STS first time!

Carolyn - Great job on the pushups! I bow down to you! I'm still working with my turbo tower, but I've told myself that each week I'll bring the bar down one notch and keep at it until I get to floor pushups, even if I can only do one. Are there still pushups in the other Mesos? I mean hopefully not as many as there are in Meso 1. LOL!

Jean - all of Ilaria's DVDs are low impact, but high intensity. Not at intense as Cathe but sometimes I don't want to go so hardcore... sometimes I need an easier day, you know? Powerstrikes and Bodystrike are her hybrid of kickboxing and karate.

Linda - I actually think I may switch to the dumbbells for that exercise. I can never figure out the correct weight on my barbell. Last week I was too light, this week I went too heavy. :/


Today I did the Hiit Low from the Intensity DVD before starting Disc 2. I actually did it twice because I wanted to warm up for at least 20 minutes before starting. Also, this way I can skip the off beat warm up on STS and just jump right in to the warm up sets. :) I had to rewind a few times because I'm still kind of running around trying to get everything I need for the next exercise. UGH. Frustrating. In spite of that though, it was a good workout. I still haven't been able to squeeze in the Yoga Abs from Ab Circuits... I woke up too late yesterday morning and didn't have time this morning, so tomorrow I'll probably do it BEFORE my cardio, just to check it off my list for the week. I want to do another ab segment on Friday so ab work needs to happen tomorrow so I can have a rest day in between.

Missy - How are you liking STS so far? Did you do your 1RMs???

How about the other ladies here, did you guys do your 1RMs or just jump right in? Also how heavy dumbbells do you guys have? I have a set of 20s those are my heaviest but I'm pretty sure I'm going to need at least a set of 25s and maybe 30s going forward. I'll probably get a set of 25s this weekend at Walmart if they have them in stock.
 
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Happy Valentine's Day everybody!
I finally did Trisets Lower Body today! I was determined to get that one in this week, but I will have to switch my STS discs now and do back and biceps (disc 18) tomorrow and wait to do legs (disc 17) on Thursday. Talk about bang for your buck on TBT lower body! Only 40 minutes and I totally feel my legs and glutes talking to me!:eek: Plus I was sweating like crazy so it's like a cardio workout too!
As far as lean legs...I wouldn't exactly call my legs lean, but they are much leaner and firmer than they've ever been in my entire life! I am 5'2" and even for my height my legs are extremely short relative to my torso. Whenever I think of lean legs I think of those models with the long, deer-like legs! Despite that, my legs and butt are smaller than ever before and the saddle bags are minimal now. Even as a teenager my booty and thighs were bigger! The cellulite does seem to be gone for the most part. Now if I could just get rid of those dang spider veins!!:(:mad: That may have to be my treat to myself at some point...spider vein removal! They are seriously hideous!

Better get in the shower. Have a great day ladies!
Colleen
 
Cammie-cam--- I am liking STS---I really enjoy the harder weight lifting type workouts. So I think this is a wonderful fit for me!!!:eek:

I did do some 1RM's. I have been doing the LIS series so some of the exercises are in those DVD's so I knew what I could and couldnt do.;)

I have 20's for the biggest dumbbells, but I also will be purchasing 25's this weekend. I am using the 20's for alot of the lower body stuff so I know 25's are needed soon.:eek::eek:
 
Cammie- my heaviest dumbells are 25#'s too. I'm also thinking I'll have to get some 30# ones soon. Wal-Mart has the best prices on dumbells! I buy a lot of my fitness equipment from Target and sometimes from MC Sports but nobody beats WalMart for dumbell prices. I think I'll be ordering my Turbotower eventually from WM online and have the shipping site to store thing. Best prices I've seen on that too. I did actually do the 1 rep max's after my first couple STS workouts. I didn't want to bother initially but I got so frustrated trying to guess what weight I should use. I've found some of them to be off though so I keep having to readjust the 1RM on the workout manager. For some reason I'm especially off with triceps and I also have to keep dropping the weight when I do preacher curls on the stability ball. Not good when you get to muscle failure before the first set is done!:eek:

Oh, I think I'm going to feel that TBT lower body tomorrow... my legs were cramping up while I was waiting for the bus with Dylan this morning! Gotta stretch more!:eek:
 
Colleen - Walmart is fabulous when it comes to fitness equipment. I find myself just browsing the fitness aisle even though I have nothing in mind to purchase. Same with Target.

I probably should have done the 1RMs but I figured that doing each week twice would be fine. Its like the first week is a test run, then the second week I'm ready to go. I actually think I'm going to stop doing that after this week and just do the program as written. Then double up the first week of Meso 2 and so on. I'll see how I feel when I start Week 2 on Sunday.
 
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I just bought the micro load gloves from Amazon, the ones that are two pounds each. I thought about buying more platemates or paceweights and whatnot, but those are just expensive and I figured this is a much more cost effective option. Plus I'm not one to be sitting around calculating 5/8 and 1 1/4 and 2 1/2 and on and on and on. I was never one for math. That's what calculators are for. :)

I know some people had issues with the zipper but knowing that I'll just try to be as careful as I can when using them. And since I'm a student I get Amazon prime so they should be here on Thursday. Then I'll get my 25 pound dumbbells this weekend. I am using my 20s right now for deadlifts and squats and for bent rows, and I'm only in Meso 1, so I know I'll be needing the heavier ones going forward. Happy Valentine's Day to meeee!
 
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omg Carolyn, I laughed so hard about the vein too! How fun would it be if we could all meet sometime? I have so much fun reading everybody's posts!

Jean- I too need to start working on my abs more. That's great you are keeping on top of that Cammie! I was really good about working my core last year but it has sort of fallen by the wayside as I shifted my focus to lower body work. I know a lot of Cathe's workouts incorporate the core, especially LIS, but I should make it a point to do more. I have pilates dvd's I used to do all the time up on the shelf that have been neglected...plus I have Cathe's ab circuits too! Do you guys have any Paul Katami? His Ab Lab is phenomenal for abs! I have serious DOMS when I do that one, but it is sort of longish (roughly 30 minutes) and I rarely want to spend that much time doing core work these days.
How does your brother-in-law like owning his own practice Jean? I always get asked if I would want to open my own place but there is a lot of stress involved with owning your own...plus I still have mega student loans and I'd hate to pile on even more debt!:confused::( There is so much that goes into it!
Cammie- you'll have to let us know what you think of the micro load gloves. I just use these 1 and 2 lb wrist weights with a thumb lock and then grab the dumbell when I need to up the weight incrementally. Sometimes I just don't want to bother and round up or down if it's close. Probably shouldn't do that though!

Betty- Cathe does use some repeat footage in the different Meso's. I was pretty impressed with how it wasn't that noticeable most of the time though. The only time I noticed it was when she would make some joke or comment and then I'd be like, ah..heard that last week!;) Of course, as you up your weights the effect of the workout is slightly different as you go too.
It's so funny what you said about the length of this thread...there was a thread about the RKS kettlebell system on VF that got over 1000 posts, so we're not the longest...yet! :D

Night ladies!
Colleen
 
I've so been neglecting my abs and I think that's part of the reason I have such a hard time doing pushups. Arm strength is important but so is the core and I'm lacking in that area. I remember years ago when I did a P90X rotation and was faithfully doing Ab Ripper X on the scheduled days not only were my abs stronger, I was able to pump out two or three pushups on my toes. Not alot I know, but hoping I can get back there again.

I do have some Paul Katami workouts but I don't have Ab Lab. Lemme go look that one up on youtube.

Cathe always has sales I think. Some better than others, but she will occasionally offer a percentage off or free shipping.

Oh and I also don't like when instructors walk around during the workout. Jillian is famous for that which is why I don't have any of her workouts. Plus I just don't like her personality.

I would LOVE to have some of the outfits the girls wear on the DVDs. They're so expensive though. Maybe if I make my weight loss goal I'll treat myself to one of them so I can wear it on the Road Trip. But usually I just wear what I find at Walmart. :p
 
Hello mfv3! STS is awesome! I did Shock CCC today and thought I was going to die! But, I pushed through and made it! I felt so good after I showered!!!

I feel like a new person. Can't wait till tomorrow...here comes Disc#2!!!

So excited!!!

Thanks again to all my new STS friends for welcoming me!!! :D:D

Oh, and by the way... my husband is the best!!! He bought me my 25 pound dumbbell's for Valentines Day!!!! I was more excited for those than I would have been for flowers!!! HAHAHA

:eek::eek::eek:
 
Good evening, ladies!

I have Bowflex dumbells that go up to up to 52.5 lbs. Won't be going that high anytime soon. LOL. I think that the highest I've used is 25 lbs. They make switching weights a little slower, but I don't have to use weighted gloves to get smaller increases, which is nice.

I did most of the 1RM for upper body in meso 1 only. So far, I've done OK winging it for the ones I don't have a 1RM. I use what I lifted and plug it into the 1RM calculator on those exercises so I'll have it for the next time.

Great point about core strength and pushups. I definitely need to strengthen my core. Perhaps I'll start throwing in some planks... I also love B&G. I need to work that into my rotation somehow.

So, what is your strongest and weakest muscle group? I think my back is the strongest. I used 50 lb barbell for deadlifts and 25 lb dumbells for 1 arm rows. My shoulders are probably the weakest. I use 12 lbs and lower. Can't wait to see how much the weights will change by meso 3.

Linda
 
Morning ladies! I'm going to do my discs out of order this week since I did TBT lower body yesterday. I'm going to do disc 18 today (back and biceps) and the leg disc 17 tomorrow. Hopefully my legs will be ready by tomorrow. The DOMS aren't too bad today so I should be good to go. :)

I'm totally pasty too Marie! Dark hair and fair skin...those veins are nasty and purple and really stand out on my legs!:( I've been talking about getting spider vein removal done for years but I hate to spend money on something like that until my student loans are paid off...which won't be for a long time!:mad: We'll see, I really want to!

BTW Jean, I know what you mean about picturing somebody before you meet them! It's so funny how you get visual just by reading posts!:D That's so funny how you pictured me as tall!:eek: I'm so short and I hate it! Actually if you guys are curious what I look like, if you go to my profile, in my profile pic I'm the girl in the gray sweater, 2nd from the left. That's a pic of me and my sisters. The one to my right a little behind me is my youngest sister and the only one who got the tall gene! The rest of us are all about 5'2" and yet she somehow managed to grow to 5'8"! Stinker!:rolleyes: I'm so used to looking slightly up at people that I forget how short I am...until I see a picture of myself with other people and I think... who's the shrimp? Oh yeah, that's me!:eek:

Missy5- that's so funny how you were excited to get dumbells instead of flowers for Valentine's! I'm totally the same way! For Christmas, I told my husband not to bother with jewelry, I wanted a jumpsport rebounder instead! I would much rather get fitness equipment than jewelry or flowers!:p

Linda- I think my strongest muscle group is probably my legs, followed by my back. At least, I think. My triceps seem like the weakest, I can start out strong but they go to failure really fast!

Okay, gotta get off the computer and get going! Later girls!
Colleen
 
Good Afternoon to all....

Colleen, Marie, Jean- I though I was the only one, that would rather have fitness stuff than flowers or jewerly. My husband always says I have a fitness equipment fetish!!! But, now he likes what he sees, so he is all for it!!!! hahaha

I am 5' 7 with reddish brown long hair.

I am on disc 2 tonight! I have already done an hour on the treadmill this am.

Looking forward to tonight!!!!

Have to run... but we check in later!!!!

Hope you have a wonderful day!:)
 
Hello everyone!

I think I'm going to put STS on the shelf for a while and revisit it later.. I miss doing other workouts! Is that weird? And I know I can do others with STS which is great but some of my favorites I didn't want to do because they are circuits or incorporate heavy weights... like Bootcamp. And my kettlebells... I miss those too. Actually, my KB instructor contacted me out of the blue yesterday, just to see how I was, and I ended up making an appointment with her on Monday for a session. I'm kinda geeked about it! :)

Plus with STS I'm hungry all the time and it's kind of unnerving. Last night I almost panicked when I got home because I was starving and I had to wait for my chicken to cook. I was so close to raiding the refrigerator. Not a good feeling.

I will definitely return to STS in the future because I'm loving the results so far, but I think I'm going to retire it for now and do some of my other workouts.

I'll still be lurking because I want to know how you guys do with your first time out of the gate with STS, so I know what to look for. It wasn't a total bust for me though, I've learned that I can lift WAY heavier than I was which is always good info to know. Next time I do weight work, STS or otherwise, when I decide on a weight selection on my head, I'll pick up the next heaviest weight because STS has shown me I can do it.

And I'll still be working on getting my core together. I have to get myself ready for the Road Trip!

Have a fabulous day ladies! Work hard, I'll be checking on you. :)
 
gratefuldog said:
Cammie we must have been typing at the same time! Just because you aren't going to do STS right now, doesn't mean you have to stop posting! You need to keep chatting with us! It's fun! The more the merrier!
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I feel like I'm on this board every day, so I'll be sure to come in and post. I like reading the old threads and even the new ones, to see what everyone is doing from day to day. Plus I like that Cathe comes in and answers questions. She gave one woman yesterday really lengthy advice about possibly becoming a personal trainer... she didn't have to do that but she did anyway.. Cathe's a rock star!
 
Hello all,

I'm in my active recovery week. Last week was pretty alarming for me, as I gained 9 lbs from the previous week! I was thinking, "how can I gain this much weight so quickly doing all the right things?" I felt very bloated, uncomfortable, and was just plain miserable.

During this week, I'm doing only cardio, no weights. Since Monday, I have lost the 6 of the 9 lbs I gained. Has ANYONE here experienced such a high gain in water weight? I'm hoping the next 3 lbs come off just as quickly this week staying away from the weights.

I have to admit that if I'm going to continue to go up and down re: the water weight doing this program, I may have to quit - excess water gain made me feel very uncomfortable.
 
Sherry - I gained three pounds my first week of STS and I am pretty sure that was water weight because my eating was very good. Cathe did say that it does happen with STS and with heavy lifting in general which is why I decided to give it a second week. But I still feel a bit... swollen I guess is the right word? And was hungry. I took an unplanned rest day today, so I didn't work out this morning and I've definitely noticed a not so ravenous appetite today.

The weight gain did make me uneasy as well, especially since I've been working so hard to finally get this weight off once and for all. Even though I KNOW it's mostly water weight I still can't wrap my mind around it and I feel like I've done something wrong.

I say if you really like the program and are getting good results, stick with it, the water weight gain will work itself out in time I'm sure. I am just impatient I guess! :)

Oh and I came back to say that the weighted gloves came a day early. Even though I'm not going to continue with STS I'm keeping the gloves just in case. Plus they seem like a good addition to any strength workout honestly, just a little extra UMPH if you know what I mean. Although now that I have them though, I can see why they are so fragile. The little bags do seem like they would be a challenge to get into and out of the pockets, especially if you're rushing to do it so you don't miss reps in the next exercise or something...
 
Sherry- that is crazy water weight! How was your sodium intake this last week or so? We talked about this a little bit earlier. I know if I am taking in too much sodium, especially around ttotm, I get that "swollen" feeling and water weight gain. I especially feel it in the abdomen, ugh. I haven't had any weight gain with the heavy lifting in STS but I'm also being careful about my eating and sodium intake. I'm drinking lots of water to flush out toxins and lactic acid and such. One thing I do, which I swear by, is instead of drinking sips of plain water while I workout to stay hydrated, I put a little squirt of tart cherry juice concentrate in a glass and then fill the glass with water for a sort of cherry juice. The tart cherry is supposed to help with inflammation and soreness post workout and it tastes really good too. The other things I've been doing is upping my protein intake. I even took some whey protein powder with me to work to mix into my yogurt on top of the recovery shake I drank this morning. I also have been taking magnesium. I read on one of Cathe's fitness blogs that this can help prevent tendonitits, which I've been nervous about with all the heavy weights. Knock on wood, no problems yet!

I hear you on missing the kettlebells though, Cammie! I really miss kettlebells! I tried a few times to work in some kettlebell work and tried to keep it cardio based but I wound up feeling overtrained and lousy. It was just too intense to combine that with STS! I'm planning on doing at least one month of my kettlebells and circuits after I finish STS to get my fix! I always say it, too many work outs too little time! If I could, I'd workout like mad all the time because I love it so much! I know my body isn't a machine though, gotta respect the limits!;)

Be careful with your hip Carolyn! If your experiencing pain I would definitely be careful about running and leg work on the same day. Don't want any setbacks! My house isn't at all clean, especially during the week when I'm working!:eek: I can't stay off the forums! By the time I get done with supper during the week and the kid's homework stuff, baths, etc. I am too pooped to bother cleaning the house and picking up...and yet I find the time to sit on the computer!:p Hee! Of course, you guys can always tell when I'm slow at work...lots of time to post! LOL
Colleen
 
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Carolyn--- My right hip is also sore! :( I think it is muscular--- I did do CCC yesterday and I probably hit muscles I didnt know I had. Going to still do disc#2 today since it is not lower body. Hopefully it will feel better by Friday.

Cammie---still check in with us. It has been nice chatting with you. Girls always have something to talk about!!! hahaha :)

As for my strenths/weakness---- my shoulders are my weakness and legs are stongest. Gotta work on my shoulders!!! :p
 
Yes, I eat clean, do cardio 5-6 days per week (I add on cardios on the weight training days, and not just steady state, either - I alternative between steady state, tabata, and HiiT), drink plenty of water (more than the recommended 8 glasses per day) and I still gained 9 last week, hence why I was so alarmed.

marazoe said:
It is so nice to see you ladies . Carolyn you are cute. I can't really see Colleen but I am sure she is cute also. Your pic is so tiny. I love looking at pictures.
Cammie It is a shame you are quitting STS but I understand. If I might make a suggestion the next time you start STS , don't do the 6 month rotation. Only do the 3 month. The 6 month is a huge commitment and it really does move slow. You may have enjoyed it more. I do hope you continue to post with us everyday because i think you have brought alot of good conversation to our forum. I am interested in all of the workouts everyone does. I have added so many to my wish list because of that.
Carolyn I did not notice that you have "honkin tree trunk calves". Where do you come up with these things. You are so funny. I bet your husband is laughing all night.
Sherry I don't know what I would do if my scale said I gained 9 pounds. That would freak me out. Are you doing cardio every day or every other day? Jillian says that drinking water keeps the water weight down. Are you drinking plenty of water? Is your diet pretty clean? I sure hope this resolves itself with time.
Carolyn take it easy with that hip. We don't need you injured and then you won't be able to work out with us.
I spend way too much time on this forum also. I did get a little constructive work done today. Nothing that anyone would notice but me. I try to clean one room a day.

Jean
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Oh okay, glad to know it's not just me. I understand gaining 2-3 lbs from water, but 9? I'm just grateful I lost 6 of it so far. Haven't really seen any results yet in the inch loss department.

cammie-cam said:
Sherry - I gained three pounds my first week of STS and I am pretty sure that was water weight because my eating was very good. Cathe did say that it does happen with STS and with heavy lifting in general which is why I decided to give it a second week. But I still feel a bit... swollen I guess is the right word? And was hungry. I took an unplanned rest day today, so I didn't work out this morning and I've definitely noticed a not so ravenous appetite today.

The weight gain did make me uneasy as well, especially since I've been working so hard to finally get this weight off once and for all. Even though I KNOW it's mostly water weight I still can't wrap my mind around it and I feel like I've done something wrong.

I say if you really like the program and are getting good results, stick with it, the water weight gain will work itself out in time I'm sure. I am just impatient I guess! :)

Oh and I came back to say that the weighted gloves came a day early. Even though I'm not going to continue with STS I'm keeping the gloves just in case. Plus they seem like a good addition to any strength workout honestly, just a little extra UMPH if you know what I mean. Although now that I have them though, I can see why they are so fragile. The little bags do seem like they would be a challenge to get into and out of the pockets, especially if you're rushing to do it so you don't miss reps in the next exercise or something...
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