Working Out!

Sometime during early spring I completely threw out my back. I was getting up from the dining room table during our school day and in the middle of standing up my back started spasming and I was in so much pain. I couldn't fully stand up and I couldn't sit down. As I was crying out in pain, Owen piped up and said...."Is this what it means when someone throws out their back?" 

I ended up going to the chiropractor and I was in bad shape. I think I had to see him 3 times that week and ice and Ibuprofen became my best friends. That was a real turning point for me. It was because of this incident I decided enough is enough....I had to start working out again. 

For years I had been working out with my neighbor Rachael, but in April 2021 they sold there house and moved. It had been over a year since I had done any consistent working out and my body was definitely suffering because of it. I started to do some research and decided I wanted to buy a few things to kickstart my own home gym. I talked with Michael about it and he was all for it. 

 

I decided on three items...mainly because these were things that I used to workout with when I was at Rachael's. I got one of those balancing boards, a bench and a TRX system. 

The bench is really cool because has all these different settings so you can lean back and use your weights. It also has a small storage area...I store my bands and my lighter weights in there. The blue portion of the legs can fold inward so it can become a lower step to be used for aerobics.

After getting the garage cleaned up from Michael making the pantry I was able to get my workout area all set up. Rachael had given me the Elliptical years ago and prior to Covid I went on it everyday. I also already owned 3lb, 5lb & 8lb weights as well as a 15lb kettlebell.  

I didn't have workout flooring so I used what we had...Ella's alphabet mat that used to be up inside her clubhouse! It wasn't ideal since sometime the letters would pop out of place while I was working out, but it was fine for the time being. Can you see the message I spelled out for myself with the letters? 

On Prime Day I did go ahead and buy some black workout tiles and those are better. They still come apart if I doing mountain climbers or burpees so I just make sure that my feet are off the mat during those workouts. 

The main thing I wanted though was the TRX system. You can see it hanging from the ceiling. Those were what Rachael and I mainly workout with and I loved them. They helped me get such a good stretch. 

The thing that I've realized though is I hate doing the same thing over and over. Variety is the spice of life! I can't do the same workout time and time again. 

One day while browsing through FB I saw this ad for an app, I think it was Fitcoach or something. I decided to sign up for it for a month. You were able to customize what workouts you wanted to do and what days you wanted to do them. They were varied exercises and the app kept track of the time for you and encouraged you. It was a starting point! After the month I canceled though and figured I could just make up my own combinations of workouts from the ones I learned for that last month. Well...I don't like to do that either! I had been seeing another app on FB and this one was free...FitOn. This one was different from Fitcoach and bit more intense, but after having that month of doing basic workouts I knew I could do it. I'm in my 2nd month of using that app and I love it!!! The trainers are amazing...not annoying plus they explain things so well. They also are really good about showing you modifications if the movement they are doing is too difficult for your body. I really do love this app. 

One of the other areas I was having trouble with was figuring out when to fit my workouts in during the day. When I was working out with Rachael we'd always workout right after the kids got on the bus for school. Now that I'm homeschooling that puts a little kink in things. I had always thought I would hate working out at night, but one day I decided to give it a try. The best part is Michael is home so the kids won't have to interrupt me if they need something. Of course they did the first couple times I worked out and I put a stop to that! I very rarely do things for myself so I told the kids this is my thing....in order to be a better more healthy mom I need to put myself first in this situation. After that chat they've done really well about leaving me alone during my workouts. 

Now my normal routine was I would workout most nights from 7pm - 8:30pm. I usually do a Cardio workout and then a Strength workout from FitOn, 20 mins on the Elliptical and then a Yoga or Stretching workout from FitOn. I'm a sweaty mess by the time I'm finished and I love it. This is another thing that works out though...I shower at night so right after my workouts I jump in the shower and I feel amazing! In the beginning I was working out everyday, but now I'm realizing I really do need to give my body was rest days. My new schedule moving forward is going to be working out on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Sunday nights I'm going to be leading a Bible Study at church, Tuesday the kids have Taekwondo so we get home later and Friday nights are Family Movie Nights. I feel like this should be a good balance going forward. 

As for my health I haven't had any back or neck issues since working out. I'm definitely getting stronger and I'm loving that. I have noticed that my knees aren't capable of doing some of the movements and they do get sore. I started taking Glucosamine again to help all my joints. I also need to get better at stretching even more. My muscles get super tight and that doesn't feel good at all. I haven't noticed any weight loss at all and actually that's not my goal. My goal was to gain muscle and get stronger so my body doesn't betray me. In fact I would actually like to not lose any weight. I'm comfortable  at the size I am. I like the way my clothes fit I'd just like my muscles to be more fit.

The only concern I have moving forward is once the weather starts getting colder working out in the garage might not be as fun. Right now it's fine...I open up the garage door and it feels great! We do have the door to the furnace I can open that will allow the heat to warm up the garage a bit, but sometimes in the winter our garage is freezing. I know I'll be moving and getting my body warmed up while working out, but I definitely don't want to pull something because my muscle are tensed up from being cold. That will be something I'll have to figure out later. Thankfully I'm making great strides and getting in a good routine during the summer months!