Shred Days 14-16: Halfway There!

Warning: this post will likely get a little goopy, so if you're not in the mood for sweet sentiments, keep it moving.

If it weren't for Bryan, I would have gone two days straight without working out. I know that doesn't sound like the end of the world, but staying on track with this is very important to me and losing momentum feels dangerous.

Day 14 went okay (Level 2 is still waaay hard) but the next day I just couldn't find the motivation. There was no injury or scheduling problem. It was, as my Mom would have put it, "a case of the Sorries." A BIG case. My inner brat took over, and I got tired of having something else to do everyday.

Yesterday was Day 16, and it was dangerously close to becoming my first second day skip. I have a friend in the hospital who wasn't doing well (he's improved some since then) and when bad things happen, I often give in to the Sorries. While I was walking around rationalizing a second consecutive off-day, Bryan said, "You're my hero." Well, what are you going to do after that? So, I laced up my shoes and got to it.

The boys came downstairs in the middle of my workout, and Bryan made a pretty convincing show of admiring my muscles. That was very sweet and helped me remember why I'm doing this. Then, Jackson did some clapping and stretched out across my body during crunches and "helped" me keep my abs tight. That was just funny and distracting, and also helped a lot. When I was done, Bryan did the workout so I had someone to be tired with.

I want to sincerely thank my boys for their support, in this, and everything else I do. You guys rock!

Shred Days 12 & 13: All's Well that Ends Well

Jackson, who's in a mimicking stage, did a perfect recreation of what I looked like telling Bryan about my recent weigh-in:

All this work just to lose a half pound!

I was devastated last night after seeing the scale, even knowing that heavy muscle is better than lighter fat. I only weighed because I was feeling so confident that I'd lost a few pounds. But I did the workout anyway.

Things all turned around though this morning when I did three things I haven't done in almost two years:

1. wore a pair of pre-pregnancy sized pants,

2. tucked my top into those pants, and

3. used the pre-pregnancy notch in my belt.

In light of those three details, who cares about that silly scale! I'm wearing clothes I couldn't wear before I started this, so there must be substantial muscle skewing the numbers.

I'm not weighing again until April 20th, when my 30 days of Shredding are complete. Hopefully by then I'll be so hot I won't care what number the scale throws at me. Since Bryan's already Shredded today, I've got some catching up to do.

So, I'll leave you with wishes for a happy and blessed Easter. We're having a great one here, just look at how smiley we are:

Shred Days 9,10 & 11

Day nine went fine - hey, that rhymed.

Unfortunately, Day 10 didn't happen. It was a crazy grocery shopping/ furniture shopping/ Jackson teething day that just didn't leave much room for the workout. So, you know what I did? I was totally kind to myself and didn't beat myself up about it! I just decided I'd done my best and that was that.

Yesterday was Day 11, and I did Level 2. To be honest I did 2/3 of Level 2, since that's when Jackson woke up screaming with his painful little teeth. He even had a tiny bit of a fever, but he's doing fine.

Level 2 is CRAZY. I did feel that Level 1 prepared me for it, to some extent. There's no way I could have started at Level 2. The moves themselves aren't at all complicated, they're just very full-body and high-impact. They seem a little military to me - nothing "dancy" about it, just packing a lot of intensity into 20 minutes. As yesterday proved, I need to get a good calorie burn as quickly as possible before the baby wakes up.

Hopefully today I'll get the whole Level 2 workout in, or at least all I can physically manage. While it's more challenging, it's really good to have new moves. Less boredom and more results are good things! I just have to stay motivated to do the work. Feel free to help me out with that if you want to, umm, you know, comment or anything.

It's finally Spring here! Check out one of my daffodil beds:

I'm so excited about my flowers. They are such a blessing after the long, icy winter. If the people who planted them were here, I'd hug them.

You didn't think I'd forgotten the Jackson photo, did you?

30 Day Shred - Day 8

"What a weird name for a blog," you say? It has to do with my affinity for weird band names- check out my first post (circa January 2007) to find out how MRF came to be.

Day 8 on the Shred went well. I'm surprised that I'm still not great at it yet. There are a couple of points during the cardio where I still have to take short breaks, and the first strength segment is a friggin bear. I have added in heavier weights in some places. (If you've done the workout, I'm still using three pounders for the anterior raises and don't expect that to change. Oy.)

Thumbs up for doing it at night instead of the morning. It is hectic to fit in (since Bryan and I are alternating workout and munchkin duty) but it is great to have more daytime energy.

I have developed a pet peeve about Jillian's motivational style. When she says, "don't even think about quitting on me now!" I always think, "Umm, I wasn't, but now that you MENTION IT..." I'm fairly susceptible to suggestion, see. If I see a hot cup of coffee on TV, suddenly I crave one. So here I am, minding my own business doing my little workout, then she starts describing exhaustion and knotted up muscles and I don't feel so well anymore. I plan to mute her today and crank the music to drown out my grunts and groans.

Let's see if I can find you a Jackson picture...

Look, Mommy! Daddy's home!

30-Day Shred - Days 6 & 7

After Day Five's equipment failure, I substituted Bryan's ankle weights for my poor little dead handweights on Day Six.They were too big to wear on my wrists, so I tried holding them. Yikes. I wasted no time getting to Sports Authority to get these:

MUCH better.

Hallelujah, I'm not sore anymore! I'm starting to rethink my timing, though. Working out during Jackson's morning nap leaves me pretty shot the rest of the day. The one time I Shredded in the evening, I found it harder to get motivated, but I felt much much better during the day. Having a night's sleep between Shredding and daily activities REALLY helps. Especially when this is your daily activity:

I still haven't weighed in several days. I'm a little chicken, because I gain muscle fairly easily. That's a great ability - and I hope it continues for a few more years - but it's always played with my head when I'm trying to get in shape. I get so wrapped up in wanting that little number on the scale to go down. So, I'll give it a few more days.

Lately I find myself focused on the impending "Day 11." My original intention was to do each of the three levels for 10 days. If I do that, Thursday is the day to begin Level 2. I'm more than a little afraid to switch levels, but it's probably the best way to get continued results. It also might help keep the experience fresh.

Thanks again for the encouragement! Keep it coming! Some of you have expressed interest in doing this workout, so here's a great tip: If your cable or satellite service comes with an "On Demand" feature, you might have Fit TV. Fit TV has Level 1 available for FREE. Believe me, Level 1 isn't for wimps, and it will give you a chance to try it out before whipping out the old credit card!

30 Day Shred - Day 5

Day 5 went well, except for a minor equipment failure.

It happened shortly after the first 6-minute circuit. The entire human part of our family was in the basement (the two furbabies were upstairs). Bryan stepped outside to make a phone call while little Jackson supervised from his warm spot inside the sliding door. I finished the first strength segment with a roar, and Bryan peeked in to make sure everything was okay. Here's what he witnessed after I dropped the handweights:

So, THAT's what's inside my handweights.

I didn't even notice all the little ball bearings on the floor since I was on to the next segment. Jillian has a strict "no rest" policy if you want results from a 20-minute workout. Alas, the weights had served valiantly for 15 years, so it was their time. Perhaps it was also a divine message for me to put on my big girl panties and use something heavier than three-pounders.

*Hee hee.* I briefly considered telling you it happened mid-bicep curl when I hulked out and snapped it with my bare hand. RAHH! You wouldn't like me when I'm angry...

One major change today was much less soreness. I also learned that I have much more energy in the morning. Since the radiator repair man was here during Jackson's morning nap, I worked out in the late afternoon and had to push harder to get through the evening blahs.

By the way, my sweet husband is Shredding as well for moral support. What a stud! I'd also like to thank everyone who has commented here on this project. You have no idea how uplifting your kind words have been. Extra special thanks to my sweet sweet stepmom, Dorothy, over at Counting My Blessings for sending your posse my way. Girl power!

I haven't weighed in a couple of days, but my jeans are getting loose. Which is FREAKING FANTASTIC.

Of course, here's your baby photo of the day. We call this hairstyle the curlyhawk:

If that's not worth some baby weight, I don't know what is!!

30 Day Shred - Day 4

So, you know Jillian Michaels, the scary trainer lady on The Biggest Loser? Well, I'm doing this
in an effort to lose some leftover baby weight, and tone up the muscles that surely must still be under there somewhere.

My Aunt: What's a 30-Day Shred? I think I need it.

Me: It's just a workout, Aunt Pat, but it's beating me like it caught me stealing.

It's an intense twenty-minute workout to get maximum results by combining cardio, strength and ab workouts. The term "Shred" refers to the desired physical result of the workout...as in getting shredded/ripped/cut. Right now it feels more like getting shredded in the taco lettuce sense of the word.

I'm usually content with slow and steady progress. However, my precious baby boy is almost 14-months old, and that approach has left me antsy. Also, the twenty-minute duration should allow me to change clothes, workout, shower and dress during Jackson's morning nap.I'm documenting my journey here because I'm in desperate need of support and accountability. (How very "Julie and Julia" of me, I know.)

I realize a "before" picture of my squishy, white, childbirth-ravaged body would make this more interesting for you. Frankly, I don't have the guts to TAKE one of those photos, much less offer it up for you, Internet. But, since I owe you something in exchange for your supportive comments (hint hint) here's an adorable picture of my baby:

Sure, most folks chronicle these things from Day 1, to capture all the cock-eyed optimism with which they approached their challenge. Trust me, y'all didn't miss anything. Prior to this, I was just doing 30 minutes of Wii Fit every other day. I knew this was gonna hurt like hell. Quick recap:

Day 1 - Holy Crap.

Day 2 - My self hurts.

Day 3 - Still sore and very tired.

I haven't done today's workout, so you're all caught up. This morning I was pleasantly surprised to find myself less sore, and my endurance has improved a LOT in such a short time. So, let's do this thing!