That's a wrap!

Today wrapped up the 8 week Tabata Bootcamp classes! There were 20 of us that went on this journey together. We met M-W-F at 6am or T-Thu at noon or a mixture of both, regardless we comitted to taking class 3 days a week for 8 weeks.  When we started this journey I was not sure what to expect. We were given these lovely little tubes which have become known as "the bands from heck" and gliders.  

At first we all giggled because we knew we'd either grow to love these items or hate them! I will say it's hard to hate something that shows such great results! We learned new workout movements that incorporated each of these, a couple of those movements I will continue to use in my workout routines. 

That nervous giggling quickly led to encouragement amongst new friends. We all looked forward to seeing who could conquer a new move each class from the best Burpees to the meanest Skull Crushers to the Hover to the Perfect Pushups. Every class meant someone would have a personal best and we celebrated that together or growled together in some cases! We became a team known as the Badass Brigade! 

At the half way point a few of us felt like all we could hear was the "Constant Chatter" in our brains. The negativity was creeping in ever so slowly. Our CEO had to snap us back in place to remind us the number on the scale is just a number! Watch this video of the Badass Brigade telling the scale what we really thought that week : (here's the youtube link for your convenience - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCmumu-ts7Y&feature=share&list=UUD8zuKmZ2V7f5B2tFNrV1Og) 

Since that day most of us didn't even think twice about the assessments. Our CEO was seeing results, our friends and family were seeing results; however, most of all WE were seeing results. We all had more energy, we all were happily expressing that our clothes were fitting better. Again, we celebrated each other! 

Today marked the end of the 8 week program for me, Friday will be the end for the rest of the crew. Sadly, I will miss the party (y'all know I like a good party!). I'm really going to miss the friends I have made through this program. I'm glad several of the girls have decided to join us for a few road trips in the fall! I'm going to miss the almost daily encouragement of this group and celebrating the end together! 

Today was my final assessment! I was excited to see the numbers on paper. I was a little surprised when I saw this graph: 

This graph shows that during this program I lost 6 pounds. YAY! However, this graph doesn't show that I am down an inch in my waist and an inch around my thigh.  It doesn't show my new confidence. This graph does not show how thankful I am to have the ability to get up in the mornings and go to the gym at 6am. It doesn't show how much I appreciate the ability to be able to meet a group of ladies to run before the sun comes up. It doesn't show my excitement when my husband suggests we get up early on a Saturday morning and go for a training run together. The past few weeks has been about more than just this class. For me, it was pushing myself to a new limit and showing myself that I could do it. I am thankful for all the blessings that came along during this program! 

Here's a few fun pictures...the before and the after! 

May 13th - Day 1

 

June - Half Way Day 

 

July 10th - Final Day

 

Just for fun on the final day... 

 

As I was trying finish up this post today I received this photo from a friend of mine. 

And it's very true! God could careless about any of the before or the after photos, he only cares about the before and after story. My hope is that my before and after will inspire someone else to get active and stay active both in their faith life and their fitness life. 

This may be my a wrap of the Tabata Bootcamp, it's not a wrap on this overall journey. Lucky for me, I can drop in on the next round of classes to continue to push myself!