Physical fitness is a crucial component of our overall well-being. But because I didn’t enjoy exercising much, I paid no attention to maintaining my physical health. My realization that I needed to improve my physical fitness to strengthen my body and increase endurance came when I experienced aching muscles and low endurance during the nature camp trekking. I decided to focus on physical fitness by committing to a regular workout routine. I aimed to improve my health and well-being, challenge myself physically, and learn about the importance of discipline, perseverance, and goal-setting. Throughout my journey, I was able to achieve the following learning outcomes:

LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas of growth.
By committing to a consistent workout schedule, I was able to recognize my areas of strength and development. For instance, when I started the exercise program, I found that while I had decent core strength, I needed to work on my endurance and upper-body strength since I quickly became weary and couldn’t complete some upper-body exercises like push-ups. I also understood that to persevere through difficult workouts, I needed to strengthen my mental fortitude and motivation.

LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.
The biggest difficulty was a lack of motivation. It was exceedingly challenging to exercise every day, let alone for 30 minutes when the bed and TV shows were so close by. As a result, I missed a few days of working out in the first month. But I persisted and overcame this obstacle, learning new skills in the process. For instance, with the assistance of my supervisor, I learned how to perform a variety of exercises with the correct form and posture, how to make effective workout plans by determining the areas where I needed to improve the most, such as endurance, and adding more endurance exercises, and how to effectively manage my time so that I could fit my workouts into my daily routine by making a weekly schedule.

LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience.
To start and plan my workout experience, I looked into various workout routines while keeping in mind the equipment I have and the kinds of exercises I need the most. I also talked to my supervisor about form and posture, and I made a thorough plan with detailed objectives, deadlines, and methods for monitoring my progress. To motivate myself to stick with my regimen and recognize my progress along the way, I also set up a reward system that included taking days off, going out, or indulging my sweet appetite after five days of regular exercise.

LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences.
I needed to make sure I committed to the workout schedule and did not take unnecessary breaks if I wanted to get better. This was difficult because of the influx of overdue assignments, the procrastination epidemic, the difficulty of the workout, and the close proximity of television programs. But instead of giving up entirely, I persevered and consistently finished all the workouts, only taking breaks when I had to leave the house or when I was ill. I also persevered through difficult workouts by setting short-term goals rather than ambitious long-term plans, inspiring myself with ideas of the benefits later, and energizing myself with music. This encouraged me to stick with the HIT exercises and even my longer-term goal of exercising consistently for at least a month, which first seemed unachievable.

Overall, I learned valuable lessons from my training experience, including the importance of discipline, perseverance, and goal-setting. The experience also assisted me in creating learner profiles like risk taker by embracing new workouts, balanced by juggling physical health, mental health, academics, and entertainment, and reflecting by analyzing my previous workouts to determine the kind of workouts that are most effective for me. Along with pushing myself outside my comfort zone and overcoming mental obstacles, I also learned the value of prioritizing my physical health and well-being, which I intend to continue doing in the future as well.