Enjoyed my pilates class tonight - and I'm feeling nicely stretched and relaxed now

Roll down was no problem tonight now that my neck is much better - although I could still feel some pressure in my head during child's pose. Also, did not raise my head from the floor whilst doing the Hundred, as I wanted to 'protect' my neck and not strain it.

Power walk tomorrow - that should be fun, NOT Actually it will be interesting to see if I've lost some of my stamina, having not really worked for about a month

Ended up oversleeping this morning and so missed the power walk Have not had time to fit in anything else as I've had a lot to do today and I won't be able to go to body sculpt tomorrow because I've got to go to a meeting.

Will see if I can get into the afternoon yoga class tomorrow and also hit the gym.

Exercise-wise, this has not been a good week - oversleeping, distractions etc etc have thrown me totally off-track I'm afraid

Anyway, have had a great yoga session this morning. It's a new beginners class, and it was slow and very basic - BUT very helpful, because you are really learning each posture thoroughly and from scratch.

We started off with some basic relaxation in Savasana, then progressed through Salute to the Sun, Triangle, Warrior, Pigeon (my favourite ), Cobra and then some stretching exercises whilst sitting cross-legged (the Butterfly), finishing with some more relaxation and the start of some meditation.

This is a good site if anyone's is interested to seeing the poses.

Om shanti

Also did an hour's fast-paced walking yesterday afternoon. I'll not call it power walking, because I was walking on my own and however fast I think I'm going, I soon find out different when I'm with the power walk group

Today is chill out day - planning to walk again tomorrow.

Had a supple strength class yesterday - was not feeling too well, but decided to go anyway as I thought it might make me feel a bit better.

Unfortunately not

The instructor has changed the routine, which is a good thing, but because it was fairly unfamiliar and because I wasn't feeling too good, I found it hard to keep up - a lot of it consisted of yoga poses but done at a faster pace. I know that when I'm feeling better, I will enjoy it, but without my usual stamina it was tough.

I will not be going to my pilates course tonight, as I really don't feel up to it. Am booked for power walking tomorrow, and am planning to take part.

Wow, it's been a while since I posted in here - definitely time to get this baby rolling again! I haven't NOT been exercising, I just haven't been writing it down

This a new strength training workout that I'm doing every other day at home (it comes from the ivillage gym-free challenge - week 1). At the moment I'm using 2 kg hand weights and an intermediate dyna-band.

This is what I did this morning:

3 x 20 reps Ab Swing
3 x 12 reps dumbbell squat
3 x 12 reps suitcase lift
3 x 10 reps dyna-band lat pull-down
3 x 10 reps flat dumbbell fly
3 x 10 reps kneeling dyna-band lateral raise
3 x 10 reps seated bicep curl

Had a yoga class this afternoon. Was very pleased with my Salute to the Sun - my moves are really flowing now. Also a lot of floor work today - feel that I really stretched today.

Had planned to stay for a pilates class, but was starting to feel tired, so decided to give it a miss.

Hey Demi, glad to see you're doing great with your program, it's really tough, but I think worth more than all the carb-counting...

Have been exercising well for the last couple of days.

A good supple strength on Friday - pushed myself and feel I'm seeing the results.

Have been continuing my strength training at home.

3 x 20 reps Ab Swing
3 x 12 reps dumbbell squat
3 x 12 calf raises
3 x 12 reps suitcase lift
3 x 12 side bends
3 x 10 reps dyna-band lat pull-down
3 x 10 reps flat dumbbell fly
3 x 10 reps kneeling dyna-band lateral raise
3 x 10 reps bicep curl
3 x 10 reps tricep kick backs

I'm thinking of getting some heavier hand weights. The heaviest weights I've got are 2 kg (4.4 lbs) and I feel that I could lift more - I'm starting to see muscle 'definition' in my arms, and I can really feel my abs underneath the stomach flab, so it's time to step up a notch or two.

Had planned to walk today, but it's been raining heavily on and off, so I did a yoga session following a yoga DVD instead.

Day off yesterday - had planned a walk but it was pouring with rain.


Today's strength training session with 2kg weights and intermediate dyna-band:

3 x 20 reps Ab Swing
3 x 12 reps dumbbell squat
3 x 12 calf raises
3 x 12 reps suitcase lift
3 x 12 side bends
3 x 10 reps dyna-band lat pull-down
3 x 10 reps flat dumbbell fly
3 x 10 reps kneeling dyna-band lateral raise
3 x 10 reps bicep curl
3 x 10 reps tricep kick backs

One hour power walk this morning.

Twenty of us went out today, and the pace was fast. I did struggle a bit on a couple of the steeper hills because of this, but kept going nevertheless

My legs are now aching - planning a hot bath and some stretching exercises later

Thursday: One hour yoga class, followed by one hour pilates class.

Felt quite stiff at the start of my yoga session, but loosened up towards the end. Very enjoyable - we progressed our Salute to the Sun, adding a Warrior pose at the start and towards the end.

Did have some trouble with the shoulder stand, but this was due to my head 'banging' - think I will go back to the doctor with this, obviously not a problem with my neck, so perhaps it's my ears.

A good pilates session - this is a new class which is being taken by the instructor who took over the beginner's class when the original instructor was on maternity leave. She is really good, and explains everything well.

It is more of an intermediate class, which I'm ready for - though some of it is difficult - but the challenge is to get through that and advance


Friday: One hour supple strength class, plus some strength training with hand weights at home.

3 x 10 reps bicep curl
3 x 10 reps tricep kick backs
3 x 10 reps flat dumbbell fly
3 x 10 reps dumbell press

I'm sorting out some more tricep exercises - need to get rid of those bat wings

OK - time to get serious - today I started my Body Sculpt programme - aiming for a toned and sculpted bod in time for the bikini season

I'm beginning with the Break-In Routine, and will continue with this for the next 6 weeks. I'm starting with lower hand weights - 1kg - this is so that I can practice perfect form, and make sure everything is correct before I progress. Having said that, I found that the 1kg weights were plenty enough this morning!

2 x 15 one-arm rows
2 x 15 pushups
2 x 15 dumbbell shoulder press
2 x 15 dumbbell calf raises
2 x 15 dumbbell curls
2 x 15 overhead triceps extensions
2 x 15 dumbbell squats
2 x 15 stiff legged deadlifts

At the moment, I am not strong enough in my back, arms and shoulders to support myself for too long in a plank position to do other than a few push ups - however, BS suggests that if this is the case, then one can perform them standing against a wall - stand 1.5ft to 2ft in front of the wall, extend your arms and perform the exercise. In this position you are not lifting your full bodyweight. As you become stronger, the pushups may be performed in a half plank 'from the knees', and once mastered, you should be able to perform the traditional push up without a problem.

I've made a record of various stats, so that I can track my progress - details in my main journal.

Normally I would be going to a Power Stretch and Pilates class this evening, but as my muscles are really aching tonight, I shall be giving it a miss this week - I don't want to overdo it and then not be able to train.

Used the 2 mile WAP tape for my cardio this morning

Although BS says 10 minutes cardio during the Break-In programme, I decided to go ahead with the WAP 2 miler, which took approximately 30 minutes.

I also used my ab swing in place of their abs exercises - this is to protect my back until it is stronger.

3 x 20 reps on ab swing

Demi super workout You gonna be sculptured after

AM One hour power walk

PM BS Break-In routine with 1kg dumbbells

2 x 15 dumbbell squats
2 x 15 lunges
2 x 15 ballet squats
2 x 15 stiff-legged deadlifts
2 x 15 dumbbell calf raises (one leg)
2 x 15 dumbbell upright rows
2 x 15 dumbbell calf raises (two leg)
2 x 15 triceps kickbacks
2 x 15 dumbbell curls