SUMMER WORKOUTS: THE YAY AND THE NAY {MY ROUTINE}

Let's talk fitness today, shall we?

Summer is my favorite time to workout...oh wait, no it's not. Not one bit. It's extremely hard to get motivation in the summer to work out. BBQ's? Concerts? Drinks on a patio with friends after work? OR spending time in the gym? Yeah, it's hard to stick to a routine when it's so nice out and you could be doing so many other things.With that being said, spring/summer is normally when I work out the most. Insert bikini season. Just looking at my bathing suits gives me some serious motivation to hit the gym. Right, ladies? It's a real pain in the butt...

I've talked about my daily eats/mean plan before, but had some questions about what a normal workout week looks like for me, so I thought I'd outline it a bit. It's important to find what works for you-if you want to have your evenings free, work out in the morning. If you want your extra sleep, make sure you carve that time out after work to get it done. Schedule your workouts just like your other appointments!

Monday: Circuit workout (see below) / 1 hour spin class 

This is my favorite workout of the week. Why? Because I normally eat the worst of the weekends and my body needs a detox. I splurge a bit (or a lot). Having a kick butt work out on a Monday instantly makes me feel better about it. ha. Not only that, spin is my favorite class to take and by the time I leave the class I'm 50x happier than when I walked in. Those endorphins will do that to you, promise. :)

Before spin class starts, I will do a short circuit workout for 20 minutes or so mixed in with some ab exercises. I highly recommend getting your hardest workout of the week done with on Monday's!

Tuesday: Run 3 miles / 30 Push ups / Circuit workout (see below) or 30 Day Shred (Jillian Michaels DVD)

The run could be inside or outside depending on how hot it is outside.

Wednesday: Rest day 

Thursday: Run 3-5 miles  / Leg workout (see below) / Abs (8 minute abs video)

Last week I switched it up and instead of running my normal route, I found a basketball court and did suicides on it for my cardio then did mountain climbers, lunges, and squats. It helped to switch up my surroundings a bit!

Friday: Sometimes I will do rest day if I'm busy or just a short circuit workout

Saturday: Morning run (3 miles) or 30 Day Shred / 30 Push Ups

Sunday: Rest day

I try to work out at least 4-5 times a week. Some weeks are better than others and other weeks I may only work out 3 times. I try to just listen to my body and take a break when I need it.

What do I mean by circuit/interval workout? Here are my favorites (all via Pinterest):

 

I think a lot of girls focus more on cardio and less on strength training. Strength training is just as important! It's something I've tried incorporating more of, for sure. Push ups, lunges and squats are now a part of my daily workouts when they never used to be. I see more results when I do them vs when I do cardio! My body looks leaner and I feel stronger.

As far as workouts you can do at home, my three favorites are: 30 Day Shred, 8 minute ab video (posted below), and any of the Tone It Up videos!

This ab video is such old school (I meannnnnn...old.school-I laugh just watching it), but it works. Man knows what's up. Listen to him, ha.

*Last and final comment: do not DRINK your calories! Keep a water bottle on your work desk everyday and fill it up as much as you can throughout the day. If you get sick of regular water, add some lemon juice or Mio to it to make it taste better for you! This is the #1 thing I do everyday. So important.

Alright, there we have it. 

What is your favorite summer workout? How do you stick to a schedule when all you want to do is be outside having fun? 

PS-You still have time to enter my Malibu giveaway and the Crystal Light one! xo