Time for some Modifications

Day 3 was a huge challenge for me. After giving these first two workouts my everything, I was extremely sore yesterday. I was in so much pain walking up and down the stairs, and I had difficulty moving the entire day. For that reason, I waited until late at night to do my workout.

Here is the link for Day 3. Due to my sore muscles, I made quite a few modifications to the workout, but I still pushed my way through the entire video.

The first modification to this workout that I made was during the Elbow Ups. I attempted to do these the regular way, but I could not push myself up. I did the rest of them with my knees on the ground, which was still intense for my lower abs but I was able to lift myself the rest of the time. I actually really liked this move because I could really feel the burn in my stomach, which is the area that I want to work on the most.

The Double High Knees are extremely tiring, but not nearly as difficult as the other moves. When I found myself getting tired from these, I would stop for a moment to catch my breath or continue with regular high knees for a few seconds. It is helpful and encouraging to see that even the instructor gets winded and tired from these exercises.

The next exercise combines a few different moves. It is the Burpee + 2 Push-Ups + 2 Knee-Ups. I found this move a little difficult for the simple fact that I am a wimp and can't do push-ups. I have tried so many times but for some reason I have never been able to master the push-up. I never lower myself completely and I end up with these sad little moves that don't do anything for my body. So instead, during these 50 seconds I found it more beneficial for myself to just do knee-ups the entire time. I got really sore really fast from doing this, but it seemed like it was doing more for me than push-ups.

Now would be a good time for me to mention that I do not own a dip station like they use in these videos. To substitute, I use a Gazelle that I have in my basement, shown below. I simply hold myself up on the sides of the Gazelle instead of the dip station.

The next moves, Superman Swings, are possibly the most difficult things I have tried to do- no joke. I tried my hardest to do these without falling over, but I was very unsuccessful. The strength required to balance during this move is incredible. After a few failed attempts, I decided to do the modified move and do these on my knees. This was doable, but by no means easy. Even on my knees, it required great balance and I was already exhausted from the previous moves.

After this video was done, I felt the burn but was nowhere near as sore as I thought I would be, considering how sore I was before I began. I'll admit that I did feel a little disappointed in myself, but I had to remind myself that I pushed myself without hurting myself. Today I can say that I am very happy that I modified some of the moves because I can actually walk today. My legs, butt, and abs are still burning, but I'm able to move more easily than I did yesterday.

I am surprised that I have not been discouraged and given up yet. (Yes, I known it has only been three days but after the pain I was in yesterday, I was close to calling it quits!) Each day I just tell myself that I am one day closer to my goal. Tonight I will continue my challenge with Day 4, and I am looking forward to rest day tomorrow!!