The Benefits of A Hard Challenge
A few weeks ago I signed myself up for a 6 hour long endurance challenge (similar to a Tough Mudder, I presume). It is coming up in a couple months and is said to be extremely physically challenging and there are very limited details on what I can expect to endure.
This past weekend we had a workout session with about 20 participants with the purpose of challenging us and also gauging our overall fitness levels so that we all had a baseline. The instruction for this workout session was simple — come at 9AM sharp and wear gloves and decent shoes. So naturally, I had no idea what to expect but one thing I knew is that it would be hard.
I would like to preface this by saying that I don’t run and the longest I have ever ran on purpose would be 750m to 1000m. The warmup was a 1KM run/jog. After that we completed 30 burpees, ran another 500m, completed 15 hydro-burpees, ran another 500m, completed forward and backward lunges (approx 250m), completed a bear crawl (approx 250m), ran another 1KM, completed an army crawl (approx 250m), ran another 1KM, completed 10 squats and finished it off with another 1KM. This was a huge accomplishment for me, considering where I was in December and my muscles are still sore from it.
Six months ago, I would have turned around in the parking lot before we started or made up some excuse why I couldn’t make it. These days, I am planning on doing it again on Saturday.
I am not saying any of this to brag on myself and my recent accomplishments. I am writing this because I want to highlight how much of a mindset shift is possible in just 6 months. 6 months ago, my go-to was wings and beers and these days it is a good workout.
Do I still struggle with overeating? Yes.
Do I struggle to wake up when my alarm goes off? Definitely.
Do I miss drinking? Surprisingly, no.
Have I ever regretted a workout? Never once.
I have been sharing some of my stories on social media and have had some folks reach out to me asking for tips and advice on what has been working for me. I love that, not because I want my ego stroked — but because I want other people to experience positive change and improvements if they want to.
My day to day changes and reshapes often. But the key things I follow are:
Track Calories and Stay In a Deficit — My Fitness Pal is legit. I stay under 2250cals daily.
Track Steps — Reach 10,000 steps minimum each day
Lift Weights — I lift 3X a week — Just started this 3 weeks ago
Personal Trainer — 30 Min Sessions 2X a week
Drink 4L Water
If you are 300+lbs like I was in December, and you follow the above consistently and don’t cheat yourself or lie to yourself, you will see results.
Until next time.
