I did it!

Well I promised I would do a 4 week blog - and here is the last installment! I have enjoyed blogging on my gymming experiences and new eating habits! If it wasnt for this blog Im 100% sure I would not have seen the inside of my gym as much as I did in January.

This week saw me return to two classes I did in Weeks 1 and 2..with a little more fitness behind me which made life easier. I also have a couple of diet tips for snacking - something Im struggling with big time. I miss my 3pm chocolate!!!

1st workout - Total Body Tone - Take 2 (45 mins)
You may remember from week 2 - I nearly died in a session in the gym. Well this time round, 2 weeks later with no alcohol in my system and eating a lot healthier - it was a LOT easier. It was still very very tough, but I was able to complete more exercises e.g. plank for longer, more full push ups and more burpees. So I'll take the small victories! In another 2 weeks or 2 months - I imagine I will be much fitter and not need to take as many breaks/complete more reps. So when things feel a little easier - push yourself to do more reps and push yourself out of your comfort zone.

2nd workout - Treadmill and weights (45 mins)
For my 2nd workout last week - I did the usual sprint as fast as I could for 1 minute (to about level 14.5) and then rested for 30 seconds. This "level 14.5" is about 2 levels faster than I was at the end of January. Again Im feeling Im getting my fitness back - because I am giving it my all and have a goal in mind. I did this "1 minute on" and "30 seconds off" 10 times. This is not easy at all - but again, knowing that I only need to complete the sprinting for 1 minute makes it a small bit more do-able! So give it a go. But as I said before - be VERY careful stepping on and off a treadmill if its moving and sprinting speed! Sounds silly, but its v tricky when your exhausted after sprints!

After this I moved to the weights section in the gym. This is the section filled with testosterone and usually no girls. Dont fear - they have light weights and heavy weights! For beginners I would suggest start with light dumbells - maybe try 2 x 2kg or 2 x 3 kg to complete a circuit. Once you are finding that easy you can move to heavier dumbells or a kettlebell. As usual - I have a routine of exercises I do - mainly because I try to get in and out of the gym in 45 mins! Get yourself a mat and go mad... Ask the gym instructor to show you some exercises for your arms/shoulders/abs. Below is the circuit I usually do:

8 x Dumbell curls (biceps)
8 x Bench Presses
8 x Upright Rows
8 x Front Raises
8 x Bicep Curls (alternating)
8 x Kneeling One Arm Row

Once that circuit is done...bad news. Two more to go. I recommend super cheesy music for this workout.

On Friday night I went to Dodgeball in Jumpzone in Sandyford with some colleagues from work. Im actually rather chuffed one of the girls in work thought - "oh SJ will definitely be up for this" - Im going to go with her reasoning for this is that I am trying to find new fun ways to get fit... and not the reasoning that she thought it would be great to flake the ball at the consultant at work! Either way - it was absolutely brilliant. Would highly recommend to groups of friends or teams in work for team building.

Two teams (we rented out the court for one hour) - on a number of trampolines, you have to run into middle and grab the soft balls - then throw them at each other. They dont hurt at all -but all of the "dodging" and bouncing on a trampoline for an hour was a serious workout! So not all workouts have to be in the gym/in a class. Something like dodgeball was a nice change! Check it out at www.jumpzone.ie

Finally - I also went back to POWOW (Power Workout of the Week).
This class was not hugely challenging first time round- but as the name suggests - it changes every week. So the 2nd time round was tougher. I came out with Jelly Arms and Jelly Legs! The main workout was working individually - complete 3 squat thrusts with dumbells and then 3 burpees, followed by 6 and 6 then 9 and 9...up to 21. After 21, I was ready to collapse..but I got there. There were about 20 people in the class. Once three people finished finished we all got to finish. Guess who was in the top 3 (well I am quite competitive!). Again - I will take the small victories!

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*(This is not a selfie - I bloody well wish it was!)

Finally some snacking tips...Im struggling to find healthy snacks between meals. So I have been asking my usual suspects for snacking tips! 2 that I have really liked are Kale Crisps and Baked Almonds

1. Kale Crisps - I bought Kale in Aldi (a whole euro!), to make the Kale Crisps, cut off the stem (I learned this after the occasion), pour a little olive oil and some sea salt and pop in the oven for 3-4 minutes. Once the kale goes a little black and crispy its done! It tastes like very healthy crisps

2. Baked Almonds - similar to the above, I bought flaked almonds in the baking section of the supermarket. Pop a bit of olive oil over them on a baking tray and put in the oven for 3-4 minutes. Yummy snack.

Nearly there...this week I crossed paths with a coach from Functional Training Ireland (based in Dublin 2) and I was raving about my insightful blog (I may have exaggerated just how useful this is!).  I think these guys know a lot more than I do so feel free to check out their Facebook page - it has some really good tips on nutrition and exercises.
Functional Training Ireland Facebook Page

So thats it from me - I really do hope you enjoyed the read...it has been a lot of fun for me to do this. It has certinaly inspired me to get off the sofa, try new classes and eat healthy! So if I have converted you to kettlebells, green tea or 85% cocoa chocolate my job here is done!

Thanks for reading!
SJ x