I Just Wanna Make You Sweat

To better understand the title, other than the obvious reasons, go listen to Sweat by Snoop Dogg.

Best. Workout Song. EVER.

One more shot of my big ol' guns, please.

Who's feeling feisty? This girl.

I have a fun little workout for you guys! I know my list of crap that I do was sort of vague, and I had a lot of people asking me to get more specific.

I found this workout on a friend's Facebook page and decided to try it out, since it was similar to what I was already doing, only slightly more structured. Check it out, gals:

Easy Peasy, right?

I take the "Repeat 2x" to mean, "You should be doing this AT LEAST 3 times, skank. Hut to it." Feel free to interpret the "Repeat 2x" as you will.

Also, I LOVE this workout. I feel so spry.

So, I know I haven't really been posting progress, and that's mainly because I felt as if I wasn't making any. When the numbers on the scale refuse to budge, it can really make you feel like you aren't getting anywhere, which is frustrating...

Until you figure out that it is now possible to take your SKINNY JEANS on and off without undoing the button.

*Insert Happy Dance Here*

Pardon the facial expression... I lost weight. I get one free duck face.

Working out has become less "losing weight" for me and more "feeling INCREDIBLE afterwards, knowing that I'm healthier and feel sexier."

Also, I'm pleased to show you a before picture from July, followed very quickly by an after taken very recently:

Admittedly bigger than I really wanted to be.

Much tinier! Yay working out!!!

Yes, I'm a dirty cheater and am in a different pose in the second, as well as bent in half, but seriously? You can very obviously see the difference, which at first made me cringe. Now, I'm all "Dayum. 10 pounds shows up on a short girl."

Anywho- Sorry for the INSANE amount of pictures this week. I'm feeling a little jazzed up after my workout and went photo happy. So you had to read fewer words to get the gist of my schpeel- so sue me!

Until we sweat again- Happy Working out!

Aly Goes Insane

This week, as promised, my wonderful cousin Aly has written up a small piece on her experience with the Insanity program! Hopefully she can show you just how not scary it is (regardless of how frightening I made it sound) :)

Enjoy!

So let me just be the first one to say it: working out sucks.

It's not fun, it doesn't feel good, and you don't see results right away which is super irritating.

 

Ill be the first to also say: I refuse to be unhealthy/overweight. It's not happening.

So, guess what I'm doing?

INSANITY. 

And to no ones surprise, it is kicking my ass.

A group of coworkers and I decided to start being super cool and do insanity on our lunch hour (meaning I'm super attractive for the rest of the day) and it has just kinda stuck. We do it literally every day. It's nice because we all push each other and we all are working towards a goal (for me: looking AWESOME in my wedding dress in 5 months!)

I won't sugar coat a thing for you- insanity sucks. Sean T is like an abusive boyfriend. He beats me, makes me cry, and leaves me hurting for days....and I keep 

crawling back to him. Ugh.

I am starting to see results after 3 weeks which I am super pumped about!

I have also been using "My Fitness Pal" which is a free app that rocks my world. Check it out! It has been helping me track my food (which does not consist of cheeseburgers and caffeine anymore, unfortunately) and helps me track the calories I burn during my workouts! Very cool.

If you're like me, get a buddy to work out with you who wont let you slack. If I don't have someone expecting me at the gym I won't go- which is why this is working out so well.

Drink water, watch what you eat (but DON'T deprive yourself), work that booty every single day, and set realistic weekly goals for yourself. Being healthy isn't a crash diet- it's a lifestyle change. Make changes you can live with and decide what's most important in your life.

So far, I'm down 3 pounds and feeling much better about my overall health (even though the whole no caffeine thing is killing me). I challenge you to make a goal for yourself that you can reach by the end of the week and exceed it.

Willpower, baby. You've got to find it.

Don't You Try To Catch Me

Before you begin reading, know that I am writing this post to Americano by Lady Gaga. If you want the full effect of this blog post, I suggest to read it to that song :)

Stop Talking, Start walking.

-L.M. Heroux

Whoa! I haven't posted on the blog in a hot minute!!

Here's what I've been up to:

• Running in place. (Its very dull, but its all snowy and icy and freezing outside, and cardio is cardio.)
• LOTS of butt kicks. (Its quite easy- my feet just bounce right back off this giant bubble..)
• Jumping Jacks!!! (CARDIO!!!!) <------- *Scream that in your head*
• Crunches (Lower and upper abdomen killers)
• Push-Ups (Regular and downward dog style)
• Bicep dips (Right? I think that's what they're called... whatever. I'm doing them.)

Oh, and lots of stretching!! I'm all about being super flexible. I dream of doing the full splits one day.........

*Insert slightly horrified face here*

Just kidding! Ouch! Just the thought of that is devastating to my entire body.... NEW TOPIC!!

Check out my guns!

Okay so they aren't massive but they ARE improving! (Push ups... they'll do their job eventually.)

On to other news!! I've been slacking on my blog posting duties! I'm going to be harassing my lovely cousin for that update on how her Insanity program is going, so look forward to that, and I'm going to be doing some measurements to see how (and if) my body is changing! I'll make sure to fill you in on my starting measurements when all that goes down.

Until then.....

Happy Sweating, kidlets!!

Fizzling Out

“The time to quit is before you wish you had.” 

-Kimberly K. Jones

It has happened again, readers. My old knee injury has been acting up since the first week of Insanity.

At first, I was just pushing through it; Ignoring the pain and focusing on my goal. After a  few days, I decided that wasn't the healthiest decision and began doing alternative moves during the workout whenever it felt like too much for my knee.

This was all working out just fine until the other day. My knee started hitching when I was walking through the house, and worse, on the stairs. I almost fell down a flight of stairs the other day due to my knee, and I'm not willing to put my body in any more danger than absolutely necessary.

I'm deeply disappointed with this turn of events, as I feel as though I was making progress with the Insanity program. My breathing was improving, I was doing the moves faster and with better precision, and I was swearing at the television a lot less. However, the fact still remains that I was putting my body in danger and that is a horrible decision to make.

This is where you come in.

I am in need of ideas of other forms of cardio that I can partake in, preferably very low impact. Running has been out of the question for a long time, again because of my knee, and I'm very limited in the sense that I am not a member of a gym so I don't have access to the same amenities as most.

Please let me know if you have any suggestions or helpful tips so that I may continue inspiring others to get the body they deserve.

Much thanks to you all!

Do Your Feet Hurt?

This post read to the song Until We Burn in the Sun by Bedouin Soundclash

"You're feet hurt because you're kicking so much ass."

While I generally love this quote, today I feel quite the opposite. Week 2 of Insanity is definitely the one kicking MY ass.

I started the workout off so full of energy and hope, not to mention my adorable hairdo.

I soon discovered that I'm a dreamer... and that doing your hair for any reason before a workout is just about the worst idea ever.

Today was another cardio circuit with Sean T. My lovely man toy decided that this would be the day he would chew me up and spit me back out... or rather, that he'd let me battle my lunch.

That's right- as gross as it is, I vowed to give you the nitty gritty of my workouts, and today I pushed so hard that I literally gave it everything I had- which included my lunch, as well as my tears. At the end of that workout, I found myself on the floor crying, ready to swear off anything but fruits and veggies if it meant I never had to do that dreadful workout ever again.

Go ahead- call me a giant baby. But as someone who is just 5 pounds away from their "perfect" weight, I think I've earned the right to cry during my workout. As long as I'm getting it done, right?!

As I've had no one yet contact me about doing a small spotlight piece on their weekly workout schedule, I will be actively seeking you out! (Sorry- I'm aggravating like that.)

However, sometime either this weekend or next week I will be receiving a blog post from my beautiful cousin, Aly. She has just begun the Insanity program with her coworkers and  I think its the perfect opportunity for everyone to see how people react differently to the program, what someone else thinks about it, and a chance to see how another reader is pushing herself to get that workout in and eat healthy.

I will also be compiling information on eating healthy without depriving yourself of simple pleasures. If any of my readers has any information they would like to share on this topic, please feel free to email me at amwyant1@hotmail.com.

Keep on sweating!

My Boo

Go to YouTube and turn on The Eagles of Death Metal- I Want You So Hard- only then may you continue.

I promise, its a good song. Also, Jack Black and Dave Grohl are in the music video! Bonus!!

Then:

Say Hello to my new boyfriend, Sean!

Not really, but hey- a girl can dream.

          My boo and I have a love hate relationship. I love his fabulous abs, ripped biceps, and his dazzling booty- er, Smile.

          However, my sig. O. has decided that he loves to make me suffer and tries to kill me on a daily basis- via cardio.

          Today, however, we had a lovely day with one another, with some much needed Cardio Recovery. Woot woot!! If I had to choose which Insanity workout was my favorite, Cardio Recovery would win hands down. There's no jumping or running around in this session.

          No, instead we just do gentle stretches... granted, they make your thighs feel like they're on fire, but that's just the flame of the love Sean T has for me.

(I'll make sure I refill that prescription for my crazy pills..)

          I think recovery is something a lot of people forget about. Everyone always tells you to workout harder and push push push, but people always fail to mention that your body needs a day to just stretch and relax a bit. Don't get me wrong, I was definitely sweating during this workout, but it was only because I was slowing down and getting deep into my stretches, targeting the muscles that work the hardest. All of that cardio definitely takes a toll on your body, and if you don't take the time to be nice to your poor aching muscles, they won't be so nice to you.

(Which reminds me- make sure you're eating foods with lots of Potassium. Holy Charlie Horses, batman.)

          Also, I'd like to start doing little snippets on my readers so that you can all see that you're not the only ones out there sweating it out. My hope is to create a small network of guys and gals that are all in it together, pushing one another towards their goals, and what better platform is there than this, where you all have some common ground and a friend who wants to help you out?

If anyone is at all interested in participating in this little initiative, please contact me either through the blog itself, on Twitter at https://twitter.com/amanda_wyant , or on Facebook and I'll get something compiled within the week!

Thanks for reading, and remember to Recover those muscles!!

Timebomb- A Shout out to the Preggers

"Its not about having time- Its about making time."

      First off, before you even begin to read this post, open a new tab/window and find Timebomb by Beck on YouTube. It is currently on repeat as I write, and I feel you won't get the full experience of what's happening unless you're also listening to it. (Although the first word is an F bomb, but its the only one I swear)

I'll wait.....

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Got it? Its good so far, right?

      I just finished the Cardio Power and Resistance disc for Insanity and I have a few photos to share with you as we go along.

      To begin, we did the usual warm up, but don't be confused by its innocent title, beckoning you, enticing you to come try because "its only a warm up, and warm ups are always so simple.. right?"

WRONG.

Sean T is a jerk, to avoid more colorful language.

      I was sweating horribly after just the warm up, so I decided to use my water break as an opportunity to snap a quick photo:

Admittedly not my best photo- but seriously ask me if I care.

      After this monstrosity of a picture was taken, Sean T continued his reign of terror over my poor calves- calves that are already so sore its a chore to walk up and down the stairs. (I live in a basement. Stairs are inevitable.)

      Jumping in and out of squats, jumping over imaginary logs and hurdles, and jumping up from the push up position all went down today- and I went down more than a few times. I'll be surprised if I don't end up with rug burns all over my arms. That is how often I fell when trying to leap up from the forward leaning rest position. But again- ask me if I care.

Battle Wounds.

A few scrapes or burns on the road to an awesome tummy and butt and thighs and actual calves? Bruise me up, Sean T. 

I tried taking a self-y on the floor after my workout.. ask me how that worked out... 

This my dears is how I looked once I actually found the will to heave myself off the carpet. You can look this pretty, too!

      I have a special shout out for all of my preggo pals out there dreading the day when they have to work off any weight their precious little wee ones are gaining for them. I believe Amy is due in March, and Megan is due in July, both with their second child! I'm so glad you ladies still take the time to read my blog posts and I am so appreciative of all the words of encouragement you both continue to send my way. I don't know that I'd be able to stick to this insane workout and restrictive diet without the help of such wonderful friends.

      To all of my readers, thank you for reading and I hope you're getting as much encouragement and help from me as I get from just knowing there are people out there reading!

Keep on sweating!