Phase 3: By the Numbers

I am officially two months in to my reCommitment to Fitness, and I'm going strong. I feel better than I have in a long time, and I'm more defined and fit than I've been in, well...ever.

And quite frankly, the numbers don't lie.

On Day 1, Week 1, I did:

46 push ups

17 wide front pull ups

33 military push ups

13 reverse grip chin ups

34 wide fly push ups

14 close grip over hand pull ups

30 decline pushups

Now, on Day 1, Week 9, I did:

76 push ups (61% increase)

41 wide front pull ups (141% increase)

56 military push ups (69% increase)

29 reverse grip chin ups (123% increase)

60 wide fly push ups (76% increase)

28 close grip over hand pull ups (100% increase)

48 decline push ups (60% increase)

I didn't weigh myself at the beginning, but I'm now at 160.8 pounds. While the numbers are great, most importantly is how I feel. I have made a total lifestyle commitment to fitness, keeping in mind the idea that moderation is key and even moderation needs to be ignored every now and again. I still go out with friends. I still enjoy beer and wine. I still eat the occasional treat. Over the past two months, I have certainly over indulged in food and or liquor, but it's now more the exception than the rule. I've adopted a healthy mindset and set of activities that make me feel great and keep me healthy.

While there are only 4 weeks left of the P90X program (at which point I'll post before and after photos), there is no end in sight to my reCommitment.

Going Strong, Feeling Strong

I am now a full month into my reCommitment 2 Fitness. Over the last 4 1/2 weeks, I've made serious changes to my overall lifestyle. The results and benefits have been nothing short of astounding. After overhauling my diet and exercise patterns, I've noticed a lot of changes.

First, I feel better than I have in a very long time. You don't realize how little energy and focus you have when you're not working out and eating right. On the mornings I get up to workout at 4 a.m., I have more energy throughout the day than on days I don't. Even though I'm getting up when some people are going to bed, the feeling and pride of my morning workouts carry me throughout the day. An added bonus, and one I wasn't expecting was that I feel like I'm a better teacher. The energy translates into how I act in the classroom.

Second, I look better. I didn't weigh myself at the beginning, because I really didn't have much weight to lose. I can see the changes though. Clothes fit differently. My body composition has changed. I'm stronger and leaner.

Lastly, I've found a drive in other activities that I otherwise wouldn't have enjoyed, if I wasn't reCommitting 2 Fitness. The first of my two new addictions is snowboarding. I've only been twice, but I'm hooked. The physical demands of the sport are tough, especially on the core and lower body. The first time I went, I, for lack of a better word, got my ass kicked by the mountain. But the second time? I owned it. Well...as much as I can own it after only having gone two times. Still...being healthy and fit has made learning all the easier.

The next new passion has become hot power yoga. P90x has a "YogaX" component. I'd done that for the first 2 weeks and did okay with it. My roommate has been trying to get me to go with her to her hot yoga classes for a while. I finally decided to go and am 100% addicted. It's physically and spiritually exactly what I'm looking for in a workout. And workout...it is! Anyone who thinks it's just a bunch of stretching and posing is sorely sorely mistaken. I've gone as much as 3 times in one week. I love it and can see the benefits from yoga in all other areas of my fitness as well.

So here I am, on Week 5 of my reCommitment and couldn't feel any better. This is truly a newly adopted lifestyle. I haven't given up on drinking or sworn off sweets, or anything like that, because as I mentioned in an earlier post, that's not what this is about. It's about LIVING LIFE in a healthy manner. It's about making choices that allow me to balance all that life is about...all with head up, eyes open, heart full and body strong.

-D

Life as I Know It...

Here I am...the end of the 2nd week of my reCommitment to Fitness. My diet has been overhauled and my workouts have been consistent and focused. When my alarm goes off at 4:10 a.m. for my morning workouts, I still cringe, but I get out of bed with a sense of purpose and determination. I feel I've gotten past the stage of reminding my body what it means to work out and have gotten into the "routine". This is what I was hoping to accomplish with this reCommitment. It feels good. It feels familiar. And yet...something is different.

In life, it's really easy to just go through the motions. Human beings are creatures of habit. We're comforted by "same", by, "routine." We can take the same exact route to work every day, for years, blindly doing what we've always done. We just...do. And that's how it's been for me, and working out. I'd focus, commit, work, and then...stop. This has happened before...several times, in fact. That was my "routine", that was my cycle. But as I said, something now is different. It's like that route to work. We go, daily, along the same path, year after year, and then one day, out of no where, we notice something different. Maybe it's a house we never noticed, or a huge tree along the way. It might be significant, or small. Regardless, something "clicks"....something suddenly breaks the cycle....it becomes new.

And that's where I am with working out. Before, I used to need a beginning, and an end. I'd need that 12-week program; something that had a finish line in sight. As I look back, that was my downfall. Fitness doesn't have an end date. It's a mindset; it's a lifestyle. I get that now.

Take beer, for example. I like beer. I really like beer. I have my categories, too. In the Winter, I'm all about the dark beers; the Stouts and Porters. In the Spring, a good Heffeweisen or wheat beer. In Summer....Corona is King. Come fall? Pumpkin Head, with a brown sugar rim, please. And if I just want to crush beers on a stamina-needing Sunday Funday??? It's the Taste of the Rockies, all the way. But I digress...

When I first started this reCommitment, I planned on staying away from all beer, wine and alcohol. Not that I was a huge drinker, but it wouldn't be out of the ordinary to open a bottle of wine with dinner, and have a few beers while watching t.v. When I'd go out with friends, we could easily go through several bottles of wine (Menton, Raptors?) But that was over. Yup, I was done...I was reCommiting to Fitness, after all. The goal was six weeks. I did it last year, I could do it again.

The first week came and went. In fact, my post last Saturday mentioned the fact that I hadn't had anything to drink all week. One week down, 5 to go. Done and done. And then...I went snowboarding. Three of us went up, two "newbs" and one vet. The goal was to shred by the end of the day. There I was, Sunday afternoon and I was getting my ass kicked by the mountain. It was my first time snowboarding and I was getting destroyed. After a particularly frustrating run, my buddy who was teaching us said, "Okay, time for beers." Part of me was psyched....just what the doctor ordered, but then, I remember...my reCommitment. Shit. No beers for me. As if tumbling down a mountain all day wasn't bad enough, now...no beer???? Well, now I was cranky. We made out way into the lodge and my buddy asked what I want.

"Water."

"Water? And...?'

"That's it. Water."

Well, my water comes, and with it...a Coors Light. (My friends know me well.)

"I know you're doing P90, but you need this.", he said.

I wasn't going to do drink it. I was reCommitted! And then he said something that made sense.

"Look, you know you're going to start drinking beers again." And he was right.

The thing was, he wasn't trying to pressure me, or derail my week's worth of success. He was 100% correct. I WOULD start to drink beers again. I love beer! My friends love beer! It was an inevitability. And that's when it "clicked". That's when something jumped out at me along the path I had tread for so long.

Fitness isn't about drastic lifestyle changes that are impossible and impractical to adhere to. It's about little changes, making good decisions and keeping good habits that can continue and become part of everyday life. I'm not going to give up beer. ESPECIALLY at a ski lodge with good friend as I was getting my ass handed to me by the Bunny Slope. Hell...that was when I needed beer the most.

No...fitness is about things like not cracking that bottle of wine with dinner on a Wednesday night, "just because", or watching a Celtics game at home with a bottle of water, rather than a beer. Those are viable, realistic changes.

For the first time, I see myself Committing to Fitness for good. Yup, life as I know it has changed....and it's great. And that, is something I'll drink to...

-D

One week in..

And with my workout this afternoon, I have officially completed Week 1 of the P90X program. It wasn't easy...wasn't easy at all, but, here I am looking back on the week that was. This past week, I:

Worked out 6 times in 6 days.

Stuck to a clean and balanced diet.

Did not drink any beer, wine or alcohol.

And the benefits were:

Energy.

Yes, I know everyone says, "I worked out and feel great!" but, I really really do. In fact, on the days that I woke up at 4 a.m. to get a work out in, I felt like I was in a better mood and a better teacher. I really never thought changing my diet and getting back to working out would impact my job, but, it really seemed to do just that. Without a doubt, working out impacts all aspects of your life.

Motivation.

After 1 week, I feel better than I have in a long time, both physically and mentally. Not only that, but I actually think I can see results. Yeah, it's only been 1 week, but it's been 1 intense week. And whether these results are real or imagined, they are but a tiny precursor of bigger and better results to come. So, after 1 week, the increased energy, better mood and promise of results have got me excited and focused on pushing forward.

So here we go, ready to kick some ass in week 2. I don't anticipate it being any easier than week 1. I'll still be sore and I'll still be tired, but mostly, I'll still be motivated.

On a side note, Sunday, my "rest" day will be spent at Watchusett Mountain snowboarding for the first time. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time and am now finally getting out to do it. I know it wont be easy. I'll be sore, and tired, but motivated.

Funny, it seems that most things in life you want don't come easily. In some way or another, the pursuit will leave you sore, and tired, but, if you want it badly enough, you need to find the motivation to make it happen.

Thanks to all those who have checked in, read and commented, either on the blog, or to me. It has helped immensely, so please keep reading, keep commenting, and keep helping me stay motivated to my Commitment to Fitness.

-D

Rise and Shine...

The first EARLY a.m. workout is in the bag. After hitting snooze once from a 4:10 a.m. wake up call, I was dressed and working out by 4:30 a.m. When the alarm first started to buzz, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to get up. I immediately started making excuses and alternate plans...."If I hurry home from work then I can get half a workout in today...", "I'll just push the workout week back a day....", etc. etc. As I was contemplating my options during the 10-minute reprieve that is the snooze option, I realized if I want this badly enough, I will make it happen. There are no excuses, there are no alternatives. There is either "do" or "don't". I'm either making the commitment or not. No, it isn't going to be easy, and yes I will be tired and sore along the way. Anything worth committing to is going to take effort and mental toughness. So, when the alarm buzzed for the second time...I got up. I worked out.

No, it wasn't easy. Yes, I'm tired. Oh man, I'm already sore. But I did it. There's "do", and there's "don't". Which are you going to choose?

-D

And here we go...

My "comeback tour" has officially started, and I'm on my way to reCommitting to Fitness. After getting home from work, I immediately changed and pushed play for the Chest and Back workout of P90X. Yes, my hands are shaking. Sure, I feel slightly nauseous. Oh man, I'm already sore. But...I feel great. The numbers weren't impressive, but that just means there is room to improve. Couple the great workout with a balanced diet, and so far...so good. Yes, yes, it's only mid-way through Day 1, but...it all starts somewhere.

For those interested, my diet for the consisted of:

Breakfast: 1 cup of Cheerios with fat-free milk

Snack: Whole grain English muffin with a TBSP of all-natural peanut butter

Lunch: Green apple with a chicken sandwich.

Snack: 25 raw almonds

Post-workout: Banana and yogurt

Dinner Chicken sandwich and apple (yes, the same as lunch but I'll be at the game tonight so can't make anything else)

Snack: Cottage cheese and blackberries

And so, it has begun...

Is Is Monday Yet?

Happy New Year to all! 2011 is here....1/1/11....pretty cool. Last night was great, as I spent the evening with some great people and had a lot of laughs, food, and drinks. That being said, I am SO VERY READY to start reCommitting to Fitness. Sure, I could go for a run today, or do a workout, but I'm going to officially wait for Monday to begin...see previous entry for the ridiculous reason why. Still....I can't wait. I'm at the point where I just feel uncomfortable in my own skin, and I want to get back to being "me".

I'm sure mid-workout I'll be hating every minute of it, but, loving it at the same time. Is it Monday yet?

-D