This is it…the week we have planned for all summer…the week will will find out what we’re made of.  On Wednesday, Gary and I will leave for Atlanta, and will participate in Atlanta Mania, a fitness conference.  I have been to conferences for the beauty industry, the Atlanta Gift Market, and education conferences.  They required nothing of me except my attendance and eagerness to absorb new knowledge.  The days might have been tiring because we sat in classes all day, but we could rest up at night, and hit it again the next day.

This will be quite different.  This will push us to our physical limits, which are likely beyond where I really want to go.  On Thursday, Gary and I will both become certified to teach new classes – Gary will be certified to teach spinning, and I will teach Tabata Bootcamp.  The bootcamp classes at the gym will be thirty minutes long, and will include several different exercises that we will do at an intense level for a short period of time.  This is HIIT (high intensity interval workout), which works all body parts in short bursts, and increases caloric burn.  There is no one in this area who offers Tabata Bootcamps, so I am really excited about the potential.  (For those interested, the classes will begin in September, and will be early morning – 5:30 – classes.  Stayed tuned for more info in the coming weeks.)

Wednesday evening, the rest of the crew from Everbody’s will arrive in Atlanta.  Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, we are all taking a variety of classes.  Most classes require working out.  Despite my attempts to be physically fit – okay, buff – I am really a wimp.  I have very little upper body strength.  My hope is that I will develop some by doing Tabata on a regular basis.  I have a Tabata Bootcamp feed on Facebook, and they always post pictures of new groups of trainers.  I always check them out, and it appears every single one of them is young and ultra-fit.  None appear to be grandmothers; I am a grandmother.  I hope they have mercy on me!

I signed up for classes such as kettlebell (those suckers are heavy), Zumba Sentao (even though I am an instructor, those classes are super hard when the badass instructors teach), and more bootcamp classes.  I also signed up for a Flirty Girl Workout.  Really.  Somehow I think I will be the oldest person in that class!  I signed up thinking I could learn some new choreography to incorporate into my Zumba classes.  Or maybe I wasn’t thinking at all.   I cannot begin to imagine how much Aleve we will go through.  I did sign up for a couple lecture as well; they will be a welcome break from the sweatfests.  I am even taking a nutrition class.  Those of you who know me know that I desperately need to improve my nutrition.  Perhaps I will come home and revamp my eating.  Or not.

So, this weekend when you’re cleaning house, boating, or camping, think of me.  I will be whining and struggling to fit in with all the buff instructors.  Most will probably be young enough to be my children.  When you see me Monday, and I am unable to move, you’ll know why.  I will have challenged myself.  I will have set my age aside and worked my tail off.

About running…I am still attempting to run a little while I await surgery.  My friend Jackie and I ran and walked a total of six miles Saturday, and then I ran three miles last night with some walking added in between.  This morning I met my friend Caroline, and she and I walked and ran two miles.  My knee hurts, but I want to keep moving.  I am going to walk with Jennifer before Zumba, and walk again with some of my Zumba group after class.  I will certainly get the miles in today.  I still miss running.  Even on these hot, sticky days, I want to run.  I know (well, I think) I will run again in time, but my patience is gone.  It’s frustrating when I am trying to do something healthy, and can’t.  As much as I have pushed others to persevere, even when it’s so stinkin’ hard, I know I cannot just quit.  I have to do everything in my power – including surgery – to run again.

If I can move my fingers, I plan to blog each evening we are at the conference.  And you know me, you’ll get an honest picture of how it’s going.  Now get off the computer or phone, and go do something active.  Don’t know what to do?  There’s a pretty awesome Zumba class at 6:30 at the Schergens Center.  Try it out!