SarahNZ

Another pretty good weekend. Did a bit of running in the VFFs, carried a HUGE load of groceries home. Did lots of burpees and some pullups, planks, bent over rows. Food-wise had some fun with the blender as I have a lot of fruit at home. Blended up a mega fruit smoothie: Pineapple, Strawberries, Apple, Ginger and the juice of a Tangelo... very nice. Then drank beer and watched the All Blacks beat Australia in the semi final!

Found a sturdy tree branch outside and surprised myself with a couple of pullups and 3 or so towel pullups! I still expected I wouldn't manage 1!

Hi clever people, I have tried to find an answer to why cooling down is important but the only answer I can find is that your heart rate needs to slow down gradually. Often the answer is just "because you should". That kinda makes sense to me but I need a more in-depth explanation. Can anyone spell it out to me? Maybe some examples of what bad things can happen if you don't cool down would be helpful. Thanks

Pretty awesome weekend, managed a few pullups out of nowhere using a big old tree by my house. It's weird, I could always do pullups as a kid so assumed I still could. When I tried earlier this year I couldn't get more than a few inches up. Now I'm back on track! Soooo happy!

Sounds good to me

I am curious. The whole prison workout is something I hadn't heard of until recently but the workouts are amazing. Can you elaborate at all on the mobility stuff? Dynamic stretches? Hope you're feeling better now, appetite ok?

Fillet steak wrapped in bacon! http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSkJL07iz2IkJpxTD5DXflJtgXVNWw5BJR18ZJcQAFCAw-Gv9R7

Thanks. Love the avatar by the way, puts a smile on my face Peanut sauce can be as simple as putting a dollop of peanut butter in the pan and dribbling in a little water to help it soften and saucify. It tastes better with friends though: ginger, garlic, soy sauce and a little lemon juice

Rest day yesterday so I spent a bit more time in the kitchen lovingly preparing a nutricious meal for myself and the other half. Chicken stir fry, in order of appearance: Diced Chicken breast Ginger Garlic Cauliflower half (organic) Green beans Cashews Peanut sauce from scratch Then just before serving I mixed in: Carrots (organic) shredded with my julienne peeler Mung beans Mixture of purple and green Kale (organic) Niiiice, recieved a good review too

Great analogy beastback! I feel the same. In one of the opening chapters of You Are Your Own Gym the author says he finds it strange when an out of shape person exhibits great pride in their house and possesions. He points out that your body is your real home, you're stuck with it for the rest of your life and it's the only thing you really own (far out philosophical arguments aside for now) so you should look after it accordingly. I have read a similar argument comparing the way you'd treat a rental house with one you own. The gist of it is that your body is precious, treat it well rather than use it for instant gratification at the cost of your health. The point has really stuck in my head. Enjoying keeping up with this thread!

Seconded! There must be some definitive source for form on these movements from someone who knows the biomechanics inside out. Even if you fork out for a personal trainer you could end up with an idiot who gives you a lot of bad advice.

Doing well on the pushups, new burpee technique is working well too. Trying to Parkour-up my burpees a bit too, helps keep it interesting. Did a 10 second kinda L-sit yesterday (one of my goals). Can't get my legs quite high enough or straight enough so I need an overhang. I use a weight bench. Really want to practice handstands but I need a bit of wall to lean against and my house is lacking in space right now, I'd be lucky to avoid impaling myself on a clothes airer or something! Got my fresh organic produce box last night very exciting. Among the goodies was Kale, which I have never even seen in a store before and Cauliflower which I have never cooked for myself. Think I'll make a stir fry with both tonight and set some Cauliflower aside to try this delicious looking recipe. I have had Cauliflower puree at a fancy restaurant before. It was a seafood dish and the puree was delicious! I think it must have had a lot of stock in it. Any one happening by with recipe suggestions for Cauliflower and/or Kale please fire away!

I want a swiss ball!

I like this plank routine. It is a test of where you're at with core strength and also a handy exercise that you can work in with your other stuff. Because it is divided into sections you can give yourself a point for each section you complete and try to get more points next time. If you can complete the whole thing, see if it's more comfortable next time and try to wobble less.

I wonder if an answer could be to focus on more applications; play a game of tennis or soccer, do an obstacle course, play on the bars at the park etc. Then take note and train to the weaknesses. Endurance is probably the simplest one, do a handful of extra reps every now an then, and flexibility you can work on a little bit everyday, even at work. Soft tissue work on rest days is a good idea I think. This can be done in front of some rubbish TV too ;-)