Day #11

I'm in a slump. Not that I don't want to work out, I just didn't feel that hot all day look, felt sluggish and had a stomach ache.

But I worked out anyway. Wasn't my best workout but I am proud of getting through and now I can official say I am DONE with the workout #1 dvd!

@Caitlin - I haven't been wearing my heart rate monitor, only because I think the battery is dead (either that or I'm dead) because when I turn it on and it blinks for a few and then decides my heart rate is 0... I'm going to test it out with Colleen's HRM this weekend and then get the battery replaced if that's the culprit, I definitely love using it, there's something really satisfying about working hard and then seeing the numbers that back it up.

And now it is most definitely bed time.

Day #10

There's no way around it. Jillian's cardio sucks. It sucked the first day I did it (9 days ago), and it still sucks today. Of course, I don't mean her cardio is bad...I mean it sucks in the sense that all you want to do is scream out mid-running man "THIS SUCKS". Today was especially hard, I'm definitely not properly hydrated and I felt sluggish through the whole workout, never really got a rhythm down and by the end I was seriously out of breathe.

Thank goodness this cardio dvd is the same for all of phase 1, because I'm not ready to see what phase 2 cardio has in store for me. Only one more session of each workout #1 and #2 before I'm officially done with those dvds (each strength dvd is only used for half of the phase while the cardio dvd is used for the full phrase). I will then graduate on to new and presumably harder strength training...bring it on Jillian, I'm ready.

One of my dear friends IRL (in real life) just got her copy of body revolution in the mail TODAY! Can't wait for her to get started so she can join me in cursing Jillian.

Day #9

1/10 through it!!!! Does anyone else do that? I think I love fractions too much. Oh I'm a nerd.

Ok, so today was workout #2, "back" muscles.

Prior to starting this program I would get up in the morning and do 45 minutes on the elliptical while watching tv. I've come to really treasure this time - I get to catch up on a show, and I feel super energized all day at work from my morning workout. I am just NOT interested in doing strength training in the morning. So today I got up at workout o'clock, but instead of doing workout #2 I did the elliptical. I waited all day with plans to get my Body Revolution in later this evening only to unexpectedly head to my sister's to help watch my niece (my sister is sick, my niece is almost 1 and she didn't want to get her sick too). Yay for fun time playing with my niece and hanging out with my sister (from a distance). Ha.

I ended up getting home just after 9, but since I'm 100% committed to not missing a day, you bet workout #2 happened!

I have to say - I'm AMAZED how strong I'm feeling. For all of you out there doing this, I'm not sure what you're using for weights, but I have 8 lb dumbbells and I seriously thought my arms were going to fall off after the first few workouts. The difference between last week and this week is night and day, I can only imagine how strong I'm going to feel at the end of the 90 days. Also...I think it's time to go buy some heavier weights. What are you guys using?

81 days to go :-)

Day #8

Hi!

Yesterday was rest day and the official end of week #1. I did some cleaning around the house and then I really wanted to catch up on some of the tv I had tivo'd during the week, but the idea of sitting on the couch for hours being lazy didn't appeal to me. Instead, I opted to just walk on the treadmill while I watched tv instead...it was nothing high intensity, but it made me feel good that I could still burn some calories while indulging in my weekly guilty pleasures.

Today was the first day of week #2 and jump start is now over. It actually occurred to me after seeing some other people who are also doing BR have amazing week 1's that because I'm already so active and generally eating really well, there wasn't much to "jump start" for me...granted I still lost some weight, but it's not as extreme as some people because of the additional water weight people typically lose when they embark on a new fitness routine.

If we go back to my very first post about workout #1 (which is the disc I did today), you'll remember I cursed Jillian for making me do pushups and then plank immediately after. Well, I'm happy to say that today was the first day that I could actually stay in plank the full time...the other 2 times I did workout #1 I would inevitable take a break by pushing back into downward dog (and man oh man I never thought I'd refer to downward dog as "taking a break"). But either way, pumped to see that I'm getting stronger. She also has tougher variations on most of her moves so I decided to push it today. On the regular squats I'm doing a squat and then going straight into a jump, and then on the sumo squats I'm doing those with weights. All in all, today was very much a success! And I have a feeling I won't actually feel paralyzed when I wake up tomorrow, hooray!!

So let's talk nutrition for a second, because I know I have a few followers who are also doing this program and I don't want to lead people astray. I know Jillian Michaels is a world class trainer and I have no doubt she knows what she's doing and has advised people as such in both the workouts and the diet plan she has set forth. I will NOT be following her diet plan to a tee. For starters, I do not track calories. Say what? It's true. I don't. I have lost over 40 lbs over the course of the last year following my mantra "make good decisions". This typically surprises everyone I talk to.

I let myself have free days from time to time and I splurge on special occasions, otherwise I try to eat healthy on regular basis which includes lots and lots of water and not a lot of processed foods. Since I already know this works pretty well for me, I'm not planning on changing it significantly because as we all know, losing weight is a LIFESTYLE change, and since I've already adapted my lifestyle and habits in a healthy way I'd rather not lose that just because Jillian's menu differs slightly from my norm. With that said, I'm sure I will definitely be trying a few more of the recipes she has provided, and when I do I'll be sure to review them.

Day #6 modified

Well, I mentioned in my last post that today would likely be modified. And it was.

I was supposed to do cardio in the morning and then cardio again the evening. I woke up with a KILLER headache so I decided cardio was a no go first thing this morning.

Since I didn't want to Jillian's cardio dvd twice in a row, I ended up just getting in an hour on the elliptical instead. I tried to keep it at a similar intensity so that it was on par with what the dvds would have been, and I got to catch up on some tv at the same time!!! Squeezed in both Smash and New Girl. Good stuff.

Tonight I had a nice dinner with my favorite people from high school at one of my favorite restaurants - Not Your Average Joe's. They seriously have the most amazing bread and dipping oil that's all garlicky and amazing. No lie, I could eat that bread all day. Bertucci's lunch on Wednesday was basically a dress rehearsal for dinner tonight....and I rocked it. I didn't even have to exercise nearly as much self control as I thought I would have to... it made me feel so powerful! Now please, Not Your Average Joe's...if you're reading this...please make some wheat bread so I can actually indulge from time to time and not feel crazy guilty!

Tomorrow is rest day and then WEEK 2 kicks off!!!! I think rest day will also translate into blog rest day.

Day #5 Half successful

Alright, this is going to be quick because I am EXHAUSTED.

Today I was supposed to do workout #2 in the morning and then cardio 1 in the evening. I got up early and did the strength workout according to plan, however I had a board of trustees meeting this evening and I just got home a little while ago...I know that there are some days where my schedule simply won't allow for two workouts, and this was one of them. But alas, no more double workouts after this week anyway.

Tomorrow is supposed to be double cardio and then Saturday is a rest day for me, so I'll see how things work out with my schedule...I'm guessing now that Friday's workout will end up somewhat modified, not sure I'll have sufficient time to get in two different cardio sessions.

Day #4

Today I weighed in the first time since I started the program on Sunday. I'm down 3.6 lbs from Sunday, but this is not 100% a real loss...the previous week my weight was up about 2 lbs so I think I was retaining water and now eating better and working out more has kicked it. But nonetheless I'm at my lowest weight I've seen in....goodness I don't even know.

I'm happy to say that my muscles have finally forgiven Jillian for the torture she has put them through, and today when I woke up I still had a slight ache, but it was the GOOD ache, the one that reminds you you're working hard, not the bad one that prevents you from moving. And because of this, I had NO EXCUSES. I dragged my butt out of bed nice and early and got in workout #1.

I had a team lunch today at work and we went out to Bertucci's. Naturally I was scared to death of how off plan it would take me, but I planned ahead and check the menu & nutrition and picked something that resembled Jillian's suggested meals. It was a salad with grilled chicken with balsamic vinaigrette and it was super delicious and low calories/fat/sodium with a helping of protein. Picking this meal was not the hardest part of lunch though...oh no...the hardest part was resisting the basket of warm rolls that landed right in front of me with all of that delicious dipping oil. MUST RESIST. And I did. I declared up front that I wasn't having any rolls and thankfully the people around me didn't seem all that interested in them either, so I didn't have roll envy. I love bread...but it's also the devil.

For dinner I decided to make the turkey burger recipe - basically just super lean ground turkey mixed with some black bean and corn salsa and grilled. Much better than I was expecting, and I threw some avocado on it as suggested. The side dish was roasted veggies: carrots and brussel sprouts. My first time eating brussel sprouts and I'll be honest...they weren't bad!!!! All in all dinner was a success.

And course, it's hell week, so despite the fact that I didn't get home from the office until 7ish and then didn't eat until after 8...I still forced myself to go put in the 2nd workout of the day, Jillian's Cardio 1. At 10pm. Yes, that's right, I am a rockstar, thank you for noticing. 

Day #3

Today I strayed from plan slightly. So as I've mentioned previously, there are two versions of week 1 - kickstart or regular. The regular one basically looks like this -

Day 1 - Workout 1
Day 2 - Workout 2
Day 3 - Cardio 1
Day 4 - Workout 1
Day 5 - Workout 2
Day 6 - Cardio 1
Day 7 - Rest

Here's the kickstart version -


Day 1 - AM Workout 1, PM Cardio 1
Day 2 - AM Workout 2, PM Cardio 1
Day 3 - AM Cardio 1, PM Cardio 1
Day 4 - AM Workout 1, PM Cardio 1
Day 5 - AM Workout 2, PM Cardio 1
Day 6 - AM Cardio 1, PM Cardio 1
Day 7 - Rest

Since I said I was going to do the kickstart one...I'm doing my best to stand behind that plan.

Crap. Double cardio today.

Let me tell you, when I woke up this morning I seriously felt paralyzed. Jillian has apparently managed to find every single muscle in my body that I haven't been using recently. Yikes. Guess my old workouts weren't getting it done. However, I let the pain get the best of me and chose to rest my poor achey muscles with some extra sleep.

So, then I was feeling pretty guilty after I got home tonight, but I didn't want to do her cardio 1 dvd back to back twice (it's pretty killer), so I ended up doing cardio 1 and then settled in for a night of TV....on the treadmill. I ended up mostly walking, when I hit 4 miles I decided to call it a night. All in all, even though I changed it up a bit, I think I'm probably still on par with whatever the calorie burn expectations should have been. And at the same time, it actually felt really good to just walk out all of the tension in my legs.

Anyway, enough of the bad stuff, here's some good stuff.

First off, at this time last year I was wearing XL tops....well, I went shopping over the weekend and I've discovered that I'm now pretty much a medium. Woooo, this delights me endlessly. Here I am in my new medium sweater (please ignore the cliche bathroom mirror pic).

Now food. Who doesn't like food? So far I have to say I'm actually really enjoying the different recipes I've tried!!

Here are two of my fav dishes so far -

Vegetable soup (prepped ahead of time and separated into individual servings!)

Sirloin steak on a bed of spinach with a tomato salad....mmmmmmm this was SO good

Til tomorrow...

Day #2

This morning I tackled workout #2 and I thought this was the worst yet. It actually ran about 36 minutes, so not only did it feel longer, it actually was longer. My body is still sore from yesterday, so I think it made it harder for me today, but it didn't stop me from giving it my all. I will do the cardio one again later tonight but I wanted to get a blog in now because I have a feeling it's going to be an early night for me.

I went grocery shopping today and I did a lot of cooking/prep work this afternoon so that I wouldn't have to worry about preparing breakfasts & lunches on the go. Now everything is neatly stacked in my fridge in tupperware.

I'm finding the hardest part about the kickstart your metabolism plan is that there really isn't anything sweet. It's making me want chocolate in a serious way. Next week once eating is allowed to be a little more normal I'll definitely be looking for a healthier sweet snack to indulge in - how about a Wooberry (frozen yogurt) trip to any of my local friends?? I will say this for anyone else doing BR and trying to follow her recipes - I made the vegetable soup for lunch and it was EASY and DELICIOUS. And since it makes 4 servings I've got leftovers! Hurray! It was also my first time poaching chicken and I was worried that it would just taste like rubber and that it wouldn't be cooked all the way through, but to be honest that was delicious as well!

Alright. I'm off to make dinner. It's going to be a toss up between steak and turkey burgers...the decision will definitely be based on what's going to take less time.

And Jillian...thanks for making me want to amputate my legs every time I go down stairs.

Day #1 Workouts

Wait. Workouts. Plural?!?

Ahhh Jillian you are a crazy woman.

I know I mentioned in the last post that the eating plan includes a 7-day jumpstart your metabolism eating guide... well, the fitness guide also has a jumpstart for week 1. I've decided that given that I have the time, it makes sense to stick to the plan as closely as possible. Well, this jumpstart includes TWO workouts a day.

First workout - The very first workout was mostly strength training. I got through it fine, there was only one point where I wanted to scream obscenities at Jillian - seriously, who makes you do a 1000 pushups and then go into plank and hold it right afterwards??? Haha, actually...I take that back, that sounds like something my favorite yoga instructor would do (and I still love you Caitlin!). All in all with the workout and a brief cool down, it ran about 32 minutes. Not too bad, and to be honest the time flew. It wasn't until maybe an hour later when I went to go down a set of stairs that I realized my legs were burning. Guess that's the sign of a good work out.

I made the mistake of telling Colleen (my twin sister) about this workout right after it happened, and then a few hours later she yelled at me because I didn't blog about it. It was then that I explained to her that Jillian was a bitch and was making me work out TWICE today.

I had a semi-late night, but alas when I got home I knew it was time to get down to business.

Cardio 1 - This workout felt like it was longer than the strength one, though start to finish it only ran about 26 minutes. Despite feeling long though, I killed it. I do wonder what the expected fitness level is for people doing this... I'm happy that I've been working out pretty regularly for the last year, I'm not so sure I would have been able to do this a year ago and 40 lbs heavier.

Consensus so far...I like it. A lot. Some people don't like Jillian but I do, and she actually just seems fun and funny and real in these workouts. The people that she has doing the workouts all have personality and so it just makes it even more fun to go along with them. It's very motivating too...the thing about these kind of workouts is that it's easy to fake it and half-ass it...but there's something about it that just makes me feel like I have to try my hardest or my doorbell is going to ring and Jillian is going to be there with a stopwatch and megaphone in her hand.

Grocery shopping for me tomorrow...need to sit down and take a look at Jillian's suggested meal plan, decide what I want to follow and what I want to modify, and then make a list. I think I'm going to be big on lists for the next 90 days. Scratch that. 89. Wooooooo.

Let's get this party started!!!

I have been anxiously tracking this package and I'm delighted to say it has finally arrived :-)

Let's open it together!!!

Aside from the DVDs there's a resistance band, food journal, and some eating plans. Obviously I bought this for the workouts, but I'm going to at least look at some of the food suggestions and perhaps give some things a try. We'll see, I haven't even flipped through it yet. I did just quickly glance through the "7-day kickstart your metabolism" plan and I'm thinking I might give it a go. You know how you'll see recommended daily meals in random diet plans and it's always a bunch of really weird stuff you wouldn't want to eat? Well this couldn't be more different, it actually has a lot of stuff I've already been eating pretty regularly as part of my new healthy lifestyle, so it's actually nice to see a lot of my choices being reinforced. 

So I won't be delaying - I plan on jumping in tomorrow with my very first workout!! Stay tuned for my "Day 1" review :-)

The DVDs

Silly me, in my excitement about starting up this blog I forgot to actually post about the program itself.

There's really not too much I can say that Jillian doesn't already say better, but go check it out over at http://www.jillianmichaelsbodyrevolution.com/

If you're curious enough to cough up the money let me know, perhaps we can take it on together!

The purchase!

I know many of you out there have a love/hate relationship with Jillian Michaels. We loved seeing her get awesome results on The Biggest Loser in past seasons, and for those of you who have tried her videos before, you hate her for the torture she inflicts on you. I've actually never tried her stuff, but I've heard all about this from friends who have taken on various Jillian workouts, so now begs the question....

What on earth was I thinking when I bought Jillian's Body Revolution DVDs?

Well, since this is my first blog post and you don't know me, here's the quick background on me. At the beginning of 2011 I set out on a journey to transform my lifestyle into a healthier one, and through being active and making healthier food choices, I've successfully lost just over 40 lbs to date.

Ok, I'm doing great....so why Jillian, why now?

Probably for the same reason that most of you are either debating buying this or already have - simply put we want to know if it works.

And if does work, we want to see the transformations in our bodies that she boasts in her infomercial.

Beyond that, I'm worried that as I start to get into a lower body weight I'm going to need to work harder to see the kinds of losses that I've previously seen. I'm really happy about the success I've had so far but I'm not ready to stop. Currently, I'm shooting to lose about 40 lbs more.

Will this 90 day program transform me? Will it get me closer to my goal of losing 40 more lbs? Only time will tell but I hope you will stay tuned and follow along in my journey.

Once the shipment arrives, I will post again :-)