Lifting with Caroline Girvan- keeping it real and having a laugh along the way!

[BigButtons]

New thread!

Rest up @BigButtons, working in a school must be brutal. My cousin works in a primary in the UK and really hates it now, the kids’ behaviour has become so awful, even in reception. And this is a leafy mainly mc area. She’s only holding on as she needs the money.

mini stollens? How could I have forgotten those? I think a trip to Lidl is in order for next weekend. I’ve been given lots of fancy pastries instead, and because they’re so small I’ve been eating 4 at a time. Not great for belly reduction, even with back to back Xmas CG sessions. I’m on the YouTube one again., I was toying with renewing my subscription to the app this month, but I might wait until next when I’m going to be less busy.

Re the round dumbbells, I have those, but then so does CG? I always did wonder how she did renegade rows without them rolling all over the place, but reasoned she must have extra muscles for holding them still that I clearly have not developed. For RRs I just place the opposite hand on the floor, ditto all my push ups are from the floor. I tried the bars but they hurt my hands. Am I doing it wrong, I wonder?

@BigButtons yeah I think you’re right. They use every photo opportunity usually!
Try and rest up and recover over Christmas. Hope you feel better soon.

And yeah that odious pair have been completely absent, thanks for pointing it out! There have indeed been a variety of hitherto unseen names posting the top comment on the app, and a variety of opinions posted on the cgxmas workouts. So refreshing.

I didn't do the cardio because I did a full step class, but I will add that as a finisher tomorrow. BTW anyone looking for a short leg workout without the barbell- this older cgx app leg day was perfect for 2 medium-heavy dumbbells, and only about 25min. Sweaty too with some squat jumps.💦

@BigButtonsTake it easy, you sound really burnt out, so pleased you have been signed off don’t know how teachers today manage (my parents were both teachers, loved the job and the kids, but didn’t care so much for some of the parents).
@Gobacktotheworld2i often do that workout, love it, especially the squat jumps.
@Fibroushope you get back to running soon.
No mince pies here so no temptation, French Christmas food is shellfish, foie gras and some sort of roast but we split that over several meals as we all hate sitting at the table for hours on end. No Boxing Day here either so main meal is split between Christmas Eve and ChristmasDay where I will be doing a CG workout, not sure what. Due to social events this weekend it was the Full body kettlebell on the app as I only need to get out a couple of kettlebells instead of the bench and all the weights! Cardio at the moment is spin because the weather is too shit to go out on my gravel bike. And lots of dog walks of course.

Thanks for all the love🥰
I did the new cardio one today- bloody tough. I have got so unfit but I felt on a real high after it and will try to include it a week just to help with cv fitness.
thanks for the leg session suggestion @Gobacktotheworld looks good.
I am certainly feeling sore after these new Xmas sessions.

Today’s CGXmas on the app was the most disgusting workout ever. Everything I fucking hate in one half hour torture session. RDLs - fine, whatever. Sissy squats? 90 seconds of them? With no alternative suggested? I can do about two and with appalling form, and they’re certainly not something I’d choose for a relaxed Christmas workout. I did normal squats instead. One legged ball rollouts? GET IN THE BIN. I can’t do the fuckers. By this point I was about boiling with rage. Did one-legged bodyweight bridges instead. Bulgarians? FUCK OFF. I did them but with what can only be described as extremely bad grace.

Anyway I did the bastard workout but I’d like everyone to know I didn’t enjoy it.

Hahaha Atomic. I didn't do yesterday's endless upper supersets one or today's shitty sissy / stability ball session. Sometimes a workout with Caroline just seems to be designed to feel hard/oppressive rather than necessarily be effective.

Honestly I should have binned it off and gone back to bed but it’s DD’s birthday tomorrow so I’ll be up a bit earlier opening presents with her so no time for a workout tomorrow. So I felt obliged to see this through, and I never really read the overview before I start so I didn’t see the true horror of it.

Haha that made me laugh @AtomicBlondeRose
But you know what I quite like the sound of that workout!(am I off your christmas card list now?😀)
Probably because I've never tried sissy squats so looking forward to something new,
I hate Bulgarian lunges with a passion and refuse to do them haha

lol @AtomicBlondeRose ! I quite like the sound of this one. I don’t mind sissy squats . I just hold onto something and go as low as feels comfortable. Wall sits are a good alternative.
i didn’t mind yesterdays push/ pull one either. These are tough little sessions and I am sore all over. My lats are really feeling it today and glutes still sore from Monday

I can't do sissy squats at all. I do heel raise squats instead (she normally suggests those as an alternative doesn't she?). I was going to do this one tomorrow but not so sure now. One legged stability ball rollouts?? Sounds like an accident waiting to happen. I have strangely got used to bulgarians (probably as they feature so often in her workouts).

@Anjelika I found it very do able- don’t be put off! I subbed the sissy squats for wall sits and as a change up did staggered awaits for the Bulgarians. The roll outs hurt but were only 30 seconds a side. My quads will hurt tomorrow for sure!

I did it, also swapped out the sissy squats for normal squats. I did try sissy squats for the first time ever and discovered that they are not for me. I deflated my stability ball as soon as it started appearing in iron Pro, strangely i was happy enough with it rolling about when i had no use for it but I needed an excuse to not do roll outs! I do bridges or the hamstring focused hip thrusts unstead. Tbh I find a 90s set of anything too long, I get bored in that time, 45s is enough. So I'm with you Atomic, today was not a favourite.

One legged roll outs are a staple of another trainer I do (I think CG borrows quite a few of her moves) and they are doable but cramp sets in. Feels like heavier staggered RDL and lighter hamstring curls both do a better job.

Staggered RDLs with one leg on the bench are top tier to me. I could do those all day.

I love staggered RDLs. I dont have a stability ball and will likely keep it that way.

I actually love my ball. I absolutely love didn’t for a long time mind.it is a respite/ love it when it appears.

I missed yesterdays as I was travelling and checked in here earlier and got the fear. But I managed yesterday’s and today’s earlier ok. I haven’t done a sissy squat before. It was fine! It’s lunges that are my nemesis.

I don’t have a stability ball either and no plans to get one anytime soon. It would just be another thing my greyhounds decide to get in the way of.

my watch is telling me I’m ill again and I couldn’t face my run this morning so I think it’s right. So many bloody viruses doing the rounds - I succumb every time I leave my village it seems.

Oh no @Fibrous . I hope whatever it is doesn’t hang round for long. Out is interest how does you watch tell you you are ill? Mine just berates me for not moving enough . Which I haven’t been as I have been snuggled down in my house all week trying to recover some energy. If is curse sometimes that watch.

@Fibrousyes, I hope your watch is wrong! Is it your HRV? Mine tanks when I’m ill (or if I drink alcohol 😂). My Garmin is surprisingly accurate, sometimes I don’t feel ill but if my HRV starts dropping I know it’s not good. it’s actually pretty good on calorie burn too despite all fitness influencers saying they are rubbish.

Yes it’s my HRV! I was sceptical at first but it does seem accurate. I’d stopped with the coughing and phlegm but it came back yesterday alongside the hrv drop. I don’t feel as tired today though so hoping it’s just a couple of days of taking it easier in store.

This is a new watch, my DP bought it for me a couple of months ago for my birthday and it has a lot of bells and whistles. I wanted it because it does navigation as I’m always getting lost on the moors, but the health info is providing quite useful and does seem to reliably know when I’m too tired to train etc. I didn’t find this info very accurate on previous watch incarnations which always just told me I needed days to recover after any physical activity at all.

What's HRV? I have an apple watch where would it show on there if I'm unwell?

It’s on the health app, the one with the heat symbol on your phone, along with resting heart rate, active calories, oxygen saturation, variations to HR when you sleep etc.

But my HRV goes up and down, but never by much do I assume I’m fine? What level
of variation denotes illness? I’m on 29 now, my monthly average is 35, but when it drops it’s a slow drop.

Thanks so what am I looking for in there? I’ve just checked and the numbers seem normal? Why would have to change for me to notice? Thank you