A couple weeks ago I had my retest. Super nervous, but despite that I did pretty well. I lost 10 lbs and inches all over! My body fat percentage went down by 2%, which is great!* That means not only am I losing weight, I’m also gaining muscle in all the right places! The retest is without a doubt a functional tool that you can actually see where you are gaining muscle. One of the hardest things about trying to lose weight is if you only focus on scale numbers. But you don’t really know whether you are losing excess fat or if you are losing muscle as well. Working with TMR I know that I am not losing muscle mass but in fact I’m gaining more so that as I lose the weight I don’t see a lot of loose skin or flabby areas. My body is transforming, not just getting smaller!
Back to the retest…I improved!
All strength areas increased, except the bike. The bike is tricky; it’s as much a mind game as it is a physical test. It’s only 10 minutes – that doesn’t seem like much, and the first 5 minutes are really easy. It’s the last 2 minutes that kill me. Every time I do the bike test I tell myself I just need to keep pushing, it’s only 120 seconds!! But that doesn’t always work that feels like a THUD hitting the wall around the 9 minute mark and my legs give up. At my previous retest I pushed to level 18 (there are 20) and didn’t give up until 9 minutes 15 seconds. That was my best ever but this time my legs gave in around 8 minute 50 second mark. Not too shabby, but I was disappointed that I didn’t do as well as last time. Maybe that’s because last time there was a camera in the room and I had to show off!! We’ll see if that theory works at my next retest!
My resting heart rate went down as well which is great because it means that my heart is working more efficiently and I’m improving my cardiovascular health. It also means that Joseph had to recalculate my 60% and 80% heart rate so I know when I’m in the optimal training zone while working out. Because both of those numbers went down (which is good) I was a little nervous when I got on the bike that I would hit my 60% maximum heart rate sooner than I did before, but I don’t think I did.
Abdominal strength increased by holding a sit-up position for 120 seconds (last time it was only 95 seconds). I still need to work on my back strength. Right now my abs are stronger than my back when really it should be the other way around. I was really proud of my side planks! I was able to hold my left side plank for 73 seconds (compared to 48 seconds last time) and to hold my right side plank for 65 seconds (compared to 45 seconds last time)! My arms and chest are getting really strong as well! I was able to do 33 push-ups!!
Joseph decided to add a new test that I’d never done before. I had to see how many burpees I could do in 1 minute. 15. I was pretty happy with that number, considering it was at the end of my workout. But I’ll have to aim at doing more next time. Apparently some people can do 30! Wow! This is testing my abilities with anaerobic exercise (short, intense exercise). It works your muscles in different ways and it is important to train your body in both anaerobic and aerobic exercise.
My next (and final) retest will be on December 17! Ahhhhhh!!! I have already met my weight goal but I have to lose another 2% body fat in order to meet my goals. That’s going to be pretty tough, especially since we’re heading into the Christmas season and there are so many parties and reasons to splurge! But I’m going to do my best! I really want to meet my goals! I’m trying to get about 6 workouts in a week at TMR and trying to run at least once a week. My biggest problem will be resisting all the yummy treats at Christmas parties in the next couple of weeks. Who decided this was a good time to have a retest?? James, I’m looking at you!!