training day one...

so i decided, at the top of this year, this was going to be "the year i get my life together."

if you've been reading, then you know i've been struggling with quitting smoking, working on eating better, did the moksha yoga 30-day challenge in february. after looking into a few different gyms, i finally decided on joining goodlife, and went in a couple of weeks ago to sign up. i opted to set up six sessions with a personal trainer, to get me started, as i have no idea how to find my way around in the gym. i don't have the slightest clue where to start, what to do, how to do it, for how long, and how often. so i go in, to meet with "jason," my trainer, and i had to fill out what i thought was some standard "rate your health" type of form. well, goodlife is a big company, with i'm sure a number of big-time lawyers who make sure everything is all legal-like. so, when i stupidly checked the wrong couple of boxes on the form, indicating that i had some slight joint issues, i was told that i wouldn't be allowed to start working out until i got the OK from my doctor.

really?

yup.

can't you just give me another copy of that form and i'll check the other box instead?

nope. sorry. it's a legality issue...

fast forward two weeks, i booked down to london last week for a quick physical with my doctor (thanks for squeezing me in), and i'm back at the gym with my signed consent form.

i started on monday. got a basic walk through the circuit training machines. biceps. triceps. quads. delts. abs. etc., starting and finishing with some time on the bike. felt pretty good after. i'm still feeling it in my muscles.

i'm hoping to alternate gym days with yoga days, but shitty, i didn't get up in time yesterday to make it to the noon yoga class. (doesn't help that i didn't get home from work until 4:30am - i need a new job, but that's a different story...)

anyway, i'm working with jason on developing a program for me. he took my weight, height, bmi, blood pressure, etc., and we discussed my goals.

he's also got me keeping a food journal. i'm a little embarassed to hand it over to him at this point. i can do better. i WILL do better.

my motivation? i've got a picture of myself on my wall from three summers ago. i was about 20 pounds lighter. i swore i'd never let this happen. not that i'm mega obese or anything, but shit, i just know how much BETTER i feel in life without carrying around that extra few pounds. more energy. more agile. lighter. taller. happier...

so, my goals, as i discussed with my trainer, are the following:

1. just to BE healthier.
-this will obviously come from a combination of excercise, better eating, and overall lifestyle changes.

2. to lose 20 pounds.
-right now, i'm hovering around in the 190-195 range. i'd like to get down to 175 and see how that feels. maybe at that point, i'll want to go further, or maybe that will be enough.

3. to quit smoking for GOOD.
-this one is on me. it's a fight. i'm fighting it. but it's not good enough to be fighting it. you have to be winning it, ALL THE TIME. or else you lose.

4. to achieve better muscle definition.
-this can only come from making 'em burn. burn, baby, burn...

5. greater flexibility.
-yoga. yoga. yoga. yoga. yoga. nothing beats it.

i'm sure i'll think of more things i want to accomplish (learning french - and the guitar - are two that spring to mind, but that's another story), but more on that later. for now, i'm going to start keeping a log of my progress on here for you. starting later today when i get home from my second session with my trainer.

i'll be checking in daily with my weight, what excercises i'm doing, and what i'm eating/drinking, in hope that some of you will remind me to lay off the ciders after work, as they surely aren't helping.

i'll be taking pictures of myself, to note the changes in my body (yeah, right now i'm a "before" hoping to become an "after"), as well as taking pictures of the things i eat and drink.

i don't know if anyone will even read this - or care - but just the very act of putting it out there will make me that much more aware of everything on a daily basis. i just know it.

okay, i'm off... gotta get my shorts on and head to the gym... just going to finish my coffee first...