Push It January 2014

[Nanbo]

Right after I checked in this morning, we found out one of DH brothers passed away suddenly. His family found him dead in bed when someone tried to wake him. Death is never at the right time but the family was preparing to celebrate my mother in law 90th bday in March now she has to bury one of her children.

We will travel south in a few days. I will likely not check in much or at all next week. I just wanted to let everyone know.

HeartyMax,
My heart goes out to your DH and the whole family. It is truly agonizing to lose someone you love. It has been 3 months since my oldest brother passed away and it still hurts like crazy . I am sending you a cosmic hug....try to keep your health up....again, I am just so sad for you.

 

[Nanbo]

I finished Cathe's 2014 January Metabolic rotation on Saturday and yesterday my DH and I went for 3 hour hike in the woods at our favorite state park. I haven't decided what rotation I'm starting tonight, but I know it will have some Pyramids, Burn Sets, and Gym Styles...as well as a lot of metabolic stuff. I also want to concentrate on abs...
I love that I have all these options at my fingertips with Cathe, but it does make it hard to make decisions !
Once I come up with something I'll check back and do some personals!

 

[Nanbo]

Okay, here's what I have for the next 4 weeks:

Mon: LIS TBT UB
Tue: Xtrain Tabatacise
Wed: STS TB
Thu: Xtrain All Out Low Impact HIIT
Fri: LIS TBT LB
Sat: Flextrain
Sun: Yoga Relax

Mon: Pyramid UB
Tues: LIS Afterburn
Wed: High Reps
Thu: X10 Double Low Impact
Fri: Pyramid LB
Sat: Xtrain Supercuts + Core#1
Sun: Yoga Relax

Mon: Xtrain Chest, Back, Shoulders + Core#2
Tue: Xtrain Cardio Leg Blast
Wed: Xtrain Bis & Tris + Core#1
Thu: Xtrain Tabatacise
Fri: Flextrain
Sat: Xtrain Legs
Sun: Yoga Relax

Mon: Crossfire
Tue: Gym Styles C&T
Wed: LIS Afterburn
Thu: Gym Styles Legs
Fri: Xtrain All Out Low Impact HIIT + Core#1
Sat: Gym Styles B,S, & B
Sun: Yoga Relax

There may be some changes along the way, but I'm thinking this looks pretty good for the month. Last night was a lot of fun to get back to TBT...it was a lot tougher than I expected! I'm thinking of doing some of the 100 rep challenges from Xtrain when I think of it, and work on push ups (a never ending quest !)!

What is everyone else doing this month?

 

[Jenniferlove]

Hi! The super bowl game was a dud but we had a fun party. I thought the commercial for the spray tan with all the body builders running to get the spray tans was hilarious however I'm the only one who really found the humor in it

I started that day with Pedal Power, premix #3.

Monday I SHOULD have TOTALLY worked my butt off but instead got the house reorganized and cleaned, shredded a lot of old documents, got my car inspection and plates taken care of.

This morning I did Lower Body Blast; haven't done that one in a long time. I used 4 risers with the High Step. I was hoping to do X77 but just didn't have it in me... all the cleaning I'd done for a few days plus taking a day off made me really want to ease back into a workout. I think LBB was just right.

Maybe tomorrow I'll do one of the High Step workouts; I sure could use a metabolic workout. I always enjoyed the original Bootcamp so if my legs are too tired tomorrow I may do that one. Or Afterburn. We'll just have to see

Heartymax,
Hope things are going okay.

Toni,
How was the cheerleading competition in Chicago?

Nancy,

I haven't decided what rotation I'm starting tonight, but I know it will have some Pyramids, Burn Sets, and Gym Styles...as well as a lot of metabolic stuff. I also want to concentrate on abs...
I love that I have all these options at my fingertips with Cathe, but it does make it hard to make decisions !

Way to go! That was a tough rotation! I didn't do it but just looking at it made me sweat!

I agree - it is hard to decide which workouts to do which is one reason Cathe's rotations are nice; the decision is already made

Tash and Stacie,
'Sup, girlfriends? Long time no talk/write.

Caitlin,
Glad your workouts are still going well and strong.

Take care and have a good day!

 

[Nanbo]

Today is my 17 year anniversary as an ex-smoker! I'll celebrate with All Out Low Impact HIIT. Last night's STS Total Body was really hard for me! Had to drop the weights down for a few of the moves. I think that happens when you haven't done a certain workout in a while !

Jennifer, I used to do Lower Body Blast a lot! Loved it! You make me want to swap out one of my lower body workouts in my rotation! My first Cathe "series" was the "no name" group with STS Total Body, Intensity, Lower Body Blast, and High Reps. I got GREAT results with those! I would sandwich her HIIT DVD in between them and really was challenged! It was a lot of legwork!

Caitlin, how is the cardio going? Which are your favorites? I used to love doing Step Blast before my PF set in...now I'm all about Tabatacise and low impact HIIT like in X10 and All Out HIIT. I also LOVE FLEXTRAIN!!!!

Heartymax, I hope your family is able to laugh through tears now. I rely on funny memories of my brother to get me through the rough patches. I don't think the disbelief, sadness, and general "missing him" will ever go away; but, I've been looking back at some of the funny emails he would send to me and laughing all over again. I still hurts like hell though.

Toni, looking forward to hearing how you're doing...shoulder okay????

Stacie and Tasha, where oh where are you??????

Well, I have to end this and get back to work...luchtime just goes by WAY TOO FAST!!!!!

 

[heartymax]

Just checking in briefly. We arrived in Georgia on Wednesday night. School was closed for students on Wednesday so that meant we only had to take the kids out of school for two days. Majority of the family from out of town arrived Friday morning. Being with family is definitely part of the healing process. DH has a large family and they are very close. The funeral is today. DH brother was only 60 years old. It is a reminder that you can't take life for granted..

Nancy-- congrats on being a long time nonsmoker. What an inspiration to others. You are so right about enjoying the memories. DH converted our wedding VHS to DVD since the loss of his brother. It's something he has talked about doing for years but never did it. The video also includes footage of other deceased family members including his father. We spent one evening watching it, laughing and just remembering his brother. We brought a copy with us to GA and the 19 year old video was enjoyed by many last evening. It's no longer just about our wedding day but also remembering loved ones.

Jennifer-- we are hanging in there. I'm a little nervous because my boys have never been to a funeral. I was pregnant with my oldest when my father in law passed. We have had other deaths in our family over the years but not close enough to my boys for us to decide for them to attend a service.

Prior to leaving, I spent my mornings packing and getting organized for the trip home so no workouts. I look forward to getting back home and working out. Not sure if I will on Monday but definitely on Tuesday. I need to decide on a rotation. Nancy made me think of Upper Body Bliss because it had Pyramids, GS and Slow and heavy if I recall correctly.

Enjoy your weekend everyone and I will check in when I get back.

 

[atompki1]

Hey everyone!! Well I only had one workout last week P90X3 CVX. Mostly out of laziness and just needing a mental break. I think it was what I needed cause I'm feeling much more relaxed overall. Work has settled back down and our drama filled cheer weekend is over so life is getting back to normal.

I plan to do 4 workouts this week. Today was Flex Train. Then I'll fill in the rest of the week with Spin or MMX, HC, LBB(standing+barre). I think that will get me back into the swing of things. I am going to stick with a 4 day a week rotation for the rest of cheerleading competition season. One because I've decided I want to learn to write iOS apps for iPhone/iPad and to do that I need to learn the programming language for it. I'm at my best in the morning, so I'm going to take one of my workout mornings to dedicate to that. The other reason is the rest of our competitions are two day competitions and last the entire weekend, which takes up one of my workout days on the weekend. I can workout around it, but it really irritates me to do that.

Has anyone found that they lose weight when they take breaks from working out???? I find this to be the oddest thing for me. I'm less hungry, so I don't eat as much and then I lose weight. I'm losing muscle tone and fat, so it's not all it's cracked up to be. But still I'm thinner and I find it quite odd. I guess this is another reason why I don't mind going down to a 4 day workout week. I'm not scared of gaining weight with less workouts.

The cheer competition was quite drama filled. Most of the team stayed at the same hotel, which I don't typically do. We usually have some hotel points and I can stay at a different hotel for cheaper. But this time I'm using the hotel points for NYC, so I just stayed with everyone else for a reduced rate. I'm really not the soccer/cheer/dance mom type, so all them kids and parents together was just a bit much for me Jasmine's team came in second out of 2 teams. However, they scored the highest score that they have ever made which is a good accomplishment for them. But after the second day of compeptition one of the coaches yelled at them as soon as they came off the floor. Jasmine was crying when she got off the floor. We have been doing this for 4 years and Jasmine has never cried about anything(and they have never been a winning team). I was not happy about that. I've talked to the director of the gym and I'll be talking to the coach also. It's been all sorted out, but I will not have coaches tearing down my kid over a competition. We are not curing cancer here...it's just a recreational activity for my daughter. It's simply not that serious. One of the reasons I'm at this gym is because I feel like my child is respected as an athlete, increasing her skills, and having fun. I've noticed this coach is having more of a tendancy to speak from a position of anger and I just don't think that is good for the kids. She's much better when she is able to control her anger, which is what I have communicated as my concern.

HeartyMax
I'm so sorry to hear about the lose of your Brother In Law. Sending prayers to your family.

Nancy
I always have a hard time deciding what to do. I worry that I should be doing something different than what I am currently doing Lately, I've just been going with the concept of just doing something and making sure I work lower, upper, and core evenly. Sometimes I find that being in maintenance mode is harder than needing to lose weight

Jennifer
I totally agree, that Super Bowl game was a total dud!! Were you going to do X77 AFTER LBB??? I might just fall out and die if I even thought abou trying that....haha!!

Tasha & Stacie
Hope all is going well with you both!!

 

[atompki1]

Hello again Today's workout was Party Rockin' Step 2(Combos 1-6, no final product). That workout moves. I haven't done step in a while and my ankles are feeling it!! Tomorrow is a rest day, so I should be all rested up and ready to go by my Thursday workout!!

Hope all is well with everyone

 

[Jenniferlove]

Hi all,

Still feeling great
Workouts have been on track for me; doing something 5-6 days of the week... For once I did Yoga Max in its entirety and wow, those balance challenges and stretch poses are hard! Also, I've done Pilates Super Sculpt (Tracey Mallott); that was tough! I am very protective of my back so I didn't do her full range of motions. Flex Train is always fun, All Out Low Impact HiiT, and HiiT 40/20

Yesterday I did LOTS of glutes; exercises from Strong Curves followed by most of Great Glutes (no chair or ball).
Today was Afterburn premix 6-10 followed by Yoga Relax express #2.
I am feeling my legs today!

Tomorrow will be Upper Body. I'm thinking Trisets; love that one.

My dietary intake has been great; the biggest change is my lunch. An apple when I first start to get hungry (sort of like a pre-meal salad), then the main course is 2 eggs (poached or hard boiled) mixed with hummus, spinach, carrots, and quinoa. This last batch of "hummus" I made was awesome - chickpeas (drained and rinsed), quarter to half of a red onion, a red pepper, tblspn lemon juice, tblspn garlic, few tblspns of olive oil, and salt. I left out the tahini altogether; it had a completely different taste and was wonderful. Tomorrow instead of quinoa I'll have half a sweet potato which I cooked tonight. I am enjoying having less meat/chicken. I just feel more healthy and full of nutrients!

I know I'll take FULL advantage of the buffet at our all-inclusive resort in Mexico next week I plan to swim and walk the beach, and who knows - I might even enjoy their workout room. After all, I actually really do enjoy working out in a gym as long as it's early in the morning and doesn't get in the way of my day. I may even purchase a couple of Cathe's Downloads

Seven blissful days of beautiful sugar-white sand, warm weather (I don't even care if it rains!), and being away from every-day stress! I think I'll even try a Hot Stone massage at their spa! Can you tell I'm excited?!

Someone is staying at our house while we're gone so no worries about the house or the dogs - at all - while we're gone

Toni,
Nice i-Dedication (haha). I don't recall losing fat/muscle when I don't work out but I know that rest days do me good. I've been doing more Yoga instead of skipping days, so generally I'm doing something 6 days a week.

Wow, sorry to hear the competition didn't go smoothly to say the least. I think you are spot-on; adults need to be role models. Supportive and constructive feedback. Yelling and making kids cry is unacceptable. Hopefully you will help her realize that her coach's behavior says more about his style of communication and doesn't reflect upon her at all!

I just love PRS#2; to me it is almost interval-style because of the breakdowns and definitely, how fast it moves. It is so fun! I have done #1 but frankly just don't really care for all the turning. I did it on a rest day using no risers and I still worked up a sweat in spite of all the rewinding. Still, it's just not as fun as #2. By the way, If you do the Extreme 8 combos premix there are one or two from PRS#1 but I liked those.

By the way, I didn't end up doing X77. SB Sunday morning was Pedal Power, Monday was running around re-cleaning and getting errands done. So, an active rest day. HOWEVER, I AM doing x77 this Saturday the 15th! It will be my last kickin' workout until after Mexico.

Nancy,
Happy Smoke-Free Anniversary!

Your workouts sound good. I'm not sure what I will do one day from the next, with the except that this Saturday I will do X77. I just sort of go with my own flow.

Heartymax,
I'm glad you all are doing well and that your travels were uneventful. It's great that the family could all be together. I didn't mention this before but New year's day we headed to Ohio to see Craig's brother who had just been moved to Hospice. He died that Friday so we got to see him before it was too late. Then Craig stayed behind with his mom and I spent the night at the airport when trying to get back home. Anyway, I'm mentioning it because Mark had just turned 59. My Aunt, who died in October last year, was only 57! You are right - life is precious and every day is a gift.

I plan to do upper body tomorrow; I like all the workouts you mentioned so I might have to take a look at that rotation. I like the shorter premix in Pyramids but sometimes it seems too short; I suppose skipping a set is a nice compromise.

Have a good night, everyone!

 

[heartymax]

My body is just worn out from the long ride down and back to GA. I was planning to workout Tuesday but didn't wake up til 6:40 which is two hours later than I get up when im working out. I also slept 2 hours after dinner. I guess my body is trying to tell me something so I am listening and will take a few more rest days.

Toni---I just love how you handled the situation with the coach. You are also teaching your daughter not to let people tear down her confidence. Isn't it nice that Jazmine can be talented and have fun at the same time. I know your family enjoys the competition and probably sit on the edge of your seat and beam with pride.....but like you said. ... it ain't that serious. I will never forgot several years ago my youngest son was playing in a soccer tournament. Our coach had an emergency so the team mom coached that day. Our final game was against a team with a crazy coach. He was screaming at the kids...who were about 7 and 8 then. I even saw him kick a ball across the field because he was furious with them. Our team won the championship and this team didnt even gather for the awards ceremony to get recognized because their coach was so angry. My heart just broke for those boys. I hope their parents said something because I know I would not allow someone to treat my child that way. Me along with all other parents contacted our coach to share what happened so this guy could be reported to the association. I told my husband that if I ever looked up and saw this man as my son's coach...that may be the end of soccer. Luckily that never happened and my son eventually moved to baseball. Proud of you Toni for taking a stand against this nonsense.

Jennifer---I don't like PR Step 1either. I am sure Craig found comfort in knowing he got to see his brother before he passed. It's a blessing to spend time with family. As for your trip, have a blast. Please post a picture or two.

We are expecting 8 to 12 inches of snow tomorrow. This has been a crazy winter..

 

[Nanbo]

We got HAMMERED with the snowstorm Wednesday-Thursday!!! 11 inches here...haven't had a storm like that in over 15 years down here! It was so beautiful! The boss sent us home early Wed and told us to stay home on Thurs. (he's a great guy!). DH & I built a snowman and walked around for a few hours in it! Sadly, there were no kids or other people out! We just can't understand it...although we do have the proper gear because of our high altitude hiking (maybe they didn't have any winter wear)....but even later when a few kids ventured out, they had no clue what to do it ...only one was brave enough to get down in it and get wet....he made an awesome snowman! Anyway I plugged away at my workouts and had a great time! Yesterday was Pyramid LB and today is Supercuts. It got up to 57 here yesterday and the snow is melting away, so I'm sure we'll be walking today as well.
How was everyone's Valentine Day? I tried to make a chocolate mousse using avacado, cocoa, and honey. It was weird, more like brownie batter...but we ate it anyway !

 

[heartymax]

Good Morning Ladies!

Nancy--we got hit with the storm last week too. We got about 8 inches and the neighborhood kids had a blast playing outside. They had organized snowball fights. They didn't make a snowman, but made snow ducks and large hearts. My boys had so much fun hanging out with the other kids. Schools were closed on Thursday and Friday. We have now used 7 snow days. We are hoping we don't have to make up these too which is what happens sometimes in a state of emergency.

No holiday for me today. It's a make up snow day from a few weeks ago. The rest days were really good for me. I was able to start back with some cardio on the elliptical on Friday. Saturday was Party Rockin Step 2. I also started doing push ups again. Saturday was 8,9,9,10,13 with 60 seconds rest as indicated in the 100 push up challenge. I just picked up with week 2 in stead of week 1. Sunday's workout was Cross Fire before church. This morning was SLOW and HEAVY triceps, biceps and abs. OMG--I think I can roast a marshmallow on my triceps right now--they are definitely on fire. I got in my push ups before slow heavy and today was 10,8,8,9,13.

Didn't do anything special for Valentines. DH and I usually don't go out to dinner due to the crowds. We will plan a date night later.

Hope everyone is doing well.

 

[atompki1]

Hello!! Well I only got in 2 workouts last week. I was on track for 4, but then I got a head cold and couldn't breathe I'm healthy again this week and am back at it. Since I only got in 2 workouts last week, I'm going to try for 5 this weekend instead of 4. Yesterday was Low Impact Circuit and today was the low impact premix of KickMax(kicking combos and leg conditioning drills).


HeartyMax
We are not big on V-Day. We just spent the evening at home and cook our own dinner Much less expensive!!


Nancy
We have had a lot of snow this year. I'm so over winter. We have to drive out of town or a cheer competition this weekend and luckily there is no snow in the forecast!!

 

[heartymax]

More snow last night: A 2 hour delay. At least the kids have school. As an educator, I must say after a while all these disruptions get old. The weather is supposed to be beautiful the rest of the week----sunny and high 50's and low 60's. I am so looking forward to it.

I did Rhythmic Step. It has been a long time and steady state cardio just feels good. For some reason I didn't feel as wiped out. I guess that's after doing Cross Fire over the weekend can make this one seem like a piece of cake.
I also did three 1 minute planks with a 60 second rest in between each of them. The third plank was tough but I managed to get it in.

I remember doing a 4 week slow and heavy rotation years ago but for some reason I can't find it under the rotation sticky. Maybe it's called something else. Either way, I am going to rotate the slow and heavy workouts over the next few weeks. It is definitely a good change for me as I haven't used it in a while. The last time I used it was for Upper Body Bliss and that rotation uses S&H and GS.

Toni--glad you are feeling better.

Hi Tasha!

 

[Nanbo]

Hard to believe that one week ago we were getting ready for the worst snowstorm to hit our area in 15 years! Today it will be in the 70s and rainy! I love variety!!!
Last night was an unscheduled rest night due to late working hours . So tonight I'll be doing Cardio Leg Blast and tomorrow will be Xtrain Bis & Tris with Core#2. I am really loving doing all Cathe! As interesting as Bret Contreras' program is, it just wasn't for me. Cathe's philosophy and unique way of putting together a routine is very good to this body ! I know I'll be properly warmed up/cooled down and will get a great workout no matter which DVD I choose! One of my young co-workers (she is a 29 year old cardio junkie: T25, Insanity) borrowed my Slow & Heavy DVD and said that she loved it! She said they were the best hours she spent working out! She wants more Cathe weightlifting DVDs now! It will be nice to have someone around that can relate to me !

Do any of you have Cathe DVDs that you've never done? I have all the cycling DVDs and several from her new series that are untouched, mainly due to no spin bike and needing to keep things low impact. I took a look at Rockout Knockout and ruled most of it out except for the last portion with the kick-box combos....looks like I might be able to do that section (not a lot of jumping). Do you guys like that one? I haven't done any of the new step one either (and I REALLY LOVED doing step)! I'm trying to ease my way back in to impact moves. When I do Tabatacise or Cardio Leg Blast I hardly have to modify (just a little less "air")...I'm very encouraged by that!

Toni, I'm glad you're over your head cold and can breathe again! I know you love to spin and that would be really tough if you're all plugged up! I hope you can do your 5 workouts this week!

Heartymax, way to go with the steady state step workout! I haven't done steady state in a long time! I used to LOVE Step Blast...
I hope you're able to find the Upper Body Bliss rotation. It sounds brutal! I like the idea of heavy lifting for upper body!!!! Let us know if you find it!

Well, that's about all for now.....been wondering where some of you are????? HINT HINT HINT

 

[atompki1]

Hello Today was Pedal Power Premix #3. I think I had it in me to do the entire thing, but I've become somewhat hooked on the 45 minute mark for workouts. Even so I almost flipped to one more song Maybe next week!!

Nancy
I have many DVDs that I haven't gotten to. I have Slow & Heavy, but haven't done it yet. Haven't done Hard Strikes(never liked the look of it), Party Rockin' step 1, and a few others from other series. It's hard to fit it all in sometimes. I also haven't done X10. What I call 'Kill me now' cardio is not something I'm in the mood for right now...haha!! Suppose I'm in a lazy mode

HeartyMax
I love Rhythmic Step. That is such a fun workout. We just had our 10th calamity day. Our state is about to vote to allow 4 additional calamity days for the schools this year. My school district shares buses between elementary, middle, and high school so we can't do delayed starts. I'll be glad when winter is over!!

 

[heartymax]

Toni - I laughed about the 45 minute mark. That's how I feel about the elliptical but usually at 40 minutes.

Nancy - the weather was absolutely amazing here yesterday. The snow is melted and the grounds are saturated. It supposed to be sunny and 61 on Saturday.

Yesterday was pushups 13,11,10,10,15 followed by Slow and heavy shoulders. I didn't have as much time so I have to do the legs another day. I overslept this morning so no workout today.

 

[atompki1]

It's almost Friday!!! Today was a HC 101 using slides and a mat. I wanted to do something that didn't have me holding myself up with only 1 arm and this one seems to fit the bill. It's though one for sure!! I'm sure it will get better with time

Tomorrow is Great Glutes!! Love that one, but I'm expecting some serious DOMS afterwards!!

Cheer competition this weekend!! I wanted to share a picture of Jasmine that another cheer mom took. I love this picture!!

 

[Nanbo]

Oh my goodness, Jasmine is gorgeous!!!!

 

[heartymax]

Toni--your daughter is so cute. Love the pic.

Today I did consecutive pushups and got to 19. The last one was really ugly so I didn't bother going for number 20..LOL. I also did Slow and Heavy Legs and Chest and back. I didn't get to do legs the other day so I needed to make it up. Its TTOM so I managed to get through all of it.

The weather was gorgeous today. Boys hung outside all afternoon.