Your Body Is Your Barbell Update (Monday Musings 63)

Book Used for Weight Lifting

I wanted to update on a post I wrote about using your bodyweight at home rather than going to a gym to use free weights and machines. In this post, I was only able to do one set of the Level 1 Ground Zero workout that includes the 8 exercises, and I added calf leg raises. As noted, I was only able to do 1 set, and it's recommended to do 3 sets.

For quite some time, I could only negotiate 1 set b/c after I did all 8, I was thoroughly exhausted, and then psychologically facing the daunting task of doing a 2nd set, I stopped.

What I did this week was to do the first two exercises, and repeat twice, and then move onto the second set. In other words, exercise 1 and 2, repeat again, and then go onto exercise 3 and 4, repeat again.

For some reason, this worked because as I finish each set, I know I don't have to go back to them again, that I'm over and done with them.

I'll try to work on doing 3 sets, then moving onto the next pair of exercises as I get stronger and build endurance.

As for the aerobics, I found that walking up and down the stairs is almost as effective as doing the stepmill, but I like the consistency of the Stepmill better and how you can space out easier than negotiating stairs. Since my Stepmill died, I decided to keep my Planet Fitness membership for the aerobic component of my exercise regime. If my friend doesn't join me, I'll downgrade to the basic membership plan.

The How of Happiness Review