Desa's Provosionary Training Log

Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Provisionary because I have little experience with consistently working out along a schedule, so it will be likely altered to fit better.

So, what am I doing here? As recommended by Laura Rainbow Dragon, I am trying out Square one as my start here.

I am making this training log to keep my mind, that is very much inclined to wander off, on track as much I can. I will likely miss some days due to that and due to the world never turning quite tidely as somtimes wished.

I might later expand more on my situation re efforts to become more fitter. But for now I will just note I did the first day of Square One.

Went allright, did just three sets, and I will keep at that for a few days and I might go to a higher level if it works out well and or if I feel unchallenged or bored.

I also did the warm-up for 4 minutes and some stretching exercises my kinesist once gave me to deal with my hip aches.

I might also add some programs later.

Day One of Square One Done.
 
MamaBear

MamaBear

Member
from Arkansas
Posts: 24
"Sometimes the why is more important than the action."
Welcome @Desa :hellothere:

I tend to have trouble maintaining a workout schedule. It seems to be easier to do nothing than maintain a workout that helps me live better and have a better mood. I am also chronicling my journey as a means of reminding myself that I can take small steps on my adventure I call life.

I will try to check in on you again later today. :wand:
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Genuinely impressed by how my training log has descended under other training logs. I don't see this as competition, but rather a sign of how others are exercising too. Nice.

I didn't update the training log, but I did a lot yesterday!

I finished the second day of Square One on the second level, cuz felt unchallenged by doing it on the first.

I also added to that the program I detailed in my newbie post but I will reproduce:

1. 50 jumping jacks
2. One minute of high-knees running in place.
3. One minute of kicking-your-butt running in place.
4. Ten arm circles forward, then ten arm circles backwards.
5. 10 push ups.
6. Hold a plank for 30 seconds.

I started all of that first off with the 4 minutes warming up and I finished all of that with a few stretching exercises.

Then I also did ten sit-ups with the very convenient help of a sofa which fits my feet nicely below.

Throughout the day yester, I did:

Lift the bike 5 times in five sets. Why? I just find it a funny exercise.

Biked a bit.

Swum for about three quarter of a hour. 50 swimming laps which is 1250 meter which is, so a random calculator site tells me, 0.77 miles.

That is, I believe, a full report of the most important physical activity I did yesterday.

Imagine my surprise I only had a stiff shoulder when awaking today. I expected other muscles to be sore.

Today I only did the third day of Square One on the first level, to take it easy for my shoulder.

Again the 4 min warmup plus some stretching exercises.

My left shoulder blade is complaining a lot now. Probably for the best if I don't exercise anymore today. Sparing the shoulder and the rest of my body.

But my hip and back are feeling good! An important change I might have made and frankly should have come up with earlier is to also use the insoles for exercising. Don't know if that was an important factor, but glad I did nonetheless.

Day Two and Three of Square One Done.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Did the fourth day of Square One on first level. As always, 4 min warming up and some stretching.

I keep looking up videos both on this site and youtube, and I regulary find recommendations that refine my exercises: such as sitting on the front of the chair with legs shoulderwide. I am such a newbie at this.

Shoulder feeling a lot better! Did push-ups and the plank again! But legs feeling an itsy bitsy shaky, so did only the jumping jacks in that regard. Today stil not lifting the bike, since I suspect that lifting my bike with the heaviest part in my left hand was the biggest source of the complaining.

Might tonight swim again though.

As always feeling a bit impatient, i want to have all the power now!! But steadily rowing thru it all, I guess. It is clear my body is not yet prepared for taking up a more intensive set. I hope though I will feel and notice differences at the end of this year...

Day Four of Square One Done.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Fifth day of Square One done on second level. 4 min warm up + my own routine + stretching.

Interesting that I felt I had to take a break during my own routine. Very rare that happens!

I had fun to find ways throughout the fifth day increasingly make the exercises more difficult.

Did not swim yesterday. It is hard for me to balance swimming with the other things I want/need to do throughout the day. Maybe today or tuesday. (Monday is going to be such a busy day I best likely focus solely on getting the seventh day of Square One done.)

I peeked in Deadoks' log and I really like the way he handles his. (I try to every day look at one log of a bee) Might copy some of his approach when the next month rolls by or earlier. I will see.

Day Five of Square One Done.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Had a hiatus of two days. I did do badminton for a hour and three quarter on sunday and monday I biked like two miles, I think?

Combination of monday being exhausting and sunday I felt dispirited for a number of reasons, one of which that there is so much I want to do and reach with my life, but I find it hard to focus properly and long enough to actually work on them through the day.

Well, time to sit up again and continue the program, no?

Sixth day of Square One done on first level+ 4 min warmup + own routine minus the legs parts due to left leg aching a bit when I tried them + three hip stretching exercises.

I found the sixth day very boring.

Does anyone know a good stretching exercise for the shoulders?

Day Six of Square One Done
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Hey, it has been a while! Got distracted as foretold.

Now, that doesn't mean I did completely nothing in the meantime. I completed three days of the schedule, and I managed to swim thrice 50 laps this week.

It is simply I always struggle to keep at a habit. Which is also updating this log!

So today I did Day Nine of Square One at the third level + 4 min warming up+ my routine + 10 sit-ups + stretching exercises and swom fifty laps. I also lifted the bike, heh.

And soon I will also bike a bit.

Continuing the work to be fitter!

Days Seven, Eight and Nine of Square One Done
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Back in the saddle for now. My body is feeling pretty good, except for the left shoulder complaining. Because it didn't complain throughout the exercises I did, I think it is due to lifting the bike. My left shoulder is not used to pulling much weight.

I did the 4 min warm up + Day Ten of Square One at the third level + my routine (with a longer plank for like forty-five seconds hell yea) + 11 sit-ups + hip stretching exercises + the Shoulders Stretch (Thank you, @Laura Rainbow Dragon! I will try all your suggestions out one for one, and then see what fits best)

So, yeah, that is it for today. Now my body needs to cool off, heh. Thanks for following this log!

Day Ten of Square One Done.
 
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Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Sunday is badminton day. Two hours badminton. Sunday also means a lil bit of biking throughout.

And I felt very tired after badminton. So I kept it simple today.

Quick Warm-up + Day Eleven of Square One art the Second Level.

Tomorrow will have to be simple too or nothing, it is for now still the busiest day of the week for me.

Day Eleven of Square One Done.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
This is turning out to be quite the intermittent Log, eh? Still, it is not easy to keep habits, and better if good habits are kept up intermittently than not at all. That can be also pave the way to more consistency after some time. This interval is shorter.

And I also did more stuff in the mean-time! I just completed my third swimming this week again. Today I felt like my moves increased in power? Like, that I had more power to spend on pushing my arms with more force through the water. Was a nice feeling.

I also kept at Square One (even at monday!), though not for two days (one in which I still swam).

I also have started that one minute meditation challenge I saw in deadoks' log and thought to give that a try.

So today, I did the 4 min warm-up, Day 14 of Square One at third level, my routine with 11 sit-ups, hip stretching, concluding with Shoulders and Stretch, as recommended by Laura (which is my favorite so far, but I will still try out the others) Then I meditated a minute for the second time this week.

Then I swum again fifty laps with the last five sprinting.

And later I might lift the bike.

So yeah, that is the update for now! See ya!
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Today did 4 min warm-up + day 15 of Square One on third level + routine and 11 sit-ups (in which I also discovered I may have to lower myself more to increase the impact. That is one thing I love when you feel confident enough with an exercise to make it a bit more difficult) + hip stretching (where my resistance band very cleanly snapped, luckily I have a roll of that material, I was able to fashion a new one) + hip stretching + shoulder stretching (this time neck and shoulders which I also liked).

Yeah...it is time to turn this in a list, isn't it.

  • 4 min warm-up
  • Day 15 of Square One Done on Third Level
  • my routine
  • 11 sit-ups
  • hip stretching
  • shoulder stretching
  • Day 3 of 1 Minute Meditation Done
(not as fancy as other logs I have seen, but well, like I said, this one is provisionary and up to change. I don't mind prettying this up in a gradual manner)

It has been a while since my hip has ached. I am glad.

Halfway of Square One!
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Regrettably a less cheery post this time.

When I was about to start day 16,yesterday I learned of some very upsetting news that distracted me. Then around noon, the left side of my body apparently unleashed some long-harbored revenge on me by suddenly having my left shoulder and my left leg complaining. But the worst of it all concentrates in my lower back, that both feels like having tied some awful brick to it and a rod softly jamming into my spine. Not great!

It is so strange how it almost all started around the same time. My mother thinks it is due to stress of that upsetting news. Maybe? I wonder if it is due to doing the sit-ups wrong? Because that was the only exercise my body flat-out refused to carry out today.

I still did exercise today and completed most of my routine, but in a much slower, more halting manner. The range of some movements is painfully limited.

It is a bit scary, sad and dispiriting. Likely this will pass, but I feel like my efforts are being undone now. I did have similiar back pain around when I started those exercises, so it feels like I am being catapulted back in time. Anyway.

Day 16 of Square One Done on First Level.

Too sad to make a list now. Hopefully it will get better again.
 
Laura Rainbow Dragon

Laura Rainbow Dragon

Well-known member
Bard from Canada
Posts: 1,786
"Striving to be the change."
I am sorry the issues with your back have returned. You are right to take care of it. (Keep doing as much as you can, but not anything that makes the back pain worse.)
Doing sit-ups with poor technique can cause back issues. But so can a lot of things. Since you have an old injury there, it may only take something very small to re-trigger pain now--so it doesn't necessarily mean that you did anything "wrong" when the pain re-surfaced--it's just that your back is sensitive at the moment.

:vibes:
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
MadamMeow said:
Hoping you can feel better soon. :vibes:
Click to expand...
Laura Rainbow Dragon said:
I am sorry the issues with your back have returned. You are right to take care of it. (Keep doing as much as you can, but not anything that makes the back pain worse.)
Doing sit-ups with poor technique can cause back issues. But so can a lot of things. Since you have an old injury there, it may only take something very small to re-trigger pain now--so it doesn't necessarily mean that you did anything "wrong" when the pain re-surfaced--it's just that your back is sensitive at the moment.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your kind words ; _ ;

My back feels better! I had the amazing luck of encoutering on monday on my cooking education (which also helped in itself in that it is a lot of doing stuff standing up) someone who also struggled with back pain! He gave me some exercises designed to lighten the pain.

I think today I will start exercising again, (I didn't yesterday) and hopefully I will feel ready to swim tomorrow again.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Fell off strongly the wagon this time.

Due to circumstances that I don't have nor the time neither the inclination to elaborate on now, I felt discouraged, and generally just let myself go.

But, you can always, though it is difficult, stop who you were, for better and worse.

So a few days ago I did Day 17 and today I did Day 18 on third level plus the routine, sit-ups and etcetera.

It is hard to keep on track, but hey, better to continually fall and sit up again than falling once and never sitting up again.

Day 18 of Square One Done on Third Level.
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
welp, then I got hit by the flu, basically, which made me tired and discouraged again.

But I am healed now.

  • 4 min warm-up
  • Day 19 of Square One Done on First Level
  • my routine
  • 10 sit-ups
  • hip stretching
  • shoulder stretching
  • Day 4 of 1 Minute Meditation Done
I also did this time some extra exercises!

  • Half-assed EOTD (ten pushup shoulder taps)
  • Merlin on First Level with Extra Credit
  • Two Days of Upper Body Blast (so I am caught up)

I hope tomorrow to start swimming again, but it might also be my arms need rest then, heh
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Something I need to learn is, when I feel discouraged, it is alright to just do one part of the program. That is still better than nothing. Hopefully that will lead to more consistency.
  • 4 min warm-up
  • Day 20 of Square One Done on Third Level
  • my routine (this time with 15 push-ups)
  • 15 sit-ups
  • hip stretching
  • Day 5 of 1 Minute Meditation Done
  • EOD (50 chest expansions)
  • Two days of Upper Body Blast (still trying to catch up despite it all dammit)
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Allright, finally did two days consequetively. Abs very stiff though, so today I skipped everything involving them in order to let them rest.

  • 4 min warm-up
  • Day 21 of Square One Done on Second Level
  • my routine (minus sit-ups and pushups due to stiff abs)
  • hip stretching
  • shoulder stretching (finally did Posture, Laura fourth suggestion. Didn't like that one much, think I will cycle throug the middle two, those I really enjoyed)
  • Day 6 of 1 Minute Meditation Done
  • EOD (50 elbow clicks)
  • one day of Upper Body Blas (didn't do two days, cuz the second one involved abs. Likely will be for tomorrow)
 
Desa

Desa

Active member
Posts: 29
Third day, finally chipping at it again. Abs less stiff, so I was able to exercise them again. Shoulders only lightly stiff. Only note of concern is a tiny complaining at my left hip. Need to watch out for this region. Perhaps focusing more on the hip stretching part tomorrow.

  • 4 min warm-up
  • Day 22 of Square One Done on First Level
  • my routine (back again with 15 push-ups)
  • 15 sit-ups
  • hip stretching
  • shoulder stretching with Neck and shoulders
  • Day 7 of 1 Minute Meditation Done
  • EOTD (50 elbow strikes) was a fun exercise, felt like a silly jabber
  • WOTD (Stake-out) also fun! Extra stretching for my legs
  • Day 6 and 7 of Upper Body Blast Done
Also yesterday lifted bike a bit, walked with dog and biked also.

I have neglected swimming, because due to a combo of hay-fever and the pool not opening on the usual time (due to vacation) it is difficult for me to get into it. But I will.
 
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