Hi and welcome to another week,
Well done to everyone who got through the sessions last week – particularly as temperatures heated up late in the week and over the weekend. I have been really enjoying the new ‘block’ of Body Work sessions (moving into week 3 this week coming) and have found the ‘double’ strength and conditioning sets really challenging (and really fun). Boxing sessions this week look great – the rowers are back out for the week and later in the week we have our first class of 90-second rounds (2x laps) for just on 15 months…so that’s going to be fun!
This weeks blog was probably ALWAYS going to be about the end of the 28-Days Later challenge so I apologise in advance for everyone reading this who did not/could not participate…suffice to say I think it has proved once again (as if it needed proving) that it doesn’t matter how hard you push yourself in the gym, unless you also make some changes to your diet then you simply are not going to get the results you are chasing. We still haven’t finalised things yet (quite a few people still need to weigh in) but so far 122 people have jumped on the scales (well, the body scanner) after 28-days of 3x classes per week and lost on average 3.49kgs.
Read that back again. 3x classes per week and 3.49kgs (average) weight loss. To achieve that, everyone abandoned bread (and bread substitutes), pasta, alcohol and any food with an ‘added’ sweetener, natural or otherwise. Admittedly, this rules out 90% of the pre-packaged food you find in the supermarket but eating steak and veggies or fish and salad every night for dinner is not really much of a sacrifice (particularly if you use a bit of imagination with your food prep).
Is it hard? Well, it takes a bit of discipline. We gave everyone 2x cheat days where they could eat and drink whatever they liked (and based on the facebook posts some people took FULL advantage of that rule!) – but I think everyone who participated will look back at the results and say that it was 100% worth it…and that the real challenge starts NOW.
The real challenge of course is doing the right thing, eating the right things, drinking the right things when no-one out there is watching. I know myself that the further away from the challenge I get the more likely I am to go from drinking once every couple of weeks to every week to twice a week to three and even four times each week. Other people aren’t inspired by the idea of alcohol and have a different vice – it might be sweets, it might be potato chips, it might be anything – but the challenge we all face is the same. Keeping these ‘sometimes foods’ for sometimes and being strong with exactly what ‘sometimes’ means.
I know for me I don’t want to be ‘that guy’ who runs into an old friend and is so strictly following a food/eating plan that I can’t enjoy a beer with them. But it is also important that I don’t become ‘that guy’ who allows ‘sometimes’ to become a daily ritual because habits – once formed – are really hard to break.
I don’t want to turn this into a lecture – I really don’t. I am super proud of the efforts of everyone who participated in the challenge and – to be truthful – most days I am super proud of the efforts of everyone who takes the time out of what I am sure is a ridiculously busy life to get to the gym and get in a class or even a 30-minute weights/cardio session in an effort to make themselves just a little bit better than yesterday. But if it is positive outcomes and positive reinforcement everytime you look in the mirror that you are after then you need to show discipline and constraint at the dinner table (and the breakfast bar, and the café bar, and the lunch bar, and the bar bar!) as much as you need to show discipline and effort in getting to the gym and trying your hardest.
Three sessions each week. No bread, no pasta, no sweeteners, no alcohol. 3.49kg lost in four short weeks.
See you in the gym,
Michael.
Congrats to everyone who fought their way to the end of the challenge – and for contributing to the massive change we all achieved throughout the month of February.
Whilst there are still a few scans outstanding, at the current time we have achieved the following outcomes:
Total weight lost: 416kgs
Change in average body weight percentage: -3.76kgs
Average muscle mass gained: 0.4kgs
We are planning to return to C.Y. O’Connor’s on Monday, March 7th at 10:30am for a workout followed by a bbq with everyone who has time to make it along…so mark it in your calendar, pack some sausages and drinks in your favourite esky and we will see you there!
Gym classes will run as normal on that day.
Over the past week a good amount of the promised equipment has arrived! You will no doubt have seen all of the new hex dumbbells in the downstairs gym area (and those lucky enough to attend today’s boxing class might have experienced the pain they are concealing first hand!) as well as all of the new bumper plates in the Tanks area.
Next to be arrive will be 4x new vinyl-wrapped power ropes (or battle ropes). Really hoping they arrive THIS week as I have programmed them into classes for next week. The issue we have with the using the ropes in their ‘new home’ (in front of the treadmills) is that all of the ‘shedding’ they do has been getting sucked into the treadmill motors (sorry, ridiculously expensive treadmill motors) and impacting their performance…so we have switched over to the nylon ones (at the sweet price of AU$390 each no less!) to try and avoid this issue…let’s hope it works.
So – over the past month or so there seems to have developed a whole heap of confusion over which classes casual gym users need to book for and which ones they don’t. So we have decided to make it easy for everyone – if you aren’t a member of the gym, please book for ALL CLASSES. We are headed into what is generally a really busy time at the gym so if you are a casual user please just call the gym on 9414 1141 to book in for any/all classes you want to attend. If you are a member you don’t need to book. We will figure it out and find a way whenever you come in! J
If you aren’t sure when the classes are – or, more topically, when Body Work is vs when Boxing is! – check the timetable here: Round 1 Fitness Class Timetable
Our fantasy league is up and running again for 2016. If you are keen to get involved (and we are keen to have you!) the invite code for the leage is 2DCHKKLN – go to Fantasy.AFL.COM.AU to get started.
The global fitness competition known as the ‘CrossFit Open’ is up and running for another year. For anyone interested in following what is going on (or having a go at the workouts) the link to the announcements/info page is here:
We know this can be a daunting time. You’re probably wondering if we really are the right fit for each other. And it’s OK! Many people before you, have felt the same, and that’s why we want to offer you something special – our $29 Health Check.
Let’s work out together to see if we’re the right fit. Just hit the button below to let me know if you’re ready to see what’s included.
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