30 Day Challenge Fitness Midterm

I promised results, so here they are:

Fitness test 1:
Squat jumps: 30
Push ups: 30
Burpees: 15
High knees: 101
Switch lunges: 35
Tuck jumps: 29
Straight abs: 29

Two weeks later, we have fitness test 2:
Squat jumps: 40
Push ups: 36
Burpees: 15
High knees: 142
Switch lunges: 45
Tuck jumps: 26
Straight abs: 31

So, we see a pretty sizable improvement here! No change in burpees, which I somewhat attribute to the nature of the exercise. It seems biomechanically difficult to do them much faster, but I will certainly concentrate on that next time through. They aren't extremely strenuous, and the Bodyrock girl gets into the mid 20's, so I'm sure I can speed it up some.

The decrease in tuck jumps I attribute completely to being able to do significantly more reps in the prior squat jumps, high knees, and (especially) switch lunges. My quads were absolutely murderous by the time I got to the tuck jumps, I was sucking mega air, and I had to rest a few seconds after every couple of jumps. Pain.

So, on to the rest of week three for me. I guess I take this test again on the last day, and shall post results accordingly then. I don't think I'll see as big of an improvement the next time around, but hopefully there will be some.

Overall thoughts: I am really liking the short, at-home style of these. I don't feel like I have to rush home from work to get to the gym before it gets crowded. I'm definitely getting more quad and core work than before, and most certainly much more 90%+ heart rate cardio work. Upper body is a different animal. This is much more high repetition, lower weight than what I was doing before. More effective? I'm not sure yet, but I do feel like I was somewhat plateauing with my previous workouts, and this is a great way to change things up. I also could stand to raise the weight of the "sandbag" I'm using. Alas, I've run out of magazines to stuff inside my backpack, and it's already cumbersome as it is. If I continue this past the 30 days, I'll probably end up investing in the legit sandbag. It would make these workouts so much easier, form-wise.

Hmm, what else? Ah! The most important thing: Vanity! The mirror test is inconclusive at this point. I feel like I'm still recovering from the annual Winter Holiday Festival of Gluttony, so more data is needed. Recovery is going well, though, so we're certainly not anywhere close to ineffective in this regard.

I'm tired of typing. BYE!