The 24 Day Shred... Day 1: Mon 13th.

...Yes, you read that right. Simply because I don't have 30 days to do the full routine in!

We're going away for our 1st anniversary for a weekend break to Edinburgh on Thurs 7th October, and that gives me just over 3 weeks to regain some muscle definition and lose some of the jiggle I seem to have developed over the course of my half marathon training (I still owe you a write-up about that half don't I!). Don't get me wrong, I'm not thinking I'm hideous or anything, I'd just like a little more body confidence back, and a break from running!

I haven't gained weight, and my measurements are still pretty much the same as they were previously (I'll list them at the end of this post), but the actual tone of my body is different, the line down my stomach that I'd worked so hard to glimpse has totally disappeared, my biceps and triceps aren't defined anymore, my thighs wobble more than they were when I was strength training consistently. So I now have 24 days where I'd like to start making a difference to those things and result in me feeling uber-confident in my appearance for this mini-break.

Have you had any experience of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred dvd? I've started it a couple of times, but due to the half marathon training  have never managed more than a couple of sessions, and never any in a row...

The basic premise of the dvd is that 20 minutes of high intensity exercise for 30 days will see noticable changes to your body, and that's achieved by a combination of strength training for 3 mins, cardio for 2 mins, ab work for 1 min, repeated 3 times. As you find the first routine less of a challenge, you can move up to levels 2 and 3. Simple, right?

But holy moly this dvd can HURT. I made the mistake of thinking that as I can lift fairly well in a weights workout, I'd be fine with my hubbys weights for this. I was wrong. Wrong wrong wrong! I've had to resort to using just the bars and spinlocks with no discs at all as though some strength moves are easy peasy, others are an absolute killer!I feel just as hot, sweaty and shaky after my 25 mins with Jillian as I do after an hour in the gym, so that's good enough for me... I'm intending to do 8 sessions at each level, so a total of 24 days in a row, if I can fit it in daily (if a forced or necessary rest day comes up, I won't beat myself up about it...)

I won't be changing my eating habits particularly, as they're not particularly bad anyway, I'm still eating a semi vegan diet, watching my protein, sugar and fat intake, but there could be a reduction in the amount of cake and baking I've been getting through recently, even if it is all good stuff... I've not counted calories in so long now that I'm reluctant to start again, so I'll be trying to do this intuitively. After all, this isn't an attempt to lose weight, it's purely to lean out a little. I will keep a food diary on here though as much as I can so that I can keep track of where and when I stray...

So, shall we?

Day 1: Mon 13th Sept

Measurements (I'll try and remember to add comparison pics too!):
Weight: 9 stone 10 (136lbs)
Bust: 34in
UnderBust: 29in
UpperWaist: 26in (narrowest point)
LowerWaist: 31in (navel)
Hips: 36in
Thighs: 21.5in
Calves: 13.5in
UpperArms: 10.5in (really?)
ForeArms: 9.5in
Wrists: 6in

Level 1 Session 1:
Completed, 199 cals on HRM (I'll be monitoring this to keep an eye on whether I'm working to full intensity for each session) Found it surprisingly hard work for someone who's fit enough to have run 13.1 miles a week ago!

Food:
Breakfast: Porridge. 40g oats, 15g soya protein, 100g plums, 150ml rice milk, 5g ground flax, 10g sweet freedom natural sweetener, cinnamon
Snack: 25g mixed dried fruit, nuts and seeds
Lunch: Mixed Bean Pasta (75g dry weight wholewheat pasta, half jar tomatoes, half red onion, half tin three bean salad)
Snack: 1/8th block of tofu, baked with a bit of soy sauce while roasting dinner
Dinner: Roast Veg and Sweetcorn Fritters. A mix of potato, sweet potato, butternut squash, peppers, mushrooms, plus fritters made from 275g sweetcorn, 175g tofu, 2tbsp rice milk, 1 tbsp maple syrup, 4tbsp wholemeal flour, 1tsp chillis, then (frylite) fried in patties... Surprisingly good! I had about a third of this mx, it made about 20. It's a Vegan with a Vengeance recipe, I'll post it if I remember...
Snack: Slight slip up, Apple Crumble with Ice Cream. Yeah. But, this was literally 2 bramley apples, sliced and doused with cinnamon, with a topping made from 1 cup ground almonds, 1 cup rolled oats, 1/4 cup agave syrup and 1/4 cup rapeseed oil. Hardly unhealthy fare, it's only the fact I ate a good third of that which causes a problem!!! With about 50g of soya ice cream.