30DayShred by Jillian Michaels

Challenging my self another month with Jillian's 30Day Shred and just in time for the Holidays. Thanksgiving is a few days away with Christmas not far behind. After my last challenge (posts here) I faced my first taste of defeat. I gained 3lbs. You may be thinking, that's not a lot. When it takes a 15lb loss to 10lb it's a big deal. I've played the if-game. What if I'd just said no to the Halloween candy, what if I didn't take all those days off in between challenges, what if? It does me no good, so my motivation for this next 3lbs is, I've lost you before I can lose you again Boo-yah!! Yeah I talk to my fat like that.

This momma is on a mission and I've hired Jillian to be my tour guide. 
There are some things to know about this workout. She allows for very little rest. You are supposed to complete the entire 30days in a row. I'm a firm believer in giving your body a rest, otherwise mine would shut down in the middle of the challenge and I'd have to start all over. Now granted you'll only be working out 20min a day. So I think I could do it non stop I just don't want to take that chance.

There are 3 phases in this set. Each a little harder than the previous one. Each to be completed in 10days. In between each exercise you're allowed to rest no more than 10-15 seconds. If you get tired you're to take a break no longer than 5sec. It's designed to keep you moving to maximize the effectiveness in such a short time frame. After a few days you'll start to feel stronger. My first day I felt challenged at the beginner level, now I find myself attempting to stay with the advanced level.

Instructor Comparison
It's hard to compare styles of all the different instructors. Jillian gets a bunch of slack for talking throughout this DVD. Some people like this while others are turned off. Instead of doing the workouts with you she's explaining each movement at each level. This can bothers those who don't like to be talked at while working out. I'm used to this style coming from the military with drill sergeants and growing up with militant sports coaches. It makes an instructor easier to follow if they're doing the moves with you.
Read my Overweighted post about how tracking goals with lbs can be misleading.
Tweeted the other day about my scale, it's MIA. The hubs hid per my request and I will not be venturing into the attic to find it. I'm excited and scared to move forward not knowing my weight. I'll be tracking inches weekly from now on instead of weighing daily.

Challenge Beginning Stats:
I began this challenge mid week on and got a total of 5x that week so we'll count it as beginning on  11/13/11. I'm only including my weight as this was the last week I weighed myself (lbs). This will be a great post to come back to in a few months.

Arm: 13	Chest: 40.5	Neck: 13	Waist: 35
Navel: 38.5	Hips: 39	Leg: 23	Calf: 16	Weight: 210

Updated results will be posted
after 12/13/11

Phase 1
For the 1st 10 Days I followed phases 1 and 2 workouts. This was Thanksgiving weekend so I took 2 days off instead of my planned one day of rest. I'm not strictly following Jillian because I get bored very easily. So I knew I wouldn't follow the phase 1 workout for a full 10days.

Comparing the first 2 phases I'd def say the 2nd is more challenging. However they are both great quick 20min routines you can do if you're pressed for time.

Phase 2
I started the 2nd 10 Days with phase3's workout and I literally cried. If you knew me lately you'd know I tend to cry a lot when the workout really pushes me to the edge. It's not that it's terribly hard and I can't do it. What kills me is knowing this used to be apart of my daily routine. Granted this was over a decade ago but my memory doesn't compute time. My mind thinks my body should be doing this stuff without a sweat and my body is like, are you kidding me?

How I Gained 80lbs | A decade in Review

Changing the way I think about my weight has been a huge obstacle for me. Making such a big change in your body and taking back control of your health can be hectic for awhile and with over 50lbs to lose it seems impossible. First I have to take a look back, how did I really get here. It was not over night, so I can't honestly think I can lose it so quick. I mean I have to think how long it took me to gain an extra 80lbs.

I was tall and slender much like an average kid. I started to gain weight in middle school, so my mom put me in sports. That saved me for awhile and pushed off the inevitable. I say inevitable because of the way I ate. Everyday I had chocolate milk, pizza, french fries, JUNK. I didn't see the consequences then, let me tell you habits like that rear their ugly heads sooner or later.

Let's break it down, beginning at the point in my life where I started to gain and not lose.

+20lbs 160lbs Just Married - 2003

160lbs -The hubs and I got married in 2003, this was prob the last time I felt sort of comfortable with my body. I probably had 15-20 lbs more than I liked but I don't recall worrying about my stomach in shirts or my thighs. I was 22yo and marrying my best friend. I believed I weighed near 160.

+50lbs 190lbs after 2005
Couldn't find a pic of me .)

180lbs - Then in 2004 we had our first child, a beautiful baby girl. I started out 40lbs overweight and gained a whopping 50lbs with that pregnancy. Most of it could have probably been avoided and my doctor even said to push away from the table that I'd been overeating. I don't think I was doing anything different so that sort of hurt my feelings. I was just stuck in old habits of not stopping when I as full and it really showed. Plus I retained tons of water and dropped 30lbs within a week after the birth. I never got back down to 180, but was 190 (a 10lb gain).

+60lbs 200lbs  after 2nd child 2007

190lbs - In 2005 we got pregnant again and I gained just as much weight, so afterwards with 2 kids I was 200lbs. In my head the lbs were just racking up. First I was 40lbs over, then add 10lbs per kid and I felt defeated. When our 2nd child was 1yr I decided to start working out. My mom would come over and we do Turbo Jam 2-3x a week together.

~75lbs 214lbs after 3rd child 2009

210lbs -Fast forward to 2008 to my 3rd pregnancy. I knew something was different this time. I only gained 20lbs. Turns out my boys are better on my body, lol. But when it was all said and done in 2009 I weighed 214 before and after. I was a bit disappointed that I didn't lose at least 20lbs.

+75lbs 214lbs stayed consistent

214lbs - Before my 4th pregnancy Feb. 2010. This pregnancy was not a planned one. At this point I was approx. 80lbs overweight, in my mind that was equivalent to 100!!! I mean I really couldn't wrap my head around the fact that I was carrying 80 extra lbs.

+80lbs 220lbs 2011

220lbs - I decided things needed to change and quick. I got really depressed knowing I had now had 2 babies and had done very little with my health.

I started looking for workouts to do while pregnant and found Lindsay Brin's MomsIntoFitness. I didn't have the money to purchase her set but was really big into blog reviews and giveaways. I googl'd giveaways with her DVDs and actually won her Boot Camp 2. I then contacted MIF and proposed a review/giveaway for my Home-Mom.com site. I felt I was the perfect candidate and had gotten quite a few other reviews under my belt.

They said yes and in late July 2011 I wrote my review and began what is now the challenge to my Happily Ever After. I'm committed to doing this at home without a gym, instead bringing the gym home. I lost 7lbs and 9inches in 60days. Not the best results, but hey they were results.

Updated:

BeforeBabiesBody 2001	Before 2011	After TBA

**Here I was fresh out of the ARMY with a hand on my hip, toned, defined, and unhealthy. Skip to 2011, I'm a mommy with a baby on my hip. Let me make a prediction about 2021, I will be satisfied with what my hard work produces. It's not about lbs lost but about knowledge gained. God created me for a specific reason, I have to be around and healthy to fulfill it.**

That was the past! Now we're here in the present until it becomes my...

BEFORE Picture...

-10lbs 210lbs October 2011. 

My Kids need an up-close and personal live role model. Who better than me to show them how to live a healthy life. The cycle of bad eating habits ends here. With 4 kids (or more, lol) I've got to be able to run. No matter how strong I am, I can't play or protect my children huffing and puffing through life.

I've lost 13lbs, gained 3, and lost 3 again. I won't promise a perfect journey. I'm not perfect. I've promised myself to fall and fail forward. Here's to falling fwd and never giving up on yourself.

More to come on eating 'Clean' Eating, Juice Power, and Kid Friendly Recipes soon.

Need Support?

I've created a group on facebook to encourage, motivate, and celebrate Moms on their journey to regaining their BeforeBabyBodies. If you're a Mom with more than 50lbs to lose and you'd like support of those going through the same thing email me at GymbellaPr@Hotmail.com

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Halloween and BMIs

I really don't like using weight as a progress tracker but for now it's letting me know I'm headed in the right direction. It's now been a little over a week since my last challenge and I've gained 4lbs, GASP. What happened? Halloween happened. It was a day I knew I'd regret but turned into a week. I have 4 kids so there was some serious candy traffic in this house.

The problem never really happened until night time, all will power was lost. Plus night time means date/tv time with my hubby. As we watch UFC or catchy up on our favorite show on netflix I'd eat candy. We both ate but The Hubs has almost zero body fat. I on the other hand have a BMI of 34.1. Calculating in my beginning weight of 220, my BMI was 35.5 so there's a bit of progress.

According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

here are the BMI Categories :

Underweight = < 18.5

Normal weight = 18.5–24.9

Overweight = 25–29.9

Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

I've been 200 or over since my second pregnancy and birth but have been overweight off and on during college. I was very athletic and active in grade school on up until high school. I lost all motivation after losing the chance to take the state champions, I wasn't going to play ball at a University because I knew I didn't have the work ethic, so I gave in and gained over the estimated freshmen 15.

I was disgusted with myself back then. Instead of seeing a problem and working toward a solution I loathed my body. What I wouldn't give to get to 160 now. Funny how that works. Then I thought nothing was worse and now I'm sitting at 211 after gaining 4 lbs from Halloween Candy. I'm not going to hate my body, I'm going to love and take care of it. I can now see it's the decisions I've made that have gotten me here, this body is not all I am. It's really been sort of trippy watching my self melt so far.

This week's workouts have included Zumba for the Wii, a 28min wo fromPostnatal Boot Camp, momsintofitness.com, and some FREE Kettlebell WOs I found on youtube. Marianne from www.myomytv.com offers some really great routines both for the novice and the experts. I love that she uses some massive weights to squat with, lift up, and swing; and yet her body isn't bulky or manish at all. Because I had poor weight lifting habits I bulked up in my legs, and arms. I would like a sleek non bulky body once I've reached my happily ever after. I really think kbs will keep me from bulking.

The rest of this week's wos will be tweeted. And before I forget I've started a group of Moms would like to lose 50lbs or more called Before and Happily Ever After. My ultimate goal is to reach 150 possibly and that's 61lbs away. Joining up with the gals has boosted motivation and my week's goal is to WO 5x, drink more than enough water, and really focus portion controls.

Until next week, keep pushing towards your goals.

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Shed 5 Fast Challenge: The Results

H

ere I am after 4 weeks using Lindsay Brin's Shed 5 Fast DVD series and

the Results are in...

Day1 / Day28 / Difference

Weight

213 / 209 / 4 lbs

Arm

14.5 / 14.5 / 0 inches

Chest

41.5 / 41.5 / 0 inches

Waist

35 / 35 / 0 inches

Navel

42.5 / 39.5 / 3 inches

Hips

40 / 40 / 0 inches

Leg

23 / 23 / 0 inches

Calf

16.5 / 16.5 / 0 inches

For a total of: 4lbs lost and 3 inches.

I have no doubt if I'd finished out strong I'd have lost a full 5 if not more lbs and more inches. Still on my way to Happily Ever After .)


For a recap you can go back to the beginning...

Day1 | Day2 | Day3 | rest | Day5 | Day6 | rest 

Week2 | Week3 | Week4

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Final Week: Shed 5 Fast Challenge

Oct. 31st - Nov. 6th

Have I really made it to week 4? OMGoodness, I'm really proud of myself. I mean I know me and I didn't think I could do it. I really didn't know how it would all end and it's still not over yet. My body is tired, and I've taken a nap 2 days in a row, a hard feat with 4 kiddos not napping at the same time.

My thoughts are already racing about challenging myself after this is over. Running a marathon keeps coming up. Some gals keep talking of 5ks, cycling, and running. It makes me want to join. Running is the best thing I could do for my body and it's nice and cool with fall in full effect. I just don't like running in my neighborhood, besides going up and down a HUGE and steep hill I'll have to run in a fairly small circle. Excuses, excuses, I know.

Here We Go, Going to Finish Strong!

Day22: S5F Workout #2
As of today October 31st I've lost 15lbs and 20.5 overall inches. Wow! That's 5lbs a month, now I'm thinking in just a few months I could see the other side of 200 again. It's been over 5yrs since I've weighed 200lbs or less so I'm pretty excited. Today was the lovely Halloween.

Day23: Cardio Option B (same as Day16 from week3 here)
I tried to do this with very little resting in between each rep. I couldn't do a full round but did 3min non stop then rested only a min to begin again. Some of the exercises have gotten doable but are still hard and difficult. So I did as many mountain climbers in a row then finished strong with push ups. Plank twisters were impossible to do so I did plank boomerangs without resting. The 24min exercises took me ~30min.

I had read somewhere that if you limit your rest time in between you'll increase your resting metabolic rate. Increasing how many calories you burn during rest times. Every little bit counts.

Day24: S5F Workout #2 + 10min of CardioA 
I am getting stronger! After trying to adapt a no/low rest approach I'm amazed at my stamina. S5F2 is no longer my favorite of the 2 DVDs in this series. That means it's working and challenging me beyond the point of comfort. I woke up before my kids and got my workouts in, success.

CardioA was not hard at all after dealing with B the past 2 weeks. I did all 5 1min exercises in a row non stop and rested only in between the 2 sets. It consisted of half squats, jumping jack crosses, lateral skis, side squats, and mountain climbers. If for any reason I couldn't finish the goal I kept moving with regular jumping jacks, push ups, jogging in place anything to keep moving..

Day25: REST

Day26: S5F + 2lb heavier weights and Lindsay's 8min Abs
Sad to say this but I skipped this day and did some Zumba with my mom and kids instead. It was one of those, I should've gotten up earlier to get this wo in but didn't and never felt up to doing it later.

Day27: CardioD
I had good intentions but I didn't get to the wo in the end

Day28: REST Finished with this lovely challenge

So despite the last 2 workouts in this challenge where I caught a lazy bug I'm very proud of my commitment during the last 4 weeks. I can also say I'm glad it's over. I mean who likes pushing their selves to the max day in and day out. While I may not have liked the during I have reaped so much because of this.

Click below for...

The Results in lbs and inches

If you want to challenge your self or are looking for some awesome results, Lindsay's S5F Challenge info can be found here and here.


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