I spent all of June participating in the Tone It Up Challenge hosted by Teal and Beth of Life is a Run. When I originally considered doing a challenged that centered around doing push-ups and planks, my first thought was not “yay.” But now that it’s over, I feel very Yay! In fact, I’m a little sad that it is over!
The numbers:
- I did my push-ups + plank every single day except for one. That’s 29 days total.
- My maximum number of push-ups at once was 30! (My lowest was 5.)
- My longest plank was held for 1:15.4 seconds! (My shortest was 25.2 seconds.)
- I did a total of 369 push-ups.
- I logged 1,165 seconds of planks.
My calendar looking all ragged because it has been loved, like the Velveteen Rabbit. Numbers in purple are my runs. The numbers in green are my planks and push-ups.
My reflections:
-I’m really proud of myself for being consistent and seeing major improvement. There’s no way I could have done 30 push-ups prior to this challenge!
-Despite my leaps and bounds of improvement, my month of push-ups has not translated into any real strength gain. I still struggle to carry Geronimo’s 40 pound food bag, and I definitely can not pick him up. (He’s 70 pounds, though. That’s like the size of a ballerina!)
-I think I’d benefit from doing the 100 push-up challenge and/or incorporating more weights. I usually shy away from strength training (it’s just not as fun as my other fitness endeavors), but it’d serve me well. Besides, this whole thing has motivated me to really bump up my strength.
Blizzdow! My totals scrawled at the top. Keep in mind, a mathematician I am not, but I did double-check my work.
-I don’t think know that I wouldn’t have done any push-ups or planks without this challenge. Challenges, plans, structure, whatever you want to call it, they really serve me well. I intend to make another strength based plan for myself to keep me on the motivation wagon.
-My friend Bianca had a brilliant idea to help with planks. Since surviving planks is often a matter of the mind not the body, she suggested speaking song lyrics while I hold a plank. Since you say the lyrics instead of singing them, they are harder to remember. This distracts the mind leaving you pleasantly surprised at how long you’ve been planking.
Overall, I’m really glad that Teal and Beth came up with the challenge! It was surprising fun and definitely good for me!
And now the Runner’s World Summer Running Streak is coming to a close as well. The last day is July 4th. Knock on wood, if I don’t end up injured between now and then, I’ll have run at least a mile every single day from Memorial Day to the 4th! Quite a feat! I’ll be back later in the week to share my reflections on that challenge.*
Wow, great job! I’m really impressed by your progress!
Amazingjob, ma’am! I am going to have to put this in my fall plans to try and do. Ilove how you structured it with the calendar. Very smart!
So awesome!! I don’t think I can do 30 push ups right now so you rock! Can’t wait to hear about the run streak!
Wow, going from 5 pushups to 30 pushups! And a plank of 25 seconds to 1:15! THAT IS INCREDIBLE PROGRESS!!!!! I know that I personally am most motivated when I see results, and those are results to the 10th power!!! GREAT JOB!!! Can’t wait to hear about the run streak, too!!!!!
Well, when you say it like that it sounds really impressive!
Thanks for the confidence boosting comment!*
Great job, Amy! You made really great progress in both areas, which definitely made it a worthwhile challenge. They get easier and easier over time; the key is to not stop doing them. Maybe not everyday, but a couple of times a week. Increasing your functional strength will serve you well. Looking forward to reading about your run streak!
I like that idea. I could commit to a few days a week. It already felt strange yesterday and today to run but not do my push-ups/plank.*
That is amazing improvement! You should definitely check out Catan. It is a super fun board game where you try to gain resources and territory. Y’all should check it out.
I promised Sergeant Boyfriend that I’d prep with him before his upcoming PT test. Um, gulp. That means there will be many push-ups in my future. I definitely think I’ll keep track of it like you did.
Congratulations! You rock! I have no idea where you got blizzdow but blizzdow indeed!
Doesn’t everyone say “Blizzdow” these days? Well, my hubby does and probably so do I. I am just that hardcore.
Good luck with your push-ups! You can do it!*
Apparently I’m out of the cool loop. Thanks for filling me in!