I have friends who thrived under lockdowns, they lost weight and got fit. I got stressed, and depressed. For me it wasn’t being locked in the house that did it. Because I am an introvert and I was already working remotely! It was the combination of the world stress with homeschooling my daughter. Not having the answers and not knowing.

I had already gained weight from the years leading up to this. In 2017 it started with my father dying and my mother moving in with us, in our two bedroom apartment. I’d never turn her away. And we love her, of course. Then a year after it turned into my mother having cancer. It followed into a very horrific treatment (for anyone who has witnessed chemo and radiation first hand, you know what I am talking about. When she finished I had endless drama at work and decided it was time to change jobs after 13 years at the same company! That turned into a big deal as I don’t fair well with change. After this I realized I needed to move… So I bought a condo. My daughter switched schools and started at a new school district in September of 2019. In December of 2019 I decided to become full time remote because I hated the commute and I was ok with the idea of them letting me go if that didn’t fly.

As January through March ticked by the stress of COVID started mounting and I wanted my daughter to be home due to the fear they were building. Honestly, this past year has been a massive growth experience for me. Learning what I am capable of, and what I am not. I’m 45 years old, soon to be 46 and I started experiencing weight hormone issues and very heavy periods. Apparently it turned out to be large amounts of Fibroid Tumors. With that said my doctor recommended a hysterectomy. It was performed on May 12, 2021.

Here I am, 5’6 and 170.8 lbs. The fattest I have ever been. I started reordering my life on June 30. My starting weight was 175. I fit into my clothing slightly better. But realized after 6 days of being stuck on the same weight I needed to integrate more fitness.

Today I did step! 15 minutes (I am so out of shape). I also did arms, abs, shoulders and triceps.

How often each week can you work your arms, shoulders and triceps?