Saturday, August 11, 2007

Boot Camp - Wk 3


It's hard to believe there's only one week left.

The past week has seen things ratcheted up another notch of intensity.

Instead of doing two sets of twenty reps, we're doing two or three sets of thirty reps; instead of two minutes at each station for circuit training, we're doing three minutes at each station. It may not seem like much, but let me tell you, that extra minute of push-ups, squats, and lunges make your muscles scream, "Please, STOP!".

I've found that I can handle most of the endurance and strength things pretty well. That's probably because I'm a stubborn ol' bird and refuse to give in.

The jumping, running and impact activities are another matter. My knees really don't like all the jarring, so I've modified some of the exercises and have resigned myself to being slow and steady. I have no intention trying to keep up with the young'uns. They have resilient bodies that recover in half the time that mine does. We have a few in the group who are still in that age and stage where they brag/complain about partying and drinking the night before and having "such a hangover". Yet they still look bright-eyed and bushy-tailed to me. The one thing I keep telling myself is that they may be faster, but I doubt they're as determined.

I was talking to our trainer one morning and she told me she noticed a big difference in the attitude and commitment between the older and younger participants. She noted that older members just get on with it and tend not to complain, whereas the young ones whine and complain almost the entire time. The younger participants are also more prone to "cheat" by shortcutting the number of warm-up laps (I noticed this myself), stopping because they're too tired, etc. Whereas the older participants do everything they're asked to the best of their ability. She asked me why I thought it was so.

The only answer I could think of was that, by my age, there wasn't any point in complaining. I was there of my own free will, so I may as well get the most out of it while I was there. Besides, I think my generation was indoctrinated with the "if you cheat, you're only cheating yourself" philosophy. I don't even know if they say that anymore.

To summarize: Despite aches and pains again this week, my legs feel much stronger and it's not quite as much of a struggle during my runs. I haven't lost any weight, but various body parts, though still jiggly, are definitely firmer.

I'm even - dare I say it - contemplating signing up for another session.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm not doing anything like you but I agree with the body firming up/no pounds lost thing. I think I might have overdone it in the last few days. I have a 12 hour desk job and after a few hours of sitting I'm sore and still and starting to feel my age. After I get up and stretch for a bit I'm better but all this sitting is killing me

Anonymous said...

Way to go! Maybe I'll take another look at the possibility of boot camp a year from now.

Anonymous said...

Muscle is heavier than fat. Weird, huh?

Still exercise is a good thing! I admire you taking on this challenge!

Anonymous said...

Way to go. I admire you for this.

Anonymous said...

Another week! Congratulations! Nice to hear about the progress and inspiring, too.