Moving Forward

It’s a motto I have taken to heart.  Yes, a silly line from a movie many of us have grown to love, but it has become so much more to me.  Dory, the forgetfull one, knew that no matter what you are up against, you just have to keep on swimming…. 

Lately, I’ve felt a bit like Dory, i.e., lacking real direction in my fitness goals and plans for the future.  As you can see from my previous posts, I whole-heartedly dove into working P90X as a way to whip myself back into shape.  Unfortunately, I over-exherted myself and was in no way prepared to tackle such a large goal.  I became sick from not having sufficient fitness that is necessary to perform those exercises, and ultimately, lost my will to complete the program. 

 Through some deep inner desire, I have once again begun the process of reaching for my fitness goals.  However, this time I am being more realistic in what I can achieve.  Once I am able to afford the effort involved, I will take P90X on again, but not until  then.  When will that be able to take place?  I have no idea… and therein lies the wisdom I have gained:  Only take upon yourself, that which you can sufficiently perform.  Neglecting this simple principle will leave you sick, injured, and even worse, lost of your fitness inspirations.

What I am doing is quite simple, and I am going to continue keeping it simple b/c I wish for it to become a habit I keep for life.  One hour each day, I only walk.  The other 23 hours of my day are spent watching what I eat and getting the rest my body needs.  Doing this simple regiment will enable me to take on more activity as my body slims and tones.  Several years of inactivity cannot be reversed in 90 days.  It is unrealistic. 

When I have lost the weight I deem necessary, I will see where I stand physically then make the necessary steps to increase my activity level. One day, I will own a P90X body.  It is a promise I have made to myself, and I will not stop my progress towards that. 

I’ve had to ban myself from the gym the last several days.  Just as sure as I get myself accustomed to a new workout schedule… and one I really like, too… I come down with the worst sickness I’ve had in years.  It started out as respiratory, but also seemed to reek havoc on my stomach too.  Heck, it may have been two sicknesses at once.  Anyway, now that I’ve allowed myself to heal properly, I’ve begun my workouts again.  Tonight was my first night back in over one week, and I really was able to enjoy it.  I made sure not to over-do it!

 Remember this, any readers out there…. When you’re sick, you have to give your body time to heal and recover.  When we are working our bodies hard, it needs all the rest and nutrition it can get, and by working out, we send our bodies into recovery mode.  Only make your body recover from one or the other:  working out or sickness… not both.  The process for each is very similar!

I started P90X with a friend at the gym, and now, it’s grown into a full blown class of many. 

After two weeks of the program, I’m happy to say that I’ve lost 6 lbs and 2% bodyfat.  With this information, I’m pumped, psyched, whatever you want to say… that I am finally on a course that works for me. 

I can’t wait to see how far I progress by the time my 40th Birthday arrives in May. !!!

Four months away from the gym has taken it’s toll.  Never again!  I burdened myself with too much work and evening classes, and unfortunately, all my progress from March to August was lost.  GONE.  So even though I am starting over again, I am happy to be getting gym visits back into my regular routine. 

 All I can do is keep moving forward, and try not to complain about it.

Today, I’ve hit a new personal low.  Bodyweight, that is.  After weeks of staggering through my routine, I think I’ve finally found a solution that really works for me.  Pure cardio.  Well, at least 80%, b/c I don’t wanna loose any valuable muscle tissues that will potentially burn off body fat.  Also, I succumbed to my Dr.’s wishes, and began taking blood-pressure meds.  My stroke from two years ago still lingers in my mind and, well, I don’t want to go through that again!!!  I assured him though, that the blood-pressure meds would only have to be necessary for the interim, as I fully intend to be med-free by getting into better shape.  I just had no idea how much better I would feel by taking the meds, and how MUCH it would positively impact my workouts!  This week, I’ve been arriving at the gym at 5:00AM, and spending a full hour on the elliptical at full tilt, and at 75% resistance.  I will not allow myself to step off that machine until I’ve burned (according to it’s calorie counter) 1000 calories.  Then, I will trade-off days of either doing light weights, or even more cardio on either the treadmill or stationary (upright) bike… with a minimum of 30 more minutes on them.  (Let me say that I easily go through my 1 litre water bottle every morning).

 There is nothing like the feeling of accomplishment after finding a routine that works for yourself!!!!!!!

I’ve been a slug lately.  In fact, I haven’t been to the gym more than twice in two weeks.  Eeegads, I hate to see what the scales will say!  The tape measure too. 

 Ah well, such is life and such is this journey.  I don’t expect perfection, but I do expect progress for the long term.  My indecision of whether to build mass first or see just how cut I can get is my only real stumbling block.  Somehow, I feel as if I don’t do cardio I am cheating myself of good heart-healthy exercise.

Picture this:  Sitting in front of my locker, having already showered, shaved, etc., I am just testing to see if a certain pair of socks can be deemed ‘reusable’ for the day.  There’s no other way to assess, than to place the sock within sniffing distance, right?  Well, just as I take the whif, one of the gym’s personal trainers, Mr. Jaron Tate of last year’s The Biggest Loser fame, rounds the corner and observes me during the midst of my sock assessment.

 "You did not just smell that sock, did you?" he asked half-surprised and half-amused.  The look on his face will forever be burned into my memory banks.  We had a good laugh, then I made the comment, "Acceptable!", and proceeded to dress myself for the day.

Okay, just a little more than last week, but I’m not at all surprised.  I’m still making progress overall, as I’ve bumped-up my time on the elliptical to a full hour and I can definitely tell that my heart rate takes much less time to recover.  Also, I can tell that my total energy level through the day stays more constant.  All in all, I must say that I’m feeling better than I have in years!  I look forward to all that I can achieve, even with a set-back now and then….

I can’t believe I’ve done it.  One week behind me and still wanting more.  Yesterday was also weigh-in day, which I knew would likely bring mixed feelings.  I had cheated and had weighed two days before and that had been a disappointment, as I had actually showed to be heavier than when I started.  So yesterday, I was preparing myself for more of the same.  

I stood at my locker after my workout, staring-down the scales as I peeled off my sweaty clothes.  Then, as if I was trying to take the scales by surprise, I stepped onto them…  Wow!  4.5 lbs lighter!!! 

I realize that since I am also incorporating muscle building into my routine that I will have weeks that I don’t show losses in body weight, but this was a good first-week weigh in treat.

I have to admit, I LOVE my calves.  They’re not natural.  I love working them out and showing them off.  Today, I indulged, and worked them out harder than I ever have and do believe I got my first experience with having a ‘pump’?.