3 little words can be such a difference maker. . .
PREPARATION PREPARATION PREPARATION
Schedules, lists, planning, calendars; these are not about being Type A (although those who don’t do them find amusement through that accusation). They are about reducing stress and being happier. Really, schedules make you happier? Lists reduce stress? Yes, absolutely!!!
Here’s the morning self talk without planning
“Maybe I can hit snooze one more time, and maybe one more time. Now, is the right time to get up. What do I need to do today? I guess I’ll get my workout in after work since I didn’t get up this morning.”
Later that day…
“I don’t feel like cooking. Let’s go out. I guess I’ll get my workout in tomorrow.”
Tomorrow, repeat.
Weekend, “I don’t know why these jeans don’t fit.”
Hmm, sound familiar?
Here’s the story with planning
“Time to get up. There’s a 5 mile run on my schedule today. Bring it!!!!”
Later in the day self talk
“I can do anything. I started my day out with an awesome run and now I am ready. Bring it!!!!”
Tomorrow, repeat
Weekend, “Look at how good these jeans fit – sweet!”
Find a system that works for you. I love my Outlook calendar, but a notebook or sticky notes work just fine too. It doesn’t have to be formal or fancy. Put your goals in writing to help you stick to them and don’t worry about all you have to do tomorrow because you put it off today.
This month kicks off fall marathon training. I am going full out with a month of total fitness before tapering off cardio and adding miles. I am following my own advice for achieving goals by posting my June calendar.
Step 1 to achieving your goal – put it in writing. Step 2 to achieving your goal – share it with people who will support you
The path that lead me to Insanity . . . On October 21, 2012 I completed my 5th marathon. I blew away my goal time and shocked myself finishing in 4:03; 19 minutes faster than my previous PB. The self gratification of that feat is indescribable.
Friends had asked me to join them in P90X and held off their start date so that I could join them on November 1st. Over the next 90 days I watched my body transform into it’s most fit state ever. The muscle tone and firm core, that I could not get from running 50 miles a week, was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
My hubby joined me in P90X and was also ecstatic with his results. He wanted to do it all over again as soon as we finished, but I urged him to try Insanity with me because of the shorter workouts.
Day 1 – fitness test. Day 2 – Plyometric Cardio Circuit. I felt like this guy after the 10 minute warm up Day 3 – Cardio Power and Resistance. I almost didn’t die during the warm up. Day 4 – Cardio Recovery – Who does this many squats during recovery? This is INSANE! Day 5 – Pure Cardio – This is where the name Insanity comes from. OMG I thought I was in shape. Day 6 – back to Plyo Cardio – The warm up is getting easier. Day 7 – REST (not really in my vocabulary)
By day 8 I wasn’t feeling like I was going to die anymore in the warmup and really started to enjoy the workouts. I don’t want to compare P90X to Insanity until I complete the program. Until then here are some basics
Did a double workout yesterday; P90X then 30 minutes on the elliptical all because my kids wanted me to bake cupcakes. I know me, and when it comes to sweets – no discipline. So rather than worry about it I just put my tunes on and got in an extra 30 minutes of cardio. Every song that came up on my favorite play list I inserted the word cupcakes.
Here’s Rihanna. Cheers to the Fricken’ Cupcake
Cheers to the fricken’ cupcake I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Oh, let the frosting sink in I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Don’t let the haters get you down Turn it around and don’t gain a pound
There’s a cupcake o’er here yo Everybody pull ‘ya paper off And I eat to that Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(And I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah
Life’s too short to be sittin’ ’round miserable People gon’ talk whether you doing bad or good, yeah Got a cupcake on my mind and my mind on my belly, yeah Looking so bomb, gonna find me a honey, yeah
Got my Nikes on and I’m feelin’ hella cool tonight, yeah Everybody’s workin’ out so we give fat a fight, yeah
Cheers to the fricken’ cupcake I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Oh, let the frosting sink in I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Don’t let the haters get you down Turn it around and don’t even gain a pound
There’s a cupcake o’er here yo Everybody pull ‘ya paper off And I eat to that Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah (And I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah ‘Bout to hop on the treadmill, workin’ on my cardio tonight, yeah Might be sore in the morning but you know we goin’ hard tonight It’s getting Coyote ugly up in here, no Tony (Horton) It’s only up from here, no downward dog ‘yo
Got my Nikes on and I’m feelin’ hella cool tonight, yeah Everybody’s workin’ out so we give fat a fight, yeah
Cheers to the fricken’ cupcake I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Oh, let the frosting sink in I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Don’t let the haters get you down Turn it around and don’t gain a pound
There’s a cupcake o’er here ‘yo Everybody pull ‘ya paper off And I eat to that Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(And I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah (And I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah
Cheers to the fricken’ cupcake I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Oh, let the icing sink in I eat to that, yeah-e-yeah Don’t let the haters get you down Turn it around don’t even gain a pound
There’s a cupcake o’er here ‘yo Everybody pull ‘ya paper off And I eat to that
Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah (And I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(I eat to that)Yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeahYeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah, yeah-e-yeah(And I eat to that)
Next up on the playlist, Ziggy Pop, Lust for Icing (Life) What’s your favorite workout tune?
We did it! We finished 90 days of P90X! In spite of turkey temptations at Thanksgiving and tantalizing tiramisu at Christmas (not very traditional, but we love it) and bountiful bubbles at New Years we stuck to it and finished the entire 90 days of extreme workouts.
Wow! Looking back I remember the first week and not being able to do even one wide arm pull up. I can still only do 3 or 4, but each one is a self gratifying moment of glory. There is an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment going through this program.
Here’s what I found to be ultra rewarding:
being good 90% of the time and cheating 10%
realizing I needed to eat MORE calories every day
metamorphosing from extremely tired to extremely energized
doing crane for the first time if only for a second or two
looking in the mirror and watching the physical transformation
improving my running time (I even took first place in my age group for a 5k)
being able to choose any dress I wanted for the holiday parties
getting in the best physical shape in my life in my 40’s
Tomorrow, repeat.
