Pilate's Reformer
I'm sure I have been bound to one of these in The castle and beaten into submission.
Thank you Mit Tress
Its not your typical gymnasium , nor does it feel like a place where you go to work your arse off , but on April 24 , 2010 I subjected 3 hi so expat housewives to a 45 minute Kettlebell session that would keep them off the podium at Mandarin a gogo for at least 3 days.
Let me run you thru the session.
We were using an 8kg kettlebell so I made sure they could actually lift it off the floor , we started with
- Kettlebell dead lifts , Instruction set then 1 set of 15 reps , all good , these girls were actually quite strong
- 2 hand Kettlebell swings , Instruction set and then 1 set of 20 reps
- 1 handed Kettlebell swings 10 reps per arm
- 1 handed swings with hand exchange 10 reps per arm
- Kettlebell squat , Instruction set and 1 set of 15 reps
- First circuit 1 set of 2 handed swings 20 reps , 1 set of Kettlebell squats 15 reps , 1 set of push ups no rest in between exercises
- Rest and then 2 handed kettlebell overhead press 10 reps rest and then 15 reps
- Kettlebell squats with the bell held with 1 hand instead of two , 10 reps.
- Kettlebell clean instruction and then 1 set of 5 reps and then a set of 10
- Second circuit , 1 handed Kettlebell swings with hand exchange 20 reps , 1 set of 15 Kettlebell squats followed by 1 set of 10 kettlebell cleans and 1 set of kettlebell Over head press 10 reps no rest in between sets.
We finished the session with a fun exercise called under the leg pass , which involves a lot of twisting and bending under tension which is great for the core.
A tuff workout for ladies that have had little or no weight training experience , it elevated their heart rate , activated some muscle groups they don't usually train and gave them an intro to functional strength training .
But will they do it again ????
Changing from your regular diet and lifestyle can be hard , you know big mango chutney burgers with thick cut fries are tasty , super thin wood fired pizza from Limoncello on Suk soi 11 rule and Tony Roma's ribs just melt in ya mouth , so what to do ????
Enter the free day..
I'm a big believer of the free day , following a reduced calorie diet is tuff , food can be boring and repetitive and if you happen to enjoy flavour and mouth feel , its just not there.
So you have eaten clean for 6 days , low fat , reduced carbs , nutrient dense but calorie sparse 6 meals per day , the serving size were small , you ate lots of steamed veggies , chicken breasts , tuna , salads with olive oil and vinegar dressing , lots of oatmeal and egg white omelets , litres of water and blanched almonds for snacks. You have worked out between 3 and six times mixing some resistance training and cardio.
Even god rested on the seventh , go eat and don't train.
I grew up in Australia , my mum always cooked us roast dinners on Sunday followed by apple pie or pavlova she was a great cook and as a consequence I love food.
So in Bangkok I head to the London Brew Pub on Suk 33 for Sunday Roast , they have lots of side dishes and cold starters and desert is included with the price .
If you happen to be in Pattaya try the Sportsman pub for Sunday lunch , probably the closest thing to mums roasts here in Thailand .
If you like burgers , Big mango chutney burgers are probably the best you will find around and well priced ,
if you like Yum Cha head to Yaowarat or China town , Grand China Princess hotel .
Office bar or Mojos serve a good steak in Pepper sauce when they have good beef , with the added bonus of coyote dancers after 10pm.
Basilico on Suk 33 serve good wood fired Pizza as do limoncello on soi 11.
So enjoy your free day , but remember its back to the grind on Monday.