100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 79: Killer Bootcamp Workout

Bikini Bootcamp workout is tough.  What more can I say.  Every Tuesday and Thursday, I plan to go hard with it, all 75 minutes of it, but ummmm...after five minutes I think, "What planet was I on when I thought that?"

This workout is NOT for beginners.  It's NOT for anyone who does not workout regularly.  I like it, but I still feel like I cannot give it my all till I get in better shape.  One day! Soon!

I'm not giving up on the challenge, which I could easily do and pick some other workout for Tue/Thurs. I'm not! Heck, at this point 30-Day Shred looks like a walk in the park!!

But I have to be honest.  Working out is NOT my problem.  I will do it. I will get in at least 30 minutes every day, of not more.  My problem is nutrition.  I KNOW what to eat, but I don't follow that much.  I have a problem with late night snacking and I have a problem in general eating more than I should.  And then I compensate overeating with working out like crazy.

Yes, you heard right, this certified personal trainer STRUGGLES big time with her weight because I can't commit to making this a LIFESTYLE change.  I'm still a work in progress. 

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 77-78: A little of this, a little of that

Can I just say that my arms are still SORE from the boxing on Monday!

And I did indeed workout yesterday, just could not move my arms to blog about it.  It was Bikini Bootcamp night, but erri uhhh, my arms were telling me no.  I tried my darnest to at least get in 30 minutes, but only 15 and I was DONE.  So maybe what I needed was something easier and way fun.

Wii Zumba Fitness!!  I did that for 20 minutes and was feeling it.  While I was at it, I through in some Just Dance 2, about 10 minutes

workout time: 45 minutes

Today, I just wanted to dance, dance, dance! So I did a bit of Just Dance 2 (10 minutes) and then I wanted to see how long I could go at MJ Experience.  A whole 60 minutes!!  I was trying to earn top stars, but still only 5 stars for Thriller but I have a lot of 4 star routines.

So a little of this, a little of that and I still get my workouts in.  Woo-hoo!

Workout time: 70 minutes

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 76: Wii Boxing

First of all, I love boxing, period.  Okay, maybe not watching the actual sport, and maybe I don't ever want to box in real life, but boxing for fitness is AWESOME!

I checked out Gold's Gym Cardio Workout from the library and thought I would give it a try. It's mostly a boxing workout and ...I wish I could review it for you but um, this game is a joke!  I could not get to the meat of the game without doing whatever magical thing I was supposed to do to unlock the good stuff.  What I did do was fun, but just not enough.  That made me mad!!

And I wanted to really box!

So I put in Wii Sports and did the boxing game there.  I quickly got dealt with.  My first match the little Mii was killing me.  I worked HARD to scrape through  that one. Whew!  I won that one and my next match was no better.

These Mii quickly had me from the start.  I got knocked the heck out like a punk.  Whoa!  I was good at the game at to this match.  It was embarrassing.  Maybe I need to train more.  So I went to the training section and worked on my punches. Yep, even they were weak.  So you may see me doing a lot more boxing in my next couple of workouts.

Works the arms, works the abs, burns the calories.

Workout time: 30 minutes or so, I really lost count. 

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 75: MJ all night long!

Yes, MJ Experience to the rescue again!  This is my go to when I really don't wanta workouts (I actually have a couple).  It's like playing a game, not a workout.  Trust me, calories will be burned, be warned.

In fact, my sister was over yesterday and thought, "Hmmm, maybe I'll do a few songs with you." Now she is not fit at all.  She was sweaty after ONE song.  It's fun enough that you want to do more though...she stopped at two songs.  Trust me, you kinda have to be in some kind of decent shape to keep up with these moves.

That said, you still can play for fun if even if you can't keep up.  You will be laughing on the floor at yourself (or others laughing at you if you do it with an audience). 

Total workout time: 40 minutes

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 74: Even on those days...

When you just don't want to do anything, DO IT ANYWAY!!

That's how I felt about my workout tonight. Tired, late phone conference, washing a load of clothes, would rather be writing...but BAM! I had to get my workout in (especially since I missed yesterday).  Tonight was Bikini Bootcamp and I REALLY did not want to do it because it knocks out all the little energy cells I have left.

BUT I DID IT ANYWAY!

Mind over matter, and my mind can get pretty lethal when it wants to. So I pushed play, did my workout and I feel a whole lot better now.  I went easy on the weights because ummmm...yeah man, it's TOUGH.  Next week I am going all out, now excuses.  Ain't no stopping me now...

Workout time: 40 minutes 

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 74: Put everything into it!

I sweat so much I think my sweat sweat!

Bikini Bootcamp Challenge tonight, what can I say.  I can't feel my arms! I can't feel my legs!  But its all good because I worked it out! I gave it everything I had, even when I wanted to quit (sometime around the warmup). And I had to do a late workout because I was out late, but I still got it in.

And since variety is key, I plan on switching things up and doing a workout I have not done in a long, long time tomorrow.  I have workouts I have never even opened so maybe I will do that.

Workout time: 60 minutes

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 73: Burn some calories, have some fun

I did a round of Turbo Kick tonight.  Woohoo!  It got me sweaty!

It's tough, but FUN! And if a workout is not fun, why do it??  So say, if Turbo Kick, or Turbo Jam, or P90X, or Hip Hop whatever too much for YOU, do something that is fun for YOU!!

As much as I like to blast calories fast and hard, I also enjoy walking.  And I mean looooooong leisurely walks, not jogging or running.  I like walking for hours if I could, just thinking. Slow burn but still a burn.  Okay, okay, so maybe you don't want top walk for THAT long.  Still, walk for as long as you can and try to increase it every time.

Other low impact workouts I enjoy is riding my stationary bike.  Or if you can't walk outdoors or on a treadmill, try Leslie Sansone's Walk Away The Pounds.  Love those workouts!  I think I may do one and review it this week.

There's also many, many low-impact workout DVDs out there. You don't have to get the most popular, hottest, trendiest workout out there.  Everyone has has heard of Insanity, Zumba, Hip Hop Abs, P90X, Turbo Fire, Chalean Extreme, Tae Bo, The Firm, Yoga Booty Ballet, 30 Day Shred, The Biggest Loser workouts and many, many others (and I have all these and more), but really, go to the dollar store and find some workouts.  It still gets the job done. Trust me, I have plenty of those as well.

Don't spend a lot of money! Sure, the pressure is one, these programs WORK!  But any workout works if you stick to eat AND eat correctly.

Workout time: 45 minutes Turbo Kick, 23 minutes MJ the Experience

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 74: 100 minute workout

60 minutes on the Wii MJ the Experience! I can never get bored with this, BUT I may be giving it a break for awhile just so I can get different workouts in.  If I do it at all, it will be for fun and not fitness.  When I play with the kids, it's more like fun...although, I get more competitive with my moves because I want to win.

30 minutes of Bikini Bootcamp! Wow!  Even though I did 60 minutes of it TWICE last week, my body was not feeling it today...maybe because I did MJ first.  All I know is, I listen to my body when it wants to quit.  I think I did a little more than 30 but I'm rounding down (I took several breaks)

10 minutes of Hop Hop Hustle 5.  And I did this only as a review of sorts. I will be teaching this to some others and had not done it for nearly two weeks.  I will add 10-20 minutes of Hustle everyday just so it stays fresh in my mind.

Total workout time: 100 minutes

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 73: More MJ

I really don't feel the need to blog EVERY day when I seem to be doing the same things over and over again.  Again, Michael Jackson the Experience.

Today I did it just because I felt lazy.  It still is a great workout, but you don't have to put much effort in it.  Just dance! I guess the challenge for me is to try and hit perfect scores and do better than the last time.  The only one I can get 5 stars is "Thriller." Next to that is "Smooth Criminal."  All the rest I have a long way to go.

I think I will get back to my normal, non-Wii games now, and really focus my fitness.  Tomorrow is Bikini Bootcamp, and since I missed yesterday, I better hit it hard!

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 72: Dancing Machine

Dancing, dancing, dancing! I'm a dancing machine!

Yes, more Michael Jackson.  I wanted to see if I could do all the songs back to back, no breaks.  26 songs that lasted 2 hours 15 minutes.  The only breaks were between songs 30-60 seconds.  I kept walking in place between songs.

Was it tough? Not really. It was getting harder toward the end.  And I got a little emotional missing MJ on a could of songs.  Next I might try seeing how long I can go with Just Dance 2, buuutttt...I know there are way more songs, so maybe just half.

Tomorrow, Bikini Bootcamp!  Woohoooo!

Workout time: 2 hours, 15 min

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 71: Wii Zumba Fitness

This was my second time doing this workout and oh boy! It does NOT get any easier! It does get more fun!

Every time you are doing this you learn a bit more of the steps and so therefore can put more into it.  I did the same 20 minute workout and this time, I was not dreading it toward the end! I actually wanted more.  But I put in Just Dance 2.

Zumba is fun because I like to dance.  And at the same time, it's a workout!! It does not get any better than that.  Love, love, love it! MJ the Experience is still my fave.

I always say, if your workout is not fun, you won't want to do it! So find what it is you LOVE to do and it does not feel like a chore.  If you like to walk, walk every day and a lot! If you like to run, run like the wind! If you like to dance (like me) then dance, dance, dance the night away! If you like to ride a bike, just do it!  If you like traditional type aerobics classes, just sign-up for it and go for it.

Make each workout a party!

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 70: Bikini Bootcamp Workout 2

My second workout with Bikini Bootcamp.  It ain't getting any easier!

I like the format of the workout. After the warm-up, Cardio Camp starts.  In this section there are several sections where moves are repeated for a few rotations.  My fave is Cardio Block 2 where it is kickboxing.  I totally nail that section.  In 4 there is also a few boxing moves.

I'm pretty excited to start seeing some results!

I did do 30 minutes of the MJ Experience before I did Bikini Bootcamp.  And now I can't feel my legs!  I skipped most of the ab section though.  I have to work my way up to doing that.

Workout minutes: 90 minutes

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 69: Michael Jackson the Experience

I am TOTALLY addicted to this game!

3 hours I did this game with little breaks in between! It was actually when I stopped to do Just Dance 2 that the dances were putting me into overdrive (and my kids play better at that one than MJ so I had to go hard).  I LOVE every routine, even the easy (slow) ones where in the videos he did not dance much so they had to come up with some simple moves.

My fave may be Dirty Diana, but I also like Thriller, Beat It and Billie Jean because who did not try to imitate those dance moves!  But then, all the Off the Wall album songs would be next. OMG, what can I say. Love Michael! His music! His dancing! Yep, I have it bad.  And I am a true fan, not fair-weather, I always was on his side, through it all.

I wish I knew how many calories I burned. At least 1,000! I know I weighed myself when I got home because I felt bloated from eating pretzels, and then ate a salad, played the Wii for 3 hours, weighed myself again because I knew I dropped lots of water weight and yep, down 2 whole pounds.  So I am drinking heck of water right now to hydrate my body.  So trust me, this is a real, REAL workout!

I'll be raving about this workout in many more blogs I'm sure.

Total workout: 3 hours! Woohooooo!!

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 68: Bikini Bootcamp Challenge workout 1

And so the pain begins!

On twitter and facebook Jeanette Jenkins the "Hollywood Trainer" and Kelly Rowland challenge everyone to joining their Bikini Bootcamp Challenge for the months of April and May.  Participants arse to do this workout every Tuesday and Thursday.  I though, why not! I quickly ordered the DVD and put a rush on it.

It arrived yesterday and I popped it in today. I heard that it was tough, that many could not finish the complete 75 minutes.

I guess I can hold my hand up in that group!

But I hold my head high! I did 65 MINUTES!!  Yeah boy-eeee!  I did fast forward a couple of moves that I, ahem, don't like, but I'll master them before the end. 65 minutes of this workout, first time out is TOUGH.  I won't even sugar coat this, THIS WORKOUT IS NOT FOR BEGINNERS!

Several reasons why:
1. She gives no modifications. Okay, maybe like one, but she only tells you what to do, she does not show you.

2. The moves are advanced and can be hard on the joints.

3. There is no "breaking it down" of the moves, you just jump right in and do it.

4. She uses weights, and she suggest heavy weights, and I think a beginner need to stick with light weights or no weights at all.  By all means, if you're gonna do it anyway, PLEASE use light weights.

I would say this workout is for someone who works out often and not afraid to do the hard stuff and sweat like you showered in your clothes!  And that's just during the warm-up!

There are several sections

Warm Up
Cardio Camp
Chisel Camp
Ab Camp
Stretch camp

All pretty challenging (except the cool down) in my opinion, but challenge is good! I felt like I wanted to stop, but did i? No way!  I modified it myself, even when she did not show modifications. Someone with some experience working out would know how to modify moves without being told, I'm just saying....

And all that and I say, THIS workout will get you bikini ready in about 8 weeks (granted you do it as planned, workout the other days and eat clean foods) .  The calorie burn on this I'm sure is crazy.  The back of the case says "600-1000 calories." I feel Iike I was close to that low end, because I did not give it my all, and did not do the complete 75 minutes.

Can't wait till Thursday and do it again!

Total workout time 95 minutes (Bootcamp plus more MJ Experience)

100-Day Exercise Challenge Day 67: Wii Fun tonight

I think I did way too much tonight but had so much fun!

First, Michael Jackson the Experience.  What a workout!  I love, love, love it! I am a BIG MJ fan and loved his dancing in videos. Now I can do it just like him!

There was a warm up, but it was static stretches which you should NOT do in a warm-up! Dynamic stretches AFTER you warm-up by doing light activity.  I had done some light walking in place before the stretches and I did not hold my stretches because the body is not warm and that's just no good!

After that, I had to figure out where to go first, then I selected my first song, Billie Jean which I believe was medium difficulty (wasn't paying attention).  It was fun and reminded me of the video.  At the end they rate you on a scale of 5 stars and I only earned one.

Then I did Thriller and it was so fun! I believe it was under the "hard" category, but if you know the whole dance routine to the video, it may not be as hard.  Welll, uh...I'm not that great at it, but I did receive my highest score and 3 stars!

Then I did Wanta Be Starting Something (medium) and had 2 stars.  Did it two times and 2 stars each time.  Bad (medium) I received 3 stars.  Dirty Diana, and you could pick to shadow Michael or the female dancer. I selected the female and that was cool.  It was like MJ and I were doing a duet.  I have to try that with a partner!  I only received one.

Then I did m FAVE MJ video Remember the Time. It was HARD! Fun, but geez, I thought I knew that whole routine, but of course it's slightly different.  My arms were getting a beating.  I only got one star.

All in all about 45 minutes.  I would have done more, so man more songs to pick, but I wanted to review the other games.

Next was Just Dance 2.  Never had any of the dance games, these are all my first.  I liked it, but it will take lots of practice to get most of those moves.  And I wish I knew more than like 1 of the songs.  I did about 7 songs for about 25 minutes.

Last I did Zumba Fitness.  Wow!  I LOVE it! It was hard.  I wouldn't recommend it for a beginner unless a) you pick up dance moves quickly, b) you just love to dance no matter what or c) you're just doing it for fun!  This is quiet the workout and just like the classes I took.  This is a MUST if you are a zumba fan and can't make it to a class.  Try it!

I only did 20 minutes....and barely.  My whole body was on fire at this point and  could barely raise my arms.  I was about to quit just as I noticed I was on the last song so I decided to stick with it.

There was a GREAT cool down that was perfect after my long workout.

All these work great as a workout.  I recommend them highly!  If you like to dance like me, get ready to sweat it out!  Also, in between songs and set-up, KEEP MOVING! Walking in place, walk side to side, grapevine, walk in  circle, whatever, just MOVE!  You have to keep the workout cardio by staying in motion.

Total workout time: 90 minutes