In the past month I have lost 21 pounds, worked out a little over 25 hours and have burned almost 21,000 calories! Although it hasn’t been easy, I have easily doubled my expectations as far as how much weight I had hoped to lose for my first month.
When I started this 28-week program four weeks ago I had hoped to be at minus ten pounds my first month, so obviously losing 21 pounds is more than I could have hoped for. Surprisingly, doing so well this first month only makes me want to work even harder for next month. One task I think will really help me this next month is to really work on resisting temptations as far as eating and drinking.
Speaking of resisting, I am now doing a resistance training Boot Camp two days a week. The classes are held on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 5am. On the way to the gym Tuesday morning I had a funny epiphany when I passed a nightclub with their lights still on and it hit me how nuts it is that I was up, driving through midtown at 4am on my way to go workout, not on my way home.
Those who know me know I’m more of the guy who would go to bed at 4am even if I had to work the next morning, not the guy who would get up at 4am to go workout...
For me, the hardest part about getting up so early is going to bed early. Let me just say, there’s something very humbling about going to bed when the sun has not completely set, but trust me I was thankful for my night’s rest about five minutes into my first Boot Camp.
My first class was definitely a lot more challenging than I thought it was going to be. Although there was no drill sergeant with a whistle, the class was definitely serious business. What really made my first class challenging is I did not know what to expect. For instance when we were told to run to the end of the street and back, I assumed after we completed that we would move on to something else – to my surprise that was not the case. Had I known we would be running back and forth ten times, I definitely would have done my first lap a lot slower! Basically my first class consisted of a short cardio warm up, running up and down stairs three times, jogging outside followed by squats and lunges and then we moved inside for circuit weight training on the machines. In between each of the five weight stations we had to do more stairs – let me just say, stairs are not my friend!
Monday and Wednesday after Zumba I’ve started taking an abs class taught by a new personal trainer at the gym named Justin. I’ve talked with him a couple times and am thinking about using him for some one-on-one sessions.
This morning was my second attempt at Boot Camp and sadly, getting out of bed this morning was definitely the easiest part of my morning. Boot Camp kicked by butt today! We started with cardio again, then stairs, then outside for some more running, then back in for weights, however this time not only did we have to do more stairs in between sets, we also had to do twenty pushups too. My first class I learned stairs are not my friend and today I am officially marking push-ups off my allies list as well!
I really tried to workout as much as possible this past week; I guess you can say I was resisting a rest! (sorry, couldn’t resist) Here’s what I did:
07/11 4 Mile Super Challenge Video; 558 calories burned
07/12 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/13 Yard work for an hour and 30 minutes; 1152 calories burned
07/14 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/14 Core class with Justin for 15 minutes; 209 calories burned
07/15 Boot Camp for an hour; 1116 calories burned
07/16 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/16 Core class with Justin for 15 minutes; 209 calories burned
Oh one new development this week: I got my first weight loss compliment! Sure my family and friends have been encouraging and supportive but there’s something about getting complimented from people who are not related to you…
After Zumba Wednesday night one of the instructors said I was “shrinking” and that “they’ve all noticed”. It really made my night cause I was extremely sore from boot camp and contemplated not going but even though I could barely raise my arms – I did it anyways. Truth be told, after the first 5 minutes or so, I forgot all about my soreness. It’s really funny how the smallest smile, thumbs up or nod of the head in a “you're-doing-good-kind-of-way” from my instructors can really give me the push I need to pull through.
Not only am I trying to always pull through I am really trying to follow through. Like they say, "Nothing in life worth having comes without some kind of fight.” I think this quote rings true in my life. Nothing worth having is easy. The problem is my natural tendency is to take the easy road. I don't know why but I always try to take the path of least resistance.
The problem with the path of least resistance is that it leads nowhere. It’s for people who want the fruits of labor without having to do the labor itself. People who want the rewards with out the challenges, the victory without the fight, the good times without the sacrifice.
When I started this 28-week program four weeks ago I had hoped to be at minus ten pounds my first month, so obviously losing 21 pounds is more than I could have hoped for. Surprisingly, doing so well this first month only makes me want to work even harder for next month. One task I think will really help me this next month is to really work on resisting temptations as far as eating and drinking.
Speaking of resisting, I am now doing a resistance training Boot Camp two days a week. The classes are held on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 5am. On the way to the gym Tuesday morning I had a funny epiphany when I passed a nightclub with their lights still on and it hit me how nuts it is that I was up, driving through midtown at 4am on my way to go workout, not on my way home.
Those who know me know I’m more of the guy who would go to bed at 4am even if I had to work the next morning, not the guy who would get up at 4am to go workout...
For me, the hardest part about getting up so early is going to bed early. Let me just say, there’s something very humbling about going to bed when the sun has not completely set, but trust me I was thankful for my night’s rest about five minutes into my first Boot Camp.
My first class was definitely a lot more challenging than I thought it was going to be. Although there was no drill sergeant with a whistle, the class was definitely serious business. What really made my first class challenging is I did not know what to expect. For instance when we were told to run to the end of the street and back, I assumed after we completed that we would move on to something else – to my surprise that was not the case. Had I known we would be running back and forth ten times, I definitely would have done my first lap a lot slower! Basically my first class consisted of a short cardio warm up, running up and down stairs three times, jogging outside followed by squats and lunges and then we moved inside for circuit weight training on the machines. In between each of the five weight stations we had to do more stairs – let me just say, stairs are not my friend!
Monday and Wednesday after Zumba I’ve started taking an abs class taught by a new personal trainer at the gym named Justin. I’ve talked with him a couple times and am thinking about using him for some one-on-one sessions.
This morning was my second attempt at Boot Camp and sadly, getting out of bed this morning was definitely the easiest part of my morning. Boot Camp kicked by butt today! We started with cardio again, then stairs, then outside for some more running, then back in for weights, however this time not only did we have to do more stairs in between sets, we also had to do twenty pushups too. My first class I learned stairs are not my friend and today I am officially marking push-ups off my allies list as well!
I really tried to workout as much as possible this past week; I guess you can say I was resisting a rest! (sorry, couldn’t resist) Here’s what I did:
07/11 4 Mile Super Challenge Video; 558 calories burned
07/12 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/13 Yard work for an hour and 30 minutes; 1152 calories burned
07/14 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/14 Core class with Justin for 15 minutes; 209 calories burned
07/15 Boot Camp for an hour; 1116 calories burned
07/16 Zumba class for an hour; 838 calories burned
07/16 Core class with Justin for 15 minutes; 209 calories burned
Oh one new development this week: I got my first weight loss compliment! Sure my family and friends have been encouraging and supportive but there’s something about getting complimented from people who are not related to you…
After Zumba Wednesday night one of the instructors said I was “shrinking” and that “they’ve all noticed”. It really made my night cause I was extremely sore from boot camp and contemplated not going but even though I could barely raise my arms – I did it anyways. Truth be told, after the first 5 minutes or so, I forgot all about my soreness. It’s really funny how the smallest smile, thumbs up or nod of the head in a “you're-doing-good-kind-of-way” from my instructors can really give me the push I need to pull through.
Not only am I trying to always pull through I am really trying to follow through. Like they say, "Nothing in life worth having comes without some kind of fight.” I think this quote rings true in my life. Nothing worth having is easy. The problem is my natural tendency is to take the easy road. I don't know why but I always try to take the path of least resistance.
The problem with the path of least resistance is that it leads nowhere. It’s for people who want the fruits of labor without having to do the labor itself. People who want the rewards with out the challenges, the victory without the fight, the good times without the sacrifice.
I am proud to say I have veered away from that Path on this journey; not only am I putting in the efforts, I am reaping the rewards!
1 comment:
Chris - I can't express enough how AWESOME you are doing!!! I can't wait to see the new "shrinking" you tomorrow!!!
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