Cathe Fans Part 3!

2BLean

Hi Ladies ~

STS Legs was this a.m. and will be heading to the Spinning workout tonight for cardio! Last night was lots of fun, she always has great music and she threw in some upbeat holiday tunes as well.

Laurel: I’m glad I’m not the only one feeling a bit of sadness . . . :ohwell: it is bitter sweet actually to think of the accomplishment and dedication but I have enjoyed it SO much. I agree, moving on to something different will probably be a good break for my body and it will be interesting to see how my body reacts to more Circuit/Endurance based workouts.
Thank YOU so much as well. :bigsmile: A huge part of this rotation and the motivation to keep on going has been having a “workout partner” doing the same rotation with me & with all the encouragement of all the ladies here too – even if we aren’t on the same workout we can all relate. I really hope we can do another rotation together this year forsure! Do you have something put together now for your next one? (penciled out anyway). I have a few weeks planned so that I have something down but 3-4 weeks fly by. Plus I want to modify things now that I have the new workouts. The pre-mix was Timesaver - Step + HiiT (Lo) ~ I think these are all going to be great workouts.

Laurie: I agree with Laurel, it sounds like you are doing really amazing with P90X and you must be enjoying it? :drinker: That’s great. I don’t know that I will do P90X again, but I might. So many workouts/rotation ahead of that in my mind. When is it you start STS Undulating? It was The Timesaver Step/HiiT (Lo) – Once I get everything down it will be great, kind of like anything step! Which one have you done?

Erika: I think sometimes that just happens w/ various workouts/instructors. You just don’t click on some days! Glad you enjoyed KPC ~ I have that one on the schedule for tomorrow! Hope you keep kickin that cold out of your way, sounds like you are. Yes, sometimes it surprises me on the calorie burns . . . I know w/ that new routine she has us do on Monday’s it is finally all clicked in, so there truly isn’t a minute to stop. BTW, I have KCM Circuit Burn down for next week during my Recovery Week! Looking forward to it.

Michelle: Your workouts for today sound like a fun combo! The food too .
What is clotrimazole? Is that something you were able to buy over the counter as well? I haven’t heard of the pineapple method for the pooh situation. We have had that issue with both our dogs and the last Lab we owned. GROSS. Hope you got your gifts all wrapped!

Hi Kara :bigsmile:

Have a great afternoon everyone!

Tami

fitzfour

Hello Ladies!

I'm still hanging in there! This cold is sooo weird. At night, I feel like I have phlegm (I know, gross!) piling up in my throat until at about 4:30 I end up waking up because I feel like I'm choking and can't breathe. Then I get up, and I feel absolutely fine all day. The only thing is I'm slowly losing my voice. So bizarre! I got up this morning and did Gym Style Back, Shoulders and Bi's Timesaver Premix. Wow, is that a cluster! I remember Laurie saying she did the premixes on the GS workouts, and they all mush together with no time to even switch weights! But, I managed to still somewhat keep up. Followed that with Tonique Mat Workout--Side moves. Ouchie! :noway: I only did 17 minutes and my butt muscles were so cramped by the end it was hard to walk up the stairs. I still love that DVD to add on to my workouts from time to time!

Tami--Nice work on Legs/Spinning! I hope you're enjoying KPC this morning. My shoulders were actually sore this morning from that, which I liked! I have to say, kickboxing is my favorite cardio, so I really get into those workouts! I can't wait to hear how you like Circuit Burn. I love that one, and find myself always going back to that one!

Laurel--Ok, I've decided you need to bottle that energy and send some this way! I am just amazed by it, and could use some extra to get me through the workday! The power cleaning sounds great! Believe it or not, cleaning is such a stress reliever for me, and I've always enjoyed it. I actually cleaned houses for income in highschool and college, cuz I liked it so much! :happy: Can't wait to hear your review of Total Body!

Laurie--Wow, great workouts you had! Can't believe how fast that P90X Rotation is going for you! I'm so glad you are enjoying it! :bigsmile: As I mentioned before, I'm right there with you on the step...just not feeling it lately, but maybe I'll revisit it someday soon!

Michelle--Sounds like that workout did it's job! I'll have to keep that one in mind when I'm ready to go back to circuit workouts. What other DVD's did you get? I hear the new P57 DVD's are being released today..I'm going to order those right away!!

Have a great day everyone. I'm off to work for a 1/2 day and then off with the hubby to the financial planner and hopefully home before the snow starts flying!

lvnascar

Morning Ladies,

Sorry Laurel I was a big chicken an opted for Coremax #2 Stability Ball workout last night! :blushing: Looked at the Ab Circuit DVD and pulled out Coremax. I have not done one of the CM workouts in a while so that was fun. Helps that it is one of my favorites. This morning was StretchX, needed to give the upper body a little TLC since I did those P90X workouts back to back.

Laurel, Congrats on finishing your STS rotation! :drinker: How wonderful to have all that extra energy, my house needs a good cleaning. Have to do a little of that before Christmas that is for sure. Thanks for reminding me that CCC doesn't use the step, I think you are right I'm confusing it with Hiit. All those workouts start to run together after a while. :laugh: I should start looking at that STS TB workout, curious about how she puts that one together.

Tami, Glad your spinning class was fun. I'm starting the undulating rotation the 27th of Dec. I'm hoping that it doesn't sidetracked by having to go visit my parents up north. Might have to push it out a week if necessary. The only workout from the new series I have done has been the Double Hiit without the Bootcamp. I should be able to get in the lower body workout during this undulating at some point.

Erika, Hope that cold starts getting better. The GS Leg premix is much better than the upper body workouts. I created a worksheet so that I knew what exercise was next and could adjust my weights, or pause the DVD player. More snow for you, we are only suppose to get about one inch. :huh:

Have a great day!
Laurie

bajangrl29

Morning Ladies,

I slept in this morning because obviously these fullbody circuits are zapping claories and energy:ohwell: Just like Laurie I injured my right glute muscle and I'm walking with a slight limp:noway: Today I'm taking the day off and will do a stretch in hopes of working my sore booty:bigsmile: I'm not sure who mentioned Kari Anderson but I 'm looking into her Reach dvd which is danced based and has great reviews. I think that adding that into a weekly rotation for a solid stretch will be great as I tend to avoid stretching and in hindsight realize that my lack of streching has contributed to my bulky mass especially in my lower body:noway:

Erika- I will look into P57 new dvds. I picked up a few Tracy Mallett dvds, her quick 6min blasts are on sale for 8.00 on Totalfitness. My next purchase will be Lott Based as I'm finally seeing my legs change and that is the toughest area to work for this pear shape With a pending job I'm also looking for short routines that will kick butt in 30mins:bigsmile:

Laurie- Today will be a stretch based day and maybe a Bar method 25min routine this afternoon. Breakfast was a Jimmy Dean's Turkey sausage d-light sandwich with coffee, S1- cottage cheese w/pineapple chunks, lunch-veggies, cuban black beans w/rice & chicken, dinner will be baked BBq chicken w/more broccoli slaw. I tried this for the first time this year and it is delicious and I plan to get the recipe and try my own version one day:bigsmile: I also bought mine from the local store but they don't always carry it in the deli section but this week I was lucky to see a new batch.


Tami-Clotrimazole is an antifungal medicine that is used for yeast infections, jockitch, ringworm, vaginal yeast infections, etc. My eldest suffers with eczema which flares up due to swimming so I had purchased some creams online that are used in the hospitals/clinics, one of them is an antifungal cream and it contains a derivative of clotrim so if you can find look for it in Walgreens, Dollar General, etc...an online pet owner stated that they used the generic brand sold for women's infections but the stores will usually carry it in liquid forms for ear infections or a cream based as well.

Laurel- Oooh a new year and a new rotation...what is the focus for the new year?

Kara- Miss you:flowerforyou:

Michelle

StiringWendel

Good Afternoon!

I decided to take it a little easier today after doing STS workouts four days in a row. I started off my day with Insanity's Pure Cardio and then did Yoga X. Both workouts felt great, and I really needed that yoga workout. Tomorrow I tackle STS Total Body, and I think taking it easier today will help me get through that one. It really does look tough, especially since I haven't been doing much endurance-based training this year.

Tami, I keep telling myself that I need to sit down and write up a new rotation (and I have jotted down some notes), but I don't have a full rotation done (by a long shot). I think I'm going to see how my body reacts to this one upper, one lower, one circuit and one full body (with two days of cardio) plan I have. If I'm enjoying it, I think I'll continue it for four to six weeks (or so). My problem is that I generally get tired of circuit workouts after a couple of weeks, and if that happens, then I think I'll go back to doing two upper body splits, two lower body workouts and one total body workout (and one day of cardio) for the week. If I do that, then I'll probably come up with some 'official' rotation because what I'd really like to do is another form on an undulating rotation. For instance, doing Slow and Heavy Upper Body workouts during the week, followed by something like High Reps for my total body workout. In other words, I'd like to mix and match the splits and total body to provide as much 'shock' as possible. We'll see. I'm hoping I can come up with something soon but, for right now, I'm looking forward to taking a bit of a break from a strict rotation for a few weeks.

Michelle, no doubt the new workouts are getting to you. Good for you in listening to your body. I do Kari Anderson's workouts. I have Reach, and I'll be honest about it. It took me a very long time to warm up to this workout. I have Kari's other dance-based stretching workouts (Angles Lines and Curves and Angles Lines and Curves II) and both of those are very relaxing to me. They flow with the music and are more stretching based (at least I feel) than toning based. I think Reach is more of the latter. That being said, Reach is much more challenging than the other two workouts, with some great core works and lower body work. So if you are looking for a bit of a tougher workout, get Reach. But if you are looking for a more relaxing full body stretch with some light toning, I would highly recommend Angles, Lines and Curves II. It is, hands down, my favorite 'relaxing' workout. It never fails to energize me. But, again, it isn't a super tough toning-based workout either. And, again, Reach is a great workout if you are looking for a more toning-based workout. In other words, they are both great....just different. I totally think adding a stretching workout once a week will help 'lengthen' your muscles. I know that muscles can't be lengthened, but my weekly yoga has made all of the difference in the world in how my body feels. I think Laurie has mentioned feeling the same.

Laurie, I don't think the words 'big chicken' and Coremax 2 belong in the same sentence. :laugh: That's a tough workout!! Glad you let your body rest today. I imagine you needed it. This has been a tough months of workouts for you.

Erika, hope you get to feeling better. I've had colds like that before, and they usually catch up with me eventually for a day or two where I finally feel congested all over. Take care of yourself and make sure you are getting enough rest. I totally agree with you (and Laurie) about the Gym Style Timesaver premixes. I've done them a couple of times but got so frustrated at how quickly the exercises came up, I've decided if I don't have the full 45 minutes to do the entire workout, I'm doing something else. :ohwell: Good thing is there aren't too many of Cathe's premixes that I feel that way about. Hope you don't get too much snow!

Kara.....:flowerforyou:

Talk to you all tomorrow.

Laurel

2BLean

Hello to my Fitness Friends ~

Last night’s Spinning was great (again) …. A friend from work came as well and was sweating like crazy, she loved it! It was the perfect ending to a long rainy day. I was a bit on the tired side yesterday, mostly just during my work day :huh: – I think it is our rainy gray days we are having now. :grumble: At any rate, it felt great and my KPC workout for today is going to hold off until tonight after work. That “tired” feeling kicked back in apparently when the alarm went off + I stayed up later than normal watching a Bball game with DH. Maybe I need chocolate Laurel! :laugh:

Erika: I’ll definitely let you know next week when I get to try that one out! YOUCH on the Tonique and :ohwell: 17 min. I think we can relate to that pain and with Tonique you do feel it forsure. Hopefully you aren’t too sore tomorrow. Great job on the workouts, :drinker: sounds like a good combo and I picture that pre-mix was quite the weight shuffle going on.

Laurie: Dec 27th - How fun, that is right around the corner. Sounds like a perfect choice for you this a.m. I bet your shoulder appreciated it as well. How are you ending up in your 5-day challenge?

Michelle: Thanks for the info on that ointment. I am going to get some forsure! Anything I can buy over the counter is fantastic because this is an ongoing situation for us with the dogs ears. I have Angles, Lines & Curves II, which I have only done a couple times but really enjoy. I have also done REACH as well. Laurel gives a good review of both and had recommended ALC II to me, I wasn’t disappointed. Just don’t get my “stretch” workouts in as much as I would like. :blushing:

Laurel: Can’t wait to hear about Total Body! :bigsmile: I do have a bit of a concern with having SelectTech weights I won’t be able to keep up with the weight switches as fast. Sounds like we are in the same thought process on what is next …. A full rotation break for several months is sort of refreshing. I just know that I need to keep on top of having something planned that makes sense so I’m not doing the DVD staring shuffle (wondering what to do) in the early a.m. each day! :ohwell: The first week after Recovery I have a combo of Cardio, Total Body, Cardio, Legs, Circuit & Total Body planned. Will probably change out one of the cardio based workouts as I go for either another Circuit or Upper Body due to my p.m. cardio workouts.

Hi Kara :flowerforyou:

Talk to you all tomorrow! :bigsmile:
Tami

bajangrl29

Morning Ladies,

A doctor's appt fo rthe little one so that and recycling has me up trying to get some exercise in and also drink some coffee..darn hubby did not have it waiting this morning:grumble: Calanetics is my workout this morning in hopes of stretching some more muscles and Lotte Berk High Assets..of course I don't need the booty high, just tight:laugh:

Erika- I ordered my P57 vol 2 which includes thighs so I'm very excited to try your program..not to mention the other 4 dvds that are on their way:blushing:

Laurel & Tami- Thanks for the info on the Kari Andersen dvds...I think that I will look into the angles dvd instead again. I also bought Tracy Mallett Renew Sleek & Lean which is similar to Reach with yoga,pilates incorporated so I will see. I just know that it is time to really include stretching at least twice per week in the new rotation:bigsmile: Our bodies will thank us

Laurie- Today was suppose to be my treat day ...lunch date with the 4 year old at Taco Cabana but without some serious calorie burn I may have to skip my taco bowl:sad: Hmnn that was great incentive to do some intervals..ok I'm off to pop in Calorie Explosion for 30minutes:laugh:

Michelle

lvnascar

Morning Ladies,

Today was P90X Legs & Back. Guess enough was said about that. :laugh: Only one more week of that one, can't believe this rotation is done next week.

Last night our youngest DD had a choir concert, and her group was all 8th grade girls. The had four songs altogether, and two of them where very difficult songs. The very last one was Carol of the Bells, and they did such a great job that everyone clapped louder and longer than for any other song sung that day. :drinker:

Michelle, Hope all goes well with your leg today. That taco bowl sounds wonderful, hope you are able to do that Calorie Explosion without any problems so that you can enjoy your treat day. You like cottage cheese and pinapple too! One would think that combination wouldn't be so tasty.

Laurel, Getting ready to hear what your thoughts on STS Total Body are. Sounds to me like you have a really good plan going for your coming weeks. It can be difficult to figure out what you want to do after a rotation like you just finished. I know that I have suffered from that in the past. I think that is why I'm such a planner. :laugh:

Tami, Glad you had another great spinning class. Sorry to hear that you are feeling tired. Was the Bball game at least a good outcome? I only did the 5 day challenge for one week, I don't know that I could keep up the pace of morning and evening workouts. Maybe I can try that again during the summer when the girls do not have so many things going on.

Have a wonderful day!
Laurie

2BLean

Good Morning Ladies & TGIF

Well Undulating Rotation finished after this a.m. workout of Shoulders/Biceps/Triceps. :bigsmile: I took advantage of every piece of the workout knowing it was my last STS for a while. Last night I did get Kick/Punch/Crunch in so that was good too! This afternoon at 3 we are closing the office early & having our Holiday Social in one of our conference rooms and then off to my DH Social at his office as well so no spinning tonight :huh:

Michelle: Sounds like a fun lunch date with your daughter .. hope you got your Calorie Explosion workout in so you can have that Taco bowl! I bet you are excited for your new DVD's to arrive?! :happy:

Laurie: Thanks, yes much better this a.m. - I went to bed at my normal time so felt good. It seems to really throw me off if it is an hour+ later :ohwell: No, the team we were rooting for lost. :ohwell: Great job on your P90X workout. I bet you were very proud of your DD and their choir concert, that sounds like it was fantastic!

Laurel: How was STS Total Body? :bigsmile:

Erika & Kara - TGIF! Hope you both have a great day and weekend!

Talk to you all soon! :flowerforyou: Hopefully everyone has some fun plans for the weekend?!? :bigsmile: I am going to finish my shopping forsure, that's my goal & get in a Yoga tomorrow and a good workout on Sun. :bigsmile:

Tami

StiringWendel

Hi ladies!

I didn't sleep well last night (DH was restless), so woke up this morning wondering if I was going to get through my workout. I decided to do Turbo Fire 45 EZ to see if that would give me energy....and it did. That and Fire 60 are definitely my favorite workouts in that system. Anyhow, after my break for breakfast, I did STS Total Body. Here's my review:

The workout starts with a warm-up using weights. This isn't my favorite way of warming up for strength training (I prefer some form of cardio followed by light weights and then into the main program) but it was effective and thorough, and I felt well warmed up for starting the program. The first tri-set is for legs (squats, one leg elevated lunges and power deadlifts). This was the first time I've done power deadlifts, so I kept my weights light for the first set. It's a bit of a difficult move with dumbells....no doubt a barbell would be better. But once I got the hang of it and focused on keeping my weights in front of my shins, I could feel the exercise. This wasn't an exhausing tri-set at all.....which is good.

Because then came two upper body tri-sets. Yowza. The first one focused on chest and triceps. I managed to do the weights suggested on my workout sheets for this tri-set. My only 'disappointment' is that Cathe used dips for the tricep work. I understand why she did since the exercises are meant to be 'compound' and dips use the chest as well as the triceps. But, for me, I don't feel dips are the most effective tricep move (I prefer extensions or even kickbacks). However, with the pushups that followed in the 'bonus burn' section, I do feel the triceps were hit well. The next tri-set was back and biceps. This one really got to me. I was able to do my recommended weights....but barely. I really struggled on the one arm row....an exercise I usually don't struggle on. I could have used about five seconds more of a break in between exercises on this one just to let my arms adjust. It was painful....but it really was a good pain.

The next tri-set again hit legs (narrow squats, lunges, and deadlifts). My only problem with this set was that my forearms were so tired from the previous two sets that I really struggled with holding the weights through the deadlifts. My weight sheets were spot-on on this segment.

The came the shoulder tri-set. Cathe did overhead presses, upright rows and lateral raises. The first two exercises felt really good with the weight on my workout sheet. But my workout sheet recommended 14# for the lateral raise, and while I was reaching for my weights, Cathe said something on the workout about thinking she might do 8# but settled for 5#. I'm not three times stronger than Cathe (!) so I reached for my 10# and managed to get through the exercise okay....but it was a bit of a struggle. So if your workout sheets are anything like mine, just know you might need to go much lower on this exercise than recommended.

The final tri-set was legs. They were plate exercises (and more deadlifts). Because the first two exercises were new exercises, there were no weight recommendations on the sheet. I didn't know what to reach for and noticed Cathe was only holding what looked like 10# (or so). I picked up my 12# weights (which is really light for me when it comes to legs), but I'm glad that's all I picked up. I was surprised how tired my legs felt from the first two tri-sets.

The workout ends with a short ab section that has some new moves. I liked it even though it did seem short to me. But it was enough at the end of this workout, that's for sure.

My overall impressions......she doesn't waste any time in between moves in the tri-sets. Tami, you MAY have some problems changing weights in between moves. I don't know how long it takes you, but there are a couple of moves (like bench press into flies) where the time in between is only a couple/few seconds. That being said, I found the workout flew by, and it was perfectly doable because of the way Cathe put the sets together (going from 16 to 12 reps). The decrease in reps definitely made me feel like I could do a second set after being wasted on the first. She does spend about 30 seconds in between each tri-set, which is nice.

It was when I was washing my hair that I realized how worked out my arms felt. I am definitely feeling this workout right now, and in a good way. My arms are shaking, and it has been a couple of hours since I finished it. I love that!! I didn't pay any attention to the music (so it must not have been too bad), and Cathe's cuing is pretty good on this workout. Overall.....I'm really happy with it. It is a very thorough total body workout and (minus the tricep dips) I enjoyed the exercises she chose for this workout. It clocked in at 66 minutes from beginning to end.

Enough about that!!

Tami, congratulations on finishing the Undulating Rotation!!!! Hope you enjoy your holiday parties.

Michelle, hope you got your workout in so you could enjoy your lunch!

Laurie, good job on the P90X workout. That's a tough one. How fun for your daughter! I'm glad they got such a good reception. I have such fond memories of performing (in choir and orchestra) at Christmas. I hope she's enjoying it.

Erika, I hope you are feeling well.

Kara.....hope you are well.

Enjoy your weekend!

Laurel

fitzfour

Hi Ladies!! I feel so behind being the last one to log in for the day instead of the first! :huh:

I usually work from home for a couple hours in the morning before taking the boys to school, but decided to switch placed with hubby, so I was in the office by 7:30. Threw my whole morning off though, as I normally log in around 6 to MFP and then get ready, and eat breakfast around 8:30. This morning it was 6:30am breakfast! :grumble:

I got a new DVD yesterday, so just had to try it out! It was Janis Saffell StrikeZone. I REALLY liked it. It's not up there in intensity like KPC, but I am looking for workouts right now that challenge me, but don't kill me. I've been feeling like some of Cathe's workouts are just a little too intense for me, so I actually find myself avoiding them! Janis did a nice job of keeping the HR up, spiking it up with some drills, and also did some nice kicks/punches etc for toning too. It overall was a great workout!

Laurel--Keep that energy going girl!! :bigsmile: I so wish I could have the Turbo Fire 45EZ and 60 DVD's...when is BeachBody ever going to figure it out??!? They'd sell a bunch if they just started selling single DVD's maybe 6-12 months after the initial release!! Great review of Total Body! Sounds like a lot of punch packed into that workout! Is it just me, or is there a lot of leg work in that one?!?!? How would you say it compares to STS Meso #1? Same type of moves/reps, but just with tri-sets/drop sets? I'm just trying to compare it. I often feel like a lot of Cathe's weight workouts are similar...or maybe they just all blend together in my head!

Tami--Congrats on finishing STS! I don't know how you and Laurel stuck to that rotation for so long...I just can't stick with something for that amount of time! :grumble: Sounds like you've got a fun evening planned with your company holiday social and your hubby's too. Enjoy your night, and good luck finishing up the shopping. We are due to get 8-12 inches of snow starting tonight, into tomorrow, so I'm running all my errands tonight!!!

Laurie--Almost done, yeah! What are you going to do for your next rotation? That choir concert sounds awesome! I can hardly wait until my boys are old enough to be part of choir concerts. I'm sure your daughter sang beautifully! :bigsmile:

Michelle--I so wish we lived close to each other...we'd have a Bar/Callanetics party goin' on!! :laugh: I can't wait to get my P57 DVD's and was pumped about the thigh and booty DVD! I'm sure you'll love them!!!

Ok gals, back to work. I'll catch you all on Monday!

bajangrl29

Morning Ladies,


I'm on a 2 on, 1 off day routine so today I was scheduled for Bob but just did not have the energy. I opted to try something else on ExerciseTV called Piloxing:huh: what a wierd mix, pilates with kickboxing. It seemed like a desperate cry to find something unique and it was just really wierd:ohwell: We are headed to SeaWorld for the day if the weather holds up so I will definitely walk at least 3 miles tonight. Tomorrow I will definitely do Pure Strength for a great 60min killer routine:bigsmile: Jillian's 6 week to shredded Abs is also available for those interested in that new dvd.

Michelle

fitzfour

Good Morning Ladies!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! We got snowed in on Saturday (I think we ended up with 18 inches or so and super high winds!), so I did some organizing around the house. Steam cleaned all my carpets, and moved our bed/set into our spare bedroom to make room for our new bedroom furniture coming on Thursday! :bigsmile: Then, I started going stir crazy! It was so bad here, you literally couldn't even drive a mile to the nearest Target. On top of that, it was rest day for me, so I didn't even have a workout to fall back on. But, I made it through, and then we ran non-stop on Sunday. I decided to take another rest day, as I just didn't have any breaks to workout. This morning was KCM NYC and Fluidity Bar Beginner workout. Both great workouts!!!

Michelle-That Piloxing does sound weird...just doesn't seem to meld together in my mind! I hope Sea World was fun!

Have a fabulous day ladies!!

lvnascar

Morning Ladies,

My last week with P90X weight workout, so Chest, Shoulders & Triceps is finished! That is my least favorite workout, so I'm glad it is done. Still have to get in an ab workout after work, but will decided what to do when I get in the basement. Saturday I did 10 Minute Solutions Knockout Body and used weighted gloves. Sunday after we got home from church, we did the hybernation in the house. We didn't get the snow like Erika, ours was rain. But then we got the very very cold temps, and our roads are like skating rinks. :noway: The dog can't even keep her footing on the roads.

Tami, Congrats on finishing another STS Rotation! :drinker: Hope those parties where fun on Friday, that is very strange that both you and your DH had them on the same day. We have our social tomorrow afternoon, have to remind myself not to bring a lunch tomorrow.

Laurel, Thank you for the wonderful information on STS TB. Can't wait until I'm able to try that one out, guess it will be another 3-1/2 months yet. :laugh: Did it help to have the worksheet, not just for the weight amounts, but for getting ready for the next exercise? Hmmm more tricep dips, Tony likes those for the triceps too. He has them in both of the upper body workouts. I'm not a huge fan either.

Erika, My family in Wayzata had told us that they where getting all that snow, and then of course we saw the collapse of the roof at the stadium. Isn't that the second time that has collapsed? We where getting snow like that last year, so I was happy that we didn't get all of that. How wonderful that you are getting new bedroom furniture. DH and I enjoyed our Christmas present to ourselves, got a new hd tv for our bedroom. I like that Janis workout, yes it isn't as intense, but I do like her punching combos.

Michelle, I had looked at that workout once, and am so glad I didn't get it. I'm sure you are happy that you just tried it out at exercise TV. That Jillian workout is on my Christmas list that I gave to my SIL. We always do small things like DVD's for us older children. Where you able to get to Sea World?

Have a great day!
Laurie

bajangrl29

Morning Ladies,

This morning I slept in which I needed and although I woke up with some major back pain, I decided to jump into an Angie Miller Kettlebell Bootcamp workout

We made it to SeaWorld and we had a wonderful time. I love Beluga Whales so of course that was my favorite part of my day. Last year we did the behind the scene with the whales but it was too cold so we opted not to this year. At the end of the night the laughter continued and we snuggled on the sofa while the girls relived their favorite moments..awesome day:bigsmile:

This weekend I finished my shopping via online..from giftcards, online shoe stores, macys, lord & taylor, neiman...of course it seems like most of these places ended up with career shoes or clothes for myself:blushing: not to mention a few bags. I also wrapped the gifts for the girls and will complete the in-laws today and then finish those that I shipped directly tp Ga when we arrive next week.
.

Ok so has anyone worked out with Tracy Long? I saw some of her future releases and she seems to offer something interesting in 50 minutes or less. So many people so little energy or time:blushing:

Laurie- Yes we made it to SeaWorld:bigsmile: Have you looked at your cable network to see if they have that Jillian 6pk Ab workout? Awwwh no more Tony:laugh:

Tami- Good job on completing your rotation:drinker: Any thoughts for next year.

Laurel-That dvd sounds great alhtough her routines tends to bulk up my upper body which has scared me off of her lower body dvds. I was looking at the new one but I dont want to buy and then it collects dust That rotation you mentioned sounds interesting..I may have to grab some of your ideas and make it work with my Bar/Lotte/P57 dvds:laugh:

Erika- I wished we lived close by too..it would be great to hit some of these dvds together especially when I'm feeling left out because I'm no longer lifting heavy like everyone else:blushing: With the new year and new job I definitely have to create the ideal workout in order to stay focused.

Ok I'm off to clean house and do some dusting

Michelle

StiringWendel

Hi ladies!

We had a fun weekend. We were able to take a tour of the White House on Saturday evening which was all kinds of neat since it is decorated for Christmas right now. I thought it was beautifully done, though I've never been there before so I have no previous years to compare it too. It was a tad surreal, though, to leave the house through the front doors. Felt strange to be standing on the front steps to the White House. Hee! Anyhow, we took the opportunity to take a walk through the city to see things like the National Christmas Tree and such. It was pretty quiet down there (we pretty much had The Mall to ourselves ) and felt so Christmas-y to me. We had late dinner reservations for a restaurant in Alexandria, so we didn't have much time to linger...which was okay given that it was pretty cold and starting to rain....but it was well worth the trip and the walk.

This is supposed to be a recovery week for me, but as I've mentioned earlier, I'm a bit hesitant to do a full recovery week right now with Christmas and all of the temptations and such. But I am going to try to focus on lighter weights. Yesterday I did CCC, which was great. Today I did an odd (and long) combination. I got up early and did Athletic Step. After a long break, I did Butts and Guts (but kept the weight down). It's been awhile since I've done this workout in full, and it never doesn't burn me. I decided to follow it up with a 'recovery' workout, so I did Insanity's Cardio Recovery. It felt tough after Butts and Guts, but it also was the perfect blend of toning and stretching for me today.

Michelle, glad you enjoyed Sea World. I've heard about the 'Piloxing' workout, but it sounded way to strange for me to think about doing it. It doesn't sound like I was too far off the mark. Regarding Tracy Long, I haven't done a workout of hers since she was with The Firm, but I've heard some good things about her workouts in the past. When do you start your new job?

Erika, I was thinking about you yesterday when I saw all of the snow up your way. I'm glad things cleared up enough for you to enjoy your Sunday. Sounds like it was quite the storm. Regarding STS Total Body, it is pretty different from Meso 1 in how it feels. In Meso 1, each exercise is new and alternating between body parts throughout the workout (for instance, chest followed by shoulders followed by triceps followed by chest etc). STS TB repeats the exercises for two sets and focuses on body parts instead of alternating body parts (except for legs, which are worked in throughout the workout). For instance, the first upper body set is for chest and triceps. When you've done the three exercises twice through....that's it for chest and triceps. You then move on to back/biceps and so on. As far as the leg work, I was happy that Cathe included more leg work in this total body workout than she normally does in her total body workouts. It definitely felt like a more thorough lower body workout than, say, Muscle Max (as an example). Hope that answers some of your questions!

Laurie, glad to hear you escaped the worst of the storm. I was thinking about you too this weekend. Congrats on getting that P90X workout done!! Regarding STS Total Body, I definitely found it helpful to have the workout sheet for both the weights and the exercises.

Tami, I was thinking about you this morning as I was staring at my DVD collection saying to myself 'what cardio should I do?' Yikes!! I think I'm definitely going to have to write down a rotation for the next little bit to prevent that from happening again. I hate that early morning stare at my DVDs!!

Hope you all enjoy the rest of your day.

Laurel

2BLean

Hi Ladies ~ I got a bunch of my shopping done and we got our tree/decorations up, so it is feeling more & more like Christmas. (Still not done but almost). I went ahead and took a complete REST day on Sat. because I knew I wanted to get out & about before the rush of people & I needed to bake some Pumpkin breads for our office managers gift baskets we do each year.

Yesterday I did my new Cathe Leg workout - Lower Body Blast. Really liked it. Moves along quickly with some great cardio bursts in between. This a.m. was KCM Cardio Circuit. I did the full workout pre-mix. Was lots of fun and glad I have this one in the library ~ thanks again Erika & Kara for the recommendation! :bigsmile:

Erika: How fun with all that snow (minus being snowed in) but still very festive and I am sure your boys are loving it. Thanks for the congrats! It definitely feels good to say I did a 7.5 month rotation from beginning to end. I will definitely do it again... enjoyed it a lot. My body definitely lost inches & leaned out which was my goal. Not much for LB loss but that’s ok, I’m sure it’s the muscle I gained, that’s what I will tell myself.:ohwell: For this week I am on “recovery” week and doing almost all “new” DVD workouts to give them a try. Looking forward to it. Cardio Circuit was great ~ lots of fun! :drinker:

Michelle: What a fantastic day you had! :bigsmile: That is so awesome and I am sure will be remembered always. The Pilate/Boxing does sound like a different combo. I have Pure Strength & Pure Cardio on the schedule this week as well! Looking forward to it; kind of giving all my “newer” DVD’s ago this week, as I mentioned above. I have done a few of Tracy Long’s workouts. Years ago when she was in The Firm videos and then she branched out on her own and I had just a couple (older) DVD’s. I remember her being pretty thorough in her explanations and a good instructor. That’s fun you got yourself some new work clothes, etc. I bet you are getting excited for your new job?!

Laurie: What a small world …. I saw you mentioned your family live in Wayzata. I lived there for about 4.5 years as a kid! Loved it and have great memories. Congrats on entering into your last week of P90X! It seems like it has flown by. The holiday parties were good. It was odd to have them both back-to-back but not the first time it has happened unfortunately. Both were on a much smaller scale than in the past & I really enjoyed that vs. a huge extravagant party. Just more comfortable & easier to mingle + starting so early we were home early.

Laurel: :laugh: on the “what should I do today” DVD stare. That is absolutely why I need to at least have something wrote down. But WOW on today’s combo! :noway: I am with you on B&G, whenever I do that one (especially the elevated leg lunges) I am burning. Definitely love that one though! Lower Body Blast was really good – I think you will like it. Some good straight forward leg conditioning along with some cardio bursts. I’m with you on this Recovery week being more on the “active” side vs. Recovery. What a fun experience that must have been going to the White House & seeing the Natl Christmas Tree + fun dinner reservations. What a great day.

Hope you all have a great day!

Tami

2BLean

Tami- Good job on completing your rotation:drinker: Any thoughts for next year

I meant to respond to this and realized I forgot. :blushing: My plan right now is to focus on some circuit & endurance based training. I have wanted to do this for quite some time and think it will be fun.
I am curious to see how my body responds to this type of training. So will do a 4-week rotation and go from there. Thanks for asking and for the congrats!

Tami

fitzfour

Good Morning Ladies! I hope you are all having a great week so far!

This morning was Ilaria's Powerstrike 5....wow, this lady is good! I've never seen such good form, pointers, cuing, etc. The music didn't even bother me (which I thought it would--it's a steady tribal like beat), it actually fit in nicely with the moves! :bigsmile: I ended up buying a few more DVD's from TotalFitness last night....Atletica, Rapid Fire Kick Box and Core, Amy Bento Kickbox Surge, Tracy Staehle High Intensity Kickbox and Amy Bento Kickbox Xtreme. Can you tell what kind of cardio I like?!??! :laugh: I have spent the last year or so buying different DVD's and trying them out (step, dance, Hiit, drills, Plyo, kickboxing, etc), and keep landing back on the kickboxing as my "go to" workouts, so thought I should beef up my DVD's in that area. I'm super excited for the new ones!

Hi Tami--Sounds like you were very productive this weekend!! Sometimes it's just easier to take a complete rest day and get a bunch of stuff done! Glad you liked Circuit Burn...so much fun! I'm right with you on trying the new DVD's this week..that's what I'm doing too (well, as fast as they can get here!). I see you mentioned having lived in Wayzata...I lived in Mound for awhile when I was a kid, and then we moved a bit further north of there, and then when I got married we moved east of the cities, and now I'm south of the cities! I like to try all areas of the cities here I guess!

Laurel--What a great experience to be at the White House when it's all decorated for Christmas! I would love to see that!!! I can't say I'm surprised by your active recovery week...true to Laurel style! It's really hard to go from intense workouts to something much less intense, so I think I'd be donig the same thing by taking it down a notch, but not a full blown recovery week. Thanks for the info on STS Total Body. I'm having a hard time deciding on my 1st rotation for 2011. I thought I wanted to do STS, and now I'm second guessing that.:grumble: I was looking at pictures last night, and really like how my bi's, shoulders, tri's and legs (and butt!) look now, and that's probably from all the less intense weight lifting. When looking back at my after STS pictures, I was very athletic looking, but definitely more bulky looking than I am now. I guess I'm not sure if that's where I want to go right now...I'm still deciding. I like what STS did fro inches/weight off my body, but not sure if my arms would bulk up more the second time? I may just do 1 week on STS, 1 week off to see how that goes...decisions, decisions!

Michelle--How do you like that Angie Miller workout? I have it, just haven't tried it yet. :blushing: Sounds like you had a great time at SeaWorld and got your shopping taken care of (for you too! :bigsmile: ). That must feel good to get that done! When do you start the new job??

Laurie--We certainly did get a lot of snow over the weekend, and the Metrodome collapse was crazy! Actually, quite a few schools/businesses were closed yesterday as they couldn't plow the roads well enough for people to get to work and school downtown. No where to plow the snow to, so they worked yesterday on bringing in trucks to haul the snow out to other locations. Lots of big white "mountains" around here! :laugh: I hear we are supposed to get more snow tomorrow...we'll see!!! Great job on wrapping up that P90X workout...always nice to be done with the one you dislike the most!

Off to get ready for work!

lvnascar

Morning Ladies,

Ok so when I go to walk the dog in the morning, the temperature should never read below zero! :noway: Especially before Christmas, I'm not ready for it to be THAT cold. :laugh: Anyway last night I got Barry's Bootcamp Fat Blaster Abs done. This morning I was not in the mood to do an Insanity workout so I opted for my next favorite plyo type workout ~ Jillian's Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism. :drinker: I really do enjoy this one, and I don't understand why. She doesn't do the workout balanced on each side for one thing. Oh well!

Michelle, Oh great idea on the ExerciseTV to see about that 6-pack ab workout. Will do that when I get a chance tonight. I really liked Sea World when we went there too, was the first time in my life that I could touch salt water fish without it being dead first. :laugh: Of course getting wet at the show wasn't as fun, that water is cold! :laugh:

Laurel, Oh now I'm jealous that you where able to tour the White House during Christmas. I have heard that it is really beautiful during the holidays. I totally agree with you on the before Chrstmas recovery week. I have that next week, and have been wondering if I should up the cardio a bit that week. Those Insanity recovery workouts are really lower body focused, so you really did work those legs and butt good today. LOL about the early morning stare. I was doing that this morning, but lying in bed trying to figure out what I wanted to do besides an Insanity workout. :laugh:

Tami, Oh it seems that everyone is so much ahead of me on the Christmas prep! My DD's dance classes are always so long, and of course take up the whole of Saturday afternoon. :huh: Hopefully this weekend we don't get such terrible weather, then of course everyone that didn't get out last weekend will be out! :sad: Glad the parties where so nice, mine isn't going to be all that nice.

Erika, I love kickboxing, so totally understand you getting those workouts. I have one of Ilaria's workouts, and really do want to get some more. They are usually more expensive that other ones, but you are right she is very good. That Rapid Fire Kickbox & Core sounds like something that I might enjoy, will have to check out the clip. Those mountains of snow sound familiar, we had a lot of those last year. It was really bad when you wanted to go to the mall and the whole parking lot was full of those mountains. No place to park!

Have a great day!
Laurie