The attempt to keep spontaneity in certain limits

[tyria]

This is my battle log.

 

I need to find a good balance between life and my attempt to include more sports in it.  If I would be able to join twice a week to my weightlifting group and go twice a week for a run, this would be the excellent. My reason for including the sports is that I see how it balances me and just feel a lot better when I workout. Or how it was written in this medium article: 

                      "

Quote

Well, Mr. Trainer Man, actually I’m running to be stronger in the sport that I love, because it gives me a clear head and makes me feel accomplished and melts away                my stress and there’s no high as extreme and intense as crossing a marathon finish line. Or whatever finish line you choose. At whatever pace you can do.A beach                    body is for other people. A runner’s high and confidence is for me."

                       (https://medium.com/runkeeper-everyone-every-run/what-the-fitness-industry-gets-all-wrong-c37901309d2e#.np1sz9w5e)

 

 

Let's go!

 

[AugustaAdaByron]

Checking in...

 

Are we going to be getting updates on lifting? (Feel free to keep the boring running details to yourself ) 

[tyria]

I went twice lifting this week which means basically the old trainer kept my busy with instructions and checked on my form. It is bit difficult to say which exercises we did. But on friday, one could imagine that these lifts might turn into sth similar like olympic weightlifting. We are working mainly with low weights (10 kg (and sometimes 14,16) for clean&jerk + snatches) and mainly 20 kg for normal squats.

DOMS are my best friends at the moment. Sometimes it is a bit more, sometimes a bit less and it takes nearly 3.5 days until it vanishes. I hope this improves quite soon and I can start adding runs to it.

[tyria]

This week I've been lifting twice and my snatches start looking like real snatches even though it still costs my a lot of effort to get up again. May be I am just scared or i don't trust myself that I can stand up again. But the time for good snatches will come

 

Next week I am abroad and I'll probably take my running shoes with me. Maybe I find a possibility to run and to do some bodyweight exercises.

[tyria]

And it continues....I am rightnow not at my homebase and working in a different city. That means: no lifting, no running and an unregular lifestlye with no real opportunity to prepare food.

To keep the chaos in certain limits: I decided to keep my calorie intake between 1000-1500 kcal and try to walk more (There is a full, vibrant city to explore!). This seem to work quite well. For this reason I reduced my breakfast and a small cup of juice, in the cafeteria I am looking for options which include meat+ vegetables and some salad. And dinner is mainly fresh bread and amazing cheese. It feels that I am at least not gaining additional weight and since I need to walk 5 floors to the apartment, i#ll take this as daily miniworkout.

[tyria]

Week II  of my outside-my-homebase stay turned into pleasant chaos and I met spontaneously some people. This led to a less controlled calorie intake, but it was still not a disaster.

 

Now I am back in my usual place, went back to my lifting club, my kitchen (aka controlled food intake).

The plan for this week is: 3 times lifting, maybe 1-2times a (short) run and stay within the borders of my planned calorie intake.

[tyria]

Small update in between:

I went lifting yesterday and can proudly report that my clean&jerk starts looking like a real clean&jerk. The coach was not fully unhappy with it. We are still working mainly on the technique on low weights (15-20 kg). The lower back, the core and my left arm need to become stronger and more controlled before adding more weight.

[tyria]

Lifting does continuously well. On friday we had a really nice training session focusing on clean&jerks. It was a lot of technique and form checks. At the end of day I managed to do a 33 kg clean&jerk. At the next session, we did more on the cleans and I ended up lifting a 24 kg clean. 

 

Due to a cold I did not manage to go for running on the weekend, but calorie tracking works well and I manage to reach my calorie goal in 6 of 7 days.

[tyria]

Uhh...it's been a while since the last update.

 

Anyway, Things continue as smooth or regular as the week before. Calorie intake is closely monitored and as long as I am in my home base below 1500 kcal/day. But even outside my home base, I started to be more stringent with  not-having-the-dessert after dinner or maybe-taking-this-piece-of-cake to my coffee.

Lifting is more about technique at the moment and I finally managed to squat as deep as expected during the snatch and clean&jerk. Tomorrow is my first time training without trainer - he assumes I/we know already everything. 

And I went running last weekend, it was an awfully slow paced round, but it least I  managed to run nearly continuously for 40 min. Maybe I'll do another round this weekend. 

[AugustaAdaByron]

10 hours ago, tyria said:

he assumes I/we know already everything. 

 

 

 

It was too hard to let that go without any comment

[tyria]

...and todays training ended with 

 

The other guys who normally come to drink a beer and play cards, couldn't ignore my lifts longer and gave me feedback. It was super nice and helpful. Beginning next week, I will continue working on the technique (never thought that it is sooo complex) and my stands and more importantly I need to build up strength in my legs and my lower back. And if this is done, we (or I) can continue to play with technique and bigger weights.

 

And most probably I go for another run on sunday... hep! hep!

 

[tyria]

And it goes on and on....

 

Lifting is doing well. Did a okayish snatch with 20 kg. I really need to build up strengths in my legs. And I did a probably okayish c&j with 38 kg.

Food tracking becomes slowly a habit and I stay during week easily below the 1500 kcal goal. I might need to add more protein to my meals. The weekends are a bit more difficult due to social events. But this is okay.

 

Overall I am pretty happy with everything and continue with all these things.

 

 

[tyria]

This week was quite nice. I learned that weightlifting balances a lot of anger from daily life. I was remarkably annoyed by my colleagues, but likely the world looks a lot different after 2 h picking up heavy weights. This week, it was time for a bit more strength exercises and focusing on the snatch technique. Slowly things are improving: my squat position in this lift is getting saver and more controlled. I still need to build up more strength in my legs.

Now, I am slowly thinking about buying weightlifting shoes...

 

[tyria]

Is it going well? It is going really well.

 

I went to my trainings 3 times a week, and (again...) I believe I made some technical progress and continue gaining strength and flexiblity. And i talk more and more with guys over there and maybe there will be another woman lifting in this round (which makes again 3 ). Foodwise I am doing well, during weekdays I mostly stick to my calorie goal, at the weekends and time spend with friends it is a bit more complicated. But well...it won't kill the progress, just slow it down.

 

[tyria]

Two weeks without training due to some travelling and a couple of christmas parties.

 

Today we tried our current max. It is 27 kg for a snatch and 35 kg for clean and jerk.

 

Foodwise it is a mess. Anyway, I get this thing in track again with the new year. Rightnow the entropy is too high in the system

 

 

 

 

 

[tyria]

After another two weeks break, a lot of mindless eating (hello christmas!) and an increasing level of entropy - I hit today  PR  in the training. The new numbers are 29 kg for snatch and 39 for clean and jerk (PRs are proudly presented by many carbs and way too many sweets).

 

After sorting out the current max, we did some pylometric exercises and a small amount of  frontsquats and backsquats.

 

The best of all: my freshly bought lifting shoes should arrive on wednesday

[AugustaAdaByron]

 

 

[tyria]

Here we go...Life continues being spontaneous and stressful, but everything is heading in the right direction. This counts as well for the training. If I am not travelling, I am going to the training that means for good weeks; 3 times a week for 1.5 -2 h. And for the beginning of this year, it was time to spend money in proper lifting shoes and I got one pair of these beautiful adipowers and two new training shirts.

 

Today's session was really good. 

- max @ power snatch (33 kg)

- max @ power clean (43 kg, missed sharply 45 kg)

- power jerks 5 x 15, 20 and 25 kg

- Front and back squatting up to 40 kg each.  Form was still okay, but the depth and repeatability needs to be improved.

 

And I did this morning a little bit of yoga (aka two rounds of sun salutation) and I would like to include yoga for stretching more in my daily routine. I should give these yoga and weightlifting tutorial on yt maybe a try as well.

Calories get randomly tracked and weighting myself happens as well randomly, but my weight is really stable. At least the diet is well balanced at the moment.

 

 

Thanks to @Heather I saw this nice description of a snatch.

 

 

[tyria]

Last week was really nice. The second training of the week was less successful due to a lot of chaos and curiosity. One local hipster online magazine came and shot for a multimedia documentary of our lifting association.

I continued doing small rounds of yoga. On yt are some recorded yoga session recorded focusing on weightlifting and I tried of them. 

As a small treat, I had a thai massage at the weekend. So my back changed from weightlifting sore to being differently sore, but the whole body felt better afterwards

 

Today's training

- snatching 10 to 27 kg

- for technique 6x6 15 kg

- power jerks 20 - 37 kg

 

--> dead by weightlifting 

[tyria]

And another week passed....I somehow teared a muscle of my back, it hurts slightly but it does not seem seriously injured as well. At the end of the week,  I'll have a 5 days break from lifting, this should be enough for recovering. It

 

Anyway, our trainer made up a first training plan and set a goal for fall: 60 kg clean and jerk, 50 kg snatch. It might be a bit too optimistic. At the moment the goals are 15 kg above the current PR (and these are performed with a lousy form). At the moment it is a lot of technique training: hanging snatches, power snatches, standing jerks, cleans, @80-85% max. + Front and Back squats.

 

We are a group of 3 people which are more or less on a comparable level and it is really nice to train together, learn from each other

 

Foodwise, it is going well. I am focussing on eating more protein (more skyr, more meat, more joghurt, more cottage cheese) and less carbonhydrates. This week went well until now, I somehow need to pay attention that I eat enough (but a piece of cake easily feels the calorie budget )

[tyria]

Worst training ever. I was too stiff and tired and not concentrated enough and too slow and did mistakes I normally never do and my back was still hurting from an insulted muscle. 

On the positive end: Even when I am totally confused and in horrible shape, I can still snatch 30 kg and c&j 35 kg.

[tyria]

Last week training was interrupted by this beautiful strained back. I skipped a training session in favor of a potential healing and then I traveled for a couple of days. In Berlin I spent time with @AugustaAdaByron and we went to her gym and joined the ladies night. The circle was a lot fun and it seemed not to exhausting, but on monday my body was surprisingly sore. The whole meet-up included a couple of coffees, some cakes and a great plate full of falafel and meat. Maybe some of the fellow ladies joining the ladies night got scared by non-vegan food on the plate.

 

Training on monday was not good. I lacked somehow concentration and energy + strained back reappeared. Todays training was a lot better.

A couple of light snatches from the knee 1x4 10, 15, 20 and 25 kg

Clean and jerks starting with 20, 25, 30, 35, 37, 38, 39 and 40 kg

Squat overhead presses 5 x 10 - 10 kg

BS 20,30, 35, 40 kg (failed the last 40 kg round)

 

 

[AugustaAdaByron]

11 hours ago, tyria said:

Maybe some of the fellow ladies joining the ladies night got scared by non-vegan food on the plate.

 

 

I wonder if there's some reason for that...

[tyria]

First run in 2017 - check!

 

 

 

It was not as bad as expected. The torn back was noticeable during the run, but besides this it was quite decent for a first round. It involved a lot walking, but this okay.

[tyria]

So....my marathon project seems to come to preliminary end. This mean for 1 or 2 weeks free evenings after work and training. And this could result in more runs and back having a social life.

 

Besides being stressed, I am doing well with training and food. The calorie intake has been increased to a maintenance level. The scale is stable within the normal fluctuations. I only noticed that my protein intake may have been too low, now I am aiming to eat at least my body weight in g protein.

 

Liftingswise, it is going okayish - no huge improvement and no step backwards as well. We started adding more squats (front and back) to the training. This should improve the strength side. Last week a hit the first time a 55 kg squat. That was cool