Is Costa and Starbucks Making Us Fat?

Nothing beats a cuppa tea and a chocolate bikkie! The cup of tea is almost an Irish institution at this point, an integral part of our culture. But this tradition is under threat as it is slowly being swept away by the big coffee corporations, the humble cup of tea is being replaced by the skinny caramel frappuccino with cream. When was the last time you enjoyed a cup of tea or a bun in an Irish owned and family run café? These establishments are all-pervasive and have slowly become dominant institutions within our society. Franchises such as Costa and Starbucks are replacing small independent coffee shops in Ireland and guess what? They're making us fat.

I was in Dublin having a wander around the shops a few months ago and I had a craving for caffeine so decided to pop into Costa (or as my friend put it the other day, Cost-a-lot) for an Americano. Don't get me wrong, I really like Costa and I like their wide sandwich collection, their coffees and have always found the staff really friendly! So I thought you know what I've walked the feet off myself so I deserve something nice. My mother loves the raspberry and almond bakes so I thought I'd maybe try one of those. As my eyes searched for them behind the glass counter, they fell on the little placard in front of the tray and I read something that literally made me gasp out loud; 457 calories! Are. you. kidding. me! That is literally more than one quarter of my daily calorie intake in one tiny ass piece of cake. I would want to eat a whole cake for that many calories. Needless to say, I didn't buy it! The difference between a full fat and low fat medium latte is about 100-150 calories, and if you add any flavoured syrup you're looking at an extra 200-300 calories. Insane stuff! Now I'm not suggesting we all start boycotting Costa or other similar companies, I just want to create awareness around the fact that what people are eating and drinking from these establishments are not as authentic and innocent as they seem.

Not many people realise how high in calories the food and drinks from these kind of multinational establishments are. When you go to eat in places like McDonalds or Burger King the majority of people aren't under any illusion that what they are eating is low in calories but when it comes to eating in places like Costa or Starbucks I don't think people understand the ploys and tricks that are used to get you to buy and eat more. I did a Google search on the tricks used by global coffee organisations to get you to buy more and it came up pretty fruitless so I'll just tell you about the things that I've noticed. The main thing that annoys me is that when you order a coffee in Costa they ask you do you want a medium or a large. This manipulates people into thinking that these are the only two sizes available when in actual fact you can order a small too. In Starbucks, if you only order a coffee they will ask you "Would you like anything else with that?". Staff in Starbucks are forbidden from straying from this phrase. I have a friend who works there and says that they must say this every time and if a member of staff slips up and says something like "Is that all?" you can get in trouble. My favourite sandwich from Costa is the chorizo and chicken sandwich. They state on the pack that there are 499 calories in the sandwich, why they don't just put 500 on the package really bothers me, I don't think anyone is under the illusion that it's any better for them whether it is 499 or 500. I have seen this throughout the entire food industry and it's a cheap, dirty little trick to further manipulate people into thinking they're eating less calories than they actually are. The next thing is obvious, it's not necessarily a covert manipulation of the masses and I'm sure many people are aware of this strategy. They place all the food at eye-level, making it impossible for the customers to not be staring at all the food with their tongues hanging out as they wait to be served. This is definitely a sure-fire way to get all the people who are desperately trying to resist the temptation to get something sweet, to break within 10 seconds. I've seen it myself countless times! Don't get me wrong, I know this is a universally accepted way of presenting food, it's not like they should hide it away in the back and only let you buy it if you drop and give'em 20. I'm pointing it out because the food behind the counter is not as good and wholesome as you think it is, which leads me on to my next point.


When you go into an Irish independently owned and run café, the food on display is more times than not, home made. If not made by the café itself, it is usually sourced from a local bakery. The products are fresh and need to be consumed within a couple days before they go off. This is not the case with the food in globo-coffee shops. A lot of people think they're eating fresh food and baked goods when the food they're eating couldn't be further from fresh, or Irish for that matter. I have searched high and low trying to find out exactly where the food that is served is from and I haven't been able to find anything. That in itself says it all really. The food is without a doubt all frozen and then thawed out ready to be sold. God knows where the products are actually made. The more I look into it the more annoyed I'm getting so I've emailed Costa directly and asked where exactly their food is made, if it is frozen and what it the usual time period between the time the food is made from when it is consumed. They get back to you in seven days apparently so I'll update this when I get a response.

I think the most important thing to get from this is that the international coffee shops that we frequent do not always have our best intentions at heart. You have to remember that they are a franchise and all that matters to the company is the bottom line, not your waistline. We live in a country where we operate on our own free will, these coffee companies are not ramming their sugar filled drinks and high fat muffins down our gobs. It is our responsibility to learn about what we are putting into our bodies, where it comes from and how we can prevent taking in too many excess calories. The aim of this article is to promote the idea of consciously thinking about what we are putting in our bodies and to think before we order. Next time you're getting a coffee try to make it a low-fat version and if you're getting something to eat check out the calories first. Thanks for reading!

Also, here's a copy of the email I sent to Costa for those interested:

"Hi, I have been searching for the answer to this for a while and I'm hoping you can help me out. I want to know where the food that is sold in Costa shops come from.  I can't seem to find anything related to this on the internet or on the websites anywhere. I live in Ireland and I want to know where the food - the sandwiches, baked goods etc - is made, when it arrives in shops and how long is the usual  time period from production to consumption? So to clarify:

1.Where does the food that is sold in Costa made?
2.Is the food frozen and then shipped to stores to be unfrozen and sold?
3.What is the usual time period from where the food is made to the point where a customer consumes the food?
4.Why is there no ingredients for your baked good listed on your website?

Thank you for all the information you can give me."

Hell and Back Trojan 10km Obstacle Course

So it's the morning after the race before and I can still vividly remember the agony in my legs as I clambered uphill through the treacherous muddy terrain, the burning of my lungs as I charged through every obstacle and the complete shock my body went into when I was submerged in freezing cold water! With all this is mind, I am overjoyed to announce that I have completed the Hell and Back Trojan 10km obstacle course that took place in Kilruddery estate, Co.Wicklow on the 27th of January, 2013. It was definitely the most rewarding form of torture I've ever endured! You only do something like this if you're a seething masochist who derives some sort of sick pleasure from being constantly ass and face deep in mud. Something which I apparently seem to enjoy. What the hell makes someone want to voluntarily do such a thing I hear you ask? Well, it's simple; apart from the whole masochism thing, it's a challenge. It's exciting and new, something to truly test the depths of your mental and physical limits. But most importantly of all, it's exhilarating and fun! The atmosphere surrounding the whole event was electric and the camaraderie was unrivalled! It was organized, managed and executed to perfection with helpful and friendly staff always at the ready. I recommend this event to anyone and everyone of all ages and fitness ranges! 

When you're doing a race like this time really isn't all that important, something which I didn't understand until I did it. Unless you have been trained by the marines and regularly throw yourself into freezing cold water all the while rolling around in mud covered in barbed wire, then it's not something you can really train for. Running helps, running helps a lot but the terrain is soft marshy ground, something which not a lot of people are used to running on so it makes running twice as hard. You might be able to run 2 marathons back to back and then cycle a tour de france, but nothing will really prepare you for this race! It is a huge accomplishment in itself to complete it, let alone make a decent time! The race is a challenge and it's meant to be fun so there's not much point in worrying about how quickly you do it in. 

The Hell and Back 2013 Course

The first thing to note about the course is that the first 5km is uphill! I didn't even really notice until someone pointed it out to me at the end of the race. It creeps really slowly uphill from the start until the top of the Sugar Loaf!

1. The Pond

This is the first obstacle you are going to meet! Just jump in, it's all or nothing! It is FREEZING. All the water that you go into throughout the course is about 2 degrees... just think about that a moment! You will run/walk/wade through this for only about 10 seconds and the water is only up to your knees! This is possibly the most ruthless placing of an obstacle because you are immediately wet and because the water is so cold your legs instantly turn numb and you can't feel your feet. It feels like you are running with two giant cement blocks on your feet!

Tips:

• Keep to the edge of the water
• Make sure to wear light socks and runners, the heavier the socks and the runners are the more water they will absorb, making it harder to run. 

2. Hurdles of Hell 

After the pond, you will be running for about 2km on a small road and some paths, which lead up to the the field where the hurdles of hell are. The best thing you can do for this 2km is run slow. Unless you're trying to be the first one to finish do not try and outrun too many people here, it will catch up with you later and they will only overtake your exhausted limping ass 3km later. The hurdles of hell in relation to the rest of the course is child's play. There's a few hurdles you have to climb under and through and then there's a few stacks of hay you need to climb up and down. This is a good introduction to the obstacles and really gets your blood pumping!

Tip:

• Take'er easy! Run at a slow pace, it will pay off dividends in the last few km. 

3. Forest Mud Trail

I found this very tough! It's all sloping uphill and it's very muddy and rocky. The best thing that I did was to not stop running, I just took it good and slow and ran up it good and steady! It isn't too long and soon you'll be hitting a much steeper hill and realize what you were running up was just an introduction to a whole new realm of pain.

Tips:

• Try not to walk if you can, run slow and steady.
• Watch where you run, it's very rocky.

4. Little Sugar Loaf's Rocky Road

Now some may disagree with me but I didn't find this too bad. First of all, I stopped running cos it was just far too steep so I enjoyed just walking quickly and trying to get my breath back. Secondly, there's usually a lot of people trying to get up at the same time and the path up is very narrow so it can only really be ascended in single file. I like climbing so I enjoyed this, it doesn't take too long, maybe 10-15 minutes! The view from the top is beautiful so make sure to take a moment to appreciate it, it'll keep your mind off the pain too!

Tip

• Appreciate nature, damnit!

5. Decent to Doom

If you don't like going downhill, you're gonna have a bad time! The decent to doom is very steep as the name suggests, it's not so bad at the beginning, you can run a fair bit, the fear of god will be in you cos you will constantly think you're one step away from face planting but just try and run as carefully as you can. This is a good time to make up the time you spent walking up the hill, if you did that! I legged it down this as fast as I could! Nearing the bottom it was just all mud, thick and sticky and constantly descending. Just throw yourself into it, the best thing about mud is if you fall it doesn't really hurt! You'll just be slippin' and slidin' like a mad bastard!

6. Avalanche of Mud

I definitely was not happy to see this obstacle! I thought wahey no more hills and seeing this loom in the distance was as welcoming as a good hard bitch slap to the face! You gotta run up and down a really steep 100m hill three times! To get to the top of the first hill you have to climb under a net the whole way, which means you have to crouch the whole way up! The second hill you run up and down again and on the third hill you have to take a shaggin sand bag with you! I just threw it across my shoulders, I found it pretty heavy! Then at the bottom of the third hill you have to carry a cement block down and back around! I actually ran with this, no idea how! My back is in absolute bits today cos of it! I think this is maybe the only thing I found a bit unfair about the course, women would find carrying things like that very hard! But it is absolute spot on torture! You really gotta dig deep into your head to get through this one! The one good thing about it though is that it's the 6km marker after it's done and you get some water! There was some young chaps giving out the water here and you have to go down a small slippy hill to get it and they shouted at me to fall and for the first time in the entire course I fell! The little bastards!

7. Satan's Pit

After running down a few hundred metres of much appreciated flat ground you hit Satan's pit! There's a guy here shouting hilarious hardcore encouragement! There's a pit of tyres, and yes you will fall on your face so just accept your fate! Then there's an almost impenetrable 8 and half foot wall! Took me a few goes to throw my leg over the top! Then there's two trenches lovingly filled with freezing water that you get to clamber in and out of! Then there's two mounds of giant logs to throw yourself over! For such a compact obstacle they surely fitted a whole lot of pain in one small space!

8. The Quarry

I'll be honest, I have absolutely no recollection of this! Maybe post-traumatic stress has kicked in and wiped my memory or it wasn't too bad in comparison to everything else! I think there's a good bit of water and trenches but nothing to worry about!

9. Tudor Woods

There's a nice run to Tudor Woods, I sprinted pretty much the whole way! It was myself and another guy who were going at the same speed all the way there and we were in a secret race to the death, I won. He died. There was a lot of muck around here so running fast got pretty treacherous! The woods are very pretty and there's a few tyres and stuff you gotta go through but nothing too bad!

10. The Swamp

The swamp isn't necessarily hard to go through, it's more of a mindfuck. No one ever wants to be stuck waist-deep in mud, it's literally the stuff nightmares are made of! Once you get over the initial  'holy fuck I need to launch myself into this pit of death' then it's pretty grand! There's a lot of branches and stuff to hold on to! What I did was actually think about where I wanted to go, I aimed for as many branches as possible and stayed around the edge. There was a fella who jumped on the log I was on, sent me flying to the right so he could throw himself into the middle and when he did he couldn't get out. That was satisfying! Try to be a little aware of the people around you here cos a lot of people need a hand to get unstuck and it's easy to plough through people if you're not paying attention!

Tip:

• Don't be a dick.

11. The River

This is going to make you want to crawl back into the warmth of your mother's uterus and stay there for the rest of your life. You gotta jump in, in my case fall in head first after you trip over a branch, and wade through the freezing water to the other side with the help of a rope. Then you gotta do it twice more! The icy water envelopes you entirely and that third time going through it was one of the toughest parts of the course for me! A guy lost his shoes here and so he carried on in his socks, fair play!

12. Barbed Wire Crawl

This was the one obstacle I think most people found the hardest! You have to crawl through thick mud on your hands and knees to prevent getting hair and butt raped by barbed wire. The muck is laced with a lot of big and jagged stones so this is why having long tights on is pretty helpful! I didn't find this too bad but come the third row of crawling it did get tiresome, what got me most was how freezing the mud was more than anything else!

Tip

• Keep your head and ass as low as possible.
• Be wary of sharp rocks under the mud.

13. Shock of Horrors

I knew it was coming, I had read it the first day I signed up for the course and it nearly turned me off the whole thing. But alas, I'm not a pussy. It jumped up on me by complete surprise because it is literally 2 meters away from the end of the barbed wire crawl. I came to a complete halt when I realized what it was! I'm the type of person who won't go on a trampoline out of fear of a static shock and I have conditioned myself to always close car doors by the window to avoid being shocked. Some guy from behind shouted at me to go on and this ripped me out of my fear paralysis  and I did what any sane person would do and bulled through. Didn't feel a thing. I asked some other people and some people got a shock and some didn't! I think it just depended on how quick you went through, how much adrenalin you had in ya and how numb you were! I think my luck was a combination of all three! But yeah, terrifying.

14. The Wall

Being 5'4' did not help me with this at all surprisingly. It's about 10ft I think, it could be more or less, I'm not sure, but it was huge. As I was standing below it, it seemed impossible. A lovely gentleman was like right gimme your foot, now jump! "What do you mean jump?! There's nothing to jump off!"... "Jump off me!". "I can't jump off you!"... The conversation went like this for another 30 seconds and I could see he wanted to kinda deck me but I couldn't for life of me understand how I could jump and manage to reach the top but I went for it anyway and lo and behold I was on the top of it! Then I didn't really know how to get down, then I realized you jump, that hurt. But wahey nearly at the end now!  

15. Final frontier

I'm running towards the finishing line, there's cheers of encouragement coming from every angle. "Come on girl, you can do it!". "Going strong, keep going!". I was intoxicated by adrenalin and exhaustion, the finishing line was leering ahead of me and the thoughts of running through it had me elated. I see my brother and his friends at the side willing me forward as I force myself onwards. Then I see it, the humiliating display that I must preform in front of hundreds of people before I can throw myself over the finish line. A cruel twist designed to test your pride and endurance. First I come to the monkey bars, I have never in my whole entire life been able to use monkey bars, so what I lacked in confidence I made up for with balls and proceeded ahead and swiftly failed and slipped after one monkey bar! Hands were covered in slippery muck, not a chance anyone could do them! So I moved onwards to the rope climb, a rope hanging down with knots you need to climb to get to the top! I got to the first one and then desperately tried to get to the second one but couldn't, I'm pretty sure I could do it no problem normally but my arms were dead, my legs were heavy and my hands were way too slippy. So I moved on and I was instantly confused by what lay before me. It was called the 'Ice Berg' and it had 'Brain Freeze' written on it! The girl said "In you get, hold your breath!"... "Huh?!". My brain would not register the heinous sight in front of its eyes. It's a skip full of freezing, muddy, foul water. I got in and there's a plank over the top of it. "Hold your breath" she says again... "I.... I got to go under it?!"... "Yep!". So under I go and it felt like my brain shrunk to half its size inside my head and my whole body was like NOPE. I resurfaced the other side of the plank, in shock and not able to see a god damn thing! I shook my head and wiped my eyes and threw myself out of the skip and ran forward, and THERE WAS ANOTHER ONE. If there was ever a moment in my life where I genuinely believed that all the forces of the earth were conspiring against me, then this would be it. I got over it, cos I'm not a pussy, and did it again! I have a pretty big fear of dark or dirty water since childhood so I'm pretty sure this is why I found these last two things to be the hardest of them all, it didn't help that my head had stayed nice and warm for the whole course and now I was about to dunk it into a freezing pit of hell. But I'm pretty sure that was the whole point! Then I proceeded to run triumphantly towards the finish line and then and only then, did I let the pain wash over me. There really is no better feeling than crossing a finish line!

Although I'm still finding mud in places where there shouldn't be, doing this race was an amazing and unforgettable experience that I would definitely do again in a heart beat! Well maybe not a heart beat... more like a year. It teaches you about yourself and what you can really do if you put your mind to something. It's definitely a character building exercise that allows you break through your normal physical and mental boundaries. The next time I don't think I can do an extra km on a run or an extra rep of a weight I'll remember that I hauled myself through this entire course and I'll push through those feelings! I feel like I've been hit by car, dragged through a ditch and run over again but the pain is worth it to say that I am tough enough to make it thru' Hell and Back.

My Results

What were my results I hear you cry! I ran the race in 1.35.44! I placed 626th out of 1,900 runners. My goal was to be in the top 10-15% of women who raced and among the women I placed 58th out of 620. So, drum roll please.... I placed in the top 9% of women who ran and top 33% of the overall runners! I am absolutely delighted with my results and I'm very proud of myself! I think my brother's results deserve a mention too because they're extraordinary! He came 97th of 1,900 runner! So he was in the Top 100! He placed in the top 7% of the men who ran and he was in the top 5% of overall runners! 

Race Tips

• Wear long tights and a long sleeved top to protect your arms and legs.
• Wear light runners and light socks.
• Do not wear a hat or gloves, the hat will get caught in barbed wire and the gloves will only be a hassle.
• Do not wear old runners, wear runners that you're feet are used to and give you support, you want to minimize your risk of injury as much as possible. You can always wash them afterwards.
• Tie runners tight or they will get stuck in the mud.
• Hydrate really well before the race.
• Arrive early to suss the place out, get your face painted and get your race pack if you have to collect it.
• Start off the race slow.
• Respect others while you're running, don't push past people, it's a race but no need to be a dick.
• If anyone is stuck help them.
• For girls, don't wear your hair up too high, it will get caught in the barbed wire.
• Bring old, warm clothes for afterwards like tracksuit bottoms and hoodies.
• There are no actual showers, just a hose down so don't bother with body wash etc.
• The changing facilities is basically a barn with hay on the ground so I hope you're comfortable with getting your tatas, kookas and dongs out.
• Have fun.
• Don't be a pussy.

Hey guys! I see this post has gotten very popular so I just wanted to say a big thank you for reading! I have just started this blog and I'm hoping to provide as many interesting fitness and health related posts as possible so I hope you come back and check them out some time! Thank you again for reading, I really appreciate it! 

Day Before Hell and Back 10km Obstacle Course

Just a quick post about my race tomorrow! I'm starting at 11am in the first 'wave'. There are three waves, one at 11am, 12pm and 12.20pm. They do this to prevent too many people coming up to the obstacles at once! The red wave is typically for the fastest people, and that I certainly am not. My brother and his friends are running in that wave so I requested to be put into it, no way I was going to wait at the line till 12 or 12.20, for me to see my brother finish and for me to not even have started! I get ridiculously nervous before races so that wait would reduce me to a blubbering shaking idiot I would imagine!

Pretty sure I overdid it this week with training which was stupid. My legs are sore, my knees are sore and my legs feel heavy. NOT what I want to be feeling before a race. This is my second day of rest so hopefully by tomorrow I'll feel better. Should have listened to my body at the beginning of the week and done the very minimum but I pushed through a very bad chest, cough and nausea and managed an easy 10km on Tuesday, and an easy 5km on Thursday. I went to the gym on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and on the Thursday I did some new exercises that are part of my new 3-day routine. I only did 2 sets and the prescribed 4 of each one to just feel them out and not do too much... DO NOT EVER DO NEW EXERCISES 3 DAYS BEFORE YOU HAVE A RACE NO MATTER HOW EASY THEY SEEM. Christ, I could punch myself.  Sure fuck it, we live and learn.

I'll be writing up a detailed post of the whole course and all the obstacles next week! I'm going to stay up in my apartment for college for a few days and hit the gym up there too so I'll see how that goes! That's it for now really, I hope to finish tomorrows course in good time and I'll be aiming to be in the top 10-15% of women who run it. Before a race I think a lot of people doubt their training and their abilities which is what I'm doing now but I'm not gonna listen to my troll brain and I'm juts gonna do the best I can! Wish me luck!

Women and Weights

When women exclaim that weight training will make them bulky and manly, I facepalm so hard. It's not only an infuriating thing to hear but it's also in some ways, insulting. People spend hours in the gym a week, busting their ass for months and years on end to achieve muscles and people have the audacity to say that they're afraid they'll achieve that almost by accident by merely touching some weights. Unfortunately, this is one of the biggest myths in fitness and it's clingier than your overprotective mother. 

There is such a huge hesitation on women's part to try out weights so I hope I can clear up some of the myths surrounding them and maybe persuade some of you to try them out!

Firstly, women are getting heavier and heavier, but also simultaneously weaker. Women strive to be skinny, not strong. So to get the thin body they desire, women usually opt to spend hours on cardio machines burning calories to get rid of fat. Too much attention is placed on dieting and cardio, and not enough on weight training. Don't get me wrong, cardio is great for us obviously but it is usually the sole thing women do in the gym and therein lies the problem. Regardless of whether or not a woman manages to lose a lot of fat by just using cardio machines, which is a miracle within itself, the worrying result of the exclusive use of cardio machines is weak women with no muscle strength. 

Secondly, what most women don't seem to understand is that to get the body they desire strength training will get them there. The representation of women in the media is a whole other kettle of fish but the fact is strong, toned women are rarely shown on the front of magazines, instead there are weedy, thin women who barely have the muscle strength to lift a cigarette plastered everywhere. Women don't seem to understand how unrealistic it is to achieve this level of skinniness, let alone maintain it. So the primary objective for many women is to eat less and burn fat, resulting in little to no muscles. It's this lack of muscle that is detrimental to a women's health. Women simply aren't aware of the relationship between strength training and fat loss. From my observations there seems to be three categories that women fall into regarding weight training: 

1. They don't know anything about weights and the benefits they can gain from their use. 
2. They know a little about weights but have no idea how to use them properly.
3. They know about weights but are too afraid to use them in case they get bulky and look maculine (ugh...)

The images women conjure up in their heads when they think of weights is that of women bodybuilders. Achieving such a high level of muscularity requires a huge commitment; hours in a gym everyday, huge supplement intake and sometimes the use of synthetic testosterone. The fact of the matter is that it is nearly impossible for an average women to get bulky from using weights. We simply lack the sufficient amount of testosterone that is needed to create the large and bulky muscles that men can grow. Testosterone is one of the main factors in the development of muscles and women only have a low level of this hormone, meaning our muscles develop differently and recreational weight training will not lead to us looking like She-Hulk. 

The Benefits of Weight Training

Weight training will tone the whole body resulting in a lean, strong body that burns fat, increases metabolism, helps posture, flexibility and balance, all while maintaining and improving bone and strength development. When you stop cardio, you stop burning calories. When you weight train you are increasing the amount of lean muscle on your body. Lean muscle not only makes you look toned, it also maximizes the amount of calories your body burns and increases your metabolism which results in fat loss because lean muscle is an active tissue that requires your body to continue burning calories long after you've hit the weights. Not only will you look better but you will feel better, weight training reduces your risk of injury and decreases your chances of getting osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, and diabetes by increasing joint flexibility and stability. In order to achieve a complete and comprehensive workout weight training is a must, the benefits really are exponential! For me, the biggest benefit I gain from weight training is confidence and an overall feeling of health and well-being. I understand that undertaking a weight training routine may seem like a daunting challenge to undertake if you've never done it before so what I recommend is doing your research, figuring out what type of training you enjoy and most importantly making sure you use the weights properly. Weight lifting will transform your body, your health and your life. 

What you think you'll look like if you weight train

What you'll actually look like if you weight train

  

Running on Icy Roads

Upside: Getting to break all the icy puddles with a nice satisfying crack.

Downside: I nearly died a whole lot of times.

Today's fun run fact : Only got chased by one dog.

Drop it low girl!

I was reading a fascinating article the other day about how everything we know about fitness is a lie. This is something I've always been aware of, the general misconceptions around fitness that is, but I never really knew the true extent of it nor had I seen it written with such clarity and expertise. It's a very eye opening article, this is the link, give it a read and I guarantee you will feel somewhat differently about gyms and fitness in general.

What hit me the most about the article was just how important squats are. I've never enjoyed squats, I have very strong legs but I have never used squats to get them there. The article highlights how the barbell squat it is a pivotal element in any fitness routine; the foundation you should base your entire routine upon. So, with this on board I decided to learn how to do a barbell squat today. It was not half as bad as I thought and I felt pretty bad ass while doing it!

So needless to say this exercise will now be a part of my workout routine from now on! I didn't mind doing it in the gym today as it was late in the evening and there was hardly anyone around but I'll need to get over not wanting to do it in front of too many people pretty quick! When I get back to college I'm going to head to the gym late at night too so I can suss out the weights room properly without anyone in it. I don't feel embarrassed working out in front of anyone, but the one thing I do get embarrassed about is if someone sees me faffin about and looking like I don't know what I'm doing. So once I get acquainted with the equipment there I won't have an issue at all doing what I want to do! The equipment in my college gym is a lot more modern, and I can imagine all the unnecessary bells and whistles will confuse the shit out of me. I was talking to the guy who owns the gym and he had a look at my routine and said that women usually benefit more from more reps, I've heard this before, so I'm going to increase my reps from 12 to 15 on most of the machines from now on. I've added the squat in now so that'll be Squat, 15 x 3! Next step, learn what I need to do for a pullup, I swear!

Training for the Hell and Back 10km

I'm doing the Hell and Back 10k obstacle course on the 27th of this month and shitting a brick doesn't even cut it! But, as with anything, preparation and training is key! I'm hoping that the training I'm doing and have done up to this point will be enough to see me through without coughing up a lung! I recently started in a new gym and although it may not be modern or big, it's the best gym I've ever been in. The instructors actually care about how you're doing and pay attention to your needs and abilities. I don't feel like they're just selling me a membership like all the others gyms I've been in, rather I feel they want to sell everyone who comes in the door a lifestyle. A lifestyle that they know will make you happy and they're just content to let you in on their secret! I have a gym where I go to college but I'm not back until early February so I didn't want to leave a whole month where I had no access to a gym. So after some recommendations I tried this place out and I love it! It's basically a weight lifting gym with a few cardio machines, nothing fancy but boy will you get results if you stick at it.

The first day, the instructor brought me around to assess where I was at fitness wise and he was fairly surprised by how strong I was, I was pretty happy when I heard that! I had been doing my own weight training in my other gym but to be honest didn't really know what I was at. I knew to lift as heavy as I could and do 3 sets of 12 reps and not take a long break in-between the reps. In hindsight, I was doing everything pretty much to the book even though I didn't have too much knowledge about weights. All the work appeared to have paid off anyway and he got me going on a really great workout plan that I believe will ensure my whole body is fit, strong and ready for the Hell and Back! I took a picture of the program he wrote out for me earlier so that I can pop it in here and explain how I'm getting on!

So to explain, I do 10 mins on the cross trainer to warm up.
 - Iso Row, Weight 5 (Don't know what weight this is, I'll check it out next time I'm there), 12 (reps) x 3 (sets)
- Lat. Pulldown, 35kg, 12 x 3
- Bench Press, 15kg, 12 x 3
- Pec Flys, 25kg, 12 x 3
- Thigh ext, 20kg, 12 x 2
- Thigh curl, 45kg, 12 x 2
- Leg press, 100kg, 12 x 2
- Dumbell seated shoulder press, 4kg, 12 x 2
- Side laterals, 2kg, 12 x 2
- Dumbell seated curls, 4kg, 12 x 3
- Tricep pushdowns, 10 kg, 12 x 2-3
- Leg raises, 15 x 3
- Reverse crunch, 15 x 3
- Plank

At first I was pretty overwhelmed, I'll be honest. And listing it all out there I can understand why, I've never had a workout solely based around weights before and I was pretty anxious but excited about it! I hope all of that is clear, but I know if I read that a month ago I wouldn't have a clue what it said so let me explain further. This is great research for me actually as I know I use all these machines but I've never looked into what every machines particular function is outside of the basic arms, legs, torso etc.

I think a cross trainer is pretty obvious to most people so I won't go into what that is!

Iso Row Machine

An iso row machine is a machine that mainly works your lats and secondly your biceps and middle back. You choose what weight you want and then pull the handles towards your chest and then release. I'm sure nearly all gyms have this machine but until I was shown how to use it I don't think I've ever really noticed one before! I like this machine for some reason, I really feel like I'm working my arms with it!

Iso Row Machine
Image from: http://www.bodybuilding.com

Lateral Pulldown 

This is probably the most common weight machine in any gym I'm sure! You pull down a bar above your head which is attached to a cable with weights on the end. Once again, this machine works your lats as well as your biceps, middle back and shoulders. I'm not a huge fan of this but I've been using it for around a year and it's a staple in any weight regimen. It's tough going as you really have to extend your whole arms. In the gym I'm in at the moment this machine is plonked right in the middle of the gym so I feel a bit on show when I'm doing it. I'd have every piece of equipment I use in a corner if I had my own way!

Lateral Pulldown Machine
Image source: http://3.bp.blogspot.com

Bench Press

Pretty straight forward really! The bench press in the gym I'm in at the moment is a fixed bench press, whereby the weights go up in 5kgs and you use fixed handles to push the weight up. They have the other normal bench presses too but I have never used a bench press with a barbell before, I really want to. I feel a little overwhelmed by it I guess. First of all, I don't even know how to go about fixing the weights on it without one side flipping up and knocking me out. Secondly, I think that guys will be waiting around for me to finish with it and I just hate being put on the spot. It's the type of equipment that is in very high demand in a gym and there's usually only one or two. I'll get there though not to worry! 

Bench Press
Image source: http://d3vs5ss8iow0ry.cloudfront.net

Pec Flys

A pec fly, or a pectoral fly, is when you use a machine or weights to move your arms horizontally out in front of you. Huh, it's called the butterfly too apparently! All I'm going to think about now when I use the machine is that I'm a pretty pretty sweaty butterfly. Anyway, you're using your chest and arms for this. I don't find it too hard but I think the weight I'm at at the moment is too easy so I'll probably go from 25kg to 30kg next time! 

Pec Fly Machine
Image source: http://www.bodypowerusa.com

Thigh Extension and Thigh Curls

They do what they say on the tin really, these machines work your thighs! My instructor calls them thigh extensions and thigh curls but they're really called leg extension and leg curls. The leg extension machine works by having a pad positioned on your shin when you're in a seated position and then you straighten your leg. This works the front of your thighs, your quads. The leg curl is similar but it works the back of your thighs, your hamstrings. You place your legs on top of a pad and then pull the pad towards the back of your thighs, as the name suggests, you're curling in the pad. I think these are great for strengthening my legs! I usually feel a little sore the day after but I think they're instrumental in having stronger legs for running. 

Ridiculously pleased with myself cos I found a gif of a leg extension!
Image source: http://4.bp.blogspot.com

Okay so apparently gifs of these sorts of things are not a rarity, who knew! Leg Curl Machine.
Image source: http://www.sparkpeople.com

Leg Press

It's basically a giant square you put your feet on and then push it away from you! I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this I have to say! After my 17km run last week I went to the gym 3 days later and could not for the life of me do my usual 100kg leg press so brought it down to 80kg. Goes to show how much stress you put your legs under when you run. I think 100kg is very heavy and maybe a bit too heavy for me, saying that, I can do the 12 x 2 but I don't even see some guys doing that much! It could be more that I feel like it's coming towards me and if I can't do it it's going to crush my legs or something...

Leg Press
Image source: http://www.sparkpeople.com

Dumbbell Seated Shoulder Press, Dumbbell Seated Curl and Side Lateral Raise

All these exercises are done with free weights. You just grab some dumbbells and a bench! For the seated shoulder press you sit on the edge of the bench with a dumbbell in each hand, raise the dumbbells to your shoulders and then raise them over your head. The dumbbell seated curl is where you sit down on the bench and place the dumbbells by your sides and then using alternating arms you curl the dumbbell towards your shoulder, making your arm good and tight. Side laterals are where you stand up straight and place your arms at your sides with the dumbbells. You then raise your arms up out to your sides, until they are straight out and parallel to the floor. I kind of hate all of these but I know they're great for the arms! I use the 4kg dumbells for the seated shoulder press and curl and I use a 2kg dumbbell for the side lateral raises. I think 2kg is pretty pathetic so I hope I can get that up to 4kg in a few weeks! 

Dumbbell Seated Shoulder Press
Image source: http://thepsychologyoffitness.com

Dumbbell Seated Curl
Image source: http://preventdisease.com

Side Lateral Raise
Image source: http://lateralraises.com

Tricep Pushdown

Very similar machine to the lateral pulldowns except there's no seat! You place your hands on top of the bar that is attached to the cable with weights. You pull the bar down towards your thighs and then release. I hate this machine more than I hate Monday mornings! I've always hated working my triceps, probably for a very simple reason; I don't work them often and when I do it hurts like a sonofabitch! 

Just look at the pain in her eyes! Lateral Pulldowns.
Image source: http://iknowsquat.files.wordpress.com

Leg Raises

Leg raises are when you hoist yourself up on parallel bars, place your forearms on pads and then raise yourself up so that your legs are hanging. You then raise your hanging legs towards your chest. This exercise works your abdominals, it'll get you a six pack gurl! I absolutely LOVE this exercise! I don't really know why, I should probably hate it but I feel like I'm really using my stomach, hopefully it'll help me along the way to the 4pack I reeeaalllly want! (even though I already have a 4 pack, hell, even a 6-pack, as does everyone... it's just under a snuggly layer of fat).

Look at her, having the time of her god damn life!
Image source: http://2.bp.blogspot.com




Reverse Crunch and Plank

For the reverse crunch you lie on your back and with your hands palms down, you roll your legs and torso as you raise your hips off the ground. At my gym we have a bar that you can hold onto instead of placing your hands on the ground for support. I much prefer the bar but unfortunately I don't think there's one in my gym in college! I also lie on a mat bench on the ground that can be raised up the bars to make it a decline reverse crunch, I did that today and it was much harder and I preferred it that way. I always really enjoy doing stomach work as I think I've done so many crunches and situps in the last few years that I have very strong abdominals and it takes quite a bit for me to feel that I'm really working them out. The plank is straight forward, you lie flat on the ground while supporting your weight with your toes and forearms. Like I said, I need a lot to work my abdominals and the plank doesn't really do it for me so my instructor made it harder by getting me to do it on a ball and my god does it make it harder, I do be sweating buckets!

Reverse Crunch
Image source: http://www.orbitnutrition.com

Plank with Ball
Image source: http://www.menshealth.com

And there we have it folks, my entire workout explained! I'll be hopefully adding more to my routine soon enough. I was at the gym today and was hoping my instructor would be in but he wasn't so I'll catch him again this week. All the instructors are amazing in the gym but I really like my own so I feel lucky he did out my program. He's going to change my whole routine up soon so that might mean a whole other post about what I'm at... I hope not cos this took me ages! I want to do a pull-up cos I am absolutely fascinated by them! I saw a girl doing one the other day and I was in awe! There was a kid, a KID, no older than 12 in the gym today and he did loads so I know I'll be able to do one in time. 

So my hopes are that all this will be enough for me to complete the Hell and Back! I'll go into detail about the course in my next post, it's pretty insane! I got worried that I'm not doing enough hill work and speed work so after my weight session today I was feeling pretty good so ran a 5km with a few speed intervals and a tough enough incline interval. I thought my lungs were going to burn through my ribs. No pain no gain I guess. I'm all too aware of a mountain we have to climb for the race and I know I need more hill work so I'll try to incorporate more of in the next week or two. That's all for now! Peace. 

I run; Therefore, I am.

This is my first post on my aboveaveragefitness blog. I don't really know what direction it will take, even if I will continue on updating it or if anyone will be interested in reading it but for now it's a place for me to talk about fitness and everything that encompasses it really! Like the name implies, my blog is about trying to achieve and attain above-average-fitness (Yep, made up my own word!). Now, what exactly this means, I'm not sure. I guess I want to see myself as being fitter and healthier than the average person. Not that fitness should be solely based off whether you're better than someone, not at all. I see the "average person" as not even being a person, more a base level of fitness that I can work on and constantly improve myself upon. I'm pretty average in all other realms of life and my current fitness level isn't what you'd call amazing, I'm an average-above-average-fitness person and this blog is to document my journey through my fitness goals and anything else I want to talk about! So, without further ado, I will crack on with it!

Did my usual 10km route today (It's actually 9.8km but shhhh) and it was pretty arduous and unpleasant! I did my longest ever run last week that was around 16/17km - I only know a rough estimate cos I got lost so many times, ha! But 4 days after and my legs are evidently still a little stiff from it. I should have stretched more, a lot more. I just really hate stretching. I think that's the essence of running though; you keep going no matter how hard it is. I wanted to stop a lot but I just kept going, I took account of my posture, where my feet were landing and when I do all that I forget the pain for a while. I stopped 3 times to stretch, something which I've never had to do but it helped me carry on. But I did it and now as always, I feel great and very accomplished! I don't think there's a better feeling in the world than completing something which was a challenge. Something that challenged you both mentally and physically. I think running makes you a better person because of this. It makes you persevere longer when others may have quit, it makes you able to tolerate pain and allows you to create coping mechanisms to deal with your problems, as opposed to giving up.

I'm reading What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami at the moment, I'm nearly finished and I have to say it is an utter pleasure to read! The way he puts the feelings of running into words really is awe-inspiring. He is so structured and regimented when it comes to running and I hope that what I've learned from the book I can instil in my own life. Today for example, like I said, it was really tough and I really wanted to stop. A few weeks ago I would be beating myself up telling myself I clearly wasn't fit enough for it and I should just drag my fat ass back home, sit on my already fat ass and watch it grow even larger. Not today! His calm and level-headed approach to running made me change the way I thought today and instead of being a dick to myself I just said "Hey, go you! You're running! It may be slow but who cares, you're gonna hammer out these 10 kilometres and feel great after!". Now I'm not exactly confident this will happen all the time but it was nice to feel this way for once. I recommend his book for anyone with even the slightest interest in running. My favourite, simple quote from the book :

"A gentleman shouldn't go on and on about what he does to stay healthy"

Now, I don't go around boasting about how much exercise I've done cos frankly I don't think the amount I do actually do is anything to boast about. But, when you have reached a personal achievement, be it a new personal time, a new long distance, another pound lost or a heavier weight you lifted, it's normal to want to tell people. I thankfully have people around me who are also interested in fitness so I usually talk to them about my goals and achievements, as they tell me theirs. I think this is an important thing to remember, people who aren't into the same things as you do not want to hear about your achievements or goals. I don't think this is due to any sort of envy or ill-will, it's just human nature. If I don't like Jazz music and you keep telling me about the new Jazz music you've been listening to, I quite frankly won't care. So, I don't expect someone who doesn't have an interest in fitness or running to listen to my ramblings on about stiff calves and stretching. I'll probably do a longer post about this at some point, but I'm only hinting on it now.

I plan on hitting the gym tomorrow and hopefully getting a few new exercises under my belt, I've been on the same program for 2 weeks now and I've pretty much adjusted to it. The body is a wonderful thing like that! I'd love to be able to do a pull-up someday so I think I'm gonna ask my instructor how I can begin this process! That's all for now folks. Peace.