Coach W10D1 - Aphrodite (Standard)

 Aphrodite (S): *00:31:32 

I got back from the beach to spend my last holiday week in the city. In my absence, the summer soccer team I'm playing in won and managed to get to the semi-finals, which we played and won on Tuesday 24 (February). We then played the final on Thursday 26. We knew from the start it was going to be an extremely hard game. The team we played against had 3 (semi)professional players on it. Unfortunately this particular summer amateur league allows a maximum of 3 pros per team, so it was all according to the rules... It was a tough game, and we evidently took quite a beating (can't remember the score but it was something like 8-0). We lost the game but were proud because we were the best non-pro team there. 

In other news, according to my "tradition", once I go into soccer break I try to donate blood, that way I can be well recovered once the matches start again. I did that first thing on Friday because I hadn't donated for a wile. I'm young, I'm healthy, I'm not afraid of needles; there's no reason why I shouldn't donate so I try to do it at least once a year (ideally two). You never know in life when you're going to end up needing a hand back of any sort...

With the two very important games and the blood draw I ended up not training that week at all, so I pushed off week #10. I know I shouldn't have, but it was just what I had to do; it allowed me a couple of days to recover well. I got back to work (*sad face*) on Monday, March 2nd and did my first week 10 training session that same night. It was good old Aphrodite!

I used to "hate" Aphrodite but now I cherish every time I have to do this workout because I'm very familiar with it, I know well when I can push harder, when I'm slacking off and I think it's the best workout for me to see improvements from time to time. I was feeling very good and motivated. I took very few and short breaks during the burpees. I usually "need" to lay around to catch my breath every 10 reps or so. I'm realizing more and more it's a mental thing rather than an actual physical need... This time, I flew, and it showed! In two weeks I lowered my time in about 4 minutes and I'm getting closer and closer to my old PB (the one I have my doubts about...). It took me a while, but it feels damn great to be here again!!! #trainforit

Coach W8D1 - Aphrodite (Standard)

 Aphrodite (S), *00:36:23 

As I’ve told you on previous posts, I’m on summer holidays these weeks, so besides training and painting the apartment (which finally looks awesome), I’m also taking two short trips to the beach. Knowing I’d be away, I only programmed two training sessions for week #8 of my Cardio&Strength Coach. I did my last session of week #7 on Monday, had a soccer match on Tuesday night, went away from Wednesday morning until Friday night and trained on Saturday and Monday morning (I rested on Sunday, although I swam a bit in my parent’s pool that day…)

Along with my older sister and my girlfriend we accompanied my father for three days to Pichilemu and surroundings (about 210 kms South from Santiago).  By “surroundings” I mean the country side around 50 km inland, where the family of my father is originally from and where he likes going a few times a year, to visit some of the relatives he still has in the area and to buy locally harvested beans, lentils, honey and organic olive oil for the year. The thing is, given the reasonable distance to the beach we (or I) took the chance stay at Pichilemu, which is one of the best beaches in Chile to surf. If you’ve read some of my older posts, I took my first surfing lesson in October 2013 while on a trip to Ecuador with my sister, right around when I was starting Freeletics (click here). I had been wanting to surf again, but never did something about it. Thanks to my sister who pushed me on taking this little trip, I took my second lesson on Thursday (with a thicker wetsuit, ad hoc for these latitudes). I was expecting to be cold and/or to have forgotten what I had learned, but everything went smoothly, like riding a bike. It felt amazing to take this opportunity and surf again. It turns out I’m quite good at it and it makes me very happy to be able to catch a wave and stand on that board. I’m really thinking to maybe get into it a bit more seriously… we’ll see what the future holds.

When I got back to the city I quickly left the water behind and traded it for my dear friend Aphrodite.  I feel like I’ve been doing Aphrodite every week... well, #CoachKnows. We all came back quite tired from the trip, but I was expecting to improve my time. I felt right during the first 50 burpees that it was not going to be that easy. Maybe it was all the driving, or the sun and heat, or the surf lesson, but my arms felt heavy and lacking strength to push me up during the burpees. It actually took me 1 min 5 sec more to finish Aphrodite than during Hell Week… I know it’s not that much of a difference, but still it bothers me a bit. This made me think again about my PB of 27+ minutes. I accomplished that time when the Coach was not around and I had to keep track of what series I was doing and how many reps were there etc. Considering I feel similarly fit (if not fitter) than last year, I find it hard to believe that now it takes me more than 8 minutes more to finish Aphrodite compared to that PB. I think it’s very probable that I miscounted the reps or skipped a whole series that day… There’s no way to knowing for sure, so we’ll have to see if I can go down to 27 minutes any time soon to figure this mystery out. Other than the heavy arms, Aphrodite went smoothly. I feel my technique on the burpees is much better; I can jump back and forward with both feet much more lightly than before. I also have a good knowledge on where to break my series of squats to maximize my time. I think one of the weaknesses I should probably work on are situps because no matter how hard I try to speed up, they keep taking way longer than they should…

Coach W7D3 - Aphrodite (Standard) + 2/5 Kentauros (Standard) // HELL DAY 3

 Aphrodite (S), *00:35:18 

 2/6 Kentauros (S),*00:16:00 

Hell Day #3 has its name well deserved. Monday, and I was exhausted after finishing painting the apartment. I was feeling extremely lazy and did not want to train, let alone do two workouts. I went to my parent's house in the morning to help with some chores, and I had planned doing the 2/6 of standard Kentauros there; I have measured around the house the 20 meters I need for the lunge walks and burpee frogs. Then I would "rest" during the day and do Aphrodite at night in my apartment. Things and chores got in the way and I ended up not having enough time to train in the morning. When I got back to the apartment it was late and I was hungry, so I had to eat and then wait to digest until it was even later to begin training. I must confess that I have a little bit OCD and the fact that things didn't go the way I had originally planned set me off. I had little time, so if I wanted to finish Hell Day #3 in time (during Hell Week + 1 day considering the knee impasse) I was going to have to do Aphrodite and Kentauros in a row... That's quite the mental wall to overcome, so much that it sounded better not to even try and let the training for the following day.

I struggled for around an hour with myself, and I had to kick my own butt into starting Aphrodite. I remembered my favorite motivational phrase, the one that's on the header of this blog: "every accomplishment starts with the decision to try". So I made the decision, and I tried. When I finished the round of 50 reps I was feeling unwell and had some reflux (I waited almost 2 hours after eating, but still...). I started to get anguished I would throw up and the voice inside my head started asking: WHY THE F*CK ARE YOU DOING THIS IF YOU ARE TIRED AND FEEL SICK?! I really don't know what happened in that moment. I was about to quit, but I just didn't. I kept on going, slow but steady. I started thinking of other things, shutting the anguish down. One burpee led to the next, and before I knew it I had finished the round of 40 reps. From that point on, everything started feeling simpler and I completed Aphrodite with one of the best times I've had in a while. I cannot explain what actually happened, what pushed me to continue or gave me the strength to keep those burpees coming, but I'm glad it happened.

Aphrodite was gone and I was then faced with another tough decision. I could either do Kentauros right there -which sounded crazy given the circumstances and considering my past horror history with this workout-, or I could postpone just Kentauros for the morning after, consciously failing to follow the instructions from the coach that say all workouts form a given Hell Day must be performed during the course of one day. I was feeling so bad at the beginning of Aphrodite that the thought of Kentauros was horrifying, but then I felt good, and did a great time so I decided to stretch my luck and give Kentauros a try. I measured the hallway that goes in a straight line from the kitchen to the bedroom in the apartment, and it was 10 meters. I decided I'd do Kentauros right there, 4 x 10 meters instead of 2 x 20 meters. It was AMAZING. I've never felt better doing the burpee frogs. I think that having all the muscles warmed up and already worked out was actually in my favor. I didn't have to stop for rest or breath much, and by the end I was pouring sweat like crazy -I think the most sweat I've had in training ever-. Proportionally (2/6) it was also one of the best times I've ever done in Kentauros.

Overall, HELL DAY 3 had a bit of everything; tons of sweat, tears (not really, but almost), reflux, anguish, mental battles, strength, joy, pride... It turned out to be one of my best training sessions, and it ended up making me very proud and happy to finish both workouts with good times.  I consider this day definitely as an accomplishment, and it all started with the decision to try.

Coach W6D2 - 4/5 Aphrodite (Standard)

 4/5 Aphrodite (S): *00:30:01 

Second training session of this week, and it is Aphrodite (standard version), but only 4/5, meaning I don't have to do the last series of 10 reps. Well, when you've done the series of 50, 40, 30 and 20 reps, doing the last series of 10 feels like a walk in the park, and I don't really see the point of skipping that... but hey, I'm not about to begin questioning what the #COACH tells me to do, right?! He's probably just saving my strength for the third workout of this week...

I wanted to finish in under 30 minutes and I missed by just 1 second (which is basically the time that it took me to press the "finish workout" button after actually finishing), so I'm pleased I sort-of-met the goal I had set for myself. I had to rush through the last series of 20 reps because I had rested a bit much during the previous series and lost quite a few seconds. At some points I was really gasping for air and sweat was pouring heavily. I don't remember ever sweating as much as I do when I do Aphrodite. I guess we can blame it on having a more active metabolism and on the high intensity training?

Overall I felt good, faster and stronger than the last time I did Aphrodite. The only thing I can point out is that I had a rougher time than expected on the squats. I felt it right away; this time squats were not going to be part of the "active rest"... I really don't know what it was because I wasn't sore at all to begin and I had rested well, but my quads just felt tired and lazy. Usually I can do the 50 reps in two series of 25 but this time I had to break the series into 15 - 15 -10. I can only think that it is because I've been exercising my legs a lot this past couple of weeks and it has accumulated. 

After finishing the workout I stretched long and hard. I must confess I do not always elongate well after training, and I know it is not smart. It's that kind of thing that you know perfectly well that you MUST do, but you still don't do it well (like eating clean all the time or training dirty). The difference that it makes to elongate all your body while still being warm from the exercise is evident. I felt immediately relieved and I woke up the next day in great shape. I wasn't sore at all (and I'm still not sore!). I'm only feeling my hamstrings -surprisingly not my quads- quite tight, and I can only imagine what they would feel like if I hadn't stretched!

Afterwards I fixed myself a quick "dinner"; I ate a slice of turkey breast ham and a hard boiled egg to provide the protein, and then I made this yummy greek yoghurt with chia seeds, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and a little bit of granola. It was super fast and delicious, it also looks great don't you think? It's one of the perks of the #summer!

#ClapClap   Eat clean 

Coach W5D1 - Aphrodite

 Aphrodite: *00:44:09 

So, as I anticipated on a previous post, we played on Monday the quarter finals of this summer's soccer league (I said before it was semi finals but I was wrong, we could have played another two matches). Sadly we lost our game... but it was a hell of a match! I ended up exhausted and I'm upset that putting in that much effort was not enough and that that was the the way our last game of the season went down. But hey, that's soccer, and I can't expect to always be on the winning side, right?! Now we go on break because it's summer vacation time here in Chile. The leagues will restart most likely mid March or in the beginning of April. 

This means I no longer have soccer on week days, so I have more time to dedicate to getting in shape with #Freeletics. Hopefully I'll come back stronger than I left. This also means I won't have to "arrange" and cut back my training so I'm not sore or tired on match days. For the next couple of months I'm a 100% Free Athlete and nothing more (sports-wise). I'm ready to give my all to the Coach, once again.

The Coach restarted on week #5, taking in consideration the four weeks I did before. I don't know why, but I was expecting a fresh start, beginning from week #1. It doesn't really matter though, but I'm just a little OCD :-P. I've set up two training session this week and of course, what else would the Coach give me to start off than a classic (and always a "favorite"): APHRODITE.

I usually train after work, very late at night. It's not always great because I end all pumped up and hyperactive, and sometimes it's hard to fall asleep afterwards. I therefore tried something new today I got up earlier than usual and  trained before going to work. 

Aphrodite was HARD. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about trying to do Aphrodite out of the blue and having to stop after the round of 40 reps because I was not feeling well at all. Today was not that different. The series of 30 reps had me feeling light headed, dizzy, wanting to throw up, pouring buckets of sweat... you now, all the not-so-fun-deal. I had to stop to catch my breath at least five times, for around 20 seconds each time -even a whole minute once-. I  wanted to quit. Really really bad. As I'm going up and down on the burpees, and see the clock ticking away, I started to question why on earth would I do this so early in the morning, no why on earth would I do this AT ALL. I've been down that road before so I know I have to power through and ignore my mind. I obviously was late to work because I was hoping to be around 35 minutes, not 45!

I think this is one of the most important victories one gets out of Freeletics; winning over one's mind. Being better than yourself. Developing willpower. It's hard to start training. and it's easy to quit mid-way through. With Freeletics it's just you against yourself, and I feel that every finished training is a victory on it's own. Even if you're far from your PB, like me today,you and only you have the willpower to start the workout, to go through it, to push harder when you are tired, to ignore your mind which will always want to take the easy road. 

About the whole "training early the morning" thing, I think I'll have to give it a couple more chances before I make up my mind completely. I'll write about this on another post, but nutrition in this situation plays a particularly important role. I ate a little something about half an hour before I trained and went through Aphrodite OK (energy wise), with maybe just one moment when I felt my three sips of coffee were coming back up... Then I intended to have a proper breakfast but I wasn't that hungry just finishing the workout so I ate less than I usually do... so of course on my way to work I felt dizzy on the subway and had to eat a banana I brought along to pump up my sugar and not faint right there! Then I started feeling really hungry and had a peach when I got to work... Man was I looking forward to lunch today!!!

#ClapClap

Cardio&Strength - W2D3

 Aphrodite: *00:34:39 

It's friday night! Last Friday I was at my friend's bachelorette party getting a little too much to eat and drink to endure the strippers. It was quite a tastefully performance must I say; I probably could have endured it without the alcohol, specially considering I'm not much of a drinker. Tonight I'm nice and clean, all showered up and ready to go to bed after doing Aphrodite and eating a good protein ration to help with my recovery process. What a good girl!

I'm very happy because I did Aphrodite last Sunday -that's only 5 days ago- and it took me 42+ minutes to finish, whereas today it only took me 34+ minutes. That means a) I achieved my goal to be under 35 minutes and b) In 5 days I lowered my time by ~8 minutes. I'm still 7 minutes away from my PB, but I'm getting there in no time! Next time I have to do Aphrodite I'll aim to be under 30 minutes.

I've been doing Freeletics (on and off, I know) for 8 months now, and I'm still amazed every time I see these unbelievable progresses happen in no time. Days like this give me strength to endure harder ones like when I have to do Hades or worse... Kentauros.

**** it doesn't get easier... you get stronger! ****

I still have two more training sessions this week, so it will be a Freeletics week-end! Also I have the date of my first soccer match of the season: Tuesday April the 1st. I'm excited and also a bit nervous... though I think that with 3 weeks of training in my body I'll manage well enough to play.

Cardio&Strength - W1D4

 Aphrodite: *00:38:18 

Wooohow! Last session of the week: in with the workout and out with the Maxes... The coach will finally finish learning about my performance and will begin busting my training. I dread all the pull-ups I'm sure are coming my way, but I know I will be thankful later on.

Since March the 7th until the 18th we are hosting here in Santiago the 10th South-American (Olympic) Games. This is, as far as I can remember and during my lifetime, the first really big sports event organized in Chile. There's been sports all over, and I've seen a few competitions on TV. This weekend, however, I went to the stadium to see the athletics competition (Saturday and Sunday) and the U-17 women soccer finale (Sunday), where unfortunately Argentina beat Chile 2-1. After seeing all that sport, cheering my a*s off, with everybody running, sweating, falling, rising, beating up scores and winning medals, I got home late and tired but excited to do Aphrodite.

My quads were still extremely sore (even to the slightest touch) and tight from the Squat Max. My upper abs were also hurting; I felt it more during the burpees than during the sit ups. After the first round of 50 repetitions, however, I was well warmed-up and the pain faded to the point I forgot it was there to start. Still I was slower than the previous times and felt tired throughout the workout. I wanted to be below the 35 minute mark. Unfortunately I was only below the 40 minute mark, and 10 minutes slower than my PB!!! Considering the circumstances, I guess it's OK. At least I did better then the previous first time I did Aphrodite(if a "second first time" exists) . That time it took me, if I recall correctly, 47 minutes. I'm glad I finished this week. I think I'm off to a good start. I don't know what the future holds but I'm  confident I'll be able to finish the whole program this time! One down, 14 more to go...

Cardio&Strength - W3D1

 Aphrodite: *00:29:27 

New week, old workout! 

It's been a while since I haven't done Aphrodite, so I was excited to do it again. I know the idea is to top your PBs every time, but I am realistic and I'd rather set myself a goal that I know it's possible for me to achieve (i.e. to finish the workout in less than 30 minutes, which I did) than one I know I'll probably not be able to accomplish (i.e. top my PB, which I didn't). I'm a minute and a half away from that PB though, but with all honesty, I think that today I could not have sped up more than I did (maybe 30 seconds, tops).

As I was writing the previous paragraph, I remembered this picture

I still have a hard time believing and incorporating into my system some of these messages, which I believe to be so true... Maybe I'm too rational and realistic, as I said before, to be able to really erase the "IM" in IMpossible. But we're getting there, right?

In spite of my "low goal", I gave my best trying to lower my time. I was sweating like crazy (ah, the good old days!), had shortness of breath and all those pretty things Aphrodite brings to your life. Even if the overall time does not reflect it, I made what I believe is an important progress: this time around felt like fainting during the 20 repetition series instead than during the 30 repetition series... I think that's a reflection of me gaining endurance; I could stand more repetitions before feeling dizzy! Also I did more squats in a row before needing to take a mini break. Again, I think that's the endurance kicking in.

All and all, I wish I had to do Aphrodite again this week to try and top my PB. I feel I always need one session to adjust to the workout change before I can really make it count, and with this new guide, every day has a different workout so it's not evident to do!

PS: playing soccer on Saturday was the best remedy for my sore muscles from last week's workouts. I scored 7 goals (yes, you heard me, 7 goals in one single match :-D) and we qualified to the final which will take place this Saturday, so I'll keep you posted on that! This week I'll train like crazy, hopefully from Monday (today) to Thursday straight, rest on Friday and then play on Saturday at the top of my game.

PS2: yesterday was elections day in Chile. We have to have a second round to define who will be the next president, even though everybody knows that answer already!

Cardio&Strength - W1D3

 Aphrodite: *00:28:09 

It's day #3 of my first week with Freeletics' Cardio&Strength Guide. Exactly a week ago I donated blood and this is what my arm looks like today:

It looked way worse a couple of days ago, but I didn't want to be too gore and show it to you all then. The thing is I want to prove a point by showing you that you CAN donate blood (of course, it's better if you don't get a bruised arm but it's a risk that you have to embrace) AND still workout just fine Other than the first couple of days, I haven't felt much weaker or anything... Not even during soccer! Well, maybe just a little bit more out of breath, but it's completely manageable... so thumbs up to donating blood for good causes and still exercising!

Today I finished Aphrodite in 28 minutes, 9 seconds. I'm a bit upset that I haven't been able to get below the 27 minute mark but I'll keep working and going at it!

Remember to check out the Freeletics website were you can find the free 5 week training guide and the 15 week guides!

Cardio&Strength - W1D2

 Aphrodite: *00:28:57 

As I thought, my performance has decreased a little bit after my brilliant idea to donate blood last week. I've felt more tired during soccer, and more out-of-breath during the #Freeletics workouts. However I'm feeling much better compared to last week, and I'm hoping to get back up to my improvement curve soon.

I think I'm beginning to feel a bit bored by Aphrodite, but I know I still got 14 more weeks in front of me and I'm sure I will get new and more exciting workouts. In the meaning time I'm still trying to get below the 27 minute mark (hopefully below the 25 minute mark). I will keep giving it all my best during this week in spite of the boredom.

Cardio&Strength - W1D1

 Aphrodite: *00:31:55 

What do you do when you finish the 5 week free program? 

You see some results but not quite so many. You know you can do better. You know your times can still go down. You know you can get in so much better shape...

...so you get a Freeletics guide and start the next 15 weeks of your life!
Depending on your goals there are tree types of guides with instructions for 15 weeks of training: Cardio, Cardio+Strength and Strenght. I got the Cardio and Strength guide because, as I have previously explained, I'm looking for a balanced workout to gain endurance and also some strength (abs and back please!) We'll see how I do with this one, and who knows, maybe I can move to the Strength guide afterwards ;-)

The thing is, yesterday I donated blood. I know, it wasn't my brightest idea but well, it's done. I've donated quite few times before, and this is the first time I almost fainted while having my blood drawn >.< It was a bit scary but the nurse was super nice and calm and we got through it. I wasn't supposed to do any exercise, so yesterday I only went to yoga and skipped my Freeletics workout. Today was Aphrodite time -yet again- and boy did I miss those 400 mL of blood! I felt somewhat like I did when I first started training. Very dizzy in some points, like I was going to puke, breathless, just wanting to give up. I missed those red blood cells and the oxygen they were not carrying to my muscles! But, as usual, I kept in mind that we never quit, so I kept going, and I finished the workout in a decent time (31 mins, 55 secs), considering the circumstances.

Hopefully it will not take 3 months (the time I'll get back those missing cells) to regain my previous aerobic condition. I'm a bit scared for Saturday's soccer match...

You can check the detailed description of each guide at the Freeletics website (I've left a permanent link to the page by clicking on the Freeletics colorful logo in the sidebar). I'll keep telling you as much as I can from my workouts but I will not be providing detailed descriptions of the exercises anymore,

Week #5 - HELL WEEK - Day 6 / Aphrodite

 Aphrodite: *00:28:01 

Well, yesterday was crazy: I went to a Pride Parade downtown and walked my ass off with almost 30°C. Then I ran, changed clothes and played a soccer match (we won 4 - 2). Afterwards I showered and went to a friend's housewarming party until 3 AM. Of course, I couldn't find a decent time slot to train, and the day went by full speed ahead. I was doing so well this week! Even on crazy Friday I managed to train... It is a shame I skipped a day, but well, that's life... I did my best and this time it just wasn't enough. 

Today, Sunday, I did then my 6th day of Hell Week (which I shoud have done yesterday). It was Aphrodite again, and I finished the workout in 28 minutes and 01 seconds. It took me a few seconds longer than the other day so no PB, but I know I could have finished a bit earlier. I had a wardrobe malfunction which consumed me around 10 seconds +  I had eaten a little too close to the workout, so by the time I was at the 20 burpees, I wanted to throw up, so I had to slow down to breathe slower and better as to prevent my puking. If I had trained "normally" I would've beaten my PB. I guess we'll just have to wait and see for next time.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now let's talk about something funny.

I've always had a protruding bone in my lower back (very low). I'm not much of an anatomist, but I think it's one of my sacrum spinous tubercles (the protruding parts of the 5 vertebrae that fused into the sacrum)... anyways, this bone is just about where my butt crack begins, right in the zone were you tilt when doing sit ups. I've always felt pain during the sit ups because of that bone being crushed repetitively under my weight, but I've always pushed through, and ignored it because there's nothing really I can do about it. The thing is, this week I've done a lot of sit ups, every day, so during Friday's workout (Day 5) I felt way too much pain, so that night I looked myself in the mirror after showering and I realized I had a massive bruise just at the beginning of my butt crack and coming dow na little into the butt crack, in between the cheeks!!! I didn't know if I wanted to laugh or cry about that awful scene. Today the bruise is still not gone, of course, so it still hurted a lot when doing the sit ups, but well! Nothing there I can do! I always try to do the sit ups in a surface as soft as possible and I even remove any shorts or leggings with a thick elastic band that may contribute to the hurting. I guess this week that just wasn't enough. I'll have to think of better ways to protect my butt crack from future bruising!

Week #5 - HELL WEEK - Day 4 / Aphrodite

 Aphrodite: *00:27:53 

Day four of Hell Week and it's the turn of Aphrodite. I hadn't done this workout in a while, and I was excited to do it again (and hopefully beat my PB). It's amazing how my way of thinking changed this week from "I don't think I can get trough Hell Week" to "let's beat some PBs!" ☺.

I did Aphrodite today in 27 minutes and 53 seconds. That's almost a minute below my previous PB. It's not much, but it's still an improvement!. Moreover, I didn't feel dizzy and I didn't have to stop to catch my breath during the burpees... We've become BFFs this past weeks, me who started off hating them really bad! I only had to stop a few seconds during the sit ups, I still can't get 50 in a row. Up to 20 I'm good, then to 25 I struggle a bit and I have to stop a few seconds every 5 to 10 reps from that point on. Still, I'm improving and that's all that matters!

I'm also feeling that the sweating has gone down in intensity. I guess that's also a sign of me getting fitter, right? Overall, still happy, still moving forward and NEVER quitting!

Week 2, Day 5 / Aphrodite + Push-Up MAX

 Aphrodite: *00:28:39 (PB!) 

 Push-Up MAX: 33  

Yesterday I played soccer so I "rested" from the workouts. Today I had no match so I decided it was a good idea to try and improve my Aphrodite time. Also it is my fifth day of training of week  # 2, which makes me feel quite happy and proud in terms of my commitement to the program. I must confess though, that the MAXs are very tempting compared tot he Aphrodite because they are over so fast!!! So I think this week is also a bit of a mental challenge not to only do MAXs because they are easier. Still, the bigger the challenge (i.e. Aphrodite), the better the reward.

I did the Aphrodite with no modified repetitions in 28 minutes and 39 seconds. I improved my best time in a little less than 2 minutes. Yay me! I think this proves my point; I need to be more "rested" in order to really improve my PBs. I commented about that feeling I had the other day that I could really do thing faster if I weren't that thire. At one point during the series I even thought I could make it in under 27 mins, but the situps held me back this time. As I said yesterday, my quads feel really tired, and today they were better but not great yet. On the brighter side, burpees are each time less of a struggle  =)!

After my new PB, and considering my arms/chest weren't too demanded I thought to myself "there's no need to do BOTH MAXs, you can just do the Push-Up MAX and leave  for another day the Squat MAX" (because I think wouldn't have done even 50 squats in 5 minutes after a full Aphrodite with the way my legs were feeling)... So I did the Push-Up MAX, and I was wrong. I felt really tired and did aroung 10 reps less than the time before. At one point I thought "I already did Aphrodite today, I'll just quit doing this stupid/painfull push-ups"... but then I remembered that 

so I finished my pitifull 33 repetitions and called it a day, exhausted. Even if the workout was lame,  I did it. 

Week 2, Day 3 / Aphrodite

 Aphrodite -  *00:30:32 

Well, today I got yet another answer from the guys at Freeletics (this time by email) to my week #2 question. Just like yesterday's Faceebok answer, the email said it was up to me if I wanted to do both HIWODs the same day, but that it was not at all mandatory and I could just alternate workouts.

Today I decided to take aphrodite for a spin, hoping to get it done below the 30 mins mark. I don't have my hopes up because of how tired I've been lately but hey, I'm not making excuses and I'm still giving it all my best, right?

Well, it's true, I'm "too" tired. Burpees aren't that hard anymore (I still sweat like a pig, but I don't see them as impossible to do). My pecs aren't hurting at all! It's just that my muscles don't respond. Squats are harder because I've been doing the Squat MAX and my quads are drained... My speeding up point is still the sit-ups, but I've never been that fast (I can do many repetitions but a bit slower than the average). Even so, I managed to ALMOST get to my goal, but still establish my new PB at *30 mins, 32 secs. It felt great, and at the same time I'm so exhausted I can't even be that happy about it.

Baby steps. I'm getting there...

Week 2, Day 1 / MAX + Aphrodite

Starting a new week means getting a new email with the workout instructions, which is always fun and exciting. Week #2 is called "MAX". MAX means doing as many repetitions of a certain excercise in a fixed amount of time without taking breaks. This week there's a Push-Up MAX (100 sec) and a Squat Max (300 sec); in total 400 sec, or 6 mins and 40 seconds of exercise. This is what I'd call a super high intensity workout!

The email says:  "we recommend you to train Freeletics at least four times per week. Use both of the MAX as well as Aphrodite." (I've put the links for both workouts instructions). I found this sentence to be ambiguous; do I have to do the Aphrodite HIWOD and the Push-Up and Squat MAXs everyday I train this week or do I alternate a day of Aphrodite and a day of MAXs? 

At first I thought it made more sense to alternate because it sounds redundant to do the burpees (sort-of push-ups) and squats series of the Aphrodite and to follow them by the MAXs (or vice versa). But if you really think about it, doing just the MAXs sounds like a very "light" workout, (ONLY 7 minutes?!) and since it's week #2 it makes a lot of sense to be increasing the dificulty of the workouts... So in the end I'm leaning more towards doing them both. I asked the guys at Freeletics, we'll see what they have to say about it.

For today, I'll only do the MAX and we'll see where do I stand at my starting point. The squats I can do with a * but I'll go on the safe side with the push-ups and do the modified version (with my knees on the ground).

Push-Up MAX: 37 (in 100 sec / 1 min 40 sec)

The number seems so low when I look at it but man did it cost me to do those girly knee-on push-ups!

Squat MAX: *103 (in 300 sec / 5 min)

The bending below your knees gets awful when the exercise is so long! But I'm proud of myself; my goal was to get to the three digits, which I did (barely) PLUS I didn't stop during the repetitions (I only slowed down). I felt like throwing up afterwards :S...

Ok, now after I "only" did the MAXs I'm having doubts again about the whole "Aphrodite +  MAX" thing. I really can't see me doing squats for 5 minutes after an Aphrodite nor the other way around... I think it might just be too much!

Week 1, Day 4

 Aphrodite: *00:32:31 

Well, today I wanted to get through Aphrodite in 30 minutes or less, trying to top my PB from yesteday. However, since it is my second day in a row doing the workout, I knew I would be more tired than I was yesterday, so I would consider it "OK" if I did it in under 35 minutes. I ended up doing it in 32 min, 31 sec. I wasn't thrilled by that time, but it was around what I expected.

I feel I am slowly improving everyday. Even if I was a minute slower, I felt the excercises rolling much easier. I am able to do the sqat series with minimum pauses and I can do more repetitions in a row without having the need to catch my breath. It is very exciting to see these little changes happening from on eday to the next!

Now, I realized I have soccer matches on saturday, sunday, monday AND tuesday... PHEWWW!!! I guess I will not be doing my workouts in the next four days because I still want to play without being too tired everyday. On sunday it's a league finale and on monday I'll join a new team in a new league so I have to be at my "best".

Nevertheless I did my minimum 4 days of training this week... I guess it'lll have to be enough for now.

Week 1, Day 3

 Aphrodite: *00:31:55 

After only doing yoga yesterday I considered myself rested. My goal for today was, therefore, to finish the workout in under 35 minutes. During the HIWOD I felt rather good, so I even thought I could do it in around 30 minutes. I wasn't too far off since I managed to do it in 31 min, 55 sec. I therefore lowered my previous time in around 8.5 min, and my previos PB (Personal Best) in a little over 6 min, which I think is A-W-E-S-O-M-E. 

Just like the previous workouts, the killer point for me is when I get to the series of 30 burpees. Yes, getting through the first 50 and 40 repetitions is tough, your muscles are still a bit cold and stiff but on the other hand you are just getting started and have all the energy. Later, when you get to the series of 20 and 10 repetitions, it looks like nothing compared to 50, so those are mentally easy, plus you are so close of the finish line and the series go by so fast that you naturally speed-up. It's in the series of 30 where the trick is, and it is a physical and mental wall that you have to punch through. 

It's no coincidende that it's in the series of 30 where the sweat usually starts running and dripping off my face as I jump! Today I sitll had to slow down a couple of times to catch my breath. I still don't master burpees completely, but they go by so much easier!!! I feel my arms and pecs stronger already, therefore, whitout pain, I can lift myself up faster. I noticed a difference also in the squats and the sit ups, but not as dramatic as the burpees...

Week 1, Day 2

 Aphrodite, * 00:40:26 

I slept around 7.5 hours after yesterday's HIWOD. I woke up feeling very tired, almost as if I had only slept a few hours, but at least I only had mild muscle soreness. I guess my muscles are starting to get used to the workouts.

This week I have a soccer match (League "A") on Saturday and the big finale of League "B" on Sunday. As I do not want to be tired like today for those matches, but I still want to train as many days as possible -even if I know that resting properly is as important for improving as excercising ans eating well-, I decided to train from Monday to Tuesday (4 days), to rest on friday, to play soccer during the weekend and eventually to train again on Sunday night after the finale (that would make the 5th training session of this week).

Today my goal was to lower yesterday's Aphrodite time to around 35 minutes. I tought I could make it but unfortunately, as I was feeling rather tired and low on energy, it took my 40 min 26 sec to finish the HIWOD. I felt a little disappointed by this time, but still proud for finishing the whole series even through adverse conditions. I had to stop for a few seconds a couple of times to catch my breath and to control a nasty incipient dizziness, but overall it was ok.

Week 1, Day 1 / Aphrodite

 Aphrodite, *00:38:11 

Well, finally the e-mail with my first instructions for this week's workouts arrived today. I had to fetch it from my spam folder... Since it was in German, Gmail decided that it was reason enough to put it there.

Surprise, surprise, the content of the e-mail wasn't the workout of week #1 as I expected, but of week #2. What happened with my e-mail from week one? It is a mistery. I cheked the bin and spam folders and it wasn't there. I guess it got lost in cyberspace. Anyhow, on this e-mail was a link where I could revisit the first week's instructions so I think of it as a 2 in 1 sort of thing. As expected, the HIWOD for week one was Aphrodite.

Since I got the second week's e-mail, my instinct was to follow the instructions and do the second week's HIWODs. However I thought it through and realized I can still do a proper week one and save the instructions for next week. Let's face it, my "pre-Freeletics week" was lacking a bit of the high intensity part of the workouts... I know, I'll be recieving e-mails one week ahead everytime, which annoys me and my *slight* OCD, but I think it's best if I really do every week properly rather than jumping forward to week #2 without having done a full and decent Aphrodite HIWOD.

This being said, and to have proof of my progress, this is me at Week 1, day 1:

You'll notice my lower left rib is protruding... well, that's just the way it's always been. It's more notorious on the side picture (on which I don't know why I closed my eyes). 

Height: 1,70 mt
Weight: 63 kg
BMI: 21,8 (normal weight)

Gluts: 98,5 cm
Hips: 86 cm
Waist: 75 cm
Bust (more like back but well...): 90 cm
Bicep contour (left and right): 29 cm

I was surprised to see a "share" button on the page with the instructions so I guess it's ok for me to share the link to detailed Aphrodite instructions here.

To sum up, Aphrodite is, with no breaks and against the clock:

WORKOUT STRUCTURE

5 Rounds	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5
Burpees	50	40	30	20	10
Squats	50	40	30	20	10
Situps	50	40	30	20	10

I like that the e-mail contains detailed instructions as to how to perform each exercise. I realized I was doing burpees "wrong" since I tought they implied doing a strict push-up and it specifically says "Get back up (however you want to, not necessarily a strict push-up) "  The modified version of the burpee is also not as I was doing it (girly style push-ups with knees).

I said to myself I had to finish the HIWOD in under 40 minutes, and I did: 38 min 11 sec. I'm so proud of myself today and the seweat dripped like never before =)!