Mastermind

There are things that we can control and things that are completely outwith our control. It's important to choose wisely with the first and to fully acknowledge the second ... and thus not let it mess with the first!

Let me clarify: I can only control my actions. I can't dictate what other people do. Therefore I shouldn't let their behaviour impact negatively on me. I need to just keep doing my thing, focus on my goals and let the rest of the world go on around me as it will. My stressing about it won't change the situation but it might well scupper my chances of achieving my goals - unacceptable!

My current life situation is not a happy one. We're talking problems with work, family, health - you name it! It would be easy to get completely overwhelmed and truthfully, I have cried myself to sleep at least twice this week. That's okay - it's a case of better out than in. It's also been the big red flag I needed to take a bit better care of myself. It seems that I'm getting that little bit closer to the edge than is comfortable and it's time to pull back.

When I'm stressed I'm less mindful of my eating and more prone to injury. It's not that I eat badly - I tend to not eat enough and then I train more than usual in an attempt at stress relief and it's not a happy combination. The past couple of days, I have managed to pick my eating up a bit more :) I'm taking steps to remedy the work situation. The family and health problems I have less control over so my key to dealing with them is a combination of fortitude and distraction. I will put up with it while thinking happy thoughts about other things.

The other things I'm thinking about are numerous. My catwoman challenge is still top of the list. I'm one month in and things are looking not too shabby. My abs are starting to come back into what I consider decent shape for me (I can never really get a full on six pack because several pregnancies have certainly left their mark on my lower stomach but I can get a decent four and nice cuts on my hips). My intention for the first half of the challenge was along the lines of a fairly clean bulk. My strength is definitely up and I'm going to keep on my bulking diet for the next week and then start to cut. I'm afraid I'm a bit of a saddo when it comes to cutting. I enjoy it! I'm not even good at maths but there's something strangely satisfying about working out your macros and paying great attention to detail - it's probably the fact that it works so well. In the words of Hannibal (not Lecter or the elephant dude, the other one), "I love it when a plan comes together" :)

Workout-wise for the next week, the focus is still strength with the addition of some explosive power. This means hitting up the big compound moves: a variety of squats (including hack squats - so evil, so good), two deadlift sessions - one at decent effort, one at a lower weight but with the addition of a Farmer's Walk, and a good shot at clean and pressing. I'm not doing any specific ab work just now - crunches are not where it's at. Lift heavy and lift well, do some bodyweight exercises, eat properly and the abs will take care of themselves.

I'll be adding in one of my love-hate workouts - a sprint session at the track. 10 x 100m with walk back recovery. It hurts ... and it works.

I also need to factor in some training for what comes after the Catwoman challenge. It appears that I am doing a triathlon next year. The swimming needs work, lots of it so I'll be aiming to hit the pool for at least three lunch time sessions. As an incentive, this is how I look in my trisuit now:

Kind of meh. The plan is to look awesome! I'm hoping that'll detract from my lacklustre performance!