Monday, December 15, 2014

Zuzka's Advanced Kettlebell Routine, Why I'm Liking BR More These Days, BR Lean Day #7, ZWOW #4 & #5

Zuzka posted her schedule late last night. Looks like she has 5 new workouts this week 2 of which are re-filmed. She then has 2 old workouts included. There are no re-filmed ZWOW's, and there is a new 5 minute workout too. I always like those. I plan on putting a few of those together when I'm on vacation. I won't have access to heavy weights while I am away so it will be a full out BR and Zuzka week for sure.

What did you guys think of her advanced Kettlebell routine? It looked like a pretty good routine to me based on how much she was sweating! I know she made a remark about how embarrassed she was by the sweat, but it just makes the workout look harder IMO. The workout took her under 20 minutes. I would never sweat that much in 20 minutes, not even in a hot yoga class. I rarely ever sweat like that.
I think she had more than one wardrobe malfunction though - these shorts were too small for her and made her look like she was working out in boy short underwear. LOL.



I liked the lunge pass through and twist move. It is a new one, and sometimes these new moves crack me up on how silly they can be (from both BR and Z), but I liked it. There was a whole lot of Kettlebell swings in there, and I'd most likely replace one set of them with a pulling/back exercise. :) But I'd like to give this whole routine a try.

Zuzka also stated  that she posts everything 8pm PST. How about 8pm EST? That way a lot more of us could plan for the next morning.

Z posted another recipe (meaty pizza) AGAIN with almond flour. Her recipes often call for A LOT of almond flour - this one 2.5 cups. That's over 1500 calories in just the crust alone. Does anyone make her recipes using a different flour?  I'd rather use those super skinny flat bread tortillas to save on calories. Unless you are gluten intolerant, I want to use something less caloric.

One of the reasons I am liking BR more these days is their posting on that they are NOT photoshopping their pics other than color. I can agree with the color - some of the pics of Lisa look TOO tan. But then there is a pic of her like this that looks so much more real than other pics (opposed to the others they use from various places that HAVE been photoshopped). I am not picking on Lisa here - but you can see some real creases in her skin that would otherwise get Photoshopped out of magazine pics. THANK YOU Lisa for doing this. My skin does the same thing, and I seriously didn't know how normal it was or not. Kudos to BR. Lisa has taken a step back from the plastic surgery thing too lately which is more admirable that constantly trying to change yourself in artificial ways.
I love this picture of her.



OK, BodyRock Lean Day #7. It was all about arms and glutes. Kelsey's arms look fantastic, don't they? I did however, think this workout was a bit weird. She used the HIIT Bar weights throughout the whole workout. The triceps kick backs with the good morning? I would just focus on holding the bent over position and work the triceps. I liked the squat maneuver. The upright rows and bicep curls with the hop? Why? I would focus on the up right rows and bicep curls independently, then do pogo hops. She does the shoulder exercise with one leg up and biceps with the other leg up. In order to be even you need to use the same weights. But what if you can go heavier for upright rows than bicep curls (or vice versa)? The reverse flies are a great exercise, but it was labeled - 1/2 burpee, push-up, bent over row, not reverse fly. Huh? Not much glute work in there either. I think doing 3 rounds of triceps, upright rows, bicep curls, reverse flies, squats and pogo hops makes more sense. Add in some hip thrusters and single leg deadlifts for more glute work.
What did you guys think?

Lastly, there are no ZWOW's this week. I believe Zuzka said that she was only re-doing 1-3. What I find interesting is that Sweat Factor put out workouts ZWOW #4 and #5 this week. A coincidence? I doubt it. VERY smart and a bit sneaky on their behalf. I received this email today:

Hi Warriorz!

We know how much you enjoy the ZWOW series, so this week we have a little surprise!  For the last four weeks, we’ve been providing you with ZWOW challenges and now we’re putting an extra WOW in your ZWOW life.  In your weekly schedule for this week you’ll find ZWOW #4 and #5!!!  Please click here to access it.  We hope you enjoy!

Sincerely,

The Sweat Factor Team


I just think it is weird, but I suppose this will keep happening since they own all her old videos. You can find many of her ZWOW's on YouTube. I wonder if Z will ever re-do any of her ZShreds?

4 comments:

  1. Re: BR Lean Day 7, I thought it was weird that the last exercise was either mislabeled or misperformed; it's not the first time that has happened (at least where part of an exercise was removed, but it is the first time that I recall it being a totally different workout than described! lol Also I did think that the upright rows/bicep curls with the hop were kind of strange. If anything I'd do the arm work by itself for each round, or the arm work for 5 reps each and then 5 one leg squat pogos (per leg, switching per 5 arm reps).

    I remember when Lisa was making her changes physically./cosmetically and the photos were really super duper edited and that was when I started to look to other outlets for research and tailoring a workout. In a weird way I thank them for that because I'd probably not have branched out to educate myself. Maybe they should thank themselves for that as well because they've been able to gain back some credibility instead of striving for greatness by behaving like a flash in the pan.

    I love how Zuzka's legs look in that photo! But yeah, the shorts are a little short. Live and learn, eh? ;)

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    1. I'm glad they are going for real photos. Makes me take them more seriously. Not that the lighting etc doesn't help, but showing us flaws is fantastic IMO.

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  2. That BR workout was silly. Why put a good morning in there - with such little weight - and why the hops and weird things? I agree with you Gina.
    The equalizer could have been used here, too. I know not everyone can do dips, but it's such a good exercise.
    I really enjoyed last week's lean series, but this week doesn't look very good so far. I do really like Kelsey though. She's very likeable and had a great body.

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    1. I liked last week a lot better so far too. Maybe tomorrow will be a better workout. But I agree, Kelsey is quite likable!

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