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TD5W2
2.21.11 Slight change of plans.. I'm currently brainstorming on how I can effectively train. Reason: The hubby decided to workout with me for the first time since I met him over 4 years ago. Last night, I introduced him to ChaLean Extreme Burn Circuit 1. While that puts me at week 2, it puts him 1 week behind me, and I wanted to start the TurboFire/ChaLean Hybrid last night. So what I am "contemplating" is doing doubles, OR continuing with CEX as is and ADD TurboFire. I can do my cardio either in the morning while he's sleeping or after he leaves for work at night, this way we can to ChaLean together. See the madness? lol On top of all of that, I ordered the TRX Suspension System, cones, rings, and Kettlebells. 1. to add equipment to my home gym (I'm a personal trainer so i need the stuff anyway), and 2. I am going to need them to train for the Spartan and Tough Mudder (which my brother and I are OFFICIALLY entered into as of last night - yikes!) OK, OK, OK, Yes! I AM a personal trainer, and YES I use workout videos. Why? because I love them. They are already done for me, I don't have to make my own routines, which can be time consuming believe it or not. Even trainers need trainers sometimes, and I trust the trainers I work out to on the videos. I don't buy "celebrity" videos; I buy the videos that have science behind them, that I know work. Enough of that. The TRX Suspension System seems to be gaining in major popularity these days, so after doing much reading/research and youtube video watching, I decided that this is it. This is one of the key ingredients to my fitness routine to not only prepare for these races, but to get my body into the shape it needs to be in to function properly. I'm SO excited! Also, I spoke to a colleague of mine out in the Vegas area yesterday morning. He is doing the Spartan Race in SoCal this upcoming weekend! So excited to hear about his experience and see some really cool pics! He did mention to me that I should consider using Insanity as well to train, because it is a good cardio endurance, mind control workout. So I'm contemplating that as well! Update on the medication wean: I visited the doc late last week and he wants me to stay where I am with the .5mg. After explaining the symptoms I was suffering from he wants me to slow down the decrease even more, so I have to stay here for a few more weeks. I am Ok with that, because the second .25mg drop I did was torture. Plus, my anxiety out in public seems to be a little stronger, so he wants me to adapt more to each wean before I decrease. All-in-all though, it's been OK, and I'm feeling positive about the outcome!
I passed on the workout yesterday, I had a major headache so I had to pass - I was NOT happy either way! I made up for it tonight though! I successfully completed ChaLean Extreme Burn 3, Burn it Off, and Recharge.. 86 minutes of pure awesomeness! I started with Burn it off, as i knew that was going to be more of a cardio/endurance routine and if i had to blow out weight training first i would not have the energy to get through it. I'm glad I made that decision too because my muscles were warmed up and ready to shake! There was only 1 exercise I had to completely modify and that was Sumo Squat with Calf Raise. I could NOT get the form right with the weights, so after 8 reps I paused the DVD and started at 1 again with no weight just to perfect my form. I did 12 with perfect form with no weight - weight or not that was intense! Finished up with Recharge which is a flexibility/stretching/Yoga routine and it felt delicious! I had to indulge in the recovery drink for Burn 3 though, my muscles were shaking like crazy! Then finished up with a nice shower to wash away the DNA!
TDW1D3
Yesterday was an odd day of sorts. I went to bed around the same time I usually do, but instead of sleeping until my normal time I woke up at 0545. I tried to fall back to sleep, but ended up popping out of bed at 0611 BRIGHT EYED AND BUSHY TAILED! No complaints here! I was able to get in a morning workout. I had forgotten how great a morning workout makes me feel! Most likely because I haven't worked out in the morning since 2005! I enjoyed a cup of Orange Sunrise while I folded the load of laundry that was in the dryer from the night prior. That was the perfect meal pre-workout as it gave me some energy and took the morning hunger pang away. The morning's workout was ChaLean Extreme Burn Circuit 2, and I brought it by increasing the weights, it was this day that i realized how strong I have become. During the day I had to work through some panic triggers and a mild anxiety attack while my DH and I were running errands. Traffic is a major trigger for me, and we ended up getting stuck in a pretty bad traffic jam while out. I just kept focused on my iPhone and read some articles on the Spartan Race Blog to keep my mind off of it, and for the most part it worked. ( I ♥ my iPhone) Later on that evening, when DH went to work, it was time to go to work on myself. I had to play catch-up so I popped in ChaLean Extreme Burn Intervals and Ab Burner; which was the designated workout for the day. Let's just say i forgot what CE Burn Intervals was! Goodness!!! It's a combo of strength endurance training (low weight for a long period of time) and Plyo/Turbo Jam. You also have to use leg resistance bands for a lot of the lower body work. No complaints.. but OUCH!! This program made me dig deep, made me sweat out A LOT of DNA, and pushed me passed my quit limit. Well, actually I pushed myself passed my quit limit. There were so many times i wanted to stop, not the program itself, but the actual exercise I was doing. I kept digging deeper, almost brought to tears a couple of times because i just could not do 1 more rep, or do that extra squat, or failing before time was up. I only had to stop on one exercise and that was burpees. I am NOT good at burpees AT ALL, and I never have been.. instead I did the modified version, which (with all due respect) is not easy, not that i expect it to be, but dang! For the first time in my years of using the DVD programs I found myself watching the count down clock. This program was NO JOKE, and i had to keep watching the timer tick down or i was going to throw in the proverbial towel. I didn't feel comfortable until the clock reached 9 minutes, but those were the longest 9 minutes of my life! I had to keep telling myself.. "The Spartan and the Mudder are your goals, if you fail HERE you will fail THERE.. what are you made of? Dig Deep! Eeking out 1 more rep, 1 more squat, 1 more burpee is not going to kill you, it's going to make you stronger! You want to get over that wall right? Run through mud? Then you need to do this! Think about all of the wounded soldiers you are doing this for! They won't give up and they are disabled! You are able bodied so use it to it's full potential!" That was enough motivational talk to get me through the tough spots. In fact, 90% of the time i was envisioning being at the Spartan and blowing through with such precision, speed and determination all because i trained, and trained hard. If i train easy i will fail, and failure is NOT an option. I am not going to deny that I was sick to my stomach afterward, but after i had my recovery drink it settled it a bit and took my shaking muscles away. My system was TAXED. This morning i can feel every single muscle in my buttox, abs, arms, and back and Burn 3 is on the agenda for tonight. At least my blister doesn't hurt anymore! I think this quote by Bruce Lee fits perfectly into this blog post: If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.
TDW1D2
Working out isn't always about lifting weights and bouncing around in an aerobics class. I decided to do some functional strength and endurance training in the form of shoveling snow/ice. We've had a particularly harsh winter thus far and it's dumped an insane amount of snow where I live. My property is not shoveler friendly. The way the house/driveway/front & back yards are set up there really is not a good place to put snow, so we put it where we could during these storms.
They are in the way and melting and refreezing because of the unnaturally warm temperatures this week. I started with a nice size deck piled with 3 foot icy-snow piles that I shoveled two days ago. Today I moved into the sun a 5 foot high x 4 foot deep x 3.5 foot wide pile that was by the back gate that was in the shade, and took the spade to chip the under-ice. WOW! What a free workout that was! back, arms, core, legs, cardio, endurance (because it took nearly 2 hours to move). I was sweating like I was in a steam room for an hour! It felt AWESOME!!! Well, all but my left hand that now has a very painful blister.. I guess i should have worn gloves lol. Tomorrow it is going to be in the 60 degree range and i plan to move more, because Father Winter and Mother Nature are the only two that know what the rest of the winter holds and I need the realestate! lol
I read an interesting article this morning; it was 1 of a 4 part series, and it introduced the lesson of getting up when life knocks you down. This article birthed a saying in my head that I will now claim as mine, it's long but who cares: Being born was your first greatest obstacle and success in life, followed by a slap on your bottom by the doc. When life turns into an obstacle, go back to the doc and have them slap your bottom, instead of curling up in the fetal position.
Martin Luther King Jr. had this to say "“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge.” Don't be afraid to ask for help, ever. Don't worry about how others judge you, you don't know what they went, or are going through and sometimes the embarrassment of seeking medical help keeps people from talking. Don't be quiet, scream it! You ARE always a work in progress! If you stop working on you, you stop living. Just like in school, you had a teacher then.. you still need teachers now!
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