30 Day Shred Complete

In my midst of busy-ness, I didn't blog a lot that I wanted to. One huge accomplishment was finishing the 30 Day Shred. 

It was daunting to finish at first for a number of reasons. All of Houston seems to be hit by this never ending, mutating, persistent cold. It knocked me off my shredding feet for two weeks. I could function for day to day stuff, but anything more than crawling around after the kids or a single flight of stairs would send me into a coughing fit that wouldn't shake. So I was worried that, after two weeks off , I had lost some of my strength. This wasn't the case. 

I'm ecstatic that I finished all 30 days and really ended up looking forward to my workout time. I think the shred is great for me for a number of reasons. First, it's quick. It only takes 25 minutes (that includes warmup and cool down) and covers strength, cardio, and core workouts. Second, it's a DVD/video which means there isn't the commitment to getting to the gym or the effort of making sure we are there at an ideal time for the kids to be happy in childcare. Ideally, and we did do this a few times, I would shred and try to make it to the gym a few times a week for extra cardio. But having already done your workout for the day with the shred takes the pressure off. Third, it's adaptable. By the end of the program, I was still doing modified versions of some of the exercises, but others I was amping up on my own (extra weights or extra reps). In the comfort of your own home you can find what works for you. There was one cardio exercise that I didn't like, so I picked another one to do for those 30 seconds. It just worked better for me. 

Did it work? That's hard to say. I think I would have seen more results without having to take those two weeks off for sickness. However, as far as getting stronger, you can tell that within three days, and every few days if you look back at where you were, the change is noticeable. Also, I definitely lost inches all over. With the exception of my biceps and quads which maintained the same measurement but got more toned and leaner, I lost one to two inches all over my body. And that is victory to me. 

I think I may plug back through the workout in the coming weeks while trying to work in more walks with the kids or workouts at the gym to continue advancing towards a healthier and stronger me. I bought myself a workout outift as a reward for doing so well which means I have to get good use out of it! I hope anyone that has been working towards their owns goals is doing well too!