Are You Free?

It's been over a month since I did my last blog and one of my goals was to try and do better at being a blogger! I have had a great month with the ladies in my bootcamp challenge. They took 30 days and committed to follow a fitness routine, implement nutrition and look for key emails that would give them points in order to win. I had 4 ladies who were very close in the running just about the whole way. I had others that still hung in there and were successful in there own right. It takes something deep inside you to really want to change. To finally be done doing what you have always done and just leave it behind. You think you will miss it if you let it go, or that your identity won't be the same if you move forward and gain a new perspective on fitness and health. You might think that you will fail and because of your fear you don't even try. That is the worse thing you could do because when you let fear override what you truly want to be it robs you of so many victories in your life. What if you didn't have your freedom to choose? Then you might not have to worry about fear because it would be taken care of for you. When you have no freedom you are trapped. And some people are not free although they have the freedom at their finger tips to choose to change. What makes a person want to be so obese and miserable that they won't even get up and try to change? Or if they have changed what takes them back to that place that they once hated so much? These are questions I often ask. I don't judge a single person because everyone has a story and although I might see choice and freedom as an easy thing, someone else might find it very difficult. Some people are slaves to food. That seems like a crazy concept doesn't it? But sad to say, millions of people, maybe even billions by now have this food addiction. It is like any other addiction, it grabs their soul and twists so tight and clouds their judgement so they see no light, just darkness and no hope. I live in a small town, I have seen in my last 3 years of being a business owner and personal trainer, great strides in the transformations that come through my door. When someone meets with me for the first time, I see all sorts of emotions, I hear all kinds of excuses, good ones it may seem to them, but to me, nothing short of having a limb or two absent, and even then, is no excuse to not make that choice and choose to be hopeful and set new goals in your life. All of us have a fire deep inside us that needs to just be lit and remain burning for the rest of our lives. I love to see the transformations in my clients. It is the biggest joy for me. It is not over night and it is a process. It can be painful at times, it can be very emotional, that is due to the changes that happen within your body, it is not easy, but not as hard as one might think it out to be, it is the ultimate victory when you hit those mini-goals driven to the main goal. What is the main goal? LIFE! We never get younger, although that would be great for some things in life,however, we don't have to let our bodies go into a state of oldness before it's time. Again, that is our freedom of choice. We can all choose to be more fit and healthier. To add years to our lives and do it in such a way that it is fun and lasting! How do you do this? By putting one foot in front of the other and just choosing to ignite that fire! Here is something I bet you have said at one time or other in your life when you wanted to start losing weight. "I will start Monday." And say that is on a Friday, you eat so much junk food and just veg out in front of the t.v., more than normal, if that would be possible, and then Monday rolls around way to fast and your mindset isn't strong enough yet to follow through with the start. For one, you didn't share that with anyone but yourself, so you have no support, which is the number one thing you must have in your choice to change. Some people have to hit rock bottom before they climb up the ladder. It is sad, because it is no one else's fault but their own that they landed in the hospital due to that Monday never coming around. That is my point, your tomorrow may never come so while you have today no matter what day it is, you can start on the road to recovery and your tomorrows will be brighter and if you don't see it then those left behind will have been impacted by your efforts. So today, no matter what day it is, get up, put one foot in front of the other, and help yourself and others that may be in your same situation, start on a road to freedom, on a magical journey filled with endless possibilities. Have faith and hope in yourself and share your victories with others who are looking for that same hope!

Do you hear it??? The Rocky song!!!! I did it!! I completed the 90 Day TapouT XT Fitness Journey!! There were days when I didn't even want to put in the dvd but I did and I am so much stronger and healthier because I chose to do this! Nothing is ever easy but it's not hard either! It's up to you and what you do when no one else is watching. To get those results and keep pushing through! Your someone's hero, so why not be your own!! ;) Thank you K-Train for letting me ride along and get some great exercises and I am praying that you are working on Part 2 of this TapouT XT Fitness Journey!! I know I will step up to the plate when it comes out!! ;) Thank you all for following along with me too and for those of you that are going to buy the program because you followed my vlog, just remember, you can do it!! Like I say, even when you don't feel like it...DO IT ANYWAY!!!! Great ride! DAY 90 Cardio XT + Ultimate Abs - all time favorite!!! I didn't drop the weight much, still at 132, I bounce from 128 to 132 now. Chest 31 Bicep 10 Waist 30 - that did go down 3 inches from day one!!! Means my friend is starting to vanish!! YES!!!!

Once again I didn't want to workout especially since my broncos were playing however, I did the yoga xt and got it out of the way! ;) Yoga XT - W13D5

Whew! Last night I got this Plyo workout in after a full day in Denver looking for a place for our daughter and future son in law, to get married! In the video I said we stopped at Texas Roadhouse to eat, and I said there were few choices, what I meant of course is that there were few healthy choices! At any rate, I could have convinced myself to just not workout and do the day 4 of the last week since I already put in my 45 minute workout with my ladies in our Cardio Kickboxing Saturday bootcamp! And you know what? I almost did, but that nagging feeling pushed me to grab the dvd and hike downstairs and knock it out and then I could go relax and watch my Nebraska Cornhusker college football!! Of course they lost but what a battle, defensive for sure in that game! Anyway, so did it and now sharing what I did last night! PLYO XT- CRAZY!!!

It's a great feeling to be so close and in a couple days I will tell you just how great it truly is! I chose: Buns & Guns + Ultimate Abs today!!!

I DID IT AGAIN!!! I love being strong and keeping up with the dude on the GRINDER!! If your just starting out, don't worry, just finish as you can and I guarantee if you stick with it you will be able to keep up with him before you know it! :) Maybe even beat him!! ;) Check out some exercises I put on this video: Cross Core Combat

Getting harder each day on this final stretch!!! I don't know if it is because I am almost done or what but it seems like I am having things pop up out of nowhere to try and divert me, however, I push past that negative and I run to it!!! My first pick of the last stretch: Muay Thai W13D1

The holiday weekend is over! Those holidays seem to put a curve in our lives don't they? Well, I got the last dvd done that is showing on the workout calendar, so now diving into 6 days of what I choose, however, going to start with the bonus dvd on strike training. Yesterday was a rest day simply because I still had family here and football game to attend, so no time to squeeze in that workout. However, today I will be back to it and rock it out!! Cardio XT + Ultimate Abs W12D6

I am so pumped to finish my 90 day journey!!! Only have 6 more days left!!! I set out to do this one thing and through it all, a very good investment of my time! Check us out as we do a little SPRAWL & BRAWL!!

I did not feel like doing any sort of workout after cleaning house all day!! But once again I dug down deep and went in with Michelle and we got it done yesterday! Today I need to figure out when I will do Sprawl and Brawl as so much is going on with family being here for the holiday weekend! ;) I forgot my flip cam so recorded on iphone so had to figure out how to get it off the phone and on you tube.. so two videos for one workout! Part 1 of 2 Competition Core Part 2 of 2 CC

I found out that working out later at night doesnt really suite my body!!! I am such a day person, that by 9ish I start to drift to sleep!!! But, no excuses and needed to get this plyo workout out of the way!!! MOVING ON!!!! DID IT AGAIN!!!

The Buns & Guns workout doesn't seem like it would be very hard, however, you feel the muscles in your butt, lower back and your arms as you get into the workout! I am a big fan of short burst workouts such as this one that lasts only 30 mintues. That is all the time you need to get in a great workout. This is how I run my bootcamp sessions, mostly in part due to time. Everyone works either morning or night, and to come and get some stress out is a great reliever! My Tactix sessions however do last 60 minutes because there is more involved and there is no way I could condense that to only 30 minutes. The biggest thing there is you learn self-defense. I am getting excited for October as I am converting the Tactix to a Membership and opening up new sessions. I feel this will be key to someone who loves this workout and will add more to their lives as I am implementing much more with this membership. Anyway, check out how Michelle is doing with her injury in the video! BURNED EM UP!

I feel good going into week 12! It's hard to believe that I am coming into the final stretch of TapouT XT! The only workout I dread is plyo! Just one of the hardest ones and not so great on my knee however, it does give you that burn that is so desired and when your done you definately earn that SWEAT!!! KICKEN IT OUT!!!

I know I say it many times, but the days just don't go slow!! I have again added 2 videos to this blog. The end is getting so near...Starting Week 12!!! How are you doing on your fitness program??? Legs & Back- W11D5 Sprawl & Brawl - W11D6

So I ended up doing 3 workouts yesterday but don't really count yoga as a workout! This has however, caused my muscles to ache a little today so going to call it a rest day. Tomorrow is a new day! ;) Will knock out the workout of Legs and Back early in the morning as I have much to do Saturday! ;) See you then! Yoga XT

Once again I had to put two videos on one blog. The days are just breezing by so it leaves little time to upload videos, but no fear, we are here today before the day is over! ;) I hurt my shoulder yesterday again, but feels much better today! Not sure why it was throbbing yesterday but it prevented me from giving my all in the workout. Today much better and I felt stronger and again felt proud as I finished the Killer Move and kept up!!! ;) Strength & Upper + Ultimate Abs = W11D2 Cross Core Combat = W11D3

The calendar is getting all checked up! I love that I am almost done here and that I will have stuck to this for 90 days without fail. Were there days when I just didn't feel like doing it at all, or that things tried to get in the way? Of course, however, I set my mind to do this and stick to the calendar the best I could. I did have to juggle a few days on rest day, but never skipped out on any workout, always able to get them in! ;) That in and of itself feels great! This plyo workout, which should be called TapouT XT LEGS!, is tough, tough, tough! Sorry to say, doesn't get any easier the longer your in it! That speaks volumes about the program! ;) Check out what Michelle and I have to say about this workout starting out Week 11 Day One!

Special today as I have not one but two videos to share. Michelle and I did cardio on Saturday and then yesterday I did Muay Thai. The weekend just went so fast as it does. Friday is the day that just had no room at all for me to exercise. Just hit the ground running and never stopped till I hit the pillow! So thankfully, I had a rest day to squeeze in this week so I just made that it. It's really hard sometimes to fit your workouts in, like yesterday too, I didn't want to workout at night, but I knew I had to get this one in so just did it and when it was over I was thankful! ;) So no matter what, stick in there and your fitness program will be very rewarding. Cardio XT - Saturday Muay Thai - Sunday

The only way to get something done, is to do it! To take action! It is no secret that I don't like Yoga XT, yet, I find myself looking forward to it. I know, it's really crazy, but I do feel better after it's all done, just like a workout! Hear what we have to say about yoga xt this time!

I was just looking at my calendar and marking off my workout today which was Plyo XT, and seen that I only have a couple weeks left and the way I feel is that I am not near where I want to be as far as my stomach getting those abs. The only reason for that is like some of you, I struggle with eating. I do use the 90/10 rule and therefore I don't go to out of whack and I feel stronger and much healthier than I ever have, however, even for me as a trainer I lack the discipline to follow the menus that most fitness programs provide. I just don't have alot of time to cook those meals for one, and for another, I just don't seem to be able to stomach some of them. I have tried the salmon, but really can't get use to that either. So I do try other good fish. Like I stated early on, the summers get me as we go to many family functions or get together with friends and I like beef! I have chosen the leaner beef however, so there are things that I have done to stay on track for the most part and still learning everyday new, easier ways to eat healthy on a busy schedule! ;)I find it interesting though that I didn't lose hardly any weight on this plan yet gained muscle. The two days I took off however, I did lose pounds. At any rate, 2 more weeks to finish it out and with no TAPOUT!!!!

The workout today for W10D2 was pretty good. I enjoy doing a band workout. I love the timing Karpenko has before he gives you a slight break, not a water stoppage. ;P If you have done tapout you just smiled right there because you know what I am talking about! Thanks again to my workout partner, Michelle! She continues to come and workout with me when she can! The best thing about Michelle is that even though she has a slight injury she still comes and modifies when she needs to and gives her all where she can. That is why she has seen results in her fitness over the past 3.5 years. I apologize as you watch the video, no exercises were taped. I just got so wrapped up in the workout, forgot to pause and record! I really should get someone to come in and do that for us huh? :) Hear how Michelle felt after this workout!

TAPOUT!!!

Michelle and I are back into it today! ;) We had a little rough start due to our bodies not being up to par just yet due to our 10K run. I will put a video up this week of the finish. We gave it all at the end and if you have never did a 5 or 10K then you might not be able to be very empathetic to us. ;) But, it's ok, the way I look at it is we came this morning and we worked it out. I have to admit though, no way would I have been able to do that yesterday or if I did, not very effective at all. Michelle is nursing a pulled glute muscle so modified a bit today, but still worked it out! She is a true Rock Star! ;) I can't believe I am on week 10 already! Getting excited for the end. ;) These next few weeks I am really going to buckle down and getter done!!! ;) ARMY RULES!! ;)

It's Sunday morning and I feel really good despite gearing all my energies yesterday in a 10K! I also feel really good because I beat my time from two years ago! Last year I had to sit it out due to my knee, but this year it is strong, I built it up with TapouT XT and cut my time by about 4 minutes!!! Not bad for 2 years older! ;P I also lost 2lbs last week! I have been at the same weight for over a month so to see the number move was another good feeling, although I don't base my health or my fitness on that number on the scale. I base it on the endurance, the strength, ect,. Today Michelle and I are taking a nice slow walk, to just get a stretch but we are going to rest it today from TapouT XT. We will resume with week 10 tomorrow and finish this out strong!!! ;)

I am so looking forward to the next couple of days of rest!!! I am feeling a little burned out between running and working it out with TapouT XT! But, I love it all and I am pretty sure I will beat my time from 2 years ago in the 10K I am running on Sat. I didn't get to run it last year due to my knee, however, it feels so strong and I know I GOT THIS!!! Doubling up on videos today. Legs and Back Workout- W9D5 Cross Core Combat - W9D6

Ok, so I made it to day 60!!! My results really haven't moved much in 30 days. However, I measure my stamina, my endurance and strength and that has increased, big time! Here are my measurements for day 60- Wt: 132 Chest: 31.5 Bicep: 10.5 Waist: 32.0 BFI: 29.1 MM: 34.7 BMI: 23.7 Yoga XT

Had a great day of mud volleyball yesterday. I loved it but not sure if my body cared for me that much. I am going having problems still uploading my sprawl and brawl video so I guess I have to skip that one and you have to trust me that I did do it! Michelle joined me too. ;) W9D2- Strength & Upper Force + Ultimate Abs W9D3 - Plyo

Moving right along with the olympics! Ms.Gabby won gold last night in the All Around for gymnastics! How awesome is that?!?!? I am still amazed by these young athletes! How many of you are having Olympic parties??? :P Alright, so Michelle and I did the Sprawl and Brawl this morning! IT was great but my legs are still reeling from my 10K!!! Only to be gearing up for the real 10K next Sat. Tommorow it's mud volleyball, thinking I need to get up really early and go workout, like at 5:30! I will get it in! ;) AND ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST!!! W9D1 No video here as youtube kept giving me errors! Not sure what the deal is! But have much to do before tomorrow so do not have time to figure it out! Sorry!!! But maybe we can get tomorrows uploaded for you! KEEP ROCKING IT TEAM XT!!!

That's great! Love that dog, he is GOLDEN!! I was watching the womens row team get their gold medals and just watching our flag go up first, I started to sing the national anthem and felt so proud to be an AMERICAN!! I am so proud of every single one of our athletes over in London. They have given up so much in 4 years to be where they are and to just be there doing what comes natural after years of practice, is exciting for us and a joy for them! Alright, now on to my world. I finished week 8 today with Cardio XT and Ultimate Abs! Did I tell you that was my most favorite workout?!??!! It's not an easy one, but I love it! ;) My August Client Of The Month joined me today!!!

I wanted to put a gold medal on here in honor of our athletes that have done so extremely well in London and have conquered there ultimate goal! GO USA! ;) This is going to be really short because it's late and I did yoga late tonite. I didn't even want to do it at all but got it in again, and do feel good now that it's over. It's funny how that works isn't it? ;P BAM!!! DID IT AGAIN!!

Alrighty! Another day and another tapout xt workout in the bag! I feel like a million bucks after I conquer these workouts! Check out my fan club as I show you them at the end of my workout. ;) IT'S A WRAP!!!!

W8D3 of TapouT XT. Yesterday there was no video due to no Tapout XT because on the calendar it has yoga twice!! I do not like yoga therefore doing it once is quite enough for me! Michelle and I ran 6.23 miles! Good stuff! ;) Tonight I got Sprawl & Brawl out of the way and can check it off! ;) Michelle has been coming in and working out with me and it's great because as I stated before when you have someone to workout with your push harder and stronger. ;) THERE ARE NO EXCUSES!

I started the workout today alone then Shannon showed up and joined me! She did awesome and got through it all to include the ultimate abs! That is my most favorite workout out of the whole series! So today marks Day 48! I did a check in today and I am not losing weight but rather gaining muscle. Not sure how I feel about that except I feel fabulous! I feel so much stronger than I did on Day 1 so that in itself is success! I still am looking for my 6 pack, not arrived yet, however, I do have upper abs forming!! ;) I will continue to move forward and thank you all for visiting my blog. I love the support on our TEAM TAPOUT XT forum! Keep up the good work everyone and don't ever QUIT! Even when you just think that those 90 days will never come, just keep pushing past the doubt and soon you will have arrived! ;) I EARNED IT TODAY!!!

I don't know if I used that photo above or not but I love it! ;) It's true, just kick it!! ;) I have to tell you, the workout seemed extremely hard for me and I know it's because I didn't eat breakfast until way later after I woke up this morning. ;) But! NO TAPOUT!!! Michelle joined me again this morning and did awesome! ;) JUMP!!!

The picture is how I feel at this moment! I just tried to find every excuse I could to not do Yoga XT today! Yet, in the end, I wanted to cross it off my calendar so I text my good friend Michelle and she came and joined me, which was great because it made it much more enjoyable and as I say in the video, it is getting better and I do feel more flexible!:) BENDING AND TWISTING IT OUT!!!!

I didn't get a chance to post this yesterday so I apologize if you are following along and was looking for that. I really enjoy the ripped conditioning and ultimate ab XT workout, simply for the abs and have to say love doing the bands too. ;) I am going to combine both videos from W7D2 and W7D3 here on this blog. Michelle joined me today and it was awesome having her there with me! She also smashed that workout!! Way to go my friend!! ;) DON'T WAIT! WATCH NOW! Day 2 Day 3 KEEP ON ROCKING IT OUT!!!

It's a sad day for many today on this 20th day of July 2012. I talk about it in my video. Today, be strong, have hope and survive the pain as you aim ever so high for that goal! PUSHING THROUGH!

Don't you just love those pictures? Do you want to see that for yourself? Is that why you are pushing so hard in these 90 days? You can do whatever you put your mind to, setting those goals and getting your mindset to run to it will ensure VICTORY!! ;)

I love it when my friends post kewl pictures with sayings like this as it always comes back to what I am doing right now. I have to have faith that I am going to finish this 90 Day TapouT XT program and get rewarded with a T-Shirt, in which I will wear it with pride!! ;) I would rather workout down at the club because I have my mat there but today I felt like just keeping it at home. ;) GETTIN IT DONE! ;)

That is how I look I am sure when I do YOGA!!! It is the most dreaded thing for me to do in this TapouT XT journey!!! But, I will continue to work it out as the calendar calls for but I have to say after I am done with program, I don't think I will be doing Yoga much!! STRETCHING IT OUT-PAINFULLY!!!

I went traveling this weekend and I will do it again this upcoming weekend, so life is throwing me off! I did the cross core combat at my sisters, hubby taped for us, you will hear him asking how to turn it off, he is so cute! Love him so much, he is so supportive and so is my daughter! She loved the workout too as we finished, not so much as we were working out! ;) IT'S NOT GETTING EASIER!!!

I know I am not the only one who just dreads workouts with Tapout on some days! It's been a tough week for me, simply because I have been doing other workouts in Tactix and bootcamp! So today as I was struggling through the workout, so many times I felt like tapping out, but I didn't, because it as mind over matter! ;) I won yet again, and whipped the workout. I know you are doing the same thing, no matter if it's TapouT XT or another workout. Just dig in and go, even if you don't want to do it, DO IT ANYWAY! ;)

Check that out! It really does bring home the picture doesn't it? Eating right however, is the hardest obstacle to overcome when your on your lifestyle change journey. It is the one thing that you keep trying to control. I can tell you this, it is the secret to losing, toning and maintaining your weight. When you combine fitness and nutrition together, you look at them both the same, go after them as furious as the other, then and only then will you see true results. Because you can work out like a mad person, doing this TapouT XT 6 days a week, yet your old habits are hanging on in the food area, it's not going to cut it, your just defeating the purpose. Get your mindset right, and GO GET IT!! Put it all together, balance it out, see the victory! You can do anything you put your mind to, think positive all the time, wipe out the negatives and move toward greatness as you were meant to be there! ;) NEVER LOOK BACK!!!

A friend of mine posted this on facebook and I just had to use it here in my blog! It is really how you must live, not always waiting for your dreams to come true, or wishing you could do this or do that. Just start stepping and then run! ;P Today was great although I still haven't quite got my legs back. Although I am stronger my body is still 45 and needs that recovery time. You have to know that your age will let you know in some forms that your not 20 in the sense of bouncing right back like you did back then, and that is ok because the main point is your doing it! ;) Stay on track and picture yourself busting out of that gate just like that cute lil pup is above! ;) GO GET IT!!!

This morning I felt like I needed to run, as I am preparing for a 10K next month. My friend, Michelle joined me, then we did yoga xt. I am feeling pretty good, just enjoying the rest of my day and the rain we are so blessed to get today. The kind of rain that is enjoyable, streaming straight down from the sky. I want to thank all of you who are following me on this journey and I hope that you can meet your goals and you keep on pushing hard towards them each day. It's the tiny steps you begin with that will turn into giant leaps later on as long as your dedicated and persist. ;) FEELING THE STRETCH!

I like that saying because it's so true! ;) It's hard to get to a workout sometimes, but once your there and done, it's so worth it! ;) Felt really good about today's Mauy Thai workout. I want to thank Lisa Simpson and Tara Steinke for joining me in the workout! I know when someone is with me I push so much harder! ;) Even when I feel I just have nothing left in the tank, I have to push it harder to the finish because I have company! ;P Tomorrow have Yoga XT, might be a welcome for a change after the past couple days I have had! ;) FULL TANK!!

Day 30 and here are my results so far: Wt: 132.8 BFI: 28.6 MM: 35.0 BMI: 23.3 Waist: 31 Chest: 31 Biceps: 11 So as you see my weight is not going down yet my muscle mass went up; (TONING!!) my Body Fat Index went down along with my Body Mass Index. Those are really key for me to see. Are the numbers dropping quickly? No, but I feel so good and I am getting slight indentions for my abs!!! ;) I am holding out the before and after photos till the end! ;) So today's workout was awesome and thank goodness no legs, no jumping, no kicking, just upper body! YEA!!! ROCK ON TAPOUT XT TEAM!!! ;)

Geez! Today was the hardest since I started this 90 day journey and it's because I spent my body yesterday doing a 5K, taking a swim, then riding bikes. Legs, legs, and more legs!! But, I finished, even though it wasn't pretty, the only failure here is the one of my body going beyond failure!! ;) I give a few tips at the end of my video today. How many of you are into a month of this or beyond and just have those days where you just don't want to do it, but you do it anyway?!?!?! ;P Got Through It!!!

Sometimes it seems as if your working out so hard or working so hard towards something, yet you, yourself don't see change in yourself, on the outside, but you can feel it on the inside and that should always be your focus! As I did day 27 I felt empowered! I felt good knowing I have went 27 days straight being consistent and not missing a day from the workout chart! KNOCKOUT WORKOUT!

Those horses are a thing of wonder! They keep it real and they keep it TIGHT! ;) Just like I did in my workout today for round 3 - Day 26 of Sprawl and Brawl! It is short but to the point and I have to say, I really do enjoy this workout the best. The greatest thing about TapouT XT is even though you did the workout before, enough time has elapsed so you forget what it was you did, but remember the moves! ;) So there is no time for boredom in these workouts! KEEP IT TIGHT!

Happy July 1st!!! This morning my daughter came over and we ran 3.6 miles with a time 32 minutes, not bad considering I haven't ran in about 2 months! ;) I can give credit to TapouT XT for the endurance and strong heart! ;)We then went and did Yoga XT!It was a little better today but I still struggle with it! I do know that it is helping my muscles though so that is why I dig in and get it done on the required days! ;) Been a great Sunday so far! I love it when my daughter comes and hangs out with us. ;) STRETCH!!!!!