Thanks so much, Cathe!

W

Wendy G.

Cathlete
Hi Cathe!

I gave birth to my son Grant (my first) on Feb. 25. I wasn't able to work out very much during my pregnancy due to lots of morning sickness and gained 40 pounds! Twenty pounds came off pretty quickly his birth but the rest was due to lack of physical activity and WAY too many desserts and snacks in between meals! ;-)

On April 1, I committed to a clean diet and a consistent rotation of your cardio and strength workouts. I'm happy to report that not only am I stronger and have more muscle definition, but I actually weigh six pounds LESS then I did before I got pregnant! I think that the S&H series and Power Hour really boosted my results. My abs are pretty much back to normal thanks to those planks! I'm currently on vacation visiting my family and they can't believe how much my body has changed since they last saw me in February! I told them it's all thanks to you!

Thank you, thank you, thank you Cathe! Can't wait for more new workouts from you! :)

Wendy
 
Hi Wendy! Wow, thanks for sharing:-! That is wonderful. Congratulations on the birth of your son as well as staying committed to your goals. You have a lot to be proud about. Hugs to the little one. You have made me one happy camper today.
 
Hi Wendy,
Just wanted to add something: While Cathe can be credited for the great workouts make sure you give yourself a HUGE pat on the back for all the hard work YOU did to reach your goals! I am only 11 weeks pregnant and hope that I do not go overboard with the pregnancy weight gain. My plan is to only put on the requisite 30 pounds or so but who knows what my appetite and mood will dictate. You are an inspiration to those of us who will need to shed pregnancy pounds in the future! Keep up the good work and CAthe--keep those videos coming! I plan to ask for some Cathe videos for shower gifts!
 
Thanks for the sweet remarks, Beets! I really did try to keep my weight gain within reason but I really felt famished all the time during those last few weeks and pretty much ate whatever sounded good! Good luck and best wishes for a healthy pregnancy and baby! :)

Wendy
 
Question -- HELP!!

WOW! Way to go Wendy! Congratulations on your success and hard work. My cousin gained 40 pounds as well. I just talked to her last night on the phone and told her that there was still hope. I faxed a copy of your post to her and she begged me to write you. She started exercising in January as soon as the doctor said it was okay, but after losing the first 18 pounds she is stuck. It has not budged in three months. She is no longer nursing and the birth did not involve a C section, so that is not an issue. She has been eating cleanly. She has been exercising with weights at a gym and doing cardio classes. Could you share with us your rotation? She would be most appreciative and we might finally be able to transform her into a Cathe convert LOL. Wishing you and your beautiful family the best.
 
RE: Question -- HELP!!

Sorry it took a while to respond! I've been on vacation! Below is a basic schedule that I followed:

Weeks 1-4

M - 45 min. stroller walk with baby + Pure Strength CST + abs
Tu - 1 hour cardio video + abs
W - 45 min. stroller walk with baby + PS Legs and Abs
Th - 1 hour cardio video + PS BBA
F - Walk and or Stretch
Sa - Circuit Video/abs
Su - Stretch/Pilates


Weeks 5-7
Same as above except used Slow and Heavy Series instead of Pure Strength


Weeks 8-11

Same as above except used Power Hour on Mondays and Wednesdays


A few notes:

I am on extended maternity leave until the end of August. Therefore I had a little extra time to workout. I'm sure that when I go back to work full time I won't have time for 90 min. to 2 hour workouts! I also have a very supportive husband who would watch our son so I could work out uninterrupted.

On my walks, I really pushed myself to MOVE! They're not leisurely strolls! Also, I live in a huge subdivision that has a few hills so I also got in a little interval training as well! ;-) I used to run, but until my son can support himself well in a baby jogger, we walk! I still got a great workout!

My cardio videos were usually Cathe (I have all of her workouts), but I also used some Christi Taylor every once in awhile!

On Circuit days, I used Cathe's Circuit Max or The FIRM's Total Body Shaping Mix, Cardio Burn or Max. Cardio.

I like floor work for my legs, so I also threw in The FIRM's floor work every once in a while (usually once per week)

Diet really played an important part in my weight loss. For me that meant eating more fruit and veggies, no eating after 7 p.m. and NO SNACKS between meals. However, if I was really craving something (usually chocolate) I had a small amount and didn't feel guilty about it!

Hope this helps!
Wendy
 
Outstanding, Thanks!!

Wendy, thank you so much. No apology is necessary. You said in your original post that you were visiting your family. I hope you had a really wonderful visit. It is so great that you were able to get such a long maternity leave to enjoy that special time with your son.

This is a terrific rotation,I called her to warn her that I was faxing it to her so she could see it immediately. She thought it looked great, especially in that there is so much variety. I truly think she could really get into this. She especially liked the concept of not having to go to the gym. It doesn't have daycare. Her birthday is coming up next week and she was thrilled when I told her I would give her my PS tapes and Cathe cardio -- I switched to DVD. I can also give her my Firm floor leg tape (the first one from the Classics). We don't normally exchange gifts so this really thrilled her. You should have heard her, she sounded so excited.

Doesn't this feel the best when you can do something to help someone!! This board has been such a wonderful source of information and inspiration. And I know others will find your routine helpful too.

Thank you so much for helping Audrey. She sends her deeply felt thanks and told me to congratulate you on your beautiful baby.

She has a few questions. (1) What tape are you using for Pilates? Have you found one particularly good? She was interested in Pilates, but the tape she bought was not to her taste, there was very little guidance. (2) When you do abs on days that they are not included in the PS or whatever tape of that day, what tape are you using? Did you find any tape particularly beneficial for abs? (3) And last but not least, did you do your weight and 60-minute cardio back to back or one workout in the morning and one in the afternoon or evening? And did you do cardio before weights or after?

Again thanks so much. You are so terrific to share with us. Wishing you and yours the very best.
 
Wow Wendy -- That's just great -- And you did it in less than 4 months! Very impressive. You should be commended for your workout efforts and for cleaning up your eating -- that's always the tough part for me! Great job! -- Renee
 
RE: Outstanding, Thanks!!

Wow! You're making my head swell with all these nice compliments! I'm glad I'm able to contribute since I have received so much helpful advice from these forums for such a long time! To answer your questions: 1. I used "Pilates for Dummies" or Kari Anderson's "Angles, Lines and Curves". I've already ordered her new ALC! I do have to say that there were a couple of Sundays where I just didn't feel like doing anything and I skipped the pilates/stretch. Oh well! 2. I used Cathe's ab sections. I really think they are the best! My favorite right now is Power Hour abs. 3. Depending on when my son wanted to nap, I sometimes did cardio and weights back to back. Other times I did the stroller walk with him in the A.M. and waited for my husband to come home so I could do the weights. It just depended on my baby! I always do cardio before weights. I've tried it the other way around and I just didn't like it as much.

Diet was really the hardest part for me. Cutting out snacking was agony but it really worked! I've gone off the wagon a bit being on vacation but I'll get back on when I go back to work!
 
RE: Outstanding, Thanks!!

>You're making my head
>swell with all these nice
>compliments!

You deserve them all Wendy!!!

Thank you so much for all the information, Audrey is so excited. I am sure this is going to prove to be the answer to breaking that plateau. You are the best!
 
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