I caught my son's flu so this is going to be quick.

Tomorrow is cardio. If I feel up to it I'll run 5-6 miles on the treadmill.

I know I've said this before, but you really need to push yourself on the cardio as well as the weights. I've seen many people in the gym and have been guilty myself of just going through the motions on a cardio machine. Of course it's better than sitting on your rear, but you will burn a lot more calories and get more fit if you'll try and go hard. I recommend doing high intensity for a minute and then relax for a few minutes and keep repeating the cycle.

No, you won't have the time of your life at the gym, but as you get more fit it will get easier - then you just have to push yourself harder or change your routine. Ain't life grand!

Have a happy workout and don't get sick.

My little man is sick so this is going to be brief. I've got to get a few minutes sleep before he wakes up again. Isn't being a mom the bomb?

Tomorrow do at least forty minutes cardio, then do the following exercises.

Bench Pushup
Find a bench or step, place hands shoulder width apart on it. Toes or knees on floor, make sure your body is a straight line, your bum is down, abs are in tight. Keeping head up, bend elbows until your nose touches the bench, slowly raise up again. 3 sets of 10.

Upright Row
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Weights in hands, palms facing body. Slowly raise weight until hands are right below your chest, lower, repeat. 3 sets of 12.

Overhead Press
Standing with a weight in each hand, raise the hands up, elbows level with shoulders. Push the weight until they touch above head, then lower until elbows are level with shoulders again. 3 sets of 14.

Tricep Dip
Find a bench or chair. Place both hands on the chair, fingers facing forward, feet flat on the floor with knees bent (to increase difficulty you may straighten the legs or place the feet on another chair). Slowly dip down, bending elbows until bum almost touches the floor. Keep your backside close to the chair, don’t just dip your rear, make sure your elbows are bending and the rear of your arms is doing the work. 3 sets of 12.

Tricep Kickback
Standing, grasp the weights with thumbs pointed forward, elbows bent, forearms pressing into body. Press the weight backward until arm is straight, should feel it in the back of the arm (tricep). 3 sets of 14.

Tomorrow is back, bicep and abs. It shouldn't take you as long so do longer cardio - 40-45 minutes.

Bent-over Row
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Bend forward at waist until back is flat, arms hanging at sides, gripping hand weights, palms facing in. Slowly row the arms up until elbows are slightly higher than back, squeezing shoulder blades together. Return to start and repeat 8-12 times. Straighten up. Do 3 sets

Row (Upper back)
You’ll need a band for this exercise. Wrapping the band around a stationary object, sit down, grab both handles and row back, squeezing shoulder blades together. Do 3 sets of 14.

Erector Spinae
Kneel down on the floor, place hands under shoulders. Raise one leg and the opposite hand off the floor, hold for two counts, lower slowly. Repeat on each side ten times.

Twisting Bicep Curl
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Palms facing forward holding weights. Slowly curl weight to the top of arm twisting until thumbs are facing forward at the top, then lower. Repeat 3 sets of 15.

Outward Bicep Curl
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, holding an eight to twelve pound dumbbell in each hand. Turn palms out to the side. Slowly curl weight to the top of arm, then lower. Repeat 3 sets of 15.

Plank: Laying facedown on the floor, place your elbows together and raise your body up on them. Then straighten legs and lift body onto toes. At this point only your toes and elbows should be touching the floor. Make sure your body is one straight line from your head to your toes: suck your abs in, get your butt down. Hold for as long as you can (you’ll start shaking, try to hold past that for at least a ten-count), rest then repeat three times. (If it’s too hard you can start on your knees instead of toes.)

Side Plank: Laying on side, raise onto one elbow and the side of one foot. Hold as long as you can, rest, repeat three times on each side.

Reverse Curl: Sitting on a bench, hold onto the bench, lean back, extend legs as low as you can, slowly bring knees into chest, then repeat by extending again. Repeat 10 times.

A friend asked me if she would bulk up from lifting weights. The answer is no. Women do not have enough testosterone in their system to builk up. Lifting weights will only do good things for you: increase your metabolism - lean mass is harder to sustain than fat mass; help your posture; increase your muscle tone and help you lose weight.

Tomorrow we do upper and lower body. Do twenty minutes of cardio. Then do the following exercises with plyometrics (box jump, squat thrust, squat jump, jumping jacks, cross-country ski, plie jump) between each exercise.

Squat Press - Holding 8-10 pound weights, elbows bent at 90 degrees, palms facing forward. feet facing forward. Lower body as if sitting in a chair, don't let toes go past knees. As you come back up, press weights overhead, lower dumbbells to shoulders and repeat. 3 sets of 12.

Tricep Kickback Lunge - Take a huge step forward with right foot, elbows bent, palms facing in holding 10-12 pound weights. Bending both knees, lower left knee straight to the ground. As you lower, kick the weight straight back. Straighten legs and bend arm to 90 degrees again. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 10 on each leg.

Plie Curl - Step straight out to the side, turn toes out, arms straight down, palms facing out, bend legs and curl arms up. Straighten and repeat. Do 3 sets of 15.

Dead Lift Row – Holding a dumbbell in each hand, bend forward at the waist, rolling weights down the legs. Look up into the mirror and keep back flat. When hands reach the sock line, hold and row elbows back – shoulder blades touch together, lower hands and raise up, then repeat. Do 3 sets of 14.

Tomorrow is our cardio workout. I'll try and run five miles on the treadmill and then do another 15-20 minutes on another machine.

I'm sure you know that to lose weight you need to burn more calories than you take in. The only way to do that is moving a lot. Okay, not the only way, you can starve yourself but that isn't fun for anybody, especially your poor family that has to deal with you all day.

There are so many ways to get moving. Of course you can go to the gym and exercise, but you can also work in fitness throughout your day. It’s more important to be active all day than it is to go to the gym for an hour and then sit on your rear and watch it spread.

Dance with your kids, run each diaper to the outside garbage (your house will smell better too, those Diaper Genies don't work), walk while you're on the phone, do squats while you hold your baby, run the stairs and talk to your children instead of yelling at them (they'll like you better).

The best advice I have is: buy a pedometer. It really makes you push yourself when you know how many steps you're taking each day. The average American takes 5000 steps a day. Physicians recommend you should take at least 10,000. Aim for twice that and even if you aren't hitting the gym you'll lose weight.

Good luck and don't stop moving!