Lowther Rinse Repeat

Bootcamp - The Results July 22, 2008

I did it.  I survived bootcamp!! When bootcamp first started, I didn’t think that that was going to happen.  I felt every muscle in my body ache for the first two weeks - the problem with waking up in the morning turned from an issue of getting my eyes to open, to being able to move my stiff aching body enough to roll out of bed.

As the weeks progressed, it slowly became easier as my body adjusted to the new grueling workout routine.  Don’t get me wrong, I could still feel the intense work out the next day - and even that evening if it was a particularly hard workout - it just wasn’t as hard as those first couple of weeks.

After the 2 week mark, I started to notice subtle differences in how my body was looking as well and more importantly, how I was feeling.  So the results are in and I am extatic.  I couldn’t be happier at all.

The first number was my result on the first day of class and the second one is on the last day at class.

- Push ups in one minute (girly ones): 22    /   39

- Sit ups in one minute: 30    /    40  (my form is also much better than the first time)

- Plank hold (you balance on your toes and arms and see how long you can hold it - I did the girly ones though where you balance on your knees) - 1:35 *the longest of all the girls!!    3:00 min

- Squat hold (where you lean against a wall and pretend that you’re sitting on a chair) - 1:07   /    1:23

- 1 km run - 5:40   /   4:36 * Yes I knocked over a full minute of my time!!

Then there were the measurements:

- Right Bicep: 10.5 in  /  11 in

- Chest: 38.5 in    /    35.5 in

- Abdomen (they measured across your belly button and not your narrowest part - kinda didn’t love that bit): 32 in    /    30.5 in

- Hips (again not where I’d think to take it - we did it across the largest part of your butt): 40 in   /   38.5 in

- Right thigh: 23 in    /    22 in

- Calf: 13.5 in    /    13.25

I was so impressed with the results that I have signed up for another month of bootcamp.  We started last night and I am going to try and make it 4 nights a week this time instead of 3 (it would be 5, but I have beach volleyball on Thursdays).  I’ve even almost quit smoking.  I’ve not quite quit completely yet, but I’m down to 1/2 - 2 smokes per day, which is a huge improvement over what it was.

At the end of this session, I will update you with my stats again.  I highly doubt that the results will be as good as the first time, as I don’t really have any weight to lose, rather I need to tone.  Where I do expect to see the results is in the fitness test.   If I can improve that much in just 4 weeks, imagine what I’ll be able to do in 8!

Bootcamp, BBQ Off and a Blogathon July 17, 2008

This week has been a particularly busy one.  It is my last week at bootcamp - tomorrow we are redoing our measurements and fitness test and  I’ll post the results and the overall inches lost.  I’ve already noticed a huge difference in my stamina and overall muscle tone.  So much so, that I’ve already signed up for another month.  It starts on Monday - so no break for me, but well worth it.

At work, we like to do off’s.  We started with a soup off, then progressed to a slow cooker off - which we aptly named Rock Out with Your Crock Out.  That one was so good, that we did it twice - the mix of slow cookers and guitar hero is amazingly fun.  To celebrate the final arrival of summer in our fair little city, we’ve decided to do a BBQ off.  As I type, I am parboiling some ribs and am about to make a BBQ sauce to marinate them in over night.

Yesterday, I signed Invoke up for the 2008 24 hour blogathon for charity. Basically, we will be posting a blog post every 30 minutes for 24 hours. This year, the blogathon was arranged by Vancouver’s very own Miss604 and the last time I checked, there were 12 bloggers signed up.  I know Vancouver can do a lot better than this and I encourage any bloggers out there to participate.  I will be writing in Invoke’s blog for the event if you would like to check it out during the event.  The Invoke team with begin posting at 10 pm July 26, and we will upload our last post at 10 pm July 27.

We’ve chosen a charity that helps villages in Mali.  I will have more information on the charity and an actual page where you can donate tomorrow.  It’s going to a great cause, so any bit that you can help with would be much appreciated.

**Update:

Invoke has set a fund raising goal of $1000 for the blogathon.  If you would like to support our efforts - which we would greatly appreciate - you can make a donation to the cause here (the page will be going live later today).  Invoke has chosen a charity that is very close to Invoke’s heart - The Lochmaddy Foundation.  Invoke is connected to this charity through Dario Meli and David Tedman who sit on the board. Through the Lochmaddy Foundation, all donations will be directed to a community in Mali, West Africa. Families in N’Gouraba are working hard to improve their lives and the lives of their children through a special agricultural project. Your donation will empower and enable them to realize increased crops, more family income with new opportunities and a brighter future.

We are collecting donations through Plan Canada who are our partner on the ground there.  I would like to thank them and specifically Heather for all of their hard work in helping Invoke bring this all together.

Day 1 at Survivor Bootcamp June 23, 2008

I’ve just got back from my first day at bootcamp. Wow…do they ever work you and this was the ‘easy’ day.

The goal of bootcamp is simple - it is a group personal training regiment, designed to kick you into shape. According to their website “Our goal is to promote fitness and its many benefits to individuals of all ages. Join our small classes and you will run, hike, weight train, develop core strength through Pilates, and sweat through a fun and intense circuit every week.”

The bootcamp location that I signed up for is the one under the Cambie street bridge by Coopers Park.

View Larger Map

The first day was about assessing your current fitness level to give you a benchmark on which to see the endurance and physical improvements that you’ve gained from the training. Below is my fitness test:

- Push ups in one minute (girly ones): 22

- Sit ups in one minute: 30

- Plank hold (you balance on your toes and arms and see how long you can hold it - I did the girly ones though where you balance on your knees) - 1:35 *the longest of all the girls!!

- Squat hold (where you lean against a wall and pretend that you’re sitting on a chair) - 1:07

- 1 km run - 5:40

Then there were the measurements:

- Right Bicep: 10.5 in

- Chest: 38.5 in

- Abdomen (they measured across your belly button and not your narrowest part - kinda didn’t love that bit): 32 in

- Hips (again not where I’d think to take it - we did it across the largest part of your butt): 40 in

- Right thigh: 23 in

- Calf: 13.5 in

So in 4 weeks I’ll give you my final scores to see how far I’ve come in just a month. Already, I can see where my strengths and weaknesses lay.  I seem to be really good with endurance and core strength and need improvement in my upper body strength - I also seem to be a bit weak in lower body strength.  I’m really looking forward to improving my weaknesses as well as my strengths.

We finished the day with a upper body and brief core workout. Judging from today, they are really going to kick my ass and I love it. I’m looking forward to feeling and seeing the results. I’ll keep you posted.