Beginner Rotation - starting Monday, August 15, 2011

One more thought....:p

Something I learned here on the Cathe message boards.

The idea of eating non-processed foods. That's what I'm trying to teach myself.

Eat foods that have not been manufactured... or at least have only been minimally manufactured.

If you think about it...... it's very difficult to eat poorly if you eat non-processed foods. And I had never thought about it in quite that way before finding this community !!!!

Sure.. I knew that to eat healthy, one should eat fruits and veggies and lean protein and beans and all that good stuff, but I had never looked at it in terms of processed vs non-processed food. It was an eye opening concept for me !!!!!

It's amazing how looking at something from a different angle can suddenly make perfect sense.

Fruits... fresh
Vegetables/salads.... fresh or for vegetables... frozen in their natural state.
Lean protein - fish, poultry, lean beef, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, milk
Beans/lentils
Oatmeal, brown rice

I'm not at 100%... and probably will never be .. but I'm trying very hard to consciously pick non-processed foods....

Okay... off to do a few things before I start my lower body workout..

See y'all later......
 
Eating has always been the harder part for me since I stress eat alot and have a stressful job...you get the picture. Not an excuse, but definitely a challenge!

I got a workout in today....Pure Strength Ch/Sh/Tri's followed by 3 miles on the treadmill (jogged 1 mile, walked 2 miles)

My magic number is 30...try for 30 minutes 3-4 times a week.

Susan, I forgot to pass this thought along to you when I sent you the link to Fitnessfreak's generic rotation. You can also consider doing the 4 week blocks in reverse order so you'd be starting with splits and ending with full body workouts, that thought came into my head when I remembered your other question about what order you "should" do strength training workouts in. Just a thought!

Some ppl have done this with Cathe's STS system as well, starting with Meso 3 and ending with Meso 1.
 
Hi Stacy! You also get some blame for my shopping cart being full, I still havent pressed "purchase". Just kidding, I fill that dang cart up all the time on my own. Good job on the workout.

Susan, I agree w/ the unprocessed foods concept. I learned that philosophy from early parenting/ La Leche League....A wide variety of foods in their most natural state--but didn't really put it into action until I read China Study, Fast Food Nation, and something by Joel Furhman.

On that note, I want to express my gratitude for capturing a nectarine at proper ripeness today. You know, u buy them, they are hard hard hard and the next day they are rotten or dried out and mealy? : D

Deanna, sorry about the sleep deprivation and boy probs. I am just sending you more hugs and prayers for you two.

I did my Low Max the other day and then Bodymax original on Mon. My knee keeps feeling inflamed and weird, even with modifications. I am going to try to rest it again and see if it improves. I don't want a perm injury so even if I am craving intensity and cardio, I need to abstain. I will focus on upper body. I might do abs today, but today was a day off (I planned to run).

FnV
 
Hi FnV...havent posted much at the WW forum, felt a bit hypocritical since I wasnt counting points. For now I'm just enjoying the forums and popping in wherever. I've read the book by Furhman and have China Study but havent read it. I also have Fast Food Nation and Food, Inc on my reading list. I'm sure it's alot of the same info, but I need that kind of repetition!

Speaking from someone who has battled knees issues....listen to your body!! Also if you dont do much yoga, incorporating one long yoga workout each week really helped my knee more than I imagined it would. I do Jeanette Jenkin's Power Yoga, it's good for some upper body DOMS as well!
 
Hey Ladies, I could not allow 2 days to go by without working out. So, I came home from work and did Body Fusion. I will attempt Body Fusion again tomorrow in the AM or after work depending on how I feel, but I will get it in. :) I will then be back on Rotation.

Off to the showers and bed, will check in tomorrow.

Deanna
 
Morning Ladies :)

I am sooooooooooo excited with my weight loss journey, I am down 5.4lbs :) Slow and steady it the way to go.
Starting weight 8.22.11 184.8
today 9.21.11 179.4 :)
Exercise and eating healthy works.

No exercise for me this morning, saving my energy for work. Will workout this evening after work, Body Fusion is on my schedule.

I hope you all have a great workout, and don't forget your WATER. :)

Will checkin later :)

Deanna
 
Eating has always been the harder part for me since I stress eat alot and have a stressful job...you get the picture. Not an excuse, but definitely a challenge!

I got a workout in today....Pure Strength Ch/Sh/Tri's followed by 3 miles on the treadmill (jogged 1 mile, walked 2 miles)

My magic number is 30...try for 30 minutes 3-4 times a week.

Susan, I forgot to pass this thought along to you when I sent you the link to Fitnessfreak's generic rotation. You can also consider doing the 4 week blocks in reverse order so you'd be starting with splits and ending with full body workouts, that thought came into my head when I remembered your other question about what order you "should" do strength training workouts in. Just a thought!

Some ppl have done this with Cathe's STS system as well, starting with Meso 3 and ending with Meso 1.


Great job on your workout Stacy !!!!!

I had thought about doing splits first... as in doing Pure Strength first, then moving to 2 upper and 2 lower or 2 upper, 1 lower and one total body. That might fit me better than the other way around. Thank you !!!
 
FnV - I am so sorry to hear that your knee is still sore, but I guess that isn't surprising... those kinds of injuries take a while to heal completely. I know you will be careful and listen to your body !!!

I have that problem with peaches and avocadoes.... One day they are too firm to eat, the next day they are rotten. geeze......

I'm going to try to eat 100% unprocessed food today... well.. my definition of "unprocessed." I'm not sure what the legal definition is... but I consider a container of plain Greek yogurt to be unprocessed... lol
 
Morning Ladies :)

I am sooooooooooo excited with my weight loss journey, I am down 5.4lbs :) Slow and steady it the way to go.
Starting weight 8.22.11 184.8
today 9.21.11 179.4 :)
Exercise and eating healthy works.

No exercise for me this morning, saving my energy for work. Will workout this evening after work, Body Fusion is on my schedule.

I hope you all have a great workout, and don't forget your WATER. :)

Will checkin later :)

Deanna

Way to go Deanna !!!!!!!!!!!

You are doing fantastic. I am soooo very proud of you !!!

We CAN do this... we ARE doing this...

Progress, not perfection !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yea Team !!!!
 
okay my friends... sigh..

I lost my way yesterday. I blew my diet. I didn't work out.
I didn't drink my water. I have no idea what I did all day other than wander aimlessly around the house and yard and do a little bit of nothing all day long.

I lost my motivation. I lost my spirit. I lost my positive attitude.
I lost my way totally, completely and absolutely.

The only bright spot in my day was that even though I ate much too much food, it was all healthy food... NO junk. So I'm proud of that.

Anyway... I was lingering in the doldrums all day... no particular reason...
just one of those days of feeling like this was all too difficult to do, so why bother...

BUT.... I watched the season premiere of The Biggest Loser on TV last night.
That jolted me out of my doldrums. Yikes.... I don't want to get where they are. :p

So I'm back on track this morning. Heading to the living room to do my workout and drink my water and then eat a healthy non-processed food breakfast.

I have decided that I need a specific time to do my workouts each morning, so 9:00 is going to be The Time.... I'm a little late this morning, but I'm off now to go do it.

Since I didn't work out yesterday, I need to do a total body workout to get back on schedule with my "Susan Rotation" for this week.

I think I'm going to try Push Pull.

I shall report in after I finish my workout !!!!

Thank you for being here my friends. I think I would have given up yesterday if it hadn't been for our support team !!!!
 
Its okay my friend. Remember you told me that we were going to have good and bad days, yesterday was a bad day for you. But you know you have come to far to give up! Your progess has been wonderful, and I encourage you to pick yourself up and press play or go to the GYM. :)

Remember, we CAN do this we ARE doing it! :)

GO SUSAN


okay my friends... sigh..

I lost my way yesterday. I blew my diet. I didn't work out.
I didn't drink my water. I have no idea what I did all day other than wander aimlessly around the house and yard and do a little bit of nothing all day long.

I lost my motivation. I lost my spirit. I lost my positive attitude.
I lost my way totally, completely and absolutely.

The only bright spot in my day was that even though I ate much too much food, it was all healthy food... NO junk. So I'm proud of that.

Anyway... I was lingering in the doldrums all day... no particular reason...
just one of those days of feeling like this was all too difficult to do, so why bother...

BUT.... I watched the season premiere of The Biggest Loser on TV last night.
That jolted me out of my doldrums. Yikes.... I don't want to get where they are. :p

So I'm back on track this morning. Heading to the living room to do my workout and drink my water and then eat a healthy non-processed food breakfast.

I have decided that I need a specific time to do my workouts each morning, so 9:00 is going to be The Time.... I'm a little late this morning, but I'm off now to go do it.

Since I didn't work out yesterday, I need to do a total body workout to get back on schedule with my "Susan Rotation" for this week.

I think I'm going to try Push Pull.

I shall report in after I finish my workout !!!!

Thank you for being here my friends. I think I would have given up yesterday if it hadn't been for our support team !!!!
 
Thank you Deanna my friend. It is so wonderful to have your support and the support of FnV and Stacy and Cyndi.

It truly is the difference between being able to do this and giving up......

Yes... We CAN do this and we ARE doing this !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good news to report :D

I did 10 minutes of Basic Step - just to warm up

ALL of Push Pull !!!!!!!!!! ALL of it !!!! Yea !!!
I had to modify a couple of exercises, but for the most part I did it the way it's meant to be done.

I used 3 lb weights all the way through so I could learn the routine. But next time I can increase the weights on some of the exercises. I can do 4 or 5 on biceps and triceps. For shoulders, 3 lbs is enough for now. I have very weak shoulders...

Then I did 20 minutes of stretching..

And now I'm sitting here eating 1 cup of plain Greek no-fat yogurt with a fresh peach cut up and mixed in !!! Before exercising, I had a banana and a small handful of whole almonds.

I feel GOOD :p

Thank you for being my support group !!!

Off to have a productive day.....

Edited to add: I LOVED Push Pull... Loved it !!! I think I'll try Supersets next time... lol
and next week try Pure Strength.....
 
3 quick thoughts for Susan-

1, don't let a bad day give you permission for more bad moments (you aren't -I see that)

3 I think it can be sooo hard to be disciplined with scheduling workouts, etc if you are stay home mom, retired, etc. I can relate.

My motivation for change is when I see my parent, chronic back pain exacerbated by overweight, victim mentality and unwillingness to change habits. All is harder to change the longer you have it.

Wow, you had a great workout and really regrouped! Congrats on that! xoxox.

Stacy, I don't check in on WW anymore b/c I was counting points but never staying within them. : ( I also like to be chatty and I was always fighting to not inundate the thread with my effusive prattle. I check it tho and am interested in everyones progress.

OK, you girls need to do an extra workout for me, Wed are crazy and I prob won't get to it.
 
Deanna....great job on your weight loss! Baby steps to the finish line!

Susan....we all can relate to those doldrum days, I've had more than my share the last few months, and b/c of them my 10 lb weight loss has slowly resulted into a 7 lb gain :(

But, I'm not out of the game yet, it's when you totally give up and stop trying...that's when things are bad. I've gotten up and dusted myself off and gonna keep plugging away. I'm about 13 lbs from goal, those last few always seem to be the hardest!

FnV, one of my motivations is seeing my parents as well, as sad as that is. They are obese with multiple medical problems, in total denial and refuse to change despite me begging, pleading, showing concern, telling them point blank and harshly their grim reality, so I've had to just accept that it's out of my hands, they have to want to change.

On that note...no workout for me today, left for work at 7am and got home at 7pm, starving!

Diet today wasnt stellar, but I did have some vegetables today. It's a start I guess.
 
Evening Ladies :)

Home from work and just finished Body Fusion. I did Body Fusion yesterday as well and today it was very difficult to finish, my legs and butt was like hey didn't you do this routine yesterday.....LOL I am going to give Body Fusion a break until Monday, when it is actually on the Rotation again.

Baby Shower at work tomorrow and I was assigned the Deviled Eggs. I am so tired I think I am going to have a couple eggs whites for dinner and call it a night.

Thursday the Beginner Rotation list Abs and Stretching. I will do this in the evening again, I have to save my energy for work.

Okay off to finish the Deviled Eggs, shower and bed.

Deanna
 
I go into work a bit later this morning so I was able to get a workout done, yay! And, I think my booty is going to be sore tomorrow morning!!

I did Level 1 of Jillian's 6 Week 6 Pack...nice cardio bursts with ab/core and I followed that up with RKS Workout #1. I bought this kettlebell system right before my workout/clean eating fallout. It didnt seem that tough but with all those swings, I can already tell it's a bun burner!

Off to shower and then a long day at work.

Progress not perfection....
 
Way to go Team !!!!!

Everyone is doing great !!! Deanna - I can't believe you were able to do Body Fusion 2 days in a row !!! Wow !!! I am impressed !!!

Go Stacy !!! Only 13 pounds to go ??? I'm jealous :p with my 42 1/2 pounds to go.... lo

FnV - yes... scheduling workouts when you are retired or a stay-at-home Mom is often more difficult than when you know you have to do them before or after work. I know, Stacy and Deanna, wimpy for sure. But it's so easy to get distracted with other things and you tell yourself you have all day to get your workout done and before you know it, the day is gone.

Stacy and FnV - I am so sorry to hear that your parents are having weight and health issues. It's so difficult to watch when you know what will help them and they won't listen.

My parents both lived til almost 90 (Mom 87 and Dad 3 weeks before his 90th birthday) and my Mom was thin all her life. My Dad was about 50 pounds overweight... he loved meat and potatoes and ice cream and pizza and every other fat ladened food. At age 80 he had a heart attack and had quadruple bypass surgery. Before leaving the hospital to come home, they had him meet with a nutritionist who put the fear of God in him and gave him a low fat diet to follow.

To my Dad's credit, he followed the diet for the rest of his life, lost 50 pounds and got his cholesterol level way down. But it took a heart attack to change his ways. My mother had been telling him for decades that he needed to change his eating habits, but he wouldn't listen....

I've been sitting here on the computer roaming around the Internet, wasting time ... so easy to do.. lol... so I need to get over to the gym and do my treadmill before the morning is gone..

I did my workout yesterday, as you know.... and... kept my calories to 1601 and my fat grams within quota. So it was a good day after the disaster of Tuesday.. And... 95% of what I ate was non-processed... wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be, but not sure I can keep that up every day.

Deanna - enjoy the Baby Shower today. Yummy - I love deviled eggs !!!

Onward we go !!!

Progress, not perfection !!!

We CAN do this. We ARE doing this !!!

Go team !!! I am sooooooo very proud of all of us !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D
 
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Stacy, I don't check in on WW anymore b/c I was counting points but never staying within them. : ( I also like to be chatty and I was always fighting to not inundate the thread with my effusive prattle. I check it tho and am interested in everyones progress.


FnV - You KNOW you can prattle here all you want.
I'm the queen of prattle :p

Have at it girl !!! Feel free to prattle !!!
 
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Fantastic news !!! Then I'll go to the gym :p

My Troy Lite barbell set was shipped yesterday and is due to be delivered by Fed Ex TOMORROW !!!

I am soooooo excited. Owning a barbell is going to make me feel like a true weight trainer... lol

okay.. off to the gym I go... lol
 
Afternoon Ladies :)

I wrote Cathe on Facebook regarding my Saddle bags and she actually wrote me back :)

Hi Cathe
I am on week 5 of your Beginner Rotation, I am down 5.4 lbs of my desired 20+ lbs weight loss. I would like to know what dvd or exercise do you recommend to reduce/remove my saddle bags? My legs are getting smaller and my saddle bags may be shrinking but not fast enough for me. So your suggestion would be appreicated.

This was her response.
Cathe Friedrich Congratulations on your weight loss Deanna! Awesome work!!!! To keep the progress going, try my Butt's and Gut's DVD and Leg's and Glutes DVD too.

I had these DVDs on my Wishlist already. I placed them in my cart and pushed the checkout button, I used 2 coupons one 15% and 20%. They should be delivered next week.

Not sure when I will use them, I have viewed both dvds and they seem to be killers. However, I have to do something with my saddle bags. My legs are shrinking faster than any other body part. Don't get me wrong I love my curves however, if my saddle bags would shrink (they do not have to disappear) I would love my curves even more.

Okay I hope everyone is having a good afternoon

Deanna
 

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