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Barbara shares her workout experience
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I knew that this wasn’t going to be easy so I needed to do some soul searching by asking myself the following questions. This allowed me to really understand why this was important for me. It was really understanding and knowing this that motivated me. For me it had to be just more than losing weight that’s a bonus.
What’s this about? Do I just want to lose weight? What are my goals?
- for me when I got down to the nitty-gritty of it all, it wasn’t about loosing weight or fitting into my summer clothes (because I could always get new ones, any excuse for a shopping trip) I’m not overweight, but dropping a few pounds would be fine.
- want to be feel physically strong and have the stamina to rollerblade again this summer
- to participate in a fundraising walk this Fall
- to hike the Himalyas when I’m 80
- to feel strength in my upper body
- to take physical time for my health
What are my weaknesses?
- making excuses such as: “I’m too tired to workout, I don’t have the time.”
- putting work first
- not liking working out
- not planning my meals
- not knowing if I snack on things I shouldn’t
- not putting me first
What are my strengths?
- I already eat well, no junk food, caffeine, or processed foods
- determination / stubbornness
- organized
- I truly want to be healthy
What do I love to do?
- I love dancing
- I love rollerblading
- I love hiking in the woods
- I love being down at the water
- I love when my body feels strong
- I love having energy
Doing this short exercise gave me the opportunity to assess my weaknesses and strengths along with what doesn’t motivate me and what does to create a plan that would work for me.
My next steps
Although I’m busy if I wanted to accomplish my goals I had to become disciplined and organized. This is how I began:
1. Working out with a trainer was absolutely essential. Sean guaranteed I’d reach my goals with the perfect exercises. He understands the body in a way I don’t. He guided me through what I had to look at and what the next steps were along the way. He made sure that I started with small steps and worked my way up to harder exercises. How often do we push ourselves too hard and give up because it is too hard. He gave me the proper instruction so I would get the most effective results and avoid injury. He kept me focused when I thought I couldn’t go further. I also had to schedule it in my day timer - I was making a commitment to Sean and to me.
2. Set up an eating journal. Even though I eat well, my food intake timing was off we found that I ate more in the afternoon and on than I did in the morning, and I get up very early in the morning. Sean recommended I eat six times a day: three meals and three snacks, 2.5 3 hours apart to raise my metabolism to burn fat and stifle cravings due to low blood sugar.
When I read the article “Eating to Lose” featured in this issue of the magazine and on the website, I started following their sample eating plan. This really assisted me because it can be hard to know what which foods would benefit me the most. By having a structured eating plan helped me get organized in planning and shopping for food.
In the beginning I had to set a timer so that I would eat every 2.5 to 3 hours. Once I got became accustomed to eating so often my body told me well in advance when the next meal or snack was due. I always make sure that I have healthy snacks that I can grab from the frig to take with me when I go out. When you choose a trainer be sure to choose someone who understands nutrition and it’s affect on the body, it really isn’t just about exercise.
3. Increasing my water intake from 1.5L to 3L a day gave me more energy and suppressed food urges. I’ve been a water drinker for years, that’s really my primary beverage. In the past I sometimes had orange juice first thing in the morning. I no longer do that. I drink herbal tea green tea maybe once a week certainly not daily.
I wanted to increase my water intake so here are a couple of things I did to help myself: I use a straw, to take in water without gulping air. The air we gulp can be what makes us feel full. I noticed that by using a straw I actually do drink more water. I keep a pitcher of water on my desk along with my glass, as soon as I take a drink of water I fill up my glass so that I always have a full glass of water. I little trick to make me think I’m not drinking enough water, it worked.
4. Since I don’t like doing traditional workouts I had to integrate things that I love to do into workouts. I love to dance, so I started salsa dancing again. I also went to NIA a couple of times a week; this is an integration of dance, martial arts and yoga movements. This was a good balance for and I found that working out really helped my stamina with the dance and vice versa; a great compliment to one another. It really is important to do things that you love.
What I’ve learned
There are many different things I’ll continue to learn, here’s some of the things I’ve learned so far:
1. I have muscles in areas of my body I didn’t know existed
2. Using my own body weight makes me perspire more than I thought humanly possible and provides startling results
3. It’s absolutely mandatory to wear proper workout shoes to avoid injury and for comfort
4. Wearing specially designed workout clothing moves moisture away from the body making the experience more enjoyable. Brooks Technical Ladies Wear line is great, even though I perspire profusely I didn’t feel yucky and my clothes weren’t drenched and sticking to me at the end of the workout. Just because you’re working out doesn’t mean that you can’t look good. Oprah says that someday there’ll be scientific evidence that working out in cute clothes makes us workout better and harder. Well if my experience can be classified as scientific proof then it’s true. I felt much better working out in something that was attractive as opposed to frumpy. And once I started loosing inches and getting firmer it showed because I wasn’t wearing baggy, old clothes, this motivated me even more.
5. I don’t have to kill myself working out to make a change; it’s a matter of consistency. That’s why for me working out with a trainer ensured the consistency I had to be accountable. This begins the pattern and habit to continue.
6. It’s important to have a check up before beginning a workout program not only to make sure you’re healthy but to know where you started.
7. That it’s never too late to start taking care of my body, and it’s never too little. What’s important is doing something to take care of my machine my body.
I hope to continue to share my experiences with you and I hope you will share your experiences with me  The other important thing I learned is that we don’t have to do it alone because we all want to be and feel healthy. Ask yourself thought-provoking questions and begin your plan to a healthier you. H&L
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