Quick update! I just finished week 5 of Insanity.
The first month’s workouts are complete, along with the recovery week. Today was supposed to be a rest day but instead of overwhelming myself tomorrow with two workouts, I did the fit test today. The results were overall pretty good. I didn’t expect to do as well as I did, but I still have to learn to pace myself to not overexert myself on one exercise and not recover well enough before starting the next one. I recorded my results down without looking at the results from the previous times I did the fit test, so that I wouldn’t be bias and forcefully push myself to do better than last time, but rather see how my natural progression was. I’d have to say I’m pretty proud of myself. Honestly the last time I did it, it was pretty hard and I was thinking there’s no way I can get more out of each set the next time I have to do this fit test. This time, I feel more or less the same way, hahaha. I feel like I’ve maxed out at my numbers so I might be in for some disappointment come day 50 when we repeat this test.
I’m not going to lie, the past few weeks have felt pretty hard too with the constant heat running outside trying to keep up with my marathon training. And having to find time to fit in both workouts. But I’m really happy that I stuck through it, kept up with the training schedules and got it done. I really didn’t think I would complete the whole first month. I was thinking I would tap out by week 3 and honestly, before I left for Paradox Lake, I was really thinking of it because I felt I couldn’t fit it in being on vacation. But I’m glad I stayed disciplined and stepped it up. It is NOT easy and I’m really worried about the second month of Insanity with all those max workouts, especially since now the workouts are going to be longer with an extra circuit added and 3 sets of it.
I am mentally not ready but my current mentality going into this week is to at least try the workouts even if I can’t keep up at their pace and intensity, take it slow, do what I can and decide from there if I want to continue and finish the program. I have to at least try.
I’m really happy of my physical results looking at day 1 and day 35, with how toned my stomach looks. My weight honestly hasn’t changed but I can feel my clothes fitting a bit looser. My skin is tighter, my waist and muscles more defined, my butt rounder. It’s small changes but I’ll take it. Since the scales didn’t move (and they’re known to not move sometimes during these workouts because of the muscle gain/fat loss possibly being in equilibrium) I took pictures instead to track my progress and help keep me motivated. Every small change definitely helped push me to continue on and keep working harder. The scales only tell you one number, instead of the details, so it’s disheartening if you rely on just one number. So if you’re crazy like me, remember to give yourself some credit, take a step back and remember it doesn’t show everything. (Although one of these days I’m going to get one of those more detailed scales that break down fat/muscle/water percentage.) I had the photos to help keep my demons at bay so I’m not too discontent with my day 35 results. But I promise you, one day I’m going to break out of the number on the scale mindset! It’s another mental obstacle I have to overcome in my journey.
I can feel the difference in my progression though in each workout in how I’ve been able to recover better, take less breaks and rests between sets and keep going for longer during workout sets. So that’s definitely a win. In the beginning, I was pausing a lot in the middle of a circuit. But in the past 2 weeks, I could notice the difference in how I was able to continuously get through them with less pauses and finish strong to move onto the next part. It’s definitely a struggle at times, but the body is definitely getting stronger, quicker, and better. I haven’t seen how it translates over to marathon running just yet since I haven’t increased in mileage just yet but hopefully like I’ve been reading, it’ll help with the runs in not feeling as burnt out or sore since it’s helping to strengthen my core as well as my cardio. When I do increase my mileage though, I need to develop a strategy to test out refueling and recovery snacks so I can plan out the best way to conquer the real deal in January. So far with the half marathon, I only need to do a few water and Powerade stops. I don’t really need to refuel with a banana or jelly beans during the actual run but for the full, I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a different ballgame as calories and glycogen stores get depleted and fatigue sets in. But this is the purpose of training. To find a way to avoid hitting that wall. To properly train your body to adapt to the stress it’s about to be tested against. I’m still terrified of what’s to come, but as I continue training, I do feel a small ounce of courage and confidence that I might, just might, be able to actually do this!
Anyways, here’s to month 2 of Insanity. May the odds be ever in my favor!
