Motivation Mondays- A Personal Training Experience

I know I haven’t done “Motivational Mondays” in forever. One of my friends is in the midst of myweddingisamonthaway hardcore wedding planning, so I’ve forgiven her lateness with her responses (I promise they will be totally worth it when I do post them!)

So today, I’m going to talk about the progress I’ve been making with my fitness. Granted, I didn’t go to the gym tonight, but I did go on Sunday, and I’m still feeling the burn (ie: I’m in pain.) I’m also still taking pilates classes at a local studio (love.)

I got this amazing personal training deal on groupon.com, as I mentioned a few posts back. It was $30 for five 30 minute personal training sessions. The gym is a personal training-only gym, which basically means that although they have cardio machines and weight equipment, they only conduct personal training there, and don’t have regular memberships available like most gyms (which is good, because it’s a smaller space-ideal for one on one workouts.)

I had my first session on Saturday morning, and let me tell you something- all that “personal training is a waste of money and overpriced” BS that I used to spew, was definitely so very wrong. I guess sometimes you can’t see the value in something until you experience it for yourself. And experience it, I did.

Yes, it’s pricey (and I couldn’t afford the regular rates if I wanted to go once per week, unless I cut out shopping, and well, I think we all know that’s not going to happen)…but what you get for the price is, well, priceless.

So I go into my session thinking “I’m pretty fit, I’ve been working out regularly for a few months,” and then I do some of the excercises and I cannot believe the burning pain shooting through my body with each move.

I was literally in complete disbelief and shock that a tiny adjustment of how I held a weight or at what angle I did a cruch made such a difference…such a sweet, burning difference.

The most horrifying part of the entire session was using this piece of equipement they’ve got called “Jacob’s Ladder.” It only looks like it would be fun. It actually feels like hellish torture. I had to do 100 steps on it, and I thought I was going to collapse right then and there. Those 100 steps felt like I did an entire leg-burning spin class in less than 2 minutes. Lord have mercy, seriously.
It was disheartening to see how out of shape I actually was- or so I thought. My trainer told me, that in fact, I was not out of shape at all, and that doing something your body hasn’t done before is always a challenge, even for people who are really in shape. Hmm…maybe he’s right…after all, I don’t remember the last time I climbed up an inclined ladder that just kept going faster and faster (that’s how it felt, at least.)

That’s what’s so incredible- like I said earlier- it’s not what you do, it’s how you do it, when it comes to working out. I even discovered during my session that all this time, I had been holding my free weights incorrectly when trying to work my biceps. Not because I didn’t know what I was doing, but because of the way my body is built, I had to readjust the way I was lifting to make the excercise work the way it’s supposed to.

I’m thankful I’m able to partake in some personal training sessions so that I can learn what I need to do for my body, and reach my goals (hello Victoria’s Secret toned-ness). If you can get a great deal on personal training, I defiitely recommend doing so.

Have you been working out recently? Have you ever used a personal trainer? Did you enjoy the experience or not? Please leave me a comment below!

Oh, and while you’re still here, if you want some amazing (but unatainable for most people who’s job isn’t staying fit) inspiration, check of Zuzana on BodyRockTV. She does these amazing workouts on her YouTube channel daily, and shares fitness tips and advice on her website. Plus, her abs are freakingincredible.

xoxo,

Veronika.