Posts Tagged ‘ab-workout’

During my run today I noticed something for the first time, it was too short. Not in the way that I wasn’t getting my heart rate up enough or even getting a good workout for my legs. I had run a couple kilometers with some stretches and jumping squats in between and my body was feeling soar. No, I felt my run was too short because for the first time in three weeks I was really enjoying it.

Though my body was tired, my mind was was enjoying the challenge. The freedom of knowing that it had control over the body and not the other way around. It was actually somewhat of a high. By pushing yourself though difficulties, you learn something about yourself. Its the reason why a person will run a 26 mile marathon simply for the reason of finishing. Pushing yourself beyond the limit helps you grow as a person.

Pushing yourself beyond your limits isn’t limited to just physical activities. It can include doing something you have always wanted to try, something you are afraid of, or something you think will be very difficult. Breaking outside your comfort zone and doing more than you though you could helps you learn about yourself and gives you the confidence to know you can do it.

Exercise of the Day

• Hanging Crunches- Hanging from a bar (as you would if you were doing pull-ups), raise your knees into your your chest and hold for two seconds. You can also do these at angles to work different parts of your abs. In addition to working your abs you also work your shoulders and arms.

Tomorrow, I will be giving more updates on my progress for the last week and covering another of my favorite exercises. Sign up to my RSS Feed to make sure you don’t miss it.

Not much to report on today, except that starting my workout was definitely much easier than it was yesterday. I was actually looking forward to it. I went for a 10 minute jog, stretched, and then did some sit-ups, pull-ups, etc. One thing I did want to talk about (that I forgot to mention in earlier posts) is weight.

Since a lot people judge the progress and effectiveness by how much weight they lose, it may seem weird that I didn’t weigh myself. I actually did (or didn’t do) this on purpose. The problem is that your weight fluctuates. In the beginning it may go down as you lose fat weight, but then will usually go up as you start building muscle which is heavier than fat. After a while it will eventually level out as your body fat gets down to a lower lever and you aren’t putting on as much muscle weight.

If you judge your progress using weight, you are setting yourself up for an emotional roller coaster. You will be excited to see your weight drop. Then be even more disappointed to see it go back up. It also doesn’t take into consideration how you actually feel. The fact you have more energy, feel stronger and actually enjoy working out. If you focus on these things, I think you are a lot more likely to stay with your program.