Exiting the Asylum - Review time

Not sure if when one completes the Asylum workout they are leaving the asylum or should be committed to one for putting themselves through such torture.

I can tell you what to do though if you want to bust your rear for 30 days and not have much to show for it. Wanna know that secret? Well, it's easy, eat like crap! Yup, my diet has been so poor and life so busy that it all just fell apart. I did every single workout for the 30 days but my lifestyle just kind of squashed any visible results.

This does not say anything about the program though. The program is awesome. Probably my favorite so far. Despite the lack of visible results, my core, legs and butt are hard as rocks and my stamina and coordination are much better than before. One of my favorite parts of this program is the focus on the lower back. This has always been a weak area for me (well, actually my entire back and shoulders), but Asylum has improved that by immeasurable amounts. I am beyond thrilled with that.

Where did the program fall short? I think there should have been at least one workout that was devoted to more ab work. Most of the moves do work the core, but I would've like just a bit more ab focus. That is my only complaint.

Also, each workout is under one hour. Thank you, thank you! Who has more time than that? Most of them hovered around 35 to 40 minutes which is really ideal. You'll work damn hard for those 40 minutes though.

Below are my before and afters. Not much difference, but I did promise them and here they are.  Day one is the blue top, Day 30 is the grey.

LOL - these look like I took them on the same day and just changed the top - even my hair looks the same!  There is a teeny bit of booty lift in the side view though at Day 30.
But, I hope that if you are on the fence about Asylum my results don't deter you from giving it a try. This really is a great workout that I plan to do again.

What's next? Another great thing about Asylum are the hybrid program schedules included. Your DVD set includes a 30 day schedule for a Asylum/P90X combo and one for Asylum/Insanity. I plan to do the Asylum/P90X combo followed by another round of straight Asylum. By August I plan to hit New Mexico with my bikini in hand!

Asylum Day 10 - Third of the Way to Done!

Well, today marks the 1/3rd point in my Asylum workout program.  Lucky for me, Day 10 is a stretch only day because I am sore today.  This workout is killing my upper back and shoulders but hopefully in a good way.

What I can say about this series so far is that it is probably great for athletes looking to improve their game.  For people with the will power to follow the diet plan that comes with it, you'll probably get very lean and strong.  I though cannot follow the diet, or any diet, so I take what results I can get from just doing the workouts alone and attempting to eat better.  Notice I say attempting.  We will not mention the 10 chocolate chip cookie emotional eating binge last night or the box of Samoas that disappeared over the weekend.

Results so far - well, I did wear a somewhat fitted tee shirt today with my jeans.  I do not usually do that because of those darn love handles.  So, I guess my mid section has gone down somewhat.  Other than that, any visible results will be hard for me to pinpoint right now as it's been a crappy week and I just feel icky, ugly and bloated.  But the workout is fun and has been keeping my attention so that's a good thing.

One thing I love about this is that the workouts are all under an hour, most between 38 and 45 minutes which is ideal.  There is one workout called Game Day which is the mother workout and it is about 60 minutes.  I will do that for the first time tomorrow on Day 11.  Eeek!  I also love that the program lasts only 30 days.  After that you can chose to repeat it or do one of the hybrid programs outlined in the package which combine Asylum with either P90X or Insanity or just move on to something new.  It's too soon to say for sure, but I think the 30 day Asylum/P90X workout may follow for me.

Pics to follow at Day 30.  Would love to hear if any of you have considered this workout or what you are doing these days!

You can follow my girl Laura for more in depth reviews and info about each of the workouts in Asylum at her blog, A Mom's Journey to Staying Fit & Fabulous.  Fit and Fabulous she is too.  Laura has been doing Beachbody workout programs back to back and in combination for over a year and looks rockin'!  Go check out her triceps.  :)

Have a great week.

Jillian Michaels' Ripped in 30 - Week 4

Finally finished all four workouts and am putting this DVD to rest for now - I'm sure I'll revisit again when I am more committed.

Week 4 is the final week in this workout series and it did not disappoint.  Definitely a thigh and butt week for me.  I was feeling the burn!  The ab moves are more advanced this week as well.  Most of them I could not do due to a back issue but I was able to modify.  My only complaint with this workout is the actual ab work.  It is only 3 minutes a day.  Perhaps though if I was able to do the moves Jillian was doing I'd feel differently, but I really felt like adding in other ab work would've given me better results.

And speaking of results, how'd I do?  Well, I really didn't do this workout religiously week after week.  My mojo didn't come back until after I did the last workout.  For people doing the entire program 4-5 days a week and following the diet plan, I have no doubt there would be awesome results.  Even though I didn't follow all the rules and pretty much ate like crap, my butt and legs do feel tighter and my stamina has certainly increased (thank God).

I'd recommend this workout to anyone who's looking for a time saving, doable workout.  Looking to get into that bikini next month but don't have a ton of free time?  This is for you.  :)

What's next?  Well, my Asylum workout arrived last week and I couldn't ignore it.  I am presently on Day 5 of that workout and love it.  So far, no missed workouts and I feel great.  Stay tuned for more on Asylum.

Have a great weekend all!!  As always, I'd love to hear your workout stories.

Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 - Week 3

Sorry I'm a little late with the week 3 review.  Had a sore foot for a few days and needed to rest it.  But, week three is complete.  I'll be honest here and say Week 3 felt like a bit of a break.  Sure the moves were difficult and I did sweat, but they just didn't come together to result in a good enough workout for me.  Well, except for my triceps.  This is triceps week for sure!  So that I did like because those little guys are hard to work sometimes.  Shoulders and hips also come into play this week.

What I missed this week was all the core work.  I felt like Weeks 1 and 2 had a huge core focus (moreso in week 1) even during moves that weren't specifically defined "core" exercises.  Hopefully we'll see more core work in Week 4.

All in all though, still happy with the DVD.  There are some great workouts in here that I see myself using from time to time as a fill in or for a day where time is an issue.  I can't adequately comment on results as I have been pretty inconsistent (ok, very inconsistent) and my diet is still garbage.  But I do feel stronger and my core is getting tighter again which makes me happy.  With week three down the tubes, I can still wholeheartedly recommend Ripped in 30!  JM has a very good sense of what body parts cause the most trouble for women and how to work them well.

Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 - Week 2

Managed to get this workout in 4 times this week which was great.  The fact that it is under 30 minutes has been my saving grace.

Week 2 left me surprisingly less sweaty than Week 1.  I also didn't feel too much post workout soreness.  This week focused a lot on the shoulders and back - which are my weakest links.  Lots of plank work here.  In fact, one of the 2 minute cardio segments has you holding plank the entire time.  30 seconds of plank jacks, 30 seconds of moutain climbers (so hate those), repeat.  Needless to say, I found myself on my knees more than a few times in that 2 minutes.  Ab work was also stepped up this week.  I had to modify most of the moves since a back issue prohibits me from raising my legs (extended straight) and shoulders off the floor at the same time.  But it still felt like a good workout and my husband did comment that my butt felt firmer.  :)

What I'm loving about Ripped in 30 is that even when you are not doing the ab segments, almost all of the moves work the core in one way or another.  A strong core = a happy Betty.

Still not seeing a ton of visible progress with my body but then again, I'm still not eating 100%.  We've gotten much better but the baked goods just keep calling and I'm unable to stop at one (or three).

See you next week with the Week 3 review!  Happy weekend.

Jillian Michael's Ripped in 30 - Week 1

My usual workout routine becoming tiresome and never ending, it was time to change it up.  I finally opened up my new JM DVD, Ripped in 30.

This DVD brought me right back to where the whole getting back in shape thing started for me with 30 Day Shred.

Ripped in 30 consists of four workouts, each one intended to be done for one week before moving on to the next, more intense workout.  I can happily report that Week 1 is in the bag.  Each workout this week consisted of three circuits - 3 minutes of strength (3 moves, repeated twice), 2 minutes of cardio (2 moves, repeated twice), and 1 minute of abs (2 30 second exercises).  Week 1 left me a sweaty mess even though it was only 24 minutes.  My obliques and hamstrings were feeling it the most and I see some definition in my chest from the push ups.

Did I see much progress this week?  No.  Was it because Ripped in 30 is ineffective?  No.  My diet is crap!  I've been snacking like a bear getting ready for hibernation.  Hopefully I can leave this bad habit behind for Week 2.  Also, if this darn weather would start feeling more spring-like, I plan to do a bit of evening jogging.  The kids and I want to run the Maywood 5K again in May so I need to get ready.

No progress pics yet as I'm Still searching for my get up and go that got up and went before Christmas and I've had three 14 hour work days so far that just totally screwed up my schedule.  I will actually probably re-do week 1 before moving on to week 2 now that I think about it.

So, week 2 review next week. Oh, and there is a Ripped in 30 diet you can follow for optimal results.  I took a look at it but know it's not enough food for me, but a link is included with the DVD.
Anybody having trouble getting their workouts in?  Any new DVDs or exercise programs I should know about?

Good Earth Tuscan Chicken Pasta - Review

As much as I hate prepared or packaged convenience foods, I do have to keep some on hand for those days when we are just rushing around and my brain can only conceive of calling out for pizza.  Bad for my wallet and not the greatest for our bodies.  Typically, I try to find the least unhealthy things available.  We may resort to this type of thing once a month or two.

Last shopping trip to ShopRite I picked up a box of Good Earth's Tuscan Chicken with penne pasta - a General Mills product.  Sounded pretty decent.  100% whole grain pasta, zero saturated fat, natural flavors, add your own chicken (cuz prepared foods that contain "meat" totally gross me out) and less sodium than a box of mac and cheese at a mere 570mg per serving, not too bad for a packaged meal kit.

My initial thoughts upon opening the box and removing the contents were wow, there is no way this is enough for 5 servings, which is what the box claims to contain.  In preparation, I doubled up on the pasta which I always have on hand and added some chicken sausage in addition to the cut up chicken.

Taste - it was pretty good.  I did go back for seconds and the kids ate it without complaint although my daughter inquired as to what the "green stuff" was (it's parsley).

Prep - fairly easy.  Although, on nights when I need a quick fix, I'd prefer a one pot or one skillet meal.  This required a whopping two as I had to cook the pasta separate from the chicken.  Then, of course, there was a colander involved as well.

Final thoughts - if it was on sale or I had a coupon, I may purchase this again.  I liked that I could use leftover rotisserie chicken meat rather than cooking up some raw as well.  The serving size however is slightly inadequate for our family, so that 570mg of sodium is actually greater based on our actual serving size.  The ingredient list was fully pronounceable, I knew what they were and didn't mind putting said ingredients into my kids.  Overall, a good thing to keep on hand for those crazy nights where dinner plans just weren't made.  This did taste good the second day as leftovers as well.