I realize I never posted before pictures. I’m 5’9” and currently about 148 lbs, my measurements are 34c-27-38. My goal is not to lose any weight but to tone my body. I don’t even weigh myself because it’s not at all important to me, as long as my pants size doesn’t change I’m happy. My focus is on my butt and thighs. I’m a pear shape body type so that makes me bottom heavy. This week I did start to incorporate some arm work because I have flabby triceps.

Everyday at work I do 2 one-mile walks during my breaks. This week at home I worked with weight.

For my arms, I did 3 sets each of…
10 Bicep Curls
10 Shoulder Press
10 Bentover Lateral Raises
10 Tricep Kickbacks
10 Upright Rows

For my legs and core, I did…
20 squats
30 lunges
40 sec planks
50 sec wall sits
100 calf raises
Then I did it again in reverse.

So, I decided to get more serious about working out again. I just completed my first week. Of course, I don’t notice any change yet but I’m starting to feel the difference already. I still do my normal two mile walk during my break at work. I’ve been doing that for a long time now. Now, I added an evening workout session to my routine.

This week I worked out to Kim Kardashian: Ultimate Butt Body Sculpt. This video gave me a great workout. I could really feel it in my butt and thighs which are my main problem areas. I get bored easy so I plan on doing something different every week so I won’t lose my motivation.

I also keep a fitness journal to help keep me accountable and focused.

The thing that keeps me the most motivated is following fitness blogs on tumblr. Those fitness blog remind me that there is no reason I should not have the body I want. I check them everyday and can’t wait to get work and exercise after seeing other people’s journeys.

Luckily for me, I’m already on the right track as far as healthy eating habits. Since I have endometriosis I’m already on a strict diet. Soy, wheat, dairy, and red meats have been out of my diet for a while now. This diet has forced me to eat more fruits, vegetables, and other fresh foods.

I’m not looking to lose any weight, I’m happy with where I am as far as weight is concerned. I’m just working on toning up. I’m proud of my progress so far and believe I will stick to it. There is no excuse not to be fit and healthy.

Just Dance was released in November 2009. It features over 30 tracks from popular artists such as Hot N Cold by Katy Perry, U Can’t Touch This by MC Hammer, Who Let The Dogs Out? by Baha Men, and many more.  This was the first dance game I’ve ever played and I fell in love with it immediately. I would play it everyday. I was so excited when I heard that Just Dance 2 was coming back.

Just Dance 2 was released in October 2010. This game features over 40 tracks from artists such as Rihanna, James Brown, The Jackson 5, The Pussycat Dolls, and more. In my previous reviews I did the pros and cons of the games however this time I think it would be a better idea to compare Just Dance with Just Dance 2. These two games are pretty much identical to Michael Jackson: The Experience and I was just as excited to play these as I was to play Michael Jackson: The Experience. The only difference is that Michael Jackson: The Experience focuses on one artist and Just Dance focuses on various artists.

Just Dance: I love the selection of music and the routines are easy to follow along with. I can tell when they picked out the music for this game that they tried to include stuff that will make this game appealing to everyone. I like to sometimes just put it on random and do whatever song that comes up because all songs and routines are enjoyable.

Just Dance 2: While the music selection is good the dance routines are a bit more challenging than the original Just Dance. This game also offers a selection of music that makes this game appealing to everyone but the majority of the preloaded music more modern than the previous version of this game. The thing that I love about Just Dance 2 is that even if you don’t like the preloaded music they have more selections available for download using Wii points.

Just Dance 3 is to be released October 2011. See Trailer below.

Micheal Jackson: The experience for Wii came out in November 2010. This game features 26 hit songs by Micheal Jackson including Bad, Beat it, Billie Jean, Smooth Criminal, Thriller, Black & White, and much more. I think this is the best dance game to come out because I don’t know many people who didn’t want to dance like Michael when they were young. Now, is your chance. Most people I know have already experienced this game and love it so I’m a little late. For those of you who still haven’t went up and made that purchase yet, this review is for you.

The Experience Pros: This game has easy to follow choreography that even kids can follow, it is rated 10+ but my 3 year old niece and 9 year old nephew can do it. The side of the screen displays the next move for you so you are better able to keep up. It provides the lyrics to the song, as long as I been listening to Michael Jackson I don’t think I knew the lyrics to none of his songs before playing this game. It’s mirrored after Michael Jackson so of course it was a workout. You are going to feel it after a few songs but it’s so addictive that you do not want to stop.

The Experience Cons: There really aren’t any cons that I can think of. Only thing I can think of is every once in awhile the moves they display on the side of the screen don’t match what’s really coming out, but that is rare. Also, there are some other song I wish were on here but that just makes room for The Experience part II which I hope is soon to come.

The Experience is a great game and the cons aren’t really cons at all. I just hope Ubisoft comes out with more games like this. I’m really hoping for an Aaliyah version of this game because I use to always try to learn the choreography to Aaliyah videos. But, I absolutely love Michael Jackson: The Experience.

Check out the official trailer here.

I have been meaning to do some reviews on a couple of Wii fitness games for the longest time. However, as mentioned in a few previous post I’ve been having problems with sciatica since February. It still causes me problems but I am able to get around a lot better now and do more things. I wanted to do the reviews while the games were still relatively new but I figured there are still people that may benefit from the reviews so I decided to go ahead with my reviews.

Zumba Fitness came out in November 2010. Zumba fitness is a dance-fitness game for up to 4 people. It has many different dance styles such as salsa, merengue, hip-hop and more. You can do a single routine or do a whole dance class. Classes range from beginner to expert.

Zumba Pros: If you are looking for a game that will give you a serious workout then this is for you. It’s fast pace and it will definitely make you sweat. It monitors your hip movement instead of your hands so you just need to put the wii remote in the belt provided so your hands are free making it easier to do the movements without something in your hand. Once you learn the routine it is pretty fun.

Zumba Cons: Unlike other dance games on the Wii this game doesn’t offer any guidance into what the next move will be which makes it difficult for some people to keep up. Beginning classes doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy, some people have complained that even the beginning classes were hard to keep up with. I purchased Zumba fitness as a gift this past Christmas and admittedly it hasn’t been played much because everyone has been kinda intimidated by it.

Overall, I think if you are serious about working out and are patient enough to learn the routine then it can be a pretty fun game. I didn’t find it too difficult to keep up with but it does have it’s challenging moments.

I hope Coco doesn’t mind me adding this, but you can check out the official launch trailer for Zumba below – LV

I am now entering into the 3rd week of my “30 Minutes of Something” plan that I first mentioned here: 30 Minutes of Something Plan.  So how have I been doing?  Overall, I’ve been doing well with this plan, but I have run into one obstacle.  I am finding it tough to get my 30 minutes of working out in on Fridays and Sundays.  Fridays and Sundays are usually family days, so we usually try to do something out of the house or hang out and watch movies together.  I’m not set on it yet, but I may adjust my plan so that it is a 5 day a week plan.  I have been doing research on the subject and the consensus seems to be that 30 minutes of working out at least 5 days a week can help with weight loss.  For a person with a lot of weight to lose, 45 minutes, 5 days a week may be needed (I plan on bumping up to 45 minutes once I build up my endurance).

So what have I been doing?  My 30 minutes a day workouts have consisted of everything from working out using the Wii to jumping rope for 30 minutes.  Let me pause for a minute to say…jumping rope for 30 minutes is one of the toughest things I’ve done.  And I’m not even talking about 30 minutes straight…I’m talking about 30 minutes with a lot…I mean a lot…a whole lot of water breaks in between.

My favorite mode of working out and getting my 30 minutes of activity in is dancing to the new Wii game: Michael Jackson The Experience (Please see disclaimer in the side menu).  Can you say fun (and a great workout)?  Now I don’t own this game yet, because money is tight right now, but I get to enjoy this treat once or twice a week when I go over my mom’s house. I will be purchasing this as soon as possible!

So far, I’m pretty happy with this plan because it takes my mood into a account.  If I don’t feel like doing a particular workout, I don’t.  I simply pick another activity to do.  What helps to keep me motivated is getting my children involved while I workout.  I know that by doing this, 1) I am teaching them the value of working out and 2) I don’t get a chance to slack off because they are often asking me “what workout are we going to do today?”  This is a plan that I think I can stick with.

What do you think about this plan?

Two things that I refused to do this year: 1) Come up with some type of weight loss New Year’s resolution, 2) Start a set exercise routine.  I knew that I would have a hard time sticking with either.  Why?  That’s easy enough to answer…I hate working out.  Actually, that’s not accurate.  I hate the thought of working out.  Once I’m actually doing something active, I’m OK…it’s just the thought process that gets to me, such as; get off the couch, put on workout clothes, put on workout shoes, get into the car, go to the gym…etc.

Still, I have 15 – 20 pounds of after baby weight that I need to lose.  The things is, my child is no longer a baby…she’s 3 years old!!  It’s due time to lose the weight.  Before my daughter was born, I weighed 150 pounds. My weight now fluctuates between 165 – 169. Yikes!  Now don’t get me wrong.  I’d like to be around 150 pounds, but my real goal is to be more active and in better overall shape.  In other words, I’d like to be able to walk up a flight of stairs (or two) without a whole lot of heavy breathing.

So what’s my plan?  Instead of a set workout plan that I know will bore me after a week or two, I am committing to a “30 Minutes of Something Plan.”  Huh?  What does this mean?  I mean that everyday, my goal is to do 30 minutes of something active.  It can be anything I feel like, as long as it’s active and I do it for 30 minutes.  What does this do?  This allows me to assess my mood and pick something active based on that.  I also try to incorporate my children as well.  I know that they will make me get up and get active.

So what have I done so far?  I’ve been actively sticking with this plan for 3 days.  Here’s what I’ve done:

• Monday – 30 minutes of “Just Dance Kids” on the Wii with my 9 and 3 year old.  I’ve enjoyed this a lot.  Not only is the “Just Dance Kids” child friendly, but it’s also adult friendly and fun.  Oh and the dance routines are not necessarily overly simple.  I actually have to move quite a bit to keep up.
• Tuesday – 30 minutes on my newly purchased mini trampoline.  I picked up an inexpensive trampoline from Aldi’s the other day.  It was only $34 and by keeping it in the living room, I’m tempted from time to time to hop up on it and jump for a bit.  My children sometimes get on it and jump while watching TV.  What a way to keep the children active!  Now the reason why I ended up doing the trampoline was because I just had to run over to my mom’s house to watch the premier of “The Game”.  When I came back home, I jumped on the trampoline for 30 minutes while I watched “The Tudors” on Netflix.  Now if I could figure out how to use the computer while I jump, I’d be in incredible shape
• Wednesday – 30 of “Active Outdoor Challenge” on the Wii.  My son and I enjoyed this together.  This game is truly a challenge.  It involves a lot of jumping.  If only I could connect my Wii to my trampoline.

I don’t know what I’ll do tonight, but that’s the beauty of this idea.  I’ll do whatever activity that moves me.  It may be “Walk It Out” on Wii.  Maybe it’ll be walking outside for 30 minutes…wait…it might be 30 degrees out there, that’s not an option. Maybe I’ll pull out my EA active game.  Who knows, as long as I get in 30 minutes of activity, I’ll meet my goal.

What do you think of this plan?  Are there any workout plans that you’ve been very successful doing?

I admit it, I absolutely hate going to the gym.  I do not enjoy treadmills or riding on exercise bikes.  Our family had a YMCA membership and we used it religiously for the first few months, then we stopped going.  There’s just something about dragging a almost three-year-old and a nine year old to the gym after a full day of home school that just does not sound appealing to me.

When we finally purchased a Nintendo Wii, I bought the Wii Fit, then the EA Sports Active and a few other exercise games designed for the Wii.  Once again, I used these for the first few months, but became bored.

Then I discovered the Walk it Out game for the Wii.

THE GOOD – I finally know what it’s like to be addicted to exercise.  It’s a simple concept – you walk around an island to the beat of one of over 100 songs.  As you walk, your goal is to collect points to purchase buildings and decorations for your island.  To earn the points, you must walk to the rhythm of the song.  Miss the beat, you don’t earn any points.  Sounds too simplistic… try keeping beat to Missy Elliot’s Get Your Freak On after you’ve already walked 10,000 steps!

What’s so addictive about that?  Well, when you start on the game, the island is empty and you only have access to a few songs.  As you earn points and purchase buildings, trees, shops, etc.,  Rhythm island begins to come to life.  Let’s say you have to earn 1,000 points (about 1,000 steps) in order to build a fountain in the park, you walk to earn enough points, but your fountain would look so much better if you just earn a few more points to build a bench next to your fountain.  You keep stepping to earn your bench, but you only need a few more points to earn a light post next to your bench…get the picture.  You become addicted to earning the points and completing your island.  Before you know it, you’ve been walking for an hour and have taken over 10,000 steps.  If you check out the Walk It Out page on Facebook, you’ll see that there are some fans who have become so addicted to Walk It Out that they have completed their island two, three, four, even five times just waiting for Walk It Out II.

Yeah, I know…it’s cheaper to just go outside and take a walk in the neighborhood.  I agree, it is cheaper, but at the very least, Walk It Out is great for days when it’s not reasonable to be outside (like summertime in the south).  Also, for people like me who need some extra motivation to work-out, I like the game playing factor, because it keeps me motivated and its fun.  In one session, I may burn 200 – 400 calories without even realizing it.

THE BAD – Some people may find walking around the same island a bit boring.  I have not gotten bored with it, but I can see how some people could get bored.  Another bad point for me at times is the music.  As you are walking, you cannot choose what song comes on, nor can you forward through songs that you do not like.  The only way to remedy this is to set up your own playlist before you begin, by choosing which songs out of the 120 or so songs that you want to hear.  I tend to choose the greatest hits song list which includes songs by Missy Elliot, Beyonce, Ne-Yo and other artist that we have actually heard of before.  Also, some of the songs are too slow to walk effectively to.

OVERALL – Walk It Out has kept me motivated for months now and I still enjoy it.  It has been very effective in helping to manage my weight and even helped me lose some pounds.  There are people on the Facebook Walk It Out page who have lost a  lot of weight by being very, very dedicated to walking almost daily using Walk It Out.

To control the game, you use your Wii remote.  To step to the rhythm, you can use a DDR Controller, your Wii Balance Board or your Wii remote and nunchuck. I recommend the DDR controller mat (I use the Wii Active Life Outdoor Challenge). There is so much more that I can say about the game, but I will stop here.  You can check Amazon.com to read more reviews, see video and purchase Walk It Out The game is not perfect, but I love it, I’ve lost weight using it and I highly recommend it.  Oh and one last thing – at only $29.99 (+ free shipping from Amazon), it’s a lot cheaper than a gym membership