Fatigued to FABULOUS! One Woman's Journey from Overwhelm to Overcoming

By Trisch Richardson

Published in the United States of America by:

http://beyouthfulnfit.com

trisch@beyouthfulnfit.com

Copyright 2015 by Trisch Richardson/updated 2017

All Rights Reserved.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this e-book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form

whatsoever, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any informational

storage or retrieval without express written, dated and signed permission from the author.

Permission is granted for the purchaser of this e-book to print a copy for their own personal use,

including copies of schedules and charts as needed for personal use.

Fatigued to FABULOUS!

~One woman's journey~

Table of Contents

Introduction.....................................................................................................................5

1. “I Guess I'll Be Fat, But I'll Be Flexible!”....................................................................7

2. Beauty Deep Within......................................................................................................11

3. Skin Deep Beauty..........................................................................................................15

4. Eating for You-th!.........................................................................................................19

5. What I Mean by “Weight Doesn't Matter”................................................................23

6. Little Bits Add Up!.......................................................................................................31

7. Detours on the Journey................................................................................................37

8. Building a House..........................................................................................................41

9. YOU are WORTH It! (Taking Time for YOU!)......................................................45

10. Less Really IS More!...................................................................................................47

11. Fatigued to Fabulous!.................................................................................................51

12. Get Started on YOUR Journey!................................................................................53

Trisch's Toolbox (Tools for Transformation!)..........................................................61

Getting Started—Workout Suggestions, Free Video Clips,

& Other Support for Getting Started

• Helpful Websites and Supplement Information......................................................63

• Signs of Overtraining.................................................................................................65

• Schedule Explanations...............................................................................................67

• Chart............................................................................................................................69

• Schedules: starting on page.......................................................................................71

Total Workout

Basic Workout Plus

MORE

Healthy Hormones Menopause Management

Senior Fit Schedule 1

Senior Fit Schedule 2

• Schedules for Those with Adrenal and Health Challenges—starting on page.....83

Basic Workout Plus

MORE

Healthy Hormones Menopause Management

Senior Fit

About Trisch...............................................................................................................91

Fatigued to FABULOUS! is the story of one woman's journey from needing two to three naps a day to

function to becoming a T-Tapp Fitness Trainer—while still working on healing from adrenal fatigue!

I don't claim to have arrived, and while I will share many tips on what helped me, each person's journey

is different. Please don't rush out and buy every supplement and dvd I mention or try to do everything

exactly the same. It might not be the best for YOU!

I share my journey and what has helped me to help you narrow your focus. There is SO much out there

about hypothyroidism, adrenal fatigue and anemia that you could spend precious energy chasing them

all—and still not get well.

The biggest thing I want you to remember as you read this is—take what is helpful and don't feel guilty

about not trying what doesn't click for you. Another tip--baby steps are better than whole hog or

nuthin'. Which usually results in-- nuthin'! If you are feeling overwhelmed, pick ONE area and work

on that. And pick ONE thing within that area.

Adrenal fatigue makes it hard to think clearly and make decisions. So does anemia. So does

hypothyroidism. And I have battled with all three. Still do sometimes! :)

I am not a doctor nor a health care professional, so all advice here is anecdotal from my journey. The

only qualifications I have are my double MA (better known as MAMA ;) and all the self-taught-

knowledge that comes with that life school degree. The other more “official” qualifications: I am

certified as a Fresh Start coach, I passed and currently maintain the ISSA (International Sports

Sciences Association) personal trainer certification, and I completed the requirements to be a Master T-

Tapp trainer (certified to teach all T-Tapp workouts), which I love almost as much as my MAMA job!

Now that you know where I'm coming from, I'll start my story......and hope that it inspires you that yes

you CAN crawl out of the darkness and feel whole and alive again!

HUGS!

~Trisch

Chapter 1

“I Guess I'll Be Fat, But I'll Be Flexible!”

That's what I told my husband shortly after New Year's Day, 2007. I had been working out for an hour

every day, 5 days per week. I was barely maintaining at the same size and weight I had been 3 months

earlier when our son was born! In fact, I looked and weighed what I did the day before he was born!

Not only that, I was tired. Oh, I would feel that rush of energy a workout gives you--and about an hour

and a half later, I would crash. I would need a nap at 9:30 in the morning! I had 9 children,

homeschooled, taught music lessons twice a month plus tried to keep up with overseeing chores on our

little mini-farm. I didn't have TIME to get tired and take a nap!

But I was afraid if I quit my hour long workouts, I would get bigger! Here I was barely maintaining a

size 22W with an hour of strength training, core exercises, flexibility and cardio!

I was not dieting (especially since I was fully nursing my son), but I was trying to not overdo on treats.

I was even proud of myself for only eating ONE buckeye and ONE Oreo truffle on New Year's Eve!

But all to no avail—after losing 10 lbs. right after my son was born (he weighed 9 lbs. 9 ½ oz!), by

New Year's Eve I had gained it back. I had to wear my maternity clothes because nothing else fit!

Growing up I never had a weight problem. Oh, yes, I did—I gained 10 lbs. when I lived in France for

my junior year in college. All those pastries! Ooh la la!

But I dropped that weight very quickly once I returned home. I never had to exercise. I would lose the

“baby weight” fairly quickly after having a baby, until my fourth child. That was a bit harder but I

chalked it up to getting pregnant so quickly after losing a baby before her. Then after our fifth child I

lost most of that weight and was feeling pretty good about how I looked.

After our fifth child was born, I had to have my gall bladder removed. Ever since then, the weight

started creeping on and I had a bigger struggle to get it off. And less time to focus on eating better or

exercising! Then just before our 8th child was born, my husband was in a terrible accident when he

was broadsided by a driver on drugs. That turned our world upside down! Thankfully he is now okay,

but it was a rough few weeks in the hospital, then a few years of healing and returning to normal. We

later found out that we are blessed to still have him with us!

Did I mention I am an emotional eater?! What do you think happened after all that stress?!

I remember a few months after the accident and after my son was born, grabbing a bag of chocolate

caramel cups and telling my friend who was with me, “You know, chocolate makes a poor substitute

for your husband!”

She replied, “Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do!”

That would sum up the next year for me—although seeing the video from my daughters' special

birthday party 6 months later and how I looked motivated me to start eating better!

After being more mindful of my eating, I was discouraged to have lost hardly anything at all. I love

walking and as the weather got nicer I continued to walk more...my legs and arms looked good, but oh!

That middle!

That's when I started doing exercises for the core from a book I found. I started adding in some

routines using hand and ankle weights. Then I a friend told me how she added running for cardio. I

tried that a few times but had absolutely NO stamina! I found I didn't mind rebounding and it was

more doable for me.

Prior to my 9th child/second son's birth I found a pregnancy workout that I started doing. I was faithful

to work out, walk and rebound. I worked out the day before I had him! I had an unplanned caesarean

section with him and couldn't work out much for 6 weeks. Then I slowly returned to the pre-pregnancy

routine. And lost nothing.

I added more weights.

Nothing.

I added more cardio—longer rebounding and tried jump roping and stepping--and didn't have much

stamina for jumping or stepping, either.

Nothing!

This is where New Year's Day, 2007 found me.

Now let me add that I HATED exercise videos/dvds! I think I had one VHS tape of a kids' aerobic

workout—that I couldn't keep up with! I loved to walk, but forget running or jumping rope or anything

high cardio.

A friend had been doing an exercise program for several months and had shared it with me the summer

before. But I wasn't interested. No dvds for me!

In January she shared it again—she told me later she almost didn't! But here I was, whining to her

about how I was working out so much, losing nothing and getting more and more tired! So she

ventured one more time---”Well, I don't know if you'd be interested, but I've been doing T-Tapp and I

lost 15 inches in three weeks.”

I was listening! And I asked more questions! I decided to get the book Fit and Fabulous in Fifteen

Minutes out of the library and check out this “T-Tapp”. Before I returned the book to the library, I

bought my own copy. Why?

Because for the first time since my son was born 3 ½ months earlier, I was losing something!

Even though working out with the book at first took 1 ½ hours for the “15 minute workout”, I

persevered, because I felt better and was losing inches—finally!

Another friend loaned me one of her dvds while I saved for my own—bless her! I could finally do the

15 minute workout in—15 minutes! (Plus a few extra water breaks!)

The rest, as they say, is history!

The exercise ball is used by the kids for play (and to drop from the top of their slide on New Year's

Eve—yes, we have our own “ball drop” ceremony!), the hand and ankle weights are under a couch

somewhere, and I sold the core exercise book I had. Oh, and the kids play on the rebounder now,

too! :)

The journey took much longer than I had first hoped for—yet it has all been good.

I've been super-consistent and I've terribly inconsistent. I've reached the lowest size I've been in 20+

years, and I've put a few sizes back on. I've had times where the measuring tape wouldn't budge, the

tummy kept me out of the next size, and times where inner healing had to come first.

Through it all, T-Tapp and walking are all I have done for over 10 years. I have gained strength and

stamina, I have weathered a few mini-adrenal crashes, and I lost 9 sizes and over 200 inches. I feel

more energetic than I have in years and more balanced than when I was in my 20s!

In 2011 I decided to become a T-Tapp trainer to help others, especially mamas like me that tended to

put themselves on the back burner and then panicked to find they were falling apart! It has been

rewarding to help even the health and adrenal challenged find the balance for their lives and bodies and

see them lose inches and get stronger.

The irony of this is I was a foreign language major in college! The body now fascinates me and I have

learned so much about body mechanics, metabolism, self-sabotage and inner wholeness. It's my desire

to share a bit of what I've learned with you. As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Learn from the mistakes of

others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself”!

It has been an amazing journey that has helped me with more than inch loss. I have become more

whole as well—inside and out. T-Tapp has affected so much of my life--I feel it has given me my life

back in many ways.

Even though I am now going through some hormonal shifts (just turned 55!) and have gained back a

few sizes, I still feel better, more confident and stronger than I have in years. And thanks to working on

the newest fascia fitness tweaks from the Brain-Body Fitness series and First Step, the fluff is moving

off and I'm within a size of my “feel good” goal! That, to me, is the beauty of T-Tapp—even when

“life” happens, we can keep doing just a few moves to keep the lymph pumping and the spine

flexible—and give ourselves the grace to live life vs. being obsessed with numbers.

Oh, and remember my hatred of exercise dvds? I now own all of Teresa's!

Ready to begin your journey to health and wholeness?

January 2007 November 2015

Chapter 2

Beauty Deep Within

What is beauty deep within?

It's feeling beautiful from the inside out!

Often that depends upon our health, but more often it is very interconnected to our feelings and

perceptions. How we perceive and talk to ourselves is the greatest contributor!

I grew up an only child in a small town. As I got older it was only natural that I put a lot of stock in

what my friends thought of me. And, like so many young girls, I had a crush on a boy and although I

figured he hardly knew I existed, I secretly wondered if he noticed me and what he thought of me.

Well, one day during art class, I found out!

On a dare, he came up to me and said, “Ahoy there, Captain Zit Face!”

Talk about dashing hopes and dreams! And yes, that was the end of that crush—he crushed me!

Kids can be cruel, can't they? What happened to me probably happened to you, too. Oh, maybe it

wasn't some kid you had a crush on, maybe it was a popular girl in the class or even someone you

trusted. Someone said you had Dumbo ears or a big nose or...well, I'm sure we can all fill in the blank!

That was when I was in 7th grade and that comment stuck to me like glue and shaped the way I saw

myself. All of a sudden I was way more conscious of my acne-prone skin. I wondered if others

decided to not like me because of something I couldn't control—how much my skin broke out. I tried

all kinds of toxic stuff inside and out (I shudder to think of taking tetracycline to try to clear my skin!

Yikes!) because that became THE one focus of my life—clear skin!

Somehow in high school, I got the idea that if I would just be outgoing and friendly, maybe, just maybe

people wouldn't notice my skin condition too much!

Guess what? It worked!

Why? Because I got OUT of myself. I think the less we think about our negatives (real or perceived),

and focus on others, the less they notice those things. If they even noticed in the first place!

One of the gifts T-Tapp has given me is confidence in who I am. I have become at peace with who I

am inside, and I have learned to appreciate my body and my strengths vs. continuing to focus on my

weaknesses and seeming negatives. Often our biggest struggles happen between our ears!

As we stay focused on the negative, we will be more and more self-conscious and feel everyone is

staring at or noticing them right away. Often that becomes a self-fulfilling fear as we either apologize

for the supposed problem or inadvertently draw attention to it. The other problem is we're so

introspective worrying about what others are thinking that we can't reach out to them to be a comfort or

encouragement. We are literally bound by our fears!

I find it sad that many women, when prompted to share one good feature or even one good quality

about themselves, can't. They are either vague or just don't want to go there. We often say things to

ourselves that we would NEVER say to a good friend! Can you imagine, over a lunch date with your

best friend, this conversation taking place?!

Sally: “I hate my tummy! I never lose there—it's so huge I look pregnant!”

You: “You got that right! I think you've gotten much bigger than the last time I saw you!

Kinda looking about 7 months pregnant, eh?!”

I would certainly hope you would never think such a thing—let alone say it!

And yet...

We will often look in the mirror (or just at the “challenging” area) and say those very words to

ourselves!

You need to become your own good friend! If you wouldn't say it to your best friend—then you don't

say it to yourself!

How about this scenario?

Susie Perfect is the self-appointed quality control at the office—and away from the office, too!

She seems to delight in putting people down and is known to “advise” others as to how they

could do better. It seems no one is ever quite good enough to earn any praise. And what's

worse—she often takes the liberty to bring it up away from the office, too!

Oh she's funny about it and jokes and laughs and makes it hard for anyone to object without

looking like they are being defensive. You're at a business luncheon and then...she walks in.

The minute you see her, your heart starts beating faster, your breathing rate increases as well.

You feel that sick knot in the pit of your stomach and wish you could either make a quick exit to

the restroom to get away from her or find a reason to need to leave the meeting. But, no! There

is no escaping and she smiles as she joins the meeting. After initial introductions, she looks at

one of the co-workers there and makes a comment about perhaps needing to hire a

kindergartener for her editor since her last report had an error in it. It's awkward and hard to

know whether to laugh or ignore it. Then with a laugh in her voice she fixes her eyes on you

and makes a comment about how you've been eating quite healthy lately—judging by how tight

your jacket is!

How did you feel just reading that? Could you feel your own stomach tightening into knots even

though it was fictitious and you were just reading about it?! I'm sure we all have had someone like that

in our lives—maybe they go to church with us, work with us, serve in a community club that we also

do, are in a homeschool group or moms day away group. Or, sadly, perhaps in our own families.

Someone that seems to always find “funny” ways to put others down.

Your body sets up a defense against this negativity. This excerpt from Your Relationship Matters says

it quite well:

Your adrenal glands ensure an immediate response to an 'assault' (in the widest sense) or

indeed perceived attack on your well-being and sense of safety and security. You will have

available all the resources needed to fight or flee (or 'tend and befriend' - more often women).

Ever fall into that “tend and befriend” category? Going to great lengths to keep people happy? Trying

to anticipate their needs and feel “needed” to make you feel good inside? But that doesn't last and

often people are ungrateful—or don't even notice. Or they suck you dry! And yes, even if you are the

one making the comments to yourself—your adrenals will still set up that response to the “assault” you

are giving yourself. While you can try to avoid a negative person in your job or community circles,

you can't get away from the one inside your own head!

We honestly can't give out of an empty cup. We tend to pull our affirmation from others, our jobs, our

hobbies, our activities or charities, our busyness--but at the end we can feel just as insecure or even

burned out.

What's the answer?

Put yourself first! Take care of yourself!

Did that statement rankle you? Do you feel that is “selfish” and “prideful”?

Have you ever flown? I'm sure most of us have. As the flight attendants go through the safety

procedures, one of the things they demonstrate and tell you is in case of emergency, put on your oxygen

mask first, then help a child or other passengers put theirs on.

Too often we as women are taking care of everyone and everything until we crash. When that happens,

and you need 3 naps a day just to function (not work, not attend your meetings, not tend to your

hobbies and charities, just barely functioning for yourself), who will take care of those things then?

By putting your physical and emotional health first, you will be a better person, wife, mother, friend,

daughter, sister, co-worker--and you will be better able to help others, as well!

You might be surprised to see that confidence showing up on the outside in interesting ways! Jennifer

S., a friend of mine, started working on speaking kindly to herself, especially about her “challenging”

area. She was dealing with inflammation in her body and hadn't seen inch loss for awhile. Addressing

food sensitivities and letting her body heal from the inside out, she realized she needed to be kind to

herself and not berate herself for her lack of outward “progress”. Soon she was getting compliments

for weight loss---only she hadn't lost anything! She was more confident in who she was, more joyful

and secure in who she was, and it showed on the outside in how she carried herself as well!

Beauty within starts with some “housecleaning”--getting rid of toxic thoughts and attitudes, and

replacing them with fresh, positive attitudes and statements about yourself. For then you will be

confident in who you are, you won't need to feel insecure or jealous, and you will truly be able to help

and encourage others on their journey to better health and true beauty—inside and out!

Chapter 3

Skin Deep Beauty

Nothing says “pamper me” like a nice, relaxing bath. Candles flickering, perhaps a bath pillow and a

lovely, scented bath oil or bath salts to make it sheer luxury.

Women spend millions every year on skin care products—and the market is continually growing!

However, many of those products contain unpronounceable ingredients that can harm our skin as well

as our internal health. The skin is the largest organ and everything we put on it does get into our

system. With that in mind we should be even more vigilant about what we slather on!

I found out about dry skin brushing and dead sea mineral salt baths shortly after starting T-Tapp. At

first all I could find was a natural bristle fingernail brush—and there was a LOT of me to brush! But I

stuck with it! Imagine my excitement when I ordered my first REAL body brush! :) I got the job done

in much less time!

I had never skin brushed before, but as I learned more about it, it made sense. Plus, I was hoping to not

have saggy, hanging skin as I lost my inches! I honestly wasn't expecting miracles—after all, I had hit

my all time largest at 175 lbs. and wearing a size 22W. Well, as near as I could tell from

measurements—I was actually wearing maternity clothes because nothing else fit!

Imagine my amazement to watch my body slowly shrink—and not have skin hanging! My tummy isn't

bikini material, but it's also not hanging down to my knees! ;)

Dry brushing helps to tighten the skin, move the lymph, improve circulation, exfoliate and detoxify. Be

sure that the body brush you use has natural bristles, like the T-Tapp Body Brush.

Along with the dry brushing, which I've done faithfully since my determined start with the fingernail

brush, I started using the dead sea mineral salts. First I took baths (using 1/2-1 cup of dead sea salts per

bath), then I found out how to make a “mask” of sorts with it, which worked better for me.

Take 1-2 Tablespoons of the Dead Sea Mineral Salts and grind them finer either in a

coffee grinder or mini-chopper. (I use a mini-chopper). Then take the finely ground

salt to the shower where you'll put about a teaspoon at a time in your palm, adding just

enough aloe vera gel to dissolve the salt. Slather on your area(s) of concern, I started

with my belly, moved to the thighs and buns, ended with the arms if I had enough left

over. Leave on for 5-20 minutes, rinse off. After your shower, indulge your skin with

your favorite lotion, preferably natural lotions or even shea butter. I call this “dessert

for the skin”!

What do the dead sea mineral salts do for you? They help tighten the skin as well as feed it, and they

also help detoxify.

Another method is to add the dead sea salt to aloe vera gel in a bottle for several uses. I had a small

bottle that was half full of the gel, so I added the dead sea salts to that, approximately ¼ cup or so. You

let that dissolve and then use the liquid with the dissolved salt (I still had some crystals but most of it

had dissolved) and apply that to the skin. I wasn't sure if it was “strong enough”, but as it dried I could

see the fine, dried salt. And it worked just as well—with a bit less mess!

Does it really work? Yes! I had a concentrated time over 6 weeks where I was able to do 3 masks per

week, one longer one and two shorter 5 minute ones. In two weeks I could visibly see the skin around

my hips and belly tighten!

If it is hard to keep the skin brushing habit going, try leaving your brush where you can't miss it. I have

heard of ladies putting it on their pillow so they will see it before bed, and of others placing literally on

the bathroom floor where they have to step over it! Now, if you have pets or kids, that might not work

so well! But if you have a shelf or a spot near your sink where you'll see it each time you visit the

bathroom, that could work.

There is a lot of discussion on the best times to brush, and before a shower is preferred so you can wash

off the dead skin you just exfoliated as well as any toxins brought to the surface. Now, while that is

preferred, the best time to brush, really, is when you will DO it! So if before your workout is the best

time, do it then. If before bed is your best bet for consistency, go for it!

I brush daily, taking Sundays off. It gives my body a little rest and keeps me from getting into a funk

about brushing. There's just something about taking a day off that helps me keep going the rest of the

week!

Sometimes I brush before a workout as well as right before I hop in the shower. I also give my “areas

of concern” a few extra strokes throughout the day (which is another good reason to keep that brush

out where it's handy!). If you usually hop right into the shower after a workout and are too sweaty to

brush well, try using a towel to mop up some sweat. I change out my hand towel at that time because I

use it for that myself!

T-Tapp's skin brushing technique is the only one I have ever done. I highly suggest getting the CRT

Supreme Brushing Sequence dvd which demonstrates the brushing techniques. You get bonus moves

on the dvd, too! This sequence also adds alignment too really work the fascia. It's very comprehensive

and thorough! If you don't always have time to follow the dvd (approximately 18 minutes), you can

learn the techniques and do as much as you can from memory but only 4 strokes in each area, then do

the longer sequence 1-2 times per week. Some brushing is better than none!

Don't forget the face when brushing! T-Tapp also has a softer, but still natural bristle face brush made

by Bass. Here is the sequence:

Begin with brushing up on the neck and then on the face, you brush up and out:

• Jaw line - brush out in circular motions towards ear

• Cheekbones - brush out in circular motions towards ear.

• Forehead - start in middle of forehead and brush out on each side towards temple.

• Nose - small circular movements over the nose.

• Under eyes - tiny, light circular motions from outer eye in towards the nose (not out towards

ear)

I also end with short strokes up and out from the center of my face and downstrokes on the nose. I

started face brushing in January of 2012. I was a bit wary of brushing under the eyes—as I mentioned

earlier, I had bad acne as a teen, and some of the remedies prescribed by doctors literally seemed to

suck my skin dry. Plus I wasn't encouraged to moisturize at all! Although my skin recovered overall

and I am blessed with good genes as far as aging goes, under my eyes was an area I felt showed

wrinkles more quickly due to the lack of proper care of my skin in my younger years (I was well into

my 20s before I learned that I should moisturize my face even if I had oily skin!). I didn't want to do

anything in that area that would cause it to age more quickly. I decided to give it a try for 2 weeks

under my eyes—if I saw it wasn't helping or even making things worse, I would brush the rest of my

face but leave my eyes alone.

Again, I was shocked! My eye area actually improved in that two weeks! I was sold—face brushing

was good even for the delicate under-the-eye area!

Okay, you've brushed, you've done your salt baths or masks, but what do you put on to moisturize? As

I said earlier, your skin is your largest organ, and you don't want to be soaking in parabens, phthalates

and other unpronounceable ingredients!

I loved Daybreak Lavender Farms products, but unfortunately, they went out of business in 2016. I was

NOT looking forward to finding another company with truly natural skin care products that I could

trust and that worked well on my skin. After just a few tries I found a wonderful shop on Etsy called

Meadow Muffin Gardens. I love everything I've tried so far! Stacy is very helpful, prompt to answer

questions, her products are all natural and her descriptions are very thorough. I started with the Facial

Moisturizing Creams Sample Pack and knew I'd found what I was looking for! Stacy sends little

samples in her orders, too, and I've found even more wonderful products I love that way! I regularly

use these products from her shop (and love them!):

• Elegance of Rose Facial Moisturizing Cream

• Touch of Vanilla Wrinkle Wrath Moisturizing Cream

• Sunflower Smile Vanilla Lavender Body Lotion

• Coconut Oil Whipped Body Butter Fluff (there are two scents)

• Fresh Rosewater Facial Toner

• Honey & Lavender Facial Masque

• Lavender Honey Facial Wash

When Daybreak was in business, I used their shea butter, but you could use any brand. I would warm

it in my hands to soften and then mix in a small amount of Skin Saver Body lotion (which is more like

a thick oil). Mmm-mm! Definitely a yummy dessert for the skin!

But what if you're on a budget? Are you relegated to just using cheap, not-so-great-for-you lotions and

creams?

Not at all!

There are times I run out of the wonderful products I love and the budget is a bit tight to replace them

right away. Necessity is the mother of invention! Inspired by oil cleansing for my face, I started

experimenting with different oils to make my own moisturizer. At first I did the KISS method—Keep

It Simple Sister! I took an empty 3 oz. travel size bottle that you can purchase at Wal-Mart, and I

started with half sweet almond oil, half olive oil. I would shake it well and just slather on my legs,

belly, arms—wherever I felt I needed it. Later I tried experimenting with different oil blends—usually

half of the little bottle would be almond oil or almond and olive, then I would use rosehip seed oil,

apricot kernel oil, and sunflower oil to fill it the rest of the way. You can also add a little castor oil (no

more than ¼ of the mixture as it can be a bit drying if you get too much). Sometimes I added some aloe

gel to give it a bit of “substance”. I really had to shake that well each time, though!

And yes, there were times when I was just too lazy to mix the oils when the little bottle ran out, so I

would grab the bigger bottle of sweet almond oil under my bathroom sink and just use that! :)

I've also done a squirt of almond oil with a little of the Skin Saver Body oil, adding a touch of lavender

essential oil.

You can do the same for your face—in the link above about oil cleansing she mentions after doing the

cleansing part, pour a bit of the oil blend in your palms, rub together lightly then pat into your damp

skin. I use a mister with purified water and a few drops of essential oils added (frankincense and

lavender are my favorites!).

Lately I've been enjoying making my own lotion. I'm still playing around with oil blends and how

much beeswax to add. And when I run out and don't have time to whip up another batch right away—I

go back to my inexpensive and easy way to mix some good-for-the-skin oils! A few other oils to add

are grapeseed and avocado. Again, I use about half almond and/or olive, then use just a bit of the other

oils. Frankincense essential oil and lavender essential oil are good for the skin as well as T-Tapp's

Grapefruit Essential Oil, which also helps eliminate cellulite. Any or all three are great for the skin--

and they smell nice, too!

Taking care of the skin on the outside is important for soft, radiant skin, but if you don't take care of it

from the inside out, you won't get that healthy glow. Drinking plenty of water is important to stay

hydrated—for health and for beauty!

I also am a firm believer in T-Tapp's Premium Blended Alfalfa. I was taking another reputable brand

before I started T-Tapp's. Once I did start the Alfalfa, I immediately shed a lot of water! After a few

months I could tell my skin tone was more even, and I was getting compliments about my glowing

skin! :) Premium Blended Alfalfa nourishes the skin—it helps the body produce its own collagen. It

also has an anti-inflammatory effect. I wouldn't be without it!

Again, if your budget doesn't allow you to do all you'd like, you can still drink plenty of good, filtered

water and eat balanced—especially eating lots of vegetables and bone based broths. We'll talk more

about eating in another chapter!

Chapter 4

Eating for You-th!

Ah, food! It's a love/hate relationship, isn't it?!

It sometimes seems as though nourishing and tasty can't co-exist! No matter what, we are obsessing

about food. What to eat, what not to eat, what is healthy, what's not....and the list gets longer with every

article we read!

“Vegan is best. Totally raw. Oh, wait, I need meat! But not red meet! Turkey causes inflammation?

Okay, maybe lacto-ovo-vegetarian is best. Or macrobiotic. No, NO! Paleo all the way!”

Finding the best way to eat can be worse than a maze with no end! Sometimes it might be easier to just

stick in a feeding tube and give ourselves a predetermined formula with all the vitamins and nutrients

we need and stop worrying about how to make it taste good!

Yet we have taste buds—and a variety of them—so we were created to enjoy food.

How do we find balance? Is there a perfect way of eating that doesn't sabotage our health, helps us

lose unwanted inches and doesn't taste worse than cardboard?!

No...and...YES!

I've learned that there's no 100% perfect way for everyone. There are different needs for different

issues. But one thing I have learned is that depriving your body of calories just to see a number go

down doesn't work for the long term.

I personally have gained a lot of understanding about the metabolism from Dr. Diana Schwarzbein's

books: The Schwarzbein Principle, The Schwarzbein Principle II and The Program. You can access

her website here: The Schwarzbein Principle .

I don't follow it strictly—the best I have done is about 80%. I have learned there are more issues than

just “what's the healthiest” and stick strictly to it. Overstressing for even healthy eating produces

cortisol, which deposits fat right at the belly! Ugh!

I understand that we can't “live to eat”, always thinking about the next meal, but I'm not sure I am in

the “eat to live” camp, either. As I said, we've been created with taste buds to enjoy food. Fellowship

with family and friends often happens around a meal. Haven't we all read how good it is for our

digestion to take our time and have pleasant conversation at our meals?

Of course, I am not talking about serious health issues or allergies that require you to avoid certain

foods. I'm focusing mainly on fueling our bodies well in a way that doesn't sabotage our desire for

better health and weight/inch loss.

In fact, perhaps that IS the key—eating for better health and energy, and let the inch loss come as it

may! And it WILL! Dr. Schwarzbein has a great motto:

“You need to fuel well to feel well, and you don't lose weight to get healthy, you

get healthy to lose weight.”

I have found this to be true! For inch loss as well as “weight”. We can do some pretty crazy things

trying to get a number somewhere to go down—and yes, even cholesterol or blood sugar numbers!

Over the past ten years of taking charge of my health, I have found that balance is the key, as well as

being aware of seasons in my life.

If I am dealing with higher stress or emotional healing, I can't put the mental energy into a strict eating

plan. That doesn't give me license to throw caution to the wind and just eat myself into oblivion! It

does mean, however, that I need to give myself some grace during those times.

Women especially have hormonal fluctuations that can tend to sabotage our best eating healthy efforts.

So what do we do? Throw in the towel?

I believe that planning ahead is one of the biggest keys in whatever “good fuel for my body” program

you want to follow. If your chosen eating program is based on “calories in/calories out”, “diet” foods,

artificial or non-nutritive sweeteners (including stevia and xylitol), then we need to look at the

foundation. The body has to metabolize what goes into it. There is no free pass! And while some

things, like stevia and xylitol, would be fine in moderation, if we sweeten everything with it so we can

continue to eat unlimited sweets, that becomes a problem.

Often the reason we turn to sweets and carbs is because they are readily available—and they taste

good! Well, for awhile....I have found myself finishing a small bag of M&Ms when they really had

stopped tasting good. I was just mindlessly popping them into my mouth!

When we plan ahead, when we have plenty of good fats, protein, good carbohydrates and veggies, we

don't crave the junk so much. As we cut back on sugar or switch to a healthy alternative, fruits will

taste sweeter—and so will vegetables! And I'm going to go ahead and say that I don't think artificial

sweeteners of any kind are a healthy alternative! Then when we do treat ourselves, we can eat the

treats more mindfully, enjoying them and stopping when full vs. continuing to consume mass quantities

just because they are there!

Tip: When I just can't resist some chocolate, I try to make it 72% dark and have

a little nut butter and/or coconut oil with it. The protein in the nut butter helps

balance the sugar in the chocolate and the fat in the coconut oil helps

satisfy me sooner. That way I can have a piece or two of chocolate—vs.

an entire large bar!

By telling yourself “I can't have _____” you set up a psychological chain of events in your brain that

make you focus even more on the “forbidden” food. Whether it's chocolate or too much fruit, all of a

sudden that is ALL you can think about! Willpower can only take you so far, and I personally no

longer believe in willpower as it lets you down when life hits hard. You can be determined to a point

but when there are underlying issues, whether physical or emotional, willpower can become yet another

stressor! It may just be a matter of definition, but I see willpower as someone yelling at you as if you

were a machine just programmed to do the right things. I prefer inspiration—and perspiration!--that

sees you as an amazing person and encourages you to stay the course and shows you how you've

overcome in the past and that yes you can do it again!

Back to planning ahead—sometimes it can be as simple as cutting up raw veggies and putting them in a

container or baggies for a quick grab-it-and-go snack. Finding a healthy, yet yummy veggie dip might

help you eat a few more, too! (Spicy hummus is a yummy dip!) Yes, you might get a little extra fat in

there—but if you keep it healthy (homemade is even better—and not that hard, really!) then you'll be

getting your good fats AND eating more veggies—a win-win situation, right?!

If you can eat dairy, this is one of my favorite “dip” recipes, from Whole Foods for the Whole

Family ,La Leche League International Cookbook (my copy is almost 30 years old!):

Invent-a-Dip

1 cup yogurt

1/2- 1 cup cottage cheese

½ to 1 cup mayonnaise (we used homemade or a healthy version)

salt and pepper to taste

seasonings (ideas to follow)

Mix basic ingredients. Add seasonings of your choice. For a change, try using only yogurt or

only cottage cheese with the seasonings. Experiment with flavors—invent your own!

Seasoning ideas:

1. 1 t. to 1 T. dillweed, 1 – 2 T. minced onion, 1 t. garlic powder, dash of tamari or

Worcestershire sauce (we use Braggs Liquid Aminos)

2. ½ cup minced cucumber, 2 T. minced parsley (half that if dried), 1 t. garlic powder, ¼ cup

minced green onion

3. ½ C grated sharp cheese, 2 T. Parmesan cheese, ¼ cup minced green onion

4. 1 t. to 1 T. prepared horseradish, 2 T minced onions

5. 1 t. to 1 T. curry powder, 2-4 T sesame seeds

6. 1 lb fresh spinach, steamed, drained and chopped (or frozen, thawed, drained and chopped),

and ¼ to ½ cup minced green onion

As you can tell, this lends itself well to creativity!

Planning ahead also applies to breakfast—can I make a confession here? Breakfast seems to be the

hardest meal for me to prepare for! My family can handle more grains so they are often making baked

oatmeal, muffins, homemade cream of wheat, etc. I do like eggs, but sometimes I need a little variety!

I'm a “drink my broth at 7, eat breakfast closer to 10” type gal—and that's okay! You should have

something within an hour of waking up to break the cleansing cycle and nourish your body (unless you

are fasting for spiritual or health-related reasons). Bone-based broths are wonderfully nourishing and,

sadly, a lost art today. MSG laden broth bases now make it quick and easy to have a broth for soups

and other dishes. But there are no shortcuts to the health-giving benefits of a slow-simmered broth on

the back of your stove! It really isn't difficult, since once you throw everything in the stock pot you

just leave it on low for 12-24 hours. Since we don't like leaving our stove going while we sleep, we try

to put it on as early as possible and leave it go as late as possible before going to bed. You can also

make broths in your crock-pot! Here is a good recipe (we personally prefer chicken and raise our own

to use and we use the backs as well)- Chicken Bone Broth Recipe.

So what do I do now when it's time to eat more solid food --whether right after my broth or at 10?

Often a variation on a theme is nice. For example, I like my eggs scrambled, but adding a bit of cream

cheese to them towards the end of cooking adds a different flavor, texture—and some good fat! I also

enjoy omelets, and you can get very creative with those! I've also had boiled eggs for a change.

Another favorite way I like to eat them is a quasi-egg-drop soup! I heat up my broth to boiling then

drop in a beaten egg. Sometimes I add some gluten free matzoh crackers to give it a bit more

substance. My kids think I'm nuts, but if you like Chinese food, why not?!

If you can't have eggs or are getting tired of them, smoothies are a good option. Again, you can get

pretty creative here! Even if you can't have dairy, coconut or almond milk can make a nice base liquid.

Or you might opt to go with green smoothies. When I do a smoothie I like to add some nut butter for

extra protein. I personally don't like the taste of most protein powders in my smoothies, but if you have

a healthy one that you like, you could add a scoop to your smoothie to boost the protein content. I've

used cottage cheese as well as yogurt to up the protein in mine. Chia seed is another option.

And you don't have to limit yourself to traditional breakfast foods, either! Even wrapping eggs, cheese,

sour cream and a bit of salsa in a tortilla can make a nice change to traditional ways of serving

breakfast!

When I do indulge in our homemade waffles (with local maple syrup—yum!), I try to be sure to have

protein along with it to balance the blood sugar.

Lunch on the go is TOUGH! Fast food restaurants sometimes have a “healthier” option, but often it's

still not that great. Again, planning ahead can save you here. Putting some of your dinner leftovers in

a container that's easy to grab can make lunches easier, whether you're having lunch at work or at

home. If, like me, you're trying to limit grains, wrapping “sandwich” style foods in lettuce leaves

(Romaine makes it more tasty, but any type lettuce will do!) can make it healthier and a better choice.

I've been known to pile the foods that others are putting in a tortilla or on bread on my plate and put

salad dressing or salsa on it!

Thinking ahead and having a plan in place, as well as pre-cut veggies and fruits to snack on, can make

all the difference between grabbing a healthy snack or meal or succumbing to the I'm-starving-and-

only-processed-foods-are-ready-to-eat temptation!

Baby steps taken consistently, slowly adding one good habit at a time, will build up your “bank

account” of good health better than trying to overhaul your entire eating plan at once. It's less

intimidating, more doable, and more practical when real life happens.

Focus on one good choice at a time, plan ahead for busy times to keep it going—and you will make

amazing progress on your journey to health and wholeness!

Chapter 5

What I Mean by “Weight Doesn't Matter”

If I could be a superhero-type character, I would cast myself in the role of a super-heroine on a quest to

free women from the bondage to the most horrendous torture instrument ever invented--

The scales!

In blog posts, T-Tapp forum posts and even Facebook posts—if you read much of what I write, you will

hear me saying, “Weight doesn't matter!”

What, exactly, do I mean by that statement?

We are enamored by numbers. Whether it's clothing sizes, inch loss, thyroid numbers, cholesterol,

blood glucose, BMI or weight—we like numbers! Sometimes the numbers are helpful and useful for

evaluating our health and to help give us direction on making wise changes to our habits to facilitate

health and wellness.

But too often, numbers drive us, causing us to do some pretty strange and even drastic things to see a

number go down.

And in the case of “weight loss”, we can let those numbers lie to us and steal our joy.

What?!

Weight loss doesn't tell you much. Did you lose fat? Muscle? Did you deprive your body of water and

it's just dehydration? How about whether you used up your structural biochemicals to “lose weight”?

Is that good or bad?

Does that scale number tell you whether you are heading for an adrenal crash or whether your thyroid

might be over- or underactive?

And, most importantly—does that number on a set of scales tell what kind of person you are? Can I

look at your weight and tell if you are kind, loving, compassionate, friendly? Can I tell if you are a

good listener or the life of the party by looking at your weight?

No?

Then why do we let that number define us, especially as women, more than any other number?!

Maybe my own experience will sound familiar....

Before I found T-Tapp, I was part of a Bible study weight loss program that focused mainly on

exchanges to be sure you were eating the right amount of food for your weight loss goal. I loved the

group, the Bible study and keeping track of my eating this way did show me how I was eating far too

many bread servings and not nearly enough veggie servings! I ended up losing about 2 sizes on this

program...but only 13 lbs. And since this program was geared around—you guessed it—weight loss, it

was discouraging to me that I couldn't get my weight down much.

After a short time into T-Tapp, I noticed that I had lost inches but my weight seemed to not be

budging. I posted my puzzlement on the T-Tapp forums where a trainer assured me that if I were losing

inches but not weight (or even the weight increasing a bit) it was muscle density and that was a good

thing!

That helped tremendously! But...well...those nasty scales! I really wanted to see that number go down,

at least a little.

But I've learned something about weight loss—it's never enough! I lose a little, I'm happy for about 2

days (if that) and then I'm discouraged again that it's not “more” or that the next week I didn't lose as

much or any at all. Subconsciously I tended to eat less—it wasn't a conscious “I'm going to starve

myself” but I started to evaluate everything I was eating and stressing over it.

By the way—do you remember from the last chapter that stress of any kind, including stressing

over healthy eating, produces cortisol, which then deposits fat at.....the belly?!

It was quite the roller coaster ride of emotions—elated I was losing inches and sizes, puzzled at the

minimal weight loss, frustrated; and yes, sometimes in tears that the scales wouldn't budge....

The scales were stealing my joy.

After searching the forums, I compiled a list of threads that spoke specifically to this strange paradigm

shift in conventional thinking—and I finally realized that weight really doesn't matter. One post finally

got through to me. The T-Tapper who posted shared about another T-Tapper who was not much taller

than me, weighed 210 lbs and was in a size 10!

Yes, you read that right!

When I read that, I heard the sound of shackles falling....

My husband didn't care how much I weighed, and he was one of my biggest fans and supporters

who noticed when I lost inches before he even heard numbers.

My girls were very supportive and never asked me what I weighed.

No one, when I first met them, asked me, “Just how much do you weigh?”

So why did I care so much what that number was, when those who loved me the most didn't care?

Why was I letting that number on a scale define my worth as a person and take away the joy of

accomplishment in losing inches and sizes as well as becoming healthier?!

ENOUGH!

I finally decided to put the scales away and focus on the health improvements, the inches lost and how

my clothes fit and stop letting the scales rob me of joy in my successes!

It was incredibly freeing! I could really relish the true accomplishments I was making without having

to answer to a cold, calculating hunk of metal and numbers!

If we let the lure of “weight loss” sing its siren song to us, we can end up doing some crazy things just

to get that number down and even think we are doing something “healthy” and “good” when we could

actually be compromising muscle and bone density, using up our structural biochemicals and taxing our

thyroid and adrenals—leading to possible worse problems down the road.

Structural biochemicals—quick explanation:

• Biochemicals are chemicals used for structure, function and energy

• Cells, cell membranes, organs, glands teeth, hair, skin, nails, muscles, bones and

connective tissues are examples of structural biochemicals

• Our bodies use up and rebuild biochemicals in regeneration daily in normal, daily

functioning.

• What we use we must replenish and we get the materials we need to rebuild our

biochemicals from the food we eat.

(Taken from The Schwarzbein Principle II: The Transition by Dr. Diana Schwarzbein, p. 12)

Let me say that I am not addressing specific diets or ways of eating necessary for those with serious gut

issues, neurological issues or battling cancer or autoimmune disorders. I'm talking about the average

person wanting to “lose weight” to get healthy.

As I quoted in chapter 3, Dr. Diana Schwarzbein states, “You don't lose weight to get healthy, you get

healthy to lose weight.” I personally substitute “inches” for weight for all the above reasons—weight

doesn't tell the whole story.

I have found this true more than once—as I focused on healing my body's metabolism and gut, I didn't

have to measure portions, count exchanges or calories. But I lost weight, inches, sizes and my body

reshaped!

The first part of that statement by Dr. Schwarzbein is: “You have to fuel your body well to feel well”.

If you don't fuel your body with what it needs to rebuild and heal, you might “lose weight”, but you

won't be healthy. Dr. Schwarzbein's book, The Schwarzbein Principle II: The Transition explains how

the metabolism works in a detailed way, if you want to understand more about it.

Perhaps thinking of this in reverse can help. As I shared in the first chapter, I was a skinny kid and

fairly thin in my teens and 20s. I ate pretty much anything I wanted and hardly gained at all. Now, I

could have surmised from that since I was thin, it didn't matter what I ate.

Does that make sense? Not really!

Neither does it make sense to have the subtle mentality that it doesn't matter what we eat as long as we

GET thin—lose “weight”. Healthier, balanced and enjoyable eating will result in the best

transformation, whether it shows on the scales or not.

What good does it do to get to a goal “weight” if you don't feel well—or you crash shortly afterward?

You want to get to your goal in the good health and feel your best so you can enjoy your hard-won

success!

When I say, “Weight Doesn't Matter”, I often am asked, “But what about my joints? I need to lose

weight to get this stress off my knees.” That is quite true—BUT--if you are “just” losing weight and

not rebuilding the muscle strength and flexibility in those joints and ligaments, you might take some

stress off your joints, but you will still be at risk for injury.

Why not focus on rehabilitative exercise while addressing your eating? And why not focus on eating

clean vs. low calorie deprivation diets?

It's not a matter of calories in/calories out—it's the quality of calories in, whether you digest them well

to get maximum nutrition out of them, and whether you are fully activated in a way to protect your

joints and build muscle density, strength and stamina with the exercise you do.

Did you know that in the first few weeks of starting T-Tapp you can gain 5-7 lbs. of spinal muscle

density alone?! That is a gain you want! You might see a slight gain or no change in the scales in spite

of losing inches. Another thing the scales won't tell you!

Another potential problem is a doctor or health care provider that is focused on “weight” loss and BMI

charts. What to do? If you have a good rapport with him/her, you can take this information and share

with him/her. Unfortunately many health care professionals (as well as health insurance companies)

are still stuck on weight to try to “measure” health. If your doctor simply won't listen, it might be time

for a change, or to graciously, but firmly, stand for what is right. If you do “whatever it takes” to get

that number down so the doctor is happy, but you mess up your thyroid and adrenals, it will be short-

lived reprieve—and you will be the one to live with the consequences, not your doctor.

I'm at a season of life that I would have no problem sharing information with my doctor and finding

another one if he/she made me feel badly. NO one should make you feel badly because you can't

control your body's ability to lose weight as if it were a static, non-organic thing. There are many,

many reasons for not seeing weight loss, and I have had friends and family accused of “just needing to

push away from the table and get moving” when that had nothing to do with their issues.

Please stand strong for yourself and keep working at total health, not just seeing a number go down!

“Losing weight” can seem to give us quick results, whereas measuring inch loss and even improved

health benefits can take longer to “show”. And therein lies a huge problem—we can subconsciously do

what it takes to lower that number on the scales and really be sabotaging the long term results that

last—including improved health.

Let's face it—if an inanimate object made of plastic and metal with some numbers on it can steal our

joy—we are giving it FAR too much power in our lives!

I would highly suggest a “fast” from the scales—put them away, have a friend take them to her house

or throw them out for now. You might find that you are paying more attention to results you can't

“measure” as well as how your clothing fits—and you'll find that you can better enjoy your journey!

`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

Would you like some encouragement that it really is okay to put the scales away? Want more

inspiration about “Weight Doesn't Matter”?! Here is a compilation of threads at the T-Tapp forums that

helped break the shackles of the scales from me:

Weight Doesn't Matter Repeat After Me

Here are some additional “stats” from my journey that may help! The first was from about 9 months

into T-Tapp:

Weight: 160#

Bust: 39

Waist: 34

Abdomen: 42.5

Hips: 42

Thighs (upper): 24

Arms: 12

Size: I was still wearing maternity clothes because nothing else fit!

Stats 9 months later:

Weight: 159#

Bust: 36

Waist: 30.75

Abdomen: 37.5

Hips: 40.5

Upper Thighs: R 22.5 L 22

Arms: R 10.75 L 11

Size: Just got into 12 Misses!!!

Does that tell you the power of T-Tapp?! And that weight means very little?! Most of those

measurements are 2-3 inches less, with the abs being 5 inches less!

I was amazed, to say the least! I wasn't exactly a couch potato when the earlier measurements were

taken. I usually walked 2 miles a day as well as did some core strengthening exercises I had found

(before T-Tapp).

And that doesn't even count all the benefits you can't "measure"!

I'll leave you with the words I “wrote”.

This is to the tune of “It Really Doesn't Matter” from The Pirates of Penzance. You can see it HERE

and you should —this will be all the more funny and pertinent if you do! (My apologies to Gilbert and

Sullivan!)

My eyes are fully open

To the awful situation

I should go at once to the scales

I will make them an oration

I will tell them I am no longer bound

By duty or my senses

And I'm tired of the wild ride

The emotional consequences

Now I do not want my joy stolen

By those numbers upon the scales

A T-Tapper must indulge

In ridding herself of that which ails

Muscle density and inches lost

Tummies getting flatter!

All my clothes are hanging loose--

So the pounds don't really matter!

Chorus:

So the pounds don't really matter

So the pounds don't really matter

So the pounds don't really matter

So the pounds don't really matter

So the pounds don't really matter

matter, matter, matter, matter

If there's one other little matter

That we should duly hale

I should give you my advice

Upon the subject of the scales

I should show you in a moment

How to grapple with the question

And you'd really be astonished

At the force of my suggestion

On the subject I should write you

A most valuable forum post

Full of excellent suggestion

And advice to the very uttermost

At present I'm afraid

I'm as mad as any hatter

So I'll tell you THROW THE SCALES OUT--

What we weigh just doesn't matter!

Chorus:

What we weigh just doesn't matter

What we weigh just doesn't matter

What we weigh just doesn't matter

What we weigh just doesn't matter

What we weigh just doesn't matter

No it really doesn't matter

What we weigh just doesn't matter

Matter, matter, matter, matter, MATTER!!!

Weight really doesn't matter!

Chapter 6

Little Bits Add Up!

When I started T-Tapp, I figured that my journey would take 1 ½ years—2 years tops—to go from a

22W to a size Misses size 10/12 (the smallest I thought I'd be able to get into). I was consistent with

my workouts and lost 4 sizes in 6 months. I was on my way to my goal!

Well......not quite....

Another 6 months went by with over 40 inches lost. But not one size! NO kidding! I even lost in key

areas (abs, hips) that normally would have kept me out of the next size down. I had figured out that I

was a combo body type, so according to all I had read, every 20-22 inches should be a size. Should be!

I was puzzled and a bit discouraged, but I knew that nothing else had worked and I was feeling better

physically, so whether I lost any more sizes or not—I was not going to give it up!

I had hopes that eventually my body would “catch up” and get the idea! Thankfully, it did—at the 6

month mark I dropped a size after just a few inches lost! Finally!

But then something crazy happened a few months later—I lost 3 ½ inches—and another size!

I have no explanation other than “catching up”!

I was still encouraged as that was 6 sizes lost and a little over a year in. So maybe this was going to

take 2 years, but I was on track....or so I thought!

The next size would take about one year to lose! As would the next size...and the next....

I finally had to come to terms with the fact that after my initial 4 sizes, I was what we call a “turtle” or

slow-to-lose. I know, I know--nobody wants to be in that category! Yet in 10+ years of T-Tapp and

hanging around the forums and Facebook groups, I can safely say that there are far more turtles than

hares!

That could be discouraging, but remember—the body heals from the inside out. We can't always

dictate what our bodies will do, and we don't always know what battles our bodies are actually fighting.

Staying consistent in the face of little-to-no results is tough! Yet that is exactly what we need to do.

I'll tell a bit more about my ups and downs in the next chapter, but I had a few times where due to some

tough circumstances, I gained a size or two (or three!) back. It really isn't linear---more like mountains

and valleys with some plateaus in the landscape, as well.

One encouragement is pictures—although I hated my first picture, I am so glad to have it now! As my

journey progressed, and especially during times of little inch loss or the “40 inches yet no size loss”

time, looking at my pictures showed changes that weren't showing up on the measuring tape. Once I

noticed my forearms—who measures their forearms?! Yet I could see they weren't as plump—success!

I am about to share my inch loss stats from my first 4 years of T-Tapp, before I started training to be a

trainer. You also might be interested to know that 80% of my workouts were shorter workouts—Basic

Workout Plus, MORE, Tempo Basic, Step Away the Inches or Total Workout split up. Half of that 80%

was MORE!

Let's Start at the Very Beginning

Just in case you wonder...what were my first 8 weeks of T-Tapp like? Keep in mind when I started, I

was a more-to-lose, 4 months post-partum and had lost not.one.thing. since having my son--in fact, I

gained 10 lbs. after having him!

Week:

1--5 ½"

2--4 ¼"

3--1 ¾"

4--nothing

5--gains cancelled losses

6—1/4"

7--1/4"

8--1" (had gains that cancelled some losses)

And can I tell you that after the first 3 weeks NONE of those losses were from my waist/abs/hips where

I wanted it the most?! It was another 2 weeks before those measurements started moving again! For the

next several months there were a few weeks of 4 1/2 inches or 3 1/4 inches, but most weeks had less

than 2 inches and many under 1 inch! That's the way my inch loss went for several months until

November when I had a few really good weeks, then back to the 1-2 inches a week (or less!).

BUT--it all added up eventually!

Oh, and my weight? Dropped 5 lbs., gained some back, dropped a few, gained it back--I started at 175

and didn't get to 169 for FOUR months. That would not win any prizes in the "most weight lost"

game!

Maybe that will help put things into perspective for some of you MORE to lose gals--you will get

there--sometimes a quarter inch at a time! But keep up the consistency and you WILL get there!

Now for the stats for my first 4 years (that's 208 weeks)--I went through all my charts and found this:

25 weeks I didn't measure at all for one reason or another (TOM, vacation, whatever), so I'm not

counting them in the weeks of measurements.

11 weeks saw no change or gains cancelled losses

12 weeks saw gains

Realize that that is close to a year's worth of not measuring, gains or no change!

Interesting Statistics

Here are my statistics for inches lost:

Under 1" lost: 52 weeks

Under 2" lost: 50 weeks

Under 3" lost: 25 weeks

Under 4" lost: 7 weeks

Under 5" lost: 5 weeks

5 1/2" lost: 1 week!

Did you notice which segment had the most inch loss? Which came in second? And how I didn't have

very many weeks of huge inch loss? That 5 ½ inch loss was my very first week of T-Tapp!

If you break that down into week/years, I had one full year of losing less than one inch per week (and

that was usually ¼ to ½ inch!).

Almost another full year of less than 2 inches lost per week (average 1 ½ inches).

Half a year was under 3 inches per week lost, and one quarter of a year-- 13 weeks—I lost more than 3

inches per week!

Percentage-wise, it looks like this:

Under 1" - 32%

Under 2"-31%

Under 3"-15%

Under 4"-4.5%

Under 5"-3%

5 1/2"--3/4%

Gains- 7.5%

No change or gains cancelled losses--6.75%

One third of my inch loss was about ½ inch per week! Another third was under 2 inches—average of 1

½ inches per week.

Even at the Safety Harbor Retreats, I didn't lose a lot—but all those “little bits” added up to over 200

inches lost!

Little Bits

You can get so discouraged that you're not losing a lot of inches---or you can hold steady and stay

consistent, and watch those “little bits” add up. As my friend and fellow T-Tapp trainer Charlotte

Siems says, “A year is going to pass by anyway—where will you be if you give up now?” I can't

promise you a certain amount of sizes lost in a certain amount of time—but I can promise you will be

further along in your journey if you stay the course!

Weight REALLY Doesn't Matter!

And if the previous chapter didn't convince you that weight doesn't really tell the whole story (and

should not be a definitive measure of “success”), following are my weight stats.

Remember--my weight didn't change much for weeks once I started! And in between it didn't

stay exactly at that weight but went up and down within that 10 lbs. section:

Start 1/26/2007: 175, size 22W

Four months later (5/2007): 169

7/28/07: 159

9/01/07: 160, size 16 Misses (4 sizes lost)

9/15/08 (yes, a year later!): 158, 12 Misses (earlier that spring)

10/27/08: 150

3/23/09: 157, 10 Misses

6/15/09: 160

9/07/09: 158

3/01/10: 147

3/29/10: 139

4/05/10: 137, 8 Misses

6/14/10: 142

8/23/10: 139

9/13/10: 140, 10/12 Misses

11/15/10: 144

1/03/11: 147

3/28/11: 145, (back down to 8 Misses about a month later—weight stayed the same!)

Now the year between 160 and 158 (9/01/07 – 9/15/08) I didn't stay at 160. It went up and down and

up and down in the 160s!

Do you see why I say that weight doesn't tell the whole story? When my weight crept back up after

hitting my all time low of 137, shortly after that my mom unexpectedly died (5/04/10) and I had a lot of

things hit me in life. But I kept losing little by little or stayed the same!

Around September I did start to put on weight in my midsection, so I know it "caught up" with me. But

considering that there wasn't some huge gain in that area, in spite of my inconsistency and stress over

the months following the loss of my mom, is truly amazing to me!

I hope that is encouraging to you, and I hope you will see how weight really, really does NOT tell the

whole story!

To encourage you on your inch loss journey, especially if you are a “turtle”--

Little losses DO add up!

Chapter 7

Detours on the Journey

Have you taken a trip, first planning the details? Which route to take, sites to see, where you were

going to spend the night and how much to allow for eating—lots of details to figure out!

With the advancement of technology, it has become much easier—with a GPS or smartphone you can

easily find a hotel, a restaurant, a grocery store, a gas station and local attractions at the click of a

button (or press of a finger!).

Even detours aren't quite the frustration they used to be—again, with a little searching you can usually

find your way around a detour much more quickly than you could 20 years ago!

Still....detours aren't usually a lot of fun, are they? They add time to your trip, taking valuable vacation

time away from sightseeing to just sitting or in going way out of your way to get back to the planned

route. Not too many people get excited about a detour..... “Oh look! A detour! Well, this will be an

adventure! We can see the local sites that we would have missed just zooming by on the interstate.

What? Well, yes, it might mean we don't go where we planned due to losing vacation time, but won't it

be fun? And then we can spend another hour getting around the detour and back on our trip route.

We'll lose time, spend extra money at the shops and attractions, not make our destination for tonight—

what fun!”

I doubt too many of us have that much enthusiasm and positive outlook on detours!

But the facts are that sometimes detours can actually teach us something, if we're not too frustrated on

being “behind” and having our plans interrupted.

It's the same way with our journey to inch loss and wholeness. We make a plan—nothing wrong with

that! But life happens and the plan gets derailed a bit. A detour comes up. How are you going to

handle it?

`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

As I've shared already, my journey took longer than I planned. Partly due to being a slower loser (or

turtle), but also due to—life happening. Often we get the idea that weight/inch loss is linear. I've

spoken about that already, too.

We have this idea that our bodies are like a fine car. We just make sure the tires are rotated regularly,

we use a good grade of fuel, keep the oil changed, get regular engine tune-ups and we are good to go!

But our bodies are not an inanimate thing. Our physical bodies are intricate, organic, and living,

responding well to the proper foods, quality ingredients, good care. Our physical being is very much

intertwined with the emotional and spiritual and therefore, many other things affect our bodies than just

the physical things we do or don't do.

Life happens. Sick kids, miscarriages, deaths in the family, emotional healing, job changes—we can't

schedule those things to be prepared for them, anymore than we “schedule” a detour on a planned trip!

Neither can all our proper preparations always be “enough” for a totally unplanned detour (are there

any other kind?!). You can eat all the right things, exercise regularly, take good care of your outward

body, but a “life happening” can still knock you off your feet, so to speak. If, in the wake of one of

these detours, you are determined to press on as if nothing happened, you could actually end up

crashing later. And you won't lose any inches then!

I know that from experience, from pushing too hard and not taking into account a life happening that

was fun but sapping my energy. I kept pushing and then I paid for it. More on that in a bit.

I'm going to walk you through my journey and the detours.....

The fall of my first year of T-Tapp I lost my dad to a debilitative neurodegenerative brain disease.

While it was comforting that he was no longer suffering, it was still a hard time. Helping my mom and

dealing with the emotional loss myself was tough. Although I kept losing inches during that time, I lost

no sizes.

Six months later, I had come out of that strange “lost 40+ inches but no sizes” period of time and had

lost two more sizes making a total of 6 lost sizes by spring of 2008. I was slowly working on my

eating and feeling better and better, and I had even switched to doing 3 full workouts per week—

something I thought I'd never have the stamina to do!

That lasted a month before my mom came home from spending the winter with her brother in

Tennessee, after my dad's death. She was needing to get her home ready to sell and find a place to

live. My daughters and I started helping her pack up and move her household and moving her from a 2

story 7 room home with a basement to a 2 room apartment. Obviously to stay focused on 3 full

workouts and my eating at that point was not going to happen! But I knew it was short term, so it was

okay. Fall of '08 I was ready to get back to my plan when all 9 of our children came down with

chicken pox! Thankfully they were all fine but my focus was obviously on taking care of them!

After that little “detour” I found out I was expecting another baby! We were delighted as we had hoped

to have one more blessing (I know, I'm nuts! :) ). I still was doing T-Tapp, but due to my past

miscarriage history I wisely wasn't pushing myself at that time, often doing one of the short mini

workouts from MORE.

Just a few months later I sadly miscarried. I knew due to the physical and emotional loss to not push

too hard, but come January (about 7 weeks later) I was ready to start MORE again.

Shortly after getting started, 7 of my 9 children got a really bad respiratory infection—detoured again!

Spring finally came along with some “back to consistency”, and I found I had lost another size—yay!

By summer I decided I was ready to get serious and take this up a notch. I decided to do a mini-model

blitz, where you do a 5 day bootcamp, then a full workout every other day for so four weeks, then

every 2 days for a few weeks, then end with 5 workouts in two days.

That would be actually a fairly doable blitz for someone who has no health issues. Not for someone

who had looming adrenal fatigue issues and had gone through two major illnesses with most of her

children and lost a baby in the previous 9 months.

Nor was it a good idea to do that blitz while also being heavily involved in our local county fair

through 4-H. LOTS of late nights and early mornings getting children to the various animal and project

judgings they needed to be at. And we won't talk about the yummy but less-than-healthy foods!

About 3 weeks after the fair was over, I was thinking how tired I was and a bit discouraged to see that

in spite of my workouts, inch loss had slowed and nearly stopped. (WARNING WARNING

WARNING) But I kept on going, thinking when I got to the “blitz” at the end, I would see great

results. (Equivalent to shutting off the warning light on a car and continuing to drive.)

I never got to see if that would work or not—I ended up “crashing”, so to speak. I literally needed

three naps a day just for me to function. Not my household—me. If I hadn't had older daughters to help

out at home, I would have had to hire help for household duties, meals and taking care of my younger

children. I had to mentally get my umph up just to take a shower. Then a nap. I had to gear myself up

to do just a little something. Then I needed another nap.

Did I mention that you don't lose any inches when you need three naps a day just to function?!

That's right—all that “hard work” of the mini-model blitz did nothing except sap my already weak

adrenals. I didn't realize it, but the natural thyroid I was taking had changed their formulation, and I

wasn't assimilating it as well. Plus I decided since I wasn't fully breastfeeding my son anymore, I could

cut back on my eating.

Triple whammy! Not getting enough protein, not getting my thyroid hormone that I needed plus

pushing myself in workouts, after a stressful year and during a stressful time during the summer--yes

happy but still stressful on my body—all culminated in what I refer to as a mini-adrenal crash.

I now know that slowing inch loss in spite of working out consistently is a sign of overtraining. And

while I wasn't exactly working out hours a day, I had added “target moves” (moves to target a specific

area) on my off days that added to the mix—it was too much.

I had my hormones tested, my health care providers tweaked and added some things, and I started

feeling better. Thankfully the worst of that “crash” lasted just a few weeks. I could start doing MORE

Chair to help me keep the lymph pumping without overdoing it. Once I also started being sure to eat

plenty to keep my body fueled well, I felt much better and by later that fall was back to doing short

workouts regularly.

Whew! That's enough detours to last a lifetime, right?!

Ah, but life is full of detours....

I continued being very consistent, taking an online class that really helped me connect with my abs,

then spring of 2010 lost another size—I was now in 8s! I was pretty excited as I thought 10 was the

smallest I would ever go (especially after birthing 10 big babies!). I was addressing my eating more,

eating more and more the balanced way that Dr. Diana Schwarzbein advocates. I felt I was in my

“groove” and now it was just a matter of tightening and toning!

And then came the hardest “test” of all during my T-Tapp journey.

My mom unexpectedly died just before Mother's Day, 2010. It was a shock and a tough time as my

brother and I had to clear out her apartment within 2 weeks, and one week of that time was of course

taken up with the funeral arrangements. I was able to deal with all the multitude of issues that came up

over the next few months (thankfully my mom had kept things in good order), and I was mindful to not

overdo and stress my body more than it already was. After about 2 months I hit a 7 week time of no

workouts, not even one move. I started back up, trying to become consistent again, but it was hard. I

ended up gaining 2-3 sizes back, but I knew I just couldn't stress about eating and exercising right then.

That fall I took one of Charlotte Siems' online classes and that helped me get back into working out,

but after the class was over I was still pretty inconsistent.

During that time I decided to become a trainer, but I still couldn't get myself to become consistent!

Exactly 9 months from the date of Mom's death, I finally turned everything over to God and was able

to start being consistent again.

Over the course of 2011 I would lose 3 sizes (getting to my smallest at a 4/6), work on gut healing and

continue my journey to become a trainer. My adrenals were up and down and not always very happy,

so several times I could only teach my practice classes and couldn't even practice moves on off days.

As I transitioned off the eating plan that my family was doing for gut healing, I knew I would most

likely gain a size back and that was okay. Unfortunately, due to not reading my body's cues to add in

more carbs I had a little setback with my adrenals again. Thankfully not as badly as in the summer of

2009! But it has been a 5 year journey back to balance—and I'm still a work in progress!

A year ago another detour hit when my husband needed open heart surgery for a heart valve

replacement. And a few daughters were getting ready to move out to pursue their education and calling

(a mixed bag of not-so-happy stress with happy stress!) Again, during that time and the months

following I couldn't be totally focused on my eating but I was able to keep moving. Due to menopause

and hormonal fluctuations, I've again put a few sizes back on, yet it feels much differently “on” me

than a few years ago. I am overall content where I am and have no doubt that things will reshape and I

will lose some of the “stress fat” at my belly as I continue my healing journey.

The one constant through all of these “detours” is—I kept on. Even in the 9 month time of extreme

inconsistency after my mom's unexpected death I stayed on the T-Tapp forums for support. That was

my connection and lifeline that helped me get back in the saddle when I was emotionally ready.

Life is a journey—why should losing sizes and getting healthy be any different? It isn't a matter of

linear loss until we hit goal and staying there forever. Our living, breathing bodies respond to

stresses—whether they are relational stresses, financial stresses, or physical stresses of health

challenges—we need to keep our eyes on the real goal--being fit AND whole in body, soul and spirit.

And fitness is not a size—it's a mindset and consistency in moving your body and eating optimally as

you can in each season of life.

Ultimately, it's enjoying the journey, even the detours. Because we always can learn more about

ourselves and become stronger. Just like seeing some sweet local scenery we never knew existed when

we're forced down a detour while on vacation, it wasn't in our original plan but we come out richer for

what we've been through—and gained a few souvenirs along the way!

Chapter 8

Building a House

What beautiful potential this house has! Yes, it needs a lot of TLC, but the price was right, the view

breathtaking, and with some hard work, it will be gorgeous!

We are drawing our plans on paper---remove that porch and redo it completely. The kitchen—well, if

we knock out that wall we could enlarge it. If that's not structurally possible, maybe we can widen the

doorway to make it more open and have our eating area in what is now a part of the back porch. Do we

need to put a support beam in the ceiling?

I have great plans for the master bedroom upstairs! We're combining two rooms to have a larger master

room but with a sitting area—perfect for nursing babies or sitting and reading on lazy afternoons. The

sun will filter through lace curtains....I can see it now....

Ah, but first, the dusty, grimy, dirty work must be done!

After a few months things are taking shape!

We are doing a lot of the work ourselves, but we want a professional carpenter to come help with

remodeling the kitchen, main living area and bathrooms. We heard really good things about the one we

hired and can't wait for him to get started!

He knocks on the door one Tuesday afternoon. As I answer the door, I can feel the flurry of

excitement—once he is done we can move in!

He had already told us that it would take a few months due to the magnitude of the project—moving

walls, combining rooms, then finishing them off to look like they flow with the house. We wanted to

keep the authentic flavor of the old farmhouse as much as possible.

We continue our work upstairs while the carpenter does his work downstairs. By the time the few

months are up, it is well worth the wait! Oh, we are like kids at Christmas! It's simply beautiful!

Pleased with the quality of his work, we ask if the carpenter could finish the siding and landscaping for

us while we are out of town. He had time available and agreed.

On our way home after our short excursion, we are nearly beside ourselves with excitement to see the

final product of our dreams, hopes, labors and finances all poured into this home and its potential!

When we get there we can hardly believe it---it far exceeded our dreams and hopes just a year ago

when we found this property with the old farmhouse needing some love! It is gorgeous! The outdoor

lighting, the flower beds edging the walk, the bushes trimmed neatly and framing the porch—a happy

sigh escapes from our lips.

Once inside the flow of the main living areas is just perfect. Large windows frame the large pond in

the back yard, and the french doors beckon us to come out to the patio for a better view. I can't wait to

have breakfast out here the next day!

We unpack from our trip, eat a quick supper out on the patio, dreaming of all the get-togethers with

family and friends we would have in the future. We even started our guest list for the first party!

Exhausted but elated, we go to bed and sleep soundly in our beautiful master bedroom. That is we

did....until....

All the smoke alarms were going off! Someone is pounding and yelling on our door! What?! NO!

This can't be happening! NOT our beautiful dream home!

We rush out of the room and down the stairs to see massive flames! We hear sirens—we find out later

that one of our neighbors who was coming home from a night shift at work saw the flames and called

the fire department then tried to get us out.

We barely get out of the house before it is engulfed in flames. Fire trucks and emergency personnel

everywhere. Once we get over the shock and see that we are okay, we sob in each other's arms at how

close we came to dying in the inferno. Friends come over to offer us a place to stay.

The next day we go back to the site---our beautiful home, GONE! You would never have been able to

tell that just a day earlier, a beautifully remodeled farm home had stood there. There was nothing.

Hardly anything could be salvaged.

As we stare at the reality, the next question of course was, why? Why had this happened? We go

through our last night there and didn't remember leaving a stove on...nothing obvious.

After the fire chief investigated, he found that the downstairs wiring had shorted out. Apparently, the

1920s wiring had never been replaced by the contractor. During the night, when our new electric

furnace came on, and its demand for electricity pulled too much on the old wiring, causing it to catch

fire....and that is how we lost our beautiful dream home.

No one ever talks about how beautiful it was....the landscaping, the hardwood floors, the patio doors

with the breathtaking view....

All they ever talk about is the contractor that didn't do a very important, basic task in the remodeling of

an older home, and how it burned to the ground in one night, taking our possessions and our dreams

with it.

`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

I don't know about you, but I about cried just writing that story! I actually live in an old farmhouse,

remodeled by my wonderful husband—and I can assure you he has replaced EVERY single wire in this

place! :)

But what does that have to do with losing sizes and getting healthy?

Plenty!

I've already shared portions of my story, and in the last chapter I shared about the “detours” that life

handed me. One thing I have learned through this journey from fatigued to fabulous, is that you must

lay a good foundation and revisit that foundation often.

What is that?

Well, what is your “why”? Why are you making healthier habits a priority? If it's just to get into a

certain size by a certain time, that will not be enough to sustain you in the long haul, and you'll be

tempted to take shortcuts.

Much like the contractor in the story.

Shortcuts like crazy diets, or severely restricting certain food groups (remember, I'm not talking about

those on specific eating plans for severe health issues here, but the “want to get healthier and lose

sizes” crowd), “magic” pills, drinks and overexercising are all going to take their toll. They may “get

results” in the beginning, but they may also cause issues later.

If you get to your goal size in a short time doing any or all of those shortcuts, but don't lay the

foundation and take care of that, you will most likely crash and burn—and then no one remembers how

great you looked at that event. They're talking about how sick you are now. And even you can hardly

remember how great you looked because you feel so miserable now!

It's NOT worth it! Please take the time to lay a good foundation—take time for the Instructionals. Take

days off. Eat sensibly and balanced vs severely restricting calories or food groups just to see quick

results. What we are after is taking the time to lay the foundational habits that can last a lifetime, not a

quick fix that gets quick results, but is totally unsustainable for the long haul.

Let's rewrite the story to end well—the carpenter talks to the couple to explain they need to be willing

to spend a bit more time and money so he can replace the old wiring as he is redoing walls and floors,

so they can enjoy their home for many years to come, making beautiful memories with family and

friends that last a lifetime.

And let's rewrite your story—take the time and effort it takes to lay the foundation of fueling your body

well and being consistent with even a few moves a day (vs full workouts, model blitzes, bootcamps,

restrictive dieting, etc.)--creating a basis for lasting success—a lifestyle for a lifetime!

Chapter 9

YOU Are WORTH It!

(Taking Time for YOU!)

Every one of us is guilty.

We take care of our families, our friends, our parents, our co-workers and our jobs, but when time

comes to take care of ourselves....we push ourselves to the back burner. Some day, we'll take care of

our health. Some day, our needs will be priority. Some day....

For some of us, that “some day” comes with a high price tag of a major health issue. Then “some day”

becomes NOW!

Remember the “oxygen mask” analogy I referenced in chapter 2? As the flight attendants go through

all the safety protocols, they tell you if you are caring for a child or someone who is unable to put on

their own mask, to be sure to put yours on first, then take care of the other person. Why? Because if

you pass out while trying to help someone else, it does you AND them no good!

While taking care of your health and well-being might not seem as life threatening as losing cabin

pressure at 40,000 ft above sea level, it can be damaging to ignore the little signs that you need to make

yourself a priority. Why wait until you crash and burn?! Think of all you do, those who depend upon

you at work, within your family and friends, volunteer and charity work.....what will happen if you end

up in the hospital? Or laid flat in bed due to an adrenal crash with not even enough energy for a

shower?

That's what can happen if you don't make YOU a priority!

Often the root issue is how we see ourselves. For whatever reason, we talk ourselves out of healthy

habits because at the root, we don't feel we really deserve it. If we don't feel we “deserve” to take time

for ourselves or that everyone else's needs are more important and ours can wait, that will play into the

decisions we make—or avoid making—to make our health and well-being a priority.

If you feel everyone else comes first and you don't deserve to take time for yourself, nothing could be

further from the truth!

Every one of us is here for a special purpose and we are uniquely gifted to fulfill that purpose. But if

we continue to put ourselves on the “back burner” and downplay our unique giftings while wearing

many other hats, we will burn out---or crash and burn. Then we will be spending a huge amount of

time figuring out what's wrong with our bodies and investing in getting well.

Why not avoid the crash and burn and start NOW to invest in your health and your future?

When we try to fill a mold that wasn't meant for us, that causes stress. When we are operating in our

unique giftings, it actually energizes us! You might need to take stock of all that you do and ask

yourself if you are actually the one that should be doing some of your tasks. Then ask if there is

someone you can delegate to (if you are in charge) or if there are more efficient ways to accomplish

those tasks—perhaps create a team of people to help distribute the work. Ask yourself what you

would have to do if everything came to a crashing halt—that often shows us what are truly the most

important things! Make sure you are making time now for those things!

Now, get out your calendar and write in BOLD ink the times you will take time for YOU. Workouts,

pampering time (dead sea salt baths or masks), when you'll check in with a friend or group to stay

accountable. Write in the one good food habit you're going to add this week. Don't try to overhaul

your eating all at once. THAT'S a sure ticket to overwhelm! Just one small step in the right direction

each week will add up at the end of the year to 52 new habits. (Or even 45 if you allow “time off” for

vacations!)

If you need to make it look more official, put “work out with my trainer” on your workout times. Put

Teresa's name there! :) And KEEP that appointment just as if you would with a live personal trainer

coming to your home each day! I'm not a fan of totally negative consequences to motivate, so why not

put a little change or even a few dollars in an envelope or jar to “pay” for your sessions—and after a

period of time take that money and buy yourself something nice! A new T-Tapp dvd, a cute workout

shirt, a FitBit.....or maybe treat yourself to a yummy, healthy treat at a smoothie bar or your local health

food store.

It's important to make yourself a priority just as you would a client or family member. Of course life

happens and you may get derailed now and then. But you can get yourself scheduled back in and get

right back to consistency—for a better body, a better outlook on life, better health—a better YOU!

Because YOU are WORTH it!

Chapter 10

Less Really IS More!

Several years ago I was in charge of my local extension homemaker's club “health and safety remarks”.

We could only use the sponsoring university's approved information, so I would read through the

materials the county extension office sent out. I was appalled to find that one of the articles said that to

maintain your current size you needed to work out an hour per day! Even more horrifying was the

recommendation to lose weight--work out 90 minutes per day! That's devoting 1 ½ hours per day to

lose weight!!!

No wonder most people give up before they even get started!

And if they are like me, working out an hour per day and barely maintaining a larger size while

becoming more and more tired and not feeling energetic at all—well, it's not going to motivate anyone

to say, “You just need to work out a half hour longer if you want to see results!” Oy!

I'm so glad I had already found T-Tapp by the time I read that article—or I would have thrown in the

towel and just drowned my sorrows in a big bowl of M&Ms!

I've shared that the majority of my workouts were shorter ones—I was NOT killing myself with hour

long workouts that stressed my adrenals once I started T-Tapp!

When you have hormonal imbalances, autoimmune disorders, thyroid and/or adrenals issues, joint

issues—you can't stress your body more by trying to do longer workouts to get faster results. Shorter

workouts or even a few moves per day will yield better results without stressing your body.

That sounds crazy—but I'm not the only one who has proven it true!

First, let's meet Rita. Rita and I had “met” on the T-Tapp forums before I became a trainer. I shared

with her what I had gleaned from the forums and my own experience. After I certified as a T-Tapp

trainer, she signed up for one of my online classes. Rita has three autistic sons, at the time I met her her

youngest (non-autistic) son was a toddler and she had a home business. Can we say life was busy for

her--and a bit stressful?! Her eating was already pretty good, yet she was gaining at the waist area.

She was really thought she needed 15 minutes daily, but I was concerned, due to my own experience,

that she would stress her body even more. I talked her into trying just 3 moves per day during the 6

week class she took. I know she was apprehensive about not being able to lose and continuing to gain.

But I was more concerned about her crashing!

She agreed to try 3 moves per day for a month to see how she would do. After a week or so, she was

worried because some days it was hard to even get 3 moves in. Sometimes her boys didn't sleep well

the night before, or she had several appointments to run to for therapy, etc. I encouraged her to curl her

core while driving, standing, walking—anytime she thought of it! She averaged 4-5 days per week

with her 3 moves and the rest of the time, including when life happened and she just couldn't get those

3 moves in, she focused on curling her core.

I was hoping for her to maintain and feel better—she was hoping for inch loss!

We BOTH were surprised when she lost 2 ½ inches off her waist alone in that month!

Why did just 3 moves each day work when 15 minutes per day didn't?

First of all—overwhelm! When you have any kind of fatigue issues, whether tied to your adrenals or

not, things that used to be a cinch can now overwhelm you. In the worst of one of my “crashes” taking

a shower was overwhelming! Fifteen minutes to work out doesn't sound like much, and for many of

us, that's what drew us to T-Tapp—only 15 minutes! But when you are already on overload, whether a

busy season at work, busy with a young family, adrenal issues or other health issues, 15 minutes can

seem like an hour! Add to that a weaker body due to stress, and it's excruciating instead of

invigorating.

It's hard to talk yourself into doing a workout when you dread it.

Secondly, we inadvertently found by this experiment Rita's “sweet spot”. Not enough to stress her

body (whether literally or from the stress of thinking about it and dreading it) yet enough to move the

lymph so she could feel better. Pumping the lymph moves toxins and lactic acid out so she felt more

like doing something vs being sore and lethargic. And when you're not sore and dragging with fatigue

and brain fog, you feel like moving and you feel better about yourself!

I am always on a quest to help T-Tappers find that “sweet spot”--and sometimes it takes a “rear view

mirror look” to see where it's at! I have found in my own experience that it might be in the next day or

two that will really tell me whether I overdid it. Learning to listen to our bodies is a lost art--but it's

well worth it! Don't get discouraged if you felt great while working out, then found you needed 2 naps

the next day. You still got some movement in, most likely took the next day off, and now you have

another piece of the puzzle called “your body” to help you “read” it more clearly next time!

There is also the issue of muscle fatigue taking over, making form focus harder when you are dealing

with adrenal fatigue or other health issues. It does no good to get ALL the reps in for ALL the moves,

and by the time you get to the end of the workout, you are losing core focus and can't keep your ribs up

anymore with your lats because they are so fatigued they can't hold you up anymore! You may have

“completed” the workout, but you really didn't get all the activation that you could have out of it—and

truly muscle activation is the key to losing inches and reshaping more than just expending calories.

I'll share more in the last chapter about getting started, but if you have any health issues or are under a

lot of stress for a season, this is not the time to ramp things up and do bootcamps, full workouts or

make yourself do daily 15 minute workouts no matter what. Get moving, yes! But don't force yourself

to do what you think will get results—start gentle and add in. You are less likely to crash that way and

will find your sweet spot without too much pain in the afterthought!

Rita went on to lose FOUR sizes in 6 months—mainly by curling her core and doing 3 moves an

average of 4-5 times per week! Less truly IS more!

Rita so inspired ME that she became the inspiration and foundation for my online class, Beautiful

YOU, which focuses on core activation through the different T-Tapp workouts!

But what if you're not adrenal challenged and don't really have any health issues? No major stresses in

your life? Does “less is more” hold true for you, too?

Let's meet Chi, another friend from the T-Tapp forums who became my client.

Chi is a former soldier, flautist and has a young family. She is also an avid Donnie Yen fan (I think

she's his biggest fan!) who loves not only his acting but his discipline in martial arts. She is a combo

turtle, which means you gain and lose all over (making changes harder to “see” sometimes!) and a

slower loser. Not the most motivating “combo”! (Yes, I know, that was a terrible pun!)

I happen to be a combo turtle as well so I could feel Chi's pain in not losing as much or where she

wanted. We were on the 6 Weeks to a New You thread and she was asking for ideas. I suggested she try

the Terrific Three or Fab Four for a few weeks to slow things down and focus more on form. (The

Terrific Three is the combination of three moves: Primary Back Stretch, T-Tapp Twist and Hoedowns.

Fab Four adds Thread the Needle to The Terrific Three.) Chi took the challenge and added intentional

form focus from her idol's discipline of turning all movements into a “perfect jewel”. She applied that

to doing just a few moves a day—for several months! She started rotating through different standing

moves, then asked me for ideas to start rotating through floor moves as well.

Combining the inspiration from her favorite actor with the discipline of a soldier, she kept to this slow-

but-intense schedule for the months leading up to the 2012 60 Day Challenge. She then decided to

have me be her personal trainer during the Challenge. She wanted to work with the LadyBug workout,

so I created schedules for her as well as checked up on her often.

Did all that slowing things down to a few moves a day do any good?

Chi lost 13 inches by the end of the 60 Day Challenge---and in the right places, too! She was

ecstatic—and so was I!

For a turtle combo who had super slow inch loss previously to go on to lose 13 inches in 60 days was

amazing!

Why did that work?

The slower focus of just a few moves a day laid an excellent foundation because it established and

strengthened brain-to-body connections, which in turn caused her body to respond well to her efforts

during the Challenge!

Again—less really IS more!

Chi also has inspired me as I work with seasoned T-Tappers or those coming into T-Tapp from a fitness

background, because our inclination is to up the ante and push harder. Even if you are already fit, you

can benefit from a slower pace, which is why trainers often advise spending time with the

Instructionals of any workout to strengthen the mind-to-muscle pathways!

Slower is harder on the muscles, but easier on the brain. Going faster or to tempo is easier on the

muscles—but tough on the brain! Both have their places in our workout routines, but slower is the way

to go when you want to challenge those muscles to the next level!

And for those who are battling any kind of fatigue or health issues, slowing down to just a few moves

per day is a great way to lighten the stress load on your body and facilitate healing! You can always

add TO your routine rather than doing too much and crashing---and then not be able to do much of

anything.

I wanted to share these two ladies' stories with you—and these are only two of many I've read, heard,

as well as some of my other clients that found by backing off of a more rigorous workout schedule,

they actually lost more inches or reshaped more by slowing things down, especially when revisiting the

Instructionals. I've lost more on short workouts 4-6 times per week, and even doing short workouts 3

times per week. In the past few years I've been able to maintain on 3 moves per day!

If you're not seeing the results you want, why not join Rita, Chi and me in the “Less Is More” club?

Whether it's easing up on your adrenals or more intentional focus with just a few moves to take form to

the next level, less really and truly IS more!

“Turn your basic movements, regardless of style, into perfect jewels.” ~Donnie Yen, martial artist and actor

Chapter 11

Fatigued to Fabulous!

FABULOUS-- exceptionally good or unusual; marvelous; superb

Just how does an adrenal challenged, homeschooling mama of 9 who is also overweight transform into

a much slimmer mama of 9, become a Master T-Tapp trainer and continue her journey to healing and

wholeness—and in her 50s no less?!

I truly was a very fatigued mama and the journey has had more detours than I would have liked! Going

from a near crash and needing 1 ½ hour naps daily to hardly needing naps at all, sleeping better, getting

up before my alarm, more clarity in my thinking, juggling more spinning plates than ever....I never

would have guessed when I first found T-Tapp that it would have truly transformed my life from the

inside out!

Not only has my body transformed in amazing ways, my outlook and confidence levels have as well! I

have learned to be my own best friend, watching the talk in my head and making intentional choices to

switch the channel to good and positive vs negative and self-deprecating.

I had been overweight and not feeling good about how I looked for nearly 10 years by the time I found

T-Tapp. And while I joke that I am not bikini material :) I am tickled at how much my body has

reshaped after the stress it's been under for many years!

Looking ahead to “aging” doesn't look like a downward spiral with no hope—after all, we have

beautiful Berei, the star of Senior Fit and First Step as our inspiration! We can still be “with it”, active

and bouncing back from life's bumps even in our 80s like she has!

So how do you get there?

Small steps. Baby steps, even. One little right choice at a time. You lace up your cross-trainers, push

play and DO it no matter how you feel. Even if you “only” get a few moves in at a time, that's

progress! When you need 3 naps each day just to function, you can't look at the end goal and think

you'll get there in a few months.

Maybe not even a few years.

It takes time to rehab and rebuild, and most of us don't have the luxury of getting away on a deserted

tropical island with our own personal trainer, holistic health care provider, massage therapist,

endocrinologist and healthy foods chef to just relax and get away from stress so we can heal. We're

moms and CEOs, we're busy taking care of kids, of Grandma, of our furry friends, our neighbors,

our...yeah. You get the idea!

We can't just hide away while we heal, we need to live life. Sometimes that can interfere with our

“schedule for healing”. But that doesn't mean we throw in the towel! We keep the long term goal in

mind while we set short goals—sometimes daily!--to get us going in the right direction. And when life

throws us a curveball—we can dust ourselves off after the crisis and get back to our baby-step-to-

success plan.

I went from a size 22W, adrenal challenged, tired-all-the-time, brain-fogged, no-energy, not-losing-an-

inch and emotional eating mama of 9 to a size 8, adrenals healing, more energy, clearer minded, lost-

gobs-of-inches mama and Master T-Tapp trainer who is gaining more and more control over her eating

than she ever thought was possible.

I did it one workout at a time, one good thought at a time, one good choice at a time. One “get back in

the saddle” decision after another when life derailed me.

I still make those little choices from day to day now, too. Just think—one good choice made each week

will result in 52 decisions in a year for better health and a better you! It's the power of one, not the

complete overhaul, that wins in the long run.

One good choice today, one good choice tomorrow, one good choice the day after-- THAT is how you

go from fatigued to FABULOUS! I did it and you can, too!

YES YOU CAN!

Chapter 12

Get Started on YOUR Journey!

Let's get started!

Because of my own experiences with health and adrenal issues, I have a special place in my heart to

help those with similar issues. Of course I'm happy to help everyone on their journey to their fitness

goals! But those of us who struggle with enough energy to take a shower can feel really lazy or that

fitness programs “won't work” for us because we can't do an hour or more of exercise every day.

Even those coming from an exercise background and who are more fit shouldn't skimp on the basic

foundational principles of T-Tapp—it truly challenges everyone from the adrenal challenged to the

most fit!

There will be actual schedules you can follow in the “Toolkit” at the end of this book. But I want to go

over a few things with you to keep in mind as you get started.

1. First, there are NO prizes for completing a workout without any breaks! Even if you have Basic

Workout Plus, which has no water breaks or kick outs, please take a break as needed.

2. It is FAR better to do 4 reps with focus on form than to slog through 8 just to get through them!

3. Bootcamps are nice, but consistency is better. If you do a 14 day bootcamp and then hardly do

any workouts in the weeks following, you will lose any benefits you gained during the

bootcamp.

4. Instructionals establish and strengthen brain-to-body connections—revisit them often! (Every

4-8 weeks).

5. The pause button is your FRIEND!

6. Less is MORE! You can always add more in, but if you crash and burn, you won't just be

taking a few moves out, you'll be taking time off!

7. If you have to release your core or your lats entirely to execute a move, you are going farther

than your flexibility or body type can go and still get results.

Those 7 principles are enough to remember! :) You can just print this one page off and revisit often!

But for those who want more explanation, let's dig in a bit further for each one.

1. There are NO prizes for completing a workout with no breaks!

The traditional exercise mindset says you need 60-90 minutes of exercise to lose, and many workout

modalities don't consider it true exercise unless it's intense. No wonder many throw in the towel before

they even get started! I was working out an hour a day, as I shared earlier in the book, and was getting

more and MORE tired and losing.....nothing. My body was breaking down at that point—I can't

imagine where I would have been if I had added even more into my routine or tried to add intensity!

What is important for inch loss is muscle activation. If you are focusing on getting through a workout

without a break to help you lose faster, it may work against you. The body will take the path of least

resistance (yes, even a trainer’s body!) and as you get more fatigued your muscles are weaker and less

able to hold proper form while executing the moves. Let's face it—sometimes just getting into the T-

Tapp stance is a workout!

By taking a break and drinking water, not only are you rehydrating your muscles and fascia, you are

giving your muscles a quick break, and you can then reset your stance before starting the next move or

the next portion in your most optimal form.

So take those water breaks—whether they are on the dvd or not! (And if they are on the dvd—don't

fast forward through them!)

2. It is FAR better to do 4 reps with focus on form than to slog through 8 just to get through

them!

Very closely related to #1 above, you are much better off doing fewer reps and holding form than doing

all 8 and losing your core or dropping your ribs by rep #6. If you don't have a workout that has

kickouts built in, you can do 4-5 reps, kick out during the last 3-4 reps on the dvd and reset before

Teresa does the next move. When I got back into floor work after closing my diastasis recti (the

“mommy tummy gap”), my rule of thumb was when I lost ab activation was that move was done.

Some of those moves I only did 1 repetition! But I eventually worked up to all 10 and even certified in

Hit the Floor!

Take the same challenge with your standing workouts—if you are working on keeping your ribs up and

staying focused on that, when you totally lose awareness it's time to stop, kick out, and reset. Yes, even

if you only got in ONE rep!

3. Bootcamps are nice, but consistency is better!

One of the most-often asked questions is how long a bootcamp should be and a close second is what

workouts are best for the bootcamp. A bootcamp is traditionally 4-14 days of Total Workout, or Basic

Workout if Total is too long/too much for you at this time. That said, with all the great new workouts

with the newer tweaks, a bootcamp can be simply said to be doing the same workout 4-14 days in a

row.

What typically happens is we get ALL excited to get this bootcamp going, decide if 4 is good, 14 days

MUST be better and then....after day 14, we find we're a bit burned out (especially if we have adrenal

issues!) and our 2 days off at the end of the bootcamp (which you should take off to give the muscles a

chance to recover and rest) becomes 3...then 4....then 7...we just can't quite get the motivation to push

play again....

Or we do okay getting on a workout routine after the bootcamp....for a few weeks. Then we take more

days off, feel guilty and try to get back to working out again...then even more days off....

A bootcamp can be a good thing—and I feel instructionals truly make the best “bootcamp” because the

focus of a bootcamp is to establish and strengthen the mind-to-muscle connections. Four days in a row

is the minimum, 14 the maximum, although you can certainly continue to do the Instructional as your

workout! Just not every day if it is over 30 minutes.

But if you do a bootcamp then fizzle out in the consistency following it, you aren't going to establish

those connections for long! If bootcamps burn you out—then don't do them! Do the Instructionals, but

do them every other day, or split them up to make them more manageable and not seem so

overwhelming. Then stay consistent. Better three workouts per week consistently than a 14 day

bootcamp followed by 2 weeks of consistency followed by months of inconsistency!

In my 10 years of T-Tapping, I have done a total of 8 bootcamps, and half of them were only 4-5 days

in duration! I lost more in the consistency following a bootcamp, so don't base your “success” on huge

inch loss two days after your bootcamp. Consistency DOES matter!

4. Instructionals establish and strengthen brain-to-body connections—revisit them often!

I talked about this a bit in the last paragraph—but WHY do Instructionals help establish and strengthen

brain-to-body connections? The slower pace is easier on the brain, but harder on the muscles. It helps

the brain “get it”. The muscles work harder, helping to lock in the muscle memory. Again, if you're

not consistent, you won't get the maximum muscle activation and memory you would have gotten had

you remained consistent. Revisiting the Instructionals is not to be confused with doing constant

bootcamps. It is recommended you wait at least 6 weeks before doing another bootcamp, unless you've

gone more than 2 weeks without T-Tapping at all--then you'd want to do a shorter bootcamp of 4-7 days

unless your time off was due to health issues. In that case don't focus so much on a bootcamp and ease

back into consistency to build your strength and stamina.

You can revisit the Instructionals in a shortened way—just 4 days max or split them up, or every other

day. There are a variety of ways to do this! If you have been consistent, then you don't need to do 4

days in a row—just revisit the Instructional of your chosen workout 1-3 times throughout a week. You

can take days completely off or do the regular workout without instruction on the other days. Do this

every 4-8 weeks to continually take your form up another notch.

If you feel a workout is getting too “easy” or you can tell you're not activating, revisit the

Instructionals, because you will feel and hear new things you never heard before!

5. The pause button is your FRIEND!

This motto is related to #2 and right up there with “Yes you CAN!” If necessary, write it on a piece of

paper and tape it to your tv or computer screen where you will see it while you do your workouts.

Many of the newer workouts have water breaks and kick outs built in, but if you don't have one of

them, create your own!

Now, I realize with other devices (iPads, tablets, etc.) it may be harder to hit “pause”, but it is worth it.

The old saying “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” goes well here—only we'll rephrase

it: “Hitting pause to take a break or examine a move is worth a LOT of frustration later!”

If a move is going so fast you know you cant' keep up and keep good form, try this:

• Watch the move. Rewind.

• Do the move with Teresa the best you can for at least 2-3 reps. Hit pause.

• Now do it the best you can from memory more slowly, at a pace you can maintain the

techniques.

Yes, it will take you longer to get through the workouts this way. You can either split it up, or you

could do this with a move or two on your off days. Starting a move with your best form (and that is

individual and it changes as you grow stronger) will yield better results than getting so fatigued by the

next-to-last move that all muscle activation is out the window. Remember, being able to keep up and

slog through all 8 reps is not really the goal—muscle activation is!

6. Less is MORE!

I know this is starting to sound redundant.... but it's true! Fewer reps done with your best form are

going to net you better results than all the reps but you lose form towards the end of that move or the

end of a workout. Remember Rita and Chi's stories in chapter 10? And how 80% of my workouts have

been shorter ones? And I didn't do 6 days per week all the time. Average was closer to 4-5 workouts

per week, and sometimes I did just 3 short workouts per week.

If you are doing longer workouts such as Total Workout every other day, then on the “off days” doing

Basic Workout or Step Away the Inches, and that is your routine all the time, you are more likely to hit

a wall with your inch loss. Then if you start adding more and more “target moves”, like I did---well,

you might end up crashing like I did as well! (NOT recommended!)

Why do we say “less is more”? Why do we never add reps or weights? Because as you get stronger,

more connected and your form and alignment improves, you are working “smarter” and there is no

need to add more of anything! I remember when I heard one could maintain on one to two Total

Workouts each week. I thought, “I don't think so!”

A few years later, I found out I was right!

I maintained on 2-3 short workouts, like Basic Workout or MORE each week!

Now, I confess I didn't have much faith that doing only a few workouts of any length each week was

going to maintain! January 2008, a year into T-Tapp, I was doing 3 short workouts (usually Basic

Workout at that time) each week. I kept losing and gaining ¾ inch. Six months later life was busy

again and I could barely get in three short workouts each week and...I maintained! NO gains! (And

that was during our fair season when we eat lots of less-than-healthy things!) I was amazed and one

happy girl! Obviously the continued consistency helped, but I also continued to gain strength and

stamina as well as improve form. In 2009 I had a season of short workouts just 3 times per week and I

actually lost inches.

Continued focus on form and intentional movement (no sloppy, zoning out, mindlessly moving),

especially as I trained to become a trainer, has resulted in me being able to maintain now on 3 moves

per day! Yes you can!

I want to answer one more common question before moving on—wouldn't you lose faster if you

focused on full workouts like Total Workout or LadyBug all the time and doing short workouts on the

off days in between?

Answer—you could. And then again—you could crash and burn, especially if you don't know how to

read your body's cues. Remember, the body is not some inanimate object you can manipulate into the

shape you want when you want. The body is amazing it its ability to achieve balance under some of

the most extreme conditions and in its ability to heal. But if you continue to push and try to force it to

“lose weight” before you get healthy and deal with the other issues that could be going on inside

(including how you talk to yourself!), you may win the battle and lose the war. That's why I say it's

better to start small (whether that's starting with 3 moves every other day or short workouts 4 times per

week) and add to that, continually reading your body's cues--or learning how to, than to jump in full

force and then crash and have to take time off to heal.

Even if you're fairly fit—it's fine to do full workouts every other day, but keep it at that and just do

Primary Back Stretch and a move or two on your off days. Later you can evaluate whether you can

handle more or not!

As Chi, Rita and I along with many others who have shared their stories on Facebook groups and the T-

Tapp forums can attest—you really can lose more on less. Less is truly more!

7. Don't ever release your core or your lats! (Unless it's a water break!)

Teresa is modeling the best form, and of course we want to imitate that, right?

Yes, to a point! If you are a short torso, you will never reach down as far as Teresa does on T-Tapp

Twist unless you release your core—and if you have to release your core, you just sabotaged what

makes T-Tapp work so well! A mirror can be a T-Tapper's best friend here! Often we don't realize

how much we are inactivating until we see it. Videoing yourself is also a great way to see what you're

really doing. You don't have to let anyone see it and you can delete it after you've watched it. Try

doing that with a few moves to see where you tend to straighten your knees, drop your ribs or lose your

core. Then work on those moves and become more aware! I can't go down as far in Plies due to

being a combination body type with short torso tendencies. But when I go to my max, I get more out

of it! Same with T-Tapp Twist—I'm not going to go down as far as Teresa and most times not even as

far as combos are supposed to go—but when I keep my belly button to spine as I'm doing the move, I

will get more out of it than if I let my core go just so I can “reach farther”.

So my rule is—if I have to let my lats go and/or my core, I'm going farther than my body type will

allow. Or my flexibility. So keep that in mind! Strive for your best but don't let go of those two key

elements!

Whew! I know you are ready to get going but I felt we really needed to chat about those 7 principles

because they come up all the time in my sessions with clients. You can pretend you just had a

consultation with me—only you get this all in written form to go over again! :)

Now let's get into the nuts and bolts of getting started!

After this chapter is Trisch's Toolbox. I have included one month schedules to give you an idea of how

to structure your workout routine. Included are schedules using the five starter workouts: Basic

Workout Plus, Total Workout, MORE, Healthy Hormones Menopause Management and Senior Fit.

I've included variations for the health and adrenal-challenged, as well (other than for Total). There's

something for everyone!

All of the regular (non-health issue) schedules start with a 4 day Instructional “bootcamp”. You are

welcome to spend more time with the Instructionals, and if you split any workout up, always be sure to

warm up the spine with Primary Back Stretch before picking up where you left off.

These schedules are just an example—you may want Wednesdays to be your days off and I have

Sundays as off on the schedules. Feel free to rearrange to fit your needs! Just keep the basic principles

of the schedule intact as you tweak it to suit you. I often tell my clients the schedule is your tool, not

your slave driver! (Maybe that should be principle #8?!)

The schedule I often create for clients using all short workouts is 2 days on, 1 day “light” (Primary

Back Stretch plus 2 moves of your choice), then 3 days on, 1 day off. Or you could throw another light

day in there:

Monday-workout

Tuesday-workout

Wednesday-light day

Thursday-workout

Friday-light day

Saturday-workout

Sunday-off

The main thing to remember is one day off, and one light day midweek—wherever midweek is for you!

This is a great way to get started yet guard against overtraining.

For those of you doing Total every other day, I can't stress enough, especially in the beginning, to

please not add much on your off days. 2-3 moves are fine as are doing a few Hoedowns in addition to

that (after meals, for example), but doing 2 sets of Hoedowns after every meal, 2-3 moves at once for

your off-day “mini workout” and then adding in 2-3 target moves adds up!

I haven't included adding other workouts in, such as Step Away the Inches or floor workouts because if

you are brand new to T-Tapp, it's best to spend some time with one workout and get those brain-body

connections strong first.

If you are a more seasoned T-Tapper, or you're a beginner who has spent time with Instructionals and

your starter workout for at least a few weeks after that, you could start adding in a short stepping

workout. I would wait another few weeks before adding in floorwork because it will be a new learning

curve.

The exception to this is MORE—I've included using the three short mini-workouts in the MORE

schedules.

For those who have been T-Tapping for awhile, here are some possible combinations (you don't have to

have all these workouts, I'm just using them as examples):

Starter workout plus a stepping workout (Step Away the Inches, Broom 2)

Monday-Basic

Tuesday-Step Away the Inches

Wednesday-Light day

Thursday-Basic

Friday-Step Away the Inches

Saturday-Basic

Sunday-off (Primary Back Stretch is okay)

Starter workout plus a floor workout (Hit the Floor, Hit the Floor Tempo, Brain-Body Fitness

Floor):

Monday-Healthy Hormones

Tuesday-Brain-Body Fitness Floor sequence 2

Wednesday-Healthy Hormones

Thursday-Light day

Friday-Brain-Body Fitness Floor sequence 3

Saturday-Healthy Hormones or Brain-Body Fitness Floor sequence 1

Sunday—off

Monday-MORE

Tuesday-Hit the Floor Tempo

Wednesday-Light day

Thursday-MORE

Friday-Hit the Floor Tempo

Saturday-MORE

Sunday—off

Of course there are MANY more combinations you could do! And you can always take the weekends

completely off, and then rotate differently the next week. If you like variety, the sky's the limit!

Steps to SUCCESS!

I'm excited for YOU! I know I've shared a LOT of information in this book, and it can be

overwhelming—especially if you have adrenal fatigue! Please just take what stands out for now—the

rest will still be here when you're ready to tackle something else. :)

The biggest take-away I want to leave you with is that in any action step you take—whether in

exercise, eating or how you think about/talk to yourself—no matter how small your step may be, it is

still a step in the right direction. It can be daunting to think of how much you have to lose, how tired

you are, how awful your eating is, how badly you talk to yourself every day. But pick ONE area and

make ONE step in the right direction. It might be “I will get at least 2 moves in each day.” Or “I will

eat one more veggie each day.” Or “I will post one thing I like about myself in a note on my mirror and

say it out loud to myself every day.” Take that small step and as you are successful in that small step,

then you can take another action step. And then another.

Just like the little bits of inches added up for me to combine into 8 sizes lost, so your little steps will

add up to healthy changes for a better body, a better outlook, a better life—for a better YOU!

I believe in YOU! ♥

YES YOU CAN!

Trisch's Toolbox--Tools for Transformation!

The two workouts I recommend all the time for those with health and adrenal issues are MORE and

Healthy Hormones Menopause Management. Senior Fit is great, but I know for many adrenal

challenged ladies, it is overwhelming due to its length. But when you see the schedule broken down

for those with health issues, you might feel better about tackling it! But you can use Basic Workout

Plus if that's what you have. Check out the tips in this blog post, Some Basic Tips, for how to proceed,

and use the schedule to do a few moves per day.

If you're totally new to T-Tapp or are just checking it out after reading this book, there are some free

“Try Before You Buy” exercises. Some are in print and there is a video player in the middle of the

page with several short clips of moves:

Try Before You Buy

Another great resource to check out sample moves (and for when you're traveling and don't have your

dvds with you!) is YouTube—and Teresa's channel has many inspirational stories, too!

Teresa Tapp's YouTube Channel

Teresa also started doing T-Tapp Tuesdays with WTSP Tampa Bay Studio 10 a year ago. You can see

many of the videos here:

T-Tapp Tuesdays

Foundational to the T-Tapp method is curling your core. The tips in this forum post are essential!

Michelle Barbuto's FANTASTIC Curl Your Core Tips!

If you need additional support on your journey to wholeness, there are several options—choose one or

all!

I blog somewhat regularly at beyouthfulnfit.com, and I joke that my second home at the T-Tapp forums

where I am a moderator. It's a great place to ask questions and glean from older posts and threads! I

am also an administrator on the T-Tapp Support group on Facebook where you can receive help from

fellow T-Tappers as well as myself and other trainers (you will need to submit a join request). I also

have a quiz that can help you narrow down your starter workout choice and if you sign up on the

sidebar of the quiz, you will get a series of video reviews for each of the starter workouts as well as

other helpful tips, charts and encouragement to help you get started! You will find the quiz here:

Which T-Tapper Are You?

If sign up there (or at the top of my Be Youthful 'n Fit homepage), you will also get blog updates,

periodic e-mails with tips and a heads up on Deep Discount Tuesday (the third Tuesday of each month)

as soon as I know what the sale will be!

I also offer a variety of services from accountability with a schedule to online webcam sessions to

online programs and even video classes. You can check out my Training with Trisch page at my

website or the Events page at the T-Tapp webstore for current offerings. You can also check out my

program designed to specifically help close a diastasis recti gap with T-Tapp principles and techniques

at Defeating Diastasis. I'd love to help you in any way I can on your journey to your transformation

from fatigued to FABULOUS!

Helpful Websites and Supplement Information

Helpful Websites

Stop The Thyroid Madness --Everything you ever needed to know about thyroid health! There is also

information about adrenal health and anemia/low ferritin issues. It can be overwhelming but it

definitely worth it. It's a great resource!

Mary Shomon-- Thyroid patient advocate. Mary has Hashimoto's and became passionate to help

others get the help she found hard to find during her own journey to health. Every time I hear Mary

speak I learn more!

The Transition to Health – Dr. Diana Schwarzbein's website--a great explanation of the transition

phase when healing your metabolism. Long but worth the read!

(as of June 2017 all links were in working order. If you find any broken links, please contact me

through my website so I can update them. Thank you!)

Supplements

I am sharing supplements that I have found helpful on my journey. I am not a health care practitioner,

and I encourage you to do your own research and work with a holistic health care provider or one

sympathetic to using supplements to help your body heal. There are many different places on the

adrenal/thyroid spectrum and what works for one may not work at all for another. I am simply offering

this as a resource you can research to see if it's a good fit for you.

Adrenal Fatigue

Royal Power Royal Jelly by North American Herb and Spice

Adrenal Health by Gaia Herbs

Adrenevive by Ortho Molecular Products

Vitamin B Adrenal Complex by Axe Naturals (Dr. Josh Axe)

Country Life Co-enzyme B Complex

Updated June, 2017—what I take now:

Adrenal Restore by Dr. Josh Axe

Bio-B-Complex by Biotics Research

Dr. Schulze's SuperFood 100

Thyroid

In addition to taking a naturally compounded thyroid I started taking T-Balance Plus by Women's

Health Network and noticed improvement in thyroid symptoms! Still taking the prescription but hoping

to be able to tweak that in the future.

Anemia/Low Ferritin

Formerly the only two things that have worked to raise my very low ferritin (iron store) levels without

causing gut issues are Floradix and liquid chlorophyll. But I found Hema-plex and WOW! With just

one daily over 6 months my ferritin went from 12 (still under low normal) to 63!!! NO intestinal

distress. I'm excited to see how this will continue to help in the coming months!

Two Better Body Basics (T-Tapp) Supplements I won't be without!

Premium Blended Alfalfa—for hormonal health, glowing skin and even helps with the gut\

Digest Plus digestive enzymes—I've tried others but Digest Plus has systemic AND digestive enzymes,

helping the body reduce inflammation as well as assisting gut health.

Signs of Overtraining

Here is a list to help you be aware of the signs of overtraining. Please keep in mind that having these

symptoms once in awhile is not a problem. It's when they become more constant, or if you already have

adrenal fatigue or other health challenges, that these become warning signs that you need to scale back.

1. Decreased performance

Slower reaction times, reduced speeds and lowered endurance levels are all common signs of

overtraining.

2. Agitation, moodiness, irritability or lack of concentration

Too much exercise and too little rest can wreak havoc on the hormones, cause mood swings and create

an inability to concentrate.

3. Excessive fatigue and malaise

A body that never has a chance to fully recover from a previous workout will continue to feel more and

more fatigued. Some people describe this feeling as “ heavy legs.”

4. Increased perceived effort during normal workouts

Overtraining takes a toll on the body, and workouts that were once a breeze can begin to feel like a

grind.

5. Chronic or nagging muscle aches or joint pain

Overused muscles and joints can cause constant aches, which may go unnoticed until the body is given

proper rest.

6. More frequent illnesses and upper-respiratory infections

Too much exercise taxes all of the body's systems and makes it more difficult to ward off infections.

7. Insomnia or restless sleep

During sleep the body has time to rest and repair itself. An overtrained body, however, is sometimes

unable to slow down and completely relax, making it difficult to recover between workouts.

8. Loss of appetite

Overtraining can cause an increase in hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine that tend to

inhibit appetite. The physical exhaustion and anxiety that often comes with overtraining can also have

the same effect.

9. Chronically elevated heart rate at rest and during exercise

A clear sign of an overworked heart muscle is a chronically elevated heart rate. Also, people who

overtrain will often find that it takes longer for their heart rate to return to normal after a workout.

10. Menstrual cycle disturbances in women

Exercising excessively and not consuming enough calories may disrupt a woman's menstrual cycle.

While some may experience irregular periods, others will stop menstruating altogether.

11. Decreased motivation.

When you dread pushing play, especially after a season of excitement and enjoyment, it's time to back

off to just a few moves or go every other day with your workouts.

12. Increased brain fog.

Inability to concentrate or focus can be a sign of overtraining. If you already have issues with “brain

fog”, you may notice they are worse than normal. Time to back off!

And a short note on sleep...

This is one I am still working on! ALL the resources I have ever read on adrenal fatigue said to be in

bed by 10:30—11:00 p.m. At the latest. It's best to shut down computers and other electronic devices

an hour before you head for bed. Taking a warm bath, soaking your feet, relaxing and reading (nothing

too stimulating, though!) are all helpful and conducive to a good night's sleep. Your body repairs itself

as you sleep, and cortisol levels start to rise after 11, which can cause a “second wind” phenomena.

Then you are ready to GO for a few more hours! Unfortunately, you are short circuiting the body's

healing time and the time it “takes out the trash”. Work towards getting into bed at 10:30 to help your

body rebalance and heal!

Schedule Explanations

Just a few explanations to help you understand the schedules! These schedules are for getting started—

there are many different options that you could add in as I shared earlier in the book—but save that for

later if you are a newbie! Even if you are a veteran T-Tapper, you might want to revisit the “basics”

and take your form up a notch!

All schedules start with “Instructionals”. For the adrenal-challenged I included starting with

Instructionals, but only a few moves a day. Please don't skimp on this! I know it's hard when Teresa

has “the team hold position” and you want to get ON with it—but there is a reason for you holding

steady and letting those mind-to-muscle connections build and strengthen while you listen!

There are 6 schedules in the first part: Total Workout, Basic Workout Plus, MORE, Healthy Hormones

Menopause Management, and two schedules for Senior Fit.

The 4 “health and adrenal challenged” schedules follow: Basic Workout Plus, MORE, Healthy

Hormones and Senior Fit.

I've made all the schedules to start on a Monday as the 1st of the month. Rearrange as needed to suit

your schedule and routine.

A light colored font denotes light days.

Adrenal-challenged schedules will require fast forwarding to get to moves on dvds that are not

chaptered. Yes, that can be a pain but to rotate through the moves, it's necessary. You can skip moves

but you don't rearrange them. I sometimes used a different combination of moves to give variety, but

you can simply rotate through the moves on a dvd by picking up where you left off the day before.

Always do Primary Back Stretch first!

Senior Fit is a longer workout, and the adrenal-challenged schedule still takes about 15-20 minutes

daily. But with all the kickouts, clap-aways and water breaks, that is not 20 minutes of total “workout”

time! If doing the entire Primary Back Stretch for Level 1 or Tempo 4 feels like too much, you can just

do the first part (omitting the hands behind part). However, do at least do the entire Primary Back

Stretch once per week, even if that is the only move you can do.

Take extra days off as needed. And don't try to “catch up” days! Just jump right back in the schedules

or pick up where you left off.

I've tried to cover all the bases here, but if you just can't understand something on the schedules or you

have any questions, please feel free to contact me at trainertrisch@gmail.com. Put “E-book question”

in the subject line so I will see it and I will try to get back to you within a few days!

One final thought—and really, the most important!

The schedule is YOUR tool, NOT your slavedriver!!!

Day Workout X Skin Brush

Alfalfa Water

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

Total Workout

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Instructional

1

2

Instructional

1

3

Instructional

1

4

Instructional

1

5

Instructional

1

6

Off

7

Off

8

BWO+

9

BWO+

10

PBS, Jazz

Twist, The

Box

11

BWO+

12

Instructional

2*

13

Instructional

2

14 15

Instructional

2

16

Instructional

2

17

PBS,

T-Tapp Twist

18

Total

Workout

19

PBS,

Reach

Scoops

20

Total

Workout

21 22

Total

Workout

23

PBS,

Oil Wells

24

Total

Workout

25

PBS,

Hoedowns

26

Total

Workout

27

28 29

Total

Workout

30

PBS,

T-Tapp Twist

31

Total

Workout

BWO+ = Basic Workout Plus

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

*You can split Instructional 2 if you need to for time's sake. Always warm up with Primary Back

Stretch first. A good place for breaking it up would be after Runner's Stretch, but you can split it at any

point you wish. Warm up with Primary Back Stretch and pick up where you left off the next time

Another possibility is to add 1-3 moves from Instructional 2 after your Basic Workout.

Basic Workout Plus

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Instructional

1: PBS to

Reach

Scoops*

2

Instructional

1: PBS, then

Jazz Twist to

the end

3

Instructional

1: PBS to

Reach

Scoops

4

Instructional

1: PBS, then

Jazz Twist to

the end

5

Instructional

1

6

Off**

7

Off

8

Basic

Workout Plus

(BWO+)

9

BWO+

10

PBS, first set

Plies, Reach

Scoops

11

BWO+

12

BWO+

13

BWO+

14

Off

15

BWO+

16

PBS, Jazz

Twist, The

Box

17

BWO+

18

BWO+

19

PBS, 2nd set

Plies,

Hoedowns

20

BWO+

21

Off

22

BWO+

23

Basic

Tempo*

24

PBS, Oil

Wells, T-

Tapp Twist

25

Basic Tempo

26

BWO+

27

Basic Tempo

28

Off

29

Basic Tempo

30

PBS, first set

Plies, Jazz

Twist

31

Basic Tempo

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

*If you have no health issues and prefer to do all if Instructional 1, you may do that 4-5 days. Please

still take 2 days off at the end of the week.

**PBS and T-Tapp Twist stretch are fine to do on off days.

*If you don't have Basic Tempo (it has a red label), continue to do Basic Workout Plus.

MORE

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

MORE

Instructional

2

MORE

Instructional

3

MORE

Instructional

4

MORE

Instructional

5

MORE Step

Away

6

Off

7

Off

8

MORE

9

MORE

10

Chair

11

MORE

12

MORE PBS

then Broom

13

MORE

14

Off

15

MORE

16

PBS then

Broom and

Step Away

17

MORE

18

Chair

19

MORE

20

MORE plus

Step Away

21

Off

22

MORE

FMHTY

23

MORE

FMHTY

24

Chair

25

PBS then

Broom and

Step Away

26

MORE

FMHTY

27

MORE

FMHTY

28

Off

29

MORE

FMHTY

30

Chair

31

MORE

FMHTY

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

FMHTY = From My Home to Yours

Healthy Hormones Menopause Management

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Form Tips

2

Instructional

3

Instructional

4

Instructional

5

Instructional

6

Off

7

Off

8

Form Tips

9

HHMM

10

HHMM

11

Spinal Curl,

Oil Wells

12

HHMM

13

HHMM

14

Off

15

HHMM

16

HHMM

17

Form Tips

18

HHMM

19

HHMM

20

HHMM

21

Off

22

HHMM

23

Spinal Curl

TTT w/

towel, OW

w/towel

24

HHMM

25

Spinal Curl

T-Tapp Twist

26

HHMM

27

HHMM

28

Off

29

HHMM

30

Spinal Curl

Oil Wells

31

Workout

HHMM = Healthy Hormones Menopause Management

TTT = T-Tapp Twist

OW = Oil Wells

Healthy Hormones is safe to do daily, but I have included a mix of daily with every other day. Even if

you have no health or adrenal issues, please listen to your body's cues and if you start feeling fatigued,

demotivated or any other signs of overtraining, please cut back on your workouts.

Senior Fit

Schedule 1

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Floor Warm-

Up/ Watch

Instructional

2

Instructional

3

Instructional

4

Instructional

5

Instructional

6

Floor Warm-

Up

7

Off

8

Level 1

9

Floor Warm-

Up

10

Level 1

11

Floor Warm-

Up

12

Level 1

13

Floor Warm-

Up

14

Off

15

Instructional

16

Level 1

17

Floor Warm-

Up

18

Level 1

19

Floor Warm-

Up

20

Tempo 4

21

Off

22

Tempo 4

23

Floor Warm-

Up

24

Tempo 4

25

Floor Warm-

Up

26

Tempo 4

27

Instructional

28

Off

29

Tempo 4

30

Floor Warm-

Up

31

Tempo 4

You may add the Floor Warm-Up to workout days, either before the workout (recommended) or before

bed. Or both! The Floor Warm-Up will not cause overtraining, but still be wise in listening to your

body.

Senior Fit

Schedule 2—approximately 30 minute workouts

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Floor

Warm-Up;

Instructional

2

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up*

3

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up

4

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up

5

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up

6

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up

:

7

Off

(Floor

Warm-Up

okay)

8

Floor Warm-

Up

9

Level 1:

PBS to

Reach

Scoops

10

Level 1:

PBS, then

Jazz Twist to

Oil Wells

11

Floor Warm-

Up

12

Level 1:

PBS, then

TTT to

Hoedowns

(approx. 35”)

13

Level 1:

PBS, Plie #1,

Reach

Scoops, The

Box

14

Off

15

Level 1:

PBS, Plie #2,

Reach

Scoops, Oil

Wells, HDs

16

Level 1:

PBS, Plie #3,

Reach

Scoops, Jazz

Twist

17

Floor Warm-

Up

18

Level 1:

PBS, Plie #4,

TTT part 1,

Scarecrow/

Ski

19

Level 1:

PBS,

TTT part 2,

Scarecrow/

Ski, HDs

20

Instructional

and Floor

Warm-Up

21

Off

22

Tempo 4:

PBS to

Jazz Twist

23

Tempo 4:

PBS, The

Box to HDs

24

Floor Warm-

Up

25

Tempo 4:

PBS to

Jazz Twist

26

Tempo 4:

PBS, The

Box to HDs

27

Tempo 4:

PBS to

The Box

28

Off

29

Tempo 4:

PBS,

Oil Wells to

Hoedowns

30

Tempo 4:

PBS to Jazz

Twist

31

Tempo 4:

PBS, Jazz

Twist & The

Box,

Scarecrow/

Ski & HDs

PBS = Primary Back Stretch TTT = T-Tapp Twist HDs = Hoedowns

*The Floor Warm-Up can be done at a different time than the workout. You may add the Floor Warm-

Up to workout days, either before the workout (recommended) or before bed. Or both! The Floor

Warm-Up will not cause overtraining, but still be wise in listening to your body.

Basic Workout Plus/Basic Tempo

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Instructional 1

1

Instructional

1: PBS,

first 2 sets

Plies

2

Instructional

1: PBS, then

Chest Press

Plies &

Combo

3

Instructional

1: PBS,

Reach

Scoops, Jazz

Twist

4

Instructional

1: PBS, The

Box, Oil

Wells

5

Instructional

1: PBS,

T-Tapp

Twist

6

Off

Instructional 1 and BWO+

7

Off

8

PBS, first set

Plies, Reach

Scoops

9

PBS, second

set Plies,

Jazz Twist

10

PBS, Chest

Press Plies &

Combo

11

PBS, The

Box Oil

Wells

12

PBS, The

Box, T-Tapp

Twist

13

PBS, Jazz

Twist,

Hoedowns*

BWO+ and Basic Tempo

14

Off

15

PBS, first set

Plies, Reach

Scoops

16

PBS, Oil

Wells, T-

Tapp Twist

17

PBS, 2nd set

Plies, The

Box

18

PBS, Chest

Press Plies

& Combo

19

BT: PBS, Oil

Wells, T-

Tapp Twist

20

BT: PBS,

second set

Plies,

Hoedowns

Basic Tempo

21

Off

22

BT: PBS,

first set Plies,

Reach

Scoops

23

BT: PBS,

The Box,

Oil Wells

24

BT: PBS,

T-Tapp

Twist,

Hoedowns

25

BT: PBS,

Chest Press

Plies &

Combo

26

BT: PBS,

Jazz Twist,

Hoedowns

27

BT: PBS,

first set Plies,

The Box

Basic Tempo

28

Off

29

BT: PBS,

second set

Plies, Reach

Scoops

30

BT: PBS,

Jazz Twist,

The Box

31

BT: PBS,

Oil Wells,

T-Tapp Twist

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

BT = Basic Tempo (If you don't have Basic Tempo, you may substitute moves from Basic Workout.

*For adrenal and health-challenged individuals, please do only 1 set of Hoedowns.

The three moves are suggestions—you may pick any moves, but the first one should be PBS, and I

count each segment of Plies as one move for light days. Walking is fine. Please feel free to take another

day off as needed!

MORE

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

MORE

Instructional:

PBS, first 2

Plies, Reach

Scoops

2

MORE

Instructional:

PBS, last 3

Plies, Jazz

Twist

3

MORE

Instructional:

PBS, The

Box, Oil

Wells

4

MORE

Instructional:

PBS, T-Tapp

Twist,

Lunges

5

MORE

Instructional:

PBS,

Balance,

Hoedowns

6

Chair

7

Off

8

MORE: PBS,

1st two sets

Plies, Reach

Scoops

9

MORE: PBS,

Jazz Twist,

The Box

10

Chair

11

MORE: PBS,

Oil Wells, T-

Tapp Twist

12

Step Away

13

MORE: PBS,

last 3 sets

Plies, The

Box

14

Off

15

MORE: PBS,

Lunges to

Hoedowns

16

Chair

17

MORE: PBS,

Jazz Twist,

The Box

18

PBS, Broom

19

MORE: PBS,

Plies, Reach

Scoops

20

Step Away

21

Off

22

PBS, Broom

23

MORE: PBS,

Reach

Scoops, T-

Tapp Twist

24

Step Away

25

MORE: PBS,

Oil Wells,

Lunges

26

Chair

27

MORE: PBS,

Balance,

Hoedowns

28

Off

29

MORE:

PBS, Jazz

Twist, The

Box

30

Step Away

31

MORE:

PBS, Oil

Wells, T-

Tapp Twist

31

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

After a few months of doing MORE, if you would like, you can substitute doing the same moves

from MORE From My Home to Yours.

Healthy Hormones Menopause Management

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

Form Tips:

The Stance

through

Shoulder

Rolls

2

Instructional:

Intro through

Using a

towel

3

Instr.: Intro

through Curl

Spine/Scoop,

Plie

Sequence,

OIP

4

Instr.: Curl

Spine/Scoop,

Lat & Trap

Warm-up,

Lat Pulls/

Lateral Lat

Pulls

5

Instr.: PBS,

Mitten Chop

Stretch/

Combo

6

Instr.: Curl

Spine/Scoop,

Organs in

Place, Oil

Wells

7

Off

8

Spinal Curl,

Form Tips:

Plie

Sequence,

TTT

9

Instr.: Curl

Spine/Scoop,

TTT

10

Instr.: Curl

Spine/Scoop,

Hoedowns

11

Spinal Curl,

Form Tips:

Oil Wells,

Kickouts,

Hoedowns

12

HHMM

Workout:

Spinal Curl

through Plie

Sequence

13

Workout:

Spinal Curl,

Plie

Pulls/Combo

/Spinal Curl

14

Off

15

Spinal Curl,

Oil Wells,

TTT w/ a

towel

16

Spinal Curl,

OW w / a

towel, HDs

17

Form Tips:

The Stance

through

Shoulder

Rolls

18

Spinal Curl

to 3:09*, Plie

Pulls/Combo,

Hoedowns

19

Spinal Curl,

TTT w/

towel,

Hoedowns

20

Spinal Curl

to 3:09, TTT,

Hoedowns

21

Off

22

Spinal Curl,

Oil Wells w/

towel, TTT

w/ towel

23

Spinal Curl,

Plie

Pulls/Combo

/Spinal Curl

24

Spinal Curl,

Form Tips:

Plie

Sequence,

TTT

25

Spinal Curl

to 3:09, Plie

Sequence,

Oil Wells,

Hoedowns

26

Spinal Curl,

TTT w/

towel,

Hoedowns

27

Spinal Curl

through Plie

Sequence

28

Off

29

Spinal Curl

to 3:09, TTT,

Hoedowns

30

Spinal Curl,

Form Tips:

Oil Wells,

Kickouts,

Hoedowns

31

Spinal Curl

to 3:09, Plie

Pulls/Combo,

Hoedowns

OIP = Organs in Place OW = Oil Wells

TTT = T-Tapp Twist HDs = Hoedowns

* Stop after clap-aways vs going on with the towel for the second half of Spinal Curl.

NOTE: If you prefer to not skip around to do the various moves, you can simply rotate through the

moves in order. But if you like more variety :) then use that chaptered menu to get to the next move(s).

Isn't it great that HHMM is chaptered?!

Senior Fit—1 move daily (15-20 minutes)

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Bonus Move:

1

Instructional:

PBS

2

Instructional:

PBS, Plies

3

Instructional:

PBS, Jazz

Twist

4

Instructional:

PBS,

Scarecrow/

Ski

5

Instructional:

PBS,

Hoedowns

6

Level 1: PBS

Bonus Move:

7

Off

8

Level 1: PBS

9

Level 1:

PBS,

Plie #1

10

Level 1:

PBS,

Plie #2

11

Level 1:

PBS,

Plie #3

12

Level 1:

Plie #4

PBS,

13

Level 1:

PBS,

Reach

Scoops

Bonus Move:

14

Off

15

Tempo 4:

PBS

Level 1:

Jazz Twist

16

Tempo 4:

PBS

Level 1:

Oil Wells

17

Tempo 4:

PBS

Level 1:

T-Tapp Twist

part 1

18

Tempo 4:

PBS

Level 1:

T-Tapp Twist

part 2

19

Level 1:

Scarecrow/

Ski,

Hoedowns

20

Level 1:

PBS

Bonus Move:

21

Off

22

Tempo 4:

PBS, Plies

23

Tempo 4:

PBS,

Reach

Scoops

24

Tempo 4:

PBS,

Jazz Twist

25

Tempo 4:

PBS part 1,

The Box,

Oil Wells

26

Tempo 4:

PBS,

T-Tapp Twist

27

Tempo 4:

Scarecrow/

Ski,

Hoedowns

Bonus Move:

28

Off

29

Tempo 4:

PBS,

Hoedowns

30

Tempo 4:

PBS,

Jazz Twist

31

Tempo 4:

PBS,

T-Tapp Twist

PBS = Primary Back Stretch

Floor Warm-Up is good and will not cause overtraining, but still be wise in listening to your body. I

did not put it on the schedule, but please try to do it at least twice a week—daily is fine! You may add

the Floor Warm-Up on workout days, either before the workout (recommended) or before bed. Or

both!

Meet Trisch!

Trisch is the happy wife of Dallas and happy mama of 9 children, ages 10 to 30. She has

homeschooled all her children, graduating her sixth daughter this summer. She misses having little

people around!

She pursued certifying as a T-Tapp trainer after losing 8 sizes and regaining her health, confidence and

energy for a more vibrant life. She is passionate to help others on their journey to better health and

better fitness, as well as physical and emotional wholeness. She certified in February, 2011 as a

Personal Fitness Trainer through ISSA (International Sports Sciences Association) and certified as a T-

Tapp trainer in January, 2012. In October, 2013 she completed all the qualifications to become a

Master T-Tapp Trainer (certified in all workouts). She is also a FRESH Start for Health Coach and is

currently working on a Corrective Exercise certification through ISSA.

Besides helping others with T-Tapp, she loves to walk, read and learn, sew, knit, write stories and

songs, sing, play piano as well as flute and hammered dulcimer with her family “orchestra”.

Her favorite places to be and things to do are with her family!