Sunday 27 October 2013

Project Jason: The Trainer

It's been about three months now since I've started going to the gym. As my shifts at work end up getting later and later it really makes me appreciate that my gym is open 24 hours half the week. Also because the gym is pretty much dead that late at night. No need to wait for equipment.

And in my last post I was pretty happy. I had gained a bit of definition, about 10-15 pounds, and I'd like to think I'm feeling healthier with more energy? I was able to lift a bit more each time and things were looking good.

And then things started to plateau.

Wut.

I was lifting more, pushing myself harder but I wasn't making progress as fast as I had during the initial few months. I mean, I wasn't expecting to be buff but come on, to an outsider I probably look the same. Thin.

Maybe I was doing something wrong, or my work-outs just weren't as effective as I could be doing them. By some coincidence, my gym was offering a few free personal trainer sessions again. For those who aren't familiar with the last few personal trainers I tried out here's a quick recap:

Trainer #1: Good workouts, but mysteriously bailed.
Trainer #2: Nice guy, but didn't really push me.

And so here I was with Trainer #3, Eli. Seemed nice enough, but the important thing was, would he be able to help me build the muscle I wanted?

Short answer: Yes.

OH GOD MY ARMS.

We only had enough time to do a few half workout sessions, but they hurt. I don't think I could have pushed myself this badly on my own. At least, not without worrying I was going to injure myself due to improper posture or something.

My arms were sore for the next 3 days. I couldn't even get through his chest workout because my shoulder's were literally giving out. This was perfect, this was exactly what I wanted. I felt completely beat up after the work-out and for days later.

If this doesn't get me out of my spaghetti arms and malnourished-looking body, I don't know what will.

Asides from using this.

One of the original reasons that I didn't sign up with Trainer #2 was not only because I wasn't getting much out of the work-outs, but also because I couldn't afford it at the time. This was before I got my full-time job.

Eli is pushes me, I can afford it (still really expensive though), and bonus: he also can work around my stupid late schedule. I signed up for roughly half a year of sessions and we'll see where this goes.

Our first official session begins tomorrow. And I'm excited to see how battered I'll be by the end.

23 comments:

  1. Nice! Pushing your limits is pretty important, but can also be hard if there's nobody with you. Sounds like a solid plan, be sure to report back!

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  2. Good luck, I used to have a personal trainer who came to my home, she was a lunatic but still good!

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  3. This sort of makes me want to try a trainer myself when I get back to the state where I'll be able to gym it, keep pushing it buddy, it sounds like you're making big waves of progress and it's just incredible. Nothing keeps you down!

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  4. Good for you for not giving up. I'm really good at giving up after a week or two. Wah wahhh

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  5. Any workout that leaves me feeling like I got in a ten pile carwreck is a good one. Plateaus suck, so good to hear that Eli's getting you out of that. On the other hand, don't kill yourself. You can't get swole if you pull a muscle.

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  6. Good luck! It sounds pretty tough to me, I hope it works!

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  7. That's a pretty long commitment. I'm glad he's pushing you, though. You'll be fit in no time. Or well, a couple of months.

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  8. the post reminded me of those old videos for 8 minute abs. Apparently those abs were also magically invisible

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  9. Excited to get beat up haha there is a new one, good luck

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  10. Plateauing is inevitable when doing any gym regimen or weight loss/weight gain regimen. The gym workers at the college I attend say that the plateau phase lasts 3-4 weeks and then you burst through it if you're persistent.

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  11. Funny 2 of my colleagues got personal trainers recently and they keep complaining about how tough it is. Glad you found a winner this time.

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  12. Congrats on finding a trainer you like, and good luck!

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  13. good to know Eli is pushing you hard towards your goal seems he is a good trainer

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  14. trainers are so expensive, but sometimes worth it - best of luck!

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  15. you found a trainer.. congrats!

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  16. This reminded me of the first Rocky movie for some reason.

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  17. Good luck!!! It sounds like you found an excellent trainer!

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  18. Yay go you! I love going to the gym but because I'm a cheerleader it's probably for different reasons than you're going. You should get lots of icy hot and I wish you good luck :) See you at the gym sometime, haha.

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  19. Eli sounds ideal!!! Good luck and hope you continue to survive such a schedule!! Of course you will you are determined!! yay! Take care
    x

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  20. I'm envisioning a Rocky 4 kind of workout. You know, you have to do sit ups while hanging from the ceiling and run up mountains during a Russian winter.

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