Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Blogger Challenge #2: Positivity

So this weeks challenge is to look at what are you actually TAKING up? What are you giving yourself? Are you learning something new? Taking up a new sport? Giving yourself a social life? 

An interesting take on the 12wbt - normally people are so focussed on what they are missing out on.

The biggest thing for me is ME. I'm taking time out for myself. Sounds superficial and selfish, but I love the times where the dog (& sometimes the cat) and I jog down the hill in preparation for my run/walk at the bottom. I love putting the music in my ears and leaving the hub in charge of teeth, story and bed. I come back in to the house just as the hub is saying goodnight to the cherubs, and I can give them a quick kiss goodnight myself.

I'm taking up running! Who would have thought that this chubby, unfit, unhealthy (old)me would be running??? Holy moly! I can run. And for 2 minutes at a time. It surprises me every time I get to the end of the 2min interval that I just ran for that long/far.  My knees are not thanking me, but they are slowly adapting to the new stresses.

I am taking up a new love of NUTRITIOUS foods. I would never have guessed that I would be happier eating a Chicken, Feta and Grape salad instead of the pizza I made for the hub and kids last night. And I was full afterwards! My nails are stronger and healthier, my hair is brighter and my digestive system is getting back into the swing of things. I'm getting my health back. Lucky me!

Want to participate in the blogging challenges? Or do you want to find more blogs running with this Blogging Challenge by 'Nutritionally Yours...' Click here: http://nutritionally-yours.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/blogger-challenge-week-2-positivity.html

Water of the gods

All week I've jumped on the scales... After my weigh in last week of 95.3 I expected that by Saturday (just gone) I'd at least be into the 94s. But no. The scales didn't drop below 95.1 ALL WEEK. In fact I was beginning to think for a while there that I would PUT ON weight this week. Thankfully that didn't happen.

After the cat brought in a mouse this morning at 4am getting us all up and out of bed (grrr) I did my WWW Wednesday (Wake, wee and weigh). 94.3! So great! I have no idea how you can lose 1kg in one day, but I'm taking it! The only thing I can think of that I did differently was that I chugged the water yesterday.

Normally I'm pretty good at drinking 3L of water a day (well since I started my health kick) but over the last week I've only been drinking 1L max. So I made a conscious effort to get the water in and yesterday drank close to 4L. Over this week I'm going to try to keep that up and drink over 3L per day. Wonder if it will make any difference?

Stats for this weigh in day:

Starting Weight (1 Jan):       106.8 kg
Last week's weight:               95.3 kg
This week's Weight:               94.3 kg

Weight lost this week:              1.0 kg
Weight lost during 12WBT:      4.5 kg
Weight lost overall:                12.5 kg  

Monday, February 27, 2012

Shopping for the 12wbt

I've just returned from the farmer's market and supermarket. My closest supermarket it 30mins away, but the produce is crap and a lot of stuff I buy there is sooo close to being out of date I've had to take a multitude of items back there in the last 3 months *sigh*

So today the kids and I trekked to our closest major centre which is about 1hr 20mins away. My parents live there and normally we venture in on a day where the kids can spend some time with the grandparents. Unfortunately both Gran and Grandpa were working today. So we all had to go shopping.

My littlest has a cold and the other one is sneezing all over the place today, so he's obviously coming down with it too. So both were in FOUL moods. The foulest of moods.

They were fine throughout the farmers' market. Awesome produce, so fresh and ALL there. I didnt have to hunt around or ask a 15 year old if they had them in. It was like shopping in heaven (or so I assume). No queues, parking at the front door and two kids that were entertained with a punnet of cherry tomatoes between them (weird I know!) My bill was exorbitant, but that was expected. I filled 4 cooler bags of fruit and vegies. YUM!

If the farmers' market was heaven, the supermarket was HELL. M screamed 3/4 of the way around the shop. I didnt have to get alot, but what I needed wasn't in the spot that I thought it should be. I was the parent that was speed-walking around the shop ignoring the glares from the other mums and dodging the 'helpful' comments from the grannies. What a nightmare. Next time I trek into town, I'm leaving the kids with Mum! Aaaaaarg.

I now have zero energy to do my Monday session tonight though :( :( I WILL do it. The scales are showing a gain so far :( :(

On a more positive note - my fridge is filled with so much goodness it practically gleams!

Saturday, February 25, 2012

10 questions as part of the 12wbt blogging challenge. I'm two weeks behind, but will hopefully participate once a week.

    Tell us a little bit about yourself.  What makes you, you? 
I am a SAHM of two kids (a boy, H, 2.5 and a girl, M, 1). My hubby, kids and I live on a farm with the nearest town 37kms away. We moved out here in late October 2011 with a view to eventually build our dream home here. I am on maternity leave from my 'real job', a Primary Teacher at the local school,  but am hoping to go back to work next year (at least part-time). This blog is an outlet for me, a way to clear my mind of all the 12wbt things running through it. I'd drive my husband batty if I spewed this amount of info at him!

    Why did you decide to do the 12WBT? 
I had seen a photo of a friend of mine from my uni days on Faceplant last year looking fabulous! She had just finished Round 3 from last year and lost 15ish kgs. I needed the 12wbt as a spur. Something to light a fire under my butt to do something. And boy has it done that!

    What are you hoping to achieve through the program?  
Weight loss... And lots of it! Hehehehehe... More of an idea about portion sizes and good nutrition. I think I could handle the exercise side of things on my own, but nutrition is where I have always fallen down.

    Why have you decided to blog about the 12WBT? 
To make myself accountable. To make myself not fall by the wayside. To also remember where I have been and where I am going. I wouldn't mind somebody reading my ramblings once in a while, but I'm not out for blogging attention/fame.

    What will be the main focus (eg, food, exercise, a bit of everything?)
ME! It will generally be about my mental, physical well-being and progress over the 12 weeks. Mostly the exercise side of things is easier to document without breaking any of the program rules, so I'll be sticking to that.

    How will you be exercising this round? Gym, home, outdoors or a mixture? 
A mixture. I have 1 (or 2) gym class(es) a week, 3 outdoors sessions and 1 home dvd session.

    What is your greatest strength that will help you? 
Commitment. I dont like to give up!

     What are you afraid of? 
Failure. Isn't everyone? Not seeing the numbers on the scale going down. Not following 100% So many things!


    What are you looking forward to the most over the next 12 weeks? 

Feeling fitter, looking better, shopping for size 14-16 instead of 18-20!

    What is your downfall? Food? Exercise? How will you overcome this? 
FOOD. Definitely. Hands down. I am a big snacker. Generally all good foods, but I graze all day. My mindset during exercise is something I battle every single day. "I'm too tired" is the main one.

     If you had to pick one word to motivate you over the next 12 weeks, what would you choose?
Success!

Friday, February 24, 2012

Owning up to it...

So I didnt end up doing anything yesterday. Instead I ate 2 squares of lindt chocolate that I really didnt want or need. I think my body was telling me it needed a break and to punish myself for not exercising I also didnt make smart choices.

So today I woke up with a renewed sense of "I can do this!" and went to my gym class and smashed out more calories than I've ever done in that class. Normally I burn about 700 cals (which is still really good!) and my highest I think was 736. Today I reached 841!!! I really pushed it. I've got a blister and a bit of a sore shoulder to prove it, but I feel great.

Can't wait to do Michelle's SSS tomorrow. (Normally I would treat Friday as my SSS and rest tomorrow, but I feel like I need to do something tomorrow.) I hope it doesn't kill me like last week's effort!

How was your day?

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Struggle Street

Stressful day...

Kids were at each other, unexpected visitors (picture house in a mess, pjs still on) and a husband that had to work late at work. It's now 8pm, just finished dinner and no workout done.

I could go out and do it in the dark... or I could sit here on the couch *sigh*

Better drag my butt out there. Hoping my motivation will appear on my pillow tomorrow xx

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

This program is working...

I think I just needed the push to get myself moving. I needed an inspiration. I saw photos on Facebook of a friend from my uni days who had lost 15+kgs with 12wbt. I joined up the next week. Didn't tell my husband or family about it until the day before I started my health kick - 1 Jan 2012. I don't know whether I was ashamed or what, but I needed the impetus and that was it. I wonder whether my friend will ever know what a huge change she has helped me to make in my life.

So the details... This week I have hit many goals. I have lost 10% of my body weight. I have lost over 10kg of weight and I've dropped a dress size. So happy. SO HAPPY! I look better and I often catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror or window and can see a huge difference. Hub says he can see some changes, but mainly in my boobs :/ I've gone from a breastfeeding, couch potato 18E to a non-breastfeeding, eating healthier, exercising 16C. Huge change. I'll take a pic of me in the same beach outfit and see if you can tell.

So today is WEDNESDAY!!! I love Wednesdays. (Well I do while I'm doing so well!)

Stats for this weigh in day:

Starting Weight (1 Jan):       106.8 kg
Last week's weight:               97.2 kg
This week's Weight:               95.3 kg

Weight lost this week:              1.9 kg
Weight lost during 12WBT:      3.5 kg
Weight lost overall:                11.5 kg  


I am so AWESOME! (I'm so proud of myself - can you tell?)

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Recuperating... of sorts

My body is still trying to recover from Saturday's Super Session. My left calf and right inner thigh muscles are starting to feel a little better. Last night I went for my Run/walk interval thing and although I can still feel the soreness it's not impinging on my ability to run./walk/complete the task at hand.

But the excuses are running rampant at the moment. I'm eating really well, and the food is just YUM, but the exercise excuses are out of control. I'm not making excuses to get out there and do it - I look forward to that! But whilst I'm running (or walking up my hill) I'm telling myself that I'm too tired or that I've just had dinner and can't walk as fast, or that I'm out of breath, have a stitch etc etc etc. Thinking back to 4 weeks ago where I was walking up my hill without stopping and I was powering up there! (Granted I wasn't doing a powerwalk/run for 20 mins beforehand).

It's very disheartening.

I'm not expecting a huge loss this week. 2 days of being away from home, missing my favourite gym class etc etc. I'm expecting a loss - just not a biggun!

Weigh in day tomorrow! Time will tell. I'm going to grab out my Mish DVDs today and do the Toning dvd. I'm getting a little tired of doing my exercise while it's dark outside!

x

Monday, February 20, 2012

DOMS

DOMS=Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

I could barely move yesterday morning when I rolled myself out of bed. So sore. Particularly my left calf and my right inside-thigh. Even today they're a bit achy. I knew that I had already had my rest day this week (Friday) so I needed to get out there and JFDI! So I did the stretch/relax workout(?) that Mish suggested for Friday. Felt so much better after getting that done. Shouldnt have left it until 7pm though! Live and learn I suppose!

I'm terrible at the diarising side of things that is required on this programme. Even as a teacher I struggled with the day-to-day diarising. So to bore you all silly I'm going to try and diarise on here. We need 2x toning sessions, 2x cardio sessions, 1x stretch session, 1x 60 second screamer (1000cal burn) and 1x rest day.

Monday: C25k Run - Cardio
Tuesday:  GYM - Toning
Wednesday: C25k Run - Cardio
Thursday: Toning @ Home
Friday: GYM - Cardio
Saturday: 60 sec screamer - Cardio/Weights
Sunday: Rest

Hmmmm.. too many cardio and no stretch/relax day. Mish tells us we should do it on a Friday so that our body is rested for the 60sec screamer. But my favourite Boxing class is on at the gym that day. We'll see how I go this week with this plan. I had a rest day last week on a Friday and it really didnt help me feel 'rested' for the saturday session. I was knackered before I even started. So i"ll make sure I get a good sleep Friday night and hopefully I can keep that Friday session!

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Out and About

Funerals are always hard work. I cry as the drop of a hat, so found it really difficult to make my way through either funeral without sobbing into a mountain of tissues. Seeing Mum so upset didn't help either. They were lovely services and Mum's family turned out in droves.

Why do we only see relatives when there is a wedding or funeral. Need to make more of an effort to see some of the older rellies.

Considering we were away from home for 2 days, I didn't/couldn't stick to the program for Thursday & Friday. I missed it! I missed knowing that the food that was going in to my body was clean, nutritious AND helping me to rid the flab. So instead, I took my cereal/breakfast with me (muesli is my new fave... yum!), made smarter choices when we were out and about, and SCOWLED at my husband for eating pizza and junk right across the table from me!

In the end we had 4 meals of fast food. Lunch and dinner for both Thursday and Friday. Lunch on thursday, my sister and I ate at the Carillion in Perth (food court) and I chose Sumo Salad (Pesto Chicken/Low Fat CHicken & Avocado) and my sister had a kebab. Dinner, the whole family went to Fast Eddy's (yuck) and I chose the healthiest thing on the menu - Chicken Teriyaki (no noodles - just veg). It was fairly average!

On Friday, I had my muesli for breakfast and lunch we were out and about again, so I had Sumo Salad again. This time I went for a South West Chicken as I knew that I wouldnt be eating snacks that day. It worked out to be about 400 cals for the regular size. Felt full all afternoon! Dinner wasnt until almost 8pm and we were eating it on the way home. I got a Turkey Sub @ Subway (without cheese or sauces/dressings) and my hub had pizza (scowl). The kids ended up having far too much junk over the two days. They'll be fed veg for the next 12 weeks to make up for it. My eldest loves potato and carbs, but the youngest thrives on veg and salads, so she didnt have a great meal last night.

Nevermind... feel so much guiltier feeding my kids that crap now. Hub can eat what he wants - his choice. *shrug*

So I'm back on track today, ready for my SSS. Rest day yesterday, so I'm all ready for today!! How was your week??

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

What a week!!!

Another fabulous week, weight wise! Lost 1.6kg. I'm taking it from the weight measure on Friday... I was 98.8kg on Friday and 97.2kg today. I can only go from my digi scales measure. I'm resisting the urge to go and weigh on my old scales.

I was hoping for a bigger loss to be perfectly honest... I've eaten really well this week and exercised like a maniac, but also it was TTOM last week and I always weigh heavier then.

Dont get me wrong - I am absolutely thrilled that I get to record a 1.6kg weight loss on the 12wbt website! Woot!


Stats for this weigh in day:

Starting Weight (1 Jan):       106.8 kg
Last week's weight:            98.8 kg
This week's Weight:            97.2 kg

Weight lost this week:           1.6 kg
Weight lost overall:               9.6 kg 


(Just 0.4kg shy of 10kg! Awesome!!!)

How did YOU do this week?

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

That one almost killed me!

Feeling so old today. Headed off to the gym as I'm going to miss my Friday session by being in Perth. The trainer called us all 'ladies' ok - I may be almost 33, but 'ladies' makes me feel so old! And I'm sure my 12wbt-er gym buddy is 10 years younger than me! Don't know how it made her feel!

But it was an awesome workout. So glad my car has cruise control. Lifting my legs to put the foot on the clutch/accelerator/brake killed my hips. The muscles from keeping my legs in the air are so sore now. Have no idea how they are going to be tomorrow! I'll be the walking wounded.

So in the end I only burned 621 cal, (which for a circuit class is not too bad) but I know I could have done better. So my personal goal is to reach at least 700 the next time I do that class. I'm either thinking I'll try the pump class on the Monday or do that one again - I'll have to see whether I can ignore the trainers' 'you can do it, ladies' comments!!

Monday, February 13, 2012

I AM awesome!

I have so many doubts... They all come rushing through my head while I'm exercising. Time with my own thoughts despite the music blaring into my ears. But then I pick up the pace, and before I know it, I'm running (not just jogging), I'm actually running! This overweight, uncoordinated, former-allergic-to-exercise girl is running! AND LOVING IT!

I am so going to do this. I rock!

Damn Tastebuds!

I have been a relatively fussy eater since I was little. I was a potato, peas and corn girl and didn't deter from this road until I was into my very late teens. I'm a much better eater now (as evidenced by my weight :/  ) But am always willing to try new things.

I love the look of the Berry Bruschetta for breakfast this morning. Pity my tastebuds found it a bit off. :( Very sad as it's on the menu for another morning this week. I found it just that little bit too bitter - like it needed a dash of sugar on top LOL. And it felt 'soggy' to me. Maybe that was because I forgot to toast the bread? DUH!

I wasnt too sure about some of the other menu items - cranberries anyone? (ew) but I've promised myself to follow the program to a tee this week. Next week I'll negotiate a few items if I need to.

Finale announcement will be made today! Desperately hoping that it will be in Perth. I don't think I'll be about to make it interstate, unless it's Sydney - and then I can coordinate to see my sister too.

My tastebuds are on notice - like it or lump it!
xxx

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Red Flag Days!

When I heard about red flag days (parties, get togethers, 'bad' days etc) I thought that the only thing that would effect me would be the playgroup morning teas (I'm not a social butterfly!). I was totally wrong.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of the 12WBT and I already have two red flag days next week. Thursday and Friday! Eeeep! I have 2 days where I'm going to be away from home, dealing with sad emotions, whilst trying to fit in exercise and eating clean. I have NO idea how I'm going about it, but I'm starting to break it down and plan now.

Exercise: Walk/run at a park. Use google maps and get out there. I will either be sans children or the hubby will be there to look after the kids. So exercise should be fine.

Food: Take lots of snacks that don't need a fridge. Sultanas, Muesli bars, vitawheats+vegemite and as a last resort, suck down the green tea like it's going out of fashion. STAY AWAY FROM FAST FOOD! That's the basic plan. Not sure how it's going to go down, but I'm hoping I'll be able to come through this relatively unscathed.

Emotions: Don't eat them - simple! Drink water... all day...

Anyone have hints or tips to share?

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Fitness Test

Today is the beginning. We needed to do a fitness test to determine what part of the 12wbt exercise program we would be doing: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Lean and Strong, Lean and Fit, or one of the running programs.

I fully expected myself to be in the beginner section - and maybe 6 weeks ago I would have been. But I'm not! Intermediate all the way baby!

Week 1
1km run: 7:09m

Push ups: 26/min (on knees)

Wall sit: 0:46

Sit ups: Stage 2

Sit & Reach: +10cm
 

1km run time: I did awesome! I ran/walked the 1km. It was on soft squishy grass that you just sank into and there was a strong wind. I amazed myself. I would have run the first 200m without stopping which is awesome for me! I'm not a fast runner and the other 12wbt-ers out ran me from the start. Totally fine with that. I'm aiming to improve my time by the next one at 4 weeks.

Push ups: Pretty good! I pushed out as many as I could as fast as I could go for the first 20 seconds or so. Then slowed down... But still more than I thought I would do!

Wall sit: So tough! And I almost gave up after 15secs. But it really is mind over matter. Next time I'm aiming for +1min.

Sit ups: Those crunches at the gym have been doing something! Got to stage 2 no worries. I dont think I'm far from stage 3 either!

Sit and reach: I think we all cheated here. Our feet were on the step, but the step was only 10cm high. This meant that our feet could extend further, putting less strain on our legs. Even still I rocked it. The husband measuring us all looked at me in amazement. I had to admit that I had been practising for 2 weeks prior! *giggle*

How did you do? Did you surprise yourself?