Catch up with all of April Ieremia’s diary entries and accompanying exercise regimes
Spring is coming and I can feel it. Bare arms, flirty sandals, swaying skirts and more skin on show is all part and parcel of the promise of spring. I am 11.5kg lighter than when I started this column but when I look at my body, although proud of the effort so far, I can see I have a long way to go.
Running like Forrest Gump, I believed weight would fall off, my muscles would tone up and my youthful form would return, but I have discovered that, while running helps to shed the kilos, it tones up nothing!
I have been somewhat remiss with completing Scotty’s exercises, largely because I hate doing them! However, the penny has dropped. If I want a firm butt then squats and lunges have to be my best friend; if I want a firm stomach then trunk twists and sit-ups need to be part of my daily routine; if I don’t want bat-wing arms for the rest of my life then tricep dips are a must!
Training was absolute hell last week. Scotty is back and full of fire. He hammered us mercilessly. He is more than miffed that I wrote off July with a lethargic effort. My first weigh-in with the big man in five weeks didn’t deliver a result. With no change in weight from last week’s 89.3kg, I braced myself for the worst.
At training, we ran, squatted and lunged to the point where most of us just wanted to crawl.
A welcome addition this week, though, was young Simon. He’s as fit as a fiddle and wants to build an even greater fitness base. He kept up with Scotty, and their competitive streaks came out. What is it with males and competition? Why do they feel the need to prove they are the best? Admittedly, there’s nothing like watching a young buck giving your “too fit” trainer a serious run for his money.
If the truth were known, tempers flared at training.
I found myself screaming at Scotty, only to have him yell back at me then punish the group for my backchat.
What did I do to incite such a reaction? I yawned.
Yawning is an involuntary reaction to a lack of oxygen – I was working hard. However, like a red rag to a bull, Scotty viewed it as “boredom”. How could I possibly be bored? I was running shuttles on a rugby field at 7am on a freezing cold day!
After our heated exchange, Scotty increased the repetitions for everyone. Sorry, folks. I know I should have shut my mouth and sucked it up but he was wrong and I needed to tell him.
Would I do it again? Well, I can’t help yawning but I will think twice about answering back, only because everyone suffers as a consequence.
All that said, training was hard but good. Without a doubt,
I will do a few more runs this week – and definitely do those wretched exercises.
A note from Scott Cottier
April has hit a sticking point in her training, which as I’ve explained to her, is very common. She now has to find that “peak performance” again. our Specforce psychologist says that, “Peak performance is all about matching your potential to the demands of training. You are in the state of flow when there is a perfect balance between the pressure that challenges you and your abilities to match the demands of that pressure.”
The daylight hours are getting longer and if you have been in a lull, then it’s time to set your goals again. Small steps are better than nothing and if it means three days exercising a week to start with, then don’t stop until you achieve it. We are now half-way through the programme – well done to those who have stuck with it to this point. Next week there is an increase in running, from six to seven hours. The exercise is the “Side Bridge”, holding for 10 seconds at a time, 100 times each side for the week. Happy training.*
Scott Cottier*
Catch up with all of April Ieremia’s diary entries and accompanying exercise regimes
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