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24 November, 2011

Final Review of Farrell's eXtreme Bodyshaping

I just finished 10 amazing weeks at Farrell's eXtreme Bodyshaping. I saw results, I feel better, I enjoyed every workout.
The basic set up was 6 days a week, alternating cardio and strength workouts. Cardio days were centered around kickboxing moves. And the strength workouts utilized resistance bands.

Check out the recaps of the first five weeks:
Week One
Week Two
Week Four
Week Five

I bet you're wondering why no reviews of weeks 6-10... Well, I got f-ing busy, so just assume they got progressively harder and I enjoyed them as equally (if not more) than the first 5 weeks.

My results were pretty good. At the end of the 10 weeks I worked off 5 inches (mostly from my gross c-section tummy). I improved my mile from 11:20 to 9:38. I went from 12 to 32 sit-up in a minute. And from 23 to 69 push-ups in a minute. I'm really proud of my mile time and my push ups. My weight went down like 6 lbs but my body fat % dropped like 4%!
People like lists, so I'll give you what I think are the Pros and the Cons of dropping like $400 on a 10 week program like this.

Pros
  •  If you go you will see results. Plain and simple, you can't fail if you show up every day.
  • It's like a family. Your class and your coach really make it about your success.
  • the Coaches  are great. It's personal but not over bearing. And they use EMAIL! It's the 21st century, I'm glad someone is effectively using email to keep me motivated. 
  • The strength training workouts are just as engaging and fun as the cardio. I didn't think they would be.
  • a 45 minute workout is the PERFECT amount of time. It's gut busting, sweaty, and extreme. But then you look at the clock and you're 10 minutes to finished. 
  • It's a group workout that isn't cheesy and it certainly isn't dancing.

Cons
  • It's not easy to drop $360+ on anything you're not sure about.
  • I was a bit younger than everyone else in the class, sometimes that is awkward for me (oh, I'm 28 BTW)
  • The nutrition portion/regime was hard to follow as a breast feeding mother. I kind of wish it was more specific, too.
  • My employer wouldn't reimburse me at all because it wasn't a monthly fee; like other gyms.
  • oh, and current top 40 pop/dance tracks ALL THE TIME! Egghhhhh...
End summation-- If you want to change your self- Do it at Farrell's. You will love how you feel and you that's worth any cost.

21 November, 2011

Finished Farrell's 10 weeks, jumped right back into busy-ness

I have about 6 million great things to say and details to give about my 10 weeks doing Farrell's eXtreme Bodyshaping. But at this very moment, I'm busy. I've got tons to do, and I recently became addicted to Twitter-- (Follow me @CrunchieMom) .

08 November, 2011

I find you totally Encapsulating... Fenugreek !

Milk supply is a big issue for me. I pump 3-4 times a day at work, and I'm just barely getting the 14 -15 ounces my baby needs for the next day. I'm not building up a freezer stash, and I'm fairly constantly stressed about it. This isn't healthy. I've been taking fenugreek for about a month now. 3 pills 3 times a day, and yes I've noticed some increases, but they don't seem to be consistent and don't last throughout the day. For example, I pump at 9am and get 5 ounces, then at my next two pumping sessions I'll only get 2.5-4 ounces each time. Adding in a 2am pumping and a 4am pumping will always help me cover the spread, but that's stressful- getting up 3 times a night for a baby that actually only wakes once!

The 100 pill bottles last a little over a week. $7.99 a bottle, means that I'm spending roughly $25 a month, minimum. I'm too cheap to not seek out an alternative that doesn't involve as much packaging, and all that crunchy biz.

I came to the conclusion that making my own fenugreek capsules was the way to go. Usually I'm a compulsive Googler of process and theory. But this time I just kind of jumped in. Bought a package of capsules, filled up a bag of bulk ground fenugreek, and brought it all home. Total I spent like $6 and I think I'm set for a while.


My Process
I spoon some out onto a plate. I use a little butter spreader to tap in the powder, then i repeat with the other side of the capsule. I admit, it's not scientific. I'm not measuring or weighing..



Fairly simple stuff.