Brazil Butt Lift & Rockin' Body Reviews

Originally, I was going to complete my Brazil Butt Lift / Rockin' Body hybrid program for 6 weeks. After 4 weeks I started to get bored with the schedule, and I was itching to start my Hip Hop Abs routine. Here's what I thought of the programs individually:

Brazil Butt Lift
Although the name suggests this program is solely for the tush, Brazil Butt Lift is definitely a full-body workout program. After completing all of the exercises in the series, I could definitely tell a difference in my waist, bum bum (butt), tummy, and thighs.

My favorite workout from the BBL series is Cardio Axe (pronounced ah-shay). It's an upbeat, Brazilian dance workout that will have you sweating and rocking your hips like a tornado. My least favorite workout was the High and Tight. Although I didn't enjoy this workout at all, I'm sure this is the workout that lifted my bum bum and thinned my thighs. It's important to note that this workout requires ankle weights (that weren't included in my purchase) and a strength band (that was included in my purchase).

Trainer Leandro Carvalho is great at giving direction and explaining what part of your body you're working out, but his smile irritated the heck outta me. How could someone smile so hard while torturing me with crunches, planks, and strength exercises that make my inner thighs scream?

Despite the cons I mentioned above, I would definitely recommend this program to anyone. Leandro will get your booty into shape and you will look great in your skinny jeans! Also, Brazil Butt Lift has different schedules you can follow depending on the problems you have with your booty (i.e. too big, too flat, etc).

Rockin' Body
I absolutely loved Rockin' Body!!! Shaun T is my new bff in my head. He is fun, energetic, hilarious, and so down-to-earth. I honestly felt like he was more of a friend instead of a trainer during the program. Even my daughter enjoyed these dance workouts and she tells me every day, "Mommy, I want to rockin' body!!"

The only cons I noticed in Rockin' Body were the music, the cheesy raps, and the lack of intensity. I expected some cool pop tunes when I ordered Rockin' Body, but instead I got made-up raps by Mr. Shaun T. Before completing Rockin' Body, I did Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred, which is super intense. I won't say Rockin' Body is easy because cardio isn't easy for everybody, but it's not as intense as a high intensity interval training workout. Although Rockin' Body never left me sore like BBL or 30 Day Shred, I still burned a lot of calories.

I would definitely recommend Rockin' Body to anybody looking for a fun cardio workout.

Results
I only completed 4 weeks (about 24 days) of the BBL/Rockin' Body hybrid but I still saw some results in that very short amount of time.

• I lost 3.4 lbs (initially I gained 2 lbs when I started then I lost those 2 lbs and an additional 1.4 lbs).
• I lost 1" off my waist. 
• I lost 0.5" from my hips. 
• I lost 0.5" from each thigh.
• I can now pass the "pencil test." (Before you start Brazil Butt Lift program, you're suppose to complete a pencil test to see if your booty needs to be lifted. You place a pencil in the crease where your butt meets the top of your thigh. If the pencil stays put, your booty is hanging too low and you need to work that on out. When I first took the test I failed, but after completing my hybrid program I passed.)

 Here are my before and after photos:

If you can't tell from my cell phone photos, my tummy is a little more flat and my abs near the top of my tummy are a little more defined. Hopefully Hip Hop Abs and cleaning up my diet a little more will help me rid myself of my c-section pooch. Stay tuned for that review in the future.

Both Brazil Butt Lift and Rockin' Body are Team Beachbody products. If you are interested in trying out any Team Beachbody products and don't know a coach, please visit  Coach Alfreda McMillan's website. She's my personal Beachbody Coach and she will get you squared away.

Unexpected Blessings

If you're one of my regular blog readers or if you're a friend on Facebook, you know I've been going really hard with my exercising since the beginning of the year.

No, I don't believe in New Year's resolutions, but I did join a 90 day fitness challenge group that commenced on January 1st. I joined the group because I wanted to be more disciplined with my fitness, I wanted to keep myself busy, I wanted to lose 9lbs, and I wanted to help encourage other people.

So far, I've become a lot more disciplined that I was in the past, I've been very busy exercising, I've lost about 6lbs, and I've become a cheerleader for a lot of folks. Along with the intended benefits, I've also become less stressed and less anxious as a result of working out so much.

I've suffered with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for over 6 years, and one of my symptoms has always been panic attacks. I'm proud/ecstatic/blessed to say that I haven't had a panic attack this year. The only thing that really changed in my life was the amount of time I've dedicated to exercising. So I put two and two together and realized that exercise has really improved my mental well-being.

In my volunteer training courses for Durham Crisis Response Center we talk a lot about self care. One way to care for one's self is to exercise. I hear a lot of stories about real domestic violence and sexual assault cases during training, and as a survivor I have to be careful that I'm not triggered by the things I hear. Exercising has really helped me deal with hearing the stories without letting them negatively impact my well-being.

Exercising rocks!