Nic's (and bruises!)

Its hard to believe that the end of the Challenge is upon us.  Where did the 12 weeks go?  The end is bittersweet but overall it has been AMAZING and I’m so glad that I was invited to participate.

Today was another great workout with Kevin.  I finally achieved my run at a speed of 6.0 for 10 minutes or 1 mile.  It was a great accomplishment and I really pushed through to finish.  There were several points where I thought I was going to need a break but I tried to focus on the goal.  SUCCESS!  Now I just have to keep working to achieve this goal…master it, if you will.  I’ve done it once, can I do it again?  And again?

After a tough run, I did heavy weights…my favorite workout.  The *hurt* is a great feeling.  “No pain, no gain”….right?  That’s my philosophy when the scale doesn’t cooperate and go DOWN after lots of crazy workouts.

• Leg presses at 180 lbs!  I did 3 sets of 12.
• Dumbbell presses with two – 25 lb dumbbells.  I did 3 sets of 10.
• Heavy squats – 50 lbs on my back.  I did 3 sets of 10.  It was a great challenge to keep the weight in my heels!
• Arm presses with 20 lb dumbbells – angled back position.  I did 3 sets of 10.
• Alternating dumbbell lunges with one – 20 lb dumbbell.  At the bottom of my lunge I did a press with the dumbbell.  Otherwise the dumbbell was held securely at chest level.  I did 3 rounds of 20 alternating lunges!

Its a KETTLEBELL EXTRAVAGANZA!

I LOVE my time with Kettlebells and today was one of those great days.  It was slightly rainy and wet today so the routine was done on the patio but under the overhang roof.

50 Jumping Jacks was a heart rate raising warm-up.

Then it was a Kettlebell circuit with two – 20 lb Kettlebells.  I had 3 sets to get through in 1 minute.  Any left over time was mine to use as a break.  The faster I got through the exercises, the more rest I got.  Of course, as I got more tired doing the exercises, I had less time to rest before my 1 minute was up.  I did TEN rounds at 1 minute each.

• 10 squats with Kettlebells on the outside of my legs – legs somewhat close together as compared to wide stance for Sumo Squats.
• 10 Kettlebell cleans
• 10 Kettlebell presses – focused on using legs to throw the Kettlebell up

After 10 rounds of Kettlebells it was time for some Boxing moves.  Kevin held the jump rope out level, with the other end tied to the railing.  My goal was to  squat and duck under the rope – - on each side I stood up and gave a jab/punch combination.  It was three sets of 30 duck-unders with a jab/cross combination.  It really got your heart rate pumping!  I did get a 1 minute break between sets.

Kettlebell windmills were up next!  I had the set of 10 lb bells…one in each hand.  Windmills really target the obliques and I was really feeling them burn during my sets.  It was a total of 20 alternating windmills – - 3 sets.

Last, but certainly not least…Kevin and I went on a RUN!  We ran the outside path around the complex.  It was HARD!  Running at the end of my workout, when I’m tired, is really super hard.  I wanted to stop every time it got hard.  Kevin had to really push me!  Literally, his hand was on my back and forcing me forward.  Wow, it was hard.  I was out of breathe before I even reached the first block.  I just kept thinking that there was NO WAY I could finish this crazy run.  But with Kevin’s continued support, I finished.  It wasn’t pretty but I finished!

Thanks for always encouraging me and believing in me!  You’ve really showed me that I can do ANYTHING…its a great feeling to finally succeed at something.

Another day of rest as prescribed by “Dr. Kevin”.  No personal training today but I did enjoy an hour of Reformer Pilates tonight.  It was a great workout and I really pushed myself.  Michelle added the “jump boards” to our routine and the feeling of *flying* was like no other.  Basically I was holding my body in the air with my core.  I can’t wait to see all the great results from adding more Pilates and Reformer to my routine.