It's Monday and although I was excited to get back to my routine I'm feeling a little sad that the holidays, the wedding, and vacation are over. But on a positive note, that means Boot Camp tonight. Yeah! The new session starts at 8pm. After all the eating, I'm ready for a tough workout. Happy Monday....it's almost over.

 *For an at home butt kicking, try The Method: Cardio Boot Camp with Tracy Mallet (amazon.com). It was selected by the American Council on Exercise to study the fitness benefits of boot camp workouts.

Sorry no pictures today, my camera battery is dead:(

New Year's Eve was AMAZING! My sister looked sooooooo glamorous. She and her husband Pat were beaming all night long. It could not have been a more perfect wedding (despite the crazy wind that moved the ceremony indoors). Here are some pictures.

Today I'm taking the day off.  The whole family is still recovering from the holiday and all the wedding festivities. We've been on the go for days. The plan is to get back in action and moving tomorrow. I can't wait for my house to be in order, the piles of laundry to be done, and our regular everyday routine back in place. Have a great weekendJ

Bring on the sleeveless dress. I just did my push-ups and I'm feeling toned and ready to go! Here's the new variation that I added to my workout this morning after my 20 min. run. I'm off to breakfast with the girls. Happy Wedding Day Meag and Pat :) Pictures to follow, I promise!

Alternating Staggered Arm Push-Ups- Start in regular push up position, slowly lower body down and up, walk left arm out into a staggered push up position and lower down, bring arm back for regular push up. Then walk right arm out for staggered push up and back. Repeat for 2 sets of 12. 

In times of stress, or family weddings, I turn to my BlackBerry calendar to keep me sane and organized. And just like hair, makeup, and pictures get scheduled, so does my workout time. It's important, so I squeeze it in where I can. Tomorrow morning looks like this.......

And that's just until noon.  

*Grab your calendar and make an exercise schedule for the week. Start off the New Year with a plan :)  

Hope you had a great weekend. Saturday my sister and I rallied the troops again and this time we made it to a great Zumba class. Sunday it was 60 degrees in NJ, so I packed up boxes of holiday decorations, took down the tree, and put the lights away until next year. This month really did fly. Today I taught stroller aerobics at 9. But instead of my usual heavy load, I had only one passenger in tow. The rest of the gang stayed with Dad and had a lazy morning. What bums!

Happy Monday! It's time to get moving and shaking before the New Year. Here's a few of my Monday morning moves:

Walking lunges for 1 min., 10 jumping lunges, repeat 2x

Bicep Curls with one leg lifted off the ground (balance) 2 sets of 12

Sprint-30 seconds, 10 jumping jacks, repeat 2x

Wall sit-1 min., 10 vertical jumps, repeat 2x

Side slides for 1 min., jumping squats, repeat 2x

Push-ups 2 sets of 12

Crab Walk 30 seconds, repeat 2x

*GO RU Football!

ERGHHHH! I'm frustrated! My sister and I rallied the troops (mom, my sister-in-law, aunt, cousins, and my sister's future sister-in-law) this morning at 8am for a family Zumba outing and it was CLOSED. We waited and waited (40 minutes) but no class. What a BUMMER! We spent the rest of the day getting last minute wedding stuff done. I can't believe my sister is getting married in FOUR days. Now we're scrambling for a workout. Gotta work off all the chocolate-covered goodies we ate and fit into our dresses. Have a great weekend.

I made the mistake of shoveling the snow before the storm had ended the other day and now our sidewalks and the driveway are a huge sheet of ice. Despite the rain, our job today is to shovel the slushy icy mess so we can put our luminaries out tonight. On the bright side, shoveling snow can melt about 350 calories an hour. Have a very HAPPY HOLIDAY! My house is sooooo excited for Santa:)

I have a strange workout habit (at least that's what people tell me). I NEED TO CHEW GUM when I exercise. And not just any gum it has to be Trident Wild Blueberry Twist. It started when I was training for the triathlon this summer and it stuck. Here's the deal, the gum keeps my mouth from getting dry and strangely enough the flavor gives me a boost of energy if I get into a funk. I even have my husband hooked (glad Costco sells it in bulk). Sounds crazy I know, but it's become part of my routine and I just can't shake it. Any workout habits you want to reveal?

Tonight I created a mini circuit in my basement. Here's what my workout looked like: