How Orangetheory Helped Jessica Williams Finish a Dri Tri

On January 1st, 2019, I started my day just like most Americans.  I had a list of goals for myself and most of those involved exercising, eating more green leafy things like kale (NOT A FAN!), drinking all of the water, and being a nicer person to everyone.  I actually had a kick-butt workout that morning doing some boxing, cycling, and lifting. I felt awesome and so happy that I could check off day 1 of the brand new year. In fact, I made my own calendar and crossed off Day 1 like a boss!

That afternoon, all of my goals that I had started working on were swiftly put to the side as I was doubled over in pain, a pain that I had never felt before and that wouldn’t go away no matter what I did.  I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t speak and my husband was working on getting me in the car to take me to the ER.

I learned that night that my gallbladder was not a happy organ in my body and it was going to need to come out in the future.  I was loaded up on pain meds to calm all my insides down, I went home, but quickly went back to the ER when I realized the pain was coming back and I now had a fever.

Several days in the hospital to monitor infection and pain left me realizing those goals I had dreamed about accomplishing, that I had just started working on 2 days before, were going to need a new start date and probably some adjusting.  I was about to get 4 holes and things taken out of my body so, ok, major adjusting.  I've got a few more details and fun photos of my hospital bling here.

Fast forward to June - I knew it was time to make those goals happen but I also knew that I needed some help to do this safely.  So, I signed up for my first class at Orangetheory Fitness in Rochester.

Now, June isn’t the normal time when we seem to think about goals but for me, it didn’t matter what the date was on the calendar, all I had to do was start.  And I am so glad that I did!

That first day at Orangetheory Fitness, my body was quick to point out that it had changed.  Poking holes in my body for surgery left my core very weak, so weak that I couldn’t even do one situp and it was physically impossible to find muscles that could do a pushup.  That right there was my starting point and my first goal.

Fast Forward to September - I finished a Dri Tri!  It sounds intense and I’ll be honest, there were some moments that had me wondering why I even made a Dri Tri one of my goals.  But I rowed 2,000 meters, did 300 bodyweight exercises, and rode 12.4 miles on a bike under 52 minutes.  

Me, a person who couldn’t even do one situp in June just did a Dri Tri at Orangetheory Fitness in September.  It was such a great feeling to finish but what was even better was knowing that I had a goal for myself and I just crushed it.

Is there a goal that’s been circling in your mind for a bit?  Is your gut telling you that it is time to get started? You don’t have to wait for January 1st to start working on those health and fitness goals, you can actually start right now!  If you need a jumpstart or some help figuring out what to do, go try Orangetheory Fitness in Rochester. They’ve got a free, 60-minute total body workout and you can grab that and learn more at their website here or give them a call at 507-722-2683.

If you see me at Orangetheory Fitness, I'd love to grab a workout selfie with you!  Let me know when you are going! Send me a message on my Facebook page or DM me on Instagram.

What are you waiting for?  Grab that free workout now!