reclaiming me

Friday: OFF

Saturday: PBS, OIP/HF, TWO I’d planned to also do core, DD, and AL…but we had a fire in the fireplace. By the time I was done with TWO, my hair was soaked from sweat, and I was tired of dripping. Plus, I expected my parents to arrive within 1/2 an hour and kind of thought a shower might be a courteous idea.

Sunday: MORE, with my mom. While I did the moves, I mostly worked with and helped my mom with her form. She’s been doing MORE 6 days per week since I gave her the DVDs 3 weeks ago — I’m so proud of her! Once she took off her baggy sweatshirt for us to work out, I could see changes in her upper body, especially the pecs and ribs. Of course, like me, she’s more of a butt/thigh person, so I’ve started warning her about fat shift and setting her thoughts that it’s a *good* thing. She’s excited about the April 14th clinic in Colorado Springs and might even make plans for some private sessions with Bekki after school’s out — she’s retiring this year.

After we finished more, I added the core series, DD, and AL. Mom noticed that my calves look SO muscular as I did AL — they’ve always had the muscle, but now enough fat has melted off that they’re downright CUT.

Fat shift is continuing, and I feel like a human toothpaste tube. Well, a tube that *I* use, that is. A tub my husband uses would look more like me pre-T-Tapp, squish above and below (annoying, and why I try to have my own tube, LOL). For me now, I feel like my legs are really leaned out until I hit about mid-thigh. Ditto with my shoulders and upper body, until I hit just around my waist. From my waist to mid-thighs, all of the fat I’ve had has accumulated. I’m in a squishy phase right now, and I swear, I can see definite delineation between the cellulite pockets and the rest of me. It’s really odd looking.

Just keep tapping…

Tags: Daily Log, Self-Motivation by Allison
No Comments »

So, how funny is it that I’m totally star-struck after calling the office with a question, just to have Teresa herself answer the phone, answer my question, ask some about my body type, and give me a few pointers on form customized to my body type?

I’m all tingly.

I jokingly told her that I figure my body is almost done with all its “internal” work, and that means that my 60-Day Challenge photos could be all that much better, LOL. She said, hey, you never know — maybe you’ll get to come to Florida for free!

Now *that* would rock.

ETA:
Okay, I went ahead and ordered the “Step Away Super Set.”

Includes both Step Away The Inches and Step It To The Max. Plus, receive a Free Pair of Thorlo Socks and a Free “Power Up Your Stride” walking audio tape.

Hoo-ah. I keep feeling like my body is saying I need more cardio, and Teresa assured me that even the 23-minute SATI is much, much more cardio than most people expect. Since I’m a glutton for punishment, I decided I also wanted the 50-minute killer SITTM. This shape-shifting fat IS going to melt off of me, damn it.

Tags: T-Tapp by Allison
No Comments »

Whew, I pushed it for this one!

Thursday’s workout:

• PBS, OIP/HF
• Total Workout
• Core Series (OIPx24, elevator doorsx24, freight elevatorsx16, half frogsx10)
• Diva Derriere
• Awesome Legs

While that doesn’t really *read* like a much more difficult workout than most of my total w/o days, man, it was! With taking at least a day between TWO sessions, I’m finding that when I return to it, I have that much more focus on my form and on keeping tight contractions.

For the last several times doing BWO+ or TWO, I’ve held the plie stance rather than moving. Did that help me…ohmygod. I realized that even as I *felt* upright, that my shoulders were surely in front of my hips. Keeping shoulder/hip alignment, I could feel the burn even holding still. With this workout, I finally returned to movement on the plie stance, and while holding correct form, my right hip no longer bothers me, and I could feel this move working my thighs and glues the entire freakin’ time. Wow.

I’ve started to realize that the location of my television is part of my shoulder/hip alignment issue — the TV is at about thigh-level, so I look down, which in turn tends to pull my upper body too far forward. During this workout, I tried to keep my eyes much higher and remember to keep shoulders back (more than usual, that is) and chest up/out. Hello, balance! During Thread the Needle, I kept bobbling, to where when Teresa would say “bobbling is okay,” I’d yell “THAT’S A GOOD THING!” at the TV. I’m also still trying to get used to holding my tuck more steady during the balance series, with small, but noticeable change.

Today, my butt hurts. And I like it. What I’d really like to do today is something totally different — besides HTF. I’m feeling like I need more cardio on my off days, and think it’s time to buy SATI. Something in the back of my head keeps telling me I should own this video.

Tags: Daily Log by Allison
No Comments »

Primary back stretch, followed by Hit the Floor.

HTF was significantly less awkward this time around, and with less need to (desperately) keep up with the moves, I was able to focus on form more. In the end, that means that I FELT this one a lot more this time, yeowsers.

Tags: Daily Log by Allison
No Comments »

I had the opportunity to visit via online chat with Trainer-in-Training AnaLee (waving!) last week, and she mentioned that while she’d heard about “fat shift,” my photos were one of the first ones where she’d seen it so clearly. As I paid attention to my own body yesterday, I decided I needed to know a bit more about this so-called fat shift. During Lawnmowers, I felt a roll/bulge at my upper hip that was new, whaaaa?

Anyway, I searched the term on the forums, and found lots of encouragement.

• When fat shifts (usually up and toward the middle), it’s on its way out.
• The places where I’m seeing extra (upper hips, waist) are normal on-the-way-out waypoints
• One poster even mentioned one of my specific gripes — that I can see fat below my belly button even more clearly than I used to. It’s like what used to be evenly spread from belly button to pubis is now from the halfway point and upward. The lower half, down to the pubis is firm and flat. It’s just…weird.

After this reading, I tinkered around with my size 12 short Levis 515/bootcut jeans. As I looked at them more closely, I realized that yes, they’re more snug through the butt and thighs, but they’re also sitting much higher. You see, I used to have more fat that was riding low, and less up toward the upper hips and waist. Now, the low fat is gone and/or up at the mid/upper butt and hips. The jeans are sitting all the way up at my belly button. If I pull them down, yes, I see a muffin-top I never would have had before (from the fat that’s shifted upward), but in the rear, where they used to be filled out? Baggy. And the thighs? Ditto.

Okay, I’m starting to believe this. If I keep going, I really *will* eventually see inch loss. I think.

Today, after a great workout yesterday, I feel leaned-out through the waist again. It’s bizarre to me how much my body is moving things around on a day-to-day basis.

Given some time later, I’ll see if I can post some photos showing what I mean.

Tags: T-Tapp, Self-Motivation by Allison
No Comments »