SuperCat's Nine (Training) Life Lines

In picking up the pieces from my training meltdown last week, SUPERchick Visionary Cat, revealed her own fabulous tips accrued during her Nine Lives including Ballerina, Trained Dancer, Trainer Extraordinaire and SUPERchick Founder among others. So keep reading for the Nine Top Training Tips this “SuperCat” could not live without!

Seriously they are the Cat’s Whiskers!!!!

(On a slight aside, is it just me or is that is a totally daft saying? I would literally die laughing if anyone told me they were the Cat’s Whiskers mid-conversation).

Anyone that’s ever tried, failed and is trying once again (ME, ME, ME) to shape up will already know the basic hints and tips for successful weight loss and bikini body nirvana – it’s really just being motivated and inspired enough to take heed. Yeah, yeah.

Two of my personal favourite sources of tips and inspiration are:

1. Marie Claire Top Ten (check here) - perfect lunchtime brain training not to go and raid the chocolate machine 


2. Zest Magazine - perfect for when you can’t be bothered to actually go and train!!

But although I thought I could ace “random fitness facts” as my Mastermind topic, I was actually totally blown away that I had never EVEN come across some of the fitness/ weight loss hints and tips that Cat mentioned to me last week.

Luckily for you and as my family will happily and frequently do testify I am HOPELESS at keeping schtum; so with what I’m about to reveal, you too can look and feel like the Cat’s Whiskers!!!

1. Time to concentrate: Getting a caffeine hit, such as a ProPlus 20 mins before training, will help you blast those fat stores more effectively. The caffeine in ProPlus helps keep more glycogen locked into the muscles, meaning that you have to tap into your fat stores (of which I have PLENTY!!) to maintain your energy reserves during training. Plus the caffeine has the added benefit of ensuring that you REALLY focus during your training session and so get the most from it. It’s a simple win, win.

WARNING: I’m not advocating that you should all follow this advice – clearly caffeine is a stimulant with addictive properties and should not be used as an aid to weight loss on its own. Moreover, an excess intake of caffeine without exercise can lead to many negative health issues. But research does suggest that taking caffeine as a supplement to training can be beneficial. Moreover taking caffeine in the form of ProPlus rather than an expresso shot can help avoid the social elements of becoming too reliant on a regular cup of coffee. The caffeine should be linked to exercise and not just daily life. 

Now that I’ve given you all the jitters and you’ve sworn off coffee forever, I should also mention that REALLY interestingly brands such as MaxiMuscle etc are basically caffeine based products for precisely this reason but at quadruple the price! HONESTLY I REALLY DIDN’T KNOW THIS TIP – WOW. I am REALLY keen to try this but weirdly I feel as if I’m cheating if I do – hmmmm!

2. Let’s get physical: Boxing and Spinning are categorically the two BEST cardio options to hit to a) really blast the fat stores and b) for a really intense cardio workout – perfect for when you’ve hit a training plateau and you’re missing the endorphin high.

3. Be mindful of your MINDset: This is where I have fallen down in a BIG way. When I started 5 months ago I wasn’t even able to comprehend that I would ever complete one, let alone two, 10km races and survive to tell the tale. I know I’ve said this before but this was a gigantically humongous undertaking for me. When I embarked on this mission, I would get out of breath just climbing a flight of stairs and thus would take the lift!!

BUT now that I don’t have to rely on the lift at work to get me to my third floor desk, I need to shift my mindset up several gears again in order to achieve the next BIG leap forward and reach my weight and next fitness goals; the equivalent of what a 10km run would be to a complete non-runner. As Cat purred knowingly: “Mentally individuals tend not to adjust to their new ability in an exercise environment and therefore find it mentally more challenging to push themselves further, even if physically their body is now in a position to do so. You must overcome this".
The biggest difference between me and my seriously Elite SUPERchick Compadres is no longer a state of behind, but simply a state of mind.

4. Mini Challenge Series: One of the best ways to help you break your mindset of what you’re capable of is to set yourself shorter term milestones as part of your long-term goal. For example, beating AJ in the sack race at SUPERchicks Sports Day this Saturday(!!!!) as a precursor to outmanoeuvring the Commando Challenge competition in October. Or completing 10 full push ups, 15 full tricep push ups, 30 power jacks, 100 ab circuit etc by the end of the month. These more immediate milestones give you mental focus to challenge the muscles at their new ability rather than your own self belief (or lack of) restricting the effort. SUPERchicks – You will all get to try out Tip No 4 for yourselves as the SUPERchick Mini Challenge Series is being rolled out from September – Yay - I can already envisage your delight at this news!!!

5. Starting out: When you embark on a training programme, the most important priority is actually getting your body and your muscles used to the patterns of movement (You shouldn’t worry if this process take weeks or even months for some exercises – I still can’t fathom how a reverse curl works even after two years of attempting it so nowadays I just fake it – sorry Mel x). Only once you’re comfortable with the pattern of movement do you really need to focus on working the actual muscles themselves.

6. Muscle Mania: This is where “negatives” can come in handy. Again donning my Science Hat (a Biology A Level, would you believe it!) and adopting nerd speak, effectively a negative training action is one which allows you to bear heavier loads more easily as you just concentrate on completing the easier section of a range of motion. Though admittedly it really doesn’t feel all that easy!
For example, this morning, Cat was getting me to do tricep push ups onto the back of a bench and when I couldn’t manage to push myself back to starting position (i.e. after just 5 repeats!), I just did the downwards motion – i.e. lowering my chest to the bench, keeping my elbows into my sides then once there stepping a foot in order to right myself and then repeat: lower down, step in, right self etc. Really I looked as glamorous as I make it sound!

(But I do have to admit that this REALLY works – I stopped by Tesco’s to grab an orange juice post-training and it took me three attempts get my bank card out of it's slot in my purse {like Queenie, I don’t, as a rule, ever have cash on me when I need it!} Seriously my arm was shaking that much – even now my muscles are having to work hard just to allow me to type this!!)

7. Embrace your Inner Tortoise: VERY slow and even just a few repetitions of an exercise can prove to be a LOT MORE effective than zipping through multiple repetitions (even if your technique is exceptional). Again this is one I can personally testify to as Cat also had me executing sets of 10 dynamic press ups this morning – i.e. from a full press up position take 4-6 seconds to lower yourself to the floor, rest on your knees and push yourself up and then back on your toes and lower yourself again REALLY, REALLY slowly. Seriously by the eighth one I could barely raise myself up even after assuming the ¾ press up position. Please refer to Top Tip 3!

8. The Calorie Bank Pays Dividends: By now you’ll have established that I have a sweet tooth (!!!!) but actually it’s easy to treat yourself to a tube of Rolos or whatever your current craving is, if you keep cashing in exercise dividends to your Calorie Bank.

After my powerwalk training I kept up the walking, so I routinely walk 5-12 miles a day (really that may sound extreme but it’s only about 2 hours a day and its brilliant to be outside experiencing London and the changing seasons rather than being forced to experience the delights of my fellow Londoners upclose on the tube! Not to mention the extra dinero I save by walking helps fund my Tesco habit.) By my calculations, every mile walked is approx 100 kcals burnt, which easily provides scope for an occasional delightful choccie treat. “Occasional” being the operative word. Crucially, the thing that struck me when Cat was talking about this was that I shouldn’t really consider walking as part of my core training schedule anymore as it’s really not sufficiently knackering for me now. (Albeit, it's still a GREAT form of exercise) Walking doesn’t/ can't be expected to replicate the effects of SUPERchicks or soon The Running School, but if/as I do the mileage, then I can legitimately afford to treat myself to a little sugar. This Top Tip rules, unlike 6 and 7!

9. Posture Perfect: I know that you’re all probably totally bored to tears with being told that you can appear to lose pounds just by standing up straight but bear with me. What I never really appreciated before was exactly how you should stand up straight. Unbeknownst to me it isn’t just a case of putting your head up and shoulders down and back. What you should really be aiming to do is stand upright from your hip flexors (this also applies whilst running). Cat would say, “think about elongating your core”. I would say “think about lifting your chest up and away from your butt”. And the best thing about standing up straight like this is that it REALLY makes your abs work harder so one day you have a perfectly toned bod and won’t need to rely on a posture perfect cheat ever again! Again another win, win.

SUPERchicks of old!

So now armed with CAT's Nine Training Life-lines, you’re all set for NINE purrfect fitness LIVES. x

p.s. I am a MASSIVE cat person. In the event that I'm reincarnated, pretty please can I come back as a purrfectly delightful kitty cat, whose only occupation is napping in the sun?