I was really bad about taking before pictures when I started Insanity. I took some in November, but they were mirror iPhone pictures taken at night, and weren't that great. But I did want to see the difference in my body, and I figured since I do take daily pictures of myself, it would be relatively easy to find some before pictures. I didn't plan this, but it turns out I took these pictures exactly one year apart! So the "before" is actually a few months before I even started working out regularly, but still probably an accurate representation of my "before."
I never felt overweight or anything, and that's not really why I started working out, but I definitely feel better, both in terms of my physical fitness, strength, and cardio, and also in how that's manifested in the way my body looks. I feel more "me." I was always a very active kid and teen, doing track & field, basketball, and riding horses. And in college I really loved being able to take fitness classes regularly, such as pilates, weight training, ballet, and ice skating. But after college, fitness wasn't something so easily accessed. I started rock climbing, which does provide a good workout, but doing more regular, longer, intense workouts is something that I needed to return to the level of fitness that I had when I was in my teens/early 20's.
For the most part, my body has always been relatively the same size and shape. I haven't grown much since 8th grade. So weight and tone fluctuations are really hard for me to perceive in my body. I have swung between ~110lbs and 125lbs at different times since 8th grade, but since I don't weigh or measure myself consistently, it's not something I really paid that much attention to. But seeing these photos I can definitely see a difference, and I see why taking before & after photos is so important when you're trying to make a change. The day to day changes are almost imperceptible and you can start to feel discouraged when you don't see a big leap in fitness, ability, or body shape. But just putting your head down and plowing through the work, and then taking the after photo, you definitely can see it! I've never seen visible results before (okay, granted, I've never really stuck to a workout plan before either), so I'm pretty excited that I can actually see the work paying off! And I'm seeing results in my strength through rock climbing too!
