Sweaty Amazon

Someone sent me this as a joke asking me to make next week's progress photos nude. Hey, not quite there yet! LOL! And please don't shoot the cat.

ANYWAY, here it is not even 10:30 in the morning and I already did a bunch of stuff around the house, AND a 45-minute workout with the Biggest Loser Bootcamp DVD. This workout alternates cardio and weight training for maximum burn. It starts with a 20-minute workout that you do for two weeks, then it gets longer and longer as you progress until you are working out for about an hour.

Instead of using the cardio DVDs that came with the ChaLEAN program, I am going to start using this on the alternate days, as it's a bit more challenging. I will still use the ChaLEAN weight Training and ab burner workouts though. I love that program and want to finish it.

Anyway, when I first started exercising back in April, I bought a bunch of exercise DVDs as I was too embarrassed to join a gym or even to walk around my neighborhood. When I got this BL Boot camp one, I tried it twice at the beginner level and it was so far from my abilities that is was actually depressing and discouraging.

I put it away and started using a Denise Austin one that is 20-minutes and a lot easier. This week, in honor of my renewed commitment to exercise more, put the Biggest Loser Boot camp DVD in to see how I'd do. What a difference a few months can make.

Not long ago, marching in place meant lifting my foot about an inch off the floor. Literally, between the actual weight of my legs, the lack of strength and the lack of aerobic capacity, that was all I could manage- and the effort of even that would leave me winded and sore.

Now I can lift my legs high, I can do a full squat while holding weights and I am talking that I can get into the lowest position possible and come back up again while holding weights. A few months ago, a squat meant bending my knees just a bit and holding 5 pound weights. Right now I hold a 20 pound dumbbell in each hand while I squat. The thing is, I feel like I could squat with more, but those are the heaviest weights that I have--- so I have to buy more. (I keep drooling over those select weights by bow flex and may try saving up for them)

So now I can do this entire Boot camp workout and the only moves I modify are the push up type exercises. I have to be on my knees still or I cannot complete the required amount of reps. Still, I tried the second stage of the Boot Camp today to see if I can do it-- and I can! I did all 45-minutes of level two--so I am feeling sore and sweaty and proud and totally freakin' awesome!

Adding this to the ChaLEAN and the walks should blast off some inches! Time will tell!

To clarify yesterday's post---- I am cutting back on my online time everywhere EXCEPT here. I love my blog and this blogging community. It's all the OTHER things I was doing online that I will either discontinue or scale back on quite a bit.

I can't promise to post daily, especially between now and Christmas, as it is my busy season with the Lakota. But I will certainly try to post every other day at least, and I will continue to read all of your blogs and comment as much as time allows.

I'm working on a post now that will be a virtual tour of my garden. I hope to have this posted soon. It involves uploading lots of pics so I work on it whenever I have a minute.

Also, some of you said the settings here made it hard for you to comment. I changed my comment settings so that anyone can comment. Let me know if that helps, and if it doesn't I will try to figure out how to adjust it.

Have a great day-- and be good to you!