Fitness - If it came in a bottle, everybody would have a great body.-- Cher
I mean, I'd buy some.
I do not love exercise. For a great while many years ago I took pride in the fact that I did not own a pair of tennis shoes. I say this with great shame.
For years I was a competitive swimmer. But that was in the South. Up here a cold body and damp hair is more than a nuisance. My school has a great gym with an indoor pool, but I'd still have to brave the elements with wet hair, and quite frankly, that is a line I draw in the snow sand: swimming is for the Caribbean and the summertime. Not snowstorms and 9 degree mornings.
But in a world where I know lots and lots about health, and in a world where 9/9ths of your closest friends run marathons the way I stroll with the Naughty Dog, I have no excuse. I know I have to be doing something. My something, for years, has been lifting weights.
Yup.
I've done a mix of weights/ weights + cardio with a program called the FIRM. It's been around since the 80s, and it's actually the older stuff that's best. (The newer series is less effective and appears to rely a bit too much on blondes and gimmicks, if you ask me. But the old stuff is stellar.) My then- roommate shared it with me years ago and I latched on for good.
The great thing about the FIRM was that all of the free weight exercises are the exact same ones you'd do in a gym. It provided a sweet roadmap for me, a then- 200- pounder who'd up til then had shown some trepidation about gymgoing. Haha on the outfits!
And no...you don't bulk up. You lose inches (and dress sizes). A lean, mean, thirteen machine.
The best thing about the FIRM is that YOU CAN TRANSITION ANY WEIGHTS...so it is impossible for the workout to be "too easy." If the last two reps are easy, you add more weight. The earlier FIRMS had ripped athletes of both sexes, but the males tapered off once the kitchy shit took over in the 90s.
So. Um. Whaddaboutnow?
For the last few months I've had this sprained wrist thing. It's actually tendonitis, which is worse, because the pain is actually irritation rather than a bruise. That means that healing can be interrupted by lots of things: making a left turn in the car; turning the master lock to my front door; opening a can of pasta sauce; even typing got the no-go from my doc. So as much as I want to hop back into the weight- lifting circuit, I can't until I'm more or less totally healed.
So! Um. Whaddaboutnow?
Following the spirit of dimplesnatcher and Rosa, I have devised a short plan to stay on track and still get workouts in while I recuperate. While I can't to upper body work, lower body and ab work will have to do for now.
Mondays: lower body
Wednesdays: abs
Fridays: lower body
Saturdays: abs
But wait! You say. There's not a lick of cardio in there! That is probably because I forgot to mention this:
It's not as good as a gym model, but should get the job done. The job being to get my heart rate up there. Lovebug bought it for me last week, and it sits, sad and lonely in the living room, waiting for him to put it together. We also acquired a GREAT weight bench from my bud who moved and couldn't take it with her.
Looky there: the makings of a home gym! That's some Real Housewives shit. If there is ever a Real Housewives of Philadelphia, I'm in. BTW, can I be on Real Housewives if I am not a Real Housewife? Or rich? Can I be an extra, at least? Nevermind that our "gym" will be in a questionably dusty basement among the Christmas decorations and my husband's fraternity paraphernalia.
So! Whaddaboutnow?
-Consistency, consistency. I manage to be nearly perfect with my eating habits but let exercise take a back burner to say, dissertation work. Which brings me to the next:
-Balance, balance. And the last:
-Challenge, challenge. This shit is hard if you make it. I need to make sure I'm really pushing myself for these workouts.
Slow and steady.
That's all I got.
weight loss, week 2: -3
total loss: -4
xoxo,
13
