back to INSANITY

OK - enough sap...

Today was INSANITY Cardio Power & Resistance.

Haven't slept well all week - not sure why...either tossing and turning or crazy dreams. I've come to the conclusion that the little man in my head has changed up his game plan. He's become a night owl. Thinking that by not letting me rest peacefully, I'll turn off the alarm and go back to sleep. Sorry, Charlie. I'm on a mission!!!

Walked over sleepy-eyed to the gym and just felt a little sluggish. Then I pushed play! It's amazing to me how my body just steps up to the plate. Like a well trained dog. The sound of Shaun yelling makes the hairs on my arm stand up. It's game time!

I love this workout! Granted, still LOTS of room for improvement, but I feel like I'm moderately OK at it!!! We all took breaks today, but I have to pat myself on the back for taking the least amount of breaks - really digging deep and pushing thru. I was on fire today! My endurance is picking up. I challenged myself to do two more pushups each time and to really pushed during the standing/jumping/squatting parts - just kept telling myself that if I'm not about to puke, there's no reason to stop!!! hey...whatever works!

Taking the advice from the brilliant Dr. Piken, I've been using recovery drink before, during and after the workouts. And I really haven't had muscle soreness and I feel like my recovery rate is really high. I'm also taking Beachbody's Performance Formula before workouts just to give me some oomph to get going. Both are golden. I feel great - and my energy thru the workout is consistent - no bonking. And man, oh man...the endorphins release is incredible. My moods are great and I have lots of energy throughout the day.

I'm eating close to my 2130 calorie recommendation a day. I feel like I'm eating all the time, but it's being put to good use! I don't feel heavy or bloated. I feel light and lean. Fueling your body with the right things makes SUCH a difference!!!

I just counted the days...Sept 16th is Day 60. I can't wait to compare my Before and Afters!!!

sweet rewards

I just have to take a time out from my INSANITY blog to just express how blessed I am to be a Beachbody coach - and I'm not using this to plug myself or pat myself on the back, but to give thanks. It's been something that is indescribable - I've been able to reunite with old friends and help them get started on a healthier path, I've made lots of new friends who I've helped get turn their lives around, and I've been introduced to some incredible trainers - some of the best in the industry! And as I sit here today, I'm just overwhelmed with it all...in a good way.

I feel like I'm making a difference, one person at a time. Paying it forward, one email and phone call at a time.

And each life that I help change is a unique gift. Looking back, I never thought that people would come to ME about healthy eating or working out. I used to be scrawny little Kel who ate Chick-Fil-A three times a day.

My eyes have been opened to lots of amazing information and it's helped me to make what some might think are drastic lifestyle changes, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I am in the best shape of my life and I feel better than I did 10 years ago!!! And I love love love being able to pass that information along to other people. It's not a secret. It's called hard work, dedication and making smart, informed decisions.

So thank you....this is an amazing opportunity for me and I'm so excited that it's just the beginning!!

back in the saddle

After 4 lonnnngggg days off from Insanity, I was back in the saddle yesterday!!

During those 4 days, I really rested - didn't do anything, and I was hyper aware of my hips and my abs. And for little bits here and there, I started to worry about what if I couldn't do Insanity - what if Dr. Piken told me that it's too insane for me. And it made me a little sad. Yes, there are a TON of other things that I can do and still stay in great shape. But it was about the challenge and this HUGE obstacle that I set my mind to and I was bound and determined to overcome it. So I was a little nervous about Monday's workout.

My abs and hips felt like they were finally cooperating, so I was ready to "ease" back into it...well, as much as I could (Pure Cardio was on the docket). I decided I was going to do what I could and stop if I needed to.

Ready or not, here we go!!!!!

I actually felt pretty good. My intensity probably wasn't as high as normal, but that was my way of easing back into things. I skipped one move toward the end - suicide jumps, but other than that, things were feeling pretty darn good. Dr. Piken said to get electrolytes in me before, during and after the workout, so I had recovery drink and water on hand and downed both. I also stretched my abs throughout the day and tried to keep them relaxed when possible. It was funny though, on my walk home from the gym, my obliques were already sore. They were DEFINITELY turned on now... thank you Dr. Piken!

Went to bed too late last night, but the alarm went off at the same time as usual...5am. We rolled out of bed, put on work out clothes and tried to get our minds right on the way to the gym. Walked into the gym studio, and Ali (one of the guys that works out at the gym that Jimmy was talking with about the program) was waiting for us...we had a workout buddy!!!!!

We were like Dorothy (me, obv!), the Tin Man (Jimmy with his hard bod!) and the Scarecrow (Ali, since he had no CLUE what was about to hit him!) - arm-in-arm, skipping down the yellow brick road into the forest where the wicked witch (the workout) awaited our arrival!

Today was Plyo Cardio - one that I've always felt good about...well, good about HALF of it! The second half usually brings me to my knees, crumbled in a puddle of my own DNA. I try not to think about the second half of the workout.

Focus on the moment.

We pushed play and off we went, singing our happy little tunes (the little man in my head was even singing along...he's been quite pleasant lately!!! He LOVES the endorphin rush!!). We were all doing relatively well, grabbing our knees and gasping for air at points, chugging water and recovery drink, stretching when needed. Then came round two. Man oh man. I have to say that I AM getting better, but being a sweaty mess and trying to do pushups on slick wood floors was even more of a challenge than not crumbling to the floor!!! I even had little hand grip things that I use for pullups - no good!!! It was like we were all trying to play Twister and Slip and Slide all at the same time!!!! I tried to wipe the floor between sets, but it was no use, the more I wiped, the more I'd sweat!!! But we finally made it to the end. Looking at ourselves in the mirror, we had flashbacks to the 90s and hypercolor shirts. All of our shirts had completely changed colors - soaked with sweat. The floor of the gym studio looked like we'd have poured a glass of water where each of us stood.

This was hard work.

And as I sit at work today, I am SOOOO thankful that my body has gotten back in sync and that I'm able to continue this battle.

ONWARD.........

grounded...

So I saw the brilliant Dr. Piken this afternoon for my weekly visit. I told him my hip flexors had been on fire recently. He did lots and lots of testing - trying to figure out the root of the problem. Nothing was testing as signs of weakness. Then he figured it out...my abs were shut off. Because of that, my hips flexors and my neck (area around my collar bone also oddly sore) were having to compensate to hold me up! He said that I've been pushing myself so hard and the abs are a hard group to stretch and so they shut off! So he did some massage work to turn them back on and to make my hip flexors relax. Night and day difference - I stood up and my hips were fabulous!!!!

But...

He said I need to take it easy for a few days til my body gets back in sync. So INSANITY will be on hold for a couple of days (which makes me a little insane!!) - but I will get up and do X Stretch tomorrow and give my body time to recover. I tried to go to yoga tonight (which he said was ok), but the yoga teacher had an emergency & had to cancel. Probably a sign that I need to lay on the couch and watch TV (I mean rest my over-worked body!)

I'm doing this for me - and so there's not an expected end date or final result. So I'm happy listening to my body and giving it the time it needs to heal. I feel like I'm one big science project - always tweaking things to see the outcome! It's exciting!!!

I am very thankful for Dr. Piken. He's a chiropractor, but he also does applied kinesiology and nutrition counseling. So he looks at the big picture. Which I think is amazing! And I'm so glad that I have him to monitor my progress - I really trust him. If you need a good doctor in NY - he's top notch!!! (And he's a Beachbody customer - doing Ten Minute Trainers!!!)

come back little grey bar!!!

Yesterday was my first day braving INSANITY alone...or so I thought! Jimmy was already out of the house by the time I rolled out of bed at 5am. He's going to Vegas!!! I liked having him with me to do INSANITY - we are great motivators for each other. So going at it alone was a little bit scary. On the docket...Cardio Recovery - which I heard was not really a "recovery"!!! So I popped in the DVD into my laptop at the gym and lo and behold, who's standing there looking back at me on the screen...JIMMY!!! Like a little angel sent to get me thru the workout! I totally forgot that he was in that DVD! So that made me smile and put me at ease...well until Shaun said "ready, go!"!!!!

The workout really was not bad - LOTS of holding and pulsing and core work. I was a sweaty mess once again!!! And felt really great and peaceful!

Got home last night - still feeling great despite the rain - and decided to work on Turbo Kick for a bit! I got thru the whole round without having to stop. My neighbors downstairs probably thought I was crazy - jumpin' around and talkin' to myself!!! Oh well! I was very proud of myself for getting thru it. Again...sweaty mess!! Slept like a baby last night!!!

Today's workout was Insanity Pure Cardio. And as I was getting ready to go to the gym, the mental prep started. I thought ok, I'm ready for some cardio, this will be good!!! I actually didn't have to do that much convincing - I was ready for it (and I think the little man living in my head was still soundly sleeping...shhhhh)!!

Not gonna lie...this workout is a bitch (pardon my French!)! I didn't realize that by "pure cardio" he meant "no breaks Cardio"!!! I loved that it was 2 rounds of differnet moves - no repeating moves - and that there were LOTS of people stopping to get water. I had a liter of water and a small shaker cup w/ 1 scoop of recovery drink - I downed them both and I think that I probably sweated them all out at the same time!

This is probably too much information, but I was drenched - I looked like a combination of the kid on Billy Madison that wet his pants and the chick on Flashdance. I was a hot mess. And had to do the Walk of Shame home with sweaty pants (guess it's not really a walk of shame - I busted my tail, I earned that sweat!...but the guy who passes me every morning for his morning smoke and stroll probably thinks I need adult diapers or something!)

Got thru the workout decently well - took a couple of breaks and I know that I will be able to push harder next time! I am proud that I made it all the way to the end of the workout (always an accomplishment not to be crumbled on the floor!!)!

I was really aware of my core today. Tried to really keep it tight throughout the workout. I felt solid! Don't get me wrong, I still felt like a ton of bricks on things like the high jump rope at the end and the switch kicks (which were like the second move and I was already dying!!) Looking forward to building more power in my legs to be able to feel light on those!

Another great mood day too - if nothing else - it's worth the sweat and early alarm to feel this great throughout the day! I haven't hit the afternoon slump like normal and I have tons of energy when I get home - hence yesterday's extra Turbo Kick session!!

Today will try to make it home in time for some Vinyasa Yoga - a nice treat for my bod!

Good morning, Shaun

Monday moring, 0500...Astoria, NY...alarm sounds

Little man in my head: "man, this is the most comfortable bed EVER...and it's cozy under the covers! Just cuddle with Jimmy for just one more hour."
Me: "nope."

Off went the covers and on went the workout clothes! Jimmy and I walked to the gym, laptop and water in hand, at dawn. (sounds like we're going to duel! well, we were...kinda!) Still sleepy-eyed and trying to get in the right mind frame to get our butts kicked!

We set up the laptop in the corner of the gym studio and pressed play.

I can't tell whether I like or hate that it starts out so fast. I guess it's good - sure wakes you up quickly so you can get the hard work goin'. Nothing like a heart rate of 175 within 20 minutes of waking up!!!!!!!!!

We were dripping - sweat was flingin' and our hands were so sweaty they were sliding all over the floor for the floor sprints! Serious DNA removal going on!

The little man...now awake and pissed off from being woken up at an ungodly hour, was just a fussin' at me. I literally was talking out loud to him during this workout. "KEEP GOING. I CAN DO THIS. I AM DOING THIS."

We made it to the end - not too bad - we took breaks and were huffing and puffing - but there was no vomiting or nausea today! I realized that I need to get some workout shorts - most of the pants that I wear to workout are usually capri length. By the end of the warmup, my pants are stuck to me and my shirt's come off (I'm in a sports bra...get your mind out of the gutters!!!!). Sweaty mess doesn't begin to describe it.

I make sure to wipe up the sweat puddles before we leave. Need to bring a camera to capture it one morning!

Got home, had Shakeology, prepped food for the day, got ready and came into the office. My mood was IN-CREDIBLE! I felt like I was on Cloud 9. Endorphins were kickin'!!!

So far soreness hasn't been bad. I feel it in my calves and the underside of my butt (Jimmy calls it where your butt smiles!). Lots of pushups today, so I'll see how my chest feels tomorrow - so far, so good!!! Recovery drink during this is a life saver!!!! But I feel like Bastian from The Neverending Story..."not too much (recovery drink)...we still have a long way to go!!!"

I've tried to up my calories for the day. I need to sit down and look at the food guide tonight - says I should take in 2130 calories to maintain my weight (which is what I'm trying to do!). That's almost double what I normally take in. So it will be an adjustment.

Had chocolate shakeology w/ soy yogurt, nut butter and almond milk for breakfast #1. Oatmeal w/ 10 grain cereal, protein powder, nut butter, chopped almonds and frozen berries (this was a BIG bowl of goodness!!!) for breakfast #2. An apple and almonds for AM snack. Leftover pasta w/ red sauce for lunch. Then I have celery and nut butter for my PM snack and will probably have salmon and brown rice and maybe a salad for dinner. And then I'll put in my food, and see if I need a little something before bed. I feel like an eating machine! But I need to - with this program I will be a lean, mean, eating and fighting machine!!!! ggrrrrrrrr!!!!!!

The amazing thing is that I don't feel tired at all. Yes, getting up at 5am wasn't all sunshine and roses, but I can't tell you how great it felt to tackle that first thing! Such an amazing way to start the day. And to have Jimmy there to tackle it with me made it that much better! But I feel so great right now that I'm going to hit up Power Yoga tonight!!!!

I think I'm going to take weekly progress pics - and then pics on the fit test days. My abs feel tighter already and my whole body feels strong. Looking forward to being able to see improvements as I go through the program. Taking less breaks, jumping higher, squatting lower - things like that. I know there were moves from the Fit Test that I can improve on form wise - and so my numbers from the Fit Test might go down, but now that I know proper form, there's no cheating!!!

Jimmy's travelling the rest of the week, so I'll be on my own. But I'll be up and at 'em at 5am every morning. It's like ripping off a bandaid - better to do it quickly than to make the anticipation drag on. Get it done first thing - then the rest of the day will be smooth sailing!!

It's begun

So the journey has begun!

I did the INSANITY Fit Test yesterday - here are the results:

Switch Kicks 60

Power Jacks 60

Power Knees 112

Power Jumps 50 (need to improve form)

GLobe Jumps 9

Suicide Jumps 19 (need to improve form)

Pushup Jacks 22

Low Plank Oblique 32 (need to keep butt down)

I'm not putting these up to compare to anyone else - this is just where I'm at.  I'm doing this for ME!

Did Plyo Cardio today - I got angry with it and pushed thru...and there were lots of breaks and  modifications at the end.  The second round of this workout kills me!!! (in a good way)  I was shaking and wanting to crumble onto the ground, but I had to silence the little man in my head.  When I was weak and ready to stop, I just remembered that fire that I have in me - and the vision in my head of me killing this workout (which that time will come!!!)!!    

I CAN do it.  I WILL do it.

This was a nice one to start with since we had the preview DVD, I was already familiar with what I was up against.

This weekend, I will write out my schedule for the first month of this adventure.  I want to still keep my yoga classes in the mix twice a week.  After putting my body thru this craziness, I'm going to need a little zen!!!

I know I'm going to be sore from this - I can already feel it in my lower back...this program is core city!!!!  

It's going to be one hell of an adventure...stay tuned!!!

The little man...

So I am getting ready to undertake a new workout program. It's called INSANITY. And it's aptly named. It's Beachbody's latest release and it's touted as the toughest thing they've ever put out. Jimmy had the privlege of being in three of the DVDs. He thought he was in great shape...until he went through the auditions and filming of INSANITY. He said he was nauseus in the warm up...I knew I had to try it but when he would describe these moves, I just kept thinking man, there is no way that I'm going to be able to keep up with this.



Why...why was that the first thought in my head?



I didn't know what these moves looked like, yet I chose a negative reaction as my first first response. Who knows, Jimmy may be fit, but it might be something that I could dance circles around him doing. I didn't know. All I knew was that he was wiped by the end of the shoot.



Far too often, we second guess ourselves and sell ourself short. I'm very guilty of it. I'm trying to get better at it. Trying to have more of an open mind about things and not to have an initial negative reaction. But it's tough. It's something that is so embedded that it's automatic. And it takes a lot of focus to change that.



As the delivery date of INSANITY soon approaches, I keep thinking I CAN DO THIS!!! I WILL DO THIS!!! And yet, like the little man with the hammer that lives in your head when you have a headache, this little man in my head keeps saying "are you sure??...this is some pretty intense stuff". Really?!?! Come on, man...



Then yesterday, I was poking around in my Coaching Back Office and there were testimonials up from the people who'd gone through the test group. I watched Alysia's first. 40 year old mother of twins. Holy cow. She looked amazing. I have to admit that I got choked up and a little teary eyed when I watched this. I want to be in that kind of shape after I have kids. Wow... The little man in my head grew quieter.



Later in the day, I watched Rachel's story. Rachel was a fit gal to begin with, but man oh man, she looked incredible after!!! The video showed her pushing through some of these moves and just giving it everything that she had! The little man stopped talking.



Then I realized what was making the little man in my head say all of those things. It wasn't fear or self doubt at all. I know that I can do those moves, even if I have to modify some here and there. I know my body well enough and I am comfortable doing modifications until I can go at full speed. I am also a hard worker and if I have a goal, I push to reach it. And I know that there's that fire in me - I see myself, in my head, doing these moves with the people in the video.

I know that I have it in me.

And I think I've figured out where the doubts are coming from.

laziness.

We can all get up and halfway sleep thru out workouts, or phone in some kicking, punching and squatting. But with INSANITY, there's no half-assing it. You have got to give 110% from the time the DVD starts til the time you crumble onto the floor in a pool of your own hard work.

And it always seems so easy to make an excuse as to why we should take the day off from working out - or just do something easy to say that we did something. Or to just stop mid-workout. We convince ourselves that these things are all acceptable and slowly start to get away from the hard work ethic and drive that started us on this workout journey to begin with. I do this a lot - I bust my butt and start seeing great results and then I get complacent with them. And then I just kinda coast thru and then fall off the wagon.

This is all changing.

With my June buckle down month, I really pushed myself and it felt soooo great. I have a refreshed spirit about the whole thing. I realized that I'm not doing it for anyone else but me. The time that I spend working out is time to work on ME...outside and in. And it is precious time, so I have to make the most out of it!

That little man in my head is an evil little man. He's going to be there when I push play, and when I am huffing, puffing and nauseus near the end of the workout. But I'm going to crush him quickly. He will not be able to stick around because I am a fighter and a hard worker and I am ready to tackle this!!!!

Here's what it looks like - let me know if you want to try it - we can tackle it together!!!

bit.ly/vdtuY

*stay tuned for before pics!

Dusty Bottoms 2009

We got back this morning from a really great couple of days in Jacksonville, FL.  The occassion: Dusty Bottoms 2009!  What's Dusty Bottoms you might ask???!  Let's see if I can give a short version...Jimmy & I got married in 2003.  Jimmy had two friends that he went to college with, Dave & Erin, and he invited them both to our wedding.  Dave & Erin had a past - and they were coming unbeknownst to the other...long story short, it was a good thing that they both decided to come to our wedding.  They began dating again and got married New Year's Eve 2007.  They had one of the neatest weddings - it was laid back and low key - and we met and got to know some really great people.  We all said that we'd love to get together every year since we all became close friends - we said this after our wedding, but it never happened.

  A few months after the wedding, we started sharing pics from the wedding week - and we thought we should give our little group of friends a name - after much debate, we decided on The Dusty Bottoms!!  And we immediately began talking about this group get together.  Last year, Dave's parents were nice enough to let us all use their house in the NC mountains - it was GORGEOUS and relaxing - so nice!!!!  And it was like we'd never been apart!  We played lots and lots of Nutso - our favorite game!  So after that great week, we began taking suggestions for next year's get-away.

  Dave & Erin moved from the West Coast back to Dave's hometown of Jacksonville, FL.  We were still trying to figure out a cost effective place for us all to go.  Dave & Erin came up with a brilliant idea for us to come to their new house!  DONE!  We all booked tickets and flew down for an extended July 4th weekend!

  Jimmy & I had a tough June and we were looking for a much needed exhale!  We got to the airport with no problems - only to see that we were delayed...2 hours...then 3 hours...finally boarded about 3 1/2 hours late and arrived in JAX around 2:30am!!  We felt awful since Dave & Erin offered to pick us up from the airport.  But they were troopers - Erin & Emi came in the DB Mobile!  None of us remember the conversations on the way home - we were just all glad to be there!

  Thursday was nice & relaxing - slept in, did Insanity with Erin (she did SO well!!!), made breakfast, took the dogs for a walk and started dinner preparations - it was grill time!!!  Dinner was so nice - almost everyone that could make it arrived - Amy was the only one left to come in on Friday.  Jimmy learned how to play Nutso - wasn't his cup of tea which surprised me,  I thought his competitive nature would come out!  It was a little too chaotic for him!

  Friday was beach day - halleluia!!  After almost 4 weeks straight of rain in NYC, I was jonesin' for some Vitamin D - not to mention sand and the ocean!!!  It was HOT HOT HOT!!!  But sunny and so nice!!!  I was in hog heaven!!!  Jimmy and I have decided that when we move out of NYC, it has to be near the water!   The water was cool - but just the right temp to cool your feet off!  It was my first time in the Atlantic Ocean - so I can now say that I've put my feet in the water coast to coast!!  We left the beach right before the daily afternoon shower - had a great lunch.  It truly felt like vacation!  Then it was time for a nap and then Amy came in.  All hail, the gang's all here!!!  Pasta was the feast of the night - YUMMY!!!  Some of Dave & Erin's friends came over for some hot and heavy rounds of Nutso - good times!  

  Playing Nutso always makes my heart smile - my parents used to have couple friends come over when I was little and they'd all play Nutso - and now we're playing it with our couple friends.

  Saturday was what vacation was all about...relaxation!  I napped and napped and napped some more!!!  We all did - and didn't feel guilty about it for one minute!  We went to the Riverside Market - lots of fresh veggies and crafts.  The goal was to take pics of whatever we wanted to put on Dave & Erin's living room wall - they had a bunch of frames and wanted their friends to help fill them!  Such a fun project!  It was so nice out there - and I think we got some great shots!  Saturday evening, post napping, we went out to the park to check out the fireworks.  We were supposed to be at a great spot to see a couple of fireworks displays.  Dave was nice enough to check out my camera and give me some tips about what all the settings were.  I had the tripod all set up to capture the fireworks...and when they actually started, everyone in front of us stood up and I was too short to take pics!!!  Doh!  But the fireworks that I could see were nice!  We went back to the house and popped some fireworks of our own!  Hadn't done that in years!!!  Good times!

  Then we had to pack.  Seemed like we'd just gotten settled!!!  This vacation flew by.  We were back home in NYC before we knew it.  But instead of needing a vacation from the vacation, it was so relaxing.  We came back feeling refreshed and renewed and ready to tackle what lies ahead!

   June was a long month filled with ups and downs and tough challenges and amazing experiences.   I almost feel a little lost with where to go from here - it's going to be a hard month to top, but the hard work picks back up tomorrow.  

  July's goals - consistent morning runs, yoga twice a week, studying Turbo Kick rounds to be able to teach by August 1st (if not throwing in some guinea-pig test classes before then) & working in INSANITY with my P90X workouts after it comes out mid-month.  

  In addition to fitness stuff, personal goals - consistent morning writing, doing a better job of keeping up with housework and making dinner at night, and most importantly spending some quality time with Jimmy.  June was so go-go-go and we are looking forward to being able to focus on each other.

  I'm not sure what God has in store for us, but I know big stuff is on it's way - and we're just trying to be open and receptive to what that's going to be!!

A little goes a long way...

It's been too long since my last post - I'm going to try to be better about this...

June has been a buckle down week for the Nelsons! Jimmy and I were asked to go on QVC to help promote P90X with Tony Horton. We were STOKED! So we had about a month's notice and my goal was to feel confident enough in a sports bra to justify spending $42 to get a nice one from Lululemon! Some might think it's silly - or I'm sure I'll get the - whatever, you look great in whatever you wear - comments. But it's my @$$ (and abs and the rest of me) out there for all the world to see - and since I was literally going to be a product of the product, I wanted to do them proud!!

I was also studying and training to get my Turbo Kick certification. This means that I'll be able to teach Turbo here in the city - and once I get my Group Certification, I'll be able to teach in gyms!

Jimmy was buckling down to do a photo shoot with our dear friend, Stephen Mosher. He wanted to see how lean he could get and really want to see those abs pop! So he started working with his trainer, Ray, and our chiropracter, Dr. Piken, to start leaning out. The photo shoot was scheduled for the Thursday before our QVC appearance.

So I started adding in morning cardio and afternoon either yoga or lifting. Also started adding in weighted ab routines. Nothing crazy, just raising the intensity. And also sticking to a semi-regular diet - eating every 2 -3 hours and eating very clean.

Jimmy's plan was a mixture of at least two workouts a day (a third weighted ab workout if he was up to it in the evening) and then rotating carb and no carb days.

The month was full of ups and downs - the alarm always seemed to go off way too early, we were both exhausted by the time we saw each other at night, and our moods were all over the map! But we were seeing great progress and were determined to meet our goals!

The day of Jimmy's photo shoot was a bit hectic - he also booked a print gig that same day that ran WAY longer than he thought - but he finally made it to Stephen's and the digital pics that I've seen so far are amazing!! I can't wait to see the real pics!

Then came the big weekend!!! I went to my Turbo Kick certification and had a BLAST!!! I worked my butt off for 8 hours, I was dripping with sweat and have my fingers crossed for the coveted GOLD level certification! From there, we hopped on the train to Philly for QVC.

We arrived at our hotel in Philly at 10pm - had to be downstairs by midnight to head to the QVC studio for our 2am spot. So that gave me one hour to sleep before getting a shower and trying to look somewhat awake! My body was wiped - and I had only just begun. Of course, my mind was racing and I just laid in the bed for an hour. The shower was nice and helped with the soreness that had already begun to set in. I joked with Jimmy that it's a good thing we didn't fly to Philly - the bags under my eyes would have exceeded the weight limit!!!!!!!!

So we got ready and went to the lobby to meet the others - Jenny, Kit, Katie, Doug...and Tony Horton!!! I was excited and nervous. This is someone who has been part of my life for the past 5 years - almost every day - and yet he's a stranger. So we finally meet - and I give him a hug - and I tell him that he smells good.....WHAT!?!?! sigh...stupid filter...never works when you need it to!! So we get to the studio and go thru some blocking on set and have a game plan. The first show went really well and the producers seemed happy - we sold over $100,000 in one hour! Not too shabby!!!

Get back to the hotel room and it was after 4am. We crashed. I woke up at 8:30am and my whole body was screaming at me!!! I laid in bed for a while - working out the knots in my hips and trying to stretch out my shoulders. Tony wanted to workout at the gym next to the hotel and i thought, maybe I'll just go run on the treadmill while they workout. But then when I put on my workout clothes, my attitude changed and I started thinking - man, I am so blessed. I have the opportunity to workout out with one of the top trainers in the nation...FOR FREE!!! So my adrenaline kicked in by the time we hit the lobby. Off we went to the gym...it was going to be chest and back - Lord give me strength! First move...wide grip pullups! EEK! I have been seeing Dr. Piken because I did something to my rhomboid and I haven't done a back workout in probably a week and a half. Luckily, everyone was super supportive - and we all spotted each other. Then we did some pushups on a stability ball - then chinups - more pushups - then what seemed like a bazillion dips. I struggled with these. But Tony was great - he grabbed my ankled and spotted me. And it was no big deal - there was no pressure to try to show off or anything. I did what I could and was proud of that. We also did lawnmowers, heavy pants and some killer pushups with our feet on a Bosu ball and each hand on a medicine ball - CRAZY!!!! It was kinda cool - because the local gym rats would sit there and watch what the guys were doing - and after we'd go to do something else, you'd see them try it!! I kinda felt like we were his little posse!!! It was an amazing hour!!! An hour that I'm STILL sore from...3 days later!!!

After a quick shower, we headed back to the QVC studio for spot #2 - this one was our best one I think. We let Jimmy lead it and we all did what he did. It took your mind off of what to do next - and Jimmy did great! Dinner after spot # 2 was so fun! It was this great tapas restaurant with lots of yummy options! We were also celebrating Tony's 51st bday a few days early - so they brought out some gluten free chocolate lava cakes for all of us to share - DIVINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spot #3 was the best as far as sales went - pulled in over $400,000 in that last hour alone!!! That's a lot of people wanting to get fit!!! Total was over $900,000. A-mazing!

Got back to the hotel and we started talking to this woman - turns out it's Joel Osteen's Mom - and the whole Osteen family was staying at our hotel!!! They were in town for a wedding. So we got to meet Joel and his family. Some of the warmest and sweetest people I've ever met!

Finally got in bed right at midnight. Car pickup was for 4:50am. Ouch... So I was up at 4 to shower and get ready for work - I'd be going straight to the office from Penn Station. Monday was a LONNGGGGG day. I would say that I was running on fumes, but I was wayyy beyond that!!! 12 hours of workouts in 2 days - I was one pooped Cajun!!!! All I kept thinking during the QVC spots was "Dr. Piken will fix me on Monday...Dr. Piken will fix me on Monday" And fix me he did!!!! I'm still sore now, but I am much better. I gave myself one hell of a beating this weekend! And it was all so worth it!

Then - last night I went over to Stephen Mosher's for a little photo shoot. I'd been wanting to sit for him for FOREVER - and the stars magically aligned and we made it happen!!! First half of the shoot was for his project black, white & bare. I chose black. I was a little self conscious at first, but Stephen was great and it was more like coffee talk than pose and say cheese! The second half of the shoot was just fun stuff for me. I took pics in some workout wear to promote our Beachbody stuff - and also to be able to pub my Turbo Kick classes. Then I just did a fun one in Tshirt and jeans. He is truly and artist. He sent me a couple of digitals (he usually only shoots in film, but he has a little pocket digital camera that he'll take a couple of pics with) - wow...he created muscles and poses that I never thought possible. I can't wait to see the film...have to wait til next week for those!

So my month of buckle down has produced some incredible results. I am Turbo Kick Certified, I got to meet, work and workout with Tony Horton and I have a gorgeous set of pictures to document my progress.

Life is good!!

Jimmy and I are leaving tonight to go visit the Cohens and the rest of the Dusty Bottoms in Jacksonville. It will be nice to exhale and relax with friends!

July's goals are starting to shape up...learn Turbo rounds to start teaching by August (if not sooner), tackle INSANITY when it comes out on the 13th, and continue my healthy eating and morning cardio!