Jessica Smith and Friends 2020

[Leonana]

Today was a You Tube workout from Five Parks Yoga, Yoga with Weights. I used 3 pounds, which was a good idea. It was one of those sneaky workouts. I thought it would be easier, but I was breathing heavy at the end. It's a keeper.

Donna, I'm glad the foot isn't worse.

[Leonana]

Today was a You Tube workout from Five Parks Yoga, Yoga with Weights. I used 3 pounds, which was a good idea. It was one of those sneaky workouts. I thought it would be easier, but I was breathing heavy at the end. It's a keeper.

Donna, I'm glad the foot isn't worse. My dh got off early today and is working hard on the bathroom. Now our water is off, lol.

[wishiwasinhawaii]

Sorry I haven't been posting. The past few days have been kind of crazy. We had a wild storm last night with 50 mph winds and I had large branches in the backyard that I had to take care of, so that was my workout for today.

A friend of mine was upset about something yesterday so I was on the phone with her for 5 hours. Good thing I did my workout earlier in the day. The day before, another friend was convinced she had COVID and was freaking out. She had to stand on a long line to get a test, and then for whatever reason, she opted for the rapid test, which isn't very accurate, so even though she tested negative, who knows what that really means. She's been having some mild cold-like symptoms that in normal times no one would pay any attention to. I'll call her tomorrow to see how she's doing.

Ugh, too much stress.

Sherry, I donated canned goods over the weekend because I felt like I had too many! Hope I don't regret that, but I do have a lot so I should be ok. The vaccine news has been encouraging, thank goodness. Hope your remodel goes well!

Donna, I haven't been to CVS lately so I'll have to check if they're redoing the skin care section. How is your foot? Does it hurt all the time? I agree about the holidays. I don't think I'm going to be doing anything. It's just safer that way.

[donnamp]

Hi Everyone,

This morning was:

Ellen - Moving for Beauty
Jessica Valent - Pilates w/ a 5 lb weight (I used a 3lb weight)

I'm still taking it easy w/ my foot - but it is finally feeling better. So I think by next week I will be back to "normal". I have to get some new walking shoes, though, as I think the new ones I got caused this.... *sigh*

Sherry - That yoga routine sounds interesting, I will have to look it up.

wishiwasinhawaii - sounds like a very stressful few days there - 5 hours on the phone?? And, I hope your friend doesn't have COVID. If I felt sick I would probably freak out.

my foot mainly hurts on the top - it is sort of like shin splints. I googled it and is probably extensor tendonitis - basically, inflammed tendons on the top of the foot - it can be caused by shoes that are too tight and I think I have been tying my new shoes too tight b/c they feel loose....it is common in runners and also figure skaters...go figure. It does seem to be getting better w/ rest.

Hope everyone has a good day!

Donna

[Leonana]

Today was walking around at three Goodwills. I found a couple of dvds, Exhale Core Fusion and a KCM. I hope I can handle a KCM workout!

Donna, I think every foot problem I’ve had has been caused by my shoes. I’m glad your foot is healing.

wishiwasinhawaii, wow 5 hours. You are a wonderful friend! I hope your other friend doesn’t have Covid. I’m glad you had no damage to your house from the storm. That does sound like a lot of stress, and I hope tomorrow is less stressful for you.

[donnamp]

Hi Everyone,

Today, so far, has been:

Ellen - Sweet 15 - 15 moves in 15 minutes
Jessica Valent - Stronger Core (20 min)

Yesterday DD and I took a short walk in the chilly, windy weather and in the evening I did Jessica's 10 Min Pilates - I enjoyed the back exercises she did.

I may walk later - short walk and I may get Jessica's routine in later, too.

I'm enjoying my week w/ Ellen and my foot is improving. I do miss my cardio though...I may try a short Leslie tomorrow.....

Sherry - I hope you enjoy your DVDs...

Hope everyone has a good day.

Donna

[Leonana]

Today was the Premix 1 from the KCM dvd, 31 minutes with no swings. The back of the dvd said 5 and 7 pounds for beginners. I used 8 and 10. I think advanced was 15 and 25! KCM moves very slow compared to Jessica, so I think I can go even heavier. I had to modify the cardio to low impact, but it was a small part of the workout. I did like it, but I don't feel it was as effective as Jessica. Lighter weights moving fast can really wear you out. I'm going to have to use the 10 pounds for the whole workout. I don't have anything heavier, or a kettlebell. I think that will be my birthday present, which is in three weeks, a kettlebell!

And no ab floor work which was good. I tried the floor ab work on the yoga strength you tube on Monday, and my lower back has been bothering me ever since. With stretching and massage, it's not too bad, but enough to nix the ab work. So, I think the KCM is a keeper, for a change of pace. I don't usually like anything but Jessica, but I really need something new. I can't wait until she releases her new workouts.

Donna, if one cannot do floor ab work, is Pilates an option? I always assumed I'd have to skip it, as I can't do crunches or leg lifts for ab work.

[TracyQ]

Hi Everyone—I’ve been trying to get back here to post but life really got in the way. One of my aunts ended up in the hospital so that took her and two of my cousins out of the loop for helping me and my sister with our other aunt. Thankfully everyone is doing ok now but we have decided to move my aunt with dementia into my mother’s house permanently. So I’ve been cleaning out her apartment, cancelling her utilities and all that fun stuff. It’s very time consuming as you can imagine. Her apartment was neat and clean but once I got into her closets and filing cabinets I realized she saved everything. So I’ve been slowly going through all her stuff. It’s a lot of work and going to take a long time to go through it all.

I’ve managed to keep up with my workouts but rather than post a long list here I will start from today. I did a Peloton cycling workout and the 20-minute back stretch from Mimi Solaire’s Deep Stretch.

About skincare. I’ve used Paula’s Choice Resist for years. But recently the Resist products were out of stock so I decided to try some drugstore products that Hot and Flashy recommended a while ago. I bought a couple of CeraVe cleansers, a retinol, and moisturizer. I like the CeraVe products as much as PC’s stuff.

So today is my husband’s 60th birthday. Normally we would go out for a nice dinner but decided to skip it due to COVID. Our favorite restaurant closed permanently last week after 99-years in business. It’s so heartbreaking. We celebrated a lot of milestones there, my niece and nephew’s first communions, confirmations, graduations and a lot of birthdays.

Im trying to stay positive but the pandemic has really sucked a lot of the joy out of life.

Donna—I sometimes have pain in the top of my right foot. I can never figure out what causes it. Hope yours feels better.

Sherry—Remodeling your guest bathroom sounds like a fun project. We only have one bathroom in my small house and it was a nightmare when we remodeled it a couple years ago because we had to go to my mother’s house to shower and use the bathroom.

Wishiwasinhawaii— you are a good friend talking to your friend for 5 hours. I hope she is doing better now.

[donnamp]

Hi Everyone,

Today was:

Leslie - 2 Miles (from You Tube). My foot handled it just fine - which is good, I need my cardio for mood boosting and also steps since I sit all day.

Jessica Valent Pilates - Scoliosis Routine (15 min) from her Unlimited Program, although I think it is also on You Tube.

Last night after work I did a 15 min barre program from Trifecta Pilates and Jessica Valent's Day # 3 - I did get an ad in this one - but it was at the very end.

Tracy - Oh my - that is a handful of work to do and stressful, too. I agree, it is very sad to see all these businesses struggling during this pandemic. I hope the end is in sight. Although there is positive news about vaccines, I'm still half waiting for the other shoe to drop. Good job keeping up w/ your workouts. Working out is my therapy. The top of my foot is where it hurt too. I Googled it and basically it is tendonitis - it can be caused by something as simple as shoes that are too tight. I tend to tie my laces very tight and I think that is what caused mine to flare up.

Sherry - Interesting KCM routine and observation! I am considering doing Jessica's Healthy for the Holidays program soon...it seems to have a nice variety and if my foot is still a bit touchy- I don't think any of the workouts will bother it - whereas long cardio, I'm a bit worried about. As for Pilates, there are definitely exercises that don't involve crunches or roll ups. Check out Jessica Valent's You Tube channel - she has a free 10 day challenge going on now....you could definitely do the leg work w/out worrying about crunches, also many of the exercises that require a "crunch" can be done w/out it. Jessica tends to do a lot planks rather than "crunching" -

waves, wishiwashinhawaii and Pam!

Donna

[Leonana]

I think I spoke too soon about KCM, I was tired last night! I did my volunteer filing today. I used to do two hours, but now I'm down to one. Half of my filing is computer only now, so they will give me other things to do. I will do some riding on my exercise bike this evening while watching videos.

Tracy, that does sound like a lot of work. I guess you are having no problem keeping busy during retirement. It sounds like you made a wise choice to retire now. That is sad about the restaurant, especially with the memories. One of our favorite restaurants closed pretty quickly, because it was a buffet. We had lots of good times there. I used to use some Paula's Choice also, then started using drugstore. CeraVe has good products. I use a Cetaphil moisturizer, a fragrance free Oil of Olay cleanser, and .25% Retin A cream.

Donna, that makes sense that it depends on the instructor. I will check out Jessica's channel. I'm glad your foot is doing better.

Waves to wishiwasinhawaii and Pam!