Rowing

When I woke up this morning all I could think about was how poorly I did on that row machine yesterday. Trying for sub-2 minutes and getting 2 1/2 minutes sucked.

I know that I was tired, and I did try ... but still, I knew that if I wanted to achieve that sub-2 min row, then I'd have to practice.

So, this morning I got up, finished the bit of work that I had to do, and headed to the gym.

I had boxing scheduled for the evening so I didn't want to overdo it. I decided to practice 2 skills - jump rope and rowing.

My workout in the morning was: 

200 jump rope skips followed by a 500 m row. 

I repeated that 5 times. 

My fastest 500 m row was completed in 2 min 5 sec. 

So bloody close! 

I'm amazed at how exhausting rowing is. The first 300 meters is fine, and then the fatigue starts to set it. All of a sudden you're looking at the bar in front of you thinking, pulling it shouldn't be hard - and then you go to pull it and think - why is the bar so heavy?! 

Getting the coordination and technique right is essential. I don't think I'm rowing efficiently. I'm sure that if I work on that I'll be able to shave those extra seconds off. 

In the late afternoon I headed to boxing class. We had a really good session. I'm enjoying the mini sparring bouts that we're doing. I'd actually like to focus on that more because I think it'll help me improve my reflexes and actually think more about what I have to do. There was one point during the sparring session that the coach was punching (lightly tapping) at my gloves which were guarding my face and all I kept thinking was - what the hell should I do? He's punching at me ... and that's when he told me to focus on what areas of his body were open (his abdominal region) and go for that. Once he said that, it clicked and I was able to work on reading my opponent more instead of just focusing on defending myself. 

It was a good lesson. 

I love bag work/pad work, but I think it's only sparring that will really prepare you for thinking on your feet and landing good punches. 

My legs are incredibly sore from today's rowing. Who would have thought that just under 13 minutes of rowing would leave me so sore. I felt a bit wobbly in my high heels in the evening ... but that sore feeling is so satisfying! 

Stronger Legs

I started writing a blog post yesterday but got distracted and didn't complete or post it. Oh well - it happens. Things have just been so busy around here. Even though it's a holiday I've got a bunch of research and writing to do. It really hasn't been much of a break, but just the fact that I don't have to go to work and deal with any lesson prep/marking is a blessing.

I've been feeling a bit stressed with things that I need to get done so before I started my day yesterday I took 45 minutes for myself and had a great yoga session. I was totally calm, relaxed, and focused. I took my time with the different positions and just enjoyed feeling my body loosen up. I wish I could do that every morning, but 15 minutes will have to do!

Later on in the day I hit the gym. After a 30-min cardio session (including 15 minutes of running in intervals) I went up to the spinning studio for RPM class. It felt so good to get on that bike and pedal. What felt even better was that I was able to put the resistance to a much higher resistance than I ever had before. My legs felt nice and strong. It felt AMAZING! I definitely want to try to fit in at least 1 RPM session a week -- scheduling is always the issue.

Today I did a bunch of different cardio exercises. I've been doing some running everyday as part of this week's specific challenge in the Whole Life Challenge. While the running has been going well, it has also been a bit draining and I'm kinda tired of the treadmill.

So today I did something a bit different. I did 2 km on the treadmill (including 10 minutes of straight running - legs definitely felt nice and strong during this run too! So happy!!). Then I moved to the rowing machine, which totally kicked my ass! I managed to do 2 km in just under 10 minutes. I then got on the bike and cycled for 2 km. I didn't like the bike at all. The pedals didn't have any straps so my feet were just resting on the top. Plus the seat was at a slightly downward angle so I kept slipping forward and having to slow down/stop to readjust. Luckily 2 km didn't take me very long to complete (I think it was 5 minutes or just under). I ended with the cross-trainer and did 4 km on that to complete 10 km of movement for the day. I ended with 15 minutes of good stretching.

So things are good on the movement front for me.

My appetite is back. Yesterday I had a crazy craving for meat -- so I had some grilled lamb kebabs for dinner. Then I did something that totally surprised myself. I ate chicken! I haven't had chicken in 5 years! For some reason I was just ravenous -- so I ate! It was all lean, all grilled, definitely all Whole Life Challenge friendly! I think I just needed a change of taste. I've been eating so much fish lately - I was tired of it. The change was appreciated.

I was a bit worried that I would feel terrible after eating so much chicken & meat after such a long time ... but luckily I didn't. I was definitely full after eating, but I didn't feel bad or over-stuffed. I felt a bit heavy ... but by morning I was ready to eat again!

I guess that's just the way it goes sometimes!


I'll end with a recent pic -- The first ClubFit t-shirt I bought was an XL, but what I ended up wearing was a Medium -- that's how deep body image distortion goes. Hope I can get over it!

Supporting Club Fit (Kuwait) [proceeds of t-shirt sales go towards breast cancer research]

An Abnormal Day

Staying up late last night made it hard for me to get out of bed this morning. I was already quite exhausted from yesterday's double workout. Once I was up, however, it was pretty much non-stop ... I wouldn't say I rushed around, as I have been trying to slow down a bit. I think it would be more accurate to say that I had a FULL day.

At the gym today was more of an active recovery day. Just 20 minutes on the treadmill - working in a bit of a jog here and there, and then to try something new, I did the rowing machine. I really liked it. I think the different type of movements for my arms and legs are good. I only did 15 minutes today, followed by 10 minutes (not straight, unfortunately) of jump rope.

I met KD, our Body Pump instructor, at noon to go over the new choreography for the new Les Mills Release, Body Pump 81. I was really touched that she asked me to join her as she went through the choreography and give my feedback. I thoroughly enjoyed it, even though I think a few tears instead of sweat fell during the lunges and shoulder tracks!

So, that was it for me. I wouldn't normally have done a weights workout today, especially since I did one yesterday and I have one planned for tomorrow, and Friday - 4 consecutive days of weights! Still, I used a light weight today just to go through the tracks versus really working out hardcore like I hope to do on Friday.

Another unusual thing about today is how much I ate. I didn't eat anything unhealthy, but I ate a lot more than I usually do. I had scrambled egg whites this morning, lentils with veggies in the afternoon, and my spinach/tofu/mushroom creation for dinner. Snacks were a banana, protein shake, and 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt. A bit of mint dark chocolate for dessert. Overall, I didn't eat horribly, but I do feel like I ate more than normal - but I was hungry! I think it's all the weight training. I'm pretty sure things will get back to normal tomorrow.