So what changed on March 21? The tools were brought into play that would help change the way I worked out. They didn’t all come at once but that was the day things started to change.
The Gym
The first tool was the gym. March 21 was my first day there on a week trial membership. I really enjoyed the machines and enjoyed the atmosphere. By the end of the week I was hooked on what I could accomplish there. It wasn’t that I couldn’t get a workout at home but being with a group of people who are striving for the same thing is a great motivator. As Emerson said, in a much more poetic way, you are what you put into your mind and the places you put yourself. The gym was where my transformation would take shape.
“A man is known by the books he reads, by the company he keeps, by the praise he gives, by his dress, by his tastes, by his distastes, by the stories he tells, by his gait, by the notion of his eye, by the look of his house, of his chamber; for nothing on earth is solitary but every thing hath affinities infinite.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
I know many people feel like going to the gym is a chore. I know the feeling myself. There are days where I have to push myself to go. But, the feeling that comes after a great workout, seeing the results on a scale, or the accomplishment of a non-scale victory is worth it. So is the knowing that I am doing things now to make the lives of my whole family better for the future by conditioning myself and making my body stronger.
On April 12 my next tool would come along. A group of us decided to give BODYPUMP a try. This was my first look into group fitness. Let me say up front – nobody cares what you do or look like in class. That seems to be what keeps people from walking in the room and the others in there are coming to class for many of the same reasons you are.
BODYPUMP has helped me lean down, build up muscle, and lose weight.
Later in April I would finally walk into a Zumba class. My wife had tried for months to get me to give it a go and I just wouldn’t budge. After some teaching of the moves at home I went to class where a blast was had! I really enjoy Zumba and all of the people in there. Your instructor can really make or break class and ours is phenomenal.
There are many activity trackers on the market today. You wear these throughout the day and then sync them with your computer or phone. They will give you some insight into your activity for the day.
I decided to give fitbit a try after some research. While there are graphs and other data that you can use with it my main reason for wearing one was to see how many steps I was taking during the day. It helped me to build the amount of activity I was doing. I could see when I had not walked enough and needed to get out of the chair. fitbit helped to keep my mind on being active instead of sedentary which was a great motivator.
I know I know. Calories counting sucks. But, it worked wonders for me doing it. myfitnesspal allows you to scan packages and add the counts with a few clicks. While it isn’t always accurate it isn’t far off. 99% of the time the calories match what the package says and you are good to go.
When you setup your account you put in how much you want to lose and in what amount of time. From there it gives you how many calories you can eat in a day and lose the weight you are wanting by your goal date.
The app also syncs with your fitbit data so you get credit for the extra activity you do. If you do an hour of Zumba you might, for example, get 300 extra calories for the day but still be heading to your goal because it factors in your activity, your calorie count, how many calories you are allotted per day and the approximate amount of calories you lost due to your increased activity.
Those are the tools that I have used in my weight loss journey with success. Tools are only half the help though! Next up we will meet the players in the game that helped tremendously…
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