WORKOUT WEDNESDAYS.

Happy Hump Day err’ybody! I hope that everyone is having a fabulous week and basking in this lovely summer sun while it lasts.

Wednesdays on Bless This Mess are going to be dedicated to all things fitness. I’m talking sweat and lunges and burpees and sprints and crunches and all other fabulously tortuous activities. I mentioned within my initial post that I like to get my sweat on and I touched on my hit and miss relationship with running. So being the first post of the Work Out Wednesday series – I thought it appropriate to discuss what exactly I do to challenge my fitness and keep nice and sweaty (oohhh yeah):

Emily Likes:

-       Running (when I’m having one of those runs that feels oh so lovely because my legs feel strong, my breathing is great and my mind is clear) (Note – these type of runs are much rarer than I wish them to be).

-       The gym. I’m a gym girl. I love circuit training and high interval training. I’ll typically spend about 45mins per sesh and love to mix up what I’m doing so my mind doesn’t go ga-ga. (I am NOT (yet) a treadmill runner *shudder* It absolutely does my head in and I revert to it only when absolutely necessary).

-       Yoga and pilates. If someone opened a Bikram Yoga studio down this way – I swear to all that is holy I will marry you*.

-       Les Mills’ Body Attack. Oh how I miss you BA. My gym doesn’t offer this class so I’ve sadly just hit the one year anniversary since I was high kicking my way through the class in my Perth gym. Wah!

2013 often brings with it a swell of motivation and inspiration. People sign up to gyms, start walking in the mornings and there isn’t a cookie in sight in the pantry cupboards. Come February this is often not so much the case (I’ll be talking more about this in an upcoming post so keep your eyes peeled if this rings true for you!). So rather than fighting the inevitable dip of energy and motivation, which for the record I am determined to beat this year, I am surrendering to my dizzyingly overambitious start to 2013 and making the most of it. I am setting a short term challenge that, if done correctly, should be over mid-late February and therefore I’ve met the deadline before my motivational plateau. Huzzah!

The Mission: To participate in a minimum of one new class every week until all have been attempted.

Seems pretty basic right? Well yes and no. I chose this challenge because gym time confidence is something that I have always struggled with. Convinced that everyone there is gobsmacked at the incoordinated girl at the back whose arms and legs appear to have a mind of their own (cue flailing limbs), I’ve only participated in a small handful of classes and haven’t ventured out beyond my comfort zone. But this is something I desperately want to change. Gym classes are awesome – you can be in and out in an hour, they’re relatively social, they include specifically chosen tracks that tend to trick your brain into making time pass much faster and you have the encouragement and expertise of an instructor right in front of you! I’ll keep you updated with a small section at the end of Work out Wednesdays dedicated to a description of those classes ticked off my ‘butt-fit list’ (see what I did there? ;)).

So what challenges will you set for yourself while the energy and inspiration of the New Year is at its peak? My advice is to keep it simple and achievable, while still challenging your mind or body. Having a few ‘wins’ or successes early in the New Year will keep that “Motivation Meter” set at “Shazaaaam!” and will hopefully ignite a spark that is lit for the whole year (or hopefully even longer).

Blessings from my sweaty clothes x

*The term ‘marry’ may or may not instead mean give you a cuddle and say ‘thank you’.

Images: Women's Health