Last week we talked about how life-long struggles and how early childhood “cookies for comfort” still affect me today. There are often deep reasons why we do the things we do. This week I want to go back even further. Let’s go back to the Garden.
Remember in the beginning when Adam and Eve stood naked and unashamed? They used to walk with God in the cool of the evening. After the fall, when they chose sin and pride over obedience, what did they do?
“At that moment, their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they strung fig leaves together around their hips to cover themselves.” Genesis 3:7.
BIGGEST LOSER “5” WEEK TEN
Posted: December 04, 2008
This week we showed a “lucky 7” people how to turn it up again. They were the ones who made the Friday night workout. Basically, we took their Level III workouts (compound exercises that use more than just one part of the body), and combined them with abs and cardio intervals for a really intense workout.
Each exercise takes about a minute, so you’ve got a minute of the primary exercise, a minute of abs, and then 2 minutes cardio. That’s four minutes total per round. We did three exercises, two times each, for a total of six rounds. That’s 24 minutes of work, not counting the time it takes to move from one room to the other and get on the treadmill.
When the weather’s nice, we’ll just step out the back door and run around the block which is just about ¼ mile. Since it’s too cold now, everyone alternates so while some were running, others were doing the work in the back. Of course if you’re on your own, it’s pretty easy going back and forth. Here’s a description of how to perform the exercises.
BIGGEST LOSER “5” WEEK NINE
Posted: November 28, 2008
Week nine is in the books, leaving us with three weeks to go in the 12-week contest. So far, Weston has lost the most weight at 45.3 lbs, followed by Logan at 38.8 lbs, and Erika at 30.6 lbs. If we look at percentage of weight loss, Erika is slightly ahead of Logan.
We also have a couple new records going on. Weston has a chance to move ahead of Josh’s 57.6 lb record from Biggest Loser “4.” So far, he’s been losing 5 lbs a week and if he stays on track, he could top 60 lbs.
Erika has also moved just in front of our former leading lady, Shirley who lost 30.4 lbs in “Biggest Loser “2.” Unless she has a couple really bad weeks, she’ll continue to set new records. She also has a chance to win the whole thing if Weston slips up. It will be interesting to watch.
BIGGEST LOSER “5” WEEK EIGHT
Posted: November 22, 2008
Well we just finished the second month in our 12 week contest, so it’s time for another look at how everyone is doing. If you recall, we started with 53 people but only 40 people weighed in at the end of week four. This week, 30 people made the weigh-in.
I’d like to say the drop in numbers is unusual, but unfortunately, it’s not. At the beginning, I told them that half of them wouldn’t finish for one reason or another. Then I ask them which half they’ll be in.
In spite of our best intentions, life always intrudes. Something always comes up. Sickness slows you down. Bills you didn’t expect. Injuries you didn’t want. Even our own nature rises up, trying to get things back to the way they were. We’ve met the enemy and he is us.
BIGGEST LOSER “5” WEEK SEVEN
Posted: November 16, 2008
Last week I gave you two free weight routines that I called Level Two workouts. If you’ll recall, the main benefit with free weights is that all your stabilizer and core muscles are much more involved than when using machines (Level One). It also burns more calories.
So we want to keep increasing the work and help them burn more calories. This is possible, because after seven weeks, they’re getting stronger. The goal is to be as lean as we can be—as strong as we can be.
This week we asked the group to turn it up again. They had three weeks to get familiar with the other two routines, so now they’re ready to combine the two into one larger routine. Here are the exercises, and all you need are dumbbells (DB) and an exercise ball.