Ooooh hi everyone!
Day 4 of Boot Camp is done and behind me. Hooray! I thought today was going to be climbing 45 flights of stairs - and I was really looking forward to that. But no - I was wrong. Instead, we did obstacle courses, cardio, and agility training.
After warm ups (only 100 jumping jacks today! YAY!), we jogged down to a new PT field. We had been going about a mile away, but this morning was a little bit further and had shorter grass. We arrive, and team up in groups of 3 or 4. Because of our small numbers, we had 2 groups of 4, and 2 of 3. Sgt. Roy instructed his helper (Sgt. Major) to join our team when we needed a 4th. (The other team of 3 was all in shape - so they could run someone twice when needed.)
And we did all sorts of crawl-in-the-grass activities: baby crawl, crab walks, wheelbarrow, piggy backs, and fireman's carry. For the last three (wheelbarrow, piggy backs, and fireman's carry), we were supposed do the exercise down field, switch who was being carried or whatever, and then do the exercise back.
Now, I was moderately horrible at the baby crawl and crab walks. But I literally Could Not be the bottom of the wheelbarrow. I couldn't put one hand in front of the other. I was fine to carry Lisa's legs, but when it was my turn to be the barrow, I couldn't do it. Sgt. Sheri asked if I had carpel tunnel or had hurt myself. No, I replied. I'm just terribly terribly weak. It was embarrassing.
Then came the piggy backs. Two of my teammates went down and back - no problem. Then Sgt. Major joined up and carried me down field. Now, we're supposed to switch up at the other end, and the runner gets carried back - but how in the world was this huge man going to get on my back? Right? Right?!?! Oh Lordy. That man jumped on my back. We were one of the last teams to finish up, so most people were watching me grunt and breathe and jog. Sgt Roy came and jogged next to me "Be careful. Take your time. Drop him if you need to." Now, I am Italian - so I have good, strong hips for carrying pots and pans and seventeen child'en, and am stubborn as a mule. And while I can't be the wheelbarrow to save my life, I carried Sgt. Major all the way back - all 215 lbs of him. This was a moment of pride.
We then did some cardio obstacles and suicides, and well as straight run relays. Sgt. Roy wanted to finish the day with some yoga and pilates - and I'm totally cool with that. :) After rolling around for a bit, we headed back to the gym. I jogged the whole way to the PT field, but that was downhill - there was no way I could jog back to the gym, right? I actually made it all the way back - stopping only for stoplights to change. I was slow, and far behind the other runners/joggers, but I did it - I finished, and I gave it all I had. It felt good.
Yesterday, Sgt. Roy gave us a "pep talk" about how this week isn't about exercise. It is about finding what's inside of you and making it happen. I think I'm starting to get it. And while it took 15 minutes to get all the grass off my body (I swear, it was EVERYWHERE), I was smiling in the shower. I'm not the strongest and I'm not the fastest, but I give it my best.
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Personal note: I'm the QUEEN of starting something, getting frustrated with myself, and giving up. Losing weight is one of the many "projects" that I've started and given up on many times. For a long time, my self-esteem and self-respect has been in the crapper. So, I've been reaching out to just about anything I could find to try and regain some of that inner strength. I have been failing at things, and failing hard. When I signed up for this week, I was mostly certain that I'd start and never finish, adding another nail in the proverbial coffin. I feel like I'm finally digging myself out of this rut, that this might be the first step that I'm carving out for myself. One week isn't going to turn around years of negative energy - but it has to start somewhere. Hey - I might as well make THIS the year that I turn everything around. I started Boot Camp the day after my birthday... and the time is now.
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Okay everyone - one more day of this, and then ... well, then I get to find my own discipline and motivation to get to the gym regularly and step up my game.
Thanks for taking this journey with me.
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Ok - for some reason the whole week of updates popped up on my RSS reader at once - and I have to say, it was entertaining to read them from the Go-get-em first day to the 'wtf ow' 3rd day to the 'ok I can do this' 4th day in a linear progression.
ReplyDeleteSounds like quite the experience.
In my opinion nothing quite finds muscles you didn't know you had like climbing a mountain though. I suggest Crowders/Kings mtn as a nice cool down stroll this weekend compared to the boot camp workouts :-)
I think its great that you are doing this, Sarah. It all popped up today for me too, huh strange. Anywho, I met the owner of the new gym I joined in Asheville and he immediately started giving me pointers and I made an appointment with him for tomorrow to learn about some of their equipment I've never seen before. I love how getting farther than you thought you would makes you proud of yourself. Big pat on your back for doing it!!
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