New Turbo Jam Infomerical is out

So back in November I got fortunate enough to be invited down to California to be a part of a new Turbo Jam infomercial! It was an absolutely amazing time and I got to meet and spend time with people I will be friends with forever!

Below is a clip of the final product!

Whirlwind Weekend - TEXAS STYLE!

Wow!!! How much fun was this weekend!?

Well Heather and I went to bed Thursday night around 1am after lollygagging and taking our sweet time getting packed for our trip to Texas.

We had to be up and out the door early, which was painful Friday morning. We hopped in a cab at approximately 430am and headed to the airport for a pleasantly quiet, and uneventful flight to Dallas! Our friend, Kevin picked us up at the airport and we stayed with him and my awesome friend Gen (who I met in person when we did the Turbo Jam™ infomercial together back in November of last year).

*****By the way....That INFOMERCIAL IS ON TV!!! AS of YESTERDAY!!! WE SAW IT THIS MORNING!!!! I'M NOT IN IT A TONNE..BUT I AM THERE!!! YEEEEE****

We spent some time running errands with Gen and Kevin (and their cool sons Austin and Daniel) and then headed to a Japanese Hibachi Restaraunt. I was surprised by my friend Jackie Bull and Missy who met us at the restaraunt and we had a birthday lunch (it was my birthday!) Jackie got me a cool Texas Longhorn hat (that I wore a lot over the weekend).

We spent some time at Gen's house after lunch and then headed off to 24Hour Fitness where Chalene was doing a special class (since she was going to be in town for Mindy's wedding, like we were).

We got their pretty early (about 1.5hours early) and there were LOTS of people already there. I was MOSTLY surprised by a bunch of folks who I hadn't met before who were excited to meet ME! I was mostly speechless about that but got to meet a lot of REALLY cool folks which made the day amazing!

Chalene came out and did her thing to more than 300 participants. It was absolutely stunning how many people made it out (good thing they held the class in the basketball court instead of the GroupX room!) We had a blast!

Janice, Doris and Pilar are three friends I've known through the Beachbody message boards for quite a while (I think I've known Pilar for more than 4years now) and got to meet them all in person for the first time before class! What an absolute treat!

I'm not going to list everyone else for fear of missing someone, but there wasn't a person I met over the weekend who didn't leave a lasting impression on me!

So my weekend has already been made amazing by this point and we haven't even gotten to reason why we came to Texas, and that was Mindy and Lee's wedding!

Saturday was HOT! Soooo freaking hot...but it was Sunny, beautiful and we got to the Ranch where the wedding was being help about 15minutes before the wedding. What an amazing place! The wedding was outdoors and at the foot of a small lake (or big pond). Lee took his place at the edge of the water shortly after we sat down and Mindy walked down the aisle. I hadn't seen Mindy in 2months and she is always in amazing shape (being the ultra fitness professional that she is) but WOW! She was not only stunningly gorgeous, but just amazing! The ceremony was short and sweet and the reception was an intimate and fun luncheon.

A great group of girls who are friends, family and colleagues of Mindy's did all the catering and they did an AMAZING job!

Heather, Myself, Gen, Jackie, Chalene and Bret shared a table and had a great time chatting and munching away on lunch while Mindy and Lee made there way around from guest to guest. The reception itself ended mid-afternoon and after relaxing and being mallrats for a little while, we met up with everyone downtown for a post-wedding party.

It was great and we slept like logs that night!

Today was very cool too! I got to meet Gen's inlaws (we all went to pick up Gen's youngest son from a sleepover with grandma and grandpa). Very nice folks and Gen's father in law has the COOLEST model train setup in the house! Oh man! He's been doing this since he was 17years old and the room he has setup now has apparently been "in progress" for 40 years! It was like nothing I've seen.

Gen and Kevin and the kids took Heather and I downtown in Dallas for lunch today (and we got to check out some JFK history too). I know my mom would be excited about this as she is a huge US History buff. We stook on the "grassy knoll" saw the Book Depository and I even stood right on the spot where the third shot hit JFK (and took a photo up the road so you can see where the car was coming from). It was all a little eerie really. But very interesting and cool nonetheless.

We made it to the airport and survived a minor delay to make it home just before midnight!
We've got a few pictures (Heather is playing with them right now) and are hoping to get some of Jackie's (I think I took 900 pictures with her camera this weekend) and Gen so I will post some of them later this week.

All in all it was an absolutely amazing weekend! I saw old friends, made some really cool new ones. Did I mention it was HOT?!

Anyways, what a blast! I can't wait to see a lot of the Texas folks again in August, when we head to California for camp TK (Everyone needs to join Team BLUE by the way)!!

Turbo Kick™ in the Park

Turbo soothes the savage beast?
Well I found out this morning that it does. My Wednesday morning class at Fitness One begins at 630am. The gym opens at 600am (usually) so I've never had a problem. But this morning was a little different. Heather and I got off the subway train and turned the corner towards the gym and we saw about 25 people not looking as happy as they should have on a Sunny Wednesday morning, all standing in front of the gym looking very put out.

It looks like somebody slept in this morning. The gyms only has one staff member on duty in the mornings, so the whole gym relies on them being on-time. Well today whoever it was, was far from on-time. I walked into a pretty angry bunch. So for about 5minutes I waited with the group, sympathized with them but quickly realized that nobody was on the way and that there was no point continuing to be upset about something we obviously have no control over.

So instead of letting the anger of the crowd fuel our fire, I let the ladies know that if they would rather get their workout done, and have some fun in the park instead of hanging around a door that may or may not open for the next hour that they were more than welcome to join me in the park!

I had my IPOD Speakers like normal (and I have batteries in them just in case the power goes out at the gym. don't laugh it's happened!)

So about a dozen ladies (a few stayed back to make sure whoever was late knew that they were angry I suppose) came with me and Heather and we busted a move in the park around the corner!

It was FANTASTIC! Its amazing how great a cool breeze, and fresh air feel while we're sweating to Michael Jackson and MC Hammer! ;)

I have two more classes to teach tonight, and I'm sure they will go smoother but I can say with 100% certainty that they won't be as improv or as fresh as this morning!

What a great way to start the day! An Hour in the park!!!

Tuesday!

So this morning Heather was planning on walking to work with one of her coworkers, so we were up (ok SHE was up) way earlier than normal. She got a text message from her coworker who was calling from the train (she lives outside the city) and said it was raining, so the walk was OFF. So that leaves us LOTS of time to chill out this morning!

Class last night was awesome! There were over 60 ladies in class and the energy was pumping! It was such a blast! Tomorrow is my Big 3class day, so I will use today as a recharge and rest day!

No classes today, so as long as I am able to get my errands done I think I am going to head out to the gym and get in a light workout.

I'm excited about Camp Turbo Kick even more now too! I'm going to be a team captain and I am so excited about it! Camp Turbo Kick is basically a cross between summer camp and super extreme workouts! We do a LOT working out over 4 days, but we ALSO get to spend a tonne of time just enjoying life and fitness! So this year, along with Lana, one of the craziest, most energetic and creative people I've ever met I get to lead "Team Blue" at camp! We're going to have such a blast!

Friday Mornings. My Favourite!

I've now decided that Friday morning is my favourite time of the week!!! I teach a class at 645am, which I have also decided is the BEST time of the day! Its JUST late enough that I feel REALLY good when class starts but not too late (I still make it to work on time).

This time of year especially, the sun is up and shining on my walk to AND from the gym which is amazing!

The class we're building up at Premier Fitness is amazing as well. So energetic, willing to learn and are loving this "new" thing called Turbo Kick™ that they get to try! It's amazing!

I think my Turbo High is at its best this morning! I LOVE bringing Turbo to new people and I already have folks interested in getting certified at this new club! I can't believe how fast they catch on too! Faster than I ever did thats for sure!!

So awesome! The next couple of weeks will be interesting for me. I've been offered more classes and another class at a third gym. I need to figure out how I can fit things into my schedule. Some juggling may have to happen.

Well time to head to work! One more class tonight!!

Confusion

There is a yahoo group called Turbo Kick Fanatics that has lot of members of, who because of Chalene Johnson, and the Turbo Kick Program she has created have a place to talk to, and share their passion for Turbo Kick and Fitness in General. People on there are either enthusiasts of Turbo Kick (and Turbo Jam), Instructors of Turbo Kick as well as Area Promotions Directors and Presenters of Turbo Kick. Basically a LOT of people who really love this program and the lady who brought it to them.

Chalene is a very gifted athlete, Instructor, Dancer, Fitness Presenter and has been a feature at IDEA Fitness quite a few times . She is very well respected, not only in the "Turbo Kick" circles, but in the Fitness Realm in general.

Now Chalene is in a contest right now for the next IDEA Conference
Click here to check out her entry and PLEASE vote.

http://www.ideafit.com/health_fitness_video_contest/ContestVideosView.aspx?vid=133

A few people seemed to get upset on the Turbo Kick Fanatics board that a couple people were leaving posts, encouraging people to support Chalene, the lady who if it were not for her, the board would not even have a reason for existing.

The TK Fanatics board is always trying to keep content pointed towards On-Topic, but to be honest there are SO MANY off-topic posts daily that nobody says boo about, and I am very surprised at the attitude of some of the so-called TURBO KICK Fanatics who say that they love Chalene but shun those people who are publicly supporting, and reminding other FANATICS that Chalene needs their support.

Chalene would never ask for the support herself, which is people who know and love her were posting to folks, reminding them and keeping everyone updated on the status of the contest Chalene is in. I am just a little surprised that people on a board called "Turbo Kick FANATICS", showed a lack of support of the lady who CREATED Turbo Kick by shunning the people who were trying to drum up support for her.

Well that's it for tonight. Two TK classes tomorrow! One at Each gym, so I am super excited, and TFIG tomorrow too! It's been a stressful week at work and I can't WAIT to blow off some steam in my classes!

Aches be gone

Well I'm feeling great today! All the aches from yesterday's Turbo Marathon are gone! Heather left for work early today, because one of her coworkers and her decided to walk to work (instead of taking the 20minute streetcar ride).

Tonight I'm planning on heading to my buddy's bike shop and bringing over some spare parts and bike frames I have and dropping off my broken frame for him. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I should have a new bike put together and can be back on the road again! I am REALLY excited about that!

8 more days until we flight out to Dallas as well! I am SO excited that we get to be with my good friend, Mindy for her wedding! We're staying with another awesome friend, Gen and her family for the weekend and from the looks of it, we should get a Turbo Class or 2 in as well! Chalene is coming to town as well, so she's planning on getting a class or two going! It's going to be a fun weekend!!!

Well time to get moving! I made Heather and I our gourmet omelets again this morning for breakfast! Tasty! Tomorrow we need to find something new though. No more of this eating the same thing every day for 6months!! :)

Ouch!

I ache.
It was such a busy day today! Class 1 was awesome but Class 2 and 3 really had me fired up today! Today was my first 10 Turbo day today as well! I felt amazing through all 3 classes. At the end of each class I was absolutely wiped out, but by the beginning of the next class I was ready to rock! The walk home from the gym at the end of the day was actually the toughest part of the day! Its about a 40minute walk home and by the time we arrived I was definitely ready to sit down!!

Tomorrow is an off day as far as teaching is concerned but if my aches are gone I'm planning on going for a run after work. Something else I discovered at work that I'm excited about...

A panini press! I'm going to buy a loaf of whole wheat bread and a package of cheese slices for snacks! Well that's it for tonight!

Big Day!!

Today is off to a great start! I just got home from the first of my three classes today. I'm just letting my omelet cool down before having breakfast and heading off to work! Today's first class was a little smaller and we had some new faces, so I took this opportunity to work on form with the class, and I think they really enjoyed it! It was definitely less high impact than normal, but everyone was sweating like crazy and groaning at the end of class!

Food-Wise my biggest focus is getting my water in-take back to where its consistent. I've been all over the place with that. Some days its been 2 litres, some 4 litres, and I've had a few days with barely any. I will be making sure I hit a minimum of 4 litres per day (not including post class water).

I've really noticed a lot of new folks in my classes lately, which is awesome!
I'm looking forward to this afternoon after work! I LOVE the new Skydome gym I'm teaching at and really am excited that I have the opportunity to bring Turbo Kick™ to a whole new group of folks! This is a gym which, unlike my current gym I know nobody and Turbo is new to EVERYONE!

Well that's it for now! I will be back and will post later tonight after classes!!

Consolidating!

So the last couple of months I think I have been spreading myself a little too thin and as a result I don't think I have been as consistent as I would have liked. Work is going amazing, and my classes are going great (I'm teaching regularly at two clubs now, and am happy to be having to turn down offers to teach more, as I am teaching Turbo Kick™ at least 7 times per week which I think at this point in my life is fine).

I have booked my first Turbo Kick Certification here in Toronto as well (Sep29) and am starting to ramp up the promotion of that which is really exciting as well!

But keeping in touch with my long distance friends has been tough. A lot of them are part of online communities, which makes it easy to keep up with them when we're online, but with everything going on right now, I just haven't been spending as much time online.

I've noticed in the past that many of my long distance friendships seem like and "outgoing" relationship, and now that I am in a place where I'm basically working full days and teaching twice per day during the week I haven't been as good at calling my friends as I feel I should have. No surprise to me, because of that I haven't heard from many of them at all. People get busy with life, but I am quickly realizing that the people who are truly your friends will be there, and will return calls if you are quiet, they will call you out. I'm moving on. I have way too many exciting things going on, and too many supportive and amazing friends to stress about those who have decided to remove themselves from my life.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) is my most challenging day of the week (self imposed). I teach 3 classes tomorrow on top of my work day which has me in a total whirlwind from 530am until 900pm door to door but MAN do I sleep well!! Days like Wednesdays make me REALLY appreciate my days off, and REALLY appreciate the days where I teach 1 class!

Anyways, I've definitely not been using my blog as much as I used to, but I think that will change. I believe it helps me stay focused and I'm ready to re-focus!