Week Two – Getting Harder (Saturday 25 October 2014)

So it’s day 13 on this new program. I’ve done as many days of heavy-weight, low repetition and light-weight, high repetition exercises and I’ve smashed myself with intense cardio intervals. Today’s Chest, Abs, Cardio smash was freaking brilliant – plus I had the gym to myself…. This meant Oasis, The Killers and Ministry of Sound being played on the music box for around 90 minutes! J

On this ship, we have a selection of cardio machines and I’ve mostly been using the spin bike (of course), the rower and cross trainer. I’ve also been making up my HIITs with rapid high repetition (low weight) leg press, calf raise and hamstring curls. The spin bike and I have covered close to 120km of 1km sprints, the cross trainer has seen me smash 4km per 12 minutes of 1 minute intervals per session (4 sessions so far means 16km total), and the rower and I have effectively travelled 10km in 4 sessions of 1 km sprints. So, I’m going pretty hard!

The abdominals everyday element is highly addictive and increasingly more difficult, but it is helping me feel less ‘blubbery’ and more taught if that’s possible (?) coupled with my program’s intensity. I’m researching and trying new exercises for abdominals, and feeling constantly that I’m working them. I even feel my core getting stronger, especially during the weights exercises, meaning I can lift heavier, or for more reps! Awesome.

That’s about all from me for now, except I’m still feeling the pinch of, maybe, a trapped nerve or muscle tweak in my shoulder – but I’m not made of glass and Yoga has taught me to listen to my body better. I’ve even started to Savasana at the end of my really hard workouts (most days!) – which must look weird since I’m doing it on the gym floor for 2-3 minutes as my cool down, calm down meditation. Love combining all this stuff I’ve learnt in the past few years.

6 Days into the program I switched my supplements around. The ON Hydro Builder is dee-lish! Plus, it’s giving me what I need to replace lunch (alongside a WinGaz style berry, superfood smoothie-yum!). The OxyShred is an interesting product because it really kicks my workout into a new gear; the thermogenic is less aggressive, but it turns up the heat! The good this is the absence of heavy stimulants and I’m not ‘buzzing’ just getting into the ‘zone’ of my training. Happy.

That’s all from me, from the middle of nowhere. Hopefully, I can upload soon.

Do yourself a favour, immerse yourself in some good old school tunes and get sweaty. Work at whatever level you are comfortable, to achieve YOUR goals.

“Never Back Down, and don’t succumb to your own justifications. Ignore them and Just Freaking Do It!” (Thanks Mish)

Phase Two - Giving Up

Giving Up...

The hardest part about being healthy and moving towards being fit is giving up those hard to quit vices. My vice, my one thing that I cannot seem to live without has always been Coca-Cola, and all other forms of sugary, soft fizzy drinks. They have always been my refreshment 'go -to' for as long as I can remember and honestly, I've known for a very long time that its part of the reason why I never shift those stubborn inches of unfriendly, unhealthy fatty tissue. Well, not anymore!

It's going to be hard, but I intend to diarise my next goal - Quitting Coke (and other soft fizzy drinks). I'm going to get fit, that goes without saying since my Naval career demands me to be, but I'm going to give up the fizzy drink that I've been consuming at an alarming rate. I'm going to follow a Yoda philosophy and I'm not going to say try...

 Yoda, Jedi Master - Star Wars V, The Empire Strikes Back

On the back of my trifecta of goals this year, I decided not to wait for the anti-climax, and push on with another goal for 2014. So, I'm a gonna kick the habit and give up Coke (and other soft fizzy drinks) and keep pushing myself to get as far away from FAT and as close to FIT as I can!

I left this post until I had completed 3 whole days before writing it and today is the 4th.... Since I'm not always going to have a good signal (I'm currently deployed) to post I'll be writing everyday (ish) and posting all of the written blogs in bundles! It's the best I can do.

So, Why Coke? Well, as long as I can remember I've been a little addicted to coke, well any cola derivative and well, as much as I enjoy a refreshing cola beverage, I'd like to think that I can live without the urge to drink it. Luckily, I've never needed cola for it's caffeinated properties, instead I just love the taste and the sweetness. Well, thats where I've realised I need to focus my attention. As I've known for a while a single 12oz / 355ml can of coke contains 34g of sugar (or equivalent to sugar in the High fructose corn syrup), which is like swallowing 10 teaspoon of sugar, every time I knock back a can of cola... that's just wrong. My dentist would agree, my wife definitely agrees and almost anyone interested in health and fitness would be like "Derrr! We know that Gaffa!" - however its taken me almost a year of training, eating right and developing my own nutrition to realise I'm potentially reversing all the good I've been doing. If I drink 4 cans of coke (I have been known to smash more in a day), which is like 48oz / 1420ml of coke I'm consuming 136g of sugar... thats 40 freaking teaspoons of sugar...no wonder there's such a concern for obesity when people consume large quantities of cola (and other soda pops).

I've decided to ignore all of the advice out there, in lieu of knowing my own body. I'm aware that I should reduce my coke intake until I stop 'needing' it, but I know that one taste and I'm hook again, so I'm going cold turkey... at least I'll be a grouchy bugger at sea and not at home! I've had a headache and I've lost my appetite this week already, so I'm hoping for some stability there.

Apparently I'm supposed to get a caffeine withdrawal, but I doubt that'll happen since I drink coffee - which incidentally I've reduced in consumption too!

Wish me luck. This may be a bigger challenge than a marathon!  

Days 58 & 59 - Blur

Blurring the Lines....

Talk about crazy busy. Yesterday I woke up late (first time in 9 weeks), missed my early morning workout and got annoyed with myself. Thankfully, we were cut-away early so I punished myself for 90 minutes doing an extended version of my missed workout. Endurance training for 90 minutes was hard work, but it got my head back in place and made me feel stronger. Sometimes we trip, we fall flat on our faces, but when we rise up, we stand up stronger and with greater purpose to not do it again.

I think being human about this stuff, whilst trying desperately hard to stick to a routine is why I am seeing results (both physical and emotional). I feel more together than I have before. I'm more zen and less hectic. Tuesday's yoga allowed me to reflect on that too. I still believe the goals we set ourselves can drive us crazy, can lead to tunnel vision of the rest of the stuff going on around us. That kind of perceptual narrowing, is totally going to mean that destination ends up overshadowing the journey. To me, the journey is still the most important element. We have our bumps, and our triumphs, but most of all we create an emotional attachment to the new way of being - it makes us feel good to step off the plane onto the tarmac at the start of an adventure, it lifts our spirits to see the sun rise or fall over a new back drop..this is why I travel, the destinations are not as important as how I get there....

Using this, helps. I've found of late, that the journey has been blurring somewhat, and this is causing me to get upset for the minor setbacks. Shit happens, to all of us, most of the time.. Remember, falling off your bike (as I've done a lot lately, dang cleats) just means you can get back on it and re-adjust. I suggest having a good laugh too. I guess what I'm trying to say is that we all need to slow it down, enjoy the bumps and sensations of the ride. We should all take a few minutes to ground ourselves,  take the time to align ourselves and carry on.

Chest, Abdominals, Arms & Abdominals

2 Days of tough training, like the rest of this week. Its pretty intense working for 60-90 minutes without a rest set. The endurance really shows when you're burning through fatigue. Obviously, as this is a new experience in the gym for me, I've dropped the weights (not by much) to maintain the work, keep the reps at 8 per set, and all exercises are 4 sets. Moving directly from a set of Chest or Arms to a set of Abdominals, then back to the original chest/arms set is not easy. My body is a little sore, but good sore, and I'm enjoying challenging my resistance workouts with a cardio-intensive rhythm. It's like I'm doing my own version of cross fit or something! I work really hard, usually I'm sweating before I get throughout the first "pair" of exercises. You see, I pair the exercises based on the logistics of what I need to do each. So for example, doing bent over rows (on back day) using the land mine set up is perfect for land mine 180s for abs. Or going from palm up forearm burners, leaning over a bench leads itself nicely for body based abs like plank or retractors.

Here's a sample of the last two Workouts: Remember I alternate between each set of each exercise....

Thursday:

1. Palm Up Forearm Burners & Plank (20 sec hold)
2. Palm Down Forearm Burners & Retractors
3. Standing Zuttman Curls & Plate Twists (10kg plate)
4. E-Z Bar Spiderman Curls & Side Plate Bends (20kg plate)
5. Inclined Bench Barbell Curls & Barbell Ab Rollouts
6. Standing Barbell Drag Curls & Heel Tap Twists
7. E-Z Bar Skull Crushers & Bicycle Twist Abs
8. Low Cable Overhead Extenders & V-Sits
9. Cable Reverse Grip Tricep Pulldowns & Cable Ab Crunches
10. Cable Tricep Pushdowns & Hanging Knee Up Crunches
11. 90 minute Bikram Yoga Workout in the evening

As you can see, its pretty full-on, and doing 4 sets of each is a real killer! This little lot took me an hour to pull off, so I was not hanging around! Yesterday's 90 minute punishment was tough, but worthwhile!

Wednesday:

1. Bench Press & Bottoms Up Raises
2. Incline Bench Press & Retractors
3. Decline Bench Press & Plate Twists (10kg plate)
4. Push Ups & Farmers Cage Walks (110kg max) - 6 sets just for fun
5. Incline Dumbbell Chest Press & Bicycle Twist Abs
6. Incline  Dumbbell Pectoral Fly & Side Plate Bends (20kg plate)
7. High Cable Fly & Land mine 180s (15kg plate)
8. Low Cable Fly & Pallof Press Core Holds
9. Pec-Deck & Single-arm Land mine 180 wiper catch & throws (10kg plate)
10. 90 minute Bikram Yoga workout in the evening

Bikram

It is the first time in absolutely months, that I have practiced Bikram so frequently. I've really missed the class and how it leaves me feeling. I've noticed that I'm calmer, less erratic, more balanced than usual.

When I'm in the class, of course I'm thinking "my gosh, this is hot", or "why can't I breathe properly", or "I wish I could stretch and bend like the person in front of me"... but after acknowledging my thoughts, I return to my breath and silently meditate on my mantra "Om mani padme hum" which really quietens my mind. I sometime just solely focus on my breathing, how I breathe determines how calm I feel. The other thing I've noticed is that as I can hear/feel my heart rate elevating, my meditation and thought process often leads to my thinking about calming my heart down. I can often feel the slowing heart rate as a result of my thoughts.

What I think I'm saying here is that I'm developing an internal self-regulation of my core functioning. My heart rate, breathing and thought processes are all being controlled when I take the time to slow things down, return to basics and calm down. I call it getting my "Zen On"...

Day 50 - My Half Century!

And here we are.... 50 days into regime to build functional strength and endurance, and to see if I could travel from Fat to Fit. Time is ticking along, and I am moving steadily from unhealthy to healthy - which I guess is the first stepping stone.

Today, not too dissimilar to most early mornings, I was out of bed after a very therapeutic sleep, at 0515h. I was at the gym by 0600h and was stuck into my workout really promptly.

That's me.

Shoulders

Super Strong Shoulders, train them hard and turn them into boulders! Well, that's the plan anyway!  Following on with endurance strength training, I decided to start with shoulder press (military style) using the barbell. With a slightly gingerly taken start, owing to slightly sore shoulders from last nights swim. I did a quick warm up with 10kg loaded on the 20kg bar, 12 reps. I then added an additional 20kg to the bar, and knocked out 8 more reps. I continued to add in 5kg increments over another 3 sets (total weight including bar was 55kg). The last set was only 4 reps, but at this point I dropped to 20kg on the bar and pumped out 8 more reps. After this, I worked back in 5kg drops each 8 reps until I was on an empty bar!

I then warmed up my trapezius, by conducting 12 straight up (to my chin) rows. I then added 5kg to the bar and did 4 more sets of 8. Nice!

I moved to dumbbells to work the front and side raises. I worked with a set weight (12.5kg per dumbbell) for front raises and knocked out 3 sets of 8 reps. After, I felt my shoulders starting to burn (endurance training is so much harder than low rep training) and dropped to 10kg dumbbells to to 4 sets of 8 reps of side raises...well, on the last set I needed to drop to 6kg weights to maintain technique, but thats most important so as to avoid injury!

My workout continued onto the cable cross-overs for a final isolated burnout. My shoulders were pretty much cooked after 60 minutes. I moved to abdominals, gave myself a good 15 minute burnout - the usual exercises. I think I'll be adding some new exercises soon.

PFT Training Circuit

So, as a serving member of the RAN, I am required to annually pass the Physical Fitness Test (PFT). That is 25 Push-Ups, 25 Sit-Ups and complete a timed cardio event (2.4km run, 500m swim, Beep Test are the usual methods). HMAS Cerberus has a really good team of trainers (PTIs) and they like to keep us ahead of the curve - so here we arrive at the PFT Training Session. Nobody likes this session, because its simple yet very effective maximal workout. Do as many push-ups, and sit-ups as possible. We were told that today PFT training would be "army style" - i.e. time based, not cadence for push-ups. So 2 minutes and off you go.... I knocked out 75 reps, which is a heck of a lot more than during NEOC (37 reps). For the sit-ups I did the full 100 reps (50 unassisted, 50 held - as ordered), then for the beep test, I got to level 9.4 or something like that...felt a little twinge in my hamstring and backed off...no sense in returning to step one again! So, at last, I listened to my body. Very happy with my performance.

Squish...

After catching my breathe, taking in some hydration and stretching, I asked Commanda Handa if he fancied a game of squash. Squash, is a fantastic sport, great for endurance, speed, agility and well breaking a sweat. Its not a game to 'get fit playing', but one that keeps you fit. I love it, and its been way too long between playing... Again, I reference my heyday in squash, playing box leagues, sunday evenings and just for fun, back in the UK. Well, today's game was a peach. I played from the 'T', used some lovely straight drives (backhand and forehand), added a few little, tight drop shots and a whole lotta aerial floaters! Commanda was not giving up easy, even though we were both tired. It went to 4 games, nearly a full 5 games! I won out in the end, but a good game around. Mr Peds and Crawf-dawg were playing in the next court, looked like a great match too...

Perhaps not this good....

Our game ended up 9-5, 7-9, 9-4,  9-7 - so as you can see, a pretty good game. Plus, it seemed to help stretch out my hammie, and glutes which meant no injury! Phew.

After a long morning of activity, I was actually really pumped, but looking forward to an easy class and a well earned relaxing evening. During class there were a whole heap of giveaway scones, with jam and cream, plus little cakes and treats...Clearly, I did NOT take any, and showed a new level of self-control... I did take photos, they can't hurt me! See You tomorrow....

In swoop the vultures!

Staring at me, eat me, eat me, eat me.... I didn't eat them.

Day 44 - Tri-Harder!

Well, here we are again.... Another fun-filled, exercise fuelled training day. 

Mornings

Getting out of bed at the crack of dawn is really getting easier. I'm just rolling out of bed, with a spring in my step. I briskly walk in the dark every day, planning my training session, thinking about the things that drive me to keep going. I seem to arrive at the gym, and I'm all prepped and ready to go. I step into the gym, with a focus and determination unlike any other. I train my heart out and feel great because I'm training so well.

Training Chest

I'm getting a lot out of chest day. Since adding some additional sets to my bench workouts, I'm feeling really strong. I powered through 7 sets of flat, inclined and declined bench. I tried a powerful lift followed by a slow return. I gradually increased from 50kg to 85kg, and reduced reps from 8 reps down to 4 on the last. I repeated the same process, on the incline bench, but reached a maximum of 75kg. On the declined bench I repeated for a third time focusing on technique reaching a maximum of 85kg again.

After Barbell-ing the heck out of the benches, I did a quick three set dumbbell pectoral fly, to warm up for a big set of fly drills on the cable cross overs. I worked slow, long fly drills with lower weights working the squeeze on my pectorals. I set up the cables with a central position (mid-chest height), then high, then low. After this I moved into abdominals (hanging knee crunch-lifts, leg and knee raises, farmers walks and over head holds).

Big session, but I felt awesome, for the rest of the day!

Tri-Hard!

During class today, Mr Ped offered a good idea for Wednesday arvo tri-club training - A Swim/Bike brick session. Since I was ahead of schedule, I decided to push it a little further. I decided to try a little harder during my cardio-endurance session. I decided that I'd knockout a 1.5km swim, followed by a good hard spin session - planned distance 40km, target time under 2hours, preferably within 90minutes....but that'd be pushing it.

Whilst on my swim I pushed through a multitude of things; soreness in my upper arms and shoulders, initially crap breathing rhythm, heavy legs and then a bit of a slog for the last 5 laps. I did pretty good. I swam the first 500m in 13 minutes, the second in 13 minutes and the third leg was 14 minutes. So an overall 1500m swim of 41 minutes was a great result, since I did swim only freestyle too!Very happy about that! As I jumped out of the water Mr Ped jumped in. He was planning a shorter swim - I think I knocked over a 10 minute 500m - awesome time dude!

After a quick rinse, to remove the stinky chlorine from my skin, I was soon gearing up to hit the spin bike. My plan was ambitious, and I worked hard, even though my heart rate stayed relatively low throughout. I was working with a heart rate of 120-130bpm, and was spinning at 85-95rpm in gear 6 from start to 10km, then up at gear 8 for most of the ride. I stayed seated and tried to simulate my awesome road bike - the only saving grace with a spin bike is the pre-fitted aero bars that make it a really good work out. Whilst spinning, I managed to employ my over infectious enthusiasm and motivation, to draw in Mrs Legal-oh. She's a Reserve lawyer who is posted to Cerberus for a few months. Missing her hubby (who is in West Australia), she's turned to fitness to fill her spare time - good girl! Oh and thanks to Mrs Legal-oh, we had some music to spin along to.

After about 10km, Mr Peds joined us and got settled onto his bike. It was nice spinning at a "talking pace", since I love having a good chin-wag. I pushed myself and ended up finishing my ride not that long after the others had left me. I was a sweaty mess as I pulled into the final 5km, with very little time to cover the ground, and being so near to my target goal of 90 minutes I stepped it up a notch. I lifted gears to 11 and powered through with a few short stints of standing. I ended up finishing the ride at 40km, in 89 minutes - Stoked! I got off the bike, stretched (way longer than normal) and made my way back to my cabin.

I actually got caught as I walked back, to stand at attention, and watch sunset. Its the RAN ceremony that is conducted at sunset each day that returns the Australian White Ensign and Australian National Flag from their flagpoles.

After dinner this evening I relaxed in the comfort of knowing how well I'd worked through my training session, and enjoyed a couple glasses of red wine with Holmie and Mrs Legal-oh.

Now I'm going to bed early....ish.

Day 42 - Week 7 Begins

Compound or Isolated

It was recently brought to my attention that I might gain additional traction with my weights and strength training routine if I were to train using compound exercises. As it happens, I've been doing this already, incorporating a healthy mix of compound and isolation exercises - so it feels like I'm going good.

Functional fitness is that which simulates real-life activities and uses a wide range of movements through a wide range of motion. At the heart of these routines are a variety of compound exercises. Compound exercises are multi-joint movements that work several muscles or muscle groups at one time. The type of exercise has more benefits that just being a little bit harder on your workout. Here' what I've learnt:

1. You burn more calories during compound exercise training
2. You simulate real world exercises and activities
3. You get a full body workout faster
4. This improves coordination, reaction time and balance
5. This improves joint stability and improves muscle balance across a joint
6. It reduces the risk of injuries during sport
7. It keeps your heart rate up and this benefits your cardiovascular system
8. It allows you to exercise for longer with less muscle fatigue
9. It allows you to lift heavier loads and build more strength 

Isolations exercises work only one muscle or muscle group and only one joint at a time. These exercises are often performed with the commercial weight machines we see in the gym. These machines isolate one muscle group, so gym users can move from one machine to another to obtain a 'full body workout'.

Isolation exercise is a really good way to focus on specific muscle groups. I used this method of training to recover from my torn hamstring last year, and I hear its a great way to increase size or bulk of specific muscles (if you're into that).

From what I've read the balance is definitely in favour of training with lots of compound, using isolation exercises to improve the performance of specific muscles, groups or joints.

Get To It, Learn New Variations....

I often use the isolation machines to warm up (since I do a major muscle every day), then move to compound exercises for the bulk of my workout. I've always tried (where possible) to complete as many exercises standing to improve my core strength (hoping that one day the hard work will pay off and my belly will shrink)... You get out what you put in....

Everyday, Learn Something New...

When I reached the gym, in the early pre-dawn cool air I had already decided to give a full compound workout a go. In exchange for the seat row machines, I used free weights. Mr P gave me a few tips on some of the new versions using a barbell, which was very useful.

I trained hard today. I started with barbell bent over rows, working a couple lightweight sets to practice then chucking on the weight (quite low) so I could focus on technique - going back to basics helps to reinforce what you think you've learnt! After completion of another 3 sets of rows, I then moved to dead lifts. I could feel the difference to my normal machine use almost immediately, and more so in my core! I still used the lat pulldown and the isolated forward inclined row machine - I like the challenge of both, plus its was a good variation and to feel the isolated muscles after working the core also made me more aware of my technique!

I love working my back one side of the spine at a time, using the cable crossover. I modified the normal seat row variants into standing, well, semi-squating routines and felt my legs stabilising whilst holding firm in my abs - whilst focusing on working my back. So good.

After 60 minutes of gym time, all spent on my back (which will love me for it later) I moved to some quick abdominal work. Farmer walks with weight discs, leg and knee raises, not to mention the hanging leg raises - which I found I was swinging more than normal? So, weird!

Another good workout, which was lucky since work commitments meant no evening cardio tonight....which led to a little over eating / indulgence...but I'll push harder in my workouts tomorrow! I'm comfortable with that!

Day 38 - Harsh Realities

Its all about the hard yards. I'm finding out that day by day, the challenge of travelling from fat to fit is more about the willpower, resilience and the ability to go the distance, than it is about much else.

Going The Distance

The ability to go the distance is pretty important. The way I see it, you need to be in it for the 'long haul' if you want to achieve more than just a temporary fix. You gotta put in 100% everyday, with consistency (of course), but more than that. You have to be prepared to sacrifice a few things, or take on new burdens, to take a few hits on the way. The pathway to success is not smooth. I'd say, I've always said that:

"You have to fully appreciate the rough in life to get the most out of the smooth."

This is one of those occasions. After my glutard-slip the other morning, which after 37 days is pretty good (although going back to day 1 bowel/intestine cleansing sucks, but is required), kinda bites just a touch. I've got a lovely array of mouth ulcers, a swollen gut, achy joints and I'm feeling really irritable and tired to boot. These are my "immediate" impact symptoms of eating just the tiniest amount of gluten. I'm paying for my flawed eating choice, and I'm learning too. It's hard coping with this, but it is a necessity. I am far from perfect, and I'm not too proud to admit when I make blunders such as this. This blog holds me accountable, which is nice, but really truthfully when I'm led in my bed tonight (and last night) groaning with stomach pains, the accountable doesn't come into it at that point. Whats going on there is an internal dilemma. I'm fighting the pain, with knowledge, knowing that I can and must go longer than 37 days, that I must fight the pains and cramps. You see, you don't stop until you hear the bell ring. 

The Old Glutard-Slip-The Jab!

"It ain't over, 'til its over."

Today, was hard for me. I couldn't concentrate, my body was sore (and not from training) and yet life goes on...and so do I. Tough Titties! Cry me a river...blah blah blah. When you know you messed up and that you need to re-hash the plan to prevent it happening again, do just that...don't dwell or get cranky - just fix it, move on and shut the heck up! 

So, thats what I did; I talked to the 'peeps in power' today, organised (hopefully) better glutard-friendly food, trained my tired mind in the classroom, achy muscles in the gym and more over I forced myself to run in the very cool and drizzly night air, alone! I pushed through all the crap going on and decided to fight, not frown.

I'm telling you this, because you might be giving up smoking, or have to quit sugar, or have some special reason to go against the grain in your life.. You might feel like giving up, reverting back to your former less strict self, or just falling off the wagon...worse still, you might just be crying about all the wrongs you've been dealt..... DON'T YOU EFFING DARE! 

Just don't, okay? Keep your chin up, it happens to the best of us, but the difference between someone who wins and someone who quits is very slight:

Isn't that right, Mr Mouldie

You are NOT made of glass and you WILL not crack, shatter or splinter.... Every slip is a new opportunity to learn something, to put new measures in place to prevent it. As an engineer, I know its part of the process - making mistakes is ok, just don't make the same one over and over and over! Learn, move forwards, take the hits and be proud of your resilience to all the BS. Tough talk, but its needed.

So, how do I prevent this happening to me again? Well, firstly a few 'safe guards' are now in place at work. I have also invoked the help of others to pull me through, so hopefully one less failure point and some extra support. But I know, life is a minefield and occasionally you might just set another one off...oh well, learn from it.

Now, I want to win, I want to prove to myself (and all those neigh sayers) that I can achieve this lifestyle change. I will not give up.

Arms & Abs

This morning's workout was powerful, hard work session of arms (biceps and triceps) and abdominals. I used the whole 60 minutes for arms, plus an extra 15 for abs. I was almost late for class. I think even though I was training hard, I felt the pain early on - my stomach was sore and my joints ached...Being swollen makes you feel nauseous, but I pushed through and blasted some 'ripper' burps and farts as I did!

The whole workout, and time sat in class today, I was planning my punishment session for this evening....

Run-Time 

Not the cool run-time you stick to when diving deep and technical, run time...the times when you go running and don't enjoy it! Tonight's punishment - run at least 10km outside of Cerberus. Run in the cold and dark and drizzle. Pretend to enjoy it, be you know I didn't. It worked, I pushed through did almost 11km in 60 minutes and really went through it all. The elation of finishing, the procrastination pre-starting...Mr Joe and Edd both can attest to my tardiness in getting started! I felt the aches of running with soreness, the wind (and moist farts that always make you worry) the burps and puke-feeling you get when you train through indigestion or stomach cramps. My knees hurt, my feet were sore....every excuse my body and brain tried to get me to turn around, I ignored. I pushed through....Just Frickin' Do It... (I'm starting to hate this phrase, but it seems to work). The dim lit streets around Crib with all that wild, unkept foliage and trees was the real test...I can't remember how many times I got whipped by a tree, bush or shrubbery! My brain said: "NO, Gaffa, NO!" but I chose to GO GO GO!!!

How I felt after 11km Running, tonight.

I can remember the surge of joy, then pain, then followed sleepiness. I felt so tired on return to my cabin...I dozed there and then....lost about 20 minutes, sitting in a chair - hadn't even removed my shoes. After, I took a long, warm shower and feebly stretched, groaned and burped some more pukey burps...

 I still feel a bit wasted, but I do know this: I made positive changes today - I stepped forward after taking some hits. I pushed through a range of emotions, justifications and 'reasons not to'...I passed my own test, now it's time to rest.