Jesse: Outside or Gym?

It’s that time of year; the weather is changing (Yay!! I love the snow, but that was just brutal.), the moods are getting better, and there are ten million different things to do. This means there are ten million things to distract me. 

Go to the gym? 

Go outside? 

If I don’t go to the gym it means I can sleep in, which takes away from being outside.

Plus, now that it’s getting warmer, there are a myriad of projects that need to be done. New bookshelves need to be cut, sanded and stained. My Jeep and motorcycle need a little after winter TLC. The yard, the dogs, hanging out with family and friends, and getting quality time with Mother Nature. Yes, all of these do play a role in a healthy lifestyle (except for sleeping in when I don’t need to) but they can distract me very easily from the goals I set for myself (If I let them). This is why I have decided to get a little help in the staying on track department (as well as some major butt kicking) by hiring the one and only Devon for some personal training sessions.

Her and I have discussed my fitness goals and even tweaked some of them (she is confident that I can do better than what I had).  So for the next few months you should see her and I upstairs as she helps me lose weight, get stronger and more flexible (by more flexible, I mean just getting me to the range of motion of a normal person). Yes all three can be accomplished at the same time.

Very exciting stuff and this time around I will have lots of pictures and other goodies to share with you about this section of my journey.

OH! I forgot to mention I am officially down 27 pounds. 3 more to go to reach my goal for the end of April!!

See you in the gym!

Sandy: People at the Works.

People at the Works.

I see you there, working hard, pushing yourself to a healthier you.

I see you walking to the pool, your towel wrapped tightly around you.  In your head you believe that others are judging, or worse, you are judging yourself.  Fear not my friend, you are not alone, and you are beautiful.

I see you in class, you’re the oldest one there.  You are moving with the beat and keeping time, putting a lot of others to shame.  You are my role model and I look to you with great admiration and respect.

I see you on the bike, pushing the pedals ever forward.  Your eyes are locked and your face is intense.  You are an achiever, destined and determined.  I wish I had an ounce of your drive.

I see you at the weights, your muscles are sculpted as you push them to get stronger.  You are a work of art in my eyes and I am amazed that you could go that far.

I see you in the pool, gracefully swimming in the water, paddling, splashing, breathing, moving.  I watch the wake you form and I am in awe that you don’t have to stop.  You are my inspiration. 

I see you walking on the track, moving so quickly I can barely keep up.  You are my pace keeper, my driving force.  I want to be motivated like you.

I see you ALL.  You are my inspiration, you are my motivation and I hold you all in great admiration.  Each of you are wonderful and beautiful in your own miraculous ways.  

I am honored to be among you. 

Sandy: Pushing Past Self-Imposed Limits!

Working out with Taz.

It has been three weeks now.  My workout partner and I have been doing a pretty good job keeping each other accountable, although we are very forgiving as we both know that life sometimes gets in the way of keeping a rigid schedule, especially when children are involved. 

Taz, our trainer, has set us up with homework to follow between visits. These are definitely not easy workouts by any means, and we manage to get thru them with grunts, groans and sometimes even a little whining. 

I push myself pretty hard when I work out alone, and a little harder when I have my workout buddy.  Though, let me tell you, when I go into my training sessions, I leave the whining and excuses at the door.  Taz has pushed me past the point of where I thought I was done, ever nudging me to push thru my Self Limitations.  Its interesting.  When someone else is watching the clock for you, or gives you a goal to push for, your mind locks in on that goal and you go.  It is human nature not to want to disappoint.

We all have our limits, and we work out within those limits.  However, what I find is that a lot of us get caught up within our own minds on how much our bodies can handle.  We start to feel a burn and we stop.  We start to feel a little uncomfortable when we are doing cardio and we think we are done.  Then we get stuck and our bodies don’t change.  We do the same thing over and over again, and we become frustrated.  We say to ourselves, “Why am I working so hard and not getting the results I want.”  The key is to push past our self imposed limits, work just a little harder, and more importantly change things up.

I have been working pretty hard for four weeks now, and I have only lost 2 pounds (unlike my good pal Jesse, who has been rocking the weight loss clip!  Nice Work Jesse!!) The reality is that my body is changing, I am stronger, I can handle more cardio than I did when I started and my clothes are even fitting better.  The problem for me is that my diet is erratic at best, and I know that diet is the only way I’m going to reach my ultimate goals. 

I’m getting off track.  Let me finish by saying that I’m making changes slowly in my diet, and will continue to work with a trainer.  At this point we only meet with him once every three weeks, doing our homework in between.  I know that the benefits of working with a trainer and my results would come quicker if we met more often but for now, this is what we have chosen to do.

If you’re ready for a change and are not exactly sure where to start, go to an intake session.  Get tested to see where you are at, and learn the benefits of working with a trainer.  There are a lot of wonderful trainers at the Works, and their schedules all vary.   Then set yourself up mentally for change.  Know what your goals are, what you wish to achieve and WHEN you want to achieve them by.   That will give you the drive to move forward. 

-Best Wishes and see you at the Works!

Jesse: Don't let Excuses Fool You!

Now a bit from Jesse about last week.

Sandy: Exercise Despite Clouds and Ice!

A Note... The sun is out today but on days that it isn't after this LOONG winter, how does a workout make you feel?  Here's Sandy on a cold, slushy day last week!

Jesse: FitWorks Results! ...and a Little Surprise Read More

10 pounds, 2 inches and 2.8% lost body fat. 

That, my friends, is what one month of FitWorks has done for me. It is pretty incredible what dedication, education, and hard (I mean HARD) work can do.

With FitWorks, you certainly get out of it what you put into it. However, Lily never let me do less than what I was capable of and pushed me to go even further. The fact that I had to turn in my diet journal kept me on track with what I was eating which is a big part of weight loss. I use myfitnesspal.com to do my food journaling. If you don’t use it or want to start using it, I highly recommend it.  If you do decide to use myfitnesspal, sign up to get your resting metabolic rate with one of our dietician staff. They go over your goals and help you develop your very own nutrition plan. Doing so will probably turn out to be one of the biggest game changers in your fitness endeavors. I had mine done and it has worked wonders.

If you are looking for some motivation or maybe have future plans that you need to lose weight for then I encourage you to try FitWorks. My results belong to me because of the drive I have inside to reach the goals I want. I know all the folks that were part of FitWorks with me all saw fantastic results as well. Give it a try, there are free demo sessions next week. If you’re a member or a not you can come to the demo sessions and hear about what it entails. Sign up at the Service Desk!

I learned a lot in a month, all of which I will apply to my ongoing routines as I continue towards my goal. I will continue on and try other new things as well.

Remember, work hard because it pays. I’ll see you in the gym (oh and feel free to say hi when you do! :) )

Sandy: Out of the Mouth of Babes

Out of the mouths of babes.

“Mama! We want to go to the works!” I hear it all the time, and sadly I have to deny my children the luxury more often than not.  I am about 7 weeks into my membership (I can’t believe how quickly time has flown by) and thus far, my children have been to The Works only a handful of times. 

I asked my son tonight what he loved most about the Works.  His response was “The water slides, the racket ball and the Smoothies.”  Okay, I admit that his exposure has been limited.  We have yet to take advantage of the slew of kid’s fitness programs available, as well as the Fit Spot, which is an awesome kid’s gym.  The Fit Spot has cardio powered video games and virtual bikes, Xbox, and various equipment they can use.  My children are dying to get in there, however our afternoon activity schedule with a mixture of unpredictable weather has made it a bit difficult to schedule the time for their orientation. 

The times we have gone all together, I typically have left my husband to play with the boys while I get my workouts in.  He likes the fact that the pool has never had the feeling of being over crowded, which makes it easy to keep an eye on them, and he appreciated the friendly nature of some of the life guards who joke around and interact with the children.  The kids love it too, especially when the lifeguard throws buckets of water at them as they are going down the slide. There is nothing quite like the delighted laughter of children when they talk about the fun they have at The Works.

Another comment from my husband is that the pool area is very clean and the locker rooms are very well kept.  What he has seen at the gym (his exposure has been limited at best since he hasn’t really ventured around the gym) he has been impressed with.  Hands down, the Works is one of the largest and nicest gyms we have been to.

I find the indoor pool to be friendly for kids of all ages.  There is a wade in area for the tiny toddlers, with water fountains they can play in as well as a roped off shallow area.  Beyond the wade pool rope the pool does a horseshoe u-turn to the deeper area which ranges around 4+ feet deep, then to the deep area which is roped off as well.  The deepest part of the pool has a depth that reaches seven feet and there is no diving allowed. 

I promised myself to try new classes, one new one each week.  I have also promised my children that I would finally schedule a time for their orientation so we can expand our wonderful experience at the Works.    :)