Running Group

I did it.  I was a very brave little girl and I went to the Running Group.  I was so scared.  I even told the coach I was terrified.  He thought that was funny. 

So we started with a little chat.  He talks abut a different topic at the beginning each week.  This week was shoes and gear.  Then he told us where we were going, and we were off. 

Right away it was clear I was the slowest.  There was another lady just a teensy bit faster than me, but yes, I was the slowest.  David, the coach, ran with me for quite a while and we chatted the whole time.  I don't normally talk and run, so this was new to me.  I coped pretty well which just shows that my fitness is improving.  We stopped twice to gather everyone together and have mini chats.  The first one was about 3 mins and the second one only about 2 mins.  All up I ran for around 40 minutes (not sure exactly) and I did somewhere around the 4km mark.  The others went further than me.  Several parts of the run were out and back, and when the leaders caught me up going the other way I turned around with them.  But I ran the whole way.  Most of the others walked several times.  So even though I am painfully slow still, even David remarked on the fact that not once did I stop for a walk break. 

The we all stretched (I learnt a few new ones that felt good) had another quick chat and it was time to head home.  David has suggested that I do 2 actual runs during the week and skip the sprints for now.  Happy with that! :o)  I know I can't do 2 long runs though so here is the plan.

Tuesday night - 2km run and work on doing it faster than my normal shuffle
Thursday night - running group
Weekend - 5km run

I am so glad I went.  Everyone was so nice.  The regular running group came past us at one point and the ladies were so encouraging and made me feel really good.  I am now looking forward to next week.

Weekly Personal Challenge Update
Cycling - 59.7/80kms
Running - 40/60 mins
Other - 1/2

Daily Goals
1)  Drink lots of water
2)  Don't buy any crap food
3)  Ride home the longer way
4)  Finish my daily to-do list (putting that on here really seems to help me get through it)
5)  Chillax with Ross tonight

Have a great day everyone!

xox

Update, Book Review, Game Review

Update

First things first. Thank you to everyone for your kind wishes, love and support. I had the procedure yesterday. I am home and my main feeling at the moment is relief that it is all over. I am really tired, and a bit tender. But otherwise okay.

It is weird, but I am hanging to get back on the bike and to start running again. I plan on going for a few walks on the weekend and take it from there to see when I am ready to get back into it.

This whole thing has made me more eager than ever to start living my life to the fullest. It is like a switch has been flicked inside of me. We have a lot of obstacles in our paths still, but there is nothing stopping us from getting out there more and doing all the things we talk about. It is time to live.

Book Review

Last week on my Retail Therapy expedition I bought the book “Running Hot” by Lisa Tamati.

Spending so much time waiting around in the hospital for the last couple of days has meant I have finished it already. If anyone is in need of motivation to live your life to the fullest, this is the book for you. This woman is my age. She broke her back in hear early 20’s. Since then she has cycled half way around Europe. Canoed down the Yukon River in Alaska/Canada. Hiked across the Lybian Desert through a controlled military zone, sneaking past soldiers and outposts. And ran in several Ultra Marathons including the famous Badwater Marathon in the US. Throughout all of this she also became a qualified jewellery designer and has an amazing inventory of beautiful jewellery.

This truly is an incredible read. The things that this woman has done is astounding. I highly recommend grabbing a copy of this amazing book.

Game Review

Now this is something I would not normally do. My husband and I have a DS Lite. Although I got it mainly for myself, Ross is really the one who uses it. However I recently got a copy of “The Biggest Loser” for the DS.

Can I just say, I am loving it. There is calorie counting (although American and limited), recipes, daily exercise routines, quizzes, challenges, hints and tips. It is actually really interesting. I have set up an 8 week challenge for myself. You weigh in weekly, it offers an exercise and stretching routine for each day (which I have not been able to do yet, but will start as soon as I can), gives you a calorie allowance, and has quizzes etc to do. I will still use Calorie King to count my calories, as the game is quite limited, but need to then input them, plus calories burned into the game. At the end it gives you really cool graphs and charts (which I love) plus you get Bob & Jillian cheering you on. It’s a bit of fun, and I am hoping it will give me a bit of a boost for the next 8 weeks.

That’s all from me for today. I am back to work tomorrow. I wish I could have taken a few more days off, but I need to make some money so I need to get back.

xox

Retail Therapy

Oh how I love retail therapy. I went to the shops today and bought a couple of books. I can’t do too much in the way of exercise right now – and I am quite surprised by the fact that I actually miss it – so I decided to get myself inspired so when I can get back to it I am ready and raring to go!

The book I bought is Running Hot by Lisa Tamati.

She is a New Zealand runner who has been competing in the big Ultra marathons on the States and all over the world. Her story is more interesting though, as she was advised to stop running at 19 when she nearly broke her back. Yet through determination she came back and is now up there with the best of them! I can not wait to read it!

The other book I bought was the Guide Book for the Southern end of the Heyson Trail.

Originally when we started talking about walking Heyson we decided to start at the top and make our way south bit by bit. It will take us years to do the whole thing if we do it 5 days at a time, but that’s okay. Eventually we know we will be able to say we have done the whole thing. However because access to the northern end it quite difficult to get to and we are on a serious budget this year, we have decided to start from the southern end. Easy access to the start and where we will finish by bus. It’s an area we are familiar with from camping. And it means that all things going well there is no reason we won’t be able to afford to do it this year!

I am really excited about this. I can’t wait until I can get back into training for it.

xox

Updates: Vegetarian Trial, 10 for 10 & C25K

So after just over 3 months of eating as a vegetarian, it is time to make some decisions.  I have really enjoyed eating meat-free.  I have loved experimenting with the different recipes and discovering new flavours and food textures.  There have been some bombs in there too, but that's okay it's all part of it.  Physically I have been feeling fantastic.  The symptoms of IBS are all but gone.  I have felt strong and in control.

My weight has gone up a bit, however Xmas was in there, birthdays, & holidays.  Plus I have just discovered another possible reason for that which I am dealing with.  Besides, ice ceam and biscuits are vegetarian...

Have I missed meat?  The ONLY times I have missed it has been when I have been hungry and busy, and KFC or Maccas would make life easier.  But not having those as options is a good thing for me.

So, what have I decided to do?  Well, at this stage I have no desire to eat meat.  I am not a 'never again' person.  I don't know what tomorrow will bring.  But for now, I am happy with this way of eating.  I feel good and strong, so this is what is right for me right now.  I am sticking with it!

10 for 10 - January 2010 Update

2) Ride at least 3000kms
Rode 130.01 kms for the month. I should be riding 250kms each month to reach my goal, so I am behind. But I am sure I can make this one up as the weather cools down. Plus when I move in a couple of months I will be further from work so I will automatically be riding more.

3) Finish the knitted blankets
I have knitted 51 squares.  I need 96 and I did not make much progress ths month so I will have to stop playing random computer games and get back into it.

4) Lose 30 kilos
I actually gained 1 kg according to my WW weigh in. So that puts me behind the 8 ball. My goal of 30 kilos (now 31) still stands, but I now need to lose 3 kgs a month instead of 2.5 in order to reach that goal. Hopefully Weight Watchers will help me get there.  I do have a medical issue I am dealing with right now that could be hindering this as well, but I will hopefully have some resolution on that soon.

5) Be in a financial position to sponsor a World Vision child
Not there yet, but have made plans to move in with family soon so we will start getting on top of things soon.

6) Send at least one childrens story to a publisher
Working on the next story and have enrolled for a course on writing for children.

10) Keep in touch with my interstate friends in the old fashioned way - by writing actual letters with pen and paper.
One letter sent by snail mail so far.

The other day I mentioned I was planning on starting C25K this week.  A medical issue has now come up that means I need to delay this for a little while.  I am not sure how long for, but hopefully it will be resolved soon.  It also means I may not post as much as normal in the coming weeks, but I will be around and normal programming should resume shortly.

xox

Challenge Update, Exercise Contracts & Pepsi Max

As per my post from earlier today, I didn't go for my run today.  I have spent the evening with my foot up and ice on it.  Tomorrow I will go swimming in the morning, then if it's feeling better tomorrow night I will do tonights run then.

Last weeks challenges were okay.  My healthy habits challenge completely went out the window over the weekend.  Again.  My running challenge I did 1 out of 3 runs.  Not good enough.  Time to get strict.  I have read about making an exercise contract with yourself.  I think this is a good idea.  It is a simple idea.  You write out a contract that you sign, have co-signed, then are obligated to stick to.  I would like to ask all of you to co-sign my exercise contract. 

"I, Kylie, commit to sticking to my running training for the remainder of the timetable set out (barring injury).  I will run 3 times a week with the goal of being able to run 1km at the end of the challenge."

Week 3 of my Healthy Habit a Week Challenge sees me introduce a new challenge.  This weeks challenge is to record my food.  I still have to drink my water and eat my fruit as well as recording the food.  Today went well.  Now for tomorrow...

On to other topics....
Pepsi Max.  Oh how I love thee Pepsi Max.  I love thee bubbles.  I love thee caffeine.  I love thee taste.  But it is crap.  It is turning my teeth brown and it is filled with yucky nasty chemicals.  I suck it down all weekend and don't drink any water.  My sleep is disturbed, my tummy always bloated, and it makes me hungry.  It is time.  I will not go cold turkey.  I don't have time for a 4 day migraine.  I am going to slowly cut back and replace it it tea and coffee.  When I am off the Pepsi (and over the withdrawls from the chemicals) I will then cut back the tea and coffee.  Today went well.  Only 3 glasses (I normally drink 2 litres). 

Food for today was okay, although I did go over my calories.  I am PMS'ing - although I have been for about 2 weeks, my bad food has made my cycle extra long this month - and I am always starving when I am PMS'ing.  I did okay though and made some good choices.

Breakfast was the normal - oats with rice milk and some seeds/nuts and a squirt of honey.

Morning tea was 2 Salada Lites with cheese.  I forgot to take a pic so here is the box.  :o)

Lunch was a big green salad with 2 eggs and a dollop of cottage cheese.

Followed by watermelon & rockmelon.

Afternoon Tea was another Salada with cheese.

When I got home from work I decided to be naughty and have one of my Mega Choc Chunks.  I say naughty because I worked out the calories and these suckers are over 400 calories EACH!!!!

Dinner was egg noodles with the last of the Mexican Lentils that I thinned out with another can of tomatos.

With Bread

Now there are rumours that after dinner my have contained another naughty biccie, but this is something I can not confirm or deny...  :o)

Fingers crossed my ankle is feeling better tomorrow.

xox

Challenge Changes

I think I made a mistake.  Now this is not something I usually admit to, but I think I did.  As you know I have been working through my Running Challenge and my Cycling Challenge.  Yet each week I can not seem to get through.  I think the reason is I have set too hard a target and my body is just not ready for 6 days a week of intensive exercise.  That is where I one day hope to be, but I am not there yet.  My body feels completely exhausted and fatigued by Tuesday, and I still have the rest of the week to go.

So last night I gave it some serious thought.  I love my cycling.  So I decided to stick with the Running Challenge.  That may sound convoluted, but let me explain...

If I drop the running challenge and stick with the cycling with the aim of doing a run 'when I can', I won't do any running.  At this point in time running is hard and it is painful and it exhausts me.  My natural inclination towards laziness would then see me avoiding this. 

However, if I drop the cycling challenge, and alter the running challenge so I am now doing 3 runs a week instead of 2 runs and a walk, I will improve my running faster which will help me meet my goal of going in the Mothers Day Classic in May.  Plus, I know myself, I will still ride.  I ride to work every day.  Ross & I ride together when we can.  And I still love going out for a ride.  Instead of doing 3 hard cycling sessions a week, I will still do a decent amount on the bike, just not as rigidly.

So that is what I have decided to do.  My running is going well.  Wednesday night I did 4 running (aka shuffling) intervals and they were 90 seconds, 2 minutes, 90 seconds & 2 minutes.  7 minutes all up - my best yet.  And I want to keep improving on that.

On a slightly different note, the Accountability thing is still playing in my head.  I was Reading Deb's Blog this morning and she has just made arrangements with a friend to be Accountability Buddies.  What a great concept.  So now to work out if anyone I know has similar goals to me so we can do the same for each other...  Thanks for a great idea Deb.  :o)

Tonight Ross & I are off to watch a baseball game.  I haven't been since I went with my Dad.  He passed away in 1981 so that tells you how long ago it was!  I am really looking forward to it.

Have a great day all!

xox

Challenge Updates

It has been so hot here in SA for the last few days. Despite having air conditioning, I have been feeling slightly queasy for a few days. So that has translated into not doing my exercise over the weekend. Here is the updates:

Running Challenge
Monday and Wednesday were great. I got out there and pushed myself. Saturday I did not do my walk.

Cycling Challenge
Tuesday’s ride was great. Thursday I went out in the morning and although I did my ride, it wasn’t brilliant. Sunday – no ride.

Healthy Habit a Week Challenge
You would think with the heat drinking all my water would have been a cinch… But for some reason I got stuck into the Pepsi Max all weekend. That is probably one of the reasons I am feeling queasy.

This week I am going to get out there as much as I can for the Running & Cycling Challenges. Although today is another too hot day. The cool change is due tomorrow – YAY – so I will get out there for my ride and take it from there. And for the Healthy Habit a Week Challenge, I am adding habit 2, which is 2 serves of fruit a day. I am determined to have a more solid week.

xox

Healthy Habit a Week Challenge

I got this idea from the Escape from Obesity blog. And I love it! Basically you pick one new healthy habit to cultivate each week for a set period (I am going for 10 weeks). At the end of the 10 weeks you should have 10 brand new healthy habits that will hopefully stay with you.

My first weeks healthy habit is to drink at least 1.5L of water a day. If I have Monday as a start day I am doing well already, as I drank 2.25L yesterday, and am nearly through my first litre for today.

Week 2 I think I will work on getting my 2 pieces of fruit a day as this is something I really struggle with. After that – who knows! I will sit down on the weekend and try and work out what other healthy habits I want to become part of my life.

xox

Week 1 Training Plans & More Cooking

Week 1 of my 8 week training plan is over.  I did okay.  I did all my walking sessions, although one was moved to a different day and slightly shorter than planned.  I did miss one cycling session.  It was 42 degrees so I figure that was okay.  The 2 sessions I did were great.  My AHR was high and I felt strong after.  One was in a wicked head wind, but it still felt good.  Today I do the first walk with jogging intervals.  I am extremely nervous about it.  I haven't decided if I will do it later this morning or wait until tonight.  Ross is going to come with me which will be nice.

Last night we had friends come over for dinner.  We always have a great time when R & M come over.  We pretty much just talk and talk and talk...  I tried a couple of new recipes as well.

I made Tomato Pasta Bake, which I thought was a little bit dry, but still yum.

I served it with a garden salad and warm Creamed Mushrooms, which I thought were delicious.

It is nearly the end of the year.  I am looking forward to this year finishing.  It has been a tough one.  I am in the process of setting my goals for the new year.  I don't do Resolutions as such, but I like to set some goals in place.  Since it is 2010 I am working on a list of 10 goals that I will share on January 1.

xox

Cycling Challenge – Week One

Hmmm… Well, what can I say. Tuesday I went for my planned ride and felt great. I did 10.37kms in the 35 minute ride. I had the gears cranked up so I focused on resistance rather than speed. My AHR was 77% of my max.

Thursday I was unwell. Not too sick to work, but too sick to be pushing it on a bike with no available toilets nearby. If you get my drift….

Then the weekend was just insane with birthday festivities, and Xmas parties.

This week I have Xmas functions every evening.

So I believe that starting this challenge in December was perhaps not the wisest thing to do. However, next week is looking reasonable clear, so I will start week 1 again next Monday and see how things go.

xox

Spinach & Mushroom Lasagna

Another new recipe. That is 2 this week. I made a spinach & mushroom lasagna. It was great, although it took a long time to cook. I made the sauce from scratch, something I had never done before, and it took over an hour to reduce enough. It was worth it though. We had friends over for dinner who seemed to like it too, which was good. I am always nervous when other people try my food.



I served it with a garden salad and some sweet potato wedges that I got out of my Vegie Food book. I didn't actually like the wedges. They were way too oily. I will try them again, but with a lot less oil.

Despite how long this took to prepare, I actually really enjoyed it. I spent half the afternoon in the kitchen, chopping, and stirring, and measuring, and tasting. It was a wonderful way to spend the day.

xox

Fun Cooking Challenge

I have decided to set myself a fun little challenge to cook 1 new recipe a week, every week, for 3 months. That comes to 13 new recipes over the next few months. Since it is the first week in December, I am starting now.


Tonight I made Texan Tacos. Although I didn't have taco shells, so I made them like burritos using tortilla wraps. They were delicious. The taco part was made with Sanitarium Casserole Mince, which is 'minced wheat gluten in gravy', with onion and red kidney beans. I really like red kidney beans, but I hate the texture. So I used my Tupperware happy chopper and chopped them up. Mixed in with taco seasoning and a can of chopped tomato's, and you have vegetarian taco filling.


We started with lettuce, piled on the taco mix, then topped it with tomato's, cheese, avocado and taco sauce.


They were absolutely divine. Incredibly filling, but not heavy like burritos normally feel to me. This is yet another thing that will definitely be made in our house again.

Now to find a new recipe for next week. This is fun!

xox