Well, here we are, 23 days into the “Back to Life Challenge” at Life – The Evolution of Personal Training, a fitness center located in the ACME shopping center in Somers Point. Although I haven’t lost what might be considered a significant amount of weight, about six or seven pounds so far, I do feel a lot better than I did three weeks ago. Starting to get some definition and feeling stronger in the legs and torso area, which have been a problem for me the last few years when you combine micro-tears in my Achilles suffered a few years ago and a sedentary, sit-down job 40 hours a week. Also had to fight through a bit of soreness in my right knee in the middle of the month, which was more annoying than anything else. This past week has been pretty productive as owner and head trainer Hesh Donnerstag has increased the intensity of the workouts, and given trainers Jason Plum and D.J. Morton the green light to start pushing the workout groups harder. We’ve been doing a lot of kettlebell work, and if you have never worked with these they are a great way to get a good workout in a variety of ways. We’ve also been working a lot to improve flexibility in the hamstrings and torso with a focus on better posture. Bad posture leads to a variety of problems in the lower back and hips, Donnerstag said. Personally, I enjoy the resistance training with kettlebells, the TRX apparatus and the ViPR. ViPR stands for Vitality, Performance and Reconditioning, and is billed as the Swiss Army knife of exercise equipment. The rubber log can be pressed like a bench press bar but can also be used in stretching exercises and leg work, as well as abdominal exercises. Pretty neat device that comes in a variety of weights. It basically replaces such equipment as bar bells and dumb bells. I haven’t been a huge fan of the ab workouts, but then again, who is! Although, as everyone knows, physical fitness and performance starts at the core. If you’re not strong in your core, it’s kind of like running up a muddy hill. You won’t really get anywhere. I still have a long way to go to get back to the physical prowess I enjoyed in my 20s and early 30s, but I’m off to a good start. Looking forward to the coming week and more intense workouts that will have me feeling and looking better. The biggest challenge for anyone looking to get back into great shape is that mental hurdle. You know the one I’m talking about, where instead of feeling like you HAVE to work out, you start feeling like you WANT to work out. It usually takes me about three weeks to get over that hurdle, and we are at that point now. Already looking forward to getting back at it on Monday, so that’s a good sign! Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays.