Thursday, June 28, 2012

Shredding

You know what I love about the internet? It has EVE-RY-THING. It is my lifeline. It is where I go when I am bored. It is where I go when I am motivated. It is where I go to stay informed. It is where I go to get new food ideas. It is where I go when I want to branch out and connect. So naturally, when I was feeling a little bored of my usual running-one-day-yoga-the-next routine, I looked to the Youtube to mix things up! And who else would I turn to but Jillian?!

It is no secret that I am a Jillian Michaels fan. She may have gotten a mean wrap from her time on the Biggest Loser, but if you've ever done one of her videos or Wii games, you know that is not her usual MO. (Well, maybe it is in real time? I can't attest, as I couldn't even kind of afford her.) 
In my search for what was next, I thought I would see what the 30 Day Shred hype was all about. I was a little nervous going in, since the one time Mr. Light wanted to try the Insanity workout, I stopped about 2 minutes in, fuming with anger.
I don't like to kill myself in my workouts. Yes, I want to be challenged, but I don't want to be obliterated. That makes no sense to me. (In fairness to the program, this was during the fitness test part of it. We didn't get past that, so I have no idea what the actual workouts are like. I'm guessing they're not much better, though.) I was afraid the Shred would be similar, but pleasantly surprised when I found out it wasn't! Just when I start to feel like I have no more of that particular exercise in me, it's time to move on to something else. She works you through 3 cycles of 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs, breaking all of those cycles into about 30 second groupings each. These are more or less non-stop, but since you're constantly changing, it's easy to catch your breath...and she's not asking for 1 minute of frog hops followed by 1 minute of burpees. Thank God.
By the end of the workout, I feel like I did some good work, and I only spend about 25 minutes doing it! Which then makes me feel like I should probably do more. I know Puppy, Light would settle for a long walk;)

I still enjoy running every other day, but I know that it's important to keep other methods of exercise in your rotation. Your muscles need to rest, and using the same ones every day gets repetitive and eventually, ineffective. With the 30 Day Shred, you're supposed to do it every day for 30 days, but I haven't determined if I really want to add it onto my running days or not. I think I might go casual in my time with it.

For me, it's a great option for circuit training, since I HATE doing circuits on my own. I suppose most people would want a gym membership for group classes, but I'm a firm believer in that fitness should be free, and Youtube makes it so! I just hope Jillian feels the same;)

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for the positive review of her program as I've been curious but didn't want to buy it. I know a lot of people love it!

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  2. I own the 30 Day Shred & was hurting so bad the day after I did it that the front muscles in my neck were even sore!! I have no motivation to work out whatsoever & I don't know how to change that. It's to the point where I am extremely depressed about my weight & lack of motivation. I can't run due to severe shin splints & my allergies prevent me from staying outside for long periods of time. How do you stay motivated, Jamie? I also feel like I do the exercises wrong which is why I always hurt so terribly after I exercise. Any advice? I'm really struggling with this.

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    Replies
    1. Chrissy, honestly, what keeps me motivated are the statistics; something like 80% of people who lose weight gain it back plus some. So I've done my research on those who have kept it off, and the way to keep it off is to a) continue tracking and b) exercise. Changing your diet is the best way to lose weight, but exercise is the best way to keep it off. I've started thinking about exercise like I think about showering. I don't always love it, and I don't always want to do it, but I do it anyway, because I know I need to. And afterward, I always feel great! I have to remind myself of that.
      Watching the changes in my body helps the motivation, too...I love my muscles!;)
      The thing about being sore is that it's going to happen at first. Your muscles get sore because they're not used to being worked like that, but it's a good thing...even though it feels pretty awful. Programs like the 30 day shred will definitely make you sore at first, but take some ibuprofen and work through it. I often find that exercising sore muscles helps them to feel better. And keep in mind while you're doing these exercises that you don't need to kill yourself. Don't push yourself too hard; follow the modifications, don't use weights until you're ready, take 5 second breaks when you need to. As with anything, you need to work up to it. And the 30 Day Shred really is intensive if you're not used to working out. Try something a little lighter at first. Zumba is an excellent workout, and it's fun!
      As for your shin splints: Did you try rolling your shins out? I know we talked about that a few weeks ago. If that didn't work, it might be the type of shoes you're wearing.

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