We're In This Together **Sept**

[mini-natty]

Hello ladies!

Here are some pics from the wedding. I'm having a hard time finding a family pic of me, Bella and Mark . I'm sure there is one, just don't know who took it . So the 1st pic is of me and my aunt (mother of the groom), 2nd is of Bella. The 3rd is of Bella and the bride (my cousin-in-law).

Yesterday's w/o was Low Max (first time!!!). Love it! The choreo was a little tricky, but I'm good with a learning curve. The leg blasts were TOUGH! The 1,000,000 pulses on the step were BRUTAL! I was like "is this ever going to end Cathe?? You crazy nut you!". The music was damn awesome . 80's music is my absolute fav and I was just rockin' away . Good stuff .

Rebekah
Happy birthday to Addie! I love the pics; she is super adorable and sweet. You have a very beautiful family . AND you are gorgeous . I love the roundness of your shoulders! I would die to have that!
Funny about the weight gain, my last weigh-in was around 170lbs too! Oh don't be fooled about my stomach, I have TONS of stretch marks everywhere too . Tis' the price you pay for having your stomach stretched "To The Max" . Yup, it's worth it alright .
Congrats on Heins 3rd place in the gold tournament! That's great .

Jen
OMG your tacos sounded very tasty . I LOVE carrot cake. It's one of my favs .

Have a great one ladies! I'm off to the Play Place shortly

 

[JT]

Natty, my neighbor is moving back to Ontario. One hour from London towards Toronto on the 402.

 

[cokonkel]

Hello ladies!

This weekend was busy for me, too! I didn't manage to get my workout in on Saturday . I was so bummed about that. Plus it's ttotm so I was feeling kinda cranky anyway...then we had to go to that get together I told you guys about. It was at the guy's house who did Mark's Camaro. It's pretty funny, he'll have a little sign out for parking with an arrow going one way "cool cars" and an arrow going the other way "other cars". Heh. He invites all the people he has worked on their cars with, plus other random acquaintances. It's quite the eclectic crowd...not everyone knows each other and I only know a few people (and the ones I do know, not that well). After about 3 hours I get pretty burned out trying to make small talk and wind up nagging Mark to go...which leads to a fight every. single. year. Sigh. He seems to take personal offense to the fact that I could give a crap about classic cars. I'm like "dude, you knew this about me from practically the moment we met!" lol

Sunday I got back into the game with Paul Katami's Burn and Build. Trying to enable you Natty got me thinking about that one so I went for it! lol Man, that totally bites about the shipping cost to Canada! WTH? The U.S. and Canada are practically kissing cousins for crying out loud! I just don't get it! I think you will see more and more instructors offer their workouts as downloads, though. Digital is taking over the world!
BTW, you guys looked so great at the wedding! Isn't it such a relief when the Toddler gods smile down on you?? If you're like me, you're all nervous just waiting for the kids to misbehave!

Rebekah- Those are amazing pictures of you guys, too! OMG, Addie is sooo cute! I love that picture of you guys and the finger paints. Are those some blue eyes I see on her? So cute! Birthday parties are such an ordeal, aren't they? The kids sure get excited about it though!

Jen- Mmmm, walking tacos. Actually, give me Mexican food every night of the week and I'm happy! Well, my waistline not so much, but I am! I totally hear you on facebook. I so rarely go on there these days. Is it just me or is that new timeline thing just crazy ridiculous to navigate? Ever since they switched to that I'm lucky if I go on there once a month for 1-2 minutes. I'm actually even thinking about getting off it totally, but sometimes it's nice when random people from your past find you on there. I think I'm kind of over it, though. Most of the time I'll find old friends, we'll chat back and forth a little, then that's it. I guess we lost touch for a reason! lol

Have a great Monday gals!

 

[cokonkel]

Hey Natty, I'm back to enable!

Seriously, though I was thinking about those shipping costs from Collage video and how insane that is for you and it made me remember some Canadian people on VF talking about how great Total Fitness was in that regard so I looked it up. The shipping rates are far more reasonable it seems!

Total Fitness DVDs - Your Total Source for Fitness

Now this could be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it...

 

[REMeeks]

!

Hello, Hello! I am replying again this afternoon, just in case I can't do my usual morning post, I may be meeting another mother for a playdate in the morning.
I didn't do Afterburn after all I despise when I go a few days in a row without a workout, I didn't finish the Thank You cards in time. Yet another thing I cannot do while Addie is awake. I think she is about to be done with naps though She fought me tooth and nail today, but boy was she grumpy! She certainly needed it though, also made first attempt at potty training, that didn't go well either. So far, not my best Monday We did, however; survive a trip to Wal-Mart and the post office, so not terribly bad. I got super cute stamps for the thank you cards that had Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., The Incredibles, and Toy Story on them, oh the simple things haha

Natty- Love the pictures! You and Bella are both lovely gals! She was a precious flower girl! Thank you for sharing We are all too familiar with calling Cathe a crazy nut! lol I'm glad you loved LowMax! Yet another one I will have to check out. Thank you very much for the sweet comments, Addie is a doll, even if she is rotten at times! It is hard to get mad at that sweet face, especially when she has pigtails! I have never received a compliment on my shoulders, thanks! They still need some work though, I think I gained most of the definition in my arms just from toting Addie around! You cracked me up about "To The Max" lol my tummy definitely was! I used to get so mad when people would ask me if I was having twins I do have a picture of what Heins called my "missle" in my photo section. I am sure you will get a good laugh! I sure am glad I don't have to carry that around any more

Colleen- I am sorry about the car show! I would have been the same way, except you were way more patient than me to stay 3 hours! I say "Well Done!" It is hard to get into "man" hobbies, esp when you have no interest in them. Heins and I fight about his golfing, , he spends countless hours on the course every weekend, and also doesn't understand why I don't "get it" but like you said, he knew that from the get go! haha Maybe they hope after a certain amount of time we will develop interest? Ehh.... not so much Good Job on Burn & Build! I have never done Kettlebell, how do you like it? Thank you for the compliments! Addie does have gorgeous blue eyes, she got those from Heins, mine are dark brown, I was so surprised that her's stayed blue, every one said they wouldn't. And yes, it was quite the ordeal, I am such a nervous/anxious hostess, I try my best to socialize with every one, but never feel that I did a good enough job. I hardly spent any time enjoying Addie, the picture I posted was the only one of her and I together at the party! Needless to say, I was glad when it was over. Lucky for me only two other children showed up so not too much craziness, and I'm glad I didn't have a house to clean up after every one left It definitely could have been a lot more stressful!

Hope you are having a great day Jen!!

-Rebekah

 

[JT]

Hello Friends.

Natty and Rebekah-Love the pics.

Colleen-Bummer about the car show, he should go himself next year. 3 hours is a long time. Many of my former classmates from Detroit are either into cars or antique boats.

Rebekah- Addie sounds like my niece, Morgan, who fought my sister on everything. School pretty much solved it plus getting older.

Natty-Cool you loved Low Max, one of my faves with Cathe, cause alot of the music upfront is motown. Legwork is brutal.

Today, I have an interview at 1pm EST with a bank. It's been difficult to communicate with them so not overwhelmed with the interview. Going to post my blog then investigate the company. At church last Saturday night, I thought I saw someone whom was very responsible for my layoff. He usually attends a certain demonination of church but wanders off..to my church. Still walking problably till October. Natty, your talk of Low Max though. I think we should be getting an update on the new series.

 

[mini-natty]

Good morning ladies

Gloomy day here. Raining and crappy out . I had a horrible sleep last night too, awake from 2:30-5:00 . I'm not sure why, I just woke and started thinking about stupid stuff really. I realised that when I ovulate, my symptoms mimic PMS ones, and that includes insomnia . Oy vay, why oh why do I have to get shafted 2X/month?

Yesterday's w/o was 4DS Upper Body premix (60min). As far as heavy weight training, you can't get any more perfect than that. I think it may be flawless, and for me to say that means a lot! My traps and chest are talkin' to me today .

Thanks gals for the pic compliments .

Rebekah
Have fun on your play date today!
Yes, you really can't do anything while children that age are awake. I had a difficult time cooking and cleaning, as Bella required so much attention. She has never been the type of kid to play by herself with toys for an extended period of time (she still is like that!). It gets a bit better, but 2 is the age where they get into EVERYTHING!
Your pregnancy pics are so cute! Looks like you gained all the weight in your stomach and no where else! Lucky gal . I gained my weight everywhere [insert gross face here].

Colleen
Thanks for the link to the website! The shipping is not bad actually. Did I tell you I also have a fear of duty fee's? If it's not a Canadian on-line source, I risk a duty fee -- always .
I see you are back to enabling your HC workouts on OD . I actually furthered your powers by telling Toni & Stacie from my other check-in about you . If they PM you, you know why .
BTW, I'm so happy those workouts are giving you such fantastic results! You work hard and definitely deserve them .
Whenever Mark complains about me, I always say "hey, you know EXACTLY who you married buddy!".

Jen
Where in Ontario is your friend moving? What city exactly?
I hope your bank interview goes well today!!!
After October, what workouts are you planning to do? What is your winter schedule? I do a little more cardio to compensate for my inactivity.
Yes, an update of Xtrain would be awesome! I don't think it will be released until 2013.

Have a great one ladies!

 

[cokonkel]

Hello girls!

Today I did Trisets Lower Body. There is seriously no workout that is more effective in such a short time! I am always amazed at the DOMS I get from "just" a 39 minute workout!
I even upped the ante a bit today . I recently bought a 35 lb kettlebell for swings (got it at Wal-Mart for $49...currently have it in hiding from Mark! I've bought too much stuff this year!! ). So I started Trisets with the warm up, paused the dvd and did this before continuing: What you do is a countdown... you start with 15 swings, then do 15 burpees, then 14/14, 13/13, 12/12 on down to 1/1. You do it as quickly as you can, resting when needed but trying not to rest too long. Since I just started swinging the 35, my endurance isn't quite up there for it so I alternated with my 25 lb bell (actually doing overhead swings with that one...I just love that move). Then after getting my heart pumping like crazy, I pressed play and finished up with Cathe.

Natty- Toni pm'd me about HC. I pm'd her about 3 messages in return. lol I am pretty enthusiastic, aren't I? I sure hope your insomnia doesn't bleed into tonight as well. As I get older, I find myself struggling more and more often with that. Phooey.

Jen- yes, I've been telling Mark the last few years he needs to go to this stuff without me. I keep saying he could take Dylan...make it a bonding experience with the boy! Oh no...he just insists I need to go for some reason. Maybe he thinks if I am exposed to this stuff enough that I'll eventually have an appreciation for it? Um...nope!

Rebekah- Oh yes, when they fight you naps it's terrible! Lydia stopped having naps at 2 years old! She's always been like that...such a restless sleeper . She'll fight us tooth and nail at bedtime, to this day. We used to put them to bed, then hear her sneak out and tiptoe down the hall, and then hide behind the vacuum cleaner in this little open closet space at the end of the hall. We'd pretend we couldn't hear her at first, just to see where she'd end up. She is going to be an interesting teenager I think!

Have a great day ladies!

 

[JT]

Natty, I think she's in Kitchener.

Interview went well. Going to a networking meeting tonight. In October I hope to do low impact then build up. Step Blast, the other workout of IMAX 2, etc.

 

[REMeeks]

Hello Lovely Ladies!

I am not feeling well, I must have caught a cold somewhere, stuffy nose, sore throat, headache, blah :-/ Thankfully, Addie is okay, no symptoms from her. It will be a day of dayquil, rest, chicken noodle soup and OJ for me. I need to get better soon as we have planned to go back to my hometown this weekend and take Addie to the zoo there. It is a 3 and a half hour trip, not too bad, but how long it actually feels depends on Addie's behavior

Jen- Glad your interview went well! I look forward to some more info on Xtrain also!

Natty- I'm sorry about not sleeping well! I hope you had better sleep last night! Good Job on 4DS UB! Playdate went pretty well! It was with a little boy 3 weeks younger than Addie, she did throw one tantrum though :-/ She definitely goes get into EVERYTHING. I cannot take my eyes off of her for a second, glad to hear it gets a bit better If you don't mind me asking, what is a duty fee?

Colleen- Your story about your daughter hiding behind the vacuum cleaner cracked me up! Kids do the funniest things sometimes Your countdown workout sounds awesome! Just curious, do you do the burpees like Cathe does in Afterburn, or a traditional Burpee? I have no doubt that did skyrocket your heartrate! I am ready to get back into the high intensity stuff once I kick this cold! Do you have Circuit Blast? That is another Cathe I am curious about. So many good options Great job on TBS LB! That also looks like a great one!

I hope you all have a great Wednesday!
-Rebekah

 

[mini-natty]

Hi everyone

I just came back from the hospital. Bella has a UTI infection . I suspected something was going on yesterday evening when she screamed while urinating. Last night was pretty bad too. She was sleeping on/off waking from about 3am. At 5:30am she ran to the bathroom and let out a horrible cry of pain. I knew from my own personal experiences with UTI's, the smell and look of her urine, that it most definitely was a UTI. She was super good at the hospital, which I was very happy about. Man, illnesses never take that kid down! She's been up and about, playing and acting like her usual self since we got back . I'm tired as heck .

Yesterday my was right knee was feeling a bit achy, so I opted for the joint friendly lower body workout TBT . I friggin' love it! I don't know about those of you with DVD's, but for downloads I have this add-on with back lunges as a separate file. I did that after the normal workout, along with static lunges. OMG my legs and butt are SCREAMING today .

Rebekah
I'm sorry to hear you are not feeling well. Rest up (if you can . Mom's get NO rest ) and take care. I wish you a speedy recovery .
A duty-fee is pretty much a way for the USA/Canada to screw you into paying kinda like a "tax" on items that are purchased and taken back to your country. If you were visiting in Canada for instance, and went on a shopping spree, while going back to the USA at the border, they might have you pay a duty-fee. It really sucks the bag . This includes driving and airfare.

Colleen
You are the kettle bell master . I salute you . I love swings too. They really engage every single muscle in your body.
Oh no, I sent the entire Cathe forum member's to PM you about HC . Toni and Jennifer are super cool though. Jennifer has got to be the nicest woman on the planet!!! You would love her, she is a doll.

Have a good one ladies!

 

[cokonkel]

Hello ladies! I'm going to try and check in from my phone but since I hate this itty bitty keyboard I'll have to keep it shortish.

Got some major posterior chain DOMS today! all the way from the middle of my upper back down to my hamstrings! Today I did horizontal conditioning volume 3 so I'm hoping for some front body DOMS tomorrow to balance me out lol!

Aack! Gotta run BBL!

 

[cokonkel]

I'm back!

Earlier I was in my car waiting for the kids to get off the bus so that I could scoot quick to dylan's karate class. Then we got home and started supper and now I'm at lydia's dance class while mark finishes supper (tacos...I think he can handle it! ).

Natty- I'm so sorry about Bella's UTI . That is so awful. Lydia and I both get them, too only the weird thing is every time I have gone in or lydia for some reason the urine always comes out "clean", like they can't detect bacteria so they just shoo us aside. I'm like "ummm excruciating pain when she/I pee...help please! For myself I've taken to using cranberry supplement daily as (kyolic brand cranberry extract with probiotics). That seems to keep it at bay. For lydia, I'm sort of crossing my fingers...she hasn't had a problem in awhile (better find some wood to knock on!!)

Rebekah- Trisets is awesome! especially the lower body split. I get DOMS every time I do that one and it is only 39 min long! I think you would love Circuit Blast, too! It sort of reminds me of a mini-Drill Max. It is really fun, not killer intense but a nice quick sweat in 44 min. Great for when you need something relatively quick, gets a little cardio, little strength and core.
I hope you are feeling better today! I was wondering if I was getting a little sick today but I think it was a mixture of ttotm and DOMS that got me feeling a little slow and achy this afternoon . Feeling better at the moment.

Jen- glad the interview went well! How did the network meeting go?

Okay, my thumbs are numb now! TTYL

 

[JT]

Hello Friends,

Posting now before my final roadtrip to Detroit for this month.


Natty-Bella, my heart goes out to her. UTIs are painful as adults. Hope she is feeling better soon. Don't really do Trisets, I prefer MM. DOMS in the legs are bad especially when trying to go a set of stairs.

Colleen-Your kids have a lot of classes, Wow!! It's problably normal though.Love Tacos!!

Rebekah-Feel better soon. Take it easy.

My interview last night was a "group interview" for this training for-profit learning institution. The position was mainly sales although its titled as Admissions. I remember doing an inquiry with them before I got my MBA, they kept calling me like crazy. I think they were picking out people who could sell themselves in a group.
Was supposed to hear from my interview by Wednesday on one on Tuesday, but no word yet.
So, I decide to go to a "Geeks group" in Holland. All men, young enough to be my sons. Although, one of them told me that you didn't need business acumen to start-up a business. I about fell over laughing. One or two got flirtatious too. OMG. Seriously.
Still walking maybe until next week, its getting colder here.

 

[REMeeks]

Hey Ladies!!!!

I am unfortunately feeling even worse today. Feel exhausted and having lots of pressure in my ears and sinuses. Did not sleep well last night either Thankfully Addie is still healthy as a horse! I have been washing my hands like crazy and Lysol-ing everything I touch to try and make sure I don't pass this crud to her.

Natty- I am so sorry about Bella's UTI! I am glad that she is otherwise acting like her usual self! I hope she will be feeling better very soon. WTG on TBT! That stinks about the Duty Fee, boo! I hope they do not try to stick you with one.

Colleen- Your days sound so busy! That is great that you have your kids involved in extra-curricular activities I hope Dylan enjoyed Karate and Lydia enjoyed dance! I also hope Mark did okay with the tacos great job on HC V3!! Glad you're feeling some DOMS! I am overdue for some! Thank you for your input on trisets and CB, I think I want those 2 and AT!

Jen- Hope you had a great day!

Happy Thursday!

-Rebekah

 

[REMeeks]

Hi Jen!
We must have been replying at the same time
I hope you hear some good news from the group interview!
I hope you enjoyed the "geeks group" it sounds like you had a good time
Enjoy walking and stay warm!

 

[mini-natty]

Hi everyone

No workout for me yesterday. After the hospital we went for a nice little walk to get my cats food from the vet. Later on in the evening I tried to do Yoga Meltdown, but just shut that sucker off during the warm-up. I needed the rest more than the stretch . Today will be another day off and I will resume my workouts on Friday.

Bella is feeling better . Man that kid is just a champ.

Colleen
As far as the urine coming out "clean", I can try to explain why that might be the case. With UTI's, the lab tests for white cell counts. Sometimes the counts don't get high enough to be detected until several days after your first symptoms of a UTI start to appear. Kinda like a pregnancy test with HCG hormone. I've been getting UTI's since 15yrs old, and so I can detect almost instantly when I am on the verge of getting one. I have been tested so many times, and often they can't see the white cell counts, but I still know regardless. I refuse to go home and suffer, re-take the test the next day or so only to come back positive. So now my doctor just gives me a prescription even if the test comes back "clean".

Jen
Your interview sounded like it went really well! Fingers crossed!
Funny about the young men . I have always like older men, but I can see what is attractive about younger males; easy going, flirty, energetic, the list goes on....

Rebekah
I'm sorry you feel so crappy . I wish you a speedy recovery . BTW, I'm also a Purell/Lysol addict .
I'm not getting screwed with duty for Xtrain cuz' I ordered downloads .

Have a good one ladies!

 

[mom2kttj]

Hi guys!

I glad and sad to be back all at the same time. Loved reading all your olderp posts. Sorry you've been sick Rebekah - is it now time for your hubby to get itt too? Thats the worst part, men are such babies. Nat - so sorry about Bella having a UTI. Kate used to get them all the time - They wanted to do tests on her, something about her having to drink dye. It all sounded pretty miserable, so I said no. She has only had a couple in the last 4 years and I'd say thats fairly normal. Colleen - OMG your day sounded so crazy. I said to myself, "somebody a whole ot busier than you, found the time to exercise" So I got in and did a little something diffrent today. I did one of the BodyRock workouts. Jen, your interview sounds like it went well. Glad to hear your still walking.

My husbands b-day is tomorrow, so I have to run to the store today. My last hike I took was on Tuesday at it was a doozy - 14 miles. My hips are a little ouchy still.

Sarah

 

[cokonkel]

Today I did Afterburn, although I made the mistake of drinking a glass of water after my coffee this morning. I ended up having to pause twice to pee in the middle of the workout! I also used lighter weights than Cathe since I'm still sore in the upper body from the last two days. When Cathe used 10's I'd use 8's, when she used 12 I'd use 10. When she got to the upright row with plie I went with 10 instead of 15. I probably should've just done CSS if I wanted to keep it a little less intense...oh well!

I've been feeling really PMS'y, too the past 5 days. I go from being happy and feeling good to being cranky. I'm not usually prone to mood swings like that . Pooey. Now if my period would just start maybe I'll get some relief!

TBH, Wednesday is just a really busy day. I only have the kids in one thing each, at least so far. We just started Dylan in Karate. Wednesday was his third day and he was loving it! Yay! The first day he cried and was too nervous to do anything. We tried him in soccer last year and he totally hated it. He is VERY resistant to trying new things. He's also not very aggressive or into being competitive so I decided not to push another team sport for awhile. I'm hoping the karate thing builds some confidence as well as focus. Lydia has been in dance since she was 3. She just loves it. Now she says she wants to do karate, too!

Jen- I chuckled about the young guys being all flirty. Still got it girl! At least they weren't calling you "ma'am" and acting like you were their mother! lol

Sarah- great to have you back! Happy Birthday to your hubby tomorrow! Mark's birthday is next Tuesday and then mine is Oct. 4. The big 4-0 looms!

Natty- thanks for that info about the white cell count. That's interesting. Explains alot actually! I can tell the millisecond when one is coming on. I can't imagine letting it get so bad that I have to wait until they detect the WBC's! It's painful enough even when it just starts! Also, I'm a baby. When I feel that tell tale tingle I have a little cocktail of supplements I take and that kicks it to the curb. On top of my daily cranberry supplement with probiotic (I'll actually take twice the dose of that), then I also take mannose-D and 1000 mg Vitamin C. Couple that with extra water consumption and that seems to work every time.

Rebekah- Feel better soon! Get lots of rest!

Gotta run gals. TTYL!

 

[mini-natty]

Good morning ladies

I know I said I was taking a day off yesterday, but after I put Bella to bed I decided to do a light cardio . I remember doing Cardio Challenge from Supreme 90-Day once before and thinking it was not that hard (well compared to Cathe that is). The concept is 30 sec work for 30 sec rest. Sound familiar? Ya, hiit 30/30 . I really did not want to do a hiit workout, but by the time I realized, I was like "screw it" and just plowed through. It's a mix of high impact/low impact exercises. Reminded me of Afterburn too because Tom uses weights in almost every exercise to get the HR up. I really like it though, not a lot of dread, and no repetition, which I love .

Sarah
I hope you vaca went well. Your hikes sound lovely.
How do you like BodyRock Tv? The women have enormous boobies! I get very distracted while looking at the .

Colleen
I love how you put the kids in extracurricular activities. I think Bella would love dance too! There is a studio right by my home. Something to think about .
Thanks for the tip on your UTI vitamin concoction! I will have to try it!


Have a great day everyone