My dear friend Polelo is no stranger to this blog! She has been right beside me, physically and emotionally on my journey to fitness and on my mission to conquer 17 races this year. She has encouraged me when I have felt down and she has held me accountable for getting my workouts done. I might be in the slower half of the races but according to Polelo I am just a few seconds from qualifying for the next Olympics! Of the 12 races I have already done, she has joined me for seven – the Jack’s Gym Trail Run, the Gabs 1/2 Marathon, the Lady Khama Trail Run, the Palapye Race, the Diacore Gaborone Race, the Gaborone City Mayor’s Race and the Botswana Independence Race!
For many of these races she has brought her mother, husband, niece and nephew along for the ride and their smiles as they cross that finish line have quite simply been heart-warming. A few months ago she signed up for an intense Boot Camp. This is her story, in her own words. Enjoy the read and BE INSPIRED…
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Three months ago I made the decision to do my first ever Boot Camp. I had reached a point where I decided my mental health was the most important thing to me; I wanted to feel less tired, I wanted to have more energy in my life and to finally find some work-life-balance. I knew to achieve this, I needed to make a mental shift. I’m a planner by nature and I started to realise that over the years I had begun to be more “relaxed” in my approach to life and as a result I had started to let things slide a bit. In some aspects it was the best decision I ever made; I was less uptight, a lot more willing to go with the flow but on the other hand I became less accountable to myself. Upon realising how far from myself I had strayed, I decided I needed to make a change and that’s when I joined Boot Camp.
Here are the Five Things I Gained From Boot Camp:
1 – The mind is a powerful thing: It’s not about the amount of time one puts in at gym, it’s about one’s attitude. Boot Camp started in the dead of winter and getting up at 4am three mornings a week wasn’t easy but my attitude kept me committed. I made a commitment to being prepared for the week ahead and that meant having to prep days in advance to make sure my work clothes, gym kit and meals were all sorted because being disorganised had the potential to set each day off course and affect how my whole week turned out. Everyone wants to start the day right!
2 – Form is everything: This cannot be understated. I walked into the gym on Day 1 of Boot Camp totally pumped! It had been years since I stepped into the gym and I was beyond ready. I could not wait to get stuck in and boy, was I disappointed. The first 6 sessions, that’s two weeks, were just about form. Everything from how to use the spinning bike, to how to do lunges correctly, to how to lift weights properly. Those first two weeks turned out to be critical to our fitness journey. Our personal trainer was clear, knowledge is power, it’s about getting the basics right. We are not about getting injuries!
3 – Teamwork makes the dream work: I’ve had the privilege of getting to know eight incredible women on this journey, all of us in it for different reasons but for one hour three times a week we were each other’s greatest fans.
As the weeks went by our camaraderie extended beyond the gym. We had each other’s backs in and outside the gym. We posted on our group to check on those who were off sick, we shared our meal plans and encouraged each other to resist the junk food cravings during the tough times. We are in this thing together!
4 – The secret is to keep going: The exercise is the easy part, understanding food is the nightmare…
I haven’t dropped the weight I expected to. It’s been three months and I was certain I’d be back to my 27 year old self but I’m not 7 kg lighter than I expected and I had beat myself up over it for some time. I’ve had to counsel myself and remember why I started this journey in the first place. The truth is I didn’t get here in 3 months, I got here over 7 long years. My life has changed drastically since then and I’ve picked up bad habits along the way. My mission was to feel better, have more energy and boy, do I ever!
5 – Forgive thyself: A lot has happened over the last 3 months. I’ve had moments of pure triumph along with major setbacks but the difference is that I now have a very different conversation with myself. Ordinarily, if I was doing well, I’d get comfortable and quickly slip into my old bad habits then subsequently beat myself up over it. And when life dragged me through it, I’d wobble and start slipping back into my bad habits and yes, you guessed it, I’d beat myself up over it. I’ve learned from Boot Camp that the choices we make outside the gym are the most important. 70% nutrition, 20% attitude and 10% exercise.
I could spend my entire life in the gym and go home to eat and drink all wrong things, binge on other people’s successful weight loss stories on Instagram and Pinterest and so goes the vicious cycle. But now, since Boot Camp, my good times are celebrated and I know how to deal with the challenging times better. I forgive myself for the slip ups and I don’t dwell on them long enough to wallow any further. I simply get up, dust myself off and carry on; tomorrow is a new day. How lovely is that?
What I do know, unreservedly, is that it’s been an education and it feels marvelous to be where I am right now!
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Thank you Polelo – thanks for being so authentic, vulnerable and honest in describing your challenges but also in sharing these beautiful lessons!
I am so excited to be linking up with Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness for the Friday Five 2.0! Please hop over to their blogs and others for some great inspiration.
Amazing read and a reminder that results are not instantaneous when it comes to health and fitness and that is ok. The goal is a change in mindset which will set you up on the path to reaching your goals well into the future. Polelo gained that lesson, enjoyed her boot camp experience and as a result she is a happier more energetic self! Love the gorgeous pics of her too. Well done x
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I absolutely loved the insights she had! And all of them so true. I can be so impatient, but the reality is that everything truly is a step by step process, takes time and energy, but above all patience and commitment.
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Sounds like an amazing experience. So cool that you’ve connected so well with the other women in the class. Having a tribe that has your back helps so much!
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And that tribe comes in really handy when you have to be up at 4 am in the dead of winter! So proud of her!
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This is great! I agree that form is everything and something I have to keep on working on to keep making progress. It’s great that boot camp has helped her in so many ways. Finding a plan that clicks for you is key!
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I loved her insights! And yes, we really take form for granted! When I started running I honestly thought it didn’t matter until I started getting all kinds of weird aches and pains. So I have worked so hard to get it right and slowly but surely better form is giving me better results.
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I love boot camp, and group fitness classes in general! It’s great to work toward a common goal with like-minded people!
I totally struggle with nutrition and I just can’t seem to get it right. It’s true what they say that “you can’t outrun a bad diet”. It’s always definitely a work in progress!
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So, so right – I also really need to start working on nutrition – and love that saying “you can’t outrun a bad diet” NO MATTER how hard you try to! LOL.
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Wow, this is great! I have only been to bootcamp a few times but I do agree that the camaraderie makes it so great! Thanks for linking up.
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After her experience, I am so tempted to give it a go! Thanks for hosting the link-up! Great forum x
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You sound like a very strong and happy person and I admire your dedication to reaching your goals!
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She has been so amazing this year – she has really dug deep and I have been so inspired. Thanks so much for stopping by x
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Yes, form, form form! I don’t do plyometric exercises because it’s about speed and getting your heart rate up. I slow it way the heck down so I can focus on proper form, and I feel like I get much more out of it.
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I totally agree. It’s funny how something so critical like form is often underestimated!
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This great stuff! I love that so much time was spent on form. That’s my biggest gripe with boot camps is that they don’t focus on quality of movement and injury prevention.
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Me too! When I started running, my form was so poor and in the end led to a knee injury. Since then I have put a lot more effort into form. It’s still a work in progress but my knees are so much happier now!
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I’ve never done a boot camp-type class, partially out of fear LOL I think I’m in decent shape, but I’m pretty sure a boot camp experience would humble me. A lot. The form thing sounds crucial…it’s great so much time as spent on that!
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I was supposed to join this same group – but chickened out in the end! I’ve just joined the gym and there’s a “Boot Camp” weekly class that I am going to try out. Let’s see how it goes!
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