Winner: Normal Losers Category
Jerri Jones
The truth is: I’m not athletic. I don’t do gyms, tracks, weights, machines or dance routines. I tend to prefer sitting… and reading books, observing people, pondering ideas, engaging in conversation, researching on the Internet, anything but physical activity it seems. But with the way I felt at 43, I knew I wasn’t going to have the energy or stamina to pursue my calling, my passions and my dreams. I observed the lives of people my parents’ age -- the multiple trips to doctors’ offices, counters filled with prescription bottles, envelopes bulging with medical bills. There were so many complaints and so much misery. I was headed there. In the afternoons, I was so sluggish I could hardly keep my eyes open. Physical complaints with digestion/elimination problems, allergies, fatigue and yeast infections were cropping up more frequently. My brain fog and forgetfulness were a family joke. On top of that, I didn’t like the way I looked. I neglected myself through the childbearing/toddler years and said it didn’t matter. I couldn’t focus on weight and exercise with four children and a husband who worked out of town a lot. Any intelligent, responsible, life-loving person could see the downward progression and realize that things had to change.
Sixteen months ago at 5 feet, 3 inches and 170 lbs, I finally tackled the discontentment with my body and my lack of physical fitness; I made a concerted effort to change my eating habits and start to move. I avoided white flour, pasta, bread, sugar and all processed foods, eating lots of salads, vegetables, and meat. For exercise, my 20-year-old daughter and I worked out together for about the first six months by walking away the pounds with a video. When she left home to work in an orphanage in Mexico, my desire to exercise went with her. It just wasn’t interesting enough or fun anymore. While I kept off some of the weight I’d lost, I wasn’t happy with the way my clothes fit. I was in a tight 14, but I refused to buy anything new. Minor temporary improvements in how I felt, had come and gone with the exercise. Stalling for time, I wondered if there was any program out there that would suit me- an exercise program that was smart, efficient and addressed the whole body, but wouldn’t take over my whole life.
One day this past June, while visiting a website to pay for an online purchase, I noticed a brightly colored logo captioned, “For those of you who have asked how I did it, click on the T-Tapp logo and see! ”. I knew Carol, the lady I was doing business with, was an active, home schooling mom just like me. What had she done, I wondered. Curiosity conquered me. With one double-click, Carol Severson’s T-Tapp success story led me to spend several hours on the T-Tapp website and forums where I got an education and was thoroughly convinced that Teresa Tapp’s comprehensive approach to physical fitness was the timely answer to my dilemma. Within 24 hours, I ordered the T-Tapp Total Workout. Clicking on the T-Tapp logo amounted to reaching critical mass for me.
On June 26th, my T-Tapp package arrived and I entered the contest shortly thereafter. I weighed in at 156 lbs. For 6 days straight, I worked on the instructional tapes adding in #2 on the third day. From the beginning, I brushed at least once a day. I also take alfalfa. On July 5, I switched to the Beginner Rehab. For three days I did B/R, then BWO+ one day. The next week my exercise routine was spotty because I was traveling and a little under the weather, but I tried to do the audio CD. After returning home, I began alternating between B/R and BWO+ every other day. I did a four-day boot camp towards the end of the month and rested for two days. In August, I joined Habit Formers and I have been following the plan of 3 long workouts plus 3 short workouts and a day of rest. My long workout is usually the B/R, but I incorporated BWO+ and SATI into the mix on Aug. 13. For short workouts, I do BWO+. The structure and accountability have been working great for me until yesterday when I got busy with the details of getting my pictures taken and writing my story for the contest. Now I’m going to have to catch up.
I haven’t lost a pound, but the shape of things sure has changed and I’m utterly confident that it’s just a matter of time. I started out at 156 lbs and a tight size 14. I now fit comfortably in a size 12 and some of them are so loose that I can’t practice holding my tummy in when I wear them for fear they’ll fall down.
My inch loss results aren’t as dramatic as some, but I’ve chosen the slow and steady path. My goal is to get into a size 8. T-Tapp offers so many options, but I’m moving deliberately so I don’t burn out. I will soon be adding in Hit the Floor to work on my abdomen. When I’m ready, I plan to switch to the God Made/Man Made system of eating. Reporting in to Habit Formers fits my lifestyle, so I’m sticking with it unless I join in a model blitz or boot camp with another group on the forum. At the first available opportunity, I know I need to get with a trainer to improve my form, until then I’m collecting and studying form tips off the forums and filing them all in my T-Tapp notebook where I keep my workout journal and measurements. The real miracle with me is that anything could produce this level of motivation to move, even when I sometimes feel like I’m going to collapse after a workout. It’s hard work, but I feel so much better. My constipation problems are gone. Allergies, headaches and fatigue don’t plague me anymore. Then, of course, there is nothing like feeling and seeing the difference in one’s body except maybe someone else noticing, too. Just today my son commented on the change in my appearance. As I entered the room, he said, “Mom, you look like a smaller version of yourself.”
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LOSSES:
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Bust:
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0
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Waist:
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-1
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Abdomen:
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-1
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Hips:
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-1
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Right
Upper Thigh:
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- 1/2
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Right
Lower Thigh:
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0
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Left
Upper Thigh:
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-1
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Left
Lower Thigh:
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1/2
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Right
Calf:
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- 1/2
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Left
Calf:
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0
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Right
Arm:
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-1
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Left
Arm:
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-1
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TOTAL
LOST:
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-6 1/2
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