Boxing and all.....revisiting week 1

It has been a strange couple of weeks. I went back to boxing and loved it...it was an hour and 15 mins of full on movement and having gone back to it after months and months I could sense that my right hook was no longer a weapon...however...a workout it certainly was....later that night I was in severe pain...hubby had to bring my dinner to me in the bedroom!! I think I was basically paralysed. COULD NOT MOVE AT ALL PEOPLE!!! Initially I thought that I would go every sat however...the timings do not suit me at all. My gym has them only once a week and on sat at 1.30 which is a real awkward time. Neither here nor there. If it was early morning, I could easily go off and proceed with my day. This way it sort of takes over the Saturday and leaves me with nothing of the day after the class. My husband is hugely supportive and would be cool about it but I just feel that if I am not happy with the balance then sooner or later it will not work and will leave me with even less time with the husband seeing our lives are already so busy during the week and also now that I am going back to gym during the week and am not likely to be home before 8pm.
So although my arse was kicked hard and I loved it...I have decided not to continue with the boxing classes. I will have to drag my arse and do some cycling with my lovely supportive husband instead. This weekend we went to Bentleigh and then cycled back - a total bike ride of 18km. So if we could manage a few more of these on the weekend, I think weekend activity is sorted.
Meanwhile I have been re-thinking my 12 week plan. The first 2 weeks quite frankly have not worked leading me to surmise that I am either setting too high a benchmark or there is some lack of complete commitment from my end. Rather than sit and philosophize on either of these, I have decided to treat the first 2 weeks as a warm up and start again. This time I will be smarter about it. I have a meeting with my gym nutritionist tomorrow to nut out some issues and then we go from there. If she cancels this appointment AGAIN then with or without her the plan will begin and I will not be a happy cookie.
I had set my 1st weeks goal as WATER. The core ingredient of our life on this planet. I had set the goal at 3 litres a day and found that I could not keep to it in these wintry days. Water for me meant - plain water - I did not count teas or coffees, soups..any other liquids. Just plain good old water.I am marking the new goal as 2.5 - 3 litres water. This will make it still challenging but not unachievable. So let the games be declared open yet again. This time there will be no turning back. After all I cannot see myself re-starting the 12 week challenge repeatedly. Any suggestions are more than welcome including any ways to increase the number of hours from 24 to 36??? Anyone???

Im joining Boxing classes...la...la...la

Hi All,
This is it. I am joining boxing classes. These ones are held every friday and my fave trainer is taking these classes. I am so chuffed and I am going back to the gym after about 5 months owing to my ankle. I have let the bloody ankle get the better of me and this winter I am determined to do the best I can and give it my best shot. I have realised that I keep waiting:
 - waiting for a job in the city so going to the gym is easier
 - waiting for the ankle to get perfect when I can at least do weights and  cardio using bicycle etc instead of the treadmill
- waiting to move up a grade at work to be able to easily afford classes when my health should be the priority

I am done with waiting...I am going to get out there and make it happen. It has to be this way and I know my lovely husband Rob will be supportive all the way even though it is a shame that the classes are on Sat only.  So my first class is on Sat at 1.30 which is a shit of a time and neither here nor there but hey if this is how it is to be then so be it.
More later
Wish everyone much health and happiness

Week 1 lessons: I call it invisible-eating - Importance of a food diary

Hi All,

Well this week I decided to weigh myself for analysis purposes and it did not go well results wise although it did tell me a lot about myself in terms of eating and behaviour. Hence I am happy to have weighted myself everyday. Well I present to you the results below:

Date  Wgt     G/L  %      BF       M

5/05  113.2   0.8   0.7   46.2     57.8     20k bikeride, 3 litres water - a good day

6/05  113.7   1.3   1.1   44.9     59.5     rained, 15 min walk, 3 litres water

7/05  112.7   .30   .30   50.9     52.6     timtams, 30 min walk, no 3 litres

8/05  112.7   .30   .30   50.9     52.6     remaining timtams, 6 cupcakes, did not weigh

9/05  114.1   1.7   1.5   51.6     52.5     yum cha, 2 desserts at tend of meal, 2 glasses of wine, serve of chocolate ice-cream

D   =  Date

G/L= Gain/Loss

%   = Gain/Loss Percentage

BF =  Body Fat

M  =  Muscle

I should not really be surprised as i used to be in the past. One of the things that I have now OFFICIALLY learned about my eating patterns is that I tend to eat without feeling hungry and even realising a lot of the time that I am eating crap. I am so manic in the consumption of these 'empty' foods that it is only post the feeding frenzy when I analyse my behaviour I acknowledge that the food did not nourish me in anyway and apart from the first 1 second when I derive the pleasure of the river of chocolate course down my gullet!!

In terms of the water challenge, I sort of dropped the ball this week by not meeting it 2 days in a row. I have no excuses bar that we had guests over this weekend and so it is hard to continue the commitment to drink up whilst playing ho0st and running to the loos everywhere we visit. But all in all this is still not a good excuse and I know it. So the challenge must carry on although the results are that I lost this one. In this whole journey the one thing that keeps bringing it home to me is the importance of keeping a food diary. Although this approach does not suit everyone, I do know that this does work for me. When ever I have tried it it has worked for me and my successes have happened however big or small.

Anyhoo, this will carry me into week 2 and maybe writing a food diary can be my challenge for week 2. That way I will have to carry this challenge for the remaining 11 weeks of the challenge. After all the purpose of the 12 week challenge is to get into good habits and make little challenges count. Calorieking has a lovely site that is free, I am familiar with it and it works for me. So yes, I will make this my challenge. Keeping mind of course that in week 2 I don't just have to write the food diary but also keep to the 3 litres of water. So it is barely week 2 but is already getting difficult.

This challenge business is getting me all excited and enthused. So I have decided to throw some more things in here just so I can refer to it later. My aims for the end of the 12 weeks are:

• Losing 7 kilos
• Meeting 80 percent of my challenges at the minimum
• Being more active

I have been wondering what the reward should be for a while now and I think I know. I have seen these bedside tables in ISHKA and I know I can get them cheaper in India but who is going to carry them for me from INDIA??? They cost $265 each and would work perfectly in the guest bedroom. If they are sold out by the end of the challenge, I guess the reward must be anything that appeals to me at the value of $500. I think that is fair. Of course it cannot be related to food in any shape or form. 

For me the goal is also related to kilos and at the end of the 12 weeks I would like to see my weight down by 7 kilos. Considering the starting weight was 113.20, the goal weight is 106.20. Seeing I am now 114.10, I have quite clearly made things more difficult for myself as i now need to lose 7.9 kilos. Again a situation I am responsible for putting myself into. However, all is not lost yet as there are 11 weeks to go and I know I can do it. Until next time.....

Week 1 lessons: I call it invisible-eating - Importance of a food diary

Hi All,

Well this week I decided to weigh myself everyday for analysis purposes. It did not go to well results wise although I am happy to have weighed myself everyday. The results below:

Date                    Kilos         Gain/Lost       % Gain/loss      Body Fat            Muscle

So I guess the above tells the story of the results I have this week. One of the things I did end up doing whilst writing this blog was to go and reach for the chocolate ice-cream in the freezer. I guess this is my 'dummy' and I did put a spoon in my mouth and then emptied my bowl of ice-cream back into the container and said to myself ' this will not change anything. I will continue to weigh what I do as I will end up keeping on making the same mistakes again and again. So lets stop now. With that I grabbed an apple instead. 

In terms of the water challenge, I sort of dropped the ball this week by not meeting it for 2 days. I have no excuses bar that we had guests over this weekend and it is so hard to continue to commitment to drink up whilst in the middle of playing host etc. However this is a pissweak excuse and so I must simply do better next week. So the challenge must carry on although the results are that I lost this one. The one thing that keeps coming back to me is the importance of writing a food diary. I know this approach does not suit everyone but I do know that in the past when I have written a food diary I have succeeded in writing a food diary.

Anyhoo, this will carry me into week 2 when I get to choose another challenge. Perhaps this should be my challenge for week 2.That way I can be certain that I will write it for the remaining 11 weeks of the challenge. After all the purpose of my challenge is to get into the good habits. All simple things but important things, little things but all together can pack quite a punch. So yes I will actually make this the challenge for week 2. Each weekly challenge is to be measured in terms of for 6 of 7 days I should get it right and I have quite obviously not. I could earn points back to pass this challenge down the line but I have still to think of how I would go about this. Ideas are welcome.

This challenge business is getting me all excited and so I have decided on throwing some more things in there. Well the few goals I would like to see myself in by the end of this challenge are:

-         loss of 7 kilos

-         meeting 80% of my challenges

-         being fitter

The reward is something I have been thinking of for a while now and I think it could even be these sets of bedside tables I saw at this place called ISHKA. I know they are made in India and all and I would get them cheaper and all of that but the point is who is going to cart them here for me??? And if end up getting sold out then I will simply have to think of something else. Who knows $500 equivalent of something or other that is not food related. I guess I will simply have to take photos of something and put those up next? For me the goal at this stage is really to get the weight down. Of course I will count the weight from the starting weight which was 113.20 making the goal 106.20 and the fact that I am now 114.10 means I have only made my life more difficult needing me to now lose close to 8 kilos. However, I still believe that this is not an impossible goal given the 11 weeks I still have at hand if I use the time smartly. So hey Goal for week 2- 3 litres of water a day and

Writing food diary

05/05/2010 113.20 0.80 0.7% 46.2% 57.8% 06/05/2010 113.70 1.30 1.1% 44.9% 59.5% 07/05/2010 112.70 0.30 0.3% 50.9% 52.6% 08/05/2010 112.70 0.30 0.3% 50.9% 52.6% 09/05/2010 114.50 2.10 1.9% 49.1% 56.9% 10/05/2010 114.10 1.70 1.5% 51.6% 52.5%

Week1 day 2

3 litres of water done - this is going to be challenging I can see that. Boy it is hard this one as it is getting to winter in Oz and I dont really feel like drinking water.

What I could have avoided today is some caramel I had - rather scoffed just before meeting a friend and also not had a muffin

Exercise did not happen as the plan to walk the 3km to the car did not take place due to pelting rain. Tomorrow is going to have to be better.

Weight patters analysis will take place on Sunday night so no mention until then

Week1 Day 1: 3 litres water

So week one is to be all about getting 3 liters water or more inside me. Each week I will pick a weekly theme and try my best to meet the theme. The catch is that I have to progressively keep the theme from the week before in addition to the current one. So for instance in week 5 I will have to keep to all my previous weeks themes. why? to make it interesting. To learn discipline but not in a cold turkey sort of way and hey....to experiment and see if such a system works for me? For me to take the responsibility of choosing my weekly themes and adhere to them. After all...this is all one big journey and if something works then I will benefit.

So now for the stats. Well the horrendous stats are in and my details are:
Weight: 113.2
Muscle: 57.8
Fat: 46.2

Umm a reality check to see how much fat I am carrying. I will be weighing myself everyday and this is purely from a researchers perspective and not because I am being obsessive. For anyone that knows me well I am among the people that run miles away from weighing machines. So in that sense I have detached from the numbers that display on the machine. I don't process them in my mind and if I make a comment in relation to them, then it is purely as a number and I do not pontificate on hurling the blame game upon myself. By profession I am a researcher and so it is only natural I should be curious.

So what could I have done better today? Not had Milo at bedtime, not had a muffin, some biscuits.

What could I be more consistent in?
Well what I am really pleased about today and the real success of my day today is that I rode to work and also rode back. All up I did about 20 kilometers and not only did I ride, I screamed through the city with my beloved husband in front of me on his push bike. Whats more? I enjoyed it. I plan to do this at least 3 times a week.The other success is that I had 3 liters of water and yes plain water. I am not counting coffees or teas or any sort of beverage. Plain water only in my water challenge thank you.

So I go to bed a happy woman - content and I want more of the contentment days. Head space feels great and I feel like I am glowing from inside.

12 week Plan and a week theme

From tomorrow - I start my 12 week plan to health. and no I am not planning on being miss perfect or anything. I am just using the next 12 weeks to be a better me healthwise and no achievement is too small. Each week I plan on having a theme. So next weeks is More water. The plan is to ensure that I drink at least 3 litres. For my weight I need to drink something in the vicinity of 4.2 odd litres or something similar. Well to make it achievable and yet challenging I have set the theme to be 3 litres which in the approaching winter is no mean feat (for those of us in Australia). Measurements will follow tomorrow as also weight but I plan not to pay any attention to it.

I find that over the years and after having tried virtually everything - we have made fitness overly complicated and with a lot of fads. The bottom line really is 'Eat less move more'. I am going to try very hard to remember this as my mantra. So let the drums roll and the party begin!!

Hello hello I am back

Ive been away for a long long while and the update is that since my last post, I have bought a home with my husband, settled and moved in and all, gone for a wedding to the other end of this great big country we call Australia, applied for and gotten my citizenship, busted my ankle in January as a result of rock climbing, been looking for a corner to sulk and cry and also realized that looking for corners to cry in do not make the problem go away and so here I am back and all. I now weight 113.3 kilos. I still have an ankle that is not in the best condition but at least i can walk and cycle. So this blog for me will be a place to vent - on a good day share how I feel and analyze why it was such a success and on a bad day look for inspiration and ideas from others' blogs.