The last couple of weeks have been really exciting. I have been working towards my goal of losing weight, toning up and reducing body fat all with the help of my amazing trainer Liz! Here is just a snapshot of what I have been up to!
In my first session I was given a programme with lots of new exercises to try, including using the Stairmaster! (I like to call it the leg killer because that’s what it does, kills your legs). I also got to work on my biceps, triceps and chest with free weights exercises (chest press, front raises, bicep curls). We did 12 reps of each – although occasionally it was more when Liz ‘forgot’ to count! (This became a running joke between us). For the next couple of days my arms felt broken – that is the only way I could describe them, my arms and chest muscles were in agony. But no pain no gain, right?
When I attempted to do the programme in the gym by myself, I suddenly had some newfound confidence. I realised that the weights room was not that scary and that nobody is really looking at you, so to anybody scared to use the weights in the gym out of a fear of looking silly – JUST DO IT!
In my second session, I had my body fat measured, which was 38% and my lean muscle mass which was around 63%. Hopefully the next time we check my body fat will have decreased! The lovely Liz really put me through my paces. Today I did not use the leg killer machine and we did a legs circuit which included weighted lunges, squats and using the battle ropes and that huge 60kg tyre that you can see me waddling in the middle of in the pictures. It was a hard session but Liz makes it easy not to give up, as she was super encouraging. I think this was my favourite workout as it was something different that I had never done before.
I also tried Liz’s Legs, Bums and Tums class! My legs were no match for the 1000’s of squats and lunges that were involved in such a short space of time. By the end of the class my legs were shaking and walking down the gym steps to the changing room was a challenge – Although the next day I woke up with only minor muscle soreness.
My most recent session was in The Pit working on my squatting and deadlifting technique, where we slowly increased the weight and I was able to hit a new personal best of squatting the heaviest I have ever lifted.
I have to say a huge thank you to Liz because she has been an immensely supportive and encouraging mentor (even letting me email her while she was away on holiday!). In the moments where I feel like I can’t possibly do another rep she is there pushing me on. The workouts are tough but fun and every session is something new and different!