Fridelisan finds her inner assassin

[Fridelisan]

Hi everyone!

I'm Fridelisan, and I'm all new to this guild. While poking around and reading on all the guild forums, this seemed like a really nice place to hang around. I hope to find my inner assassin while spending some time here, getting to know all of you. 

 

My primary goal right now is to get stronger, so that I can progress in my pole- and aerial silks classes. I'm way to weak to do any of the more difficult tricks, and I can't even invert on silks. That's why I'll continue to build on my first challenge.

So with any further adoo, my goals for the next 4 weeks:

 

1. Go to at least 3 workouts a week.

I'm currently on a schedule where I do pole on mondays, aerial silks on wednesdays and yoga on fridays. But to build stength, I'll try to go to a interval gymnastics strength workout o thursdays on my uni gym too (which is something that I tried for the first time last week, and I just wanted to lay down and die afterwards. Ugh, that's hard). 

 

2. Eat a minimum of 80 g of protein every day.

So I started using MFP a couple of weeks ago and realised that I don't eat as much protein as I thought I did.  While 80 g isn't as much as I actually need, it's still much more than I usually manage to eat each day. My average daily intake is 78 g, but it varies from ~50 g to ~115 g. So protein intake is absolutely something that I have to work on.

 

3. Drink at least 1 liter of water each day.

I suck at drinking. I mean, I can go a whole day without drinking anything at all. So I have to step up my game if I want to get all the water I need. Especially when the recommended water intake is ~2 liters a day (although this includes water from food). But I'll start with something that I think I will manage, and then increase the amount later on. 

 

Life goal:

4. Meditate for 10 minutes every day.

After taking up yoga I realised that I enjoy taking some time and just be in the moment. I feel super relaxed and can focus better afterwards. That's why 10 minutes of meditation every day will be great for me. I started using Mindspace yesterday, and I love it! It absolutely helps me focus!

 

 

Oh, and I heard you liked cats around here.

 

[rainra]

Your challenge goals look good! I feel you about the water- I used to NEVER drink water, and even after months it still usually has to be in front of me to remember that hydration is a thing. How did your first day go?

[raptron]

We love the kittiessss. And your goals.

 

You'll have to tell us all about what you do at these workouts. I am especially fascinated to hear about what goes on at gymnastics strength. 

[Fridelisan]

Your challenge goals look good! I feel you about the water- I used to NEVER drink water, and even after months it still usually has to be in front of me to remember that hydration is a thing. How did your first day go?

 

Hey, thanks! Remembering to drink can be super hard! But now I own a bottle that can hold .6 l, so if I remember that I only have to drink a little more than 1,5 of those, I do pretty fine. I hope.  

My first few days has gone quite good actually. I woke up on monday with a cold, getting a little more sleep than usual due to a late seminar in school. But I managed to do my meditation on the metro there, I drank 1 l during school and considered skipping workout that day due to the cold. Stubborn as I am though, I decided to go to pole class and take it easy. Ha. I should know better than to tell myself that I'm going to take it easy when I see 10 other people working as hard as they can close by. It was a tough class. During the evening I ate the last of my protein to end up over 80 g

Yesterday was rest day from workouts. I managed to eat 93 g of protein, drink 1,5 l of water and meditate for 10 minutes on my way to school. It was nice.

[Fridelisan]

 

We love the kittiessss. And your goals.

 

You'll have to tell us all about what you do at these workouts. I am especially fascinated to hear about what goes on at gymnastics strength. 

 

 

Oh, yay!

 

Well, ok! I'm not sure if there's always the same exercises on the gymnastics workout, but last week we did 8 bodyweight exercises in three circuits after warm up. Every exercise was done for 40 seconds with 20 seconds rest between, and then a 1 minute rest at the end of each circuit. The exercises included: tight pushups (either with our hands on a box or on the floor), a cardio exercise that I cannot explain in text for the life of me (at least not in english), bodyweight rows in gymnastic rings, rolling squats (without the kettlebell), the superman, banana roll with a crunch after each, dips and a squat that looks kind of like a side lunge, but with the feet kept on the same place on the floor, just alternating the side you lean to (I really don't know how to explain this better. I know it had a name, but I just can't remember it right now). After the three circuits were done, we did some stretching and cool down.

I'm curious to see what we'll do tomorrow on that workout!

 

[starsapart]

Ooooooooooooooooh more aerialists for the Assassins, yes, good, perfect~

 

Welcome!  There are quite a few of us flitting about here these days, come say hi!!!

[Fridelisan]

Ooooooooooooooooh more aerialists for the Assassins, yes, good, perfect~

 

Welcome!  There are quite a few of us flitting about here these days, come say hi!!!

 

Oh, thanks for the warm welcome!

I'm just about to see what everyone's up to around here, so I'll probably stop by in some logs and cheer everyone on!

 

[Fridelisan]

Sooo. Since I'm not feeling all great due to a cold, I had to cancel aerial silks training today. Booo!

 

 

I had been looking forward to it so much, but I know that I'm gonna use up all my energy on the workout if I go, and not leave anything for getting better. So, I went home after my seminars to study and eat all my protein. I still have lots of water left to drink, with just an hour (max) until I have to sleep. Yay for great planning skills.  

I did manage to do my minspace meditation on the metro this morning though. 

[lucky fire dragon]

Hi there, too

Hope you get well again soon, cancelling aerial classes due to cold sucks,but is the sensible thing to do. Very curious to learn what you work on in your pole classes?????

[Fridelisan]

Hi there, too

Hope you get well again soon, cancelling aerial classes due to cold sucks,but is the sensible thing to do. Very curious to learn what you work on in your pole classes?????

 

Thank you! It feels like I'm getting better with everyday, so hopefully I'll don't miss any more fun classes.  

Oh, on the level I'm on right now, we work on reverse spin, gemini/scorpio and to switch without holding on with our hands, pike, butterfly, cupid, iguana grip and some other stuff... As you can see, I'm still in the beginner/early intermediate level, so I'm not very good yet. We've just started to work on spinning pole too, so that still scares the living s**t out of me. 

My biggest problem to progress in pole is my strength. I'm so weak compared to all the others, and I really have to work with that. It's going to be a long journey.

[Fridelisan]

Update time!

 

1 l of water: check

80 g of protein: check

Gymnastics strength trainging: check

10 minutes of meditation: check

 

Yes, today was a good day in terms of this challenge. I've managed to do all the things I should have. I have realised that I can't do meditation in the evening though, because I get so tired and almost fall asleep. So morning meditation it is henceforth!

The gymnastics class was hard today, even though I didn't go all in because of my cold still isn't all gone. The instuctor had changed a little of the exercises. So we did pushups, scissor jumps, bodyweight rows in rings, a tuck up-straddle up-v up-exercise, deck squats, russian twists with a medicine ball (remember to keep those arms straight!), bench dips and an exercise that I still cant explain. I can't understand how 40 s of an exercise can be so hard!

 

[Mad Hatter]

Excellent start to the challenge!

Your classes sound really fun. I'm really curious about the non-explainable exercise now. Do you think you can explain it in Swedish?

[Fridelisan]

Excellent start to the challenge!

Your classes sound really fun. I'm really curious about the non-explainable exercise now. Do you think you can explain it in Swedish?

 

Well, thanks! It feels good still, so I hope this challenge will go as smoothly as the last one. 

Hm, I might be able to explain it in swedish.. lets see...

 

TvÃ¥ gymnastikbänkar stÃ¥r bredvid varandra (lÃ¥ngsida mot lÃ¥ngsida), sÃ¥ att det inte är nÃ¥gon springa emellan. Övningen gÃ¥r ut pÃ¥ att man gÃ¥r upp och ned pÃ¥ dessa, Ã¥t sidan. SÃ¥ om man stÃ¥r pÃ¥ vänster sida om bänkarna börjar man att ta ett steg upp med höger ben. Man gÃ¥r sedan upp med vänster ben och samtidigt ner med höger ben pÃ¥ höger sida om bänkarna. Därefter gÃ¥r man upp med höger ben pÃ¥ bänkarna igen, och ner med vänster ben pÃ¥ vänster sida om bänkarna. Och sÃ¥ gÃ¥r man sÃ¥ upp och ned. Samtidigt som man gör detta rör man armarna ut frÃ¥n kroppen och över huvudet (som när man gör jumping jacks), sÃ¥ när man är högst upp pÃ¥ bänkarna ska armarna vara rakt upp, och när man gÃ¥r ned Ã¥t vardera hÃ¥ll sÃ¥ för man ned bÃ¥da armarna till sidan av kroppen. FörstÃ¥r du hur jag menar? Och det är egentligen hela övningen, sÃ¥ gör man det sÃ¥ snabbt som möjligt. 

[Fridelisan]

Already one week in. It's crazy how the time just seems to speed up. 

 

So how's it been going the last week?

 

Working out

I've been to 3 workouts in total. Pole on monday, interval gymnastics strength on thursday and yoga in friday. I would have gone to silks as well if I hadn't had a cold. I would say that's an acceptable week. Grade: A

 

Eating protein

My protein intake has been quite difficult sometimes, but most days I've been able to eat more than the amount I've put as a goal. On saturday, I only ate ~50 g, but my mean protein intake the last 7 days has been 84 g, so it's still a pass. Grade: B+

 

Water

This has been my real struggle this last week. I can't understand how much I have to work with this. But mostly I've been able to drink around 1 l of water every day. On saturday, I didn't manage to drink everything I should've, but the rest of the days has been good. Grade: B

 

Meditation

I've done my meditation all days but one. I missed it on saturday because my usual routine was off. I didn't remember to do it until I was in bed to sleep at 3 AM. I didn't do it by then either, because I realised I would only fall asleep during the meditation anyway. Grade: B

 

So.. All in all it's been an ok week. Reading this though, I realise that most of my struggles happen when I don't follow my usual routine. When I don't have any school to go to, I forget to do my meditation in the morning. I don't eat enough protein, because I usually eat much less on days that I don't do as much and I forget to drink my water. That's to be remembered next weekend when I'm off to my SO.

 

 

[raptron]

Hey, that all looks pretty solid to me. 

[lucky fire dragon]

you did great!

 

Those gymnastic classes sound intense and ahahaha, you're way ahead of me if it's any consolation, because despite of poling for 2 and half years now I am noway near gemini/scorpio or the like. Will share some of the stuff I currently battle soon and then you can see and be comforted

Yes, strength is the magic thing, right? Also the thing to keep you safe, so I like your strategy to up it with those badass gymnastics and the yoga.

 

Congrats on a successful week 1!

[Fridelisan]

Hey, that all looks pretty solid to me. 

 

Thanks! Maybe I'm to hard on myself. I guess it was quite a good first week.

 

you did great!

 

Those gymnastic classes sound intense and ahahaha, you're way ahead of me if it's any consolation, because despite of poling for 2 and half years now I am noway near gemini/scorpio or the like. Will share some of the stuff I currently battle soon and then you can see and be comforted

Yes, strength is the magic thing, right? Also the thing to keep you safe, so I like your strategy to up it with those badass gymnastics and the yoga.

 

Congrats on a successful week 1!

 

Thank you! Yes, those classes are really intense! I always just want to lie down and cry a little after every class.

Oh, a really want to see what you're working on! After what I've read, different studios seem to teach different tricks and spins on very different levels. So it's always interesting to hear what others have learned! 

Oh, yes. Strength is absolutely the magic thing. I've noticed a real change in my progression speed after I started doing more strength training, and having an instructor that focuses more on strength than others I've trained for. It's so fun realising one can do much more than expected.

[Fridelisan]

Oh, and todays update:

 

Workout: Check!

Protein: Check!

Water: Check!

Meditation: Check!

 

I went to pole class today. We worked on lots of different stuff. Our instructor likes making us do all the strength exercises (which is really good for me), and I always walk away from there all soaked. We worked on head- and handstands, reverse spin and core strength. We also did some freestyle dancing and rehearsed some pure dance moves. Afterwards I stayed to work on my flexibility a little. And after doing some backbends I decided to try a bridge pose, which I've never been able to do before due to weak-ass arms. But I managed it today! And it was super easy! I felt so happy standing there. 

[lucky fire dragon]

W00t w00t on bridge pose and all the strength gains

[Cephalopod_Dreams]

Hooray for you and your strength successes that's awesome

[Mad Hatter]

Hooray for bridges! And strength. Everything just becomes so much easier when you don't have to worry about being strong enough and can just focus on the skill itself.

And yep that exercise description made sense. Kind of like an aerobics side step jumping jack hybrid thingy.

[Fridelisan]

W00t w00t on bridge pose and all the strength gains

 

 

Hooray for you and your strength successes that's awesome

 

Thanks! It feels really good.

 

Hooray for bridges! And strength. Everything just becomes so much easier when you don't have to worry about being strong enough and can just focus on the skill itself.

And yep that exercise description made sense. Kind of like an aerobics side step jumping jack hybrid thingy.

 

Yes, you're absolutely right! I love that I'm getting stronger by the day! 

Ah, yes, that's one way to describe it, I guess.

[Fridelisan]

Last week was quite a bad challenge week for me. I forgot to do my meditation during 4 days. I didn't eat enough protein 3 of the days, and I didn't drink enough for 2 days. The only thing I managed to go through with was to work out 3 times. No, last week was no good at all, but I'm totally going to do better this week. 

 

 

(non-challenge-wise I actually had a pretty good week. Interesting seminars and patients in school, great workouts, a fantastic weekend with my boyfriend... So I can't complain that much...)

 

I managed to drink my water yesterday, which felt good. I also went to a dance class and did some headstands and handstand prep work. I meditated for 10 minutes using mindspace, but fell short with my protein intake, just a couple of grams under 80. 

Today I went to a gymnastics class, working on tumbling/somersaults, balancing and strength work towards an L-sit. I also went on a hand stand workshop where we worked on body alignment, wrist preps and walking up to a handstand against a wall (facing the wall). I suck at handstands, which is why I go to this workshop. But I'm too scared and I feel like I'm too weak to get anywhere with it right now. I'm sure that's just a feeling that I have though, because I'm pretty sure I actually do have the strength to do hand stands, at least against a wall. But it's something that I really, really have to work on...

Right now, I'm trying to find something to eat that has a little more protein as well, because I'm 5 g short of 80 g right now. But I just ate my dinner (I'm stuffed), and I soon have to go to sleep, so I don't know if I'll manage that today. Suck. I've at least been drinking ok today. And I'll do my meditation as soon as I'm done writing this. 

 

Tomorrow is a sports day at our university, so no scheduled studying. But I'll meet my mentor from last semester and talk about my report, and if I'll continue to do some research in her research group during my last year. I'll also meet some of my best friends for brunch, which I've really been looking forward to. We haven't been able to just sit and talk for quite some time now. And in the evening I have aerial silks class. So yay!

[Mad Hatter]

I'm absolutely positive you have the strength for handstands! Just a question of getting used to the feeling. Have you tried low arm balances like crow pose?

Even if you didn't nail all of your goals your week sounds great!

[thewrittennerd]

That guy's eyes are so intense in that gif, holy cow!

 

I think having a good life-week but a bad-challenge week is okay once in a while! Just don't be discouraged by it. Getting back on track shouldn't be too hard.

 

I've read through this whole post. That gymnastics class sounds crazy but super useful for learning functional movements and strength! That's awesome that you found it! Was it something your university does, you said? (Also, I'm excited you're starting silks! My silks partner and I are considering trying out pole classes ourselves, too, so we may have another cross-over of interests! It'll be a few months before we have the money and time, but we may sign up for a 'pole 101' intro that an aerial gym nearby does periodically.)