Graduation Day

Congratulations to the girls who completed the 6 week program - now stronger, fitter runners - the circuit in the final week was a lot more challenging than week 1 and you all coped very well.

Remember your fitness is not a given and requires ongoing maintanence.  Continue to challenge yourself aerobically at least once a week - short bursts of higher intensity combined with intervals of recovery so that you can repeat the higher intensity phrase at least 6 times. 

Be imaginative and vary your sessions - swim, bike, skipping, hills, weights.........

Tuesday sessions are ideal as these are guaranteed to make you huff and puff.  Check the board at the clubhouse each week to see where the session is - its a 5:30am start so arrive 5-10mins before hand.

Congratulations

Week 4 and wow! The Coach is impressed - can you feel a difference in your fitness?  The Coach certainly can see it - I was very impressed with the entire group on Monday with the hill repeats on Fisher Street. I think Margie was a stand out, powering up the hill time after time.  I think she got faster the longer the session went!  Well done to Anna who gave 100% effort with each repeat (as you all did!).

Again you have a session to do on your own this Wednesday - perhaps do your week 1 activity again.

Keep up the good work because it is certainly paying off!

note: remember to check out http://www.gggnutrition.blogspot.com/ regularly

week 3

Mixing it up - is the theme of the program - keep up the good work.

We  exercise to set up the fitness improvement process- daily exercise stresses our body so  in turn, our bodies  react by causing  numerous chemical/hormonal processe which helps the body to make the necessary  adjustments.

Exercising with intensity ensures your body get serious about making changes so that your body copes better with the extra demands.  Interval training works both the aerobic and the anaerobic system, and it results in improved conditioning of the cardiovascular system.

It's also important to add to the fitness improvement regime - SLEEP - this is an often overlooked part of effective training. If you don't plan rest or schedule recovery days in your training, you limit your ability to train.

 As I've just said your body actually gets stronger after exercise stress, so you need to allow down time for rebuilding muscle tissue.

An effective training program will have regular periods of rest and recovery. This also allows adaptation to the exercise that is you return bigger, stronger and faster.

 Rest also allows you to recover mentally and emotionally and avoid exercise burn-out.

So how do you do  recovery days if its still important to do your 30mins of daily exercise, 6X per week?

Cross Train - Alternating exercise is a great way to train effectively. Not only do you develop overall muscle conditioning, but you allow muscles to rest and recover without losing your fitness and get a mental boost from alternating activities.

On recovery days you pick a more gentle exercise option - maybe yoge,a walk or a leisurely swim or ride. Remember even gardening or mowing the lawn are all valid exercise options.

So find your 30 minutes a day for health and find two session per week where you push yourself that little bit more for improved fitness. And go to bed at a reasonable hour each night for a least 8hrs of sleep!

Week 2

Congratulations Girls, you all trained extremely well on Monday morning.  It's very important to remember your goals when training - its that added incentive so your session is the best you can give.

Most of you decided to do skipping this week for homework.  Remember this extra session is necessary to help deliver the promised improved fitness.

Next week -  consider coming along to Tuesday's session for your homework - it will be a hill session - check the clubhouse noticeboard for the details.

If you can't we will organise a piece of equipment or a dvd.

Breathing

Such an automatic function that most of us take for granted and yet it is our primary source of energy.  Focusing on your breathing helps to increase the oxygen flow and rids our bodies of the carbon dioxide in the blood. It increases our lung capacity and circulation. 

Many runners and non-runners breathe by expanding their chest, which is sometimes referred to as “high breathing.”  This kind of breathing isn’t as effective as relaxed diaphragmatic breathing.

When inhaling fully, you should relax your belly so that it can move outward on the in-breath and your diaphragm ( see note at the bottom) can expand and move through more of its full range of motion. When exhaling fully, you should allow your belly to retract toward your spine, which supports the diaphragm’s upward movement to help empty the lungs. This is sometimes called "low breathing."

The ability to relax during a run is very important because remaining tense can cause a decline in performance for the runner. Some of these common problems which plague runners who are not relaxed during their training runs include clenching the fists too tightly and running with the shoulders in a position where they are too high to be effective. This type of poor form often results in muscle fatigue and soreness. 

Though learning to focus on your breathing may not come as an easy concept, practicing healthy breathing techniques while running can help a runner to better succeed in having more energy when running...

  An breathing exercise sequence to practice at home -

1. Sit up straight. Exhale.

2. Inhale and, at the same time, relax the belly muscles. Feel as though the belly is filling with air.

3. After filling the belly, keep inhaling. Fill up the middle of your chest. Feel your chest and rib cage expand.

4. Hold the breath in for a moment, then begin to exhale as slowly as possible.

5.  As the air is slowly let out, relax your chest and rib cage. Begin to pull your belly in to force out the remaining breath.

6. Close your eyes, and concentrate on your breathing.

7.  Relax your face and mind.

8.  Let everything go.

9.  Practice about 5 minutes.

Diaphragm - It is a thin, dome-shaped sheet of musclethat which inserts into the lower ribs. It is the principal muscle used in repiration. When it contracts, it pushes downward and spreads out,increasing the vertical dimension of the chest cavity and driving up abdominal pressure.

Daily Affirmation

I am a Runner.  I am strong, fit and healthy.

Say this affirmation daily and as often as you remember - say and you will believe. 

Write it on your bathroom mirror.

Welcome and Congratulations

You made a decision to commit for the next 6 weeks to this special program with the idea that you'd like to improve your fitness.

Now you need to make a specific goal - what you want to achieve at the end of this 6 weeks - it must mean something to YOU.

This program is based on interval training - high intensity short burst of activity with a recovery rest between.

Each week will be a different session - we are aiming to stress your body and help it adjust to the new exercise work load.

Each week you are expected to do one short TEN minute session on your own.  YOU are developing the motivation to push yourself .  This is not a long session so YOU can find time to do it.

• windtrainer - stationary bike - warm-up - ride 1min fast - 1 min slow - repeat 5X
• skipping rope - warm-up - skip for 1 min - walk rest 1min - repeat 5X
• step machine - warm-up - step fast n shallow for 1 min - step deep n slow for 1 min - repeat 5X
• fisher street - warm-up - from the park's drive way - sprint 30secs - walk back down/recovery - repeat 5X
• fisher street alternative - warm-up - walk briskly from drive way to the top - walk back down -repeat 5X
• swimming - warm -up - swim fast for 25m - swim slow for 25m - repeat 5X
• if you have a fitness DVD with a 10min high intensity workout - do this
• using 3-4kg handweights - walk intervals - 30m- 50m walk with weights in hands at your sides - put the weights down -  modified plank for 30sec or 6 bridges-  repeat 5X
• stepbox - step for 1 minute - side planks for 1 minute - repeat 5X

Lacking motivation when it comes time to do your alone session - go and look at your goal that you have posted on your fridge.  Remember what you are aiming to achieve!  You will feel energised and satisfied after you have done your session.