Monday, August 20, 2007

Getting on Track

I think I'm finally starting to get back on track. I decided today that I'm SICK of my body always telling me what to do, which can sound bad if taken in the wrong way, but for me it's more of being sick of allowing my body or small things get in the way of my success (ie the excuses I talked about before).

Joe Vitale was talking about love some more in his posts. His view: Love your work. I took it to mean, that not only do I have to love my job to be successful in it, but I have to love the work I'm doing to be successful in reaching my body comp goals.

So food: I love you. Especially the healthy stuff! Workouts: I love you. I actually did love the jump rope session I did today, which was done after convincing myself in the first place that I should finish my TT workout (lack of consistent workouts makes one tired easier). Here's what I did on the rope: 5 min stretching/warm-up, then 15 minutes of 30 sec hard jumping followed by 90 sec of active rest (I either walked around the gym or did some easy karate kicks). Followed that with 16 minutes easy walking on the treadmill.

9 comments:

Kristen said...

Hi there, I saw you comment on Skwigg's blog, then came and snooped on your blog. 2 things struck me about todays blog...first, I hadn't jumped rope in a long while, and had saw something on someone else's blog..can't remember if it was Alwyn Cosgroves, or thefitblog. Anyway, so I went a bought a new jump rope and gave it a whirl on Sunday. Apparently I'm not good at it because I had whip marks on my upper arms and buns from hitting myself with the rope...OUCH.
Also, I just started Karate with my 5 year old son. It is great!!! I've been wanting to do it forever, and I'm so glad I finally am. I hope sometime you can fit it in your schedule too.
Anyway, good luck to you!!

Carrie said...

Kristen, kudos to you for joining a karate class! I got my black belt five years ago, and it's been calling me back ever since. Jumping rope is one of the best ways to do HIIT, since cheating doesn't get one very far. I've been practicing, one time one of my goals was to jump for 5 minutes straight without tripping up. I never made it past 3 ;).

I am also a past BFLer and still live off Eating for Life and the tenets that I learned from BFL. It's always good to meet another, although I noticed on Skwigg's blog that you were starting to look at moving past it. I also highly recommend Afterburn. I didn't quite have the results Skwigg had, but that's because my nutrition stinks in comparison to hers!

Kristen said...

Carrie, I think I will get Afterburn, but I don't foresee myself doing the eating plan because I get a little wacky with having to count calories, or any other kind of tracking, so I'd like to stick with the BFL eating plan and do the Afterburn workouts. How long did it take you to get to a black belt in karate? Today was only my second class so I know I have a ridiculously long way to go. I'm going to keep practicing with the jump rope...I'm fine going slow, it's trying to hit my "10" when I start to whip myself silly. I'm thinking I need to wear a hoodie and long pants (with padding in the hiney) next time I attempt it. :)

Marcol said...

Hi Carrie!

Thanks for your post. Im an aspiring Personal Trainer and working on getting the body I want, need and deserve!

I needed to read what you said from Joe Vitale. I will try to always remember what you said "...love the work Im doing to be successful in reaching my body comp goals." I was an athlete from 6th grade through 12th but have been wondering lately what has happened over the past few years to my motivation. I think this quote might be the ticket. I loved playing basketball and so I did it everyday, all day when I could. I hve to find that sport now that I love so that I can have the success.

Thanks again. I will definitely be reading your blog :)

BTW, just wondering how long did it take you to get certified? What prep did you do? How long have you been a trainer?

Carrie said...

Kristen,
I totally understand about the calorie-counting thing, as I'm not too good at it myself. When I do log my calories, it's either a "well I have some more to burn, so..." or "I can't log today because I know I've eaten more than I want to know about". I think if you follow EFL closely and the whole foods approach, Afterburn will definitely work.

It took me 4 years to get to my black belt. Every dojo has different timelines, some get black belts in as little as 2 years and some take up to 8. I have more respect for the places that take longer, since you get more practice in and it becomes more ingrained. However, karate is just an awesome sport to take up, period. From your blog post, it sounds like you have a good sensei. Mine didn't make us do it, but he told stories of his sensei forcing the class to run around the building on the rocks to toughen up their feet :) Ours was more fond of teaching little movements, tai chi, and holding horse stances forEVER.

Carrie said...

Marcol,
I did approximately 5 semesters worth of college work before going for the certification- important classes are anatomy, physiology, exercise physiology, clinical exercise physiology, and exercise testing and prescription. A semester-long CPR/First Aid class wouldn't hurt either. Of course, some of those courses have prerequisites, which is why it's taking me 4 years to get my Masters Degree. You can visit ACSM.org for more information on certification requirements, and there are books available there as well. The one I used to study for the cert. was Resources for the Personal Trainer, available through that site. It was a quick overview/review of the things I had learned in my classes.

I have now been a trainer for nearly a year, but I've learned so much this past year that I feel I've been at it longer.

It's always good to meet others who have personal trainer aspirations but are also human too! You may enjoy Steve's Transformation Blog at http://fitnesstransformation.blogspot.com/
Perhaps you could help me and Billy from http://leanbodyquest.blogspot.com/ kick his butt into gear at the same time as our own!

Marcol said...

Carrie thanks for the reply. I dont have nearly the background you do in the sciences. In fact for the cert that Im going for I got stumped for several months on the anatomy part and put it on the shelf because it wasnt clicking. Ive since decided to just move on and get the rest of the info and either hope to come back and get the anatomy a little better or be able to pass with the other info. Im going for NSCA CPT. I have all the materials to gear me for success, we'll see. I have like 2 months to get this done, I have the smarts to do it but i need to focus and be more disciplined. Ive decided that i dont want to fully "practice" as a trainer until I "look" like a trainer. I mean why should someone follow my prescriptions and see me as motivational if i myself dont look the part? ANyway thats where Im at. I'll be in touch.

Carrie said...

Marcol,
Anatomy as a class is intensely annoying. Many people have to take it twice before they pass. So I empathize with you there. Anatomy is amazing in combination with physiology, since it gets one to think about how the body is a single organism with many parts that make up a whole, and how one thing can affect another, seemingly unconnected part.

About the part of "practicing" before "looking the part", I had some initial thoughts too that said, "maybe you should wait..." but I realized two things. One, if I waited I probably wouldn't EVER practice, and Two, as someone who is currently struggling with the same issues as the people you're working with, you are an intensely positive role model for others. The problem many people have with personal trainers is the thought, "Well, I bet they never had to work a day in their life to look as good as they do, how could I have a chance?" My clients benefit quite a bit from knowing that while I know so much, applying it is a different matter entirely. So that's how I look at it. Besides, what's the point of spending so much time and money on learning and getting the cert. and then not using it, basically you'll end up losing everything you've worked so hard for. The important thing is to let people know that you are still learning :) and then keep working toward your goal.

Marcol said...

Good points! I'll keep them and mind and work harder on the anatomy :) I'll be in touch soon!