Curves

 Now that I am on P3 (Phase 3, maintenance), I decided to return to Curves Gym after a several month hiatus, and decided to get weighed and measured. I was thrilled with the new measurements. Compared to my original measurements from 7 years ago:

Total weight loss: 42.4 lbs

            Total inches lost: 32.25  (7 inch loss from hips; 5.5 from abdomen, 4 from each thigh, etc.)

Total body fat lost: 7.8% = 28.63 lbs. WAHOO!

I was introduced to Curves (Fitness Center for Women) in 2003.  My sister, who lives in Boston, kept telling me to go visit it and I said, “OK” but never went. When my sister came to visit me here in Tucson, she dragged me to Curves to show me what it was like. She said, “It’s a little dorky, but it’s fun!” I saw that it was set up in a circle with machines alternating with square pads (recovery stations)…. and, the best part -- they were playing groovy music. After trying it out, I became a member and, for the first time in my life, not only loved working out but consistently did it three times a week (and found a Curves gym whenever I went out of town to not miss a workout). 

I was so impressed with the Curves workout philosophy, combining strength training and aerobics in a 30-minute workout, that I bought a franchise and owned the one in Tucson at Campbell and Glenn for about 4 years! I love empowering women, and it was exciting to watch them getting stronger and healthier!

Although I regularly worked out and made healthy food choices, I was challenged to lose much weight. I continued working out because it was fun, made me feel good, and was good for my body. It wasn’t until the fall of 2009 that I found a weight loss program that worked for me (ADIO, in Arizona) and then released the remaining excess weight with homeopathic HCG in July-August 2010.

Now that I am on HCG phase 3, I can work out again and I am enjoying it. Since I am an “A” personality type (and need to be careful not to stress my adrenals), I want to be careful about not overdoing it and pushing myself too much. I plan to work out twice a week at Curves and take a 30-minute brisk walk at home on the other days. I started doing the DVD “Hip Hop Abs” but I must have been doing it wrong because after two workouts I had a lot of back pain. Darn. I like dance and that seemed the perfect solution to getting rid of what’s left of my belly fat. Sometimes I will also do a belly dance ab workout….and maybe some day take a belly dance class (stay tuned!).

One of the great benefits of HCG is that as the fat disappears and/or gets redistributed, the skin doesn’t end up saggy.  I am curious to see how my measurements change as a result of strength training.

Curves are located all over the world; go to www.curves.com to find a location near you.