Sunday, September 29, 2013

Raise The Bar

It's no secret that I've been struggling with motivation for the last month or so.  I ran a half marathon that I didn't train for (and paid a heavy price for it) and I scratched the JHawk Latebird Tri from my schedule.  I'm tired of half-assing it. I'm tired of feeling so crappy about myself. I'm tired of failing to meet my own expectations - and yes, my expectations for myself are very high.  Thus, it's time to 'Raise The Bar'.


I'm embarking on a 90 day fitness challenge - centered around the Les Mills Pump program.  Pump is the at home version of the wildly popular BodyPump classes that are taught in fitness clubs around the world.  I used to take BodyPump 2-3x per week back when I had a YMCA membership and it's one of the very few things I miss about the Y.  I miss how strong I felt and the definition in I saw in my muscles. And I won't lie - I have a beach vacation coming up in December and I'd really rather not be sporting my usual layer of winter insulation along with my swimsuit.  I'm also hoping that this challenge reignites my desire to work hard to achieve my goals next season - and believe me when I say that those goals are BIG. I already know that the next 90 days won't be easy, but is anything worth having ever easy to get? 


Les Mills Pump consists of a weighted bar, 2 5lb weights, 2 10lb weights, 8 workout DVDs (ranging from 20-55 minutes), a training plan (3 phases - each 30 days long), and a nutrition guide.  There are 6 workouts every week and I'll also be trying to incorporate some swim/bike/run workouts as well.

On to the really scary part:  The "Before" measurements...and pictures. (Please be gentle.)

The details:

Weight: ideal weight + 5.8lbs
Body Fat: 23.5%
Chest: 33.5"
Waist: 27.5"
Right Arm: 10.5"
Left Arm: 10.5"
Hips: 37.0"
Right Thigh: 21.0"
Left Thigh: 21.0"

I was surprised that I haven't gained more weight and at how oddly symmetrical my arm and leg measurements are.

And now the pictures...


I think the only part of myself I didn't pick on when I saw these was my upper back - I guess all that swimming over the summer paid off!

My goal is to blog about the workouts and how I'm feeling from both a physical and psychological standpoint each week. I will blog about the results at the end of each of the three 30 Day phases.  I'm not terribly concerned with losing a lot of weight from this project - in fact I may even gain weight as a result of building muscle - but I would definitely like to see a decrease in my body fat percentage and an increase in overall muscle tone and definition (and my ass needs some lift).  I also feel that building a stronger, leaner core can only help me in becoming a better swimmer, cyclist, and runner - which is always my ultimate goal!


*My face is blurred/cropped in these pictures because I don't really want my face coming up in a random Google image search!


4 comments:

April said...

You are so much more dedicated than I will ever be.

Mary said...

I need to do something to get out of this slump!

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't worry about the swimsuit. My fat% is almost double yours. I blame the boobs though.

Mary said...

I'm worried. There's another set of "before" shots that I didn't post. I really didn't like what I saw.