So, where have I been? In case you were wondering, I headed off to London at the end of June for 12 days. I ate croissants and sausages every morning (I’m not joking) and was out for lunch and dinner every day and night. I didn’t restrict myself at all. I also did some shopping and walked almost everywhere! When I got back (on the 12th morning), I was pretty sure I’d have put on weight so I decided not to weigh myself until Sunday morning – I thought it would give my body time to get back into its routine of ‘normal’ eating, etc. And when I weighed myself that morning, I hadn’t put on any weight. I was pleasantly surprised. While I was away I’d bought two new pairs of trainers (mainly because I couldn’t decide which colour I preferred!)…
The next day I had my first session with Pete since the end of June. He said it wouldn’t be too bad (although his definition of ‘bad’ is different from mine).
I started with 1 km on the treadmill:
- Walk x 100 m
- Run x 400 m
- Walk x 100 m
- Run x 400 m
Oh. My. God. It was tough. I could feel all the consequences of all those croissants and sausages. I had some water, did some stretches and began the first circuit:
- Chest press x 12
- Leg extension x 12
- Lateral pulldown x 12
- Mountain climbers x 30 s
- Double crunch x 30 s
- Treadmill x 4 min (30 s walking, 30 s running)
I had some more water and a 1-minute rest. The next circuit consisted of:
- Incline pushups x 12
- Front squat x 12 (15-lb weights)
- Bentover row x 12 (15-lb weights)
- Romanian deadlifts x 12 (15-lb weights)
- Plank twist x 30 s
- Russian twists x 30 s
- Cross-trainer x 4 min (30 s walking, 30 s running)
After another 1-minute break and some water, I did the next circuit:
- Low row x 12 (resistance band)
- Goblet squats x 12 (15-lb weight)
- Chest press (resistance band)
- Good mornings x 12 (resistance band)
- Hip rolls x 30 s
- Butterfly situps x 30 s
- Treadmill x 4 min (30 s walking, 30 s running)
I was dying. Thankfully it was the end of the session and I finished off with some stretches.
I was a bit sore on Tuesday but I went to the gym, intending to do Week 4 Day 2 of the 10k Runner, but I only managed for 20 minutes. I did do three sets of the abs exercises that Pete had told me to do: hanging knee raises x 10, side bends x 10 on each side, abdominal toe touches x 20.
I had another session with Pete on Wednesday. I began with a warmup on the treadmill:
- Walk x 1 min
- Run/walk x 3 min (30 s intervals)
- Run x 3 min
I did some stretches, had some water and began the first circuit:
- Back extensions x 12
- Tricep dips x 12
- Shoulder press x 12 (10-lb weights)
- Bicep curls x 12 (10-lb weights)
- Knee in/out x 20
- Rest for 40 seconds
I did that circuit three times, had a 1-minute break and moved on to the next one:
- Step ups on the treadmill x 10 on each side
- Side-step squat x 10 (alternating 5 on each side)
- Walking lunges x 2 lengths of the gym
- Elbow to knee crunches x 20 on each side
- Rest for 40 seconds
I did that circuit three times and had a 1-minute break. The next circuit was simple:
- Jumping jacks x 20
- Bench crunches x 20
I did three sets of that circuit. For the bench crunches, I lay on the floor with my calves resting on a bench and did the situps from that position, touching the bench each time I came up. It was tough and I could really feel it in my abs!
I didn’t work out again in the week or over the weekend – my brother and sister are here with their kids so it’s been quite busy!
Total distance covered this week? 2.24 km (not including the warmups during my session with Pete).
Low point of the week? Struggling to get back into a routine – and eating out a lot with the family here!
High point of the week? Wearing my new trainers (how sad is that?)
Weight loss? Let’s not even go there. It’s been going up since I’ve come back from London – from all the eating out!
Read more updates here.
Notes by Nectar 