Weekly Workout Recap: Planning for Fitness and “Testing” Some JM Videos

Umm.. no way will this ever be me. (*hides*)

I have been thinking quite a bit about the goal that I want to work towards.

Initially, I figured I needed to join a sport of some sort since it would be easier to visualize. So maybe working towards a body competition, you know, the fit ladies who are super tanned in skimpy bikinis? I had a friend who was into it and I know she devotes an inordinate amount of time to prepare for it. I then remembered that I am an introvert and doing anything on stage practically naked is probably not a good idea.

So what about rock climbing, boxing, cycling, triathlons, half marathons, power-lifting, etc.? It dawned on me that choosing a specific sport too soon is too much commitment in time and money for something I don’t know if I will like just so I can force myself into a goal.

I figured I should start with the journey before I determine an “end goal.” So ultimately, I decided that…

1. I want to get into the best shape I have ever been
2. I want to incorporate exercise videos into my life as a daily habit (I want to feel weird if I go a day without doing it)
3. I want to be able to develop my cardio endurance enough so that I can participate in a 5k without stopping, maybe in a Disneyworld 5k!
4. I want to be able to do a proper pull-up/chin-up, 5 total! (for now)
5. Lastly, I want to be able to do a hand stand, hand stand push-up, and maybe walk on my hands!

Yes, that’s literally it. Those are the goals for now. I would like to learn how to swim eventually and maybe even do a proper cartwheel. Heck, I might even work up into playing basketball or some kind of adult sports league. We’ll see!

Back to basics. I need to focus on goals #1 and #2 right now.

At this point, I had decided on following the 30 Day Shred as the core of my “First Month of Fitness” and augmenting it with other videos on the weekends or days off when I am able to devote a bit more time to exercising. After the 30 days (it feels so far away, doesn’t it?), depending on how it goes, I may do another cycle of 30DS or start a new cycle of Ripped in 30.

I also determined that evening workouts will be best on the weekdays I get home from work. I am a night owl and I have a hard time falling asleep, so waking up early is so hard to do! Maybe a morning routine will be something I try once my sleep quality gets better. Right now, it feels like too much.

I normally work 9am to 5pm and it takes me about 20-25 minutes to walk home. The schedule will be tight because I have to rush home and get my workout done ASAP.

Why? Because I live with my boyfriend who has a longer commute where he gets home by 6:30-7pm. He is a fit and attractive guy and I am lucky to have him in my life. However, I have been feeling and looking pretty gross and I am embarrassed for him to see my floppy ass jumping around to an exercise video. At this point, I feel like I need to hide it from him. He’s aware that I will be working out, but I don’t want him to see me do it. When I feel better about myself, I will be more open about it. Of course, if he walks in on me working out, there’s not much I can do about it. I just want to avoid that situation right now and any feelings of embarrassment.

Lastly, I am going to try to convince people in my life to get involved too! I have 3 groups so far:

1. My family: Sister and 3 girl cousins
2. My high school group of friends (plus one of their boyfriends)
3. My college buddy and some of her coworkers

In total, there are about 15 people participating. The whole point is to get everyone going and we’ll establish a core workout group. I’m hoping it’s not just going to be me at the end!

12/17/16: I did Level 1 of the 30 Day Shred again. This wasn’t really the beginning of the workout program, but rather to test out the videos while I had a lull in the crazy work schedule. The workout itself went well enough. I am still super weak and need to work on the push-ups. Level 1 winded me out. However, as expected, I did not get crazy sore as I did the first time. Just a bit, but not as debilitating.

12/18/16: As an Amazon Prime member, they were offering some free trials to certain channels that had Jillian Michaels videos on them, like the BeFit Channel and the FitFusion Channel as a 7 day free trial. I highly doubt I will be subscribing to the channels after previewing it, but I am stoked to have the access so I can check them out! The plan is to take notes on which one would be good to buy given my level of fitness and what I would like to work on after finishing my first month or what I should double up on during the weekends.