Drop 2 Sizes: Week 1 Complete and Metabolic Workout review

It's Monday.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

Just wanted to let you all know that I did my Metabolic Workout!

Lets get down to it.

There are 2 of them:  Timed and Countdown.

I did the Timed one this week.

It is 15 minutes.  Yes, only 15 minutes.  Basically you do a move for 30 seconds and then you rest for 30 seconds.  And in those 30 seconds you are supposed to do as many reps of that move as humanly possible.  So be prepared to push yourself.  You an either half-ass it or go all in.  What kinds of moves you ask?

squats, squat-thrusts, lunges, kettle bell/dumbbell swings, and plank type moves to name a few.

And just so you know I went all in.  And it was a solid workout.  I was sweating, breathing hard and so thankful when it was over.  At one point during the workout she mentions that unless you give it all you got, you won't get all the results you want.

And that was the push I needed.  Because I want results!

There is also a warm-up and foam roll workout included but I did things a little differently.  I did my own standard warm-up and then I chose to do the foam roll AFTER the metabolic workout because there is no cool-down.  BTW, the foam roll is only 5 minutes or so.  I will definitely be adding the foam roll to my cool down from now on.  If you don't have a foam roller, go get one.  I happened to have one from my trek to physical therapy last year.  I believe it was around $20 or so.  I also have a rumble roller but I will definitely be using the foam roller for this one. 

And look here, below is the kind of I have and it's only $15.  Got to love Amazon.

White Foam Roller 6x36 Round

There you have it folks, that's week 1.

And today starts week #2.

Good times.

30 Day Shred: Level 3

I'm at level 3 y'all!

And all I can say is ...

THANK GOD.

I was NOT a fan of Level 2.  It wasn't horrible or anything, it was just plain HARD!  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE what it did to my body I just didn't love having to do it :)

About Level 3:

I burned 260 calories.

Again, it's the 3-2-1 system (3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, 1 minute of abs) and I have become a huge fan of this format.  I find that I can push myself harder when I know that any second I get to move on to something else.  I'm only on Day 1 of this level but it already feels easier than Level 2.  Then again, when I wrote my last update about Level 2 I had no idea that that workout would get harder as time went on.  I'd like to think it became harder because I pushed myself each time I did the workout.  In all honesty, I did do that.  I always start a level following the beginner moves most of the time, but I like to end doing as many of the advanced moves as I can.  And push myself I did.  My hips and butt are still sore from doing my last workout from level 2 because of those stupid planks.

Measurements:

Level 1 Day 1:

Chest:  40"
Ribs:    33"
Waist:  33.5"
Hips:    42"
Belly Button:  34.5"
Upper Thigh:  24"
Leg @ Knee:  18"
Left Arm:  12.25"

Level 3 Day 1:

Chest:  40"
Ribs:    32"
Waist:  32.5"
Hips:   41"
Belly Button:  33.5"
Upper Thigh:  22.5"
Leg @ Knee:  17"
Left Arm:  12"

Total Lost:  -6.75"

Today's Menu:
B:  larabar
L:  zucchini boat + bacon wrapped jalapeno pepper + spring potato salad
D:  sushi

30 Day Shred: Level 2

I had my first workout at level 2 last night!

First, the facts:  It was the same 3-2-1 format,  3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, 1 minute of abs, and it ran just around 25 minutes total.  The only equipment needed is a set of dumbbells.  I burned 225 calories according to my HRM.


I thought this was definitely a step up from Level 1.  There were a couple of times when I had to do a beginner version of a move or take a five second (but no more!) breather.  The compound moves during this level are definitely more difficult but I guess that's how it's supposed to be.  I remember wishing during Level 1 that the legs were utilized more and this level takes care of that.  Also, get ready to love the plank.  She uses it quite a bit.  I have a love-hate relationship with the plank.  I love what it does for your body but I hate doing it. 

Am I sore?

Not really.  I was pretty sore after level 1 so I guess that means I have gained some strength :)  I can tell I did a good workout last night because I have a slight bit of stiffness in my smaller muscles.  If I roll my shoulders I can definitely feel that I worked them pretty good last night.  It must be those darn planks.

I'm excited for this new level and challenge and have to remind myself that the more I put into each individual workout, the better my overall results will be. 

Also, just as a note, you're supposed to be doing this program for 30 days straight.  I'm not doing that.  Instead I'm doing 6 days a week w/ 1 rest day. 

Today's Menu:

B:  Larabar (blueberry muffin)
L:  French Spring Soup (basically a whole bunch of spring veggies in a delicious broth)
D:  Pulled Pork + Cole Slaw

Slim in 6: Week 4

I am officially at the halfway point.  It hasn't been too hard but it hasn't been easy.

For the last 2 weeks I did the Ramp It Up DVD for 6 workouts per week.  Here's the rub, it's really hard to do the same workout over and over.  In fact, there were days when I had to give myself the 10 minute rule.

If I just made it thru 10 minutes, then I could quit. 

It's a nice little tactic.  You see, rarely do I ever get 10 minutes in and want to quit.  But seriously, trying to just get myself to start those 10 minutes proved to be a struggle at times.  No matter, I made it through.

I measured myself yesterday and true to form, I left my notebook at home so while I can't give you exact numbers,  I can tell you that I definitely lost inches.  Not tons of inches but a few.  Specifically in my bust, waist, and hips.  I do remember the hip measurement being the biggest change.  And I can definitely "feel it" in my waist area.  To me, my waist feels like the place that has tightened up the most which is awesome.  Scale wise, I've lost about a quarter of a pound in the last 3 weeks.  Also, a mirror check last night during my workout made me think my arms were looking a little more toned and my body had an overall slimmer, more shapely look.  

Yesterday was my Day #1 of Week #4 and I started the Burn It Up DVD.

Here are my thoughts:

This 59 minute workout starts out almost exactly the same as the Ramp It Up.  So if you've got the choreography down you can just hit the ground running.  However, it's at double time.  Yeah, she has picked up the pace and about 30 seconds in you can tell.  And she doesn't stop.  She moves swiftly from one exercise to the next while keeping this faster pace and before I knew it, I was jogging in place just to give myself a breather from torturing my legs.  Seriously, the first segment after the warm-up is squats.  I love squats.  I really do.  My legs have always been super strong so maybe that's why I like them - they have never been too difficult.  But she made my legs BURN and by the end of the segment I wanted to punch her.  Ok, not really.  But the intensity is definitely up.  On the plus side, because she moves so quickly, the segments move quickly.


I can't really tell you about the rest because I made it about 30 minutes in (255 calories).  I got to the 30 minute mark and my body was tired.  Instead of forcing myself through it I decided to turn it off and wait til my next workout to try to make it a little further.  She says go at your own pace and that's what I'm doing.  I have 3 weeks to do this workout and I don't have to be perfect on my first go at it.

Also it was 12:45am.  The workout almost didn't happen at all.  I got home from work and was sick to my stomach all night.  Then finally around 12:00am I felt a little better and so I plopped in the DVD and got to work.  Probably not the smartest move but the thought of missing my workout made me feel too guilty.

Also, I was sure my legs would be super sore today.  You see, the 30 minutes I did do were mostly all squats, lunges, and kicks.  Never fear, my legs are feeling pretty good.


And finally, my goals for this evening:  start the workout earlier and try to get further.

Today's menu:
B:  3 slices bacon
L:  mushroom stroganoff
D:  hamburger + lettuce wrap + oven baked fries

Slim in 6: Week 2

I made it to week two so you know what that means?

It's time to 'Ramp it Up'.

Yeah, that's the title of the second DVD.

But before I start talking about the second DVD lets take a look back at how I did with week 1 and 'Start it Up'.

I did all 6 (yes, SIX) workouts exactly as prescribed.  I can honestly say it got better.  I've decided that 25-30 minutes is probably the perfect amount of time for working out.  You get in a good workout and on those days when you're not "feeling it", it's not that hard to make it through 30 minutes.  Anyway, by workout #6 I definitely felt like I had made some progress.  Not so much in how I looked but more in how I felt.  It feels like I accomplished just a tiny bit of tightening here and there.  Nothing major but definitely enough to make me feel good.

I took my measurements and while I personally don't think 1 week is enough to tell a major difference, I can report that I lost inches in 3 areas.  0.5" in my ribs (I measure right under my bust for this), 0.5" in my upper thigh, and 0.25" from the area right above my knee.


I was both surprised and pleased.  Pleased because, lets face it, it's awesome to lose some inches.  Surprised because while I feel pretty good I still don't see any difference in the mirror.

As far as weight goes, so far this week I am continuing to gain.  I haven't changed my eating at all so the only correlation I can make is that it has to do with working out.  Yes, this was one of my fears so part of me is freaking out.  However, the other part of me understands this happens so I'm not trying to let it be too overwhelming. 

Now lets talk about 'Ramp it Up'

It's just over 47 minutes long and it requires the use of exercise bands (but I don't see any reason why small dumbbells wouldn't work).

For being almost double the time of the 1st DVD, this one moves along pretty fast.  She moves you from one exercise to the next pretty quickly so the first 20 minutes kind of go by fast (yeah!).  The first portion is almost the same as the Start It Up, easy choreography and familiar moves.  Then she moves on to using the bands for some light toning on your shoulders, biceps and triceps.  All the moves are really easy and as long as you do them correctly you feel it working.  Then you do a nice little floor workout (you know, Tae Bo style ... on all fours lifting your legs in the air one at a time til your buttocks are burning from the effort), some abdominal work and finally a small yoga portion for stretching at the end.

And that's it.

I burned around 300 calories with this DVD (according to my HRM) but I was very much going at my own pace. Your miles may vary.

Tonight is Day #2 of my second week of Slim in 6.  I'm doing Ramp it Up for 2 weeks total and then I'll move on.

Until Then ...

Today's Menu:

B:  pea rice protein + almond milk + ice
L:  bison chil:  bison + carrots + tomato + onion + red pepper + beans (lots) + my special blend of 11 herbs and spices (chili seasoning) + diaya for garnish
D:  vegetable quesadilla:  assortment of veggies + daiya + brown rice tortilla

FitBit

I have been looking at the fitbit for a long time now.  I've read all kinds of reviews and user opinions and even have gone so far to pick it up in the store only to put it back down.

So after my doctor visit last week, I decided to take the plunge.  I mean, I had a gift card to a store that sells them so I figured why not.  So I came home from my appointment and went shopping.

I got a blue one.

Initial thoughts?  I'm still not sure.  I've had a rocky start with mine.  I started wearing it full time on Friday.  I did 2 workouts that day (as per my doctor's orders!):  a walk and a p90x strength workout.  It told me I burned 2493 calories total that day (that includes my workouts).  I can't help but think that seems a little high.

But it was only day 1 so I wore it again the next day.


Saturday! I wore it the whole day long.  Had one short cardio workout (20 minutes maybe) and worked on a photo shoot so I was pretty active.  It says I burned 2421 calories.  I was a little surprised that the calorie difference between this day and the day before was so minimal because of the 2 workouts but whatever.

Next day:

I was starting to get into this little gadget.  I liked seeing my steps, calories and whatnot.  I found myself getting competitive and trying to move more to beat my steps from the previous day.

And then, it stopped working.

It was the end of the day after much movement, walking, and such and it just decided to stop working.  No lights, nothing.

I was agitated.  I reset the sucker and left it at home while I finished my day all prepared to take it back to the store.  But, when I got home, it was working again.

Go figure.


However, the third day was a wash since I had to reset it.

Now it's Monday.  I've been wearing it and so far I'm at 1116 calories burned today.

Yeah, I burn way less calories at work than I thought.  I have 2 workouts planned for today so hopefully I'll get that number up higher.

Conclusion:  I have no idea what to make of this thing.  I like that it makes me want to move more.  I like that I can see how my calories differ day to day.  Do I think the calorie burn is accurate?  For now my answer is no.  It appears to be an estimate at best but I'm hoping over time I can find a pattern in the number.  Maybe it'll help me find that "sweet spot" my doctor was talking about.

In any case, I love gadgets and data.  Maybe in a week or 2 I'll have a better idea.

For now, I'm keeping it.