Thursday Check-In

So, I've only done the Pilates tape twice now (Monday and yesterday).. but I have been doing much better with my eating and water-drinking. I forgot to take measurements this morning, but when I weighed myself I'm down two pounds from last week. (I'm sure it's more of my watching what I consume rather than the Pilates being magic or something)
But, how about that Pilates?

The DVD I got was put out by Gaiam. Back in college I had a VHS from Gaiam, Yoga for Weight Loss, that I really liked. The instructer was clear, and explained what she was doing and even gave pretty good directions on what sorts of things to watch out for (i.e. she'd warn about tension in various places and I'd notice, yep, I had LOTS of tension in that area). So, I decided to trust Gaiam again.

I was takling to a friend on Sunday night about my plans to start Pilates the following morning, and she pointed out that one of the drawback to doing workouts from video (or any do-it-yourself workouts without prior training).. there's always the danger of doing the moves wrong and at best, having a less effective workout, and at worst, hurting yourself. I considered her words.. they were a wise warning.. but I don't really have the option of getting myself a personal trainer, so, the next morning before starting, I said a little prayer and resolved to honor any feelings of resistence in my body, I popped in the DVD and got started.

It has two options: a 10min Pilates Energy Boost and a 30min Pilates routine. Since I generally slot out 45-50mins in the mornings for my workout, I decided that I'd give them both a try. Wow do they ask you to put yourself in some strange positions! It's different than yoga. Yoga's all about stretching and holding positions.. Pilates has that too, but it's more about smooth motions and repetition. Some of the exercises don't look so bad, but after you do them 15 times, you start to feel it.

Following my wise friend's advice, I took it easy; I didn't do all the excersies, and I didn't do all the reps, but I did do most of them and I ran through both segments of the DVD. At the end of the workout, my muscles felt rubbery and a few hours later the tell-tell symptoms of pending soreness began. I knew then that there would be pain on Tuesday.

And there was. But, Tuesday morning I did my elliptical routine, followed by handweights, anyway. I think that helped to soften my muslces, so the soreness wasn't so bad. Wednesday I did the Pilates again, and I felt like I could do more. And it seems, even with only two times doing it, that my posture is better, and today I'm not sore at all.

I think this routine is a keeper!