It’s my fourth consistent week on this new Freeletics journey and I’m beginning to feel stronger. It feels subtle, but I notice that the warm-ups are easier. I feel a bit more supple.
I did two runs on Monday and Wednesday. A 3km run, which was pretty straightforward, and an interval run on Wednesday which was also fine. I marked them both as ‘too easy’, and I’ve noticed that next week’s training includes a couple of slightly longer runs, although only by 500m, so I wonder if I do need to ask Coach to up the ante a bit.
On Friday I did Nemsis, which I always think is going to be easier than it is. It’s a combo of crunches and mountain climbers, starting with 50 crunches. You get halfway through that set and realise that this workout is anything but a walk in the park. But it felt good to be working out my abs.
So next week I’m going for a fifth perfect week, which will gain me a new badge. I’m going to see if I can continue with perfect weeks throughout February.
My previous streak on Freeletics is 4 perfect weeks. I like that they now have similar badges that Apple Watch offers. Here I am at the end of my third perfect week on Freeletics. I’m now determined to get my next badge – six perfect weeks.
Meanwhile, this week was another two runs and a HIIT session. Wednesday’s run was a 4km interval run. I kept walking in between runs and so my total distance was 5.6km which felt good. I also cycled to work and back twice which is a 30min round trip. The HIIT was Persephone – burpees, leg raises and lunges. I don’t think I’ll ever love burpees, but they do work. I was a sweaty mess at the end, even with adding 3mins onto my PB.
I’ve lost 3kg in three weeks, which feels good. I’ve been combining a consistent Freeletics schedule with 16:8 (or just about) intermittent fasting, and so I’m mostly exercising when I’m in a fat-burning state and I think that is making a difference.
So on I go to week 4. Hoping for more sunny, frosty winter mornings
I’m writing this while I wait outside the pool for my session to start. It’s a Sunday and I’m back for another swim, second week in a row. And I had another perfect Freeletics week. So I’m feeling pretty smug right now.
Week 2 of my Freeletics Journey was pretty similar to week 1. Two short-ish runs (an interval and a 2.5km run), and a HIIT Bodyweight workout. For both of the runs I gave Coach feedback that it could be working me harder. The runs are fine, but I reckon I could be running for longer.
My HIIT was Metis. I’ve done it many times before, but am seriously out of practice so I added nearly 3mins onto my PB. I’m not used to doing burpees (forgotten how much I hate them). I took it slowly — I wanted to focus on technique rather than speed. Even though it’s only 8mins or so I still felt exhausted and sweaty at the end.
This consistent approach seems to be working for me too. Not trying to do too many workouts a week. Just Monday, Wednesday and Friday and a bonus weekend freestyle, hence today’s swim.
I’ve also stuck with the intermittent fasting this week, which is getting easier.
So far, so good then for 2022. Going to do my best to keep going.
I’m one week into a new Freeletics Journey. It’s the start of the year and I have a renewed motivation to stick to my fitness plan this year.
And the first week went well. I’ve decided to do Freeletics on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with a bonus weekend workout that could be a swim, a run or a Freeletics workout. Last week I had two runs – a 3km interval run and a 2.5km run. Both pretty straightforward. It was good to be out in the morning before work and to get them out of the way.
Friday’s workout was 2x Athena, which is lots of climbers, sit-ups and squats. My PB is 14mins, but last week it took me almost 20 minutes. I felt pretty out of practice. And I had sore quads for a couple of days.
I’m liking the mix of bodyweight and running. My weekend workout was a swim – first time doing lane-swimming since well before the pandemic. It was more tiring than I remember, but I liked the feeling of stretching my arms and chest.
And then this morning was another interval run which took longer than I thought it would (was a bit laete for work – oops).
My training kind of went out of the window in the latter part of last year. We moved to a new office and I had a longer commute – by bike – that meant I was usually a bit tired after work. I falsely decided that my cycling could partly take the place of training. And so I wasn’t running as much, I wasn’t swimming at all, and as my Freeletics journey was running only, I’d stopped bodyweight exercises altogether.
This blog has become a series of false starts for a while. I seem to return to it when I want to be accountable but then quickly slip out of the routine again. So 2022 is another attempt at consistency.
Do New Year’s resolutions work?
I’ve put on weight. I’m 6ft 0in, and I now weigh 88kg – which according to the NHS website is overweight. When I’ve put on weight in the past, It’s mostly been muscle mass. I used to be skinny and starting Freeletics meant that I quickly gained muscle. But this time it’s just excess fat. My body is less toned, my muscles have waned and I’m feeling achey and ungainly.
Some people don’t like New Year’s Resolutions. I’ve always found them really useful. I like to have that moment of reset – a chance to start again and build better habits and 1 January feels like as good a time as any, especially as I’ve often over-indulged over Christmas.
So I abandoned my previous journey on Freeletics and I’m starting a new one HIIT & Run Weight Loss.
How Freeletics Coach works
If you’re new to this blog, or have stumbled across this post because you’re thinking of starting Freeletics, here’s a quick run down of how it works.
I pay an annual subscription to Freeletics, which means I get access to tailored programmes that coach me through a series of workouts over around 12 weeks. You can set the number of days you want to train per week, and as you move through the journey you can give feedback on how difficult or easy you’re finding the work-outs.
I’ve always liked the ‘impersonal accountability’ of Freeletics. I’ve never fancied the idea of an actual personal trainer (or being willing to spend the money), but I’m not disciplined enough to lead my own workouts regularly, so I like that there is structure and that the app gently encourages you to be consistent and complete every workout.
My new journey – HIIT and Run Weight Loss
HIIT and Run Weight Loss feels like the right journey for me at the moment. It combines bodyweight exercises and runs/sprints, so I mix it up through the week and combine it with other exercises like swimming and cycling to work.
I’ve also decided to structure my week so I train in the morning (I think I’m more likely to train if I can get it out of the way first thing), and that I’m doing Freeletics three times a week. This leaves me with a fourth day at the weekend that I can use for swimming or a free run or something else. I think I was putting too much pressure on myself to exercise five times a week and that’s unsustainable.
So I’m starting tomorrow with a pretty easy 3km run, split into two 1.5kg runs.
A Freeletics Journey 