Personal Assessment

Holy shit my friends, in my wildest dreams I could not have guessed what happened last night at my fitness “Assessment” at the gym. Sure, I had an idea of what was going to be said. Less cardio, more strength training (and by more I mean some; ha!) Which is what was said. But the other stuff; could not have guessed.

Let me say this, whatever crazy funk I was in yesterday I really did snap out of it at the gym which is exactly why I love exercise and health and fitness so much. It is just plain old good for my soul. I got to the gym and went to the treadmill. I like to warm up with a 5k run. There really is something about the gym that makes me work harder than I ever do at home. But I was totally feeling it despite thinking I would be in a horrible funk so I kept going. I ran 6.2 miles in right around 60 minutes. And I felt great. I then did some weight machines and then only had time for a 15 minute stair climber session.

I walked into my assessment obviously dripping sweat. My mom was there; she was at the gym which translated into her being there for my assessment. It was not necessary nor did I care one bit though that she was. It was with her personal trainer and it was cool. Someone else hearing the words is always good anyway. It’s like when you go to the doctor and get news it’s probably best to have someone else listen in case they hear things differently than you.

Anyway, so I kind of end up telling her a little of my back story. That in the last 9 years this is the 3rd time I’ve lost a significant amount of weight. That I’ve been 220 to 130 in my life and done that not once, not twice, but the 3rd time. Hell, it could even be more than that but for now I think of 3 major times I’ve done this. The original time, 9 years ago, 4 years ago when I went to Maui the first time and had my gall-bladder removed and then now. I know there were other times in between but they were of less significance.

Anyhow, These are the points I would like to make or things that were very nice compliments or rather that left that warm and fuzzy feeling in my heart.

1. She asked me what I weighed now and I said around 140 and she said, you look great, that is a great weight for you. I wouldn’t focus on losing more weight but toning up.

2. How old are you? I said I’ll be 34 next week and she said, wow, I seriously was going to say in your 20’s. Nice compliment. (I know that generally speaking I do look younger than my age, thank goodness for great genetics from my mom who looks great for her age!)

3. She told me I was obviously a dedicated, fit, healthy person.

And then there is one more that gets its own story here in a minute. She took all my info and put my height/weight etc into a program they have and I kind of got a whole Biggest Loser Know Your Number kind of feeling from it. It said my biological age was 34 but my inside age was 31. Yeah!!! I was not expecting that. She told me this was great as she just had a 24 year old in there who had the inside age of like 46 or something. She said that I was obviously in great shape and I looked great and I didn’t necessarily need to do more if I didn’t want to, but since I was sitting there at the gym that obviously I wanted more and she 100% said toning it up. Which I knew. Taking it to that next level of fitness and health.

I told her that the 3rd time is the charm and I am not going to ever do this again and that I was looking for answers now to keep this permanent. That here I am, I am at goal and now I need to set a new goal or figure out how to do this. Honestly she said so many things that really resonated with me.

She then broke out that body fat testing machine. She said that the numbers are skewed after you just work out which I obviously had and that my numbers would be higher than they really are. That you are supposed to rest before hand to get a true reading but she’d take it anyway as a baseline. My body fat percentage came back at 25% which she told me was GREAT. She said it was on the low range of healthy. Something like an athlete is 19-24% body fat and an average healthy woman is 25-33% so I am on the low range of that. She told me that she was confident that easily I should be in the athletic range as clearly I was athletic.

I guess I must have talked openly and passionately about stuff as I tend to get really passionate from time to time about health and stuff. Plus in terms of being open and honest about my struggles and where I’ve been I have no problems freely sharing that. Then out of nowhere, this is the thing that totally made me go, oh. One of those ah ha moments I guess she was like… you need to get a personal trainer, work out for a while and then I honestly can one day see you sitting on the other side of this table doing my job. I can see you being a trainer. I paused because previously when I have gotten to goal the thought has crossed my mind. It is not the first time this bug has been planted in my head. It was just crazy amazing to hear it, completely unsolicited, from a trainer I just met.

She told me that I had an amazing story that people would relate to, that I was obviously passionate and she could just see it. I told her that I would love to incorporate this world into my daily life as a job. I’ve often thought that. There would be nothing more motivating and nothing to keep you more accountable than that. She told me she could see me taking the classes and even still working full time while I became certified.

Obviously she said that I needed to start from the ground up and that was to first do personal training sessions which I agree with. I kind of knew I needed them going in, which in the back of my mind is kind of why I joined the gym to begin with. I am where I want to be in terms of something and need to set new goals. She told me that without a doubt I needed them for the strength training and that I’d see amazing results with adding that in. That obviously I had the cardio and endurance down and my body is clearly a sponge in terms of fitness so it is so possible to be toned and fit. I told her I did not want to be stick thin but curvy, healthy and FIT.

She told me that I am 100% doing too much cardio. That I need to quit. That ½ an hour 3-4 days a week is enough. Ooops. That I need to apply that time and energy to building my muscle now. That she knows I’m worried about gaining weight back but she promises if I build muscle it won’t happen. That good things will happen. She also said she understands the runner’s high. I told her yup, it’s a high that I crave. I am a cardio junkie!!!

She wants me to sign up for weekly sessions and I honestly don’t believe it’s because she wants the business I believe it’s because she believes it is the best thing for me. And honestly I wouldn’t be sitting in that room discussing it with her if I didn’t believe it to. I told her I have another week and a half until Maui and then it was pretty much my goal when I get back to start something new. To being the next phase of my journey.

She said classes and personal training. Take some of the other classes the gym offers which I totally was going to. It was single handedly the most refreshing hour I’ve had in a long time. She told me of course if we were sitting there in October having this discussion this would be a whole other story. But right now I am in great shape, perfectly healthy, I look great and obviously have a great fitness level but it’s now time to take it to the next level and make this my true lifestyle from here on out. I whole heartedly agree. She said we could do the body fat test thing again later to see if it’s really lower or not.

For right now this next week and a half I am still going to run. I am going to go to the gym. I might try a class or two but I am going to finish what I started and go to Maui ending phase 1 of my healthy lifestyle plan. Phase 2 will begin when I return and will most likely include personal training and less cardio :( I am honestly still not sure how I feel about less cardio. I really do love that runner’s high. But I am excited about lowering my body fat percentage. I could see that as an obtainable/trackable goal. Something to work towards and God knows I need to work towards something. The food stuff is important for sure but as I gain more muscle all that will take care of itself. I guess what I’m saying is I’m moving into another phase of my journey where the scale matters a whole hell of a lot less.

Honestly it’s very hard to be upset if the scale doesn’t move as clearly I am in great shape and clearly this last week I have killed it with exercise and nutrition. Plus the trainer looked at me and thought I was in my 20’s and healthy and I looked great and didn’t really need to lose any weight. That is a compliment. Oh and that she saw in me what it takes to be a trainer. That she didn’t become a trainer until her late 30’s so it’s totally possible.

Overall I was so impressed. Guys, look what can happen in like 7 months if you just put your mind to it. Look at the change you can really make if you want something. If you embrace that inner athlete that lives in all of us. In 7 months, 8 months, 12 months, 2 years… your life CAN be different. I am living proof of that. And also that falling down doesn’t mean failure. You can pick yourself up and try all over again. And again. And again. Ha.

Phase 1 is pretty much coming to an end for me and I was so blah about what phase 2 was going to be but I knew I needed a solid phase 2 in order to not fall back into old habits and after last night I feel re-energized and motivated to tackle phase 2. I feel like where I’m at now is a place I have been before. The “end” of my weight loss journey to 140 pounds and this is the point where it’s all fallen apart before because I just never took it to the next level. I know inside of me is a warrior. I know there is this fierce athletic fit girl and I am crazy excited to tap into her. I am excited to actually tackle phase 2 and become the girl I’ve always wanted to be. The girl I always knew I could be in my heart if I’d just let her out.

This girl is going to kick some serious ass and make it happen. I’m saying it now. I am going to lower my body fat percentage. I am going to get a personal trainer. I am going to take classes and I am going to build muscle. I am excited. But phase 2 is after my Maui trip.

Anyway, obviously, I am a little happy today because it was such good news yesterday overall. Today I am not exercising. Taking the day off and then tomorrow I will go to the gym and do a zumba class probably with my mom. Something different right :) Of course tomorrow morning is weigh-in too. I don’t care so much about the scale weight right now but I would still like to eventually see 139.9 on the scale before Maui. I don’t know though because I really worked EXTRA hard this week which usually backfires on me. Either way none of it matters because I am about to unleash the beast inside me… and it’s going to be a fun ride and I’m so glad I have this place to share all about it. I love you all for reading this and continuing to inspire me and challenge me and keep me going. I may not “know” every one of you but I love you anyway….

Have a fabulous day my friends.