Insanity Day 1 - Part 1

So... I finally did it.!!! I finally stopped talking about doing Insanity and finally mustered up the guts to do Insanity. I decided not to do the Fitness Test. Instead, I started out with Disc 2: Plyometric Cardio Circuit. I already know I need to be in a LOT better shape than I am in now. As a matter of fact, that's exactly why I'm doing this. I want to become a healthier me. I’ll gauge my success by how much faster I can run a mile, larger my clothes feel and how much longer I can workout without needing a recovery period. Oh yeah… I wouldn’t be too disappointed if I looked good in a 2-piece either afterward but for now, I’ll take what I can get. As we journey down this road through Insanity and beyond, we must be mindful that no two people are the same so we have to use our own measures for our own goals. But that’s another post for another time….

Anyway…I was so excited to see what the big fuss was about that I hardly slept last night. I set my alarm for 6:30am and ended up getting up at 6:00am to start my first attempt. Armed with a towel, 2 litter bottle of water and a lot of guts I headed to the basement. I didn't use a heart rate monitor but will once I complete the program once without the pressure of having it. I think a lot of times we get so caught up on numbers (weight, heart rate, BMI, resting heart rate) and self-imposed deadlines that we neglect to take the time out to enjoy the stress-relieving benefits of exercise. Now maybe if I keep telling myself that’s why I’m doing it, I’ll start to believe it. LOL

I watched so many Youtube videos of people doing Insanity and read so many reviews that I can honestly say I was prepared for what Shaun T. was about to do to me. Within the first 3 minutes of (what I like to call) the warm-up from hell, I managed to work up a good seat and was in need of a water break. But I toughed it out and waited until the rest of the group was able to break too. The “warm-up” lasted apprx. 20min and my heart rate (manually checked) was well above my “safety zone” by this time. I think I sweated out my sewn-in weave…if that’s possible.

The warm-up consisted of a light jog, jumping jacks, jumping side lunges, mummy kicks, sumo squats, high knees, Heisman’s,  and a few other moves that didn't hurt me enough to remember what they were. Then we went into the stretch. I hated the stretch! I’d rather do the warm-up again than to do this awful stretch. The next time I do this disc, I’ll probably do my own thing during this time to target the same muscle groups.  I probably disliked it so much because I'm not very flexible, have very little core strength and have a little too much "insulation" around my belly to fully get into the moves. So forgive me if I’m too critical of the stretch. Perhaps, I’ll enjoy it once I finish the program.

Speaking of the stretch, I can’t understand why it was put in between the (2) 20 minute sections on the DVD. This is what made me thing I was done. Yall would have been laughing. I could have sworn I did something! Then I found out that was only the warm-up. Imagine the look on my face: I’m all out of breath, drenched in sweat and drank ¾ liters of water and that was just the warm-up! I definitely need this in my life!!! I managed to get through the first circuit but decided to finish up disc one tonight.  Supposedly, working out twice per day is better than once because it gets your metabolism going. But that’s another post for another time. I’ll post my experience with the next circuit tonight along with my stats, weight, and before pic.

Be back soon...