Accountability: The Devil and Jillian Michaels

Hello!

For this accountability post I'm going to be highlighting my fitness routine as it develops in the agile way. In the updated backlog this will likely be seen as ongoing for the forseeable future with no true end in sight. I may change my approach however improving my fitness will be a cornerstone of my personal development.

Alongside my FitBit and lifestyle choices in attempts to improve my overall fitness I have started working through a Jillian Michaels DVD. Jillian Michaels you say? The female fitness trainer from 'The Biggest Loser' US?

Yep.

And goddamn is she a hard taskmaster.

I knew I was out of shape when I started my journey, part of the reason why I decided to utilise the DVD (of my partner's friend no less) was to feel comfortable and confident enough to go to they gym and not be the most pathetic person there. I know that I shouldn't feel this way, however as a young male in my 20s I feel I should be more confident in my body, so by laying in the groundwork at home with a DVD, I will soon redebut at the gym to make more substantial progress.

So this DVD, what is it, and how does it relate to scrum and agile?

 

The 30 Day Shred is a set of three workouts, each divided into three sections and those into three exercise intervals. Focussing on strength, cardio and abs as individual areas for improvement the entire workout feels like it echoes the iterative process of scrum. Each individual workout can be seen as a minimum shippable increment and has value unto itself. Breaking down the workout into three sessions of three minutes of strength, two minutes of cardio and one minute of abs allows me to track the burndown and many times reaching the critical measurable halfway point of each workout has been a wondrous beacon marking that I don't have too far to go.

Despite my reservations I can see progress in myself, I don't feel as tired or worn out during the workout as when I initially started and my partner has noted improvements to the way I look. Small steps, but for results from the first sprint I'm happy with my progress so far.

Why is she the devil? She'll promise you what you want, but by God you're going to have to put your soul into it.

Thanks for reading!

AT