Shredding Level 3

OK, there is NO doubt that Level 3 is much more enjoyable than Level 2.  I was going to say it's easier ... but it's not that.  If possible, I think I actually had even more sweat dripping off my face.  Either that or it was terribly hot last night (which I don't think it was). 

I think the issue I have with level 2 is all the small muscle shoulder work she does - which is SUPER tough for me. 

Level 3 seems to be your prize for sticking it out with Level 2.  There are some very, VERY hard moves.  Rock star jumps, squat jumps, lunge jumps - my heart felt like it would explode.  And jumping jacks WITH weights???  Actually that move I kind of question the safety of because I can see the high possiblity of injury from flinging around weights like that.  I make sure to have a slight bend in my elbows during that one so as not to overextend the joints. 

There are some moves that I remember being absolutely killer from when I did this DVD before (though not daily, just on an occassional basis).  This time around they actually weren't so bad.  I used to think mountain climbers were the devil, this time they were just good.  Walking push-ups used to be tough ...not now!

At the end I felt like I wanted to collapse.  Though ... after I did Level 3, I did Level 2 - hahaha.  I want to do this a few times in the next 10 days.  I'm a sucker for punishment that way.

Today is just the regular single session of Level 3 and 45 min running.

Oh ... I also tried my first Green Monster yesterday.  I tried a pretty basic one with milk, frozen banana, spinach, flax, almond butter & ice.  I know these are a huge buzz in the blogging world and everyone raves about them so I decided to give it a try.

My verdict ---- Gross!  I can't imagine how anyone could love these things.  To me it just tasted like icy banana with the odd mix of almond butter in there.  I tried it before I put in the almond butter and it wasn't great, but adding it seemed to make it worse.  I don't mind bananas, though they are best when they are ripe but not yet having any brown spots.  And I like them in some baking.  However, I'm not one to put them on a peanut butter banana sandwich, or mix into my oatmeal (gag!).  So maybe the Green Monster is just not for me.

I tried finding a recipe without banana but they are few and far between.  I think I can happily live my life without going down that path again and not feel like I'm missing out on anything.  I'll keep my spinach in my salad, my almond butter on my toast, my milk alone in a glass and my banana as a plain, simple snack!