I used to be a pretty hardcore athlete. In high school, I ran for a total of 11 seasons (I'm still upset I missed out on the fall season of 9th grade...). In the winter of 9th grade, a friend of mine mentioned that she was going to try out for the track team and asked if I wanted to join. I had nothing to lose, and I hadn't really been involved in an extracurricular activity before (besides playing the piano), so I thought, why not? That first season was life-changing, because I discovered how much I love running. So I continued running throughout high school, and I tried to run cross-country during my freshman year at Williams (I wasn't a bad runner, but I wasn't good enough to run on the Williams track team; I didn't have to try out for the cross-country team, though, so I thought I could at least do that). However, after about a month, I developed tendinitis in my right knee and had to stop running for the rest of the season. I attended physical therapy and participated when the team had pool and gym workouts, but eventually, I stopped altogether because I was overwhelmed with disappointment. Throughout college, after my knee had some time to heal, I exercised periodically. Sometimes I had someone to go to the gym with me, which was the best, because I really have a hard time motivating myself to exercise. I never really went back to a daily routine though. I hardly ran at all during my year in China. The year after that, I ran periodically, especially because my parents had a treadmill, so I could run even when it was too cold to run outside. The year after that, I had to get into shape because I was determined to run a half marathon. I really wanted to prove to myself that I was still a runner at my core, even if I had had to take some time off and even if I had allowed myself to get out of shape. It truly is one of my top five personal accomplishments (to date). I won't be doing it again (my knees were KILLING me for the next couple of days), but I proved to myself that I can get back to running if I really apply myself. Since then, my relationship with exercise has been almost nonexistent.
Last Monday, however, I decided that enough is enough, and I signed up for the Transphormation challenge. For 8 weeks, I'm going to be completing daily workouts and eating (or trying, anyway) six meals a day (three larger meals, and three snack-type meals), each of which will involve some sort of protein. I don't have a gym membership, but thankfully, the website offers workouts that can take place in the comfort of your own home. I'm going to be drinking a lot more water too (those of you who know me KNOW this is a biggie lol). I signed up because I want to make a change - I don't want to keep making excuses for why I can't get back into a daily workout routine. I think part of the reason why I've allowed myself to slack off is because I'm subconsciously worried that I will fail again, that I will get back into shape and then start to take more days off than I should until I'm out of shape like I was at the start of this challenge.
I think another part of the reason why it's been so easy for me to be lazy is because I've allowed myself to listen to people around me. My body was at its prime by the time I finished high school, and I've since disliked what my body has become. I've lost a lot of the definition in my muscles and my stomach certainly isn't as tight as it used to be. Sometimes when I tell people I want to start working out again, though, they tell me, "But you're already skinny."
The thing is...I might be thin, but that doesn't mean I'm healthy. I've actually come to that realization as a result of this challenge. I signed up thinking, "8 weeks of daily workouts and having accountability for those workouts? I'm there!" I want to get back into the swing of daily exercise (I've been watching way too much Netflix and eating way too much ice cream), and for once, I really want to improve my upper body strength, instead of simply saying I want to, like I usually do (Side note: On Sunday, Peter and I went kayaking, and I was reminded just how easily tired I get when I have to use my arms. I also had to take several breaks when we walked the kayak we were borrowing from my friend's car to the beach, which would've been a three minute walk without the kayak, because it felt so heavy to me, and it took me several attempts before I was able to lift my side of the kayak over my head so we could put it back on top of her car. It was really frustrating.). My friend J, who was one of my teammates while I was a teacher in China, is a personal trainer and started a Facebook group for the friends of hers that were taking on the challenge, and after I signed up, she told me to let her know if I needed help with the nutrition aspect of the challenge. I was completely taken aback. I had honestly thought the challenge only involved exercise (which, thinking back on it, is silly because when I signed up, I was asked if I wanted to buy 1st Phorm protein supplements...). I then learned how important your nutrition is when it comes to gaining muscle. I must just be naive, because I really had no idea!! So this challenge is proving to be an even more positive experience than I previously thought it'd be because for once, I'm actively taking note of the nutrition facts labels on food products. It's also great, because since Peter has been impressively sticking to his low carb diet for almost two months now, I have someone in addition to J who can encourage me when it comes to watching what I eat (which I've never done before, hence why I'm definitely not a healthy person).
So what do I want to accomplish through this Transphormation challenge? I want to workout. I want to build my upper body strength. I want to change the way I see nutrition and I want to actually strive to eat more healthily. And I want to see results. I don't expect to see much in just 8 weeks, but I'd like to see how 8 weeks of healthy eating and working out will look on me.
Bring it.
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