Peak Fit Challenge - End of Week 8

I've survived and thrived in the eight weeks of the Peak Fit Challenge! This was a great week, bittersweet in some ways.  I'm excited about completing this session, but in many ways I'm going to miss the structure and excellence within this program.  Although I'm going to enjoy other videos in my collection, the Peak Fit Challenge will always remain a favorite.  I hope to return to it soon.

Click here to watch video excerpts on the PeakFit Challenge website.

Fellow PeakFit Challengers, share your thoughts, too!

Get your body in peak condition in just 8 weeks with the PeakFit Challenge™, the revolutionary exercise and nutrition program that will help you burn more calories so you can get that lean, ripped, head-turning body you've been dreaming about!

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Week 8, Day 1  (8.1)  July 6, 2011
Today’s Workout: Cardio Strength II
Weekly Weight: 156.6

Despite last week’s water retention, I stayed on track and the results finally showed up on the scale!  I lost three pounds this week, now putting me well within the range I need to be considered a healthy weight.  My new goal is now 155.8 pounds, which would put me down 10 pounds since June 9th.  I have one week left in the challenge, and I think if I stick to it, I just might make or exceed that goal!

Today’s workout was Cardio Strength II.  I was determined to give it 100%, as it will be the last time I do the DVD during this challenge.  I stuck to the 12 & 8-pound weights for the entire workout, which I haven’t been able to do for the whole of CSII done before.  There were a few times when my range of motion with the 8-pound weights was a little smaller than usual, but I made it through.  My energy stayed up well during the entire routine, although I was drenched and spent when it was over.  CSII is a tough DVD—I can see how it’s been delivering great results!


Day 8.2
Today’s Workouts:  Core Dynamics and Pure Cardio

My morning was pretty busy, but I managed to squeeze in Core Dynamics before I had to run my husband to work.  CD is not my favorite routine, but I know it works and that this would be my last time doing it during this challenge.  Not only did I give it my all, but I tried doing a few moves that I’d been modifying in the past.  I even managed to get on my toes when we were on the floor kicking our one leg back with the band—super tough!

Doing Pure Cardio later that day was bittersweet.  I’d had an upsetting family incident that morning, and for a bit I was unsure if I’d even be able to get the energy up to do the video.  But I love Pure Cardio so much, it gave me the desire to do put the DVD in today.  Knowing it would be my last Pure Cardio session for a while, I really gave it my all this time.  Even later when my thoughts drifted back to my earlier family conflict, I forced the tears back and determined to do my best and enjoy PC one last time.  I kept up really well and got a great workout, forcefully “throwing the hammer” with all my might during the last moments of the routine. This one is going to be missed!


Day 8.3
Today’s Workouts: Pure Strength II and Dynamic Flexibility

On the schedule for today is Cardio Interval Burn, but I’m going to save it for the last workout before my Fit Test.  So I’m skipping to the next day on the schedule, which has Pure Strength II and Dynamic Flexibility on tap.

More family difficulties put me in a foul mood today.  I did not want to work out.  Moreover, I honestly wanted to go take a dive into a bowl of some kind of simple carbohydrate! I’m so thankful for the structure of this program—I’m so close to the end, I didn’t want to mess up all my good efforts with some carbo-binge.  I managed to push through the frustration and get the workout into the player. 

Although the workout went fine, you know it was a bad day if I even felt annoyed with Michelle! I didn’t even want to hear her voice or work out with her!  But I managed to get my act together and give it 100%, using my 8 and 12 pound weights and maxing out on all the moves.  The only exception—I still can’t do those tricep pushups on my toes!  But despite the moody start, it was a good workout and went just fine.

Later that afternoon I had an amazing, redemptive conversation with the family member with whom I’d been having trouble, and I was in a completely different mindset for the second routine of the day, Dynamic Flexibility.  This one is very effective, but it hasn’t been my favorite.  However, I was feeling so great that evening, I was glad to do it.  It wasn’t even a concern when the household wasn’t able to clear out and I had to do the routine in front of everyone.  It’s amazing how a good mindset can make all the difference.


Day 8.4
Today’s Workout: Cardio Strength I

Despite staying on track with food and exercise, my weight has been climbing for the last couple of days.  The only way to account for this is the increased hand weights in my workouts and stress at home.  Studies have shown that stress can cause weight gain.  I guess it’s time to get some of that frustration out and get some pounds off the scale!

While I wasn’t overly excited about working out, I was definitely in a willing mindset and was enjoying an almost-empty house as two of my men had gone to the local pool.  So it actually came as a surprise when I noticed that my energy levels were far below what they usually are. Minutes into the workout, I kept waiting for my adrenaline to kick in and for my body to get going.  It never did.  In fact, my stamina, strength and energy declined as the segments progressed.  It was really strange, and frustrating.  I pushed as hard as I could and was sweaty as usual by the end, but my performance was severely lacking today.  Reasons? Stress? Stayed up too late last night? (Couldn’t put a fun book down!)  Who knows?  I wish this hadn’t happened so late in the Challenge, but I’ll just continue to do my best and soldier on.  Three more days to go.


Day 8.5
Rest Day

It was a nice day of leisure, although I did end up taking a 30 minute stroll while on the phone with my parents.  I usually call them once a week, and sometimes I use the little .23-mile block of road in front of my house as my treadmill.  It’s unpaved and sandy with little traffic, so it makes for a decent close-to-home option for me to stretch my legs.  Between that and a trip to the store to get a few grocery staples, I was able to still rack up over 12,000 steps for the day on my pedometer.  Ten thousand is a great number to aim for on regular days, so 12,000 is even better!


Day 8.6
Today’s Workout: Cardio Interval Burn

I deliberately switched around the schedule this week a bit in order to do this particular workout today.  It’s a favorite, and I always feel like I’ve truly accomplished something when it’s completed.  At over an hour in length, it’s the longest workout of the series.

Today went very well, thankfully.  After the disastrous workout on Saturday, I was a little worried.  But I made sure to have a good breakfast and lunch to fuel up, and I got right to it.  Thankfully, the energy was there this time.  Knowing it was the final full workout of the series, I pushed myself as hard as I could.  It was tough as usual and I shed plenty of sweat, but I loved every second of it.  I can only describe the hour as an act of joy.  I was so pleased at my progress, having fun and incredibly grateful to God that He’s given me the body that can do this and the motivation to make it happen. While I’m ready to try some new routines, I almost don’t want this series to end. 


Day 8.7
Today’s Workout:  Fit Test

I can’t believe it’s been almost eight weeks since I did my first Fit Test.  It has gone by so fast, but at the same time it seems like it’s been such a long time.  I was excited and nervous about today’s results, hoping that all my hard work would pay off in equally hard numbers. 

As the workout began, I wasn’t bowled over by what I was seeing.  I added 7 reps to my Alternating Lunges, and that didn’t seem like quite a lot.  Next was Prisoner Squats, and I only added 9 to the 32 that I did 8 weeks ago.  But as the test progressed, I began to be excited about my numbers.  The results really began to emerge.  As we performed the Ankle-Grabbers, I was stunned at how quickly and easily I was able to perform these full-body situps.  Sit-Outs, which were a brand-new move for me two months ago (and very difficult to perform initially), have now become a favorite. I cranked them out with no trouble at all.  And Burpies!  A couple of months ago I could barely do them.  On the Fit Test, I was able to increase them by 75%!!  The 28 minutes flew by, and at the end I was very happy, very pleased with the results.  Below are my totals for each 60-second segment and some extra data:

Wow.  I am just amazed.  Yes, pounds have been lost, but look at the improvements in fitness levels!  Tomorrow will be 8 weeks exactly since I started the Peak Fit Challenge, so I’ll take measurements and get a final weight for the session then.  So check back soon for even more results!

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May 2013

BLOG POST UPDATE - May 2013: I have since done the Peak Fit Challenge on multiple occasions.  After my third round of the series, I had the privilege of being featured on Michelle's website.  Check out my blog post here:

http://www.michelledozois.com/confessions-of-a-3-timer-peak-fit-system/

THE PEAK FIT SYSTEM

http://peak10.michelledozois.com/