Thursday, May 28, 2009

I Finally Shredded!

Well, I mentioned a while ago that I wanted to try out the 30 Day Shred DVD by Jillian Michaels to get me out of my exercise rut. Somehow it took me FOREVER to try it! My goal had been to post an update after I did it every day for a week. Well, this didn't exactly work out.... Overall, I really like the DVD, but I don't think I would ever want to do it every day. Oh, and hubby did it a few times, too. It was fun doing it together, but we had a hard time trying not to laugh at times... :o) So here is a breakdown of the last six days:

Saturday, May 23: Shred Day 1
Okay, I finally did Shred Level 1. Several days ago, I watched the DVD to prepare myself for what I'd be getting myself into. It looked intense but doable. And it was intense yet doable. I definitely got my heart rate up and broke a sweat right away (and so did hubby by the way!). I appreciate that the moves are basic, so I didn't feel like a fool...

Sunday, May 24: No Shredding

Well, I was a bit sore this morning. But it wasn't too bad, and I still made it to the gym and ran for 30 minutes, did some abs, and stretched. In the afternoon, we also walked all over a Nature Theme Park with the toddler for about 1 1/2 hours.

Then the plan had been to do the DVD at night after the toddler went to sleep. However, by the time he was finally asleep it was 8:30, and, frankly, were were WAY too tired to shred...

Monday, May 25: Shred Day 2
We hosted a BBQ, so there was no time to make it to the gym. The toddler visited his grandparents for a little while while hubby and I prepped for the BBQ and shredded. I loved being done in 20 minutes. It's just so convenient to get a workout in at home.

At night, we also went for an hour long brisk walk. Both hubby and I noticed that our legs were a bit sore...

Tuesday, May 26: Shred Day 3

We shredded again. Today was definitely the hardest day so far... BUT, it was great to get in a workout at home.

Hubby made the following observation: "This workout is just like me telling you: Do 50 push ups, now do 50 crunches, now run in place. Do this for 20 minutes and don't rest...."

And he is sort of right. But that's what I like about the workout. It's basic yet challenging. I feel like I can do the moves, but I also feel I'm getting a good workout. I definitely think Shred alone is not enough cardio though. I definitely need to do some more cardio...

Wednesday, May 27: No Shredding
I didn't want to do the DVD while the toddler was taking a nap as I make too much noise and was afraid that I would wake him up... His naps are just too precious... :o) Plus, I don't really think doing the same workout every day is necessarily good... Plus, I really felt like doing cardio today. So I ran for 30 minutes, lifted some weights, did abs and stretched at the gym.

Thursday, May 28: Shred Day 4
I shredded again and also swam for 30 minutes.

Overall Verdict:
This is definitely something I will continue to do in addition to my other workouts. It's great to get in a quick, basic, yet challenging workout at home. Work has been really busy this week, so it was hard to get to the gym, and I was glad to get at least some exercise. I don't quite understand the thinking behind doing the same workout every day though...

Be well,
Andrea