TiffanyAprilM: Fitness Solutions for Busy Ladies---and my special relationship with Gilad

Hi all,

After I had my son I worked out every day for at least an hour
to get back in shape. Years later, the weight crept back on.
Yep, it's my lifelong struggle to be healthy!

Staying fit and healthy has been a life long struggle for me. I was a chunky kid, a voluptuous teen, and gained a ton of weight when pregnant 12 years ago. In other words, I have always been in need of a good fitness routine. I didn't always have to watch food intake, but I sure as heck do now.

This is me at my heaviest weight of my life...
I can pull it off, but it's very uncomfortable on my back
and joints to be overweight. I've lost 20 lbs since this pic.

My special relationship with Gilad started when I was around 12. My mom had just had three kids in a row, and was working hard on getting back in shape. My mom has a lovely figure, way better than mine, and she looks great after four kids. But like most moms, she needed to work out to tone up and build lean muscle mass while burning fat.

There he is! Gilad. He's the man.

At the time we had American Cable Vision. The Fit channel featured a 30 minute fitness program called Bodies in Motion with Gilad. This program is still on today, on the Discovery Fit and Health channel. It airs at 5:00 a.m. I DVR it. But back to my story. My mom and I would do this work out show together. Working out is always easier if you have a pal or family member to motivate you. In turn, you motivate them. I really think working out with my mom during these early years helped me lose baby fat, as well as develop an understanding of the importance of working out to stay in shape.

Gilad's workouts take place on a beautiful Hawaiian beach.
They consist of a warm-up, commercial, aerobics, commercial,
floor work, commercial, cool down, over.
Perfect for beginners! Already in shape?
Jog in place through the commercial breaks!

Later on in my teen years, I was able to stay thin by working a part-time job, going to school, always hanging out with friends, and not eating very often. I'm not saying it was healthy, but it was how I stayed thin.

That's me in the middle, Kira on the left and Laura on the right.
I die when I see that amazing stomach of mine here, hehe!
No stretch marks!

(Well, after having Gabe and gaining a Gazillion pounds, I started working out to Gilad and Bodies in Motion again. I was able to lose 50 pounds and get my figure back. Granted, I was much younger than I am now, and didn't really need to watch my diet. However, when I think back I realize Chris and I hardly ever went out to eat or grab fast food. Just goes to show you, if you can make yourself eat at home, you are taking the first step.)

Over the past 15-16 years, Mom and I have also worked out frequently to Denise Austin, who has the best figure even after all these years and having two kids of her own. She is so perky and positive, I would recommend her videos and shows to anyone who is a beginner, or starting back into fitness after taking a break.

Denise is so beautiful. Amazing figure, amazing hair,
and most importantly amazing attitude!

This DVD is a must have. I know for a fact
they have it available for rent at the
Riverside Mid-continent Library.
No excuses! Give it a try!

Now that I have been working out for a little over 4 months, I have enough base strength to do Pilates. For anyone who's ever tried Pilates, you know there is NOTHING easy about it. You always see celebrities on TV and in magazines saying how it's easy to do. "How do you stay in shape?" "Oh it's easy, I do Pilates." Please, Pilates is one of the hardest workouts I've ever done. But I will say, after just one week of adding it to my fitness routine, my body is tighter and more streamlined than it has been since my teens. Also, the scale has dropped 4 lbs. However, I've also been making sure to eat fruits and vegetables every day, so eating and working out is what changed the scale I'm sure. Also, I worked 4 months to get strong enough to do it.

I rented the Basics Step by Step DVD from
the library and have been doing it for
almost a week. I would love to buy
the set!

The morale of this story, and blog post, is don't give up. There are workouts you can do. Start small. Even if you can't get your diet under control in the beginning, never stop working out. It will make you stronger. You will see results. I believe you can do it.

I'm posting my workout routines. Hopefully it will motivate you and help you realize you have enough time to be fit. I never do the same thing on Monday, Tuesday, etc. I always change things up so my body never "plateaus" (a nasty word meaning you don't see any more results!)

Some of my workouts include:

*Gilad 30 minute work-out, *Windsor Pilates

*Gilad 30 minute work-out, *Denise Austin's Daily Dozen (one or two of the workouts)

* Denise Austin's Daily Dozen, *Windsor Pilates

*A brisk 30 minute outside walk, *Gilad

*Jump Rope video on Spark People's Youtube channel, *Gilad

You see how I'm always changing things?!

I would like to lose more, but here's to not gaining any back!

I've also made myself a Pilates vision board, which I'm going to add 5 exercises to every week. I will do these after I finish the Pilates video.

I'm pretty proud of my sketches, lol!

I hope this blog post has helped you figure out your own fitness journey, and where you want to go from here.
If you have any questions, or tips for me, please comment below.

For questions on the photo studio, or to send me information or photos, just email me at tiffanyaprilmiller@gmail.com

Love you all, and here is my friend Heather's beautiful vision board! I love it!