Between January and early April I dropped almost 25 pounds thanks to B12/Lipo injections and carefully tracking my diet.
I loved my new looks, but I felt that I needed a new phase to caring for my new body. My "man boobs" had shrunk, and my stomach was leaner, but I needed to tone my muscles and get some definition.
To help, I picked up
The 12-Second Sequence, a book I had seen
previewed in USA Weekend at the beginning of the year. Its author, Jorge Cruise, is a regular contributor to the magazine and a regular on TV talk shows and best-seller lists. The subtitle promises to shrink your waist in 2 weeks.
One thing you learn about Cruise is that everything is systematic. If you like numbers and results, Cruise has it covered. His previous best-seller,
The 3-Hour Diet, detailed how to eat small meals or protein shakes every three hours to drop the pounds.
Of course, that's what attracted me to the book in the first place! I HATE working out, although I love sports and seeing things. When I saw workouts that were measured in
seconds, I was ready.
As it turns out, the 12-second sequence is a series of slow-pull workouts. Instead of doing 30 or 40 crunches, for example, Cruise's program details four crunches, drawn out over 12-seconds, slowly building the muscle.
After four weeks of the 12-Second Sequence, I'm convinced that Cruise hates my guts. There is a lot of ab work, but the other muscle groups are covered. Workouts last longer than 12 seconds of course--and each set is usually twice that because of the slow sequence. I have found most workouts to last 20 to 30 minutes.
This is what I liked about the 12-Second Sequence. It doesn't take a lot of extra equipment. I bought two 10-pound dumbbells, a swiss ball and an exercise mat. Some of the later exercises involve weight machines, but he has alternate exercises if you still need to do them at home.
I like the results, too. My body is more toned, more defined now than when I started on the program. I haven't seen a big drop in weight, but my legs, arms, and abs are definitely showing improvement.:wout
All of the workouts in Cruise's 8-week regimen are illustrated and well explained. I found that it still took me a few tries to get maximum burn from some of the workouts. I'm still trying to get used to breathing while counting out the ten-second moving sequence and the two-second holds.
What I didn't like. Cruise uses a lot of studies to show that slow-burn muscle workouts burn a lot more calories over time. I found, though, that I was a lot hungrier, and it has thrown my diet out of whack. I'm taking a long-term approach, though. After dropping from 223 to 198, I am using this as an opportunity to build strength and burn more calories day in and day out.
I would recommend
The 12-Second Sequence if you have reached your goal--or if, like me, you have plateaued at a good weight and want to tone your muscles--this is a simple, effective course of action.
