Week One

Week One

1 May - 7 May

It's Week One!!! Yay! Twenty Week Challenge time again. This time my categories are Flexibility and Maintenance. Mr Tabby Tabster and Mrs Cat are in Pets n Peeps. I also did the Early Starter Challenge.

Flexibility is something I don't have - never have I don't think - gymnastics at school was always tricky as I was so tall but I wasn't bendy either. I started yoga at Apollo for my 2016 June4By4 just once a week. It was a real revelation for me as I used to think yoga was a real namby pamby type of stretching. I think a lot of people do - I heard on the radio a lady saying that Pilates uses your muscles not like yoga! If that was the case, how come people who do yoga regularly have such incredibly toned bodies? My first lesson was so hard I thought I was going to throw up or pass out! It was a very hot room - to help wirh the muscles - and the poses are held for up to five minutes. So there was a lot of trembling and shaking from me! So embarking on Flexibility means I will have to do more classes. Starting with a Monday May 1st Restore class.

Tuesday was the gym  - cardio 

Wednesday I met PT Blair for a new programme - PPL - Push, Pull, Legs - with a range of exercises with lower reps and heavy weights.

Bosu ball squats, arm warm up. 

Thursday - Aquafit class at Graham Condon Pool. This was another activity I started in the 2016 June4By4 and enjoyed it.

Friday - OMG!! 6.15am Yoga taken by Jim Small. This was a flow class so a lot quicker than Restore. 6.15am is quite early to be doing that - High plank, Low plank, Up dog, Downdog. To start with I was a few beats behind everyone else! And what is Flip dog!! That wasn't going to happen. I guess I will get used to it.

Yes! That clock says 5.50am!!

Friday I booked in a massage - I thought it would be good to loosen up my muscles before my flexibility tests. Hmm I won't do that again! I hadn't had a massage since the end of the 2016 Challenge so I knew I would be quite tight. Kelsey ended up spending one hour and a half massaging me. She said it was a challenge to loosen all the knots! I know it was good for me but I felt like I had been run over by a bus - tender all over my body.

Saturday - I did my Flexibility tests with Meg at Total Fitness.

Sit and Reach:   17cm

Feet together - hands stretched out

Groin Butterfly:

Left patella knee to floor: 29.2cm

Seam on pants to the edge of heels: 14cm

Shoulder Rotation:

Distance between hands

holding stick not letting go of your grip:  62cm

Back Scratch / Cow head arms:

Right elbow up - distance between index fingers: 7cm

Left elbow up - distance between index fingers: 9.5cm

Sit and Reach

Cow Head Arms

Cow Head Arms

Shoulder Rotation

Groin Butterfly

Frog

Double Pigeon

Double Pigeon

Sunday: Yoga Restore

Focus on progression not perfection. What step can you take this week to improve your portion sizes?

I have been getting the smaller pack of sushi rather than the big pieces - sometimes I used to get the 8 piece pack!!

So the end of Week One.