Late on Saturday night, my mom told me about an issue with the public photo gallery I’d set up at www.kerryandwillie.com/gallery/.  The basic problem was that when you viewed the image, you only saw a small cropped thumbnail instead of seeing the full image.

When she first told me, I immediately felt the familiar clutching fear that I always used to get when someone brought up an technology issue that I didn’t know how to solve.  Despite over 7 years of experience solving technical problems and developing a reputation for providing answers, I still get a sense of dread that I wouldn’t be able to solve the latest problem in time.

But, in the last few weeks I’ve gained a new sense of peace in my life (possibly through a strengthened prayer life) and a newfound sense of confidence.  And so, I told myself to solve the problem, and was able to solve it in about 20 minutes.

Instead of stressing out about it or dismissing it as something that wasn’t that big in the grand scheme of things, I felt confidence in my own problem solving abilities.  It felt good to solve the problem, but it felt even better to feel good while solving the problem. 

When I started working out at Fitcorp I used to hit the elliptical (the device shown on the right) twice a week.  I’d put a magazine on the top, crank it to resistance 8, and read the magazine while jogging away at 160 strides per minute.  At first I ran for 10 minutes, then 20 minutes, then up to a whole half hour.

When I got to a half hour I noticed that I could run just under 3 miles.  I always tried to get to 3 miles – around 2.79 I’d start running as fast as possible, with 30 seconds to go, and end up at 2.95 at the half hour mark.  Eventually I figured out that I had to keep at least 160-170 strides per minute for the full half hour to run a full 3 miles, and since I’d always get completely out of breath around 1 mile I could never keep up the pace.  Usually after a mile I’d slow down and would end the session out of breath, staring at 2.95 on the monitor.

Until tonight.

I’ve been taking spin and pilates classes on a weekly basis, and keeping up yoga when I have time.  On tonight’s elliptical session I noticed that I was running faster and easier than ever before – I passed 1 mile breathing strong at the 9:30 minute mark, and kept running strong to 3.2 miles in half an hour.  After 30 minutes and the 5 minute cool down, the monitor read:

Miles: 3.74
Resistance: 8
Calories: 574

I still can’t believe it.  Not only had I exceeded my goal, I had exceeded it so easily that I need to find a new goal to strive for.  I hadn’t thought that the spin, pilates, and yoga classes were making such a difference, but it’s clear that it’s pushed me WAY beyond my physical limits in a short amount of time. 

If you want to experience incredible results, I recommend the following classes:

• Pilates – Rachel Bairstow leads a physically challenging but incredibly fun pilates class on Monday at 6:30pm at the Summer Street Fitcorp.  Rachel’s enthusiasm is infectious even when she’s leading seemingly impossible exercises (one legged push ups on a pilates ball, for example) and you end up doing a lot more with your core (the muscles in your stomach) than you ever thought possible.  And a strong core is the foundation for a LOT of other exercises (like spin or yoga). 
• Spin – Patrick Rooney blends pop songs, the Karate Kid, and healthy pirate “yaaaar”ing to create a memorable spin class that offers an incredible workout under the guise of an incredible fun time.  I have no doubt that slogging through Jay Z’s “Encore” at level 6 contributed to my success on the elliptical.  Patrick teaches spin at 5:45pm on Tuesday at the Summer Street Fitcorp, and 5:30pm Wednesday at the Beacon Hill Fitcorp.
• Yoga – Fitcorp does offer yoga classes, but for an extraordinary yoga class you need to visit Warrior’s Way in Maynard, MA.  Schedule and directions can be found at www.warriorsart.com, along with photos of Karen (who used to teach at Fitcorp) doing some of the many incredible poses she leads during class.  The wonderful thing about yoga is that you can go at your own speed, and Karen’s lifelong commitment to the yogic arts inspire you to push beyond your physical boundaries.

Sign up for Rachel and Patrick’s classes today!

Still feeling a high from mastering the elliptical, and more fired up than ever for the next pilates and spin class.