Hannah\’s Blog

My shoulders have now recovered and so has my chest from Tuesdays workout.  I am going to have a little think about my arm workout for this Saturday.  I am working on peaking the bicep, but I might need another building exercise in.  Needs a little thought.

My clock counter is on my home page, so now I can keep a record of my hits, moving forward - progress!

I have got my pictures back from Brian, so will be putting time aside this weekend to put them on, looking forward to freshening up my gallery.  I am also going to put a video of my PUMP class on (not till I am in my pre-contest diet - when I look good in shorts again, roll on march 18th to start pre-contest diet).

So this mornings workout was LEGS (no animal pump today as I think Tuesdays workout blew my CNS (central nervous system) this week, so I decided not to stress it and get more sleep and focus on taking it and getting off my head on Saturday! ha!

It was a really intense workout, I did Squats in the cage, 20 reps down to 8 reps, then walking lunges in the corridor with 10kg and then upstairs for 3 sets of barbell step ups and into the lying leg curl superset with bb stiff leg deadlifts.  I did 3 sets of 25 reps for calves and full and side planks.  I also managed to get 15 mins in on uphill walking on the treadmill.  Result!  Had lots of sleep this afternoon, needed to do some work really, but obviously needed the rest.  Got some growing to do!

Trained clients this morning and one of my clients got her personal best in the serious fit run through, she did it 10.50 last august and this morning 9.27.  Well done Rachel.  Back to work now to train clients all evening.

Last nights PUMP class was good.  They are all learning the Step routine well and next week we can add and move on.  The classes technique is really good and I am really pleased with how many of them are now adding more weight on to make the desired changes to their body! It’s great.

It was weigh day today and I am 2 oz heavier!  Unbelievable, cos I look massive!  Even my clothes are now getting tight.  I only have 2 weeks to go before clean up diet starts and then its full on diet time to get lean!

This morning I trained arms, shoulder and chest.  Arms are a priority as shoulders, so this week its arms first.  I warmed up on chins and dips and then onto the first tri-set, pressdowns into barbell curls into overhead lying cable curls (3 sets).  Next was Close grip bench and incline supination curls (single arms), I got a great pump off these first 2 exercises.  Then it was close grip push ups (easy today) into double arm kneeling cable curls.  Helen and I then worked together on standing military shoulder presses and then it was onto dumbel lateral raises superset with reverse flyes (used the machine today).  Chest was incline flyes dumbel into vertical chest press.  Then to start working on my calves, I did 3 sets of 25 reps (4 plates) standing calf raises.  I am now committed to training my calves every day to give them some height, 100 reps every day. 

Watched Rocky 2 before training my first client before my training, so we both got as usual great workouts and I had Rocky playing on my i-pod.  Rocky music gives me a great feeling of being in New York for my first time and I can really lose myself.  It creates a wonderful feeling.   In NLP terms this called VAKOG (see below)

Representational systems (also known as sensory modalities and abbreviated to VAKOG or known as the 4-tuple) is a Neuro-linguistic programming model that examines how the human mind processes information. It states that for practical purposes, information is (or can be treated as if) processed through the senses. Thus people say one talks to oneself (the auditory sense) even if no words are emitted, one makes pictures in one’s head when thinking or dreaming (the visual sense), and one considers feelings in the body and emotions (known as the kinesthetic sense).

NLP holds it as crucial in human cognitive processing to recognize that the subjective character of experience is strongly tied into, and influenced by, how memories and perceptions are processed within each sensory representation in the mind. It considers that expressions such as “It’s all misty” or “I can’t get a grip on it”, can often be precise literal unconscious descriptions from within those sensory systems, communicating unconsciously where the mind perceives a problem in handling some mental event.

Within NLP, the various senses in their role as information processors, are known as representation systems, or sensory modalities. The model itself is known as the VAKOGmodel (from the initial letters of the sensory-specific modalities: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory, gustatory). Since taste and smell are so closely connected, sometimes as a 4-tuple, meaning its 4 way sensory-based description. A submodality is a structural element of a sensory impression, such as its perceived location, distance, size, or other quality.

Busy day working with clients and on being on-duty in the gym.  Then getting myself ready for Thursdays workout LEGS!

Today was back, shoulders and arms.  I jumped in and trained with Simon and Dean again.  I started my morning breakfast with Rocky 3, my favourite out of the series.  The training scene of rocky and Apollo is very inspirational for me.  Back training was deadlifts and bent over rows and pullovers, writing this now my back is feeling sore.  Shoulders were strict seated dumbell lateral raises.  Arms was good and I am looking a bit thicker in the arms, we did pressdowns into close grip bench press and overhead lying cable curls into dumbell hammer curls. It was a great workout for us and I really felt good this time on Animal Pump, I think the intensity of leg training on Thursday just blew me away.  Trained a client this morning and she got a great first trial time for Serious Fit event, well done Rebekah! 

Just deciding which pictures I am going to give to Brian to add to my website.  Looking forward to making the site fresh again. 

Today I trained with Simon and Dean.  It was legs and it was SQUATS.  That’s it? Yes! 10 sets of squats……………

I started with 10kg either side of the olympic bar for 20 reps, working all the way down to 4 reps with 25 kg either side.  The whole session took an hour.  I felt sick (think that was the caffieine from the animal pump) my legs felt strong and I concentrated on squeezing my glutes through the whole of the movement. 

It was a really good session and I was spaced out for the rest of the day!  Hard work.

Visited Tamsin my hairdresser today and she started to thread more blonde through my hair.  I am going back to my original colour for the competitons this year - blonde.

Hopefully by early next week I will have some fresh pics for you all to look at.

This morning I trained Arms and Shoulders.  My traps are still sore from saturday’s workout, so Simon advised me to start with arms today.  this could be a new change to my workout, with one session arms first then shoulders and then on the third session shoulders first then arms.  This is because both are a priority.  I warmed up on dips and reverse grip chins to warm up tris and bis.  Then I completed a tri-set with pressdowns into barbell curls into overhead lying cable curls.  For today’s workout my focus was to think about my biceps and to try and make them ‘peak higher’.  I could see this happening on the lying cable curls.  Then it was onto close grip bench into incline db sup curls.  Then another tri-set with bb press into upright rows into db lateral raises, this was the hardest exercise today for me, really struggled through the first set, but the second set was better.  The two sets of 8 reps of db shoulder presses at the regular position and then the second set with db’s turned in (almost like Arnie press without the twist).  Then onto reverse flyes for my rear delts and reverse shruggs on the smith machine.  I left calves out as I wanted to do 25 mins incline hill walking on the treadmill and will do 3 x sets of 100 reps throughout the day and I have decided to do this every day as my calves need it!

A good session for me and my arms were pumped but I am a little disappointed as I think I could have pushed myself more. 

This week I am starting to take some of my clients who have registered for our Serious Fit Event on the 30th March for their trial runs, to see what times they are approximately.  And to the pleasure of my clients who are not doing it, I am taking them through it as fun!

Good news today, my weight was up by 1 1/2 lb.  Next week goal 1/2 lb.

My hamstrings are still sore from Thursdays workout, so priority was achieved.  This morning I trained with Simon and Dean, I am on a updated programme with less volume as it was getting too much and making me ‘blown’ in the week.  It is still the same split but I am keeping with the ‘key’ movements and training calves at the end of each session, as my calves need to come up higher.

We started with standing military press for 20reps working our way down to 6 reps, then standing dumbell lateral raises - 15 reps down to 8 reps, then 2 sets of barbell shruggs and then into back, bent over rows (conventional and reverse grips) then into neutral chins with 100 reps out between the 3 of us (you can guess who did the least reps!)  I need to get tougher on these.  Then it was onto biceps, with cable curls and into seated supination curls and for triceps it was press downs into overhead extensions (I love this one) and then into clap push ups.  No calves, but I couldn’t if I tried, thought I was going to be sick through the whole workout, well, what with breakfast, animal pump and pak who wouldn’t!!!  But today my body looks full so I am happy with that.  I trained a couple of clients this morning, both of them are training hard and looking in great shape.  Good start to the day.

Helen and I practised our posing today and both were pleased, my new poses are coming along and I don’t feel as awkward and Helen’s lats are starting to come out on her front quarter turn, her back is growing and that of course helps the pose.  She starts her pre-contest diet in March when she is back from the States, as her European competiton is at the end of May. 

Legs today was fun!  Hamstrings were a priority today, so I decided to pre-exhaust them as much as I could.  I started with leg extensions to get a pump and then moved onto lying leg curls and stiff leg dumbell deadlifts.  I still wanted to hit them again, so I did perfect barbell lunges (getting easier again each week).  Pre-exhaust over I moved onto the leg press and squats and then standing and seated calve raises.  I hit abs and then moved onto training clients.  Good session and starving for a big steak and cauiflower for lunch.  My metabolic rate feels that its moving well, I am supplementing BCAA’s and Glutamine between meals and still adding MCT oil to my 2 shakes and oats in the day.  Just need next Tuesday to be a good weigh day.  My chest and triceps are still sore from Tuesdays workout, but not my shoulders (but come Saturday they will be for sure).  I now have Arnie and Davana Medinas pictures at home  for inspiration.  shoulders, shoulders, shoulders………………..

Another successful PUMP class last night.  The step combination went well and (I forgot the routine, but the class helped me out) must have been the weekend break that slowed my brain down).  The routine went down a storm and we managed to do the routine on both sides - very impressive watching a studio packed with women almost all going the same way!

 Training today was Shoulders, Triceps and Chest.  I left Biceps out today as they are still incredibly sore, my left one most certainly.  Probably didn’t help with PUMP last night.  The workout was great, I am looking a little fuller than last week, and took my Animal Pump again.  I did standing military shoulder presses (3 sets 15 reps) just to get a little pump and blood into my shoulders.  One set of 15 reps with the 10kg on seated dumbell shoulder presses and then Helen gave me a spot on the 15kg for 8 reps then 8 reps again with a rest pause set of 8 and 6.  Very strict dumbell lateral raises (the new way) and seated.  Very hard!  I decided to superset upright cable row and dumbell shruggs (15kg 3 sets).  For triceps, I really pumped up with pressdowns superset with overhead cable extensions (3 sets).  I went upstairs and did (3 sets) free dips with Brian giving me a spot and got 12/8/6 reps.  Felt great, back downstairs for chest and (2 sets) of tri-set clap push ups, ibs chest press and incoine dumbell flyes, reverse incline crunches and plank.  really enjoyed my workout today and typing this now feel a little blown, lucky chicken and cauliflower cooking for lunch!

Have e mailed Brian today asking for him to design a clock counter for my site, I would like to know how many hits I am getting and to meet up and put my Bath visit and January training pics on.

Weight today is 9st 8lb (1 and half lb on - but states it water, so we will see next week).  I’ll take it today as weight though.  Back to work after lunch and clients through this evening.  Legs as usual on Thursday, may put hamstrings first as they are a priority for now.

Went away for the weekend with Helen and trained at Bath University Gym again.  Helen is starting a new training split from Tuesday so we did my program together.  We started on seated shoulder press from 10kg to 15kg and then I did standing dumbell lateral raises whilst Helen did them seated.  We both superset upright rows into dumbell shruggs (I tried to make this exercise as hard as I could, as last week Simon blitzed me on this).  Then it was onto back and we both did 3 sets of wide grip chins to get a connection with our lats, that worked!  I did reverse grip bent over rows and dumbell pullovers (Helen did dumbell deadlifts and single arm rows).  We practised our posing in the gym.  Helen was blown and stopped so I carried on and did arms.  Now typing this I can still feel my biceps, they are ‘off the bone!’.  I went into incline supination curls straight into dumbell hammer curls into overhead tricep extensions (2 sets).  Then pressdowns for triceps into free dips into barbell curls (2 sets).  Fit ball crunches and the plank.  JD (job done!)

The workout was great, we both took Animal Pump post workout and I am pleased to say that I wasn’t as crazy as the week before.  It must have been the coffee earlier in the day that got me up.  So I am pleased to say that Animal Pump is staying in my workouts!

Had a great post workout meal and truly fed our muscles and also went in the New Spa Baths where the thermal fed waters soothed our aching muscles and the steam rooms did their job.  Great workout, great weekend away, just hope my biceps will be ready to go for tomorrows workout, if not might have to leave arms out.  I will see how they are after PUMP class tonight.

Yesterday was legs day and it was a good workout.  I had breakfast real early as I had a client before my training.  So to get my mind off how much food I had too eat I switched on my dvd of the English girl IFBB Pro (that I mentioned earlier).  It’s an interesting dvd, I watched the training bit on the legs, too much talking for me, I much prefer the leg workout Jenny Lynn has at Golds Gym, Venice Beach, LA on my other dvd.  but it is all good research.  Not seen all of it so far to make a comment.

So legs it was, I followed the same workout pattern, leg extensions, lying leg curls, leg presses and incline hack squats, barbell lunges (got my knee to touch the floor - real hard reps!).  I missed out 3/4 deadlifts and put stiff legged barbell deadlifts in instead to get my hamstrings.  My quads were really pumped, but my hamstrings didn’t match!  Need more work!!!  Visited the hairdressers and had fresh colour in today, blonde and brown and got my eyelashes and eyebrows tinted.  We are looking for a beauty therapist at our ‘Well-being Centre’,  if you know of anybody who is interested?  Then back to the gym for a few more clients.  Today my legs are sore, quads, glutes and hamstrings!  Thank goodness, I willed them to be sore!!!  Bring it on for Saturday, shoulders, arms and back.