Week 1 Results

 Hi All,

 Apologies for not posting yesterday – I tried but was having technical difficulties. I am away with my mum for a couple of days and couldn’t get into my account from the hotel’s computer. All sorted now.

 So, end of week 1 and how has it gone. 

86% compliant with PN guidelines. Click here to learn more about Precision Nutrition.

Did my 3 beginner TT high-intensity weight and interval workouts for a total of 2 hours. Click here to learn more about Turbulence Training.

Did an additional 1 hour 35 minutes steady-state cardio (walking on treadmill and recumbent bike), giving a total of 3 hours 35 minutes exercise for the week. Short of the 5 hours minimum recommended with PN, just under 72%.

Lost 20mm in total from my 7-site caliper total, equivalent to 4 lbs of fat, a just over 1% body fat decrease.

Gained 1/2 lb of lean muscle.

Plan for the next week:

1. Prepare better for when I am away from home, as this was the source of all my non-compliant meals.

2. Get the exercise up to 5 hours a week.

‘night all.

Challenges 1

Oops, I posted this a couple of days ago, then forgot to upload it!!!! Guess that’s what carb deprivation will do to you. Anyhow, here it is, a couple of days late.

Today I’m going to talk about challenges, in all shapes and forms.

Challenge number 1: The Precision Nutrition challenge.
A 16-week body transformation challenge based on the principles of Precision Nutrition. This was the reason for the ‘Before’ photo. I have been following the principles of PN for 6 days now, tomorrow is day 7. Monday would be weigh and measure day, but I will be away from home, so progress report tomorrow instead. Well, actually, I haven’t been following all of the principles. See challenge number 2….

Challenge number 2: Exercise.
PN calls for a minimum of 5 hours per week of moderate to high intensity exercise. In my first week, I haven’t managed to reach that at all. I am following Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training programme. This is a high-intensity training programme that allows you burn loads of fat, build tons of muscle and feel fantastic in 3 workouts per week, each lasting under 45 minutes. It’s in e-book form and comes with loads of workouts suitable for different fitness levels, different goals, for men and women, and so on. There are also equipment free workouts, in case you don’t belong to a gym, and lots of other support and information. And with so much content, the whole thing costs less than a meal out at a nice restaurant. And for us Brits, yet again, “GO STERLING!”, it’s practically for nothing. Click here for more information.

I’ve started on the 4-week Beginner TT programme, and hope to progress up to intermediate, and maybe even advanced during the course of the 16-week PN challenge. I’ve been enjoying the workouts so far, and always feel fantastic when I’m done. I’m drenched, not-too-fragrant, and grinning from ear to ear. On paper, they seem quite simple, but darn, they work a girl hard. So that accounts for around 2 hours per week. For weight loss, I need to add in some regular cardio. And I’ve been a bit lax there. See challenge number 3.

Challenge number 3: Getting in my cardio.
I need to do around 3 hours a week, minimum for maximal effect. And till today, I’d managed zip, zilch, zero. So first, the sob stories….I have a bad knee – no cartilege, so I can’t run. That leaves cycling, swimming, walking. Walking would be the easiest, despite the weather, since my Chrissy present to myself was a cheap treadmill off ebay. It was made in China and says things like “Converging healthy dynamism to all users” and “Bringing a good luck to all households” on the control console. But it works. Still, if I overdo it, my knee flares up and then I’m no good to anybody for a week or two. So in the spirit of not overdoing it, I’ve been not doing it at all. Well, all that changed today. I promised myself I’d do 30 minutes and see how I felt. Turned on Radio 4 and started to listen to a rather disturbing play about a murderous middle-class housewife in the early 1900s, who knocked off an old lady tenant, got her husband convicted and hanged for the crime, married her lover, and ran off with him, the inheritance and hubby’s life insurance to a new life in California! Well that got me to an hour on the treadmill and feeling very pleased with myself. Get fit to Radio 4. (For all you yanks reading this, Radio 4 is one of the BBC’s serious, non-music radio station, the kind that your parents listened to in the car when you were little and bored you senseless. Apparently I am now at THAT AGE. You can listen online if you like, just click here.) Anyway, that’s walking taken care of. I’m going to try and do 30 minutes every day minimum. I’ll fill you in on my swimming and cycling sob stories another time, or this post could get out of control.

Challenge number 4: Tomorrow I go away on a 2-day trip with my mum.
I’ve just found out that the hotel has a gym, so should be able to get my workouts in. But I’m a bit nervous about getting PN-friendly food outside of regular meal times. But I’ll take some protein bars with me, drive room service a bit mad, and hope for the best. So far, have been 88% compliant with the nutritional recommendations. The aim is for 90%+. I’m quite happy with that for my first week, and don’t want to ruin it tomorrow in transit.

Anyhow, I will try and keep posting while I’m away and let you know how I’m getting on. Better get to bed now – early start tomorrow for weighing and measuring. ‘night all.