Shrinking Violets Check-in
Good evening, Violets! This is a late check-in for me. I think I am finally recovering from my recovery week! I did the second segment of Total Body Stretching and slept like a baby Sunday night. I was still tired yesterday morning, and it took an act of will to get my body moving. After my Bible study, I did the warm-up and Intervals 1-5 of IMAX2 followed by my beloved Leaner Legs. Fun, fun, fun! IMAX2 is a walk in the park compared to IMAX3. I did not need to use my rebounder for any of the blasts. Interval 5 kicked my butt!
I was feeling blue yesterday afternoon and called my friend Rebecca during my break. I told her that I was too tired to meet her at the club last night. All the sleep I lost last week caught up with me. Rebecca called last night and offered to take me out to eat. I politely declined and ate my grilled Smart Chicken breast and steamed veggies as planned. I needed to get to sleep early last night, and I knew that eating out and staying out with a friend would only make me feel worse.
I did the third segment of Stretch Max last night. I slept like a baby again last night but was still tired this morning. After my Bible study this morning, I did Pyramid Upper Body (without the stability ball core work) followed by the Kick Max warm-up, blast challenge, and stretch. I actually need to increase my weights the next time I do Pyramid Upper Body, so I did not lose any strength last week. I did not lose any cardio endurance either. After 2 restful nights, I am feeling much better tonight. I definitely like the concept of a recovery week and believe it will bless my body in the long run. Hopefully, I can tweak it so I can avoid the blues and find a way to deal with stress that arises so I can sleep at night. A week of sleepless nights is what wiped me out this time. Jogging in the pool helps me sleep, so I think I may add more of that next time. It is also possible that 3-4 days would be enough of a break from intense workouts. I still need to decide how often to do this.
My purpose for adding a recovery week to my rotation is to prevent overtraining and burnout. My body responds to intensity. For me, intensity = results in terms of weight loss, strength gains, and cardio endurance. Thankfully, I love Cathe’s workouts and really enjoy the challenge. I have learned through experience that I can sustain an intense rotation for 3-6 weeks before I start burning out and losing my focus. I think part of what I need is a mental break. On Labor Day, I committed to a 3-week Hardcore Series rotation followed by an active recovery week. Knowing that I had that “breather” ahead of me motivated me to maintain a determined focus and give my all to every workout. My overall stamina improved dramatically as a result of doing IMAX3 and the Kick Max blast challenge for 3 weeks, and I was very pleased with the transformation in my body. I was definitely shedding pounds and inches, and the difference was visible and measurable. I want to break the cycle of pushing too hard for too long, losing 20 pounds, crashing and burning, regaining every ounce I just lost, and starting over again.
Intense cardio energizes me. Heavy weight training wears me out. My plan for my recovery week was to alternate the TLTs that I like (Better Burn Better Buns and Strength in Movement) instead of traditional weight training with non-Cathe cardio plus core work and stretching. I love the way the functional fitness workouts make my body feel. I think that was a good plan. I also decided to give my knees a break from all the intense stepping, so I switched to hi-lo workouts by Kari Anderson and Christi Taylor. Dancy and fun but not as intense as Cathe’s cardio.
My goal for my recovery week was maintenance. I regained a few pounds, but I can deal with that. I have already decided on some eating changes that I want to implement for my next recovery week. Fasting animal protein for a few days or all week and eating more fresh fruit and raw veggies should help. I think the stress at work was a factor too. I need to have a better game plan for dealing with that.
I just thought of something and reviewed an old journal to refresh my memory. I started burning out early this year after 7 weeks of my first Intensity Series rotation. I took an unplanned recovery week (or half week actually) and alternated Push Pull and Supersets with jogging in the pool for a few days, and I was bursting with energy after that. I think I just figured out what I need to do for my next recovery week!
My meals and snacks are packed for tomorrow. It is time for Stretch Max and Sleep Max!
Blessings,
Heather B.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
