GET FIT FOR 2012: CYRENA’S WORKOUT PLAN

So I’ve been hitting the gym for a little over a month now and I have definitely noticed a change in my stamina. My workout plan was set up by Personal Trainer Lawrence Okoye at Nuffield Health, I had told him that I wanted to work on toning rather than weight loss and I wanted to concentrate on my stomach/waist and thighs; prior to this I had no exercise routine whatsoever so he had to make it ‘interesting’ enough for me to work through it.

Lawrence suggested I work towards achieving 45 minutes of cardio using a combination of the Cross Trainer, Summit, and Rowing machines followed by 4 circuits to work the core muscles. Knowing that there was no way I could possibly do 45 mins of straight cardio at the first attempt he suggested I build up slowly, starting with 10 mins on the Cross Trainer, 5 on the Summit, and 10 on the Rower.

Circuit 1

Core Bag – Squats and lifts

Kettle Ball Swings

Viper – “Thread the needle” holding above the head then twisting and treading through legs with a squat

Roll Outs on a mat – kneel down then roll forward using the lil wheely thing

Do each 10 times then repeat the circuit 3 times

Circuit 2

Ball Roll Outs – feet on the ball, hands on the floor using core to pull knees in then back out

Roll Outs on mat – same as in circuit 1

Dumbell Raises – Front raise, Lateral raise, Flys

Do each 10 times then repeat the circuit 3 times

Core Circuit

Canoe – Rowing with the Viper

Heel Touches – lying on your back with knees bent, using core to rock and touch your heels

Leg Chops – again on the back with one leg bent, using core to chop straight leg with opposite arm

TRX

Squat Jumps – holding on to the straps squatting as deep as possible then jumping

Back Rows – kind of like a stand up push up only you’re pulling yourself up at an angle

 

I started of doing 25 mins of cardio followed by these circuits which really worked up a sweat! Over a few weeks I pushed myself to 55 minutes of cardio!!!

Next I’m going to test out the classes, I’ve been told that Combat Aerobics; Legs, Bums, and Tums; Body Pump; and Yoga will do the trick. Stay tuned!

GET FIT FOR 2012: BOXIT BOOTCAMP

Yesterday I had a major breakthrough, if you have been following my GET FIT for 2012 series you will know that up until a month ago I did not nor had I ever worked out before; gym membership…? Pah!!! Well now, I have a gym membership at Nuffield Health which I’m using to the fullest, (I’ll be putting up my personal workout regime aka #cyrenasworkoutplan on here soon) and I’m looking into external classes/boot camp sessions. I tend to workout on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (if I don’t keep strict days I won’t go); as this week was full of bank holidays I spent one of my ‘workout days’ in bed! So, back to my breakthrough yesterday – I did 45 mins of cardio at the gym in the morning, then in the evening I went to Boxit Bootcamp! TWO BOUTS OF EXERCISE IN ONE DAY PEOPLE!!! I’m truly growing in this department!

One of the things I’ve always wanted since I was a child was a punching bag, take from that what you will, but you can imagine my excitement when I was invited to attend a Boxit 2 the Beat class in Brixton. It’s a non stop, 1 hour, intense pad circuit class with a live DJ spinning house tunes so you can literally Boxit 2 the Beat! They say you can burn up to 1,000 calories in one hit and it definitely felt like it; the class has you sweating buckets! The instructors have you bouncing around, punching pads, doing squats, lunges, crunches – everything to work out your entire body. The best bit for me was the stretching at the end because that’s when I knew it was almost over! Just kidding, well not really…I’m feeling the effects as I type this but I would definitely go again. I’ve been told the outdoor class is great too! I recommend everyone gives this class a try at least once, you’ll be hooked. The best stress relief!

For more info on classes and to register take a look at the Boxit site here

Follow them on Twitter here

And Like them on Facebook here

RIHANNA’S VITA COCO BODY

Riri’s campaign pics for Coconut water brand Vita Coco shot by photog fave Terry Richardson are out. If water is all it takes to get a body this good then I’ll drink it by the gallon! Brand ambassador for Vita Coco, Rihanna commented on how her favourite drink helped to get her body toned up and in shape.

“I wasn’t drinking enough water before, and I love coconut water.  It hydrates me just as much as regular water so it really started to affect my diet and the way my body was shaping up.”

“I also started to eat a little differently” the songstress admits, delving into the details of her diet. “I added one vegetable to each meal with my diet for awhile — but then I went right back to eating McDonald’s and pasta and stuff like that too! So really its just having a balance of eating great and staying hydrated.”

“I never weighed myself so I don’t know how much weight I was to know how much I lost.  I haven’t worked out sine January!

See more of Rih’s slim and trim body here and follow my GET FIT for 2012 journey here

GETTING FIT FOR 2012: HEALTH M.O.T.

I finally got my health M.O.T. from Nuffield Health, as you would expect it’s not the greatest. However it’s better than I would’ve thought, a close friend of mine was shocked, and I mean truly shocked at the fact that my Cholesterol level was good because of my love affair with butter! The outcome was as expected – drink more water (fluids in general), exercise more/be more active, and drink less alcohol (I don’t have a problem with alcohol believe me)!  One of my queries was the hip to weight ratio, I’m going to ask if they can double check it for me as the measurements didn’t make sense, to him or I. Take a look at all the things they tested, I think the heart rate is a bit off as he decided to tell me about the blood test just before it!

GETTING FIT FOR 2012!

In the spirit of the Olympics I’m on a mission to ‘GET FIT’ for 2012. I will be recording my physical progress and commenting on my gym (Nuffield Health), my work out plan and fitness gear I’ll be wearing. The desired outcome is to de-stress, getting fit, and having an overall healthier lifestyle.

Being in my late 20s, as a size 10, 5’ 10” girl people may believe I hit the gym regularly; when in reality I’ve never worked out a day in my life. Cardio for me is shopping and walking around central London to various press days; and with a lot of companies offering online shopping that cuts the “cardio” in half! Being blessed with a great metabolism is not enough, I hear all the ‘horror’ stories about ‘once you hit 30 your metabolism slows right down’ so I know one day it will come to a grinding halt, the main thing on my agenda is getting fit and feeling healthy so I don’t feel completely winded after running for a bus!

Running two fashion/lifestyle sites, designing and customising outfits, and being a social butterfly doesn’t exactly leave much time for anything else. I want to show you (and myself) that you can have the busy lifestyle and still have/make time to get fit and healthy.

I’m not the only one on this ‘GET FIT’ caper, this series is being tried and tested by Toronto based fashion lifestyle site Coco&Cowe.com; personal fashion lifestyle blog QOTUGIRL (launching in May 2012); and my style blog LetMeSeeYourWears.com.

Next step, my body M.O.T.