Tania is a freaking machine...

A few days ago I learned that the Insanity workout, which Ceejus and I have been at for about two months, has a sequel. 

Wait...not-so-quick recap: 

I learned of the Insanity workout months ago, first online, then through a friend who had completed it.  I'd been working out steadily but wasn't feeling particularly challenged, so I was looking around for a more challenging workout. 

Ceejus was joining gyms, taking classes, doing yoga, and really working her butt off.  I was just going to our apartment's gym for some running and weights.  Prior to that I was just running - I completed two half-marathons in two weeks, and a ten miler with Ceejus several months later.  But I still felt like she was working much harder than I was.  I knew I was taking my natural fitness for granted.

Then one day we both got free trials to a high-end gym (Equinox - an amazing facility, but really expensive).  I took a spin class with her, assuming it would be no problem - but I couldn't finish.  I could barely start. 

What the hell?  I could run 13 miles, but I couldn't bike for an hour?  Something was seriously wrong. 

And this wasn't the first time I'd had my butt kicked by "just a class" either.  I'd tried cardio kick-boxing with a friend of mine years ago, couldn't finish that either.

I was complaining about the spin class experience to a co-worker, and I said "I'm in really good shape, so I assumed it would be no problem!"

She said: "You're in good shape according to whom?"

Good point.  I LOOKED good, I felt pretty good, I could run for miles, and I could lift weights - but I'd never completed a workout program led by someone else - except for those classes, and those didn't end well.  And I'd never really had my fitness "officially" confirmed outside of my own perception.


So I resolved to complete a workout program that I hadn't designed myself. 

I was still pretty cocky, though, and I needed a workout I could brag about - I wanted an advanced workout that instilled fear in mere mortals.  I'd heard hushed whispers about how awful Insanity was, and that it was way harder than P90x.  On top of that, I KNEW I was in better shape than my friend who completed the program.  There was no way I was going to let him have that title.  So Insanity it was.

In short: the first two weeks were painful.  Squats, jumps, sports drills - my quads hurt so much that I wondered if I'd ever used them before.  But after two weeks my body adapted.  I recovered more quickly after each workout, I became more flexible, and I felt AMAZING.  Energy was up, and my body was visibly transforming.  I lost fat deposits from places I didn't even know I HAD them, I dropped multiple belt notches, and my legs look more muscular than they have since I was in high school.  And again - I FELT good. 


In fact...I felt so good that I started to wonder what else I was capable of.  Which brings me back to the point of this post.


-End of Recap-


Next week is our last week of the 60-day Insanity workout.  At this point I've made so much progress in spite of believing that I didn't have much progress to make.  Plus I feel that I've done so well at the Insanity workouts that I want to see what else I can do.  I've always self-identified as super-healthy and super-fit, but I'm finally realizing that I wasn't, and that I do have to work at it.  That said, as an individual I still believe that I'm particularly well-suited to get great results.  I think I'm well above average in terms of my physical ceiling and my mental toughness for physical strain.

So now I want to step it up...and Insanity: The Asylum is a 30-day sports training program designed to take my Insanity results and leverage them beyond general fitness and into athleticism.  It's definitely a path I want to pursue.  I think I can turn myself into athlete-level material - at LEAST amateur athlete.

But Ceejus wants something different, and therein lies the rub.  See, she works her butt off, not for dreams of becoming a pro athlete, but for long life, good health, and beautiful limbs.  So for her, elevating to sports training doesn't make sense.  We've talked about moving to P90x, which is lower-intensity, but more variety, including weights.

So why don't we each take our own path?  Because we're both concerned that without the other one for support, we won't actually do it.  Plus we have limited time to work out, and squeezing two separate workouts in would be really tough. 

So now I'm wondering if I can keep working out with her, and do Asylum on the side.

...Insanity indeed.