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Sunday, February 28, 2016

Core Synergistics and My Workout Schedule for This Coming Week

Good morning! This morning's workout was Core Synergistics - had a great workout as usual, I love that workout because it works everything.

This coming week starts the last part of this hybrid workout. My workout schedule for this week looks like this:

Monday - off
Tuesday - Chest and Back and Abs/Core Plus
Wednesday - Interval X Plus
Thursday - Shoulders and Arms/Ab Ripper X
Friday - Yoga X (will probably substitute X Stretch)
Saturday - Legs and Back/Abs/Core Plus
Sunday - Kenpo Cardio Plus

So it looks like this week I'm finally going to start doing more actual P90x Plus workouts. Looking forward to it!

Saturday, February 27, 2016

Power Kata

Good evening! Today i did Power Kata and had a good workout as usual.  This morning after i worked out and showered, Kevin and i went to Golden Corral for breakfast, then came back home and relaxed a bit, then I spent some time working on some stuff. Tomorrow is my last workout of this recovery week, and then on Tuesday I start my last rotation.  Monday is my rest day, which is good because I have two doctor appointments.

Thursday, February 25, 2016

X Stretch

Good morning! This morning's workout was supposed to be Yoga X, but I decided to do X Stretch instead, because Yoga X is too long. I love that workout, I always feel great after I get stretched out from it.

Last night Kevin noticed something - the skin underneath my hair has gotten real dry and red - not sure what it's from, but I suspect it's from my shampoo. So I'm going to make an appointment to see a dermatologist, and in the meantime I'm going to try switching to a mild shampoo to see if that helps .

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Leslie Sansone Indoor Walking Workout and Pilates

Good morning! This morning I decided to do a Leslie Sansone 30 Minute Indoor Walking workout, and I did a 10 minute Pilates for abs workout after that. Felt great to do the walking workout, I like it because it's easier on my joints.

Yesterday I started doing some call audits at work, and I have to say I like doing the call audits, I'm actually realizing I'm doing a few things wrong in my own calls from doing those call audits - I did call audits for most of the morning and then took calls in the afternoon, and I have to say I made almost as much doing that as I would have if I had taken calls all day. I hope this is going to work out for me.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Core Synergistics

Good morning! This morning I did Core Synergistics, which was a nice change from my regular P90x workouts. I'm in a recovery week this week, so it'll be less intense than my regular weeks. After this week though, I start my last P90x/P90x Plus Hybrid section!

Monday, February 22, 2016

My Beachbody Transformation Journey Talks with a Vegetarian

Have you ever thought about becoming a vegetarian?  What motivates someone to become vegetarian or vegan? I decided to find that out for myself by posting those questions on a website I like to use, MyBlogU, and this is the feedback I got from the one person that answered those questions. 
Q. Why did you decide to become vegetarian or vegan?
 A. Kari (Blogger And Writer)

For me, I was never able to tolerate the idea of eating animals. I must have been born with the notion that eating animals was gross because I've been like this since I was young.

I have never eaten fish or chicken. When I was little, and I understood where chicken and fish came from, I refused to eat it. I'm talking about 5 years old and being at McDonalds eating chicken McNuggets. My mom told me what they were and I refused to take another bite. Same with fish, but my parents weren't big on fish, so it wasn't as much of an issue in the house.

My parents didn't tell me where beef came from until I was old enough to figure it out (I was still under 10). When I did, I refused to eat that too. I would sit at the table until all my beef was gone while other kids sat at the table until all their vegetables were gone.
Next, I learned about hot dogs and those were gone. Then ribs and steak - and those were gone. Then, the last to go was bacon at the age of 15. Eventually at the age of 20, I stopped eating eggs too, just because the idea was too gross for me.
Q. What kind of meals do you eat daily?
 A. Kari (Blogger And Writer)

I do still eat cream, cheese, and butter; although, we have been vegan and enjoyed vegan cheese and the vegan spread. My husband can go without the cream, cheese, and butter. Because I've been vegetarian for so long, it's not really an issue on what to make. We eat everything meat eaters eat, just without meat. So we eat lasagna, but without the meat. We eat burritos, but without the meat. We eat burgers but use Portobello mushrooms instead of meat.

The only issue we really have is making sure ingredients don't have meat products. For instance, meat broth is something that is often in soups. Or beef fat is something found in a lot of products. Also, we look for vegetarian rennet and gelatin-free products.
Q. What advice would you give to someone who's considering becoming vegetarian or vegan?
 A. Kari (Blogger And Writer)

It's not that hard. My husband ate meat and decided to stop eating it. He's a weightlifter and has had no problem with his protein whatsoever, so all the people who tell you that you are going to lack nutrients in some way believe that because they've been told that, not because they know that for sure. The only thing you can get on a vegan diet is B12, and you will have to take that in supplement form, but other than that, eating a balanced diet of beans, grains, and vegetables gives you everything you need. Research how to get all you nutrients first, and then go vegan or vegetarian. As far as taste, you can create some incredible dishes without meat!
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Sunday, February 21, 2016

Legs and Back and Ab Ripper X and Les Mills Combat Power Kata

Good morning! The last few days have been good workout days - yesterday I did Legs and Back and Ab Ripper X, and today I did Les Mills Combat Power Kata. This coming week is going to be a recovery week, this is what my schedule will look like:

Monday - rest day
Tuesday - Core Synergistics
Wednesday - Interval X Plus (might actually try doing that)
Thursday - X Stretch
Friday - Abs/Core Plus
Saturday - a Les Mills Combat kickboxing workout
Sunday - Core Synergistics

That's it for today, hope everyone has a great day!

Friday, February 19, 2016

Step Aerobics

Good morning! This morning to change things up a bit, I decided to do a Step Reebok workout from the 1990's! Got a great workout from it too. This morning I stepped on the scale and found I'd lost a pound.  Tomorrow's workout will be Legs and Back and Ab Ripper X, and Sunday I'll probably do a Les Mills Combat workout.


Thursday, February 18, 2016

Chest, Shoulders and Triceps and Ab Ripper X

Good morning! This morning's workout was Chest, Shoulders and Triceps and Ab Ripper X - again I was able to do the first three exercises of Ab Ripper X with my hands off the floor.

I also got my bills for my trip to the emergency room on 1/21 - $150 copay for the emergency room visit and over $500 for the ambulance ride! Going to try to call Blue Cross/Blue Shield about that one.

That's it for now, hope everyone has a great day!

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Les Mills Combat Ultimate Warrior's Workout

Good morning! This morning's workout was Les Mills Combat Ultimate Warrior's workout. Tried to count that one as my Pact workout, but for some reason Pact only logged 15 minutes - so I think I will try doing something like a step aerobics workout or an indoor walking workout. Not sure why it's not counting more of my movement, maybe I need to try doing something different with my phone, like putting it in a waist pack around my waist, or doing a different workout, like step aerobics.

Hope everyone has a great day!

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X, and the Last Few Days

Good morning everyone - it's been a few days since I posted, and I apologize for that.  I have been sticking with my workouts.  As most of you know I was supposed to have an appointment with an endodontist yesterday - that appointment ended up being cancelled because the weather was bad, so the office closed for the day. I rescheduled the appointment this morning, for February 29 at 11 am. So I have to wait another 2 weeks to find out if I'll need a root canal or not.

This morning's workout was Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X, which went well as usual - I can get through the first three Ab Ripper X exercises with my hands off the floor now! Tomorrow I'll probably do one of my Les Mills Combat workouts.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Les Mills Extreme Cardio Fighter and Going Through More Clothes

Good morning! This morning's workout was Extreme Cardio Fighter - I got a good workout from it, as I always do.

Last night I started washing some of the stuff that my aunt gave me that I decided to keep, and this morning I put it away - I love having some nicer stuff to wear, I just have to find ways to store it all - I'm going to need to get some more hangers for sure, and I may end up giving some more of it away.

That's it for today, hope everyone has a great day - don't forget to bring it and stay wit the fight!

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X and Going Through Clothes

Good morning! This morning's workout was Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X - I need to start finding ways to make Ab Ripper X more challenging, it's starting to get too easy again.

Yesterday I started going through the clothes that my aunt sent back with me on Sunday - I found a few things that I don't think I'll ever wear, so I put them in a pile of clothes that I'll donate to Goodwill or the Salvation Army. I hate to donate it, but some of the stuff I don't think I'll ever wear, and also I don't have enough closet and drawer space for all this stuff. The rest of the stuff I'm going to wash and then figure out what to do with it.

That's it for now, hope everyone has a great day!

Saturday, February 6, 2016

Legs and Back

Good morning! This morning's workout was Legs and Back. Decided to skip Ab Ripper X today, just didn't feel like it. Tomorrow before Kevin and I go down to Florence, SC to have Sunday dinner with my aunt and uncle, I'll do a Les Mills Combat workout so I can get my metabolism ready for the food my aunt will be making (my mother's side of the family is Italian, so whatever she  makes I know it will be good :) ).

This morning I've been working on some freelance writing, not sure what I'll do the rest of the day. Hope everyone has a great Saturday!


Friday, February 5, 2016

Tips for Success with Any Beachbody program

Got these tips from another Beachbody devotee... enjoy!

1) Get the best exercise shoes (sneakers) you can afford. Take some time and research them, and go to the store and try them on. I use New Balance; the pair I got sold for about $140. I was told to replace them every 6 months. That gets expensive, but the flip side is that after a while they won't provide the cushioning you need for all the jumping we do in Insanity and if you don't replace them you'll start experiencing pain and/or injury.
2) Consider investing in a heart rate monitor. I put it off for close to 2 years but I finally bit the bullet and got a Polar FT4. It does what I want it to do and while it wasn't cheap, it wasn't exorbitantly expensive either. It's a very good thing to be able to monitor your heart rate while you're working out so you can either ratchet up the intensity a little or back off some in order to stay "in the zone".
3) You don't have to go as fast as the people in the video if you don't want to or are unable to. Don't try and match them move-for-move. There's absolutely nothing wrong with going 1/2 as fast or even slower if that's the best you can do. "Do your best and forget the rest." Keep saying that to yourself over and over and over. What's important is to use impeccable form to prevent injury and burn-out. You do have to push yourself - you can't dog it and expect to get results. But if you go too fast your form will suffer, you'll end up getting hurt and then you'll start finding excuses not to work out. Find your own pace.
4) If you need a break, take a break. Sometimes 30 seconds isn't long enough. 45 seconds or 60 seconds might be needed in the beginning in order to bring your heart rate down to a reasonable level. Stopping for longer than 60 seconds probably isn't a good idea as you'll start to cool off too much. If you find you routinely need a longer break, either hit the Pause button or rewind the video.
5) Listen to all the comments and suggestions and tips that are offered by Shaun T, Tony Horton or whoever the leader is on the video you're using. They are VERY important and VERY helpful. After a while you'll begin to memorize the dialogue on the DVD's. You'll start to anticipate the comments and the suggestions they make. That's when you're really starting to internalize them. Try not to think of it as "getting bored with the program", think of it as really starting to know the program.
6) Keep a positive attitude. Remember, your body doesn't want to do this. It will probably fight you every step of the way. I keep hearing / feeling this little voice telling me take it easy, take the day off, shut the DVD down and call it quits, sit down in an easy chair and watch TV. I listened to that voice back in 2002 and took some time off. 10 years later I noticed that I had a gut and couldn't play frisbee with the kids anymore! That's when I decided to get P90X and do something about it.
7) You're going to be sore all the time, hungry all the time and tired all the time. That's normal and that's how you know it's working. Make sure you're eating properly (no more junk food, drink LOTS of water!) and get more rest (sleep) than you're used to. Your muscles don't grow when you're exercising, they grow when you're resting.
8) Work the program (Insanity, P90X, Turbofire, whatever) as written at least once or twice. If you decide afterwards that you want to do a hybrid, WRITE IT OUT so you have a plan and then stick to the plan. That's not something I would recommend until after you've done each program as written at least 2 or maybe even 3 times. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. The few times I decided to "wing it" by doing whatever workout I felt like doing next I found that I was focusing too much on one area; usually chest, shoulders and arms and not enough on the areas I really needed to work on (legs). That's where the Plateau Effect comes in, which is what P90X was designed to avoid in the first place.
9) There will be days when you don't want to work out. If you're sick, you're sick but if you're just feeling lazy then suck it up and go do what you know you need to do. 9 times out of 10 once you get a minute or two into the warm-up you'll start feeling better. I like to think about how I am going to feel 2 hours from now. Would I rather feel pleased that I did what I was supposed to do or ashamed that I allowed myself to get lazy again? Skipping a workout on one day makes it easier to skip it the next day. Before you know it, 2 or 3 days have gone by, then a week or even more.
I consider workouts like making deposits in the bank. I need to keep making deposits in order to keep a healthy balance. If I skip a day that's like making a withdrawal. There are already daily, automatic withdrawals just from too much sitting around but skipping a day makes it worse.
Be the person you want to be by doing the things you know you need to do.
10) Post on the Beach Body message boards or on Facebook as often as possible. Let people know how you're doing. Talk about what's going right and about what's going wrong and in both cases be willing to take suggestions. Sometimes I would do things I thought were really smart (like doing PlyoX 4 days in a row! What was I thinking?) and then found out they weren't so smart after all. I do better when I'm humble enough to take suggestions and listen to people who've done it before and who are doing better at it than I am. A lot of times, maybe more often than not you'll find that something you say helps somebody else and that is a REALLY good feeling. If you post often enough you'll find that you're making friends with the people here. That makes it even easier to write about how you're doing.
10.a) Have fun with it!
_____________
Some maniac who used to go by the name of "KeptMan" once posted these Top 10
1) people who faithfully exercise 6 days a week and mix cardio with strength have better results than people who workout less or in different proportions
2) people who prioritize their nutrition AHEAD of their exercise have better results than people who do the opposite
3) people who make TIME rather than excuses have better results
4) people who modify rather than skip have better results
5) people who PLAN TO DO THIS FOREVER have waaayyyy better results than people who are "completing programs"
6) people who design actual plans have better results than people who "do what they are feeling like"
7) people who workout with other people at least once a week don't quit at the rate that "loners" do
8) people who "switch it up" A LOT burn-out much less frequently - and see better results
9) people who develop/have active hobbies WILL exercise in order to be able to "keep having fun"
10) people who fill their lives with people who share these values . . . Become Lunatics!

Extreme Cardio Fighter and Gained 2 1/2 pounds

Good morning! This morning's workout was Extreme Cardio Fighter - it felt great to do that workout, I had a lot of stress to work off. My medication is finally supposed to be delivered today, last night I had to have my doctor call in an emergency prescription for a few doses of my medication so I would have enough to last until it's delivered. Next time I order this medication, I'm going to make sure I order it a month ahead of time instead of waiting until two weeks before it runs out - I don't want to go through this again!

I'm looking forward to this weekend - tomorrow I plan to spend the day working on a few things, then on Sunday Kevin and I are going down to my aunt's in Florence, South Carolina (about 2 1/2 hours away) for Sunday dinner - that should be fun. Hope everyone has a great weekend!


Thursday, February 4, 2016

Chest, Shoulders and Triceps and Ab Ripper X

Good morning! This morning's workout was Chest, Shoulders and Triceps and Ab Ripper X - I love that workout because it's a little more varied than Shoulders and Arms and Chest and Back - there's push-ups, dips, different types of shoulder presses, etc.

This morning I also had to call my prescription drug benefit provider (again!) because I was supposed to receive my medication no later than today - well the lady I talked to this morning said that they had to verify some things with my doctor about the prescription details, so now I won't receive my medication until Saturday. They supposedly put in an override for me, so I'll call Rite Aid later and see if they still have the medication, and if Express Scripts put in an override for it. Hope everyone has a great day!

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Les Mills Combat Live Ultimate Warrior's Workout

Good morning! This morning's workout was the Les Mills Combat Live Ultimate Warrior's Workout - it felt great to do that workout, I always enjoy the variety in that workout.

I'm hoping today that I'm able to get more accurate information on when my prescription is going to ship, or if it has shipped. Yesterday the status said the estimated ship date is tomorrow, but this morning it's gone back to saying my prescription request is being processed - so I'll check later and see what it says. Hope everyone has a great day!

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X

Good morning! I had a good workout this morning - I did Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X. I'm actually surprised, the bicep exercises were a little difficult for me, even though I'm used to doing them. I still think I want to get myself a pair of 10 pound dumbbells though, just to kick things up a notch.

I'm feeling a little less anxious/nervous about the possibility of having to have a root canal done - I figure its useless to get too nervous about it yet, when I haven't even had the consultation. I am however going to make sure I take plenty of questions to the consultation, and that I get all my questions answered.

That's it for today, hope everyone has a great day!


Monday, February 1, 2016

Rest Day and Dentist Appointment

Good afternoon everyone - sorry I'm so late in posting - I usually don't post on rest days (because there's not much to post about since I'm taking a rest day, LOL) but I wanted to post today because I did have a dentist appointment this morning - went like a normal 6 month check-up until I found out from my dentist that I may have to have a root canal done because one of my teeth has nerve damage. The dentist tested my tooth to see if I felt any pain when cold touched it, and on two of my teeth it took me a while to feel anything, but I felt it right away when he touched a third tooth. So I have an appointment to see an endodontist on the 15th for a consultation. I guess I'll just have to see how things go.

Other than that, I'm looking forward to changing up my routine this week - tomorrow's workouts are Back and Biceps and Ab Ripper X. I've also been working on some more eBay buying guide, one of the ones I'm writing is about the best weight machines, and one of the ones I found when I was doing research for it is an assisted pull-up machine. I may get one of those eventually, after Kevin and are in a bigger place (hopefully by the time our lease is up at this apartment in July!)

That's it for now, hope everyone has a great day!