28 Nov 2016

Why I Stopped Crossfit



It's been a few months since I have written about my first week of Crossfit.
For many of you the name Crossfit conjures up images of super shredded
men and women doing insane physical tasks in the gym. There are also 
heaps of fail videos all over Youtube depicting people getting seriously
hurt attempting these tasks. That is why I am writing about why I stopped
my Crossfit journey to switch to weight training and boxing. 


At first when I joined this Gym that specialises in Crossfit I knew it would

be difficult, and challenging. I completely trusted that my trainer/coach knew
what he was talking about and instructing us to do. Even though I spoke with
him about me being a beginner and recovering from an ankle injury, he didn't
seem to listen. When I asked about how to do certain things that I knew I 
wasn't doing in the correct form, he would just say 'You'll get there eventually".

I knew if I continued doing some of these exercises without proper direction,
that I would indeed become injured. So I listened to him and tried my best
to keep up without hurting myself. He times our ability to complete our circuit 
training doing various exercises as quickly as we can. So this is the perfect
recipe for injury, and my husband at one point was a personal trainer so I 
am aware of what 'not-to-do'.  

So here is my breaking point


During my timed workout session I would go from Power-cleans, to Burpees,
to Skip rope, Squats, and Hand Stand Push-ups. At the time, I didn't have 
the upper body strength to do a hand stand much less push-ups while 
doing them. I pushed through, and got through most of the work out. 
When I got to my third set of Hand stand push-ups something popped in my 
elbow, and I lost balance and fell on my right arm. My arm was immediately
sore
after that. My coach didn't seem to notice, and his mentality about training
really rubbed me the wrong way.



Hand Stand Push-ups (img crd: www.crossfitinvictus.com)


I didn't have a good vibe from this gym and it didn't seem to be anywhere
near the environment I had been looking for. I felt like my coach was almost
mocking in his comments, and felt awkward being around him. So every time
I went to go back I would break into a nervous sweat on the way there. It didn't

help that the coach had taken my number off of my forms that I had submitted,
to send me messages about training. At the end of the day that just creeped
me out.



I am now training at home or at the gym doing various weightlifting,
resistance 
training, boxing, and jogging. I feel much stronger and happier 

with what I am focused on right now. My husband has helped by showing
me 
proper forms and movements for exercise routine he has put together. 

This post is dedicated to him for helping me find fitness to be almost
fun again. 



21 Nov 2016

How to Deal with Stress



Sometimes I ask myself how I handle such high stress situations.  
It took me a while to realize how much of a difference your own 
reaction to these situations can affect the overall outcome. For me,
I use my creativity as an outlet of sorts, by writing and making jewelry.
When I look take a step back and look at the 'bigger picture', it makes 
me want to take any negative thoughts or feelings and put it into
something that will be positive for me in the long-run. 


I see many bloggers/vloggers who have issues coping with depression,
anxiety, and stress in their daily lives. Unfortunately, life has it's ups-and-downs.
The most important thing we can do is control how we react and respond.
Freaking out about something you can not change will not affect the outcome. 
I find accepting whatever has happened in my life, and finding a positive direction
really makes a difference.


If I get to the point where I find myself dwelling 
on something to the point where
it affects my state of mind daily; I will write
about it or push myself harder during
a workout. 
I hope that this helps even just one person, that would be amazing.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. 


11 Nov 2016

Back to Brunette + Tips for Colouring @ Home


So, as much as I love being blonde or having light brown hair, 
it is literally killing my scalp. I get horrible welts all over my scalp
that tend to bleed. It gets so painful that I have to douse my head 
in full cream milk to soothe and heal it.

I noticed that my readers are 
loving my reviews on hair colouring,
and seeing my mishaps 
as well as success stories. Loads of you
are probably nervous 
trying a whole new colouring product or just
trying to do anything d
rastic to your hair. 

My advice on this is to have someone help y
ou, even if it's your
partner. It helps to have someone to go over t
he back of your
head to make sure everything is even and covered. Another 
important tip, would be to check the amount of dye given in your 
box/mix. Some have more than others, where some of the more
expensive brands may have less to spread through your hair. 


If you have thick or long hair, I highly recommend doubling up
the product. That way you won't get to the end of your bottle 
and still have the ends of your hair to cover. It's a common 
mistake that I'm sure loads of people make, but will save 
you a trip back to the store to fix your colour.

For me, I want to stick as close to my natural hair colour 
as I can,
which is a deep dark brown colour almost black. 
If you find yourself
using a darker colour, be aware of any droplets that 
fall onto your
skin or clothes. They will darken up anything they touch or stay
on
if you do not wipe it off with a damp towel. If you find that your skin
has 
marks from the dye, don't worry.

The best method I have found is using
a damp towel and dipping
it in ash (gross but effective), then gently rubbing it 
on the areas you
want cleaned. If you don't have ash, I would recommend 
trying 

mi-cellar water instead (not as effective).