“All Star” Liz of NJ
Have you ever been awe inspired by the site of very pregnant woman working out? Well this story reflects just that! Liz is a true success story in that she regained a great level of fitness during the third trimester of her pregnancy. Here is Liz’s final summary for a contest we had in the Team BuffMother Rally Room starting May 2007~
at 29 weeks At 39 weeks! NOW- 4 months later!
My Reflections on The 10-Week Quest for ConsistencyBy: Liz of NJBuffMother! Since 2005
At the conclusion of this Quest for Consistency Challenge, I am about to deliver a baby any day now and I am in the best shape of my pregnancy! At the beginning of the QFCC I was at the beginning of my third trimester, not weight training or eating particularly well and had just returned to the Rally Room a couple of months earlier from a hiatus due to remodeling my home. Having been uprooted from my usual diligent routine of weight training 4-5 days a week, I had become complacent about exercise and lacked the necessary enthusiasm for this challenge. I had never participated in a challenge in the RR before and was not sure I was prepared at 7 months pregnant to do so, yet I attempted to “psyche myself up for it [QFCC].” Then fellow BuffMother!, Debra Golding, also pregnant and further along then I, posted that she was doing it and that I should too. I thought to myself, “Well if she’s doing it… how could I not?” She planted a seed and that was all it took. I decided to join in the QFCC and I am so glad I did because I accomplished more that I thought I would in 10 weeks!
My opening thoughts were (as per my blog):
Day 1: “…I’m scared. Consistency is not a strong point of mine: …any break down in my “scheduling” can frazzle or de-rail me.”
Day 2: “I can do this!!! I feel GREAT! I wish I could bottle this [the excitement & energy]! Rather than worry too much about the outcome, I am just enjoying nourishing & energizing my body.”
What changed from one day to the next was that I walked into the gym with a plan and a mission. The QFCC was so well planned out with time frames, goals, mini-challenges and PMA (positive mental attitude) that it made it easy to “just do it!” I survived the first day back at the gym. My “test times” were not what they once were but I left the gym feeling GREAT!
And so as the QFCC progressed, I picked up steam. At first I was really tired and napped a lot! But as time went on I started feeling energized from my workouts. By week 4 I was hitting “pregnancy personal bests,” some of which exceeded numbers I hit BEFORE I was pregnant. Team BuffMother! encouraged me the entire way and by Week 8 I felt invincible even given “my biggest obstacle to overcome” over the 10 weeks: Almost constant lower back pain. Given this particular obstacle, the mini-challenge that I am most proud of, which I completed 100%, was the “100 lunges each day [for a] week.” I believe that was when I really picked up momentum.
Week 8 was a monumental one during the QFCC because at that point I was gaining in strength beyond what I thought was possible and realized my body’s capabilities were tremendous. I can only relate it to having attained a “runner’s high” because I was going into the gym and stacking on weights with such ease and determination that it was blowing my mind. Then at the beginning of Week 9, I found the balance that ultimately I am always striving for in my life. I was determined to finish out the QFCC while enjoying the last few weeks before I gave birth. I intuitively knew I had achieved a powerful lesson regarding my body, its capabilities and my attitude regarding CONSISTENCY: If I could be consistent, realizing that in doing so that my goals are attainable with such a natural flow that do it any other way was an injustice to myself, I could accomplish anything! And that my body is a powerful tool designed by nature to function optimally when nourished and strengthened properly and its driving force is determination and positive mental attitude!!!
Again, what changed my initial attitude regarding this challenge was a BuffMother!, who simply planted the seed of PMA that the QFCC could be done even in our third trimesters. If one simple statement could have such an impact on me that it changed the course of my pregnancy in such a POSITIVE direction, imagine the possibilities of encouraging other women. It is that simple! Michelle Berger has always said, “The Key to your Motivation is to Encourage Others.” Well the dynamic of what occurred in the Rally Room to encourage me to follow through with this challenge clearly proved that point! I sincerely hope that my involvement in the Rally Room has had even a small positive impact on others compared to the tremendous positive impact the women of the RR have had on my life! Thank you for the 10 most energized & empowered weeks of my pregnancy!
Weekly Consistency Report Final Summary
How many weight/strength training workouts did I complete: average 4 per week
How many cardio/interval training sessions did I complete: average 2 per week
How many days of the week in total did I workout: average 4 per week
What obstacle did I overcome in order to get it done? Lower back pain
Who did I encourage? BuffMother friends