by Macie Holloway

Created on: July 16, 2008

The only thing I knew about resistance training, was that I was certainly resistant. My vast assortment of work out clothes were the only thing in my drawers neatly stacked, and my South Beach Diet book had migrated from bedside nightstand to the magazine rack by the toilet. Resistance was an understatement.

So, I embarked on a personal fitness journey, the same way so many of us do. I woke up, diligently scrawled my goal weight on a paper, grabbed a pair of sneakers and vowed to start a stringent fitness regimen first thing after work. My intense motivation lasted three days. The kids groaned because I was an hour late picking them up, my husband groaned over a dinnerless table, and my muscles groaned in protest every time I tried to make a transition between sitting down and standing up. I guess you could say, "Working out was not working out for me."

At this point I considered continuing to pack on the needless pounds of flab that foretold of a future involving two airplane seats. "NO," I said. "Not me!" So, I consulted with the experts. Armed only with an attitude and the ability to Google' stuff, I set out on my journey to discover how a busy working mom like myself could enjoy the benefits of resistance training.

I learned through Internet research, along with advice from the trainer at the gym, that resistance training could increase my Basal Metabolic Rate by up to 15%. That's a potential of 300 extra calories, or a chocolate bar. I also learned that research suggests resistance training may have a positive effect on insulin resistance, resting metabolism, blood pressure and body fat. Therefore, resistant training is associated with decreased risk of diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis and cancer.

However, the most valuable lesson I learned was that little things go a long way. According my trainer, all of these health benefits could be reaped to some degree from only two 15-20-minute sessions per week.

I was sold but how could I start without completely restructuring my schedule? I started with a pair of ten-pound ankle weights. No one could see them under my pant legs and I mindlessly lifted my feet off the ground doing quadriceps lifts as I sat in my chair helping customers over the phone. When getting up to take a bathroom break, I did a few hamstring curls to balance out both sides of my legs. The next day I brought some ten- pound dumbbells to work. On my lunch break, after indulging myself with a quick salad, I did three sets of bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, upright rows and shoulder presses. I even used the dumbbells to do dead lifts and also to weigh down my shoulders while I did a few lunges and squats. I even went as far as to bring an enormous exercise ball to work. Sure, people looked at me funny as I sprawled out on the ball doing abdominal crunches, but nothing good comes without a price. I played some lively music on my iPod all the while. Every other day, to get some cardiovascular exercise in, I walked up and down the stairs. It wasn't long before I noticed my body toning up ever so slightly. It wasn't much, but it was something and "something" was enough to motivate me to keep going. After three months I dropped ten pounds and had more energy and confidence but the beauty of it all was that I did it all by taking baby steps, going easy and fitting in a little here and a little there. The kids didn't stay long hours in daycare, my husband didn't go hungry, and best of all, those little "somethings" really started adding up.

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