Another week down and it has been a good one, full of tough workouts and delicious eats! The workouts for BBB were the same as the first week but the tempo count was slightly different as I will explain later. I mixed up the order of the workouts a little from the previous week as I only strength trained last Sunday and didn’t want to do another session back to back.
On Monday I did cardio interval workout A on the stationary bike. I warmed up lightly for 5 mins and then alternated between 2 minutes of fast pedalling on resistance 4 and 3 minutes of recovery on resistance 3 for 30 minutes. I finished by gently cooling down for 5 minutes. I would have loved to have run outdoors today but the weather was so bad- as it has been all week- that an indoor workout was best! I refueled with that awesome shake above which was Gena’s blueberry carob green smoothie. Totally delicious, loved the combo of the carob and blueberries.
On Tuesday I did strength workout A, the moves and reps were the same as the first week but the tempo count was 2 counts to peak contraction, 1 count pause and 6 counts to return to start. It’s incredible how different a move can feel just be altering the tempo! I still found this workout pretty challenging, and I kept my weights the same as the first week between 5-7kg dumbbells, except for the lat shoulder raise which I go light on. I also warmed up and cooled down for 5 minutes on the elliptical and did two 5 minute intervals on the bike between circuits.
I got a huge iHerb order which as always arrived promptly and without hassle. Post gym I tried out my new purchases:
I have only tried the Vega vanilla almondilla mix so far, but it is without doubt the best smoothie mix I have ever tasted. It tastes like marzipan, it is amazing! I decided to put it to good use and whipped up a delicious Pumpkin Persimmon Smoothie. I will have the recipe up sometime next week. It was so good!
Wednesday saw me blast out a 4 mile interval run despite the Arctic conditions. I went with shorts and compression socks, but it was just so cold. I’ve taken to breathing through a neck scarf pulled over my mouth as it makes the cold air less harsh on the lungs. I had a good run and was glad I got it in as it was probably the only day this week reasonably suitable for an outdoor one. Once I got back I had my breakfast smoothie which was the Hempanana smoothie from Dreena Burton’s Let them eat Vegan. This was so delicious and creamy.
On Thursday I headed back indoors for the dreaded core circuits! I found it a little easier than the previous week and I was nowhere near as sore after the squats as I was the first week. The scorpions are still killing me, but my balance is definitely getting stronger. My sides (tranverse abs?!) felt really sore on Saturday which was definitely a result of this workout! I followed it up with a quick 2 mile interval run on the dreadmill. I warmed up for 5 minutes, did 30 seconds at 10.5, 30 seconds at 12.5 and 30 seconds at 9.5, repeated 7 times and cooled down for 5 minutes. I have to say I was absolutely spent after this workout, I just felt exhausted!
Friday was my well earned rest day. On Saturday I went to the gym which was pretty busy and did strength workout C which was the same as last week but changed the tempo count like workout A did. I found this really challenging still, and kept my weights between 4-6kg except for the reverse flys which I went very light on. I actually did the pushups on my feet this week as the 6 counts to push back up wasn’t as hard as the 6 counts to contraction from the first week. I did my longest plank of the program so far at 1.32, steadily improving!
I made a delcious chia protein pudding after the gym for lunch, it was Pumpkin and Tahini, super delicious and super filling, it kept me going most of the day! I’ll post a recipe later in the week.
On Sunday it was cardio of choice day so I did Jillian Michael’s Yoga Meltdown 1, it was a 35 minute video and it was pretty tough! I was feeling pretty drained so this was an ideal way to get a workout in.
I’ve hit my goals most days this week, I have made a fresh smoothie/juice every day and tried out loads of delicious new ones! I have also planked on 5 out of 7 days-not bad and some of those days saw me doing 3-4 a day, so pretty good overall. I can’t wait to try out the new workouts next week!
Yum a marzipan flavoured smoothie sounds incredible! Glad to hear you’re getting on well with BBB, I’m so tempted to try it next round!
It was really good! I’m definitely enjoying it so far, so I would recommend it.
I really have to place an order with them! They sound right up my alley! Great pics! I like the moose bowl. It looks like he’s walking on your food
Yeah they are brilliant, so much good stuff that we can’t get in the Uk and Ireland. Thanks it’s my favourite bowl