A few days ago, I made it to the halfway mark of PBYP Resolution, a a 12-week online yoga and strength training program by Erin Motz, co-founder of Bad Yogi and maker of the Perfect Body Yoga Program (PBYP).
Having completed PBYP last year and now working through the second half of PBYP Resolution, I’ve seen how some of the tools in these programs work well for me in my journey to become stronger and fitter.
CHARTS HELP ME VISUALIZE MY PROGRESS
I’ve a printed program chart hanging on the inside of my closet door. Every day for the past six and a half weeks, I’ve been putting an X mark on the box with the yoga class, strength training class, or meditation that I’d just finished.. Seeing this chart every day and writing an X mark over one completed class every day remind me that I am moving forward and am slowly but surely working towards my goal.
CHECKPOINTS HELP ME FEEL AND KNOW THAT I’M GETTING STRONGER
During certain weeks of the program, there are checkpoint classes. These are yoga classes with the same or similar poses and flows but with small changes, perhaps poses are held for longer times or more breaths, for example, to make them more challenging the second time around. After I did Checkpoint 1 on Week 5, I saw some improvement from when I did the same class on Week 1. My forearm plank was stronger. My Dancer Pose was steadier. Towards the end of the sixth week, during one yoga class, I noticed that my Half Moon Pose was easier and steadier than it used to be.
CELEBRATING THE SMALL WINS KEEP ME GOING
My small wins are what they call Non-Scale Victories or NSVs (a term I learned from the PBYP online community). My first NSV came quickly and surprisingly, just after two weeks into the program. I was at a swimming complex to watch some family friends do their time trials. I needed to go up one floor from the pool level to the viewing deck. On an impulse, I opted not to take the lift and instead walk up a flight of stairs. When I got to the top of the stairs, I was surprised that my quads weren’t burning and my heart wasn’t thumping. That hasn’t happened to me in years.
At the start of my fifth week with this program, I decided to test my quads and my heart again, but this time with a much longer flight of stairs, about 48 steps total. I was on the MRT platform and instead of heading to the escalator as I and most people normally do, I walked up the stairs. I was again pleasantly surprised that I felt fine when I got to the top, no burning quads and no thumping heart.
Earlier this week, I compared photos of myself taken at Day 1 and just a few days ago at the start of Week 7. I saw some small wins there, not obvious and drastic, but wins nonetheless. My stomach area looked a wee bit smaller. My husband also told me that my legs seem more toned now.
I quietly celebrate my small wins by marking them on my chart, telling my husband about it, and now sharing them here with friends and readers. Having the time, money, ability and support to do this program is a big win for me and that I celebrate everyday by being grateful and staying committed. I still have a long way to go, especially with my core and upper body strength, with my Crow Pose and my crunches. I will keep going especially through the tough days. I know I will finish stronger and healthier in body and in mind. My chart, my checkpoints and my celebrations say so.