WEEK 4: PERSONAL JOURNEY

This week was filled with HIIT classes and a trip to the dermatologist to treat some pre-cancerous spots on my face (reminder to wear sunblock)! Over the next few weeks, I will be doing a chemo peel on my skin, so my photos might not look too good- but, hey- that's life when you are 45 and have fair skin- with Irish in your ancestry. My father passed away from cancer- melanoma- so I have the sad reminder of what too much sunshine can do to a body, with the good fortune of knowing I need to stay on top of changes to my skin. I am reasonably good about dermatology visits.

My dear friend Owen got the flu, and I took over the 2 (40-minute) HIIT classes he usually leads on Wednesday and Friday mornings, plus my regular Monday morning shift. Starting the day at 4 am to get into the Worcester studio for 5:20 and lead classes at 5:30 and 6:20 is a whirlwind, but I always feel uplifted by the effort and kindness of the group. We have so much fun! On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have an amazing personal training client, so it felt like I had something to look forward to each morning this week- with wake-up times pretty consistent. Consistent bedtimes help our brain cope with the challenge of earlier days a little more readily.

There is a headache virus going around, and it hit me- so I've also been working as a teacher and working through icepick headaches for the past 7-10 days, and this is all to say that when I needed to rest and hydrate, I didn't work out. I have to listen to my body and so do you. There are times when a workout will help with discomfort by working out the stress we are holding, but when it's already been a busy and active week- we just might need to put that icepack on the forehead, drink a tall glass of water and sleep for an hour and a half midday.

Results

I am down almost 4 lbs in 4 weeks which is healthy weight loss. Nutrition wasn't wildly out of whack except for the extra glass of wine and the cookie dough bites I snacked on while listening to a local town hall meeting- where the LGBTQIA+ community came out to fight for respectful treatment of our first-ever openly transgendered official. There is a heightened need to protect this part of our family- we are all vulnerable and none more so than my trans family and friends.

After all the HIIT workouts this week, I took a 55-minute Peleton bike ride with heavy resistance today, and I plan to do a short, upper body lift.

The week ahead will be another full week of early mornings with HIIT classes to lead M,W,F and clients before and after school. I start training for a half marathon this week, too. The weights will be harder to sneak in, so I will likely adjust my training plan to keep weight lifting to short bursts- focused daily on a particular muscle group and increase protein.

Recommendations if You're New to Fitness or Just Returning to it:

The average person does NOT need so much cardio. If you're looking to start a routine from stagnant, try 10-minute walks 3x per day. Aim for 180 minutes of steady-state cardio or 75 minutes of HIIT workouts as recommended by the American Heart Association. HIIT is an intensity spike followed by a steady state or low-intensity move over a workout, usually involving weights, but it could be done as a walk/run or jog/sprint as well.

Try getting 2-3 weightlifting sessions in per week. If you are just starting out, full-body sessions with 8-12 reps (2-3 sets) will help you avoid too much soreness, but later you can increase the weight as your brain and body connect without fear of bulking up. As your strength increases, you can increase workouts and specialize them more.

Of course, as we age, stability and flexibility are just as important as nutrition and weights. Stretch and foam roll. I like to try to get some morning yoga in when I can or to do a 10-minute relaxing stretch at bedtime.

If you need help, reach out!

Health and wellness are not linear. We just keep returning to the path together.

Love,

LeeAnn