Insanity Is Great

The more I use it, the more I like it. I mean, any workout that can get your body working good and hard before you are even done the warm-up is the exact sort of workout I like and for that matter, need. I have not slept well the last few days which made working out difficult. Add to that a bunch of snow falling and the need to clean that up, and workouts were not being done. Today, after having a good night sleep, I got back to it after a couple of days off. Insanity did it. I couldn't get through the whole workout, but what I did finish worked me out really well.

Before and In Process December 2010

I was looking at some pictures on my facebook account and saw some from Christmas 2 years ago. While the position I am in in that photo is less than flattering, it compared to the photo I have from December this year shows what I have changed. Now that change came all in this year. If anything I was fatter when I started in January than I am in the December 2008 picture.

Before: December 24, 2008



In Process December 5, 2010

Insanity

Insanity, an exercise plan on DVD has become one of my favorite ways to exercise. I have not used it following its official plan, but have worked in various workouts from it into my regular exercise routine. For months I used Tae-bo exclusively, and I still like it a great deal. However, I noticed a month or two back that my heart rate was not being raised sufficiently with the Tae-bo DVDs I have. I tried P90X, another Beach Body product, but found its dependance on Yoga did not interest me at all. Then I saw Insanity at Costco and decided to try it out. The first time I tried it, I barely got to the end of the warm-up. My heart rate was higher than it had been for weeks, if not months, and I loved it. Since getting Insanity I have started to do it more and more, and Tae-bo less and less. I still have not gotten through all the routines completely, but even with that, the workout I am getting is great.

Having said that, there are a couple of cavets. First, if you have knee problems or hip problems, this is not for you. It fairly high impact with lots of lateral action. Second, this is not for beginners. You need to be somewhat fit to do these. If you are not, you will find that you will have a great deal of difficulty doing this.

All in all, if you are looking for something that will push you to the next level, this is an exercise program that will do that. I am guessing that you could modify some of the moves yourself, if you take the time to figure it out, to make that lower impact, but some of the stuff will be very difficult to modify.

Eat Stop Eat

I have now done two fast days, and so far the results are very positive. On the fast days I find I still have lots of energy, and frankly going from 6PM to 6PM for a fast is not that difficult. Think about it for a minute and you will realize that for 8 hours of that time, give of take, you are sleeping. Keep busy through the day, and 6PM comes before you know it.

The results so far are that I have come down from 196.8Lbs to 193.0Lbs. Now some will say that is all water weight, but it clearly isn't because on the days I eat the weight does not come back. Others will say it is all muscle, but based on the fat percentage, the majority of the weight loss is fat.

Now I realize this is but one week. Having said that, I am thinking this is something that I could do for the rest of my life, and in the end it will not require constant measuring of food and a careful diet. I still have to watch my sodium consumption due to my high blood pressure, but with Eat Stop Eat it has come down consistently this week. I am hoping the trend continues and I can get off more medication for the blood pressure.