One Week Down, Five to Go

Well the first week is over and I am feeling pretty much back to normal. I almost feel guilty having another week off work, even though it will only be two weeks that I will have been off and its recommended that you have 3 - 4 weeks.



On day 8 I started walking again (real walking I mean - where you actually put on sandshoes!). I walked 5 kms with no negative impacts. In fact, I've been measuring my waist/hips and scar and have seen the measurements drop every day so I take that as a sign that I'm not overdoing it. Today I plan a second 5km walk, and whilst I have so much time on my hands - would like to try and walk 10kms/day - particularly since I'm not allowed to do anything else.



Some exciting reflections:

I love my reformed body - I am no longer embarassed about my tummy - I feel that I have a normal body again. One of my original goals for weight loss was to "feel comfortable in my own skin" Ie to be able to just pull on jeans and a tshirt and not be worried about what I had to "hide". I got close to this with my weight loss, but there was always the issue of the saggy skin hanging over the top of the jeans, and no matter how much I lost it never seemed to change. Now it doesn't really matter what I wear, nothing will "hang o



I can see abs! I'm loving seeing the swelling going down and seeing ab definition - something I had no hope of seeing before. I can't wait until I can train again and really work on seeing a six pack.

I'm Home

Well I'm home and relatively comfortable, and having just read a few people's accounts of their "tummy tucks" I know I should consider myself relatively lucky. Its day 3 post surgery, the drains came out yesterday (they even offered to let me go home yesterday) and I'm able to move about ok and potter in between rests.
Having said this - it was not fun - in fact is was an awful experience - I'm still not sure if I would do it again knowing what it was like. I woke up feeling ok - but then slid into lots of pain within a few hours. Because of needing to wear the compression garment, and the fact that they were pumping me full of fluids, the pressure on my bladder was unbearable and I wanted to go all the time. But of course I couldn't move - so had to keep trying the bed pan which was awkward - yada yada yada. So they upped the pain killers (morphine) which worked and I finally (about 8 hrs later) I finally got some relief. But by then I was so doped up and not eating/drinking anything that I became incredibly nauseous and this became my main issue. I eventually stopped the pain killers about 2.15 on the day after surgery, and over the next 12 hrs the nausea subsided. Then it started again the next morning! I finally worked out that it might be the antibiotics - confirmed when they double dosed me and I threw up everywhere! nice! Anywhere from there on in, I stopped feeling so nauseous, starting eating and drinking and started to recover.

Now day 3, home, mild pain only and feeling pretty normal within myself. Hopefully there are no setbacks ahead - apart from wearing this awful pressure garment - which is the main source of pain

On the more negative side - they are insisting that I can not cycle for 6 weeks, and with the Tour Down Under only 7 weeks away- it would make it very unlikely that I would be ready for the 97 kms. I haven't given up though - when I go for my next outpatient appointment I will try again. They talk about no vigorous exercise - What is vigorous? if I cycle slowly on a recumbent bike with minimal resistance and keep my heart rate low , for limited periods of time initially- how is this much more vigorous than walking? I would think at 4 weeks this would not be very stressful on the tummy at all - particularly if its healed enough that I'm back at work (only have two weeks off). I will try again. I don't want to risk the results, but I want to be sure that the risk is real, and not just a standard line.

Anyway - tomorrow I start my walking schedule - I will aim for the block to start with

Its all about to happen

Hi all
Quick post - pre-admission clinic this morning, and admission for surgery tomorrow! (and no computer access for days - this may be harder to survive than the surgery!)
Ciao

A Little Unbelievable

Well I've had a bit of a spanner thrown into the works of my Tour Down Under Training.

I received a letter from the hospital on Friday providing me with a date for my elective surgery - Friday December 4, only 3 weeks away.

What surgery you ask? I decided some time ago that I wanted to finish what I started with my weight loss, and have all the excess skin removed from my tummy - basically a tummy tuck. Its been two years since I decided, and since then I've been on the waiting list to see the surgeon, and then on the waiting list to have the surgery. I could have had it done quicker if I went private, but I weighed up the costs of private cover, plus the cost of the actual surgery, and decided I didn't mind waiting if it meant getting it for free!

I can't really believe that its actually happening and that in three weeks I will be without my little apron around my hips! Of course, it has come at a bad time weight wise - as for some unknown reason I have gained 7 kgs in the last 6 weeks - I have no idea how someone can gain weight that fast - I'm hoping its just a lot of fluid for some bizarre reason, and am now trying to do everything I can to lose as much as i can in the next 3 weeks. I'm also rather nervous about it all, but trying to just focus on all the positives.

I would love to read of others experiences with tummy tucks at the moment - so if you know of any links to relevant blogs - please let me know.

14 Weeks Out

Well - I've done the math - and I'm currently 14 weeks out from the Tour Down Under.

This weeks been fab for training (and confidence) as on top of my ride to work on Wednesday, yesterday I rode 65 kms. Now it wasn't continuous - I'm still stopping every 15 kms or so for a drink (probably about 2 - 3 mins) and a big stop halfway - enjoying a relaxing breakfast and a bit of shopping (in my ever so glamorous bike pants and jersey!) - but still I have now covered 2/3rds of the distance for the TDU with 14 weeks remaining. So I'm starting to feel quite confident that I can make the distance - and will start reducing my breaks, although I know I can break on the day as its not a race!

I'm also feeling much more confident on my bike, and learning new things every time I ride.


After having problems with my gears last time - I got hubby to look at them for me, and in doing so he explained the whole gear system to me. Yes, thats right - I'm riding 65kms and don't know anything about the gears! In fact until 10 months ago - I had never ridden a bike with gears! Anyway - what I discovered is that I haven't been operating the front gearing system, which means I have 3 times as many gears! Tried this out on the ride and found the smaller gears were of no use, but the bigger ones (harder to push) allowed me to go much faster. I knew I had strong quads for a reason! Hit a new all time fast speed of 47 km/hr downhill, and worked out that on flat ground I can easily motor along at 30km/hr. Its all good and its all fun.

On the weight side, I braved the scales today and it wasn't good. So I have a new target - back to the clean eating (with the exception of my Friday night pub outing) and I aim to be back to goal by Christmas. (possibly sooner). I've also challenged a face book friend to help with the motivation....

Smashing Times Ahead

I'm really enjoying riding my bike at the moment. On my side bar I set a goal of riding to Pirie in under 1.30 (30kms) and I smashed this on Saturday at 1.20. And today was National Ride to Work Day - so I elected to ride to work (in Pirie). My work colleagues made a big fuss about it - with someone sending out an email to everyone about my "humungous" effort - whereas to me its no longer a big deal, I've done it quite a few times now. (It was nice though) However, what was a big deal to me was that I smashed my time again - 1.10, averaging 26km/hr and a HR of 71%. I was pretty pleased with this average speed - given that the first 10 kms have some heavy duty hills.
One of the reasons for my faster time was that I was having problems with my chain/gearing and was reluctant to change gears very much. So I pretty much rode the whole thing overgeared - meaning that I had to work quite hard, rather than fast spinning, but this seemed to produce much faster speeds, and I discovered that I'm strong enough to maintain this over distance. Now I'm wondering about what the right speed might be for the Tour Down Under... for example do you ride at a slower pace eg 20 km/hr and ride over 5 hours, or do you work harder and ride at 28 km/hr and do it in say 3.5 hrs? Maintaining the pace might be difficult, but 3.5 hours is much closer to what I used to maintaining endurance wise than 5 hrs. And an extra 1.5 hours adds up in the time you have to stay in the saddle and lean forward/take weight through your arms........Mmm a trade off to ponder. I'll get back to you.

On a not so positive note - I've eaten sh**t for the last few weeks due to an enormous amount of work stress I've been under. I've been aware of my poor choices and made a conscious decision to allow it as necessary to coping.... but now my clothes are tighter and I know I need to reign the eating back in, and step up the exercise which has also slackened off. I'm strangely peaceful about this however, as I'm hoping that I'm starting to manage my weight like normal people do - making allowances for ups and downs, and moderating their behaviour to keep their weight under control. Well I hope so.

A bit of everything

Here's an update on a bit of everything for you. I've been away a lot for work, and working most evenings, so I haven't had much of a chance to update.

Weight - Last week - 58.5, this week 58.0
Very, very interesting. I am currently losing about 500gms/wk without really trying. I haven't counted calories, I've eaten whatever I've wanted, and I've drunk reasonable amounts of alchohol. I have however been somewhat stressed, still exercising a fair bit, as well as extra endurance bike sessions, and haven't eaten any large meals -I've tended to just eat lots of snacks - some very healthy, some not so. And I've stuck to my weekly weigh ins. If I drop any more weight I will be looking at my lowest weight range in 24 years. How come its suddenly so easy? I'm not sure. I'm wondering if my metabolism is finally recovering. Its been two years now since I stopped serious dieting and reached goal weight. I've also worked hard to build muscle to help with my metabolism as well as changing my eating habits to eat small amounts regularly. Has it all actually worked? Time will tell.


City 2 Bay
Ran this last weekend in a terrible time of 80 mins - but I didn't expect anything more given my calf injury and the absence of any training. I was just hoping my general fitness would allow me to run the distance. Having mainly only run intervals this year, 12 kms was a big ask. I decided to use Jeff Galloways walk/run interval trick to put more kms in my legs than are really there. He believes that all runners should put short walk breaks in every 9 mins or so - and then you can significantly extend your distances. The week before the race during my two and only two training runs I had run 9 min intervals with 1 min walk rests, and at times had to extend them to 2 mins. So for the C2B I did some calculations and set my Garmin up to have me run for 2kms (which would be about 12 mins) and then walk for 100m. This would mean that over the 12 kms I would only walk 500 metres of it - but would hopefully be able to cover the distance injury free. And so I stuck to the plan. I let myself run as slowly as I liked, but refused to let my self stop for anything more than the scheduled walks. As I hit the 1.5 to 1 km mark I realised I still had a reasonable amount of "legs" in me, and picked up the pace, sprinting past most people along the way. I ended up running down Jetty Road feeling a little green - but thats a good way to finish. It also made me realise that I could have pushed my running harder - but I had no way of knowing this given my lack of practice. I had originally set my target at 66mins, prior to injury, and still desperately want to break the 60 minute barrier at some stage. So I have decided that as I know I can run at these speeds for short periods of time, I am going to start my training for next year, now. I am going to try and run the fastest km I can every second day until I can run a 5 min km. And then I am going to string a second together with the first etc and I WILL reach my goals - after all - a year is a long time to achieve it!

Cycling
I did my second ride to Port Pirie yesterday (30kms) and it was absolutely awful. If I thought I had a head wind last time, it was nothing in comparison to this. At times I thought I might fall off as I was having trouble keeping the bike moving forwards! During the first 3 kms I glanced down once and saw my HR hit 220 bpm. Yes you read it correctly 220 bpm - with my official Max HR being 176. Well I knew I could manage more than this - but 220! In fact when I downloaded my ride onto the computer, I saw that my max HR in the first 3 kms was 225, 220 and 225! No wonder I was feeling sick when I stopped at this point to fix something on my watch. So the ride that took my 90 mins 2 weeks ago - took me 130 mins this time. For much of it I couldn't move the bike at more than 10kms/hr due to the big hills and the headwind - which is ridiculously slow for a road bike. What was also very interesting was the calorie calculation that my Garmin did. Unlike Polar, Garmin doesn't take HR into account - its formula is based on distance and speed, so for my 2hr plus ride, averaging at 13kms/hr - it told me I had only burnt 550 cals! Now for those Polar experts, or punch this in to a calorie calculator - I spent 130 mins cycling with an average HR of 180 bpm - I would think you could probably double this effort. Vigorous exercise with a HR of 180 bpm should be burning at least 500 cals per hour I would have thought!
Anyway - also of training note - is that once again I have no stiffness/soreness/DOMS from the ride. I'm wondering if this is because its a low impact sport.

Weight Training
Haven't done a lot of this of late due to work pressures. But I did bench press again this morning, and after two sets put another 1kg on the bar, and managed to push out 8 reps at 26 kgs. So I decided that if I can press 8 of them, the bar will stay at 26 kgs in future. Didn't try a maximum at the beginning - so don't know how this is going - but I did have another go at the chinups - and there is a little bit more movement there. So onwards with the bench press - maybe its helping. No update on the pushups, they have been missing for the last two weeks!

Well - that's it for now - I'm off to watch Australian Idol

How time and perspective fly!

I was reviewing my sidebar entry of events I've been in, and realised quite a few were missing.
So I've gone back and added all the "little ones" in - right back to 2003 when I entered the C2B for the first time ever and was terrified that I wouldn't make the distance - and I was only walking!

Delayed Weightifrication

In line with new found more relaxed approach to my weight, I have finally managed to stop weighing daily, and have only been weighing Saturday mornings. So far so good.

Last week - Weight 59.2
This week - Weight 59.0

Happy with that

Tour Down Under Training

Well- I managed one of my weird and wonderful goals today, except I then realised that I had never remembered to put this one in my sidebar. Now fixed.

I rode from my home in Crystal Brook to Port Pirie. This is something my husband and I have contemplated for years but never had a go. Its about 32 kms (but my trip actually measured at 30 today) and its the trip I travel everyday on the way to work. A little to far to run on a regular basis - but we have always thought cycling would be achievable. Since we can't both ride it (cause then there's no-one to pick us up) and I'm far more motivated than Andrew - this morning I decided that this was it - I was going to do it this morning. And I did

It took a little over 1.5 hrs - but I had a massive headwind all the way along the highway. Oh yes, that's one of the joys of living in the country - If I want to ride any distances, I actually have to ride along the highway and have all the trucks, lorries, caravans, boats etc try and shake me off and great speeds! Apart from the headwind, and the fact that it was reasonably warm (forecast for 27 deg) it wasn't too bad. The headwind made it feel like it was all hills (I even had to work hard on the downhills) but it was only about 12 kms of the ride, and once I turned off I only had to deal with a crosswind which was much easier. I had a quick 3 min break at the 15km mark, had a drink, stretch and a gel) and then headed off again. The really good thing was that when I arrived in Pirie and had some breakfast I felt good - no stiffness/tiredness, and briefly contemplated riding back home again. (No, not yet, but it will happen) I reckon that if I didn't have the headwind I could have done it in less than 90 mins, so this is my next goal.

Now - I just have to be able to do that ride three times in a row - and I'll be all ready for the big race!

Training for City 2 Bay

Given my injuries of late, I haven't done much distance running - in fact this year I have predominantly run speed and hill intervals. With the C2B being only 2 weeks away - thought I had better try some continuous running. So Wed morning whilst staying in Adelaide - I headed out along the Torrens by the Festival Theatre. I decided to run 9 min blocks with 1 min walk breaks - otherwise I would never be able to cover any distance. I ended up running about 7 kms.
My time was quite slow, as after the first block, I found I needed my second break to be 2 mins, and my 3rd to be 3 mins. What I did find of great interest is that although I was focussing on running slow, every time I looked down at my watch I found myself running much faster than I thought - somewhere between 11 and 12 kms/hour. This is a change, as my "slow" speed is usually more like 9 kms/hr - so I guess all my speed work has made a difference. Only problem is that I struggled with the 7 kms (its been months and months since running any distances), so the 12 kms next weekend is really going to hurt! Not to worry - I've given up on any time goals, I will just be aiming to relax, enjoy it and make the distance however I need to .

By the way, for any other SA bloggers who are competing, I will be having lunch afterwards with friends from the gym at the Jetty Hotel (i think thats what its called) so if you want to call in and say hi - you will know where to find me. I still look pretty much like my profile photo - except my hair will probably be up in a pony tail.

A Changing View

I've noticed lately that my body is changing. And for the better.



I've been exercising fairly consistenly now for almost 2.5 years, and it has occured to me lately that there are lots of signs that I have slowly changed shape, regardles of what the scales say.



For example

When comparing statistics from one year to another, if I compare at the same scale weights, my waist and thighs are smaller.



When reviewing photographs 1 year apart, same weight - and I tried on the same clothes, even my 12 y.o. daughter said - Mum you look different. Its subtle - but my shoulders are rounder and more defined - there is more muscle definition in my chest, my waist is smaller etc. A colleague looked at a photo of me 12 months ago and thought I had lost some weight since then - "You look thinner in the face". My weight is probably a few kilos lighter - but I think I've also changed muscle/fat ratio



I can feel the difference. I feel the difference in the way underwear sits on my body (more of that Lift and Separate feeling), I can feel the way my stomach feels flatter and my thighs feel stronger.



From a weight management perspective, I have now found that I can eat more without gaining weight. This was one of my goals to increase my metabolism through gaining more muscle. I think this combined with plenty of metabolism boosting exercise is really working.



You don't gain a muscly body overnight, and mine still has a very long way to go - but - I think the long term benefits of the exercise are really starting to show.

Diary Entry of a Fitness Freak

I am sooo loving my weekends at the moment.

Now that Saturday morning sport has finished for the girls, it means there is no reason why I can't head into the gym in the morning for a somewhat leisurely workout. I say somewhat leisurely as I don't seem to be able to get in there earlier than 10 am (keep in mind they don't open until 9) and that only gives me 2 hours until they close again at 12. But still, 2 hours of no rush in after work, and work to a time schedule because hubby will be picking me up at a certain time and I have to get back home to cook tea. I've been doing 45 minutes in the Male Zone weight room (had it to myself last week - maybe I've scared 'em off with my mega muscles LOL) and then running for an hour. Then I've changed clothes, taken my self to the local shopping centre for a relaxing lunch on my own, a dawdle through the shops and a bit of food shopping. HEAVEN! And Sundays I've been doing my long bike ride for the week (90 mins this week) and what ever else I've felt like. (Walks, weights, pushups etc)

By Monday I'm sore but loving it. I am also almost embarassed to admit that I think I had DOMS in my glutes for the first time on Sunday (must have finally hit proper form) - even sitting on the toilet seat hurt - WHAT A GREAT FEELING! My new motto for the glutes parallels a bra ad - "Lift and Separate" - LOL - don't share that one too far!

Gadget Queen

Anyone who knows me will relate this title to me. I loooove my gadgets. And two new ones arrived during the week. A food pod for my Garmin - which will now record my distance/speed on the treadmill so that I can download to the computer, and a Mini Ipod for swimming.

Last season I grabbed "a bargain" on Ebay and bought a waterproof ipod casing for swimming - thinking I will perform better and for longer if I can distract myself with music - like I do with running. Of course the "bargain" worked out to be a bit more expensive as my existing ipod didn't fit - so I've been searching every since on ebay for another "bargain" - a mini ipod to match! It came and I'm getting quite excited. I've even downloaded books and geocaching podcasts onto it. Imagine that - I could "read" a whole book whilst swimming!

I was telling a good friend (the owner of the pool I swim in) about my recent purchase and waiting for him to laugh and the conversation went like this
"Really - you can get waterproof ipods?"
"Yes" I said hesitantly - waiting for the snicker
Pregnant pause
"Do you think you could leave it here between swims and I could borrow it? I could swim so much more if I could be listening to music!"

Ah ha - I'm not the only crazy person in the world - and not a bad deal either - considering he lets me swim in his heated lap pool in the mornings for free!

But what really got me posted about gadgets - is finding out about all the amazing blogger gadgets that exist ! I've uploaded quite a few in my sidebar. I think I'll have to visit my own blog daily just to see all the latest quotes and tips! Check 'em out and have a game of Hangman on me!

Another mini goal

I was talking to my nephew the other day, who plays footy in the reserves. He's not a really big guy in comparison to some footballers, and only 18/19 - so I was curious as to how much he can bench press. The answer - he can do sets at about 80 kgs! Now I'd guess he weighs about 80kgs, and I think if you are seriously into power lifting you have to be able to press about your own weight. Mmm - that means I should be aiming to press between 50 and 60 kgs - eek!

What can I press now? Well I'm doing sets of 25 at the moment - but I put another 5kgs on the bar and managed to do 2 at 30kgs. I also had a go this morning with the weights my husband had put on - with him spotting - 39kgs - I could hold it but not push it. So I guess my max is somewhere between 30 and 39 - but pretty close to 30.

So I've set another mini goal. I want to be able to press 50kgs. I don't know how long it will take me to get there, but if I keep the focus on it, I don't see why not.

And this should also help with my other goals in pushups, one handed pushups, clapping pushups and pullups (still cant do them.) Surely if I can bench press 50kgs I should be able to do a pullup!

Oh - and more for my records than for anyone else - yesterday I did one point (one armed) rows with 12.5 kgs dumbbells- Woo hoo! Thats the most weight I've ever done with one arm anti gravity.

100 Pushup Challenge Update

I seem to have trouble fitting this in consistently.

Anyway, last Saturday I started week 4
Its 5 sets of 30, 22, 20, 20 and then a min of 27 (or something like that)
And for the first time I failed
I pushed out the first 30, and I think the next 22, but from there on in it was a real struggle. I'd do about 14 and then fall flat on my face. Get up, get up I'd say - and do another 2 before falling again, then 2 more, then 1 etc - you get the picture. I think I ended up doing about 113 - but I would have been fun to watch. Not to mention this was the day I ventured into the "male zone" the heavy weights area.
Ahh well.

but I will push on. Its been a week since then I must go again soon - but its scary!

For the love of running

EmH posted recently about how she doesn't really enjoy running, but whilst injured and not able to do it - she misses it. I'm exactly the same.
With my recent calf injury I've had to had a very slow and careful return to running. Just 20 secs at time, then 60 secs, then 60 sec repeats, then two minutes - you get the picture - a very slow return. I did running intervals on the weekend with cardio coach and by the end of it was feeling fairly confident and even did a little bit of speed work. Ran 12kms/hr for 1 minute - which I was really pleased about. Just before my injury I was really pleased with my speed work - feeling like I had entered a new phase - I seem to have learnt how to stride differently when running faster- I even hit 14km/hr at one stage. So getting back to running 12km/hr - even for a little bit felt good.
And then last night I decided to try slow but long. By long I mean longer than 2 mins at a time!
I ran 5 mins, then 10, 10 and then 15 and it felt FANTASTIC. I loved it . I felt like I could have run forever - but as soon as I felt my right leg working harder than my left to protect it, I stopped and walked for a while. I was only running at 8km/hr because I am terrified of re-injuring - but it felt very easy. I wish I had worn my heart rate monitor. Breathing was so easy I could almost do it with my mouth closed, (a sign I wasn't working hard enough!) and whilst the legs felt it - it was quite manageable. It was lovely to run on the treadmill again and feel the body pumping - and I'm really pleased with how I've maintained my fitness. If nothing else my aim for the City to Bay (post injury target) is just to do a slow jog and complete it. And it looks like I might manage it if I stay sensible.

Oh and by the way - i now have a chance at beating hubby - he has injured HIS calf on a run whilst in Sydney - so I'm hoping i will be better recovered than him - and finish ahead of him. What - a bit rich I hear you say? Hey - I'm never going to beat him any other way - gotta take the opportunities as they come up!!!!


PS - why so many posts lately? - I'm home looking after my sick daughter - so extra time on my hands...

Tour Down Under - Stage 4

151 days to go....
Andrew and I decided a few weeks back (ok I decided and he eventually agreed) that we would do Stage 4 of the Tour Down Under this year.
Now I'm not much of a cyclist, but we did buy the nice road racing bikes for triathlons - so why not. The choices of distance were really either 32kms or 97kms. We have been contemplating riding from home into Port Pirie (where we work) for some time now on the weekends, and this is 32kms, so the shorter distance didnt seem like enough of a challenge. So 97kms it is.

I started training for it this week - particularly as with the calf injury its another form of exercise that's low impact.

Given the weather I'm doing this at the gym. Did 5 mins on the bike and could start to feel it already - yikes - thats not good. But 5 mins on this and then 5 on the recumbent - which is much more comfortable - and then every day adding by 5 mins. The last few days I've been doing half an hour at 90 - 100 rpms - and covering 12 kms quite comfortably. I know the recumbent isn't the same as riding my bike - but at the moment I just want to get my legs used to spinning at speed over time. (An interesting side note - I'm not putting on any resistance - but I didn't think it would have such a low impact on my heart rate - it rarely goes over 100 - generally sitting at about 95). Then on Sunday - I hopped on the real thing and went for a ride.
I did 14 kms in 37mins, which is about an average of 23kms/hr. I was much faster in the first half - seeing 28/30kms/hr quite often - but in the second half I had a head wind and I was much slower. I don't know how much this had to do with the head wind - or just me tiring. At the 10 km mark I thought - gee only need to do this 10 times over on the day..... At the moment that seems quite impossible - but as you know I love a challenge

I know nothing about cycling training - but I'm just going to treat it as an endurance event, and use the same principles. I think I will train in the gym during the week at the moment due to the short days/bad weather, and then do one long ride each weekend, increasing by 3 - 5 kms each time. If I increase by 5, I can probably afford to have a maintenance week once/month to give my body some time to recuperate. I might try and put up a weekly log/table of my training distances, but I've forgotten how to do this - so if any knows - can you drop me a line?

And on the gadget front - I've decided to buy the foot pod for my Garmin -so I can measure my running indoors. I then plan to buy the cadence sensor for my bike and eventually the quick release wrist strap for quickly changing it from my bike to my wrist - but I don't really need this yet until I set another date for a triathlon. Oooh I loooove gadgets!

Thin People Are Naturally Thin – or Maybe Not

I’ve always thought there were two categories of people. Those who struggled with their weight – and those who don’t. You know the ones I mean – the ones who are naturally thin and don’t seem to worry about what they eat or drink. Most of them don’t exercise either. I’ve always envied them and wondered what life would be like to be like that.

But since losing weight, I sometimes think I’ve gained entry into a new club. A club where secrets are shared. A club of thin people who I’ve discovered actually secretly pride themselves on maintaining their weight and actually monitor it very carefully.

Here are a few stories

Friend One on a sporting weekend shared late one night, how she loves to be thin, and loves the way clothes look, and is terrified of gaining weight. She weighs herself every day, sometimes more than once, and carefully makes sure she never eats too much. She only has fruit for breakfast, then nothing till lunch, a healthy salad role, and a what ever the family are having for tea – but only a very small serve. Nothing after tea, no treats during the day. Oh - and of course she doesn’t eat things like pizza or other takeaway if that’s what the family are having– she cooks herself up some veggies instead. And she exercises (on a moderate level) daily. She says if she eats any more she gains weight. She is worried about passing on her eating obsessiveness to her daughter. She is my age, and has always been a size 8. I’ve never really noticed what she ate, apart from knowing that she liked to make healthy choices. And I’ve always assumed she was naturally this way.

Friend Two – always been a size 8, and very petite. We were at a BBQ one night and I noticed she was eating soup that she had brought with her. Why I asked? It turned out that whilst on an overseas holiday she had gained 4 kgs, and on her return, she set about losing it as quickly as possible. Of course, those around scoffed – because you couldn’t see it, but she whispered to me that she knew she had, because her jeans felt tight. And as soon as this happens – she cuts back on her eating until they fit well again. She doesn’t weigh herself all the time – but she always wears fitted clothes and uses the fit as a guide to modify her eating. I always knew she went to the gym regularly – but I thought it was for her bad hip. I’m not so sure now.

Friend Three – always been a size 8 (I seem to have a lot of these don’t I?) In talking about how much weight I had lost and how fabulous I looked (in her opinion). We got to talking about what she eats. “Oh I never eat much more than a vegemite roll during the day – and then I can afford quite a bit of wine at night”. Interesting that at the same height, she didn’t think that I needed to lose any more weight – despite being about 10 kgs heavier than her!

Friend Four – yes, another size 8 (well in my head anyway) Turned to me in a meeting the other day when we stopped for the catered lunch and said – “oh I really can’t have any of the sweets today – I’ve put on weight this week” “This week?” I puzzled to her. “yes” she whispered, “I normally gain weight on the weekend, and then lose it again during the work week” but last week I didn’t lose it like I normally do.” So she obviously weighs herself regularly to stay within some sort of limit, and then changes her eating accordingly.

These friends are all over 40 and I have known them for many years. They have ‘successfully” maintained their weight all their lives, and I have never noticed any gain. But I always assumed it was easy for them. I never realized that they were secretly – well at least not openly – checking their weight regularly and restricting their eating when necessary. And I didn’t realize that they actively worked at eating small quantities. Not all their behaviors are healthy, are some are bordering on obsessive, but I never realized that perhaps thin people (or at least some) enact some sort of control over their behaviour, that those who gain large amounts of weight perhaps don’t. I know for me there were probably years when I refused to step on the scales, and I always wore elasticized trousers so I didn’t have the same bench marks to monitor my gains. All I noticed over the years was that my clothing sizes kept creeping up and up.

Maybe there are still two groups of people, but rather than the naturally thin and not so naturally – maybe its about those who monitor and react to the checks and balances, and those who don’t. And maybe our disillusioned view of how much easier we thought maintenance would be, is based on not realizing this.

Pushups equal Pain

I never thought pushups could cause so much pain.

I’ve just finished Week 3 of the 6 week program but it is taking me longer than its meant to as I’m having to have 3 days between each session as I haven’t recovered sufficiently.

Today I did a total of 113 pushups over 5 sets (30, 22, 22, 20, 25) oh – yes – that should add up to 114 shouldn’t it.

But I didn’t quite make it.

Each session I look at the figures ahead of me and shake my head. I don’t think I can do it. And then I remember that I think that every time and somehow just manage to make it.

So today was no different. Except I had to increase my rest time between sets from 2 mins to 3 mins, and on the last set, I collapsed at number 24. Wooss – I told myself, get back up there and do the last one. So I got back up to the full plank, lowered myself to the ground and could not for the life of me push myself more than half way back up again. Collapsed again.

You know the test kids do – where you stand in a doorway and push your arms outwards on the door frame and hold for one minute – and when you let go your arms feel like they are floating upwards? Well that’s how my arms feel – for hours afterwards. They ached and throbbed so much that I had to take nurofen at lunch time just to get over myself! And I’ve noticed at work that my hand shakes if I try and write something rather than type – because the fatigue is so intense. Who would have thought that a little old pushup could reek such havoc!

But I wont give up.

I will be a 100 pushup girl!

August Fitness Update

Nutrition
As I mentioned on my previous post- I've had a weeks leave of absence from clean eating - and its been lovely. I'm a bit scared to step on the scales tomorrow - but I don't really care. Its only one week out of normal routine -and whatever the damage I know I can turn it around - and it was worth it. Interestingly I noted that I seemed to want to eat more and more as time went on, and it wasn't until the long drive home that I finally realised that I wasn't eating because I was hungry- in fact my body seemed to have stopped responding to hunger - I was eating out of interest (hey that looks good) and boredom/fatigue (i'm tired - lets stop and eat/I'm bored with all this driving - what can I eat next). I wasn't experiencing any hunger and and I hadn't realised it. I guess thats how I used to feel all the time and thats why its so easy to overeat when you don't eat well. I'm looking forward to returning to good eating, and really enjoying all types of food, rather than just the indulgent ones that become blander and blander over time.

Exercise
Well - although I've been eating a lot - and I've had no normal exercise routine - we've had a very active week, walking or hiking all day every day. I'm hoping this will help me with the scales, as apart from sitting down watching 3 movies, and meal times, I've spent every other waking minute walking in hilly areas - which is much more active than my normal days at work, although minus the high intensity exercise routine.

Injury update: I went back to Combat last week to try out my calf muscle. Told myself I'd stick to low impact - but some things you just cant do...... By the end of track 2, I had pulled the calf again (but not nearly as badly) but of course I couldn't just chuck it in - could I? Good thing I am pretty fit and strong as I realised I could do just about everything - as long as I did it on one leg - and I have a good strong right one to fit the bill. So I finished the class - still doing a lot of the high impact stuff, although rather frustrated. And the next day I was back to limping around.....
It was only a minor set back though - and I had discovered in the class that I could do practically anything as long as I only placed the ball of my left foot on the ground. So when climbing stairs in the blue mountains I "toe stepped" them, and when I went up steep inclines, as long as I only took weight through the toes of my left foot - no worries. And of course for the bridge climb where you have to declare injuries - what injury???? Needn't have worried - I could have done that one legged too if needed(LOL). Running is still an issue though. I tried Thursday morning - and last 20 secs before feeling the strain - so I'm not sure if I will be able to run the City 2 Bay - I think its only about 6 weeks away....If nothing else - I will at least be able to walk it, or maybe run/walk - but I won't be able to focus on a PB like I had hoped. Ahh well.

100 pushups - had great intentions of keeping up with this whilst away - but left the caravan the minute we awoke each day (ok we did get dressed first) and only returned in time to climb into bed late at night. And sizing up the caravan - I couldn't really see how I was going to do it without pushing Andrew out the door - so I did NONE. Will start again tomorrow - am up to week 3 I think - maybe my week off has given me time for great muscle growth! (wishful thinking I know)

Oh - and I'm going to try Combat again tomorrow night - trust me the calf feels much much better, even better than it did last time I tried!

All Things NSW

This must be the year of NSW for me. I've just returned from my third trip there in about 5 months, but this time it was all pleasure, no work. Andrew and I were invited to a wedding in Katoomba so we decided to take a week off work, leave the kids behind and have our first holiday on our own after 23 yrs of marriage! We decided to drive and take the van, as it would work out a lot cheaper - and allow us to put the money saved to much better use -which we certainly did - I hate to think how much money we spent!

The wedding in Katoomba was lovely although very cold, as it was outdoors in about 5 deg! but with a beautiful backdrop of the misty Blue Mountains. The next day we went to Scenic World and did the whole tourist thing seeing the 3 sisters etc. Wednesday we had planned on a couple of big hikes, however it was pouring with rain, about 0 degrees (well at least thats how it felt) and blowing a gale. Not really good or safe hiking whether, so we decided to give it a miss and head to Sydney a day earlier. We had a lovely time in Sydney, doing lots of shopping, going to the movies (saw The Bank Job, The Square, and Mamma Mia), eating anything I felt like (had a holiday from clean eating too) We enjoyed Darling Harbour, walked around the Opera House and surrounding areas at night - and did the big Bridge climb - twice. well almost.

We booked in to do it on Thursday - and after an hour of "gearing up", and brief walk and climb, and then 30 mins of sheltering at the mezzanine level of the bridge whilst 3 electrical storms made their way overhead, our climb was eventually aborted and we returned to base to "de-gear" and rebook. Well that wasted 3 hrs- and we still had to return the next day to do it all again. This time we went up no probs. Whilst I am thrilled to have done it - to be honest it was a bit frustrating. There is all the hype about it being challenging - but it really wasn't - I would describe it more as a walk in the park. Apart from one section of ladder climbs which takes you up past the road level to the arch - and wouldn't take more than 5 mins to climb - the rest is gentle stairs. and the really frustrating part was that the group stopped about every 5 mins for tourist info about the bridge and Sydney. As Andrew reminded me - most people were probably very interested - but for me it was all about the climb - and I think I could have done it in half an hour, rather than the one and a half hours that they dragged it into. In fact - I reckon I could have run most of it - now that would have been fun! Of interest to us fitness fanatics - the first guide said you burn approx 900 cals on the climb - and the second said 600-800. My take on it - I would have been lucky to burn 300! Not once did I breathe hard, and I spent more time standing resting, than climbing. If I compare it to a combat class - I would be lucky to burn 500 cals in an hour of this high impact aerobics - can't see how the effort required for the "climb" came anywhere close to this! Anyway - it was great to do it, and I have a Tshirt to prove it!

Here we are - looking particularly glamorous! It was so cold that all I cared about was dressing warmly!

Two other lovely things whilst we were away - Friday night we went on a Salsa - dinner cruise which was a lovely night with lots of dancing - and Andrew decided it was time to buy me an eternity ring - since we were practically on a second honeymoon. He bought me a lovely white gold ring with a pink saphire and diamonds. Luckily we found a shop that was closing down and was selling everything half price. Even at half price it was a little above our price range any way!

HEREs where the photo of my ring should be - but someone's taken the batteries from the camera - so I can't put one in GRRRH! Maybe next post.

The End of Week One

Well I survived week one of the pushup challenge - well no problems really. But week two looks a little harder, and I think the real challenge will come in week three. This is when it is really stepped up. I have had to change my push up days to match my weight training days – as I found that my chest and shoulders were not getting any rest. So I will “push up” first, then following through with my weights all in one session.

I have just finished reading The Amazing Adventures of Diet Girl, and although part of me is well past the whole dieting thing – I did really relate to a whole range of things in this. Like the need to ditch weight watchers at some stage and stop relying on this sort of external crutch, the transition in focus from numbers on a scale to achievements in fitness, the joy in seeing your body adapt to all sorts of new challenges, the struggle in learning to run, but the enormous sense of achievement from it, and the awakening of inner self and learning what I am all about/who I am! Shauna did a wonderful job of writing it – I’m not much of a non-fiction reader, but I read the whole thing in about 4 or 5 days as it was written in a wonderfully entertaining way. I would thoroughly recommend it.

I’ve had two sessions on the elliptical now – using cardiocoach. I’m once again reminded of what a fab program this is and how good the elliptical is when you are injured. My calf is recovering well, and Wednesday I plan a return to combat – but low impact options only. Once I came up with this option, I thought to invite a friend who has recently joined the gym. Classes are very daunting at first, but if you have someone who will go with you, and more importantly is willing to do the low level stuff with you so that you are not worried about looking out of place – it must be easier. Right? Anyway – she said yes, so that’s good.

The “threat thing” has raised some interesting comments, which I may expand again on later, but I am also planning another thought provoking blurb about another aspect of the impact of weight loss – so stay tuned.

Week One Day Two

Well - my next effort on the push up challenge was fine - although my arms are quite sore - and I can't ever imagine doing all these pushups consecutively

Todays effort
Scheduled: 5 sets of 12, 12, 10, 10, max reps (min of 10) with 60secs rest
I achieved - 12, 12, 10, 10 and 21 - total pushups for the day - 65

I've also been "playing" at the gym - don't know that I could actually call it exercise.
As I am know able to walk pain free - I tried the treadmill tonight - managed to walk at 4.5kms/hr for all of 10 mins - feeling like an absolute fraud - you know, one of those people who go to the gym but don't really exercise!
Anyway - also managed to spend some time on the elliptical (Level 1 - no resistance) and checked my HR every now and then - but couldn't get it over 100.

So the only exercise I've been able to do that gets me huffing and puffing is rowing. An interesting cardio activity because I find it really hard to do over any length of time. So I have been racing myself. How fast can I row 1 km? I've only had 3 time trials - and so far my best effort is 3mins 58secs. This is probably a woeful effort - but I have nothing to compare it to, but myself. What I do know is that I am going all out/as fast as I can, and am extremely puffed at the end. Hey, if I intersperce (cant spell that tonight) it with lazy lumbering on the treadmill - I could almost be interval training - LOL I do love watching the metres fall away as I race as hard as a I can, and watching my 250 m splits to see if I'm going to "win". Oh have I ever mentioned I'm somewhat competitive???

"The Threat" thing

Thanks Em for raising the concept of "the threat" after reading my last post.

Yes, yes, yes - I know exactly what you mean. This is a new issue to contend with. Actually for me its the remembering of an old issue - I experienced this when I was younger (and thinner) but had forgotten that it existed. Men seem more happy to talk to me these days - and women less so than they used to. Of course, with my new found confidence I am proud to wear clothes that show off my figure, and this doesn't always go down so well with my female counterparts. I'm always careful to do a"trash check" ie - am I showing too much (in my case any) cleavage, is my skirt too short, is my clothing too suggestive etc, but even with all of that in mind - I still get that sort of reaction from some women. The other thing is that jealousy has raised its head in our relationship - I was very surprised by this at first - thinking it had never been a problem for us - except that I eventually remembered that it was an issue before we were married - once again when I was thinner.

So what does this say about how society views relationships with overweight people vs normal weight people? Does it say that the potential for relationships are shallowly judged by appearance, with no regard for the personality of the individual? Or - to stretch the thinking - how much of this is influenced by how confidently people act and how confident they are with their shape and fitness and body image - could this be projected enough to others that it wouldn't actually matter what shape you are, but its your comfort level with it that conveys a level of attractiveness??? I dont know. Are there are aspects that contribute to this? Lots of food for thought...

Week One, Day One

Here's the update on my first day of the hundred pushup challenge.
My baseline test was a maximum of 21 consecutive pushups, so my sets/reps for today were as follows
1 - 10 pushups
2- 10 pushups
3 - 8 pushups
4 - 6 pushups
5 - max pushups able (minimum of 7)
with 60 secs rest between sets

I achieved sets 1 - 4 ok although I was feeling a little sore from my weight training the day before. Not sure how I'd go with set 5. However yesterday obviously really wasn't my maximum as I managed to push out another 22 pushups in a row - after doing 34 over the previous 4 sets! (Thats a total of 56 pushups for those who are mathematically challenged!)
Bring on the rest of the challenge! (Although I am a little sore - don't know whether its the pushups or the workout from yesterday)

Now I'm Fit and Fab...

I know I know - 3 posts from me in one day is enough to make your head spin....

I've been thinking for some time about writing about the impact losing weight and becoming fit has had on a range of aspects of my life - and they are not all positive.

Many people will relate I'm sure, when I talk about the fact that after my "transformation" I not only look different, but I act differently. I eat differently, I exercise regularly, I have different interests and some would say - obsessions. I am possibly more confident and outgoing - and because of my increased energy - engage in a lot more outdoory types of things. I also have more interest in clothes, gym and fitness gear, makeup and going out. My husband however, finds some of this a bit difficult. Whilst he appreciates "the improvements", he is having to learn to live with someone who has changed in many ways. I feel like I'm still the same old person (just released from some of my hindrances), but he sees many of my actions as new. (Actually I'm pretty similar to how we were when we got married - but that was a long time ago to remember). He also finds that he is more insecure about our relationship - worried that I will want to "trade him up" for a newer and better model.

I'm interested to know if others have had similar experiences, where the positive changes they have made in their health and fitness - have had negative affects on their relationships. So how has it affected you?

The 100 Push Up Challenge

I've come across this little/great challenge which I am going to start tomorrow.

Its a 6 week program that will see you being able to do 100 consecutive pushups.

I did the pretest - 21 consecutive pushups with good form was my max.

I've even decided to be a little crazy and buy the Tshirt that says I'm doing the challenge! I like this sort of challenge because its easy to add into your routine - and there is a sense of real achievement at the end.

Do you wanna join me? Details can be found here

Is Fickle Foe or Friend?

I think I've posted a few times about the scales being fickle.

I've had a few weeks of not eating so well - I've been away a lot and have just relaxed by eating and drinking and had a few extra treats - like a Ham and Cheese Croissant for breakfast (no I don't want to know how many thousand calories are in this!) and I've discovered Subways white chocolate and macadamia nut cookies (at 200 cals a pop (i've only just checked this out) and you buy them 3 for $2) this is half my daily cals in one hit! Exercise has been a little limited because of all the travelling. I knew I might have gained a little, but was ok with this, because I truly believe that eating healthily is now the norm not the exception, and a return to routine sees a return to good healthy eating habits. Of course the day I returned to "normal" I did my calf muscle in - so that's made cardio a challenge.

Anyway - earlier in the week I made myself face the music and stepped on the scales - 60.6kgs - eek - ok - how quickly can I get back to 58? Can I do it before the wedding at the beginning of August?
Well - goal achieved. I "stepped" on the scales on Friday to see 58.6, and Saturday 58.3. I've highlighted "stepped" because this is what made the scales fickle. You see earlier in the week when I stepped on - I leaned heavily to the right because of my calf injury. Friday - I realised I could weight bear much more evenly - and hey presto - 2 kg weight loss! If only we could always have the fickle scales work in our favour!

The will to look fab

Well life's been a little grand - that is of course until Combat on Monday night when my calf went "ping" and I couldn't stand up any more! Nothing like a dramatic exit in front of lots of people...
I put ice on it immediately and have spent the last two days resting it - I can now bear weight and am concentrating on trying to get the heel back on the ground. Of course its these few days that my husband is away....
It has been somewhat frustrating exercise wise as I'd had a fairly lax couple of weeks both on the exercise and the nutrition week - and was making a concerted effort to get back on track when this happened - and being laid up and miserable is not a good recipe for great nutrition either. Nevertheless I have persevered in cleaning up my diet again. I'm going to a wedding in the Blue Mountains in three weeks and have bought a lovely slim fitting dress that I want to look fabulous in - so I need to focus on reducing any temporary bloating and being in the best shape I can.

On another note - I've been looking at Katie and LizN's new team..... and I've looked at their inspirational photos for today. They do look good - but hell - I can match that... (LOL - I've been drinking too Katie) I might do it on the quiet and see how I go (its very quiet when you publicly announce it on the internet isn't it? - well not many people actually read my blog - so I might be quite safe) Anyway - lets see who ends up the biggest....
And I may be injured - but there is always something you can do exercise wise....I've been doing bench pressing, incline abs work, seated quads work, pull ups and even one legged deadlifts.

Cardio is a real challenge at the moment - I was able to use the elliptical when I did my hamstring - but I tried this tonight and its definitely a no-go at the moment -the only thing I think I could do would be rowing (and not push with my left left calf) but I don't have a rower at home Could this be an opportunity to convince my hubby to lift the 12month ban on buying anymore fitness equipment??? - after all - I have served 7 months of my sentence.... I think I might be pushing it - but I can always ask. I spied in the sports store a few months ago a recumbent bike that converts to a rower - I don't have either of these - any one know what they are like?

Motoring Along

Weight: 57.7 kgs
Waist: 72 cm

I know what you're thinking - she hasn't blogged for a while - must have fallen off the wagon....
Wrong - things have been going fine - I've just been so busy working and DOING the exercise that I haven't had time to write about it.

As you can see from my weight - it is still dropping, and so are my waist measurements, which I am really pleased about. I am back in a healthy weight range for my height (yes I'm very short) - and pretty much at the lowest weight I have been at in 20yrs. This was my initial goal weight back in 2005 and I achieved it Christmas 2006. It remained fleetingly and then I slowly returned to the low 60's where I have basically been ever since. The really exciting thing is that I have been weight training for approx 2 yrs now, and whilst I am at the same weight as I was 18 months ago - my waist is 6 cms smaller! I good sign of how I have changed shape. I have new track pants on today (black shiny, no stretch fabric) and they are a little too loose in the waist and a fraction tight over my right thigh - just how they should be if I've been doing everything right! (well symmetry of the thighs would be better)

Weight loss challenge
The weight loss challenge has finished - and I lost 6.5 kgs over the 12 weeks. Its not a rapid loss but exactly what I think it should have been - anything more than 500gms/week suggests I would be losing muscle as well as fat - and I certainly don't want that. The team lost about 45 kgs overall, and we came second in the competition. I really did want the first prize of a trip to Queensland, but oh well, I guess 6 months free membership to the gym will have to do. As you know the challenge wasn't really about me losing weight - but encouraging my workmates to do so, and two of them are so close to goal weight now that its not worth worrying about the remaining few kilos. One of the interesting things is that they are both around the same height (6'1") and whilst about 8 kgs apart in weight - both look as skinny as the other. Interesting.

Running
Running is going well, I am basically running three sessions a week, a normal/tempo run on Tuesdays, speed intervals on Thursdays, and a long run on Sundays. I have found my running legs again and running reasonably well. The speed sessions are a killer - I am sore and exhausted afterwards but always have two running free days afterwards before I tackle the long run. The speed sessions also seem to be working - the speed is getting easier and I am finding that I keep finding new "all time fastest" speeds. At the moment I am running a 400m lap (on the tready of course) the first quarter at 11 kms/hr, the next 1/2 at 11.5 and the last quarter at 12 kms/hr. Its all reasonably manageable until I hit 12, and this is quite an effort. Times this by 20 laps (1/2 laps of walking in between) and I can barely walk afterwards! Anyway - on a 10 sec speed interval with cardio coach the other day - I found I can sprint at 14kms - so I'm suitably encouraged.

Other Exercise
Don't be fooled into thinking I'm only running 3 days/week. I am continuing my other interests with 2 combat classes and 3 weight training sessions - giving me a total of 8 workouts/week. By the way - has anyone tried the new release of combat? There is a track in there to a Rogue Traders song (split room power track) that I've found really challenging with high knee running and jumping lunges. In fact its the first track in ages to really push me - all the others I have to add extras (jumps etc) to keep my heart rate up - but this one really pushes me. Of course I make sure I'm jumping through all the punches so I don't take it easy but....

Still Here

Weight: 59.8
Waist: 75
Exercise: 45 mins weights, 35 mins cardio coach yesterday, 10 km hill run today and 5 km walk

Well - I had psyched myself up to expect a return to the 60's today - but was ecstatic to see I'm still in the 50's - even 100gms down from yesterday.

I've started David Greenwalts Leanness Lifestyle program (well just whilst I read it first to see if it offers anything different to what I am doing already), but the book is 494 pages long and I haven't really got to the guts of it yet. So really all I've changed is the daily calories - I am following his plans for zigzagging them. This has me a little worried as today I have to eat 1578 - (which I wont make -but I'll probably get within 150 cals), and I'm worried about what impact it will have on the scales tomorrow - I sooo want to stay in the fifties. But its the only day in the week that I have to eat so high and the rest are a little lower than what I'm used to. It actually averages out to the same over the week as what I am used to - so I guess the risk is fairly small - and the opportunity for different results higher - Right? Actually I nearly didn't follow it at all as the original calculations only had me eating about 900 cals/day which I think is way too low, but once I added my exercise level in - it boosted up the cals to a level that I'm comfortable with. I'll give you more updates as I work my way through the book.

Back to the Fifties!

Weight: 59.9 !!!!!!
Waist: 75cm
Exercise - not much - read on

Well - I'm back in the fifties where I think I really belong - don't know if it will last till tomorrow - but considering my weight has had a considerable downwards trend over the last few months - I should see it again. I think KatieP's Whoosh Fairie visited me, as after about 3 weeks of being in the low 61's - yesterday the scales showed me 60.6, and then this morning the magical 59.9. Despite this not being my lowest ever weight - I am at my smallest by waist measurements, which I think reflects a change in body composition. I am also now about 1 - 2 cm's away from fitting into the waistband of my wedding dress that I wore when I was 20. And when I fit into this in the next few weeks (lol) I'm going to take a photo!

Yesterday I also started something new. I am trialling taking Hydroxycut (supplement aimed at increasing metabolism and fat burning). I've been thinking about this on and off over the last two years, and with just 3 weeks left in the weight loss challenge, I thought, well if I was ever going to try it, might as well do it now. Will let you know how it goes.

Exercise wise - I have had seven full days of no exercise, apart from some attempts at walking. Wednesday night I just about thumped the treadmill in disgust. I walked for 5 mins, then started adding some inclines in, but after a measly 17 mins the pain in my back was intense and I had to stop and go home. The frustration levels were huge and I was going stir crazy! I was still taking pain killers on day seven (Thursday) and finding getting in and out of the MG quite painful, so I thought I might have to actually seek some treatment. But low and behold, Friday i woke up pain free, and Friday night managed to walk, walk inclines, run and then even run at an incline of 12! It was like a miracle! It ached a little afterwards but it was short lived. This morning I managed my weights session - and I'm back in happy land. Oh - and you remember I said chin ups were something I can't do and keep trying? This morning, I managed to get up to the bar and move up and down miniscule amounts - so miniscule that probably noone else could tell I was moving - but I could! At last - I have something to work with and actually improve on! Between the magic weight this morning and the chin-ups - I'm one happy gal!

Week 1 of Training Plan

Weight 61.1
Waist 75.5
Exercise - Read on...

Well the training has not gone according to schedule. This week I have suffered from fatigue, shin pain, hamstring pain, nausea and this weekend - back pain.

Monday's Combat class was fine, and I had done my weights in the morning, and then followed the class with hill climbs as our weight loss team has a pact to burn 1000 cals per day. Mission accomplished Day 1

Tuesday however - I had a tempo run planned for the evening - but I really struggled and had to put some breaks in. I was feeling sick and exhausted, I had left shin pain that wouldn't ease, and my right hamstring felt swollen, and eventually left the gym thinking I would have to rest and then do some more after tea. But I didn't really recover enough - so let myself have a night off, both exercise and nutrition wise. I didn't overeat , but I had some BBQ chicken, pasta salad and peanut M&M's. I actually felt better for it, and the weight was still good in the morning

Wed morning I got up and did my weights - no probs there, and my Combat class in the evening, but after that I struggled to do too much more - the leg pain was getting to me

Thursday I decided I needed to have a low impact day to rest my legs. The speedwork session I had planned would have to wait. Have you ever tried to contemplate how you can burn 1000 cals on all low impact exercise? The night before I had cycled on the recumbent bike to increase my total - cycled for about 15 mins to see that I had burnt 30 cals! Thursday night seemed like a daunting night of training. I did some hill climbs for half an hour, and then rowed a Km (cal total so far - 200cals) and then hit on the idea of doing Cardiocoach on the elliptical. I have all 7 cardiocoach workouts on my ipod - and just go through them in turn. Unfortunately for me, I was up to Workout #6 - which is quite hard and goes for an hour (For those who don't know cardiocoach it is basically interval training). So I killed the elliptical for 60 mins with high resistance sprints, and by the time I got off I felt quite ill. I stumbled off to my daughters drama performance, and grabbed a banana on the way.

Friday was a scheduled rest day which I readily embraced. I also got my new sandshoes off layby to see if this would reduce the shin pain. (although I did walk for an hour in the morning -that's not really exercise - right?)

But Friday night when I got home from work, as I got out the car i noticed a sharp pain down the left side of my back and radiating into my leg. I don't know what I have done, but I have been in quite acute back pain ever since. It seems to be nerve related, and so I have avoided any exercise this weekend, as I am worried about exacerbating it. This has meant ditching my weight session, and Sunday's long run.

So I have done no real exercise for three days. I've focussed on making sure I eat well, as I don't want to let the team down. There is only 4 weeks left in the challenge, and we are in there with a chance to win 1st prize - which is I think a trip to Queensland! Of course I'm not exactly their star weight loser -only averaging about 500gms a week - but I need to at least do that to support them!

The legs are feeling much better, and my energy may be returning. I'm wondering if I may be a little overtrained, and the rest with the back might not be a bad thing. But what I really want is to see the scales move downwards again - I keep seeing low 61's and no dipping below this. For the weight loss challenge, I have committed to the team to be in the 50's by the end, but if I don't see some movement on the scale soon I might not make it!

Mother's Day Classic 2008

Weight - ??? No scales available in hotel room!
Waist - as above
Exercise - 7.2 km Mothers Day Classic

Well the run was both good and bad. As I've been easing back into running lately - I've been taking regular walk breaks - hence my woefully slow time from last week. This week - being a shorter run, I wanted to at least run it all. I went out a bit fast though with this one, probably more out of frustration as there were so many people on the path that I couldn't even choose my pace - but was spurred into running around them. By about the half way mark, there was a steep hill (one of many little hills) and so I decided to walk half of it as I was breathing hard, and not sure about my pace. Started to run again and then saw the drink station. Walked a few metres whilst having a drink then started again in earnest. The break had really helped and before long I had hit my stride and was running quite comfortably. I really wanted to stop at times but forced myself to continue - slowing my pace if I felt I needed to. With 1 km to go I picked up the pace again, then increased my efforts at the 400 m and 200 m, managing to sprint to the finish line - with Garmy telling me I hit 13.6km/hr. Total time - about 46 mins, a good 3 mins slower than I would have liked. But I did run the majority of it, and my legs now tell the tale. I guess if I hadn't walked the bit in the middle I might have come closer to usual running pace.

Talking to my husband later (who also ran it in about 36 mins) I asked him how I looked coming down the finish line. He told me that I looked strong and fast, and that in fact, he wonders why then, I'm finishing 2/3 way in the pack. He also reflected that knowing how fit I am, and looking around at "the fairly average looking competition" that I should be able to run rings around them. I have to admit, its something I've wondered about too. Between me and my fellow bloggers, I think I am pretty fit, and frankly - I don't know why I am so slow. It could be that I over think the race, and pace myself too slowly - after all I can always sprint to the end. My average heart rate was only 80% so maybe i'm not pushing myself. But the other major thought is that I simply don't run enough and don't have the strength/endurance in my legs. I don't really think that my aerobic fitness is holding me back (after all I can maintain high HR levels for several hours), but I probably always take my runs too slowly in training, and don't expect myself to run fast. From todays run I have one heck of a lot of work to do to even get close to the goals I described yesterday. But maybe its time I really went for it - and really pushed myself to my limits. Heck I dont even know what my limits are!

Nutritionally today I made some good decisions out of not so helpful alternatives, although I didn't eat enough. With the race in the morning (and I don't eat before exercise) and by the time we got back to the hotel, showered changed and packed up - it was lunchtime before my first meal. The family wanted Barnacle Bills (aka deep fried seafood), so I compromised by also buying a fresh vegie salad. I had a couple of calamari rings and prawns (deep fried I know but kept to a minimum), skipped the chips and had salad. Unfortunately I was still hungry afterwards. Afternoon tea and cheesecake was on the menu. Luckily I had thought ahead, and when I bought the salad, also bought a yummy greek style yoghurt. Now these things are relatively high in calories compared to normal yoghurt, but I knew if I could eat this when everyone else had cheesecake, I would feel like I was having a treat too, and not so deprived. It worked. Tea was whilst travelling again, so I stopped at the one servo I know that sells chicken kebabs (skewers) and had two of these. Not a very balanced meal , but I think the better of any of my alternatives from other service stations as everything else is fried . Haven't counted the cals, but I'm pretty sure I have too many left. Ah well, hopefully I will still see a nice number on the scales tomorrow.

Well - I'm off to bed as I'm tired and sore, and tomorrow morning start my new training program. Weights in the am before work, and combat in the evening. I hope I'm up for it!

I have a new plan....

Weight - 61.8
Exercise - 2 x 1/2hr hill climbs and 45 mins weights
Waist- 76cm

I was talking to the manager at my local gym about my plans for the City 2 Bay in September. Although I'm doing the Mother's Day Classic tomorrow, I'm really just seeing it as a training run, and the C2B is my next real challenge. I had previously planned to work hard and try and improve my time from 72 mins last year (a 6 min/km pace) to 66 mins (a 5.5min/km pace). But when talking to him he planted the idea that if I really wanted a sub 60 (which is my ultimate goal and a 5km/min pace), why not go for it now. His view was that being this far out from the race (19 weeks - I've counted) - I might juuuust be able to make it.

So - I've spent about an hour and a half devising my training schedule for the next 19 weeks, being careful to ensure I still get to do combat twice a week (my fave) and 3 weight training sessions, along with a speedwork day, a tempo run and a long run. It took a lot of juggling to make sure that the timing of each session ensured enough rest of relevant muscle groups between different types of training. I think I've come up with a sound plan. Of course as I worked out what speed sessions I would need to achieve a 5 min pace over 12 kms - it became quite scary. The speed sessions I've designed on this plan would be totally UNachievable if I attempted them tomorrow - I simply am not fast enough. However I have to remember that the ones in September for example, don't need to be done until September, and by then I will have hopefully done a lot of other sessions that will have me ready for them.

There is a reasonable chance that this program is too ambitious for me. But I guess I can only try it, and if I can't keep up with the speed sessions, I will just need to be prepared to readjust my goals and my schedule to my original plans. Nothing ventured, nothing gained I guess.


So the big plans start Monday........
I will have to try and workout how I link it to my blog so you can read it and laugh at how ambitious I am!

The BEST sort of compliments!

Weight - 61.6kgs
Waist - 77 cm
Exercise yesterday - exhausting sprint and hill intervals - so stiff and exhausted afterwards that it was spa and bed for this chickybabe - had to skip the weights.

I had one of the best sort of compliments at the gym tonight.

We've been getting to know some of our "competitors" in the weight loss challenge. Tonight I was introduced to a girl named Jenny who is a similar weight/height to me. When introduced she said that she thought she knew me - was I out at netball last weekend? Yes, I was, and we got talking about all things fitness whilst we warmed up on the treadmills. After a little while it was puzzling me that she recognised me from netball - I didn't play or anything, was just a parent on the sideline - certainly not doing anything noticeable, so I commented she must have a very good memory. She replied by saying that she actually recognised me at netball from seeing me at the gym. She said "I watch you during the classes from up the back - you are sooo fit - it really stands out in the class." Wow - I was rapt (did I mention she only looks to be in her twenties? so this was high praise indeed!) And then then a few minutes later whilst discussing our respective weights, and the fact that she is a few kilos lighter than me, she said "yeah, but you pack a lot of muscle, that's really noticeable too" Did I mention I LOVE THIS GIRL! She actually repeated both comments several times talking about how impressed she was and how much I stood out in comparison to every one else in the class. I think I'm in heaven. For me, this is what its all about. I don't mean getting lots of praise (although that's nice), but to think that my fitness and muscle tone is good enough for people to take notice. And having just read that - I don't mean that's everything, because I do it for me - but I guess this is one way of getting feedback on my achievements.
I am now one exhausted, but happy, chickybabe!

PS - Magda - my weight usually drops the longer I sleep to - but I don't know what was going on that morning!

Daily Blogging

Well - I must say blogging daily is somehow a little easier than every now and then. No need to think about which "gems" to share - just one day to consider each time.

Calories yesterday- well under allowance
Exercise yesterday - 11km run, plus my first weights session of New Rules for Lifting for Women
Weight - well do you want the 4 am, 7 am or gym weigh in figure......

Couldnt sleep last night - well - probably because I went to bed to read at 8pm where it was nice and warm. Not surprising that I then woke at 1 am and had trouble getting back to sleep. At 4 am a quick trip to the loo - and I know, I know I should be thinking about the scales - but my weight has been looking so good lately, and I'd had a great weekend - sooooo - I stepped on. My eyes were a bit blurry but I'm sure I saw 60.7 wooooohooooo - fabo I thought. And went back to sleep a happy camper.

7.00 am did the routine daily weigh in (and yes, I know that's not normally recommended) and my weight read somewhere between 61.6 and 62. (it kept changing every time I stepped on) WTF!!!! Anyway - no breakfast for me yet - have to do the weekly weigh in at the gym. (Which by the way I only do every couple of weeks!)

My grand weight at the gym? And grand it was let me tell you 63.o0 NOT *HAPPY *JAN!

Well on the official gym records it shows a loss of 1.1 kgs since the last weigh in - but I was really hoping to contribute to the team tally with a good number. And it seems so far away from my next goal of sub 60 AGGGHHH!

Oh well, maybe I'm keeping a few kilo's of weight loss up my sleeve for the final weigh in.

Make A Wish

Weight - 61.6 (woohoo)
Food yesterday- met all my goals - kept it light
Exercise - rest yesterday (apart from some bench pressing) and the 11km Make-A-Wish Foundation Fun Run

Well, no super time for me on the fun run - but still quite respectable - 74mins. Considering I ran the 12 km C2B last year in 73, its hardly a PB - but then again - when you've basically only put in one long run/week for the last few weeks (and next to no running before that) its not half bad either. I basically averaged a 6 min pace but put in walk breaks every 10, so that slowed down my overall pace. If I want to run the C2B at a pace of 5.5 with no walk breaks (translates into a 66min time) I am really going to have to start training hard. But I'm ready for it. And I want it.

I'm really happy with my weight for now- I'm only about 3 kgs out of my healthy weight range/goal weight again, and have lost a total of 5kgs over the last 7 weeks, which is not bad going given my starting weight. 5 weeks left of the weight loss challenge - and I think I will be ok with my moderate results. Speaking of which, I'm so very proud of my team who all did the run today. Bill ran the race in 64mins - and until a few months ago didn't run at all, Syd walked it and took out first place, and Matt - who has knee problems and walks with a cane, walked it in 1:44 - which is over 6kms/hr. They are all absolute champs!

Going Down...

Weight - 61.9
Waist - 77cm
Exercise - not much this week - Nail Can Hill Run yesterday (my run, not the official one) in Albury

Well - I've been in NSW for the last 4 days and have successfully managed to eat fairly cleanly and see my weight continue to go downwards - woohoo!

Exercise was hard due to the break in routine, travelling with someone else, and the work schedule. Had time to run on Thursday but it poured with rain. With no steady tready available, or a gym of anysorts - exercise was just too hard. But Friday I managed to get up early and go for a 50 min hill run - up Nail Can Hill in Albury - and it was awesome. There is nothing more exhilirating (after doing the hard yards up the hill) than running full pelt downhill, surrounded by beautiful trees, the wind through your hair, feeling your legs power on and your heart pumping positively. As I said - Awesome! After that great run I am now really looking forward to the Make a Wish fun run tomorrow (11kms), after being a bit worried about it over the last few weeks.

I had dinner with the lovely Katiep on Tuesday - and even managed to meet her other half. It was a lovely night and she looks terrific in person. All ready for the big event I'd say.

Physically I've hit a new goal, with my waist measurement hitting an all time low of 77cm. (Quite big by many peoples standards, but for me its the best I have seen in a long time.) I've been recording waist measurement over the last little while as another way of measuring progress. After my holidays in Jan/Feb my waist measurement had risen dramatically - to about 85cm - and I've managed to see this drop quite quickly again which I am pleased with. Its also really interesting to note that my waist is now less than (or maybe the same) as it was when I was at my goal weight of 58kgs. I think its just a good sign that my body is changing shape, and a better indicator than the scales.

Am going to try some of the sets in The New Lifting Rules for Women this arvo - provided they don't work my legs too much - am resting up for the big race tomorrow!

1+3=2

Weight - 62.7
Exercise - 12 kms on the steady tready last night, and combat tonight
Calories - too many of the wrong kind

It is soo true that weight loss is not an exact science - eat x, exercise y does not equal exactly z the next day. I had a shitty weekend nutritionally - not that I ever really binge because I only eat small quantities- but I was far from clean eating, I enjoyed some of the no-no foods and I'm sure above my calories on both days. But this morning - a loss, after probably a week or so. Of course there have also been some hormonal influences in there, and the fact that I exercised late in the evening and had eaten nothing since then in morning, but still....

Anyway- back to the clean eating again today. Whilst running at infinitum on the treadmill last night (only because Sat and Sun attempts at a long run outside were thwarted by rain), I was thinking about the fact that I have now maintained my weight loss for about 15 - 18 months - and how most people regain most of their loss within a year. I feel very lucky to have managed to do this, and I was thinking about what keeps me motivated. Without a doubt the exercise is an essential component. I struggle so much with the eating, that I think that if I didn't exercise, I would forget all about wanting to be fit and fall back into old habits. But the other thing that really helps, is reading everyone's blogs every night. This has an enormous impact on me, and reminds me of what I want to achieve, and keeps me focussed on health and fitness. So I want to say a really big thanks to all of you that put the effort into their blogs and provide me with the privilege of having an insight into your worlds. It's making an enormous difference to at least one person!

Anyway - I'm off to Sydney and country NSW for a few days for work, and will be catching up with the lovely TD and KatieP tomorrow night! Yeah! Cant wait.

Don't know what internet access I will have so may not be blogging again till Saturday. Can I keep up the clean eating for the next 5 days with no access to a kitchen or even a fridge during the day? Time will tell.....

1001 Books

Well you can't exercise all the time (shame - because I would really enjoy it) and so to ensure I have balance in my life, I like to have quiet times reading. I have set myself a (lifelong) goal to read all of these books that are listed as the 1001 books you must read (NB the book of the list is 1000 pages in itself!) In fact, I would eventually like to own them all - maybe set up in a bookshelf (or 2!) that could be handed on to future generations. So today I started Ebay searching and have bought a couple. Some of these books look a little heavy going - but I guess its like setting fitness goals - they can be hard and daunting at the time, but at the end you have gained something unachievable without the effort.

Team training yesterday at the gym went well, and we all went out for coffee afterwards. It was quite a lot of fun. Would like to do it again next weekend, but I will be driving the new car back from Adelaide (Damn) and Sunday is an 11km fun run which we are all doing anyway.

Was meant to do a long run today- headed out but then got caught in the rain and turned around and came back. Weak I know, but I might have soldiered on for a 1/2 hr run, but when I was facing 1 1/2 hrs and a fair distance from home in the middle of nowhere, with no shelter in sight, it was enough to put me off. So tomorrow I will have to get up extra early to fit it in before 9.00 am church, and if its raining again - I will have to do it on the treadmill. BORING!

I Cant Be Grumpy Anymore....

Yesterdays Weight - 63.3kgs
Waist - 78
Food - under calorie allowance

I can't be grumpy anymore.......


Because - guess what we bought yesterday......










All bar the last photo, are photos of our actual car. Probably not the most practical decision we have ever made, but life shouldn't always be about practicalities. After 20 odd years of always making the practical choices with a young family, its time to be a little rash! We don't get to pick it up though until next weekend so it will be a long wait..

This morning I am introducing my weight loss team to Cardio Coach. We are having a team training session at the gym, and I have loaded up 4 Ipods with cardio coach, looked up/worked out all of their HR training zones (blue, green, orange etc) and hope to secure 4 treadys in a row so we can all press the start button together. I like the idea of this because even though we are all at different fitness levels, we can do the same workout - individuals just adjust their speed/resistance to match the required HR zone. It should be fun.

Saving Time

Weight - 63.9
Waist - 78cm
Food - not tracked in CK - but around my budget according to my calcs
Exercise tonight - Combat and a few kms of running either side of the class.

I'm not sure why my weight has spiked - but since I think I've kept to my targets I'm going to ignore it. I did discover however that my non nutritionally sound choices of food led to a significant drop in energy. I had enough to train - but couldn't get out of bed in the morning to prepare my healthy food which has led to a catch 22 situation. So I forced myself to break this, and hopefully I'm back on track.

I'm a bit grumpy about the "love" situation (aka the new car I want). My husband looked at the car I'm interested in tonight, and then spoke to a friend of a friend who has one, who said there is a fault in this particular model and not to buy one. Not happy. What does one person know anyway?

And whilst I'm grumpy - who is designing these Combat classes to be easier and easier every new release? This latest one only really pushes me in Moo Thai (I have no idea how to spell this) - and even then not to my limits. AND I take all the highest options and then add my own in to keep my HR up. Mind you - my polar told me tonight that I hit 100% of my max HR and I wasn't even puffing - what the ### - oh, and then it promptly died on me (I guess that explains the odd readings!) Oh and did I mention my current car also died today - thankfully right in front of a crash repairer, and within walking distance of work. Mention #2 - I need a new car (hmm - and it must be an MG/convertible)

Well grumpiness aside (im not really a very moody person) thought I might post some interesting fitness info - from Matt Fitzgerald's Complete Triathlon Book on Time Savers - The benefits of good gear in an Olympic Distance Triathlon(1.5km s, 40 km b, 10 km r):

The Swim
Upgrade Time Savings
No Wetsuit to Wetsuit - 1:30

The Bike
Upgrade Time Savings
No aerobar to aerobar 3:24 - 4:36
Standard wheels to aerowheels 0:40 - 0:55
Shaving 2 kgs 0.05 - 1:12

The Run
Upgrade Time Savings
Training shoes to racing flats 0:30

So go get your gear!
(PS: Simlin if you are reading this, my memory is clearly faulty)

I'm In Love...

Weight: 63.6


Food - haven't tracked over the last few days - have been away


Exercise - Sat - Interval Training, Sun, long run 1.5hrs, Mon - Combat

Shame about the quality of the photo - taken on my MIL's phone and then beamed from phone to phone to PC! (aint technology grand!) but anyway - my hubby's birthday on the weekend. We went out to dinner at a lovely german/swiss restaurant. It was a little pricey - and the meals were small - but it was so worth it! Perfect sizing for me really - couldn't have eaten any more and beautiful vegetables. I'd rather pay the extra for quality any day. MIL had brought a white chocolate mud cake for desert and mentioned I might like to order something else (they are so used to my healthy eating) but I thought - nah - I night off - I'm just going to have a piece and enjoy it. And I did.

Now I might have fooled you with the title and the photo- but noooo - I'm not referring to my husband. I have fallen head over heels in a most unexpected way.

I've fallen in love with a car. And not just any car. A small red sporty convertible - it is just HOT!

Now you might think this is not that unusual, but just days ago I was explaining to my co-worker about how crazy men are about cars (he is male) and I don't really care - I just want something practical to get me from A to B . I even said my fave car was a Smart Car (very small, economical 2 door European car). Then whilst waiting for our dinner the other night - hubby takes me over to the car yard. Says maybe I need a new car. No, I say, I don't need a new car, walking around the lot, no - waste of money I......"OMG get me that car!!!!!!!!" I had spotted a red Renault Megaine Capri Cabriolet (convertible), and within our price range. It is gorgeous - kinda more like a fashion accessory than a car. Next thing you know, I'm ringing him at work wanting to test drive it, and on the weekend we looked at similar cars in Adelaide. Now if I just work on him a bit more.......I might end up with a sports car. Will keep you posted!

On the exercise front - ran for 1.5 hours down at Glenelg Sunday morning. This week ran 10 minute intervals with 2 minute walk breaks - cutting them down by 1 minute from last week. Covered 12 kms - earned a few more blisters, but woke this morning with no residual stiffness/soreness. I've also learned that Ibobrufren works a treat after long runs, I'm now just taking it routinely after the long ones, and the aching legs disappear. I'm a bit frustrated that 90 mins for 12 kms is just sooo slow, (remember I ran 12kms for the C2B in 73mins, and want to run it in 65 this year) but I guess I have to remember that I've really only been back running some distances for a few weeks, have pushed out the distance very quickly to have me ready for an 11km race in 2 weeks, and I actually haven't been doing any other running during the week apart from speed work and intervals! I contemplated pulling out of the 11km race because I'm so slow at the moment - and then realised that would be ridiculous - just run the damn race girl - forget about the time. So next week I'll run the 12 kms again - with 1 min walk breaks and then if needed will put them into the race as well. Its a fun raiser for Make A Wish, so I'm sure the main aim is to support them, not run a PB!

Work and Food

Today's Weight - 63.1

Tues food
You have used 1220 out of your net daily budget of 1350 calories and have 130 calories remaining. 29% of the calories are from fat, 25% from protein, 46% from carbs and 0% from alcohol.
Exercise - 35 mins running speedwork - approx 400cals

Wed's food
You have used 1273 out of your net daily budget of 1350 calories and have 77 calories remaining. 44% of the calories are from fat, 20% from protein, 36% from carbs and 0% from alcohol.
Exercise - Nil (day in Adelaide with 5 hrs travel)

For the last 6 weeks or so I have been doing a different job. We have a very large initiative on our hands - a 12 million dollar project, and a new centre to build over the next 5 years. I've been taken off line to scope it, ramp it up and get it started. So rather than being a busy director of 120 staff, I've been in a project role with no staff. And its been bliss. And its been quiet, and with much reduced meeting times and people demanding things of me. But the person who's been relieving for me had to take two weeks leave. So I'm back doing my old job for a while - and what an impact its had on my eating!

I'd forgotten that when I lost all my weight before, how much the job (which was new then) had helped. I simply dont have time to eat. I rush from one meeting to the next (actually if I was moving around I could probably grab something in between, but as they come to me, they just pile in one after another), and before I know it the mornings gone and my mid morning meals have been lost in the rush. Its budget time and I'm under extra pressure so food just doesn't rate. I know this is bad. I know that this is probably what is causing me weight maintenance problems now - that I didn't eat enough when I lost it the first time and its played havoc with my metabolism. And to make matters worse - I eat so few calories that everyday I've been able to afford my favourite treat: a Giant Twin icecream, at the end of the day. (Yes I know, its my choice) But I'm still under my calorie allowance. And this is certainly not clean eating!
I have had three very long days with evening meetings, breakfast meetings and long travel at each end, which as made being prepared very difficult as I've just fallen into bed each night and got up early to leave again. Hopefully the next few days will be a bit saner.

On a more positive front, whilst we are talking about food, I have finally managed to develop a liking for cottage cheese. I've only been trying on and off for the last 2 years, and on the weekend I tried Premium biscuits with cottage cheese and grapes - and loved them. They are my new favourite snack - despite my family ribbing me about the sliced grapes on top! I also made two recipes from Tosca's Clean Eating mag - which I loved- especially the Strawberry and spinach salad. So there area some wins on the food front as well as losses.

By the way - You'll notice that there's no weight training in my logs. I have finished Jillian Michaels Making the Cut program, and whilst trying to shake my weight plateau, I decided to give myself a week off of the weights and just focus on cardio. I'm now trying to decide what to do next - I could:

• Redo - Jillian's program - but instead of doing 1 set of all the circuits - do 2
• Have another go at the Ultra Fit program by Cindy ??? which has a lot of plyometrics - possibly more than Jillians. I tried this once before but found it too hard - maybe I'm better prepared for it now?
• Or do another 3 month block of straight weight training (ie low reps, high weights).

I wouldn't mind doing the last option, but I'm conscious of the fact that I'm in a weight loss challenge, so building muscle at the moment might not be my best choice - maybe I should keep more of a plyometric focus as it has the cardio benefits for fat loss?

What do you think?