Tuesday 17 March 2015

Week One : Be the best you

I'll start with the positives! I lost an inch and a half off my hips and an inch off my thighs which I was delighted with. I have no idea where I am weight wise as there is no scales here to work off! 

I'll be honest my first week in Finland eating wise and exercise wise was a bit of a write off. I was sick for a few days and couldn't eat so I couldn't exercise as I was too weak. The other nights I was drinking and eating rings around me. I managed to get to the gym once and attempted one of my HIIT cardio sessions. 

Claire Kane of Volta Fitness, has put together a great plan for me exercise wise taking into account that I'm not a member of a gym (but got to use one while I am here) so many of the exercises are squats, lunges, Russian twist, hand to toe crunch, burpees, mountain climbers and squat jumps all exercises you don't need equipment to do. all of the exercises are predominantly done in three sets of 10 or in the case of burpees and mountain climbers as much as you can for 40 seconds, 30 seconds etc. 

The high intensity interval cardio is so hard I am not gonna lie. Felt like I was going to faint after one set which was five minutes! 

Examples of what I have been eating is a low starchy carb high protein diet. A boiled egg some bacon and fruit for breakfast and green tea, then some snacks of fruit such as apples, pears, plum or orange and cashew nuts/sunflower seeds then a lunch focusing on protein and veggies. Then a workout and following that something post workout that includes a starchy carb ie a banana some rice or sweet potato or even porridge oats. 

It's hard to get used to this way of eating, I find I get so hungry at lunch time because I am not eating bread or pasta with my meal. I made lettuce wraps today but I definitely need to sort out lunches as I end up very hungry and liable to make bad food choices otherwise.

It's been a great motivation being in the group able to post in it asking questions about diet or exercises and all of us taking part are supporting one another.

This is my second day of my second week and I am so much more focused and determined. 

Yesterday's breakfast and dinner are below:


Changes I would make would be:  I would avoid the croutons in the Caesar salad and have dressing on the side. Those are also sweet potato fries. I made a mistake with my breakfast and ate some muesli in my yoghurt which is full of sugar so I will be avoiding that in future. Lunch was three rye crackers and tinned sardines which meant I was absolutely STARVING for dinner. I need to find the right balance and make sure I'm satasfied after meals to stop me picking or making bad food choices. 

I did a serious workout in the gym which was as follows: 

Squats with 5kg weight 3 sets of 10 reps
Lunge with 5kg weight 3 sets of 10 Reps 
Russian twist with 4kg kettle bell 3 set of 10 reps (repeated 3 times) = 60 reps
Hand to toe crunch 3 sets of 10 reps 
Treadmill 15 mins brisk walk
Donkey kicks to the side 10 reps on each leg and backwards 10 reps on each leg 
Leg extensions 3 sets of 8 reps 15kg
Leg press 3 sets of 8 reps 40 kg 
Shoulder press 12 reps of 15 kh
Bicep pull down machine (no idea of name sorry) 20 reps at 20 kg 

I also attempted to plank, only got to 30 seconds and nearly died, I was shaking so much. I also did ten push ups trying to improve upper body and core strength. So body is definitely sore today! Would love a sauna! 

How are you all getting on? Follow us in Instagram and Twitter using the hashtag #BeTheBestYou




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1 comment

  1. Well done, your doing great. Its tough making lifestyle changes and being away adds another challenge!
    Well done! Here's to Week 2 ;-) #BeTheBestYou
    www.chirpsfromalittleredhen.blogspot.ie

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