Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Its a Gift !

To be able to wake up everyday, get up on your two feet and dance or run and do mountain climbers ~ its a gift ~ unparalleled gift!

I was reading someone's blog yesterday and she wrote that its a gift to be able to wake up and run everyday. That really hit me with a whammy and stuck with me since.

We do take so many things for granted in our life! All the little inconsequential worries obfuscate the real gifts that we still have.

I am blessed with this gift ~ this privilege.

Excuse me while I go put on my dancing shoes~~~

Monday, August 9, 2010

Review of 30 Day Shred -Jillian Michaels

Okie Dokie...Here goes.

I bought the 30 day shred last year around December along with "No More Trouble Zones", also by Jillian. I tried it for a month, however did not stick to the program as prescribed. Why did I not stick to the program? Big reason why and let me elaborate.

I will start my saying that 30 day shred DVD is excellent. The format is very manageable. There are three levels of boot-camp like circuits. Each harder than the previous level. The idea is to do each level for about 10 days and move on to the next level. The level starts with warm-up of couple minutes, followed by two sets of two exercises each. These are then followed by a set of cardio exercises like plyometrics.

The warm-up is kinda goofy -not your usual kind. Jillian does some old school routines like knee rotations. I am not sure how doing knee rotations exactly aids in preparing our bodies for whats to come next. But that's not a biggie at all and only a minor quibble.

Once we are done with warm-up, the first resistance circuit consists or two exercises- one a quick set of 30 seconds with high resistance and then a 1 minute set of low weight and long reps. For example, in the first level, we do full body push-ups for 30 seconds and then over head rows for one minute.

I loved doing level one for 2 days- by third day I got BORED. I persevered, but by 5th day I could not take it and switched levels even though I was not doing the first level to the intended physical level.

I have since done it on and off...owing in part to my laziness and desire to switch up my workout all the time.

So, if you are in decent shape but doing just cardio or running type of exercised with no body conditioning included AND you do not mind somewhat repetitive exercises ~ then 30 day shred is great for you.

I would still take a break in between. Go three days, take a break and go another 3 days and so on.

All in all, a great program!