What I love about working out

The past three days (including today) were good workout days for me.

• Monday – First Timer Urban Rebounder workout + P.I.N.K. Fitness workout #7


• Tuesday – Basic Urban Rebounding workout (more about that later)


• Wednesday – P.I.N.K. Fitness workout #8 (I intended to also do the Basic Urban Rebounding workout but I mis-managed my time this morning. Besides, I have line dance rehearsal tonight so I’ll still be able to get some cardio today.)
  

About the Basic Urban Rebounding workout, it was not as bad as I thought it would be. The moves were pretty much the same from the First Timer workout, only the beat was faster. I just couldn't keep up, so I bounced at my own pace. Hey, sometimes, that’s what you gotta do. The workout was shorter than I thought too and there was an abdominal workout at the end. Let me tell you, I hate lying on the floor to do ab workouts. You’d think that with all of the cushion I have that I’d be more comfortable, but it hurts and it’s very uncomfortable. My tailbone feels like it’s grinding into the floor and I can’t get the small of back to floor to save my life! However, doing ab work on the Urban Rebounder was very comfortable- - no stress on the back and I was fully supported. The workout was short and sweet but effective, my core was zipped up all day.

Now, what I love about working out is the physical changes you see. You know, things start to shrink, tighten, and lift. For instance, I stood in front of the mirror this morning and saw a scar. Why is that a big deal? Because previously I needed to turn slightly to the left, bend back and “slightly” lift a little flesh to see it. But this morning, it was like “hello, there!” Another thing….. my pooch is less poochy. If this is TMI for you, I don’t care. I’m just keeping it real and I know someone out there knows what I’m talking about.

“Good God, it feels good!”

….is what JB Berns says during the Urban Rebounder First Timer workout and this morning, instead of chuckling I thought, “He’s right, it does feel good!” It does feel good to move and sweat, knowing that each day I’m getting a little stronger and building up my endurance. I was able to make it all the way through the workout without stopping compared to my first time when I was stopping almost every 30 seconds. I’m proud of myself and I can’t wait until tomorrow; I’m going to do the Urban Rebounder Basic workout, which is about 40 minutes long. I fully anticipate that I will be taking numerous breaks throughout, but that’s ok. In a week or two, I’ll be breezing through that workout too and heading on toward the advanced workout.

I also did the P.I.N.K. Fitness workout #7 this morning. It was my third day I (I do each workout three times) and on Wednesday, I’ll start workout #8. So far so good. I’m maintaining my form and I haven’t pulled any muscles. I think I’ll try doing a few push-ups just to see if I’m actually getting stronger.

In case you’re wondering, I did workout over the weekend. I typically don’t workout on the weekends because on Saturdays I’m in class all day and on Sundays I totally rest. But yesterday (Sunday), I woke up energized and I felt compelled to do something. So, I did the Urban Rebounder First Timer workout to warm up and then I line danced for about an hour.

So, that’s it for now. Wish me luck tomorrow.

P.S. I saw an infomercial for the Brazil Butt Lift; I’m a little intrigued. Does anyone out there own it?

I didn't Blog, but I still worked out!

It’s been a few days since I’ve blogged but guess what? I worked out!! Wednesday was an awesome fitness day for me. I did the First Timer Urban Rebounder workout and P.I.N.K. Fitness workout #7 before I went to work. Then, I had line dancing rehearsal that night; it lasts about an hour and a half. Then yesterday (Thursday), I did the Stretch Bound workout for the Urban Rebounder and went to line dancing class that night. Two hours of straight line dancing with no break. It was an awesome workout!!

I did not work out this morning, however. And, do you want to know why? I was TIRED!! I had those two strenuous workouts Wednesday morning, line dancing rehearsal and the class, plus I didn’t go to bed until 1:30 am this morning. I think I deserved the extra hour of sleep. I did take a quick break from work and did a 20 minute power walk this afternoon. It was nice to get outside, breathe some fresh air, and get the heart pumping. And the cool thing I noticed was that the walk back to the office was all uphill but there was no noticeable burn in my calves. I was breathing hard, but no burn in the legs. And I was walking fast. I’m feeling pretty good about that.

I think I love my Urban Rebounder!

First let me say that this blog is definitely keeping me motivated. It’s one thing to be a slacker but it’s another thing when people know that you’re a slacker. Back to the rebounder, I did the workout titled “First Timer”. It was only 15 minutes but my heart was pounding as if I had run a marathon, my calves were on fire, and I was sweating so hard you would have thought I was caught in a rainstorm. But I felt great afterwards and that feeling has lasted all day.

A few things about the Urban Rebounder:

1. According to creator JB Berns, the Urban Rebounder is not a trampoline even though it looks like a trampoline, feels like a trampoline, smells like a trampoline…you get the picture. I’m not sure why he makes the distinction but in the words of my sister, “it’s a trampoline!”
2. You don’t just jump on it. You bounce using the balls of your feet to press down and you bear down to keep your movement controlled. This worked my core so much that I’ve had the most awesome posture all day—shoulders back, chest up, stomach in…..
3. It’s pretty sturdy. I’m within the maximum weight limit for the Urban Rebounder but I was still worried that it would collapse beneath me. I’m happy to report that it didn’t.

I plan to stick with the First Timer workout for the rest of the week and move to the Basic workout next Monday. By the way, if the First Timer workout is kicking my butt, I can only imagine what the Basic workout will be like. Maybe I can borrow my grandmother's oxygen tank.

P.I.N.K. Fitness Workout #7

I started P.I.N.K. Fitness workout #7 this morning! I really wanted to stay in bed but I couldn’t let my readers down, all three of them. So let me tell you, 20 minutes of weightlifting may not seem like much but I was sweating like I had done 50 minutes of cardio. The exercises in this workout are building you up to do an Olympic style clean and jerk. I’m sure a real competitive weightlifter would laugh at me for breathing heavy and sweating with only 5 lbs. on my bar, but it was a lot of work for me. There were 9 exercises total, you do 10 reps for each exercise, and 3 rotations for the entire workout. Six of those exercises included a squat. That’s 180 squats!!! My legs started shaking halfway through. I usually don’t take a break between rotations but this morning I needed to. I did pretty good though; I limited my breaks to 2-3 minutes. Now the real clean and jerk starts with the bar on the floor and you squat to pick it up; but with P.I.N.K. Fitness, we start standing while holding the bar near the pelvis, squat down and then jump shrug up. I don’t know if that’s going to change in later workouts- - I’ve only gone as far as #9- -but since I have no desire to be a competitive weightlifter, the P.I.N.K. Fitness way works for me. I just hope I have the strength the get up tomorrow for the Urban Rebounder.