Thursday 14th April 2012 was the day of reckoning.

1 Arena, 2 Girls, 6 Sessions.

Had it been done before? No!

Could it be done? We would soon see ..

I turned up as per my usual routine at stupid o’clock to be greeted by Phil who was the master of ceremonies for the first four sessions of the day with the following words of “encouragement”

“Joe told me to really f**k you girls up – then he’s going to finish you off tonight”

Now that’s a motivational speech if ever I have heard one. See why I love that place so much 😉

Session One:

The first session was a mixture of sets and games which was a nice change of pace AND the only burpees were “punishment” for when you messed up at tyre ball.

If I could clap, catch a ball and jump in unison I wouldn’t have had to do any. Unfortunately I can’t.

Session One burpee total = 15.

My favorite set was OBVIOUSLY the one with chins in it and I would like to take this opportunity to bow down to the Queen of Wrestle Ball, my partner in crime – Izzy.

We finished session one thinking “OK that wasn’t too bad – next … ”

Session Two:

Session one and two run back to back so no rest for the “wicked” our friend Clare stayed on with us and two other people turned up for 7.15 am session.

Since it was such a tiny class Phil decided to do a boxing session which is not a great thing if you happen to be holding the pads for me to hit because it’s hard to figure out left from right if your hands are covered up and you can’t make an “L” with your thumb and finger. Izzy resorted to just waving the pad that I was supposed to hit.

I may be the brawn – but she is the brains ..

Because it was partner work (and this session is shorter than all the others) it wasn’t actually THAT taxing. The last five minutes however were hell. Phil would call out something and you did it – when it was my group it was a shite load of sprints and squat jumps with medicine balls, probably because he knows how much I love to sprint.

Session Two burpee total = 10 (just because Phil thought I needed to add to my total)

Two down – four to go.

We had about 90 minutes before the next session so we went back to Izzy’s place to have breakfast, get showered and changed before heading back. Oh and I downed three cups of black coffee .. who needs a pre workout when you have coffee 😉

Session Three:

I walked into the arena feeling good, then I saw the board and thought “Shit thats a toughie” then I panned along and realised that was only half of the workout the session took up the ENTIRE wall.

At that point I was worried and I felt sorry for all those turning up to any session today, because they were going to pay for the sins of Izzy and I!

I actually prefer sessions with lower rep numbers so this one was right up my alley and I bolted through the first half. Then I got to the 4’s which were four complete lengths of the Arena at the end of the hour I had down 4 lengths of crab crawls and when Phil yelled time I thought “Wow that was a hard workout”

However, Phil then said “Everyone except Iz and Julz come and stretch – you two finish the workout you have an hour before the next class starts”

WTF!!!!! That 60 minutes was supposed to be when Izzy and I refueled instead we sucked it up and got on with the job at hand.

At 12:01 I was just starting the 2’s (Phil was “nicely” keeping FB updated with our progress) and by 12:15 I was dripping wet and shoveling creamed rice down my gob.

Three down – three to go.

Session Three burpee total = 71

Session Four:

Phil had planned on Session Four being a “game session” so that Izzy and I could recover but when the lunchtime crew turned up and saw the board they all wanted to give it a go so Phil set Izzy and I our own workout.

On a side note – Girls – The lunchtime class seems to be inhabited by young men with great bodies who workout with no shirts on .. just thought I’d mention that in case you need some motivation to get your sweat on.

Session Four burpee total = 40

We now had a break of four hours so the plan was to go back to Izzy’s eat, shower, rest, eat .. 😉

What does a legend in the making have for lunch? .. Sushi with a caramel slice chaser.

The last two sessions of the day were to be taken by Joe and we knew that he was going to make them sessions to end all sessions – at least we would die having eaten caramel slice.

Session Five:

Our friend Anna came back to do the last two sessions of the day with us and Joe asked every Ludian in the arena to give Izzy and I as much encouragement as they could to keep us going.

Joe loves his big reps and this session was no exception. Izzy and I cajoled, encouraged and pushed each other along and everyone in the arena was cheering us on. At the thirty minute mark I knew Izzy and I had this workout in the bag. With seven minutes to go the only thing that stood between us and the finish line .. deadlifts (piece of cake) and hill sprints (FML).

Did we do it – hell yeah! Five down ONE to go!

Session 5 burpee total = 200

Session Six:

Another one of Joe’s favorites an inverse ladder to finish 20-2 and yep, more burpees.

A few people stayed and did back to back sessions there was Joe, Simon, Anna and obviously Izzy and I and if there were more of you – I apologise but my mind was concentrating on keeping me alive.

My entire body was screaming by then but Izzy and I only had one workout between us and being the stuff that legends are made of ..

Session 6 Burpee total = 110

1 Arena, 2 Girls, 6 sessions – Mission complete!

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank;

My girl Izzy the only nutcase I know who thinks my hair brained ideas sound like fun, you made me far stronger than I could ever have been without you by my side!

Phil and Joe for providing Izzy and I with six fantastic sessions, each one different and each one with it’s own unique set of challenges.

Clare and Anna for being unwavering in your support and encouragement AND for sucking it up and doing double up sessions to keep us company.

Every single Ludian who cheered us on with a special thank you to all the men who came and trained with no shirts on – you deserve an extra special mention!

Mum – for the best caramel slice I have ever tasted in my entire life (maybe because I earned every bite)

James – although you are last on the list you are never last in my world.  Thank you for having the epsom salt bath ready, for rubbing down my aching legs and for listening to me droning on for hours about my day and lastly for being so proud of me 🙂

Ludus for life!

Oh and I’ve been asked if I will do it again maybe – never say never and that caramel slice was REALLY good …

Till next time

PS – Total burpees for the day = 446 thankfully nowhere near as high as I thought it would be!