Valslides, Part 1

I've had quite the week at the gym. I picked up three extra shifts, adding two TRX Bootcamps and a Foam Roller class to my schedule. And a local corporation hosted a health fair for its employees, so I popped into our booth for a little bit to help out (as much as I could with a little one in tow). Tomorrow, I have Circuit Sculpt and two clients. That's it. I know my schedule pales in comparison to some of yours, but Hannah can still be unpredictable, so there's always the potential for a quick-change on the horizon. Translation: I get nervous whenever I put something on my calendar. 

Maybe this'll change with time.

Let's back up to yesterday for a second.  As a FitFluential Ambassador, I was invited to try Valerie Waters' I Want My Bikini Body Express program free of charge. It's a three-week training program that comes with two Valslides...slick disks that slide across the carpet. 

"The Valslide is specifically designed for flowing, controlled range of motion that activates the muscles that lift your butt and slim your thighs. While other programs use bulky, expensive equipment and fancy footwork to try and entice the exerciser, simplicity is what gives Valslide the edge."

Who isn't looking for an edge when it comes to their workouts?

From what I can tell so far, as I did my first workout yesterday morning, this is a program designed to produce results in a timely fashion when followed exactly. Best part? It seems pretty straightforward, which translates to "easy to follow." Three BBX workouts a week, which call upon the Valslides and various other elements of strength training, are sandwiched by cardio and diet suggestions. 

I've messed around with other training programs, but have ultimately thrown 'em out the door because they're confusing. This program is not confusing. In fact, I'm already doing a number of the exercises in my Circuit Sculpt classes on Monday and Friday mornings. So I plan to spend Wednesday mornings with the exact workouts from Val's program. Not ideal in the grand scheme of things, but with her help, I concluded that this would be my best approach. 

If I tried to follow the program exactly, plus teach twice a week, I'd probably just overload my body which wouldn't produce any results. And as a new mom with a few pounds of baby weight to lose and some spots here and there left to tighten and tone, I'm all about getting results.

Sometimes you have to do that, and it's OK. If you're interested in a program, but aren't really sure if you can integrate it, you have to stop and consider two things:

1) Are you having a problem integrating it because you aren't willing to sacrifice other aspects of your life in the name of change? Or...

2) Are you having problems integrating it because certain aspects of your life cannot be changed, and and integrating the program would just wreak havoc on your body, mind or soul?

If your answer falls under the first question, then you might want to sit yourself down for an honest little pep talk. If your answer falls under the second question, well...that's when you need to get creative and come up with a plan that works for you.

So I'll let you know how things progress with the workouts. I've already indicated that I have to teach again in the morning, so I think I'll use some of the moves from the workout I did on Wednesday.

Speaking of Wednesday, I picked up another share from my CSA yesterday:

Not pictured? Snap peas, cabbage and bok choy. And that big bulb of a thing? Kohlrabi, which makes me want to shop at Kohl's. But instead, I'll try my hand at making a Cabbage and Kohlrabi slaw. I'll let you know how it turns out. In the meantime, be sure to enter my giveaway. You know you want some healthy snackage.

Question: Do you eat kohlrabi? How? What was the last workout program you tried? Do you have a favorite?