Its 9 am and I’m spent. Its day 2 of my 12 week workout program, and I’m spent. I’m a dollar in the hands of a fat kid at the ice cream truck. I AM SPENT! Winning Stacey Cooper's BootyCampSB ‘Biggest Loser’ fat loss challenge essay contest is most definitely the best prize I’ve ever won. I haven’t done the math, but at 5 days per week for 12 weeks I’m sure it would the cash value is great! But the real price is not the monetary value. The real prize is that I get to change my life. The prize was someone putting faith in me, perhaps even more than I currently have in myself. The value of that is something that can't be measured in dollars, or even inches. It is because of them that I have a hope to accomplish a goal i never thought I could!
We started out with orientation this past Saturday. I looked around me and saw a range of sizes and shapes, and it felt good to know that 'normal' people workout too, not just athletes, and trainers. There was nutrition counseling, and we got an overview of our program. Wait, you mean you want us to train OUTSIDE at 6 am 3 days per week? Then in the gym for 2 more? Ok. Ok. Sure. Yes. I can (secret doubt).
Workouts day 3. Today I was very very sore, and dreading my 6 am cardio blitzkrieg! I was afraid of being injured, and I was afraid that moving the achy muscles would just hurt more, and that each step would be painful. To my surprise, this was not the case! Ashley had us do proper warm ups and stretches and all the sudden, my muscles were not achy and sore. They were warm and workin' hard, just right!
Don’t get me wrong, the workout was hard! Ashley had us doing stadiums (the mere thought of which had me uber anxious the night before), laps around the track, and a strength exercise alternating for an hour and it was HARD. But I did it. And it felt great to accomplish that. I had no idea I could do that! The other contestants lapped me, but I jogged and didn’t walk (except for a few yards that one lap that I almost puked on). I didn’t cheat on my reps, even when my arms were shaking. And the sunrise sure was pretty that day! I left feeling accomplished, and ready to start my day! I was a bit sore at work, but nothing like before the workout. Ironic?! I doubt it. Probably something about release of lactic-glycogen-myofasial something something something that I know nothing about! But clearly my trainers DO know their stuff! So this was the day I learned to trust the trainers!!
Day 4. I'm not going to lie. It is HARD! That’s why everyone doesn’t ‘just do it!’ The workout itself is hard. Waking up is hard. Being outdoors in the cold is hard. But you know what? Being over fat is hard too! It is just hard in a different way. In a 'self-loathing, hiding from life, heart attack, diabetes, high blood pressure in the future' kind of hard. No big deal, right? Wrong! But the 900 calorie StarBUCK stops here! No more of my toxic ‘well, if Imma be fat, I might as well eat’ attitude. No more sacrificing tomorrow for chocolate and laziness today. Its time to take control of my life and LIVE.
WEek #1 has been a challenge, but I'm already feeling stronger, accomplished, and most of all flooded with eternal gratitude for Stacy, and her trainers Nicole and Ashley. They are helping me to accomplish something I never could on my own. I always thought 'oh, I could just google the exercises' or 'I can just run for cardio' but I never did!!! The value of having someone on your side, keeping you accountable, watching your form to make sure you maximize benefit and don't get hurt is invaluable!! They keep you accountable, and most of all they care. They have a vested interest in my success, and the feeling that I can not let them down just keeps me going and going and going. Even...on that laaast shaky rep. It is truly their dedication, knowledge and kind encouragement that has allowed me to get through my first of these 12 tough weeks.
THANK YOU! And we'll see you for our workout tomorrow :)
Barbara Byrge
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