I Be Up in the Gym Just Working on My Fitness

I'm no Fergie Ferg, but I've been in the gym working on my fitness. I finally made the commitment to hire a personal trainer. And I mean commitment on many levels-- personal, time and financial. I called out to my Facebook friends to get trainer recommendations. I had a few caveats (of course) before choosing the right trainer:

1. Must be male: simply, I would hate, hate, hate any trainer that was a female. Mainly because she would be skinny and in shape. (and fat girls don't like skinny girls, just sayin'.) Of course, I would know that she should be fit and thin -- who would want a fat personal trainer? But, my own self-esteem can't handle that.

2. I needed someone who wouldn't be my friend: frankly, I have enough friends. I don't need to hire them. So, I need someone who isn't interested in being my friend, but interested in doing the job I hired him to do. That would be kicking my ass, ladies and gentlemen.

3. I don't need an enabler: I'm a communicator by profession and I can pretty much make an excuse for anything-- fitness and exercise being one of my biggest excuses (I don't have time, I'm too busy with work, kids, school, whatever.) Further, I can make nearly everyone believe it-- I'm in PR for goodness sakes ... and I'm good at it. Well, no more, I say. No more excuses. Frankly, I needed someone who would be honest and not an enabler. So when I made an excuse, he would say, "I don't care if it hurts. Just finish the damn set" and so forth.

4. I need someone who is kinda mean: it works for me. It motivates me. I need someone pushing me. Not letting me quit. I'm seriously a big time quitter at things I'm not good at, and let's face it, I'm not good at fitness, exercise or taking care of myself. Therefore, I need someone who is mean; who will yell at me, push me and make me do it.

I found him. His name is David Allen, owner of NBS Fitness http://www.nbsfitness.net/. He's a meathead former football player, but has the brains with the brawn. And he's really not a meat head at all. He is very smart, knows the human body and what makes it work and was a former strength coach at LSU.  And he is massive. I mean, solid and in shape. As for NBS, you can figure out what it means. Yep, NO BULL SHIT. Now that's exactly what I need.

I've been working out with David for 3 weeks with a partner, the lovely and talented Shawn Sandy. She keeps inspiring me and keeps me motivated. David won't let me quit. My hubby, Tom, has been super supportive and says it's time to take care of me, rather than everyone else. So he's giving me to David 3 times a week, an hour at a time. And so far, I don't hate it. (which, if you know me, know that is a HUGE compliment!)

To show how much progress I've made, David pulled my first workout and compared it with my workout Wednesday. Workout 1, I did 17 pushups. Girl pushups, and I was dying. Week 3, I did 70 (yep seven-zero) girl pushups! That is major progress. Especially for a fat girl who is way out of shape. (Okay, maybe I'm being too hard on myself. I have 2 children, one of which is only a year old.) But my goal in 3 more weeks is to do FIVE REAL pushups in a row. Can I get a woop woop?!?!?!

I'm also running three times a week. Now, when I say running, I don't mean running a 6 minute mile. I've started the "Couch to 5K" program, whereby I follow a weekly program and alternate between running and walking to build up to running a 5K. And, I don't hate it. I have found that the 30 minutes I spend running three times a week helps me clear my head. It helps me think about things and I can just let my mind go. I don't have to solve any problems, I can just think about things and see where my mind goes. I'm not sure how long it has been since I have done that.

I will keep you posted on my progress, dear readers, and I hope you will help hold me accountable.


NO BS!