In high school, I was more academic and into Drama than sports or any kind of exercise. I remember struggling through P.E. classes not just with specific sports but with things like jogging--I could barely go 1/8 of a mile (imagine half of a football field track) without cramping and getting *totally* out of breath and just HATED the thought of sweat and getting my heart racing.
So what changed? Well, I got to college, and like so many other students, started having late nights of eating pizza and other fattening snacks to get through long and boring study sessions. (I kept a suitcase full of junk food under my bed!) I didn't quite gain the Freshmen 15, but maybe the Freshmen 5 and thought I really need to do something about this before it got out of hand so my relationship with working out started! (I could not give up the junk food, lol, but did become a vegetarian in the last two years of college in hopes of being healthier, fyi.)
My mother got me a Step Aerobics workout system by Brenda Dykgraaf which helped me get started and also started walking. I also got a slide board that simulated skating that I *LOVED* and remember rocking out to it with my InXS "Kick" album a few years later after I got bored with the Step Aerobics.
When I went went off to OT school in my very early twenties, they offered free personal training to the students so I got set up on a program to do some weight training and this is where I finally fell in love with lifting and have since made a commitment to doing it.
Of course, I fell off the wagon after I had a bilateral inguinal hernia repair (not from lifting, it was a genetic issue) since I was not allowed to lift for a few months after that so I did get out of the habit then but as soon as I was healed up and ready to go again, I not only went back to working out at a gym but I also got involved doing the then very popular Tae Bo by Billy Blanks.
Anyway, Tae Bo started me on my love for workout videos. (I'd say DVDs but I am so "old" it was VHS tapes at the time!!!) I like the structure of video workouts, and I am really independent and disciplined to stick with it, so it works out great for me.
About two years after I got married, we ended up living in apartments that were very small for about a year or so and I had NO room to workout to my usual Tae Bo so I invested in the Windsor Pilates since I could do those on the bed, and it helped me to maintain the tone I did have. I also had a manual fold-up treadmill I worked out for about twenty minutes but I did not like quite as much as it was hard to get it going being completely manual--NO electricity to help me along and fighting friction all the way!!!
Well, once we moved from that place and into a slightly roomier house, I was back at it with the DVDs. Besides my usual Tae Bo, I also did some lesser known workouts that I don't even remember the names or people anymore, but the ones I loved best were Jillian Michaels' first set that she came out with called The Biggest Winner, a set of five DVDs that are *still* some of my favorites when I want to do a little extra.
Then, I went on to buy a very basic Elliptical Trainer from my local Sam's Club and a mini-trampoline and did that along with some 5 & 8 pound hand weights for my arms. By this time, I was getting closer to my mid-thirties and noticed the metabolism was slowing down even more, and I had to start working out longer to maintain the weight I needed as I realized the pounds beginning to creep up.
That is when I rediscovered Jillian Michael's and her most recent DVDs: 30 Day Shred, Burn Fat Boost Metabolism, & No More Trouble Zones. Wow! Especially with 30 Day Shred, I noticed the level of intensity and appreciated the short 20-25 minutes it took to complete the workouts for my busy schedule. To this day, I tell people to start off with the 30 Day Shred as the price is great and you get three different workouts--a lot of bang for your buck!
But like with any addiction (lol) I had to have something harder--and wanted more. My husband actually told me about the P90x infomercials he had seen and many guys on some of the forums he frequented really recommended it. So I thought, "Why not?" and ordered it this past September 2009. Since then, I've moved on to Insanity, Cathe Friedrich (not found at BeachBody though) ChaLEAN Extreme, & TurboFire--with the latter two being my current programs--and now have decided to become a Beachbody Coach because I know I will be buying even more programs from them in the future (like the P90x & Insanity sequels!) and also eying a few others like the Brazil Butt Lift & Rev Abs.
Now that I am becoming more familiar with the various exercises out there, I've also been doing a lot of research especially checking out tutorial videos on the Internet (man, there is a lot out there!) and doing some workouts I have found on other people's fitness blogs that are just as good as some of the DVDs I've been doing. I admit, I miss someone like Shaun T or Jillian who cue me to "dig deeper" or "finish strong" but I can still get a great sweat and pump from them as long as I work hard--which I like to think I do. ;)
So why am I sharing this with you on my Fitness Blog? Well, I think it is important that you know a little bit about me and where I've been as you note products I review; I am not a beginner but not really quite advanced yet where I feel like an athlete or even semi-athlete. But also, you can see I have a pretty big range of programs I've done and I can help others gauge what program might work best for them at their fitness level whether they are starting from never exercising at all to being a hardcore disciplined exerciser like me.
But you'll also know that I am open to trying sensible workouts and are not loyal to one particular set of workouts. I think it is actually pretty cool that we are all unique and that different things appeal to different people! I just want to facilitate others to help them figure out what will motivate and work for them and get them to do things that will change their life permanently for the better. :)
**To buy the Beachbody DVDs listed here (P90x, Insanity, ChaLEAN Extreme, TurboFire, Rev Abs, & Brazil Butt Lift) go to our site at Graceful Coach/Beachbody. Sign up under "Graceful Coach" for free coaching and advice from me!
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