Bella the Gym Bunny – One word…SORE!

At 5pm today, I would’ve sworn I was on The Biggest Loser.  I was working my muscles beyond the point of “the burn.” I was sweating like a pig (I don’t really sweat that much, so continuously feeling drops down my neck and on my brow and lower back are strong indicators that I’m working out HARD).  Totally out of breath, struggling for air.  And at one point, I got a bit light-headed.

It was a last-chance workout if I’ve ever heard of one.  I wasn’t on BL, I was experiencing my first personal training session with Jimmy, my new trainer!

The last time I had a personal trainer was 2006, so I thought I knew what to expect, but man, was I wrong!  Jimmy took my workout to a whole new level today…but let me back up.

As soon as we met, Jimmy asked me what my goals were for the training, and I told him to lose weight.  I explained that I had been doing WW but felt that now it was time to really kick my workouts into gear in the hopes of raising my metabolism and amping up the weight loss.  He told me that he was confident that we could do it, although it would take dedication and accountability on my part.  Done and done.

Then he mentioned that 8 years ago, he weighed 305 lbs!  I was in shock.  Here was this tall, dark Adonis in front of me – muscles rippling, not an ounce of body fat visible.  A total athlete.  He said that through a solid fitness routine, coupled with a sensible diet, he went down to 220 (of pure muscle!) and has continued to keep it off.  Talk about inspiration!!

I knew we were off to a good start when we started the actual workout.  He pushed me saying, “c’mon, baby, you can do it!” (not in a lascivious way, more like the way athletes would encourage each other).  “You can do it, Bella, that’s it, MOVE it.  Keep it going.”  Then when he saw that I got frustrated at certain points, he said, “you know, you’re going to work up to some of this.  You can’t expect perfection; it’s a process, and we’ll get you there.  You’re doing awesome!”  I told him about the perfectionist traits I had, and he said that he could tell, but we’d work on that.

So, what did we do?

1. We started by taking measurements – my weight (gotta love stepping on the scale with half a day’s food in you while wearing heavy sneakers, right?!), body fat measurements with those dreaded calipers and inch measurements of my neck, upper arms, forearms, bust, waist, hips, thighs, and calves.  I really can’t wait to see what the results look like in a month.
2. Lunges – he just wanted to see what my form was like.  This is where I explained how bad my knees are.
3. I’m not sure what the name of the next move would be.  He had me hold a weight (at least 7 pounds, but it could’ve been 10) that had handles on each side.  It sort of looked like a big kettleball.  Then I lifted the weight ball above my head while alternating lifting one knee to a 90 degree angle.  Does that make sense?  Hard to describe, but hopefully you can picture it.
4. Then we got on the step – he had me do 2 sets of 15 up and over the step.  Up left foot, touch right foot (at the top of the step), down left foot, down right foot and reverse.  It was a great workout, but I was so out of breath.  I thought I had decent cardio strength!
5. The next move incorporated the weight ball and the step.  So I stepped up, lifted my knee and twisted my arms (holding the weight) to my alternate side.  Side knee twists? These really killed me, but I did 2 sets of 20, huffing and puffing the whole way through.
6. Next we did floor ab work.  He had me on the mat, legs up, and crunching by both bringing my chest up and my legs toward my chest.  These were killers!  I did 2 sets of 20.
7. Next we used a resistance band with handles, similar to this one .  Jimmy wrapped it around a poll in the wall (plumbing poll or something) and had me do bicep and tricep work.  2 sets of 10 each.  It was in between the bicep and tricep that I started to get a bit light headed.  Jimmy was really cool about it, had me take some really deep breaths, and told me to get some water.  He also told me to make sure to eat something with some carbs and protein before I come to workout next time.

Next came the discussion about food.  Jimmy said that he thinks I should stick to a low carb diet, but I don’t think I’m going to do that.  I tried that with the South Beach Diet, and I knew it wasn’t something I was going to be able to sustain.  I told him that I like WW, and that it works for me, so I was going to continue that. I’m sure he’s going to recommend low carb again, but I know I can remain strong in my convictions about what type of food plan I want to stick to.  Although, eating more lean protein wouldn’t hurt.  He definitely cringed when I said that for breakfast this morning I had a light English muffin (1 pt) with Better ‘n Peanut Butter (2 points for 2 TBSP), a banana (2 pts) and a yogurt (2 pts).  I think it was the peanut butter that got him.  But whatever.  I may incorporate some of his food suggestions, but I love WW, I’m committed to it, and I’m going to stick with it.  Plus, I can do a more low-carb plan with it, if I really want to, but I don’t think I do.

Jimmy also mentioned that he’d like for me to get a BodyBugg, so I think it’s official, I’m going to buy one in September.  (Buying the car in August has taken most of my “extra cash”).  I may have some money that I can spend in August, but it will just depend on how much I spend on the car/down payment.  He really recommended it because of the calorie deficit idea.  And it makes sense.  Every one of you that have mentioned the BodyBugg or GoWearFit have all said that it really helps you to push yourselves a bit farther to make sure you get the proper calorie deficit to lose the pounds.  Plus, it’ll really make me feel like a Biggest Loser contestant then. 

Lastly, Jimmy said that he wants to workout with me twice a week.  I had hoped we could do once a week sessions, but he said that for me to see any kind of meaningful results, he’d really like to work with me two times a week.  So be it.  He knows more than I do, and it will definitely be the kick in the pants that I need.  I do realize that it may be his job to get me to use the sessions faster so that I can spend more money on the personal training, but since I do have 20 sessions right now, we might as well use them and see what the results are, right?  That gives me 10 weeks, which will take me through the middle of September.

All in all, the personal training session was awesome!  I really like Jimmy’s personality, and I think he’s really going to push me but he also realizes my limitations.  He asked me several times throughout the workout if I was doing ok, and I appreciated that.  I told him that I would definitely let him know if I felt sick, but otherwise, to keep pushing me to complete the reps.  I was dog tired when I was done, and not just a little bit nauseous, but I did earn 5 APs, which is great!!!

At a few different points during our session Jimmy asked me if I was excited about changing my body and losing weight.  And I could honestly answer him that I was.  I am! I cannot wait to see the results that we are able to achieve together!

Now, I’m going to drink a bit more water to try to avoid too much soreness tomorrow (I’m already feeling quite sore tonight).  I hope this personal training session with Jimmy did act like a “last chance” workout for my WW weigh-in tomorrow.  We’ll see!!!