Exercising with Emery

A couple posts back I talked about taking Emery to the fitness center with me and running on the treadmill with her on the floor next to me. Well, that hasn't really worked out too well. Emery does fine if we're the only ones there, but she doesn't like the loud metal clanging that comes from the opposite side of the room if other people are there lifting weights.

Besides, I feel kind of weird bringing a baby into the fitness center.

So, Pete and I have resorted to extreme measures--well, more like "weird" measures--to exercise in the confines of limited time and a very limited workout buddy (Emery).

Number 1: Rollerblading.
The other day I rollerbladed while Pete  pushed Emery in the stroller (eventually, I will get good enough at rollerblading to do it while pushing Ems myself). We live in an area with a lot of hills, so I wasn't sure I was going to tolerate the downhill portions too well on the rollerblades; I'm not too adept at the whole stopping thing yet. As it turned out, I was fine going down the hills...should have been more worried about making it up them.

As cars whizzed past our little 3-man sidewalk parade (it happened to be the 4th of July too), I felt pretty lucky that we don't really know that many people here. In other words, I'm not the most graceful roller-blader. I was going pretty slow on the last uphill portion before we got back to our apartment, so finally I grabbed onto Pete's arm and he pulled me from behind him while pushing the stroller in front of him.
I'm sure that didn't look weird at all.
All in all it was super fun and pretty good exercise.
I will definitely be doing more rollerblading.
And maybe I'll take a picture of it so that you, my dear blog reader, may behold the spectacle.

Number 2: The 100 workout

The second form of exercise we tried recently was a "100 workout." Here's the original "100 workout":

 I say we did "a" 100 workout, because we made up our own version as we went. First we did 100 jumping jacks, then 90 crunches, then 80 jumping jacks, then 70 walking lunges (35 per leg), then 60 jumping jacks, then 50 push-ups (girl ones for me!), 40 jumping jacks, 30 tricep dips, 20 jumping jacks, and 10 leg lifts.

I know I'm not in the best shape these days, but oh man, the soreness this less-than-30-minute workout inflicted on my muscles was tremendous. I couldn't believe how much I hurt for the next two days...I mean, c'mon, I did the workout in my living room!

While I someday hope to be able to do the original 100 workout, I had so much fun and lots of laughs with Pete as we made up our own version. The laughing may or may not have had something to do with the fact that I do really awkward looking jumping jacks, and that Pete's basketball shorts fell down after about 15 jumping jacks. Whereas Pete would not have chosen lunges for the "70," I would NEVER have chosen push-ups for the "50." I wasn't even sure I could do that many (even the girl kind...) so it was great to have Pete pushing and encouraging me.

Emery laid on the floor looking alternately giggling at our jumping jacks and staring at us like we're crazy. 

And maybe we are. 

But we'll probably try it again soon!

At some point, I do plan on getting a jogger stroller---the logical thing to do for exercising with a little one. 

Until then, the fun will continue.