I Know This Post Isn’t Going To Go With The Usual Vibe I Want For My Blog, But I Don’t Have Anywhere

Joanne

Accountability Post #1 (13 June 2022)

Today was leg day (my favorite day :D) 

Before we get to my workout, though, I want to stress that, when I exercise, I do not aim for burning a specific amount of calories. My main goal is to move my body in some way, at least 4 to 5 times a week, for at least 30 minutes each session. I have found that, for me, personally, focusing too much on how many calories I am burning makes my workouts a lot less fun. I’m trying to relieve stress, not add to it.

Anyway...  

My workout consisted of:

1. 3-minute warm up on the stairmaster (trying to work up to around 5-10 minutes...3 is all I can handle for now lol)

2. 22 minutes of weightlifting (I, typically, aim for 15-20 minutes)

3. 20-minute hill workout on the treadmill, followed by a 5 minute cool down

In the past, I have always completed the cardio part of my workout first before moving on to weights. However, since the end of last month, at the advice of some gym bros (lol), I have been doing weights at the beginning and then cardio. So far, I feel great. It has taken some getting used to, but I’m starting to think I prefer this order. I feel that I am able to put in more energy and effort into the weightlifting portion of my workouts and still have awesome cardio sessions after. 

I finally have a routine. Once I start seeing results that actually show that this routine is working, I will definitely be sharing.

Now, I’m going to go shower, drink some tea, then go to bed. :)

2022 smells like success, healing, transformation, blessings and self love.

Accountability Post- 2 January 2022

I completed my first workout of 2023 today. Pretty proud of myself. I, almost, didn’t go to the gym. I’m really glad I did. 

I decided to restart my slightly modified version of the tik tok famous 12330 workout. Last year, I mentioned this in a post where I, briefly, discussed what I had been including in my workout routine. So, the 12330 workout is a treadmill workout that was created by a social influencer named Lauren Giraldo. Basically, you walk on the treadmill on an incline of 12, speed of 3, for 30 minutes. I do a 10330 (Incline 10, speed 3, for 30 minutes). For some reason, in my head, an incline of 12 seems too intimidating (Honestly, an incline of 10 is still a lot for me, but I did it lol). 

Cardio-wise I’m still going to be doing the hill workouts I was doing last year (whenever I actually worked out). I think I’m just going to alternate between them and the 10330...just to add some variety, so I don’t get too bored.

Anyway...on to today’s workout...

Today was leg day (my fave):

1. 3-minute warm up on the stairmaster

2. 18 minutes of weights

3. 30 minutes on the treadmill (Incline 10; Speed 3) + a 5-minute cool down after

I’m feeling pretty great (and tired lol). Now, I’m going to read a couple of chapters of the first book in my 2023 reading list (All About Love by Bell Hooks), then I’m off to bed. 

Here’s to starting the year off strong :)

shout out to everybody who’s unlearning the old habits that won’t serve them in their next chapter of life. letting go is difficult, counterintuitive, and disorienting. it’s also worth it.

Let’s believe the process ❤️

may this year be kinder and gentler to you

24 January 2022-Reset

Hey ya’ll!

I can’t believe it’s already almost February. I really feel like this month flew by. I’ve been all over the place since this semester started. However, I finally feel that I’ve finally settled in and have gotten used to being back in school. I had all of these tasks I had planned to accomplish during winter break that I ended up neglecting. Honestly, I was beyond exhausted and burnt out after the end of my last semester. I, pretty much, spent my entire break sleeping, playing Animal Crossing, hanging with my family, and catching up with my friends over the phone.

The funny thing is, in the past, during winter break, which is like a month long for a lot college students, I would get bored around the 2 week mark and would start looking forward to going back to school for the spring semester. However, this year, for the first time ever, I didn’t want to go back...like at all. In fact, by the 3rd week of break, I was starting to get anxious again and was absolutely DREADING going back to school. I was even wishing I had an additional week, on top of the entire month, of break. Not only because I had not completed any of the tasks I had set aside for the break, but because I was still really tired. Not just physically, but mentally as well. I’m really not sure why though. Maybe it’s because I’m entering my second (or third???) year of the pandemic. Maybe it’s the fact that last year was awful and I was still recovering from everything that happened. Maybe it’s because this spring is the last semester of my degree and I still have no idea what I want to do with my life and just wanted more time to not have to think about that. Maybe it’s because I knew how lonely I was going to be again once returning to the city I attend school. Maybe it’s a mixture of everything...and more. 

Then those feelings of dread ended up turning into guilt. I felt guilty for not being more productive with my winter break. I also felt frustrated with myself, especially after realizing I now had very little time to accomplish a large amount of work by the deadline that was established prior to break. This just worsened my anxiety and dread. 

I ended up, reluctantly, bringing this up with a therapist. After telling them everything I was feeling and how I wished I didn’t choose sleep over work during my break, they said something that has stuck with me and will probably stick with me for the rest of my life. They said, “Maybe you needed that break.” They then proceeded to reassure me that there was no reason to feel guilty for choosing to rest. And you know what? I agree. It took a while to get to this point, but I finally do agree with them. I mean...I still think I would have benefited from getting at least SOME of my tasks done, but it’s fine. I really did need that break. Last year left me drained and broken and I needed to use that time to rebuild myself a bit so that I could be ready for this year.

This also reminds me of what I have told friends of mine these past couple of years. “If you don’t take a break, your body is going to do it for you.” Basically, what I mean when I’ve said this is that if you’re constantly on the go and not listening to your body and taking necessary breaks, your body is going to shut down when you least expect it. When it does, it’s going to be at the most inconvenient time of your life. At that point, you will have no choice but to finally slow down a bit and take some time to recover. 

I’ve decided that I really need to start applying this philosophy to myself. Not to hype myself up too much, but...sometimes I do give good advice. I just need to be more proactive with practicing what I preach.

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far in this long post (if you’re some of the new people who have followed me this past month, just to warn you...unfortunately, this isn’t going to be the last lol) thank you for taking the time to read my jumbled thoughts. I’m going to start back up with my fitness/health journey-related posts this week, now that I feel a bit more grounded. So stay tuned.

Until later, stay safe friends :)