You Are Not Tired! --- Turbo Fire Day 19 - Day 30

It has been a full 30 days since I have started my personal journey with Turbo Fire. It has been a roller-coaster of a ride learning many different aspects of my own personal health and wellness. I have always been crazy about exercise and fitness knowledge, but since I began working on my BeachBody programs and becoming a BeachBody coach, I have tried to make better choices and really focus on what needs to be done to get into the best shape of my life.

Originally, I started this journey with P90X, where I wrote about my experiences each and every day. If you want to check out my journey with P90X click here or feel free to just jump ahead and see the results. I wanted to do the same thing with my journey with Turbo Fire, but unfortunately, I have been unable to write a proper introduction each and every day and still be able to publish without it being flagged for being like the previous write-ups. So, due to those issues, this series will not be continued on a daily basis and will be only updated periodically. However, I will still being doing my workouts so don't worry that the lack of updates mean I have given up! As always, I thank everybody for their support!

It still amazes me how each day is still as difficult as the previous day. If you are looking to sweat, this intense cardio kickboxing class will do you justice. Chalene Johnson, who made this series based off her love for music and dance, will push you to push yourself all while grooving to the beat. This is an intense program that lasts for 12 weeks, but it has made some promises and if you give it 110 percent, you will see results.

So far, the Core 20 Class has proved to be one of my favorites. I would love to say it has become a favorite because of the length being relatively short in comparison to the Fire workouts, but the reality is, this is by far one of the best core workouts I have ever experienced. Not only is it tough enough to really see the difference in results, but it is gentle enough that even someone who has issues with the strength in the core area can do this workout. This is something very different from what I experienced with P90X. The core workouts there were Core Synergistics and Ab Ripper. At the time, my abdominal muscles were too weak to make it through those workouts (and I still can't make it through them). I couldn't even do enough of the workout to work my way up to the full thing. With Core 20, I feel like I can do the workout to the best of my ability, and work on improving my core section. I don't feel like I immediately failed. In fact, if I can get rid of those last stubborn pounds around the mid-section, I am pretty sure I have a six-pack beginning to form!

I studied the program thoroughly before starting, but even so, this first month has been an eye-opening experience. First off, the weeks were constantly changing. Not one week was a copy cat of the previous week. This meant my muscles weren't going to get bored and they definitely weren't going to adapt any time soon.

Upon peaking into the second month, I realized the first month was filled with HIIT (high intensity interval training) classes - two a week with the exception of intro week - while the HIIT classes completely disappear the second month. After thinking about this, it really did make sense. HIIT training ramps up the metabolism and really kickstarts your metabolism. This of course will make your body a mean-lean-calorie-burning machine. (It will also make you hungry for the entire day!) The second month seems to be mostly long cardio workouts to really burn off the fat. I can't wait to see what happens at the end of the second month so I can see if this really is the key to the program!

I have been keeping a close eye on the results, measuring myself each week - on the scale and with the tape measure. I will admit, I was a little disgusted because I was hoping for so much more. I was hoping to see major changes like I did in the first month of P90X. However, I needed a reality check. After all, I can't expect impressive results when I am already pretty close to my original goal. I am not starting where I started with P90X and therefore the results are sadly not going to be nearly as impressive.

So, in one month, I had to look at the numbers. I wasn't happy at all. I worked my behind off all month long and at the end of everything, I had actually gained weight. That is one of the worst feelings in the world.

Now, I am well aware of what could have caused this. I started TurboFire with the start of BBQ season. That has meant we have done several cookouts with friends and my eating habits have not really been under control. Each week I slap myself thinking how I need to eat better, but when I really think about it, I don't want to envy others. This is a lifestyle change and frankly if I can't enjoy hanging out with my friends eating a pizza, than I have to ask whether or not this is really worth it. It is, but I still want to be able to enjoy a soda every once in a while and I still want to have those high fattening foods. They shouldn't be forbidden. If you feel like that, you are likely to fail.

So, there it is. I may have gained a couple pounds in the process, but I learned a valuable lesson. I want this to be a lifestyle change. If I eat and I maintain, I am really not hurting anything. And, even though I did gain, I actually did lose inches.... 8 inches to be exact. So, I know I am building up muscle in the process!

So what do I see in the picture....

I had to look really close to see the difference between the pictures. In fact, if I didn't know any better, I might have even thought that I used the exact same pictures from the exact same day. But I know I didn't.

The results aren't dramatic, but when I look at where the inches have been lost, each spot is only a little bit here and a little bit there. It isn't going to be as noticeable. What does strike me as odd is that one of the measurements I took was around the base of my neck. In fact, I lost an inch around the base of my neck. So, I asked my husband if my neck got skinnier. Of course, this was met with ridiculous laughter. Asking if your neck got smaller is almost like asking if these socks make my ankles look thinner!

Yet, after looking at the picture, you really can see my neck is smaller. Weird! Never thought about seeing results there. But at least there is something noticeable!

When I first started Turbo Fire, my husband expressed that he wanted to join in. After all, he was feeling pretty motivated by my successes with P90X and wanted to better himself as well. Naturally, when I started, I enforced that he take a Day 1 photo. He met me with a grumble and begged me to not use him as a guinea pig. However, after one month and seeing the results, he didn't mind the results being shared with others.

This definitely brought a different angle to the story. He works a full-time job and when it comes to workouts, he really has to push to get them in. Therefore, if he can do it, others who use the same excuse of not having time, should be able to do it as well.

This of course has proved issues with my schedule. I have been used to always getting my workout in. If the workout isn't done in the morning - and it seems it never is - sometimes getting it in at night seems a big challenge. So yes, there has been workouts missed. But hey - it is life and when you work, chances are good you might not be able to get in all your workouts. That is OK. If you push hard majority of the time, you will see results.

Now, when I looked at his first month results I was irritated. He did better than me (and I am competitive). However, him being a male means he is more likely to have faster results. It always happens that way. Make note that he also hasn't really changed his eating habits and for what I know, I am much more conscious about the amount of calories I am consuming.

So, one month later, he has dropped 1.2 pounds and lost 5.9 percent body fat. Obviously he has made some big changes in the muscle mass. When measuring the inches, it actually came out that he gained half an inch, but when looked at separately, he lost 3 inches where males want to be lean and trimmed and gained 3 and a half inches where males want to look buff and strong.

When looking at the pictures, you can tell the waist has gotten much smaller, but when it comes to the chest and the arms, the muscle mass has increased. I guess it goes to show, those who thought Turbo Fire was just for the ladies are very wrong. Men can show muscular gains with this program as well.

I am insanely proud of my husband for stepping up and wanting to better his health, however I will admit that working out with him has been nothing short of frustrating. After all, I have had a schedule for my workouts for a long time already and adding him to the mix has really screwed things up. Mostly the timing of our workouts which are no longer in the morning, but well into the evening. This means when I did P90X, I never missed a workout, but that since starting Turbo Fire, there has been a few times where I have had to "make-up" my workouts or double up. Yet, I wouldn't change it for anything. After all, I am so close to my goal that a few days without working out isn't going to kill me. A healthier family is invaluable though. And knowing how much I have dedicated time to my health and fitness has made my husband and my children more attentive to the lifestyle choices they have made.

I have also learned this month that nutrition is key. Jokingly, I always say that I work out hard so I can have my dessert. Seeing the results, (or the lack of them) really made me realize how important nutrition is. I am not talking about sticking to a specific calorie number. I am talking about really knowing what you are putting in your mouth. If you aren't fueling your body with the proper vitamins and nutrients for foods that are good for you, it really doesn't matter how many calories you don't eat or hard you work out - you will plateau! Your results will never be as good as they could be. So remember, if you want to look like an athlete, you need to fuel like an athlete - eat your fruits, eat your veggies, and eat your lean protein.

Now the question comes to you... what have you learned about yourself and your health while embarking on your own personal journey?