I’m back! Not that I went very far…

I decided I needed a staycation to get on with some DIY around the house so over the past 2 weeks I’ve been a bricklayer, a decorator, a carpenter, an interior designer, an electrician, a gardener and a consumer of all things B&Q and TravisPerkins! The end result is that my office is now in a different room so that I can feel focused and inspired when I’m at my desk; the kitchen/dining room is freshly painted with new oven (unplanned purchase!) and blinds and the front garden is transformed from a nasty prison cell to a bright open space with fabulous steps…

Do I feel rested? NO! Do I feel ready to get back to the world of fitness? Most definitely YES!!

Sorry I haven’t been in touch during the last 2 weeks – I did have plans of sending you home workouts to keep you mobile & active while I was off but DIY took over my life so I hope you have enjoyed some R&R and feel ready to get going again next week.

For those of you who have taken a long break over the summer, remember to pace yourself for the first few weeks back – rest whenever you need to and work at you own level until your body gets back into the swing of it. Don’t use it as an excuse not to start though – it will get harder as we go through the month so make sure you are back next week – the sooner you start, the better you will look in your LBD for Christmas!!

If you haven’t been to bootcamp for even longer and are nervous of how much it will hurt – please come back next week. I give you my guarantee that you:

• will be able to work at your own pace
• will be able to do it
• will ache – but it will pass quickly if you keep moving & it will get easier after only a few sessions
• will see massive health, fat-loss & fitness benefits from bootcamp sessions
• will wonder why you’ve put it off for so long…

The way I see it, I have your money so you may as well come & get the benefit in exchange!! Don’t get me wrong, I love to have money for nothing, but I much prefer to have money AND help you to reach your goals & feel great about your body. I know it’s scary but it’s only scary the first time so make it soon and get it out of the way! (PS. I had some photos taken today for my website & I cried (!) because I was overwhelmed at how scary it felt; I understand how difficult it is to step outside your comfort zone but it’s amazing how good it feels once you have crossed that line…)

So a new addition to the first bootcamp session each month is the fitness test. Don’t be alarmed – it’s all non competitive and designed just so that you can see your own progress as the weeks go by. If you’re aching to get started and can’t wait until Monday, here’s what the fitness test involves so you can do a bit of preparation at home this weekend. Keep count of how many you do of each move in the time allowed:

• 60 seconds of push ups – you can have your knees on the floor if necessary but the chest must get to within 4 inches of the floor; rest 90 seconds
• 60 seconds of deep squats – thighs parallel to the floor; rest 90 seconds
• 60 seconds of burpees – or low impact inch worms if necessary; rest 90 seconds
• 60 seconds reverse lunges with both knees bending to 90 degrees; rest 90 seconds
• 60 seconds mountain climbers – or low impact plank with knee to elbow; rest for the rest of the day…

So know you know what you’ll be doing at the start of the Monday morning sessions – here’s what else is coming up for the week ahead:

6.15am @ DCPS:

• Monday – Fitness test & low impact 40/20
• Wednesday – ME 13
• Friday – Short circuit with intervals

9am @ Benenden: just to make sure the first week isn’t too much of a shock to your system we’re going back to the start with ME so that you can get used to it all over again. If you’ve been coming to ME over the summer, don’t worry you’ll still be able to push yourself…

• Monday – Fitness test & PHA conditioning
• Tuesday – ME 1
• Wednesday – Low impact toning
• Thursday – ME 2
• Friday – Core conditioning

One last thing before I forget – I’m going to bring super healthy, home-made, gluten free chocolate cookies with me on Monday as incentive to get you back to bootcamp ASAP….it’s on my to-do list so make sure you’re there to enjoy them!

Enjoy your weekend – see you on Monday

Jane x