Home on the Range

Today I woke up not feeling like going to the gym - was a bit clogged up in the head this morning and thought I was developing a head cold. I decided to take my workout to home base this morning instead and did Spinervals 25 - Aerobase Builder 5, The Compilation. I think I've mentioned this DVD before - it's basically a workout where you work at about 75% of max heart rate and learn to become aerobically more efficient. It's been a fair while since I've done this, so water bottle and IPOD all connected and Coach Troy's music switched off, I got going. According to my own bad self, 75% max for me is in the 139-145 bpm range and I surprised myself by having to whack on a good bit of load to get my heart rate up which was very challenging. I did 5 out of the 6 working sets - I simply had no more to give to set 6 and 1 hour and 40 very sweaty minutes later, I was done!

Coach Troy says all sorts of interesting things about cycling and technique along the way, including his favourite - "sometimes you have to slow down in order to get faster". Oh so true! Since I've been teaching so much Hi Performance and felt I had a good aerobic base, I've let the concept of aerobic base building slide. It was a good wake up call to remind me of its importance.

Which brings me onto other things - the notion that people are sometimes too accommodating of themselves when trying to reach a goal, myself included. It's the, "this little bit won't hurt me" syndrome. Unfortunately, if you're trying to go anywhere with any sort of resolution, the "this little bit won't hurt me" scenario just doesn't work. I'm talking about not just fitness and eating - it applies to most of life. In order to reach that goal, you need to get rid of the excuses. This is where the concept of balance can get temporarily thrown out and rightly so - has anyone prepped for a competition and kept on top of everything else in life - you can't be good at everything when you're seeking out excellence in ONE thing.

On that note, it's time for a bit of relaxation at Chez Liz :)

Pushing the limits!

I think this pic of Cathe pushing the limits with an incline chest press is a good one! Similar to how I have been lately and also blows apart the theory that exercise DVDs are for pussies.

I've done a backflip and decided not to compete - I feel like it's all a bit much trying to prepare myself, grow a business and look after the clients I am preparing properly. The best part is that I'll really be able to enjoy the shows through their eyes. I also feel like I haven't had enough time to make changes - ideally I'd like to pack on more upper body mass and be able to perform more functional movements such as squats and deadlifts well. My glutes have been giving me trouble so I am indulging in one on one pilates once a week for the next six months. I'm planning on starting this next week.

With my basket too full, I haven't been sleeping too well and have just come down with a cold. However I know I have made the right decision. I am preparing to expand the selection of DVDs I sell in the next few months, the next addition being the Spinervals range which is superb for both general conditioning and cycling technique. That will be awesome once I get them up on the site.

I'm hoping to be back in the gym tomorrow if this cold is on the way out. Unfortunately I think it is settling in for a nice game of bridge. One can hope!

For Mikey

Hi Liz,I came across your blog looking for trainin... Hi Liz,I came across your blog looking for training tips. I'm a mountain climber and cyclist so I stick to DVDs like The Tri-Athlete (which I love) but I am always looking for new training methods and ideas. It might be time to check out Cathe Friedrich. Any other suggestions?

Dear Mikey, I accidentally "rejected" your comment, so I've copied and pasted it. If you are into cycling I would suggest that you check out Coach Troy and his Spinervals workouts. They are excellent - you can use a stationary bike or bike trainer with these really well. The address is www.spinervals.com . The other person you can check out is Chris Carmichael. I haven't seen any of his DVDs but believe they are very good.

Yeah!

Another great set of workouts this morning. First up was Kenpo X - after reading Lesley's blog, I really looked hard at background exerciser, Wes, and really pushed the technique. It made the workout harder and more effective. I then went for my usual morning walk and dropped Miss S and Miss G off at school and kindy respectively and decided despite TOM starting to give a Spinervals DVD a shot, so I did the DVD in the picture. It's all technique work interspersed with core work on the ball. I really threw everything at it and really enjoyed it. Now I am sitting here in a bath of my very own endorphins!

When I have days where I work out really hard, I feel really proud of myself up here in the middle of f****** nowhere. I definitely don't have the "in season" figure look going on anymore, but I'm looking strong and athletic despite the increased body fat. It's been really therapeutic to do all of this different training and it will be interesting to see the effects in October or November, should I compete, which is probably highly likely with all the motivation pouring out of everyone else's blogs!