My training days were planned like this:
Monday: CrossFit training – which is basically strength work, and then a 15 min (approx) hellish workout
Tuesday: Training with my friend Scott Cooke in the morning, and then training for an hour with my son later on in the afternoon
Wednesday: CrossFit
Thursday: CrossFit
Friday: CrossFit
Saturday: CrossFit if I could, otherwise a workout in my back garden
Sunday: Rest day.
All of the above days apart from Sunday I get up at 5.30am to train the wonderful women at Cambridge Bootcamps and on most of these days I do not finish work until 8pm ish.
Yesterday a Tuesday, I trained with my friend Scott for the first time in AGES! WHY?? Because 3 weeks ago today, I felt my shoulder/ neck go after a CF session. As the day went on, I could feel the pain increase and the movement decrease. By the end of the day I could barely flex/ extend/ or twist my neck… driving to work the next day was interesting 🙂
If you follow my blogs you will know that July signified a difficult anniversary for me this year, and I had scheduled my work diary around my training diary to be able to get through what I perceived to be a difficult month.
I was training hard.. But seeing little results. I began to notice little things changing ~ I was feeling tired, full of self doubt, difficulty sleeping, weight creeping up, digestion was off, having periods of low mood. Little alarm bells started ringing in my head… This feeling was similar to a period 6 years ago when I was undereating + overtraining (as has been explained in pervious blog post here
The difference this time is that I was NOT undereating ~ (My nutrition has been fairly constant for some time now) Nor do I feel I upped my training too much (at the time) When I injured my shoulder, I was told to REST it, and work on Serratus Anterior Strength, plus I was informed I have a winged right scapula.. mmm sexy!
The difference in my training had been the strength training element. I am used to throwing around kettlebells – the strength training I had been doing incorporated learning some very technical moves: Barbell cleans, snatches, heavy deadlifts, Pull-up’s, strict over head presses, push-presses, Ground to overheads (with a heavy weight) and quite a lot more besides. I obviously hadn’t considered how much exertion this would take out on my 41 year old self when under great personal stress. My body knew though, and bang went the neck/shoulder. I began to get rehab on it, but my symptoms haven’t abated. They are still there..
So here is where I will admit I have made a mistake.. One of the biggest tools I try to teach my 1-2-1 clients and Cambridge Bootcamp clients is to TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES! Find time to FOAM ROLL, go for a walk, relax (easier said than done I know!) *BC girls, please do NOT throw your kettlebells at me) :p
I haven’t been doing these things, I have been filling my days up with work, training and WORK! *Hangs head in shame* The 20 year anniversary hit me very hard this year. My whole body ACHES :/
I was lucky enough last Friday to receive a Thai massage from Jenni Cowdrey of Chiron Therapeutics Jenni is one of our online #TribeCBC women (I know, I am privileged to have an array of very talented women around me :))
As I was being pulled, and pummelled I had time to think about my life, and the last few months. I felt quite a lot of pain as Jenni was pushing meridian points along my body and it was then that it hit me, just how little I had taken care of myself – no stretching routine, no regular foam rolling, no regular massages, and just rushing about from one thing to the next (in that trying to fill a void emotional filler kinda way)
It is something I have been guilty of in one form or another.. Trying to fill a void, driving myself forwards whether that be with my business, or training, or other forms of distraction.
These last few months have been full of self reflection, however, the PING moment really happened last Friday as I was being pulled about by the lovely Jenni! THIS IS WHAT I DO!! I continually look for the next thing to fill the gaping hole that is always there.
So why am I telling you this? Mainly because I want to be honest with my ladies about the struggles that I go through so you know you are not alone. Because you are all so honest with me. Because underneath it all I desperately want to learn how to take care of myself, as I am passionate about you all doing that, and more importantly to let you know that IT IS OK TO MAKE A MISTAKE! I haven’t been taking care of myself, and now karma has risen to bite me in the derrière.
I have therefore made the very difficult decision to take this month off training completely – (this was not easy for me) I have rested, I have done some rehab work with Scott, and I will not force myself to exercise on holiday (I go to Fuerteventura FRIDAY!!)
I won’t lie and say that I haven’t felt guilt every single day of no training BUT I am listening to my body, my mind, the messages I am being given at various points by the universe. I have NO desire to end up where I was 6 years ago. I am still learning.. That’s life though innit 😉
Charlie x
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