What have I been up to?

About two weeks ago, I posted that I was doing Les Mills Pump and loving it.  Then I hurt myself somehow and had to stop using the program.  I pulled some kind of muscle on my hip and it is still very painful.  On a side note:  My husband is still going strong with Les Mills Pump. He is on week 5 and his body is really starting to change for the better (not that it wasn't already pretty amazing).  I spoke to my doctor about my hip injury.  He feels that at my size Les Mills Pump was just a little too much for me.  I really hope to get back to it at some point.

I wanted to keep working out so I pulled out my T-Tapp DVDs.  If you have been following my twitter account you will see that I have been working out very consistently with T-Tapp.  When starting T-Tapp you do a "boot camp" based on how many sizes you want to drop.  If you only want to drop a clothing size, you workout four days in a row and then every other day for six weeks.  Since I want to drop three sizes or more, I am doing a 14 day boot camp (14 days in a row and then every other day for six weeks).

Today is day 8 of my 14 day boot camp.  Previously, I never gave T-Tapp enough of a chance.  I would do one or two workouts and then quit.  It just seemed too good to be true.  But, as of today, I can honestly say that I am starting to see some amazing results.  After the fourth workout, my jeans got loose. About a half of a size loose.  Then on day five I looked in the mirror and my double chin halved in size.  It was weird, in the best way possible.  The creator of T-Tapp used to work with Chemotherapy patients and developed these exercises to get their lymphatic system moving properly.  This is what I attribute my inch loss to at the moment.  I will take inch loss any day.  While I haven't measured myself yet (will do so next week) it is obvious something good is happening.

I've also been listening to my Slimpod very consistently.  I log that on my twitter account as well.  It seems that consistent listening is helping me to keep going with my exercise.  Having a positive attitude really supports all of the other changes I am trying to make in my life.

After the boot camp is done I plan on getting back to Tai Chi night at karate.  Eventually, I will get back to karate. Right now, I am just taking a little detour in hopes of getting healthy again.

Twitter and working out

I am not doing a great job of logging in workouts here on the blog.  I opened a twitter account so that I can record workouts there. It is just easier for me.  You can find me on twitter at @MrsC_19460 (The link is also at the side under helpful links).  As for my workout, today I did the second DVD (so the next level of difficulty) on Les Mills Pump.  I still really like this work out.  And, my husband is really starting to lose weight from it. 

Kettlebells, Les Mills Pump, Tai Cheng, etc....

Les Mills Pump is such an excellent workout.  Even for someone of my size.  Doing it is really making me feel a lot happier in life.  It is making me feel hope again. It is also making me excited about getting an exercise routine together.

I am usually not good at creating daily exercise routines but Pump has got me thinking.....
Tai Chi first thing in the morning (if we save some more money, Tai Cheng)
Kata
Pump

And, if I ever get some weight off I am desperate to get back to Kettlebells.  Pump is really making me miss my Kettlebells.  So, to some up, I guess I am feeling really hopeful and happy just from one simple change in my life.  Thanks Beachbody for creating a program like Les Mills Pump which anyone, at any level, can use.  Hope you all have a great day!

workout schedule

I've been working out but I haven't been posting it for some reason.  I am re-doing my first week of Pump because the first week I did it without weights just to see what I could and couldn't do.  I did the workout but didn't make much progress strength wise.  Les Mills Pump provides a 13 week training schedule that we are trying to follow pretty closely.

Last week I did DVD 1 of the program and completed that on April 23, 25, and 27th.
This week I workout on April 30 and May 2 using DVD 1.  This time with 10 lbs. on my bar.
Tomorrow my scheduled workout is 20 minutes of stretching and 45 minutes of walking, per the schedule.  But, instead of walking I will do 45 minutes of kata.

I will definitely try to do better with logging in my workouts as I do them.

The Science of Exercise

Today I turn 42.

So, I have been writing this blog for a year now.  I haven't made much progress regarding weight loss but I have learned a lot about my body over the last year. 

While I was out today, I listened to a great radio program on NPR.  The topic was "The Science of Exercise" (if you click the link you can listen to the podcast).  One of the people who was interviewed during this show was the NY Times "Phys Ed" columnist, Gretchen Reynolds.  She just published a book called “The First 20 Minutes: Surprising Science Reveals How We Can: Exercise Better, Train Smarter, Live Longer,”   She talked a lot about HIT training .  The program was very detailed and interesting and there is no way I can do it justice, just take a listen for yourself.

The show confirmed for me a conclusion that I have come to on my own.  I am no longer going to focus on food.  Instead, I am going to focus on exercise my goal.  Primarily, I will be doing this by doing Les Mills Pump.  But, that is not the only way I want to get exercise into my life.  Doing kata daily is also an important focus for me.  But, really any way I can get exercise and movement into my day is going to be my main focus.  Also, I want to exercise at least 5 days a week.

There are some interesting side effects this new focus seems to have on me.  First of all, my attitude is better. I feel happier.  Getting your workout in is a more positive goal for me than over thinking everything that goes in my mouth.  Secondly, I feel better when I exercise daily.  Thirdly, I eat better and less, without trying.  Since I started doing this (gradually for the last week) I have lost 5lbs. without thinking about it.

Now I know that losing weight is 80% what you eat and 20% exercise.  But, psychologically focusing on my diet makes me 100% crazy.  So, it is not worth it to me.  Instead, let me focus on exercise and let everything else fall into place all by itself.

Going forward with this blog I will be blogging about my workouts.  It will be used as a tool to help me get my five workouts a week into my schedule.

Happy Birthday to me.

Les Mills Pump

Today will be my second workout using Les Mills Pump.  I started on Monday.  They provide a workout schedule that I am trying to follow.  My husband started last week and so far he is doing really well with it. 

I really enjoyed the workout.  It is flexible enough to accommodate anyone at any fitness level.  I really enjoy weight lifting so this was a natural fit for me.  But, it is also quite aerobic which was surprising.

Les Mills Pump is part of the Beach Body line of products.  Beach Body of course has a great reputation for their other workouts like P90X and Insanity.  I have to say, Les Mills Pump, is a really well put together program.  I love everything about it!

better but not quite

So I am currently on:

• one steroid shot to last for 4 weeks
• Zyrtec-D 2x's daily
• Singulair 1x's daily
• antibiotic
• Nasal spray 3x's daily
• 2 different inhalers

I feel much better but I am still am having some issues breathing.  Since the pollen count is so high in our area (especially our block infested with Oak, which I am deathly allergic to) due to dry weather, the doctor basically said I won't feel great until we get a ton of rain.  Rain washes the pollen out of the air and reduces the pollen count.  We have gotten some showers over the last 24 hours but according to pollencount.com it hasn't been enough to improve the situation.  Our area is suppose to get a soaking rain on Sunday which is the answer to my prayers.  So until the Oak tassels fall to the ground and get washed away I am stuck in the house with the air conditioner on. 

My husband has started Les Mills Pump.  So far he likes it.  He keeps telling me how sore he is so it must be working.  Hoping that Monday will be my start date.