When I joined Life Time’s 60day I wanted to win. Perfection was the prize. After falling short of completing the fall 60day I knew what work needed to be done and I knew how to execute it.

From day one my trainer Phillip and I had a plan of attack. It was not a grueling schedule of 24/7 workouts nor was it full of restriction and gloom. It was called living life wisely. He told me if I could not maintain it after the 60 days I should not start it now. This was a whole new approach for a lifelong gym goer. I have been a member at previous establishments that persuaded me to “kill” myself in the gym every day if I wanted the enviable body I was striving for. And I did with little results to show for it. So this new approach I was taught caught me off guard. For the first time in my life I looked at going to the gym as fun and healthy, not pain and punishment. I knew that Phillip and Life Time were different.

We went over my previous workout routines and tried to make them more efficient and fruitful. Having two kids ages five and under in the kid center, my time was limited. The metabolic testing was one of the most beneficial tools I used and will continue to use. Knowing when I was burning more fat really helped my previous mindless treadmill sessions. Before I would run as hard as I could and as long as I could dripping in sweat thinking I had accomplished a great running session. Now I run faster and longer from better heart training. With the help of the Life Time app I sank up my heart rate monitor to the app and could see where I needed my heart rate to be to be the most efficient in fat burning. For me it made my cardio workouts more fun seeing the spike move around the circle showing me how hard or harder I needed to work. With the numerous cardio workouts to choose from within the app I was never bored on the treadmill again.

Phillip asked me if I had any concerns when we started. I told him I didn’t want to bulk up, that I gained muscle quickly. He kind of chuckled and told me not to worry. My plan included several days a week of weights but for only 20 minutes per day with little rest in between sets. Who knew how sweaty you could get lifting weights in 20 minutes! Within three weeks I was starting to see muscle definition I have never seen before and this is from someone who has always gone to a gym. Weight training was starting to be my new favorite workout.

Food became fun again. I looked at it in a whole new light as rather fuel for my body not just food. The 60day recipes made thinking about what to eat that much easier. It was easy to substitute different ingredients when needed to accommodate my whole food plant based lifestyle. The Life Cafe even had several food options that worked as well when in a pinch!

With the Life Time 60day coming to an end I learned what my body is capable of and what a gym is supposed to be. Without participating in this program I would never have known that lifting heavy weights for me will not cause me to bulk up, gasp! I learned that the gym is not a place of torture and comparison but a place of seeing what the body can do and celebrate that. The prize of perfection got replaced by the prize of a strong body, healthy mind and new friends.