Wednesday weight loss week 4 + 5

I have been busy at work. Very busy and so blogging has taken a 3rd wheel, unfortunately.

So week 4 was less then stellar. I burned my 3000kcal, I tracked every morsel that went in my mouth and stayed in my points and still I was up 400g (0.9lb). The WW leader was again not the usual one although she didnt weird me out as much as the last time. I think she realised we were used to a very different style then the one she does and she kept talking to us and keeping us calm (sounds like we are kindergarten children but when your routine on something so important is disturbed you get stressed)

I decided that it wasnt going to discourage me and promptly got discouraged. That night I didnt go to gym but went straight to a braai (BBQ) at friends and managed to eat all my points I think, I dont know I didnt track it but I was miserable. I gave myself the night to be miserable and throught the evening kept reminding myself that i still had 200g (0.4lb) left of my big 1.8kg (4lb) loss and I wasnt allowed to gain it. I spent the public holiday on wednesday doing lots of nothing except drinking great cofffee, eating sushi and watching private practice and medium. Thursday was back to gym and I did my utmost to burn 700kcal in that hour but only got 641kcal, I felt exhausted though so wasnt too upset by it. Had a great dinner and watched that I didnt over indulge, even too much salad is too much.

Friday I wasnt able to train as I headed out to Betty's bay (a coastal town) to spend the weekend with friends. Got there, cooked supper and went to bed. The next morning I though "I could go for a walk!" and I did, a quick 30 min walk just to get my morning started. This was my view for most of the walk:

This is who I met when I go there:

The whole area has these helpful baboon information signs as baboons have started becoming a problem with people feeding them and trying to "make friends" with the cute but wild animals.

Was kept busy most of the day so didnt even snack, just had a nice salad for lunch (it was late spring weather) and then decided to try walking to the shops to do the grocery shopping we needed for supper (2-3 hour walk) but by the time we left it was getting late so 3 of us walked while we told my friends husband to wait an hour and a half and then come fetch us. We walked for 1h45min and it was very nice.

We had a braai (BBQ)  that night and I had bought Kudu (type of venison) steak, very very lean and very tasty. 

That evening was also an early night and the next morning I woke up with the same thought in my head "I could go for a walk!" This time I took a diffrent direction and walked for just over an hour. This was my view:

I drove home after that to wish my daddy a happy father's day. I decided on sunday that my "Bread Fast" was over. enough was enough, I wasnt losing more weight, it wasnt helping me in anyway and just making me miserable.

Monday I was so sore and exhausted from all the walking that I took the day off. Went to a book launch that evening.

Yesterday (tuesday) was weigh in day again and the lady who is meant to lead us for the next couple of months was back, so back to our usual routine. I really really felt like I would have a loss this week, i felt it in my bones. I was sure it would be a small loss but definitely a loss. Well....I was...wrong. It wasnt a small loss it was a BIG loss. I lost 1kg (2.2lb). Was so motivating and I was ready to kick ass at gym. Which I did in the first 40 min till I didnt catch a medicine ball thrown to me properly and ended up with in my face. Luckly on the side and not my nose.

What shall today bring...I have a lovely pot of minestrone waiting at home :)

Wednesday weight loss week 3 (late..oops)

I want to say it was another fantastic loss by I cant. I am up, 1.2kg (2.6lb). I feel really bad about it by my husband, my trainer and a gym buddy have all mentioned the fact that over 2 weeks there is a net loss of 600g (1.3lb) which is actually healthy. I have recommitted to watching my portion size and have decided to be extra careful about the points I allocate to things. I tracked accurately and exercised and still there was an up on the scale so I am very frustrated.

Last week I burnt 2206 calories. That isnt enough really so I am aiming for more then 3000 this week. So far I am on 1270. I have my trainer tonight and I have the day off tomorrow so will be going in early before the World Cup madness on the roads begins. My sister and I are planning to go Ice Skating on Sunday. The "week" on my HR monitor is Monday - Sunday so that will be my week.

Oh that reminds me. Ice skating last week was great. I didnt skate consistently as I was helping a friend and just generally chatting to friends but in an hour with all that I still got through 584cal, not bad at all for something I had lots of fun doing.

I am going to review my goal weight. Initially I put it as the lowest weight WW says is healthy for my height but I have had many many people telling me that I will be skeletal and they are worried about me aiming so low. So I am putting it at half way between.

so here we are:

Current weight: 114.6kg (252.6lb)

Goal weight: 57kg (125.7lb)

Total to lose: 57.6kg (127lb)

My weekend that was week 3

All in all a really fantastic weekend.

I went ice skating on friday which was really fun. i didnt realise how many calories got burnt in the process, lots with stopping I think I could double it if I skated non stop (hard to do with the little sh*ts that skate at the Grand West Ice station) One thing though is it really made me miss Goodwood Ice rink (For those who are not from Cape Town. Goodwood Ice Rink was a old leaky place that was falling appart but I was ther e a lot, and they played 80's music while you skated. It was knocked down and replaced with Grand West Casino and Entertainment) I missed the 80's cheese, I missed the sessions where they would let only beginners or only experts or only couples etc. The new ice rink plays pop, hip hop, R&B but no 80's. There was one remix of an 80's song. Mostly I miss that half way through a session they kicked everyone off to smooth out the ice.

Saturday I forced myself to stay in bed and manged till 10. I dont think I will force myself again, I felt like I had wasted so much time. We did some stuff at the V&A waterfront, had brunch and then headed home where we vegged some more before heading out to a friend's birthday party. I got aaaaalll dressed up, hair, make up, the lot because we thought we may be able to go to another party after. We decided to go home at 11 cause we are old and boring...um...and broke.

Sunday was supposed to be me and my sister going to the gym and doing breakfast. It turned out to be TheHusband  and I going to the gym and then going to my parents to taste bread (I only tasted as this is my month without bread). We then went home and did some cleaning up and I attempted to make diabetic friendly marangue. Need to chat to ThePartner as to why they failed. Then will try again.

Team up Thursday - Breakfast

Well we actually have a 3 way team up Thursday but sidiot, our 3rd team mate seems to have gone AWOL.

The theme we chose was breakfast. I think we just chose at random and its interesting to see the different interpretations.

So without further a due here is Manik and my TUT

Hopefully sidiot will be around and I will add his here when he sends it

Other bloggers also doing Team Up Thursday's ARE:

Berta and Corey

Andrea and Claire

Megan and Melody

Joanne and Rose

Cat and Shayne

Marcelle and Kerstin

Wednesday weight loss week 2

Still no badge but I dont want to push my fantastically talented friend so I will wait patiently like a good girl.

Yesterday I was not in a good way as its TOM and I havnt felt that bad since I was a teenager. Couple that with the fact that no one needed help with anything so Trade post Tuesday didnt happen.

So onto Wednesday's post.

I lost 1.8kg (4lb). It takes me to 113.4kg which, after checking my book, brings me to 10% of my total body weight lost!

Even though most of that was done at sport's science, the lady that is leading our group at the moment (I usual leader has gone to the states for 3 months) is the head of CT (from what I gathered) and she decided that I deserve the 10% keyring!! I am ecstatic.

I wont say I worked extra heard this week but I did train quite a bit and my eating wast too bad.

I had a very strange moment though: I am an emotional eater. When I am happy, I eat, when I am upset I eat. It's part of the reason I am where I am weight wise. On Monday night I had a huge fight with my dad. I am still dealing with the stress from it (tight chest, very jumpy, unhappy tummy) but on Monday night it was all snot in tranne. Normally I would reach for food, chocolate, cheese, something. I made my husband supper and went to bed. The last thing I wanted to do was eat, the thought of food made me feel ill. I didnt eat anything till Tuesday afternoon when The Husband insisted. So very very strange. I was so hungry by last night that I had too much food but luckily it was healthy food.

I have broken through a platue and the downward trend must continue now. My next big goal is to make 5kg (11lb) loss on WW (1.6kg-3.5lb away). Then after that is to get into double digits...I havent seen those since I hit 20.

Current weight: 113.4kg (250lb)

Goal weight: 51kg (112.4lb)

Total to lose: 62.4kg (137.5lb)

My weekend that was week 2

So as you could see, Thursday and Friday's posts were non existent. Well the reasons are simple, I had nothing to write about. No one wanted to use my blogspace to advertise and we didn't to see a movie on Thursday night.

Friday I cooked supper and you can follow the recipe adventure on my other blog: Add to taste. It took a lot longer then expected but it came out fantastic and everyone ate their fill.

Saturday The Partner was meant to come over to bake cookies that we could sell but she ended up spending the day with her sig-oth and I ended up meeting Princess Anie's new addition to the family while getting really slow and overwhelmed service from the staff at Millstone in Oude Moulen. Later on I was being fetched to The Physio's birthday party...by The Physio and her husband. I was told they would miscall me when they were 5 mintues away so I could head out to meet them at security. I received a missed call SMS and ran straight for the gate, not checking the number. When I got there and saw that no one had arrived, then I checked my phone and saw it was actually The Husband who had tried to call me to let me know he was done working. I told him where to meet us and shortly after my lift arrived.

The boys went to watch the rugby at Woodstock lounge while the girls went for happy hour cocktails at Jamaica me Crazy. 3 cocktails and lots of giggles later (it amazes me that I can switch from being uber bouncy fan girl to laughing at the uber bouncy fan boys,e specially while slightly warmed by my liquid refreshment). Sorry that the Stormers had lost but proud that they got as far as they did and that they were not completely trampled by the bulls.

We then headed off for sushi at 1890 House. Consistently good sushi at consistently good prices, you know you have been to a place too often when they waiter gives you a hug when you arrive. Had delicious fish, champagne and plenty of water. Then home James, with a detour past Woodstock lounge, apparently The Husband put down a bet that the score will be 27 -17 to the bulls, to collect some winnings.

Saturday morning bright and early The Partner arrived and we started our first tandem baking adventure. We went shopping for the few things we were missing and then got to work. We spent the whole day working in my tiny kitchen and didn't bump into each other or spoil each others work or anything of the sort. Later we went for supper at my mom's and in her huge kitchen we kept knocking each other, and all we were doing was eating. The evening ended off with an episode of knightrider and Angels and Daemons and then off to bed.

Ah and also, if you want to see the result of the baking check out
Goodbye Hello Kitty

Weightloss Wednesday

So I have an idea for a badge and I have asked a fantasticly talented friend to help me.

Last nights weigh in wasnt too bad. I havent moved. Still the same weight. I managed to track most days which isnt ideal but its better then not tracking at all. Once I  am back in the habit I will be doing it regularly and I know if I track consistently and accurately I can lose the weight.

I have gone to gym 3 days in a row now (Sunday, Monday and Tuesday) and today I am taking a break. If the weather stays as it is I may take my mom and the dogs down to the beachfront for a walk this evening but otherwise I need a rest day. The reason is simple: The fitness you gain in 3 weeks of exercise is marginal compared to the fitness you lose when you dont exercise for 3 weeks. The Husband suggested I do 3 days in a row for a while till my fitness is back up to the point where I can handle 5 days in a row like I used to.

My trainer is sick so I had a lesson in pushing myself last night. I followed the routine he did with me last Thursday which was 20min of cardio, stretching then core exercises and then finish off the 45 minutes with cardio (from next week I will be back up to an hour). So I did 20 min on the elliptical (currently the one cardio machine I can really push on without hurting my back) then did my stretches. I did my balance exercise byt standing on an overturned bosu ball with my eyes closed for as much of it as possible. Then I did 90° crunches iwth a 1kg medicine ball between my legs. I did 5 of them while holding the crunch each time for 10 counts. Then 5 crunches, holding th medicine ball out in front of me also holding the crunch for 10 counts. I then did the plank for 1 minute and I felt it wasnt enough, so I did an exercise where you hold the plank position and tap a ball in front of you with alternating hands, I did 15 taps.

I finished off on the treadmill. Now most of you already know I have a shin splint problem so I cannot run, at least not at my current weight. A few weeks ago I decided to do a little experiment as the top speed I can go on the treadmill does not raise my heart rate up enough. SO I dropped the speed and upped the incline. At the moment my maximum is a 13° incline at speed 4.

I have set some goals for the next couple of weeks that I think will help me get out of this rut I find myself in. Firstly back to limiting my salt. Portion control!! I have lost my way here and its time to get back to that. In addition The Husband and I have decided that June is "No Bread Month". We are not cutting out carbs or starches, just bread.

Current weight: 115.2kg (254lb)

Goal weight: 51kg (112.4lb)

Total to lose: 64.2kg (141.5lb)

My weekend that was

This weekend wend more or less as planned. Nothing completely off track but there were some moments of madness I can share.

Friday was nothing exciting really and everything went as it was meant to, except that last minute I was sent to do the shopping. I discovered to my great glee that the Garden Center PnP and woolies are open till 9pm!!

Saturday was full of adventure. I went to Truth Coffee Cult in the morning and bought coffee for my sister and I, then to Marcelino's to buy bread, but it was too early for bread so I went to drop off the coffee and came back for the bread. Later we went flat hunting. This is where things got interesting. We went with an estate agent from the Table View Remax Associates, named Derek Ghol. He showed us one flat inside and out and then moved onto the next where he was unable to get hold of the tenant so showed us the flat from the outside. The third block of flats he took us to he just pointed at the general block, said "they all look the same from the outside, its 2 bedrooms but very compact" we said thank you, took his card and when he asked if he could contact us if he had any more my moms aid he was welcome to as long as we could see inside, to which he replied in a huffy, sulky voice "If you're going to be stroppy then forget about!" then under his breath "I have good properties" as he stormed off to his car and drove off. I am still in shock.

Later we went to see a private sale and I think we may have found out first home.

That evening my sister and I went to watch The Stormers at newlands. wow wow wow that was a fantastic experience and I really didnt expect my sister to be such an awesome person to watch it with, she normally doesnt watch with us when we watch on TV. She was the best best best partner.

The next morning I was up early for some ungodly reason and decided that I should take the opportunity to plan my morning to go to gym before going for coffee with a friend. Gym went well and the coffee was fantastic. This friend has lost 42kilos!! very very inspiring.

The rest of the days went quietly. The Husband was meant to work last night but didnt and that was great and The Partner, The Husnad and I met for coffee at Touch of Madness later to discuss some business stuff and as you do with old friends just chat. I discovered something new, Book Crossing. The books at Touch of Madness are all book crossing books. The idea is simple. Take the book, read the book, enter the code inside the book to say you have it into the website. Pass on the book. Love it!

A new week this week, lets see what it holds. HAVE A FANTASTIC last week of May

Film Review Friday

Well last night wasnt movie night because Movie Buff is in Oz and no one organised an alternative on (I was too busy drinking brandy to organise anything)

So instead I will tell you about a movie I saw a week and a bit ago called KickAss

Let me start by saying that this is NOT a kids movie and that Hit Girl is my new favourite superhero


"Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan with a few friends and who lives alone with his father. His life is not very difficult and his personal trials not that overwhelming. However, one day he makes the simple decision to become a super-hero"

This movie is just plain fun. It has a little commentary on society and some feel good moments but mostly its fun. It's gory and pulls no punches. and I enjoyed every moment.

Trade Post Thursday

Again, no badge yet but I will get to that. 


Today I would like you to meet Gabbi and Mischa:

These to beautiful ladies are the proud owners of AnonaMiss Beauty Emporium. Both are not just really sexy, wonderful human beings but well qualified and good at what they do. Both are qualified make-up and special effects artists and have worked on many shoots and events. Gabbi was the make-up artist at my wedding and did EVERYONE from the bride's maids to the Mother of the Bride to the Bride herself, I mean, myself. So I can vouch for her professionalism and style. 

Here is what the company is about:

Style is NOT about blending in! Real style is having the confidence to stand out of the crowd.

AnonaMiss Beauty Emporium's exclusive range of professional quality make-up, extravagant lashes and too-dye for hair accessories offers you the chance to do just that! Be it a demure darling, a feisty femme fetale or a sultry sex-kitten, let your sassy alter-ego come out to play....don't MISS out.

Our products include the Ooh La Lash lashes, professional quality TI Creative Styling hair irons and dryers ( sport new Tourmaline & negative ion technology, patented 96 ventilation holes, titanium plates and heat-adjusting...some come with matching real leather clutch purses). Imported New York cosmetic and hair range, Manic Panic, which includes top-quality, strong pigmented, brightly coloured make-up, vegan friendly semi-permanent hair dyes, temporary hair gels. clip-in hair pieces and washable synthetic wigs. Eyeshadows, glitters, hair pieces and dyes available in selected neon colours that glow under UV lights. Also Alila cosmetics for all little extras, such as little brushrolls to fit in your handbag, make-up fixatives and primers, foundation palettes and cosmetic cases.

What more could you want? Gorgeous colours, great accessories and BEAUTY WITHOUT CRUELTY and VEGAN

Wednesday weight loss

I will work on a little title badge for these days when I have more time but for now you will just have to deal with the picture of my pretty face on the right :)

So the news is not so good as I put on weight BUT not by much only 200g(0.4lb) which means I am now 600g(1.3lb) away from losing the weight I put on over the stressful work week. I know where my faults were, starting with not tracking and ending with a rather large piece of cake. I however, am not going to break all the china, this is a long term journey and I will make my destination in the end.

So my plan for this week is to track, stay under my points and get back into exercise. MY back injury turns out to be just a twisted joint, she said its there where the dimples at the top of your bum are (she being the physio) so no slip disc, no major injury. I am super happy.

Gonna make sure I do a lot of core work as it will probably save me from back injury in the future too.

I think I also need to say how much weight I need to lose till my goal weight:
Current weight: 115.2kg (254lb)
Goal weight: 51kg (112.4lb)
Total to lose: 64.2kg (141.5lb)

I have set other goals along the way and have attached rewards to them:
100kg (220.5lb) = Lion's head moonlight walk
90kg (198.4lb) = Walking up Table Mountain from the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens side
80kg (176.4lb) = Namibia 8 day hike and learning to run (pending physio approval)
70kg (154.3lb) = Skydive
60kg (132.3lb) = Begin designing a new wardrobe to be made by Secret Garden
51kg (112.4lb) = Get my very own steampunk outfit

It may be that when I reach 63kg (138.9lb) (the top of the healthy weight for my height range) I wont go any further but we will see then, it's still a way to go

Getting back to real life

I realise its been a while since I blogged. Its been madness on my side with our annual pageant happening where I get turned from a layout designer to a rough-about. Then straight into production for the magazine which was about 20% done and had to work overtime (till 1am) every night and weekends.

So firstly I want to state that this blog is changing direction. Not that I have many followers and that many people will care but I have decided to make this a general blog. There will be weightloss stuff and all of that.

I have decided to take a cue from my good friend and excellent blogger, photgrapher, mother and granmother Marcelle and add structure to my blog.

I dont know yet what to put in each day so will need suggestions. I will update the below list as I get suggestions or ideas:

Monday: The weekend that was (meant to be) - the weekend and how things went down compared to how they were planned. (Thank you Eve)

Tuesday: Trade post Tuesday - I have loads of friends starting their own business, or trying to find homes for their pets or something they need help with. Tuesday will be dedicated to that

Wednesday: Weight loss day - Tuesday night is weigh in so wed I will report back and talk about my week and stuff like that.

Thursday: Team up Thursday - Will be taking a pic in the week to match a theme, as will my partner and then will post it on my blog :)

Friday: Movie review day - Each Thursday night we go to a friend for movies, I will review the movie we see on the Friday

Saturday:

Sunday: 

Please note weekends need to be low maintenance stuff as I will probably want to be lazy on weekends.

Also I would like to share my new look haircut with eveyone who hasnt seen my tweet or FB post :)

Tada:

not a long weekend

Unlike half of South Africans, I am at work today (and will probably be in tomorrow as well). I have a very hectic week ahead of me with too much time planned for meals and not enough for exercise. See the company I work for is hostinga beauty pageant to find their brand ambassador. I am hoping spending the week with tiny Indian girls will inspire me to not eat so much but I also know what I am like under high stress. I am going to be working non stop from wed morning till very early sunday morning.

Today my boss is gonna give us a rundown of where we have to be and when and I will try fit in a workout where ever I can because we are going to be eating indian food and take aways the whole week.

This weekend I baked a cake:

and redid the packing of the cupboards in my kitchen. In particular the Tupperware cupboard and I threw a WHOLE lot of stuff away.

I also ate very badly because I had a moment. I knew that the cortisone was going to make me gain and be bloated. I was hungry continuously because of the stuff and was just so frustrated and stressed (the cake was for money, if I got it right it meant I was guaranteed at least 1 more cake) so I didnt care. I didnt even track. I will see it on the scale tomorrow and next week but I am not going to let that get to me. This is a long journey and some potholes are not going to deter me from my final destination.

Hope everyone has a solid week :)

Thursday with a diffrence

You may have noticed that most my thursdays are the same in the evening. We go to a friend's house where we order nando's and watch a movie. Last night was different as our other friends didnt come (they husband had to work and withe wife was tired), the other lot also didnt come (the 1 house mate is sick and the other is liftless otherwise) and so I called the friend who we go to and checked if it would bother him much if we also cancelled this week. He was happy for a chance to get to bed early at least 1 night this week so J and I had the evening to ourselves. We will get to that part shortly :)

The whole day I was so hungry, my gran says its the cortizone. I think its a combination of that and the cold weather I drank 3 cups of green tea before it was even 11 oclock. Then I tucked into an orange and ate it really slowly. By lunch time I was so hungry but luckly I had packed a fantastic lunch (see here). After lunch I was very satisfied for about an hour when the niggles for food started again. I had some water and another cup of tea and about 3 I had an apple. It was a baby apple and I had to cut off some bruised bits so not very filling :(. By 3 I start my wrapping up for the day, finishing things off and the like. So it wasnt so bad.

I rushed home from there to fetch Jack and go to gym. Wow what a session and for the first time in moths I experienced muscle failure. Now for those training hard will know that muscle failure is a good failure. It means you have really worked hard, pushed your body to its limit. My trainer was very impressed. (As an example for those who havent experienced. I was supposed to do 15 reps on level 15, 12 reps on level 20 and 10 reps on level 25. I managed the first 2 but barely did 5 on the last one and my trainer helped)

Then we I had a shower and while Iwas in the change room J bought me a little baby C-monster (smoothie) and himself a cup of coffee and we sat and chatted to a metro cop friend who goes to our gym. He told us that as of the 1st of July they are going to start implementing the points system on licenses and from the 1st of november it goes in full. That means you get 12 points every 3 years, driving 20km/h over the speed limit = -2 points, bigger offences are -5 points and if you do not have your license on you when you are stopped you will arrested. No more fines for not carrying your license, go straight to jail, do not pass go, do not collect R200.

We then went to the V&A waterfront to check mail and do some shopping for dinner. I made spicy chicken breasts with garlic cous cous but I will post the link when I blog about it. Suffice to say it was delicious. Then we went to visit my dad who ha been in JHB all week.

My ear is feeling a lot better. It changes from moment to moment between feeling normal, feeling a little blocked and feeling very blocked but my gran says thats how cortizone works (my gran has been on cortizone most of her life, as a result she has paper for skin and matchsticks for bones)

This morning my chest is a little tight, will see how I feel later and maybe use my ventoline pump, I try to breath past it and see if it releases but not for too long otherwise it gets too tight, if it doesnt realease on its own then only I use the pump.

Hope everyone has a fantastic day and even better weekend. Fro those who have a long weekend, remember there will be many more long weekends, this is not the last one and so there is no need to go overboard. If I dont get a chance to blog this weekend (As has been the case) I will post monday (as I have to be at work)

Thursday with a diffrence

You may have noticed that most my thursdays are the same in the evening. We go to a friend's house where we order nando's and watch a movie. Last night was different as our other friends didnt come (they husband had to work and withe wife was tired), the other lot also didnt come (the 1 house mate is sick and the other is liftless otherwise) and so I called the friend who we go to and checked if it would bother him much if we also cancelled this week. He was happy for a chance to get to bed early at least 1 night this week so J and I had the evening to ourselves. We will get to that part shortly :)

The whole day I was so hungry, my gran says its the cortizone. I think its a combination of that and the cold weather I drank 3 cups of green tea before it was even 11 oclock. Then I tucked into an orange and ate it really slowly. By lunch time I was so hungry but luckly I had packed a fantastic lunch (see here). After lunch I was very satisfied for about an hour when the niggles for food started again. I had some water and another cup of tea and about 3 I had an apple. It was a baby apple and I had to cut off some bruised bits so not very filling :(. By 3 I start my wrapping up for the day, finishing things off and the like. So it wasnt so bad.

I rushed home from there to fetch Jack and go to gym. Wow what a session and for the first time in moths I experienced muscle failure. Now for those training hard will know that muscle failure is a good failure. It means you have really worked hard, pushed your body to its limit. My trainer was very impressed. (As an example for those who havent experienced. I was supposed to do 15 reps on level 15, 12 reps on level 20 and 10 reps on level 25. I managed the first 2 but barely did 5 on the last one and my trainer helped)

Then we I had a shower and while Iwas in the change room J bought me a little baby C-monster (smoothie) and himself a cup of coffee and we sat and chatted to a metro cop friend who goes to our gym. He told us that as of the 1st of July they are going to start implementing the points system on licenses and from the 1st of november it goes in full. That means you get 12 points every 3 years, driving 20km/h over the speed limit = -2 points, bigger offences are -5 points and if you do not have your license on you when you are stopped you will arrested. No more fines for not carrying your license, go straight to jail, do not pass go, do not collect R200.

We then went to the V&A waterfront to check mail and do some shopping for dinner. I made spicy chicken breasts with garlic cous cous but I will post the link when I blog about it. Suffice to say it was delicious. Then we went to visit my dad who ha been in JHB all week.

My ear is feeling a lot better. It changes from moment to moment between feeling normal, feeling a little blocked and feeling very blocked but my gran says thats how cortizone works (my gran has been on cortizone most of her life, as a result she has paper for skin and matchsticks for bones)

This morning my chest is a little tight, will see how I feel later and maybe use my ventoline pump, I try to breath past it and see if it releases but not for too long otherwise it gets too tight, if it doesnt realease on its own then only I use the pump.

Hope everyone has a fantastic day and even better weekend. Fro those who have a long weekend, remember there will be many more long weekends, this is not the last one and so there is no need to go overboard. If I dont get a chance to blog this weekend (As has been the case) I will post monday (as I have to be at work)

2 day report back

Sorry about the quietness yesterday, I felt weird not blogging but I didnt even look at my pc yesterday. Checked mail on my phone and that was it.

So lets start with Tuesday:

It wasnt such a great day. My ear was still bugging me and my boss kept looking at me like I was faing it. Eventually I called the doctor and made a booking for the next morning. Gym was ok, trained on my owna s my trainer was booked for 6 and I had weigh in at 5. Oh yes! Weigh in. I didnt lose...but...I didnt gain either and with cortizone drops I am very happy with that result. After gym we went to a meeting with a financial planner and we were home really late. I just collapes on the bed, why youy ask? Well since I have shin splints I cant go fast on the treadmill, it hurts. So I never get my HR very high on the treadmill. Tuesday I was a little bored of the elliptical and I didnt feel like steps so I got on the treadmill and pushed it up as high as my legs could handle but my HR wouldnt go above 140. This frustrated me and then I had a wave of genius. It took the speed down all the way down to 3 and pushed the gradient up to 13. then I just upped the speed as I went. Wow! My HR was up at 175 at one point.

Wednesday:

I went to the doctor and she put me on cortizone tablets. 40mg a day 5 days, I hate to see what my weight does by next tuesday. I went to fetch the medication, went to my mom's for lunch, took my medication and went for a nap. Yesterday was a month since J and I got married and by stroke of luck it was the night we went to pick our favourites from the Pro shots!!

Cant wait to get them all touched up :)

Look on my food blog to see my recent lunch time blog post.

Also I want one of these: http://www.fitbit.com/product

Monday just might go my way...

My ear is still driving me nuts. I was moody and unhappy by the end of the night last night. I had a very good day food wise. I had bought an apple and an orange from the Spar on the way to work yesterday. The apple was sooo juicy and sour, sour foods inhibit appetite (apparently). I expected the orange to be sour too as they are just just on the market and in season. I was pleasantly suprised as it was so juicy and delicious.

Gym was good. My trainer has latched onto this interval training idea and now we do it every time. It works, I dont enjoy it, but it works. I think I just need to learn to work through my pain :) Maybe it can become a spiritual experience.

The weekend that was

Before writing this blog post I calculated my food for the weekend. I had written everything down I just hadnt written the values or calculated. I was shocked! I was sure I had a terrible weekend. I was sure I went over my points each and every day. How wrong was I. Friday I was waay under, Saturday I was "on-the-dot" and sunday I was waay under again. Will tell you about my weekend anyway.

So friday was an ok day at work, my boss wasnt in so it was quiet. After work I went straight to my mom's house to cook supper. I will post the recipe on my food blog as it was healthy and low in calories. While the meat was marinading I took J's skipping rope which is now mine and went outside to skip. I did workout 3 of week 1 of the 100pushup program and skipped. It took about 30 minutes before I had had enough. I hadnt burned many calories but the bricks I was skipping on were hell for my legs. I need to make another plan as I really enjoy skipping but need a softer place to land.

If you recall I went to aqua on Wed. Ever since then I had water in my ear. I asked my mom on friday to buy me drops to get it out. So after the meat went into the oven and the potatoes were on the boil I went to shower and decided to try a trick my ENT taught me where, when you shower, you put the water in your ear and hold it there a minute. After 30 seconds I felt dizzy and sick. I had to have my sister bring me water before I could move again. I guessed then that I had an ear infection but thought maybe the hot water and standing with my head tildted, plus the skipping may have just made my blood pressure go funny.

After supper (which was oven roasted tenderloin, crispy smoked potatoes and bamboo steamed veg) I went to lie down in the lounge so my mom could put drops in my ear. At first if felt really good, like the drops were going in places that really needed it and then suddenly the pain started and it was sooo bad. eventually the pain subsided but my ear just felt blocked.

I went to the doctor the next morning and it turns out my first assumption was right, I have an ear infection. I then put drops in my ear that had alcohol in them and that went into the raw infected area and caused my ear canal to swell and close up my ear, which is why it hurt so bad and then the swelling went down a fraction so it still felt blocked but the air inside still had space to move so the pain stopped.

I went to cavendish to go buy the drops and visit a place called "Storm in A-G cup" It is a lingerie store that measures you properly and teaches you how to wear your bras. The lady at woolworths told me I was a 42D. I am actually a 38DD and wow what a difference the correct size makes! I cringe when I see women, especially at the gym, who wear the wrong size bra and also the wrong bra, you have no idea what damage you can do. I am happy now that I am wearing the correct size and I will be taking my sports bras to them to have them altered as they are 44DD.

Then we went home for much needed rest (no sleep the night before), breakfast (at 1 oclock, cause I wasnt feeling so great when we left the house) ear drops and a new show I am now hooked on called Drop Dead Divas. That night we went over to friends and were there till 3 in the morning. We had take away chinese food and although I made the best choice from what was on offer, I know take away chinese food so only ate half of it. Even so, like I said, Saturday I ate 24 of my 24 points and that was with not having breakfast.

Sunday I was bored of sleeping by 9:30, we went over to my mom's and I made pancakes. She said she admired me because if I feel like something I will take the time to make it not just stuff my face to try and fill the gap and drown the craving. We then went back home as I forgot the drops there and I watched some more Drop Dead Diva. In the opening credits there is a scene where they eat popcorn so I had to go and make some, that was basically lunch. Sub conciously my body knew not to eat a lot for lunch cause at 6 my dad called and said that they were taking us out for supper. They took us to a place called Posticino. I could have had pasta there, the pasta is not bad but their pizza, there is no better pizza (if you are the kind of person who like real pizza not stogy, oily take away crap) so I decided tog et my favourite pizza and a big salad with it. To be honest, the mood I was in last night, the salad was the best part :)

So today I am alone at work. Everyone is out on meetings. I still cant hear very well out my right ear but I ahve my green tea, I have my giant bottle of water. I am dressed ready for gym tonight, tonight after gym we are going to my photographers office to pick pictures for the wedding album

TGIF!!

Phew Thursday, what can I say, I think I am still shaking :P

Eating wise I was right on track and saved loads of points up for supper. So instead of a millie or a roll I got some extra chicken wings :)

Training wise, well if I thought the last workout was hectic, boy oh boy. When I started the Healthy Weight program at sports science I saw a 700+kcal burn almost every workout. As I got fitter, reaching the 700 mark was harder and harder. At the moment I am happy if I see 600 in an hour. Last night I burned 731kcal! in an hour! Seems my body hates interval training (yes hates, if it like it it would use so much energy to do it :P )

I was shaking, I had to get one of those restaurant mint out my bag when I got to the locker room cause I felt like I was going to faint and I had a cold shower to knock me out of it.

Did my next workout for the 100 push up program and managed o do 12 max, yay!

Tonight I am cooking supper. If my mom can find tuna and salmon I am making sushi, if not I am making roast beef with roast potatoes and steamed veg :)

Have a great friday! If the weekend is anything like the last then I will see you monday ?( I have to try and bake a hello kitty cake)

Over the "hump day"

Yesterday was a super day eating wise, I was really good until the end of the day when I had this unbelievable craving for chocolate so I binged...well not really, I had 3 block which is more then I have had in a while. I ate exactly 24 points so the chocolate went into my activity points but its fine, I didnt eat a whole bar and so I am happy.

I decided that wednesdays is aqua day. I didnt think it was so hard but I was so tired after. It could be from the lack of sleep the night before too. I did enjoy the yoga and the instructor was soooo happy to see me there (he also teaches step and vbox and has seen me at the gym for years)

My dad made this amazing thai fish curry last night, low in fat (used the low fat coconut milk and the low fat curry paste) and sooo tasty. I dont normally like fish curries but my mom endeavored to buy a fish I like so I could eat it.

Today I am saving up points for tonight, thursday nights we go to a friend to watch movies and we order nando's. As faswt food goes, nando's is very good, they actually plan their menu with dieticians and there is a whole page dedicated to them in my WW book. Still I like to have the chicken, a salad with feta and either a milie (corn on the cob) or a roll (and 5 chips) so I eat low point stuff throughout the day to save up points for the evening :)

FOR THE SA READERS BEWARE: Woolies "slimmer's choice" is a lie! I looked at the packaging the other day and was shocked! The "slimmer's choice" lasagne and the regular lasagne are almost the same! there is about a 100kj difference. I am almost considering writing a letter of complaint, they are cheating people. I thought about them, but I realised they will probably tell me it's consumer's responsibility to check the nutritional information. Scoundrels

Report Back and Lessons learnt

I SKIPPED!!! I cant believe I did it. I thought I wouldn't be able to because of my shins but I did it and I was told by my trainer "wow you're better then all the guys I've trained who have trained for ages and are half your size!!"

So from now on on the days I cant get to gym I will get Jack's skipping rope and skip. So happy I can do it :)

Tonight I plan on going to aqua, thats if I can move as apart from skipping my trainer seriously kicked my ass last night, my average heart rate over the hour was 163!!

I had my weigh in yesterday too. I lost the 1kg(2.2lb) I put on over the 3 weeks!! I am so happy because I was so scared I would be stuck on that plateau of 114kg(251lb) again and I'm not. I put it all down to tracking!! Tonight is picture night and measurements too so we will see. I haven't measured in 3 months and I am looking forward to see the changes.

So now to the lesson learned: I had weigh in at 5 and my trainer had some one booked already for 6 so I went to train at 7. After that we went to my parents for supper and we ate Romanian kebabs with salad an a pita bread. I learned a hard lesson in the night as it was all too heavy. I had strange strange dreams and every time I woke up from one I felt like I had a giant anvil resting on top of me. Next time I will just have the salad with a bit of bread and take the meat to work the next day.

I can feel every muscle in my body and I love it!

Day 1 weeks 2 :)

Yesterday was a good enough day food wise. I packed a nice lunch but realised that, even though it was enough food, the choices of what was in there were not the best. I am going to start packing in more veg as I am left with very little points by the time supper comes around and those are usually the biggest meal of my day.

Every second monday I spend the evening with my goddaughter and then roleplay. So I dont get a chance to go to gym. I did however start the 100 push up program and roped my friends into it too. It was very funny to watch what some people think is a correct way to do a push up ;)

I made a really yummy supper for all of us (which I forgot to photograph) where I took a whole lot of veg, baked them in the oven with a little bit of olive oil, garlic and origano. I made my own pasta sauce (1 tin tomatoe and onion mix, italian mixed herbs, paprika, pepper, salt, cinnamon) and then cut whole wheat pita breads in half. Put the tomatoe apaste, the baked veg and a bit of cheese over, back under the grill. Worked it out on sparkrecipes and its 3.5 points for 1 serving!! I think I will make these more often :)

wewewewweeekend

I totally planned to update this weekend but I spent very little time at home and when I was home I was either really busy or sleeping. 

Fridays are my day off, the reason is that with working a full day AND synagogue I never get time to go to gym and Friday night meals are always very big and rich in calories. I try to eat in such a way that I have loads of points left for supper but I dont freak out if I go over my points on a friday.

Saturday was full of lessons for me foodwise. In the morning we went bird watching with the Finish guide that J was working with this week. It was very cold but loads of fun and we saw so many different bird species AND hippos. All this 10 minutes from home. I love Cape Town. We then dropped him back off at the hotel and went for breakfast. I had a rosti with mozzarella and bacon and a smoothie and there go half my points for the day. ON BREAKFAST! We then went shopping and then home so J could change and I could take him to the hotel as he would accompany his group on the bus to the airport. What was meant to take 20 minutes took and HOUR and I still had to bake cupcakes. I made marshmallow cupcakes. They were delicious but I was sweetend out by the end of the evening as by the time we got to the party we had nothing to eat so unfortunately had cake and cupcakes and pizza!?! Well even with all that I didnt pig out like I would in the old days and only went over my points but 2½ points. Still, not the best food. 

So sunday I ate better, stayed well under my points to make up for the day before. I started the morning with a very healthy Israeli breakfast called Shakshuka. Basically its eggs poached in a tomato and onion relish. I called it store cupboard shakshuka as I had no fresh veg so used tinned tomato and onion mix and dried garlic. Then we went to houtbay with my family and when we got home J sent me to nap as I looked (and felt) dead on my feet. 2½ hours later I woke up and he had done the laundry and cleaned the kitchen *sigh* I love my man. We then went to a braai at my parents and then back home to bed so I could get enough sleep before work

I am not gonna make it to any gym today because I am going to my friends for a Roleplaying and supper, I will however excuse myself when I get there and restart the 100 push up program so I can get some calories burnt.

Have a great week!

The Mountain is my Gym

So yesterday just before leaving work my PT called to say he was sick and going home. I spent the afternoon thinking about what to do and whether I could push myself enough at gym. I asked J if he was willing to train me instead and he agreed. By the time I got home the weather was so lovely and that inspired me to go for a walk on the mountain. I waited for J to get home and out we went...

Instead of going left to where I thought we were going J went right. we went up a few roads and into Table Mountain National where the forest means the houses. There the Adventure STARTED!!! J decided to make the walk exciting. He found a stick and made me carry it in alternating hands, he found a log to walk along...ooo that was scarey...he made me go sneak sneak, bum down crouched low, then sprint a few meters. He found another log that was just the right size and length to lift the one end onto our shoulder and do squats with lifting it up as we squated and putting it on alternating shoulders. Then we carried on walking on the fire road until we got to Just above where we live and found the fire trail (where the firemen walk down to put out the fires) and walked all the way down to the braai area in our block and then home.

It was soooo much fun, such an adventure.

We went to my friends house for movies and nando's and after that we went home and had a SWIM!! Crazy people we are. I planned for it to be cold, I planned to swim 3 laps (dive in, swim to the stairs, swim back and back to the stairs), I DIDNT plan for it to be FRREEEEEZZZING. I dived in, swam to the stairs and got out, I thought my ears were going to fall off. Good thing we swam cause there was NO WATER in our flat, non this morning either. I brushed my teeth with bottled water (spoilt brat **g**)

The day after. OUCH!

So last night was back to gym and back to the other "half" of my plan to a fit mommy. I learnt that for me neither works without the other. I can gym to my hearts content and there will be a marginal loss and then a very looooooooooooooooooooooooooong plateau. I can diet and I there will be a marginal loss and again the plateau, but if I do the 2 together, that's when I see the results.

I like having a trainer, it means there is some one to push me and I he also knows how much to push after 3 weeks of not doing anything. It was just the right intensity to break a serious sweat but not so much that I injured myself or felt completely destroyed.

I can tell you this morning climbing(we have a bath with a shower and I am short) into the shower I definitely felt those leg presses and I am waiting to feel all the arm stuff we did, I am sure that will come soon.

Last night we went to babysit my mom's dogs (more for my mom's sake then for theirs) and I decided I felt like kitchenwitching (thats the name I give going into the kitchen, looking whats available and cooking something from it) and made a delicious pasta with mushrooms and olives in a "cream"y sauce. I will blog about it on my food blog soon :)

Hope everyone is having a fantastic morning and that your day will be as beautiful as cape town looked with the mist on the bay.

by the way: If any of my USA readers are willing to do a trade. I really want one of those food and exercise tracking diaries and if you willing to post me one I will trade for anything from here (Rooibos tea, khoisan salt, etc).

Weigh in report back and mini "comment" challenge

Last night was weigh-in, initially I was scared to go back but I realised that I knew that I had over indulged AND I was sick AND it's TOM so I prepared myself for the worst and predicted a gain of 3kg (6.6lbs) and went in to the meeting with a smile on my face. It was actually nice to be back, my leader is a very bubbly, upbeat woman who really tries to help members who are struggling and gets genuinely excited when members do well. She becomes a friend, getting interested in what is happening in your life so she also understands what is going on and helps you eat right for the circumstance.

Well it came to stepping on the scale and I braced myself for a colossal gain. I love my body, I have to say this, I really love my body because with 3 weeks of no exercise, 1 week of eating all the junk in the world and 1 week of eating so so, I only gained 1kg(2.2lbs)!!

So back to tracking and tonight I have booked my trainer (I made double sure last night that he got my message) and I am on the roooooad again :)

Now for the mini challenge I mentioned in the title. In the talk at the meeting last night my leader told us about a leader in the states that lost 98kg(215.6lbs)!! Her story was that she tried everything (including WW) before but didnt succeed so she went to see a doctor about bypass surgery. The doctor told her he would do the surgery until she learnt to eat correctly because otherwise she would just continue the cycle. So she went back on WW and never did the surgery in the end. In the article she read they asked the lady a question: What has your journey so far taught you?

So I would love if everyone wrote 5 things they have learnt so far on their journey, You can put it in the comments of my blog or write your own blog but I think we can all learn from each other a little. Even if its small things that help, tricks, tips or revelations. Here are mine:

1. The first 2 bites taste the same as the next 10

2. It takes your brain 20 minutes to realise your tummy is full (apparently smelling mint shortens this time)

3. There is nothing wrong with leaving food on the plate (always try leave something)

4. If you feel like you are going to have to have seconds, take ½ a portion for 1sts and then the other ½ for seconds.

5. It's ok to slip up every now and again, I am human, just make up for it the next day NEVER wait till monday to start again.