Day 29:
I think I just met my favorite Insanity workout thus far. Core Cardio and Balance was definitely not easy, but it was much less intense and I actually thought it was kind of fun. My favorite move tonight was the Jab Switch Jump Squats - shadow boxing for a count of 8 then springing into the air and turning 180 degrees - rinse repeat for a minute. I was definitely thanking Tony Horton and P90 Masters for that one since the 180 degree spin squats were a prominent feature in that workout. My least favorite was the Switch Kick Hop Squat combo - 8 switch kicks followed by 8 hop squats - repeated for 1 minute. That's probably because I. Hate. Switch. Kicks. At any rate, I felt good after the workout instead of like I'd just gotten my ass handed to me.
Day 30:
30 days in...time for a progress update and pictures. The Day 0 pictures can be found here.
I'm annoyed that the numbers aren't better because I've been working my ass off for the last 30 days and I expected better results. However, a little internet research leads me to believe that I'm not the only person to experience this lack of numeric improvement in the first 30 days of Insanity. From my reading, men lose weight and shed body fat like crazy all the way through and women tend to see very little weight and fat loss until sometime in Month 2. I can vouch for the claims that guys lose weight and fat like crazy from the get go. Mr. R&R is actually struggling to keep his weight from dipping too low - and I'm sitting here turning pea green with envy. Hopefully I'll experience the Month 2 weight and fat shed that other women have experienced - if not, thankfully there are other metrics out there. For example, even if though the scale and fat monitor aren't moving much, I've lost inches. This is also why I'm a huge fan of progress pictures, so without further ado...
I like this picture. At first glance, there's not a whole lot of change from Day 0, but upon closer inspection, I could see that my butt has moved upward quite a bit and it's no longer pancake flat. All those squats and jumps have given me the beginning of a bubble and my thigh cellulite has diminished considerably (or at least it's had the decency to move to where my shorts can cover it).
This one made me happy too. My back muscles are more defined (thank you Moving Plank Walks and Level 1 Drills) and I can tell that the muffin top that was peeking over my shorts on Day 0 has shrunk considerably. I think I need to find an excuse to wear a backless dress soon!
Finally, there's my absolute favorite photo. This one told me, without a doubt, that despite my lack of weight/fat loss I'm definitely making progress.
Day 31:
I took an unscheduled rest day as a birthday present to myself. Yep, I turned 35 today. Mr. R&R and I celebrated by eating totally naughty Qdoba burritos (neither of us felt like cooking), laying on the couch, and petting Walter and Spot. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday.
Day 32:
The unscheduled rest day was great. I woke up feeling refreshed, focused, and ready to attack my workout - and I did. I got through the entire workout without any extra breaks! I was particularly thrilled by my performance on the Level 1 Drills. I could tell I was using my abs to 'float' my legs in and out rather than just powering from my quads - and I did all my pushups in each set!
Day 33:
You've gotta love when a cross-town meeting and driving home through Friday rush hour traffic means that you get home an hour earlier than you normally would - or at least I do! I even managed to stop at Trader Joe's to stock up on ingredients for pizza to go with the bottle of wine Mr. R&R got me for my birthday. While Mr. R&R was having happy hour beers with Yada Yada (since he crammed in his workout over lunch), I hit The Cave for Core Cardio and Balance. I was still riding the high from the previous day's performance and once again I wasn't disappointed even though I was cursing Shaun T's existence during the Shoulder Burners in Plie. My arms were torched and so were my legs - and it felt so good.
Day 34:
I'm pretty sure that four little letters can be used to describe Saturday's workout: B-O-N-K. I got through it, but there were far too many extra breaks and absolutely no enthusiasm involved. Upon reflection, Mr. R&R and I both concluded that we were under-fueled for the workout since we were sort of hoarding calories in anticipation of our evening plans for pizza and wine. Guess what mistake we won't be making again?
On a positive note, the pizza and wine were fabulous and we enjoyed them while watching the five live action short films that had been nominated for an Oscar in 2014 and then we watched one of this year's Best Picture nominees: The Grand Budapest Hotel. The shorts were a mix of humorous, thought-provoking, and heartbreaking and The Grand Budapest Hotel was absolutely hilarious. I highly recommend it - especially if you like the Monty Python movies. As for the short films, I'm kicking myself that I've never made the effort to see these before. We're already planning on watching the 2015 nominees next weekend.
Day 35:
Today should have been a full out Rest Day, but after realizing that Monday would involve both a Fit Test and the first of the hour-long Month 2 workouts, we decided to move Fit Test #3 to today. The Fit Test, while short, is an ass-kicker because you're going full out on everything and you end up feeling completely used up, which is not how either of us wanted to feel going into that first big workout.
As expected, the Fit Test beat the crap out of me - to the point that I actually cried at the end! I'm not 100% sure why I cried, but I think it had something to do with pushing myself so damned hard even though I was completely exhausted - sort of like why I've cried after a few races. Tears and exhaustion aside, it was a damned good test!
I'm annoyed that the numbers aren't better because I've been working my ass off for the last 30 days and I expected better results. However, a little internet research leads me to believe that I'm not the only person to experience this lack of numeric improvement in the first 30 days of Insanity. From my reading, men lose weight and shed body fat like crazy all the way through and women tend to see very little weight and fat loss until sometime in Month 2. I can vouch for the claims that guys lose weight and fat like crazy from the get go. Mr. R&R is actually struggling to keep his weight from dipping too low - and I'm sitting here turning pea green with envy. Hopefully I'll experience the Month 2 weight and fat shed that other women have experienced - if not, thankfully there are other metrics out there. For example, even if though the scale and fat monitor aren't moving much, I've lost inches. This is also why I'm a huge fan of progress pictures, so without further ado...
I like this picture. At first glance, there's not a whole lot of change from Day 0, but upon closer inspection, I could see that my butt has moved upward quite a bit and it's no longer pancake flat. All those squats and jumps have given me the beginning of a bubble and my thigh cellulite has diminished considerably (or at least it's had the decency to move to where my shorts can cover it).
This one made me happy too. My back muscles are more defined (thank you Moving Plank Walks and Level 1 Drills) and I can tell that the muffin top that was peeking over my shorts on Day 0 has shrunk considerably. I think I need to find an excuse to wear a backless dress soon!
Finally, there's my absolute favorite photo. This one told me, without a doubt, that despite my lack of weight/fat loss I'm definitely making progress.
 |
| I Have Abs!!!! |
I took an unscheduled rest day as a birthday present to myself. Yep, I turned 35 today. Mr. R&R and I celebrated by eating totally naughty Qdoba burritos (neither of us felt like cooking), laying on the couch, and petting Walter and Spot. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday.
Day 32:
The unscheduled rest day was great. I woke up feeling refreshed, focused, and ready to attack my workout - and I did. I got through the entire workout without any extra breaks! I was particularly thrilled by my performance on the Level 1 Drills. I could tell I was using my abs to 'float' my legs in and out rather than just powering from my quads - and I did all my pushups in each set!
Day 33:
You've gotta love when a cross-town meeting and driving home through Friday rush hour traffic means that you get home an hour earlier than you normally would - or at least I do! I even managed to stop at Trader Joe's to stock up on ingredients for pizza to go with the bottle of wine Mr. R&R got me for my birthday. While Mr. R&R was having happy hour beers with Yada Yada (since he crammed in his workout over lunch), I hit The Cave for Core Cardio and Balance. I was still riding the high from the previous day's performance and once again I wasn't disappointed even though I was cursing Shaun T's existence during the Shoulder Burners in Plie. My arms were torched and so were my legs - and it felt so good.
Day 34:
I'm pretty sure that four little letters can be used to describe Saturday's workout: B-O-N-K. I got through it, but there were far too many extra breaks and absolutely no enthusiasm involved. Upon reflection, Mr. R&R and I both concluded that we were under-fueled for the workout since we were sort of hoarding calories in anticipation of our evening plans for pizza and wine. Guess what mistake we won't be making again?
On a positive note, the pizza and wine were fabulous and we enjoyed them while watching the five live action short films that had been nominated for an Oscar in 2014 and then we watched one of this year's Best Picture nominees: The Grand Budapest Hotel. The shorts were a mix of humorous, thought-provoking, and heartbreaking and The Grand Budapest Hotel was absolutely hilarious. I highly recommend it - especially if you like the Monty Python movies. As for the short films, I'm kicking myself that I've never made the effort to see these before. We're already planning on watching the 2015 nominees next weekend.
Day 35:
Today should have been a full out Rest Day, but after realizing that Monday would involve both a Fit Test and the first of the hour-long Month 2 workouts, we decided to move Fit Test #3 to today. The Fit Test, while short, is an ass-kicker because you're going full out on everything and you end up feeling completely used up, which is not how either of us wanted to feel going into that first big workout.
As expected, the Fit Test beat the crap out of me - to the point that I actually cried at the end! I'm not 100% sure why I cried, but I think it had something to do with pushing myself so damned hard even though I was completely exhausted - sort of like why I've cried after a few races. Tears and exhaustion aside, it was a damned good test!
 |
| Take THAT Switch Kicks! |
35 days down...28 to go. Bring it!
Have you ever watched any of the Oscar-nominated shorts? Cried after a workout? Thoughts on The Grand Budapest Hotel if you've seen it?
Have you ever watched any of the Oscar-nominated shorts? Cried after a workout? Thoughts on The Grand Budapest Hotel if you've seen it?
2 comments:
Never been an Oscar fan....most of the nominees I don't agree with and the winners usually make me roll my eyes. Meanwhile...all the films I do like are looked over.
I usually avoid the Oscar movies because they're so damned serious and real life is serious enough. I was surprised at how enjoyable the 2014 short films were.
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