I'm Shrinking!

That's what I will be saying if any of my hard work & meticulous food logging pays off. So far, I'm exactly the same as I was when I was sitting around with a tub of Ben & Jerry's in hand. With the season of good eating (which starts on Halloween and runs straight through Valentine's Day) just around the corner, I realize I've reached my maximum comfortable girth.
Not good if you live for pumpkin pie, peppermint ice cream, and chocolate martini's.
So, with a little over a month of time left before the Love's Halloween driveway bonfire/smorgasbord, I decided to kick my glutes into high gear with a shake-up of the 'ol fitness routine. Furthermore, since I've put oodles of thought and time (and money...can't forget the greenbacks) into this project, I felt a review of my first two new DVD's was in order. Here we go:
Tracey Mallet, Booty Barre, Total Body Transformation
Grade A
The Booty Barre DVD is a fun, unique, high energy class. It fuses legendary fitness techniques from Pilates, Dance, Calisthenics and yoga. You will streamline, firm, tighten and tone your entire body without adding bulk. Creating balance, posture, body awareness, flexibility and cardiovascular endurance.
The result is a body that looks and moves 10 years younger!
What's the secret behind The Booty Barre?
Fat Burning Interval Training
Deep Toning Isometric Conditioning
Elongating Techniques inherent in Pilates and Dance
Mixed together to create a NEW workout that will change how you exercise forever!
Say goodbye to cellulite and belly fat with The Booty Barre.
For this workout you will need a chair or a ballet barre and a set of 3-5 pound dumbbells  
This is the original Booty Barre DVD. It is a full 60 minutes of heart pumping, thigh burning, abs screaming exercise. Technically this is a 'strength' workout; but research (cough, cough, looked it up on several sites online) has shown that it is a major calorie burner weighing in around 430 calories for the hour. I've been using this DVD three times a week in conjunction with running sprint intervals two days and walking three others. There are still sections where I have to stop for a few seconds because my legs are crying. I'm also drenched in sweat when I'm finished. The added bonus is that my abs have really taken on some great lines (partially hidden under my belly pouch, but still feeling pretty rock solid) and I can now kick over my head! Wowzers!
@$15.99 (on Amazon.com) or $12.99 on Collage Video...I consider this a workout that pays for itself!
Tracy Anderson Mat Method
Grade B-/C+
Re-engineer your muscular structure, wake up your accessory muscles, pull in your larger muscles, and shift your shape into something you never knew you could achieve! This helpful DVD trains your muscles to work in a different way and shift your approach to fitness. From Tracy Anderson.

As always, please consult your personal physician before beginning any diet or exercise program.

Take a realistic approach: If you work consistently and follow the program, you maximize your results.
This workout is also a full hour. I got this on sale from Mamapedia. Ordered it mid August. It took an entire month for the DVD to arrive; which is *completely* unacceptable. That being said, I will move on to the workout. Tracy Anderson is a dancer with big name devotees, the biggest being Mad(I'm too good for this planet & Hydrangeas) onna & Gwenny I-peed-in-my-pants Paltrow. I'm not a big fan of either, but Madonna has a smoking hot bod in an I'm too old to look like this kind of way. So I thought, why not?
Here's why not:
To look 'teeny tiny' you have do this workout four days a week + an hour of dance cardio six days a week. No running allowed (builds muscle). No jump roping, stepping, eliptical training, swimming, or any other type of exercise that might give you a ripple of muscle anywhere. Oh, and I almost forgot the best part, there's a special diet that's basically 700 calories of mushed up Gerber Baby food that goes with your 'teeny' physique. She doesn't tell you any of that on the DVD...I found it doing some online digging.
Ewwww!
But, I tried it anyway. The workout itself isn't bad. It's great for women who are into pilates/ballet workouts and the unweighted arm section burns like a FutherMucker...no lie. I doubt it will do much except make my shoulders scream in isometric pain. That & the hip flexors...I'm not sure why anyone focuses so much on hip flexors... are they the key to shrinking my a$$? Even with my misgivings, I'm sticking with it for two weeks to see if there is any change in any fat pockets anywhere. After that I'm on to Tracy Effinger's SQUEEZE STRONGER & PHYSIQUE 57 (both of which I will review).
It should be noted that there are tons of women who love her style/strategic methods & an equal amount of women who positively loathe her. I'm in the 'meh' category. She's okay. unless I see some changes soon...then I will revisit this review and bump it up.
Tracy Anderson's DVD's are NOT available on Collage (since she isn't a certified instructor) but you can snatch them up on QVC for anywhere from $99.00 (Total Body Transformation) to $12.00 (Beginner Dance Cardio). Not a bad investment if you're looking to spice up your routine or begin fitness anew.


***Some positive notes for both DVD's***
My abs/core muscles have very quickly become very strong. Better than they've been in years. My posture is better. My flexibility rocks. All good things!

Now, on to some book news!
I opened my inbox this week to find a review request!!! I'm thrilled to check this one out, since it sounds like it will be funny as bananas in pajamas. Even more thrilled because I've managed to finished Anna Karenina...my longest read ever.
Get ready, get set....
A SLOT MACHINE ATE MY MIDLIFE CRISIS, Irene Woodbury is next on my hit list!
Until then, eat your Greek Yogurt and kick like a ballerina.
Cheers!

Thank God You're Still Here!

I think we've established that when things get tough, Elsie hides behind the Ben & Jerry's, only taking short breaks to write & sleep.
And lately, things have been TOUGH.
I don't want to bore you with the down & dirty details, but I will say this: when trouble rains down at the Love house, it really is a torrential downpour that requires an ark. If I'm lucky, I will have bailed out the aftermath (with my teaspoon) by October. I'm not holding my breath mind you, just keeping my breathing straw slightly above the water line.
So what have I been doing/reading?
1. Reading
Well, I gave the Count of Monte Cristo one page. I sensed, in those very first lines, that I was in no frame of mind to absorb the material & promptly ditched it for:
ANNA KARENINA
So far, I'm loving it. I'll admit there have been times when talk of Russian agriculture found me skimming a page or two; but for the most part it has been a tale of love, betrayal, friendships & life. There was even a curveball or two I didn't see coming. But--I'm only just past the halfway mark--so I'm not ready for a full review as of yet. I will be. Soon, I promise.

2. Publishing (yes, I'm still pretending I'm a writer)
On another note, ether publishing just picked up SNOW ANGELS! And the very best part is that it is FREE for all you lovely readers out there. It even received one 5star review (thank you, whoever you are). Of course there's a catch: ether is a mobile/Apple download only product (yucky for those who don't iPod, Pad, or Phone). If you'd like the free Apple app, click HERE and please, if you read it...drop me a line & leave a nice review. Every little bit feeds the ego.

3. Doing (By doing, I mean writing)
I've reached that point. SIXTY POUNDS OF SH!T & COUNTING has 50,000 words, all already through one round of editing, and a chapter or two left to write. This is the stage where my mind starts to wander beyond the book I'm currently writing & into other books which have yet to be written. This is very dangerous territory, my friends, as it slows the entire process down to a snail's pace--and that's when I'm *not* dealing with job changes, children on the verge of breakdowns, & other various life altering issues. I took a minor break to write a thriller (POSSESSIONS- 4,000 words yet to be published), spent a month with rewrites, and now I'm onto the finish line....if I can just keep my eye on the prize.
So that's it in a nutshell. Nothing big, new & exciting. Just me, trudging through day by day, hoping to make it to the end. I can't thank you enough for sticking around. If I'd logged in today & found I only had a follower or two left...I don't know what I would have done.
perhaps write a book about a dysfunctional, impulsive writer who is her own worst enemy? Hmmmm...
Cheers!
**Side note** DO NOT read the Amazon.com description...it tells you the ending! GRRRRR. I hate that. I went on to add the link & now I know the end. Pooh. That stinks.