TurboFIre Results

I have completed 90 days of Turbofire! Time does fly because it really does not feel like I've been using it this long! I am not finished with this program as I just starttd the advanced part of Turbofire.  Even though I only lost few pounds, it did BREAK the plateau I was stuck in! So I'm happy with a few pounds along with some lost inches! I am more fit and stronger now. When I first started using Turbofire, I had to hit pause on the DVD player several times during the first 2 weeks to take a few breaks. I did not have a great endurance. I  also had to learn Chalene's superfast moves and memorize the choreography moves. After a month, the moves became much easier to follow and I was able to do every move rather than constantly falling behind the trainer's moves.  Doing 2nd round of TF probably will give better results than 1st round because you are stronger and you'll know all the moves! I don't hit "pause" on the dvd player anymore as I can get through all of the workouts now. The workouts are more enjoyable and fun!  Here's my stats.
My height is 5' 7"
BEFORE

Feb 2012
Weight-155


BEFORE



Chest-37

Waist-29
Hip-42
Left Thigh=24 1/2
Right Thigh-24 1/2
Left Arm-12
Right Arm 12


AFTER
April 2012
Weight-151
Chest-35
Waist-29
Hip-40
Left Thigh-23
Right Thigh-23
Left Arm-12


AFTER



Right Arm-12

I'm thrilled I can pull size 10 pants/shorts down without unzipping them! I went from size 10 to size 8.  :-) No wonder as I've lost two inches off my hips! My arms haven't changed at all. I never used sculpting gloves during those workouts.  Maybe I should have! My hubby says they're toned though!

Habits

I saw this book being featured on Anderson Cooper show. I don't watch it often but if I see a topic that looks interesting, I record it.  I intend to buy this book! Habits are powerful.  One of my bad habits before I lost weight, was snacking during my favorite TV shows. I still do once in a while but I replace junk food to a healthy snack. I walk on the treadmill too so I can be distracted from snacking.  That helped me break the habit.  The author in the show stated that people who exercise on a daily basis had lower credit  card debt! One of reasons is a better self image leading to less shopping binges. We know exercise offers so many benefits so it's nice to add one more thing to the list! I will be back about this book again after I finish reading it. 

Fitness Milestone

As I hopped on my treadmill to watch one of my favorite TV shows, I realized that I have been using my treadmill for YEARS. I think Its been about 7 years? I remember when I used the treadmill for the first time, I was HUFFING and PUFFING using one of its easiest programs.  I used this same program today while watching TV. (I did Core 20 for Turbofire but I wanted to do some walking while watching TV!)  I realized that I have been working out for  SEVEN YEARS. WOW! That definitely has kept most of my weight off. Without careful eating and exercising, I'm pretty sure I will be back to the old weight. I used to sweat like crazy using some of the programs on the treadmill. Now I can breeze through them. Thanks to Turbofire, it challenges me for now.  I'm actually using the advanced part of Turbofire! I never thought I would reach to that level! Anyway, my health bill from my annual physical check ups always has been healthy. My cholesterol is very low. (100)  I remember a doctor telling me I needed to exercise and eat better because my cholesterol was too high and I was only in college!  Anyway, this thought made me think that I should appreciate that Im stronger now. I'm still hard on myself to lose 5 more lbs or etc. This drives my husband nuts because he thinks I look great now and don't need to lose any more weight. What happens if we do reach our goal weight? Do we stay happy? I only stayed at my goal weight for a short time.  We shall see what happens! For now, I'm happy where I am right now.  Fit and strong.

A Stinky House

Once something bad happens, it pours.  First, I found a salt shaker with a missing bottom meaning there's salt all over the counter and floor. I had to clean the whole mess up. My sweet mother brought me some pretzel rolls that I could never find in the stores. I popped one in the microwave around lunchtime. I did not read the WHOLE direction. It said to warm up the roll for 5 minutes in the microwave. I missed the most important word...THAWED. The roll was frozen. As I was eating my salad, I smelled something burning. OMG, the roll! I ran to the microwave and it was SMOKING. The whole kitchen was smoky. I looked at the flasher to see if the smoke alarm went off. It did not. Whew! The house stunk for hours. Ugh.  It still smells like burned popcorn here. Hope tomorrow is a better day.  At least, kale chips turned out delicious!!!

Kale News

There's a funny story about kale! I saw a recipe for Kale chips in my Hungry Girl's cookbook several years ago. I could not find Kale in the grocery stores so I gave up. I tried again to search for Kale when we moved to another state. None.  Of course, I was disappointed.  Last Friday, someone and I happaned to talk about the healthy benefits of eating Kale, I told her that I couldn't ever find Kale. She said she usually bought them at Publix and that is where I shop too. She told me to look for it in a BAG. I had been looking for Kale in those fresh, leafy lettuce area.  Not bagged salad section! So I decided to look for Kale again in the bagged section yesterday and FOUND a bag of Kale.  Thanks to her, I would never thought of that.  So you can tell that I'm thrilled to make Kale chips today!!!  I got the recipe from my favorite healthy eating blog. The blogger rocks with her recipes. Here's the recipe if you are interested. Kale Chips

Easter Egg Bake

Easter is coming up soon! My family is coming to celebrate Easter this Saturday meaning I will have some leftover ham.  So I searched for a healthy Easter breakfast recipe on Easter and I found it thanks to Hungry Girl! I will definitely try this!

Ham-It-Up Egg Bake

1/12th of egg bake: 143 calories, 4.5g fat, 650mg sodium, 12g carbs, 0.5g fiber, 4.5g sugars, 12g protein -- PointsPlus® value 4*



This brunch-y bake is perfect for Easter; but really it's good any time of year!

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated Pillsbury Crescent Recipe Creations Seamless Dough Sheet OR cresent rolls and just pinch the lines together

1 cup light or low-fat ricotta cheese, room temperature

4 wedges The Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss cheese, room temperature

1 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original)

1 lb. 97% - 98% fat-free sliced ham, roughly chopped

1 cup scallions sliced into 1/2-inch pieces

2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

1/4 tsp. black pepper



Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9" X 13" baking pan with nonstick spray.



Place dough sheet along the bottom of the pan. Firmly press it into the bottom and corners. Pierce dough several times with a fork.



Bake until dough just begins to puff up, about 5 minutes. Remove pan; leave oven on.



In a large bowl, thoroughly mix ricotta cheese with cheese wedges until smooth and uniform. Add egg substitute and thoroughly whisk until smooth.



Stir in chopped ham, scallions, parsley, and pepper. Pour mixture over the dough in the pan.



Bake until egg mixture is cooked through, about 40 minutes. Eat up!



MAKES 12 SERVINGS

Easter Temptations

Easter is approaching upon on us soon! Candies galore! Easter temptations! Okay, no need to deprive yourself completely from the food as long as you keep them in small portions. That is the key!  We could develop the risk of gorging. Recipes always can be modified by using fat free mayo for those famous deviled eggs. There are tons of recipes that don't use mayo for deviled eggs as well. While we were at a store, I spotted a bag of SMALL sized candies. They were the smallest I ever seen and I LOVE that size!!! Here's an example of how small the Health candy is. I put a quarter by the candy so you can get a better idea.

There's also CHOCOLATE shakeology that just hits the sweet cravings too! If you are craving something that tastes like Reese's, simply put 1 TB of PB2 in your Chocolate Shake. That is one of my most frequent shakes. (Im a chocolate addict!) PB2 is one of the best inventions ever for food because 1 TB only has 20 calories!

Beachbody keeps coming out with new products.  One of them is FIRESTARTER. it's a program that is a stage between TurboJam and TurboFire. This program is still intense but no jumps.  It may be good for those days that you do not feel like jumping if you already used TurboFire.  Beachbody is also producing a new fitness program named Body Beast.  It is for people who are into bodybuilding. Keep your eyes peeled for its release if you are into that kind of thing!

Happy Easter!!