Getting the balance right

Those of you who know me will know that I am generally an all or nothing kind of girl - I am either committed to something 100% or can't be bothered as it is all just too hard. I am starting to learn that life doesn't have to be this way - I can take the middle road on occasions and nothing bad will happen to me.

My exercise of late has not been as good as was a few months ago. I think this is mainly due to the cold weather because I am a big wus and don't like being cold so it became easier for me not to exercise rather than exercise in the cold. Unfortunately, once you are out of the habit of exercising, it is harder to get back into it. But, we are working on it and while we don't manage to walk every single day, we do walk more days of the week than not. At one point I was almost obssesed with having to do 10,000 steps each day - so much so I would run up and down the passage trying to make my steps for that day. Now I have realised that some days it just isn't going to happen - and, it isn't the end of the world if it doesn't. Sometimes life gets in the way of exercise and that is just how it is, and, if I don't make 10,000 steps today, the sun will still come up tomorrow (unless we are having really cr*ppy weather in which case it will be lighter than if it was night time !).

I have not been in the right head space to really concentrate on losing these last bloody 7-8kgs - maybe I am meant to be the weight that I am because I have found it relatively easy to maintain this weight since the middle of June. When I write it like that it seems like a long time to be dicking around and not getting serious about what I am doing but then it has been winter and everyone knows that we eat more comfort type food in winter - and maybe I am being too hard on myself. Being able to maintain my weight is what I am aiming for - if I practise a bit along the way to losing all the weight - is that such a bad thing ?

It is certainly a lot easier to watch what I am eating at my new job. We are in an industrial area with nowhere to buy food so any food I want to eat during the day I have to take with me - no vending machines close by, no servo within walking distance and I can't be bothered getting in the car and driving 5kms to the nearest shopping centre for a chocolate. So, it should be easy, shouldn't it ???? But it isn't, because I haven't been getting much work from Coles which means I am sitting at home at night, often by myself, and what is the best thing to do when you are home alone - eat, of course !!!!! I tried not having junk food in the house - that worked except that even if you eat too much of any 'good' foods, the calories still mount up. I need to work on how to deal with this issue - maybe I should be doing my paperwork or yoga or pilates - anything but eating !!!

Work is improving and today I really enjoyed my day - although I did spend nearly 4 hours on two conference calls and for some reason I was the one doing most of the talking !!!! I am not sure how that happened except that maybe seeing as I am the newest member of the team, I had the most questions but it certainly kept that 3pm slump at bay. I am really excited about the new system that we are moving to - I think it is going to make my job so much easier and free up some of my time so that I can persue more worthwhile projects - at least that is what I am hoping will happen !!!

On that note, I am off to do the washing and then get into bed - far away from the kitchen and the food - to read until Al gets home from work. I can't believe that it is Thursday already tomorrow - another week has just flown by.

Take care and go safely !

TFTD : There is a prayer that lives in the centre of your heart. If you pray it, it will change your life. How does it begin - Matthew Anderson

Surprise !

A surprise birthday party for me is what I walked into when we got home from picking up some DVD’s last night ! A and K had organised another surprise party for me without me suspecting a thing – he really is amazing at being able to do this. When I look back now I can see the signs and the reason for some of the questions and decisions that were made but at the time I had no idea.

I don’t know how he knew I was going to suggest getting some DVD’s last night and he won’t say what plan B was if I didn’t suggest getting them. K got home from work and I said “What about getting some DVD’s ?” and she said “OK” so off we went. Then she was calling A to check if he wanted to see what we had chosen (Law Abiding Citizen and Dear John) and he said they were fine (not sure if that was what he really said actually !!!). Next thing, her phone rings again and she tells me that he has called to say that they really are OK – I am sure that they were just making sure we didn’t get home before everyone got there !!!!

When we drove down our street, I saw my folks car and said to K “Wonder why Gogo and Papa are here ? They don’t normally come this late in the evening.” She replied that maybe they had come to check mail. So I left it at that. Anyway, got inside and as I walked into the kitchen she said I had to close my eyes – I thought that it was just my folks there but there were other family and friends as well. It was just lovely.

They had organised all the food – nibblies, meat, salads, rolls, dessert – everything !!!!! A and I had had an amazing day together and it was just the perfect way to end the day.

I am so lucky to have the wonderful family that I have. I couldn’t have asked for a more caring, mostly unselfish daughter who is not always just totally wrapped up in herself, or a husband who is also my best friend who I wouldn’t swop for anything in the whole wide world. I love you guys both so much – I wish that I had words to tell you just how much.

Thank you both for a blast of a birthday – now the downward slippery slope to 50 is calling !!!!! Bring it on is all I can say.

First day down

Well all the nerves were for nothing - I think that I am going to really enjoy working at my new job ! I guess I should have known that the nerves and the churning stomach were for nothing when they were happening but you know what it is like sometimes - even though you know something in your head doesn't make it not happen in your body !!!!!

Hopefully now (well from next week probably) - some sort of normalcy will return to my life and I can get back on track with losing these last 8-10kgs. I guess the good think is that over the past couple of weeks I have learnt what I need to do to maintain my weight - always a good thing given how many times I have lost these pesky kilos, only to gain them back at a later stage !!

Financially we are going to have to pull our belts in a bit as I have taken a drop in salary to leave Council but I think that in the long run the opportunities that I have at this company far outweigh the financial loss which is hopefully only a short term issue. If The Body and Feet Retreat continues to grow, we may even be able to look at giving up working at Coles (although we may stay on as casuals so that we continue to get the 5% discount on our groceries !!!!!)

I am feeling so much happier in myself and I am sure that I will be able to translate this into continuing with my weight loss. My plan is to take the rest of this week off and to seriously get back into a healthy lifestyle from next week. I can't say that I need to be more conscious of what I am eating because I have made conscious decisions to eat and drink what I have, but they haven't always been the best choices that I could make. My exercise has sort of fallen by the wayside because I have had lots of reasons (read excuses here !!!!) for not exercising BUT I can feel it and I know that I need to get back to exercising daily and NOT finding excuses about why I can't exercise UNLESS there is a legitimate reason e.g. getting home from work at 5.30 - seeing a client from 6-7.15 and then working from 8-12 - I don't expect myself to perform miracles and try to get 60 mins of exercising in between all of that. Instances like the above are the ONLY reason I shouldn't be exercising. (I may have to have a re-read of this next week when I forget about this decision !)

Have a great week everyone - I am happy, happy , happy and I wish you all you wish for yourself !

Every choice before you represents the universe inviting you to remember who you are and what you want.

Too long !

It's been ages since I posted but I haven't felt like I have had anything worthwhile to post about so figured there was no point in posting about nothing !

The whole job issue has been on and off since about 10 June - I am just so glad that it has finally been resolved and I can start the new role on Tuesday. I was hoping to finish up at Council on Friday but they are holding me to the 7 days notice that I had to give but that is OK. It gives me one more day to go through things with the new contractor.

My weight and exercise seem to have come to a bit of a standstill at the moment but that is OK. I am maintaining my weight reasonably well - have put on 0.4 in 2 weeks but we have been out to dinner a couple of times where I have made choices that were probably not the best I could have made but were things which I really felt like eating so figure that is what maintaining is all about. I also had dessert both times we were out. I have been out to lunch a couple of times with people wanting to say goodbye - made reasonable choices but again, could maybe have made better choices. Again, I have been happy to just able to maintain at the moment because of the stress in other areas of my life. I am learning to find the balance between my weight and what I eat and how I cope with other issues in my life. I guess this is what the key is to being able to maintain - what I need to do now is get back to how I thought about 4-6 weeks ago so that I can lose these last 8-10kgs and get to the weight that I want to, and then be able to maintain at THAT weight. The I will be happy - not because all my worries will be gone, but because I will be at a weight that I am happy at. I realise that losing weight doesn't mean that all my problems are lost as well, it just means that I can deal with my problems at a lower weight that what I used to weigh.

Not only have I had the stress of the job happening but I have also had some health issues which, after some exploratory stuff, we are no closer to finding a resolution than we were before they started. I have decided to just put it all out of my mind, just wish my family could do the same.

But, it is all good from now. On Tuesday I start my new job, on Wednesday I turn 45 (which is a pleasant surprise as I thought I was already 45 turning 46 !!!!), and I feel like I am getting back into the right head space to be able to tackle these last few kilos and get rid of them. I know that as I get closer to my goal weight, the weight takes longer to lose, but I am prepared to just keep at it until it happens. I KNOW that I can do this - now I just need to make it happen. (OK - having eaten 3/4 of a packet for biscuits this afternoon isn't going to help) - that has happened and maybe I just need to do some damage control over the next couple of days to counter act what I did.

I do think that once things have settled on the job front, everything else will fall into place. It seems that I can't really concentrate on two many fronts at once - clearly I am not as skilled at multi-tasking as what I thought !!!!!! Or maybe I just use having a few things on the go as an excuse to have a lapse in my healthy eating - whatever it is, it is going to stop - now - tonight - OK, maybe tomorrow as I am at home by myself tonight and I can hear all sorts of food calling me !!!

Hopefully the weather will be good tomorrow and we will be out there exercising and enjoying ourselves. Last weekend we did a 28km ride on Sunday - Al said, "Hey, if we just do this route another 3 times, we would have just finished the Brisbane to Gold Coast" - that is our next cycling goal - the 100km Brisbane to Gold Coast cycle. Our next walking goal is the 14km Bridge to Brisbane at the end of next month - best get out there in our walking shoes or on our bicycles otherwise we aren't likely to achieve those goals.

Choose being kind over being right, and you'll be right every time - Richard Carlson

We did it !!!!!

First off I want to thank A and K for their encouragement and support during the ride and the training - it was a great family effort and I think we all did really well.

We were up just after 4am - got the drinks and last few things packed and we were on our way. Arrived in Brisbane with plenty of time to spare and managed to get a parking right across from the park where we needed to be. Thankfully it wasn't as cold as we thought it could have been although it was a little chilly out of the car.

I guess next year we will tackle the start of the race a little differently - we went close to the back so that we were out of the way of the pack but then everyone started joining from the side so, even though we were there and waiting from about 6.15am - we didn't actually get to leave until just after 7.30 - a long time to be waiting around for something to happen.

Anyway, got onto the course and, as my friend said, before I knew it 9.5km were gone and I hadn't even realised it. The hills were as bad as I remembered them and in most instances I just fixed my gaze 2m in front of my bike and just kept pedalling. What I had forgotten was that the majority of the hills were in the second 25kms !!! But that became apparent when we got to the compulsory half way stop and we still had some horrible hills to go. But, it was all good. We had a banana, some trail mix and some energade and then took off again. I was having a lot of pain in my right kidney but that seems to have gone now so that is good.

A and I used our camelpaks but they were leaking and we found ourselves with wet pants and then wet shirts as we were trying to feed the tube around so that it didn't drip - will have to see about replacing some of the parts - maybe they have perished from not being used !!!! I only dry heaved once which was great - normally that happens at the top of most hills !!!! Sometimes I was at the back going up the hills and sometimes I was in the front - and sometimes I was even in the middle. We weren't sure how we were going to be able to stay in contact with each other and said we would catch up at the halfway mark if we lost contact but it was relatively easy once we were away from the crowd.

The second half I think was definitely harder than the first half and I kept on getting cramp in my toes. A said that his toes were really cold and suggested that maybe we shouldn't have laughed at the guy all kitted out with the cycling gear who had socks over his shoes !!! It was quite funny at stages - people all kitted out in, what looked like the most flash outfits and shoes etc etc, walking up the hills. Thankfully I managed to keep my bum on the saddle the whole way - no walking for me !!! I was very proud of that although if things had got to tough I would have walked if I had to.

Our average speed for the 50kms was 20kph which wasn't bad given that I was going up some hills at 8kph !!!! I also reached a personal best - fastest time of 47.78kph - obviously on a downhill !

K slept on the way up and the way down. My legs were really sore and stiff on the way down and, although I was going to sell tickets to see us getting out the car when we finally got home - it probably wasn't as funny as it could have been as I was busting to go to the toilet and so the minute the car stopped and the garage door was open, I was out the car and into the house without thinking too much about how much my legs hurt ! After unpacking the car we showered and then spent the afternoon in front of the TV - dozing, watching TV, reading and knitting.

What a great way to spend a Sunday - can't wait to do it again next year and now the Brisbane to Gold Coast isn't as frightening as it was before this morning - bring it on !!!!!!

Have a fantastic week, take care and go safely !

Weight down, mood down

My weight was down 0.4kg this morning – I was hoping for 0.5 but it wasn’t to be – and that is OK because it is what it is. That takes my total to 21.9kg in 23 weeks.

My motivation today is lacking – even my FOCUS post-it on my computer didn’t do it for me. I don’t know if it is the weather that made me just want to eat whatever I could lay my hands on but I don’t like it. I feel like I am out of control with my food and I don’t like feeling like that – I don’t want to think that the food is controlling me. I NEED to be in control of what I eat – that is how I have got as far as I have. I don’t want to undo the good that I have done so far, but I am going to have to find something from somewhere to turn this feeling around. It was only a few weeks ago that I was really happy with life – granted there is something happening that it probably the cause of this, but, until decisions are made, I can’t change what is going to happen and I just have to accept it. Easier said than done, I know.

Maybe it is the lack of exercise that is also contributing to making me feel down – those endorphins haven’t had much chance lately to get pumped around. While I understand that it is OK to exercise when the weather is cold, I think it probably isn’t a good idea to exercise in the cold when I have a cold which is why I haven’t had as much exercise lately as I would have liked. I don’t know if the race on Sunday is playing on my mind as well – I know that we can cycle the 50kms and finish (we don’t have any times in mind for how long we are going to take), but I am still nervous about either stacking it myself or someone else stacking it and causing me grief. The fact that the roads are not being closed is of concern as well – knowing that many motorists have such little regard for cyclists.

Yoga was good although my right thigh is feeling a little tender now after some of the poses that we did. We worked on pigeon pose and other variations which were good - these poses always get me in the glutes. We did a really slow, contemplative salute to the sun which I really enjoyed and, of course, the meditation which is always the best way to finish the class. Somehow the energy there is so much better than when I try to meditate on my own at home.

This is a bit disjointed – sorry my mind is all over the place tonight. So much so I am using my TFTD from work here as well !!!!!! Yes, I know that I need to read this particular TFTD and take it on board because it speaks directly to how I feel right now.

TFTD : Whatever we are waiting for – peace of mind, contentment, grace, the inner awareness of simple abundance – it will surely come to us, but only when we are ready to receive it with an open and grateful heart - Sarah Ban Breathnach

Last week

My weigh on Thursday saw a loss of 1.4kg taking my total loss to 21.5kg in 22 weeks which I am very happy with. I am feeling so much better in myself – not surprising with that amount of weight gone. Now if I could just get rid of this head cold that I have it would be great ! What I am worried about is not being able to exercise – (a) because it is too cold and (b) because I feel cr*p but I don’t want to get out of the habit of exercising. I get cranky when I don’t exercise – my family don’t like it !!!! (And neither do I actually !)

K has been battling a head cold for a few days now and has been taking some OTC stuff to try to help with a blocked nose and sore throat. That finished yesterday and I stopped at the chemist on the way home from work to get some more stuff for her and I – at the moment no point in going to the dr because there is no infection or anything like that.

We decided to give yoga a last week – couldn’t imagine doing downward dog or salute to the sun with a head that feels like this!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - things just seem to be so hectic at the moment although I am not sure why because with us being sick, we haven't exercised as much as we normally do or as much as I would like. I guess this past week has made me realise that, while exercise is good for me, I also need to listen to my body when it is not feeling 100%. I have been looking at my charms a lot lately - my runner keeps reminding me of how much fitter I am now than I used to be and my yinyang charm reminds me to keep the balance and if that means not exercising because I am not well, then that is what I need to do, no matter how much my head is saying "Get out there and exercise !!!!"

TFTD : If you are too careful, you are so occupied in being careful that you are sure to stumble over something – Gertrude Stein

I did it !!!!

Today A and I went up to Brisbane to cycle 'the hill' before the race on 27th June. We did it - twice ! Man it feels good. What I did notice was that, you know how sometimes things seem to be much bigger issues in your head than they actually are - well that is what it was like with the hill - some of the hills that we did a few weeks ago when all three of us were cycling were WORSE than 'the hill' today !!!! Clearly 'the hill' had grown in stature in my head but now that I know that I have conquered it twice, it doesn't seem like such a big deal anymore. I am REALLY glad that we did the other hills so that I know what to expect when we get to them on 27th !!!

I wonder how often in life I have imagined something was going to be worse than what it turned out to be - how many times I have worried about issues that never happened, or wasted energy on something that never materialised ? Today was such a great example of how powerful your mind is - in my head, this hill was maybe going to be impossible for me to get to the top of but in reality, it wasn't anything like that - I made it up there twice in the space of about an hour. I really would like to keep this incident alive to remind myself that often the reality is not as bad as the imaginary !!!!

I had to laugh at A - when we were on our way back to turn around and do the hill the second time, I overtook him and was riding ahead of him and as we turned I asked if we could stop and make some adjustments to my bike. Anyway, before we pulled out again he said that I should ride ahead of him because he could see how much weight I had lost and how sexy my butt looked ! It made me feel really good to know that he had noticed it and that he cared enough to comment on it. I am always the one cycling at the back - whether there are two of us or three of us. A was an international athlete, K probably had the potential to compete at a really high level of whatever sport she chose had she chosen one, but me, I will always be the fat girl who lost weight and just likes to exercise - I will always be the one at the back of the pack but that is OK. I bet that even though K has done less training than me, she will beat the pants off me come the day and that is fine she is 27yrs younger and about 13kgs lighter than me so she probably should beat the pants off me.

I am off to shower and then attack some chores that very kindly waited for me to finish cycling and get home so that I could get them done.

TFTD : Every huge success starts out as one simple thought.

Staying focussed

Today has probably been the hardest day for me to stay focussed on what I want to achieve – mainly because I was busy with the most mind numbing data capture work. Don’t get me wrong – I enjoy the fact that I get paid as a management accountant to do a data processing job but that doesn’t stop the boredom from hitting or make it easier to stay focussed on what I want to achieve. I have come so close, so many times today, to just eating for the sake of it, but so far I have managed to resist – long may it last because my unofficial weight loss this morning is over 20kgs !!!! Have to stay focussed enough so that I can see that number (or less) on the scales on Thursday morning when I weigh-in.

FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS – that is the key for me at the moment.

Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Rest day or lazy day ?

This weekend I did not exercise at all – nothing, zip, zero, zilch, no walks, no cycles, no jogs. I had lots of good intentions but they just didn’t happen for lots of reasons. But, am I using the excuse of a rest day as a way of justifying what I didn’t do ? A keeps telling me how important rest days are when you are training but I am not sure if it is just a way to justify the times when you don’t train.

At 9pm last night I felt really guilty when I realised that we hadn’t done any exercise the whole weekend but not guilty enough to get out from under the blanket and go and do something about it !!!!

I did work packing shelves for 3 hrs on Saturday night at Coles so I did sort of do something but it may be a stretch to call it exercise.

My food intake this weekend was really good given the circumstances – I had good breakfasts both days. Made good choices for lunch when we were out. I had about 6-8 chips with lunch on Saturday and paid the price with an unsettled stomach the rest of the day so said to Al that, in future, please remind me about the fact that, while I love hot chips, my body doesn’t like them anymore and it isn’t worth the discomfort to have them. So yesterday when we were sitting down to have something to eat he reminded me and said he didn’t mind if I had them (as I would have had some of his !!) but that I had asked him to remind me not to have them. I didn’t have any and felt so much better for not having had them.

I also managed to stay focussed enough to not have a muffin or an ice-cream that they had over the weekend. I did have one Ferrero Rocher chocolate but figure that wasn’t going to break my motivation or send me off the rails – I could have eaten a whole heap more but managed to say only one, only one !!!!!!

My unofficial weight loss was just under 20kgs this morning – oh how I wish the 20kg mark would arrive – I am hanging out to get my yinyang Pandora charm !!!!! Someone said to me today that I should just go and buy it but I said that didn’t feel right – if it was to acknowledge my 20kg loss, how could I justify buying it if I hadn’t lost the 20kgs yet ?

I am focussed on doing some exercise tonight – will be going home and making sure that, come rain, hail or snow (OK that isn’t likely on the Gold Coast), I WILL be exercising tonight. Not so much because I have to, but because I missed not exercising on the weekend. Our plans to cycle the horrible hill in Brisbane went south when all arrangements changed on Saturday but, you get that some days and sometimes it is about being able to adapt and adjust to the current situation.

TFTD : If you have love in your life, it can make up for a great many things that are missing. If you don’t have love in your life, no matter what else there is, it’s not enough – Ann Landers

Another great day !

Well day three of doing exactly what I need to do is just about over - so completely happy with that. Unofficially, total loss of 19kg this morning but it doesn't count until I am that weight on a Thursday morning weigh-in.

There were times today when I was so tempted to have something from the vending machine and I looked up and saw my FOCUS post-it note and had a drink of water instead - I LOVE IT WHEN I AM SO MOTIVATED AND HAVE THE WILLPOWER TO RESIST EATING WHAT I SHOULDN'T - can you tell I am happy ??????

Have a great weekend everyone and take care !

Just for today

Just for today ...... I ate what I was supposed to
Just for today ...... I drank my water
Just for today ...... I did my exercise
Just for today ...... I went to yoga and thoroughly enjoyed it
Just for today ...... I did all of the above because I wanted to and not because I had to, and I enjoyed them
Just for tomorrow ...... I am going to do them all over again (except for the yoga which is only on a Thurday night !!!)

Have a great Friday and an even better weekend !

TFTD : There are three kinds of people: 1. Innovators. 2. Imitators. 3. Idiots - Warren Buffett

FOCUS

This is what the post-it note that is stuck to the top of my computer says. I am hoping that it will help me to remember what it is that I am working to achieve – a healthy lifestyle as well as some weight loss. This is to help me think about what I am putting into my mouth BEFORE I put it into my mouth rather than sit regretting it after I have eaten it.

My weight has been creeping up this week which is not the way I want it to go but it is because I have not been as focussed as I was a few weeks ago. I have found excuses for why I should have the extras and felt that it would all be good – but it isn’t and I need to get it all back to being good quickly !!!!

Kathy also suggested that maybe just walking isn’t enough to burn off the excess calories now that we are so much fitter than we used to be. We did the 4th in the 5 race Corporate Challenge Series on Sunday and knocked another 1 mins 50 secs off our time. This means that over the course of the three races we have taken part in (there was one race on while we were away) we have knocked 3 mins 50 secs off the time we did in the first race – that has to mean that we are getting fitter but I think it also means that I have to work harder to burn the excess off. Kathy also said that with the time limits that she has she is trying to work harder for the same period of time rather than just for a longer period of time. So tonight we jogged for sections of the walk along the side streets – sometimes it is a little difficult with the dogs – if I run with Alfie, he almost pulls me along whereas sometimes with Rosie she tends to dawdle and doesn’t keep up with me !!!!! Will try this for the next week to see what sort of results I get – OK, I probably need to try it for more than a week but you know what I mean. My legs didn’t feel heavy at all which was great.

I am tossing up the idea of going to a personal trainer for 30 mins a week – don’t think I could do more than a 30 min session. I asked Al if he would come with me and he said a flat out no thanks. I asked him if he would like to think about it and he said no thanks, he did two years conscription in the navy and said that he doesn’t want someone telling him what to do !!!! I asked if he could think of it as them training him but he isn’t keen. K said she would come with me so need to seriously think about whether this is what I want or not. It will tie up more of my time but I think if I could use him (one of my client’s husband) to tone up my arms, legs, tummy and butt, it would serve a purpose. Will let you know what I decide. Of course, if you have any stories about what to look out for with a personal trainer, I would love to hear from you.

I am going to try to have an early night tonight. Despite my history of sleeping better when I exercise, this is not happening. I wake up at least once or twice, sometimes even three times, an hour and I am soooooooo tired. I don’t understand how I can be so tired but not be able to sleep – it just doesn’t make sense.

I am not looking forward to my weigh in tomorrow – I am expecting a gain but that is totally my own fault. I have not been nearly careful enough with what I have been eating but today, the first day of the rest of my life, I have had a good day. I haven’t eaten anything I am not supposed to eat, I have exercised (including some running) and I have remained focussed on my goal of losing some more weight.

TFTD : Self-worth makes you extremely attractive.

Complacency or ................ ?

I am starting with the TFTD today because it is so relevant for me at the moment.

"You may have a fresh start any time you choose, for this thing we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down" Mary Pickford

Having lost 18.5kgs, I am feeling successful in my weight loss endeavours but I am also finding that it is easier to eat those things that are not assisting me in losing the next 12-15kgs that I want to lose to get to the weight that I want to be. Initially, it was so much easier to just say no to the things that weren't helping me get to where I want to be but now it is harder. I feel more like I am entitled to have a life without total deprivation, but am I if I can't control it ????????

Yesterday is a good example - we got up early and had our breakfast before going to the race. Got home and walked the dogs down to the park at the Broadwater to run and fetch the ball. Came home and showered and off to Robina to do some shopping. At 11.30 K said "I know it is early for lunch but I am starving." I suggest sushi or Subway. A suggests Grill'd. Off we go to Grill'd because the weather is a bit cold and we want something warm. That is fine - I have a grilled chicken burger and a couple of chips (OK more than a couple because I felt like cr*p about 30 mins later because I had eaten said chips !!!!). I didn't eat the whole roll and left some of the salad stuff out as well because there was just too much. Had a Coke Zero - so far, not too bad. Then we walk past Darryl Lea - liquorice - 98% fat free (never mind all the sugar !!!) so we buy a packet. After a couple of hours it is time to go to the movies - we have booked to see Robin Hood using the Gold Lounge tickets that Al got for his birthday. We get there and get a drink - only diet drink is Pepsi Max (which I hate) so I have Solo. Strike 1. Then the movie starts and they bring us each a box of popcorn. I have about 1/5 box and realise I am just eating it because it is there so stop but really, that is Strike 2 ! Prior to going into the movies we ordered spring rolls and chips at 4.30 and then sticky date pudding with ice-cream at 5.30 - these come and I happily partake of them 'because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity - we aren't going to pay $35 each for movie tickets no matter how comfy the chairs and why should I deprive myself' - Strike 3 and, if I was playing baseball or softball, I would be out.

Am I getting too complacent with my loss to date ? Or, is life for living and it can't be all about denying the nicer things in life ? Or, it is about being able to do it all in moderation ? I think it is a bit of the first and last question - I AM getting complacent with my loss to date - my clothes are fitting better, people are commenting on how much weight I have lost and I am feeling good about myself. Will I feel better in another 12-15kgs time - for sure I will. Will I be able to lose that next 12-15kgs - not so certain. Can I have a bit of those extra things without going overboard - I have ALWAYS been an all or nothing kind of person. I am either totally committed or can't be bothered - there is very little that is middle of the road for me and I need to find the balance between being totally obsessed with my weight and living a life that is enjoyable and worth living. Just how I am going to do this I don't know. What I do know is that my TFTD today is one that I am going to keep with me to remind me that I am NOT a failure until I stop picking myself up and trying again.

Have a great week everyone and take care !

Nothing to say !

Those of you who know me will know that the title of today's post is a little unusual - I usally have lots to say about a whole range of things. Tonight I sat down to blog and I went "I have nothing to say today". I have sat here wracking my brain for a few minutes and I still "have nothing to say" - so on that note, I am going to go and give my child a massage that she asked for.

Have a great weekend !

TFTD : Life is like a sandwich - the more you add to it the better it becomes.

The dreaded snooze button

Does anyone dislike the snooze button as much as I do ? I think I dislike it more than the actual alarm going off in the morning. Mine might be a bit dodgy which is why sometimes it snoozes for just a minute and other times it snoozes for the conventional 5 minutes – but, no matter what it snoozes for, it seems to me that I just doze off and it is going off again. I know, I know – if I just got up when the alarm first went off I wouldn’t have to worry about the snooze button – but I can’t. No matter how many times I try – I just can’t get out of bed when the alarm goes off – I NEED to have a few ‘snoozes’ before I get up. I don’t know why – A doesn’t know why – but I am sure he wishes that I would just get up the first time it goes off. He generally doesn’t get up until after me so there must be mornings when I snooze for about 30 minutes with the alarm going off every 5 minutes it must drive him nuts but, given he has never said anything, maybe it isn’t that bad !! Of course winter time is worse because the chance to stay snuggled under the doona for those extra few minutes sometimes is just too hard to resist – the down side is that, the longer I lie in bed, the more I have to rush or the later I will be for work which probably isn’t the end of the world but if I am too late I have to stay later to make up the time (or just get paid less) and, the chances of getting a parking space diminish in direct proportion to how late I am.

This adds to the dilemma of how short to cut my hair. The shorter it is the more often I have to wash it – at least if I can tie it up, I only have to wash it every other day instead of every day and, with winter on the way, I would prefer to spend every second longer in the morning in bed rather than getting up earlier every morning to wash and dry my hair UNLESS I went really, really short but my head may not like that during winter – at least with long hair, I have a chance of keeping some part of my body i.e. my head, warm. Given how much I feel the cold, this is probably going to be the deciding factor in the decision on how short to cut my hair. There is still a part of me that wants to go really short but that part may have to just wait until closer to summer (and more kilos gone).

TFTD : There is no need to go to India or anywhere else to find peace. You will find that deep place of silence right in your room, your garden, or even your bathtub.

Another Monday

How come Monday seems to come around so much more frequently than Friday ? It seems like every time I turn around it is Monday again but man, I have to wait and wait and wait for Friday to get here. I suppose that it is just one of those things that are part of the unexplained.

We had a great weekend – a good mix of clients, chores around the house, exercising and resting. We got up to Brisbane yesterday and cycled 28kms of the race – boy are the hills in Brisbane something else when compared to those on the Gold Coast – I guess everything really is bigger and better up there ! The worst thing is that we didn’t get to do the worst hill – the one that dog legs about 3 or 4 times. Will try to get to that one next time we go up – probably in two weeks time as next Sunday we have the fourth race in the Corporate Challenge races so think we will just cycle locally on Sunday and do some hill work around here.

On our way home we stopped off and got two new saddles as A and I are still battling with our butts on the saddles we had. Unfortunately our butts did not like the time they spent on the saddles yesterday so we have decided to stop dicking around trying to change the angle of the saddles that we have and to get new ones – these have a 90 day money back g’tee so you had better believe that if our butts don’t like these ones, they are going to be going back.

I think that I am soon going to have to put a ban on us going to Anaconda – just like I had to do with Bunnings when we first moved into the house. You will be amazed at all the things you didn’t know you needed until you go into one of these two shops and then – BAM – it hits you – gosh this would be handy to have, wow this would work really well over here, gee this is amazing and I am sure that we will be able to use it so much – it just never stops. The worst thing is that you go there expecting to spend maybe $2 buying a washer for a leaking tap and come out having spent $150 on stuff that you didn’t even know you needed but which you are really sure is good value for money !

A’s hand is progressing slowly – he has taken leave this week from Coles so it is going to be great having him at home in the evenings. I am also another step closer to a different marketing strategy thanks to the help of a very dear friend, I now have a one colour DL size flyer ready to be saved as a pdf file and sent to the printer for printing and distribution. I just need to decide what areas I want to target and how much money I can afford to spend.

My weight is slowly coming down this week – not as fast as I would like but then it never is, is it ? Today I could so easily have walked to the Arts Café and bought a milk chocolate macadamia cookie but kept putting it off until it was just about home time and there is no point in eating a cookie that close to going home – could just wait and have a fruit cup when I get home and save those calories for another day when I am really desperate for something sweet.

TFTD : You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.

The weekend is here !

There were times during this week when I wondered if the weekend would ever arrive – but it has and I am happy !

Unfortunately the Saturday morning yoga classes have been cancelled as the yogi’s husband now has to work on a Saturday so won’t be starting my weekend with a yoga class anymore which is a little sad but these things happen.

I have one client booked in and someone else interested in an appointment so will wait to see if anything eventuates with the second client. Other than that, I have to go for a blood test in the morning and then that is probably me for the day. I might take some time out and try to rest up a little – I haven’t been feeling all that flash this past week and wonder if maybe we are overdoing the exercise a little. A keeps reminding me that rest is an important part of exercise – maybe tonight will be a good night to have off seeing as it is raining and, while I know we won’t melt, A’s chest is not all that good and the chances of him getting sick as a result of walking in the rain are rather high. I would rather forego one night’s walk and not have a sick husband than the other way around !

We had a look at the paperwork that we have received for the race next month – BIG BUGGER – they don’t close the roads to traffic while we are cycling – BUGGER, BUGGER, BUGGER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How did we miss seeing that somewhere before we registered (probably because we didn’t have the paperwork we have just received or maybe we just didn’t read all the pages on the website !!!!!) – so, now do I not only have to make sure to stay clear of any cyclists who may have stacked it ahead of me but I have to worry about bloody cars driving right next to me as well !!!!! Bet there aren’t any cycle tracks along the route to help us either !!!! This is getting to be more than a little harder than I originally anticipated but, it will all be good when we are finished, in one piece (I hope) and proud of what we have achieved !

My eating is going along at an OK kind of pace – I am doing my own breakfast and having a L&E meal in a bowl for lunch and then the L&E dinner but I am finding that I am spending more time thinking about what I would really really like to eat and that is probably because I am bored at work. I need to find a job that is challenging and busy (not in a frantic way but enough to just keep me going the whole day) that tests my brain and what I am capable of achieving. I did see a job yesterday that I want to apply for but I know that it was advertised about 3 or 4 months ago so have to wonder what happened to the person who was appointed – should probably check to see if I applied for it when I saw it that time ago. You would think that if their first choice person didn’t work out (for whatever reason), they would have looked at other candidates who applied. Never mind, I will send my application off tonight and see if anything comes of it.

TFTD : When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability …. to be alive is to be vulnerable.

So close .......

to the 20kg mark. A loss of 2.1kg this morning took my total loss to date to 17.9kg – I can almost smell the 20kg mark. I just need to be patient and continue to do what I have been doing. We have been tracking our weight loss (since the beginning) and exercise (not as long) and I want to try to find the time to have a look back, week for week, to see whether the amount, type or intensity of exercise has any bearing on my losses.

One thing that I have noticed is that the plateau that I was in before we went away is well and truly gone. I think that my plan moving forward is going to be, firstly, have a look to see how many weeks we had been watching what we were eating before I hit the plateau and when I get to around that mark again, take a week or two off – eat what I want, within reason, and just have a break. The break that we had when we were away really seems to have given my weight loss a good jolt back to where it should be. I am still amazed at my losses, while I am being good about what I eat, I didn’t think I had been that good to have lost just on 4.5kgs in two weeks this far into my journey. Maybe it is the exercise that is really helping to burn these calories – I have noticed that when we are out walking each day, we don’t just stroll along, we walk quite quickly although there are times when we do seem to slow down a little and when I realise this, I step it up a notch again.

I love the feeling that I get when exercising but I also need to start listening to what my body is saying to me while exercising. My right thigh was twinging a bit last night and the night before but we still walked the longer route. When I mentioned it to A he said that it may be muscle fatigue because we have done quite a bit lately so we have decided that we will just do the ‘short’ walk tonight and see how it goes because it is only on the extra bit of the walk that I have felt the twinging happen.

I need to get about 4-5kgs more off so that I can fit into my next lot of clothes – I seem to be at the in-between stage and it is very frustrating. I have one pair of work pants that fit me nicely, the others are all too big, and, while I can wear them, they are really quite uncomfortable. Maybe if I get a chance on the weekend I will get the next lot of pants out the kist and see just how far off I am being able to get into them. I know that a while ago I thought to myself that it was about 5kgs but maybe it isn’t that much anymore.

We are planning a cycle along the route in Brisbane on Sunday. It won’t be the full route – just part of it so that we can see how the bikes handle the cr*ppy roads of Brisbane ! Also, we will probably pick a section that has a couple of hills reasonably close together so that we can get some hill work in at the same time.

TFTD : Do not let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past nor for the future. By living your life one day at a time you live all the days of your life.

Life is good !

I have been doing some thinking lately as I have a few health issues that need to be addressed – and they always make you think about other stuff, don’t they ? Anyway, even though I have these things to deal with, I was thinking about how good life is for me right now (geez, I hope I don’t jinx it by saying this !!!!). I have a fantastic family who are loving and supportive of what I do, I have a business that I am growing which does take a lot of energy but it is good to see the results of the energy spent when I get repeat clients, my weight is moving towards being in a healthy range and I love exercising and find I can get a bit cranky when we have to miss exercising for whatever reason – life is good !

I don’t know if it is my attitude that has changed or whether things are just better but I don’t feel nearly as stressed as I used to. Financially we aren’t doing as well as I would like but even that doesn’t seem to be getting me into the spin that it used to – maybe because now I realise that we are doing what we can and there isn’t much more we can do to generate extra funds (winning Lotto would be great but I don’t think it would be wise to hang everything on that happening). I could hound Coles for more shifts but I don’t think that is the answer – the one thing I would love is for the business to really take off so that A could give up Coles (but I am working on that and it will happy in time – I just hope it happens sooner rather than later !)

On the job front things aren’t all that flash – in fact, they are bloody awful – but I have realised that in order for me to concentrate my energies on my family, our business, my weight loss and our exercise, I need an area of my life that demands nothing of me other than that I show up each day, ready to put in my 9 hrs and leave at the end of the day – not having to take work home with me, not even having to take thoughts of work home with me. The last permanent job that I had saw me working 70-80 hour weeks and I know that that isn’t what I want for myself or my family – the money and the prestige of the job just aren’t worth the sacrifices we had to make for me to stay in that job and the reason why I left, for the first time ever, without having another job to go to. Probably one of the hardest things I have ever had to do but geez am I glad I did.

I am now starting to appreciate the down time that I do have instead of feeling guilty because I am not rushing around ‘doing’ something !

I think one of the things which is really keeping me motivated is the compliments that I have been receiving – people are really noticing the weight loss and that seems to help me stay focussed on what I need to do to continue to keep the weight coming off. When I was phoning to make an appointment with one of the specialists yesterday, the receptionist asked me what my weight was because she said she would need it for the anaesthetist – I told her what it was but also said that it wouldn’t be that in July when I have the procedure because I hope to be a lot less by then. She then asked me what I had been doing and I told her and she sounded so happy that I had lost this much weight and wished me good luck with continuing on my journey – it was just great because she doesn’t know me from a bar of soap so really had nothing to gain by being happy for what I had achieved especially as she said she had about 30kgs to lose and would love to be my current weight !!!!

To all those people out there battling and struggling with their own issues – hang in there, it does get better. There were times when I wondered if I was doomed to a life of worry and lack, but now I realise that it is up to me to make my life the best that it can be. Sitting around doing nothing but expecting it all to arrive on my doorstep is not how the universe works – nor does it work on a one for one basis of you do something for me and I will do something for you – it does except us to get up and go out there and grab hold of what we want and make it our own. And that is what I am doing – I am taking responsibility for the things that I can control and I am not worrying about the things that I can’t. I am going to use my energy in positive ways rather than negative ways and I am going to be the best person that I can be. (I am also going to ear mark this post for days when I feel like it is all turning to cr*p so that I can come and have a re-read of how positive I can be !)


TFTD : The distance is nothing, it is the first step only that is difficult.

The birthday week that was

Well the birthday week is over after much celebrating and eating and drinking - thank goodness birthdays only come around once a year - except of course if you are born on 29th February in which case they only come around once every four years. The only problem is that everyone's birthday comes around once a year so in actual fact you land up celebrating more than just once a year if you add up everyone's birthday that you celebrate you would find that some months it would be hard to get through the month without more than a few birthdays sneaking up on you - this makes it hard to lose weight when you don't want to offend anyone by picking at your meal or their birthday cake or snacks or whatever they have provided you to eat and drink. But, celebrate with our friends and family we do and then hope that we can increase our exercise enough to work off the additional calories we ate and drank in the celebrations.

K had a wonderful birthday week and it was fantastic watching her enjoy the time with her family and friends but I am glad that we can return to some sort of normalacy now. I have been doing the best I can with the food choices available and have increased my exercise where possible so the scales are showing a loss so far this week taking me (up to today) to a loss just under 17kgs. I am happy about that but just wish that I could shed these last 15kgs quicker - mind you I think I also keep moving the goal posts because originally I said I wanted to lose 30kgs - now that has crept up to 32kgs - maybe what I should do is have a look at how I feel and look when I get closer and then decide on the number but for now, the number seems soooooooooooooooooo far away and I want it to be closer. I guess eating those extra snacks and biscuits won't help, will they ?????

We did a 48km cycle yesterday in preparation for the race at the end of June - the first 20kms incorporated hills along Turpin Rd, Johnstone St and Ferry Rd down to Broadbeach but then the cycle home, via the Spit was all flat - not good preparation for hills but good preparation for butt time on the saddle as the ride landed up being about 2.5hrs. Will be doing more of these rides over the coming weekends.

I have a couple of repeat clients booked in this week which is always good - I am still planning on getting my walking/cycling in every day because I need to do it to achieve my weight loss goals. This week I have stuck to my promise to only not exercise if I had something else on or was injured in some way - I have had lots on but I haven't been injured so have exercised at every opportunity and I do believe that that has helped with my weight loss this week - of course the party on Friday night could still catch up with me and if I don't stop sneaking a few extra biscuits for my afternoon tea, it is definitely going to show up so I guess I had better get my act together before weigh-in on Thursday morning.

Someone asked me a while ago if I was happy with my weight loss and I said to her that it was slower than I would have liked but faster than I expected and I put this down to the fact that I am more consistent with my exercise than I have every been before. Previosuly I might have done my 30 mins 3 x per week and that would have been it - if I was really daring I might have done it 4 x per week whereas now we are walking the dogs almost every day (at least 6 out of 7 days) and cycling on top of that when we can plus our walks are faster and longer. What I don't want to happen is that I become complacent about what I have lost which I think is beginning to happen hence the extra 1 or 2 biscuits for my snacks which can sometimes turn into another 5 or 6 at night when I am finished with my clients and feeling a little peckish - yes, I could probably have a fruit cup but how interesting is that ??????? I used to think that would be fine to have - now I don't so I need to find that part of my brain that says, when you want something sweet late at night, have a fruit cup instead of a handfull of biscuits. If you find that part of my brain anywhere on your travels, please send it home to me.

On that note, I am off to bed - a lovely, electric blanket warmed bed that is going to keep me cozy until A gets home from work.

Take care and be good to yourselves !

Another year older - not me, K !

Where has the time gone to – it certainly doesn’t feel like 18 years since I went into hospital to have K. As with all families, we have had our ups and our downs but we are so proud of the young lady that she has become and I have to thank Al for being the fantastic Dad that he has been – I could never have managed without him.

I haven’t had a chance to blog about our holiday because the notes that I made are my phone and, for whatever reason, won’t allow themselves to be mailed to an address where I can use them from so I am going to have to (at some point in time) sit down and transcribe them from my phone – when I get a chance !

We had a fantastic break. The weight wasn’t all that flash but within 2 days of getting home I had lost the weight that I had put on while away on holiday so I really can’t complain about that. The highlights for me of the holiday were :
Being comfortable in an aeroplane seat and not having to extend the seat belt in order to be able to do it up.
Being able to go into a whole range of shops, take clothes off the rack, try them on and then decide which of them I wanted to buy or not buy as was the case in most instances – not because they didn’t fit, but because I felt that I didn’t really need them.
Being able to eat what I wanted without feeling guilty (most of the time) because I knew that when we got home again, we would be back on track with our eating and our exercise and it would all be good BUT we did have to make choices. Most of our choices were healthy choices but then sometimes they weren’t – the main thing, for me, was that we stopped, looked, checked how much we wanted something and then, if we didn’t want it that badly, put it back and made a better choice.

We went to a live NRL game as well as a live AFL game – AFL now has three new converts ! What an experience that was. We are going to see Brisbane Lions vs Geelong Cats on Saturday night with someone who has more of an idea of how the game works than we do so that will be good.

We have nearly a week of celebrations for K’s birthday – family dinner last night as she only finishes uni at 8pm tonight and we thought that it was too late to get the family to wait for dinner, drinks tonight with us after uni, party on Friday night for her friends at home and the off to the AFL on Saturday night. Breakfast this morning was supposed to be weetbix and fruit but how can you have that for a birthday breakfast ? So we decided to have pancakes, syrup, lemon juice, cinnamon sugar and ice-cream instead. Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do !!!!! To be honest, I thoroughly enjoyed my breakfast this morning but it will mean an extra long walk this evening. I think this is the key to maintaining my weight loss when it is finally all off – eat something extra, exercise more and it will all be good !

Last night we didn’t have a chance to walk the dogs before dinner and so we said we would do it when we got home. Well after a lovely grilled piece of barramundi and a few spoons of sticky date pudding, when we got home the last thing I felt like doing was going for a walk. Plus, Grey’s Anatomy was on and that would have to be one of my favourite shows so, after booking our tickets for the AFL on Saturday and checking out the GCFC website, I sat down to watch. Al asked if I was going to walk with him and I said “No thanks – I’m watching Grey’s and I am comfy and warm here.” BAD MOVE !!!!!! I should have gone for a walk because when I eventually got to bed last night I felt so guilty about having sat watching TV rather than going walking – it was just awful. I said to Al that in future – unless there is a really good reason for me not to walk (not just a show on TV that I could actually tape !!!!) – I was going to walk. It is just so hard now that it is getting colder in the evenings – so much nicer to curl up under the blanket and just watch TV !!!!!

We are planning a 2-3 hr cycle on Sunday – have to increase the time our bums spend on the seats otherwise it is going to be a long 50kms in just over 6 weeks time. That ride will include some hill work along Turpin Road and Johnstone Street and then probably down to the Broadbeach markets and home again – that will give us a fair idea of how we think we might do in the race bearing in mind that there are going to be a gazillion other cyclists there as well as we will probably stay somewhere near the back so that we don’t stack it if other riders do ! If you are interested in sponsoring me, please give me a shout and I will send you the link.

Have a great rest of the week – take care and go safely !

TFTD : When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you till it seems you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn. – Harriet Beecher Stowe

Added later : Have to love going to the drawer and pulling out clothes that you think won't fit - and they don't BECAUSE THEY ARE TOO BIG !!!!! Loved the great walk we did tonight before collecting K from uni and going out for her first legal drink and play on the pokie machines.

To go down or to go up ? What will my body decide to do ?

Things have been tracking really well with my exercise and eating this week but I am not seeing any loss. Have I reached the famous ‘plateau’ that everyone talks about ? Is my body saying ‘Hey, this is too fast – where is all my insulation going ? Don’t you know that winter is coming up and I need it ?’ which doesn’t really help me accept that the weight is not moving even though I am doing everything the same.

Yesterday I did have a summer roll chocolate – and I thoroughly enjoyed every morsel of it. I figure if I can’t eat something worth about 160 cal without having heart palpitations over it, my life probably isn’t worth living anyway. And one chocolate in I don’t know how many weeks surely can’t be too bad for me. I got home last night and really didn’t feel like walking but A was up for a walk and I felt a bit guilty over the chocolate so went walking. I don’t think I walked as fast as I normally do because my thighs were quite tight and tender. The important thing for me was actually getting out there rather than staying at home and working my way through the list of things that I had to do last night. I tackled those when I got home and apart from one thing which wasn’t on the list because I had forgotten I wanted to do it, I managed to get the rest of the list done so felt really good about that.

I have one client tonight so, depending on the weather because it is peeing down with rain now and has been raining on and off most of the day, we will go for a cycle or a walk and then home to dinner and my client.

I found a training program for us to use in the lead up to the bike ride. The main problem is that it is a 12 week program and we will only have 7 1/2 weeks from when we return from holiday so I think I may just start the program off at week 6 and see how we go. It may get a bit tricky trying to fit it in with clients and two jobs but we will do the best we can.

Only another two work days and then we are on our way – I can’t wait !!!

Have a great day and take care.

TFTD : Bad times have scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

A great weekend !

I can't believe that the weekend is over - the good thing is that we have managed to accomplish so much.

Friday night I promoted my business, The Body and Feet Retreat, at a friend's kindy's Ladies Night and it was really worthwhile. I got to bookings and heaps of enquiries which was great - all for the princely sum of $10 and the donation of a free reflexology treatment.

Saturday morning K and I went to a really good yoga class. After that K went to work and A and I went to Brisbane. We visited a friend in hospital who is doing really well and may be allowed to go home tomorrow. After that we drove the route of the 50km bike ride that we are going to ride at the end of June - boy do we have a whole heap of hill work to do in order to complete this race without killing ourselves !!!! The hills are more numerous, steeper and longer than what we have around here so we have our work cut out for us. BUT, they are all do-able - it is just that more training would mean an easier ride. I know that it is all in the gears, but I was still a little startled when I saw some of the hills - we will get there I know. A says that he is more worried about all the other people cycling with us and avoiding us stacking it more than he is worried about the hills !!!

We stopped off at DFO on our way home and, I can now shop at Lorna Jane !!!!!!!! - YAY because their clothes are so comfy - am waiting until I am closer to goal before I go back again ! Got home and then took the dogs for a really long walk to get my steps for the day over the 10,000 mark and got caught in the rain on the way home so had a nice hot bath to warm up.

This morning we were going to cycle down to Broadbeach to the markets there but once we started, we realised that there was a fairly strong head wind so we decided to go along a road that has a few hill. I was so excited when I got to the top of the first hill which I have been DREADING cycling because I didn't think I would make it - BUT I DID !!!!! I was soooooooooo excited. Anyway, we didn't get quite as far as we wanted to go because half way up the last long hill, I wasn't sure I would make it home if we went all the way to the top so we turned around - I was disappointed afterwards because I felt as if I had stuck it out I probably would have made it. Next time I am not going to stop half way !

We got home and then went out and bought some slicks for our moutain bikes at a really good price and swopped the jeans we bought the other night from black to demin. After that we to Anaconda to swop the speedo that A had bought for my bike and the guy we saw was just amazing. He really knew his stuff and we spoke about getting new road bikes. The bottom line is we went back and landed up buying new bikes - unfortunately, we had taken our bikes there for him to see and then we had 6 bikes and a bike holder for 4 bikes so K and I waited there with the other two until A could get home and drop the first 4 bikes off. By the time we got home it was too late to go cycling - how disappointing !!!!!!! But, they are all ready and waiting for us to use them tomorrow.

A was busy putting the speedos on the new bikes when we decided to go walking except by then it was raining. So we waited 10 mins and it was fine to go walking ! Managed to get my 10,000 steps up by running on the spot for 80 steps before I had a bath. I have twinged the muscle in my right quad and am off to massage it a bit and put some heat on it and hopefully it will be all right for me to try out the new bike - I can't wait !!!!!!

We have had a great weekend and next weekend we are off to Melbourne - life is good right now ! Take care and have a great week.

It's back .................... sort of !

The motivation that I was missing yesterday is back today. Last night I realised that it is up to me to change my attitude if I don’t like what is happening – I don’t have to be a victim of my circumstances and so today I started the day in a different frame of mind and it is working – I don’t feel down like I did yesterday. It is all good and I am happy.

I had a hectic night last night but that was OK because I knew it was going to be hectic so had a bit of plan for tackling everything. I had a late client so it was after 9pm by the time I was finished with her and then K wanted a massage so it was closer to 10pm by the time I as ready to eat by which time I no longer wanted to eat – so I didn’t. I figured that missing one meal wasn’t going to kill me and it was probably better for me not to eat that late in the day although I do think that it gave me a false reading at my weigh in this morning. Down another 1.4kg taking total loss in 13 weeks to 15.2 ! That is just about half way so I am quite happy with that. Someone asked me the other day if I was happy with how my weight loss was progressing and I said that it was probably quicker than I think it should be (or what it has been in the past) but not as fast as I would like it to be !!!!! I think what has made it a bit easier this time is that the whole family is doing it and while K&A never tempted me and supported me in my weight loss endeavours, there is something different about them supporting me to them actually doing what I am doing. Plus we are doing heaps more exercise that I have done in more years than I care to think about !! Having said that I am really enjoying it and the feeling of accomplishment when we get home after a hard walk or cycle is fantastic ! Just knowing that I got off my butt and did something is good.

Have a great Friday tomorrow everyone !

TFTD : The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you are willing to work – Oprah Winfrey

Come back Motivation ...... all is forgiven !

I don’t know what has happened but today my motivation has gone AWOL – and I don’t like it ! “Come back motivation – all is forgiven”. I have to believe it is a short term hitch and nothing too serious but honestly, right now I could sit down and tuck into all the foods that I know aren’t good for my weight loss plan. But instead, I am sitting here, drinking my water and writing my blog in the hope that I will be distracted enough not to pick up my purse and go and raid the vending machine. Of course that may still happen seeing as there are still another 3 hrs of work for today left but, for now, I am distracted enough not to do it.

Last night we had ribs for dinner. I knew we were going for ribs and I planned accordingly. I could have had nothing to eat during the day but I knew that wouldn’t work because when the ribs came I would have savaged the whole rack and all the chips and probably the plate as well (actually, I don’t think they use plates I think they use serving platters !) but I planned my food for the day and cut down my calories, where I could, to allow for some extra calories at dinner. All in all I probably did eat too many calories at dinner but I am certain that it wouldn’t have been a gazillion more than I should have – in fact it probably wasn’t even thousands more than I should have and more like maybe a couple of hundred calories more than I should have. But, given the exercise that we got up to on the weekend, I know that I have already burnt those calories off. So the question is – Why do I feel like I want to eat every single chocolate in sight today ? Is it because I haven’t reached my 10,000 steps for the past two days and, while I know I need to make the effort for the rest of week, I am already wondering how late at night I will need to walk in order to reach my 10,000 steps for the rest of the week. Part of me has said – why not make your week the same as your weigh week (Thursday – Wednesday) ? But there is a part of me that knows that it is just trying to justify having another day of not reaching my goal without making me feel guilty !!! I understand that things happen to get in the way of our plans but this is really just bad planning on my part – actually, not even bad planning because these were planned, I just didn’t follow the plan when it came up as a reminder on my phone !!!!! So I need to pull myself towards myself, stop stuffing around and just get on with what needs to be done.

I have a new client tonight which is great – hopefully she will turn into a regular client but if she doesn’t, I hope that she enjoys the treatment that she will have had by the time I get to post this entry.

I wonder if maybe I am trying to spread my positivity too thin. I am trying to stay positive about my weight loss, my eating and my exercise and even more so than those, I am trying to stay positive about finding a new job – the job that is just right for me because I really don’t want to go from one miserable job to another. I want to find a job that is challenging without being over the top because at the end of the day, my family and my health are more important than any job will ever be but it is so hard when I have been looking for such a long time and trying to stay positive for such a long time I starting to wear me down. I feel like I must be doing it incorrectly otherwise how come the universe hasn’t responded. I know that the universe works in it’s own time but, in this context, three months isn’t exactly a short period of time.

Tomorrow will be a better day.

TFTD : When you realise that nothing is lacking, the whole world belongs to you !

Finding the balance

Before we started our weight loss journey, we went to a local tavern to have ribs for dinner but, because we got there at about 7pm, by the time we came to order, they had run out of ribs and so we had to order something else which was extremely disappointing because we had gone there hanging out for ribs but then not able to have them. We started our diet the next day and after a couple of weeks Al wanted to know when we could go for ribs. I told him he could go at any time but until I had lost at least 12-14kgs, I wasn't even going to consider going there because I needed to stay focussed on my weight loss - which is a lot more than what he has to lose. While I hit the 13.8kg mark at the weekly weigh-in, I did lose more and hit the 14kg mark so said to A that he could book a table for ribs tonight. He did and we went and had them - and they were awesome ! I really enjoyed them - I could have eaten more than I did but I didn't because I had had enough and I would have just been eating for the sake of eating which is one of the reasons I put on the weight in the first place. Is this the first step to recognising a trigger that sets me on the slippery slope downward after I have lost my weight ? I am really happy that I realised when I had eaten enough and stopped.

I know at some point we are going to have to stop doing L&E, if only because the sameness of the meals after a period of time is enough to make you wander off to the vending machine rather than eat the healthy lunch that you have at work. With this in mind I have started to 'make up' my own lunch. The main difference ? There is always some fruit and my 'treat' for the day is only 80-100 cal instead of 700-800 cal - who would have thought that there were so many calories in biscuits - such innocent looking little things ?

When I started counting steps this time I set a goal of achieving over 10,000 steps 5 days out of 7 - this week I have had my two days off already - and it is only Tuesday !!!! But, that is OK - yesterday I had yoga and I had told myself that it would be a rest day after the full on day we had on Sunday. Today we went out to dinner and when we got home, A said "Let's go for a walk" - I could have gone with him but I stayed at home to watch Gray's Anatomy and Private Practice - they are my two favourite shows on TV and tonight I would rather watch them than exercise. Is that a bad thing ? I don't think so - I think this is about finding the balance between exercising and relaxation - yes, I could have exercised but I wanted to watch the shows, so I stayed at home while he took the two dog for a walk and the best part is, I don't feel guilty about it. I feel I have achieved the balance that I needed today - it may not be like this tomorrow, but for today, I have balanced what I want to do with what I need to do.

TFTD : People with goals succeed because they know where they are going.

The weekend that was

I wish that this was a four day weekend instead of a normal two day weekend because it has certainly been a busy one ! From yoga at 8am yesterday - to treating some clients - to going to buy some road bikes only to be told that there are none in stock ............ anywhere in Australia until the 2011 stock comes in in about a month's time. So, seeing as we couldn't get our bikes we took the dogs for a walk instead before going to work for 3 hrs - what more could you ask for on a Saturday night ????? Certainly not that BUT it helps to pay the bills so, it was off to work we went.

When the alarm went off at 6am this morning I wasn't too keen to get up to head off for our second 5km race, but I did. We will find out our time tomorrow and so there be able to see the improvement from the first race which was a couple of weeks back - just not sure if we can keep improving on our times. We will miss the next race as we will be in Melbourne but then we will be back for the fourth race on 30th May and the last race on 20th June - one week before we do the 50km Brisbane to Bay bike ride.

We got home from there, loaded up and drove down to Currumbin Valley were we did a 22km cycle along Currumbin Creek Road - a long steady incline made us really work our legs today and, with an average speed to 19.2kph, we were happy with our efforts.

Got home and had lunch before going to Anaconda where they are having a huge sale on bike stuff where we bought some new knicks, two wind breakers and some more cycling gloves. Oh yes, and some more lights for our bicycles. Because we cycle quite often at night and, as it is getting closer to winter and the days getting darker sooner, the flashing lights that we have are not that flash (no pun intended) to cycle with BUT they are great for visibility. So we decided to buy another light so that we can have one flashing light and one light on all the time which helps us to see where we are going.

After we had spent a (very) quick $250 on the bike stuff, we came home and did another 5km walk with the dogs. They had a great time running down a secluded path on a 30m rope - they always seem to walk so much better once they have been for a run. We had a family birthday BBQ to go to at Paradise Point, so had a quick shower and dashed off down there. All I really wanted to do was to stay at home and relax but that was not to be. We were there about 2 hrs before everyone left and we could come home where we have been sitting and relaxing for a while. If I don't sleep well tonight there is going to be all sorts of trouble. I have been sleeping so badly lately which is quite strange before normally when I exercise it helps me to sleep better but not so lately. I can only hope.

I can't say that I am looking forward to a 5 day work week but I will be happy to get a full weeks pay so I guess that I will have to show up there in order to get the money.

I also have two bookings for new clients this week which is great - here's hoping that they turn into regulars. I have a stand at a ladies night on Friday night at a friends kindy and hopefully I will attract a few new clients from that. Once we are back from Melbourne I really have to knuckle down and get some more advertising happening to try to build the business - I really want this to work so that we can give up Coles.

OK - I am going to read a bit before going to bed - take care everyone and have a great week !

TFTD : For every minute you're angry, you lose 60 seconds of happiness.

TGIF !

I know that it has only been a short week (and if I wasn't sure my pay packet next week will remind me !!!) but I am really glad that today is Friday - not sure I would have managed to get through another day of work.

For some reason I have not been sleeping very well lately - not sure why because normally when I exercise as much as we have been, I sleep really well. It doesn't seem to be the situation at the moment - maybe because I haven't been to yoga for a while. Looking forward to going tomorrow morning. Then on Monday night and after that we will be going on Thursday night and Saturday which will be good because the class on a Thursday is the intermediate class and goes for 90 mins instead of 60 mins.

On Wednesday A said that he had a surprise for me but wouldn't tell me what it was. I guessed a few things but wasn't right and then he said that he would tell me on Thursday after we had weighed. I forgot all about it and yesterday morning he showed me the easter eggs that he had bought from the South African shop - candy coated chocolate eggs that look similar to normal eggs. We used to love these eggs as kids - the first year we had them my Mom had put them into egg cups and pretended that they were real boiled eggs for our breakfast. Of course when we tried to crack the egg and couldn't then realised that they were chocolate we couldn't wait to eat them. We used to get them every year. After we were married, Al and I would buy a couple of boxes (6 eggs in a box) and eat them over the course of a couple of weeks leading up to Easter and beyond. I was really excited when I saw them but said I wouldn't have it for breakfast which is always a rush but would rather keep mine until I could sit down and quietly savour the taste. I had mine tonight - it wasn't as good as I remember it being and so I told Al that he could he the other one in the box that was mine. No point in eating extra calories if they aren't really what I want ! That is something that I have learnt more and more about this time around - I was always brought up to eat what was dished up 'because there were thousands of starving children around the world' - was my Mom going to ship the food I didn't eat off to them ? I don't think so - but she used to tell us that everytime we didn't want to eat something. When I think back now I should have just said no and not eaten it except that we didn't do that, we did what our parents said and that was that. There was certainly never any discussion about why they told us to do something or any reasons given for anything. Maybe that is where we went wrong with K sometimes - had too many discussions and explained our decisions instead of just telling her to do something and be done with it ! Anyway, I digress.

I was talking to someone the other day about the fact that there were a few occasions when I had made a conscious decision to buy a miniture chocolate and eat it - always after I had waited at least 3 hours. The point was that I didn't just go off and buy a large chocolate as soon as I thought "I feel like a chocolate" invariably because I was bored or anxious or waiting for something to happen. She explained the behaviour as a lapse in my eating plan rather than a relapse into a bad habit. That has stood me in good stead quite a few times since then when I have made a decision to eat something - I always think about whether it is a lapse or a relapse. I don't want a relapse but I am happy to have a lapse if it means that I will have a miniture chocolate rather than a large chocolate - just enough to satisfy the sweet tooth that I have that has really missed my daily diet of chocolates and biscuits that I used to live on.

I am trying something a little different with my L&E this week. On the 1200 plan - you generally get cereal, toast and fruit for breakfast. Lunch can be a variety of things plus a fruit and a snack - a biscuit / muffin / pate and biscuits / cracker mix - again a range of things. And then dinner is dinner. The last couple of weeks I have not been too enchanted with the lunches so what I am trying this week is to order breakfast and dinner for the week plus 5 of the 'meal in a bowl' for me to use for lunches (we sometimes get them in the lunches anyway) and then I have bought some fruit cups as my fruit (again something that we would get in the lunches) and I have bought some biscuits to have as my afternoon treat based on the calories that I need for the day. The difference now is that instead of having 6 or 8 biscuits as my snack, I have one AND I always wait until at least 3pm before I eat it - that is the time that I have said is snack time otherwise it would be eaten by 9am every day and then I would have nothing to look forward to !!!!

We have a busy weekend planned - tomorrow we have yoga from 8-9am, then drop K at work on the way home, get home and walk to pick up our numbers for the 5km walk on Sunday morning and take the dogs for a walk at the same time. Have to be home by 10am as I have an appointment from 11-12. Then dash home again for a client at 12.30pm and another at 2pm. After that I think we may shoot off to see about getting some road bikes - am not keen on doing long distances on the mountain bikes without slicks on - but it will depend on what else needs to be done. Then home in time to have dinner and get to Coles by 6pm. On Sunday the race starts at 7am - at least we will have collected our numbers and timing card the day before which means that we can go straight to the start on Sunday morning. K is working at 9am so will have to get home quickly after the race so she can shower and get to work on time. The last race we did in 44mins and some secs so will be interesting to see if we are fitter and can do it quicker this time around. Al and I are going down to Currumbin Creek Road to do a cycle up a road that is apparently a long incline - to help with our fitness levels and stamina for hills. Think that might take a couple of hours (also good to have to sit on the bicycle seat for longer than the hour or so that we normally cycle for) and then it will be home time to shower before going up to Brisbane to see if we can drive the route of the 50km race that we are doing on 27th June. We want to try to have cycled it at least once before the big day so it may have to be next weekend as we don't want to do it too close to the actual day - the weekend after we are off to Melbourne and Adelaide - YAY !!!! Once we get home from Brisbane we have been invited to a BBQ at Paradise Point for one of our nephew's birthday - Al has taken out some steak for the BBQ but K and I are going to heat our meals up and then wrapped them up and take them with us. Much as I love my nephew, I don't want to have a night of eating food that is not what I want and likely to break my focus on the weight loss side of things. I do know that once I am at goal, the trick is going to be intergrating ordinary eating back into our lifestyle and still be able to maintain the weight. I think it will be so much easier this time around because we are all watching what we eat and so when one overdoes things the others are more likely to say hey, do you really need that extra helping of dessert ?????

I am officially a granny - I am sitting in the loungeroom - blogging and watching TV with my bifocal glasses on - what a pleasure to be able to work on the computer and then glance up and be able to see the game on TV !!!!! While the operation was a success, I do miss the close vision that I used to have BUT I don't miss having to wear glasses or contacts 24/7. It is great to be able to see the time on the clock next to the bed, and dry my hair without having to have my glasses on, and eat without glasses on and be able to see what I am eating ! So many positive except for the fact that I can't read and watch TV or knit a pattern and watch TV because my glasses were for distance only. Now with the bifocals, I can do both - YAY !!!!!!!

Have a great weekend everyone - take care and Jod, go safely on the bike ride.


TFTD : It is easier to drift than it is to climb.

Another weigh-in tomorrow

Thursday seems to come around quite quickly lately - more than once a week I am sure !!!! This is our weigh-in day and while I did have a small Lindt easter bunny and two hot cross buns for breakfast on Sunday, we also did heaps of cycling and walking to burn off those extra calories. I am curious to see whether or not it worked.

I have been doing really well making my 10,000 steps per day although last night I had to run on the spot for 250 steps to reach my goal but I just knew I couldn't go to bed knowing that I had got so close and didn't manage to make it.

A is looking at us doing a 50km cycle in June - Brisbane to the Bay - you cycle from Southbank to Wynnum and back. Would like to drive the course before we enter but early bird discount entrance fee happens if you register before Friday so will have to weigh up the difference between having to pay extra for each of the three of us or maybe entering a race only to find it is full of hills after we have paid. At least with it being in June we do have a bit of time to get some more hill work in - we have been doing some hill work in preparation for the Brisbane to Gold Coast cycle in October but we haven't done anything serious.

My legs were tired tonight when we cycled - I think that tomorrow night I will give them a break and go shopping with K. No matter how many times I tell her Melbourne is the shopping capital of Australia, she insists on buying clothes to take down with her !!!! Will see what she finds tomorrow night.

I am off to have some dinner, do some washing and then hopefully have a great night's sleep = I have been sleeping so badly lately and it is really annoying. Normally when I exercise I sleep so well but not lately - the more I exercise the more it seems to keep me awake.

Take care and have a great day !

TFTD : Courage does not always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying "I will try again tomorrow"

A holi-holi-holiday !

The good news is that A got the all clear on the lump that was removed - so huge relief over that. Now it is a case of waiting to see if the cut heals or whether he will need a skin graft.

We have had a good few days - lots of exercise - walking and cycling and food has been pretty good except for Thursday at work when I had four little solid easter eggs - I really enjoyed them but I don't think that counts for anything ! I need to be more focused on what I am putting into my mouth. We each have one Lindt easter bunny for Sunday - can't make up my mind whether to just eat it all in one sitting and be done with it or spread it over a period of time. Will see how I feel on Sunday. While we are enjoying the exercise, it really is to help counter-act the effects of the chocolate !!!!!

I landed up working at Coles last night - not my first choice of how to spend the evening but it helps with the money seeing as I only worked 3 days this week.

Tomorrow we have hired a high pressure cleaner to clean the outside tiles - Easter is our annual clean up weekend and I love when we are finished and the tiles are all nice and clean again - it is amazing how dirty they get from one year to the next.

We don't have much else planned - K is working tomorrow. We want to do some longish cycles and lots of walks. I have managed every day, except Monday,to have over 10,000 steps so am really pleased with my efforts in that department.

Sorry this is a little dis-jointed, I am half listening to the TV, half listening to A & K talking and thinking I should go and join them rather than be on the computer.

Will come back another time this weekend and post again !

Have a great Easter break - take care and go safely.

TFTD : Whoever is happy will make others happy too.

A rest day

I really need to try to keep a positive attitude about my job - it is not easy ! In March last year I got a 4 month contract with the local council - 12 months later I am still there - not from choice but because there are so few other jobs out there. I have applied for I don't know how many, have received a couple of 'thanks but not thanks' letters, have had one interview and came 'a close second' to their final choice candidate, and have not heard back from more than I have heard back from. While I understand this can be a time consuming task for private companies, when employment agents don't even get back to me I get REALLY annoyed. Isn't that what their job is - to find people and at least reply to people who send in their CV's for a role. My current job is so up to date I could walk out of there tomorrow and be satisfied that nobody was going to walk into a mess at all - given the state of the role when I first arrived there, that is no mean feat. I am trying so hard to stay positive that my dream role is out there but every day that I continue to have to deal with burocratic cr*p, it gets harder and harder. I am not used to working in an environment that is so stuck in the past that they will not even CONSIDER changing a process to something that is more beneficial. Honestly, I need to change the whole way I think to work here and I am worried that I am going to lose the ability to work in commerce if I stay here too long. I just KNOW that my dream role is out there and I HAVE to stay positive so that it comes my way but my patience is starting to run thin.

This is certainly not helping my healthy way of eating because all I want to do each day is attack the vending maching - to help make my day better. There is a part of me that KNOWS that eating chocolate will not make my job any different but there is also a part of me that wants the comfort of chocolate to get through the day. I am bored with what I am doing and the only way I know to get around this is to eat chocolate. The good thing is that so far I have managed to curb these wants and occasionally have one of those little mini chocolates - that is better than nothing at all.

Today I have not reached my 10,000 steps but my goal is to reach 10,000 5 days a week - I know that Monday is not a good day for us to exercise much. After work we can do a little bit of something before it is time to go to yoga. Today we picked up the bikes from getting serviced - it was like getting a new bike again !!! - and then cycled for about 40-45mins before screaming home to change and get to yoga. While 5,500 steps is not a fantastic effort, along with the ride and yoga I am happy that I have made the best effort I could with the time I had available.

Tomorrow morning I am taking A to get a skin cancer cut out of his leg. I am really annoyed about this because 4yrs ago when he first had this sore on his leg that wouldn't heal I asked him to go and get it checked out but he didn't until last week and now it is an invasive type of cancer and there is a lump which has already formed under the skin. The problem now is that because they have to cut it out and it is on the front of his shin, there isn't much excess skin to be able to pull together to stitch up so there is a good possibility that he will have to have a skin graft - all because he didn't go and get it checked out when I said - or on any other occasion between then and now when he has been to the doctor about any other problem !!! Men - sometimes you have to just wonder why they don't listen ?????

Other that that - today has been a good day. Managed to fight off the sugar cravings with a little crunchie and some sugar free chewing gum (something that I never eat but thought it would be better than the big chocolate that I really wanted !!!).

TFTD : One of the best ways to realise that age is an illusion is to have your body get older and realise that you are who you have always been.

Another Sunday gone !

We had a great day today. K had to go to work and we needed a prescription filled at the chemist so cycled into Southport to the Discount Pharmacy there. All up probably about an hours cycle there and back except we didn't come home, we dropped our bikes off at the bicycle shop to get serviced and walked home (about 3,100 steps). A has a thought that we should do the Wilson Brisbane to Gold Coast cycle in October - I am not so sure about this but he has turned into a fitness fanatic and is very keen on the idea !!!! We will have to do a lot more hill and stamina work before we can even consider this but it is something we can work towards in the meantime (maybe we could do it next year ??????) Can I make him wait that long ? Can he wait that long ?

Anyway, got home and had our morning snack - they have a really yummy Greek yoghurt - it is just the best although unfortunately, it is never enough - the little punnet they send has to be eaten with a teaspoon otherwise it is finished in about three dessert spoons !!!

Then we took the puppies - oh yes, Happy 1st Birthday Alfie - so I think he is officially a dog and not a puppy anymore - for a walk to Paradise Point. Got back from there with just over 11,000 steps completed. Had lunch and a shower and then went to look for a birthday present for a friend, came home and did the last load of washing before watching a tape of Gray's from last week.

It's amazing how our bodies change and tell us what they want - yes I know sometimes mine is screaming "Give me chocolate, give me biscuits" - but I am talking about once you start to exercise how those endorphins kick it and just make you want to exercise even more. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that I would, on a Saturday night when A is working and K is baby-sitting, go out walking because I haven't done enough steps for the day. Normally it would be - kick back on the beanbag, with something to drink and nibble on and there I would stay until someone came home and interrupted me !!!!!! I just love that my body so wants to do all this exercise that it is no longer a chore but rather something that I want to do because I can see the benefits of doing it. My clothes are fitting me better - my wardrobe is growing by the week as I get into clothes that I haven't worn since I don't know when - it is sooooooooo cool ! (to borrow an overused word from K !)

I will finish the day with over 13,000 steps (am I allowed to carry those over to tomorrow night because that is going to be the one day of the week when I will battle to hit 10,000 steps ???) but seeing as my goal is to have 10,000 for at least 5 of the 7 days of the week, I'll be OK and won't beat myself up because I am not making 7/7 days - sometimes other things just have to be done. Monday night is yoga night and one of my favourite nights of the week because generally after yoga, I sleep soooooooooo well !!!!

Have a great week everyone - take care and go safely !

TFTD : Diseases of the soul are more dangerous and more numerous than those of the body - Cicero