Fitness Challenge Steemit Style! Creating New Habits
A change from my regular creative writing & whatnot...
So I posted my weightloss journey thus far last week. I've already come a long way since April!
I used to be a fitness instructor up until 2012 and was thin and fit. Then age 40 hit along with some who tf knows what kind of hormonal/age related bullshit and I gained over 90 pounds in nine months. Most of those months were when I was still working out 5-6 days a week, but my body went to hell and I felt like it had totally abandoned me. I've spent the last 5 years trying to find anything that would work for me, but all of the things that worked miracles when I was younger no longer made a difference.
I've spent the past year working on sustainable changes and now I'm ready to step up my pace and get some good energy going by increasing my now dismal fitness levels. I had read about this contest and thought that was a good place to start developing some stronger workout and exercise habits.
I've already lost right around 50 pounds (my scale fluctuates a LOT, but I'm still within a half a pound of fifty pounds lost) and I have at least another 30 to go (although I'm still 50+ pounds from my 'old' weight, I would prefer to have more muscle than I did then as I have no desire to just be skinny. I want to be STRONG, too!)
Here are a couple of side by sides of my progress thus far. Let's hope I can make the next 3 months just as effective for my new goals! (The "after" photos here will be my "before" as far as this contest goes)
So my goals for my 46 year old, super sedentary self, are as follows:
Current
Weight: 194lbs
RHR: 84
Fitness: I can do 5 sets of 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off HIIT cardio before I'm literally ready to vomit from the exertion. I am REALLY out of shape. Seriously 2.5 minutes of cardio does me IN.
GOALS (by March 1st)
Weight 170
RHR: 74
Fitness: I am going to work up to being able to do 20-30 minutes of HIIT (using battleropes and stall bars) at a shot without vomiting :/ Hopefully. I don't know if this works for the contest, but I can not workout outside without allergies knocking me on my ass and it's going to be cold as balls here once January really gets going... so I have to stick with what I have in my house already. If you have suggestions for a better way to have a measurable/compatible goal, I'm all ears.
Pledge 10SBD (edited to add that part because I forgot the first time around)
You can do this!! You know, this year was like that for me. I have been gaining weight for no reason. And getting hot flushes again - what?????? This sh...t should be over by now ( I am 60)(which is such a weird number because I don't feel that that should be my age lol).
I just started a challenge as well to do daily Hormone Yoga again. I know its Hormones going wild....
And pretty much eliminated gluten for a bit - at least no bread and such. Lots of veggies and protein and lots of vitamins for me.... We shall see.
I hear ya. I'm haven't gotten the hot flashes yet, but soooo many other things! I'm really needing to step up my exercising, but I also know that the peacefulness, strength AND flexibility that comes from yoga style practices are SO necessary for me.
Hormone Yoga is a therapy developed for women to balance their hormones. I am one of a handful of therapists in the US. it is from Brazil and very popular in Germany and other European Countries.
A hard sell here because you have to keep doing it - a pill is so much easier lol
I'm fairly against pills as much as possible! They always seem to have the opposite effect on me. I prefer to find natural ways. Now you just need to start a daily hormonal yoga practice online so I can join you.
thinking about it..... there is one problem. when I took my training, the teacher - at the time already 83, does not like to share freely. I had to sign something saying that I wasn't going to make vidoes and sell them ( a bunch of people did that in other countries). But doing an online class would be different, right? hmm. thinking.....
Yeah, I've been licensed/certified to teach several different formats. Some of them are VERY strict about what/how you can say/advertise or share and others are very laid back about it. Let me know if you find a way that works for you.
I will...
What I really wanted to tell you is that I nominated you for a sevenday black and white photo challenge...
https://steemit.com/sevendaybnwchallenge/@mariannewest/20171204t174558159z-post
Oh goodness... let me see if I can make that happen! I love photography :)
Wow! You've already made such amazing progress so far, that's truly inspirational. I think the challenge will be a fun addition to the next 3 months. I'm going think about about how to better standardize your exercise, but we can make it work something. You don't have any sort of stationary bike, rower, elliptical, etc?
No. I have the odd workout stuff at my place. Stall bars which I use for strength and cardio, battle ropes that I use for climing and the various cardio workouts that I've found. We've been trying to keep the home workout stuff to things that take up minimal space, so I don't have the normal stuff at this point. I've really never focused on cardio before (not since my Zumba teaching days years ago!). It's always been more strength training, so anything cardio is going to be a great challenge for me, I'm just not sure how to fit it into the contest.
Hey I've been thinking a lot about standardizing this for you, originally I though about timing doing something to exhaustion but I think the percent change will be to high. So I think a circuit would be perfect and with your training style.
It would have to be a rep based circuit and not time based. Something like 20pushup, 20burpies, 20 sit-ups, then repeat. Go ahead and add things that work for you. I'd say as long as it takes like 25-40mins it will be perfect then redo it at the end.
Awesome. I will see what I can work out and film my first attempt for a post when I'm back home this week. Thanks for the suggestion, I was really feeling like I just wasn't going to be able to figure out a way to standardize it. I'll come up with something really great and challenging for me. Maybe I can meet some personal goals I've been wanting to do in the process!
Wow! You're already on your way!
I attempted to start back in April... and totally failed. 😏
You know you can do it! And now ya have some folks along the journey 😍
Thanks! I have started and failed many times in the past. I think this time will stick, since I've focused so much on habits that I know I can sustain.