DSC has been a life changer!
Before joining DSC, I ran lots of miles, especially on Saturday mornings. After having children, who are now 12 and 14, I practiced yoga regularly and built up the road miles, pounding out anywhere between 12 and 14 miles Saturday mornings and running two or three shorter distances during the week. Yoga was great until the kids' schedules began to interfere with class times and it became too hard to juggle home, work and the kids' activities. Doesn’t that happen to many moms?
Recently, running was all I did. It became harder to finish the long runs and eventually the runs became interval workouts...run for a bit and then walk for awhile. I kept at it, but knew in my heart that I was losing ground. I needed to build core strength again and start working my upper body. When my running buddy moved away last June and my desire to run distance solo waned, I knew it was time for a change.
Renee posted on Facebook an invite to a DSC Open House the same week my running buddy headed to her new adventure. My children trained with Matt, Kurtis and Renee in the past as part of their conditioning training for sports. Her post and my children’s own positive experiences were all I needed as the sign to go for it and try DSC for the summer.
I completed my first Met Con fairly confidently as I have the leg strength and decent cardio. What I really needed was the strength class.
To say I was not nervous to attend the M/W/F Adult Group Training Classes would be a lie. I willed myself to go for it. Thankfully, I was not the only new person joining that Monday morning. I immediately was in good company as Matt, Renee and Chris took us under their wings. They started us off slow and made sure we had proper form. The competitive side of me really wanted to check out what the "A" Team was all about, but my core and upper body screamed “no”. Many members were doing push ups with additional weights and I had to start by doing push ups from an incline. Suddenly it hit me that I must have tunnel vision and only compete against myself. I joined DSC for ME. I needed to work on ME. Small steps to strength became my focus.
After months of consistent workouts, I realized I had been running from my hips down for several years. My upper body played such a minor role in propelling the last 2,500 miles. Core and upper body strength offers a whole new positive running experience.
After almost a year at DSC and lots of hard work, I can now handle the push ups from the floor, push and pull the sleds, swing the kettlebells and tackle the Airdynes. Matt, Kurtis, Chris, Renee, Luke, Nicole and now Tommy are always there to correct technique, help me prep for chin-ups, encourage heavier weights or more reps, but most importantly keep me fired up. I feel and look stronger!
I recently played basketball against my 14 year old son and lacrosse against and with my 12 year old daughter in friendly environments and I was able to contribute and enjoy the experiences. My upper body would have struggled to shoot and score last year. My daughter’s comment of “Nice, Mom!” made all the workouts well worth it. I loved being with them as opposed to cheering for them.
Working out consistently leads to healthier eating. Renee’s nutrition challenge in January helped significantly as I’m down about 10 pounds and my clothes are either too big or roomy. I have gained so much strength!
It’s great to go shopping and be able to quickly find clothes that fit.
The DSC family is incredibly special. I have bonded with a great group of people who keep me motivated and committed.
So many members inspire me on a daily basis and it is a gift to be part of it. We laugh often and as Matt says, “We have fun!” I love starting my day with my posse. My DSC workouts energize me and my productivity level increases.
DSC has been a life changer! It is definitely work, but stress releasing, feel good, strength work. If you are considering joining, put on tunnel vision glasses and go for it! You are worth making time to exercise a priority.