Sherry Morris's Blog, page 12

Fantastic Ab Workout Video

I've been a Denise Austin fan since the 90's when I began trying to lose weight and firm up after having 9 pound babies. Her voice is so soothing and encouraging, I just love how consistently perky she is. Seriously. Anyhow, fast forward to now and I'm a runner. And a yogi. But I've always searched for an effective core workout. The CXWorx class and the Pilates Mat classes at the gym didn't engage my tummy muscles in a way that tightened them. The new yoga teacher, Anne, does an awesome core series in some classes, but I wanted more.

I found this video on YouTube and it's the best ab workout I've ever tried! I don't know how it's possible, but Ms. Austin actually has exercises that I've never been exposed to. And she doesn't make me do multiple sets of the same thing, so there is no dread and longing for them to be done because I'm not in terrific pain. I do all of them. Hours later, I'm sore. Yippee!

This is my go-to core workout.  Thank you Denise Austin, BeFit and YouTube!

Seriously, Go Outside and Run

At age 18, I was a 5' tall 97 pound bride. I'm now a 51-year-old overweight housewife and mother. Diets don't work for me anymore, even Atkins. I didn't lose an ounce in the two weeks I last strictly stuck to the Induction phase. I used to lose at least five pounds during that period. I've belonged to gyms over the years and bought home exercise equipment but never lost any weight nor toned up.
I've found a gym with great group fitness classes like Zumba, kickboxing, cycling and weight lifting. I have spurts when I'm addicted and take more than five classes a week. But I don't lose weight. I am more toned, and better balanced though, to which I credit the yoga classes. The same fat ladies I started the classes with two years ago are still fat. No fatter, but still the same. And they, like I, really put a lot of effort into exercising.

I looked around the gym and it dawned on me. Runners weren't fat. Runners perspired, were confident and happy. So I researched running for beginners. I trained and conquered two 5Ks.

On May 11, 2014 I weighed a whopping 152 pounds when I completed the Marine Corps Semper 5K. After the race, I ripped a half-marathon training plan out of a magazine. It's also online at Coach Jenny's website. I followed it several weeks, then I really wanted to run more so of course I derailed myself. Then I went back to all the fitness classes instead. And my weight stalled. Then I went on vacation and gained four pounds. It took two months to get the four pounds off, and only after I stopped all classes except yoga and  began a new running program, training for a 10K. I downloaded it for free from the Run Disney coach's website. I have stuck to it.

I might be the only person who prefers running on the old treadmill in our cluttered basement. I don't have to worry about strapping on a fanny pack with cell phone, ID and pepper spray. I don't have to worry about cars and tripping on uneven sidewalks. No bears, snakes, coyotes, dogs, feral cats or scary men. I don't have to worry about sunscreen. (I've been a skin cancer patient for 9 years. I've never had a tan and have always been careful about the sun. My beautiful non-smoker sister died of lung cancer last year. It's all mind blowing.) I don't have to worry about earphones and hearing potential dangers. I can listen to my music out loud. I like the free cardio iRadio stations.

Anyhow, as I was saying, on May 11th I weighed a whopping 152 pounds (not my all-time non-pregnancy high of 162 by the way). Yesterday and today I weighed in at 135. I haven't been this low since my 30's. I'm not dieting, only because my metabolism refuses. I'm just running, cross-training with Yoga and core strengthening via a BodyBlade.

Running has reversed my scary ascent into blubber.

So, what are you waiting for? Stop with the excuses. Don't say you can't run because you are too busy, too old, have bad knees, a bad back, bunions, mysterious pain etc. If you aren't pregnant and don't have a debilitating disease, paralysis, balance issues or your doctor forbids it, tie your shoes and go out and run. You don't have to run continuously. I don't. I am a Run/Walk/Run girl and I love it. There are plenty of couch to 5K programs in magazines, TV, books and online. Find one. Perhaps you'll only be a walker. That didn't work for me. But I'll let you in on a secret. As slow as I am, when I changed my locomotion to that of a runner, while still going at my walking speed, I began to lose weight. It's incredible.

I'm perspiring. I'm smiling. I'm happy. I'm down 17 pounds in four months. No diet. And yes, life has gotten in the way. I am losing weight by Run/Walk/Running. When I lose 7 more pounds, I'll be at the top range of a healthy BMI. I'm aiming for a final goal of losing 40 pounds. I'll be 112 pounds, what I weighed at 19 when I deemed myself full-grown. I'm not longing to be a tiny 97 pound bride again. I will keep running. I don't fear pushing myself too hard and dropping dead. I'd rather die running than from melanoma, lung cancer or overeating.

You can do it. Start right now. Tie your shoes and go for a Walk/Run/Walk or a Run/Walk/Run.

Love,
Sherry

Pictures from my September 2014 Disney Trip

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

Results of my KDP 5 Day Free Promotion

My award winning paranormal romance THE IMMACULATE DECEPTION was free through Amazon's KDP program for five days. The results:

Amazon.com 108 free downloadsUnited Kingdom 87 free downloadsGermany 17 free downloadsFrance 7 free downloadsCanada 6 free downloadsItaly 2 free downloadsSpain 1 free downloadJapan 1 free downloadIndia 1 free downloadAustralia 1 free download
One 99 cents purchase of  the sequel, THE MASTER MANIPULATOR was purchased through Amazon.com. My net royalty is 35 cents.

THE IMMACULATE DECEPTION and all of my eBooks will remain available for 99 cents through August 31,2014, at which time I will pull them from the marketplace. Paperbacks will remain available until the bookstores sell off existing inventory.

FREE Kindle Paranormal Romance

THE IMMACULATE DECEPTION by Sherry Silveris a Free Kindle until Monday, August 25, 2014

THE IMMACULATE DECEPTION won the Romantic Times Book Reviews Magazine Reviewers Choice Award for Best Small Press Paranormal Romance. I accepted the award at the Pittsburgh Hilton before an audience of over 1,000. It was so exciting!

This book starts out with true life phone call I really received from my father and I jumped off from there, letting my imagination say and do things Sherry never did. It is the only book of mine that wrote itself, I was taking dictation from my muse.

I received rights back from Cerridwen Press and Indie published it two years ago. All of my Indie sales have dried up so on August 31st, I will remove them from the market. If you download THE IMMACULATE DECEPTION and like it, the immediate sequel is THE MASTER MANIPULATOR which will be available for 99 cents until August 31st.

It was fun being an author, but it's time to move on to the next chapter of my life. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.

My First Farmers' Market Day!

I've been meaning to visit a farmers' market for well, decades. I never remember to do a web search to find locations. I finally did this week. They were talking about farmers' markets on the radio and the announcer said there were links to all of them in the area on the radio website. I couldn't find the links, I had to get my husband to search for it. Apparently he meant it was on his blog page which could be accessed from the station website.

Anyhow, I went to one in the north part of our county today. In the light rain with my daughter and puppy. She took care of nervous Frank as he cheerfully met three other dogs (the site for this market said dogs welcome). I looked through all the offerings and decided to buy at the last stand because: everything was price fixed except this guy had his eggplants $2 per pound instead of the normal $1.50. Plus this was the second busiest market, so I figured he had a following for a good reason.

I wish he'd labeled the herbs individually instead of just pricing them $2 a bunch or 3 for $5. I would have gotten more than wonderful looking chives had I known what the other stuff was. Something familiar with long soft leaves looked good, but I couldn't pull it out of my memory. Later I realized it was sage. Which is really good in my sausage balls.

I thought he had good looking kale, but it wasn't labeled so I asked. Yes, that was kale and the stuff next to it with the long leaves was Tuscon kale, which was sweeter and really good. I'd never used any but the curly leaved kind, but I decided to try it. Yes, it was really good. But it just tasted like kale.

I also bought two ears of already shucked sweet corn for my daughter and I to have with the kale at lunch. I heated up leftover citrus pulled pork to round out the meal. Yum!

I also bought a leak. I'd always wanted to try one, I never notice them in my grocery store. It looks great. I'll use the leak and chives tomorrow.

I spent $7 on my purchase. On the way out, I couldn't resist the guy who had fresh cut flowers for $5. Yes, it was pricey for zinnias, celosia and eucalyptis, but I love flowers and rarely splurge.

I am looking forward to returning to the farmers' market soon.

Indie Author Closing Shop, Opening Windows

              
I will be retiring my independently published mystery novels on August 31, 2014. Until then, the above titles are available for 99 cents as Kindle ebooks and free for Amazon Prime and Amazon Unlimited members. Paperbacks will be on the market for years to come, until the bookstores sell off existing inventory.


Thousand Dollar Pharaoh is published by Eternal Press and will remain available in all formats.

Zumba is Still Not for Me

In my weight loss journey, I've tried Zumba several times. It's an ethnic inspired group dance choreographed to pulsating, infectious music. I'm currently on a quest to take as many different group exercise classes as possible for cross-training, to intersperse with my running. I want to move as many muscles as many different ways as possible.

I've never been coordinated. I only enjoy slow dancing. I gave Zumba one more whirl tonight. And slipped out 15 minutes into the class. There is no air conditioning in the studio due to construction on the gym expansion. The class was crowded and I could not see the instructor on stage, so I was monkey see monkey do following the lady in front of me. I didn't do very well, so I made my way to the ladies' gym where I ran 15 minutes and did the stair climber 15 more. I came home and vacuumed 20 minutes.

I don't think I'll try the Les Mills Body Pump class this year either. I don't like lifting weights set to pulsating music for an hour, especially since most of the moves are squats and I never feel anything in my glutes.

However, I am loving that I have revisited the cycling studio, the very hard boot camp yoga PiYo class as well as a low impact cardio class by Les Mills, Body Vive.

I am woman, watch me shrink and tone.

Ceasing Auto Tweeting

In my quest to promote my books in a sea of billions, I've tried automatic tweeting apps so I can schedule my promotional tweets ahead of time, and don't have to actually type in my 140 characters every time. I've done it for a couple of years, and have decided to stop.

Why? Nobody is paying any attention anymore to the mass produced, frequently repeated tweets I make up ahead of time. I've sold one book this month. A Kindle of Persuasive Lips for $2.99. That's it. No other titles, no other formats.

As a writer, I've been kicked more than helped up, so I'm used to low sales and bad reviews. But I don't like wasting time better spent in the real world. Or even in the virtual world, enjoying other people's tweets, bantering back and forth.

By the way, I long ago ceased the auto ReTweeting apps. I was unwittingly sending out porn under my name while I slept! I manually auto ReTweet now.

Onward and upward.

Follow me on Twitter here. I follow back most people and businesses.