Still crushing it with Jillian 2021

Thanks roonetta I've just ordered them!

Have been considering heavier weights for a while so thought I'd treat myself

Day 26 of Epic here - a full body dumbbell session with 4 x 10-minute circuits.

Professor I think my upper body strength has improved enormously since I started the workouts and my arms/shoulders look much more toned now. I can do full press ups and even did hand stands the other day, which I definitely couldn't do 6 months ago.

at overdone spaghetti! That could descibe me!

I have BR cardio today but it’s also run day so I think I might do that in its place and do another workout instead.

Thanks guys good to know! I’d be happy with looking more toned. I’m eating well but not really counting calories - I know I should but will give it a few months!

I did day 3 BR today- cardio. See what some of you mean about it - think I’ll get bored with it quickly so might swap in some runs now the weather is hopefully looking up!

Posted too soon!

@ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson I can’t say I’ve noticed a significant improvement with upper body strength with Jillian but my upper body is quite strong due to years of yoga.

Yesterday I did Shred L1 and this morning I did 6W6P L2.

@Nameregretter glad you’re feeling better. Re the weight loss, I’ve lost 2 pounds since I started Jillian on 1 March, not a huge amount considering I’m watching what I eat but I do look a lot more toned.

@Queuing4Fergs hope you get to see your family soon too. Being so far apart is so tough especially with elderly or ill parents.

BS week 4 workout 3 done, first time. Ugh. Does anyone on here feel their upper body strength has significantly improved? I’ve been doing Jillian DVDs for years and I still have shoulders and triceps like overdone spaghetti.

I really hope you get to see your family soon, @Queuing4Fergs. I do feel for anyone with family abroad at the moment. Mine are 300 miles away and that’s been bad enough.

Glad you’re feeling better, @Nameregretter! I felt rough after my vaccine, but only for 36 hours (though I felt more tired than usual for about a week).

@Nameregretter - glad you are feeling better! I found that I lost weight with both 30DS and BR - not loads but I had lost about 2 stone prior to starting both plans (I did one straight after the other) and it definitely helped. I think there is some truth to her claims about boosting metabolism!!

Ooh where did you get your dumbbells from
Roonetta? I've been looking for some
7 or 8kg dumbbells as 5kgs isn't heavy enough for some of Caroline's workouts.

I fell off the thread fir a few days but have done Day 25 of Epic here - 40 minutes of hellish HIT!

Hello, I joined the thread then pretty much immediately dropped off - had my covid vaccine and was knocked out for 10 days! Nightmare but recovered now. I’ve done 2 days of BR and really enjoying it - nice to see Natalie and Anita from 30 day shred again!

Have people found they’ve lost weight with it? I have a stone to lose now at 5 months post partum. It’s my second baby and I didn’t really lose anything with my first until I stopped breastfeeding so expect I might struggle but hoping to tone up a bit at least.

I hope you get to see your family before long, Queuing :(

Well done on finishing your double up sessions! Would extra stretching help? I always do some extra stretching afterwards because Jillian’s cool downs seem to be very short compared to others I’ve done in the past and there are some stretches she doesn’t do which feel really good!

C25K is great! I did running a number of years back but never enjoyed it. So I’m very surprised to find myself enjoying it this time around - so far anyway! I’ve discovered that I was going too fast last time and also worrying too much about breathing ‘right’ - it turns out that it’s easier when I don’t think about my breathing. We run after 7pm too so I’m not sure what will happen when it gets dark and cold!

Wineloffa brilliant news about your dad. I feel for anyone who has ill family members at the moment. So worrying. I'm actually from NZ so am finding it hard to be so far away from family there and in Australia. We were supposed to be there for the whole of December last year but obviously that didn't happen. I have no idea when I will next be able to go as both NZ and Aus seem perfectly happy living their lives as normal with the borders sealed shut. Very worrying as my dad is in his mid 80s

Anyway, I have just completed my last double up session of BR, so have finished off Weeks 1 and 2 in 1 week. I really don't enjoy such long workouts as I find them harder to fit in my day (I do them during my lunch break while I'm WFH) but I also seem to tire much more easily. Clearly Jillian has conditioned me to short sharp workouts and I really lack stamina to keep going. I find I sort of hold back a bit so I have enough gas in the tank to keep going which isn't really in the spirit of the programme! I do work hard though and last night I needed ibuprofen as my muscles were so sore. A bit of a worry as I'm only just starting this programme!

The W25K programme is so good isn't it? I completed it a few years ago but didn't keep up with running once it got dark (I'd run at about 7pm). I'm toying with the idea of starting it again and forcing DS11 to do it with me - he's got a bit chubby over the last year despite all the sport he does and could really use more time off the screens. But I'm not a natural runner and I really need to force myself to keep going - see above re my woeful lack of stamina!

Great, thanks Professor. I did wonder about weights. I have a few different sets of neoprene weights which I bought cheap from TK Maxx probably 15-20 years ago, though I hid the heavier (not heavy!) set away from the DC and I can’t remember where I put them! I’ve been using lighter ones for BR and I’ve been looking online for heavier ones for L&S and prices now are shocking!

Biked to work, so that’s my first cardio day this week. Back to BS tomorrow.

@gratedbeetroot, I really liked Lift&Shred. DD and I did it, alternating with Killer Cardio, in lockdown 1, and although it’s not easy, there’s no cardio (hurrah!) and it doesn’t demand great co-ordination. A klutz like me can do it without falling over my feet or staring in bafflement at the screen, even the first time round. And you can make it harder by increasing the weight. DD did it with 1 and 2kg weights, and I did it with 4 and 5 kg. I also rashly bought a pair of 8 kg dumbbells, which was over-ambitious, not to mention expensive.

Thanks, roonetta. I’ve decided I want to be careful with the jumping around as I worry about my knees, so I might adapt those bits.

Actually, I meant Lift and Shred!

Glad to hear your dad is back home and feeling better wineloffa

Yoga by the sea sounds wonderful!

Interesting that you’re experiencing the same with weight loss.

Week 2 of BR this week, and week 5 of C25K - the first run went better than expected.

Has anyone tried Shred it with Weights?

Morning! Thanks to everyone who asked after my Dad. He’s home from hospital now and is feeling much better after a blood transfusion and some IV antibiotics. My anxiety has eased a bit but it’s so hard living far away and not being allowed to visit.

On Saturday I did a group yoga class outdoors by the sea with my old yoga instructor. So lovely to exercise with people again and the sea air and sunshine made it even more special.

Yesterday I did Yoga Inferno L2 and today I plan on doing 6W6P L2. This is my last week of alternating Shred levels and 6W6P. Starting Ri30 on Saturday!

That’s interesting about upping calories to lose weight. I try and stick to 1200 /1400 per day but have only lost 2 pounds in 6 weeks even though I’m doing Jillian nearly every day..? I look more toned though and jeans are looser which is encouraging!

There might be something in the upping calories thing, roonetta, as that reminds me that years ago when I used to weigh regularly I’d find that I’d randomly lose weight after having a takeaway pizza! I’ll do it the healthily way now though haha. I’ve lost nothing in over a week which is disheartening although my trousers feel a bit looser I think.

Queuing, I am doing the 6 days. Mainly because I’ve printed out a tick chart and it’s quite satisfying to tick each day off on that When I regularly did her DVDs previously I worked out most days. I made myself have the occasional rest day but I was quite addicted. I like that these workouts are shorter; some of the DVDs said they were x minutes long and then ended up being longer which felt annoying. How are you feeling doing two workouts a day? I’d be very tempted to do the same occasionally if I could get the same results in less time! I’m doing some other ab exercises on top though as I don’t feel like there are enough ab exercises in there for me.

Perhaps Body Shred at the end of the year then Professor! Sounds scary.

Today I have Workouts 1 and 2 on BR as I'm doubling up until Wednesday when I can do single workouts. Can't wait as an hour is too much to fit into my schedule at the moment.

Beetroot how are you getting on? Are you doing 6 days a week as per the programme, or modifying? Up to now I've tended to do 3 days on, rest day, 3 days on and so on. Upped it to 4 days when I did Ri30 but have never done 6 days a week before. Glad it's only half an hour

BS week 3 workout 4, second time. Those burpees aren’t getting any better...

@Queuing4Fergs, it really is hardcore- more difficult than any of her others. Workouts 1 and 2 are intense but not too bad, and the first cardio disc is tough but do-able.I suspect I’m just not quite fit enough for the rest of it, unlike @roonetta, who is clearly a fitness goddess! (I agree the cardio in month 1 of Body Rev is criminally dull, by the way, I ditched it and did other things. The other two discs are better.)

@Wineloffa, very sorry to hear about your dad. Hope he’s being well looked after.

Hi Queuing, it’s good to hear from someone at a similar stage. I’m enjoying BR so far, although like you I’m not a fan of the cardio workout and repeated circuits. I do find JM very motivational though. I have the last cardio workout of week one to do today (although I’m wondering whether I should do it tomorrow on the same day as my run and have today as a proper rest day). I’m also on the wrong side of 40 and things are going very slowly considering I’ve gone from eating what I want when I want to eating very healthily, restricting calories, eating within a smaller timeframe each day and doing more exercise than usual! I’m really hoping for a significant change after three months!