Tuesday 1 December 2009

Sent from my iPhone

Sunday 27 September 2009

Please visit new blog!

Please come see us at our new blog- we are having some "issues" with the domain address so please come to www.thefullbloomproject.blogspot.com

Please visit new blog!

Please come see us at our new blog- we are having some "issues" with the domain address so please come to www.thefullbloomproject.blogspot.com

New Blog! Come Visit!

Please come see us at our new blog- we are having some "issues" with the domain address so please come to www.thefullbloomproject.blogspot.com

Sunday 6 September 2009

New site

Okay!

Please come visit!

http://www.thefullbloomproject.com/

It's still under construction so please be patient!

xox

Saturday 22 August 2009

After a longer than planned silence...

.. I'm back!

I returned on Sunday from a wonderful trip to Brisbane to visit the Healthy Body Club girls and have a blast at Booty Camp 2009!

It was so great to see everyone and share our experiences. I felt very welcomed and left feeling like I had a whole bunch of new friends! Thanks everyone!

Special mention goes out to Chrissey who has lost an amazing amount of weight and is transforming her mind and body daily. She's a girl after my own heart in wanting to help other people to find themselves and get fit- she's signed up to do a PT course like me! Yay!

Chrissey and I have partnered up for encouragement and support and have decided that we would like to compete in a figure comp at the end of next year. That's 18 months to get our bods lean and mean! Yay for fitness friends!!

I have found myself a coach- I'm waiting to hear back from her but she has offered to coach me to the comp for little to no cost. She can see how much I want it and how dedicated I am to my goal. I am so so so excited about this!! She usually charges $800 a month for coaching... How did it come about? Well, I asked her if she thought it was feasible to try and prepare for a comp on my own with no coaching. She asked me a whole bunch of questions about why I want to do it, who I have in my "team"- as in, who are my key supporters, and what would get in the way of me achieving my goal... She must have been happy with my answers because she has said she'll take me on!

Whoop!!

Anyway... I plan to start a new blog to mark the beginning of my journey towards becoming a figure athlete...

Who's coming?!

Saturday 8 August 2009

Sexy salad!



This is my lunch today...

It is the most luxurious salad ever.. that dripping yolk, the crunch and colour of the cabbage- the naughty bursts of fetta! OOH!

I need to go take a cold shower!

;)

Thursday 6 August 2009

A great post that you should read...

Go over HERE and visit Kerryn's blog... she has just written a post about achieving things you never dreamed you could... go on! Off you go!

Monday 3 August 2009

Photos!

Not of me this time!!... lol



This is Molly with my little step sister Ally (14 y/o) who is visiting from the UK at the moment. Molly thinks she is the bee's knees and follows her around like a shadow. She even speaks like a pommy after we see her. This pic was taken while having a coffee break at Lentil as Anything after visiting the Collingwood Children's farm... aww


Add Video

No story behind this photo but I thought it was cute...





This is a butterscotch icecream cake that my mum made on Sunday... I didn't eat any of it... but had to take a picture as it looked so delicious! I have a steely resolve! lol


I haven't got a lot to post today except that I started a new weights program and already have DOMS which is a great sign! Haha! I may not be able to walk tomorrow but that aside- I feel good! I have been advised by someone in the know that I should probably be eating more calories!! (gasp!) So I am aiming for 1600-1800 per day right now as I am doing so much weight training... I'll be eating all flippin' day!

What are your ideas around nutrient timing (ie. eating carbs around your cardio workout... you still eat the carbs, just at a specific time in your routine) I have heard a few different opinions and am trying to nut out what works for me.


Not weighing in this week as it's TTOM and I know I always hold fluid- I don't need to see numbers to know I'm going in the right direction right now. Drinking gallons of water to minimise fluid held but it never seems to make a difference..


Here's my foodies today:
Pre work out: 1 banana
Post workout: 1/2 cup oats w/3 desert spoons of low fat yoghurt (I'm getting some more whey this week to add to my oats- I ran out)
Snack: 2 boiled eggs and some salad greens
Lunch: 100g grilled chicken with salad, avocado and balsamic/lemon juice dressing
Snack: small tin tuna and blanched green beans
Dinner: 100g grilled pork medallion with salad made from lettuce, green beans, roasted carrot, and roasted sweet potato Yum yum!! I may also throw some left over ricotta cheese in with it...


So much fresh and healthy food today- My body will thank me... it already is! :)


I need to do some negotiating to get my workout in tomorrow... John's at uni and I'm not sure about childcare.. hmm I'll see what I can sort out. Once I am in a good routine it will be great!


Anywhoo!

That'll do!

Saturday 1 August 2009

New gym, goals and my course...

New Gym...

I joined at my local aquatic centre/gym combo... The price is right too at only $49 a month for a full gym, pool, and les mills classes.. oh and childcare too! I have been loving Step into Life and would still promote it to anyone but our current financial situation and my need for more sessions meant I needed to make the hard call..

So I am going back to doing split upper/lower body weights training 6 times a fortnight and 4-5 cardio sessions a week... This has worked for me in the past and will work again! Last night I trained legs and back and did about 45 mins hi/lo intensity cardio. If anyone has any training tips they think might benefit me, please leave me comments!

Goals...

I would really like to be at a "healthy weight"- but moreso have a healthy bodyfat percentage by the time I compete my PT course. I know how to do it but seem to have a freak out every time my weight starts moving and I am still sitting around 81kg. I was saying to hubby last night that my first goal really is hitting the magic round number of 40kgs lost... which is 78kg. Not far away but my body likes to do things sloooooooowly! I am not about to go on a carb free diet just to get there (I know it would work) as I would put it all back on as soon as one carby food passed my lips. Plus I become the megabitch from hell when I am carb depleted.

So, here's an average day for me food wise.. you're comments are welcome...

B. 1/2 cup oats with grated apple, LSA and cinnamon or oats, LSA and yoghurt or omelette and veggies
S. skim latte and apple (sometimes a boiled egg)
L. 1/2 cup basmati rice, 1 cup beef and veggie ragu and green veggies (or similar) or a meat and salad wrap with avo
S. Orange and yoghurt or souffle omelette & cup of tea with skim milk
D. Meat and veg usually
S. camomile tea

I'm usually doing 1 hour+ of training and drinking 2-3 litres of water... The weight should be coming off faster but I guess I'll just have to hang in there! I also take a multivitamin, fish oil, chromium and l-glutamine.

My course...

It's going great guns! I was familiar with the nutrition side of things a flew through that module without any hassles... Now we are onto exercise science and it's a bit more tricky, needing to remember bones, muscles, joints etc etc... But I love a challenge!

I already have a list of people (including my mum... yipee!) who have asked me to train them once I am qualified.

That's about it from me today...

xox

Sunday 26 July 2009

Good sign...

I have been on the toilet every half an hour this morning! This is a very good sign that the weight gain was from held fluid and not from the fat coming crashing back to my thighs!

Whoop!

Went out for a really enjoyable 50 minute run this morning... I am feeling 110% better than I did yesterday!

xox

Saturday 25 July 2009

I have decided not to be negative...

Ok... I am pulling myself out of the slump... (I just realised that I am even sitting up straighter in saying that!)

I do not want to be negative...

So maybe I ate some chips... Maybe I had a square of chocolate hedgehog... Does that undo the months and months of good eating, excellent exercise and top water intake?? Does it undo the mental work I have done and make me put on the almost 40 kilos I have lost?? Will that waste away my hard earned muscles???

NO WAY!!

I am a strong woman and I have goals.. One of them is to be able to live as a confident person who is totally accepting of herself whether she is a size 10 or the size of a house. I love myself too much to fall into a hole of self-pity and loathing. Another, is to be an excellent PT- and being able to set the example of how to overcome a hurdle is one way of doing that!

So, moving forward!

This week I am back to normal life... eating well, and exercising...

Exercise plan:
Tonight: Get John to drop me approx 5km from mum's house and jog there before John's birthday dinner
Sunday: walking with workmate 1 hour
Monday: SIL cardio
Tuesday: SIL weights
Wednesday: Early morning run or ride if it's not too windy
Thursday: SIL weights
Friday: have a well earned rest- maybe take Molly out on the bike if it's not windy.

Food Plan:
Meal 1: oats with grated apple and lsa or ground almonds or eggs, sweet potato and spinach omelette
Meal 2: boiled egg and apple or yoghurt and apple or avocado on rice crackers
Meal 3: chicken/corned beef/fish and veg/salad or chicken and veg soup
Meal 4: same as meal 2
Meal 5: slow cooked casserole style something with piles of veggies
Meal 6: if hungry, Kek's paleo or souffle style sweet omelette (meals 2 and 4 could be this too)

There.. I feel so much better- ready to face the rest of the day/week etc feeling strong...

I am in contol..

;)

Feeling flat as a tack...

Not sure what to write as for the first time since I got my act together and started eating really clean and training hard I have hit a wall...

Scales went UP this week. Body fat % on my scales went down but I feel like I have gained weight this week..

:(

I haven't been as onto my food as I usually am and have ended the week with too many "treats" and not enough veggies..

It's so frustrating to KNOW what works well for me but to not be doing it.

I know that I don't do too well when I eat carbs at night... It's not a scientific thing, no research behind it, just a personal feeling. I also know that bread and wheat based products don't really work for me.. again... no research, just my own preference... I also know that it's not a good idea to go to work without planned meals when I am feeling this sad and low... or I'll do something silly like eating chips and chocolate (yes, that happened today)...

So why do I do things that don't work for me??

I am feeling very frustrated with myself right now... I need a run or something... Oh, the other thing that has been annoying me is that I haven't been for a bike ride in ages and I am meant to be training for this gigantic ride in October... that is not far away and I am so un prepared it's not funny...

:(

I'm grumpy!

Tuesday 21 July 2009

1st session!!



It was GREAT! The class (about 12 people all up) was an even mix of girls and guys, all with different stories (a couple of meat-head bodybuilders) and different reasons for being there. There was only one other person who had lost weight (15kg) and there is even a professional footballer in the class... planning for his career after football I think.


We started with basic nutrition- macronutrients/micronutrients etc... all stuff I was familiar with so I am not feeling out of my depth yet... I actually felt really good that I was the only one able to answer questions like "how many extra calories does a pregnant woman need a day?"- the answer being about 200cal (a glass of milk) and "how many for breastfeeding"- the answer being 500cals approx (an hour walking on the treddy).... I felt a bit smug...


We have been asked to keep a food diary for a week and then practice analysing each other's next Monday night... easy for me as I do this anyway... Yay!


I also was NOT the most overweight person in the room (I know I am not that overweight any more but I do have days when I feel like I stick out like a sore thumb- probably coz I hang out with a lot of very fit people).... I felt like a normal, healthy person...


:)

Sunday 19 July 2009

Thinking of a new challenge....

I am contemplating a new 12 week challenge to help kick it up a notch and get me to my goal weight...

I have to think a bit more about it... maybe 8 weeks is better...

hmmm...

Thursday 16 July 2009

The photo post

Hey again!

I have found some more pics and added them to the post below...

:)

Wednesday 15 July 2009

Photo Post: Cha cha cha cha changes!!

*Edit: I have added some pics from the very start of the challenge. I didn't realise the ones I originally posted were from the 6 week point of the challenge! Yay!

Hey all,

I hope this post works as I often have trouble with the formatting when I do photo posts.. Anywhoo! I stumbled across some old progress pics from when I started a challenge with Kerryn in October 2007 and I decided to take some more... I still have a way to go yet but I can definately see some big changes!!

Enjoy!
xo





Look how mis-aligned I was!! I still have stubborn fat around my butt and upper thighs but it will be gone in no time the way things are going!





I just can't help flexing my guns! Loving my developing shoulder muscles amd the fact that I no longer have "back boobies!" (which I used to cover up with a LOW bra strap)




Even my posture is better!

And on another exciting note, I measured my waist yesterday and I am finally into the "healthy" waist measurement range! Whoop!

Monday 13 July 2009

Weigh in!!

After a less than perfect week (a couple of dinners out this week-
Tried to make the best choices but still wasn't home cooking!) I
managed to weigh in at 80.9kg!

A bit of dedicated super healthy eating this week should see me much
closer to, if not IN the 70s next week!

Whoop!!

Sent from my iPhone

Sunday 5 July 2009

Weigh in!

Loss of 1.3!! So 81.6kg! Come on 70s!

5.6kg to go to get into healthy weight range!

Sent from my iPhone

Friday 3 July 2009

My "plateau"

This is a post I wrote for www.healthybodyclub.com.au

Many of you who have been here for a while know that I spent about a year at the same weight! Now that is a LONG plateau! It's more of a halt than a plateau but for the purposes of this post we'll call it a plateau!

Anyway, I spent ages wondering what on earth was going on?! Why was I staying at the same weight with all the exercise I was doing and the fairly healthy diet I was eating most of the time. I was challenging myself with exercise etc and it was just sitting there. So recently I decided that I really want to achieve my goals. I realised that I had become complacent and had spent too much time looking at how far I had come, patting myself on the back (which was a long way- 42kgs, then pregnant and gained, then lost 30kgs since- worth the back pat!) BUT not looking FORWARD.

Last year I got back up to 91.4kgs and managed to get down to 87-88kg where I hovered for about 6 months. So I decided to finish* what I started and get to goal as quickly as healthily possible. I then had a change in living situation and realised that the stress of the situation and the people I was living with were making it very hard to focus on my goals. I also had eczema which cleared as soon as that situation changed, but that's a side issue. Anyway, since I have a new lovely housemate who is also focused on healthy living, I have managed to drop another 6 kilos (as of last Sunday) and feel like I am really on track again.

On examining my lifestyle over the "plateau" time, I realised that there were loads of "extra" treats and snacks that I didn't bother to make a note of. My exercise was good but I wasn't varying it enough. I was training too hard but not often enough and needed to train smarter not harder. I was eating waaaay too many carbs and processed foods. Foods that my body doesn't know how to process.

I am now eating freshly prepared foods with real ingredients. I am hardly having any refined carbs and not any carbs after about lunch time other than piles of fresh veggies and salads (but mostly not for lunch either). I am totally turned off processed foods and I feel like my body is just sooooo happy! (apart from recent sickness which I guess comes from my occupation -social worker, lots of people contact, and being a mother of a 2 year old).

I am no longer making excuses and "forgetting" about those extra snacks and treats that were stalling my progress.

I think it's so much about making a decision and sticking to it. Then every choice you make from then on is either going to help or hinder you.... and if you really want it you will make the right choices.

Girls... plan plan plan, but when it comes down to it is about making one healthy choice after another and then doing it again the next time.

And there is ALWAYS a choice... YOU decide what goes into your body, YOU decide how much you want to prioritise your exercise and YOU decide how you approach the psychologial aspect of your journey.

You have to make the decision that YOU are worth the effort.

YOU ARE!

*the word finish is a flawed term when it comes to this journey, but for the purpous of my story.......

Saturday 27 June 2009

The plan works!

Just weighed in and have lost more! Whoop!! 82.9kg only 6.9 to go! But
one of my goals was just to get into the 70s and suddenly that doesn't
seem so far away!

Looking in the mirror I am starting to see definition in my upper
abdominal muscles which really excites me! The lower ones are covered
in a layer of baggy skin so I think it'll be a while before they make
an appearance!

So pleased!

Sent from my iPhone

Saturday 20 June 2009

I really really DO want to get to goal!

I need to keep telling myself this!

Recently I have had a pretty successful time with food and exercise! I have been making plans and sticking to them.. And I have lost 3 kilos in the last month which I am super pleased with! The thing that is getting me frustrated is that when I start to do really well and begin losing weight I tend to sabotage my efforts by going off plan with food. A bit of custard or ice cream here, some chips there, a delicious Grilled burger here, a choc-coconut scone there... and all of a sudden I am not being the healthy person I want to be any more!! Lucky for me all the exercise I do has stopped me from gaining any weight.

BUT!!

I know from experience that the only way I can fail at this is if I stop trying to get back on track...

So here we go again!

A PLAN!

Just one week.. no one DAY at a time!!

Food choices in the next week will come from the following list:

Breakkies:
Egg white omelette with spinach, mushies and tomatoes
Porridge
Fruit and yoghurt
Muesli and yoghurt or skim
A shake

Lunches:
Veggie soup
Salad and meat/bean wrap or sandwich on grainy bread
Leftover healthy dinner from prev. night
Grilled chicken with veggies and brown rice

Dinners:
Simple meat and low carb veggies
Soups
Casseroles

Snacks:
vita wheats or rice crackers with cottage cheese
protein bar
steamed veggies with brown rice
fruit
almonds
grilled chicken strips

One of my big problems is that I eat too much after dinner... I wouldn't be mentioning it if it was only a little low fat ice cream and fruit, but it's been a little outta control for me recently. So I have decided I am not eating after dinner any more unless we are out doing something special.. Herbal teas are just going to have to be my night time treat until I break the habit.

I have been so tempted to go back on shakes or the soup diet in preparation for starting my PT course... I must be feeling really insecure!! But have decided that I have come this far doing it the sensible way with real food.. and however long it is going to take, I need to finish it the same way.

Anywhoo.. better go do some work!

xo

Thursday 11 June 2009

You know things are getting serious when things like this start popping up!!

Saturday 6 June 2009

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...

This week I have felt a little blahhhh....

I think it was pms. I have been flat and a bit sad and generally not very nice to be around. I have eaten things I didn't really want and haven't done much cardio.

Today is slightly better and I feel a bit less crappy about myself.. I have spent the week thinking about starting this PT course and feeling like I am going to feel SO fat compared to the other pts-to-be. I know this is completely ridiculous as (like my trainer told me) there are plenty of other trainers out there who are bigger than me and have only half the fitness I do... but it's not about what you look like it's about how good you are at training people. She told me I am a people person and am good at motivating people. She also reminded me that I have come a long way and have a great story to share with people about how to set goals and achieve them.

I felt a bit better after that.

I tried to go to training this morning. I got up at 6am and got dressed. I picked up my keys and as I was about to walk out the door I heard a huge crash, John yell "SHIT!" and Molly start screaming... I didn't know what I was going to find when I ran out... She was ok in the end but fell off a tall swivel chair she had climbed up onto (trying to hang her jacket on it like daddy does) and smashed her chin on the stone benchtop on her way to the floor. The poor little thing was beside herself and needed me to hang around and have a slightly less hectic morning than was originally planned. So I drove them to where they were going instead of them having to catch the train... but I missed my session. I am thinking of looking up a class at one of the local gyms and giving it a go tonight.

When it gets cold like this I start to wish I had a gym membership. I love training outdoors in the morning but I am a bit limited when I need to train at night or on my own. Thinking of finding the cheapest (but not the nastiest) local gym option so I can have a plan B for days like today.

Food today has been OK but not amazingly good...
B. Skim latte 1/2 mediteranian roll and a scone (B. delight)
S. Skim latte(#2... I needed it!) and an apple
L. 3 wholegrain Ryvitas with grilled chicken breast and 1/3 of an avocado
S. 2 small mandarines and 3 dates (and a sip of a strawberry rtd protein shake which was thrown out after several gelatenous lumps made their way into my mouth... I did shake it!!)
D. Chicken and vegetable soup

Water... about 2 litres.

Thinking a spin class would be fun.. I wonder if there are any free gym passes on the internet!? To Google I go!

Sunday 31 May 2009

Sri chinmoy 4km- before the run!

I'm going to be a Personal Trainer by September!

How excitement!

I start in July with Fitnation 2 nights a week from 6 till 10pm... It's going to be an exhausting 16 weeks but worth it!

Yay!

Any potential clients??

:)

Friday 29 May 2009

Testing email blogging

Did it work?

Sent from my iPhone

Monday 25 May 2009

My day... hmph!

Hey all,

Sorry to be a downer but today I just feel so crap! I knew last night when I wanted to go to bed at 8pm that I was coming down with something... AGAIN! I just seem to get everything that goes around recently which doesn't make sense to me as I have spent so much time and energy getting my diet to a level that I assumed would help my general immunity AND I had a flu shot which I thought might help.. but nope!

My ears are all foggy and my throat is on fire and I'm just really annoyed today. John's at uni and I need to find some fun things for Molly to do today otherwise she will just start climbing the walls...Hmm... maybe getting out to the shops or the park would be good for both of us.

But there is SO much to do around the house (as there is after every weekend when I am at work) sweeping, vac**ing, mopping, dishes, laundry, bedroom tidying etc etc etc and I just don't have the energy but can't stand being in chaos so I will do it all..

later...

I've been doing the housework bit by bit... I currently have a clean kitchen and mopped floor (apart from a few pots to wash), and I have a tidy living room.

I have been quite tempted to eat things that aren't good body fuel today. It's funny that those old thoughts come back when I'm feeling a little blue. I even said to Molly that we'd get some chips to share while we were at the shopping centre earlier but we talked it through together (she's only 2 and a half but has great insight) and decided that we would go get hot drinks instead as the chips might make mummy feel even more sick as they aren't a healthy food for our bodies..

So I ended up having a chicken, avo and salad wrap and Molly had a tuna sushi. We followed it up with coffee for me and a babycino for Molly and we were all satisfied.

So now she's asleep and I am having some me-time. About to go make a cup of tea and may close my own eyes for a powernap before she wakes up.. I really do have it easy with Molly though. She's so easygoing and understanding. She keeps trying to do things to cheer me up and saying "do you feel better now mummy?" Cute!

Saturday 23 May 2009

Yummy protein!

I have devised a very sneaky way to make a delicious meal packed with protein.


Grill these... (Chevups)

Chop them into pieces and add this...

Simmer until sausage is cooked through and serve with the grain of your choice or if you're going light on the carbs it tastes great mixed through a salad or on top of a big pile of cauliflower and brocolli.. Yum! That's what I'm having for lunch today!

Thursday 21 May 2009

Move your body every every body!

Now that's just rediculous!!! Someone's got a little too much spare time me thinks!



This week... with the aim not being to become big barry biceps pictured above, but lean fit and strong! (without the use of illicit substances... not that I'm accusing anyone! ahem!)


Monday: 3 hours of cycling

Tuesday: Weights

Wednesday: Swim 45 mins

Thursday: Weights + community fitball class

Friday: Bike ride, walk or jog

Saturday: Weights

Sunday: Bike ride 1 hour
I'll be back later with some more in depth thoughts.... hmmm... let me think!

Tuesday 19 May 2009

Get back in the groove!

I have been so on top of my eating over the last month. I think having an injury made me step up to the plate and eat more high quality foods and less junk/calories as I knew I wasn't burning as much with little to no cardio.

Anywhoo, I'm back on the cardio wagon. I did 3 hours of cycling yesterday! But with the cardio comes more hunger! So my challenge for this week is to focus on good quality high protein snacks (particularly in the 2nd half of each day) so I don't have an all out sugar binge after dinner.

Today's food looks like this:

B. 1 egg and 3 white omelette with spinach, fetta and bacon
S. mango smoothie
L. Ham, cheese and tomato on wholemeal bread
S. tuna
D. Mayra's cooking- not sure but usually healthy!

I am also going to try not having anything after dinner as it is a destructive habit I have been in. If I really want something I can have tea or a Jarrah chocolatte.

Had a lovely brunch with Linda, Brookie and Cat on Sunday which began with a stroll around the Tan. A lovely way to start the day! Thanks ladies!

Thursday 14 May 2009

A pain in the...

... left foot! The "other" foot from my previous ankle injury... My self-diagnosis is that in limping around for so long on the right ankle, the left one has been under too much pressure and has spit the dummy. That is a medical term... look it up!

Anyway!! Sore feet and all, I got out of bed at 5:30 this morning and did my second weights session for the week. After a tough session on Tuesday night I was feeling pretty weak this morning! I have another weights session on Saturday in which I will probably feel just as sore. I just have to keep remembering that sore is GOOD as it means the muscles will have to re-build themselves bigger and stronger!

John and I were admiring my newly uncovered biceps last night and that was enough incentive to keep doing it! I can actually do proper push-ups now! Well, about 11 and then I have to drop to my knees, but a few months ago I couldn't do 1!

So even without all the intense cardio I have still managed to lose more weight this week. Only 300g but it is surely better than nothing! I am now 84kg on the button and looking forward to seeing the 83s. I was actually a bit surprised with my loss this week as I have had a pretty slack time with food. Oh well, I won't complain!

I have yummy breakfasts planned for this week! I got inspired in the supermarket last night when I saw Carman's bircher muesli on sale for $4.oo. I grabbed a box and a litre of organic fat free natural yoghurt, mixed it all together with grated apple and I have enough breakfasty-type-food to sink a battle ship! It really makes a lot and it just gets better with age in the fridge (not too long!). I also got some wholegrain english muffins and ABC butter (almond, cashew, brazil). Molly loves it and it has nothing yukky added to it. MMMM!

Anyway, that's enough from me today! Hope you're all doing well.

FYI (and my accountability)- My food diary
B. Bircher muesli
S. 1 english muffin with ABC butter
L. Beef and veggie soup, 1 apple and a skim latte
S. Tuna and beans thingy
D. Grilled fish with steamed broccoli, cauli, carrot, pumpkin
S. Jarrah chocolatte (and apple if hungry)

Exercise: Weights 50 min circuit + warm up and stretching
H20: 2 litres

Friday 8 May 2009

Just had to post this cute pic of Molly...


Here it is!! It's short!





My new hair...

I'm just waiting for my photos to copy from my camera to my computer... ho hum.... Will be back soon with pics of my lopped locks!

Thursday 7 May 2009

OH MY FREAKING FREAK!



I just registered for Around the Bay in a Day 2009!!!


For those who don't know this is a massive bike ride held on October 18th this year. I have entered the 210km option going from Melbourne to Sorrento and back.
FREAK OUT!!!!
I'm ok... I'm ok...
On a side note, I cut a lot of my hair off today.. It's now a nice bob thingy! I'll take a pic soon!

Tuesday 5 May 2009

Food and love

Yes Ani, my day of food did turn out to be all I was hoping for! I needed to make a couple of adjustments due to time constraints (and other factors) so this is how my day of food turned out:

b. scrambled eggs (1 yolk and lots-o-whites) and was going to have toast but went to the freezer and the rest of the family must've thought toast was a good idea too so no bread! Had a very small bowl of muesli with skim milk as well as I am a hell of a nasty pasty if I don't have some form of carbs in the morning.

s. apple and yoghurt

l. was going to have tuna salad but ended up running late for a course I was doing today so I bought lunch from a sandwich bar... I got a chicken and mega-huge-colourful salad wrap and only ate half the pita. 1/2 a coffee... didn't feel like it so threw it out.

s. tuna and 3 tsp yoghurt

d. chicken and steamed broccoli, cauli, brussel sprouts and pumpkin

s. this is the only thing I shouldn't really have had today... some custard (delicious very thick gourmet custard in the purple tub) I had about half a cup... worth every calorie!

I took my mum's dog out for a brisk 45 min walk this evening and smiled at all the other dog walkers. One guy even stopped to talk to mum's dog and said "hello Buffy"... He knew my mum's dog from the park! She's famous apparently!

To answer a question left in my comments section I met my husband at a church camp when I was 14 and he was 17. I fell in love with him right there but we didn't get together for three years after that.

Monday 4 May 2009

Tomorrow.. delicious and nutritious!

Today's food, while within my calories, did not go to plan. I had a training day where lunch was provided and I ended up carb loading without meaning to. (I did do an hour long boxing session and a half an hour walk but I don't like eating up my exercise burnt calories!!)

So I thought I'd have a good think about what to have tomorrow to even things up.

Here goes;

B. 2 poached eggs on toast
S. 1 tub jalna yoghurt, 1 apple and peppermint tea
L. Tuna salad with avocado
S. 4 meatballs and peppermint tea
D. Roast chicken and steamed veggies
S. If I really want a sweet thing I'll have a jarrah chocolatte


YUMMM!!! Love the thought of tomorrow's food... love the thought of size 12 jeans!

The last couple of days of semi-unplanned eating have me worried that my next weigh-in may not be as spectacular as I'd like... My weekends at work are something I need to work on as far as sticking to a plan goes as my workmate is a very go-with-the-flow type of eater and I often have 5 hour breaks between breakky and lunch and then eat too much in the afternoon.

We'll have to wait and see if I can correct the possible damage done before weigh in...

:)

Sunday 3 May 2009

Answer to Bee's question on the Gabriel Method

I have nothing but positive things to say about it! I am using the visualisation CD and find myself saying things to myself during the day like "I run like a child at play"... just out of nowhere it pops into my head and makes training more fun..


I am also finding that I am not thinking about food as much and like the CD suggests "food is just there". I am craving nurticious fresh and healthy foods and my body feels great.
I am sure about the idea that you stop craving junk when your body is properly nourished.
Hope that helps!

Things you wanted to know...

What did you have for dinner last night?

Last night I was at my sister in law's for dinner. She made healthy pita breat pizzas and I ate till I had enough... mmmm!


What is your one vice?

I can't say I have many vices... although I love really really good ice cream. I'm happy to say "no thanks" to crappy ice cream but if someone offers me something really good (like the gelato shop near Lygon t in Carlton... droool!) I have a hard time saying no. I also love Jalna yoghurts.


Do you think you've grown your hair much longer? I got a shock when I saw how long it was! :)

Yes... te hee! I'm getting sick of it though... It's hard work!


Oh, and come on - you owe me a Gabriel Method answer from a question I posted ages ago!!!

I'll have to go review old posts and comments about this and get back to you... Sorry! I'm not a very good comment replying person.

Edit: I have nothing but positive things to say about it! I am using the visualisation CD and find myself saying things to myself during the day like "I run like a child at play"... just out of nowhere it pops into my head and makes training more fun..
I am also finding that I am not thinking about food as much and like the CD suggests "food is just there". I am craving nurticious fresh and healthy foods and my body feels great.I am sure about the idea that you stop craving junk when your body is properly nourished.Hope that helps!

ASK ME MORE!

This is fun!

Saturday 2 May 2009

Ask me anything....

I did this on my old Healthy Ashwee blog and I think it's time to do it again!

Ask me anything and I'll answer as honestly as I can!

Go on! It's fun!

A yummy thing...

Today for lunch I had a Mexican wrap from Healthy Habits. It was so delicious I just had to share it and I'll probably replicate it at home.

It had;
1 medium pita bread
1 tbs guacamole
1 tbs salsa
1 tbs low fat sour cream
100g (ish) shaved chicken breast

It was supposed to have crumbed chicken strips but I asked for shaved chicken breast instead. It was like a nacho in a wrap (minus the corn chips!). It was delicious!

Friday 1 May 2009

It's been a tough week and a bit...

... I haven't been able to exercise since I hurt myself.. well, I have kind of exercised by doing upper body toning work and core strengthening exercises at home however I am pining for my Step into Life sessions...

I am back tomorrow morning. A 7am toning session. I am going to give my muscles the shock of their lives!

I managed to lose another 200g in the last week bringing my total loss for the last fortnight to 1.9kgs! This is a much better result than I have had in recent months and I am determined for it to keep happening!

I am now 84.3kg.. the lowest weight I have been since before Molly was born... I am very pleased with this!

My nutrition plan is still consisting of 5 meals a day as follows (example only);
1: (carbs and protein) porridge, fruit and low fat jalna yoghurt with whey
2: (carbs and protein) tuna and apple (and a skim latte usually)
3: (carbs and protein) wholemeal pita with poached chicken and salad and wholegrain mustard dressing (mmm!)
4: (protein only) cottage cheese/protein bar/shake/low fat meatballs
5: (protein and veggies) chicken casserole with steamed broccoli, cauliflower and green beans

This is keeping me so so so full! I am expecting another good loss next week.

I'm off to have a peppermint tea and go to bed!

:)

Friday 24 April 2009

:(

I've hurt my ankle again.. Netball... hmmm :(

I'll be back to post properly soon....

On a brighter note I dropped 1.7kg in the past week! That menu plan is working!

Sunday 19 April 2009

What does your shopping list look like??

Do you like analysing people shopping baskets as much as I do?? Not passing judgement... I just find it interesting what people choose to spend their money on.

I have spent the last 15 minutes planning my menu for the week and writing my shopping list and thought I might share it. If you don't really like reading blogs about what people eat/buy then I'll see you next post! *wave*

Here's my plan for this week (inspired by Ajay's food plan on HBC):

Breakfasts:
- egg white omelette with mushies, tomato and spinach
- poached eggs on 1 slice grainy toast
- porridge with berries
- berry and skim milk smoothie and a piece of grainy toast w/avocado

Morning tea options:
- apple and a small tin of tuna
- boiled egg
- salmon on 2 vita wheats
- smoothie w/ whey protein
- light cheese and 8 rice crackers

Lunches:
- turkey and salad sandwich
- egg white omelette w/ salad
- tuna or salmon salad
- grilled chicken breast and salad (or in a wrap)
- veggie soup with chicken or beans

Arvo snack options (no carbs):
- tin tuna
- 3 boiled egg whites
- handful raw nuts
- turkey
- ham
- salmon
- protein shake or bar
- lite cheese

Dinners:
- omelette and salad
- grilled fish/steak/chicken and steamed veg
- chicken/beef/tofu with stirfry asian veggies
- warm chicken salad
- thai beef salad
- chicken and vegetable soup

I'm trying to minimise carbs in the afternoon/evening as I want to get out of the habit of having a sweet thing after dinner each night... plus I don't need all that sugar sitting around all night waiting to jump on my thighs while I'm not watching.

Just wanted to say a big embarrassed thank you to Philippa for saying such nice things about me over at Skinny Latte Strikes Back

Big hugs!

Ash

Saturday 18 April 2009

Double-up!

... no not the yoghurt and muesli treat made by a dairy company whose name is a winter sporting activity...

Double-up is what I did this morning at training. After a few days away I wanted to catch up on my training and decided to do 2 sessions this morning. Cardio and toning!! That's 2 hours of exercise with a small stretching break in the middle and at the end. I am feeling so great now for doing it and I actually coped surprisingly well!

Cardio this morning included running up a big hill at 60% effort, running back down, running up again at 80%, back down again, up again at 100% and down again. We then repeated that with side steps, backwards running (no one fell over) and travelling lunges. In between these sets we were divided into a fast team and a slow team and we had to run a lap of the park in a line while passing a ball over head down the line and when the ball reached the back, that person ran to the front of the queue... and so on... did I explain that ok?

In toning we used mats, fitballs and free weights (My heavy and light weights went up one kilo this week) and I think I worked harder than I have in a long time. It was great feeling so warm after doing cardio and just being able to launch straight into it while the others were just waking up. I think I might do the double session every week! We'll see how we go...

This week's food has been ok considering we were away on holidays. All main meals were good (eg. spaghetti, meat and salad wraps, healthy burgers, risotto, Lentil and veggie soup) but I really was quite relaxed about the extra things like coffees, biscuits and left over choccies from easter.. I guess it's only easter once a year and I have done a good amount of exercise to compensate. While we were away we did lots of beach walking, stair climbing and I even got in some pushups, squats and lunges... Enough to be sore!

Yesterday I sat down and wrote in my food diary at the end of the day and realised that I had no other protein aside from the lentils in my soupy dinner which led to a bikkie binge (4 nice biscuits) at about 4pm. So today I made muself a banana and whey smoothie for breakky, had a chicken and salad wrap for lunch (plus some blueberry doughnut which we wont talk about too much) and am planning a chicken and rainbow veggie stirfry for dinner... yum! i might have some yoghurt and fruit after dinner too.

That'll do from me! I'll be back!

Monday 13 April 2009

Taking a little break...

Just waving goodbye for a few days as we head up the Great Ocean Road for a few days of relaxation!

*wave*

Saturday 11 April 2009

Shift the focus...

I have been thinking recently about "dieting" and all the things that go along with it....

From my experience, a diet has been a set of rules around what I am NOT allowed to eat, eg. Don't eat too much, Don't drink soft drinks, Don't eat too much fat, Don't have too many carbs, Don't eat processed foods, Don't drink alcohol, Don't eat sugary foods, Don't add sugar to tea, in face Don't drink tea or coffee!!

Why don't you just develop a taste for air?? It's cheap and tastes fairly neutral so I'm sure you'll get used to it..

Hang on... something's not sounding right here!

So... this morning's ramble is about ADDING things to your "diet" (diet meaning your nutition). It's time to focus on more that what NOT to eat!

This week, I will be (and I challenge you to) ensuring that in each day I am getting enough of the following three things;

1. Omega three fatty acids... Hardly any of us get enough. On the days I don't EAT enough I will be supplementing with fish oil capsules. Omega threes do all sorts of amazing things including helping your body burn fat! Yes, eat fat to burn fat! But it must be the right type!

2. Protein... I am doing a lot of strength work at the moment and need protein that will easily assimilate into my cells to help my muscles recover and repair. Whey protein is the best for this. I found a whey with no flavour (Aussie Bodies Natural) so I can add it to savoury dishes as well as sweet and make it into fruit smoothies for an in-between snack. Protein also keeps you full for longer.

3. LIVE foods... particularly leafy greens and deep green veggies like broccoli. These foods contain live enzymes which help your digest foods. They also contain clorophyl and will fill you up so you can increase the size of your meal greatly without adding lots of calories. Mind games mind games! Your body KNOWS how to process these foods so you'll be happy happy happy on the inside!!

So there is the challenge. I guarantee you and I wont have heaps more room for junky things in our day if we make sure we are getting enough of these things.

Let me know what you think and how you go if you choose to try... go on!!



My food yesterday:
(not great- but part of my easter treats and I did 1 hour of hard (read: excruciating) cardio today to make up for it!)

B. 2 x french toast made with capeseed loaf and 1.5 eggs (2tbs whey added to the egg mix with NO change in flavour) skim latte

S. 1 hot cross bun

L. Strawberry skim milk shake, 1 slice cape seed loaf with avocado and light cream cheese

D. Small bowl of tuna and veggie macaroni, 1 scoop low fat icecream

S. 1 hot cross bun... oh come on.. it was good friday!

Thursday 9 April 2009

Because I want to be the best me....

Something has happened over the last couple of days.

Something has changed and I think it's going to be really good for me. For my mental health as well as my physical health.

I have realised that I am too heavy... okay, well, I knew that. However I have always looked at my weight as a number on the scale and as a gauge of whether I am OK or NOT OK.. That sounds harsh, but it is true. It was all wrapped up in body image, feelings of self worth and whether I felt ugly or pretty. Don't get me wrong. I don't think being overweight is ugly. Deep down I know I'm beautiful, but these things just come into your head sometimes.

ANYWAY! So I am feeling pretty good about my life right now. I am not feeling any sense that I am not worthy, not gorgeous or not OK. But I am too heavy...

I am too heavy to be the best runner and athlete that I can be

Woh! I never ever thought I would consider myself an athlete! But I am heading that way and I do not want to let a few kilos weigh me down. I have been thinking about how much happier my body and knees would have been on Sunday if I hadn't run 14kms with 10-15 extra kilos on my body. I crave feeling light and bouncy!! (Not that type of bouncy!)

So... what do I need to do to get light?!!

I know exactly what I need to do...

eat CLEAN! eat ENOUGH! eat RIGHT! And train SENSIBLY!

I will be putting my food diary on here more regularly and giving more in-depth analysis on here as to how it's all going for me.

There is no magic number on the scale. I know I carry a lot of muscle so I will never be as light as those chicks who don't weight train, however somewhere from 70-75kgs works right for me... Or about a size 12. I am going to enjoy a sensible amount of chocolate over easter (a medium sized fair trade egg) but after that the treats are out for a while. Not going to set a time limit. I just need to get back in the habit of eating real foods all the time!!

So Stay tuned!

Food today:
B. 2 slices wholemeal toast with 2 eggs and a soy latte.
1/2 litre water
S. 3 tbs natural fat free yoghurt with whey protein and 1 tsp honey. 1/2 slice capeseed loaf
L. Grilled fish with salad, 1 slice capeseed loaf.
2 litres of water
S. Small smoothie w/ soy, banana, whey protein
D. Grilled mustard chicken w/ mashed sweet potato, piles of broccoli and green beans

Sunday 5 April 2009

A couple of pics from the run today

Here I am obviously thrilled with my result... This pic was taken for the Step into life newsletter as my trainer has made me member of the month!

Mayra and I loving ourselves sick!


Big girls CAN run!

Okay, well I'm not THAT big any more however I am not your run of the mill athletic type. I have big strong muscles and curves in all the right places.

That aside, today I ran 14.1km (although I think it was a few hundred metres longer but that's a side issue) in 1:48:38. I am stoked with this time!

In 2006 when I was apparently at my fittest (and 10 kilos lighter than I am now) I completed run for the kids in 1:55:26. I was only able to run for about 10km of the whole course and I needed frequent walking breaks.

This year Mayra and I jogged the whole thing, only stopping for a few steps at each drink station. I felt so amazing sprinting accross that line after being able to achieve a goal I had set myself.

What's next??

The Run Melbourne Half Marathon (21km)!!

Tuesday 31 March 2009

Muscles!

I have been getting myself a little depressed recently as my flabby arms are always the last thing to shrink when I get fit. Even today, I was walking through my local mega shopping complex, catching my reflection in shop windows and feeling like I had 2 hams hanging from my shoulder sockets. That said, the difference between now and before I started weight training/boxing etc is that when I flex the muscles in my upper arms you can actually see them! They may be under a layer of fat, but they are there and probably bigger than ever! I love running my hand over the outside of my arms and feeling the definition and I love feeling strong and powerful. I am looking forward to taking off my veil of fat and letting the world see my fully carved biceps and triceps.

I completed 2 of my tasks today. I put some gorgeous Raco pots and pans on layby. I got $500 worth for $199!! Bargain shopper!! And we started getting the car organised for repair.

I thought of 4 other things I need to get done this week though.

1) Call Office Works to see if we can do a Bushfire Appeal sausage sizzle out the front.

2) Call Chocolateir (spelling??) to see if they are selling Fair Trade easter eggs this year. We got some last year for $5 each.

3) Use some Fair Trade chocolate to make our own easter egg gifts for our friends and family.

4) Make a new playlist for my mp3 player to make my Run for the Kids experience a little easier.

I played netball tonight which brings me to 4 exercise sessions this week (including Sunday). I am going to rest tomorrow and do toning on Thursday (easy on the legs), Cardio Saturday (taking it easy all over!) and the 14.2km run for the kids on Sunday. I am going to try and run/jog the whole thing but if I need a walk break up the bridge I wont hate myself for it. A couple of weeks ago I ran 12.35km without dying so I should be able to manage it. Most of it is fairly flat apart from the bridge and tunnel. I plan to keep up the running as I intend to do the 21km half marathon as part of the Melbourne Marathon. Sunday will be a good chance to see how my legs pull up.

Looking forward to carb loading on Saturday night as I made a yummy recipe from Kek's blog last night and it was so good I wanna do it again. It was creamy chicken and bacon fettucini (creamy with light philly!). mmmm! So many veggies and so little fat!! I made satay mince with mash and green veggies tonight. It was really tasty. I have been enjoying food so much recently. Fresh ingredients are tasting particularly great so I have been having a lot of salads/ salad wraps/ salad sandwiches etc etc.. And fruit, lots of yummy seasonal fruit like pears! Oh the pears are heaven aren't they!?

Tomorrow night is the blogger dinner at Southbank. I'm really looking forward to it! It's been too long!

Hope you're all having a nice day/night... whatever!

:)

Sunday 29 March 2009

Things to do...

I am notorious for having great ideas but not following through, so I thought I'd write down a few of those things that are on my list of things to do and do them in the coming week..

- Put new set of pots and pans on layby

- Get car looked at (had a bingle yesterday and need to work out what to do- wasn't our fault thank goodness!)

- Bake another few lots of hot cross buns for friends and family

- Bake a loaf of rye bread

- Buy a new pair of jeans

- Finish letter to Philippa

- Find a cute new pair of shoes to wear on Wednesday night for dinner with the blogger chicks



There we go... Those are manageable but I can't believe how I have put off most of those things! They are things I actually enjoy doing (shopping, baking and writing) however I have not really been that motivated to do much recently. Not sure why, it's just the way it is at the moment. But if I have some goals then I can focus on them and move forward. I could probably do most of these things in one day really depending on how organised I am.

This morning I went running (last running group :(..) around docklands and southbank and it was so nice to run in the fresh air as the sun was coming up. The city was surprisingly quiet and I ran at a comfortable pace for an hour. We all went and had some breakfast and coffee afterwards and it was just so nice. I will miss my running group. I wonder if any of them would like to continue on Sunday mornings. I will definately keep the habit of exercising on Sunday mornings up as it is a great way to start/end the week.

I had a bucket of hot chips today. I really really felt like them. I never really eat chips.. Maybe one or 2 at mums if they get chicken and chips but I usually don't want them- they always seem to get stuck in my throat and are all claggy.. but today I enjoyed them so much. I don't know if I was craving salt or starch but they did the trick. It was so nice to want something like that, and decide to have it and for it to just really hit the spot.. mmmm! I don't really get any cravings these days. My mind rarely dwells on food like it used to. In the old days, I rarely didn't think of food. It was always either thinking about what I should or shouldn't eat or what I had just eaten or wanted to eat. Now I generally think about food when I get hungry and then I see what we have and try to make the best choice with the options available. It's become as un-complicated as that. What a freeing feeling!

I haven't mentioned that I am totally decaffinated! It took 7 days of headaches and tiredness but I'm back and it feels good. So it's all about the herbal teas and water now and I feel quite cleansed. I just felt that my body was not doing what it should and it was probably due to the large amounts of chemicals I was putting into it with my un-quenchable diet coke habit. So it's gone from my life now and it's really exciting. I am sleeping so so so much better and waking up feeling like I hve actually rested my bod properly! I have the occassional decaf skim latte but that's more of a ritualistic/nice thing to do with the boy type thing.

That's all for now.. I'm feeling very bloggy today.. tee-hee!

Saturday 28 March 2009

Boot camp torture...

Ok.. well, it wasn't that bad.

No.. it really was.. it WAS torture!

But it was the kind of torture I like (I like it in retrospect, at the time all I feel is hate). Right now, I can feel every muscle I used this morning and it is now 5pm! I'm still tingling from such a hard workout.

Saturday morning cardio training is usually a 1 hour circuit or a road run which is still a decent workout but nowhere near what Tess, our trainer had planned for us this morning. I got worried when there were only a couple of witches hats out in the park as a circuit has lots of stations and a road run doesn't need hats. Then I bacame more worried when Tess said "I have an idea, I have made something up for you all".... gulp!

She then led us through a warm up and stretches. This is what happened next.... a non-stop, no break, 50 minute boot camp style workout consisting of the following;
-sprint 50m, butt kicks back
-sprint 50m, high knees back
-travelling lunges with upper body twist 50m, run back
-plank hold 15secs, plank with alternating knees to chest, mountain climbers, pushups
-run round the park
-side to side and touch the ground 20 reps
-lunge hold 30 secs each leg

REPEAT 3 MORE TIMES!

It was fantastic! Horrible, but fantastic!

I looked in my rear vision mirror when I got back into my car and the Nike phrase "Run yourself ugly" popped into my head... good job!

Sunday 15 March 2009

WANTED: FAMILY SIZED FRIDGE!

If anyone can help me out, I'm not wanting to spend much but we need a bigger fridge!

Running group...

Every Sunday for the last 6 weeks I have been going along to a running group (part of Step into life Yarraville). Each session has been different going from flat, long sessions to sprints to hills and stairs and back to flats. The group is so encouraging and there are all different fitness levels. This morning we tackled some huge hills in Keilor and Essendon. The only time I really had to stop was when I desperately needed to find a toilet!


Here's a pic of the group with our 1st big hill in the background!


Saturday 14 March 2009

Blogger Meet

I have had a request to re-schedule the blogger meet to a later date as it is close to the meet with Diet Girl Shauna on April 1st. However I would still like to go ahead with the meet next weekend. If you only want to go to one that's fine, but I'm a bit of a party animal so I will be attending both.

Come on girls, don't be shy!

Date: 21st March
Time: 7:30
Venue: Town Hall Hotel, Errol Street, North Melbourne (next to Bakers Delight) There is a good menu of dinner type meals there at a reasonable price. I will be eating there.

Remember! Bring your cameras!

Please respond in the comments section of this post if you will be attending so we know how many to look out for.

Yay! Fun!

Wednesday 11 March 2009

Changing times...

Our housemates (John's sister and her hubby and 2yo son) are moving out. They told us last week... Friday I think it was.

It makes me sad but I understand as the house we're in is far too small for the 6 of us. But I have loved living with them (mostly) and it is going to be a big change for all of us. We've lived together since the end of 2007. So just over a year. Hmm..

On the bright side, a close friend of mine is moving in. She is into getting fit and eating healthily and she participated in a triathlon with me last year. We are planning to do a Around the Bay in a Day in October which is a 210 km bike ride around melbourne. She's really inspiring and we get along really well. She's also been in a share house since she left home and she is really easy going and considerate. I think it will be a great change for all of us. It is better that this arrangement ends before it gets too hard. We have a wonderful relationship with John's sister and we want it to stay that way!

I haven't been here on the blog for a while as I have been busy living and haven't had the time to sit down and post. But I have been reading all your blogs and am keeping up with what you are doing without commenting. Sorry! Hehe!

I have decided to participate in 101 goals in 1001 days. Please visit www.ashs101.blogspot.com to view my goals if you are interested.

I am loving my job so much! It is just perfect for our life right now.

I'd better go as my eyes are falling out of my head with tiredness...

Love to all!
Facebook me!
xox

Ash

Sunday 22 February 2009

Venue for Blogger meet....

A few suggestions....

-My personal pick... The Town Hall Hotel, Errol St North Melbourne
- Anglers Tavern, Maribyrnong
- Commercial Hotel, Yarraville
- Rostown Hotel, Carnegie
- Elternwick Pub

Let me know what you think!

Blogger Meet

Considering we have past the 21st Feb, Let's book in to meet on March 21st at 7:30

How about dinner in Carlton somewhere?? Or if anyone wants to host it in their home please feel free to suggest it!

Let me know what you think?!

40km! Easy!

Me, Liam, Mayra, Melissa and Steve at the 1st rest stop.
I'm at work so I don't really have time to write a big post but I just thought I'd pop in and say that I'm fine... just busy!! The ride was great (dare I say, EASY!) and I am really getting excited to start training for Round the Bay in a day 2009! Planning on doing the 210km course so I have a lot of training to do!!
Hope you're all having a lovely weekend!
xox

Sunday 1 February 2009

It's a miracle!

After so many weeks of saying I'll do it, I finally put a bike on layby! I only have 245 dollars left to pay off! (About 2 weeks of saving I think)

I will find a picture and post it shortly!

Yay!

Saturday 24 January 2009

Please note Poll on right for Blogger Meet

Please let me know a good date for you!

I [heart] Boxing....

Boxing was the exercise of choice at training this morning. When I found this out via a text from the trainer last night I did a little excited jump because I am very GOOD at boxing! It is something I have always liked. Especially kick boxing! There is something about smashing your fists, feet, elbows and kneed into a soft, but not too soft bag that just feels so good!!

I did martial arts for seven years in my childhood/early teens and have missed having an avenue for my agression and skill. I made no mention of this at training this morning and enjoyed the slightly scared, but mostly impressed look on my (very athletic, top of the class runner) partner's face. I even had the cheek to say "..this is why I love cross training, it can bring the fastest runner to their knees" to which my partner replied ".. ahh now I have a new face to put on my dart board"... I reassured him that there would be many an opportunity to give me grief (ie. when he laps me three times during the next run).

Fun times!

I have had a much more relaxing week. Not much on except the usual things- women's group, community dinner, coffee dates with people from our community... nice... I am so happy life is awakening from the blur of the new year's cross-over. I love the holiday period but it like returning home after a long trip away to a foreign place.

John and I spent a lot of time cleaning our room last night and I was able to get out of bed this morning and place my foot on the floor without stepping on a pile of clothes (there have been a few lying around after being turfed out of a suitcase to be replaced with another lot which inevitably ends up on the floor too)... ahhh... I am feeling balanced today.

I relish the feeling as TTOM is expected (and very welcome- I have learned to embrace and enjoy it... making it a time to become a little recluse and read books where I am able) and I usually feel a little scattered around that time.

Tonight I am meeting a gorgeous weight-loss blogger friend (Miss Milo- see my sidebar) for Vietnamese and a Movie- My shout... to celebrate her 20kg loss milestone... I can't wait!

On that lovely note, I leave you!

Saturday 17 January 2009

Crazy times!!!

This week I have been on a camp with 600 kids!! I am utterly worn out!

After last week's disappointment on the scales I decided to really knuckle down with my food this week and focus on really healthy, sensible sized portions. This week has been one of the most full-on weeks I have had in a long time (there were 20 incidences over the course of 5 days including a sexual assault, a fight, an admission to the psych ward at the Royal Melbourne, people pissing on other people's belongings and a promiscuous girl wanking-off any guy that would let her) so, as a leader, this week was challenging to say the least!

The food there was also a challenge... Each lunch time was a fat, salt, sugar and carb fest mostly comprising mini pastries, spring rolls, dim sims, pizzas, and a few sandwiches (the healthy option!! Boring!). So Mayra and I decided to boycot the menu and BYO! Each day we feasted on grainy rolls, tuna, vita wheats, delicious salad, fresh fruit and raw nuts. Our "eating out" options for the dinners of the week were subway salads with byo crackers and tuna, Okonomiaki (Japanese veggie pancake) and felafel and salad. The other options were chips, fried chicken and more chips. While everyone was complaining of constipation, we were feeling fantastic. Not to mention the exercise we managed to get in! 3 runs and a swim- not a bad effort for such a full-on week.

I haven't weighed in yet- but I feel i will be pleased. Cross your fingers for me! I am going to weigh on Monday morning to give myself a couple more days of healthy eating.

I start step into life properly next week! Hooray!

Sunday 11 January 2009

A lot of exercise- not much to show for it!

Over the last week this is the exercise I have done...

Sat: 50 min brisk walk
Sun: 40 min brisk walk
Mon: 40 min brisk walk
Tues: 1km swim and 1 game fast netball
Wed: Group personal training
Thurs: Cliff walk and fun beach running, kicking footy etc
Fri: Rest
Sat: 1.5 hour fitness assessment (including 4km run, weights, sprints etc)- burned 833 cals in that session

I have eaten very well aside from a few treats on our short trip to Airies Inlet. So you can imagine my disappointment and frustration this morning when I hopped on the scales to see the number 87.3 flash up. I really hope I have gained some muscle because it's not fair! I know I sound like a sooky little kid but it's just so demoralising.

I am going to take my measurements tonight to see if there are any changes. Fingers crossed!

So yeah.... that's where we're at and It's all feeling a bit blahhhhh

I've been watching my friend losing weight recently and she just seems to be cruising along and the kilos are dropping off her. 7.3 in the last 8 weeks. I am so pleased for her but can't help being a little bit jealous as it seems we are doing pretty much the same level of exercise and we eat a similar amount/type of food and I'm still here in the high 80s. We started off at about the same weight and wanted to do it together but she's well and truely left me behind. Any way... got that off my chest- moving on- I don't wanna rain on her parade.

I tried to buy a new bike today but the bike shop was closed. Maybe tomorrow.

I have started doing some group personal training which is fantastic! It's with Step into life. I love it. Will elaborate more once I have been to a few more sessions!

I'm at work and really should be finishing my lunch break now.


Here's today's food FYI:
Breakfast: (lateish) 1 slice Burgen soy lin toast with a scrape of olive spread and vegemite (made by Molly! Cute!) and a skim latte on the way to work
Lunch: 1 cape seed roll, 1 small tin tuna and a handfull of baby spinach (my fave lunch at the moment) and a large nectarine
Afternoon tea: Gelato- I have been craving it all week and said that if I got to sunday and still want one I can have a small serving.
Dinner: Not sure yet but it will be a combo of lean protein, veggies and rice or pasta and for afters, some fruit salad and low fat frozen yoghurt (note to self, buy frozen yoghurt!)

Monday 5 January 2009

Tracker... because a little accountability goes a long way!

B. jalna low fat yoghurt with blueberries (2.5), 1 slice burgen toast (1) with scrape of butter (.5) and honey (.5)
L. small chickpea salad (3.5) and 1 rice paper roll (2.5)
S. 3/4 drumstick ice cream (4?) 2 lindt balls (2)
D. Teriaki chicken (3) bento box with 1 cup rice (3??), 1 small piece sushi (1) and miso soup (1)

Total - approx 24.5
2 litres water
Exercise (8km brisk walk pushing pram)

Tomorrow- less treats.. more fruit and veg

She's BAAACK!!

Phil is back... Go visit her new Blog Skinny Latte Strikes back!

Thursday 1 January 2009

Blogger meet

I would like to organise a blogger meet. I feel we could all use a bit of support and a good old chat.

Let me know if you're interested and I will pull something together!
xo

More photos...


Lounging in her birthday beanbag from Nana


Molly and her big cousin (and housemate) Felix

Photos...


Molly on the morning of her 2nd birthday 29.12.08- setting up for her tea party


Molly blowing out her 2 candles!

Positive things.... thanks darling Philippa

My wonderful friend Phil has just shared a giant post containing only positive things about 2008. I have been feeling a little blue recently so I have decided to do the same.

2008 was a fantastic year because;

  • We moved to Footscray and have become members of a fantastic, supportive, loving, externally focussed community who live cooperatively and have a heart for the poor and marginalised people who live on the fringes.
  • I have an amazingly loving husband who is frustratingly forgetful and disorganised but who knows exactly how to love me and who is following his dreams and wants me to do the same.
  • I am blessed to have a lovely little person called Molly as my daughter. I am so proud of her as she really is growing up to be a good person. She knows how to love and be loved, her language skills blow me out of the water every day, she expresses how she feels without being mean or rude, she is toilet trained nearly and just turned two. She is an amazing person- truely quirky and knows the words to many many many Beatles songs which makes her Daddy proud.
  • I now get to hang out with her from monday to friday!
  • I have a great job doing what I love- A Social Worker in a mental health rehab for young people. The residents are so good to us. They really appreciate the help and although there are tough times, and they are dealing with some full-on shit- they try their best to be good to us as staff.
  • I learned to run again in the past year and although I have had a few weeks off recently have found an activity that I really enjoy. I participated in 10 events last year, a stat I am very proud of.
  • I maintained my weight more-or-less over 2008. This is not what I aimed for however I need to pat myself on the back for not gaining weight working in a sit-down office job for the past 11 months.
  • I did my tax return on time. Something I have never done before!
  • I have started singing again- with John and with Mezz and have written and recorded two decent songs.

There is so much more I could write but I must be off... I will try and upload some photos soon as there have been a few good ones taken recently.

Much love to all and happy new year!

Ash

xo