Quote:
Originally Posted by stingo
It also may have helped that you paid more attention to the warmup. And as for tempo it's a lot harder to get out of the hole in a squat when you're slower getting into it, and also pausing at the bottom. I was wondering about your minimalist approach in previous workouts - you seemed to want to get the workout done, but not to do more than you absolutely had to. Glad to see that pushing yourself yielded such great results - keep up the great work.
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When I read this, I came to the conclusion that you equate minimalism to not pushing yourself...I don't.
I have several reasons why I am purposefully looking for minimalism in regards to this particular program:
- Can I perform these exercises with appropriate form choosing the appropriate weight quickly
- Can I stress my body without beating myself up to the point of injury or wanting to quit
- Since strength training is recommended for the rest of my life, can I learn to do it on my own and in a manner that I look forward to doing it more than not
In the case of my last workout, I'm happiest about finding out that my mind can help strengthen my body when I've determined a goal (in this case completing the whole workout) AND that I didn't kill myself to do so. The exhilaration I felt was comparable to how I feel after dancing to the point that it clears and calms my mind.
For me, the biggest kick I'm getting out of this program is what I've learned (and am learning) about my body, weight-lifting, and making weight-lifting part of my lifestyle. When I look back at what I've done during my workouts, I see the following:
- I can complete an independent program on my own
- I enjoy weight-lifting when I'm engaged:
- it's like dancing to me when I have good music;
- it's scientific to me when I find that my body is responding positively to something I'm tweaking/trying out
- My body needed me to pay attention to the "non-mirror" muscles
- My body has an identity -- when I find out what it needs, it will be soothed; when it is nourished with love it responds positively; when it is learning something new, it will not always be quick or pretty; sometimes it needs firm guidance
- Being adaptable by listening to my body keeps my mind from going gung-ho and over-doing it, however, listening to my mind provides joys of discovery too
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I'm so glad that you posted this to my log. It caused me to do a lot of reflection before and while I was responding.
I have to say that when I've been reading some of the other women's logs and seeing how they have been increasing weight used that I'd been second-guessing whether or not I should be focusing on increasing weight faster, i.e., I knew I was feeling these workouts but I wasn't dying. However after putting into words what I was actually getting out of this program (
this only took me an hour to finish), I've come to the conclusion that I've been good for me.
Thank you soooo much
!!!