Turbo Jam!

So my Turbo Jam finally arrived yesterday. I've been excited to start since I ordered it.

It arrived and I literally ripped open the box. I tried on the gloves first. I have to say, they are comfortable and seemingly light. Although, if you're lifting those things through a 40 minutes workout I can see how they'd get very heavy. Next, I read the guidebook. Yes, the whole thing. What I love most about the guidebook is it's very easy to read, it's organized, and it explains EVERYTHING. If you have no clue what you're doing and just know you want to get in shape. It tells you exactly how from telling you how to calculate how many calories you should eat to providing healthy meals. It even gives a workout calender. The really cool thing about it is you can maneuver and modify however you need and still have a perfectly wonderful health plan. This is one such recipe from the breakfast section:

Energy Oatmeal
1 cup plain oatmeal (I used the quick cook oldfashioned oats)
4 ounces non fat milk or soymilk
1 Tbls. honey or 2 Tbls. Beachbody's Whey Protein Powder (optional)
1/4 raisins (optional)

You can play with this. I did. I don't have any of the protein powder (yet) and that's not even needed. You could also sub with brown sugar. I actually didn't use ANY milk because I didn't have any.. otherwise I would have. I did, however, add raisin and crushed nuts. Just a few. You could probably substitute with fresh fruit or even canned fruits if it's drained or not in syrup. You could use another dried fruit like cranberries or white grapes or blueberries. All in all the meals look yummy.

The package also includes a 10 day plan that will help you burn up to 10 pounds in 10 workouts. It's a challenging 10 days.

I did the first workout it instructs you to do on the 4 week beginniner exercise calender provided. It was the Learn and Burn DVD. Honest;y, the first workout wasn't that hard. But, it's probably geared to fit someone who hasn't been working out. The first part breaks down the "Elite 11" so you learn the proper way to do them. After that you do a little workout to get used to them. Even if you so already work out I would suggest starting with this anyway, just to learn the moves. After the Learn and Burn I did the AB Jam and it's pretty awesome. You're hardly even on the floor!

I have to say that my first experience with Turbo Jam was more fun than a workout. I look forward to continuing the program.

Something else I noticed that I'd love to try is call Zumba. Zumba is a form of exercise that uses various dance moves such as the Samba, Salsa, ChaCha, etc meshed together to make one very sexy workout. A LOT of local gyms offer classes and I was looking into joining one. I love to dance and this looked like fun. I added a link along the right side to the Zumba website. You can also copy and paste the follow into your navigation bar to see a vid about it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwVdBH4vjLU

Are you doing the wrong ab workout?

The following link suggests the typical sit up or crunch isn't nearly as effective as you think. And what's more is those expensive peices of equipment you buy aren't helping.

It also says that unlike other strength training exercises where time is needed in between, abs can be worked everyday. It's better to give them frequent short workouts as opposedd to sporadic intense ones.

Enjoy!

http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/common/standard/transform.jsp?requestURI=/healthatoz/Atoz/hl/fit/star/alert05222001.jsp

Update on Crossfit

The last time I mentioned Crossfit was the first time I had ever done it. I did a workout named "Cindy" which consists of 5 pull-ups, 10 push ups, and 15 squats. The objective is to complete as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes. My first time I did a pathetic 8 rounds. So when it appeared again I was excited to see if I'd notice any improvement.

Well... I did. Today I did 13 rounds with time to spare. I have to say, I'm pretty damned pleased with myself.

Over the last week or so I had been complaining that I wasn't making any progress. I know it's going to be slow going but I was getting frustrated. I guess I can't complain. Since I've started I've lost a good 3 inches in my waist and nearly 10 pounds. I just thought I'd be seeing more impressive numbers. Although, I haven't been a complete angel this whole time. I've had some pretty cheaty days in there. Although, lately, I've been kicking it up. My impatience and frustration is only proving to be motivation. ;)

In other news, I ordered a new program called Turbo Jam (www.turbojam.com). I ordered it because it looked like a lot of fun and I was introduced to it not from some infomercial, but by a youtube video of a regular girl, like me, working out. She even had one that showed her progress. That sold me. So, I bought it. It looks like a mix of everything. There is some kickboxing meets dancing moves, some strength training, resistance training and a whole lot of booty shaking. I'll keep you updated on how it is. I also plan on keeping on Crossfit. It's hard for me when I don't have any weights, but I do my best.