Catching Up

It’s been a massive couple of weeks since I last posted.

A mixture of some great high’s but also some very hard times.  But here I am today to fill this space with words that describe my adventures to this point.

I’m at Week 8 of the Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation program and I have been very happy with my efforts and results to date.

Personally, emotionally life has been very difficult particularly in the last 2 days.  There has been the ending of something significant & the loss is profound.  Decisions & choices were made and I can’t control that.  All I can do is keep working to be the very best I can be.  I need to somehow move forward and start a whole new book for my life, making it strong & powerful, full of the love & support from some amazing people.  Even though people go from your life it doesn’t mean you forget, but you can choose to remember the good and take that forward.

Some of the highs…………..

I had a DEXA scan 2 weeks ago to measure my body fat composition and muscle mass.  I had a benchmark one done the first week of the program.  In 6 weeks I have lost 4% body fat & gained 400gr of lean muscle, both results I was thrilled with. 

In the last 8 weeks I have lost 50cm from my overall body.  The work I am doing is paying off and I am happy to see the results!! 

Physically I have kicked some big goals.

Since my last post I have managed to achieve banded pull ups.  I was so thrilled to get these.  I can’t explain the feeling when I just decided to try them on a Friday afternoon and not expecting anything, I got them.  I got one of the girls to video for me to capture the moment

First ever banded pull ups

Getting these actually made me feel normal.  No longer constrained to the ring rows.  I can be up with the other girls hanging from that bar.  The goal now is to keep building the strength in the movement so I can use smaller and smaller bands over time.

Last night was my best achievement in a while!!!!

The WOD was 3,3,3,3,3,3,3, Deadlifts working towards loads close to 1RM therefore getting a good strength workout.  My prev 1RM is 110kg so I was wanting to get around that.  Even to do that for 3 reps would be good as I have only done it the once.

Last time we did heavy Deadlifts I couldn’t go beyond 107.7kg and had lost a bit of confidence at that time.  I have rebuilt it a bit over the last couple of months with some extended reps at heavier weight like 90kg. 

So my reps last night went as follows:

85, 90, 95, 100, 105, ….

So I knew I had 2 sets left and loaded the bar at 110kg. My 1RM.  I was a little bit nervous about attempting 3 reps but stepped up to the bar with a confident mindset. I got them. 3 at 110kg. A new PB for 3 reps

What now?  I was tempted to try 115kg which was my goal for the night (quietly to myself).  Marc my coach suggested just a couple of little ones so we went up to 112.5kg.

I hit the first 2 reps well but then lost the bar on the third.  Theresa who was filming it for me didn’t get it so had to do it again.  I was just going to try for a 1RM but as I stepped up Marc told me to go for 3.  So I did and I got them!! I was stoked.

I asked Marc if I could try for a 1RM at 115kg.  As there was some time left he said sure, my form was ok so keep going.  Loaded up the bar, deep breath. Chin up, bum down & pull!!  Got the lift. WOOT! Goal achieved.

But as there was some time left we increased the load to 117.5kg, now I was getting nervous! Same routine and bang hit that one as well. With time for one more lift and lots of encouragement from the guys I loaded it to 120kg.  Now I was nervous.  This was 10kg heavier than my previous best.

Stood over the bar, took a few deep breaths and just lifted and before I knew it the bar was in the air and I was done!!! I was so happy. It was just the win I needed after a particularly difficult day yesterday.  I channelled all that I was feeling into those lifts!!

Here’s a video of the lifts from 112.5kg & beyond

Deadlift PR's

So what now…………..

Well being week 8 it’s milestone week on the program. So tomorrow is the day I hit my Milestone WOD with Sam and try improve the time.  We now have 2 WOD’s to choose from and we’ll decide tomorrow which one.  It’ll either be

3 rounds for time

10 Rope Pulls (from ground to standing)
20 Lateral Burpees (sliding sideways under a bar)
30m Walking Lunge with 7.5kg sandbag overhead.

Trying to better my prev time of 25m49s

or

3 rounds for time

3 x 70kg Deadlifts
6 x 35kg Clean & Jerk
9 x GHD Sit ups
30m Prowler Drag
30m Prowler Low Push
200m Sprint

Trying to better my prev time of 32m50s

Both of these WOD’s challenge me physically & mentally.  I really push to better my time to show my improvement & the results of all my other training. I hurt like nothing else but I keep going.  A very good friend sent me a message last night about how our minds are stronger than our bodies and how amazing it is when we conquer our doubts how empowering it is.  So that’s my eternal challenge………..keep pushing past the barriers my mind creates and taking control  of my outcomes!

Also I have entered my very first Crossfit event.  It’s on April 22 at Crossfit Never Quit.  To say I am exceptionally nervous is an understatement.  It’s a charity thing with just one WOD so yes I know it’s not going to be super hard core.  However the thought of stepping up and having to do my thing in front of a crowd is slightly intimidating. But I will give it a go.

Because that is what my life has to be about now………pushing my own limits.