An Update: On me

It’s been since Christmas time since I wrote on here… my only excuse is that I have been working very hard.

I’m now reaching the 9th month of my time in car sales for Lifestyle SEAT and I’m based in Brighton. 9 months sounds like a long time but I’m still learning.. slowly but surely.

I’ve continued on my fitness, albeit, a lot less intense than the extreme adventure that I was on. My most challenging aspect is making sure I eat enough. Anyone who has worked in a showroom will understand the time pressures and how reluctant most sales people are to leave for a break. I’m getting there!

in a boot

Continue reading “An Update: On me”

Finishing my fitness training; What do I look like now?

I have had a huge break from blogging about my fitness, I moved house and life became a little bit more mental.

I actually officially moved from my home of 19 years on the same day I finished the 8 week course. I was a bit emotional so it’s taken until now for me to able to reflect on my experiences.

It’s been completely life changing. I will never think of my body or my mental and physical ability in the same light. From waking up at 5am to bench pressing, I achieved the impossible (for me anyway!).

My body has never been happier. This has taught me about my wheat and oil intolerance and how to control it. Going out for food can still be a bit stressful for me but I’m managing it. Although I’ve been treating myself a bit more (it is Christmas after all!) I feel that I have a diet plan that works for me, a little bit less protein…

Enough of my emotional rambling now, let me show you the difference. It might not look as dramatic as those before-and-after ‘weight watcher’ 20 stone-loss people, but for me it feels that big. I can’t thank Tim enough for how much happier he has made me. I have worked so hard but he has worked even harder. Without a doubt he has changed my life, I now truly believe that Australians are all slightly crazy!

Continue reading “Finishing my fitness training; What do I look like now?”

The Jessica Ennis six-pack ambition: The Final Phase (pictures so far!).

So we’re now into the final part of the training. I can see the end and I’m so happy with what has been achieved so far.

I’m not 100% certain how much weight I’ve lost but hopefully these pictures can show you the difference in how I feel:

Continue reading “The Jessica Ennis six-pack ambition: The Final Phase (pictures so far!).”

Sprint Training is a BITCH

This week I have experienced ‘the wall’.

No this does not mean that I have found out how to brick-lay, I have found my mental and physical wall in the form of sprint training.

I have never felt anything like that moment when there is nothing left in your muscles any more! The first session was quite an amazing setting too. Shoreham beach, at half 6 in the morning on the board walk. Looking out to sea there was an enormous American styled thunderstorm, to the right Worthing was coming to life and to the left we could see Brighton Pier lighting up.

Continue reading “Sprint Training is a BITCH”

Phase 2 begins. Endorphins and struggling with ‘days off’

So today, Wednesday, is my ‘off’ day.

When I say ‘off’ I mean I am grumpy, unsociable and tired.

I don’t have work and I don’t have exercise and no matter how much I sleep I constantly feel shattered. It’s exactly like people say,

“energy creates energy”

Also this keeps running around my head about endorphins:

Continue reading “Phase 2 begins. Endorphins and struggling with ‘days off’”

Why have I decided to get fit? Update: the 2nd week.

Apologies for the delay in blogging. I started a new job this week and the hours have been very tough on me, physically but more mentally!

Everyday I get up at 5, get to the workout for an hour, shower and get ready at Tim’s and then drive straight to work. (In case you were wondering I am a Trainee Car Sales Executive for Lifestyle SEAT! The dealership in Brighton hasn’t actually opened yet so I’m training at Lifestyle Ford in Horsham. Pop in if you’re local! But this isn’t what I’m blogging about here!)

Continue reading “Why have I decided to get fit? Update: the 2nd week.”

The first week.

It’s Friday afternoon and there is only one more early morning training session left for this week!

As I type this I am really aware of the muscles around my shoulder blades- they are throbbing like mad! I also have a large bruise on my right knee but I don’t remember knocking it.

This has been tough! I have personally found the toughest part eating. Eating all that is required on my daily plan and keeping up with it. This morning my head was throbbing and I was going a bit dizzy and then I realised that I had missed a meal and my body was sending me warning signs.

It’s easy to forget one of the 6 meals I need, but I have to make sure I’m keeping it up or I don’t have the energy for the work outs.

This week Tim fitted me with a heart monitor watch, looks like this:

It’s really useful for seeing how much I’ve worked throughout a session and I’m really beginning to get used to these early starts!

Motivation!!

The first day of the ‘Athletic Body’ Challege

As you can tell by the time of this post, this is a very unnatural time to be awake, especially for me.

I was awake at 4am worried that my alarm(s) wouldn’t go off at 5. They did and my cardiovascular work started immediately! (gettit? boom boom)

Couldn’t get the contact lenses in without feeling like I had poured acid in my eyes so resorted to the good old heavy frames.

Ate a banana on the way and managed to melt some of it to my lap as I drove. Continue reading “The first day of the ‘Athletic Body’ Challege”

Why EVERYONE should go to an American Summer Camp

As I started the biggest production of my life (so far), the third year dissertation, I suddenly got a bit worried. This wasn’t because of the amount of work I needed to do, I’m super organised so I knew I could handle it. It was the thought of what I would do when this was all over. Over and over again I had read graduate ‘horror stories’ of how everyone falls into this inevitable pit of unemployment desperately trying to scramble out.

I decided to start planning my life after graduation and what I would do with my life after university. This is when I found Camp Leaders: the chance to work all summer in a camp in America. Although the application process was more strenuous than applying for University there is no doubt that this was the best thing that I have ever done.

Continue reading “Why EVERYONE should go to an American Summer Camp”

This is what my completed dissertation looks like!

I’m actually a little embarrassed to admit that I enjoyed this piece of work. Nevertheless, I am relieved to see it finally bound and submitted after so much hard work! Congratulations to everyone else submitting their dissertations!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(If you can’t see the title clearly it says: Has the Press Complaints Commission failed to fulfil its designed remit- quite a timely piece, in fact so up to date, it will be out of date by the time it is marked!)