In the past week, I became both a PCP alumna and a 500 hour RYT (registered yoga teacher). Aside from this being an incredibly busy week, I'm quite happy to have these two experiences dovetail into one another here at the end. More on that later.
Let's get down to the nitty gritty with some before/after pics, shallllll we?
Day 1, 117 lbs, 24.3 % body fat
Day 90, 109.6 lbs, 17% body fatThe weight number doesn't mean much, but a 7.3% drop in body fat? THANK YOU, JUMP ROPE AND VEGETABLES! Those pictures kinda suck, though, don't they? Here's another before/after that, to me, tells a more complete story:
May 13, 2010
September 29, 2010Top photo is from a slackline/acroyoga workshop I took last May. In that picture, I see a woman whose enthusiasm for trying something new is tempered by a deep self-consciousness. I remember feeling totally obsessed with my age, that day. Driving there, I was nervous, assuming that everyone else there would be fit college-aged rock climbing types (they were), what would they think of this "mom" showing up to learn to slackline? I also see that, under the softness of my belly, there is a weakness there, in my core. There's a sway in my lower back - see it? Even though I look happy and excited in that photo, the line of my body is shows me someone who wants to feel confident and centered but who, on that day at least, didn't yet feel it in her bones.
In the bottom photo, I see myself as lean, fit, lithe and strong. I see myself having tested my mettle again and again, becoming stronger in body, mind and spirit each time. Also, I have put myself back into alignment - see how my shoulders are right over my hips? Shazam!! There's that strong core. And in my core, I do feel a new level of confidence - you can see it in my posture, the strong energetic line of my body. I am calm, focused, and ready for anything. In a word, I am transformed. :)
How did this transformation take place? Well, it ain't rocket science! Here are the insights/lessons learned that have changed me along the way:
The Simplest Food is the Best Food
Like everything else about the PCP, my biggest obstacle to feeding myself adequately was all in my head. How to shop, what to buy, how to prepare it, when to eat - my little pea-sized brain just couldn't figure it out. The PCP diet has answered these questions in the simplest way possible. Eat vegetables, protein, fruit, eggs, grains and some dairy. No fancy recipes, no parameters besides the grams. Simple! And yet, incredibly broad, encompassing so very many fabulous, fresh, whole foods. Foods that are filled with flavor, nutrients, fiber, water, energy. Can't get all THAT from a box of cereal!
This philosophy of food is (I'll say it again) so simple, but it would have remained just that - a philosophy - if I hadn't felt and experienced the difference in my body. Hey, I feel all bright and sparkly! I have loads of energy! I'm getting stuff accomplished! I'm not so tired all the time! The only downside? Green stuff between my teeth after every meal. Just means I have to engage in another PCP-endorsed activity: floss more. :)
I can't overemphasize the HUGE IMPACT this diet has made on my daily cooking and time management habits. I blogged about it previously, but suffice it to say that, over the past 3 months, the kitchen has become my number one happy place, with the farmer's market and Fairway a very close second and third. BIG WIN in this area.
Jumprope is a Way of Life
Don't get me wrong - I've had my ups and downs with the rope. I spent at least 2/3 of my 90 days hating it to one degree or another. Near the end, though, the rope and I became one. I finally stopped struggling and let the jumping be whatever it was that day - fluid and efficient, or a bumbling mess. Didn't matter, didn't care. Mind = calm. After a few days recently of not jumping first thing, I started daydreaming about it. I find that it's something I need to do when I wake up - and so, I have been, every day. Mama needs her morning endorphin rush. ;)
And here, at long last, is my jumprope trick. Be warned, kids - it's VERY ADVANCED. Cross-over and double jump? Child's play compared to this. Do not try this at home without proper adult supervision:
I am a Person Who Works Out
This still feels awkward to say out loud, but I'm saying it anyway so that I continue to manifest it in real life: I am a Person Who Works Out. I did these damn workouts every damn day for 90 days - there was never any question in my mind about whether or not I was going to do it that day. I was committed - and also psyched about the changes I was seeing/feeling.
Now, my challenge is to keep the ball rolling. All the excuses and procrastination techniques have shown up again now that the PCP-proper is over. The hardest part is getting started, each and every time. Once I'm in the workout, I'm IN it - and I love how amazing I feel when I'm done. Again, it's all a mind-game. Which is also good news, since that means it's all in my head. ;)
The Places Where Yoga and PCP Intersect
In yoga, we talk a lot about opening up the pathways in the body so that energy, or prana, can move more freely. Over the weekend, a yogini friend of mine said something interesting: When the body is strong, prana moves more easily, with less impediments. This has definitely been my experience. Certainly, with the practices - whether it's asana, pranayama, yin yoga - I do feel a heightened sense of energetic movement through this very fit body. It's super cool! But I can also feel in my body that the strength training exercises themselves release prana in their own way. We're not working with ancient postures or meridians, but we are working deep in the muscle tissue, with focus and (hopefully) awareness. It's all prana anyway - my PCP workouts have certainly released their share of it in the form of emotional upheaval!
The other thing that I appreciate about these workouts is that they have shown me, yet again, that my body is capable of far more than my mind thinks it is. Working to failure necessitates going beyond the habits of the mind and staying with what's really happening: breath, sensation, etc. This is where I get to "play the edge", out here in muscle-failure-land.
Exercise Begets Exercise
Raising my daily activity level with these workouts has already paid huge dividends in my day-to-day life, especially with the kids. I'm much more apt than ever before to suggest a quick bike ride or a half-hour on the slackline when the kids and I find ourselves looking for something to do. Absurdly, these are the type of activities I used to say no to when the kids suggested them, pre-PCP, when I felt too tired to deal. Now I'm the one raring to go!
Getting Fit Brings Out My Inner Daredevil
During the PCP, I rock climbed and flew on the flying trapeze, both for the first time. I played on my very own slackline. I bought my very first new bike (which I totally forgot to blog about, so here you go - it's AWESOME!). I jumped off a public dock in my skivvies. I even wore a bikini in public for the first time in 8 or 9 years! These are all things that I wanted to do when the PCP started (well, except for the spontaneous dock jumping) - and I did them ALL, dammit. Next up? I wanna learn to SURF. Talk about manifesting one's own destiny!!
Last But Not Least: There Is No "I" In TEAM BADASS!!
Whenever I needed inspiration along the way, I thought of Haley and her badass firefighting classes; Grace and her hardcore volleyball tournaments; Louise and all her travel/apt selling/wedding planning; Ilan and his crazy intense job/endless client dinners/international lifestyle; Will and his intense work with Alzheimer's patients. Seriously - you're all AMAZING and I'm in awe of each of you. I'm also grateful and proud of us as a team for passing the baton of support, encouragement and ass-kicking to whomever needed it in the moment. Let's keep that going, eh? Via FB or email until there is an official PCP forum??
To Patrick and Chen - Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for creating an experience of personal fitness that goes way beyond the physical. Patrick, your wisdom is deep, man! Thanks for being so very present through this process, through all your emails and comments and chats. It's been an honor and a privilege, sir!
To past PCP'ers, particularly Team SEXAAAY - Thanks for leading and lighting up the way ahead. I often thought of you guys, especially during the final weeks, remembering little gems from your blogs. Great role models, all of you!
To the present teams - F*@#ing rock it!! I know you will. And if I need a little kick-in-the-arse to get my post-PCP workouts going, I'm gonna turn to YOUR BLOGS, 'cause that's where the rubber is hitting the ROAD!
Finally, to Dan - Thanks for being my IRL support system and PCP-enabler, even when it got hard. ESPECIALLY when it got hard. I love you, and I hope that this experience helps set in motion a healthier way of life for our family.
I think I'll close this (extremely long) post with a coupla muscles shots. What, did you think I wouldn't?? :)
Have you ever heard Patrick say something like, the exercise you hate the most is the one that will set you free? He's right, y'all. Remember all the whining I did about how much I hate pull-ups? I give you, Exibit A:
If I can do this, I'm pretty sure I can do anything.
XOXOXO
