GOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLL

(Imagine that title in a South American football commentator's voice, please. One of my favourite sounds in sports viewing. The other is the sound of an F1 car.)

Today I got talked into several events, courtesy of a workmate who is currently training for a marathon and who is keen to get me running/training/being fit with her.

So... what are my firm goals?

1. Swing Dancing lessons - I am taking these up with Tia at the end of this month. The goal is to start taking these classes as it has been on the cards for a while.

2. Run the Mother's Day Classic. This is on Mother's Day (hence the name), and is an 8km fun run. I need to be able to run 8km easily and be at my goal weight by this date. Both are achievable, but I am a little apprehensive about getting my running up to par.

3. Run the City2Surf. Another fun run, this one is in August and is 14km.

4. Do a mini triathlon - September. More details to come on this as 2010 race details haven't come out yet so I don't know exactly what I'll be up for.

Whew! All this is going to make this year very busy. I'm also an emergency reserve on a social netball team and I am considering entering a social tennis competition.

My current training plan is focussed towards my first event. Boxing twice a week, running three times a week and dancing once a week. All up: six sessions but a mix of muscle groups being worked out.

If anyone has any tips on mixing up the training so I don't kill myself trying to do all this (I have to pick up swimming and cycling at some point too) I'd be very grateful!

Kickstart

It's been back to reality for me this week - back to work, back to boxing and back to healthier eating.

I had a bit of a backwards slide leading up to Christmas. Portion sizes grew, more junk was eaten and coffee was being consumed at an amazing rate.

Over Christmas, while I kept up with my running and also acquired a Wii Fit Plus to try and combat the lazies on rainy days, I still managed to come out the other end not feeling or looking my best.

This week has been a kickstart into this year's effort. I'm tracking my food intake again while I recalibrate my serving sizes and get used to eating the healthy stuff (again). My training is also starting to get serious now. I'm in the latter half of my running training and the increase in pace is getting almost exponential. My trainer has also demonstrated that boxing is going to ramp up quickly - the newbies have had a bit of a wake up call this week! I really need to watch my training and food carefully while I get used to this pace - just to make sure that I'm getting the right nutrition and I don't get injured.

I've had a bit of shin pain today. I'm pretty sure it's been caused by me deciding to use my old pair of runners for boxing - they were causing me shin pain when I replaced them as my runners. I'm going to swap them out next week to see if it makes a difference and give my shins a rest for the next day or so. I'm hoping it clears up quickly.

Here we go...

Oops

It's nearly summer... well, it would be if the weather decided to get warm and stay warm.

I hope it decides by the end of the month, where I head off to Canberra for a day of listening to very loud music and hanging out with a bunch of very cool people! I bought shorts today, and I'm keen on wearing them that weekend.

I'm within 3 kgs of my goal weight now. I've had quite a few ups and downs. Toward the end of September I injured my foot - which meant no running or cycling, little walking and careful boxing.

That wiped me out for three weeks... and since then I've been lazy. The weather hasn't been helping - cold and grey! I really should get back into running again, but it's been so hard to find the motivation.

It's off for this weekend anyway - I have a nasty infected blister on one of my heels thanks to some new shoes, and it's painful even when I'm barefoot, let alone with shoes on. No running possible at this stage.

I'm hoping that next week gets a little better and warmer, which will encourage me to get out there and get back into it!

Just keep Swimming, Swimming, Swimming

I was having a discussion with a colleague at work the other day. We were talking about boxing class, and how during the ab work at the end of the class the trainer called attention to the fact that the two boys were complaining, while I was dead silent.

The reason I was quiet? I knew if I so much as opened my mouth or pulled my concentration from the spot on the wall I was staring at, my legs would drop and I wouldn't be able to continue. I was that tired and worn out after a hellish class that it was all I could do to just get through the last few minutes.

I was lucky - the "stare at a single spot on the wall and concentrate on that" had worked for me in that class, but it often doesn't. he shared a secret with me - when doing tricky exercises such as a plank, he often starts counting the threads on his towel or the specks of colour on the floor, just to get himself through. I haven't tried that method yet, but it did intrigue me.

I really didn't think I ever did much of the sort apart from concentrating on a single spot somewhere, but today while cycling I surprised myself. The course I was doing has a lot of hills - some steep, some not. Some long, some short. It was on a long climb towards the end of the ride when I was tired that I caught myself singing "Just Keep Swimming" from Finding Nemo in my head.



I have to say, repeating the "just keep swimming" constantly did help, and gave me something else to concentrate on other than how shaky my legs were feeling and how I just didn't want to climb any more hills. As anyone who cycles knows - if you stop pedalling while going uphill, even for a second, you're stuffed. Getting going again is very, very hard. You'll pretty much do anything to keep yourself going... and if I have to think of a goofy Finding Nemo song, then so be it!

In other news, I'm now 1.8 kilos away from my goal weight. I had another loss this week and I am feeling pretty good about things. I'm also onto week 2 of the couch to 5k program and I think it's going to be fine.

Catch Up

Sorry about the silence, I took a break from exercise and good sense last week as I'd been feeling fatigued and had pain in my hand that was being made worse by boxing. A week off seemed like a sensible idea.

I am now feeling much better and today I bit the bullet and started the couch to 5k program. I've been meaning to do it for a long time, but I always managed to find an excuse to not start... and I also managed to put off loading the week one podcast on my shuffle.

No more - I did my first run today and I was pleased that while the week one session was not too easy. Depending on how many runs I do per week (as I also want to cycle, box, occasionally swim and then in a few months time dance as well), I'll run the sessions for either one week or two.

Weight-wise, I'm the closest to my goal weight that I have ever been. The week off led to a 200g gain, which is nothing really.

I just have to work on improving my food, which has been letting me down recently.

Spring has Sprung early

At least - I think it has. With the weather we have been having, it has definitely felt spring like.

Once again I had a tough week. A small, small gain (less that half a kilo! I'm holding out that it's muscle after the pain I went through in boxing) and more rest days than usual as I've felt quite blah.

I tried to run yesterday and managed a bit less than a k thanks to two stitches - the first I managed to walk out, but the second flared up if I so much as jogged to get across a street quickly. Instead of a run, I walked.

Today I've had pain in my Achilles tendon and a headache, so again it was nothing more than a walk. Maybe tomorrow will be third time lucky?

In brighter news, I was really happy with Boxing earlier in the week. In a silly move I'd eaten too late in the afternoon because I realised I'd forgotten to have my loading snack - normally I stop eating 2 hours before class, then stop drinking water one hour before class. This time I stopped eating one hour before class. While I spent a lot of the class feeling like my food was going to come back up, I got through everything relatively unscathed. My biggest achievement? Holding a full body plank position for a minute - right at the end of the class. It's amazing what the threat of fifty push ups (if anyone dropped) can do.

White Rabbit

I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date! A late update from me this week.

Life has gone hectic - in between my car being in the shop (again), nights out, early starts at work and so on and so forth... it has left very little time for internet.

I had a loss last week, and I've gone back to boxing and I am feeling much stronger and fitter. I think taking care not to overtrain is really paying off. I've been listening to my body and if I do feel too fatigued to exercise I take a break. I'm also trying to ensure I get enough rest days.

Onward!

Another week... and LURGY!

I was sick last week - some virus attacked me, beat me about the head and chest then ran away giggling. Bed bound for three days, I was too lethargic to do anything.

Back at work on Thursday I tried a quick walk to the shopping centre at lunch and was wheezing... things did not look good!

Come Saturday I felt much better and tried to run... bad idea. I didn't get very far before I was too out of breath to deal with it. I ended up walking the rest of my route.

Sunday I managed to complete a 26.6km cycle - rocky start but once I got into it I was powering away.

Net result last week was a gain last week. It was definitely due to being sick - when I'm sick I carb load and I eat small morsels way too often. I also rarely lose my appetite when I am sick. Even if my stomach is churning I'll still want to scoff something down!

Back to normal this week, I hope.

Update and thoughts on containers

A bit of a loss this week. I'm happy with that as I am sure I've built up some muscle. I've kicked up the training now and I am actually running - not just walking.

I also had a bit of a surprise this week - along the lines of eating food out of containers.

Most of us will have, at one point, read that as a general rule we shouldn't eat food directly out of a container - be it takeaway or the leftovers you packed for lunch. I have always been a little blase about this, but not so much any more.

During the week I found myself without a home made lunch one day, so I went to the local cafe and bought some takeaway noodles. I bought a small, which I always figured was a pretty modest serving. On this day, I decided to dump it on a plate instead of eating it out of the container... and I am glad I did.

The "modest serving" I thought was in the container was actually a mounded bowlful. it was more that I'd usually serve myself if I was making myself a meal. I had never really considered just how much portion distortion could apply to a takeaway container - especially if it's been crammed full to bursting point.

The same also applies to a container of packed lunch: in the container it can look small and insignificant, but once you put it on a plate or in a bowl you'll see how much is really there. It's not so much of an issue if you are pre-weighing what you pack (something that is pretty much required if you are counting your kilojoules), but if you're going by eye, you could be eating more than you think.

I can't wait to see just how big the salads from the local salad-bar place actually are...

Another week, another update

Last week was not so great - too much junk, not enough healthy food.

Although I did exercise, I still gained weight.

I've started attending boxing classes again (good), Monday is also going to be the start of lunch-time walks at work (good) and I'm in a walking/running distance challenge this month. I really have no excuse not to do the exercise I need, now I just have to get back into the habit of eating healthy and not eating out too much.

Back in the real (?) world

Back home, back to reality.

I am home a day late as my uncle needed to go into hospital as soon as he arrived home - and it's a good thing my aunt took him! He'd had horrible gastro and his inability to keep anything down had dehydrated him to the point where he had acute kidney failure. Luckily it was caught early enough to ensure no lasting damage and it was treated with lots of IV fluids. He's much better and back at home now.

I've had another small weight loss this week - not bad considering I haven't been counting my intake and I know I have eaten a little more than i should have! The walks that the dog demanded were definitely a help.

Now I'm back at home I need to ensure that I keep doing regular exercise - with no dog to demand a walk, motivation will be a little harder to come by.

On the plus side, being back at home means proper internet again - so I'll be able to post more rambling posts soon!

Update with a twist

Weekly update time!

I got back on track this week - while I have still been working some crazy hours and had an unusual amount of stress, I still ate (fairly) well and kept things going. Net result: A weight loss of 1.3 kg this week. This confirms my suspicion that the gain I had last week involved water retention, as that's a large loss for me, especially without my usual Wednesday boxing class.

Emotionally this week has been very up and down - there has been some very good things, and some bad. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping, so I have now purchased a few new bits and pieces to try and revamp myself a little more.

I am wondering exactly why I did buy a few of the things I ended up getting... but I am sure they will be used and worn.

I have another week and a half of house sitting, and then life is back to normal. If all goes well, I am going to have the week of the move back home off work, which will give me time to clean out my wardrobe and settle back in home without too much stress.

EOFY = evil

So, my last week was pretty crap too. (Hugs to Ness!)

EOFY meant that I was working 12-18 hour days, and on top of that, I got sick as well. I also received a couple of pieces of news that brought me down.

I gave up trying to track my food and eat well because the reduced sleep and extra stress meant that I was propping myself up with caffeine and sugar. I did try to maintain some semblance of control over what I was eating, but truth be told it was not great. There was a lot of take-away and a lot of lollies and junk.

The massive hours also left little time for exercise.

Net result: I gained 2kg. I'm hoping that most of that is retained water brought about by increased sodium intake, but I am not kidding myself: I probably did put some of that on under my own steam.

This week's focus is all about eating wholesome, healthy food. I've upped my fruit and vegie intake, and while I am still drinking some coffee I know that eating good food can only help my body get back to normal. This week I am also having a holiday from tracking food just while I get back on track.

A quick update

I am writing this from my mobile as I am without internet! Quite vexing.

This week I hit a bit of a plateau. Not surprising seeing that work has gone insane due to EOFY. Whenever things get busy, it gets that much harder to maintain a healthy diet if you don't have a fridge and freezer full of meal base items ready to go. Spending longer hours st work also makes regular exercise more difficult.

That said, I haven't done that badly. The real test will come on Monday and Tuesday... We get really under the pump and the work-supplied meals and sweet treats come out!

See you on the other side of EOFY!

It's Sunday!

Time for another update...

I had another loss this week, which I think is a good thing. I seem to be staying pretty consistent. I'm actually really happy that I have managed to keep things rolling as the past week has been quite difficult and busy, and as such it's been harder to get out and exercise. Combine that with the amount of junk food that has been doing the rounds at work and well, I think I'm very lucky to have kept going with a weight loss this week.

I am now house-sitting (with giant dog), so exercise is going to be a lot easier to come by - the dog gets quite insistent that she gets her regular walks. Thinking of taking her out a little later today.

That's all from me for now - will be typing up some more ramblings later on!

Can't vs Won't

Veruca Salt: But I don't want any old squirrel! I want a *trained* squirrel!
Mr. Salt: Very well. Mr. Wonka? How much do you want for one of these squirrels? Name your price.
Willy Wonka: Oh they're not for sale. She can't have one.
Veruca Salt: Daddy!
Willy Wonka: I'm sorry, darling. Mr. Wonka's being unreasonable.
- From Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005 version)

Spoilt movie children aside, the allure of something you cannot have is well documented. Children and teenagers in particular are well known for wanting to rebel and do those things they know they aren't allowed to do.

As we grow older, do we lose this urge? I don't think so. We may learn to control it better, we may learn to hide it more skillfully, but the draw of those things that are classed as "not allowed" is still there. There's a little Veruca Salt in everyone, waiting for the moment she is told "no"... and then she starts whispering about how it is actually what you want, how it is just fine to have what you want and hang the consequences.

Never is this more apparent than when one starts a health kick, lifestyle change or (quietly now, for this is a very dirty word) diet. All of a sudden, all of those foods that are just so delicious and were fine yesterday are taboo. The use of that one little word - can't - suddenly awakens the little Veruca Salt and gets her demanding. The cravings and feelings of deprivation can be huge! It is very common for someone to persevere, only to then cave-in at a desperate moment, and it's these moments that can cause guilt and negative feelings, making it harder to stay motivated to continue the change to a healthier lifestyle. Been there, done that.

Something I've found very interesting is that a small change in the language used and the attitude to the temptation of unhealthy food can make a huge difference to the way they are approached.

By changing the word can't into won't, it shifts the connotation of the phrase. If you think about it - what do you feel more comfortable with? "I can't have chocolate", or "I won't have chocolate". The word "can't" removes the choice from myself so the rebel kicks in. When I say "won't", I make the choice my own... which means there's no reason for Veruca to start convincing me that I should actually have it. Coupling the "won't" with the phrase "because I don't want to" then shifts the attitude. Rather than the offending food being desirable, all of a sudden it doesn't look so good any more.

Of course, if it was as simple as just saying "I won't have (insert food here)" all the time, then there'd be no issue. It doesn't always work that way... but while it won't prevent the cravings totally, I have found that it does seem to make them more controllable. I don't believe in deprivation, so I personally eat things in moderation. Nothing wrong with the odd piece of chocolate! It's just a matter of not overdoing it, and for me that's easier if I allow myself a little every now and then.

I'd be interested in hearing if this works for other people as well - the idea that just changing a little four letter word can cause such a change in the thought process is pretty cool, to me anyway.

Rainy Sunday update

This week's update - I have been doing pretty well!

I had another loss in the weight stakes (yay!) and eating well has just become easier and easier. Sweets, while still tempting, aren't causing me massive cravings like they used to... and I am getting better at just saying no.

Exercise is also becoming much easier. I'm much more motivated to go walking or running, and it felt really good to get back into boxing.

I've been happy with my progress - but the big challenge starts next week - I'll be house sitting for my aunt and taking care of her dog. The walks will be upped (for the dog), and I'll also be living alone so there won't be any support to fall back on for help in food prep and cooking. I have some plans already, many of which include pre-cooking and freezing things on the weekends, so we will see how it goes.

red's update #1

Ok...

So why am I here? I posted on my blog that I wanted to lose a bit of weight and get fit again. I'd done it before, but thanks to the rollercoaster of life I had let myself slip and I was pretty much back where I started. I'm not happy about that so I'm working to change my lifestyle for the better and keep it that way.

What are my goals?

1. Lose the weight I've put back on. I've already made some progress with this.
2. Fit into those black work pants that used to fit and the slightly too-tight skirts I just bought.
3. Work exercise into part of my daily routine - so that it's not a huge chore.
4. Change my eating habits.

All in all, I don't think the goals are too lofty. I also have a genuine interest in nutrition, exercise and the psychology of all this sort of stuff, so I like to read about it, think about it and see how it affects me. This blog should also give me a chance to post a bit on my thoughts without feeling like I'm spamming my normal blog on this topic.

That's all from me for now. More later on!