NewYearathon - getting fitter in 2017.

Having a rest today as I've got a cold brewing. But did take DD to tumbletots and car into garage which involved a fair amount of walking carrying her. Ditto yesterday but less walking. Will see how I am tomorrow...

Rest day here today, I had the dentist to start work on my new veneers and she was lovely and gentle but it's been a bit traumatic! Wednesday is usually my rest day but I'm working from home so should be able to squeeze something in.

9.5km Run this morning, was aiming for 10 but happy with what I did-shattered now though...
Got a PT taster session booked in at the end of the week so will see how that goes-so bloody expensive though, am contemplating retraining as one as I'm clearly in the wrong trade

Managed a 5.6mile run yesterday and have worked out every day in the last 10 except Thursday. Lost 1inch off my hips and I.5 inches off my waist. Today I'm off work with the kids and going to a big forest play park so won't be in charge of my exercise levels. Hoping to do a 30DS tonight though.

KBFF done. Also did a 2 hr walk Saturday and 20 min walk Sunday.
Well done all!

There's great work going on in the latest days! I've been very good and rested my calf and tested it gently at the pool with the children today. It was great so I went for a short, slow run. I got 650m I'm going to talk to a physio friend about it. I started some kettle bell /weights this evening so I'll try to keep them up while I figure out what to do with my leg.

Lord Peter you have basically described me only I don't trust myself to ride a bike! I hated running (boring) until I started doing mud runs so needed to run a bit. Couch to 5k not bad, also Zombies Run (I use the free one which gives one new mission a week). Added to a decent playlist or an audiobook and it becomes tolerable!

Sniffle Maybe try setting yourself a goal a bit like Oubliette and RJ are doing - to exercise for a certain amount of hours, and for a certain amount of days over the year. So if you have days where you feel like you could do extra, then great, it all counts towards your goal - but if you have off-days then it balances out. So the goal is to keep going, not do as much as possible which becomes unsustainable.

I've also suffered from similar feelings to you, trying to increase goals and then just burning out and giving up, so I find it helps to have a long-term goal - e.g. this year I'd like to complete JM's Body Revolution and Body Shred (90 days and 60 days respectively), ideally before July, and I think both programmes involve 30 mins exercise, 6 days per week. I do try and do some little extras, like using my weighted hula hoop for short periods alternate days, and getting out for walks, and if I feel guilty for 'only' doing 30 minutes I remind myself that I am in this for the long haul this year and need to pace myself, and that includes rest days.

Body Revolution Workout 2 plus 10 mins hooping today, and made myself go for a brisk 50 minute walk (3.3. miles).

EatSpam, ouch!

Thanks for the cardio tips, RJ. I reckon in practice I get enough cardio by cycling to work (an hour each way), and I wouldn't dare use a kettlebell - I'd either drop it on my own foot or hurl it accidentally at the poor cat! Have I mentioned that as well as totally inflexible and malcoordinated I'm very clumsy?

That probably doesn't make sense, I mean that by putting something specific in, I find it easier to achieve.

Sniffle I have this great diary which has a weekly goals section. I have been writing modest goals in there. I knew if I put 5 lots of exercise I would never stick to it. I have been increasing it gradually each week. My goals for this week were Walk X 2, Pilates x2, Run x 1.

I managed to do a ten minute run yesterday without stopping. This morning, I have done a 5.3km walk. Haven't done any Pilates this week but have been doing my physio exercises instead.

Ouch, Eatspam!

MMA circuits this morning followed by week one day one of couch to five k with my non runner training buddies.

We have signed up for filthy girl in summer so need to get some running in for that.

15/235

Intentional rest days yesterday and today, apart from a bit of yoga. Adriene wanted me to stand on one leg, hold the other foot and straighten the leg up and out to the side - I don't think that's happening in a million years!

sniffle12, I'm afraid I can't help - my default setting is that I don't want to exercise so I need a plan (working through Jillian DVDs usually) and a timetable, and an effort of will to stick to it. I really wish I enjoyed any part of exercising, but I don't, sadly.

Can I ask how everyone manages to hold themselves back from the instinct to do too much?

Until now I've never regularly exercised, always start but burn out quickly. But the last week or two I've started doing something every day - nothing too intense just a yoga video or moderate dance workout on YouTube, say, 30 mins a day as recommended by NHS. And it feels really good and sustainable. Such that for the first time in probably two years I'm actually doing regular exercise which is a big achievement.

But already I feel myself falling into the old trap of doing too much and it becoming unsustainable. Thinking I should be doing more vigorous workouts, working out for an hour not 30 mins, doing strength exercises every day, not taking rest days etc etc.

How can I be happy with what I'm doing and build up gradually and not take it too far and burn out??

Had a few crap days illness wise so didn't manage to do anything but back up and on with it today.
4009 steps (1009 over my target)
15 mins indoor bike (managed to break part of it because I did a funny double turn when I thought our puppy was shitting in the corner of the room. I wobbled a bit and toppled smashing my whole body weight into the footplate, I then fell into the glass doors and slid down whilst DH opened the door to the new vicar, who is also my new boss )
5 mins beginner kettle bell video on YouTube.

Feeling good!

I don't mind running outside on tracks and paths but normal running around roads or on a treadmill bores me. Parkrun also is good for alleviating the boredom having people to "race". I started mud runs because I wasn't interested in actual running and now am planning a half marathon...

Wilderness Some weeks are just like that! Getting started again is often the hardest bit, so well done.

RJ The kettlebells sounds seriously impressive, I've only ever tried using them with JM's Shred it With Weights DVD and I only have a 4kg and 6kg bell, which I find challenging enough! I actually don't mind cardio, but I tend to get bored very easily with whatever workout I'm doing, so need to change up moves often (might be why I've never got on with running).

LordPeter Glad it's not just me, I'll probably stick with Cardio 1 as I'm going to skip a week of phase 1 anyway, but glad to know it improves a bit later.

Body Rev Workout 1 done, and an (almost!) 5 mile walk.

Yikes, wasn't intending to have four rest days this week!! Did a medium length walk and had a physio session for my back yesterday.

Today, another medium walk. Back on track! I also fell off the dry january wagon mid week. 😢

Did a kettlebell pentathlon with a 14kg weight allthe way through today, my slightly unorthodox training plan is to up four of the 5 lifts to 16kg next week, then two of them to 18kg the following week, then one to 20kg the week before the competition.

Which sounds okay until you think you're aiming for 100+ reps with no stopping for each lift 😳

Anyway survived today okay so I am now

14/236

Lord peter and anyone else who is bored by cardio, I can heartily recommend kettlebell training for variety and effective cardio. You don't need to do the 5/6/10 minute sets either. Kettlebell snatch 30 seconds on/off is apparently the second most effective cardio after uphill cross country skiing!

30 minutes jig yesterday and parkrun today. Still can't beat first local time which is so frustrating as I walked less of the hills. Maybe I'm still faster walking thsn running up hill!

Didn't do any shred type stuff yesterday as spent entire day painting loft conversion room. More of the same today.

All very frustrating as despite cutting junk and doing dry January my weight is stuck and my clothes are no looser. Starting on more definite calorie counting and probably need to reduce carbs... meh - was hoping to really kick start losing weight before I need to up the running distances!

Biked to work and back (which feels like quite an achievement when it's so cold), and did Body Rev workout 6. Target achieved for this week, though I've had a couple of days of not doing any yoga as I couldn't get out of bed and don't have time for two workouts in the evenings.

Delicious, I couldn't agree more. I did the cardio disc once a week the first time I did Body Rev and I thought I was going to die of boredom in the first month. The other two cardio discs are a bit less dreary because there are more moves in each circuit, so you might want to switch to cardio 2 or 3.

RJ, hope you finally shake the virus off really soon.

Body Rev Cardio 1 done - fairly disappointed that not only do we have to use the same cardio for each phase, but that it was the same bloody circuit (of 60 second moves) repeated 3 times. Could she not have put a bit more effort into the cardio workouts?? It was fine but I will definitely get bored of that one quickly.