The Luck of the Irish

So, I've been AFK for quite some time, but there's a reason for that: I've been busy with training, work, and travelling. A friend and I travelled to Dublin at the beginning of December, because the two of us had a holiday at the same time for the first time in a while. And we've always wanted to go see Dublin. 

And what can I say, it was all we had hoped for and more. Why? Because of reasons. The Luck of the Irish being just one of them.

1. Irish people are among the friendliest I've ever been in contact with. I know, it sounds cliché, but most people we encountered on our trip were happy-go-lucky people, who didn't take themselves or life too seriously. They helped whenever they could and had the greatest accent ever.

The Liffey at night

2. Our accomodation: we had a great hotel room looking out on the river Liffey, where staff was nice and the room cosy. And cheap. We even had a kettle and several Starbucks and Costa branches within walking distance. Well, to be completely honest, almost everything of interest was within walking distance. Check out the Clifton Court Hotel.

View from our hotel room

3. The Irish luck seems to be contagious; after a few hours, you start to get more relaxed as well, and notice that most things just work out, even if you don't stress them. Or maybe that's just why. You just trust that everything will work out for the best, and if not, then you deal with it when or rather if it doesn't. I was able to take some of that Irish chill back to Berlin and I'm feeling a lot better than before. 

Anyways, it is (almost) impossible to get stressed in Ireland. 

4. Nature. Everything is just incredibly green. Even in December. Trinity College and the park around St. Patrick's Cathedral were great representations of "the Emerald Isle".

St. Patrick's Cathedral

5. Guinness. Do I need to say more? Well, pub culture and Guinness seem to go hand in hand, and it's just an experience in itself to visit a real Irish pub. There's live music, happy people, red cheeks, and laughter all around. We headed to the Temple Bar pub and The Church, an old church that serves as a pub these days.

Temple Bar, probably one of the most photographed spots in the city

6. Nando's. I know, I know, you can find Nando's in London, too, but the staff were grand (and one of the waiters was named Taco), friendly, and it was our first Nando's experience. We love Nando's. And it's just across the street from The Church.

Quinoa salad at Nando's 

7. Boots. The drugstore. To make this one short: my friend and I are into British cosmetics. I for one have had to travel to London or Britain every other year, to get my favourite scrub, Soap & Glory's "The Breakfast Scrub". You get all or at least most British cosmetics in Ireland as well. And you don't have to change money, seeing that the Irish use the Euro. 

8. Sights. We only had two and a half days, so we had to leave out a few of the more time-intensive things in order to get a feel for the city and see the most important things, like the Georgian Doors, Oscar Wilde's birthhouse, Oscar Wilde's lounging memorial, the Ha'Penny Bridge, etc. Next time we vist, we have to see the Guinness Experience, maybe the inside of Trinity College's Old Library with the Book of Kells (which had an unexpected 10e entrance fee, after we read on the net that it is free...), the Writer's museum, etc. There's a bunch of writers hailing from Dublin. And if you've been there, you know why.

Oscar, lounging in style

9. You feel like you walked into a postcard most of the time. Or onto a movie set. It's just surrealistically beautiful.

movie set feeling because of all the details

Project "Back to Bantam"

So, I've rarely ever cared about my weight as a number, because it rarely ever has been a problem or anything. I usually go with how I feel and when my favourite jeans feel a little tight for a change, then I ate a little more strict, meaning less carbs and sweets, but more veggies and protein. But. 

You might have noticed that MMA (mixed martial arts) and BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) are weight-class sports and when you are actively competing, you have an advantage when you are able to compete in a weight-class that has opponents about your own size. For males that is rarely a big problem. It might get uncomfy for them, but the biggest weight difference possibly are 5kg or 10lbs. For women however, this looks different, at least in BJJ-tournaments, because there just aren't enough women to fill all weight classes. And since it doesn't make any sense to have three or four weight-classes with 3 competitors each tops, they are mostly just divided into -60kg/+60kg. And let me tell you, it is no fun whatsoever to compete against someone weighing in at about 78kg, when you yourself are 65kg, which is my "happy weight". 

This being said, a friend and training mate of mine is fighting in MMA featherweight (-65,7kg), so if we ever were to start in the same competition, chances are that if I was my happy weight, we'd be fighting against each other. Which just isn't fun, because a) for the fighters it is never fun to hurt a friend, and b) for the audience it's kind of boring, because both fighters know the other's strengths and weaknesses, and tend to avoid them, which makes them careful, which makes the fight a boring escape-game. 

After my moving back to Germany this summer and the stress at work I've had before, I actually weighed about 71kg when I arrived in Berlin. After a month of okay eating I was back at 69kg. Which was still too much. Then my trainer told me after my first Jits competition here in Berlin that I had to lose weight, if I did not want to face opponents significantly bigger than me (what happened to me during the White Belt Challenge). So, yeah, I knew I was going to have to diet. And then, my "blood thirst" or rather competition spirit awoke after a few sessions back in MMA, the spirit I'd been missing after this spring's competition debacle (preparing for four different comps, making weight, thus harming my metabolism, and being told that there is no opponent). Said team mate told me that we could run the world together, if we weren't in the same weight class. And well, she's a few centimetres taller than me and doesn't have anything left to lose, except for a foot or a hand, because she's totally shredded. So, it's my turn to lose weight, and go down to Bantam class (61,2kg). Not to cut it, because I don't want to wreak havoc on my metabolism again, but slowly lose it. 

I've done this once before, in 2014, when I wanted to compete at -60kg in the Finnish Amateur Open, and back then it worked well. I just felt like I looked a little anorexic as soon as I reached 61kg. Also, friends and family started telling me to stop losing weight. So, I gained some back. I knew I could do this, so, I was ready to go, when my trainer told me what to cut and what to not cut even though it might sound like you should cut it. Like carbs in general. Cut the simple carbs, the ones your body burns through right away, which don't give it anything for fuel. But keep the complex carbs, the ones your body needs to keep up power. Because you need power to train. Oh, and he was pretty clear in that I can't have candy. Which doesn't matter, because I don't like candy anyway. The chocolate however is a whole other thing. I miss chocolate. I have an allowance of one bar of dark chocolate per week (55g), of which I am allowed to eat before craving gets out of hand. But after that, none. 

You can't imagine how hangry I got in the beginning. There's nothing that sucks as much as sugar withdrawal. Because yes, sugar is addictive. And I don't really know the middle ground, I either go all the way or I don't eat anything. 

So, yeah, working with a 1600-2000kcal/day diet (depending on how much and what I'm doing on the gym side of things) right now and last Monday I was already down to 66.3kg. Only 5kg to go, so 1/3 of the way went in two weeks. It's going to slow down, though. It always does. 

I also changed my exercise regimen, I am now attending 3 BJJ classes, 2 MMA classes, 2 Combat classes, 2 Crossfit classes, 1 Body Attack class, 1 LMIStep class, 1 Pump class, 1 rolling session and 1 boxing class a week, if everything works out. However, it rarely works out perfectly, so most of the time two to four classes a week don't work out, because of work or soreness/failure to recover properly in time. 

This is another thing I've changed; I am now taking rest seriously, too. There is one day a week, where I don't do anything, and every five weeks, I take it really easily. 

During project "Back to Bantam", I have so far fallen in love with Crossfit, LMIStep, and found my abs again. I can actually see them again (in the right lighting :D ). Also, I am feeling better now, and maybe I have become a little judgmental, when I see people eating crap, but that's probably just jealousy in most cases. Because yes, some days, a muffin would be great. Or a brownie. Or red velvet cake. And yes, I am still hangry every now and then, and nothing sucks more than having your calories for the day used or planned and then thinking about eating something great. But all in all, I'm doing okay. When I reach Bantam weight, I can add a good 200-300kcal to my diet again, but until then, well, it's really strict. Today I was totally excited, because I could eat a jackload of stuff, because the main ingredient was spinach which has so few calories that you can eat away at it until you burst, basically (not really, but almost). It's the simple things. 

CrossFit can't be that great...oh, nevermind

So, I only meant to try CrossFit to be able to take part in the debates going on about it. I was a sceptic, but I wanted to give it a try. And after the second class I was already hooked. There's something epic about doing stuff you didn't think you could do (e.g. handstand push-ups) and that other people will never do in their lives. So, what I mean to say is: it's not a cult, it's a lifestyle. And it's not about being the best, but being better than before. And even though everybody is encouraging you and cheering you on, no one is gonna keep you from giving up, which means you have to get through it with sheer will power sometimes. It hurts, but you see improvements and development even after a few sessions. I was the last person I ever expected to say this, but CrossFit is amazing. I just sold my soul to a great box with a great trainer and I am totally happy about that decision. 

You're my favourite sin...

"So I salute you with both hands

It's unbearable pain, but time well spent

[...] You take all my problems, filter them up, then throw them all away

With the pleasure comes the pain that only you could bring...

You've been given all I have

When you come around, I seem to give in

In a fight I'll never win, cause all the while you're my favorite sin"

(Within Reason - My Favorite Sin)

The awkward moment when you hear a love song and all you can think of is: "that's exactly what MMA is to me!" 

So, after a month at Randori, training with the same Jits and MMA coach, who knows pretty well, what he's doing, I came to a decision. I'm almost 30 now. My prime time for competing is almost over, so when I came to Berlin, I already knew that it was either all in now or having a fun hobby on the side for the rest of my life. 

I'm not an 'a little bit'-kind of person. I'm either all in, or I'm out. Obsessed or not interested.

So, I had a talk with my trainer. Real talk. I told him, I wanted to go all the way. That I trusted him enough to get me where I need to be. And he said, he'd be there to do everything he can to do what it takes for me. He'd give me conditioning instructions and revise a nutrition plan. And while he's talking a lot and one could think that it's all just talk, he came through right away. Yesterday, I had my first conditioning circuit with our competitors. Our trainer invited some other people, too, to check out our basic fitness levels and well, torture us a little (he's doing the same training with us, so don't get me wrong, he's walking the talk). We did five rounds of pull-ups, push-ups, lunges, burpees and abs. It wasn't that bad then, but today, I'm SORE. On the other hand, he also told me that my fitness was solid, a good base to build on (because there's always room for improvement). So yeah, now it's all about nutrition, conditioning and training as regularly and often as possible. The life of an athlete. Fat me seven years ago would have never thought that I'd be enjoying this so much. Life is a funny thing, it never turns out the way you thought it would, and that's great. 

Feel the burn...

Handstand push - ups on a box. Good morning, shoulders. Ouchie. This CrossFit - thing is worse than I thought. And more fun. And it hurts more. And it's way more addictive. Having the time of my life right now with MMA, BJJ and CrossFit. I'm probably in way better shape at 30 than I've been at 20. :D

Others collect stamps...

..I collect bruises. But you know what has been a really stupid idea? Face- or rather foreheadplanting into the cage to literally save your neck. I didn't get choked, but now I'm growing a second head out of my forehead. :P
On the light side of things, my 51-year old coach twerked to 50 Cents Candy Shop today. We had a blast at training and I have to say, as much as I miss MMA Team 300, the team at Randori-Pro is probs the best thing that could happen to me at this stage (while MMA Team 300 was what I needed before).
I love training again.

Priorities

Life is a strange thing; it is a different experience for everyone and no two people take the same path through it. And why is that? Because people have different jobs, hobbies, friends, and priorities. I, for one, love exercising. I love fitness, sports, you name it. And because exercise and sports are important to me, I make time for those. I prioritise them. 

For a long time people have been asking me, why I am single or why I don't even try to change that. Well, for one, I'm happy as it is. I love my way the life it is and for me to compromise and change even parts of it, well, that'd need someone who's worth it. I haven't met anyone like that before. 

But the other thing I never fully understood myself is prioritising. On Saturday, I got talking with a guy about those things and he said something that's true for me, too. "Well, if I could go out and socialise or go to training, I'd always choose training. Which kind of takes a toll on my social life sometimes." And that's just it. If I get to choose between anything and training, I'll choose training. The type of training might change, but it's almost training. Which is why my life is different from those of many other people I know. Sometimes it's sleeping, too. But yeah, my life revolves mostly around exercise and sports. And you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm happy with it. Otherwise I'd change it. 

Those last few weeks...

...have been quite busy and a little exhausting. Mind you, I'm far from complaining, but there have been so many firsts that I don't even know where my head's at right now. I haven't yet had the time to mentally or emotionally catch up to where we're going right now.  

Firstly, I moved to Berlin. And signed my work contract on the same day just to start working almost right away for four days straight. In a new job, new field. I'm now a proud member of the IKEA clan. But. I'm also working in gastronomy. How that's possible? Well, I'm working for IKEA Food, which entails everything from selling to cooking to actually serving the customers and working the cash register. The good thing is: it never gets boring. There's always new things to learn. But well, that means a whole lot of mental input. But it's fun. My work mates are great. And payment as well as the way IKEA takes care of its employees could not be better seeing that, on average, I work only three days a week.

Secondly, I've travelled to Amsterdam for the first time. Because I only work three shifts a week, I can travel quite freely without even being on vacation. My brother had his summer vacation and thus we decided to make the six hour train/nine hour bus trip to the capitol of the Netherlands. And it's been great. I fell in love with the relaxed atmosphere in the city and its Grachten and the red light district where everyone's just allowed to be themselves and do whatever they enjoy without judgement. Also, my brother was a great companion, keeping me from shopping too extensively, but making me see things I didn't necessarily know I wanted to see. I've rarely walked this much in spite of having a tram ticket. Emotionally, the Anne Frank Huis really got to me. It's strange what human beings do to others, sometimes. I can't understand it. And I don't want to. One of the things that stuck with me was the sentence: "Her would haves are our possibilities" and in keeping with that, I now try to help people whereever and whenever I can. Also, I feel like I ate myself through most of Amsterdam's food offerings. Macaroons? I tried everything that sounded good to my ears and taste buds. Pancakes? Tried them filled with egg and salmon, decked out with bacon, cheese and syrup, and with Nutella. Belgian waffles? Yes, with Nutella, with ice cream, and with ice cream and Nutella. I also tasted myself through a whole cheese shop, had some chocolate-hemp ice cream and strop waffles. Had some espresso though I ordered coffee. Ate some great Zwieback-biscuits. And I peed at a public toilet that had a great view over the whole city centre (sorry, if that's tmi, but it really impressed me). 

Back from Amsterdam, I had a day to prepare for the visit of my mother. Three days with her and my brother planning our US-trip for 2016. 

And this last week went into getting back into some kind of everyday life like I'm used to. I dragged my old gym buddy to my new gym to attend XpressDay and do the new Les Mills choreos with me. And now I got an old new gym buddy :) Then I tried CrossFit. And fell in love-hate with it. I was so sore for three days, it wasn't even funny. So yes, first CrossFit workout? Done and done. Afterwards I ran into my German MMA partner in crime from January, who convinced me to join her in Jiu Jitsu practice. I was totally done after CrossFit, but I said yes anyways. The DOMS was strong that week. And then I finally got back to BJJ practice and made a contract with Randori Pro. Oh, and at the same time I was asked if I wanted to compete at White Belt Challenge next Saturday. I said yes. So, first competition in Germany coming up, too. So much about my pondering of maybe really just doing this for my fitness and fun. 

Oh, and before I forget; before moving to Berlin I considered applying for a certain job at a certain firm. I thought, I'd know when the time is right, when it feels right. Yeah, turns out, life is what happens while you are busy making other plans: said firm asked for applications for said job on their facebook-page. No need to say, I've already sent in my application. 

So, does anyone understand why I could maybe need a moment to get to the surface and get a good glimpse at the situation that is my life? I feel like everything is just happening all the time and I'm playing it by ear, and mostly that's okay with me, I'm good at just winging it, but I might just need a moment to get my bearings right. Though I have to admit, if everything continues like that, I might just be okay with continuing like this. 

Never judge a book by its cover. Or: a week back in Germany

"I've got fire for a heart, I'm not scared of the dark, never made it look so easy [...] Nobody's gonna drag me down" 

(One Direction - Drag Me Down)

This has been the soundtrack to my first week back in Germany. How has life in Germany treated me so far? The answer is, I'm not sure. It still feels like I'm only on vacation. I mean, yeah, I've been working five days within the last seven days, but work doesn't feel like work. It's strange to think that I get money for giving people food and taking their money. It's pretty physical, yes, but fun, too. And our team is just great. I love the fact that people are talking Russian and Turkish left and right, even though I understand neither. But yeah, it's kind of surreal that I get paid for this.

Then I started following the youtube-account "Yoga with Adriene" and the accounts "30 Days of Yoga"-videos, meaning I've been doing yoga every day for at least 20min, which is astonishingly addictive. Or rather: I notice how I feel worse when I don't down-dog and plank and stretch it out. 

On the gym side of things, I've been a little lazy, only going to the gym every other day. Went to Grit Plyo on Thursday and boy, the instructor was...for lack of a more sophiaticated word...hot. And he knew what he did. which made him even hotter. But yeah, was a great Grit.

Saturday I went to a Combat class. The fourth Combat class I've attended in Germany at Superfit this far and for the first time I had an instructor who knew what she was doing. For the first time an instructor that could be compared to the ones in Finland. I'm a spoiled brat, when it comes to this because I'm used to instructors on a really high level. Good-looking, fun, nice instructors that are really good at what they're doing. Which brings me to the topic at hand: yesterday I went to BodyStep and BodyPump at Superfit Mitte and there was this dude on stage that looked a little like a charicature or Goofy as an instructor: he wore one of those 80's sweatbands on his forehead and short shorts and his hair looked funny and I was just like: "You kidding me?!?" But I thought that it'd be better to do some uninspired training with him than just leave and go later in the day. 

And right I was. Partly. It was a good decision to stay. And I was wrong; the classes were far from uninspired. Actually, they were two of the most fun and rad classes I've been to in Germany. One of the greatest BodyStep-classes overall. And not in spite of but because of his quirky personality that was paired with a great deal of knowledge about technique and anatomy. He gave great pointers and made me laugh more than once during the two hours that just flew by. He still reminded me of Goofy, but by the end of Pump-class it didn't matter any more, because he won me over. In spite of my previously made decision that no one is ever gonna be as great as the instructors at my Finnish gym. 

Another one that really got to me was the BodyAttack instructor whose class I already went to in August. She's not funny like Goofy, but she gets me to do stuff. She's efficient. And nice to look at. I'm not into girls, but if I were, I'd definitely crush on her. 

When it comes to MMA/BJJ, it's still rather boring, because I did not have the peace of mind to go and set up the contract with the gym. Also, there's a shitload of stuff ahead right now. The next two days, I'll be out of town and then it's the weekend and they're closed and then my mom's here and then it's almost October again. Ugh. And there's my five day work week next week, because I only have one day this week. But after me mom's gone, I'll be putting some effort in there, too. But right now, I got drive and I'm unsettled and I got itchy feet and wanderlust and yeah. I'll keep you posted about my ex tempore stunt that's gonna happen this night. 

Grit Summer Games - To puke or not to puke that is the question

So, today our gym held a nice little event called Grit Summer Games. I've been talking about Grit before, Les Mills' own HIIT-series with focus on either basic strength, explosive strength or cardio. I was a little nervous beforehand, because we weren't told what exercises were awaiting us at the gym. All we knew was that there'd be 9 different exercises and we'd have 45sec per exercise during which we had to perform as many reps as possible. Then 15sec rest and on to the next exercise. 

The exercises were: 1. Clean-and-press (20kg for women, 30kg for men), 2. sumo jumps from a step-board, 3. burpees (of course there were burpees...), 4. bent over rows (again 20kg women, 30kg men), 5. lateral jumps across a step board, 6. c-crunches with a plate (5kg women, 10kg men), 7. squat to overhead press with a 5kg plate, 8. push-ups and finally 9. my least favourite exercise in the history of ever: the jumping lunge. I even prefer burpees to the jumping lunges, which is mostly because my legs are about to give out 3 reps in on a good day.

Today was not a good day, I might add. Firstly, I am still sore from all the stuff I've done all week, especially grappling on Friday and Pump+Combat on Saturday (yeah, I know, I should have rested, had I taken this seriously. But this was for fun). And secondly, well, just try doing jumping lunges after already being so far beyond your lactate threshold that all you want to do is hug your toilet bowl close and your triceps' have already failed you and your quads are burning. 

What I want to convey: it felt great, even more than great afterwards (as most HIITs), but during the thing, I wanted to quit, scream, puke, quit again, throw myself onto the ground and cry. I did nothing, but go on. I tried to think of nothing but the next rep. Clean-and-presses are one of my favourite exercises, and I got 17 of those, already feeling slightly winded, and there was a little burn already, because normally I half-ass them with 15kg (I never realised I half-assed them until today). The sumo jumps are usually not my kind of thing, I like them, but - as with the jump lunges - my legs don't really like 'em, meaning I start strong and after 15sec my legs are on fire. But the competitor across from me and I pushed each other through this and I got 39 of those, too. Severly winded it was burpee time. And cue the sickness. I'm quite good with exercising at a high intensity, but as soon as we take it to the ground, I get really sick and a little dizzy. Something about lactate acid, I was told. Halfway through the bent over rows, my left triceps failed, but I tried to do as much as possible with my back. Still, the last few reps where a bit lopsided. The lateral jumps were a whole other thing, because you need some kind of coordination to land on the step board and at that point, I was already so tired that this seemed a Mission Impossible. Again, my heart rate soared and it was down to the ground. Serious retching going on. But the crunches went fine. Not well, but okay. Then the squat jumps in itself were okay, but then again, almost none of us did them with the right technique or movement range in the beginning and that made them a loooot meaner. Thank goodness, my triceps recovered at least a little until it was time to do push-ups, but I still did those ten at a time, short stretch into child's pose. I actually got quite far with this technique. 39 push-ups in 45sec is not too bad. But yeah, the lunge jumps were horrific. I only did 29 of those and all the time I was afraid my legs would give out any second. 

Still, this was a fun and interesting experience and I know where I have to push a little more. Next time I'm doing something like this, I will get at least 45 push-ups in those 45 seconds. And I will work on my burpees. I got to have some goal now, because moving tomorrow (effectively the day after tomorrow), I have to switch gyms and one of the reasons I never had to think about going to the gym was that I knew certain instructors' classes would be fun and missing them would be a pity. Now I need some internal motivation again, until I know the who's who of my new gym. So, yeah. (I also have to lose about 8kg before the competition season for MMA starts...but that's a whole other story)

Anyhow, I believe the Grit Summer Games have been A) an incredible success, B) fun, C) a possibility to overcome oneself and get out of this comfort zone nobody likes these days and D) a great way to wrap up summer and effectively my membership at Gogo. I'll still be pretending that it doesn't end tomorrow, as I'm going to take one last class with one of my favourite instructors. After that I got about half an hour to get to my train to the airport, so that hopefully realisation only hits when I'm sitting on this train. 

Friendship is weird, especially when saying goodbye

"I've been here so long, I think that it's time to move
The winter's so cold, summer's over too soon
Let's pack our bags and settle down where palm trees grow

I've got some friends, some that I hardly know
But we've had some times, I wouldn't trade for the world
 We chase these days down with talks of the places that we will go"
(Rise Against - Swing Life Away)



I've got some friends, some that I hardly know
Yesterday was my last real day at work and now it's only ten days until I return to Germany. Well, Berlin. Berlin sounds totally different than Germany, doesn't it? At least to my ears, it has a totally different ring to it. But I might be imagining things.
Yesterday was one of those days that seem like they should suck out loud, but... it didn't. It would be wrong to accuse yesterday of being a bad day. My day at work was okay, and yes, I was still suffering from those last symptoms of my cold and a really lazy brain, but other than that, I was doing quite well. I bumped into a guy I know at the store and while my brain really left me in the lurch when trying to talk to him, it was still nice to see him. Gotta tell him that I'll be missing him. Gotta tell him that I think he's a decent guy and I will most definitely miss him. Why do we only tell people stuff like that when we're leaving or when we're dying? Gosh, that sucks. We talked again today and this time my brain worked well enough to at least answer questions and do the words into sentences putting thing. I don't know if you can tell, but I'll be missing him.

But we've had some times, I wouldn't trade for the world
Then - back to yesterday - I bumped into another guy. Well, not any other guy, but... he's kind of "the one that got away" in the narrative of my life. I've had a major crush on him when we first met (and I've told him that once, when the acute crush was over) and I'd actually written off seeing him again before I leave, but there I was just leaving my flat to get a piece of cake (yes.) when he was just walking by my building. We exchanged a few sentences and while I was looking at him, I noticed with a hint of melancholy that we've changed. Now he's not the one that got away because there's never been anything between us, but because he's not there anymore. Or no, that's unfair. He's changed a little. And I've changed a little. And between the two of us we changed a lot; the things that once build a bridge for us to meet on, they were not there anymore. And there we were, the same two people and still two perfect strangers. But it was a good thing for me to see, because it makes it easier for me to leave. It doesn't feel like there is still something left open. Now there's just another tiny scar that tells a story of what once was. It is gone, but it left a mark. We said that we'd see each other again. And maybe we will.

I've got some friends, some that I hardly know...It's an interesting line, really. Because we always talk about friends like they are those people that know everything about us and that we know everything about. I know him/her inside out. But is that really it? Is knowing that someone has a bigger sister and what their favourite band is and that they don't like asparagus what matters? I have friends like these, but I also have friends like those two above. Because to me, friendship is a feeling. Some sense of kinship. Sometimes not even needing words. I remember telling a girl I've known for ten minutes almost everything about my stalker-ex. She ended up being one of my best friends. Still is, even after ten years. I either like and trust someone or I don't, no matter how much I know about them. If I'm happy to see you or I like to spend time with you? Tough luck, I will consider you my friend. Even if we haven't exchanged phone numbers and I don't know where you live. Chances are that that's not important to the kind of friendship we have. There are different types of friendship and not all require actual factual knowledge about each other. Some are just about having a good time, when you see each other. The only thing that bugs me: am I allowed to hug them goodbye? I don't need to know more about them, right now. And guess what? I have never been asked to take a test on any of my friends.

But here's some random fact about me, you are allowed to quote if need be: I quite dislike socks.

No, really, I don't like socks. I rather go without them nasty little buggers.

Grit Strength, or: I challenge you to focus on your technique

Ugh, please remind me to never half-ass technique during a Grit-class again. Today I decided to concentrate on technique rather than rep count and I got myself so much more exhausted, it's not even funny anymore. Normally, I just do everything as fast as possible and as many reps as possible, sacrificing the right technique and weight. I could easily up the weight on my bar a little if my pride didn't take a hit when I have to take a break or get in less reps than the person next to me. 

But today, I always started out with clean technique and the burn was a whole other. For example: I hate nothing more than burpees, except for jump lunges. I hate those from the bottom of my heart, mostly because whereas my upper body has been responding really well to training and gains and stuff, my lower body just stays as chicken-y as ever. I got chicken-y legs and all the same how much I squat and eat, I don't gain any muscle (or fat) below my knees and even on my thighs, it's mostly fat. So, my legs are my weakness. And I hate regular lunges, because they mostly burn in my quads, not my bum or the back of my thighs, where you supposedly feel them. Most people have a muscle and strength imbalance between the front and the back of their thighs, which is why they tend to push up with their quads rather than their behind, which is why in turn instructors always keep telling you to push through your front heel and pinch your butt cheeks together while pushing up. In my case... both sides are equally weak. But, I noticed already before my short vacation in Germany, that I have much more power and strength and don't tire as fast (on a muscular level) if I actually go deeper and sit into the lunge and go down to that infamous 90° angle. The cardial fitness is another thing all together, because engaging my butt, I get out of breath rather quickly (larger muscle, and the gluteus maximus is one if not the biggest muscle in your body, higher oxygen consumption), but as I said, on a muscular level I don't tire as quickly, because my butt cheeks take much longer getting sore than my quads.

Do it the right way. Also, remember to eat well. My day in four pictures.

The point I meant to make: the cardio part of the workout was driven home much harder (muscles use up oxygen while working, so you don't need to run to get winded) and now my butt hurts. And the rest of my body hurts in exciting new ways or with a new intensity. So, for your health's and your fitness' sake, listen to your instructor even if going down to a 90 degree angle sounds impossible. It's actually easier. Or well, maybe it just hurts differently and in my case less. But yeah, listen to what advice they have to offer. Look at their posture and movement radius. Yes, you can do 20 squats in the time they do 10, but those 20 actually are as useful as 0 if you only quickly pulse between a 0 and 45° angle. So, if you do it, do it right, even if that means you have to swallow your pride when the small chick next to you does 20 more reps than you do. In the end, it's your workout. And while your pride might benefit from keeping up with her half-assing your technique, your body doesn't. 

Product test: Quest Peanut Butter Cups

So, a week ago I bought these awesome looking and sounding Quest Peanut Butter Cups, which I have wanted to try for quite a while now. The idea seems simple enough: take a beloved sweet like the peanut butter cup, which is not exactly healthy, and make a healthy version of it, sell it under the name of "Quest Cravings". In Quest Nutritions case, being concerned with people's protein intake and all, this means loads of protein, low or next to no carbs. 

The nutritional info reads as follows:

Serving Size: 2 cups (one packet contains 2 cups), 50g

Calories: 240

Calories from fat: 150 (well, peanut butter ain't exactly low fat)

Total Fat: 17g (of which 35%, 7g are saturated fats)

Sodium: 240mg 

Potassium: 230mg

Total Carbohydrate: 10g (of which 3g dietary fibre, 1g sugars, 3g Erythritol [well, that sounds healthy])

Protein: 20g

So far, so good. Sounds okay, on the ingredient list the first listed items are protein-supplement mixes (Heraprotein-Isolate and Milkprotein-Isolate, so it's not suited for vegans) and actual peanut butter, plus unsweetened chocolate. Nutritionally, this isn't too bad. But. The taste is gruesome. If you've ever had a real Peanut Butter Cup (Reese's), you will know the second this thing touches your lips that nope, this won't help your cravings. If you have never had one, leave this thing on the shelf and take a real Peanut Butter Cup with you. Might be nutritionally worse, but at least you get some taste for the calories you consume. The chocolate is way too bitter (maybe try stevia for sweetening?) and the consistency of the whole thing is off-putting. It might be due to the fact that obviously the packet I grabbed hadn't been stored correctly, but the chocolate was also covered in this white film chocolate gets when it's getting old. So maybe the taste of the chocolate would have been better, but even that would not have saved the whole thing.

The cup itself. As you can see, the chocolate is already gone off and it doesn't look too attractive.

To put it in a nutshell: Nice idea, but terrible execution. Which is a pity because I usually like Quest's products. But this is the reason why people always frown upon healthy alternatives to sweets and baked goods. 2/5 Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. 

It's getting hot, hot, hotter than hell...

There was this song by the Finnish band Reckless Love and it starts becoming the soundtrack to my days here in Berlin. After leaving the limestone cave that was Finnish summer, I arrived in Central Europe, where there's almost sauna-like temperatures. Working out in this heat ain't fun, even in the morning my body feels like a wet cloth. So, working out is like dragging a wet cloth through the gym and back. But still, it's fun.

I don't sweat, I sparkle. Or how did the quote go?

Monday, I went in the morning and did some Body Attack, Tuesday I did some gym routine and incorporated a few moves from the current Grit Strength. Wednesday I went with a friend in the evening and we did something here, something there. And yesterday I first took Body Combat to the next level (Hot Body Combat) and then I showed my baby brother his way around the weight room. Which was incredibly funny, because the dudes back in the free weight zone weren't sure what's happening, since a) the girl describes to the boy what he has to do and b) what exactly is the relationship between those two?!? But yeah, leaving my Finnish home gym GoGo still feels bad, but not as bad, now that I know that Superfit is an okay-option. It's not GoGo, it never will take GoGo!0's place, but it's a nice gym with nice enough members and instructors.

But I didn't go to Berlin to workout (well, or not exclusively), I went to a couple of job interviews and did some official business preparing my move to Berlin. Since yesterday, I'm officially a Berliner again. Feels strange. Okay, but strange. Well, and come September 1st, I'll be living and working here. I hate leaving Tampere, but I do love Berlin as well. I've already found a load of great places here and the possibilities are endless. And it's the best place to be to do the stuff I wanna do. stay tunes ;)

Life changes even the best of plans... I'm doing Gains, Lean Gains

and isn't that the truth. In June, I had decided for myself that I wanted to go down to Bantam-weight, to get a feeling for my body at 61,2kg (135lbs.). Little did I know. I am not entirely sure how I ended up doing what I did, but at some point I noticed that I was actually working out harder than ever and my muscles were sore as hell more often than they were not. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of sore muscles to some extend, but I also know that to actually build muscle, you have to eat more than your normal calorie intake, because your body needs energy to build and protein from which to build new muscle fibres. So, hanging around at a caloric deficit of 500kcal/day seemed like a terrible waste of workouts. 

The actual math is something like this: To actually build muscle mass you need a positive energy balance of at least 500-1000kcal a day. You also need to get about 1,2-2g protein per kilogram of body mass. For me at about 65kg that would be 78-130g of protein a day. Fuck a duck with a Christmas tree. You know how much more I have to eat to get to these figures? Especially with no sugar involved? Thank heavens, there's peanut butter, nuts and other healthy stuff high in calories. 

You also have to get a good amount of carbs, because they fuel your workouts and keep you powered. Also, recovery is easier and faster when your body is able to refill its glycogen stores (that's basically the tank that keeps the energy your muscles are burning while working) relatively fast. So, you should try to eat within 30 minutes after your workout. 

So, gains, yes? We are going to do gains, body? The treacherous thing with gains, however, is that I have a tendency to underestimate my caloric intake and I always want to be on the safe side: did I really eat enough to turn this pain into muscle? Or even worse: justify eating loads with "yeah, I'm doing gains right now"

I have tried a system last summer that actually worked pretty well for me: Lean Gains.

My biceps after a month of gains

Lean Gains is basically another form of intermittent fasting; meaning you don't fast for a longer amount of time, but for short bouts at a time. The most popular form of intermittent fasting these days may be the 5:2 diet (I tried that, too, for a while, but that's a whole chapter of its own), but lean gains don't quite work like 5:2. With 5:2 you eat 5 days of the week normally and on the two remaining days, you eat less than 600kcal (men) or 500kcal (women), with the fast days not being on consecutive days. 

Lean gains, however, make you eat enough food to build muscle, but - as the name already says - promise to keep you lean. You have to calculate your daily caloric intake via a formula based on your basic metabolic rate, your level of activity and whether it's a rest day or not. See the infographic at the bottom for more info. After that you need to know, when to eat. You got 8 hours a day within which you eat those calories. The rest of the day, that would be 16 hours on Planet Earth, you fast. You take BCAA supplements, but you don't eat. For me the schedule looked as follows: 

5:30 get up, drink a cup of tea (because I don't do black coffee)

6:30 go to work

10:00 breakfast break, biiiiig breakfast

13:00 lunch

15:00 dinner (because most of my workouts begin around 17-19 o'clock and I can't move on a full stomach)

17/18 (just before workout) small energy boosting snack

18-10 FAST

You'd think this is hard, but actually it isn't. Because of work, my mind is mostly kept off eating in the mornings anyways and 10am is the first chance I get to have a break and thus breakfast. The only clear disadvantage is, that you're feeling full for those 8 hours you are allowed to eat, but also you crave food like it's not even funny anymore. Once you get to eat, your metabolism starts revving up and it goes full speed baby. 

This does work. I did not gain any significant weight during my gain phase and I've been eating A LOT. I have gained water weight, though, because I usually don't eat that much carbs.

Still, there are some Downsides to this method:

1. Keep in mind that you are meddling with your metabolism. If something feels off, don't continue with this until you know it's safe (consult a doctor, personal trainer, dietitian, etc.).

2. Food cravings, baby. And those ain't funny.

3. Food babies and inability to move because you just ate 6 hours straight and well... now it's time to train. I look like I weigh twice my weight most of the time because during the hours I do eat, I carry a heavy food baby with me. And sometimes, when I don't time my eating right or had something more difficult to digest, it actually does get in the way of effective work outs.

4. Hunger. Like, you're going from one extreme - the foodbaby - to the other, namely hunger. Your body in a fasted state wants food and it makes itself known. Those pangs are short and go by rather quickly, but if you have a tendency to get hangry (like I do), those can be very inconvenient. 

Upsides:

1. Lean gains. Need I say more?

2. feeling really satiated without the guilt. 

3. something you really did not want to know: incredibly regular bowel movements.

I found this on the interwebs when I was looking for info on this issue and I found it very helpful:

My upcoming week in workouts

So, I was talking about planning ahead when it comes to workouts to fit them into your schedule and also to give yourself something to do during rest days. This is what I have planned for the upcoming week:

Monday: Body Jam and Body Pump as a combo if my ear is still hurting. If my ear is okay I'm going with Body Jam and Grappling/10th Planet Jiu Jitsu training. 

Tuesday: MMA stand up training and Body Balance. 

Wednesday: I got an invitation by my stand up coach to come to the Muay Thai sparring session. It depends on my feeling that day. If I don't feel sharp enough, I'll be going to Body Combat and Grit Strength.

Thursday: getting a massage in the morning. Then maybe Body Combat in the evening, if my muscles are forgiving.

Friday: Grappling. Maybe Body Combat before.

Saturday: forced rest, because I'm working all day.

Sunday: Body Balance, CX, Grit Strength. Maybe Combat. 

What do You do on a rest day?

Mostly, when I know I have to have a rest day, I really don't know what to do with myself and I find myself at the gym. Again. I know, I should not do it, but it happens all the time. So, what can you do on a rest day to make it a success?

This is me, basically.

1) A rest day does not mean that you only sit around, watching tv, doing nothing. You can go to the gym. You just shouldn't do the weight-lifting, cardio -thing. I had my rest day today and I went to the gym. To go to a Body Balance class. Body Balance, as a mix of Yoga, Tai Chi and Pilates, is a pretty great option on a rest day. I mostly half-ass the Pilates core workout on rest days, but otherwise it is great. The Tai Chi warm up gets your body to softly open up, it helps cramped up muscles to release tension, but it does not force them to work. The sun salutation track does the same thing, but it also starts adding in some dynamic stretches, which feel pretty great after training your body into a stiff, cramped up ball of pain. At least that's why I love it. The Warrior poses in the next track do engage your leg and core muscles and you can get a pretty intense workout if you go low enough and really challenge yourself, but on a rest day you can engage your muscle just as much as you need to to get your upper body relaxed. Also, at the same time as you are using your lower body's muscles, your stretching them, so in the end it does not challenge you in the same way squats do. And, what can I say, but the balance and stretching tracks are just perfect on a day like this. And the Savasana at the end lets you deeply relax all of your muscles and calm your mind.

Other options for "working out" on a rest day include Yoga and stretching. Maybe a walk around town or the woods, but nothing where you effectively get out of breath. Also, with Yoga, I am not talking about Yoga strength classes or Hot Yoga that effect your circulatory system, but rather about Yoga stretches and relaxation techniques.

2) Eat well. Because it is on your rest days that your body gets to replenish its energy reserves and re-build cracked up muscle fibers. Your body needs nutrition to repair these microscopical tears in your muscle fibres that help you get stronger and buffer.

My dinner today. Lots of protein. I had a load of carbs for lunch in the form of cereal, so dinner was a low-carb affair.

3) Meet friends. This is one thing I happen to neglect most of the time. If my friends don't go to the gym with me or ring me up, I mostly don't see them on training days. So, on rest days I make the best of the amount of spare time I have, and meet my friends.

4) Do stuff you don't have the time or energy to do on gym days. Like I went through all my closets and cupboards to discard and chuck a load of stuff I don't need. I also prepared my meals for the rest of the week so I don't have to think about cooking when I come from the gym in the evening. Plus, I cleaned the whole kitchen because I felt like it.

5) Get a massage. You're not supposed to do any great strength training efforts after that anyway and it helps get metabolic waste out of your system.

6) Take photos of your achievements. See how far you've come. Set new goals if necessary, do planning for your workouts. I planned my whole workout week today.

I'm pretty stoked that my biceps is starting to grow. 

So, basically, do all kinds of stuff that keep you busy and feel good. Eat. Have fun. Sleep in. Do whatever helps you to bounce back better after your rest day.

this just in...

Don't be that person. Please don't.
As seen on the street. So I guess this would be called "street style";

Working out in the heat

Now, while it's great that we finally got great summer weather, the rising temperatures may be a problem for some. Especially as the quicksilver in Central Europe climbs up to almost 40°C, you might not be willing or feeling able to work out. 

Scientists in an University of Oregon study have found out that working out in the heat might help you achieve better results (they made a study with bikers driving in 110°F (approx. 42°C) heat over a 14 day period and found out that their performance improved more than the performance of a control group training in a room at 55°F. The bikers needed some time to acclimate, but after that they really got it on. 

Bikram yoga is another example of making use of heat during a workout. Your muscles give in easier to stretches making it is easier to get into poses that are hard to get into at normal room temperature. 

There are, however, a few things you should remember when working out in the heat:

1. Drink enough, but not too much.

This one is almost self-explanatory. Drink enough to stay hydrated to fend off dizziness, cramps etc., don't drink too much as this might lead to a loss of sodium within your body. Check the colour of your urine to see if you drank enough or too much, it should be a light colour, not clear but not strongly yellow either. 

2. Give your body time to acclimate and take breaks when necessary.

I had to learn this the hard way. My body really doesn't like the heat and even after getting used to it, it still doesn't react the same way it does in 15-20°C weather, which is my optimum. I get dizzy a lot and quickly, my chest starts to restrict. Take breaks if something feels off. Don't push through it if you're not sure what's going on. Normally it takes your body a few days to acclimate. Take baby steps. Start with a walk, not a run. See how you feel and if it's okay, then start running. 

3. Don't work out when the heat is at its worst. Keep to the shadows if possible (and remember sunscreen).

Self-explanatory, isn't it? You don't need a heat stroke. You really don't. 

I love morning workouts in the summer because it's already light out and at 5 am there's few people crossing your pass and you got the whole town to yourself. Or the beach. 

Me at the beach at 5:30 in the morning. I have this habit of running and ending my run there with a swim. It's cool.

4. Wear the right clothes.

Light-weight, breathing clothes, maybe special heat gear, maybe breathable cotton help your body's cooling system. And it feels nice to feel a light breeze on your skin now, doesn't it? 

5. Maybe go for a nice swim?

It doesn't always have to be running or jogging or weight lifting. Try some alternatives like going for a swim or doing a nice yoga, Tai Chi or Pilates workout that does not raise your heart rate as hard as e.g. a run. 

6. Always listen to your body!

This is imperative. Because your body knows when it has had enough. Your body gives you signs when it is time to stop. Tune in to your body and you'll know what's the deal and if you can go for another five minutes. 

7. Enjoy.

Don't forget to enjoy the heat, too. There's all this great, great stuff like ice cream, the feeling of the sun in your face or your skin in general, the light, the mood. It's summer, take it easy. 

Sore muscles, happy pain?

When I woke up this morning, it took me a moment to get up, because I was so sore. I took a short inventory and my upper body was really beaten up, but my lower body was still a little sore, too. Especially my gluteus medius, part of my bum. 

My schedule this week was Sh'Bam on Monday evening, Spinning and CX Tuesday morning as well as striking practice and Body Balance Tuesday evening. Wednesday I went to a Body Pump class in the morning and - finally - grappling training in the evening. So, I deserved the soreness, but still. I like being sore up to a certain point. If it exceeds that point, I get whiny. And today was a whiny day. Everything hurt, and since I do physical work, I really felt it most of the time. 

Which brings me to the point of this post. There are all these motivational fitspo pictures saying that "pain is weakness leaving the body" or "no pain, no gain", but should you really go for that burn every time? 

Sure, being sore gives most people a feeling of accomplishment. It is a way of proving to yourself that you put in the work. You can tell your friends about your sore legs, post about them on social media. All of that. Oh, and it is totally worth it, posting about accomplishments on facebook, twitter or the social media outlet of your choice. Studies showed that it actually helped keep up motivation in people who set themselves the goal of getting fitter. 

This just as an aside. That burn you feel while working out is lactate acid that accumulates in the muscle and the pain you feel when you're sore are microruptures in your muscle tissues and when they heal, they grow back stronger (if you give your body the right nutrients to grow). So, to gain muscle, does it have to hurt? No, it doesn't. But it's a walk on a tightrope, because you have to hit the zone where you challenge your muscles enough to encourage growth, but you can't come on to strong. At the same time, you shouldn't go to hard, but you have to go hard enough to challenge your body. And that's probably why most people like being sore. It's almost instant feedback that the workout did come through. And that's okay. However, keep in mind that being sore means that - in a way - you're injured. And as it goes with all injuries, you have to give your body time to heal. Take a rest day. You deserved it. 

In that spirit, I had a great rest day today. I walked a lot ("Walk it off") and had good food to give my body the material to bounce back stronger. 

So, enjoy your soreness and your rest day!

Recipe: (Recovery) snack by Miesha Tate

So, Miesha Tate posted the recipe for a well-balanced snack (well-balanced in regard to macro-nutrients) on her instagram the other day, and of course I had to try it. It had peanut butter in it. 

The recipe is simple enough;

3/4 cups vanilla yoghurt

1/2 scoop protein powder

2 Tblsps Peanut Butter (there it is)

1/2 cup Granola

Mix these together in a bowl and enjoy. Good for recovery after training or just as a snack to fend off sweet cravings (it's true!). It's fat to protein to carb ratio is great, as I've already said, but you should keep in mind that it is by no means low calorie, so if you're on a diet, really integrate it into your meal plan, so there's no bad awakening.

Thank you, Miesha Tate, this will be a new go-to snack of mine. 

-K

No Sugar Challenge

I got a problem with sugar; I'm either off it or on it. Being off it means, I get all my carbs from fruit and veggies. Being on sugar means that I'm eating enormous amounts of chocolate, ice cream and cookies. And when I'm talking about enormous, I am talking about a whole tub of ice cream or a whole chocolate bar (the 100-200g kind, not 30-40g). During my graduation weekend I've eaten so much junk food that of course all my eating habits went out of whack and my body is craving fatty and sugary foods again.

This was the first helping at the kebab and pizza buffet where we went for my graduation. The first helping still contained salad. :D

This weekend is Midsummer in Finland, which means tomorrow the stores are open for a limited amount of time and on Saturday all the stores are closed. I got no chocolate or ice cream here at home. So, I'm going cold turkey, because no matter how hard I'll be craving sweets, there's no getting them. And - at least to me - the first two days are always the hardest. 

Now, this has nothing to do with losing weight or anything, but consuming sugary sweets makes me feel a bit off. Plus, I get acid reflux pretty easily. And I don't get the energy I get from "real" food. Actually it is quite paradox, how I love to eat chocolate and ice cream when I know that they make me feel bad. In the end, I've decided to stay off sugar and fatty food until August. Which is going to be a challenge because summer is ice cream time. On the other hand, I've probably eaten enough ice cream for two life times. ;)
My aunt is coming to visit me next weekend, so this is going to be a real challenge, but on the other hand, nothing like a challenge to make it more interesting. 

Motivation - what get's me going when I don't want to go?

I've been training 10-15h a week on average - come rain, come shine - for the last two and a half years if not longer. I usually do a session in the morning and one in the evening. This led to some seriously confused faces, especially during times when I had loads of stuff on plate, like uni, work, internships etc. One of my friends straight up asked me, how I am able to deal with having no spare time at all. 

The secret is: sports and training to me are spare time. Quality spare time to be honest. Whenever I got a crazy schedule, the first thing to go is tv. Now, I don't even own tv (I got a tv, with a dvd-player, that's not hooked up to satellite or anything), so if I watch tv shows and movies, it's after a longer period of contemplation of what I could watch. If I have no time, well, then there is no tv. You got no idea of the amounts of hours one can while away by just hanging around in front of a tv (or mindless surfing on the internet for that matter), even though there isn't even anything interesting on. So, there's a goldmine of hours you can potentially use for exercise. 

After useless time in front of the tv is gone, I start to plan my days more effectively. There've been times where my life was scheduled down to the minute (well, 15min intervals to be exact).

Me this morning at 7am waiting for Body Pump class to start.

But why would I do all that for... exercise? 

Because training to me is a habit that helps me deal with stress, is fun and lets me interact with people. I don't even think about it any more, I have a routine and I stick to that routine, sometimes for months. There are days when I don't even think about it anymore, the act of packing and shouldering my gym bag being so natural that I might find myself at the gym at the time I've always been there, without even noticing it. 

There are times when this is more difficult, though.

When I am on a really tight schedule. I plan ahead. I write down every single engagement and meeting and then I fit in the classes or the exercise I can do around them. Sometimes I also make appointments according to my workout schedule (actually I do this as far as possible).

When I am exhausted or my muscles are extremely sore. But. That is actually a sign to consider. If I'm so sore that getting out of bed in the morning seems like a daunting task, then I know I should consider a rest day. Mostly I get up, stretch a little, do some light sun salutations and evaluate the situation again when I got the morning stiffness out of my limbs. If it feels okay, I go, if not: rest day (or some light alternative exercise like Body Balance or Yoga) it is.

When I really don't want to go to training. Well, that happens rarely enough. And if it happens then it is mostly a certain kind of training I am not particularly interested in at that moment, which may be due to having done too much of it for a prolonged amount of time or just not wanting to do it at that moment. Mostly I just try to figure out what my problem is exactly and then see if I might be interested in another way of training or another class. If this goes on for a prolonged amount of time, I try to get behind the reasons why I don't like to do that right now and why I started doing it in the first place. Right now, I'm a little stuck with MMA, because spring has been pretty rough and full of major and minor disappointments, plus I trained a lot in spring, sometimes just forcing myself to train because "I have a match coming up and I have to go". In addition I wasn't allowed to do any submission wrestling for a few weeks because of my neck-shoulder-condition (that starts getting better) and my work schedule has been pretty stuffed. So, I decided to not feel guilty about taking those few weeks off, because afterwards I can go back to training for the fun of it. 

When I'm feeling generally uninterested in anything. That's when I just kick my own butt to the gym, because I know that afterwards I will feel better. It helps that many of our instructors at my gym are just great guys and gals, who I really enjoy seeing/meeting. Plus, normally, I love MMA, submission wrestling, Body Combat, Grit, bouldering and Body Pump. And maybe that's what's most important: finding a sport or class you love to go to. Finding a way of training you enjoy. And once you've found it, it's like I said in the beginning: training is quality spare time.