Three Minute Step Test Queen!

I can't actually believe it but I excelled at the three-minute step test, a test that assesses your heart's capacity to pump blood through your body while you exercise. You do roughly 72 steps on an 18 inch platform for three minutes, rest for a minute and then take your recovery pulse.

The results were astounding. I'm actually super fit! I know this is just weirdest thing to say for someone who has been going to the gym consistently almost every day since March, but still, the only other time I've noticed a difference in my fitness level is when I was able to climb this monster hill in Algarrobo really easily (after having huffed and puffed up the same hill two months earlier). I still have the same legs I consider too fat (but am trying to embrace just the same). I still have the little pancita. I still have an ass. But there I was counting away and dude, my heart is fit! I calculated that I needed to be working out way more than I am.

Low and behold, I landed in the Very Good fitness level and calculated that my heart could withstand me working at even 90% of my max heart rate (holy crap!).

I then vowed I would go to the gym and workout at this new higher rate and really give my body what it needed. However, I ended up eating a chocolate croissant too close to my workout time and felt super duper sick (when am I going to learn that I need to not eat at least three hours before a workout?). Then the next day, I tried again, but no matter how often I started at pushing myself on the bike, I would get distracted by my thoughts and ended up in my comfort zone, at around 140 bpm--74% of my max heart rate.

This has gotten me thinking. How does the average Joe or Jane motivate themselves to the proper level of fitness? If I'm at the super high rate, and I can't seem to motivate myself to work at those upper levels, what happens to someone who's super out of shape and shouldn't be operating at more than 40% of their max heart rate? How daunting, especially since, if you don't have a high level of fitness, it's probably because there's something about moving and exercising that you don't like. What a vicious circle.

I would really love to dedicate my life to helping people adopt healthy habits and find some way to love eating healthily and also love moving. I'd love to find ways to help people be more motivated with me but also without me. I guess the trick is to discover what will motivate me first.