Thanks for the encouragement CC Gally :)
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Thanks for the encouragement CC Gally :)
Wednesday
Cycled from Gawler train station out to Roseworthy, braved the heat and flies as long as I could and cycled back. Got home in time to have a quick shower before getting ready for training because as gross as I get from training all the bugs and dirt and plant matter that accumulates in all the wrong places and really, really needs to be cleansed!
Back hates me from field work. I don't want to jar it by skipping so I stretch in between rounds of footwork and shadow to warm up. Do about 5 rounds on the bags with Leonard's mental advice in mind and I think I kinda get what he means but still need to work on it.
Notice that Anthony is working with some guy i don't know. He looks like a beginner when they spar but then is holding pads for Anthony and giving him instructions. I think Anthony is just too polite to ignore what he's saying (Anthony is the most experienced in the gym but also the most humble and unlikely to insult anyone) then I realise he actually makes sense.
When he's finished with Anthony I ask him to hold pads for me too. Poor guy was just about to finish. :) I do a few rounds with him and really enjoy the different things he shows me. He's out of practice himself but still remembers a few tricks which are good fun.
I cycle back to uni - Waite campus. had to make up some solutions for the lab. It's my lab job to make these up even if I'm in the field and have no ideas we've run out. I have to cycle here and have just finished at 11:30 pm to cycle home again. it's not the way I'd like to be training but i guess with all the cycling I got some cardio and some boxing in today and at least temporarily have avoided attack of the lab shrews who await an excuse to pounce.
I'm not the only student here which kinda sucks because when most other people still find themselves doing late nights without training taking up time I'm not sure how I'm supposed to keep up. Also check my uni email for the first time in a few days and have a lovely progress report to do by next Tuesday which pretty much means I've got an exciting weekend coming up! :P :-X
Thursday
Day in the field. Bus it out today so no cycling. Don't train before leaving but fit in boxing training plus another session of weights afterwards.
Boxing
6 rounds skipping
Partner footwork with Kristine - I get her to take control with verbal cues to signal who follows who in the first few rounds and who is attacking and who is running away in the next few.
We do a similar thing then with partner shadow sparring. We work alternating roles between attack and defence and in fighter and out fighter for about 4 or 5 rounds. I have to say I'm having heaps of fun.
I don't know why I'm in such a good mood but my mum commented by email last week when I was stressing out that i was probably on edge because I was hungry. I've been eating whatever I want since the weekend and perhaps enjoying it a little too much :)
Kristine finishes up because she started training early and i finish off with 3 rounds on the floor to ceiling ball, about 4 hard rounds on the bag and about 10 minutes on the medicine balls. It's been a while since I worked on my balance with them and I have to say I really suck! I finish with a quick stretch and then go to the aquatic centre.
Eat a protein bar for dinner and start weights. Low reps, high weight, 4 mins break between sets. Deadlift with jumps straight after each set, Dumbell chest press with clap pushups, Lat pull downs and weighted incline bench situps.
Then cycle home (not far) and before I go inside I do a 5 min jog to warm up, about 10 short sprints (maybe 100 or 150 metres) with walk recovery and 5 mins cool down. Cardio session is only just over 20 minutes so quick but i guess better than nothing.
Went to bed after 10:30 Thursday night but have to get up at 4:15 am Friday morning. Long day in the field and in this heat I jump at the chance to get a lift out there to start by 6 am. I finish at about 1:30 pm having only a few short drink and food breaks. Seems like a long day and I'm absolutely stuffed. Have a decent lunch (steak sandwich with the lot plus chips - still eating whatever :)) back at Roseworthy campus and then (after showering off all the dirt) jump in the pool. Damn that's nice after working in 38 oC heat all day! My work boots are black and my feet were even beginning to cook!
I was fairly careful with sunscreen but in the Australian sun it's not easy to not get burnt. I've managed to forget a spot - lower back plumbers crack! and have a large red sunburn welt across my ass! Why didn't the field guys tell me I was exposing myself! :-\
Probably should have tried to make more of a work out of the swim but have only 30 mins before I have to catch the bus back. It's soooo nice just to cool down I try to work on my form a little - keeping my core strong, leading with the elbow and using my full stroke length for freestyle. Since I've missed Judo for 2 weeks now I also practice my tumbles and I get dizzy easily - looks like you loose your ability to not feel that if you don't keep doing the tumbles regularly.
Rested a home for a bit before boxing training. Did 6 rounds of skipping and then partnerwork footwork and shadow sparring with Kristine. We then do chase aswell. We alternate within the rounds who is attacking and defending taking turns to call it. It's a fun session but the heat is a killer. At least come Queensland in December I'll be used to the heat! Originally planned to do something after training like weights but have decided to take the night off because my body hates me. Will get a good night's sleep tonight and try to stretch tomorrow to make up for all the bending over and heat stress I've caused it this week!
Saturday - off needed it
Sunday - interclub sparring at Golden Grove. Over 1 hr cycling there - the last 30 mins uphill. Was a b**ch just getting there and felt tired before I started but was allowed to be a bit conservative with my energy until I had to start sparring. It's so hot at the moment they're not pushing us really hard.
I get to try out hitmandonny's starting technique and I like it :) Have 2 new sparring partners this time. Heavier, taller people (one 81 kg girl, a guy of average height and a tall skinny dude) but they don't try to take my head off so it's actually lighter than usual.
With the guy of average height he has this really irritating way of holding his lead hand. It's on an angle but high. makes it easy for him to go over the top of any lead punch and difficult to counter. The only way i could deal with him was by switching to southpaw and using a lead right hand jab to go over his lead hand. I'm not entirely happy with that because I don't want to have to switch to a weaker stance to tackle that kind of guard. I think that's dangerous. If anyone has any better ideas please, please, please tell me!
With the tall guy I struggled to get in a bit but right at the end of my last round it dawns on me that I don't have to go straight in against the dude. I can just step to the left when he jabs, slip inside his jab and land my own because he drops his right.
I like that I worked that out but I don't like that it took me so long to do it. If it took me that long in a fight I would have lost - i guess the only comfort being girls my own weight won't be that tall and if they are they shouldn't be strong enough to push me backwards every time I do get in like he does.
Cycle about 30 mins to mums for a free feed and a lift home :)
Monday
Still trying to work out how to program things in but haven't come up with any magic solutions just yet.
Do a 45 minute workout at boxing before going to judo. Includes skipping and shadow rounds with sprints and core work, hamstring exercises and pushups in between rounds. Also do some balance work on the medicine balls in the last 5 minutes to cool down. Tricky stuff now I'm working on all directions but I can see it being beneficial in the long term.
Judo
Usual warm up - mix of exercises for abs and weird pushups, rolls etc. My bro takes me and another white belt for some work. He's very technical which is good. Much more detailed in what he wants to see us doing compared to the other coach. My head hurts by the end of the session and I see we both have a similar approach to learning things - we're fussy picky podantic freaks! i like that though - I'd rather learn it properly the first time!
Tuesday
Night boxing
OK I haven't really got a structure for the week in mind specifically. I intend to go by how my body is feeling a bit also using my resting heart rate and the feeling of my muscles after warming up to decide what kind of session my body is ready for - hard and explosive, moderate or easy.
I do however have a structure for what i expect to have in every workout for the next few weeks - starting off with some cardio and core work to warm up, then some stretching - enough to get a little benefit but not enough to cool down - then the main workout - either running or boxing - followed by more core work and stretching.
Core here meaning not only ab work but back work, a little hamstring and bum stuff and hip raises (stand on edge of ring or curb with one foot, hold body straight and raise and lower the other hip). I have noticed that sometimes when i do the hip one my back clicks and I'm sure that having one side weaker than the other might contribute the back issues I tend to have.
So that's what I did, main boxing workout involved shadow and bag work. I like how my power is much better when I have my core engaged and my lower back sort of straight. I got the idea from Judo feeling how much easier it is to carry the weight of another person on the correct part of your back and feeling the way you automatically hold your back and hips to brace for the person you're throwing (so they can pull on the ghi to slow their descent). Early days yet but I think the same applies to getting power in boxing.
After boxing a quick feed and some water and the same format for a run. The main workout consisting of 30 mins run - 6 min warm up, then minute on and minute off for the remaining 24 minutes. I'm limiting all my runs to this short, demeaning pidly time for a while because I have to admit I pull up with a sore back from longer runs because of the poor posture I have over longer runs. I need to improve my core before I can build my mileage.
So that's the plan - no swimming or heavy weights until after the national - a decision made partially due to economic factors (aquatic centre membership has expired but I need to pay for flight to the nationals as first priority) aswell as time constraints. It makes sense to me though - it's too late to build a lot of muscle before the nationals and if I work my core properly and stretch properly I should be able to get a good cardio workout from running without hurting myself.
Wednesday lunch run
Do a few sets of straight and oblique crunches and some bridging exercises to work my core then a 30 minute jog. Legs feel heavy and even a slow pace feels difficult. That's what i get for stuffing up my back bending over in a field all last week so i can char grill my ass! My stride is shorter than it should be - i think due to the same tightness that's got my back feeling like it's meant to belong to the 80 year old me rather than me now. I try to stretch a bit after the run and have difficulty stretching my right hip flexor - that'd be part of my problem i guess but it's difficult to isolate.
Wednesday Night
Quick 50 minute boxing workout. Skipping, core work, shadow and ball balance work. Young Micheal who's had knee problems the doctors can't help him with stands in front of me looking miserable. I try to give him a pep talk about how just because things don't get better as quickly as the doctors say they should it doesn't mean they won't. if he rests his knee and goes easy on it and ices it a bit he'll come good. Funnily enough he also has a dip in his lower back where it goes in - same as me and sometimes gets back pain. I wonder if - despite our huge age difference - we have a similar problem?
Energy levels are a bit low and despite my heart rate not being as high as when pushing in the same kind of workout on Monday I feel a bit flat. Feel like I get good flow in the shadow work though.
Judo
Worked with a blue belt beginners coach today, throwing and being thrown by same white belt as on Monday night. I weight 55-54 kg, he weighs 85 kg. I can easily feel the difference when I'm throwing him properly since he's suddenly a LOT lighter. It's fun - even being thrown now I'm getting comfortable with falling properly - feels like a ride at the show :).
They are talking about grading us for our yellow belts soon. I know if Judo was my main sport I'd be gagging for it but with nationals coming up for boxing soon I really don't care either way. Nice of them to have our continual progression in mind though - i like how organized they are!
After Judo I have dinner with my bro and we discuss mental preparation and general preparation for competition. He has a lot to say which makes sense and I've got some homework to do. Things to find out about my opponents, the competition in general and tactics to think about for a few situations - plus what the limitations of my pre-fight observations might be and how to know when to stick to and abort from the path I've taken in a fight. Eg i might be doing something and suddenly be hit with a close to KO punch coming from somewhere - I won't stay there with my little jabs but get the F**k out and look for her third arm! Not a likely scenario but having thought about that before just in case makes sense!
Thursday Morning
OK sooky la la time
Tried to run - only managed less than 20 mins before having to stop. My back has been HATING me all week since field work last week and it refuses to loosen up. Basically when I try to run my body has an "F you b**tch! Die b*tch!" kinda response. Back hurt, stride was messed up and not my left knee but my RIGHT knee didn't like it! BS my knee pain and back pain aren't related!!!!
I finished off the 30 minutes doing my version Scraps vertical treadmill idea but heart rate is so low I'm not sure I can really class this morning's efforts as a workout. I'm tempted to just go out and run for 2 or 3 hours until something either breaks properly or gives up on hurting me - I don't have time though since I've got a chiro appointment this afternoon.
Perhaps that's something to try after the nationals. Resting and stretching doesn't seems to be a magic solution and I'm sick of reminiscing about the days I used to be a runner. It's ironic I feel this way the day after trying to console Micheal about his knee problem!
OK I'm a goob and I've finished cracking my sooky la la :-[. Went to the chiro - got a few answers RE why my back is so screwed at the moment. One is my sleeping position. Lying on my back with my left leg straight and right bent causes my right glut to tighten up - I've been wondering why that's tight for a while now! The other being the bending of the field work which I kinda knew. She adjusted a few things but because everything is so tight she couldn't do a lot. I have to have tonight off.
I also asked her if it would have been such a bad thing for me to keep running and it is a stupid as it sounds. Apparently I've inflamed a joint in my back so even if I warmed up and made all the ligaments feel good it would have only masked the problem temporarily and caused worse pain later when i cooled down. Bad idea!
mental note to self - make an appointment for the afternoon of my last day in the field when doing field work coz it's bound to screw my back and stick to known 'safe' sleeping positions if possible. She showed me a couple of stretches to try to release the tight part of my right glut but I couldn't feel them and she said it's a difficult area to stretch so I think prevention is much better than cure in this case!
I stretched my gluts before I went to bed Thursday night a little and when i also woke up this morning.
No exercise until later tonight since the chiro said to take 24 hours off. I plan to make a habit of stretching properly before bed and when I get up from now on. I once read an interview with a female runner who had gone from average to elite in a relatively short space of time. She said she stretched for 30 mins every morning. It didn't suprise me that she said stretching was so important but at the time the significance of her timing didn't register.
When you think about it dogs, cats, most animals have a good stretch when they get up in a relaxed state. We don't because we've scared ourselves shitless with blaring alarm clocks and are immediately in a rush to go somewhere or do something. Also I'm a blissfully sound sleeper and if for whatever reason i sleep in a dodgy position I'm gonna hold that for hours so of course it's going to be just as bad - if not worse than what I do in training.
I also wouldn't be surprised if having some back pain from field work had something to do with the position I feel asleep in - perhaps it's a vicious circle. Maybe that's why having almost a week off of field work didn't actually make my back feel any better but worse instead.
It all seems so obvious now but I've been training for years and never caught onto this idea before - i wonder how many more stupid things I've missed. I might just have to get used to feeling like and idiot!
Friday night boxing -
A more or less normal session minus the skipping. Did partnerwork with Kristine and high tempo sparring. Was good fun. Luckily movement doesn't seem to be too badly effected. Either the chiro did a damn good job or my back problem is mainly only restrictive to my running. Weird!
Saturday
Morning boxing with Kristine. Ended up being a light session, stretching before and after with help from each other. Worked on a combo which used to be one of my favourites that I'm a bit rusty on these days. That's the thing about having been in several gyms over the years. You get moulded into several different shapes and for a long time that's a disadvantage - it's confusing and you're always a beginner. Now I'm at the stage where I can see how I'm a beginner and I think have a clearer idea of what I have to improve. It's when you can't perform well and you don't know why that it gets to you.
Night self massage and stretch. Lots of heated baby oil, sitting in front of the heater murdering my own legs, drinking several litres of water. Whatever has happened to my back feels like it's made my legs spasm and I really need to spend several hours on them. I think it helps though. Fell asleep wearing my skins in case they really do work :).
Sunday
State training in the morning. Loooong warm up since there are a lot of people who need to spar. Biggest people go first and as one of the smallest I'm last. I do 4 rounds straight with Omar. I'm happy with the way I'm moving. Omar seems to have learnt how to spar softly since he is very controlled with me and the guys before me. Went well :).
Mum was passing through the city since she had her first triathlon of the season this morning (yes were all freaks!). She dropped by my house and gave me a much needed and appreciated back massage. Fantastic :)
Sunday night got to go over my mum's for a free feed (I know I'm spoilt :)) and scabbed a massage off my sister. She wasn't going to say no because it was my birthday Friday and she was too busy being a flusy with her new boyfriend to hang out with me :) :)
Also borrowed the roadbike stationary trainer thingy off of my mum since I won't be risking running again until after the nationals. A bit of a stretch before bed and tried to massage my own legs again.
Monday morning - a little stretching 30 minutes on the trainer with sprint intervals and some more stretching.
Monday Arvo
Paid for a massage. Normally when I book massages at late notice and just walk in to a place i get a pissy little 'relaxing' massage despite asking for a sports massage. That didn't happen this time. I was very impressed and luckily this place is close to my house so I'll be going back. I've actually booked another one Thursday plus a chiro appointment. It's a bit expensive but I'll cope and I can't think of anything worth spending money on more right now. He gets into a knot in my back (between my spine and right shoulderblade) no one has ever been able to move. I don't think he defeated it but I was impressed by the fact he gave it a good go!
Boxing training (skipped Judo in case lifting dude 30 kg heavier than me irritates my back) - skipping, shadow and floor to ceiling ball plus lots of stretching. It's not a long session but it's fast and fluent. After that guy has massaged my hamstrings I can nearly do the splits all of a sudden! I'm still not game to do anything jarring but I don't think I really need to at this point.
OK quick update.
I went to the nationals and did a little better than last year so I guess I achieved my original goal. I'm a bit disappointed I didn't get to test myself against the southpaw again and not entirely happy with a few factors which i didn't predict but have to put these things into perspective and get over it!
Anyway I'm going to do weekly posts now rather than daily since I've taken some time to work out how to use my Polar Protrainer software over Christmas and have a semi-structured training program all set out on a calendar at home! Organization always being my weak point I'm hoping it helps. I've decided to own up to how much time I actually have this year and only plan to use that instead of planning things that are too ambitious, failing and then doing crap all.
Back is happy right now. Still saving for a new mattress but sleeping on the floor when it's bad helps. Also not cycling much anymore since buses are more convenient in my unit now than the share house I was in before. That seems to help the back.
I've planned 4 fitness tests - one for testing lactate threshold - test named after some dude starting with a C - will try to remember that later.
Also weekly Ownoptimiser test to check am recovering properly.
There's a walking fitness test which seems a bit dodgy. The software calculates it based on your heart rate after walking for a given time. It doesn't take into account some pretty serious variables though like the pace you walk! I'm going to do the test multiple times on the same day with a good rest between times to make up a standard curve and calibrate the method.
I've also designed a flexibility test routine and strength test routine. Unfortunately I don't have a partner to spot me for weights so I can't calculate my one rep maximum weight so I guess I've made it more endurance based by counting max no of reps I can complete at a moderate weight.
Last test is a mobility test - basically hopping between two points on the floor and seeing how many hops I can do in a minute and I'll do something similar punching set point on a bag aswell maybe.
I intend to do one of these every week so I do each of them once every 4 weeks but not all at once. I think it'll take up too much time to do them all at once and the lactate threshold and strength tests might tire me and interfere with the results of whichever I do second.
I guess it's time to set some new goals .............. Still thinking about it.
Going pro is a possibility - after the nationals my coach was up for it seeing why I don't feel there's much point in me continuing with the amateurs. Need to feel like a machine after 6 months though.
Need to learn to balance stuff with work better which is what I hope my new training program will allow.
I am running again too! :) :) :) Ok sounds crazy but I did a one hour tempo run the other day and my back feels fine - my quads HATE me - I'm lowering myself down on the toilet seat with my arms but my back is fine :) :) :). It was meant to be 40 mins but had accidentally set the HRM to start the tempo phase when I pressed the button and forgot so it was a really long 40 mins ::**.
Anyway I'm not aiming for a marathon and am only doing 4 runs a week with really long warm ups and cool downs and two swim a week with the purpose of concentrating on exercises which will balance the muscles in my back, stretch them and strengthen my abs and gluts - all to help my back.
I guess though one of my aims will be to maintain my ability to run without any abnormal pain, That'd be GOLD!!!!
Anyway I've just been doing easy cardio up until Tuesday this week and have now started weights and plyometrics (YES I can do them now!!!! :)). Next week back at boxing. I'll use this log for weekly summaries and technical issues and keep the daily conditioning details in my polar calendar at home so I don't have to wade through hours of crap when I'm trying to work out why I'm tired or sore but people can still offer me suggestions etc on here. :)