Review of Jari Love’s Get Ripped: Slim and Lean vs. The Biggest Loser Workout: Power Sculpt

On Monday, April 20, 2009, Jari Love’s Get Ripped: Slim & Lean DVD came to me by way of Netflix. The next day I popped in the dvd and began what I think is a huge step in the right direction with strength training.

There is a major difference between Love’s Get Ripped: Slim and Lean workout versus The Biggest Loser Workout: Power Sculpt one. Although Power Sculpt is great, it lacks changes to really tear deep muscle tissue which is essential for building muscle. Consequently, there aren’t a lot of repetitions so after a few sessions of doing the workout, you can easily lift the weights, although you can go heavier once that happens.

On the flip-side, Slim & Lean wears down your muscles. You don’t just do 18 single count bicep curls and move along to another exercise. Oh no. Jari Love constantly changes the dynamics of the entire session. You count four up slow and down slow, then up two and down two, down three and up one, pulsing, and finally single counts–then you repeat this three to four times. It’s the same whether you’re doing squats, shoulder presses, lunges, dead-lifts, or triceps. When it comes to bicep curls I start out with eight pounds and then end up using five. As for shoulder presses? Oh. My. Gawd. I do one set with eight pound weights, do 1/4 of the next with five pound weights and then finish the second and third sets with three pounds in each hand–shaking and grunting to lift them!

Another difference between Power Sculpt and Slim & Lean is the length of the workout. The Biggest Loser workout is broken up into five segments: 5-minute warm-up, 20-minute sculpting section, two 10-minute sculpting segments, and a five minute cool down. Once you’ve gained strength you can tailor your workout to do all three strength training sessions which adds up to 40-minutes. Jari Love’s Slim & Lean workout is broken up into 15 segments–12 of them equal almost an hour (including the warm-up) and that doesn’t include the cool down.

Even though Jari Love’s Get Ripped: Slim & Lean workout is harder, beginner’s can adjust the amount of weights used and pause if need be. And like I said previously, The Biggest Loser Workout: Power Sculpt dvd is great. I really recommend it for beginners looking to ease in to weight training without half dying in the process. Make no mistake about it though, I used it for a few months before learning about Jari Love through a friend and felt it!

Three wonderful similarities stand-out to me between The Biggest Loser trainers, Bob Harper, Jillian Micheals and Kim Lyons, and Slim & Lean’s Jari Love; they are all very encouraging and definitely will keep you motivated, the workouts are fun, and you can tailor your workouts accordingly.

I’ve done the Get Ripped: Slim and Lean workout every other day since April 21st (minus this past weekend when I was camping) and can already feel a difference in my body.

My fitness goal is to do the entire Get Ripped: Slim & Lean dvd without stopping or switching to lower weights and then I’ll move along to Love’s cardio and strength interval training video.

Have a happy and healthy day!

Hugs ~ Sandy

Rev Up Your Sex Life with After Workout Sex!

Need some spice to your dead or dying marital sex life? Then let’s talk about sex and specifically why after workout sex rocks and how it can take your sex life to a whole new level.

When you’ve been married for awhile (we’ve been married 17 years), it’s normal for intercourse to become a bit mundane and dwindle from quite a few times a week to a few times a month. Although sex isn’t “the” most important thing in a marriage, it does rank up there with having a healthy and happy one. So, what’s a woman to do when it comes to revving up sex? Why, workout with or at the same time as her husband. And, if he isn’t into working out, bring his ass over to the computer and give him a good reason to. 

My husband works out at home in the mornings; he sets the alarm for 3:30 or 4:30 (depending on whether he runs or not) and leaves for work around 6:15. I usually don’t wake up at three-thirty but I do get up around 4:30-5am daily so instead of waiting until six, I go ahead and workout too. We do not workout together, but we’re usually done within 10-15 minutes of one another. Whoever finishes first takes a shower, but sometimes we take one together.

Regardless of your size, when you’ve finished a hard cardio or strength training workout, you feel sexy (once you’ve passed the dead phase). Also, cardio and/or weight lifting gets the blood rushing and we all know that sex enhancement herbs or drugs are all about getting the blood to places of desire–working out is a natural way to get those little red guys where they need to be.

My attraction towards my husband happens on several levels; I love the sounds he makes when lifting weights, the sweat trickling down his rock hard chest drives me wild, and his muscles appear enlarged and powerful which makes me want to touch, touch, touch.  His attraction towards me is seeing me working towards the goal and viewing the confidence I have when finished.

Feeling good about yourself, blood flowing throughout your body and the mutual animal attraction for one another are all perfect ingredients for an incredible sexual experience! You may also find yourself willing to try positions you normally wouldn’t do because your self-confidence levels are running high. I don’t know about your man, but if you’re an overweight woman like myself who try’s to cover-up the fat during sex with shirts or blankets–do not do it–my guy hates it and chances are yours does too. Why? Because it takes the focus of what you should be enjoying completely uninhibited.

Have a great day and try working out with your man!

Sore, Sore, Sore and the Cure for Soreness

I’m into day three of the May 2009 issue of Prevention Magazine’s strength training workout and yesterday and first thing this morning I was sore…make that sore, sore, sore!

I’ve been lifting weights every other day, as well as lunges and squats, since January but it didn’t prepare me for Prevention’s workout at all. The exercises require moving in to and out of the positions slowly. For instance, instead of just squatting and returning to standing position, you slowly lower into squat position to a count of four and then raise back while counting to two or four.

The reason counting in this manner works so well and feels so new to your body is because it confuses the muscles and makes them work harder. If you’re in need of a boost to your routine, you should definitely try incorporating the slow-count method in to your routine.

Yesterday I could barely move and this morning was the same way. However, I’m no longer sore due to a wonderful natural “cure” for sore and tender muscles…after workout morning sex with my husband. Cool eh? Of course, you’ll have to use your own hubby or significant other to cure the soreness though…which I’m sure they’ll be happy to oblige. 

I'm an Herbal Essence "Yesser" This Morning

“Yes, yes, yes”, were the words that came out of my mouth as two more pounds are now in my past. In total, I’ve rid 15 pounds since December. 

I wrote Melody yesterday and told her that I was dreading stepping on the scale today because of my bad eating days. She offered me up some wise words that echo those I’ve heard and read from Lara, “Don’t let yourself get focused with numbers on the scale.” Melody also told me not to get down if I gained or lost no weight, what’s important is getting back on track…again, many friends have said the same.

It’s much easier said than done, isn’t it? You try not to focus on numbers but something deep within cry’s to be at a lower weight. Despite all of the great advice I’ve received from others battling the almighty bulge, I still find myself stuck with placing great importance on that crazy red needle and which direction it’s headed. If the needle moves to the left, I have an almost orgasmic experience. However, if it remains idle or ventures to the right, depression kicks in and I FEEL like running to the snack cupboard and devouring everything in sight, but I don’t.

While trying to place less importance on what the scale reads is something I need to work on, I’m thankful that my mindset has changed for the better when it comes to other ways of dealing with disappointment over my weight–and that’s a good thing! 

Even the Dog Said, "Ewww" to Tofu!

To prevent myself from buying fast food when I was starving yesterday whilst out running errands, I grabbed some food (if you can call it that)from our local health food store’s refrigerator–Sweet and Sour Tofu.

You see, my friend LaVender once made me a delicious tofu burrito with onions and peppers and salsa–it was awesome–so I thought, this should be good. Wrong! The first thing that struck me when I opened the little container was the aroma; it didn’t smell like any sweet and sour food I’d ever had. The next thing was the appearance; it sort of, kind of, looked like chicken but something just wasn’t right. After that came the feel, I can’t quite describe it; it was a cross between jell-o and silly puddy. Finally, the taste–it was horrid, not to mention the “jellpuddy” texture. My 11yo dd tried it too and snarled her nose after a tiny bite.

After my daughter and I finished discussing this disgusting, so-called food, I tried to give some to our Boston Terrier, Pugsly. I threw a piece on the ground. He sniffed it and ran backwards and then he walked towards it again with caution, made a small “woof”, backed-off, and then finally ate it. LMAO!

25 Pounds in One Week?

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE The Biggest Loser but vehemently disagree with how contestants on the show lose weight. One man last night hopped on the scale and lost a total of 25 pounds for one week–good for him, but is it healthy? As an overweight woman who has been battling the bulge since my pre-teens and as someone who has taken off the same pounds over and over again, I can say, “No, this is not healthy!”

Throughout my entire life, I was able to lose weight quickly (for me a big weekly weight loss has been 7-8 pounds) but you know what–it always came back and with more weight to boot. It’s easy, you practically have to starve yourself or go on a fad diet like Atkins (although you lose uber amounts of weight it is not a healthy plan) in which fruits and veggies are restricted.

The Biggest Loser Contestants not only eat a low cal diet but they have personal trainers and workout from six to eight hours a day! This explains why so many Biggest Loser winners end up gaining tons of weight back almost as soon after the finale’–most of their weight loss from loss of water and explains the extreme loose skin factor. Also, the workout program on the show is not something most people can keep up with once they go back to their jobs and family–and there are no trainers or cameras anymore.

Though my weight loss has never been that extreme in the past, it’s the same concept; most of my loss was due to water–not this time. On average, since December of 2008, I’ve steadily lost 1-2 pounds a week. I’ve cut out junk food (except on occasion), workout from 30-50 minutes a day and have upped my intake of fresh fruit, vegetables, beans, whole grains and water. I don’t starve myself but I don’t overeat either. This is the first time I’ve made a lifestyle change with eating and exercise that is slowly but surely becoming a habit.

I LOVE working out with my Biggest Loser Cardio and Sculpting dvds EVERYDAY and I LOVE how I feel by eating healthy foods. Yeah, the weight is coming off painfully slow but everything I read says the people who are most successful at keeping weight off do it slowly and by making gradual changes–is it any wonder though? After all, if it takes a year or more to lose 40-100 pounds, you’ll have developed healthy habits that will last a life time versus quick weight loss at the expense of extreme workout and calorie restriction that when finished–most won’t be able to maintain and, therefore, the weight will come back just as fast as it was lost.

Finally, Well Enough To Workout And Introducing Melody Polakow

I still have a lingering cough but the cayenne powder, cider vinegar and honey keep it at bay, not to mention that me getting a full nights sleep has helped tremendously–and without sleeping pills! 

This morning I did the beginning and intermediate cardio blast from my Biggest Loser DVD and boy did it feel good. However, Jillian’s segment is still very hard for me, especially the “burpies” (sp) which is when you bend over, walk your hands to push-up position, walk your hands back, stand-up, jump, and repeat for what seems like an eternity. Man, I huffed and puffed the whole ten minutes but I did it.

Now it’s time to refocus on eating healthier again because for some odd reason, when I’m sick I decide to eat what I shouldn’t. How silly is that? I know that if I hate super-dee-duper healthy meals that the bronchitis would leave within a day or two, so I need to buckle down and make it happen.

A wonderful woman by the name of Melody Polakow shared her blog with me at a mom’s board online and it’s amazing. She’s a single mother and currently layed-off vegan chef whose teens live with her part-time. Her blog is called MELOMEALS and she shares not only how to eat spectacular vegan meals for $3.33/day, she also shares her financial and weight battles. I absolutely ADORE this woman and am looking forward to trying her recipes.

Be sure to pop-in and take a gander at her site, she photographs her amazing dishes and shares the recipes too!

Blah

That is how I’m feeling this morning after a horrible night’s sleep. Also, I’m sore as heck from pushing myself yesterday in cardio and not taking in near enough calories–it made for a long night.

The weight is practically falling off me this week but yesterday was the first day that I missed my early morning meal and it messed everything all up. We were out of milk, our son was sick, and the kitchen was a freakin’ disaster upon rising. Due to busying myself trying to get all of that done, by the time I got home from shopping it was nearly ten o’ clock a.m. before I had breakfast; starting my small meal eating ‘ritual’ at that time of day threw me all out of whack.

Yesterday morning I did my beginning 20 minute cardio segment and added in Jillian’s 10 minute segment and did the Zumba video. However, unlike my first attempt this week adding in Jillian, I kept up better but am now paying the price! My feet hurt like heck.

Another blah moment came when I had my first bubble bath (I’m a shower gal) for the first time in years. There’s no hiding bodily flaws in the bathtub, that’s for sure. Instead of having a nice relaxing soak, I sat there looking at my fat rolls and found myself getting angry (with me) for allowing myself to get so damned big–it was just like my shopping trip a couple of weeks ago.

I emerged from the bathtub a bit grumpy and then took my pissy attitude out on my husband, who was eating huge bowl of Breyer’s chocolate ice cream with syrup and whipped-cream on top, even though earlier I said, “Sure, you can buy some ice cream, it won’t bother me a bit”–Pffft!

Alright, I’ll focus on something more positive–I love my forearms, they’re beautiful, roll free and contain zero cellulite–and I don’t have cankles (whew!)

Food Log (30 Minutes of Sculpting)

Morning – Smoothie w/GV organic soy milk, blueberries, one banana, an orange, and a good handful of baby spinach

Mid-Morning – three eggs w/four pieces of turkey bacon, jalepenos and salsa.

Lunch – A big salad with red wine dressing

Midday- A mint choco square

Dinner – I don’t know yet

Glass of red wine

Holy Calories!

Yesterday my daughter’s Girl Scout troop went to lunch at Chili’s while on a field trip…which meant I went too. I ordered the endless potato soup and salad lunch (with honey mustard dressing) but had one serving of each. THANKFULLY, I prepared for what I knew would be extra calories by only having a bowl of cereal for breakfast because that meal alone contained 884 calories and over 55 grams of fat!

Also, because I knew I’d be going to Chili’s for lunch I did two sculpting workouts and cardio earlier that morning. Later that evening I did a few push-ups, squats and crunches with a medicine ball for about five minutes and cardio for ten by walking up and down on a workout step.

Out of curiosity, I hopped on the scale this morning and saw the needle on 222…Yay me!  It isn’t my official weigh-in day though so it doesn’t count, but I’m happier than a lark that I didn’t gain and instead dropped two more pounds!

For dinner last night I had a BLT w/light mayo and five pieces of bacon and french fries (baked)…I had my chocolate square too. However, due to eating heavier foods, I didn’t eat 6 small meals. That’s okay though, I think you have to allow yourself room for ‘off days’ by eating less and making sure to workout a bit harder to make up for it.

Oops, can’t forget about today’s food log:

Morning – orange and 1/4 watermelon

Mid-morning-blueberry whole wheat oatmeal

Lunch-a huge salad from Ruby Tuesday with peas, chickpeas, lima beans, spinach, purple lettuce, green peppers, onions, carrots (no cheese or croutons), black olives, and topped with light ranch dressing

Midday-chocolate mint square

Dinner-homemade chicken noodle soup

Glass of Red Wine

Woo...I Feel Good

My body was ready to go this morning even though my brain said, “You don’t have to workout today”–I ignored my brain and pumped out three cardio workouts for a total of a 50 minute workout. I have no clue what came over me, but damn it–aw heck, I’ll let James Brown speak for me…

Food Log

Morning – Half a cantelope

Mid-morning – fruit smoothie w/spinach

Lunch-big salad

Midday-Chocolate square

Dinner – I don’t know yet

Snack-Orange and/or Banana

Late night-glass of red wine

Heart Healthy Friend's Advice

The other day I spoke with a really good friend of mine who is 40 years old and has the cholesterol levels of a healthy 25 year old–what a great inspiration!

She works out 4-5 times a week, is fit as a fiddle and eats healthy. She also allows herself to eat food she likes from time to time like a Coke, fries, etc. After inquiring more about her healthy lifestyle, I’ve decided that I’ll try to implement a bit of what she does.

I’ll be having one square of dark chocolate a day and a glass of wine at night (unless I treat myself to a Pepsi or Coke). She says that by allowing herself one ‘treat’ a day, that she doesn’t have the urge to splurge on a chocolate bar. She does not ever eat crunchy snacks like chips, cheetos, etc. because she, like me, cannot ‘only eat just a few.’ Lastly, eating every two to three hours, having a salad as a meal (careful not to go over 7 grams of fat on dressing), and getting in 35 grams of fiber a day.

I’m going to try my hardest to incorporate her wisdom.

That said, here is the beginning of today’s food log:

Breakfast- Half a Cantelope

Snack-Banana

Mid-morning meal-Kashi Blueberry Cluster cereal w/1 cup of GV Organic Vanilla Soy Milk

Snack-Orange

Lunch-Big Hearts of Romaine Lettuce with 1 tomato, onions, jalepeno peppers, and 1tbsp of red wine vinegar dressing

Snack-60% Caco Dark Chocolate Square

Dinner-Fat Free Bean Burritos w/onion, lettuce, tomato, jalepenos, 1tbsp of hot salsa, 1tbsp of sour cream, and one large tortilla

One glass of red Pinot wine

Who Is That Girl I See

Or should I say, “Cow”? That description pretty much sums up my experience when I had to purchase a new pair of jeans two weeks ago–the ones that are now loose in the legs.

We don’t have any full body mirrors at home; when I do use them, it’s to glance quickly at my hair and fix it if need be. In other words, it’s been forever since I saw myself naked. My husband is normally with me when I shop for clothes so I don’t look in the dressing room mirror, I slip on the clothes and run out and ask his opinion. Anyway, this time I was alone…

When I saw my naked self in the mirror, tears filled my eyes and I was devastated. It was though I was looking an obese woman who I’d never seen before. This can’t be me, can it? “Yeah honey, it is you, there is no denying it,” said the voice in my head. I bought my jeans and promptly left the store.

On the drive home, I felt my blood pressure rise and when I stepped through the door I took it out on the family. “Hi honey. Hi mom. Did you have fun shopping?” were the words I was met with. I replied with a snarky, “Noooo”, then I headed to the kitchen…

My first desire was to go and grab some chips out of the cupboard and comfort myself. Filled with self-pity, I opened the cupboard door and was just about to reach in when reality set in–this is exactly how the obese woman in the mirror got that way. I closed the cupboard door, opened the broom closet and angrily began sweeping. Still feeling sorry for myself, I started emptying the dishwasher and clanking the dishes around so everyone would know it, lol.

After my small temper tantrum, I went to my room and wept. It was then that Donnie came in and spoke with me. He was very positive and supportive. He told me that there was nothing I could do about the past but I could change the future by working out and watching what I eat.

He was right. Tears and sorrow are not going to help me lose weight and get healthy. I needed to step up my workouts from three days a week to five or six and eat better…it’s the only way.

It’s been two weeks now since my dreadful shopping experience and I actually look forward to exercising daily. The pain I once had after working out is gone, but the Biggest Loser beginner segments of the tapes are still hard to get through. However, I’ve come a long way! I’m able to get in a few good jumping lunges and do a couple of regular, versus girlie, push-ups.

Lastly, I’m too embarrassed to post a picture of myself. But, so you know I’m not a size 10-12 fussing about being obese–I wear a size 20 in women’s Levis. I’m longing for the day I can wear a size 10-12 for the first time in many years.

Still Going

I haven’t been blogging but I have been continuing to workout and try to eat healthier. My official weigh-in is this Thursday but I hopped on the scale today because my jeans are a bit loose in the legs–2 pounds gone! 

Two pounds isn’t a whole lot but I honestly don’t believe it’s due to water weight. The reason being is that I’ve been eating less but not starving myself…and I’ve been working out.

It feels really good to wake up, have some coffee, workout, and be showered and dressed before the kiddos rise from their slumber. Having all of that accomplished by 7:30 am has helped give me energy, something that I normally do not have.

Most days, I rise and look forward to working out but I still LOATHE holding in push-up position and want to smack Bob (Biggest Loser trainer) up one side and down the other. LOL Seriously, I find myself cussing at him while my arms are about to crumble while holding up my entire body!

I’m looking forward to my weigh-in Thursday but won’t be disappointed if I’ve still lost just two pounds for the entire month–well, maybe a little. 

Thanks to all of you and your support! Your words of encouragement help keep me going. 

Love and Hugs ~ Sandy

Trials and Tribulations: Getting Through Them

Here it is, one week later and not one pound was lost.  Due to financial pettiness that came upon us, I was not able to go ‘raw, raw’ or completely vegetarian.

I ate as many fruits and vegetables as possible over the past week and only ate when I was hungry. Over the past two days though, I’ve had a couple of meat dishes — a helping of Hamburger Helper, and one sloppy joe with 8 onion rings. No popcorn or chips at night or through the day.

I’m going to continue carrying on! I think my body is resisting right now because it isn’t used to being worked out regularly and eating better. My butt, thighs and hamstrings feel nice and tight — I love the feeling!

After the first couple of workouts, my feet hurt extremely bad. However, I think it had more to do with it being easy, in our Florida weather, to throw on a pair of flip-flops — horrible for someone with arthritis in their feet. To combat the pain, for the past two days I’ve worn tennis shoes all day long and my feet feel a lot better!

Insomnia still plagues me. Last night I broke down and bought an OTC sleep med and slept seven straight hours, ahhhh, but I went to bed at 7:00pm because the night before I didn’t sleep a wink.

Today is a new day, right? The weight will come off, eventually, it has no choice. I think one thing that I’ve allowed to discourage me when trying to lose weight and eat healthy in the past was not losing weight ‘fast enough’; not this time though! My new attitude has to be one filled with not only positivity but logic — I did not get this way overnight, and I won’t lose it overnight.