Progress Report
Fitness: On Thurs I was working with my trainer and had him spot me while I did the bench press. I mentioned that the most I had ever benched was 100 lbs and that it was a goal of mine to bench that weight (or higher) again, and he said I could probably do it already. It was almost like a game - add more weight, do a set, add more, lift more. At 80 lbs I could do a clean set of 5 reps, so we added the remaining 20 and gave it a go. The first time I lowered the bar and then got "stuck" on my way up (that's why it's recommended to have a spotter). I talked to my trainer about it, and he said that I should try again and really focus on using all my strength to power through the lift - it wasn't so much a physical issue as a mental one. The second time I was able to really focus and did summon all my strength to raise the bar, but afterwards I was pretty beat. This was my first lesson in "Power Lifting."
Ballet: Had my private on Fri and did 14 fouettes which is a new record for me. I consistently did sets of 12, 14 and 13 before my foot started giving out, which is a significant improvement over where I was six months ago. My feet are getting stronger and I feel so much more confident, especially with turns. Even my adagio is getting better - I don't fall out of my penchee anymore when I take the company class.
Here is a photo of Uliana Lopatkina, just because.
Ballet: Had my private on Fri and did 14 fouettes which is a new record for me. I consistently did sets of 12, 14 and 13 before my foot started giving out, which is a significant improvement over where I was six months ago. My feet are getting stronger and I feel so much more confident, especially with turns. Even my adagio is getting better - I don't fall out of my penchee anymore when I take the company class.
Here is a photo of Uliana Lopatkina, just because.