Shrinking Sisters

New South Florida fitness show to bring a sweaty start to 2013

Trainer Roberta Rachkovsky has been involved in fitness since she was 5.
Miami Fitness TV photo

Got an email the other day from Calibe Thompson. In addition to being an "electro-reggae" artist, she's also co-executive producer of a morning fitness show that will premiere on South Florida TV station WSFL just in time for your New Year's resolution.

 "Miami Fitness TV" will air Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 5 a.m. on Channel 39 starting Jan. 2. If you're not up at the crack o' dawn, then set your DVR to workout later.

Yep, it's an old-school free, over-the-air morning exercise show. 

The workouts include:

• CCX-Treme (Cardio Core Xtreme): Plyometrics with core emphasis.
• Power Cardio: Light weights and body weight resistance training.
• Vinyasa Flow: A relaxing style of yoga, heavy on stretching and breathing.
• Yoga X (Xtreme): Yoga poses are held longer for maximum strength and sweat.

After hunting around for fitness shows ("I noticed I couldn't find Gilad or Denise Austin on local cable!" she said), Calibe brought the idea to some partners.

Roberta Rachkovsky will lead the show's workouts.

"(Roberta) cares deeply about fitness and about making sure people take care of their bodies (she calls it your machine) the right way for a long and healthy life," Calibe said. "Her regular gym classes are like a fitness DVD. She's very charismatic and good at verbal instruction, and coming from an entertainment background myself, I knew her energy and personality would translate well on camera."

"We're very excited about the whole thing, and grateful to have the support, especially of women in the South Florida community," she said. 

Here's a sneak peek at what to expect:

 

Be a part of Commitment Day and do a 5K

Life Time Fitness wants 300,00 people in more than 30 cities to start 2013 off with a commitment to fitness, and that's why it is launching Commitment Day around the country.

Kicking off the new year with a bunch of joyous exercisers sounds like an awesome activity. Certainly better than slogging through the day with a hangover. The 5K-run/walk event will take place in 35 cities on Jan. 1, 2013 at 11 a.m. ET, 10 a.m. CT, 9 a.m. MT and 8 a.m. PT. (That's right, East Coasters, we can sleep in a bit!) Everyone will start the year off on the same foot.

Carol and I will be taking part in the Miami Commitment Day and you can take part, too. If you sign up for the 5K this Friday, you can get 50 percent off the registration price (regularly $39), by using discount code CDBF2012 when you register. If you don't register on Friday, you can still save $5 on registration by using discount code CORP0598.

You can also connect with Commitment Day on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Disclosure: Life Time provided Commitment Day registration to Shrinking Sisters.

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Throwing a hissy-fit, lost my 'bit

For nearly 2 months, my Fitbit has been a close friend... a REALLY close friend, usually clipped to my bra, or on my waistband.  I love how it motivates me to take those extra steps to get my 5,000-step badge, or to take the dog out one extra time so I can climb another flight of stairs.  My Fitbit even calls me Princess.

On Tuesday evening, I took my Fitbit off to see how many steps I had taken -- my apartment complex is being repaved and I had to park two buildings away, a golden opportunity for more steps. I wanted to see how many steps over my goal I had gone -- then tragedy struck.

I hadn't broken the 5,000 step mark on Tuesday; I went to put my Fitbit back on AND IT WAS GONE!

Lost without my Fitbit ... would I ever take another step? Climb another flight of stairs? Life without it seemed pointless. Gail would win the daily step count, and my Fitbit would post sad daily postings of "0 steps taken; 0 flights of stairs climbed." Poor Carol can't get off her couch without her Fitbit.

This is the beginning of a very busy time at work for me (back-to-school in a high school office), and I'm looking forward to getting major steps on my Fitbit, if she would just come home ...

to be continued...

 Fitbit provided Gail and Carol Fitbit Ultras for the Shrinking Sisters Summer Spectacular.

What's worse: Nagging injury or nagging myself? It's a tossup

I'm finally over my cold (they last for freakin' ever) and finally over my nagging Zumba thing, which was probably a little IT-band tendinitis (according to Dr. Google).

I went for an hourlong walk on Monday and my right leg was really bugging me, so I took Tuesday off. And Wednesday off.

And now it's Thursday afternoon. It's much, much better.

I decided that not working out would benefit me in the long run because when I was pushing through the discomfort it didn't get any better and I had to spend the evening swaddled in ice packs.

But man, the Exercise Guilt was almost worse than the leg pain.

I kept seeing the "you go, girl" Facebook and Twitter updates of my online pals and thought that I should be out there, too. But I listened to my inner coach, who told me to ice it and sit on the bench.

Now that everything's hunky-dorky again, I'll get in a "stretchy" workout today and get back to my routine on Monday.

Sometimes I just have to listen to "Coach."

Wordless Wednesday: Walk and talk, it's good for you!

EveryBody Walk, the campaign to get America walking, teamed up with the cut-ups at Funny or Die for this video:

Walk & Talk - The West Wing Reunion from Martin Sheen

Working muscles for what feels like the first time ever

Continuing on my physical fitness with Sara... I must reiterate how much more focused and diligent I am in working out with a trainer guiding me. 

Last week we did "playboy poses" (dead lifts), "cheerleader posing" and "office squats".  I don't know what the exercises are really called, but naming them on my own makes them "more fun"...  The playboy poses worked my hamstrings, which I thought only athletes had.  Two days after our session, getting up out of my office chair was brutal... But it made me remember the good work I have done.  

Yesterday, my friend and co-worker, Erika got into the mix with us.  In Sara's small home gym, the three of us worked our circuits... In no time, sweat was dripping in my eyes, and I was truly feeling the burn.  

I envision not being able to lift my arms over my head again tomorrow... but all for a good result!

Working out with a trainer... and I didn't vomit

My good friend, Sara, who is an awesome SAT instructor, is also an amazing trainer.  She recently had a baby (6-8 weeks ago) and is back to her pre-baby weight -- probably even less.  She approached me at my desk last week to help me to lose my baby weight, with her direction, and I said yes (my baby is 12 years old).

We tried this before -- boot camp style, where she triumphantly made me vomit (my proudest Biggest Loser moment), But we stopped -- her pregnancy, my move, her move, we couldn't get it together -- until yesterday.

I warmed up on the elliptical (the machine I love to hate -- or hate to love) then did upper-body weight work mixed with cardio.  I've never trained with a trainer before and to have her there, pushing me, made all of the difference in the world.

The gym at my apartment has all of the same equipment that she has, but in the hands of an experienced professional, it all made sense. I look at the stack of free weights, and the combo machine and I'm lost.  With Sara's guidance, I felt like a pro.

This was just day 1.  I've commited to Sara two days a week with her training, and four days on my own.  I'm excited to be doing resistance training -- I can figure out cardio on my own.

Tuesdays and Thursdays -- my promise to myself and to Sara. 

The Distracted Girl's Guide to Exercise

 

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy exercising. It's sticking to a program that is my Achilles heel. Every time I print out a rotation calendar for a fitness program or get a "30 days to something or other" DVD, my mind starts to wander after less than a week.

 So I came up with my own rotation. It provides three days of cardio, two days of resistance, a day of something "stretchy" and a rest day. I've written these broad terms on my calendar for the month of February and when I complete it, I get a check mark. (I need to buy myself some shiny stars.) Here's how it goes:

MONDAY: Run

I have to start the week running. It usually provides my best calorie burn of the week and it's a symbolic way to "hit the ground running." This Monday, the day started off rainy but I waited for the clouds to part somewhat and jogged through the drizzle. Makes you feel extra badass.

TUESDAY: Weights

This can be something like ChaLean Extreme, a Jackie Warner DVD, or something else involving weights, resistance bands or a body-weight workout (lunges, squats, etc.). I did Jackie's 30-Day Fast Start one day last week, and her pyramid style routine killed my upper body ... but in a good way.

WEDNESDAY: Dance

The category is wide open for anything dancy -- Zumba, Jazzercise, Hip-Hop Abs, or a Wii or Xbox workout like Dance Central or Just Dance. (I just got Just Dance 3, and while it may look like a video game, my BodyMedia FIT tells me it's also a great way to torch calories.) I recently got Jazzercise Burlesque and it's a fun, flirty workout (but don't let your kid catch you doing it; he'll be mortified for life.)

THURSDAY: Weights

Same thing as Tuesday but it doesn't have to be the same workout.

FRIDAY: Kick

This can be a kickboxing-intensive workout like Turbo Jam or something from Billy Blanks. His PT 24/7 is a great new set with such good instruction that I FINALLY figured out how to do a proper side kick. I also absolutely love the DVD that came with Robert Ferguson's Food Lovers Fat Loss program. Robert is a really fun and motivating workout leader and he has a good kickboxing workout. It might be hard to find but there are a few sellers on Amazon that offer it.

SATURDAY: Stretch

This is either yoga or a stretching DVD. I especially like Ashley Turner's yoga workouts, and Tamilee Webb's Total Stretch for Beginners DVD is a classic that has two separate stretching programs.

SUNDAY: Off

When I mean "off" I don't mean sacking out on the couch. My Sundays usually involve grocery shopping and laundry, so there's a little somethin-somethin for activity.

Wordless Wednesday: Neck sweat

The reward for working out hard outdoors (in Florida).

My BlogHer highlight: Bob Harper's workout

I'm at BlogHer in San Diego this weekend, and while there are oodles of seminars, lunches and parties, the one thing that I absolutely could not miss was this morning's workout with Biggest Loser trainer Bob Harper (I know, right?).

The folks at Quaker, who sponsored the workout and the breakfast, had told me Friday that it was going to be just some "yoga and stretching." Uh, no. It was one of Bob's signature workouts, heavy on the lower-body work. My legs were screaming. And while I can slack off and curse at the TV while doing one of Bob's DVDs, it's a whole other can of whup-ass when he's there, live. (But I did tell him that this was the part of the workout where I start swearing at him at home.)

After the workout, he told his people that he needed to get a photo with me. I strategically wore my Jillian Michaels "Finish It!" shirt because I know the two are pals.

Worked out fabulously, as you can see in the photo above. Much thanks to One Mom Media for uploading the photo.

Bonus!

Want a couple of bits of music off Bob's playlist? He's a big fan of the songs Down With the Trumpets, by Rizzle Kicks and Heaven by Emeli Sande.