Shaping Up

Metamorphosis

Here I am, having tried one of my two chosen workouts as promised. The “winner” for last night’s sweatfest was Tracy Anderson’s Metamorphosis series. It’s a multi-part set that comes with dance cardio, “transformation” exercises, and some literature to help support the program. Ideally, the series is recommended to be done for 6 days a week, following a strict diet plan.

The daily session is composed of 30 minutes dance cardio followed by 30 minutes of one of the transformation (i.e. toning) exercises. The dance cardio remains constant, while the type of toning workout changes every 10 days. Thus, the number of transformation videos included.

“A Study in Ropeless Jumping” would be an apt alternate title to Tracy Anderson Method’s 30-minute cardio workout. I’m now officially a believer that anyone is capable of losing weight from the cardio alone, simply because of the non-stop jumping. Tracy’s video has no warm-ups. She just gets right on moving at a dizzying pace. I felt like vomiting a few times. It’s definitely bloody murder on first-timers, unless you’re Manny Pacquiao.

After the initial half hour of nearly collapsing, I forced myself to continue with the transformation video. The first 10 days are devoted to arms, abs, and ass: Triple A. And the girl just doesn’t quit. She does one movement and repeats it for an eternity, exhausting the entire right side with a variety of specific movements. Then it’s the left side that gets beat up. No wonder she doesn’t have an ounce of fat!

I can tell you right now that this workout WILL work you out. But I can also tell you that I won’t be doing it for 6 days a week, unless I plan to get sent to physical therapy really soon. Maybe once a week of this is good enough for me. I plan to switch this up with other instructional videos per session. Thank goodness for that.

Joining a local gym is sure to break the bank. I love a good workout, especially when I’ve already gotten into the habit of exercising regularly, but the price I’ve literally been paying is ridiculous. In a utopian world, I’d be making the most out of the monthly fees by hitting the gym daily. But realistically, thrice-a-week trips are the most I can commit. It doesn’t help that the transportation fees are slowly killing me.

The best I could do was to cancel my membership and try to figure out my next move from there. Trust me, that’s the last thing I ever wanted. Most of the classes I’ve attended turned out quite fun to do. The variety also kept the workouts fresh. But the rates were ridiculous, especially for a person with very humble monthly earnings.

What now? Well, I’m in the process of weaning off gym classes and transitioning into other (cheaper!) athletic activities. The most inexpensive being a home workout program. Yes, that’s where it all began anyway. Back when there was one well-known gym in Manila and it was way too expensive for a young high school or college student, the next best thing was to sweat it out at home.

I’m beginning to realize that “working out where you sleep” isn’t such a bad thing after all. However, it does take a certain amount of motivation and discipline to keep me working out (instead of sitting around) where I sleep. And so, I’m going on the age-old quest of finding engaging exercise instructional videos that won’t piss me off or bore me to death.

I’ve yet to try them out, but here are my discoveries so far:

1. Tracy Anderson Method

Tracy Anderson immediately brings to mind the names Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow. It’s all about having a toned, feminine dancer’s body. From what I’ve heard and read, you’d have to be psychotic about doing her routines (e.g. 2 hours doing the workout, six times a week) to get to top form. There’s even a meal plan that has to be strictly adhered to during the initial 90 days.

While I’m positive that 2 hours is above and beyond what is called for, I’m interested in the changing workouts. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s a boring routine. Let’s see if her vids can keep me on my toes. (Hopefully, not literally.)

2. Zumba

A gym favorite, Zumba is non-stop movement to fun music. I’ve never been much of a dancer, but the instructors of the classes I’ve attended were good enough that even senior citizen ladies (seriously) got the moves down pat. After the initial self-consciousness wore off, it was actually a blast.

~~~

I’m trying one of the two videos out tonight. Let’s see how it goes…