Mix It Up!

Guess what, last week I returned to the gym! I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with the gym, with a strong emphasis on the ‘hate’ part. Last December I joined my current gym, a rather cheap one close to my work place. But I only used their treadmills, nothing else. When spring arrived, I completely stopped going, as I prefer outdoor runs.

I’m currently struggling with my motivation to workout, or rather with the lack of motivation. So I’m trying to mix things up, which includes going back to the gym. Last Friday after work I finally went, I rode on one of their stationary bikes for about 20 minutes, and even liked it!

Yesterday I went again, this time I first ran on the treadmill, then I did some abs moves (holy planks!), followed by another bike ride. I was a total sweaty mess, but also happy about getting a great workout.

The Stats:

• Distance: 2 miles (3,2 km)
• Time: 21:45 minutes
• Average pace: 10:56 min/mile
• Feeling: Sweaty

This Friday I have a date with one of the gym’s trainers. Let’s see what she has in store for me.

See you!

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Workout Recap May 2011

So, May is already behind us, and so is my first 5k race! Afterwards I ended up in some kind of workout slump, though, so my mileage dropped a little. But I won’t get upset about it. I’m still running and working out, just a little less.

Running

• 9 times
• Total distance: 29.75 miles (47,88 km)
• Total time: 5:32:26

Other workouts:

• 3 Pilates sessions (3 hours)
• 1 DVD workout (45 minutes)

While I ran less often in May compared to April, I did manage to get some distance records in. My longest run so far was 4.6 miles. Yeah!

My Pilates training was more consistent again. Too bad next week’s class will be the last one for a while. They’re taking a long summer break, but I’ve already signed up for the next class that starts in October.

No biking this month. Somehow we couldn’t find the time. I hope, this will change in June.

My PLANKS training is not going so well, I’m really struggling with it. Guess my training plan sucks? Well, we’ll see where I’ll be at the end.

Have a great weekend!

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Tough As Nails – The PLANKS Challenge

You might have noticed a new icon on the right hand side, the one that reads “Tough As Nails”. Now, what’s this all about? Today marks the start of the PLANKS #Fitblog Challenge.

As we are supposed to design our own plan, that we will follow for the next six weeks, here’s what I’m going to do:

• I will work on my planks 3 times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri)
• Each time I will try to increase my time by 10 seconds
• In my initial test I could hold the plank for 1 min
• My end goal is 4 minutes

Day one was already a success, I held the plank for 1:10 minutes! Let’s see if I can keep up with my plan.

Note: I’m not a fitness professional, so I clearly don’t know what I’m talking about. But you can find some great tips, given by a real expert, over at Morgan’s blog Life After Bagels!

See you!

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