My before & after photos from the 2014 Gold’s Gym Challenge. So Yeah, I’m a believer in this challenge.

Once again I’ve sighed up for the 2018 Gold’s Challenge. This is my 3^rd time and I do love challenges. In my effort to loose my post surgery pounds, I’m off to a slow start. I feel I’ve finally righted my diet (no more eating out and no alcohol).

When it comes to losing inches, I need to jump start my exercise routine. Right now I’m more turtle than hare.

To be fair, I wanted to see the results of my 3D body scan before coming up with a plan of attack. While I want to do full body workouts, there is a part of me that wants to target my abs and thighs.

My doctor told me it would take a year for my abs to fully recover from surgery. He wasn’t kidding. It’s been a year and a half and while my abs are stronger, there’s still a lot of exercises I either can’t do (like that damn Roman chair leg raise) or am limited in how many I can do (I’m looking at you sit ups).

But here’s where I have to be careful. I have to balance my newfound determination to kick ass in this challenge (I’m coming for you Roman chair!!!!) with my limitations. The last thing I want to do is injure myself. Thankfully my trainer seems to know how much to push.

As for my thighs, well…what woman doesn’t hate her thighs? Yes it’s an area ripe for weight loss, but I also know you can’t target areas of your body for weight loss. I’m more focused on toning exercises.

Dot’s 3D body scan for the 2018 Gold’s Challenge.

3D Body Scan
The body scan was interesting and eye opening. Your clothes have to be bare minimum. I wore tight fitting shorts and a sports bra. That’s so the beam can scan as much as your body as possible. Baggy clothes hide too much.

During the scan you stand still on a turntable, holding your arms out away from your side. You are slowly spun around as a laser outlines your entire body.

It is a bit shocking seeing the physical print out. It isn’t a photograph you see. But it does show you everything – fat folds and all!

I have to admit I cringed. And briefly got a little dejected. My trainer, seeing my expression said no one likes their scan and “I promise it won’t be the same after the 12 weeks.”

He’s right. I saw results the last 2 times I did the challenge. This will be no different.

Always Double Check The Numbers!
Normally at the beginning of the year I take my measurements – arm, thigh, waist, chest and hips. However the 3D scan calculates your measurements, so I held off breaking the tape measure.

Well it turns out you should always double-check the scan.

The first number it calculates is your weight. And it was off…by 15 pounds!

To be fair, the scan is not a scale. The system estimates my weight based on the scan, height and age. So while it was off by 15 pounds, it did a pretty good “guesstimate.”

I’m sure gym scans will get more accurate as technology improves. Certainly the ones universities and hospitals use (the big expensive machines that go ping!) are very accurate.

So I did go home and have my husband take my measurements. Here the scan really shined. The measurements were spot on. The only differences were in fractions of inches.

Dot’s Measurements
So what did the 3D scanner tell me?

• Start Date: January 16, 2018
• Starting Weight: 210.4
• Right Bicep: 14.9”
• Chest: 43.4”
• Hip: 50.8”
• Waist: 41”
• Mid Right Thigh: 29.2”

Now let’s compare those numbers to my past measurements.

Ugh! I regained inches all over. This is why you should measure yourself at least quarterly. You can see if you are starting to go off the rails. Granted, as of June 2016 measuring myself was not even in the top 100 priorities.

It’s annoying to re-lose weight, but no use whining. It’s time to embrace the suck and kick some butt.

3D Scan Calculations
The scan calculates my body fat at roughly 33%, which translates into 74.4 pounds of fat.

Now I’m not looking to lose 74.4 pounds of fat – that just isn’t possible. We all need some body fat. In 2016 I calculated my ideal body weight – 166 pounds. Despite the post surgery weight gain, I’m sticking with that number. The nice thing is that number is very reachable target this year, despite menopause.

But with the weight loss comes maintaining muscle mass (and hopefully adding some) and toning/shaping that muscle. And that’s a big part of this challenge.

Re-Building Good Habits
My previous challenge helped build really good exercise habits. I’m fully expecting that to happen this time around. There are specific classes I’m excited about trying – Boot Camp and GoldsFit, Gold’s version of Cross Fit.

In addition I’m planning on checking out the new Parkour facility near me. I tried Parkour about 18 months ago. The class kicked my butt. I was sore for a week from head to toe (literally!!!) for a week.

I loved it.

I started this week slow – 3 muscle workouts and daily walks. Next week I add 2-3 hours of Boot Camp.

Challenge accepted!