Well, I’ve started the ChaLEAN Extreme workout program, and finished the first workout. Needless to say, I am sore in places that I’m normally not. I’m sore in places that I didn’t know could get sore. But it’s a good feeling, because it tells me that I’m getting a good workout (and also that I haven’t gotten a good workout in these areas in quite awhile!)
A little background about me: I’ve known Jesse for quite a long time and consider him to be an extremely good friend. I trust his recommendations (usually… j/k) and well, you can see the pictures of him on his site. The man is in shape, and lives, eats and breathes fitness. So when he recommended a new 90-day, half-hour workout program, I definitely wanted to hear more. From high school through college, I weighed about 185 pounds (I’m 6′3″) and could eat anything I wanted, in any amount. Then, after college, I started more of an “office” job where I was sitting all day, and since then my weight has gone up a bit. The highest it’s gotten is 225, and right now I’m around 205 to 210. My goal would be to get down to around 190.
Jesse had heard good things about ChaLEAN Extreme, and I must say, I was initially skeptical. “Isn’t this a chick workout?” I remember saying. Even some of the random reviews I’d seen online said that this was geared more towards women, while P90X (another BeachBody product) was designed more for men.
I completed Day 1 on Tuesday. By Wednesday morning, I had taken back every single negative word I’d said about it. This is not a chick workout. It’s a GREAT workout that happens to be led by a woman. Scoff no more; this will kick your butt. I know it kicked mine.
One of the tougher things about any kind of workout plan is the diet aspect. If you’re like me, you enjoy pizza, burgers, chicken, junk food, and all of the other wonderfully tasty (yet not so healthy) snacks available pretty much everywhere you look. I’ve been taking baby steps away from this and started to incorporate more healthy stuff in there. I won’t list out my diet, but I’ve replaced candy bars with FiberOne bars, pop with Crystal Light or V8/fruit juice (though I still do drink some pop), and so forth. I won’t fool myself into thinking I can just change my entire diet overnight, so I’m going to attempt it in a more gradual manner.
Today’s Thursday, which means my rest day (Wednesday) is over and I’ve got another workout coming tonight. The hardest part about all of this is just getting started, and I’m not just saying that. Frankly, it is infinitely easier to sit on the couch and watch TV than it is to set aside 30-40 minutes for a workout. I love watching movies and playing video games, and there’s nothing wrong with either, but you also need to incorporate some physical activity into your day. It’s all a matter of routines. If you can get yourself into a routine or a pattern of doing the workouts, eventually it will become normal to you, and if you skip a day or are otherwise unable to stick to your routine, you’ll miss it a lot.
Best of luck to Melvin and everyone else getting into their routine! More to come…
