Another Surfng lesson and windsurfing lessons on the way

Have had my head down and tail up for the last week after learning that my resignation period had been cut short from a month to two weeks: aaarrrgghgh! In the end I followed my Boss's advice - there was only so much I could do, and I had to be happy with that. So I finished up with Yachting NSW on Friday and now have all my own time to get my new business, SportSPeak, up and running as quickly as possible so that I don't starve to death.

I have a good feeling about this, and my way forward, but just having the feeling won't make it happen. For sure: it will make any hard days easier, knowing that I'm going the right way for me now, but there will have to be plenty of ACTION - will report back on this as the days go by.

So: Second surfing lesson report. My teacher and friend Kathy is happy with how I'm learning and of course I want to learn faster! Plenty of face-planting was the order of the day on Sunday, but it was another stunning day with perfect water temperature and just a gentle breeze - how bad could it be???? Besides, it's water and I LOVE playing in the water. Homework for this week is to practice getting up on my feet and making sure they land further forward on the board and that I'm rotated around more. I still haven't worked out whether I'm a natural or goofy footer but it's got to be a good thing that I can go either way, doesn't it?? I'm sure it will work itself out once I can stand on the board.

Added Bonus to Sunday's surfing lesson was that a 'new' contact, and as it turns out, someone from my past sailing life, Bevan McKanagh (hope I spelled his name properly!!!) was on the water on something as remote from the softie Mal that I was learning on as is possible. One of the coolest slickest boards I've seen - it was made of Carbon fibre and HOLLOW and about 6 feet long. Bevan is Glide Industries - importers of Bic Surfboards, kayaks and Sailboards...and hopefully my windsurfing teacher to be. After seeing me learning to surf on Sunday he may well have changed his mind, but he also knows I can sail pretty well as we were old Club mates when we were kids sailing our Flying Elevens at Manly 16's (yep, the club that's about to go bust because of the new state Govt thieving rules. Oooops! did I say THIEVING? I meant Taxation, surely. I think not! That Club has been a great community (and might I say Government) asset for so many years now. If the State govt enforces it's current ruling, that club will go under. BIG SHAME!

Surfing Lesson at Manly

What a fantastic way to start the day! This morning I had my first surfing lesson at Manly Beach (South Steyne, if we're to be specific) with my good friend Kathy, who is considering starting a Learn to Surf business. The weather was beautiful - perfect temperature in the air and water - and the low tide whitewater had just the right amount of punch to let me get the very basics without scaring the heeby-geebies out of me.

I don't know much about surfing, but I do know about teaching and coaching, and she is a great teacher! Really clear and concise with her information and especially good at giving just the right amount of feedback.
In fact, the best thing she did was make me think about what I was doing and get the feedback from me. Granted, at 39 I'm officially an adult learner, but I use these techniques with all my learners (young and old) and I strongly encourage the coaches and instructors I mentor to do the same. It really helps people learn much better and gives them ownership of the process rather than just sitting back and being spoon fed.

By the end of my first hour I'd managed to catch a few waves and stand up on the board (if only for few seconds before I fell off) and I'm completely hooked! Can't wait for next week's lesson.!

8 Intense seconds

I have sourced a copy of the research papers and will have them in my hot little hands very shortly and will share all.

I'm particularly interested to find out if the research papers match the media hype....Stay tuned.

PS made it back onto the Rowing erg and bike this morning - the treadmill and elliptical trainer are still waiting (somewhat menacingly) for their trials.

Cheers, KK!

8 Intense seconds for weight loss and "spot reduction" UPDATE

I finally gave up looking for all the scientific answers this morning and, armed with my trusty NuMetrex heart sensing sports bra and Polar F4 HRM watch, headed to my local Fitness First gym to see what this exercise protocol was like.
The bottom line is that it's not for the faint hearted, but if you're lookingfor a power-packed workout on a tight time budget, this one is a Ripper!

Because of the need for time information I decided to try it out in the gym on a variety of machinery. First up was the famous Concept 2(C) rowing erg. I warmed up over about 7 mins at about 60 - 70% total effort and then decided to get stuck into it. The first 8 intense seconds were easy, as were the next 12 seconds in which you're supposed to take it easy. After about 2 minutes I was officially working hard, and after 5 mins I was working Very Hard. Knowing that I only needed to sprint for 8 seconds before I got to ease off again was highly motivating and I was able to produce more work in the short space of time than if I had aimed to work at a constant level.

I also tried it out on the stationary bike: still hard, but it felt easier than on the rowing erg. My Heat rate montor watch indicated that I'd used a relatively extraordinary amount of calories in the 15 minute work time-frame and I'll also report back on this when I have some more info.

Tomorrow I'm up for a treadmill trial and the elliptical trainer (which I have some doubts about from a safety aspect).

if anyone else has tried this formula or was involved in the UNSW study, I'd love to hear your comments.