I had to look at the calendar twice today, has it already been a month and a half since I started personal training? Yep, it has! Wow that time went fast!
I talked about my experience with a personal trainer when I first started, and wanted to circle back to give everyone an update on how things are going. I had two major goals when I started, to look and feel good, and to repair an injured shoulder. I'm happy to report that both of those are progressing well.
1. Look and Feel Good
I'm not a guy who feels the need to look like a bodybuilder, but I do like to look and feel good. A month and a half ago, I was feeling pretty run down, had a shoulder injury that would barely let me sleep, and was not happy about the extra pounds that had started to settle around my midsection again.
I'm happy to report that I've started to regain some of the old energy I used to have. As a 40-year-old guy, it's amazing how quickly things go downhill when you take a break from working out, and I was certainly feeling it. I can see changes in the mirror, and feel stronger. Jeremy has been keeping me progressing steadily, and has been challenging me not only with the workout routine, but to clean up my diet (no more cookie monster plus eating more protein and green stuff). I haven't lost a ton of weight, only 4 lbs, but I feel like some of the fat been also been redistributed into muscle. Losing weight wasn't really the point anyway since I'm pretty well in the healthy weight range for my age and height, although still a bit on the high side. If I had been doing everything that I've been told to do diet wise, I'm sure it would be more. Overall I'm very happy with the progress and feel like I'm meeting this goal.
2. Repair My Shoulder
For those of you who have been following along, you know that I injured my shoulder some time ago while working out on my own. A combination of bad habits with weights that were probably too heavy, poor form, and repeating the same exercise too often had led to intense pain that wouldn't let me sleep at night for nearly 3 months.
I wish I could say that my shoulder is 100%, but it isn't quite there yet. The very first week, we got rid of the shooting pain that was keeping me up at night after something popped. Thankfully that hasn't come up again! I have full range of motion now, when I started I could barely lift my arm halfway up, so that's a major win. The pain has faded and I'd say my shoulder is probably around 85-90% now, it still bothers me a little on certain exercises and is a little weak and sore, but otherwise is working fine.
Overall I'm very happy with how things have been progressing. I'm in a pretty good groove now and actually enjoy the sessions and being around the people at the gym. Looking forward to continuing to make progress!
Ready to Get Started With Personal Training?
If you're near the downtown Springfield Illinois area and want to check out personal training for yourself, I highly recommend Jeremy Ferry with Pure Performance Fitness. Shoot him a text or give him a call at 217-891-0691 and he can get you started! If you are outside of the area, click here to find a personal trainer in your area.
About the Author
Don Smith
Happily married with five kids, Smith owns a technology company, is the founder of this site, has served on the board of directors for multiple companies, and loves playing soccer, hiking, and mentoring.
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