Several years ago I joined a gym as part of an overall goal of improving my health. For me, one of the most effective parts of my exercise routine was participating in group fitness classes.
I was hitting the gym regularly and was noticing a big improvement in my strength and endurance. At that time, I had learned and implemented certain lifestyle changes to improve my health, including exercise, but I hadn’t yet figured out the diet part. So, while my health and strength were improving, I was being held back. And I actually looked like I was getting fatter because I was building muscle under fat. My appearance wasn’t solely indicative of my health and progress, but this was part of what hit me to really begin a diet change because I thought to myself, “If I had less fat, you could actually see the muscle and the hard work!”
I made some long-term diet changes and, as I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I lost over 50 pounds.
However, I did go without a gym membership for about 2 years, due to issues mostly related to finances and relocating to the other side of the country. In that time, I was able to lose weight because of diet and exercise, such as walking, hiking, biking, lifting weights, going to gyms at friends’ apartment buildings, and using machines available at public parks.
As I plateaued, I realized I really needed to go back to the routine and structure that a gym and group classes offered to bring my health and fitness goals to the next level. I particularly missed the BodyPump sessions I took at my old gym, which is a resistance workout training class focusing on low weight loads and high repetition movements. Because it’s a Les Mills class, and those are offered at numerous fitness centers throughout the world, I was able to find some places in my area that offered these sessions.
I signed up for a gym membership in my area and I began taking BodyPump the next day. I wondered what it would feel like to take this class, which I had done regularly, after a 2-year hiatus. There were times when I had to skip 2 weeks and even coming back from that was hard. What would 2 years be like?
As I put the barbell on my upper back, I immediately remembered that my body had changed from 2 years ago. Just the act of putting the weight over and behind my head felt different. The lunges and squats I did with the barbell were easier than I had anticipated. I believe it was the combination of keeping my upper legs somewhat strong due to hiking, mixed with my body weighing less.
I became aware with each track, which focused on different parts of the body, that my physique really had changed. I was putting little to no strain on parts that once carried a burden. When I was in the first few stages of losing weight, I realized how I was starting to put less weight and strain on certain parts of the body just doing everyday movements. As time went on, I got used to it and didn’t remember it as much. But doing exercise moves I used to do regularly and having my memory go back to what it felt like 2 years ago made me realize just how different it is. It almost feels like doing it with a different body.
The part I was really expecting to be difficult was the push-ups. I had really built up my arms back at my old gym using the machines. I actually went overboard at one point that clothes weren’t fitting around the arms (muscle building under fat) and so I dramatically cut back on that. But the pushups and even the triceps dips were much easier than before, even with having much weaker arm strength than back then. Having to push up less body weight made it easier and it’s gotten even better.
The stretches are more effective now because I can actually do them properly. There were some I could not even do before and now I am enjoying the benefits of them.
Since I restarted three months ago, I’m noticing even more differences compared to before.
I’ve been able to increase to higher-weighted plates. Sadly, when I took BodyPump at my old gym, I never increased my barbell load, even though I took it for a couple years. Not once. Why? Just the act of lifting my own body weight was a challenge enough. It got better, but never enough to lift any more than the already too-heavy load of my own body. Not only have I been able to use heavier weights, but my form is better and I feel like I’m doing the exercises more properly and effectively, which is resulting in fewer injuries and better results.
I am no longer in the back of the class. I didn’t realize this change until last week during a session. I was once intimidated to stand anywhere near the front and now I don’t even think about it. This not only shows a difference in my self-confidence of my body and my performance, but it helps me have a better workout since I can see myself in the mirror and compare my form to the instructor.
There is less recovery time, which means I can take the classes more often and improve even more. After the first class of my restart, I was still sore several days later. After the next time, I only was sore for a day or two, even though I was working out more intensely. So I went from taking the class weekly to doing it at least twice a week, combined with other exercises on other days. I could not have done this before. I took it once a week back then. I tried to do it twice per week, but it was causing injuries, even after I had taken the class for a while and was improving. Now I even take a thirty-minute CXWorx session immediately following BodyPump, which helps me do exercises focused more on my core. I wouldn’t have been able to do many of the CXWorx moves in the past, let alone immediately following an hour-long class.
While it wasn’t ideal, I think having a 2-year hiatus actually benefitted me in some ways. It helped me compare myself to my former self more than to others. Sure, it’s good to notice people’s achievements, but sometimes it’s easy to look around the room and feel a little down when I see how much more in-shape others are and how much more weight is on their barbells. But when I get going and feel the changes being made, I realize I am heading in the right direction. And now I look at their conditions as motivation to what I can achieve someday rather than a reminder of what I am not.
It’s only been three months since I started again and I can already see and feel big improvements. I am now a smaller pant size than I was in the picture from July. It’ll be interesting to see where I am with this one year from now.