Bar Method One Month Challenge

All right everybody, here's how it went over one month.. I started the morning of January 6th and finished on February 8th. I did a 45-60 minute workout every morning at 5:15 AM six days a week. I tracked every single workout with my FitBit Blaze HR that monitors my heart rate. I also tracked my nutrition with the MyFitnessPal app. Here are my stats (mind you--this is only one month):

Avg calorie burn for barre workout	3.85 cal/min
Overall weight lost	4.2 lbs
Change in body fat	-1.2%
Total inches lost	6.37 in

Sadie joined me for my progress photos

Here are the before and after pictures for my 1-month challenge. (Disclaimer: this is after 4 weeks. My 5 week photos didn't turn out very well. Note to self: wearing the same clothes helps show the progress better).

Not a HUGE difference, but there is definitely progress

Here are the overall before and after pictures from April 2019 to February 2020. There is about a 20 pound difference, believe it or not. It definitely shows in the face. I really can't believe how Shrek-like my face looked like, but hey, it was 5 AM.

My weight loss progress over 9-10 months

Big difference right?

What I have learned from this self-imposed challenge:

• I can still get a good workout from a non-cardio activity. (However, this did mean focusing on getting more activity throughout the whole day to keep burning calories.)
• With lighter weights, my arms have shrunk significantly. In fact, my right arm alone decreased in size by OVER one inch in one month! I had to measure my arms more than once to verify. I would way rather have smaller arms than bigger biceps. Light weights are emphasized in the Bar Method with a focus on shoulders, back, and triceps. I was previously using heavier weights in different workouts that made my arms bigger. I have always struggled being top heavy (an inverted triangle body type), and have been super self-conscious about the size of my arms. I was under the impression that heavier weights would help improve muscle tone, but I just feel like they bulked up my already bulky upper body. 
• Even though I only used light weights for upper body exercises, my shoulders and triceps feel more toned than when I was using heavier weights before. For the first time in my life, I actually have definition in my upper right arm. I think it must be related to getting deep in the muscles with small, concentrated movements.
• 
  



Do you like cheesy workout progress photos? Do you like the old school "duck face"? How about combining the two? Killin' it.

So, my right arm was feeling a little camera shy, and didn't really want to show any muscle definition. Also, it's not very photogenic to begin with. In fact, I don't know why I'm including this photo, but oh well. 

• Barre workouts require a lot of mental fortitude. When you are deep in a muscle and you are shaking like crazy, it's hard to convince yourself mentally to keep going.
• Doing lower intensity exercise helps me get out of bed easier. When I did cardio early in the morning, I lay in bed for 20-30 minutes every morning before exercising because I wasn't mentally prepared.
• The Bar Method online videos are great! I have really loved them so far. There have been ones so difficult that I am sore right away (usually I don't feel sore until the next day). They vary in difficulty, intensity, and styles of instructors. 
• Barre exercises give your glutes and hamstrings super powers. They make me feel like I'm power walking with springs in my legs and booty, and I look like I'm walking with purpose to get to my destination.
• I was afraid that my legs would get bigger because of the lower body focus, but both of my thighs shrunk by one inch.
• Having a wall barre is way better than using a chair as a barre. The stability allows me to work even harder when doing leg and glute exercises.
• One bad thing: I got tennis elbow doing the Bar Method. I've gotten it before from a different exercise, and I'm not quite sure what exactly triggers it. Apparently push-ups can aggravate it, so I'm wondering if the 40-70 push-ups in a 60-minute workout are what triggered it for me.
• I love barre exercises. They are intense without feeling like you're punishing your body. I really really hate running, and I also don't like weight lifting. This type of exercise just fits me much better.

Anyways, I am so impressed with my progress that I just may commit to the Bar Method long-term. I will probably add in cardio two times per week once my challenge is over. Mind you, the results did happen with calorie restriction most days of the week (between 1500-2000 calories per day). If you're trying to lose weight, you may not have the same results if you're eating too many calories.

Here's to more time at the barre in 2020 (yes, I know that's a cheesy joke that's probably been done a million times before).

Also, thanks to everyone for the support to my last post about my personal life. 💕