Bodybuilding/Sculpting check-in;-)

Today was KCM's Muscle Up workout #1, the bonus Abs from that DVD, and RWH Plyo 2. This was my first experience with KCM, and I loved it! She is very personable and encouraging without being like an over-the-top cheerleader. When I previewed the workout, I thought about going heavier then I usually do because each set was only 8 reps, but I'm glad I decided against that. There is little to no rest in between exercises so I don't think I would have survived!

Jen, I also got KCM's Weights, TLC and Shape Up. I'll be trying all of them over the next 2 weeks. I have a feeling I'll be stretching the rotation to a month if I like them all as much as today's workout. I feel a shopping spree of KCM workouts coming on! :eek:
 
This morning was Tapout XT Ripped Conditioning + Ultimate Abs XT. Planned doubles is Max:30 Cardio Challenge. Jodi--I have all of those KCM workouts and they are all great. Like Cathe, she has a lot of awesome and varied workouts. She actually does some really challenging and unique strength work. Some of it is so challenging that is difficult to go super heavy with the dumbbells. Your Best Body has some really awesome strength work. I really like Weights, too.
 
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Hi Ladies-

I participated in the RwH check-in and was hoping I could jump in on this one! Hope that's okay! I've been MIA for a couple of weeks and due to an issue with my email address/log-in, I had to create a new account. Excited to back though!

After completing the RwH Getting Started Rotation and getting over a wicked bad cold, I've moved onto a STS rotation with some RwH and other workouts sprinkled in for some fun and variety! Last week I completed Week 3 of STS as well as both UB RwH strength workouts (I'm trying to hit each body part twice a week). For cardio, I was really craving some running. Running/Jogging used to be my main form of exercise until I discovered my love for heavy weight training a year and a half ago. Since I have not ran in who knows how long, I decided KCM's home gym interval workouts would be a good way to satisfy my desire to run while sticking to the HIIT style cardio I've been doing lately with RwH. I did one of the workouts on Friday and one yesterday and they both really hit the spot! In addition to the KCM workout yesterday, I also tried out the new 21 Day Fix Extreme Pilates Workout from Beachbody. It was a nice addition given all the core work that you do in pilates, although I think only about half of the workout could really be classified as pilates. The second half of the workout was just your typical lower body floor exercises with a band. I haven't been including any sort of additional core work in my current workout rotation. This is something I hope to improve on as I continue along in my rotation.

Today I am starting week 4 of STS with Disc 10 Chest, Shoulders, & Biceps.

Hope everyone has a great Monday!
 
With all the talk about KCM and muscle up I decided to do muscle up full body premix. What a gem. I really like Kelly but I do get a bit board with her workouts. Sprinkling them in with Cathe's helps a lot.

Another no school day and more snow. I'm trying to stay positive but when all you see is white it's hard.
 
Check in later today due to another manic Monday. :( Well, at least it's about over soon. :D

Today I focused on biceps, triceps with 10-12 reps. I incorporated an unstable balance and bands when I did bicep curls and triceps. Also working on 1 leg deadlift with a lighter weight to do 10-12 reps. Tomorrow is HiiT with STS Ab with weights and plates

ilovefitness - I think I do pretty well with a high fat diet too. The fats keep me from getting hungry. As long as the fruits, grains (especially), starchy vegetables are limited and only eat when I'm hungry then I pretty much lose excess weight steadily. I have to be mindful of what I'm eating though.

I know exactly what you mean. :) I am glad you're the same way. The scary thing is I can get so hungry that I end up eating too much organic nut butter of any kind. I actually lean out a lot and build more muscles on a higher fat, moderate protein, and lower carb diet. I can eat plates and plates of veggies with proteins and they won't satisfy my hunger at all. If I do too much fruit and starchy stuff, I end up wanting to go to sleep. Strange, I know. I cannot quite make of this. All the MD's in my family cannot help me. I guess diet is really an individual thing.

I am a bit deflated today. I again over-consume the organic nut butter without pre-meauring. I am only competing with myself and I feel so bad about losing self-control. I have a fitness goal which I hope to achieve by May. I am ectomorph in body type so I am hoping to tighten up some flabbier areas and gain more strength. I am really type A with myself as always. :(

Tomorrow is another day for me. I am gonna use this check-in to keep reminding myself of proper portions. I hope you ladies don't mind.
 
Today was a rest day. I think I'm fighting an infection or virus and I'm tired. My 12 yo dd had a fever last night.

ilovefitness - What I notice when I eat a high fat diet is that when I get hungry, I can go an additional hour or more without food and not get famished. It's like there is still a slow release of um what, energy release? I guess I don't know how to word it. Today I had a salad with canned tuna on it and I was hungry an hour later! I should have had an avocado with it and upped the amount of pumpkin seeds! Funny, I don't eat much nut butter, but my kids go through a lot of it. We do use almond meal and coconut flour almost exclusively for the occasional baked goods.
 
This morning was Tapout Competition Core + 5 Minute Knockout. Planned doubles is Max:30 Tabata Power.

ilovefitness--I love nutbutters, too, tho I don't have an overconsumption problem. But I will tell you what I do to stop myself from overeating things I have a weakness for: environment control and pre-portioning things. So if you have issues with nutbutters, I know a lot of companies sell their nutbutter already portioned out into single serving packets (I used to buy Justins single serving almond butter to take to work and eat with a banana). I don't buy things I cannot stop eating and even when I make things that have wholesome good ingredients but I have problems over consuming them, I just separate them into individual servings, leave enough out for a week, then freeze the rest. Don't know if this helps, but it is what I have done for many years. Everyone in my family knows I love decadent cupcakes and petite fours, so I get trays of cupcakes and boxes of petite fours for holidays. So I throw out about 2/3 of the cupcakes and freeze the rest and freeze all of the petite fours. Then I thaw them (or even eat them frozen) in individual servings. Out of sight, out of mind, plus the stay fresh for a very long time in the freezer.
 
Hi Ladies,

Today was (it's nearly eleven pm here) a rest day.

I am recovering from DOMS caused from yesterday workout. It was Hard strike XTrain plus 100 hip thrust with 18kg load
and 100 modified fast push up. My chest was coocked. I had to skip push up from abs segment/Hard strike.

Welcome sare-bear :) Please feel free to join this check in.

I will report further tomorrow.:):)
 
Today my body must have been craving a rest day because somehow I completely slept through my workout. Even though it came a couple days earlier than I was planning, it sure felt nice to give my body a rest and enjoy the extra zzzz's.

Been doing a lot of research on nutrition and working out. Wish I could figure out the right combination of each to get the results I'm seeking. It's been about a year and a half since I got really serious about adding heavy weight work to my workout routine. I had always done some form of strength training before this, but never really pushed myself like I do now to really go heavy. Trouble is, while I have gotten stronger over the past year and a half, I feel like it really doesn't show. I just can't seem to get "leaner" and in some areas (like my stomach), I still feel soft. I also feel like my body doesn't really add muscle easily. I don't have a ton of weight to lose which is probably part of the problem, but with so many different nutrition guides out there these days (IIFYM, Paleo, etc.), it's hard to know which is best and most sustainable. I don't eat horribly now (although I'm certainly not perfect) which is what makes it even more frustrating. I can't figure out if I'm eating too much or not enough. And then don't get me started on cardio---based on everything I read online I honestly can't figure out if I should be doing more cardio or less (I'm currently doing 2x a week HIIT). Sorry for the vent, I've just been more frustrated than usual with this stuff lately and needed to get it off my chest, I guess. LOL. I work out so hard each week and just wish I was seeing more changes in my body.
 
Today was EFX 3. Now, it's been awhile since I did EFX 2, but I remember sweating a lot and it being pretty tough. So I thought 3 would be even tougher. I didn't even break a sweat for 3! For me, it was slightly tougher than 1, but not as tough as 2. I'll do 2 again next week so I'll be able to do a better comparison.

SarBear, have you considered meeting with a nutritionist to get a better idea of an eating plan that would be right for you and your goals?
 
This morning was STS Total Body and planned doubles is Max:30 Sweat Intervals.

Jodi--I found EFX #3 more challenging than #2. I definitely broke a sweat with both of them. I am impressed that it didn't really exert you. That first split squat with rotation in EFX 3 Complex 2 killed me every time (once I was doing it properly, that is--the first time I did the workout I did it the same as the split squat in EFX 1--then near the end of the complex, I realized I was doing it all wrong, so the other times I did EFX 3, it challenged me much more!). And the skydivers in every workout killed me every time. I bet you won't find the YAYOG advanced workouts nearly as challenging as I did. Have you tried those yet?
 
I woke up yesterday not feeling so well, so I took a rest day. This morning I felt great. I did RWH Hiit legs and KCM Gym intervals core. Sometimes I just prefer standing abdominal work.

Has anyone used a fit book?

I bought one last week at target. I'm hopeful it will keep me focused. I seem to have ADD lately. I use to always be so focused about my fitness, but lately I can't seem to decide on a rotation. I keep changing my mind. Heavy weights, light weights, only yoga, only spinning for cardio, oh and what about kick boxing?
Way to many choices.
 
This morning I did Muscle Endurance - Upper Body and Abs

Elaine, I've never used a Fit Book or anything else like it. It looks like a very nice journal, but I can't keep up with things like that. I can't track what I eat either or keep a very up-to-date daily calendar for that matter. I like putting together rotations and after I do a workout I do write it down in my workout calendar, though! This I can do, other forms of organization are lacking for me. And I totally agree - way too many choices in workout types and DVDs (yet I'm always looking at more...).
 
ilovefitness - What I notice when I eat a high fat diet is that when I get hungry, I can go an additional hour or more without food and not get famished. It's like there is still a slow release of um what, energy release? I guess I don't know how to word it. Today I had a salad with canned tuna on it and I was hungry an hour later! I should have had an avocado with it and upped the amount of pumpkin seeds! Funny, I don't eat much nut butter, but my kids go through a lot of it. We do use almond meal and coconut flour almost exclusively for the occasional baked goods.

THANKS for telling me this. :) Actually, like you, I actually show more muscle definitions on high fat diet. Hight fat in this case means 'quality' fat from nuts/seeds/avocado. :) I can eat tons of protein and veggies and I swear I will be hungry in an hour or two. I have no problem with nuts/seeds in their original form. It's with the nutbutters I have trouble with.

ilovefitness--I love nutbutters, too, tho I don't have an overconsumption problem. But I will tell you what I do to stop myself from overeating things I have a weakness for: environment control and pre-portioning things. So if you have issues with nutbutters, I know a lot of companies sell their nutbutter already portioned out into single serving packets (I used to buy Justins single serving almond butter to take to work and eat with a banana).

THANKS ALSO for your sound advice. I have tried premeasuring...haha..the will power did not take over as in today also. :) I am not going to beat myself up for it. I am improving every single day and also I only have myself to answer to. One strange thing is I actually show more muscular development this way. But just like you said, I need to quit buying the trigger food. I have no problem measuring out nuts/seeds/avocado, just something about organic nutbutters...boy, that's the problem. :( I took a peek at your blog; wow, you are AWESOME!!!! Now I have a blog where I can reference to. :)

Today is Lower Body followed by a quick session of kickboxing. :) I love kickboxing. Today I pigged out on nut butters again and I shall 1) put them in the freezer 2) quit buying them for a while. I have done these two things before and still...sigh...anyhow, I need will power. Again, at this point, I don't have weight problem, just want to go for my personal best with good muscular definitions since I am an ectomorph.

Sorry ladies. I forgot to check in yesterday. :( Got carried away by work and I just forgot. I know everyone seems to post their accountability in this forum. Is there an invite-only FB group as well? Please PM me if there's a such group. I know some people are leery of privacy issues. I am..only to the extent of having my personal info all over the open web. ;) Anyhow, just thought I'd ask. :D Rock on, ladies!!!!! ;)
 
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Today I was back at it with STS! I completed the last leg workout of Meso 1. I'm getting very excited for my active recovery week next week. Even though I know I'll miss lifting, this will give me a chance to mix things up with some other workouts. I just haven't been able to decide on a schedule for next week. So many workouts I'd like to do, so little time!! :)
 
Today was KCM's Shape Up workout #1 and the Tabatacise premix with Tabatas 1 & 2 and Core 2. Another winner from KCM! And it went by so quickly...I put my weights down and turned to find her stretching. I was like wait, what, we're done? But I was having so much fun! I could definitely see doing both workouts together in the future.

Jen, I haven't gotten YAYOG, but it's on my wish list. And that's thanks to your awesome review!
 
This morning was Tapout XT Yoga XT. I felt like yoga/rest/stretching was exactly what my body needs after beating it up with Tapout and Max:30, but I didn't like Yoga XT. I guess it did the job but I did not care for it at all and will not revisit it. Planned doubles is Max:30 Tabata Strength.

Jodi--that actually sounds like a great combo! KCM's tabata is far below the level of Cathe's, but it does get the heart rate up--however, I love how she does strength tabata intervals. Use the right weight and it seriously burns! I will have to try that combo some time.

Glad to hear you're feeling better Elaine.

Nathalie-that sounds like a tough workout!
 

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