BelovedHeather
Cathlete
Cathe:
I love you more than cheesecake! I am so excited and inspired tonight. I am not sure whether to jump for joy or cry. I have been doing both all afternoon! When I was in school, I hated gym class with a passion. I especially dreaded physical fitness tests every year. I always struggled through the runs, finished last, and was in the “poor” category for everything. Then the FIRM Ya Yas introduced me to your workouts in 2005. I started with Cardio Kicks, fell in love with your dancy step choreography the first time I discovered Rhythmic Step, and never looked back. You made fitness fun for me. I have faithfully trained with your cardio workouts almost exclusively for over 2 years. I have also been enjoying Stretch Max consistently. My weight is not a good indicator of my fitness level. I have believed in my heart for a long time that I am in much better shape on the inside than I am on the outside. I was right, and that was confirmed today.
My church family is hosting a Biggest Loser challenge. In addition to providing each team with a personal trainer to prepare us for the physical challenges we will face every Wednesday evening (similar to those on the show), we were given the opportunity to have a comprehensive fitness evaluation (that would cost $150.00 otherwise). I put on my running shoes, workout clothes, and Road Trip tee shirt, went to the gym during my lunch hour, and met with a personal trainer for my fitness test. I was not looking forward to this. Once again, I stepped out in faith. My body fat is 40 percent. That is what I expected, so I was not shocked. My strength is just “average” for my age. No surprise there either since I just got serious about weight training in November with your 4-Day Split. My flexibility is excellent! Thank you, Cathe, for Stretch Max! My cardio fitness was the real surprise. The trainer was very impressed! I did a VO2 max test wearing a Polar chest strap connected to a computer (which I am sure is not as accurate as a lab test with an oxygen mask, but he assured me that it is accurate enough). The trainer was blown away by my VO2 max results of 80.2. That puts me in the 99th percentile and “elite” category for my age. After doing a double-take, he told me that he has never personally tested anyone that high and definitely wanted to know what I have been doing for cardio. I told him all about my beloved Cathe cardio and gave him your website address! I also shared my “before” picture at my top weight and size (4 sizes larger), and he was very inspired. He offered me a free one-on-one personal training session to check my form and show me the weight machines if I decide to supplement your workouts with gym workouts, but he told me to keep doing what I am doing at home because your workouts are obviously working for me! I think he was skeptical when I walked in at my size and told him that I enjoy intense cardio every week, but I made a believer out of him! I have known for a long time that I need your intense workouts to feel worked out. Now I know why!
I started my fitness journey at 51 percent body fat in the “poor” category across the board. I could not climb a flight of stairs without resting several times and feeling like I would die. I could not bend over and paints my toes either, which was my only fitness goal in the beginning. LOL! Thank you, Cathe, for creating such fun and effective workouts! For the first time in my life, I am no longer in pitiful shape. Yes, I am still fat. But I am beautiful and fit. With God’s grace and your amazing workouts, I will be strong too. Seeing the results I have achieved by consistently training with your cardio and stretch workouts, I am more inspired than ever to give my all to your weight workouts. The trainer assured me that being faithful with weight training in addition to my beloved cardio will be the key to conquering obesity for good. I am contending faithfully for a healthy body weight in 2008. The trainer affirmed that my nutrition is good. My resting metabolic rater is higher than I imagined too. I have the love and support of my church family and a team to conquer this challenge with me as well as the Ya Yas and my Cathe forum friends, and I have finally added consistent strength training to the mix. I am on target for a successful year when my fitness dreams become my reality!
One of the questions I need to complete for my Biggest Loser time capsule this week deals with what I want to do in the future that I cannot do now. I want to run! I have the heart and lungs for it! I just need to break free from this fat cocoon. I am fit and fat. I have too much fat on my body, but I have a strong heart! In a few short years, I have gone from huffing and puffing up a flight of stairs to IMAX3 and loving it!
Bring on STS, Cathe! I am ready to build my strength, blast this fat to the curb, and kick some butt! Now that I see the progress I have made with your cardio and stretching workouts, I am excited about STS and the possibility of being in the “excellent” strength category someday! Yes, I really do love you and your cardio workouts more than cheesecake! Cathe cardio looks so much better on me too! Thank you for the inspiration. I am feeling so empowered tonight. I am ready to take on hell with a water pistol again!
Blessings,
Heather B.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
I love you more than cheesecake! I am so excited and inspired tonight. I am not sure whether to jump for joy or cry. I have been doing both all afternoon! When I was in school, I hated gym class with a passion. I especially dreaded physical fitness tests every year. I always struggled through the runs, finished last, and was in the “poor” category for everything. Then the FIRM Ya Yas introduced me to your workouts in 2005. I started with Cardio Kicks, fell in love with your dancy step choreography the first time I discovered Rhythmic Step, and never looked back. You made fitness fun for me. I have faithfully trained with your cardio workouts almost exclusively for over 2 years. I have also been enjoying Stretch Max consistently. My weight is not a good indicator of my fitness level. I have believed in my heart for a long time that I am in much better shape on the inside than I am on the outside. I was right, and that was confirmed today.
My church family is hosting a Biggest Loser challenge. In addition to providing each team with a personal trainer to prepare us for the physical challenges we will face every Wednesday evening (similar to those on the show), we were given the opportunity to have a comprehensive fitness evaluation (that would cost $150.00 otherwise). I put on my running shoes, workout clothes, and Road Trip tee shirt, went to the gym during my lunch hour, and met with a personal trainer for my fitness test. I was not looking forward to this. Once again, I stepped out in faith. My body fat is 40 percent. That is what I expected, so I was not shocked. My strength is just “average” for my age. No surprise there either since I just got serious about weight training in November with your 4-Day Split. My flexibility is excellent! Thank you, Cathe, for Stretch Max! My cardio fitness was the real surprise. The trainer was very impressed! I did a VO2 max test wearing a Polar chest strap connected to a computer (which I am sure is not as accurate as a lab test with an oxygen mask, but he assured me that it is accurate enough). The trainer was blown away by my VO2 max results of 80.2. That puts me in the 99th percentile and “elite” category for my age. After doing a double-take, he told me that he has never personally tested anyone that high and definitely wanted to know what I have been doing for cardio. I told him all about my beloved Cathe cardio and gave him your website address! I also shared my “before” picture at my top weight and size (4 sizes larger), and he was very inspired. He offered me a free one-on-one personal training session to check my form and show me the weight machines if I decide to supplement your workouts with gym workouts, but he told me to keep doing what I am doing at home because your workouts are obviously working for me! I think he was skeptical when I walked in at my size and told him that I enjoy intense cardio every week, but I made a believer out of him! I have known for a long time that I need your intense workouts to feel worked out. Now I know why!
I started my fitness journey at 51 percent body fat in the “poor” category across the board. I could not climb a flight of stairs without resting several times and feeling like I would die. I could not bend over and paints my toes either, which was my only fitness goal in the beginning. LOL! Thank you, Cathe, for creating such fun and effective workouts! For the first time in my life, I am no longer in pitiful shape. Yes, I am still fat. But I am beautiful and fit. With God’s grace and your amazing workouts, I will be strong too. Seeing the results I have achieved by consistently training with your cardio and stretch workouts, I am more inspired than ever to give my all to your weight workouts. The trainer assured me that being faithful with weight training in addition to my beloved cardio will be the key to conquering obesity for good. I am contending faithfully for a healthy body weight in 2008. The trainer affirmed that my nutrition is good. My resting metabolic rater is higher than I imagined too. I have the love and support of my church family and a team to conquer this challenge with me as well as the Ya Yas and my Cathe forum friends, and I have finally added consistent strength training to the mix. I am on target for a successful year when my fitness dreams become my reality!
One of the questions I need to complete for my Biggest Loser time capsule this week deals with what I want to do in the future that I cannot do now. I want to run! I have the heart and lungs for it! I just need to break free from this fat cocoon. I am fit and fat. I have too much fat on my body, but I have a strong heart! In a few short years, I have gone from huffing and puffing up a flight of stairs to IMAX3 and loving it!
Bring on STS, Cathe! I am ready to build my strength, blast this fat to the curb, and kick some butt! Now that I see the progress I have made with your cardio and stretching workouts, I am excited about STS and the possibility of being in the “excellent” strength category someday! Yes, I really do love you and your cardio workouts more than cheesecake! Cathe cardio looks so much better on me too! Thank you for the inspiration. I am feeling so empowered tonight. I am ready to take on hell with a water pistol again!
Blessings,
Heather B.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
