Goodbye 2018!

Crazy to believe that 2018 is almost over. I'm ready to move forward to 2019 for sure, but moving forward always makes me nervous. Some big things happened in 2018: I turned 30, which was a huge and kind of scary milestone for me, I really struggled with some dark depression there for a few months, the house caught on fire, and I spent the half half of the year living in a hotel (which I'm still at; more on that later). The idea of turning 31 is just as startling as turning 30, and hotel life is still kind of difficult for me to get used to. I'm not here on vacation!! But some days, it sure feels that way, especially with so many vacation days that happen at the end of November and around Christmastime. All the baking and iffy eating has caught up to me. While I was gaining weight according to the scale, my clothes fit the same, and I could see positive changes in the mirror. I got some of my clothes back and a couple pairs of pants are really difficult to button. Others still fit well. I'm not sure what's going on. I'm trying to remember if some of these pants were tighter before, but to be honest to myself, even if these clothes were tighter before I know that my nutrition has not been that great. It's a work in progress. I'm making sure to try and clean it up a little (now that Christmas is over, I'm hoping that will be easier, but being out of your home and having limited fridge and freezer space makes it all way more difficult than I thought it would!) and I'm confident that even if I can't get the weight off, I can at least get my body back to where I was! We were moved to a different place in the hotel; we're now in a two bedroom, two bathroom suite. So the whole family is together (previously we were spread between two rooms) and the living room area is large enough that I can do Body Shred without any space issues! In our previous room, I had about a 3.5ft by 6ft space to do it. I made it work, but this is much easier! I'm on the second week of workouts 3-4, and I move to 5-6 tomorrow. Workouts 3 and 4 are really tough! Burpee and planks galore. I'll give a good review on them soon.

I'm not sure if there is anyone who actually reads this, but the idea that someone may be reading makes me happy. The idea that I may inspire someone to do their best when they've been faced with a big tragedy or adversary (such as a house fire) is exciting too. I just want to inspire others this year! I want everyone to know that they CAN do it. If anything, I have confidence in you.

Entering Body Shred

Hi everyone! Hotel life is going all right. I could get used to having breakfast cooked for me every morning. ;) That makes it hard in a way though, it's so easy to pick the wrong choices OR eat too much. Would it be weird to take my own measuring cups down to where breakfast is served to get the right portion size? Yeah, didn't think so! I'm trying my best to make healthy options. Being stuck in a hotel without knowing if you'll be moved to another hotel or moving to another more permanent, yet still temporary home makes it difficult to really make plans, work out a schedule, and even just liven up your room. Christmas is 15 days away, but I've not done much about it, except bake. A lot. Chocolate and peanut butter fudge, cookies, brownies... the sweets seem endless! I'm really struggling with eating healthy right now. I can't say I would struggle like this as much at home, but I don't know. At home, I can at least go to another room or do something. Here I'm a little stuck.

Current workout is Body Shred! I started yesterday after inquiring in a Jillian Michaels group on Facebook how much space one really needs for it. I thought why not!? I was looking into some BeachBody workouts such as LIIFT4, Core De Force, or even 80 Day Obsession. 80 Day Obsession says you need a 6x6 space. I have about a 4ish by 6ish space. I noticed a lot of the workouts for Beach Body are longer, but have a few minutes where each move is explained. In some moves I'm grateful fo that, but in others I've done it so many times I don't need an explanation. I'm hooking my laptop up to the tv and playing workouts through a flash drive as it's all I have right now, and it's difficult to fast forward. I'm familiar with Jillian so I thought, why not? Body Shred always intimidated me, but I've got the first two days done and tomorrow is the cardio day. So far I enjoy it a LOT. Phew! It's Jillian's classic 3-2-1 style that 30 Day Shred and Ripped In 30 has, but in a group setting like Body Rev. And some of my favorites are back! Kenta, Jamie, Omar (!!) and more! So that's cool. Like I said, only in week 1, just started yesterday. Hopefully I'm not biting off more than I can chew!

Checking in again

Hello to anyone who may be reading this! Thanks for dropping by!

Sorry for the lack of posts here lately. Things have literally been CRAZY! I want to go into details, and I promise I will, but here are some highlights.
- Summer came and went. I got a lot of Stand Up Paddleboarding in, which was great! I love being out on the lake and exploring new places on the water.
- I went on a vacation for the first time in years - first time going anywhere with my new body! I went to Washington DC, which is one of my favorite places to travel to. I can't say that I didn't spend all of my vacation recreating photos, but, uh, I spent some time taking photos so I could compare. I mean, I know I've changed, but it wasn't until I saw a side by side photo that I realized that I'd really changed. It was amazing. My my vacation was filled with lots of activity that I'm not sure I'd have been able to do before my weight loss. On our last day there, I walked almost a half marathon around that city AND rode a bike.
- My house caught on fire. I'm currently living in a hotel. I'm not sure exactly how long I'll be here, but our home won't be livable for at least another six months. Everyone was safe, including our little dog, and that's all that matters. But with that, I'm still trying to eat healthily (or as healthily as possible with limited kitchen space, kitchen utensils, and more) and get my workouts in. Our hotel does have a lovely fitness center and our rooms are VERY solid. I've done several Jillian Michaels workouts the last two weeks and I've had no complaints from neighbors. Family members (my parents) are in the room above me, and they let me use their room to work out in if necessary. It just usually depends on where my weights are. This has been a major challenge to me and I've been so nervous that this may be my downfall to weight loss. I'm not exercising nearly as often as I was, and diet and nutrition is tough. But that said, I'm hard on myself with all that. Sometimes I wonder if I was overtraining and restricting calories too much. My clothes fit the same (or well, still in the same size; I've had to buy new clothes) but I just feel like there is so much more I could be doing. I'll elaborate more on this in another post. I hope that I'll be able to talk about my issues more and actually use this blog more!
- I have learned that I REALLY LOVE to run outdoors. I used to be a mostly-treadmill only girl. A run outside was a rarity. We did a LOT of walking in Washington DC, and every time we were out walking, it didn't matter the time or weather. There was always someone out running. It inspired me to give it a try. It didn't matter if it was rainy or really hot or what, they were out running. They were going somewhere instead of running on a treadmill. I wanted to give it a shot! While we were there, we'd watch their local news stations, and I heard about a woman who running and when was randomly stabbed. She passed away and I was really sad to hear it. It got me thinking again about running outdoors. This woman I never knew, never met, never heard of until she passed away and possibly wouldn't have heard of inspired me. Her story inspired me. So I decided to try something new in honor of someone whose story touched me. I got to explore places around my home that I never knew about and I've lived in the area for almost 30 years. I climbed up hills that at first felt like mountains that now I am able to run up no problem. (Well, we'll see what happens. In the hotel we're at, it's elevator only. I can't believe how much I miss stairs!)

So that's been a condensed (although it doesn't seem like it!) version of life lately. I hope to elaborate more on all of these in the near future and keep blogging about living in a hotel and still managing my workouts and healthy eating. This may be the biggest test of my fitness journey so far. Current workout: Killer Body. I was doing Body Rev again but I've done Killer Body so many times that I can remember it by heart.

Love to everyone, especially if you're reading this. <3

You are worth more.

YOU ARE WORTH MORE. 

You are worth more than the steps you take or your killer or not-so-killer workout. You are worth more than the calories you ate or didn’t eat. You are worth more than the size of your jeans or the number on that scale. You are worth more than what someone said to make you feel anything less than your worth. And what is that, by the way? It’s not a number. Your worth surpasses all numbers, even the infinite ones. No. Your worth is that you are you. You are the only one who is you, and that makes you powerful. That is your worth. 

Checking in!

Hey guys! How's everyone been? It's been a while since I've written something other than a DVD review and I wanted to check in. I think my last check in was more of a whining post about how I had been busting my butt with workouts and with my diet, but the scale was going up. Unfortunately, I think that's still the case, but I'm not sure. To be honest, I avoid the scale these days and try not to identify myself with a number. My pants size is still the same, so I'm guessing my measurements are staying the same also. If they have, it's only been a slight difference and I'm okay with that. I can't say that I'm not curious, but I'm also not interested in having my day ruined by a number because that's how I am. I'm still working on trying to find that balance of eating healthy but living a little, workout and rest, and everything in between. It's a work in progress! I never thought it'd be this tough. I did take a lovely rest week. I made sure to get all my Fitbit steps in, but I took a week off of all my two a day, intense workouts for more fun ones. It was so nice. I took several baths, I tackled my Amazon watch list and got to watch several movies I've been wanting to see, and truly enjoyed my week. Getting back on the wagon wasn't difficult at all and I was glad to be back. I was really burned out there, and that was definitely what I needed. :)

In other news, I've upgraded my Fitbit. I went from the Charge HR, which I had a lot of problems with, and went with the Versa. I was a little nervous sticking with the Fitbit brand after all the issues I've had it he past, but I ultimately decided to stay because the Versa is water resistant up to 50 meters and you can swim with it. (Or more accurately wear it while you're paddleboarding, or going up five stories to go down your favorite waterslide!) So far, I'm really happy with it. I've had it for a little over a month and I can't think of any major issues yet.

Did anyone capitalize on all the Jillian Michaels' DVD's at the Dollar Tree? I sure did! Right after Christmas, someone posted on Facebook that there were a ton of Jillian DVD's being sold at Dollar Tree. I went and lo and behold, there were an absolute ton of them, each for $1. I was so excited! I got Hard Body, Extreme Shed and Shred, Killer Cardio, Killer Arms and Back, 10 Minute Workout 1st Edition and 2nd edition, Beginner Shred, and Hot Body Healthy Mommy. I think that's all. I got the Beginner Shred and Hot Body Healthy Mommy simply because I didn't have them. I know Beginner Shred is awesome for beginners, and I am hoping I can get my dad or my brother to workout with me with the BegShred. I thought that the pregnancy one might be good for when you're coming back from an injury, but it's nice to have around just in case. ;).

I turned 30 in February! That is kind of weird to say. Turning 30 bothered me a lot, and still bothers me, to be honest. But I can say that at 30, I am the healthiest that I've ever been physically! :) (Well, physically if we ignore my hips and joints, haha.) And that's a wonderful feeling! August makes it six years that I've been on my health journey. I saw an old picture of myself from 2010, while on vacation in Washington DC. After maintaining this weight loss for over four years now, I don't always realize the changes, because I've gotten used to my face. I sometimes get discouraged now that I don't see major changes as often, but when I saw that picture, I thought: WOW! That my face. And my face is significantly thinner now. I see all the changes. I see it from point A to point... J (because at the end of the alphabet is the end of my life. I'm hoping I'm only 1/3rd of the way through!) I shared the post on Facebook after hemming and hawing for a couple of days. I really don't like old fat pictures, but I remembered again that the Julie from years ago deserves the ultimate celebration and the utmost respect. SHE is the one who got off the couch, started to play DDR, and then changed her life and grew into me. :)

Current workout is Killer Body. It's one of my favorites and I went back to it back in March, I believe. I have a confession. I didn't completely complete Body Revolution. I had four days left! FOUR DAYS! And then I caught the awful flu that went around. It knocked me out for three weeks in January. By the time I finally got my strength back, I felt like I couldn't do Week 11 and 12, and definitely not Cardio 3 with all I had lost while sick. I started back into fitness with some Youtube workouts. I found a lady named Pahla Bowers, and I really like her running in place workouts. I started 10 Minute Workouts, both editions and really enjoyed them, and then I started back up with Killer Body. So while I'm a bit bummed that I didn't quite finish Body Rev, I did do every single workout. It's not a huge deal, but 86/90 days. Booo. It'll happen though. :)

I'm going to start winding down now. Thank you so much for reading! Coming up. I'm hoping to have more reviews on some new DVD's I've tried recently, such as both 10 Minute DVD's, and Killer Cardio. I'm seriously considering trying 80 Day Obsession by Autumn from Beach Body. I love Country Heat, and if I do, I will talk about it as I go. Thanks again for reading!

Body Revolution - Phase 3, Cardio 3

Phase 3 cardio takes you through all four weeks of Phase 3, just like with the previous two phases. This one is pretty simple in which you do the circuit three times over, but the moves in general are HARD. Even Jillian herself says that this was probably the most vicious workout she's created and she wasn't lying. By the end of Cardio 3, I was dripping in sweat. It is the toughest Jillian cardio workout I've done personally (Workout 11 and Cardio 3 are about equal).

So, there are several different moves that last around twenty seconds or so. You start with windmills, and you quickly move from that to fast feet, knee thrusts on both sides, double jump jumprope, and jumping front kicks. She also has you drop down in plank for plank moguls. Then you do a purely evil few minutes of rockstar jumps, squat jumps, jumping lunges, and squat jacks. She has you do four high knees and then an up down/burpee. Standing mountain climbers, high knees with a rotation, long jump forward and two jumps backward, cannon balls. She has you drop down on the floor for plank taps, crab kicks (which I hate with a passion!), knee thrusts in plank, down dog thrusters, zig zag jumps, side burpees, single leg hops, and then finally, back in plank again for plank punches.

And you get to do this two more times!! 

It is tough. A ton of plyometric moves, lots of planks, lots of burpee variations. I did this workout in the summer months and also in the winter months when my home was pretty cold at night, and it didn't matter. I was dripping. But it's still a great cardio workout a super effective!

Body Revolution - Phase 3, workout 12

THIS IS YOUR LAST WORKOUT!! WOO HOO! You are a force to be reckoned with!

I'll be honest, after workout 11 I was scared for workout 12. Phew. But I really enjoyed it! Your warmup consists of plank taps, long jumps, and donkey kicks, which you do on each side.

Circuit one has you doing a lat pull on a one legged bridge, alternating plank rows, a tuck to a sprawl (which reminds me of boat pose spraws), and then alternating popups, which reminds me of surrender lunges to a degree. You repeat all this after doing your cardio, which is cannonball jumps.

Circuit two is a bit tough. She has you do what's called wheel pushups. I've never been able to get in wheel pose, let alone do a pushup, so I definitely modified. Then you do alternating dumbbell rows, which is sounds easy, but you go so fast that you definitely get your heart rate up and going! Next, get in plank, and get ready because you do reverse flies in plank, and then you do tricep kickbacks in plank. Repeat after zigzag jumps for cardio.

Circuit 3 has you doing sit up flies with your resistance band. Next you stand on our resistance band and go into a backwards lunge and then stand up and and do a shoulder press with your resistance band. You do that on the opposite side after you do squat jumps holding weights, which is super tough. You get to do it all again after you do your cardio interval, which is speedbag with kickouts. 

Last circuit in this last workout. I almost cried! Circuit four has you doing single leg squat jumps, and then bicep curls. Just simple bicep curls. Single leg squat jumps on the other side, and then dancing crab. Your cardio interval is side to side hops with weights. And then you repeat on the opposite side!

And then you cool down. What I loved about the cool down is once you're finish, Jillian bring the entire cast up. Everyone is clapping, and she congratulates you on completing the 90 days program, and reminds you that they're there whenever you need them.

I really love Body Rev. I loved seeing lots of Jillian 'regulars' in there like Natalie, Anita, Mimi, Kenta, meeting some new ones (I loved Teri Ann and Omar!) and just the whole workout in general. And to complete something that is three months long and build every week was great. I was never bored with Body Rev (except maybe the cardio's, since they did last the whole month, but that could be easily rectified) and while some of the workouts were SUPER TOUGH, it's my favorite program so far of it's caliber.

Body Revolution - Phase 3, Workout 11.

Okay. We're at workout 11. The first time I did Workout 11 for in Body Rev, I cried. Jillian is crazy. Evil. Demented. Pick your adjective and go! I will say that the second time I did Body Rev, I found workout 11 a little easier to manage (maybe because I knew what to expect and pushed myself harder on 9 and 10?), but it was still HARD. So far, I think workout 11 is the hardest Jillian I have ever done. So with that said, lets break it down!

As usual, you start with your warmup, which has overhead punches with your resistance band, down dog thrusters, fast squats, single leg mountain climbers, and high knees.

Your first circuit from hell has something calls reverse squats, where you get in a super deep squat, and then bring it up to a regular squat. Then you do scorpion pushups. And then you get into jumping static lunges with a shoulder press. My shoulders were burning! Oh, and that's not all. Your cardio is weighted burpees. What. Repeat on the other side if you're not dead. ;) It's only circuit one!

Circuit two has dive bombers, bear walks (which remind me of duck walk), and then tricep kickbacks in plank on both sides. Your cardio is crab kicks and you repeat on the opposite side.

Circuit three has jumping statue of liberty. Then she has you do pushups with your resistance band, so as you're coming up from that pushup, the resistance band is trying to keep you from coming up. Ohh the burn. You do statue of liberty jumps on the other side, and then she has you hold chaturanga. You cardio is standing mountain climbers and then you repeat all that on the other side.

And then circuit four is the circuit from Hell! This one is tough. First you go into dragon stance and do lateral raises. Then she has you do three part pushup. Where you're in pushup, and start with your hands fairly close together, and then you bring your hands wider, and then wider again. And then you bring it back up. So it's a pushup, a three part one. Phew. So tough! Then she has you do russian twists, and then as if that wasn't enough, you get in plank and do plank twists. Your cardio is long jump with two hops back, and then you get to do this fun, fun, fun circuit all over again!

And now, you may cool down. Oh man. Toughest workout in the whole program. I bet you did amazing!!

Body Revolution - Phase 3, Workout 10

On to workout 10, which is one of my favorites! Your warmup included rockstar jumps, which are favs of mine. It also has up downs with supermans, alternating push kicks, arm circles, 180 jumps (another favorite!) and butt kicks. You're good and warm to move on to circuit one with this warmup.

Circuit one has you in reverse plank with leg raises, which is a lot harder than it seems! Then Jillian has you do alternate jumping lunges with weights. As much as though suck, I got so excited because who would have thought that I would have been able to do that during week one?! She has you do another move which I really love, which is where you lunge backwards on one leg (lets say your right leg) and then as you come back from that backwards lunge, you push it forward and bring your left leg forward to kick it upwards. I loved this move because it felt extra dancey and kickbox-y. Your cardio is where you're doing lunge taps. I thought those would be pretty easy as you're in plank but moving your leg back and forth but it was tough. Anything that looks easy, especially in week 10, is an optical illusion! Repeat on the other side and you're on to circuit 2.

Circuit two has you doing a curtsey lunge with a fly using your resistance band. Then you get your dumbbell and do a woodchopping lunge. Then you hold a squat while holding your heaviest weight. You do woodchoppers on the other side, and then your cardio is dumbbell swings. Which is kind of like doing a kettlebell swing, jumping forward three times, and bringing it back three times. I actually used my kettlebell for this one the majority of the time, and I enjoyed it. And then, of course, you repeat on the other side.

Circuit three is a flying pigeon squat with a bicep curl. Next is a squat jump with an upright row, which I loved. You do pigeon on the other side with the curls, and then you get into superman with reverse flies. You repeat that after your cardio which is rockstar jumps with weights.

Circuit 4 is possibly my favorite. You do a yoga pose called half moon, you do single arm rows, and then you repeat on the opposite side, so you do each twice for the first half of the circuit on opposite sides. Your cardio is windmills with weights, which is one of my favorite cardio moves, and then you repeat both again. And guess what - you're done!

Enjoy your cooldown and beware - workout 11 made me cry. ;)

Body Revolution - Phase 3, Workout 9

Woot woot! You’ve got FOUR WEEKS LEFT!! :D Oh man, now we’re onto the last phase and things are really starting to heat up. I love weeks 9 and 10, maybe even more than 7 and 8! 

Like always, Jillian has you doing a quick warmup. You have speed rope, high front kicks, half squat with a round kick, jumping jacks, and then mountain climbers. Plank in the warmup? That’s when you know you’re getting stronger! 

Cricuit One has you doing something called pushup jacks. So in pushup position, you jump the feet out as you go down for your pushup, and then bring them back in as you go back up. Yeah, the girl is crazy. Then in plank, she has you doing plank flies on each side. Next is a really deep squat, where you go up on your tip toes as you go down. Your cardio is jumping jacks in squat, and then you repeat all that on the other side. 

Circuit two is something evil called dive bombers, which I had never heard of. It reminds me of creeping under a fence in a way, or diving down into a pushup from downward dog, and then into cobra, back into downward dog, when you go down again. Then you do sphinx pushups, which is as mean as it sounds. Then down dog series, where you bring your knee in to the left, center, and front. The you do frog into squats, which is kind of like a burpee. It reminds me more of bear into squat. Your cardio is side burpees and then you repeat all that again. 

Circuit three has a walk out into plank from standing all on one leg. Then you’re down in a chair pose, and then you’re doing boat pose into hollow man. Then you’re doing hip thrusts with your resistance band. You cardio is in plank and it’s plank moguls and then you repeat on the other side. 

Circuit 4 has some classic Jillian moves. You do a squat with a V Fly which I remember doing all the way back with the 30 Day Shred, and I still hate them :D. Then you do a curtsey lunge with a lateral raise. She has you get back down into crab and you do tricep dips and then into side plank for an oblique crunch. Your cardio is another classic Jillian move: Rock and Roll squats! I can do these, but they scare the crap out of me, so I usually modify. It sucks because I actually really love them, but I can see it ending badly. I feel like I need a pool of deep water near when I roll back up to standing! hah. And then you repeat circuit 4 on the other side. 

You’ve earned your cool down. Phew. 

Body Rev - Phase 2 Cardio

Phase 2 Cardio. 

The Phase 2 cardio workout takes you through all four weeks of Phase 2. So on your cardio days, you will do this workout, and you’ll do it a total of eight time during Phase 2. All other workouts you do four times.

So the cardio workout is pretty simple. There are 14 different moves that you do for approximately 30 seconds, and you repeat it three times. Get ready to sweat. Since it’s a cardio workout, you don’t need to warm up. The moves are jump rope, butt kicks, high knees, alternating knee thrusts, jumping jacks, fast feet, skaters, skiers, plié hops, cross jacks, half squat uppercuts, towel runs, hooks, and…boom! Thought you might escape those burpees, but they are ba-aaack! 

So, like I said, you do each of these moves for approximately 30 seconds each, and then you move on to the next one and repeat this circuit three times. The Cardio 1 workout is my favorite cardio from Body Rev, but this one is my second favorite (and then Cardio 3 is somewhere down in hell!). I did like having some uppercuts and hooks in there, and I'm all about those skaters, jump rope, and fast feet. There is one amusing moment during towel runs and Jillian is joking about how bad the workout sucks, and then she’s like, “Who’s the crazy person who came up with that? Hurts So Good, oh my endorphins!” I KNOW! John Cougar Mellancamp, and I love that song! Small towns unite! I always love when there are moments in a workout that I remember and look forward to getting to when it comes to doing them over again. 

Cardio 2 is definitely a step up from Cardio 1. I’m someone who likes cardio more than the strength training/HIIT training. 

Body Revolution - Phase 2, Workout 8!

Body Revolution - Phase 2, Workout 8!

All righty! On to workout 8. I really enjoyed workout 8. I liked the moves and I felt like we’ve really stepped it up to a better workout. You start this one with a brief warmup, like always. This one has side crunches (elbows to knees), cobra pose, and surfer getups on both sides to help get you warm and ready to work.  

Circuit 1 has you in a squat with a medium row, lat pulls while in bridge position, upright rows with your resistance band, and then a deadlift with hammer curls. You repeat that on each side after you have a one minute cardio interval that is butt kicks with hammer curls. 

Circuit 2 is pendulum lunges with a reverse bicep curl (so palms are facing forward) and pelvic thrusts with your resistance band. Those are the only two moves but you repeat them several times throughout this circuit (each side, totaling the up and down four times I think) and your cardio is jump rope with weights. 

Circuit 3 is evil. Live backwards is EVIL. Or is it love backwards? When you do this workout, that’ll make sense. It’s a Natalie moment. ;). You have been warned. You get in crescent pose, and bust out some lateral raises. As if your shoulders aren’t already on fire, she has you in Warrior 3, with your hands out holding the weights. You get to do it on the other side right away, and then you get to do rockstar jumps, and then you get to light another match for your shoulders. ;) 

Circuit 4 is a weighted good morning, a side lunge into a crossover lunge holding weights on both sides one one leg (you’ll repeat on the other both times), and then bicycle crunches with your band. Your cardio is suicide runs. 

So I really like workout 7 and 8. I really felt like I was finally starting to be challenged! I liked the previous six weeks, but I can’t help but wonder if I should have done the less intense workouts for a shorter amount of time, because at times it felt a little too beginnerish. Then other times I felt like I was really being challenged. That’s the beauty of Body Rev though! 

Body Revolution - Phase 2, Workout 7

You’re officially past the halfway point and now on to Week 7! I think Week 7 and 8 are my two favorite workouts in the program so far. Jillian really steps it up during the second half of Body Rev, and I really feel like I’m getting to push all those muscles I’ve been working the last 6 weeks to the max! 

Week 7 starts with a quick warmup with some side to side squats, lunges with stretch, and a few short cardio moves. Jillian warns that the warmup is deceptive and she’s right. I know I said I liked workout 7 and 8 the best sp far, but the first circuit is mean! Want to know why? It’s mostly in plank. Ugh! The first move is crow pushups. I hate those. Does anyone like them? Haha. Then walking plank. And then if your abs aren’t already screaming, you’re doing plank ups. She finally gives you a break while you roll over. ;) And then you’re doing jackknife crunches. But never fear! You get a break as you roll over to get back in plank position for your cardio interval. I bet you’re really looking forward to workout 7 so far! ;) 

It gets a little better. Circuit two has pike pushups, tricep kickback with your resistance band, and then w-presses on one leg as you extend your leg out. Cardio reminds me of DDR. You hop on one leg forward, backward, and to the side. I like to do up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, select start. ;) Or pretend I’m jumping on some arrows! I use weights instead of the band for my tricep kickbacks because my band is different than Jillian’s and it’s hard to do the move in the way she wants. 

Circuit three has you squatting with your elbows in a 90 degree angle while holding the resistance band, and then standing on the resistance band, bringing it behind your head and doing a tricep extension. Then on the floor you go to do a single leg pushup. It’s about as fun as it sounds, a pushup with one leg extended in the air! Then you get to hold boat post. Cardio is star jumps, and I’ve always enjoyed these :D 

In circuit 4, you do something that I’m going to call quad raises, because I can’t remember if Jillian had a technical term for them. You’re on your knees, and then you sit back, your butt touching your heels, and then you pop up, doing this while holding your heaviest weights up. You’re working your quads. Then you get on your back and you do chest presses. You can your feet on the floor with your knees bent, holding your legs 6 inches off the floor, or raising your feet up and down doing leg raises. Jillian says it all depends on what is hardest for you. I usually alternate between holding them 6 inches off the floor and doing leg raises. Next you do side plank crunches, and then you’re on your back doing the same thing, but instead of chest presses, you do chest flies. Your cardio is double under jump rope, and then you repeat on the other side. 

After a cool down, you are done! Woo hoo! After that terrible first circuit, this may be one of my favorite Body Rev workouts so far!