Well it's been a while since I've updated you all on my exercise progress. I do exercise because of it's innumerable benefits, not really because I like it (yet). So blogging about it many days of the week just wasn't working for me...
So I've reverted back to my 3-4x 45min a week routine instead of my 5x 30min a week routine. I was trying the 5x a week and frankly it was just too much and I wasn't seeing the fitness results I wanted.
FOR ME (not saying it's best for everyone), that extra 15 minutes for whatever reason really gets me more toned, makes me feel a greater endorphin rush, and it forces my lungs to work harder longer and I cough up more junk. So there you go.
Those who know me know that I do the eliptical I have in my house to work out and I use free weights to tone and keep my osteopenia at bay (BTW i'm now NORMAL in my spine and less osteopenic in my hip over last year....very exciting). But about 6 weeks ago I decided to mix it up and I bought an exercise video. VERY unlike me, but I wanted to see if I could be doing better by trying something new.
I listen to Jillian Michaels on the radio Sunday mornings to get inspiration to eat better (i'm on so many antibiotics, why buy chicken that's not organic, etc), use more natural products on my face, body, hair etc and of course exercise! So I figured maybe I'd try one of her videos. OMG I LOVE IT.
Let me be clear - I receive no benefit what so ever for mentioning her video, blah blah blah. I'm just posting this, like everything else in my blog, for the benefit of health of my fellow CFer's.
So why do I like her video? Well, it's 45 minutes (which is the time frame I like), and it combines cardio and weight training (but with my body weight, which is different) all in one. And HOLY COW my body has changed quite a bit over these past 6 weeks. I've only lost 2lbs (which I probably needed... I don't need to be 120 and 5'3), but I've gained a ton of muscle.
My upper legs, my arms, my abs - WOW! I've never been a team sports gal, or any type of sports gal except for tennis, so this type of muscle tone is something i've never had. So of course benefits of muscle tone are less risk for osteoperosis and less risk for insulin resistance, a component in CFRD.
So what I've been doing is my eliptical for 45 minutes 2x a week and this Jillian Michaels video 2x a week (oh here's the video http://www.amazon.com/Jillian-Michaels-Banish-Boost-Metabolism/dp/B001NFNFN0/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1241878375&sr=8-3). I do PFT's on Monday so I'll etyou konw how that goes.
But there's no doubt in my mind that mixing things up has really done my body good. I could barely do the whole video after pausing it like every 5 minutes, but now I only pause it every once in a while to catch my breath.... yey improvement!
How's everyone else doing with exercise?
BTW I want to give a shout out to She is a 47-year-old retired pathologist with cystic fibrosis. Julie’s professional career began at Stanford Medical School, where she spent 10 years in medical training. While at Stanford, Julie also worked in the Stanford Cystic Fibrosis Research Laboratory and she really focuses on wellness and exercise. I'd recommended RSS-ing her blog if you haven't already. Plus she has a schnauzer so you KNOW she has to be a cool woman!
FIGHT ON
You're going to look like Ms. Michaels in no time! Seriously though, that's awesome that you are so committed to that.
ReplyDeleteI also really like Julie's website. Good reccomendation!
Ronnie