Monday Motivation: 6 days until Spartan Day

Monday Motivation: 6 days until Spartan Day

by TartanJogger ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I cannot believe it, less than a week to go. Oh my! This training period had flown by in a flash, and I’m only now feeling fully recovered from my injury. 

 I feel like I did last week: part excited, part filled with trepidation, but what will be will be. Last week’s training went a little awry: lack of numbers meant that Jacqui had to cancel Monday and Tuesday night’s classes, which was a really difficult call for her- but I agree that she can’t run them for very small numbers of attendees. It’s just a shame when it happens to her (and is) at short notice. It put a little more focus on what I had to do for myself, so on both nights I did some strength training and ran, managing 5k on Monday and 4 miles on Tuesday. I know it’s always more difficult to train by myself than to put in the effort at class, but I pushed myself with some challenging moves including box jumps (eek) and sandbag lifts. I then ran 5k again on Wednesday to test my tired legs and I struggled, but I’m very glad I pushed through as I’ll have to keep going with tired legs on Sunday. 

I was then in London from Thursday through to Sunday night, so I didn’t get any training in – unless you count an average of 15,000 steps per day and lugging a suitcase about with me!

Tonight, we were back at WAR and I pushed it: it was really hot, really sweaty, but I felt much more capable than I have in weeks and weeks, with the strength returning in my legs for the balance moves and the jumping lunges. Progress indeed! I’m sure I’ll have DOMS tomorrow, but that’s fine with me 😆 I also worked my shoulders, chest and core hard with some full press ups and I tried to focus on my form when doing planks and side planks. 💪🏻

I have my bag packed for tomorrow, I’m hoping to squeeze in a run before PiYo tomorrow night, again just to really push myself. Bring it on! 

This is my focus for the week: I hope it resonates with you, too. Have a strong week! 😎

Monday Motivation: 13 days to Spartan Race Day

Monday Motivation: 13 days to Spartan Race Day

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Yip, you read that correctly. In two weeks, it will all be over. Hopefully I’ll be a Spartan Warrior 💪🏻

My training has been pretty solid this week, and I’m almost back to full fitness, while accepting that there will be some obstacles I’ll really struggle with. C’est la Vie.

Last Monday I worked really hard at WAR, pushing myself during the HIIT sections to really get the most out of it. We had a new routine, and boy did I feel it on Tuesday! Jacqui provided me with yet more invaluable techniques on Monday night using resistance bands, so I’ve been building them in to my training this week. Thanks as ever, Jacqui! 

Tuesday was a good day for training, I managed a Doubler by getting in a 5k run along Helensburgh seafront followed by an hour of PiYo stretch and Flow. I needed it after the previous evening’s hard work! 

I made it along to Jog Scotland on Wednesday and my intention was to drop back and do an easier run. However I just can’t resist the glen road, so I went with the Improvers 1 group for a little hill run instead. And I’m glad I did- it was a fab run! 

Thursday night’s PiYo class was cancelled so I did some cross training but kept it quite light. It was good to mix things up a bit. I then had a rest day on Friday, followed by a busy Saturday that left little time for structured exercise. I did do a good bit of weeding so my shoulders got a workout and I did plenty of squats, that’s for sure! I’m classing that as functional training 😉

Tonight, we had no WAR class due to last minute cancellations but instead I ran and did some strength training. Go me! 

All in all, I still have mixed feelings about the Spartan Sprint- I’m really looking forward to taking on such a different type of event and testing myself, but I’m a little anxious about some of the obstacles. I’m sure I’ll manage to drag myself over and under some stuff and I’ll have to rely on TheWelshWookie and others to shove or drag me over and through others! 

We are off to London later this week, so I’ll be trying to get as much training in during this early part of the week. Make the most of it while I can! 

 Have a brilliant week!

Monday Motivation: Three Weeks Until Spartan Day

Monday Motivation: Three Weeks Until Spartan Day

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I can’t believe that, in three week’s time, it will all be over and I’ll have- hopefully- completed my first Spartan Run. Eek! This is hurtling towards me at an accelerated pace, and I’m hoping that my nod towards training is enough to see me through.

As I said in last Monday’s post I started the week with WAR. And I had DOMS for days, I definitely pushed myself! On Tuesday I did a 5k run/ walk which felt good, but reminded me that my body isn’t quite 100% yet, my left leg still felt a bit off and weak. I’m hoping that my runs this week will show an improvement, but who knows. 

I had an unanticipated busy week, with a trip to Islay on Wednesday meaning that I missed my regular Jog Scotland run. I was out on Thursday night and so I missed PiYo but I managed a walk and a little cross training on both nights which was better than nothing. Since then, I’ve had visitors all weekend for the Seafood Festival, which is one of the best weekends of the year in Tarbert. This year was no different: it was really wet but we had great fun, great food, excellent company and a few cheeky drinks including the newest addition to the local gin collection: Kintyre Gin   I’ve had a day off today, which had mostly been spent getting beds stripped and washed, and catching up on a few things around the house. We have a quiet weekend coming up, with no visitors which will be nice as we’ve enjoyed company for the past three weekends. I’m hoping that this week will give me a chance to keep my fitness goals on track. I’m heading to WAR later today, we’ll see how that goes after such a busy weekend 😉 

We then have a trip to London planned before the Spartan Race, so I’ll be doing what I can between times to keep up. Eeek! Here’s some Monday Motivation that I’m holding on to- I hope it works for you!

Monday Motivation: More Spartan Training

Monday Motivation: More Spartan Training

by TartanJogger ♥ 3 Comments

Pheeee-ew! What a busy weekend! We had our end of class salsa night out on Friday, our Ceilidh-come-Fèis-Showcase on Saturday and a lovely day out to Portavadie on Sunday. My parents were here, so it was good fun to catch up and relax. But it did mean that I didn’t get much training done over the weekend.

Before that, though, I’d made good progress in my attempt to become a SpartanJogger: I didn’t get to WAR on Monday or PiYo on Tuesday: I’d had some adjustments from the miracle working Osteopath on Monday so I gave my body some time to adjust, but I felt brilliant afterwards.

On Wednesday I ran. Yay! 

First run in five weeks. It was a slow, steady three miler chatting with Emily so the time flew by. It was also torrential rain- we had thunder, lightening and overflowing drains to contend with, but we got it done. Why does running in the rain make you feel so bad ass?

Thursday was my first full- power PiYo session for some time and it felt great to be back to some degree of strength and flexibility. Jacqui loaned me some kit so that I can work on strength training in advance of the Spartan race, which is brilliant- and very kind of her. I now have a box jump, medicine balls which I can use as they are intended for or in a hold-all to replicate a sand bag. Jacqui gave me some really really good tips on some training ideas and exercises so I’ll be testing those out in the coming few weeks. 

Friday night was our last Salsa class- boo 😔I’ll miss it: the fun, the footwork, the cameraderie- hopefully we’ll have a chance to do it again.

So, all in all, I have definitely made progress in my work towards the Spartan race. Yay!

Tonight I gave it my all at WAR. I’m almost back to my old self: I definitely still have some weakness in my left leg, and it did collapse under me when I was doing some jump lunges. But for other parts of the class I dug in deep and kept focussed. I imagined myself in four weeks, ready to run and as strong as I could be 💪🏻, so I worked HARD and used my weighted gloves as much as possible.

 My plan for tomorrow night is to get in a solid run and to follow it up with some circuit exercises- if I’m not too sore after tonight’s class. I want to test my body a little, pushing it on while trying not to set back my recovery. 

We’ll see how that goes and I’ll report back to you next week 👍🏻, meanwhile I hope this resonates with you:  How is your training going? 

Have a good week 🙂

Monday Motivation 

Monday Motivation 

by TartanJogger ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hello! How has your week been? Did you have a busy weekend? Are you loving this weather? Not that we’d know here in Argyll- we haven’t seen the glorious sunshine or high temperatures that most of you have had. Ah, well 😏

I’m not going to bore you with the details of my training last week, since I shared that with you all yesterday. You don’t need to read that lot twice! 

I just wanted to pop by and give you a dose of motivation, if you need it 👍🏻 After our walk on Saturday I thought that this would work: 

 Have a great week!

SpartanJogger Training Continues 

SpartanJogger Training Continues 

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Well, in a fashion it does. And by fashion I mean this rather swish Spartan Ambassador Tee 😉   As the weeks go by, I’m feeling much more like my old self physically, but I still have a way to go with some numbness in my right thigh, triceps and upper back. My left knee isn’t collapsing nearly as much but I’ve not ventured a run on it yet. 

I had a great night at WAR last Monday working on my core, legs and arms in particular but I didn’t use my weighted gloves- I’m planning to add them back in tomorrow night, if my osteopath appointment goes ok. I was a bit wobbly in the legs last week, too, but much improved from the previous week. 

Yesterday, @TheWelshWookie and I went for a long, hilly walk in the woodlands above Tarbert, getting in six miles which was a real achievement: I felt ok physically, with my left leg struggling a little only in the downhill sections. 

The view was gorgeous:   When we got back, I did some work comparing my current training to the Spartan guide and there are some gaps I need to work on. Granted, I’m very happy that I’m already working hard on squats, lunges, planks, press ups and other key strength exercises, but I do have some gaps to address:

Bear Crawls: I’ll need to work on these to get my butt under the barbed wire. Not sure what to do beyond focussing on dropping my hips when holding a plank.

Pull Ups: Nope. Definitely a gap for me. Not sure I’ll ever manage pull ups so I’m going to rely on The Wookie punting me up ropes and walls 😆. Meanwhile I’ll work on my next gap:

Box Jumps: I’ve asked The Wookie to find a suitable implement we can use for practicing these- my coffee table is too high, higher than a dining chair. Still working on this one for now but I know it will be a critical one.

Sandbag Lifts: we’ve been working on imaginary sandbag lifts at WAR so I’ll have to really focus on this, and see if there’s something I can use in the meantime to build some strength here.

Not too bad, though, four key areas for development in terms of strength.

In the coming week I’m hoping to try a short run/walk/run so wish me luck with that, it’s been five weeks since my last run so I’m missing it terribly! 

All in all, training is slow: my focus has been in recovery and on returning to fitness in a measured way. Long may it continue but with five weeks until the Spartan run I hope that my improvements build momentum as my confidence in what I can do returns. 😀

Monday Motivation: Spartan Training Begins

Monday Motivation: Spartan Training Begins

by TartanJogger ♥ 2 Comments

Yes, it begins. Slowly. But better than nothing.

I’m still unable to run, but my mobility has improved a little meaning that last week I managed to get my sorry butt back to classes. With one eye on the Spartan Sprint in six weeks, I started last Monday with WAR. I didn’t use my weighted gloves, and I kept to low intensity moves, but it felt great to be there 👍🏻

On Tuesday I went to PiYo Stretch and Flow which is more gentle than the Thursday class. While I missed my usual run, I felt that I was helping my body by doing as much as I could to keep up. My left leg was driving me crazy and had a mind of its own but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I planned to join the walkers group at Jog Scotland on Wednesday night but it was cancelled. Undeterred, I walked 5k myself and I kept the pace up as much as I could manage. 

All in all, the week was a real improvement on the previous few. 

This week, I’ve been back at WAR again and I managed some higher intensity work- but I’m still limited. I do feel that I’m making progress so I’m focusing on that. But I really want to get training for the Spartan Sprint more intensely while not setting myself back. I’m sure that will come in the next week or so. I’m waiting for some training tips to come through, so that should help!  It I can’t help. It feel worried when I see images like this:

Eeek! All I can do is focus, train and do my best.

I hope that this resonates with you as much as it does with me right now:

Have a good week!