Monday, May 02, 2011

Almost at the Halfway Point..

Well, I am on Day 28 of my 60-day challenge, and my success rate is not where I want it to be. I've let other issues (albeit very pressing issues) stress me out and deter me off of my course, particularly over the past 2 weeks. However, I am recommitting that I WILL finish this challenge successfully. I'm getting great results; I just need to be more consistent. I'll definitely try to extend it out to 90 days total as best I can. I also really need to manage my stress levels, which is a day-to-day challenge.

Anyway, I came to the realization today that I am probably like a kid in a candy store when it comes to exercise. There are so many things that I want to do/try/experience, that I get distracted by the "ohhh..shiny" mentality. I also have a hard time following just DVDs for any super long period of time. I do enjoy designing my own workouts, and I tend to do them. They integrate kettlebells, ropes, sandbags, med balls, TRX suspension trainers, etc, and I enjoy the integrated approach very much. That's not to discredit any system or protocol that I have followed to date; they are all outstanding tools, otherwise I wouldn't use them at all!

That being said, I still plan to continue focusing on at least 4 KB workouts per week, but I will use additional workouts in my library in addition to my Skogg System (which I just LOVE)!! My favorite Skogg workout is Flow, followed by Ladders in a close 2nd position. I do want to incorporate more high rep metabolic work, which is where my other DVDs will come in. This month, I want to include MB45 Essentials and Keith Weber's Extreme KB Cardio Vol 1 into my routine. I plan to do one of these DVDs as 2 of the 4 KB workouts per week. The other 2 workouts will be Skogg workouts. I want to play around with this method to see how I do. I've been reflecting quite a bit about my initial journey with kettlebells. After I learned and felt comfortable with the basics, I used AOS Providence religiously once per week and AOS Newport approx once every 2 weeks for 3 months (an entire summer). Granted, I did plenty of other things around those workouts (lifting weights, extra cardio, teaching Spinning), but my body really exceled with that combination of activity (and clean eating of course). Anyway, to net it out, sometimes I feel overwhelmed by my own DVD collection and get distracted by "the shiny". So, I think it would be fun to just focus on a few key workouts. I'll let you know how this goes..:-).

All that being said, I want to stress that for me, the most important part of this experience hasn't been the exercise component. It's absolutely the nutrition component. The plan that I'm following is very reasonable, and through it, I have discovered a love for many new foods. I also have been able to share my experience and journey with my clients, which is so much fun. I need to focus on buckling down and keeping everything aligned for the next 30 days, but I'm taking it all one day at a time.

Today, I did Paul Katami's Kettlebell Drills DVD. Yesterday, I did Paul Katami's Kettlebell Kombos DVD along with some treadmill walking (I love my Woodway Path!). A friend let me borrow these 2 workouts, so I wanted to try them out and get them back to her. I've had them for far too long and wanted to get them out to her today.

How are your training and nutrition coming along? What have you learned about yourself along the journey?

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