Fit Friday: Scotch

My first Fit Friday! I'm excited for this feature because my life mostly revolves around going to the gym, when I'm not at work or in bed anyway.

Workout schedule of the previous week:
Friday: Circuits
Saturday: Rest day
Sunday: Circuits
Monday: Rest day
Tuesday: Les Mills GRIT Cardio
Wednesday: Boot Camp
Thursday: 3km run, Les Mills GRIT Strength

Happy?
I am very happy with my exercise this week! I have worked out nearly every day and done a variety of different things. I even managed to go for a run outside in the beautiful countryside but my recurring knee problem surfaced so I don't think I'll be trying it again anytime soon!

This week at the gym they introduced Les Mills GRIT taster classes. I have been doing HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) classes for a while now and they are much the same thing. In GRIT, you actually get more rest but you work harder on the exercises so it balances it out. It was tough! I like the style of the classes because you can rest whenever you like as long as you push yourself to reach failure. GRIT Cardio was very intense; a lot of jumping around and squatting and lunges and all the other things I hate. I didn't get chance to try the Plyo class but hopefully will sometime soon. GRIT Strength was my favourite as I love working out with barbells. They seem to push you a little harder and I really want to improve my strength as well as my fitness.
All in all, I'm a fan!

 

These videos are so cheesy; we do a lot less hugging and high five-ing in our classes but it gives you an idea!

How was your eating?
Pretty good! Working in a cake shop is very hard but for the past few weeks I have been getting amazing at resisting!! I had been previously eating some kind of cake related item every day and wondering why I wasn't losing any weight. I knew something had to change! I do have a wee nibble every now and again but it's not every day and it's not a huge amount. I truly believe that you can eat everything in moderation and 'treats' are the way forward, but it's not a treat if it's all the time!

Biggest achievement of the week?
My fitness related achievement of the week is my new ability to do full press ups! I tried them a while ago and managed one shaky one but last night I did four in a row! That may sound like the lamest achievement ever but it's a big deal for me! It's encouraged me to practise them every day so I can build up my strength and be able to do HUNDREDS in a row. Well, tens...

Another achievement for me happened at work. My boss bought us some plain black t-shirts to wear as a uniform but they are very short sleeved, something I'm not used to at all. I never wear anything with sleeves higher than my elbow and I always wear a cardigan with anything else. I have always had low self esteem issues and I especially hate my arms. I braved the t-shirt this week and although I did feel a little uncomfortable to begin with, I now wear it every day! It's amazing how far I've come.

Speaking of progress, during bootcamp this week we had to do squat jumps, sprints and lunges whilst wearing a 10kg vest. While it must have been absolutely hilarious to watch me waddle up and down the pitch, it did bring on another achievement for me (this week's been a good'un!) I realised that if I wore three of these vests, it would be just about what I used to weigh. And that thing was heavy!! Sometimes I am a little too hard on myself but it's good to have these moments where I realise just how well I've actually done.

Fitness Challenge
Final section, I promise! I could ramble on about fitness forever! Every week I'm going to set myself a fitness challenge and I'll tell you how I get on next week.

This week, I aim to do a set of tricep dips, sit ups and full press ups. Well, as many full press ups I can do before having to drop onto my knees. Tomorrow I will start with 10 of each, Sunday will be 20 of each and so on. I'm quite looking forward to this one because arms and core are two of my weakest areas.

Wish me luck!