So today was day 8 of Juneathon and I felt like I needed some encouragement. Yesterday I started a training plan to work up to 5k. Small beans for most other folk doing Juneathon but big for me. As I am trying to integrate Juneathon and exercise in general into my lifestyle I felt like an appropriate reward was some new running tights. Initially I went looking for some that were somewhere in between my winter-weight-nicely-compressing ones and my lightweight-cheap-at-Aldi-not-supportive-at-all-ones. Winter ones are too warm now and the Aldi ones are…well…well they show my lumpy bits off a little too realistically for my liking. As I am not too comfortable with the world knowing that I am growing an extra buttock under each normal buttock, I was delighted when I found these:
Rather hideously called Skapri, they are actually really comfortable and looks far better on that it looks in the picture. For a start my leg to arse ratio is different (more of both) so the skirt is more fitted. Hmmm maybe it’s just that my thighs fill it more. Ach, enough self absorption. So, for those of us who, like me, would not be seen dead outside of a park wearing “leggings” they are a nice compromise. Now I can run places and do my chores and run back.
I’m sure that I’ll get perfectly used to wearing running gear in the supermarket but right now, it’s just embarassing. It’s bad enough being nuclear reactor red in the face from the exertion without also looking like a badly packed sausage.
I also found some of these for a too-cheap-to-walk-passed price (but of course in black!Who wears white socks? People who don’t do their own washing or have too much time on their hands, that’s who!):
The purchase of the new togs was preceded by a lovely lunch with a old work colleague so it really felt like a treat myself nicely day.
I have been thinking today about rewards. I rewarded myself today by buying myself some new togs and having a lunch out. At the end of Juneathon I’m having a really good quality full body massage to thank my legs for carrying me through. I may also reward myself at the half way point too but have no idea what with yet – suggestions more than welcome.
This got me thinking about why I am doing Juneathon. I want to get fitter and feel better in my body. Strength and increased activity should equal decreased pain levels and more endolphins swimming around my systems – so there’s the primary reward…but my motivation slipped in week one so I clearly need further rewards and incentives to keep going. At first this made me sad, that the primary reward was not enough but I saw several other layers to this:
- I ‘need’ to get fitter – the ‘want‘ sometimes slips under the sofa
- I am essentially very lazy
No-one else in my house is an exercise bunny so it’s a shame for me I’m learning to be self-motivating and do things on my own for me.- Rewards are good –
why the hell shouldn’t I be earning more rewards? I reward my family and OH but rarely myself.
I was also surprised at the community that exists in Juneathon and the motivation and inspiration that comes with it – not only from directly asking for some but also from the desire to fulfill the challenge. I won’t let myself read other people’s blogs until I have done my own. I don’t want to stop being part of this group and therefore I have to keep at it.
There is also the added bonus of the fact that all this time (before Juneathon) I was blogging away, plotting my track towards fitness and very few people were actually reading it! I’m not a self publicist and really was blogging to encourage myself but readers has made a big difference. I’m starting to think about what I say before it falls out of the my fingertips! This may not be a good thing!
So that’s the reward part of the title covered.
Reduce is my looking to reduce the amount of time I spend planning and thinking about exercising and increase the amount of time I spend doing the exercise. Sounds simple eh? 🙂 As I saw someone else blog the other day, apparently there is a common phenomenon among Juneathoners (hehehe say that aloud!) to eventually try to crowbar exercise into their normal daily activities. I don’t exactly live a hectic life but I seem to have fallen foul of this already. Well, I bought the socially acceptable running tights anyway! Now just got to use them to run in public – eeeek!
Today was intentionally a light exercise days. So far I have walked to the post office and taken the dog to the park – about 1.5 miles and completed the initial test and week one day one of the 100 push ups programme. Oh. My. God! Now I was merrily doing this programme before until I looked for a link and found that I had skipped a stage! The initial test grades where you are now and then puts you into the right level. I just presumed that I was in the “Lightweight” group and got on with it. My upper body strength and core strength are appalling so I was also doing them on my knees. As I was starting afresh I decided to do them properly on my toes and do the initial test. Now I’m not a great one for reading instructions and doing as I’m told so I got 50% of the way there – I read the instructions and then ignored them telling me to rest a couple of days between thee initial test and starting the programme (impatient? Moi?) I managed 11 good form push ups on my toes and this put me in level 3 (most people are in 2 or 3). So I started the app on my phone and the corresponding level was heavy weight!!!! Eeeeek! This should have been encouraging but I’m having a meep day so just intimidated me a bit! Stoopid woman!
Anyway, the programme in total was 45 push ups and it really was challenging! Far more than on my knees lightweight setting!! What a surprise! So in total I did 56 good form push ups. This also seemed to really work my abs keeping my core stable so I’m missing off the abs programme today and my back is still twinging.
I’m planning to do the 20 minute yoga workout before bed tonight to stretch myself out in anticipation of working hard at bootcamp tomorrow. It’s going to be nice and muddy as it’s been pouring down today. Is it wrong that I like the muddy ones best? The damp play havoc with my asthma and the slippy grass makes turning on the short runs tricky but I like the getting mucky…and it’s far cooler than the sunny sessions!
So pretty good outputs today for a light day!
Breakfast: coffee and *ahem* more coffee. Craptastic I know but we had nothing in and I went for lunch shortly after I got up!
Lunch: Stir fried beef, pak choi and ginger with boiled rice and a mango juice
Dinner: Quorn vegetables and rice currently under construction by my OH in the kitchen.
Need to up my fluid intake today as it’s currently rubbish – does a large G+T count? Nah, I didn’t think so 🙂
See you tomorrow.
thighwillbegone 