Exciting Changes–Some Patience Required!
Have you had a chance to check out the new T-Tapp webstore? As with any change, there are new things to get used to, but there is a lot of GOOD stuff coming as everything falls into place. Of course, there are glitches to be worked out, too! Patience is a virtue as we all get used to the new store and wait for things to be worked out–and anticipation for all the cool functions coming to both the webstore AND website!
One thing that is a bit difficult right now is finding specific events on the events page. Or the monthly specials—click HERE to see October’s. Even once you get to the events page(s) you might have a hard time finding what you are looking for. Physical events are listed in alphabetical order by city right now, with Skype training and online classes listed under Skype and the trainer’s name. I have a Skype sale (Fall Fitness Focus), a mini-Skype sale (Mighty Minis) and November’s Beautiful YOU class that just went into the store a few days ago, but they are harder to pick out by just scrolling through! You can click on the names to go straight to them if you are interested. Eventually things will be organized to a more user-friendly format—again, lots of patience and excitement through the changes!
November’s Beautiful YOU online class features 5 schedules for the new Brain-Body Core Floor! I originally was going to combine Brain-Body Fitness Floor with Core Floor, but then changed my mind. Although they are very similar, the main difference being Brain-Body Fitness Floor is divided into 3 sequences where Core Floor is straight through, I still felt it worthwhile to do a separate month for each of them. Of course, it got to be a challenge when it came to dividing Core Floor up! 🙂 But I’m excited to focus on the core with—Core Floor!
If you are “local” to Mentone, Indiana, I have started Stepping into Fitness classes. Due to a scheduling conflict I didn’t have classes this week, so they will resume on November 11 and go through December 9. If you are coming from a distance do give me a quick call to make sure we are having class—the weather starts getting pretty unpredictable in November!
If you are near South Bend, IN, I am coming up on Saturday, November 15 for a clinic! Definitely will be doing a core floor session and two other sessions, possibly stepping and Senior Fit. Still finalizing details, but I’ll post as soon as they are ready. If you’re interested and want to know right away, send me an e-mail with South Bend Clinic in the title and I’ll e-mail you!
I am heading to Syracuse, IN later today to get set up for this weekend’s Be Beautiful Retreat—so excited to have a nice group of ladies coming to my neck of the woods! I’ve had a few requests to possibly bring a Be Beautiful retreat to other locations–I am willing to consider that! Of course I’ll need help in finding a place to hold the retreat as you know where the neat, local places are better than me! I found Brook Pointe Inn was not far from me when my original choice for this retreat was booked full! And Brook Pointe Inn is a lovely gem tucked away in northern IN. So you may have a similar jewel tucked away near you that would provide a lovely location for a mini-retreat!
I apologize for not getting those promised Brain-Body Fitness Floor tips out this week—between getting my energy back after my recent mini-crisis and getting ready for this weekend, I’ve been more than a little “behind”! I’m continuing to drink my apple cider vinegar “tea” (2 TBS ACV, 1 tsp honey and a dash of cinnamon to a cup of hot water) at least twice a day and recently started taking an herbal tincture to help with any possible kidney sediment. AND drinking more water! I am continuing to feel better with less discomfort. One nice thing from all this is the blood tests and ultrasound I had show those areas are quite healthy! 🙂 If the discomfort doesn’t completely go away within a few weeks or gets worse, I will be looking at more testing. So prayers that the upward trend continues are appreciated!
Be sure to drink plenty of water! It is tough as the weather gets cooler, but staying hydrated helps our bodies in so many ways–including our kidneys!
Are you working the polls next Tuesday? My four oldest girls and I are, and we’ll be “sneaking in” some T-Tapp! You can, too–a set of Hoedowns in the restroom during a break, or a set of Butterflies. Maybe even sneak some Mitten Chop Box in! Belly to spine and ribs up, even while sitting, and press your “mitten hands” into your thighs to get a nice stretch. Keep weight in the heels and ribs up if you are walking voters to the machines. Ribs up and activating lats (clap aways, anyone?!) will help you stay awake, too!
(Don’t forget to bring plenty of water! 😉 )
And if it gets slow and no one’s around, teach the other poll workers some sneaky moves, too! You’ll all feel better and you can spread the T-Tapp “love”!
Still Interested, Cincinnati?!
Ah, with technological changes come glitches–and the new webstore launch is no exception!
I didn’t realize that my reports weren’t current right now, and that I had registrations I knew nothing about for the Cincinnati Cinch-In Clinic! I’m still a bit short of what I need to come on down and torture–er–teach area T-Tappers 😉 so if you are seriously wanting to come, please register ASAP or contact me that you are coming so I will know and not cancel!
Click HERE for more details about the sessions and to register!
Hope to make it down–I’d love to meet all of you in the area!
A “Bright” Discount!
Today’s Deep Discount Tuesday is a BOGO—buy one bottle of White Brite, get one FREE!
White Brite is a teeth whitener that doesn’t cause sensitivity and doesn’t use questionable ingredients. One of my daughters had some discoloration after having her braces removed, and she faithfully used White Brite with great results! And she tends to have sensitive teeth and gums but White Brite did not cause any issues with that—double bonus!
AND—in addition to the BOGO offer–if you spend $57 (no, not all on White Brite!) you can get a woman’s cut T-Tapp t-shirt FREE while supplies last!
Click HERE to take advantage of this great deal–but just until midnight!
`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`
I haven’t forgotten those Brain-Body Fitness Floor tips–I’ll have those ready for Wednesday! 🙂
Time for Changes!
The new T-Tapp Webstore is UP!
Of course with changes come some learning curves and adjusting—for me, I realized all my links to the store no longer work! Uh-oh! So I am in process of updating the links in my Training with Trisch page! 😉
I also want to let you know that there are still some spots left in the Indiana Be Beautiful Retreat October 31-November 2–but after tomorrow (October 18) the price will increase. If you’ve been wanting to come– grab your spot soon! I’m really looking forward to meeting T-Tappers and having fitness fun while enjoying lovely Brook Pointe Inn!
I’m also starting local classes! If you happen to be close to Mentone, Indiana (about 20 minutes from Warsaw or Rochester, and 25-30 minutes from Plymouth), and you’d like to join me, check out Stepping into Fitness.
I’m sad that I had to cancel the Cincinnati Cinch-In clinic at Mt. Orab, OH. I’m hoping to reschedule for next spring, though!
Keep checking the T-Tapp Events page and my Training with Trisch page–I’m already making some plans for spring!
And do check out the new webstore–it has great features and looks easier to navigate! Change is hard to get used to sometimes, but in this case I think it’s a great change that’s going to make it even more user-friendly!
Coming up Monday–some tips on using the new Brain-Body Fitness Floor!
Rein in Those Hormones with Deep Discount Tuesday!
Don’t let the name fool you! You don’t have to be a woman heading into or in the throes of menopause to benefit from this workout!
My own teen and 20-something daughters benefit from it, and I know of a 23 year old who used to miss work during her cycles improve so much that her cycles surprised her after doing this workout! And I know of men who do this workout, too–after all, they have hormones, too! 😉
Today’s Deep Discount Tuesday deal is Healthy Hormones Menopause Management for 35% off! PLUS if you are one of the first 100 to order, you can get a free TechNoni Spray supplement, too!
Teresa developed this workout for Mary Shomon’s book, The Menopause Thyroid Solution. It is one of my favorites–I feel SO good when I do just half of this workout! It was developed to especially help those with thyroid and adrenal issues, but it can help can help decrease inflammation and boost the metabolism, too!
A really great deal on a really great workout–and a chance to get a great supplement to try, too!
The Beginning Is in Sight!
4- The Beginning Is in Sight–Let’s Work Back to the Starting Line!
After considering the first three points (found here in From Finish to Start), we’ll refine our goal as lose 1 size in 3 months and stay consistent no matter what.
3 months is approximately 12 weeks or 84 days. First thing we need to allow for are regular days off–at least one per week. That brings us down to 72 days.
You’re going to want a few days off right before your event so you have no muscle swelling from your efforts skewing your clothes fitting properly! So now we have 70 days.
Since we have decided that 4 days per week is doable, that gives us an additional 2 days off per week. While we may do a few moves on those days, we are not going to “count” them in our total for working backwards. This brings us down to 48 days (we already counted 2 extra days off on our final week). Doesn’t sound like much, does it?!
Yet it is enough! (So let’s get rid of that “It’s not enough!” monster screaming at us, okay? Kick him OUT!)
You might decide you will want a bit more effort at the end of your 12 weeks. So you’ll put that week’s workouts together, making a bootcamp of sorts, then taking the last 3 days completely off.
A bootcamp at the beginning using the Instructional of one of your chosen workouts is also a great way to kick off your personal challenge. I am a huge fan of shorter bootcamps with more focus on muscle activation (which is why instructionals are great for this!).
NOTE–if you have health or adrenal challenges, do NOT worry about doing a bootcamp on either end–start or finish! You may need to split up Instructionals and workouts–but that’s okay!
The two bootcamps take 8 days of your 48, leaving you 40 days to focus on consistency each week. Now, your particular 4 days may always stay the same or they may change from week to week, depending upon what’s going on in your life. Take out a calendar and mark days off when you know you definitely need off. Then you can schedule your workout days around them.
Finally we’re ready to put it together!
Couch to 5K has a great chart, but you can do the same thing with calendar pages you can print for this purpose. Mark your days off. Again, you may decide to do Primary Back Stretch and a move or two on those days, but you are planning them off right now. Make sure one day IS completely off (except for Primary Back Stretch) to give your body the rest it needs.
Let’s say you have decided to use Healthy Hormones Menopause Management (HHMM), Broom 2 and Hit the Floor (HTF) as your chosen workouts.
Here’s how the first few weeks may look:
Week 1:
Day 1: HHMM Instructional
Day 2: HHMM Instructional
Day 3: HHMM Instructional
Day 4: HHMM Instructional
Day 5: Off
Day 6: Off
Day 7: OffWeek 2:
Day 1: HHMM workout
Day 2: Off
Day 3: HTF
Day 4: Broom 2
Day 5: Off
Day 6: HHMM workout
Day 7: Off
You could continue to use the same workout schedule each week or you might vary it due to days available to work out. You could put shorter workouts such as Broom 2 and Hit the Floor back to back but be sure to schedule a day off after doing 2 days in a row (or a light day–Primary Back Stretch plus two moves).
ALWAYS listen to your body–if you just feel “done” 5 minutes into the workout, be done. You will be fresher for your next workout day and get more out of it than slogging through just to say you did it all.
Fourth step–working backwards, break it all down into realistic and manageable increments that will take you consistently to your goal.
5- Schedule yourself as a priority!
It is so easy to put ourselves on the back burner! We intend to take care of our health–someday. We intend to exercise consistently–someday. We intend to eat better–someday.
Life does happen but it’s important to be sure we are not constantly making ourselves the low priority that gets bumped completely off the list!
Because someday, our bodies may just scream at us, “TAKE CARE OF ME NOW!” Whether it’s a frightening panic attack, total loss of energy and motivation from an adrenal crash or a heart attack, we WILL make ourselves a priority someday!
Why not make “someday” today?!
Write on your calendar whatever it takes to show you are making yourself a priority. Whether a CEO of a company or CEO of your home with little children, you are busy. But you also need to take care of yourself or you won’t be able to take care of the precious responsibilities you have. The oxygen mask analogy is familiar, but in life we don’t always take that advice well!
Put on your calendar that you have an appointment with Teresa Tapp, or with your personal trainer, or whatever it is that motivates you when you see it that this is important–YOU are important!
Fifth step–put yourself on the calendar as you would an important appointment that you wouldn’t want to break.
You can’t run a 5K overnight, and you can’t create consistency, improve stamina and lose a size overnight, either. It takes planning, persistence, patience, and then–
Sweet Victory!
Photo credits:
Happy Birthday Teresa! (And a Gift for YOU!)
She encourages us with “Yes you CAN!” and makes us feel that sense of accomplishment with her beautiful smile and “Have a great day!” at the end of nearly every workout!
Today is Teresa’s birthday, but true to her generous nature, she is giving US a gift! For one day only you can get 57% off ANY T-Tapp dvd!**
AND if your order is over $57 you also get FREE shipping!
What an amazing way to celebrate such a wonderful lady who’s helped us all not only get smaller and more fit and healthy–but more confident in who we are and brought the best out of us!
Click HERE to join the birthday celebration! Happy Shopping!
**Discount doesn’t apply to starter systems, the Total Workout System or any packages that include books.
From Finish to Start
A month ago I posted in Starting at the Finish Line that I would talk about how working backwards would look with T-Tapp.
Remember we were using the popular Couch to 5K program as a guide of sorts? Here is great advice for beginning:
You should ease into your 5K training plan gradually. In fact, the beginners’ program we outline here is less of a running regimen than a walking and jogging program. The idea is to transform you from couch potato to runner, getting you to begin running a 5K or 3.1 miles and on a regular basis in just two months.
With T-Tapp–what is our goal? We are not going to run a marathon in a few short weeks, and neither are we going to do full workouts every other day or Maxi Max Extreme right away! Our goal should first be to get movement in consistently. That will then snowball and help us be more consistent with workouts, taking us to our inch loss goals eventually. Notice how the Couch to 5K program starts with a a walking/jogging regimen? And if you click that link, you will see that at first you are walking a whole lot more than you are jogging!
So let’s set our goal–let’s say you have an event you would like to look nice for in 3 months. That’s a little longer than the Couch to 5K program, but I like round numbers! 😀 We’ll choose a goal of “lose 2 sizes” or perhaps “lose 1 size and have more energy” as our goals.
Let’s take stock so we can work backwards, from finish line to the starting line, shall we?
1- Where Are You Now?
We can be so focused on our goal that we don’t realistically look at where we are, therefore we set unrealistic steps to reach our goal. Or perhaps set an unrealistic goal in the first place!
If you are having health or adrenal challenges, for example, losing 2 sizes in 3 months could be a bit ambitious, as you have inner healing to do. Your ultimate goal might be shoot for losing 1 size without crashing, and to feel better with more energy.
If you don’t really have any serious health challenges, but you really need to squeeze out the time to workout from your schedule, your goal might be “lose one size and stay consistent no matter how crazy life gets”.
You may ultimately want to lose 2 sizes–but if you set that as your goal and don’t take into account what’s going on in your life or in your body, that can set you up for disappointment.
First step–set a realistic goal based on where you are now.
2- Which Workouts Do You Enjoy Doing?
You might have expected me to say, “Which workouts will yield the most for your goals?” But if your goal is consistency in the long haul as well as that size loss, doing a workout you are not fond of will not cut it. So look through your T-Tapp “repertoire”, and think through a few questions:
Do you like variety or sticking with the same workout most of the time?
If you like variety, do you want to rotate through different workouts throughout the week or rotate by a different workout each week?
Answering these questions will help you craft a plan that you enjoy, which has a better chance of helping you consistently work towards your goals!
Second step–choose workouts you are more likely to stick with for the long haul.
3- What Is a Realistic Workout Time Commitment?
Now we come to another crucial component in the plan–how much time can you set aside each day or each week to exercise?
Couch to 5K has this catchy phrase:
30 minutes a day
3 days a week
9 weeks
————
5K ready!
That sounds doable, right?! So what can you come up with that is realistic and doable? Borrowing from the above equation—let’s say you can commit to 30 minutes, 4 days a week. Another great quote from the Couch to 5K plan:
Be sure to space out these three days throughout the week to give yourself a chance to rest and recover between efforts.
This is tough when we have this end goal in mind and we think more and faster is better! But we need those rest and recovery times–so don’t skimp on those!
Third step–decide on a realistic time commitment for your workouts, and allow time for rest.
Work through these three steps–we’ll cover two more next time!
Photo credit: Celestine Chua
Pamper Those Fingers and Toes!
Deep Discount Tuesday this week is Finger and Foot Fitness for LESS than HALF price!
Not really a workout but a sequence of movements designed to give optimal flexibility, lymphatic drainage and relief to tired and sore feet and fingers, Finger and Foot Fitness helped me rehab a foot I had broken a few years prior to finding T-Tapp. It no longer aches when the weather changes!
One of my daughters works at the post office and the repetitive motion of some of her work has caused her some pain. She memorized some of the finger sequences and does them during free moments for relief.
Heather Petrie attributed Finger and Foot Fitness to helping lay an excellent foundation for her size loss in 2 weeks while preparing for her bikini shoot with People Magazine a few years back!
If this dvd has been on your wishlist, today is the day to get it! Grab it today before midnight for $16.50! (Regularly $39.95!)
Click HERE to take advantage of this great deal and to give your feet and fingers some happy pampering! 😉
(P.S. The annual T-Tapp Retreat was AMAZING–as usual! I hope to share more about my trip in upcoming posts–trying to get back into a routine after a crazy summer isn’t easy! 😉 )
Photo credits:
Starting at the Finish Line
Goal setting. Something we all like to do.
Reaching goals. Something we all want to achieve.
Yet the reality of getting from where we are to our goals often crashes in, especially when, yet again, our goal seems to elude us despite our best laid plans.
Nowhere is that more common than in weight/inch/size loss goals!
Let’s say your goal is to lose 2 sizes in 9 weeks as well as increase your stamina and improve your posture. Worthy goals, right?
What happens if week 2 rolls around and you haven’t lost a size? Worse yet, you feel you can hardly keep up, let alone improving in stamina!
Maybe 2 weeks is too soon to see progress? Yet we often berate ourselves for not seeing HUGE leaps in progress in some area in a short time. Fit and Fabulous in Fifteen Minutes does have the subtitle “Lose Two Sizes in Four Weeks” on the cover–but there are a LOT of variables that can affect that goal achievement!
And the biggest one is how you approach it.
What’s Your Mindset?
How does a runner set his goals?
If you have never run a race and you plan to run a 5K six months from now, do you just focus on the finish line?
No. You focus on the steps to build your endurance, reduce chances of injury, get your mind focused properly. You start with maybe running for 30 seconds and walking for 5 minutes!
The popular Couch to 5K plan takes you over 9 weeks to go from 60 seconds jogging alternated with 90 seconds walking for 20 minutes to jogging for 30 minutes. You don’t just buy a pair of running shoes and go run 3.1 miles in 30 minutes the first day! That would be—disastrous!
So we start with our goal, or our “finish line”, and work backwards. And that’s not just X amount of sizes lost. It’s a lifestyle change!
How Do You Eat an Elephant?!
I know you’ve heard that question–and you know the answer! One bite at a time!
Let’s take some principles from the Couch to 5K plan and apply them to T-Tapp/fitness goals.
I thought this paragraph in the Couch to 5K link was interesting:
Too many people have been turned off of running simply by trying to start off too fast. Their bodies rebel, and they wind up miserable, wondering why anyone would possibly want to run in the first place.
I have also found this true with T-Tapp–too often we get so caught up in doing a 14 day bootcamp because it was recommended (without taking into account our personal schedule, stamina or other issues) that we can wear ourselves out at the starting line–and never get to the finish line.
On that same page about the Couch to 5K program, it says you can run for time or distance. So with T-Tapp–is your goal better stamina? Lose sizes? Both can be viable goals, but you may reach one before the other. Which is more realistic right now? As you set a realistic goal, be sure you don’t get sidetracked! If you decided being able to go up steps without becoming totally out of breath was a great goal to have, don’t get discouraged that you also didn’t lose a size. If your goal was to lose a size, don’t get discouraged that you didn’t lose two!
Of course, as with all exercise, gaining stamina, sleeping better, less brain fog–all those often come with the territory so they can be great goals OR side benefits!
But Aren’t We Supposed to Do Bootcamps to Jump Start Inch Loss?
Going back to our Couch to 5K analogy, what does this mean for T-Tapp? Isn’t a 14 day bootcamp recommended if I have 4 or more sizes to lose?
Yes…and no. It’s recommended, but realize that muscle activation is the key to success in T-Tapp. So if you get to day 8 (or 10 or even 5) and you are slogging through the reps, especially the last few moves of your chosen workout, you are going to get much less out of that bootcamp than if you had done 4 days but with total focus and intention. Keep that in mind as you create your goals and decide on a bootcamp. The goal isn’t to complete X amount of days (14 days does not automatically guarantee a size loss) but to establish and strengthen mind-to-muscle connections. THAT lays the foundation for optimal muscle activation and great results!
It’s All About Muscle Activation!
Couch to 5K has you starting 3 times a week for 20 minutes, alternating jogging with walking.
After your bootcamp and two days off to let the muscles rest, you have options. I can guarantee that if you really focus on muscle activation and your best form (that is progressive–no one ever gets “perfect form”!), even if that means half the reps and extra kicking out to reset your T-Tapp stance, you can lose inches “just” doing 3 short workouts per week. NO kidding! I am at the point of being able to maintain on 3 moves a day! It takes time, though, to build up that level of muscle activation and brain-to-body connection–just like it takes time to build up endurance for a 5K!
If you think of building mind-to-muscle connections as the same as building up endurance to run, that can help you be willing to take the time to establish that foundation vs “getting through the workout”.
As a trainer, I actually don’t get very excited to hear that you got all the way through Basic Workout Plus without taking a break. It IS an achievement, don’t get me wrong….(and I did the SAME thing!)…but often it means a newbie has sacrificed building a foundation of core muscle activation for completing a workout.
What if you focused on running the 5K as quickly as possible? Maybe you feel ready in week 5 or 6. But what if that meant you were sacrificing a good foundation that might result in cramps or crashing after a run due to improper stamina-building?
“Don’t Try to Do More, Even if You Feel You Can”
This stellar piece of advice is SO good!
It’s easy to get impatient, and you may feel tempted to skip ahead in the program, but hold yourself back. Don’t try to do more, even if you feel you can.
I have to say many of us are guilty of this with T-Tapp! We are impatient–we want results NOW! “Maybe I should do Total Workout 3 times a week, with SATI on off days.” “Maybe I should do one of the Tempos to up my cardio.” “Can I add Diva Derriere and Awesome Legs daily?” Pretty soon we are so driven we keep adding or changing things around for immediate results that we lose sight of the best way to reach our goal. It’s not in doing more or going faster, but in taking time to lay the best foundation we can.
Just as a tall building may require months of laying a proper foundation, so, too, we may require longer times of preparation than we think necessary. Yet when the foundation is strong, the building goes up quickly. When we lay our fitness foundation, spending the necessary time to make it strong, when the results start coming they often start happening quickly–much to our delight!
Next time let’s look more specifically at what “working backwards” looks like in T-Tapp.
I’d love to hear from you! Do you struggle with setting achievable goals that help you feel good about your progress?
photo credit: Celestine Chua
Buy Trisch’s New Book!
How does a hypothyroid, adrenal-challenged, busy mama of 9 go from barely maintaining a size 22W and being so tired she needed a 1 1/2 hour nap every day to an energetic mama and size 8 T-Tapp trainer?
That’s my story in Fatigued to Fabulous!