Deis

Been ill all week, so I slacked off a bit. I also started tracking at Fitocracy, since they give me points. I like getting points.

Went swimming today. It all just suddenly clicked. Still some work to do, to make my stoke more efficient, and to learn tumble turns, but I feel pretty good about it. There were schoolkids in the pool today, having lessons just like I used to, from the same teacher! She didn't remember me, but I remembered her, and I hope it gave her a warm glow, that she had instilled a love of swimming in me that had lasted fourteen years. Also in the pool; one of the lifeguards. Yumyum. Anyway, because of the kids, I was doing widths of 11m, rather than lengths of 25m. So, I did; 4 x 3 widths, with 30 seconds rest each between each set. 3 x 5 widths, with as much rest as I needed to get my breath back. I considered walking the half a mile from the bus stop to the pool my warm up, and turned somersaults for my active cool down. One of those widths I did without taking a breath, which I'm quite proud of. I also noticed that it used to take me eight strokes to cover the 11m, and now it only takes me 6. Just letting my dinner go down, and then I'll do workout B of New Rules. I'm still just playing around with these, figuring out the right weights, and how to do them with my home gym stuff. A few exercises, like the prone jackknives, the weighted lunges, the swiss ball crunches, and the pullovers are stuff I've not done before. That's why I'm not going to start counting these workouts until next week. Edit: Workout B Deadlifts: 15@15, 15:15. Seems like a good weight. Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 15@7, 15@7. Tried lifting 10kg, but couldn't do the reps. Pullover: 15@2, 15@2. I found that going any higher seemed to pull on my left shoulder too much. Lunge: L15:2, R15@2, L15@2, R15@2. These really hurt! Swiss Ball Crunch: 8@BW, 8@BW. Barely felt them.

I'd love to go, but I don't think I can afford it.

^ I do what she does, but I have my weights more at diagonals, so they come to my hands naturally, rather than in a straight line.

Haha, I fell off the ball for every other one! And I kept curling myself up, so if I did manage three in a row, I'd find I was closer to all fours than a plank! I could feel that really working even with sloppy form, so I will stick with them. I found that leaving my step-up chest on the floor, and putting it behind the ball really help. It stopped it rolling too far back, at least.

I had another go at Workout A from New Rules. 30 Star Jumps. Squats: 15@8, 15@10. I reckon I can go up a bit here. Push-ups: 15, 15. For these, I put a wooden chest on top of my table, to get a surface that's about hip height on me. My form was a little shaky here, so I'm going to stay at this level for a bit. Bent-over Rows: 15@5, 15@5. My form was much better this time, so I intend to go up a bit. Step ups: 15@8 each side, 15@13 each side. I used that wooden chest, which is just over 7 inches tall. I'm going to stay at 13kg for a bit, since I think I was using my trailing leg a bit too much. Prone Jack knifes: 15, 15. My form wasn't perfect on these, but I should be much better at them soon, if I carry on with this. Salute to the sun x 2. I've also noticed that a meal or snack high in sugar leaves me feeling extremely ill. I'm going to switch to stevia, and see how I feel.

Stupid jokes are fine, but it'd be just peachy if you'd lay off the sexist ones, 'kay?

Swam this afternoon, for about half an hour. Came home and played with the first workout from New Rules of Lifting for Women. Results as follows; 30 star jumps. Squats: 15@8, 15@18. I held two dumbbells up to my shoulders, each weighing 4kg. Next time, I'll hold them at my sides, hanging down. Push Ups: I used a table which is about mid-thigh height on me. I managed 10, then 5 on the second set. I don't know why these are so hard for me. I know my left arm is weaker - I could really feel it struggling. Bentover Row: 15@8, though I think my form was pretty bad. I did the next 15 with no weight at all, to see if I could get the hang of the form, but I'm still not sure. Prone Jackknife: couldn't get the balance right. At this point, I gave up for today, feeling a bit depressed. Also; Hell's Belle's (penultimate 100 pages) - 27:19:6 = 1639.6 seconds Hell's Belle's (final 100 pages) - 24:12:7 = 1452.7 seconds

Seriously, heels and cute?O_O Bring iron and we'll talk.

Quick question; are swiss balls one of those things where you get what you pay for? Or one of those things where you're just paying for the label? I'm inclined to think that it's the latter, and that the only difference between this one and this one is that they're charging me £20 to write 'Adidas' on it, and for the 20cm size difference. Is that the case? I'm super broke right now, which is why I'm being so cautious.

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Oh hey, I totally forgot I was on my period today. Mooncup + Mirena ensuring that I lose something stupid like 5-6ml of blood every three months or so makes it a breeze. I've found that, although I'm wiped out during the few days before it starts, once it gets going, I'm full of energy.

I got 'em, yeah. Amazon should have got them here by Monday. Only problem is, as you can see below, I already outpaced them with deadlifts, so I'll have to get some more. I'm thinking a set of 4 x 5kg, then a barbell. That should last me for a good few months. Tbh, I've been feeling run down for days. I had a migraine Tuesday and yesterday, and I've been getting early nights and trying to eat better. Haven't run or swum since last week. I felt better today though, so I went to lift weights at the gym. Results as follows; 1 minute on the rowing machine. Assisted Pull-Up: 5@30, 5@30, 5@30,, 5@30, 5@30. I really stuggled with the last one, but I still plan to move up to a 25kg counterweight next time. Lat Pulldown Machine was busted, so I skipped it. Dumbbell Bench Press (weight is total weight, not each hand): 5@15, 5@15, 5@15, 5@15, 5@15. Levelling up on this one too. I'm a little nervous about dropping them on myself, but I can't let that hold me back. Goblet Squat: 5@10, 5@10, 5@12.5, 5@12.5, 5@12.5. Next time, I'll start on the 12.5kg, and think about moving up to 15kg. Dumbbell Deadlift (weight is total): 5@20, 5@25, 5@25, 5@25, 5@25. Next time, I'll start on 25kg, then move up to 30kg for subsequent reps. About halfway through, I looked at the weight, and thought it looked so small, and seemed so unimpressive. Then I recalled that I only weigh 57kg, so I'm almost lifting half my bodyweight. Overhead Press: 5@10, 5@10, 5@10, 1@15 4@10, 5@10. Next time, I'll start on 15kg and do 10kg when I can't take it any longer. Finished with two salutes to the sun, and a very slow minute on the cycling thing, with arm stretches. Can just about touch my toes again. My reservation of New Rules of Lifting For Women came into the library. Just reading the first few pages, and I already love it. It really inspired me to push myself. I hope those ladies staring at me learned something. Speaking of reading; 7. House of Many Ways - 22:29:6 = 1349.6 seconds 8. Goodnight Nobody - 42:46:4 = 2566.4 seconds. This means my average speed for 100 pages of new-to-me books is 1602.55 seconds, or 26:42:6, all books is 1970.48 seconds, or 32:50:5, and my average for rereading books is 2943.4 seconds, or 49:03:4.

I like the leggings. My boyfriend's a radiography student; it's practically homework. Having now watch the real link, I have received the final push to give up fizzy drinks.

Congratulations on finding - and sticking to! - an eating style that works so well for you!

Hi Gemma! I'm English, 23, and worked at McDonalds until last July. Currently studying economics.

I'd agree that the basic premise needs rethinking. The best exercise is one that you can stick to, and I don't think your wife is getting that out of this. I've only worked out with my partner once; we ran together. He doesn't run regularly, but he easily covered the times and distances I've been working up to for weeks, and, yeah, I felt awful. Luckily, it had initially been suggested as something we try together once, so he has an idea of what I'm up to when I'm out there, not as a regular thing, so there's never been any pressure to do it again. I'd imagine your wife feels the same. Maybe your wife would enjoy swimming, or ice-skating, or some other activity which is more like a game than a chore? As for your needs, drop us a link to your workout thread, if you've set one up. I'll certainly pop along and cheer for you.

Oh, I spotted a really great dessert the other day. http://paleodietlifestyle.com/chocolate-cranberry-pie/ ^ I was thinking of making it myself, just veganising the crust, and maybe using raspberries instead. I'd imagine the crust is the only thing that might give you trouble, re getting ahold of the ingredients, but I'm sure you could find a simpler one if you needed to. You could get really fancy and arrange the berries in a heart shape! Or, melt some chocolate, drizzle heart shapes onto to a sheet of waxed paper, and put them on the top once they're dry.

Today's Workout 30 Star Jumps Squats: 50, 50. Hindu Push-Ups: 10, 10. 1-Armed Rows: 30r, 30l Salute to the Sun x 2 I'll do the planks later - I hurt too much now.

No? He was responding to Spezzi's post about my M-W-F idea, and stated that he'd be taking her advice and doing the modifications I'd just described. Follow the quotes.

I used to be a picky eater. My mom gave up on me at the age of five or so, and fed me chips for every meal, so kudos on not giving in. I had to train myself into liking vegetables as an adult, which came from frequent exposure to them. I've read that it takes up to thirty tastes for your tastebuds to stop going "WHAT IS THIS?! THIS IS NOT FOOD! GIMME MY FOOD!" and go "actually, this is quite nice...", and that was certainly true for me. So yeah, I've never been a parent, but a method where kids are frequently able to try foods without feeling pressured to eat a whole plateful might be very successful. I dunno; you've had lots of good advice from people with a better idea of what they're talking about. I would second finding out why your kids dislike something. In my case, I had a very weak stomach, and over-eating, especially of creamy textures or strong tastes, would make me very sick. My mother swore I did it on purpose, to punish her for trying to make me eat - actually, it was a natural consequence of being forced to overeat certain textures.

A month or so before I went on a first date, and less than three months before entering a long term relationship, each time. I also didn't experience many of the one-line come ons that other people report on OKC. I agree that having a long profile helps; you can usually tell if someone hasn't read it at all, and it helps self-select for people you just wouldn't get on with. I replied to every single message I got, which, I think, made my experience more positive. Even if it was just "I'm sorry, I really don't think we have anything in common". People seemed to appreciate that. And I sent out a lot of messages too, always with a little hook from their profile, ie, "wow, you stole part of the fastest car in the world? Which bit?" or "I noticed you like sushi - anywhere you'd recommend? I've been wanting to try it" (this was from before I went vegan). Um, no. I think the only place I've ever seen that happen is TV, and with the popularity of the Big Bang Theory, geek love is fashionable now. Besides, would you want to go out with someone who would think that? What really helped me was being open to new experiences, and not expecting too much. At the very least, you'll have an interesting evening with someone you wouldn't otherwise have met. Even if you don't want to repeat it, you can still enjoy it for what it is, and if it turns into more, that's just an incredibly awesome extra.

If he's using the way I worked it out, no, that gets insane very quickly. You just skip every day that isn't Monday, Wednesday or Friday. You're increasing at the same rate, but swapping the inbetween days for recovery days.

How about if you just did the M-W-F of the program? For instance, this week, you'd do 3 on Monday, 5 on Wednesday, and 7 on Friday, and then end with a week of 108 on Monday, 110 on Wednesday, and 112 on Friday, before doing the full 115 on Monday 4th June?

I've never come across one. Pshaw, Manchester. Second bloody city my arse. Sure, add me.;p