Week 9 has been done, son. It has been a challenging week, filled with many different emotions. Work/life balance can be hard to manage at the best of times but this week was particularly difficult. Still I left every session feeling energized, revitalized and with more knowledge then I had when I went in with. So lets get into it.
Session one :
Vinnie with his mad F’N ideas huh. I was not expecting Tuesdays session at all, and it hit hard. The exercises where much the same, but the mechanics certainly were not. Today was about TUT. Time under tension (TUT) refers to the amount of time a muscle is held under tension or strain during an exercise set. During TUT workouts, you lengthen each phase of the movement to make your sets longer. The idea is that this forces your muscles to work harder and optimizes muscular strength, endurance, and growth.So in practice this means when coming down for your set you time it, decrease is four seconds, hold the weight for two seconds and then try to be explosive in the increase. All well in good until your muscles flat-lines on you. You know how many reps you are generally able for and your mind wants to hit that, but the fatigue in the muscles sets in so much quicker. We done this for chest and back, and my chest was messed up after it. Man I could barely do a push up after it, and definitely couldn’t manage the incline. 20 incline push ups! Vinnie is a mad lad. I had to do it in blocks, laughing at my failure.
A nice stroll in Jenkinstown, followed by a run through town, had me raring to go for my work week to start.
Session Two :
Lee was on hand for the second last leg session of the programme. I went in Thursday, pure dreading the workout ahead. I was after coming from the doctors office fora re-occurring issue I had to get surgery on last year. Nothing serious, but enough to piss me off for the day as I had a busy few months ahead. I just was not feeling it walking through the doors that day. Lee managed to pick me up though telling me I was doing myself a disservice! Last week I had wrote I leg pressed 200lbs, when he informed me it was 200kgs instead, almost double. So the challenge was could I best that today. To be honest I do not know if I did best it, Lee maintained I did 13 reps, when I only did 12 last week, but I think the last two reps were very suspect. Still he is the pro, so i will take his word. Hack squats, free squats, Romanian dead lifts, leg press and hamstring curls, never a nice thing facing ya but you feel accomplished when you leave.
The legs are recovering better over the weeks which is encouraging, definitely helped by being able to get out running again. All though the hamstrings after four sets of 15 working on them are always a bit sensitive!
Session Three :
So I went in for a bit of arms and shoulders, ya know standard. That was not what ended up happening. Thankfully I never went for my morning run, instead opting to go for a stroll with my dog. Conserving that energy served me well, because I walked in on a three man wrecking crew. Vinnie, Lee and Paddy encouraged me to join in on their heavy lifting day, which was a chest day. I was up for it, to see how I would fair with the big boys. A few warm ups and I was back to something familiar, dumbbells. Before training chest day exclusively incorporated free weights, so I was happy enough to come back to something I know. Now the lads were lifting heavier ( Vinnie getting up 46kg for 10 was quite a sight) but I was happy with my 36’s. It was a nice atmosphere which brought up alot of chats about weight training. Lee is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to training and is more then happy to offer advice and words of encouragement. Can’t get to 10 reps? Will ya stop boy, of course you can! That seems like the motto, and you aim for that maximum rep every time. Chest press is a weakness of mine, but it is improving, once again showcased by the plates lifted. Bitta shoulders and a 4 set, superset on arms had me blown up leaving the gym. it was fun catching Vinnie out when he tried to skip the last set, he thought he had done four rounds, I was quick to notify him it was only three. So he did the last one, with me jeering him all the way, no doubt I will pay for that one come next week.
The week was completed with a nice 5k on Sunday morning. The sun was shining and the weather was sweet. Sometimes I am guilty of labeling things I enjoy doing as tasks. Goto work, check, go to gym check, go for a run, check. Just a constant check list of things to do in my head, instead of stopping for a second and realizing these are things I love to do. Even my job, to me is not really a job. I have been a gravedigger, a bouncer, a laborer, funeral insurance salesman, a banker, I was a F’N Santa Claus one Christmas. My past self would love to be where I am today, and I need to understand that sometimes it nice to not constantly strive for your goals, just show gratitude for what you have. I took a few minutes from my run to stand on top of the Castle Park Hill and just appreciate what I have, a moment of self reflection. As Ferris Bueller said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” I did that on Sunday , and I loved it.
If you want to make a change, you can contact Davy on 0892528904 or email [email protected].
