Plodding along nicely

I don't really have a great deal to report since my last blog... 

After GymStick on Wednesday I was fabulously sore - every muscle I moved hurt! I did some cardio at the gym on Thursday and then PT on Friday. Kate thoroughly kicked my arse, which I am still loving. I leg-pressed 80kgs! 

I am going to chat to her this Friday about what exercises she recommends I do during the week... I don't just want to do weights once a week with her, but I still don't know which ones to do / how to do them properly. 

On Saturday morning we did stair sprints - 400 stairs + 3km walk and I was exhausted!! 

More cardio yesterday and today - although I did plank for a whole minute this morning... very exciting considering one of my 12WBT goals was to plank for 30 seconds by the end of this month and I have gone and doubled it! 

I have found a dress for the wedding this weekend too - one of Sam's gorgeous dresses fits me perfectly! I need to get a strapless bra though... gone are the days I can go bra-free!! I am very excited about dressing up and wearing heels... it's been a long time since that has happened! I am getting a pedicure and my nails done on Thursday which I'm pumped about as well. 

I cooked the 12WBT beef and potato pie last night and it was a total win!!! Even Connor inhaled it! We had mashed potato and pumpkin, instead of plain potato and I added a bit of stout to mine and Paul's and it gave it a really nice, rich flavour. 

We are having the oven roasted fish with sweet potato wedges tonight which I"m very much looking forward to! 

Holy GymStick!

What an amazing class! I am so pleased I did it... even though I am in a whole world of pain now! It was really well put together and very easy to learn how to use. I am definitely going to add it to my workouts from now on.

After GymStick

I am off to the gym shortly and will just do a bit of cardio... rowing machine, treadmill and cross trainer. I am falling terribly behind with my weekly challenge of 30 minutes of wall-sit by Sunday... I have done the grand total of... 1 minute. And I have PT tomorrow so I know my legs are going to be so much sorer! I will do some today at the gym before I stretch and will do some more tonight.

And now for some photos of Canberra... 

View from the National Arboretum

Connor & I, Heather & Willow :: So many layers for my little Queenslander! :: Willow, Connor & Sarge keeping an eye on the neighbourhood :: the two worst sleepers in our baby group together at last... at 5.30am!

Connor fell in love with Sarge :: looking out the plane window :: Baby selfies make me happy :: Connor getting some love from Heather

Food-wise I am feeling great and have got myself back on track. Last night for dinner, Paul & I had bacon and veggie omelets which were amazing. I think we are going to Grill'd tonight but I will just have the Chicken and Pomegranate salad - which I have to say, I'm a bit excited about! Paul got me some raw energy balls from the markets yesterday... almond and cranberry I think they are. They are delicious!!! I am learning to love my protein powder... It is SO hard to drink with water so I am having blended with berries and almond milk which is much easier to drink. 

Have a good day xo

Getting my head back in the game

My little holiday to Canberra was amazing... I got to meet my gorgeous friend after nearly 2 years of talking online  / over the phone / on Skype. Social media is absolutely amazing sometimes.. She is a kindred spirit and I am completely blessed to have her and her gorgeous family in my life. 

The kids got on famously - except for a few little pushes and shoves here & there. Lots of hugging and sharing... Heather and I teared up more then once watching our babes play together. 

And now... I'm back. And to be honest, I am struggling to get back on track. My eating has been ok... Connor has had a horror few nights with teething and temperatures so I've slipped a bit over the past few days and got back into the 'rewarding myself with food' mentality. I find being at work easier as I can't access the 'bad' food - although it's only when I go to the shops do I slip up... I need to reclaim the willpower strength and get my head back in the game!! 

I am not overly concerned about my weight (the number) at this stage as I know I have lost weight... I can see it in myself and the way my clothes are fitting - although my size 14s are definitely NOT fitting me anymore which is nice! 

I am going to try a new gym class today - GymStick Muscle. The blurb from the website: A unique muscle conditioning class using a Gymstick giving you results in Strength, Endurance, Balance, Joint Stability, Coordination & Postural Awareness.  Sounds interesting! I was going to go tomorrow night, but I have PT with Kate on Friday morning, so I don't want to be too sore as she is totally going to kick my arse again!

As part of the 12WBT, I have to a SSS - Super Saturday Session - where you aim to burn 1000 calories... I am thinking of changing it to Sunday as I was really, really sore after PT last time with my muscles really fatigued and seizing up when I went walking on the Saturday morning. 

I am falling behind with my Weekly Challenge as well... this week it's 30 minutes of Wall-Sits and so far I've done the grand total of one minute. Boo. I really have to get my head and arse into gear!!!

My new PT

Serious lady-crush going on here right now... I met with Kate from Goodlife Holland Park during the week and organised my first training session for this morning. Holy shit, I am going to be SO sore tomorrow! 

I did:

Warm up on the treadmill for about 10 minutes before hand.
10 x lat pulls
15 x push ups
walking lunges
10 x lat pulls
15 x push ups
walking lunges
10 x lat pulls
15 x push ups
walking lunges
10 bar pull downs
walking lunch
10 bar pull downs
10 step ups (each leg)
10 toe touches (each leg)
10 bar pull downs
10 step ups (each leg)
10 toe touches (each leg)
10 bar pull downs
10 step ups (each leg)
10 toe touches (each leg) 

I burnt close to 180 calories in about 25 minutes. 

She recommended Musashi protein powder for after my workouts, so Paul & I bought some from Woolies on the way to work - and it was on special which just worked out perfectly!!! 

Her assessment is that my back is quite weak (and considering I've done any upper body training, there's no surprises there!), my core needs a lot of work and I need to work on my cardio fitness. I'm pretty happy with all of that... no shocks in any of that! I am seeing her again next week before I go to Canberra which will be great. 

I still haven't done my measurements - I will be doing them tomorrow morning before I have breakfast as well as my before photos to put on the 12wbt website... gulp!!!

The last week...

Has been great!!! This is going to be a random catch-up post laced with photos...

*I have lost 1.7kgs since I started the pre-season at 68kg and weighed in at the gym yesterday, and I was 66.3kg

*I have SMASHED both of my 1 month goals already and one of my 3 month goals already! I am in the process of setting some new goals!!!

1 month goals:

• to fit comfortable into my size 12 dress for the wedding on the 31/8/13. So about that size 12 dress... yeah, it's TOO BIG!!! 
• to run / walk 1km in less then 8 mins. I did it on the 17/7 in 9.07 mins. (I DID IT!!!!!!!! I went to the gym on Sunday afternoon and ran it TWICE!!! First time was 7.44, second time was 7.32!!!!!!!!!!) I ran 1km again yesterday (Mon 5/8) and got my time down to: 

My knees were really, really sore (too much cardio I think) but I was really pleased that I didn't stop once

3 month goals:

• plank for 30 seconds on toes DID IT!!!!!!!! I stopped right on 30 seconds, but am well pleased that I have already beaten a 3 month goal!! 

*I have submitted my Fitness Test results for the beginning of the 12WBT which was exciting.

1km run: 6.41

Plank on toes: 30 seconds

Push ups on toes: 25

Sit and reach: +8cm

Wall sit: 3.02mins (I actually did 1.02 with Connor in my arms and 2.30 without so I decided to add a bit more to my time!)

I am already excited to see how much I can beat everything by in 4 weeks times. 

 

*I made this amazing dessert last night... a healthy little apple pie

-1/4 piece of mountain bread

-1/4 green apple chopped up (will use 1/2 an apple next time)

-topped with a mixture of almond flakes, cinnamon, coconut and a little bit of brown sugar

Put mountain bread into muffin tray, place apple inside and top with mixture. Bake on 180 for about 10 minutes. Top with Greek yogurt. 

*I had an amazing weekend and definitely made the most of the fabulous Brisbane weather. I caught up with the lovely Tonina for her birthday lunch at a little place at Eagle Street Pier. The food was ok (I was good and ordered the salad - which came with fried chicken. Boo) but check out the view... 

 *We went to the Sunshine Coast for lunch with Paul's sister on Sunday. We went for a walk along the Maroochy River which was just amazing. 

*This kid? Seriously... he is just incredible. I love being with him... best age ever! 

I have spoken with a PT at the gym and have booked in a session with her on Thursday morning... this woman is a competitive boxer and is going to absolutely kick my arse. Which is good. That is exactly what I need to keep me motivated and accountable. 

I am off to Canberra next Wednesday so have printed out all of my exercises to do while I'm there... this will test my willpower like nothing has before!!! On one hand, this is my first real holiday just for me so I kind of think 'who cares' when it comes to the food. On the other hand, I know I will pay for it and will probably undo all of my good work so am reasoning with myself to be strong.

My final challenge for the pre-season is to 'Measure Up' so I will be back with measurements on Thursday! 

Two steps forward, one step back

I have had a few slip ups this week in regards to food... Paul has been away so I have rewarded myself with chocolate for doing it all myself - I know, I know... I need to stop! I don't really know what it is in my head that makes me want the food - the voice that tells me to stop and think is getting stronger but my willpower is still not as strong as it needs to be obviously. 

Just keep trying! Just keep trying! Just keep trying! 

I have had a pretty good week exercise-wise. 

Cardio on Friday, Saturday and Sunday...

Friday:: Easy walk / jog with Paul ~~ cuddles out the front with Sam & Connor to finish up

Saturday gym session:: treadmill - 25mins, 2.6km | rowing machine - 12mins, 2000m | bike - 10mins, 3.13km

Sunday walk:: decided to head up the hills behind my house for a look. Nice view of the city and no pram to push!

I've emailed the gym about organising some PT sessions so I can start using the machines and building some strength instead of doing cardio all the time.

I also took some more progress pictures to compare to the ones I took during week 1 of pre-season. I can't see a huge difference, but I have definitely lost some size. It does give me motivation to work harder in the next fortnight so I can see a bigger difference the next time around. 

Onwards and upwards baby!

Finshing the week with a BANG!

I didn't get the chance to come back and update my last blog entry with my results of the fitness test, so here they are again...

So...

1km: 7.32 minutes
Pushups in 1min: 25 (on knees)
Wall sit: 1.30min
Sit ups: 1 (gah - must keep practicing!)
Sit & Reach: -10 (reached to the end of the ruler!)

The latest challenge was to 'Say It Outloud' and to make a commitment to complete the 12WBT. 

I have already announced it on Facebook that I'm completing the challenge and have told pretty much anyone who will listen that I've signed up so I'm pretty well covered on that one! 

On the 12WBT website, I created a post in the forums so I could put it there a bit more. Here's a picture of my post...

I have gone back to edit it and changed it to: is to be the best wife and mother I can. It's not about changing for anyone else, but I have to be selfish in order to change which will benefit my family.


I spoke with my parents who bought me an early birthday present - a pretty pink Polar HRM! I am a little bit in love with it! We went for a walk / run yesterday. It's so light and easy to use... I would recommend it to anyone!

I was supposed to hit the gym for a boxing class last night, but C has been diagnosed with asthma and was far too fragile for me to leave the house. I am looking forward to the day I can leave him at night, I have to say! 



I have tried a few more 12WBT recipes this week too. I made the not-so-naughty nachos on Tuesday night (just added extra lean mince and some taco seasoning) and everyone inhaled it!!! Even C was munching on the mountain bread chips! We made the spinach and feta parcels on Wednesday night (added 1 chicken breast, cooked & shredded) and served them with oven roasted chips... they were a big hit too! Although I completely forgot you have to take the pastry out of the freezer the day before, so it all broke when I opened it! Such a dick!! I ended up doing little sausage roll types parcels... just as delicious!!

Paul and I are going on another walk / run this afternoon and hopefully another tomorrow morning. I will go to the gym tomorrow afternoon as Sunday is looking like a tough day to get there. Fingers crossed I can squeeze in a few workouts this weekend before Weigh-In Wednesday!

Happy weekending xo

Catch up

I feel like I am behind here already! It is so much easier for me to blog when I'm at work rather then trying to find time to work on the computer at home over the weekends - too much fun to be had there! 

Ok... where am I up to?

Setting my goals... Last Thursdays pre-season challenge was to set goals for my self. 1 month, 3 month, 6 month and 12 month goals that I can work towards.

Firstly, my overall weightloss goal is 10kg, which will take me to 58kgs (2kgs less then my pre-baby weight). 

1 month goals:

• to fit comfortable into my size 12 dress for the wedding on the 31/8/13
• to run / walk 1km in less then 8 mins. I did it on the 17/7 in 9.07 mins. (I DID IT!!!!!!!! I went to the gym on Sunday afternoon and ran it TWICE!!! First time was 7.44, second time was 7.32!!!!!!!!!!)

3 month goals:

• plank for 30 seconds without stopping
• do 20 situps without hooking feet
• lose 10 kgs

 6 month goals:

• Buy Lorna Jane pants in SMALL
• 20 push ups on my toes
• Complete True Grit 

12 month goals:

• strengthen my core so I can do some crazy yoga moves
• I want muscle definition in my arms and stomach

 Here is an example of the crazy yoga moves I want to be able to do! I know I have a lot of core strengthening to do to complete these moves comfortably, but I will do it!

^^^ this woman? Total inspiration to me even though I've never met her. Her name is Annie Reid. Her blog can be found here and her IG name is areid1982. Amazing doesn't cut it!

So, I hit the gym this morning, just for some quick cardio (15 minutes on the TM and lots of stretching) as I just wasn't feeling it and I had to get back to the office. I thought I would start recording my stats for my Fitness Test... as I said previously, this isn't the official Fitness Test Michelle sets in a couple of weeks. I am doing this purely to try and beat my scored in 3 weeks. 

So...

1km: 7.32 minutes
Pushups in 1min: 25 (on knees)
Wall sit: 1.30min
Sit ups: (will update later)
Sit & Reach: (will update later)

I'm not too disappointed with those times / scores. I am happy I found out what I have to do so I have a benchmark to beat! 

Happy Tuesday xo

Thoughts on food

So I had a bit of breakthrough last night. I was feeding C to sleep thinking about my excuses etc regarding exercise and I realised I hadn't actually thought about any to do with food. 

I've never really thought much about my relationship with food... I haven't acknowledged the way I think about it, why I eat the way I do. 

I was browsing the 12wbt forums yesterday and came across this motivational picture...

Boom. Breakthrough. 

That's exactly what I do. Well, what I USED to do. 

C had a good night sleep? Have a chocolate.
Going for a walk after work? Have a chocolate.
Haven't had chocolate for 3 days? Have 2 chocolates. 

Even last night. Mum & Dad were staying with us, we had the girls. Big cook up of spag bol & garlic bread. Followed by cheesecake and ice-cream for S's birthday. My thoughts? 'Oh well, mum and dad are here, it's ok to eat 3 pieces of garlic bread. And I have to have dessert... it's for S's birthday'

That's bullshit. Nobody would care if I said NO to the garlic bread. Nobody would care if my piece of cheesecake is smaller then theres. Nobody would care if I only had one scoop of ice-cream. 

I need to STOP worrying about what everyone thinks. Mum is here for a few more days and we are off to the Pink concert tomorrow night so I'm not holding out great hopes for a healthy dinner at the entertainment centre, but I don't have to have the hot chips... I don't have to have the greasy burger... I can make good choices. 

Pre-Season challenge 2 is out... time to set some goals and list HOW I can achieve them in 1 month / 3 months / 6 months / 12 months / overall weightloss goal. 

I've started jotting down some ideas, but will take my time and get them right. I'll come back later today or tomorrow and list them here.

Nic xo

A loss already!

I jumped on the scale at the gym yesterday and I have already lost .5kg!! I know, I know... it's not much. But still - a loss is a loss is a loss!!! 

I have managed to get my hands on a copy of the Fitness Test so I am going to give it a go on the weekend in preparation for when it's released on the 5th of August. You have to retest every 4 weeks throughout the challenge, so I'm excited to see my progress - even though I don't have to do it now I want to see if I can improve while still in the pre-season.

I also did my measurements on Monday...

Right arm: 29cm
Left arm: 28cm
Bust: 96.5cm
Waist: 79.5cm
Hips: 106.5cm
Right thigh: 59.5cm
Left thigh: 60.5cm

Again, I know I don't have to record these yet. But I really want to see what I can do in the next four weeks in preparation for the challenge. I also really want to hit the pre-season as hard as possible because I'm on holiday in Canberra for the first week of the challenge and I know it's not going to be a good week.

I am excited to test myself and see how far I can go and what improvements I can make in the next four weeks. 

Get Real

The first challenge as part of the pre-season is to GET REAL... acknowledge your excuses and come up with solutions for each of them. 

Michelle has listed 3 types of excuses - Internal, External (within your control) and External (outside your control). The first thing I had to do was to list all of the excuses I have made in the past to get out of exercising and to come up with a rebuttal. 

It was actually quiet confronting... I was already rolling my eyes at myself for the lame-arse excuses I have been using over the past 12 months! So, here they are... my excuses listed below and the solutions I have come up with in red beside them...

Internal Excuses
- I'm not motivated :: JFDI! Make it part of every day. Stop thinking - start doing!
- I'm too tired :: JFDI! Be tired for a reason. C is sleeping better and I feel so much better afterwards!
- I feel silly exercising and I worry what I look like when I exercise :: who cares and who cares?! At least I am doing something. Stop worrying what others think!
- I'm not really *that* overweight :: if you are sitting at your desk, with your jeans unbuttoned while you shovel chocolate in your mouth, it's time to move that arse!

External Excuses - within my control
- I'm too busy :: week one and I have been to the gym 5 times! 2 classes and 3 cardio sessions!! Hello?! Too busy for what?
- C has been out all day :: exercise at home... put YouTube on. Run around outside with him. Be a good example to HIM!
- It's too cold :: put a jumper on and JFDI!
- It's too hot :: wear a tshirt and JFDI!

External Excuses - outside my control
- C is sick and I have no one to look after him :: Exercise at home! Stop complaining and JFDI!

Saying it all outloud makes me feel SO much better already. 

My new favourite saying? JFDI... I love it!