favorite ab workout videos.

as i've mentioned before, i live in new england where the winter's are harsh. i spend all daylight hours at work, which doesn't leave much time for outdoor runs during the week. especially since i live on a dirt road which is almost always ice november-march. therefore, i often end up at the gym. apparently, i get out of work at the same time as everyone else in the state so the gym is usually PACKED when i get there. in that case, i like to hit the treadmill and then get the heck out of there. 

since i sometimes skip the weight machines at the gym, i got into workout videos on youtube. that way i can do it in the comfort of my own home and not in the crowded gym. i particularly like ab workout video's on youtube since i already have an arm/leg workout routine with my dumbbells that an old trainer taught me. maybe someday i will share it with you...but for now, check out my favorite ab work out videos. 

"8 minute" ab combos

this video is by XHIT daily. i truly enjoy XHIT workouts. they are short and to the point. if you do it right, regardless of the length of time, you will be feeling the burn. sometimes, i do the videos twice. 

9 moves to a flatter stomach

this is another video by XHIT daily. same thing, short but gets right to it. the main focus is your lower abs, which for me is the hardest thing to work. Rebecca, the video instructor, often points that out. i LOVE flutter kicks!

passion4profession level 2

this video is by passion4profession. the voice of the counter/the counting in general drive me absolutely crazy in this video, but besides that i enjoy this video. i did level 1 for a few weeks before i moved up to level 2. someday i will try level 3, but for now level 2 combined with another ab video works for me. 

best lower ab workout

this is another favorite by XHIT daily. i love the mountain climbers at the end of this one. 

if you're looking for a good at home ab workout, give these videos a shot. they are quick but painful (the good kind of pain!!). i normally do not do more than 3 videos a night. when i do 3 my abs burn fiercely, which i love. none of them involve weights, although you can add them in if you are a veteran. i add in a medicine ball whenever possible and i use my dumbbells during the "russian twist" exercise. if you don't have weights to add, no worries, they hurt just as good without 'em. 

enjoy!! 

disclaimer: i am in no way affiliated with XHIT daily OR passion4profession abs. they don't know me (YET...HI XHIT!!!) & i don't know them. i just swear by their videos and wanted to share with you! 

hittin' the treadmill.

for me, not running outside sucks. i absolutely love street runs and/or trail runs. one of my favorite routes near my house is about 5 miles on pavement (2.5 miles there & back) and about 3 on a trail (1.5 miles to the end of the trail & back). unfortunately for me, i live in a place where there are 4 seasons and daylight savings time. this time of year, the sun is out from about 7 am until about 4:30 pm. i am at work from 7:30 am until around 5 or 6 pm. i work at a school and then i coach cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track (depending on which season it is) so i am pretty much booked for all daylight hours. in this case, i have to hit the treadmill and/or elliptical. 

one of my favorite treadmill workouts is one i call the 3 minute loop:

i usually do a quick warm-up before i hop on the treadmill. i stretch, do some high knees, and do some butt kicks. once i get on the treadmill, it's straight to business.

• start out running at speed 7.0 (8:34 minute mile) continue for 3 minutes
• at 3 minutes, advance to speed 10.1 (6 minute mile) continue for 1 minute
• repeat for 4 miles 

if i am feeling tired and chicken out, i switch to a plain ole run at speed 7.0. whenever i do this exercise, i at least do the 3 minute loop for 2 miles.

i also sometimes just run. i run at speed 7.0 until i hit 3 miles. then i run for 7.5 for a half a mile and finish the mile at speed 8.0. if mid-run i am feeling good, i might increase my speed a little earlier. in turn, i end up finishing up my run a little faster. it all depends on when i increase. i normally never exceed about 9.5, except for during the 3 mile loop.

other days when i am just not feeling a long run because i've had a long day at work, i hit the elliptical for some cardio. i always, always, always, at least run 1 mile but some days i just do not have any more in me. on those sad days, i hop on the elliptical for 30 minutes at a resistance level of 15. i am usually going at about a 3.2 mile per hour pace when i go at that level. i feel the burn in my thighs like CRAZY, even at that very slow pace. i don't mind elliptical workouts, but i find them a lot more boring than a run. i also do not get the same satisfaction from finishing an elliptical workout that i do when i finish a nice long run.

i don't usually exceed about 7 miles on the treadmill. it kills my knees. if i really need to go for a long run, i hit the streets no matter what the weather. rain, snow, sleet, ice, heat. i've got the gear and i put it to use. 

what's the weather like where you are? what do you do when you have to take it indoors?

can't stop, won't stop.

like i've said before, i am not a natural born runner or athlete. i know some people that just have it in their blood. their parents are runners, they started running track in middle school, they ran cross country from 6th grade-senior year of college. i am not one of those people. i never ran cross country and i used to complain about running during sports in high school. "WHY do i have to run 3 miles? i don't even have to run the whole length of the field half the time playing defense in soccer!" i would almost say i despised long distance running. i could do suicides and sprints all day long, but when it came to those long distance runs i would have much rather sat out. (i know "suicides" isn't the politically correct term anymore, but i couldn't tell you what they're calling those things now-a-days. anyone??) 

the first time i hopped on that treadmill, i was intimidated. it was a while since i had been on a long run, never had i ran more than 3 miles, and i most certainly had never run on a treadmill. i ran at practice and try-outs but other than that i got almost all of my cardio from the elliptical, maaaybe a few runs outside to prepare for tryouts. i steered clear of the treadmill though. the thought of a run alone bored/exhausted me, the thought of a run in place was absurd. regardless of the feelings of dread i had towards the treadmill, i got on it and i ran that mile. although all the while i was hating on it, like uuughh when will this be over, at the end i realized it wasn't really all that bad. the next time i got to the gym, i found myself on the treadmill once again. 

this was november of 2012. i live in new england, so it was already snowy and icy at this point in the year. running outside was out of the question because i was not all that determined and quite honestly, it didn't mean that much to me...yet. YET! after a good week and a half of running a mile on the treadmill at speed 5.5, i decided to bump it up to speed 6.0 mph, a 10 minute mile. although i had only been running for about a week and a half, it didn't kill me to run that speed like i was anticipating it would. 

at this time i was also doing about 30 minutes on the elliptical at level 5, as well as about 45 minutes of strength training. i wasn't in terrible shape but i also wasn't in good shape either. after a few weeks, i bumped up the length of my runs and cut back on my time on the elliptical. at this point i wasn't trying to do much more than about 40 minutes of cardio, because i didn't always feel like being at the gym all day. i was working out 4-5 days a week for about an hour, twenty-five minutes.

i decided that by the time spring came i would be up to running 3 miles comfortably, and then i would take it to the streets. i achieved my goal of a comfortable 3 miles quicker than i had expected and was able to be at a comfortable 4 by the spring. this was at a speed of 6.0. i had not worked on my pace, only the distance i was running. i didn't care about my speed, i just wanted to finish.

one thing i did not do ONCE while training myself to be able to run 3 miles comfortably, was stop and walk. no matter what, i never slowed down the treadmill or stopped. in my mind i knew that if i gave up and stopped, the next time would be just as hard or harder, because i had already given up the previous time. if i was always making progress, each run after the next would get easier and easier. i repeated to myself over and over again that i could do it, even if my body was tired and i felt like stopping. (i never endured any intense pain or injury, if i had, i probably would have stopped.) i ran through the small cramps and the exhaustion, taking about 1 sip of water every 10 minutes. at my current pace back then, that was a sip of water per mile.

 i always kept pushing, because for each feat i conquered, i was getting myself ready for the next. with each mile i ran, the more my confidence grew. the more my confidence grew, the more my love for running grew and the more i was excited for my next chance to lace up my sneakers. 

it was not all rainbows and butterflies, don't get me wrong. there were days where i thought i would throw up at the end. days where i had to drag myself to the gym. days i had to switch my days off because i could not bring myself to go. but then, there was always the upside. there were days i could not wait to get out there and run. days where i remembered that running helps with my anxiety. days where i looked in the mirror and noticed a positive change in my body. there were days that runs were so hard i counted down the minutes. there were others that they went by in the blink of an eye. regardless though, no matter what, i knew that i never gave up. i knew that the runs i did start, i finished. that was something that was and still is in the back of my head, every single run. 

welcome!

hello & welcome to average girl running. if you want the full low down, you can check out my about me, but i'll sum it up for you here really quick. i have no computer/blog skills, besides the basics. the reason i am here is because i am always asked for running advice. so people don't run away scared (no pun intended) when they see the word run, i like to add this disclaimer: i am not a natural born athlete/runner. i got serious about running and started doing races this june, but i first started running on a regular basis a little less than 2 years ago now. i can comfortably run a half marathon (13.1) but right now i am training at about 15 miles. 15 miles is an absolute struggle and it is proving to be a lot of hard work. i am always training and trying to be better, without letting it take over my life. i run for fun, i run for me, and i run because i love doing it. the winter months are hard, because it is much easier to just get up and hit the road then it is to get up, get in the car, drive to the gym, and run on that treadmill. i get up and do it though, because i have goals that i want to reach and the only way to reach them is hard work. 

i know that not everyone can get up and run 13.1 miles, so i want to brush up on the shorter distances also. i help people who struggle to run 2 miles, people who struggle to run 6, and people who struggle to run 13. it's hard work no matter where you start out, but if you put your mind to it and dedicate yourself to your goal-you can do it!! 

via pinterest.