I’d like to share how I spent a portion of my Mother’s Day weekend.

This involved having 5 minutes of insane courage.

Why? It was a Burpee Challenge for Charity to help raise awareness and support for JDRF hosted by my dear friend Pamela MacElree who has had T1D for 26 years all while leading a healthy life despite the daily struggles she faces.

Plus this was my very first trip to Philly and to her home – so it was also much needed girls time.

But I must say… this challenge REALLY took me out of my comfort zone.

First of all, I rarely work to such a high level of intensity – this was like a 9.5 on a scale of 10. Yes the FYM workouts I teach do have bursts of intensity… but nothing quite like this.

Second, this was a competition…so dozens of people were watching! This dramatically increased my nerves – which I noticed affected my first 3 burpees so much so that I was shaking before it was a natural reaction to doing these full body moves.

Third, who likes burpees?

The Takeaways: This is what I realized about myself by digging down and finding the courage….

– I Can Do Hard Things

Sure many of the workouts I do may appear as challenging, but lifting a heavy weight for a couple reps pales in comparison to 5 full minutes of full on burpees. I do not claim to have a high level of endurance or stamina, and I am known for doing the bare minimum… so this showed me that with no specific training for this burpee challenge, the workouts that I DO do keep me at a higher level of fitness, prepared to take on such events  – once in awhile.

– Having A Coach Is Essential

You will notice on the video that each of us has a coach. Not only did our coaches count reps, for this was a competition, the encouragement was absolutely amazing. If left to do this on my own – there was NO way I would have pushed myself to see just what I was capable of achieving.

– Having a Strategy allowed me to SET and BREAK a Goal

I was listening in to the other participants and almost everyone had a strategy – well I was actually warned that if you don’t have one, you will end up doing too much from the start and completely burn out. I did not want that to be me.

So I was brave and set a goal to complete 12 burpees at the top of each minute. That meant as soon as I hit 12, I could rest and refocus. It totally worked! But by the final minute, I did burpees all the way through… heck it was like an out of body experience, giving my last bit of strength and I completed 13 that final round!

That gave me a personal best of completing 61 Burpees in just 5 Minutes! While not the highest to win the competition – one gal got 65 – it was absolutely a win in my book!

I captured a video of my experience… no worries, it’s only a 2 minute clip to help you get a glimpse into my 5 minutes of insane courage.

Watch Here:

I hope you will take the lessons I have outlined above and find ways to apply them to the way you train and really… to the way you live your life.

Also, consider these two questions:

When was the last time you pushed past your comfort zone?

How often do you try something different and learn more about what you CAN do?

It was nice to come home to a day full of pampering from my boys… from breakfast in bed, to a fun workout with my husband, to a shopping spree at the mall and from the most thoughtful card and potted Lilies from my 13-year-old son.

I sure hope you were loved on and spoiled – you deserve it!