Rest, Recharge and Reset

Over the past week I have taken a break from my hardcore workouts of TapouT XT.  I have not quit, because I know that "To quit, does not exist!"  I was not feeling it and I was not getting the results I wanted or what I was expecting.  That was not due to the workout itself, but rather of me not FEELING IT.  On Monday, it was my 2 year Fitaversary.  It was two years ago that I started on my journey to A Healthier Version of ME.  Since then I have been going pretty hard and I think my body was telling me to slow down (just a bit), so I listened.  That is probably why I felt so run down last Fall and throughout the Winter.  At least that is what I am telling myself.  When I was teaching my spin classes, I used to tell my class..."If I'm telling you to GO, GO, GO and your body is saying NO, NO, NO...listen to your body".  Well it was about time I listened to MY body.  With the combination of TapouT XT and the last couple months of Squat Challenges and this month's Just Plank It! Challenge, my body started to shout NO, NO, NO!  I did not stop all together because that would be silly...right?!?! RIGHT!  I have kept up with my planks, well at least doing them, but not hitting the goal times set out for the month, but that's okay, at least I am doing them.  We are to hit 8 minutes by the 31st.  Let me know how YOU are doing with the Just Plank It! Challenge.  Any 8 minuters out there????  Let us all know.

In addition to the planking, I have been gardening (finally), running and biking while camping on the long weekend.  I bought myself a new mountain bike.  I have been on a spin bike for so long, I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to ride a real bike. LOL.  On Friday May 17th, I had a unexpected day off of work (YAY!), so...I decided to run, that's right RUN to the store and buy myself a new bicycle.  So I ran there and rode back.  Here is my new ride...

I was a little bit shaky at first but then I got the hang of it again.

Now getting to the running...

While we were camping on the Victoria Day long weekend, I got out for a nice 5K run through the trails that were around the conservation area.

This is my favourite part of this trail.  The path is lined by tall trees on both sides, it's lovely and so very peaceful.  It's beautiful!

Later that same day, my family and I hiked the same path down to the beach where my children enjoyed the sand and the sun.  Me...I was a bit chilly, but I enjoyed watching them have a great time.

I have been out for a couple more runs and the one I want to tell you most about is the one from last night.

First of all I should tell you about the new goal I have set for myself.  I was perusing through Instagram one day last week and I noticed something on the Under Amour for Women page, a contest...What is Beautiful? Set a goal, log it, blog it, vlog it...let everyone know about your goal and what you are doing to reach and demolish that goal.  So as I said I have set a new goal for myself...it is to run my first 10K race this year.

I have yet to decide on which race I will run but I will post it on my Events with Me page when I register for it.

Last night's run was just going to be a short one since I started out late, but it ended up being just over an hour long.  I started off running with just me and the snails on the sidewalk, and then it was just me.  Instead of turning right to head back home, I turned left and ran around the far side of a new subdivision they are building nearby.  On my iPhone I have the Nike+ Running app, and that is what I have been using lately to track my progress.  Well last night as I was running I snapped a few pictures and I forgot to resume the workout through the app after taking the pictures.  The pictures were taken at the 2.85 mile mark, the music kept playing, but it had stopped tracking my distance and GPS.  My mistake.  Next time I will know to hit resume after snapping my proof pictures.

 

The pictures are blurry because I did not stop running while snapping these shots.

Anyway, I kept on running and running and running.  As I got closer to my home, I thought that I would run to the bottom of our street and then walk back up the hill to cool down.  That didn't happen.  At the lights, the walk signal flashed at me and I kept going across the road.  Then I thought I would turn around at the first side street and head back home.  That didn't happen either.  Then I decided that I would run to the end of the street I was on, turn around and run back home.  That DID happen!  Once I got back across the lights, it was all up hill back to my home...I KILLED it!!!  I felt unstoppable!  I guesstimate my total distance at about 9km.  AWESOME!!!!!  I felt great!!!

I felt great last night, but when I woke up this morning my knees were a little sore so I decided to do some yoga as my morning workout.  I felt great once again.

My new goal...I am going to demolish it!!!  Maybe my next goal will be a half marathon.  Could this wimpy-weather-runner stick with the training for a half????  We shall see.

I am so looking forward to the Color Me Rad 5K run coming up on Saturday June 22, 2013 in Toronto, ON.

A few weeks back I bought myself some trail running shoes...Salomon XT Wings 3...I love them.  Last week I bought myself some Under Armour socks...they are AWESOME!!!!  

It's what's on the inside that makes things happen.

And this is WHAT happened...

I wore them the other day and my feet were so comfortable, it felt like I was running on a pillow-like ground.  Yes I know that may sound silly, but these socks were so cozy.  With the combination of the Under Armour socks and the Salomon XT Wings 3, the trail run was a breeze.  Loving the running lately.

A little reading with comfortable feet. LOL

I am going to cut this off now so that I can get some rest and recharge for tomorrow's workout.

Until then...Stay Strong!

Good night

Trina

And the Winner is...

I

The winner of the autographed copy of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred is...

Joann

Congratulations Joann!

I will contact you to get your mailing information and send that right out to you. 

I wish you all the best on your journey. 

Very short post tonight. I was in the garden again today and I think I caught too much sun. I have a splitting headache and need to get some sleep. 

Stay Strong!

Trina

Here are a few pictures from yesterday's gardening...

My little girl planted her own little garden. 

LOVE IT!

An Evening with Jillian Michaels

Last night I was able to see in person, the one that provided the tools to get me where I am today, the one and ONLY Jillian Michaels. Almost two years ago I began on my journey to A Healthier Version o Me. It all started with eating better and exercising , and then, I started my first "Jillian" workout...her 30 Day Shred workout DVD. I completed that and had great results. So I decided to pick up a copy of her Ripped in 30 DVD, just to have some diversity...LOVED IT!!!  After completing these two workouts and achieving the results I wanted from MY hard work, I became a fan of Jillian Michaels. Her workouts are fantastic and you will get the results if YOU put the effort into them. She can tell and show you what you need to do, BUT if YOU don't put your best foot forward, you will of get the results you want. 

Last night she spoke of many things and was very entertaining. She stated the thing that everyone knows but not everyone follows. If you want to lose weight..."Eat less, move more".  So why doesn't everyone follow this simple rule of common sense???  I'm not sure. Everyone is different and we all have our own reasons "WHY" or "WHY NOT" I guess. 

Fear of failure was a big topic that Jillian talked about. Not just in the way of losing weight and eating right, by rather life in general. The same rules apply. Fear to try something new, because there is always the chance of failing, but that is how we learn. That's so true. Fear keeps many of us from doing the things that they really want in life. 

For years now I have thought of becoming a personal trainer , and as each year passes, the fear grows more and more. Even though I feel stronger than I did before, and I know that I would be great at it...BUT...I know there should be no BUT, but there is. It is the fear of failure that is stopping me right now. Fear that I may be too old to start that "something new", but I am going to research my options as recommended by Jillian and I will go from there. You know I will let you know how this part of my life will unfold. 

I mentioned that I am a fan of Jillian, and I have all of her DVDs, but I have never read any of her books with the exception of the books that came with the Body Revolution program. Some of you that went to see Jillian on tour, have told me that she covered a lot of topics and information that was in her books and that probably is true. She also enforces what she says in her workout DVDs too. "Believe in yourself", "Get out of your comfort zone", "move it!"  It was awesome to hear her say these things in person; it made it more "real".  So next time I do one of her workouts, I know that she is there to help me Stay Strong and that she's pushing me to get the results that I want and that I deserve. I do believe in myself and have been out of my comfort zone many times pertaining to working out, now I just have to do it with the rest of my life. 

So I am you g to tell you about the whole experience of the evening. My friend Courtney and I arrived I Toronto in great time. No crazy thunder storms to battle with on the drive. 

We were able to grab a quick bite to eat before the show. We made our way to the Sony Centre and as we were about to go in, there we some girls handing out samples of E Boost. It's a daily health booster that Jillian is endorsing. I love getting free stuff!!!  E Boost is a powder that you mix with 400 ml of water. I had to try one right away, so I emptied the pink lemonade E Boost in the water I had left over from dinner. Well it almost turned my face inside out. I was able to top it up with more water and enjoyed the rest of the drink while watching the show. 

Once inside the foyer, we noticed the Jillian merchandise that was on sale. We looked around and then I got in line to purchase a shirt for myself. It read, "Feel the fear Do it anyway". 

As I was standing in line, I was debating on which size I would get. I was thinking medium, well I ended up getting g a size small and I'm rocking it! 

We picked up our VIP packages and made our way into the theatre to our seats. Our seats were in the third row...awesome!!!  The music that was playing really made you want to get up and move. I did not get up, but the crowd was entertained by two little cuties on stage. Jillian's daughter and son came out on the stage and started dancing to the music. 

So cute. 

The show began shortly after...

We sat, we listened, we laughed, and we learned...we left, ah not yet. 

With our VIP seating, it included a 30 minute Q&A session with Jillian. She answered about 10-15 questions from some of us left in the theatre. It was definitely worth the extra money that we paid for the tickets. 

After the session, Jillian came to the front of the stage to greet some of her fans.  Her people were nice enough to give her a few minutes to sign some autographs and some people even got a photo taken with her. I tried to take a selfie, but it didn't work that well. 

I was lucky enough to get her autograph on my Body Revolution Phase 1 DVD folder. I also took with me a brand new copy of Jillian's 30 Day Shred DVD, and I got her autograph on that too. However, this little item will not remain in my possession. It is going to go to one lucky reader/follower/friend...it could be you!! 

The rules for this contest are as follow:

1. You MUST be a follower of mine on Twitter and/or Instagram @phatsoslim

2. Leave a comment here on my blog about "Why you should win this autographed copy?"

The contest will closed Sunday May 26th, 2013. The winner will be drawn from all the entries and will be posted on Monday May 27th, 2013. 

Good luck to you!!!

After Jillian was whisked off the stage, we left the theatre and made a pit stop in the bathroom, and then headed to the car park. I know you're probably thinking "why is she telling us all this?"  Well, the evening did not end there. We got to the car and made our way out onto the streets of Toronto. We were on Wellington street when we came up to a red light. As we were sitting there, a white van pulls up beside us, I just happen to look over and then I noticed someone waving at us. "Who the hell is this waving to us?", I thought. Then I recognized the man from Jillian's show. He was the same gentleman that was calling out the time she had left while interacting with her fans after the Q&A session. I believe he is her business partner (but don't quote me on that). Anyway, he's waving, so I waved back to be polite, and then I noticed Heidi, Jillian's life partner, sitting in the van as well...so cool. Not sure if Jillian was also in the van, but I thought it was pretty cool that we would just happen to be sitting there as her entourage pull up beside us...and then start waving at us...CRAZY COOL!!!

I snapped a picture of the van as it was turning the corner onto Bay Street. 

Little things like that kind of make us regular folk feel like Rock Stars. Who am I that they would be waving to me??? LOL. 

Oh yeah...I'm Phatsoslim!

That was the end of the excitement for the night. We returned to Kitchener/Waterloo. 

Jillian wi probably tour again next year and if she does, I highly recommend you "move ass fast" and get tickets to go see her. If you are one on Jillian's "Bitches", you will enjoy the show. 

I will be back soon with more posts to let you know what else I have been up to lately. 

Until then...Stay Strong!

Trina

Sorry if the pictures are all mixed up in this post. I had to write it on my iPhone and its much harder to edit things. Our wifi at home is still messed up. Hopefully I will be back soon, I am missing you all. 

Phatsoslim’s Day Off (TapouT XT Day 33 of 90) + A Recap of Day 34 of 90

Day 33 = Legs and Back

Yes I started my Day Off with my TapouT XT Legs and Back workout.  It felt great to start my day off with a wonderful calorie burn and with doing it first thing; I knew I could enjoy my day without worrying that I needed to get a workout in later on.

After I KILLED my Legs and Back XT workout, I showered, got dressed and woke my children up to get ready for school.  Made their lunches, fed them their breakfast and walked them down to the school bus stop.  After they were on their way to school, I got on with my Day Off…Yay!!!

My first stop was to Tim Horton’s.  I bought myself Oatmeal with Berries and a bottle of water for my breakfast.  

So good!!!

Second stop…pedicure.  Oh yes, and then I fit in a manicure too.  After I had my fingers and toes pampered, I was off to my hair appointment.

Third stop…Xcentric Hair Studio to get a change.  While I was having my tresses treated and tamed, I continued to read The Beauty Detox Foods by Kimberly Snyder.  It was nice to have some time to chill out and read without interruption.  Through the winter I tried colouring my hair myself to help boost and shove off the winter blahs.  Well now that it is spring, I needed help, and Wendy from Xcentric Hair Studio did just that.  She turned it from blah to beautiful. 

She changed the dark red colour to a chocolate brown with caramel highlights.  I LOVE IT!

If you want great hair too, go see Wendy at Xcentric Hair Studio Uptown Waterloo.  The studio is at 42 Bridgeport Rd E. Unit 4 Waterloo, ON www.xcentrichairstudio.com

After my hair was beautified by Wendy, I had to get back to my home to meet my son and my daughter at the school bus stop.  I was definitely overdressed compared to my usual attire of workout clothes and hair tied up.  I had my new dress on, hair coloured and curled, manicure and pedicure…it felt great!!!  After the kids and I got back home we had to jump in the car and pick my husband up from work.

And the day continued on…we planned to go see Iron Man 3 at the drive-in.  We packed up and made our way to our usual spot at the Mustang Drive In.  With the weather so nice, the place was busy.  We again had a great family evening full of fun.  Yes I was all done up and looking and feeling great, but spending the evening with my family was perfect.

I brought along my 6 Pack Fitness bag with some healthy snacks to enjoy while we watched the movies.

I packed it with fresh pineapple, watermelon, water and some avocado brownies.

Yum!

I feel asleep during the second movie, Oz…The Great and Powerful.  I guess my day of R&R worn me out.  LOL

It was a late night…well make that an early morning with getting to bed.  But one thing about going to the Drive in on a Friday night, it makes the weekend seem much longer.

A quick recap of TapouT XT Day 34 of 90

Day 34 = Cardio XT + Ultimate Abs XT

Even though I didn’t get to bed until around 2am, I did get up and get my TapouT XT sweat on.  This workout is such a killer on the calves, especially during the warm up.  Always up on the balls of your feet hopping around.  A great calorie burner, and sweat maker.  I was joined my daughter again this morning for this workout.  She makes me laugh so much when we are working out together.  She kind of does her own thing and then all of sudden she joins me with the TapouT moves.  I can always count on getting a high five or a fist pump from her after we finish a move together.  LOVE IT!!!

If you eat clean and train dirty, you are setting a good example for your kids.  So do it!

Continuing with this Month’s Fitness Challenge…Just Plank It!

Yes I did 1 minute yesterday and 1 minute 15 seconds today.  I hope you got yours done as well.

Day 3 Just Plank It!                                Day 4 Just Plank It!

Tomorrow we will be stepping it up to 1 minute 30 seconds.

Until then…Stay Strong!

Good night

Trina

TapouT XT Day 32 of 90

Day 32 = Yoga XT but as I said on Tuesday and in yesterday’s post I was going to do Ripped Conditioning XT + Ultimate Abs XT

And that is what I did!

I was even up bright and early at 5:15am.  WHAT?!?!?!  Yep! I think this girl just needed the sun and warmth that is in full swing right now.  This morning at 8:49am it was already 15C and later by 4:06pm it was 22C…

NICE!!!!

The Ripped Conditioning XT workout requires the resistance band throughout most of the workout.  There are some moves where you just use your own body weight.  One of those moves that I like is the Forward Jump/Plank/Knee Strikes.  This move is a real heart pumper and sweat maker.  Definitely Earned with Sweat!!! 

Since this was the first time through this workout, I did have some trouble getting the correct resistance for some of the moves.  I will get it right next time.

Checking in on this month’s fitness challenge…

Just Plank It!

Today we did (or are going to be doing) a 45 second Plank.  

I did mine this morning while waiting for the daycare children to arrive.  

I knew that it was only 45 seconds and it wouldn't be like I would be holding a 6 minute plank while the parents and children arrive.  LOL I hope you are sticking with it and build your core strength.  I think with choosing a 15 seconds increase was wise (even if I say so myself), it challenges you, but doesn't put you off from getting down on the floor and Planking it out.  Five seconds would be to short, and 30s-1 minute increase would be too, too much.  Together we are going to get to the 8 minute Plank by the end of May.

I read a little more of Kimberly Snyder's book, The Beauty Detox Foods.  She also praises the goodness of coconut oil and all coconut products, and by that I mean clean unprocessed coconut products.  I use coconut oil all the time for baking and cooking, and I also use it for my skin and hair.  I love it!

Tomorrow I have a Day Off…not from workouts, but rather work.  It’s Trina’s Day Off.  It will begin with TapouT XT Legs and Back, followed by…

…I will let you know what happens.

Until then…Stay Strong!

Good night

Trina

TapouT XT Day 31 of 90

Day 31 = Muay Thai

It’s a short post today because the weather is SO beautiful finally.

WOW!!! I can’t believe I am already 1/3 of the way through the TapouT XT program.  Today I am feeling renewed, refreshed and feeling great!  I don’t know if it is because the sun is shining and it was 16C at 9:00am this morning or because of the Glowing Green Smoothie I had this morning for breakfast.  I don’t care what it is caused from; I just want it to continue on so I can carry on with my journey. 

It’s a new month and with that comes a new Challenge.  This month’s Challenge…Just Plank It!  

In addition to my TapouT XT workouts I will be adding my Plank.  I will be doing this whenever I have the time during the day to do it.  And so will YOU!!!

We are going to start out with a 30 second Plank and work our way up to an 8 minute Plank by the end of the month.  “What?!?!?!...8 minutes, she’s crazy!”  That may be true but together we CAN do this!  I know that some of you are past the 30 second start mark, so start at a time where you can build on for the month of May.  We are going to get to the 8 minute mark by increasing 15 seconds each and every day.  If you need to take a Rest Day, then do so.  I will be posting my Plank times on Instagram, my Facebook page and/or here on my blog.  It will be able to be found somewhere.  Please feel free to post them as well.  You can post them in the comment areas.

I just wanted to let you know how the Glowing Green Smoothie tasted.  It was surprisingly nice.  I am not a big fan of drinking meals and I had never been a fan of drinking vegetable juices.  But this one was pretty good.  I was excited about trying this mixture.  I am still making my way through the Beauty Detox Foods book by Kimberly Snyder.  I am just at the point where she is talking about sugars and sweeteners.  I’m finding out what sweeteners are good and which ones are not so good and which ones are down right evil.  Some of them I already knew about, but others have surprised me and I will be depleting them from my cupboards and replacing them with only the good stuff.  My favourite is on the good list…RAW Honey…I love it!  I use it to top pancakes, to bake with and just to eat if I am craving something sweet.

I am just going to share a little bit of my food today through pictures…

Today’s food…

Breakfast: Glowing Green Smoothie

Green vegetables and fruit blended together for energy and goodness.

Snack: Avocado Brownies

Lunch: Banana Pancakes topped with Honey/Guacamole with Walnut Meat and Baked Pita Chips

I ate the pancakes first and then decided to have something else.

The Walnut Meat came from the segment on the Dr. Oz Show the other day with Kimberly Snyder.  It sounded interesting so I thought I would give it a try.  It was very good.  I used it like it was ground beef and ate with the chips and guacamole, kind of like eating nachos only no cheese.  Yummy!

It was so good; I ate it again at dinner time.

I am going to cut this off now and spend time with my family.  Tomorrow’s TapouT XT workout is to be Yoga XT but I am changing it up to make up the missed TapouT workout from yesterday.  I will be doing Ripped Conditioning + Ultimate Abs XT in the morning.

Until then…Stay Strong!

Good night

Trina

P.S. Don’t forget to Just Plank It!  Get. It. Done.  It’s only 30 seconds for today.

I know that I can hold a Plank longer, but I am doing this along with YOU.

I'm here for support.