Getting Started

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it." -Lou Holtz

I am embarking on a new fitness journey. I decided a few days ago that I needed something different in my exercise routine that would challenge me and give me the results I am looking for. Not very surprisingly, Groupon and Living Social started having a variety of boot camp and exercise deals with many gyms in the triad area on January 1st. I looked through them all and one caught my attention. It was by Fitness One Training Systems in Kernersville. I called the gym and talked to the owner (Allen) over the phone about what options I had. He suggested coming to an introductory session and then talking to him afterwards if I became interested. I went and the workout facility looks like a place boxers would train in. There is a boxing ring along with punching bags and every sort of exercise equipment that you can think of. A group of beginners and I were led through a workout that utilized kettle bells and TRX bands. As I felt my muscles being pushed and engaged in something different, I began to think this place might be a good fit for me.

I talked to Allen after and decided that instead of buying into the Groupon deal (that included 3 workouts a week for 21 days with a nutrition plan), I would get the membership which allows me to go to as many classes as I want (they are all throughout the day and vary), a nutrition plan, and a couple personal training sessions. I think this option will work better with my schedule and is a little more focused on what I am looking for. I really enjoyed my experience at the gym and I'm excited to go back. Allen is able to give me a lot of personal attention and that was exactly what I was looking for.

Goals

The reason that I decided to look into something different to push myself physically and mentally is because I have been at a standstill with my fitness level. My first goal is to lose 10 pounds. This has been something I have wanted to do this for a while now. I feel like the 10 pounds will help trim the fat and slim me down to where I want to be (especially in certain areas like these thunder thighs!!). I weighed in at 132 pounds yesterday so that will be the weight I will measure myself against. My second goal is to increase my flexibility. No joke, I cannot touch my toes. That’s horrible for a 22-year-old not to be able to do. Flexibility is not only great for your muscles but helps you perform better in your workouts. My third goal is to increase speed and intensity. I want to be able to improve my running speed and also the speed and intensity in which I perform various aspects of my workouts. The only way I’m going to see any changes and results in my body is if I take it up a notch! However, some exercises are meant to be down at a slower speed so I would obviously not try and perform those faster. My last goal is to decrease my body fat. I will get my body fat measurements hopefully in the next couple of days of my body fat and will use that to measure up against.

The Next Step

Now that my goals are in line and I have my resources ready at hand, it is time to execute! My plans is to keep this blog of my workouts, keep a food diary and also report about it here, and also use helpful advice from the nutritionist and inspiring quotes to keep me motivated. This is certainly going to be a big challenge for me but recording it like this will help.

My layout of my blog will look like this every day:

Date: 1/4/2012

Workout: From 5:30-6:15pm: 45 minutes of Cardio at Rush, From 7-8pm: 60 minute Kickboxing class at Fitness One

Food:

                Morning: Banana, 2 eggs w/spinach and cheese= 290 Calories

                Morning Snack: Activa Yogurt & Clementine=140 Calories

                Lunch: Salad w/ light dressing, chicken noodle soup, sliced green peppers and hummus=300 calories

                Afternoon Snack: Kashi Bar=120 Calories

                Dinner: Grilled Chicken, Steamed Broccoli, 1 c. cooked brown rice=320 Calories

Total Calorie Intake: 1,170 Calories

Estimated Water: 70 ounces (should be at least 66 ounces)

I am already learning a lot through this program so I will document that here as well. So far, here are some helpful hints that the nutritionist sent me:

·        Eat 5 small meals a day. This helps keep your metabolism up.

·        For snacks in between meals, try and keep them less than 200 calories.

·        Do not eat under 1,000 calories a day because then the body goes into survival mode and stores everything you eat as fat instead of burning it for energy because it doesn’t know how often you’re going to feed it so it protects itself by storing.

·         Make sure to get 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Lack of sleep increases the cortisol hormone and decreases the leptin protein in your body. Increased cortisol in your body will increase blood pressure and blood sugar. Leptin regulates our body weight. When these two hormones get unbalanced from lack of sleep, it increases our hunger and appetite.

The nutritionist also sent meal plans with healthy recipe ideas. I will put some of those on here as I try them out. Counting calories is difficult, time consuming, and requires advanced planning but totally worth it and vital to do in order to reach your fitness goals!