THE WEIGHT SCALE

Yesterday our local paper reported that South Australians are now the fattest in our nation. We also hold the honour of having the highest incidence of heart disease and high blood pressure. Apologies, being yesterday I cant link to the article but there wasn't anything earth-shatteringly different about it. It was the usual doom and gloom about the growing obesity epidemic.

One just needs to sit and people watch in Rundle Mall or visit the food court of any large (or even smaller) suburban shopping centre to see that this statement is likely to be 100% correct. What was interesting was the range of comments on the adelaidenow website in response to the article. From the "its a community problem so lets take a community approach to fixing it" to "its just laziness/apathy/lack of time/lack of knowledge ..... blah blah blah". There were the "sugar is the demon" to the "fast food chains are to blame" arguments. We were certainly divided in our opinions.

I have my own opinion about why the growing rate of overweight and obesity is a problem but hells bells I'll be buggered if I knew how to fix it. I guess that is the million dollar question, isnt it? I do believe though that until something changes INSIDE an individual, nothing will change outside. 

On a slightly different note (but not far off topic) I took Mitchell for a skating practice last night and overheard this conversation between two women (one a mother of a primary school aged child and the other a teenage or early 20s girl.)

Mother to the girl: How much weight have you lost? (smiling and looking impressed)

Girl: 15 kilos (I couldnt see her face)

Mother: How did you do it?

Girl: No carbs and I exercise for 3 hours a day.
Mother: Oh, do you go to a gym?
Girl: No, I do it at home. Lots of cardio.

Mother (starting to look somewhat concerned): Oh my ... (speechless) ... cant remember what she said next.

Girl: Yeah, its hard. Really hard.

Then the girl went on to say that she was planning to lose another 5 kilos (which she clearly didn't have as extra body fat to lose). The mother looked aghast and tried desperately to talk her out of it but I could tell she had made up her mind that the 5 kilos had to go (which would probably tip her into the anorexic category).

I so badly wanted to sit her down and give it to her straight but that is not my place. She must make her own mistakes and learn from them even if it takes decades to achieve. How sad though. She looked fantastic at her current weight but she couldn't see it. If only she knew that being a bag of bones would not equal happiness.

Ok, I'll step off my soapbox now. 

:-) M

 

    

 

THE UPDATED VERDICT

I saw the orthopaedic surgeon this morning and was given a very interesting update on my  assumed bone spur. Its not a spur at all, instead its an os trigonum which is a small triangular shaped bone that sits deep behind the achilles. I'm told that 7% of the population is born with this and there is a 50% chance that my other foot has one as well. As to why its giving me a problem now, he said I probably sustained a foot or ankle injury that aggravated it and changed my foot alignment and hence its causing me this pain when my foot is extended. Basically I have 2 choices: put up with it and never wear heels again or have it removed. That's an absolute no-brainer for me. I'm having it removed.

My boss is back at work on 4 Feb and I'm booked in for my surgery a week later on the 11th. Its key hole surgery and a minor procedure requiring only a light general anaesthetic and a morning's admission. I'll be home by lunch time, on crutches for a few days, hobbling around a week later and off work for 1-2 weeks depending on how mobile I am. Driving will be out for at least a week, but probably ok within 2 weeks. If my recovery is on track and there are no problems or complications and I stay off it as much as possible in the early weeks, I should be back running by week 4. If that pushes out to 6 weeks its still a reasonable time being incapacitated LOL. (Perhaps I'll reserve judgement until I'm laid up on the couch and going stir crazy!)

I'm so pleased that I got an earlier appointment and that my surgery will be as early as I originally wanted it. Although I reckon being housebound for several days might just do my head in. I might start stocking up on crosswords and sudokus again. It will be weird being useless for a while. 

On a brighter note, I have 3 weeks to keep training hard and after my surgery I should be able to do some upper body weights in the second week or so. I guess I'll just listen to my body and see how it all feels.

Cheers all

M

 

OH THE PAIN .......

...... But it's ok, we'll sorta.

I have raised the bar somewhat with my training and my body is feeling it. On Thursday morning I had a brainwave to do sprints instead of my usual plod along steady state jog. I just felt like doing something different. So after my warm up walk and brief jog I chose a stretch between 2 streets and sprinted down and walked back up, 10 times. It was a great workout. My heart rate got up and stayed up really well. I finished with an easy jog home and felt awesome.

In response to this amazing training session, my body rewarded me with really sore adductors (inner thigh muscles). So on Friday I moderated my training to a 30 minute walk followed by abs - 130 to be precise. Not sure what I did different because I NEVER get ab DOMS but this time I broke the mould and am suffering big time.

Add to this mix my extremely scabby elbow and wrist (I fell over on my run on Tuesday) and I'm the walking wounded. I also have a knee that is turning beautiful shades of purple and grey and is as itchy as hell.

I've rejigged my training schedule a little to allow me to do legs in the afternoon on Saturday. I find I'm better warmed up, more flexible and stronger. All god things as I have nudged my weights up higher and am finding the training harder. This also allows me to do my favourite hour of power on Sundays which suits me the best.

So on that 'woe is me' note, I shall bid a fond farewell for now. I'm bracing myself for a bitch of a week at work but I'm organised with 2 days' lunches made ahead and my training shall be done, regardless. Oh and just 1 last thing, my orthopaedic surgeon's appointment has been changed to tomorrow morning.

Will report back when time permits.

PS I actually feel great - just sore:-)

M

GOING IT ALONE

Since Friday I've been going it alone while my boys are away, Mitchell for the week and Peter returns tomorrow. They're both up on the Sunshine Coast with Peter's parents but due to work commitments I couldnt go.

 

In their absence I have really found my training mojo (not that it was a problem before) and have had a few really kick arse sessions. Firstly, I couldnt go for a run on Friday morning as we left for the airport before 6am. I had put in a solid day at work and felt pretty good on the way home so much so that I was actually looking forward to doing my run that evening. So I set out at around 6.30pm and did my usual 40 minutes but chose a different route just for the sake of it. It was quite strange running back on the home stretch as I passed pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants full of people out drinking and eating. Meh, it was too good an opportunity to pass up.

 

Saturday was leg day and I suffered the usual trepidation which resulted in a promise to myself to train at 5pm (what would normally be beer o'clock for Peter and myself). For lunch I caught up with Kerry who I met when we both competed for the first time in 2007. Well, is she an inspiration or what! At 5pm I fired up the music, bar, plates and a kick arse attitude and gave it my best. I have the leg and glute DOMS going on today and am feeling quite smug at my effort.

 

I woke up pretty early today because I always look forward to my weekend Hour of Power which is usually a combo of walking and jogging/running but for at least an hour. It was pretty cool here in Adelaide and I set out in the drizzle only to finish in a light but steady rain. I had one of those rare "Man this run feels good" days where I just seemed to glide like a gazelle instead of my usual baby elephant shuffle. Today I upped my run time to 40 minutes and it didnt give me any probs. Feeling invincible?? You betcha!!

 

But I will say that cooking for one is a drag. Although its been really tempting to just grab a take away or book myself on endless lunches and dinners, I've resisted the urges and eaten in most of the time. Mind you, I am hanging for a meal out with Peter tomorrow night. Hey, a girl cannot live off chicken stir fry (albeit with different flavour bases) alone.

 

So there you have my little batching it weekend which every now and then is a glorious opportunity for some me-time but honestly, I wouldnt want it to be permanent. I miss my boys too much.

 

M

PHEW! SURVIVED THE WEEK

Well as I launch myself into Friday, I must say its a huge relief to get here.

The week started out quietish but I knew there was a major deadline looming on a big project that my colleague is managing. My role in this project was to proofread endless documents, make edits, check and re-check them. We've been plugging away at this since the start of January but this was the week (yesterday) when it was all due. Needless to say there were some MASSIVE days and the going home early honeymoon is well and truly over. On the biggest day I was SO lucky to have Peter organise dinner for us all. It was a real 'treat' to go home and just help finish preparing it and then sit down to enjoy it with a well-earned glass of wine. I used to have a little private whinge about preparing dinner (even if it was having left-overs) and then having to make lunches etc but lately I've welcomed that time in the kitchen preparing my lunches and having a nice potter. It sure beats sitting chained to a computer screen all day LOL.

I've just recently started road testing a new back care program. This guy presented at an OHSW session for our department and I tell you, it was one of the BEST OHSW sessions I've ever been to because it was practical and totally relevant to everybody there (attendance was optional). I mean, isn't the MOST important thing, knowing how to care for our back health in an environment that is anything but conducive to healthy backs. Anyways I recently downloaded his free e-book and am doing 2 simple 'exercises' from it each night. I'll let you all know how I feel as I progress to longer durations of each exercise. So far, so good. I can certainly feel relief as I lie in the suggested positions.

My regular exercise continues to alternate between running and weights. I like this as its become a bit of a no-brainer. I used to hate waking up early and then debating with myself what exercise I'd do. I'm a creature of habit and routine and dont at all mind the predictable. I know when I have my bone spur surgery things will change as I recuperate and that might be a good time to change my routine. Which brings me to something I just have to share. I had breakfast with a dear friend yesterday and she told me about her work colleague who had surgery to remove a bone spur and he was off work for 2 MONTHS!!! Holy crap!! I couldnt help but google it and I don't think I'll be anywhere near that bad as normal recovery time is 3-7 days of foot elevated and minimal walking/pressure on the foot. The mind boggles though and I'll certainly have lots of questions for my surgeon when I see him at the end of this month.

Anyway my 'breakfast break' is almost over (I started work very early today) so its time to stop blogging and haul my arse back into work.

Cheers all

M

 

  

NO WORK MOJO

Today being the 7th marks the end of the first week of January. Wow, that went quick ... well sort of. Some days at work just dragged. And you can tell I have chronic Mondayitis as I'm blogging at work again. 

So here's a quick fitness and goals update:

1. Weight has dropped below 70kgs. Yay!! As I've said before, getting to 67 or so isn't hard. Under that and I do have to be more mindful about food choices but its still very achievable without a whole lot of pain, as I've proven before.

2. Exercise has been a dream. I managed 10 sessions in all due to walking to/from work on a couple of days. Originally I wasn't going to do any walking this week due to the scorching heat but with the amended forecast I'm planning to give it another go on the 'cooler' days.

3. Although there have only been 4 work days, I've managed to stick to my goal of not spending on food at work. Yep I have my breakfasts organised and they get packed in my bag. Same with lunches and fruit. Plus I have an emergency stash or almonds if/when the munchies hit. Shops and junk food, BE GONE!! Savings be growing!!

Yesterday was legs and abs day (geez THAT came around quick!!) and I powered through my workout increasing the sets on my static lunges. I've kept the weights light on them because my right foot still doesn't love them but light is better than nothing, me thinks. Plus I can feel that once again I'm getting to my 'safe limit' on squats. Damn it, there is a point at which my body just says "oooh I'm not sure I can do this". My legs start to waver and I'm really worried that my lower back just wont cooperate. And yep, I brace through my core, use correct foot and knee alignment and take the reps real slow but still there is this sticking point and I'm just about there. I wont embarrass myself by posting the weight I'm squatting. Or maybe I should so you can all have a big laugh LOL.

Finally I must just say how much I'm loving the weekends now that my family is on holidays. There's WAY less washing, no school lunches to make, no lunches for Peter (yes I still make his lunches), no school uniform to iron and only myself to organise in the mornings. All that adds up to a far more laid back lifestyle. Now to just find my work mojo :-(

Cheers all

M

 

 

GETTING INTO THE SWING OF THINGS

Well I have dragged myself through 3 days back at work and I can tell you, it hasn't been easy. The only silver lining has been that with only myself to organise in the mornings, I've set my alarm for 5:30 and still got through exercise, getting ready AND walking to work (45 mins) by 8am. I've been eating breakfast of a hard boiled egg and a muffin made from Tosca Reno's Clean Eating Cookbook at my desk and that's been working well. So far I've stuck to my goal of no spending on food during the work week.

I seem to have fallen into a pattern of alternate days of weights and cardio. This means my weights sessions are on a 6 day cycle for now which is proving to be just enough recovery. I know that once I'm back into a regular weight training routine I won't have such fierce DOMS but right now everything aches all the time. Plus my body is trying to subtly tell me that the additional walking is not such a great idea. On Thursday I spent the first 5 or 10 minutes limping along due to my right leg and hip just not wanting to cooperate. Bastards!! But I shall not give in and I persevere with my running knowing that once I'm well and truly warmed up, everything is ok as long as I don't push for too long.

So I'm pretty happy with my training, eats and lifestyle right now and I know that keeping on will get me where I want to be weight and fitness wise. Although I had recently contemplated signing up with a trainer for that extra push, financially it's off the cards now as I save my hard earned cash in readiness for some serious overseas shopping later this year.

I guess I've gone it alone most of the time and this year will be no different. Cheers all.

Xx m

WELL HELLO 2013!

Ah blogging, I haven't missed you but it is good to be back. Now that the craziness of Christmas and the new year is over and I'm back at work today I thought it would be a good time to launch back into the blogosphere. 

I had a wonderful break that was a mix of being very busy (like feeding 20 people on Christmas Day - 8 for breakfast and 12 for the main meal) and then totally chilling out immersing myself in the daily crosswords, targets and sudokus. That plus playing with my new iPad mini and getting up and exercising late made for a nearly perfect life :-)

Sad that all good things must come to an end and today I'm back in the grind. But hey, somebody has to run this show (LOL). I've also used my break to establish an exercise routine that I can commit to for some weeks and just clocking up a few good runs and some much needed leg training has lifted my spirits incredibly - oh and its given me a killer case of DOMS too. Once the Christmas food was pretty much finished up (which was only a couple of days) I found it quite easy to get back into normal, healthier eating and whilst the Metal Monster did creep up a bit, it hasn't been nearly as bad as other years. 

Like other bloggers have done, I'm choosing not to do a big recap of 2012. It had its ups and it had its downs and it is in the past and that's where I'm leaving it. I know that 2013 will be an amazing year for a number of reasons. Firstly I turn 50 in July and my goal is to look and feel extraordinarily gorgeous for the event ... and beyond. To that end there is some work to be done and there is no time like the present to get back into some good habits. If there is anything I'd do different this year its simply "doing rather than analysing." Secondly - and this is also a biggie - we have booked to go to Europe in June/July. To say that I'm excited about this is a complete understatement. I'm MEGA EXCITED!!!! as the holiday will form a big part of the month's celebrations leading up to my birthday. (Hey, you gotta celebrate the 0s in a big way).

I'm not doing resolutions but I have 3 goals for January:

1. To not spend any money on food during the week at work and only eat the food I pack. This is for 2 reasons: budget and cutting out junky stuff that is often eaten just mindlessly.

2. Maintain at least 6 exercise sessions every week.

3. Get my weight back under 70kgs and never let it go over again (although that's a long term goal not just one for the month).

So there you have it. Some big news. Some predictable goals. Mixed with a decent dose of optimism. I'm ready for a great year. Bring it on.

:-) M