Insanity- Week 9 Day 7- DAY 63 ROUND 1 COMPLETE!!!!

Wow, is this day really here??  Round 1 of Insanity is officially over!  I did my final Fit Test today so I can now take a little break & let my body heal up!!  I have so many emotions going through my head right now.  I'm slightly bummed 'cause I don't think my body looks that different since I started.  Sure, I can see some abs coming through, and I have some guns forming on my arms (small pistols right now LOL), but overall I wanted more dramatic results.  Now I know my diet wasn't great & that's a big part of it, but I was busting my ass 6 days a week!  But I'm not going to let that get me down!  I Dug Deep for over 9 weeks, pushed through injuries & completed a workout that most people will never even attempt to try!!  I set my mind to it & I did it!!  And for that I am thrilled!!  I feel stronger mentally as well as physically, even if my outer self doesn't show the full extent of that strength...YET!!  This is only the beginning & I will keep pushing forward!!

So...here are the final numbers from 1st Fit Test compared to the final one:

Switch Kicks: 52 --> 54

Power Jacks: 32 --> 46

Power Knees: 60 --> 102

Power Jumps: 15 --> 36

Globe Jumps: 5 --> 10

Suicide Jumps: 10 --> 13

Push-Up Jacks: 4 --> 20

Low Plank Obliques: 25 --> 65

Those numbers amaze me!!  Improvement all around!  Look how far I've come in a few short months!!  Looking foward to moving forward & continuing my life of fitness & exercise, and hopefully good eating, too.  I'm trying!  Although I am treating myself to a white pizza with eggplant for dinner tonight.  I deserve it!  :)

And to add icing to this wonderful day, I posted on Shaun T's wall on Facebook & he responded back to my comments!!  This is what he said: "Congrats KAREN!!!!  YOU WORKED HARD AND DUG DEEP!  THANK YOU FOR TRUSTING MY TOOL!  Keep digging deep.  There is no plateau as long as you progress mentally, the physicality will follow... AGAIN, CONGRATS!!!"  I don't think he has any idea how he touches us all.  He's such a busy man but yet he takes time out of his day to keep in touch with us on Facebook & to respond to our posts when he can!  It means so much to me!!  To have his direct support is what keeps me going!!  He's so accessible & is so supportive!  I knew I made the right choice when I picked this workout & more importantly Shaun T himself.  I knew he'd be the one to change my life!!

It's feeling kinda weird to be wrapping up my blog as well!  I never blogged before, and it was tough at times to keep up with the daily posts, but I did that, too!!  I'm thinking of turning my blog into a book & adding some of my pix along the journey to always remember this special time!  I will possibly continue to blog as I start the new Beachbody programs, even if not everyday, just to keep a log of what I did & how I'm feeling, etc...

In the meantime, the next two weeks or so will be for rest & to get back into running!  I committed today to run the half marathon again in September!  Didn't register, yet, but verbally committed to Jenn & Vira!  Can't back out now!  And I feel the need to have another accomplishment!  :)

To Shaun T, if you ever happen to read this, I just want you to know from the bottom of my heart what an amazing man you are!  You have inspired me to push places I've never gone before, and to try something I would have never thought I could do in the past!  You have changed my life & I hope to meet you someday to tell you in person how awesome you are!!  ♥

This is only the beginning...

Insanity- Week 8 Day 1

Whew, now I know why I did the fit test on Sunday when I started month 2 & not back to back with MIC.  I am pooped!!  I took about a 10 minute break inbetween but it's much better to spread them out to save some energy for the workout!!  I don't know why I felt so good yesterday, and yet today I felt so heavy.  I did OK with my fit test, but felt like I should have been able to do better.  Here are my results:

Switch kicks: 52/52/46/50

Power jacks: 32/41/45/47

Power knees: 60/76/87/96

Power jumps: 15/26/30/32

Globe jumps: 5/8/9/9

Suicide jumps: 10/12/12/12

Push-up jacks: 4/12/15/18

Low plank oblique: 25/40/50/62

So as you can see, some moves I went up with some I stayed about the same.  I got a half globe jump before time ran out, but since we're counting whole moves I didn't count it.  :)

Burned a great amount of calories today, too, if my HR monitor is correct:
Fit test: 265
MIC: 675
TOTAL CALORIES BURNED: 940

I'm feeling a bit bummed today, too, because I'm not losing weight & when I did my measurements today I didn't lose any more inches & I actually gained a half inch on my waist & hips!!  The two places I don't wanna GAIN anything!!  I'm not giving up, and I am feeling great inside, but I really want to see better progress on the outside.  I guess that will come in time.  It's a little frustrating, but I know a lot of it is my fault as well.  I'm not eating as well as I should, and as you can see, that truly has a lot to do with it.  Because if I can burn over 600 calories a day 6 days a week, you would think I see better results on the outside & on the scale.  But I really need to pay better attention to what I'm putting in my mouth!!  I will do my best!!

Here's to a better day tomorrow...

Insanity- Fit Test Before Month 2

OK, there was some good today & some bad.  Ugh, I feel like if it isn't one thing it's another.  I set out on this beautiful day to do a 7 mile run.  Well, after about 2 miles my left knee started bothering me again.  Yep, my IT band!!  I thought I could push through it but it was really tightening up & I didn't want to injure it so I slowed down.  I ended up doing 5 miles but most of the last 3 miles were walking.  :(  Every time I tried to run again I could only go a few hundred feet before it hurt again.  And what's more upsetting is that even after icing it twice since then it's still feeling painful tonight.  Grr...

But, onto some better news, I did do the fit test today & most of my numbers went up except the switch kicks & suicide jumps.  I just bonked with the switch kicks & the suicide jumps stayed the same from last time.  I'm still a little tentative with my rib area but for the most part I made it through OK.  I'm ready for month 2, I just hope that my body is, too!!  :)

Fit Test #3 results:

Switch kicks: 52/52/46 (I bonked)
Power jacks: 32/41/45

Power knees: 60/76/87

Power jumps: 15/26/30

Globe jumps: 5/8/9

Suicide jumps: 10/12/12 (still a little rib-tentative)

Push-up jacks: 4/12/15 (still can't go that far down but I'm trying!!)

Low plank obliques: 25/40/50

Another great bit of news today is that I finally decided to become a Beachbody coach!!  I'm really excited to see if this works out for me!!  I have a few friends who are interested in doing P90X &/or Insanity so I'm trying to get them on board with me!!  I'm excited to help others & if this can become supplemental to my future as a wellness coach/trainer then that would be even better!!

All in all today was a good day but I'm a little frustrated with my knee.  All I can do is try & pray that I get through my workout tomorrow & the rest of the week!!

DIGGING DEEP Y'ALL...LET'S GOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Insanity- Week 3 Day 1- 2nd FIT TEST!!

OK, so today started week 3 & my first updated fit test since starting the program two weeks ago.  I made definite improvements, but was still surprisingly out of breath after the test.  LOL  It's OK, there's still a loooong way to go!!  I just hope I get in better shape before month 2 comes along!!  Anyway, here are my results:

Day 1 Fit Test/Today

Switch Kicks: 52/52

Power Jacks: 32/41

Power Knees: 60/76

Power Jumps: 15/26

Globe Jumps: 5/8

Suicide Jumps: 10/12

Push-Up Jacks: 4/12

Low Plank Oblique: 25/40

Wow, I made great improvements in all categories except those damn switch kicks.  I was confused during my first fit test about counting both legs as one rep so I actually did it twice that first day.  I first wrote down 52 then did it again & put down 65, but after doing 52 today I'm gonna go with that.  There was no way I did 65 my first day!  LOL  It's all good, we'll get there by the next fit test!!

I did my measurements & I surprisingly didn't lose that much.  In total I lost one inch: 1/2 inch off of my butt (woohoo!!) and a half inch off of my left calf.  Yep, just the left side.  So now it's even with my right calf.  Haha!!  My clothes do seem to be fitting better & I feel like I look different so I was expecting to see more inches gone, but I will keep pushing forward & see what the tape measure says in a few weeks.

One other happy note to report is that I've lost 2.1 pounds since starting Insanity two weeks ago!!  To some that may not sound like a lot, but to me it's a step in the right direction.  My weight has been creeping up over the last several months, so to have it start to come back down as a result of this program really makes me feel good!  I've been trying to follow the nutrition guide & make the right choices & that's made my body feel good, too, even if the scale doesn't show it much yet.

I bought a pair of cross-trainers today (Under Armour) so I'm curious to see if that really helps make a difference with the workout.  My running shoes that I had been wearing are really worn down so hopefully that'll put a spring in my step as well.  I wore them today & I think I could tell a difference.  My power jumps seemed to be more like they're supposed to look & I didn't feel like I was pounding as heavy.  Well, some of my landings sounded a bit hard, but I'm working on that.  I looked in the mirror as I did the jumps & my knees were definitely getting above my hips better than they ever have!!

I threw in cardio abs tonight as well so that I felt like I did a little workout, too.  It was a loooong, busy & stressful day at work today so it felt good to release a little pent up aggression.  Hope my abs thank me for it later.  :)

Coming home to Shaun T every day is something I've come to look forward to!!  I missed him yesterday with my off day.  :)  Looking forward to week 3 & digging deeper than I have so far!!

Insanity- Day 1

Wow, this day is finally here! I made the decision to start the Insanity workout program a few weeks ago & had a few setbacks before finally being able to start. I ordered the package from eBay to save some money. I skipped buying a set from this one girl because she was going to be away until Feb. 14th & wouldn't be able to ship until she got back. So I decided to pay a few more dollars & order it from someone else who would be able to ship right away. Well...I was all excited to start on Monday Feb. 15th but one small problem when my package came...they sent me P90X instead by accident!! And they didn't have any more to ship out. So I had to go back to eBay to find another set. I found another set, paid & even emailed the guy to see if he would send it Priority Mail for an additional fee, instead of Media Mail. Well, he never responded back & proceeded to ship it Media Mail. It was a long hard wait for that package to get here but it finally did...this afternoon!!

I opened the package, came right upstairs, took my measurements, popped in the Fit Test and (like Shaun T says) pressed play!!

All I can say is...this is gonna be a loooong interesting 60 days!! I was wiped out just after the WARM-UP to the FIT TEST!! LOL But I made it through, marked down my initial numbers & felt good. Even though it scared me a little bit I am really looking forward to starting the workouts!!

I will be back every day I workout to post how the workouts went, what I'm feeling & how I'm progressing. Thanks for stopping by!!