it does not take long to get a great workout in.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Of course I hope that your excellent post will be motivating for many!

    I do have to add, however, that because of the damage I have occasionally taken, such as from karate or wrestling, for example, there have been workouts that I have regretted :-)

    ReplyDelete
  12. To sum it up, quit making excuses and get your lazy ass off the couch.

    There is a lot of exercises you can do at home without spending a lot of time, and they give great results. The question is, are you ready for a commitement?

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love seeing posts on new ways to get -and keep- inspired. It's completely an ongoing battle, so its always awesome to get new ideas. I'm going to check out your workout!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks for the great post Taylor, and thanks also to everyone who stopped by!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Great workout, thanks for sharing that..

    ReplyDelete
  16. Glad you liked the workout! Glad to do it! Anytime. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yay, glad you made it! Get that motivation back and keep it going! Awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  18. So love that rush of getting in a workout in just 15 minutes. I no longer have the excuse of why I did not get in my workout today. And, there is no longer an imprint in my couch, since I have more energy by the time I get home.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I hope this motivation will reach to all women and they can practice this at home.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Even thou can be extremely hard to movitate yourself, I found that a good beat can right way get you OFF the couch!! Oh YEAH!! LATIN MUSIC, babe!!!

    I personally LOVE zumba, and I dance almost every day!!! I learned with a DVD.. it was quite simple to learn the moves.
    C'mon, you can do it too!!! and you'll absolutely LOVE it!!
    Here is my site if interested in some zumba stuff :) Stop by!
    http://workoutzumba.com

    AH!! you can also sign up for good HEALTHY stuff!! low cal recipes, workout articles, free stuff, and goes on...

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting, Cranky Fitness readers are the BEST!

Subscribe to comments via RSS

(Note: Older Comment Threads Are Moderated)