Focus T25 STATurday: Week 2 (Take 2)

You may recall that last week didn’t get off to the strongest start for me as far as the Focus T25 challenge goes. To be honest, the week sort of hovered there. I got the workouts in, but I didn’t feel like I gave them my all. I wasn’t feeling well, and I let that translate into a less-than-100% performance.

So, I decided to repeat Week 2 this week, rather than move on to Week 3. The scheduling of the workouts gets progressively harder, and I wanted to make sure I was pushing myself and living up to Shaun T’s expectations. Because OBVIOUSLY he can see me in my living room sweating like a pig and trying to keep up with him on my TV screen. OBVIOUSLY.

This is one of the things I love about at home workout series – you really can make them work for you. The calendar serves as a great guide, and I was able to evaluate my performance and my progress, and decide to take some extra time before moving forward. I may ultimately decide to repeat the Alpha cycle before moving on to Beta — I would ideally like to be doing at least 85% of each workout full out, without needing to modify, before advancing to the more difficult series of routines. I’ll have to see how I feel after this cycle is over! I give this advice to anyone in my challenge groups as well – just because the calendar tells you to advance doesn’t mean that it’s the right move for you! Regularly check in with your progress, see how you feel, and decide whether you are ready to take the next step.

I decided to do quick recaps each day for this week. If you follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, you might have seen some of this content already… #SorryNotSorry.

Monday: Cardio 

I LOVE kicking the week off with Cardio! I pushed myself harder today and didn’t need to follow Tania for modifications as much as I have when attempting this workout in the past. I have a feeling this workout might stay in my repertoire even after I’ve completed the cycle; it’s a great go-to quick workout with a fantastic calorie burn payoff.

Tuesday: Total Body Circuit

I decided that I’ll be ready to advance to Beta cycle when I can do Total Body Circuit without a) cursing at Shaun T on the screen, b) needing to hit pause to take water / mop up the sweat that I’m slipping on when attempting the pike moves, and c) don’t feel the urge to crawl directly back into bed for a nap after completing the workout. This workout is not messing around. I still find myself getting tripped up at points – I need to pause in my workout to figure out what the heck Shaun is asking us to do, because I haven’t quite mastered the lingo for this workout just yet. I am assuming that this will come with more practice… but I like to pretend that I’ll never have to do TBC ever again every time I finish it, because it kicks my butt every single time.

Wednesday: Speed 1.0

Is it okay to play favorites? Because this is my favorite workout in the Alpha cycle, hands down. I really like the balance between cardio, strength, stability, and stretching. I could easily see myself keeping this around as a go-to routine long after this challenge is in the bag.

Thursday: Cardio

Wait, didn’t I do this already? There’s a method to Shaun T’s madness, that’s for sure. Doubling up on Cardio this week, and stacking it with Speed 1.0, and I’m definitely feeling it. I am also feeling the after effects of last night’s book club meeting, but that’s neither here nor there.

Friday DOUBLE SESSION: Lower Focus & Ab Intervals

I took today off from work and had planned to go kayaking with my mom, and stacking this double on top of an hour on the lake definitely put my core to the challenge. As I write this post Friday night, I am FEELING IT. I liked this double, though – stacking Cardio on top of Lower Focus in Week 1 really left me drained, whereas this combination tested my body without leaving me dead on my mat.

Okay, but on to the important part… how are my stats looking?

Guys, I gotta say… I’ve seen the before and after photos that Beachbody uses to promote these DVDs, I’ve heard the stories from friends and colleagues who have done the program, but I guess I didn’t really expect to see numbers like these. I am TOTALLY BLOWN AWAY.

The individual numbers tallied in the graphic above show my loss between Week 1 of STATurday results and today. In weeks 2 and 3, I lost another 5.25 inches. I was thrilled to see my arms come down after no movement in the first set of results, and I am super excited by the loss in my hips. I’m halfway there, and I’ve already lost 11.25 inches overall. THAT. IS. CRAZY.

I’ve got three weeks to go. Since I repeated Week 2, I will be taking 6 weeks total for Alpha cycle. I’ll report back again in two weeks, just in time for the friends’ wedding that inspired this challenge. I can only hope that things will keep progressing as well as they have been thus far!

Again, I do just want to add this disclaimer: I am still very much in the during portion of my journey. I currently wear dress size 12/14, so these numbers are reasonable for someone of my size and height (5’9″). Adjust your expectations proportionally to where you’re starting from, and remember that results will vary based on individual body composition.

STATurday: T25 Alpha Week 1

WHEW. I did it, y’all! I survived Week 1 of Focus T25 Alpha. As you may remember, two big components of any SMART goal are that they are measurable and time-defined. One reason I chose this particular fitness program was because it built these factors right into the workout calendar. Every Saturday, instead of popping a DVD into the machine, I pick up my trusty measuring tape and pull together the data. STATurday – the day I (hopefully) get to see my progress reflected in the numbers!

Before we get to the numbers, I wanted to share a quick recap of how yesterday went.

You guys. I can’t accurately convey my reaction when I checked the workout calendar for Friday’s routine…

Luckily, selfies exist and I had the foresight to grab my camera and document the experience:

The program is called Focus T25, Shaun T! It’s not Focus T50! YOU LIED TO ME, SHAUN T. I FEEL BETRAYED. Just when I was starting to like you, you go and spring this on me.

… It’s possible that I sometimes tend to be a little bit dramatic. Anyway. Moving right along.

Once I got past the initial shock and betrayal, I realized that this made sense. Upping the ante on Friday’s workout would give me the extra little oomph I needed to head into the weekend on the right foot. So, I laced up my sneakers, I pressed play, and I threw everything I had into those 50 minutes. I actually felt pretty good throughout the first round, Lower Focus. It was my first time trying this workout, and it is a killer. Lots of squats and lunges – but definitely within what my body is capable of doing. Tacking Cardio 1.0 on after that was brutal, though. I found myself following Tania, the modifier, for most of the workout, because my legs were totally burned out after the first round. Despite how wiped out I felt by the end of it, though, I survived. And when all was said and done, I felt pretty great about my burn for the day!

(And then I went and took a Piloxing class at Studio Poise, because I’m a masochist. Obviously.)

Annnnnd… drumroll please… now on to the exciting part – STATURDAY!

TOTAL INCHES LOST = 6 INCHES! 

So, a quick disclaimer — I took my measurements on 7/12 as part of a Facebook challenge group I’m participating in, and I didn’t re-measure last week prior to starting Focus T25, so these measurements are a combination of this week’s efforts with Shaun T added to three weeks of Shakeology. Please ALSO bear in mind that I am very much still in the midst of my journey toward fitness and I have a lot of toning and trimming left to do. Every individual is on his or her own journey toward wellness and no two sets of stats will look the same. Tracking these numbers is as much for my own reference as it is to inspire others who are thinking about setting off on their own path to a healthier lifestyle.