As you all recall, I had my Fitness Assessment last night with a Personal Trainer (it’s free at the gym, every three months), and while it was all fine and dandy — I just hate the fact that they only try to sell you at the very end, to be your Personal Trainer. I was blatantly honest with her and perhaps a bit too brutal, but she deserved it lol (see this is why a lot of females don’t get along with one another — she acts just like a typical one. I’ll get to that in a moment). Anyway, so I told her I don’t see them  benefiting me in any way, as I can push myself in a fitness class and get the same results… for free. I also disliked how when I was asking her questions about my flexibility (my reach was 12 inches) and she  of course had to go in and say: Well… since I’m a gymnast and all this stretch is called the (whatever it was called)… “ [Insert awkward pause here].

Don’t compare myself to you.

I’m not you. I’m not as flexible as a 5 foot nothing gymnast who has a completely different build than I do myself. She’s short and “stocky”, while I’m thin and lean — but don’t confused that with completely fit. She mentioned I should not lose any body fat percentage even though it grew a percent since the last time I had it measured. My boyfriend was correct in telling me that I put on weight a-symmetrically. Meaning my arms are complete twigs, as is the rest of my limbs, but then I have “love handles” that get out of control. I hate them. It doesn’t take me too long to tone up, which is then where I get bored at the gym. If I stop seeing results that means quitting time. Ultimately that sucks.

Apparently my core strength is “great” with 25 sit ups during a timed tick tocking noise I had to move to. 25 was the limit, and I did it with eeeeeease. She asked me if I knew how much I weighed and I estimated 124lbs, because that’s usually what I weigh on the scale at home after I wake up or before I go to bed. Thankfully, I was wrong — 5lbs wrong and I’m not 124 at all, more like 119. Wat wat!. That made me smile … End brag.

Sporting my awesome kicks I got for 40% off in June …

During the assessment I had to go on the treadmill (I love the plasma mounts ones they have at the gym) for her to read my V02 oxygen intake, which was supposed to be a 15 minute interval  on the treadmill where I have no control over the speeds (it only goes fast as a brisk walk), while I watch the grade go up and speed go down, and vice versa. Apparently my heart rate hit the highest it could go at 191bpm, and I was only walking. Yes, I can hold a conversation quite fine, I’m not out of breath, or panting or sweating like a pig. My heart rate gets out of control and I should probably have that looked at. But it doesn’t bother me because it’s been like that my whole life. Even when I was walking at the speed of 3.6mph with a zero percent grade, I was in the 100’s with my heart rate. I mean, my resting heart rate is totally fine at a below average of 63 – where average is 65bpm. I just don’t get it. The fitness instructor and my Boyfriend were a bit concerned about that, as they should be. Maybe I should just get it checked out “early”, and see what’s up? Maybe it’s just my nerves since I know I’m being evaluated. I have no idea, but I’m also concerned as to why I hit my maximum heart rate by walking. I wouldn’t want to see how fast it beats when I play soccer all hyped up on adrenaline. Maybe that’s why I have a high metabolism?

It’d be interesting to see what has changed on my next Fitness Assessment, come three months time.

I may look fit, but am I?

The gym I attend offers free Fitness Assessments to track your fitness throughout the months you work out. When I first joined the gym in November 2007, I had a consultation for a full hour where she was measuring my body, as well as my body fat percentage, how flexible I was, then took me onto the treadmill with a heart rate monitor to see how good my endurance was, even if it was just walking — it was at various speeds with hills and then straight away.

Of course, like any female — I didn’t like the number I saw when she told me my body fat percentage. So for the next three months I pushed hard at the gym, doing a couple of classes here and there, but mostly trekking away on the treadmill doing a ton of miles per week. I was successful in some aspects, when I had my second assessment in March 2008. I lost inches off my ass (I thought I had nothing to lose on my butt!) but I lost a mere 0.3% of body fat percentage after brutal amount of torture I endured on the treadmill. Not long after, I quit the gym in May ’08 and didn’t go back.

I notice my body tones up fairly quickly, but I was so bored at the gym just going on the treadmill and doing the occasional strength classes Saturday mornings. But I think mostly, I dreaded the commute to the gym. Now that I have switched branches, I am now in the exact same building as the gym I attended three years ago, in November 2007. I signed up back in the beginning of December and went to a few classes, then came Christmas vacation…

I immediately got back into going to the gym right after my holidays ended. Spin, Strength (weight),  “wave” (a neat fitness machine lol) classes, and many more. I love working up here because it’s hard to walk past the gym and go home, knowingly you’re skipping a class (ahem, I’ve never done that before).

After a few weeks of joining the gym I have finally booked my second first Fitness Assessment for today right after work. It’d be interesting to see how much my body has changed (or stayed the same for that matter), since I initially joined back in oh seven.

I’m looking forward to it. Mainly because right now I’m not playing soccer, I’m not involved with climbing. I’m relying on going to the gym for my fitness and I better make it fun. I’m trying to promise myself to not quit within 6 or 7 months of hard work at the gym.

I’ll let you know how the Fitness Assessment goes! If it doesn’t, maybe I won’t post it at all and just head on over to wholesaleinsurance.net and complain lol.

Being competitive with yourself, and secretly with other people next to you while either on the stationary bike or any other machine, is killer. Much better than taking any sort of fat burner pills in lieu of sweating it out manually, if I can word it that way. At the gym, we even have a Women’s Only section that’s off on it’s own corner right in it’s own room inside the women’s change room. You don’t have to be bothered by guys with no necks or other meat heads.

I love the subconscious guilt that comes with it too. Because, it’s so hard to walk past the gym every day after I’m done work and decide to not go. Definitely a bit of guilt kicks in and of course after it’s out of sight, it’s definitely out of mind ha ha! What can I say I don’t exactly love the gym. But I conveniently have a gym right in my building at work. In fact,  tomorrow I have my fitness assessment. I’m kind of bothered to find out the results of it. I’m an average sized person but last time I had my body fat percentage taken I was a few points higher than I wanted to be. Grueling months at the gym lowered it, but not by much — I only lost inches. Which, I mean is great but I wanted to be in the healthier body fat % range.

Can’t complain I guess! Maybe if that number changes for my second F.A. 3 months from now, I’ll tell you all about it. But for now, it’ll be my little secret.