With a goal in mind

My fitness regime, if one could even qualify it as a regime, has been full of excuses:

•  My husband’s not home during weekday mornings, so I can’t go to an exercise class before work.

•  I cannot seem to drag myself out of bed anytime before 6 a.m., so an early morning workout session doesn’t fit into the precise schedule of getting the kids and myself out the door on time for school/work.

•  Work has been too busy lately that I cannot fit in a mid-day workout.

•  I’m too tired after a full day at work and an evening taking care of the kiddos (making dinner, overseeing homework, prepping for the next day, etc.) Even if I wanted to go workout in the evening, it’s hard to find an activity that the kids both like. And if I take them to the gym with them, I spend more time overseeing them and/or fielding complaints than I do working out.

•  It’s 9:30 by the time Mr. B is in bed and then it’s too late to workout.

It doesn’t help that many mothers I know have flexible work schedules and/or are home part of the day where they can easily fit in exercise classes at the gym during the day when their kids are at school. Yes, jealousy and a great deal of self-pity have been running rampant in my mind for a long while now.

So what does one do when faced with having to wear a fancy cocktail dress to an uber swanky event in New York City?

Like the infamous words of Tim Gunn, I figure out a way to “make it work.”

I’ve been lucky to have found a wonderful local trainer on Twitter that has been willing to work with me. With the support of a good friend who has offered to watch the kids one night during the week (and my husband on the weekend), I’m now taking two high intensity, fat-burning/toning classes a week through October.

My goal: Lose at least 5 pounds and build  muscle tone by the first week of November to look smokin hot in this plum little number:

Let me tell you, after the first two classes, I hurt like I haven’t hurt since two-a-day volleyball workouts in college (did you know your lats can hurt so much it takes a good 5-10 seconds to lift your arm...they can. And don't get me started about sore lateral butt  muscles, oy!) My kids finds it amusing that I’ve been walking around like a slow moving, old lady this weekend, but I’m loving it because I know my efforts are already working.

Stay tuned...