One week in

This week has gone by very slowly, can't believe I've only had two PT sessions and my first was last week!

I've been encouraged to do extra workouts in between the sessions - with running and swimming preferred. I've been doing Body Combat as I find that the most fun workout - however I did do 20 minutes running before a combat class this week.

So, my week consisted of:

SUN - 60 min PT session

TUES - 60 min PT session

THUR - 20 min interval run + Body Combat (60 min)

SUN - 60 min Body Combat

So it's not a bad first week - but it's not as much as I want to do.

My other major improvement needed is my day to day diet. I'm not the most enthusiastic cook in the world, so I just need something simple and easy to follow with my erratic schedule (my job means that no week is ever the same).

I'm going to follow a 6 meal plan - little and often as that fits my appetite rhythm quite well I think. I tend to get full up at main meals very quickly and then snack a lot at other times. I probably won't get it properly going until I move as it just seems better to make a fresh start with that.

I'm going to have these meals

Breakfast - Blueberry Porridge

Bean snack - Beans, tomato & Spinach

Lunch - Turkey Sub

Fruit & Nut - Banana + Walnuts

Dinner - one of spag bol, chicken hotpot, beef stew

Soup - home made soup with barley

My main change would be cooking all my dinners (and the soup) at the beginning of the week so I don't have to do it during the week (always my downfall). I know I get into things and don't follow them through, but I'm hoping the money I'm spending on the PT will help keep me focused.

Second Training Session

So, I had my second training session on Wednesday and I think it went a lot better than the first which is promising. I knew how it was going to be so I was more prepared for the kind of things my PT was getting me to do.

Yesterday I also squeezed a body combat session in, so that's an additional hour of aerobics. I love combat, it's so much fun so I'm definitely incorporating it into my weekly routine (hope to be up to at least 30 mins of exercise every day, including three PT sessions a week from September). My PT has advised swimming as the best form of exercise - I just find swimming so boring!

What's become clear, although I already knew it - is that my diet is probably the part where I fall down. As I've said, I'm hardly obese - but I do tend to eat bad foods quite a lot. What makes it worse is that my other habit is not to eat very much at all. On Wednesday, before the session at 7:30pm - all I ate was a sausage roll, and a ham roll - all day. I know that's not right - I really need to change my attitude towards cooking and eating food. Little and often, and I don't really care if it's boring.

This week though, I'm just making a conscious effort to eat breakfast every day.

Session 1

So I had my session today and I have to say I really enjoyed it. I have a good feeling that it's going to push me in the right direction to get the body I want. It is going to be expensive, but hopefully worth it.

I've never had a personal training session before, so not quite sure what to expect. Her started off taking measurements and I was a bit shocked to see my stomach was 34" (!) - I don't know if that's waist or belly though. I will definitely be monitoring that one. I also discovered I have quite good legs - well, from all my running and combat classes I would expect that I guess.

In August I have just six sessions to get started, before commencing a more in depth set of sessions from September. I think this is a good idea as it is easing me back in gently, and I certainly could feel it this morning. I did put in as much effort as I could, and the PT did notice this. About 40 minutes in I thought I was going to collapse.

The beginning of the session was fairly easy, running, sidestepping but got harder as we introduced ground touches and jumping. The session was non-stop with other circuit based moves and some boxing which really worked my shoulders. By the end I really felt as if I couldn't go much further (we ended with some sprints) and a different kind of fatigued than that of a body combat class or a run. I'm good at pro-longed, aerobic workouts but no so good at the anaerobic workouts and apparently that is what is going to up my metabolism and burn that belly fat.

After August, I'll be moving to three sessions a week and hoping to throw in Body Combat, Swimming and Running cross-training. Yep, I'm keeping my gym membership through this! I mean business.

In addition to the exercise, I'm make two changes to my diet. One is drinking no alcohol, and two is (trying) to eat a bit healthier. I'll keep you updated on that as I am notoriously bad at having Irn-Bru, Wotsits, and Rice Krispy Squares - they're all my downfall. Another thing I'm bad at is actually eating meals - I sometimes eat breakfast, often forget lunch, and hate cooking dinner...

I'm also going to track my progess visually - so here's a couple of pictures

First Day of Personal Training

So, I've decided to get a personal trainer. I know it's a bit extravagant, but my business is doing well, I've got some shifts at sit-up booked, and I want to banish that stubborn bit of belly flab once and for all.

I've been keeping up a generally good level of fitness - mostly running and body combat - but felt I wasn't getting the kind of results I really wanted. I didn't enjoy the weight training so much and so ended up just doing cardio as that's what I enjoyed. So, while on the train this week I realised I have 5 months until I go to India and I want to be in tip-top shape for that. With weddings winding down a little from October onwards, it's also a chance to focus on me for a little. Over the last few years I've been so concentrated on establishing and growing my business that my health probably has suffered a little. Time to correct that!

I've bought countless books and magazines that promise to give you the insight into how to achieve that body you want, but I find it too difficult to stick to. I don't know what weights to lift, or if I'm doing it right, and then I stop. I think I'm the kind of person who needs structure, and focused goals to make things happen, and I just don't know enough top make those goals.

I'll be moving to Blackheath in two weeks, so I found a PT in that area. I looked at some "miracle" programs based in the city, but decided for my first foray into Personal Training I'm going to stick with somebody local. There are a few around the area, but I went with the guy who looked the friendliest - I know, stupid reason, but I didn't have much else to go on!

I'm going to use body fat percentage as my measurement tool - so hopefully that'll get taken today. I think I'm probably around 20% body fat, so my goal would be to get to 15% and then 12% - but we'll see what he recommends. Ny first six sessions are fairly spread out (due to August being super busy work wise) and from September on I move to a more structured work-out.

SO, I'll be back to let you know how the first session went.