Nothing I hate more than a jumped up judgemental gym bunny.
Nothing I love more than a bit of competition!
Exercise. Urgh.
I feel exhausted just writing the word.
It’s a love hate relationship with me and exercise, I hate every second of doing it, I love it the second I finish.
Post work out the endorphins rush in with their rose-tinted glasses, I conveniently forget I just managed to ward off 4 heart attacks, 2 bouts of cardiac arrest and 1 moment of delirium.
There are three varying levels of exercise in my experience:
Level 1 : TheFatEngineer Vs The Tortoise
Level 2 : TheFatEngineer Vs Miss Gym Bunny
Level 3 : TheFatEngineer Vs The PT
Level 1 : TheFatEngineer Vs The Tortoise
Level one is usually from this statement: “I’m going to work out at home”. This normally consists of a half-hearted effort on the bike followed by a series of exercises I enjoy. If I enjoy them, it usually means they’re easy. Now in my defence, I do normally do a lot more repetitions if they are exercises, I enjoy, however, they will be done with bigger rests and lower heart rate - a far less efficient way to burn fat!
If I am by myself I have no one to answer to, if I want to stop I will.
This is better than not doing anything, but only Just!
Level 2 : TheFatEngineer Vs Miss Gym Bunny
Level two is reached when attending the gym. I’m lazy, but I’m also competitive! I will be going around the gym doing my workout quite happily then miss gym bunny will come in and place herself on the machine next door to me. Now I know she doesn’t even notice I'm there. But I notice her with her impeccable hair and make-up running 500miles not even changing to a shade of light rose.
Meanwhile I’m a redder shade of tomato, sweat literally rolling down my cheek, before I know it I’m trying to push myself harder, faster and further.
She doesn’t see me, I know I won’t keep up but here I am trying. At least now my sweaty red face looks justified.
The reason for this is ridiculous BUT it pushes me to the next level!
Level 3 : TheFatEngineer Vs The PT
This is the level that induces panic, pain and ultimately the battle I loose.
As you can tell from Level 1 and Level 2 I NEED a kick up the arse when it comes to exercise. It is because of this that I have to spend the extra pennies and use a personal Trainer.
Side Note: For those thinking about a PT, go private, you don’t have to pay the gym PT prices and you will get a personalised session.
I’ve had two different PTs, both took me equally close to death, both I hate with a passion but both pushed me beyond what I thought capable. I’d like to tell you a bit more about both of these ladies.
First Up we have Charlotte @be.you.tifil.toulouse
Charlotte was the first personal trainer I had. From day one of meeting her I knew that we were on a similar wavelength, bat-shit crazy.
Charlotte at the time was just starting her own business and due to the fact, I lived in a city centre my work outs would be held all over the place. Sometimes at my apartment, sometimes within beautiful parks, sometimes outside work. These workouts were always varied and because of the fact the majority of my sessions were body weight training, it means that Charlotte got creative with our surroundings.
Come rain or shine we would be out and most of the workouts she did alongside me to keep me moving.
There are a whole host of activities and methods of working that Charlotte used including HIIT, Circuits and Plyometrics so I will give you a lot more details in my future blog!
Charlotte is a force to be reckoned with mind, never say you can’t, she’ll only make you do more!
Second Up we have my current PT, Kelly @Toogoods_Fitness
I joined with Kelly a year ago, unfortunately in the year since leaving France I ended up back at square one. The difference being, this time I knew what I was MEANT to be doing, I just wasn’t.
Kelly works from her own studio which means it is just you and her there. Personally, I love this as it means there is no one to feel self-conscious around and you know that the only person you are pushing to impress is yourself.
Kelly is another lady that frankly you just don’t bother saying no to, it won’t get you anywhere!
My sessions with Kelly are circuit based and we will focus on one main muscle group at a time. There is a set of exercises prepared as I walk in and we will complete 3 rounds of each. For me, I love knowing where the end point is, I like that I can go in and know what needs to be done.
Round 1 – I feel like I might have a heart attack
Round 2 – I'm really not sure how I am going to finish, this is when my begging to stop begins
Round 3 – I miraculously find a little more energy because I know the faster I go, the quicker I can stop this hell!
Again, I will be giving you a better insight into these training sessions in a future blog, this is...no, was meant to be a short overview!
Yes, mid work out I hate these ladies for the torture they are putting me through but let it be known I love both of these ladies for what they do for me! I know that I would be 10 times worse if I had not had these alongside me.
Now it is time to give back and prove to them that I am capable and that they are not wasting their time with me!
Some FAQs I often get:
Why did I choose females?
I actually didn’t mean to. I chose Charlotte initially because she spoke English (I was living in France) and took time to understand what I was looking for. After just 1 session with her I knew I made the right choice.
I think I feel more comfortable around women when I'm in my gym gear and worry less about making a t**t of myself. Motivation is also number two, your PT will undoubtedly be in great shape, with someone of the same sex, you can look at them and think “One day, that could be me!”
Why have you not lost more weight?
ME! That is why. These ladies make sure I bust a gut during my work outs. I am a hot, sweaty, dripping mess after my work outs. The second I leave them, it’s on me. I have to make sure I get my butt to the gym. I have to make sure I eat well. That is something that I have not been doing on a regular basis. I have weeks where I am so unbelievably driven, then I have months where I am not.
Why a PT not just classes?
I’m going to dedicate a blog next month to group classes, but for me I am too self-conscious around other people and I hate feeling like I’m holding people back if we get paired up so for me 1 to 1 session work best.
When I am fitter and able to keep up I will join some group classes too!
Great blog Jess. How's it going. I'm with you on the exercise. I'll do you a deal. You lose the weight and I'll work on getting fit and cure my bad back.