The Shred

So I purchased the workout DVD Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred about a month ago. It was a crazy time for us with school ending, CWE starting, and wouldn't you know our DVD player started acting up...thus creating the perfect excuse for me to not even tear open the cover of this DVD. However, in the past few weeks I have come to the realization (not new territory for me) that something had to give - I was lethargic and horribly out of shape, and I finally am just plain tired of it. So, yesterday afternoon I tore off the clear wrap on this DVD and actually set my mind to work my way through it watching on my computer screen. It boasts a short 20-minute workout that produces results in 30 days...now I know why. OH. MY. WORD. IT. WAS. AWFUL.

It was refreshingly "old school" in it's approach, but I am embarrassed at how few push-ups and jumping jacks I could actually do without getting winded. It's important to know that there are NO REST PERIODS in this 20 min cycle between intense cardio, weight lifting, and ab work - NONE. She allows you to catch your breath for 5 seconds only if you must...gee, thanks Jillian.

I am going to admit now that a lot of my making it through the workout was sheer stubborn pride. I used to train with a personal trainer. I used to compete in beauty pageants for crying out loud! What in the world happened?? So I was determined not to quit, and to be able to keep up. Therefore, after it was over I literally laid in the floor of my den and thought to myself, "Sweet Jesus, please don't let me throw up on the white carpet." I laid there for quite a while actually, wondering if I could even get up off the floor, listening to the DVD menu screen music repeat uncontrollably. Then I had a brilliant thought, "If level 1 is this hard, what in the world is level 3 like? Hmmmm... If I could only move my arm upward to the couch to push that button on the computer..." About this time, Turner woke up and I seriously wondered if I could pick her up out of the crib. I managed to get her up and "we" decided to lay down on my bed for a few minutes. After about 5 minutes of me trying to convince her to hide in the covers, read a book, (read: anything that didn't require me to move) she started saying, "Mommy, get up." over and over again...nothing like a little motivation from a 19 month old.

Needless to say, I was pretty sore today. BUT...I stayed on track and even convinced Mark to join me for day 2 tonight after dinner. Honestly, I saw improvement in my endurance in just one day - which reminds me there is NO excuse for how out of shape I have allowed myself to become. Mark had a similar experience to my Day 1 (and he's in much better shape than me). I just hope that he can comfortably handle luggage duty tomorrow in the hot parking lot at CWE!

So, 2 days down, 28 more to go! I hear Mark in the bathroom rattling the ibuprofen bottle now...as he exited the bathroom his only comment for me, "I hate you. Let me rephrase, I am going to hate you." :)