Anyone who has stuck with an 'at home workout' regime deserves a medal. I will name this medal - The Determination and Internal Motivation medal. Bravo!
Back in August I purchased Shawn T's newest fad workout called "Insanity". I respect Shawn T's eagerness to help people get fit at home with the hip hop ab routine and completely insane/intense Insanity workouts. Insanity came with a workout plan (1st ingredient for success), multiple dvd's (2nd ingredient - variety), and challenge (3rd ingredient - sense of accomplishment). As I opened the packaging I envisioned myself doing this workout every other day. I could smell increased cardiovascular endurance and sweat. I would tell Mike my goals for these DVD's and attempt to convince him that it was a worthy cross training routine.
Day 1 of the Insanity program was a fit test. This test was absolutely impossible - after the 1st 3 exercises the lactic acid in my legs was unbearable, lungs burning and sweat trickling off my brow. I could see Shawn T's strategy - kill people on Day 1 (humble them) and then build them back up with progressional exercises. I get it.
For the next 3 days I went through the first 3 DVD's and quickly ran into the 'at home workout' obstacles:
- Space: Although I have what appears to be an adequate space in my rec room to workout, Shawn proved me wrong. Jumping in a square was difficult, walking plank was more of a crawl, squat jumping back and forth was a stutter. I had no other places to put things - my furniture was against the wall.
- Equipment: Although Shawn or his back up crew do not use mats- I decided that I would spare myself the floor contact and use my yoga mat. I found out quickly that jumping, planking, lunging, mountain climbing was not practical on a mat with sneakers on. Bunching, sliding, stretching - the mat soon went by the wayside.
Insanity also provides the fitness enthusiast with 'elevator music' as it's background music. There's an option to choose the workout with or without the 'tunes' and it's hard to determine which is better. In an attempt to pump up the workout - I pulled out my IPOD. I was doing much better with my own tunes until my ear buds wouldn't stay in with all the abrupt movements I was doing. Back to the drawing board.
Note: At this time I did not have an IPOD dock...
- Safety Concerns: As I was giving my all in the Insanity workout and "pushing it!", as Shawn T would yell, I was working up quite an "at home workout" sweat. A real first for me. I was down on the floor doing pushups when my hands started slipping and sliding. Laminate flooring/sweat do not mix folks. I then cautiously did the other moves and I'm sure did more harm then good. The next day my calves were seized up tighter than I've ever experienced.
Despite the above - I was still dedicated to my newest cross-training routine. By the end of Day 3 I was experiencing 'at home workout' distractions. Ringing phone, text messages, Mike coming home/leaving, mind wandering, clock watching.... I couldn't stay focused. Shawn would be yelling "10 more" and I would do 5 and rest for 5. He would do something double time and I would do single - not because I couldn't do it double rather I wasn't 'feeling it'. I then asked Mike to watch me do the workout to encourage me and give me a boost. He soon grew bored and I soon grew tired of his encouragement.
This is when I really realized that no matter how much I try there is no substitute to working out in a group setting. I love the energy that others bring and the motivation I get from being in a group. Priceless. I love CrossFit and the community and is the reason why I've been able to stay enrolled for a little over a year. I will remember this blog post the next time I get the notion to invest into another dvd set. I give mad props to the people that can stay committed with all the obstacles that working out at home presents. Good for you!
For now - I'll stick with what's been working and file "Insanity" with the rest of my workout DVD's....
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