STS Rotation #1: Thoughts and Conclusions

I have now finished my first STS (Shock Training System) 3-month rotation.  Whew!  When taking into account the recovery weeks after every 4-week Mesocycle, the 3-month rotation is really 3 months and 3 weeks.  I started this in the latter half of May!

Motivation

What kept me motivated?  Honestly, the hope that doing something so different will change my body. And it did.  I think.  More on that later.  But I've never done such an intense program and I'm proud of myself for getting through it.  

The workouts change enough to keep you from getting bored.  Each Mesocycle is completely different - different exercises and different reps...  Just changing a weight by 2 pounds can have a major difference, as well.  

As I started this program, it was nice to look forward to mornings where I didn't have to do cardio...  But weightlifting provides its own challenges.  And I enjoyed that different challenge.  

Results

I have no idea what kind of results I had.  How crazy is that?!  The bad news is that I didn't lose weight - but then, my eating wasn't great.  I definitely gained muscle - I can lift more and I can see more muscle definition, especially in my legs.  In a perfect world, I was hoping that this system would shock my body so much that it would finally shed a pound (I'm still dealing with the repercussions of having no thyroid).  But it didn't.

That doesn't break my heart because I know I gained muscle.  And that made me a Cathe believer.  This woman knows a lot about fitness!  She broke my cardio obsession - I know I don't need it every day.  I now know that weightlifting is just as good - if not better - for your body.  So now my goal is to keep weight training but also keep up my health, cardiovascularly, with the right amount of cardio.  

Going Forward

Cathe has a schedule of what to do after STS, to keep your muscles challenged but also to keep your body guessing.  That'll be fun - new workouts!  So together with that and a short Peak 10 session in December, I'm good through the rest of the year for workouts!  

I hope my thyroid comes around - well, that the meds actually start acting like my thyroid used to.  And I hope I didn't irreparably damage my metabolism by eating too little and doing too much cardio before STS.  

So, now that I've had a recovery week, it's time to work again on Monday!  Calories won't burn themselves!