Affirmation

Had an absolute cracker of a training session yesterday with Miss Shelley - we did a Chest/Biceps workout. We're still doing a bodybuilderish type of split at the moment but trying to be as functional with the moves as possible. Yesterday's workout consisted of decline push ups with 12.5kg worth of plates on my back (on toes), and absolutely blitzed the bench press yesterday with 8 x 45 kg bench effort (5 unassisted, 3 forced reps). For a little piss-ant like me, I'm totally chuffed with my efforts.

Shelley is also improving in leaps and bounds, especially with her push ups - we've now got her plated up and looking stronger. This is one time when being shorter has its' advantages!

I woke up this morning checking for bicep DOMS, they're not painful yet, but definitely very very fatigued. And my chest is starting to kick in as well.

Anyway, to today's post - affirmation. I am finding these hard training sessions very affirmative - I left yesterday with a belly full of Paleo Pancakes, an exhausted upper body, yet feeling so good about myself and the improvements I'm making in strength.

I would really like to go for a 50kg bench as my next strength goal and it must have been providence that Mike Robertson dropped a newsletter in my Inbox about improving the bench press, so guess what I am reading when I get home from work.

Today has been cardio heavy - RPM this morning and about to get my kit together to teach Bodystep. Then I'm getting glammed up and having a haircut before picking the girls up from school and taking them to ballet.

Cheered and where to from here?

As I mentioned in a previous post, I've been having trouble with my left knee and as I was not 100% convinced by Monday's physio explanation, I decided to seek out a second opinion at the University of Queensland Sports Medicine Clinic. I am so glad I did as the physio that I saw was fantastic. I do have popliteal and VMO issues but I'm lucky that I've caught this one early - the root cause of this problem is my wonky pelvis. I can still continue on with my normal training load and I have been given more pelvis homework. I am feeling so much better now about resolving this issue - what a relief.

Sam asked me about what my own plans were for the future. As you know, I have been doing some online work with Mike Robertson (www.robertsontrainingsystems.com )and I have been really happy with the programs I've been given. There are obviously limitations in working with somebody on line - how can they check technique etc, but since I've been doing Mike's program, a lot of my lifting has improved out of sight. My squat and deadlift technique is much improved and I've learnt a lot from Mike's perspective. In the upper body department I've been lifting a few PBs too.

The online business has been really busy and I have quite a few people to prepare for competitions next year and ensuring that their preparations are hassle free is my top priority. I could almost now get away with just training athletes, but I like a variety of people to keep me on my toes. That said, I'd like to don the bikini and the heels again in 2008 - however this depends on how I balance my own training, my clients, my hubby and children and life in general. All of these goings on however are no excuse to drop the ball nutrition wise or training wise - I try and live what I believe every day.

I am loving my classes at Fitness First - I have picked up a Bootcamp style class (Xtrain) on Wednesday mornings and now have a weekly RPM HiPerformance class to teach as well. I taught CORE today and really enjoyed it. It is such a change of pace from RPM and Step and I've really improved with the exercises as well.

The Lindor ball experiment unfortunately didn't last for long - it was not of my doing however. Poor Hubby, who is a chocolate fanatic, couldn't help himself and scoffed them in one sitting when I wasn't looking! He owes me a box of Lindor balls :)
Well that's about it from me for today. I have to feed Miss G - she tells me she's hungry :) (not unusual in our household!)

Makes all the difference!

Yes, good food does make all the difference. I have been eating very healthily for about two to three years now and I have always felt like I had become used to just how much better my body runs on a) good choices and b) lots of variety. I rarely eat junk food, except for the occasional treat when I feel like it (there is such a thing as being too healthy). Except for yesterday - I was extremely busy and on the run all day. Even though my choices weren't super dreadful - I had a McDonald's Extra Lean Burger for lunch and a couple of slices of Pizza Hut Thin and Crispy veggie supreme pizza for dinner, plus my usual vegetables , it really did feel like I was not running on "premium unleaded" like I normally am. Sometimes it takes these sorts of days to realize just what a difference eating well makes.

This is why I ask my clients to aim for "consistency" and not "perfection". This way you can learn from your actual experience without beating up on yourself. Was I "perfect" yesterday? - no - but my experience helped me solidify what I know about good eating. It's just another way of "walking the walk."

Shall we say, I don't think it helped with my post workout recovery - taught a great RPM class, but exhausted this morning.

Today I have enjoyed catching up on some housework and am off to do a little food prep - pumpkin and cauliflower soup is the go :) I just cook my regular pumpkin soup, only I add in a head of cauliflower. It's a little more textured than the pumpkin soup, but it's nice and chunky which is what I like.

Tomorrow I am off to Get Active Brisbane with DH and the girls. ( www.getactivebrisbane.com.au ) and teaching RPM. Should be a busy, yet fun day!