Happy new year!

Hope you all thoroughly enjoyed the holiday season. Mine was quite busy. A little hectic, really. But I enjoyed spending time with my fam.

And now, I'm back on my grind...

I've been exercising here and there, but haven't held a consistent routine since June (yikes!). So my bro and I have made a health pact to eat better and become more active. He signed up for boxing lessons, and I plan to take a samba class once a week (in addition to my morning workout).

This morning I got up and popped in Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred. The dvd worked for me last time, so I figured I'd try it again. There are 3 levels, each only 20 minutes so I can ease my way back into the routine; but it's a great workout so I'll see results. There was a time when I thought I needed more aerobics, but it is actually a nice mix of strength, cardio, and abs. Perfect for getting me started.

The tricky part will be Level 3. It's really intense, and I never made it through the full 10 days last time. But I'm gonna do my best this time around. I'll definitely keep you all posted. :)

All the best for 2013! I hope you all find the determination and resources to make your dreams and goals reality.

XO

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Days 7 through 1 & beyond - Ultimate Cliff Hanger

Sooooo...Um, yeah. It's been a minute. A very hot minute!

I'm so sorry for leaving you hanging with my progress, but life just got completely hectic. So hectic that I haven't even exercised consistently for the past 2+ months. Now that's not to say that I haven't exercised at all. I have - just not as much as I would've liked. Not being lazy or anything, but I really have been that busy and that drained from being so busy.

But I'm trying to manage things better. Because, if I don't take care of myself...well...you know the drill.

So what have I been doing since I last wrote? Well, I've been walking to and fro the office (instead of taking the bus from the train) to maintain some kind of physical activity. And, when I've been able, I turn to Cardio Core Express for a quick cardio boost. I've also been doing a pretty good job of maintaining a healthy diet. So all has not been completely lost!

Oh, and I did finally try 6 Week 6 Pack. I was majorly disappointed! Not because it was a wack workout, but because it was a strength training workout. I thought it was a cardio workout that focused on the abs (similar to Cardio Core Express), but I was wrong. It's a core strengthening workout that incorporates some cardio - but not enough to get my heart pumping in the way that I wanted.

The verdict: 6 Week 6 Pack is a great core workout (trust - I felt it the next day!), and I will go back to it once I get closer to my target weight. But, for now, I'm shelving it to continue focusing on shedding lbs/burning fat.

And now, the news you've been waiting for: Since I began this self-challenge, I have lost a total of 13lbs.

I'm actually amazed that, after not working out consistently for so long, I've managed to maintain the weight loss. But that's the power of healthy eating for ya! I feel so much better when I put good food into my system. And so sluggish when I eat unhealthy things. I've fallen off a bit on eating as much veggies as I was before, and drinking enough water has always been a challenge, but I'm a work in progress. :)

I haven't re-taken my measurements recently, so I can't update you on those numbers, but I can give you two funny, if not slightly embarrassing stories (well one is anyway).

So I was going to a sound clash with E one night, but was running late. The weather had suddenly become blazing hot so jeans were not an option. As I was getting ready, I decided to put on a trusty outfit because I knew it fit well and looked good - no preening in the mirror or multiple outfit changes necessary. E had already gone outside so I put it on, hopped in the passenger seat and did my makeup as we drove along. We got to the venue and I had to go to the bathroom. When I got in there I was horrified! I saw myself in the mirror and my clothes looked super baggy, like they were about to fall right off of me. In my rush to get out the door I never paused long enough to notice that I looked like a motherless child - lmao!

In one sense, I was pleasantly stunned to see that I had made so much progress and hadn't even realized it. It actually felt good to know that what had once been a curve-hugging outfit was now completely loose. But then I still had to make it through the night, and I felt really sloppy. So I found a spot (E was the emcee for the night so he was up on stage while I was in the crowd) and kept miself steady fi di night! LOL!! I enjoyed myself just the same (who cares - it was dark!), but made a serious mental note to never run out the house without giving myself a once-over in the mirror again - lol.

The other story is not embarrassing really, but it does show that it hasn't completely sunk in that I've lost this weight...I went to this clothing store (you know the one ladies, where everything is super cute, runs super small, and the sizes don't go past a certain number) to browse around. To my surprise/delight I found several items in my size. I went to the dressing room to try them on, not expecting much (remem, most everything there runs small), but to my surprise everything was actually a bit too big on me. I needed a smaller size. Well that made my day! So now I just have to make sure I keep it up.

As a matter of fact, I'm starting 30 Day Shred all over again. And I'm doing it with my bestie. She had started a while back, but fell off so now we're doing it together. Starting tomorrow Monday.

I never did finish Level 3 so I'm hoping to get through all 30 days this time. And, although I complained about wanting a higher level of cardio, I can't front - I had great results using Shred. I felt healthy and toned.

So I'm gonna start going to bed early again to get enough rest and have enough energy to wake up pre-dawn. :) Either way, I'm enjoying the season!

Days 39 & 38 - Working it with Slim in 6

I am happy to report that I've gone down a pant size. And, to date, I've lost 10lbs.

I incorporated Level 3 of 30 Day Shred into my weekend workout, but have been doing Cardio Core Express from Slim in 6 every other day during the week. I really like this workout from Debbie Siebers. There's enough cardio for me to work up a sweat and feel like I'm burning fat. This workout also incorporates a lot of standing ab work, so I also feel like I'm focusing on my problem area.

Debbie suggests using 3lb hand weights, but says you can also do the workout without them. I've done both - with and without - depending on how I'm feeling on a given day. It's a 30 minute workout so it's also easy to fit into the day.

I've also been doing her Slim & 6-Pack, which is intense. It's 15 minutes of mat work, utilizing some traditional moves as well as some more advanced moves. The time goes by quickly enough, but you definitely get a good core workout in by doing it.

I was hoping to do some more running now that spring has arrived, but it's been so nasty outside that I've been sticking to my trusty dvd's. How about you all? What's been your workout of choice to keep you fit, healthy and strong?

Days 67, 66 & 65 - Steady Breathing

Level 3 of 30 Day Shred is intense!!

Jillian gets down and dirty right away, starting out with a more intense warm up, then heading straight into plank moves for strength. In fact, a lot of the strength training in this level involve planks. And, this time around, some of the cardio involves weights. It's a challenge, but feels good. And yes, I broke a sweat early on and kept on sweating the whole way through. But it was manageable. Partly because I built up stamina in Levels 1 & 2, and partly because I was keeping a steady, focused pace - particularly during the cardio intervals.

The other day I learned that, when you are doing a cardio workout, you do not want to get to the point of panting. You should be able to hold a conversation while you're working out. Sounds crazy right? We tend to think in terms of "no pain, no gain" but truth is, if you're working beyond a certain capacity, you stop burning fat and start burning sugar - not what you need for weight loss.

Here's the basic breakdown of how it works:

AEROBIC
Aerobic exercise requires oxygen. While you're breathing steadily, your lungs fill with air, filters out the oxygen, deposits the oxygen in the blood and then sends it straight to your heart. Your heart then pumps the oxygen back out, sending it to the rest of your body - including your muscles.

Your muscles use fat and carbohydrates as fuel to function. But too much of anything is a bad thing. So when you have excess fat built up (i.e., are overweight) and need to burn it off, you can turn to aerobic exercise because, as the heart pumps oxygen into your muscles, the oxygen will actually aid in burning off fat and carbohydrates - so you're burning off fuel and losing weight.

Thing is, fat is dense and requires lots of oxygen to burn it off. But, the more you do aerobic exercises (e.g., cardio), the better your body becomes at using oxygen to burn fat...So that's why they say you should be able to hold a conversation...It's not so much that you should be blabbing during a workout, but that you should be keeping a steady pace and breathing evenly so that your muscles get as much oxygen as possible to generate fat-burning energy. And you should be able to sustain aerobic activity for more than a few minutes.

ANAEROBIC
On the flip side, anaerobic exercise requires no oxygen. It is more intense so you will start to pant and get out of breath - which is why anaerobic exercises are pretty short and/or are done in sets. With this type of exercise, your muscles do not need loads of oxygen to complete the task.

Because anaerobic exercises are so intense, your system basically cannot produce the large amounts of oxygen your body is begging for. So, instead of using oxygen, your muscles turn to sugar (i.e., glucose, fructose, sucrose) and start burning that to function. That is why you don't burn fat through anaerobic exercise (e.g., strength training) - not enough oxygen.

And, in case you were wondering, the reason anaerobic exercises don't last very long is because burning sugar causes a byproduct, lactic acid, to build up in your system. The more lactic acid in your system, the more fatigued your muscles will be, so they won't be able to perform as long.

Ok, so that was a WHOLE lot of information - lol. But here's the thing -- you need both aerobic (cardio) and anaerobic (strength) exercise to be truly fit.

Doing aerobics will:
1. burn excess fat (key to weight loss)
2. tone up body all over
3. strengthen cardiovascular system (good for overall health)
4. boost your mood

Doing anaerobics will:
1. strengthen muscles (good for revving your metabolism which is also key for weight loss)
2. strengthen bones
3. lower blood sugar levels
4. increase overall strength and stamina

All this being said, I've completely reinforced my theory on why I haven't lost as much weight as I thought I would have by now...Jillian primarily uses anaerobic exercises in 30 Day Shred - strength training. I need to add aerobic cardio to burn fat. So I'm gonna start running tomorrow.

Oh, and by the way, I've lost 5lbs so far. Not bad for 5 weeks. Haven't measured myself in a bit, but my clothes are much looser on me than before. And a few people have even noticed that I've lost weight. That's always a nice feeling...It's one thing when you can feel a difference in your own body, but another when other people start to see it too. :)