The Biggest Loser- #BL11- week 8- BALLS. Big Ones.

For lack of a better word.

"The Kids are Alright"

This week's episode of The Biggest Loser was so FULL of crap.  It actually made me angry, really angry!

This week there was the red line/yellow line business.  The Red team went to a new and exciting location to box.  BOX!  Can you believe it?  We learned the Scorpion Flip.  The Black and Red teams played with their balls.

This is what really annoyed me about the episode.  After the ball challenge where the Black team lost, the Black team gathered around the table to discuss what will happen when they lose the weigh in.  Not IF they lose the weigh in.  What unfolds is a master manipulation by Marci to convince the parents in the team to let the "kids" stay on the show.  Basically, the parents throw the weigh in to insure the younger folks get to keep participating.  When Jesse says he isn't ready to go yet, the women at the table turn it around on him, making their whole cause about "keeping Arthur safe".

Hold on.  If Arthur hadn't lost 20 pounds last week, they were going to vote him off.  Remember?  The Black team NEEDS Arthur and Jesse and their larger numbers as they get smaller.  Marci is already under 200 pounds.  So is Deni.  Why don't they volunteer to go home?

When Jesse says he wants to stay and calls the team out on their game play, Olivia gets up from the table indignantly like Jesse did something to her personally.  My theory?  She felt guilty because the women had already planned to send Jesse home and thought he was going along with it.

At the weigh in, the game play becomes even more apparent.

Austin:  From 306 to 299- 7 lbs lost

Ken:  From 296 to 291- 5 lbs lost

Justin:  From 277 to 270- 7 lbs lost

Rulon:  From 371 to 367- 4 lbs lost

Kaylee:  From 187 to 180- 7 lbs lost

Moses:  From 333 to 322- 11 lbs lost

Jen:  From 211 to 213- 2 lbs gained (Which I don't understand.)

Arthur:  From 415 to 406- 9 lbs lost

Olivia:  From 206 to 202- 4 lbs lost

Sarah:  From 208 lbs to 204 lbs- 4 lbs lost

Irene:  From 198 to 195- 3 lbs lost

Hannah:  From 194 to 193- 1 lb lost

Courtney:  From 258 to 256- 2 lbs lost

Marci:  From 181 to 182- 1 lb gained

Jesse: From 238 to 241- 3 lbs gained

Deni:  From 196 to 204 lbs- 8 lbs gained

"It's clear that something is going on," says Rulon.

Instead of trying to really lose weight and come together as a team, the Black team becomes petty, losing very few pounds (except Arthur).  The parents gained weight to "protect" their "kids".  There are no kids on this team.  They are all grown ups, and some of the parents could go home because they have already lost a good amount of weight.  Instead, Deni takes a DIVE, gaining 8 pounds, and then giving a speech about how she gained the weight to save the "kids".

How about showing your support by pushing each other and making the effort?  Gaining weight shows you don't believe your teammates have what it takes to lose the weight themselves.  The Black team is shattered, and I cannot imagine how they will ever recover after losing two team members:  Deni after falling below the red line, and Jesse being voted off in an unfair elimination.

At home, Jesse has started a walking program and Deni has become a super grandma.

Next week:  The teams are going home for two weeks and Jillian prepares for her transition to Oscar winning actress.

Want to hear what Mark has to say?  Here is his two cents, courtesy of Dietsinreview.com.

Day 44: Insanity Challenge- Month 2

If you had asked me 44 days ago if I would be able to execute some of the exercises that Shaun T has been asking me to do in Insanity I would probably have laughed. I would have had a hearty chuckle, said "Really?" in the fashion that I am accustomed to, and done some 30 Day Shred.

Because 44 days ago I thought Jillian Michaels was the toughest trainer out there. Apparently there are many trainers that wear that moniker!

This pushing of my body, this intensity that I am working out at, this willingness to say "Yes!" and not "Really?" has opened up my eyes and I am having some major epiphanies.

Back in the old days, in my single lady days, I used to go to all sorts of classes and I would run and boot camp and pole dance- I would get totally inspired and motivated by fitness because it was a great distractor and occupier of time. When I was single, I would get super fit.

Then I meet someone, get cozy, and I gain some weight. Not a lot, but enough where I was like, "Huh?", and ponder why I wasn't where I used to be.

With moving in with my boyfriend this past June, I realized I had adopted that same mentality. I didn't want to work out in front of him because what if he thought I looked silly? Or he found out that I sweat? I quickly got over that because I like working out and had to get over this sudden shyness. I started working out again, I started this blog, I started the studying for my ACE certification, I started my Twitter account. I met all my blog friends and forum friends; People that encouraged me to get accountable. I felt I needed to push myself to be an example for those folks, to show them what was possible.

Through the Celebrate Weight Loss challenges, I started to push the limits to what I thought that I could do. Then I started watching all the infomercials for Insanity and I thought maybe that was the challenge that I needed to get the scale moving.

And I was right. The intenSati Warrior Challenge got me into the positive frame of mind to do this hard work, and Shaun T keeps telling me to dig deeper and really push myself beyond the boundaries that I have set for myself.

That is when the light bulb went off. I didn't lose weight because I was single! I lost weight because I pushed myself harder than I used to. When I pushed myself, I got the results that I wanted. Now I am seeing the results that I want in the mirror. My body feels strong, graceful, and powerful. I now know that this is the level that I need to be working out at, and I have already started to plan my workout regime for after the Insanity plan is over based on the structure of these workouts.

With careful planning and renewed dedication, I know that I can keep it up and not back track. I have even found a couple of bikinis- BIKINIS!- that I want to purchase and really wear in public. I am onto week 2 of the second month! Exhausted, but insane.

Day 17: intenSati Insanity Challenge

My butt is sore. Damn those curtsy lunges! But at least I know it's working!

Day 17 of my challenge is complete! WHAT WHAT! I did Insanity Pure Cardio and my nemesis Cardio Abs. Which actually wasn't AS tough as I thought it was going to be. Maybe because I was mentally prepared for the beating I was about to take.

I wanted to talk about excuses for a second. I notice when I am reading posts from the Celebrate Weight Loss forum or looking at blogs with people that haven't posted for 5 months but their blog title is "Watch Me Lose 100 pounds- My Journey to Greatness!" that there are some pretty amazing excuses being used to not work out.

NOW DON'T GET ME WRONG. I understand that sometimes there are days when you wish your bed was already made, to quote The Bangles. You can be legitimately sick or injured. But half the game of making yourself well and creating self discipline is making yourself actually do it.
Yeah, it's hard. Nobody told you that it would be easy. But do you really want it? Then you must make yourself do it. Slacking off because you have a headache or you just aren't in the mood to sweat aren't good excuses. There is a reason why you have gotten where you are and why you want to change. Now all you have to do is make it happen.

So make it happen!!!

Wanna try out Insanity? Click here. I sell it! Wanna try out intenSati? Click here.

30 Day Goal Challenge: Days 1-7

If you followed my blog during most of October and November, you saw that I was a part of a 30 day challenge that involved doing Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred DVD every day for 30 days. The woman behind this challenge was my friend Paula, and she runs the site www.celebrateweightloss.com and the new forum.

She has now organized a new 30 Day Challenge- a challenge to set goals for yourself everyday and accomplish those goals. You can choose any goal you like- working out, doing housework, writing, drinking more water: Whatever you feel you need a little push to accomplish set the goal and do it. You log in daily to the forum and share your progress with the rest of the participants. It is a great way to meet new people and keep yourself honest and ACCOUNTABLE.

Here is a recap of my first week.

Goal. . . Accomplished?
Day 1:
Hey y'all! Today's goal was to write my blog YES!
post and my examiner.com article for Cherie
Lily, the instructor who taught the
Powerstrike class I went to last week.

Day 2:
goals were 1.) yoga 2.) write article about YES!
Black Friday.

Day 3:
Today's goal- starting the hard core cardio YES!
to prepare for Insanity in January.
Completed Amy Bento's Kickbox Xtreme and
xtremely kicked my own butt.

Day 4:
Goal was to work out even though it is usually YES!
my day of rest. But ever since the 30 Day Shred
I realized I can keep working even when I think
I can't.So I did Jules Benson's Total Core Pilates
(review on the blog) and DID NOT order or eat
french fries at brunch. In fact, I just realized
that I haven't eaten fries in almost over a month.

Day 5:
Goal for today was to get some writing done. Went YES!
to Starbucks with the boyfriend and wrote a review
for The 30 Day Shred for my blog and for my Examiner
page. And I invited my friends to be my fans on
Facebook because now I feel comfortable enough for
them to know what it is I do besides singing and acting.

Day 6:
Today's goal was to continue with my hard core YES!
training for the Insanity track next year. I did
a new DVD I just got in the mail- Amy Bento's Hi-Lo
Xtreme which was so much fun! My heart rate was to
the max, but at least I was having fun doing it.
http://www.collagevideo.com/workout-vid ... treme-7771
I also FINALLY did my Biggest Loser recap from all the
shows last week.

Day 7:
Today's goal was to cardio workout- check. Did YES!
Kelly Coffey-Meyer's Step boxing DVD.
http://www.collagevideo.com/workout-vid ... meyer-7762
Still working on my homework for ACE- will get
some in before the live tweeting tonight.

Hope I can keep up all this productivity into the new week, the new month, and the new year!!

What I Learned from The 30 Day Shred

My goal in starting this blog was to find a way to write about the things that made me excited about fitness and then share that information with others. I wanted a community where people could come together and find their "thing": Like kickboxing? Pole dancing? Weight lifting? Whatever it was, I wanted to try it out and share it so that everyone can find what they love to do and stick with it. Why run if you hate running, right?

But I am only me, and my information is only as good as the people who read it. And if it is just me, well. . .that's not very helpful. I already know this stuff is good.

I started a Twitter account, and through the Twitterverse I started to make connections and meet people who, like me, had a passion for fitness and health. I didn't want to sell anything (Although I do, I hate being pushy. I find it supremely annoying.) or try to make anyone do my bidding. I didn't care if I had a million followers. My goal was to make as many real, meaningful connections as I possibly could.

Through all the muck and mire and BJ photos, I found Paula Seymour and her Celebrate Weight Loss site. I saw her call to action on a 30 day challenge involving Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD. Since I already owned it, I thought, "What the heck. I could use some structure." I signed up, and met a wonderful group of women that I am so pleased to call my friends.

We Twitter daily, we watch The Biggest Loser, we share our joys and pains and frustrations. I never thought in a million years when I embarked on this journey that I could find real meaningful connections over the Internet (even though I met my boyfriend that way). The accountability and responsibility I share with these women is a powerful tool.

Here is what I learned:

1.) That I can find time to workout everyday.
2.) I own a lot of workout tapes. A LOT. Which means I never have an excuse not to workout.
3.) I am stronger than I thought I was.
4.) I can take control of my life.
5.) I can make time for all my secondary activities and my day job.
6.) I must make time for myself. It is not selfish.
7.) I am a motivator. This is what I was born to do.
8.) I have to walk the walk and talk the talk.
9.) I can leave my day job and get into the fitness industry where I belong.
10.) I am a BAD ASS. Even if I don't look like Natalie.

This 30 Day Challenge opened up so much for me. I am looking forward to the next challenge and the new year with much enthusiasm and optimism. And I am excited to see you all there.