A New Workout Record

This morning marked my 14th day in a row of going to the gym, which is unprecedented for me. Normally I only work out one day on the weekend, but last weekend I worked out on Saturday and then went to the gym again on Sunday because I had a free personal training session. Mango and I (sort of) signed up for that weight loss promotion that ran from January through March, and one of the perks was two free personal training sessions. The reason I say “sort of” is because all we ever did was submit our measurements for the first week. We never turned in any subsequent measurements, which we were supposed to do on a weekly basis, and we never actually signed up for the program at the activities desk. However, the personal trainer Sooz assured us that, regardless, we were still eligible for the two free training sessions. Sweet!

Sooz started my session with, “So, what workouts are you currently doing?” I almost laughed at her reaction when I told her all of the classes I do on a regular basis. I’d done Group Power on Saturday, meaning that that week I’d done Group Power three times, Group Kick twice, Yin Yoga twice, Power Pilates once, and Body Sculpt once. She then ran a fitness profile on me, to see what my general health is like and to see what areas could use some improvement. My blood pressure was in the fit-excellent range, while my resting heart rate was high, but she attributed that to the cup of coffee I’d had on my way there. My body fat content was in the fit range, and nearly at excellent. (YAY!) My aerobic fitness was also in the fit range, and she tested that by monitoring my heart rate while I rode a stationary bike, which increased its resistance every minute or so. The two areas we discovered could use some improvement were my upper body strength, which she measured by having me pull upwards on a bar, and my back flexibility, which was so pathetic, I was not even on the chart. My overall fitness levels were judged to be fair, mainly because my back flexibility was so limited.

We discussed ways I could improve my upper body strength and flexibility. Before she could even point it out to me, I mused aloud that my Group Power classes are improving my muscle endurance (since I’ve heard K-Dawg say she wants to do more strength training because Group Power only helps her muscle endurance rather than her strength), but that I probably need to do more weight and less reps if I want to build strength. Sooz confirmed my thoughts, so we trooped out to the weight room so she could show me how to use the cable machines. She instructed me to do two sets of 15 of each of the exercises she showed me if I want to work on building strength. Then she showed me some stretching exercises.

All in all, she didn’t show or tell me anything I didn’t already know, but it was helpful to see my fitness profile, and it helped me assess how effective my current workouts are. I’ve realized I should do upper body strength training and only two classes of either Group Power or body sculpt per week. Also, after reading Gicky’s fitness blog, I’ve decided to “pyramid supersets” on my strength training days, which means doing increasing amounts of weight with each set (pyramid), and to do opposing muscle groups with no rest in between (supersets). So, for example, if I do one set for my biceps, then I should immediately follow it with one set for my triceps. With each set, I should increase the amount I lift, even if it means I have to do less reps in subsequent sets. My session with Sooz also made me realize that I can probably relax a little in my workouts, which is why I've decided to take tomorrow off from the gym. I figure that by now, I’ve earned it.