Project: Transformation

“Genuine happiness can only be achieved when we transform our way of life from the unthinking pursuit of pleasure to one committed to enriching our inner lives, when we focus on 'being more' rather than simply having more.”

  - Daisaku Ikeda

I was going to start this post talking about the physical transformation program I have started however, I realised that by the pure act of focusing on improving our physical selves; we begin to grow spiritually too. No matter what form of exercise you undertake, it will require self-motivation and inner strength to push your body past the limits that your mind sets. I don’t really practice yoga but I find that when I get into the zone running or lifting weights it is meditative; you’re focusing on your breathing, at completing the task at hand. Because of this, physical activity is a fantastic tool to combat depression and anxiety; it alleviates stress and boosts self esteem. Personally, I also find that it helps solve problems, getting blood pumping around the brain you become more alert, more aware, somehow the problem seems smaller and the answers just come to you. There is no other feeling like when you get into your own mind, focus, push and drive yourself to be better. I think this is why so many fitness professionals are so keen to share their lifestyles with others; to help them to realise the riches that lie within themselves.

With this in mind I am committing myself to being more. The first step of this journey begins with the physical. I’m the kind of person that likes a plan; I like to know what I am going to do & when I am going to do it. And then like a massive geek I record everything in an excel spreadsheet. Yep, that’s me! I just find having a structure makes it easier to achieve want I want to; kind of like when you do a time management plan to complete an essay or get through your to do list at work. Or am I the only one that does time management spreadsheets too?? Anyway, I decided that for my goals I would download a 12 week training program from Bodybuilding.com and chose the Jamie Eason’s 12 week transformation plan. Jamie Eason is an incredibly successful fitness model and this plan is great as it gives you a day by day of what you should be doing and eating; with videos to demonstrate form and a list of different foods and serving sizes required for each meal. This is fantastic for anyone who is just starting out as all the information you need is there!

I started the program on the 16/01/2014 I don’t rely wholly on my weight as a measuring device as it can be deceptive so instead I am using pictures and my body fat percentage to record my progress.  I’m not sure I am ready to share my progression pictures with you quite yet, (besides not sure the difference is at a point where it is noticeable after 1 week!) But I have seen a decrease of 1.7% body fat which brings me into the healthy range so I am happy with that.

	Day 1	Day 7
Body Fat Percent	31.80%	30.10%

This first week really helped me to establish where I am in terms of my strength; I realised that my upper body is still incredibly weak and I need to work on endurance as well as strength, but I also discovered that my legs are much more powerful and stronger that I thought; I managed to squat and leg press more than I ever have before and still have the confidence that I can go heavier! The Phase 1 of this plan does just focus on weightlifting and I have put a table of what I completed this week below however I have also been undertaking cardio in bootcamp form; which I will detail in a post over the weekend.

For the 1^st 4 weeks of this program I will be doing 3 sets of 12 reps, with a 1 minute rest between sets. I tried to pick a weight that would have me working at 60% effort and cause me to get to failure by the 3^rd set, as this is my first week it will take a bit of trial and error to get the weights right! On some of the sets I did feel I could lift a bit heavier on my next attempt, whereas with others I had to drop some weight in order to complete them.

I will update again on week 4 to see how the weights have improved!