Weddingbee boards

In response to my before and after pictures that can be found on this thread, I've gotten a number of PMs asking what my workout schedule was like.  Instead of messaging everyone seperately I decided I'd just make a post about everything that has worked for me.

First of all, I tried to workout at least 4 times a week.  Sometimes life got in the way (for instance, when Fi's Grandfather died) but I really tried my best to get 4 workouts in.  There was more then one week where I did some form of exercise every day, although I wasn't killing myself everyday!  You have to give your body time to heal in between hard workouts!  I workout anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour and a half.  Usually though, my workouts are about 45 minutes.

A normal week for me went like this:

• Sunday - resistance training
• Monday - easy/short day (who wants to workout on Mondays???)
• Tuesday - resistance training
• Wednesday - hardcore cardio
• Thursday - resistance training
• Friday - I didn't always workout on Fridays, when I did, it was whatever I was in the mood for, generally cardio
• Saturday - off, but I like to do some yoga before going to my meeting to get my blood flowing a little bit.  I'm a fan of Kundalini yoga, I find it relaxing (I don't really consider it to be "exercise" though)

These are the supplies that I have:

• Yoga mat
• Hand weights - 1, 3, 5, and 8 pound sets
• Kettlebells - 5 and 10 pound (I would like to invest in a 20 pound as well)
• Resistance Bands, but I don't use them much
• Mini Balance Ball, but I don't use this much

These are the DVDs that I have:

• Cardio
  • I have 3 Insanity workouts that I got from a friend of mine
    • These really are insane - this is usually my killer cardio workout for the week.  The whole system is pretty pricey though (and super intense) so personally I wouldn't buy it, but if someone wants to give you a few for free, I wouldn't turn them down either!
  • Jillian Michael's "Banish Fat Boost Metabolism"
    • I can't say I love it, but I think if you didn't want to buy that many DVDs it would be great to get this and No More Trouble Zones and rotate between the two
  • Amy Bento: Kickbox Xtreme Workout 
    • This DVD is tough, not just because the workout is hard, but the choreography is really quick.  If you don't have a history of dance or something similar, I would not recommend this DVD, I think it could be frustrating.  But if you have experience with complex choreography or kickboxing, it is really fun!
• Resistance
  • Jillian Michael's "No More Trouble Zones"
    • I love this workout, expecially the ab circuit.  I attribute my obsurdly defined obliques to this DVD
  • Jari Love: Get Extremely Ripped!
    • Another DVD that I love.  Jari is kind of obnoxious, but I was doing Jillian DVDs like every day, and if I heard "Don't phone it in" (anyone who does a Jillian workout regularly can probably relate, lol) one more time I was going to lose my mind, so I decided to get a DVD with a different trainer.  This workout is KILLER
  • Power Body: Kettlebell Bootcamp with Angie Miller (kettle bell)
    • Mleh - don't really recommend it.  It is a good workout, but it's kind of boring and the trainer has this cheesey smile plastered on her face the ENTIRE workout
  • Amy Bento: Kettlebell Dynamics
    • This is a much better kettlebell DVD.  And I really like the music in it, which helps make it more interesting.
• Combo
  • Jillian Michael's "30 Day Shred"
    • If you haven't heard about this, you must live under a rock, lol.  I like it for if I don't have the motivation to do a full workout but want to squeeze something in.  I wouldn't do it for 30 days straight like you're supposed to though.
• Yoga
  • Yoga Quick Fixes - Ana Brett & Ravi Singh
    • LOVE THIS!  If you've never done Kundalini though, research it a bit before taking the plunge to buy the DVD.  Kundalini focuses a lot on meditation and breathing, which is why I really don't consider this "exercise", more of "me time" haha.
• Pilates
  • Stott Pilates with Flex Bands - got from Marshalls, can't remember what it's actually called to give you a link
    • I rarely use this, it is super boring.  That's what I get for buying a workout DVD at Marshalls though.
  • Stott Pilates with Mini Balance Ball - again, I got it at Marshall's
    • Again, super boring

I also bought myself a few more DVDs (Merry Christmas to Me) that I'm still waiting to receive, and I'll let you all know if I like them after I try them.  They are:

• Kundalini Yoga Cardio, Stretch, & Strengthen - ALL LEVELS - Ana Brett and Ravi Singh
• The Firm: Get Chisel'd
• 10 Minute Solution: 5 Day Get Fit Mix
• 10 Minute Solution: Knockout Body Workout Kit w/Weighted Gloves (2009)

I also sometimes watch fitness videos on demand through Netflix.  Last night I did a half hour of pilates from the 10 minute solution pilates video which was available on Netflix and I really liked the Ab segment.

A great place to find workout equipment is Marshall's and TJ Maxx - that's where I got my kettlebells for a STEAL!

Okay, so that's a TON of information, and I'm sure I missed something along the way.  If you have any questions, I'd rather you post them here then PM me so that I only have to answer them once, but if you're more comfortable PMing me, go for it!

And, just as an FYI, you DO NOT need to invest in this many DVDs.  You don't need to spend a lot of money in order to get a good exercise regimen in place, I just have workout ADD so the more options I have the more likely I am to workout!

And I'll wrap this up with a little inspirational quote:

No matter who you are, no matter what you do,
you absolutely, positively do have the power to change.
-Bill Phillips

Happy exercising!

@deliciousappleblue: It is a lot of work, but its worth it! And thank you for the compliment!

@edb: I just tried to reply like a million times, but I kept getting an error. I hope my work didn't block me from responding haha, cuz right now I'm on my pfone which is much harder to do!

@edb: If this doesn't work it means today is a sad day and I can no longer post on my work computer (I just restarted it).

I think Kettlebells are kind of over rated.  I bought them because they're like a "hot thing" in fitness right now, but I find the workouts to be kind of boring.  Like I said in the OP though, the Amy Bento Kettlebell DVD has good music, so that helps.  And I LOVE No More Trouble Zones.  I would recommend that you also invest in Banish Fat Boost Metablism and switch between the two (NMTZ is resistance training, BFBM is cardio).

THANK GOD IT WORKED!!!!!!!!  I was going to die (a little drama, haha) if I couldn't post from my work computer anymore!

@Pomapoo: Thanks so much!  If I could even help one other person get results like I did I would feel great!  And as for feeling sore my best advice is to drink TONS of water (hydrated muscles are happy muscles, lol) and eat a banana (the potassium helps your muscles heal).  And trytrytry to workout again tonight; at least for me I feel a million times better (mentally and physically) if I workout even if I'm sore!  Don't kill yourself, but get your body moving and you'll feel better and be stronger in no time!

@Pomapoo: Did you do the entire NMTZ DVD on top of 15 minutes on the elliptical?  YOU CRAZY!!!! Hahahaha

@KLP2010: Thanks for that!  I was embarrased to tell people I was joining weight watchers in the beginning because I wasn't over weight.  But the bottom line was I wasn't happy with myself and exercising alone wasn't cutting it.  Weight Watchers gave me the tools I needed to lose the 17 pounds and then being extra dedicated to my workout routine is what has given me the muscle definition that I have now.  If I wasn't working out this much, I would look pretty scrawny at my current height/weight!

People have to remember no matter what it isn't easy to lose weight, whether you have 5 pounds to lose or 500...it just takes a lot longer to lose 500.

@JustlikeHeaven: Thank you so much!!!  I was always active so I just assumed I could never get my body to look this way, but when I finally got my diet straightened out (thanks to Weight Watchers) my body transformed!

@Pomapoo: I'm sticking with you're crazy! lol.  But you inspired me to not only do The Shred Level 2, but to do 20 minutes of pilates on top of it!  Not as crazy as what you did, but more then what I normally would do on a Monday night!

I've developed something of a Pilates-addiction...I just feel great after doing it!

@AudzinLuv: The sense of accomplishment is even greater then the physical changes! (Aka, I'm giving you a swift kick in the butt, its totally worth it, lol)

@kirabee: NMTZ is the best!  There are some really amazing ab segments in it!  And believe me, I wasn't showing anyone my before pictures until I had the after picture to show along with it, lol.  But you'll totally appreciate having them!!!

Last night I tried out:

And I really enjoyed it.  Again, if you aren't into/never have tried Kundalini Yoga before I would definitely do some research on it before purchasing a DVD, but I really like this one.  I didn't do the upper body tone section and I'll let you all know what I think of it when I do, but the core and the core and stretch sections were AWESOME!  The cardio section is kinda of weird...it's like Yoga-dancing and the instructor is wearing these really strange shoes.  It isn't hard cardio at all, I would equate it to going for a brisk walk, but when I choose to do yoga, I'm not looking for a hardcore cardio workout.

The best part of this DVD is that it has this "matrix" option where you can go and select up to 8 different segments and then it will play them in the order you selected them so you don't have to keep going back to the main menu if you don't want to do the entire workout.  More workout DVDs should do this!!!