During DLP, I’ve had a lot of time on my hands, meaning that I will be able to continue with the fitness that I had originally started during last year’s DLP as well. Being at school in-person took away a lot of my motivation to work out and made me constantly tired. As a result, this will be the perfect opportunity for me to get back to where I started.
I usually spend each day with a different workout, ending with cardio afterwards. When working out Lats, I spent around 45 minutes in total, while reserving an additional 30 minutes to engage in cardio. I found that my pull-up form had improved significantly and I was able to work through my reps with ease. While chin-ups are known to be the easier exercise, I had a bit of a hard time doing this which indicates that I’ve been somewhat neglecting them in the past. I felt like the weights I used for some of the exercises felt a bit too easy, which means I could add just a little more to each dumbbell for the next Lat day. Additionally, ab day takes around the same amount of time, with the same amount of cardio afterwards. I’ve added onto my workout routine from March-June, incorporating my weights and pull up bar within my workout as well. As recommended by a friend, I’ve been using the same ab workout video for some time now, as I feel like it is one of the most effective workouts out there, engaging every part of your abs.
These workouts usually take around 75 minutes and are completed after the school day ends. The five muscle groups that I have decided to focus on are arms, chest, back, and legs. These are all essential to my goal, as I wanted to create a holistic workout routine. The days will be scheduled as followed:
- Day 1: Chest
- Day 2: Back
- Day 3: Abs
- Day 4: Arms
- Day 5: Legs
- Day 6: Abs
- Day 7: Rest Day
Currently, I only have 10kg weights, and a pull-up bar, meaning that I had little equipment at my disposal. However, I was able to make use with the little that I had and hope to be able to gain access to more equipment to slowly advance my progress as soon as curfew ends. I have also been able to play a bit of basketball in my front yard, however, the hoop isn’t a regulation hoop and my yard isn’t big enough to shoot three point shots in. As a result, I’ve been sticking with free throws and hopefully shooting on a shorter hoop won’t affect any of my previous progress and improvements. I usually spend around 30 minutes shooting, usually on days where I don’t workout my my upper body in order to prevent added soreness (Days 3, 5, 6 and 6). This amounts to usually at least an hour a week, but can increase depending on the time I have available to me. As soon as the American clubhouse is opened I will try and go at least once a week in order to play on a proper hoop. For now, I will have to make do with what is available.
After doing this workout routine, I felt that I was thoroughly challenged and hope that I can completely integrate this into my schedule. It became a bit difficult to adjust my routine at first, but after the first few days I felt very productive while still engaging in my fitness plan. This overhaul in lifestyle may be a bit of a drastic one, but I believe that this will help me to improve my time management skills and improve my overall health and fitness.
In these past two months, I believe that I’ve made quite good progress, as my current weight at the moment is 58 kg (128 lbs) which means that my exercises and overall diet have been sufficient in maintaining my total mass for the time being.
Playing basketball has also contributed to the active lifestyle that I am trying to achieve. All of the practice and repetition I have undergone has translated into results. A big example can be my free throws, where I am shooting at a much more accurate rate than previously. I was able to finally create a form that was suited to my own strength and was comfortable for me. Additionally, I think that my three point shot has progressed a lot as well, as I am much more comfortable shooting from deeper ranges and am able to release my shot at a much quicker rate. I was able to create a practice plan for myself and followed it for a couple of weeks. It was quite boring at first and difficult to stay on, as I usually tend to do whatever comes to mind while I play. However, ensuring that I practice key shots on all areas of the court was very beneficial for my development. Overall, I still think I have a lot more that I can do to improve. However, I’m making a lot of progress and hopefully I can get even better.