I am shamelessly stealing blog entry ideas from other peoples' blogs. Do I feel bad about it? No! (See also: "shameless.") Over on Ask Moxie today, Moxie asked for her readers to submit their T-Tapp stories, and one commenter mentioned that she struggles with boredom. "Doing any one workout over an extended period of time would be I guess," writes Thy, but there's probably more to it than that. T-Tapp doesn't use any of the distracting gimmicks that you'll find on other workout videos -- there's no music, no flashy backdrops or fancy camerawork, no hunky guys sweating shirtless in the background. It's a mind-body workout; you need to focus on what is happening in your body, so the fewer the distractions the better. But I'll admit, I've struggled with boredom myself. It's not so bad when I'm actually DOING the workout, but it's sometimes hard to work up the motivation to press "play" on a DVD I could quote verbatim. So what to do?
The obvious solution is to order more T-Tapp workouts, so you can vary your routine. Most of the workouts aren't available in the webstore; you need to call the office to order, so they can verify that you already own the instructionals. (The number is 1-800-342-0717... and don't forget to mention befabulo.us!) I own a stack of workouts -- as soon as I can find the time, I intend to start posting reviews of the various workouts I own, as well as some of the new ones that are just being released -- and it does help a lot to be able to stare at my collection and wonder whether I feel like doing Tempo Torso or the Ladybug workout or Basic Workout Plus followed by Hit the Floor. (I realize that this is the same type of manipulative trick I pull on my 5 year old son. Just as "do you want to wear your sneakers or your boots?" works to quell the "I don't wanna go out!"s, "do you want to do Ladybug or Tempo?" works on the "I don't wanna work out!"s.) There will be longer reviews to follow, but for now, let me give you some quickie review-suggestions on workouts you might want to add to your collection...
T-Tapp to Tempo: This is the Total Workout, but done at a smooth pace and with less instruction, which brings the total time down to about 40 minutes instead of 55. The one I own was made in 2001, but there's a new version that's just been released that is high on my MUST OBTAIN list.
Hit the Floor: A 30 minute floor workout that targets the belly, butt, hips and thighs. HIGHLY effective. One of the things I love about this workout is that it intersperses hard moves and soothing stretches. I like to do this one after Basic Workout Plus, but it can be done on its own if you do PBS first.
Ladybug Level 1: This workout is billed as being for "Menopause Management," but it's a fabulous workout for people of all ages. The workout is in two parts, first a standing workout that's similar to the Total Workout, and the second is a floor workout. The DVD is set up so you can do either just the standing, just the floor, or both. I love this one. Most of the exercises are similar to those on Total Workout or Hit the Floor, but they've all been tweaked so you'll feel new and different sensations as you go through them. Certain moves are totally new. I did a 4 day bootcamp once with the combo Ladybug workout, which was hard, I'm not going to lie to you, but at the end I had brand-new muscle cuts on my hips. That's not a bad thing for bikini season! Oh, and the first section of the standing workout, through Advanced Hoe Downs, can be used on its own as an alternative to Basic Workout Plus, or you could stop there and skip right to the floor segment.
(N.B.: You need to be familiar with the Total Workout before trying any other T-Tapp workouts, but then again, you probably wouldn't be bored if you weren't very familiar with it. Also, make sure that at least one of your workouts each week is one of the standards, either Total Workout or T-Tapp to Tempo if you do long workouts, BWO+ if you do the shorter versions.)
So you could buy more workouts, but what if you're tight on cash and can't afford a new workout right now? You could try T-Tapping with a friend. You could try moving your exercise space if you have a portable DVD player or laptop; my friend Kate likes to T-Tapp outside by her pool. You could try breaking the workout up into shorter chunks (my favorite place to stop, if I want to do a longer-than-BWO workout but not the full thing, is right after Thread the Needle and Runner's Stretch.) You could try using BWO+ as a warm-up for other exercise, like walking, rebounding or whatever you like.
It's not advised that you try to beat the boredom by having a TV or radio on... but I'll admit that if I do any "extras" in the evening, a bit of floorwork or what have you, I generally do it with the TV on. And my favorite way to stay entertained while skin-brushing is to prop a magazine open on the bathroom counter and read while I brush.
So what works for you to conquer boredom and keep your motivation up?
WOOT~! Summer mentioned ME on her blog *G* Another great thing to help with boredom is to use a MIRROR~! Watching yourself and your form seems to make time fly by *wink*
Posted by: Kate | January 22, 2008 at 05:57 PM