Strength in Numbers

[Thumper]

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING

It is finally here!!!!! It felt like Spring today here too, I was able to get out into the garden to do some cleaning up. I also went to yoga this morning and it felt really good.

Pam I didn't have bad DOMS today. I thought I might but I was fine. It is tough when your team loses in the last second. I am assuming his team is now out of the tournament? Good job on Core Max and your stretching. Sometimes taking some time off really helps, maybe you will be able to do more pushups after a bit of a break. Good luck on your shopping trip with your DSD. Kitty shopping is so much fun. I hope you find one.

Janie You need those days when you don't do anything but veg out.

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I had Friday off and it really felt like I had three days off so it was good.

Happy Monday everyone.

Cheryl

 

[janiejoey]

Today I did 10 min. on my climber, 10 min. on the mini trampoline and 10 min. on the treadmill. It was all good.

Pam, I'll be 60 years old. Sounds so old! OMG! Great job on CM2, stretch max seg. and the push up test of 44. That is so good. I don't blame you for wanting to take advice on a rest week from those. I decided not to them because it's taking so much longer than they suggested. Also, I do them much better now with a DVD and keep up really well. That's good enough for me. How was the shopping and Kitty considerations?

Cheryl, It's here, it's finely here! Spring, I can see longer days, but still rainy. Soon wonderful weather, I can't wait! Great job on gardening and yoga.

Have a good one everyone,

Janie

 

[pgeiger]

Cheryl Sounds like you had a great day yesteday! So glad you got some nice weather and were able to get out and do some work in the garden! I'm glad you enjoyed your long weekend!
Yes, DHs team is out of the tournament now. He is not happy about that.
We had success with the prom dress shopping but not the kitties yesterday. There were actually 2 of the kitties that I would have brought home in a second, but my sister has her head and heart set on a ragdoll.

Janie Great job on your personalized 10/10/10 workout! Sounds like a lot of fun! I guess we both have big birthdays this year! Mine is 50. Yikes It doesn't seem that long ago that I was shopping for my own prom dress. I just can't believe how fast time goes by! Ashley got an absolutely gorgeous prom dress yesterday and it looks fabulous on her!

This morning for me was Imax 3. I haven't done that one in awhile and it was fun. I hope you all have a great Monday!

Pam

 

[jldx2in2000]

Yesterday I didn’t get to rest much. Jason’s grandma was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and is a nursing home under hospice care so we went to visit her for a few hours. The place she is in isn’t too bad but I just get so depressed whenever I visit nursing homes. He also found out his grandpa also has stage 4 lung cancer but so far is in better condiiton than his grandma. After that, we did a little shopping and then went home and did laundry all day. This morning I did Imax and will do some pull-ups and my bonus burn tonight.

Pam Glad you had a good time with your trip! I am so sorry to hear your bad news. I will definitely keep you and your family in my prayers. Great job on your interval run and then DM! Great job on CM2 and Stretch Max! I love stretching! Great job on Imax 3! So glad you found a prom dress in one shopping visit. I remember forcing my mom to go out for several weekends in a row because I just couldn’t find that right dress. So it looks like there are 3 of us with birthdays in April. Although I had my big birthday last year. This year I am turning 29 for the 3rd time!

Cheryl Great job on LBB! That one is a good hurt! I am so happy it is officially Spring!! The weather is turning around and starting to get warmer consistently. We are seeing thunderstorms but that is part of Spring!!! Great job on yoga! So far the Shiva Rea Yoga Flow for Beginners that I have been doing is good. There are 4 very short segments (20 minutes or less) but it is a nice intro and she seems to be good at cuing. Sometimes you get into a pose and don’t know when to get out because the instructor isn’t saying anything.

Janie Great job on your rest day! Those are so nice! I have been trying to add one 3 mile run a week to slim my legs down. I am not sure it is helping yet so I will give it another couple of weeks. Great job with your 10/10/10 cardio combo! That sounds fun! Sometimes doing the same thing for more than 10 minutes gets boring. That’s one of the reasons I don’t enjoy running but I force myself to for cross-training. 60 is not that old! Especially since you take such good care of yourself! Remember you are as young as you feel and act!

Have a wonderful Monday!

 

[janiejoey]

Today was Upper/Lower/Stability ab work. (Took a little over an hour).

Pam, It doesn't seem that long ago for me looking at my Grandfather at the age of 60 and recalling how old he looked. Yikes is right! Oh well, not much you can do except try to stay healthy. That with Retin A, I think I might look 10 years younger. At least I hope so. LOL It must have been fun looking for a dress for Ashley. Good to see you enjoy yourself. Great job on Imax 3.

Julie, I'm so sorry about Jason's Grandma and Grandpa with stage 4 cancers. YUCK! I don't like nursing homes either. It seems they are there on the last leg of living here on earth. So sad. (((((hugs and prayers)))))
Great job on Imax.

Take care everyone,

Janie

 

[Thumper]

Didn't sleep well last night so I did S&H Chest and Back tonight.

Janie Good job on your workout today. 60 isn't old, you are only as old as you feel and if you stay in shape you probably feel and look younger than some people in their 40's. It was really rainy here today too. Hopefully we get some nicer weather sometime this week.

Pam Glad to hear that your DSD found a prom dress. Ragdolls are really cute cats. I try to not go see cats because I could become that "Crazy Cat Lady". I just want to rescue them all . Don't worry Pam turning 50 isn't so bad. I will be 51 in May and like you I can't believe how fast time has gone by . Have you found out anything about your FIL yet?

Julie Sorry to hear about Jason's grandparents {{{{HUGS}}}} to you and Jason. Nursing homes can be very depressing, I remember visiting my great grandmother when she was in one and it was not a fun time.
I have some yoga videos too that the instuctor doesn't cue very well and you are still in the pose when they have gone to something else.

Have a great Tuesday everyone.

Cheryl

 

[pgeiger]

Julie So sorry to hear about Jason's grandparents! Wow, both with stage 4 lung cancer. Big Hugs to you and Jason and both of them. I agree that it is very hard to visit nursing homes. What a tough day you had I will be keeping you and your family in my prayers as well!
Great job on Imax and I'm sure you did great with your pull ups and bonus burn as well. so depressed whenever I visit nursing homes. He also found out his grandpa also has stage 4 lung cancer but so far is in better condiiton than his grandma. After that, we did a little shopping and then went home and did laundry all day. This morning I did Imax and will do some pull-ups and my bonus burn tonight.
It wasn't quite the first attempt for the prom dress, she had been out shopping with her friends a couple of times but was having trouble finding something. The only dress she had found that she liked before this was $370! I don't think so! I don't know why she was having such a hard time though, we found 4-5 that were hard to choose between. I think she might have wanted the opinion and advice though too. I am so surprised that her mother didn't want to do this with her, but apparently it is because she wanted us to pay for it. How crazy is that?! Poor kid.
When in April is your birthday??

Janie Great job on your Upper/Lower/Stability ab work! you are doing some fun and creative workouts!
So funny, I remember when I thought the neighbor who was in her 40's looked old! The older I get the younger every age seems. Although sometimes with my aches and pains I feel like I'm about 80!
It was a lot of fun looking for prom dresses. There were a lot of girls looking so I sat outside the dressing room and gave my opinion to all of them, whether they wanted it or not!

Cheryl Sorry to hear you had another bad night's sleep. I didn't sleep well Sunday night because my cat decided he needed attention at 3:00 am last night I slept like a baby though because I was so tired after that! Great job on your S&H Chest and Back.
I have the same issue with cats. My husband put me on a strict 2 cat limit because he says I have crazy cat lady tendencies! I definitely would've taken 1-2 of the cats we saw on Sunday! My sister is trying to find a cat that looks and acts exactly like the one they had. I am just the opposite, I think every one is unique and you can't replace any of them! Oh well, it's their cat and their decision.
We don't have any news yet on my FIL. They did 4 biopsies yesterday and are hoping to have the results tomorrow. He is still in the hospital, I'm not sure about plans for letting him go home yet.

This morning I was supposed to do LIC but wanted something more intense so I did the Gauntlet. It was fun, I haven't done that one in quite awhile. Of course I got to do my favorite Genie hops again and also the terminator climbers! What fun! I hope everyone has a great Tuesday!

Pam

 

[jldx2in2000]

Last night I decided to try something different with pull-ups. While the pushup challenge helped me (I think), I didn't feel the pull-up challenge was really doing as much for me. I was concentrating too much on getting a certain number of reps in and not concentrating on proper form. So starting last night, I decided to do 3 sets of maximum reps with 90 second rests in between concentrating on my form. I am still using a band and bought 2 other bands to use when I get stronger. I found out that the pull-up bands come in varying levels and I was basically on level 4 (the levels go in reverse order). So I bought levels 3 & 2 from Amazon and hopefully will get to use them soon. Anyway, last night my sets included: 6, 5, 4, and one negative pull-up for about 10 seconds. I also found out that supposedly if you can do a negative pull-up for 30 seconds, you should be able to do a full pull-up. I also did my bonus burn. This morning was High Step Training!

Janie Great job on your stability ab work! I just pictured you perched up on the ball like a cat with all your hands and feet up there!! Hehehe! You are so good with being able to make up your own workouts. I just don’t think I have that kind of creativity or discipline to do that.

Cheryl Sorry about your bad night's sleep but great job on fitting in S&H later! I have been doing mainly cardio and circuits and really miss that heavy lifting. I am so looking forward to May because then I will be starting STS and back to doing a more balanced week of weight training and cardio.

Pam Great job on the Gauntlet!!! So much fun is right! Wow $370 on a prom dress! My wedding dress cost just $100 more than that! My mother would have laughed in my face if I would have said I wanted a $370 prom dress! LOL!! My birthday is April 22 which is also Earth Day and this year it happens to be Good Friday too.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

 

[Thumper]

Did the cardio portion of 4DS Lower Intensity Step this morning.

Pam They are so cute when they want attention at 3 am , yeah right.... I am like you and think they all have their own personalities and you will never get one that is exactly the same. With our three they all have completely different personalities just like people. Wow $360 for a dress YIKES, my grad dress was only around $50 I wanted one that was $70 but I wasn't allowed to get it because it was too expensive. Oh boy your favorite genie hops and terminator climbers, at least you had fun.

Julie I really like the heavy lifting and like circuts for a break but I prefer the heavier weight work. Your birthday is exactly one month before mine. I am May 22nd. I guess I am the odd person out with not having a birthday in April.

Have a great Wednesday everyone.

Cheryl

 

[janiejoey]

Tonight I did 30 min. of the Wedding Video. Then ate some chocolate. about 200 extra calories. I fought with myself, but I lost.

Cheryl, Great job on S&H and this morning cardio portion of 4DS. Well done.

Pam, That's weird that her parents wanted you to pay for the prom dress. Why? I don't get it. I can see you giving advice to these younger kids LOL. I bet they respected it too. Although the reason behind getting this particular kitty is iffy, at least there was one saved. They will love this kitten eventually on his own merit. Terrific job on The Gauntlet. I still haven't done that one, and I've had it for years.

Julie, I like your plan on the pull ups. You did a really good job on them. Fantastic job on the bonus burn and HST. Wow. That's a lot of work. Good for you. LOL, I did do that again, but fell flat on my butt. With all my padding back there, it didn't hurt, much. Can't believe how hard that is, even while holding on to dear life to the furniture. My balance needs improvement so, it has to be done.LOL You do know enough to put workouts together, perhaps you just don't trust yourself.

Have a good one everyone,

Janie

 

[pgeiger]

Julie I think it makes a lot of sense to change your focus on the pullups to proper form. Good luck, I hope that works out for you! HST is so much fun, that one just flies by for me!
My wedding dress cost Less than the prom dress she originally wanted! When she told me that price I told her she needed to keep looking!

Cheryl Great job on 4DS Lower Intensity Step.
I was so happy when the cats left me alone the next night, but it turned out that they were bugging DH that night. The little rats!

Janie Great job on the wedding video. Don't beat yourself up over the chocolate. I eat some chocolate almost every day! It's dark chocolate though, so it's good for me, right?
It's mom that wanted me and dad to pay for the prom dress. Remember, I'm the evil step-mother!
I can't believe you have never done the Gauntlet! It is a lot of fun!

Well, last night was girl's night out and I didn't get to bed until 11:30. I assume my alarm went off this morning, but I don't even remember hearing it and I must've immediately shut it off so I woke up an hour late and didn't get a workout in. Oh well, it was a fun evening so it was worth it. My girlfriend's gave me a gift certificate to Loft (my favorite store) for my birthday too, so now I get to go shopping!
I just remembered that I forgot to post my kitty with his haircut so here it is. He looks so funny, he looks like he has a giant head! I'm also posting a picture of my latest cake creation that I made for our Hilton Head trip. It's an almond cake with chocolate ganache filling, candied almonds around the bottom and then chocolate almond bark on top. It was yummy!

Have a great Wednesday everyone!
Pam

 

[jldx2in2000]

I did my bonus burn last night. This morning was supposed to be a 50 minute cycle ride plus Coremax Segment 1. I don’t have a bike (indoor or outdoor) so I ran 3 miles and then did the Express Circuit Premix from Cardio Core Circuit. You would think only doing one round of the cardio in CCC would make it easier but it was still a doozie!

Cheryl Great job on 4DS LIS step portion! I have only done the step from 4DS once and can’t say I did very well. I guess that means I need more practice. That’s ok that you’re not an April birthday. You are still a Spring Chickie!

Janie Great job on the 30 min. of the Wedding Video! Don’t beat yourself up over the chocolate. Chocolate (especially if it was dark chocolate) has antioxidants and flavonoids that are good for you. Plus it just tastes so darn good! I think you hit it on the nose. I don’t trust myself to make the right decisions in picking out a good rotation. Maybe someday.

Pam Oversleeping happens! Oh well, as you said, if you had fun, it was worth it! Your kitty is too cute! I imagine he has a scowl on his face since I can’t really see it but maybe he likes his new look! I think I gained 5 pounds just from looking at that cake! That looks amazingly delicious!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

 

[janiejoey]

Did aggressive pruning for about 2 hours. OMG! I'm spent! I'm sure that consists of a full body workout and cardio. OMG! I didn't stop until it was done. However, I have tree limbs and crap everywhere! You never know how long we might have this beautiful sunny weather. Later, if it's still nice outside, will take Rolly out to Huff N Puff. I have been so busy today. Made earrings for one of my sisters, made 3 pillow cases for my grandson and preparing bread to bake tomorrow. Whew! Rolly got his walk.

Pam, To me you could never be an evil Step-mom no matter what. I'm going to have to take a second look at the Gauntlet.LOL Glad you had fun last night, everyone should put that on their list. OMG! Your Kitty is so cute without clothes! And the Cake! What can I say? You were lucky I wasn't there when you baked it.

Julie, Great job on the bonus burns, your 3 mile run, and the Express Circuit Premix. Wow. You are good.

Have a good one everyone,

Janie

 

[Thumper]

Janie Don't worry about the chocolate you have to do that every once in a while. I have chocolate sometimes and it tastes so good. You really had a busy day today. It was nice today but I don't think it will be that same tomorrow so it is good that you got out today. Did you and Rolly get your walk in?

Pam Cats are so funny. Sometimes if they are not in the room when I go to bed I will shut the door so they don't wake me up. Don't worry about not working out. If you didn't hear your alarm you probably needed the sleep instead. At least you enjoyed yourself, have fun shopping. I love the picture of your kitty (it's Butters correct?) Your cake looks really good too. DH saw a picture of it and said "Why can't you make anything like that?"

Julie I didn't realize that CCC had a premix. I should take a look at it. It took me a while to get the steps down in 4DS. Especially the High Impact Step took me longer to get it down.

I took today as my day off. Will get back to it tomorrow.

Cheryl

 

[pgeiger]

Julie Great job on your bonus burn, run, and CCC premix. Wow! You worked HARD!
That was the first time in a LONG time that I have overslept but considering how tired I was even with that extra hour, I can't imagine what I would've felt like yesterday if I had gotten up and worked out. I was a zombie as it was!

Janie Oh yea, that aggressive pruning is definitely a full body workout and cardio. Great job! It's nice that you were able to get out and enjoy your nice weather. You were sure busy, holy cow! Pruning, makding jewelry, pillow cases, walking Rolly and bread today. Whew! You are making me tired!
The kids think the cat looks awesome with his hair cut. DH thinks he looks stupid It's not slowing him down, he's still terrorizing his brother!

Cheryl I should've shut my door last night. For some strange reason Butters decided to BITE my elbow at 3:30 this morning. I don't know what they was all about. Maybe I was moving around and hit him or maybe he was trying to play I think if I shut my door though they would be knocking and trying to get in.

This morning I did Power Hour and will try to do 30/30 after work to help make up for my unexpected day off yesterday. PH felt good but it frustrates me because this is one where Cathe doesn't tell you what weight she is using until she has done a few reps and I was way off a couple of times. One way too heavy and once way too light. I should take her advice and write it down huh? Have a great Thursday everyone!

Pam

 

[jldx2in2000]

Last night I did my pull-ups: 8, 5, 4, and a negative of 18 seconds! I increased the reps in the first set and in lowering myself during the negative. Afterwards I did my bonus burn. I noticed now that I am paying close attention to my form, my biceps were on fire last night. Anyway, this morning, Cathe tried to make my legs fall off with 4DS Kickbox cardio only and Legs & Glutes.

Janie Wow! Aggressive pruning! That sounds like fun! I would certainly count it as a total body workout! You must have had some crazy energy yesterday to be able to do all that you did! Glad you had some good weather. We had a beautiful day on Monday and Tuesday and then it got colder and rainier starting last night. We might actually get snow flurries but nothing that will stick.

Cheryl CCC actually has three premixes: one is the cardio portion only (no core), another is the express one I did that only does the cardio one round instead of two but keeps the core, and the third one is just the core pieces.

Pam Great job on Power Hour! Don’t kill yourself trying to get 30/30 in. If it happens, it happens; if not, I doubt one missed day will do that much damage. Have you ever checked out fitfig’s website? There is an Excel and a Word file she keeps out there that lists the weight and reps used for each exercise in each workout. I have it saved to my computer at home and at work because I reference it so much. I also printed out each page and put it in a 3-ring binder so I can write down each time I do the workout what weight I use.

Have a most wonderful Thursday!

 

[janiejoey]

Rolly and I went for a 45 min. walk in the wood. Oh how we loved that!

Here are a couple of pictures of my rye,coffee, molasses and garlic sourdough bread. Very intense flavors, but oh so worth it.

Cheryl, Enjoy your rest day. We did get our walk in yesterday as well as today. Yesterday was only 30 min. long. Such lovely weather to be walking in.

Pam, Whenever we get Winkle his haircut (2 or 3 X's a year), he thinks it's so awful! He walks around so vocally and blares out how much he was abused. So funny, it lasts two full days. Poor little thing. He does look like a lion though, even if he's black and white. Very handsome. Great job on Power Hour. Yeah, you have to write down your weight. I know, it's a hassle.

Julie, Great job on those pull ups and bonus burns and especially taking note on your form. Good for you. Also great job on this mornings 4DS Kickbox cardio and Legs and Glutes. I don't know where I got that energy, but wished I had it everyday. Snow flurries, March is so confused.

Have a good one,

Janie

 

[Thumper]

Pam How is your elbow, hopefully he didn't bite you too hard. He may have been trying to get your attention to play, those little stinkers are wide awake at that time. If you shut your door they may put up a fuss for a while but they should calm down. I know ours would be fighting at the door in the beginning but that doesn't happen anymore. I like to know what weight Cathe uses too. I always forget to write it down so I am guessing by pausing the DVD and looking at the weight to try to figure out how heavy it is. Did you get 30/30 in?

Julie Good job on your pull-ups. It is amazing how much more you feel things when you really pay attention to your form. How are your biceps today? I never really paid attention to the premixes in CCC. I will have to keep them in mind.

Janie Your bread looks sooo yummy. I wish I could make bread like that. Maybe when I retire and have more time I can experiment. Glad that you got your walk in. It has been nice the past several days.

This morning I did S&H Shoulders.

Happy Friday everyone.

Cheryl

 

[pgeiger]

Julie Wow, that was a big improvement on your negative hang! It sounds like you will be doing a pull up in no time! How are your legs and glutes feeling today after the kickbox cardio and legs and glutes??!
Thank you for the pointer to those spreadsheets! i will print them out and keep them in my workout room. That will be quite handy!
I didn't get 30/30 in last night. I carpooled with DH and we didn't leave work until 6:00 and then he needed to go back to the mall because they had messed up on the alterations his suit. So by the time we got home it was 7:30 and we still had to make dinner so it just wasn't happening. But you're right, missing a day now and then is not a big deal.

Janie Sounds like you and Rolly had a wonderful walk yesterday. Your bread looks just amazing, wow! I can almost smell it looking atht hose pictures!
That is so funny that Winkle lets you know that he doesn't like his haircut! I'm not really sure what Butters thinks of his, but he has become a total lap cat ever since we had it cut. One of my friends said that he is saying please please don't cut my hair again, I'll be good!

Cheryl My elbow is fine, but it was a little alarming in the middle of that night. I think he must've been trying to play because he doesn't bite. The only other thing I can figure is that I accidentally elbowed him
I know what you mean about pausing the dvd and trying to figure out what weight Cathe is using. I had one of her barbell sets about figured out, but at some point she switched to a different kind and I am just totally lost with that one! I think Julie's solution with the spreadsheet is the ticket!
Great job on S&H Shoulders!

This morning I had Hiit DWP on the calender but instead I did CCC. It's on the calendar for Monday but I don't think I'll get to do it then because we are going to go to Pennsylvania to see my FIL. His diagnosis is not good unfortunately He was diagnosed with mesothelioma and even if he gets treatment the prognosis is not good. I think we are going to leave sometime today and come back on Tuesday or Wendesday. I'll take some of my DVDs with me, but I'm not sure if I'll have anywhere to do them.
Have a great Friday and weekend everyone, not sure if I'll get a chance to post or not.

Pam

 

[jldx2in2000]

Last night I did my bonus burn and then I did the band segment from Stretch Max. This morning I did my band-assisted pull-ups: 9, 5, and 4 with a negative of 16 seconds. Not much of an improvement and I would like to blame it on the fact that I did it in the morning instead of the afternoon. After the pull-ups, I did my bonus burn. Then I did Kick Max. I had to do my pull-ups and bonus burn this morning instead of later because I have errands to run after work. I’m so tired and so glad it is Friday!

Janie Great job on going for a walk with Rolly! I bet it was so nice. Our weather has turned yucky again. Highs in the upper 30s today and tomorrow with possibly snow flurries! I thought it was Spring! Your bread looks positively delicious.

Cheryl Great job on S&H Shoulders! My biceps are actually ok today but my triceps are pretty sore, which is weird because I didn’t feel like they were getting worked during the pull-ups.

Pam Great job on doing DWP! So sorry about your FIL! That does not sound good and I hope he is not in too much pain. Hopefully being surrounded by loved ones this weekend will help everyone get through this sad news a little better. My legs and glutes are ok today but I think it was from doing SM last night. I’m glad you like the spreadsheet. I think I would be lost without it!

Happy, happy Friday everyone!