Carry on exercising - the August 2022 edition

[roonetta]

Hope this works!

Today I did my first 10k row at racing speed.

The training programme I’m following is obsessed with long, steady rows (heart rate under 70% max) and short, intense sessions. I’m sure it makes sense from a training point of view, but also means I have no idea how fast I can actually go over longer rows, or how best to pace myself.

So I went off plan today and pushed myself a bit more and finished in just under 51 minutes. It’s not going to break any records, but is good enough for me! At least it gives me something to aim for, and improve on, next time 😊

I hope your cat gets better soon @iloveeverykindofcat. Good thing she didn’t break anything, but it’s always so heartbreaking to see an animal in pain.

@CrimsonAlligator thanks she's much better already. My credit card isn't though. She was pretty good, hissed a lot when the vet felt her leg but in fairness a lot of animals would have bitten the vet for that, it must have really hurt.

Get well soon hotwaterbottles

Any idea how your cat managed that iloveeverytypeofcats? Poor thing.

Well done on the racing speed crimson!

Everyone seems to have been really busy with lots of different types of exercise. Great for inspiration!!!

Today Complex series day 4 (one hour full body dumbbell).

Days exercised 167

@SophieLion what's Complex series? Sounds intimidating! Yeah I know what she did, she was having an argument with the neighbour cat, launched herself back over the wall in a hurry and landed a bit wrong. She's 11 and a bit fat so she's normally more slow andncontrolled in her jumps, but she was all agitated. Other cats having the audacity to exist on her planet and all.

45 min endurance ride done

I'm jealous of the runners with scenic routes. I have nothing but houses and industrial estates. The woods sound lovely Wolfmother

90 minutes of yoga Professor! Are you finding you are getting more flexible?

Ouch iloveeverykindofcat, that's a lot for some painkillers. I know from experience how hard it is to keep cats still so I hope she is on the mend soon.

Well done on your 10k Crimson!

5 mile WWL done ☑️

Days exercised 143

Your cat sounds like my spirit animal ilove 😂hope she's OK soon.

Well done on the 10k row, CrimsonAlligator

I did a spin class this morning. I was hungover (I too am too old to drink any more) so it wasn't pleasant.

Days exercised 123

Kindofcat, hope the cat is ok soon. One of my cats is also very fat (so many people ask if she's pregnant. I measure her food but I am sure she eats somewhere outside). But she (and my other one) do NOTHING if a stray cat comes in our garden. Just stare. Even if the stray eats their food....

the complex series is one of Caroline Girvan's programs. It's a one week program. Basically I'm going through all her one week programs now while I wait for her to bring out something new. She had the 10 week Epic programs (5 in total) and then she had two 6 weeks programs (Iron and Fuel).

I like following a schedule for exercise as I feel like my whole body gets worked without me having to think what to do each day. On the downside, I tend to do less running and yoga.

Hhhhmm spinning and hangover doesn't sound like the best combo MotherForkin.... so well done for doing it!!

I think I'm scared of Caroline Girvan workouts! Respect to anyone who can follow them! Back to swimming/yoga combo today. Pretty soon I'm going to have to buy heavier weights though, I've gotten a bit stronger. Probably next month after I get paid. @SophieLion I've got two cats as well, one always been slim and the other always been prone to chonk out immediately at the slightest hint of excess food. They're very bonded to each other, and both lovely with people, but would much prefer that no other cats except each other existed in the world. I don't know why.

Cats are weird creatures Cats. Mine are sisters and loved each other until one hurt her leg really badly and needed to stay at the vet for a month. When she came back, the other cat totally rejected her and now they hate each other!!

5km interval run today.

Days exercised 168

Wow Sophie I could have written that exact post! My cats are also sisters and were fine until we took them to get spayed. Took them to the vets in the same carrier no problem, but on the return journey they were killing each other in the carrier! Hated each other ever since .

Walk to/from work

Days exercised 144

Lovely swim today. Could have done longer but i was late to the session so missed a few minutes.
days exercised 124

< limps in >
OW
Who's bright idea was it for me to do this power zone challenge? OW

After posting and then going quiet for 10 days, I did a Pilates session on Friday and ran back from the school run today. It’s only 1.5mi but it’s definitely a start and I hope to do that twice a week, as well as weekly Pilates for my pelvic pain.

I’ve never seen 7 heart rate zones before @PeloAddict (if that is what they are?!). Is that a special cycling thing?

Today’s exercise: 30 minutes slow & steady row. I thought it would never end 🥱 I can’t wait for the speed phase of my training programme to begin. I much prefer the intensity of that type of training to these slightly tedious rows...may be I should have thought of that before signing up to do a 10k 🤣

@CrimsonAlligator it's power zones rather than heart rate zones
Pic attached
FTP is the highest power you can maintain for one hour on the bike

Went for short runs yesterday and today, felt good but only had time for 20-30 min. Planning for a longer run tomorrow and a weight session on Wednesday.

Hope everyone is having a good start to the week!

Think I'm about to try joining a gym. Haven't been happy with the prices at the local pool for a while and there's a gym 10 mins train ride from me that opens at 7am, meaning I could still be back in the morning for the same time. I can't drive because I have visual processing disorder called object blindness (it's not actually blindness, I can see fine, it affects my perception of where objects are in relation to each other and to me, especially if they are moving. So I could never navigate a roundabout safely, for example). I need access to more equipment if I'm actually going to get stronger and leaner now. It's free till October so I'll ring them this morning to check a few things out and then take the plunge I guess!

Had a chat with a fairly helpful guy on a fitness forum last night who I have to say is in amazing shape, but tried to convince me I won't reach my goals without meat. I'm an ethical vegan, more or less. He was nice about it and didn't dismiss my concerns - actually he used to be a vegan himself - but I don't think he's right, I've seen vegans who are absolutely shredded. Not that my goal is to be shredded or anything! I'd like to get my bodyfat comfortably in the low 20s and be stronger and faster.

Complex series day 5 (HIIT) - that's the complex series week finished now. Plus a couple of short abs workouts.

Days exercised 169

I’ve just finished reading a book about sports nutrition @iloveeverykindofcat . Based on that, I’d say that as long as you get enough protein (vegan or otherwise) you should be ok. Iron is important too, as is B12, but as a vegan I’m sure you’re already well aware of all of that.

The only other thing to be aware of is that it’s hard to build muscle on a calorie deficit, so if you’re cutting calories to reach your goal, don’t cut them too hard (no more than 15%). If you have days where you train particularly hard, it’s better to eat maintenance calories on those days and cut the calories a bit more on rest days.

Today’s exercise: 2x6 km steady row

This is the book. It’s very thorough and based on the latest research in this area:

www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Guide-Sports-Nutrition-Guides-dp-1472976940/dp/1472976940/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

@CrimsonAlligator That's what I think too. Especially considering that until a few months ago my two main food groups were sugar and caffeine. No I'm not cutting calories, I'm skinny already and have a high metabolism. I'm actually underweight by BMI but I certainly don't diet for it, I eat at least 2k calories a day. (Feel like an alien on this site sometimes when people swear they maintain a BMI of 23 on 1200 calories a day....I would die). I've now gone from classic skinnyfat to having a bit of definition. Thank you for the book rec!

I fast for 16-20hrs a day and eat one meal (usually lunch) and a snack. Obese still

@PeloFondo oh I believe you, its probably me that's the anamoly. But I don't put too much stock in BMI as applied to individuals to be honest. That's not even what it was designed for.

I’ve just checked the book @iloveeverykindofcat and the recommendation for people trying to build muscle through lifting weights etc is to aim for 1.3-1.7 grams of protein per kg of weight. That’s if you’re doing a “normal” amount of exercise. If you’re exercising multiple times a day, or have particularly gruelling daily sessions, you may want to increase it a bit.

For cardio, 1.2-1.4 grams of protein per kg of weight is enough, but the recommendation is to have more if you’re also trying to lose weight. As you’re not doing that, these figures should be enough for you.

I’m vegetarian and do struggle a bit with my protein intake. I’ve started to aim for 25 grams per meal and 25 grams for snacks. I found that a really useful to break it down and make sure I get enough 💪