The "C" word

I'm guilty of dropping the odd C-bomb on occasion. But 12wbt has shown me just how much I don't need this little 4 letter word in my vocabulary.

CAN'T.

There.  I said it.

I USED to think (and say) that I can't;

• lose weight
• run
• exercise
• cook
• do pushups
• cope

...just to name a few.

But I CAN do all of those things - and more!

• I've lost 25kg - one quarter of my old body weight.
• I'm now a runner.  I run.  I love it.  It feels free.  Fast. I ran at 15kph on the treadmill today.  Fast.
• Every day I do some form of exercise, either cardio or strength work or both. And I sweat. And I ache. And I love it.
• The kitchen and I had a strained relationship.  We're dating again, and I think the things that I'm serving up are healthy and yum and man-approved.
• Only fit chicks do toe pushups.  Right?  Yesterday I got to 37 consecutive in a minute.  Proud :)
• Not coping is no longer an option.  I DO cope with work and home and life.  And the more I cope, the more I can do, and the more I get out of life. Being thinner and healthier encourages me to make better choices.

It really is as simple as changing your thinking.  I CAN do whatever I put my mind to.  And I'm hatching a few plans as to what my mind might like to focus on.  Stay tuned...

Weign in - R2 - Week 3

Three weeks into round 2 - can you believe it?

I feel as though I'm in control of my weight, of my food and my body, and this week's loss takes me back to just above my lowest point.

Current Weight: 72.0kg
Last week:      73.0kg
Week's loss:          -1.0kg 
So far:          -25.0kg  




Loving being back at the 25kg mark.  And I think there's still a couple more kilos to be granted their marching orders.  But I've noticed a definite change of shape in the past couple of weeks.  It's a much firmer, more toned 72kg.  If I could wave the magic wand and deduct a few centimetres from specific places, I'd choose a couple of cms from my back, about 5cm from my hips and a couple from each thigh.

Looking forward to my first ever bikini this summer.  A size 10 summer dress.  Imagine wearing a dress without your thighs rubbing together. Seafood & salads. Warm air.  Oh, how I'm going to love this summer.  Being thin.  Does it get any better?

How heavy is 10kg??

Tonight, I'm on my exercise bike, pumping away on the pedals, when a brilliant (?) idea pops into my head.

I'll ride the last 10 minutes of my session with a 5kg dumbbell in each hand! (as I said...brilliant!) 

By the time I'm at 38 minutes (2 to go) I'm swearing and sweating and swearing some more. 

And then it hits me.

I used to do EVERYTHING with two and a half times this weight on my body. How did I function that way? I thrashed out my 10 minutes and put those bastard weights down. I will NEVER go back to where I used to be.

Weigh In - R2 - Week 2

I wasn't going to post this week coz I'm not overly impressed with the scales right about now.

Current Weight: 73.0kg
Last week:      71.9kg
Week's loss:         +1.1kg 
So far:          -24.0kg


Last Wednesday I weighed in and it was all smiles.  Thursday morning I had lost another 200g and was feeling GREAT.  Skipped lunch coz I was trying on (and buying) wedding gowns (sooo much fun).  Skipped exercise too.  And water. Ate a good dinner.  Was well under my 1200 calories.  Jump on the scales Friday morning AND I'VE PUT ON 2.2kg.  OVERNIGHT!  Come on!!!!!

So, it's Friday and I'm flat out at work due to a HUGE event the next day.  No exercise, but calories within the daily limit.  Plenty of water.  I'm hoping it will all even out, or even have been a mistake at the morning weigh in.

Saturday morning, jump on the scales and NO.  There was no mistake.  This 2.2kg is going to stick around. Heavy sigh.  So I can either fight this or I can go buy a packet or two of chocolate coated bullets. On go the runners and I'm out the door for an 8km jog before heading into work. Probably a bad move with an event to run, and my back agrees.  No running on Sunday or Monday or Tuesday, but the mystery weight is starting to move again.

And here we are, recording a 1.1kg gain.  I have no idea why.  Perhaps my body got a little freaked out?  Maybe it was the stress of the event or the move? Could be just one of those stupid fluctuations that us females have to put up with. Really, I just feel bloated and yuk.  Such a difference from last Wednesday.

It DOES do your head in though, losing the same weight over and over again.  Slow, steady, consistent.  Come on girl, hang in there!!!!

Weigh in - R2 - week 1

Current Weight: 71.9kg
Last week:      72.9kg
Week's loss:          -1.0kg 
So far:          -25.1kg





Great day today!  Feel on top(ish) of my workload.  Have followed Mish's exercise plan to the letter. And have been rewarded with my lowest weight so far.  Feels good to be losing weight for the first time rather than re-losing stuff I've put back on.

Here's todays HRM report;

Totally ripped training today.  It felt great to complete the same set of sprints easily today that I struggled with on Monday.  And the 20 minutes of steady state jog was almost comfortable.  So much so, that I was able to increase the speed to 8.5kph and  then up it again to 9kph for the final minute.

Onto today's facts and figures;

Calories in         1009
less training        525
less BMR            1455
deficit              971

Today, Day Two

Ooohhh... I'm a bit sore today.  And tired.  Yep, tired and sore.

But... I still completed Day 2 of Lean & Fit.  Strength day.

First things first, I had to do a 5 minute warm up.  "Hmmmm", said I, looking out the window hopefully. "Might go for a jog".  So I'm rugged up (as you do in Melbourne, in winter) in my fluffy trackies, long sleeve top, raincoat and beanie that looks like a tea cozy. Step outside.  Have an argument with myself that goes along the lines of "Oh God it's REALLY cold"..."stop sooking you...sook"..."My ankle hurts"..."You're outside now, so suck it up and start moving"...blah blah blah for a good 5 minutes.  The dogs are looking out the front windows at me thinking what the?  Felt like a bit of a dick actually, standing there, rugged up, cemented to the front deck.  Raelene - what ARE you doing?

So I press the go button on my Nike+ app and just do it.

20 seconds in and I'm feeling like a bit of an athlete.  A brilliant plan hatches.  I could make this my 1km time trial.  Like I said, brilliant plan.  So I stride it out a little more.  And. Then. The. Rain. Comes. Bucketing. Down.  I'm full on soaked.  But do I stop?  Noooooooo.

1.18km later, I'm standing back to where it all began - on my front deck - but with a PB 1km time under my belt (not that I was wearing one!)

Well, I say to myself (yep another brilliant plan is coming up) seeing as I'm warm(ish) I may as well do Day 2 of L&F.  Mountain Climbers suck by the way!

But the fun doesn't stop there.  Why not do the rest of my fitness test parts too?

So here are my fitness test stats;

                            Round 1 - week 12            Round 2 - week 1
1km time trial          5:51                                    5:43
Pushups (toes)            21                                       34
Pushups (knees)         83                                      104
Sit and reach           +5cm                                   +5cm
Abs                         stage 5                                stage 5
Wall sit                   6:58                                     3:01*

*I will make an excuse on the wall sit - I was completely spent by this time.  I could re-do it tomorrow, but I won't.  The 3:01 stands. I barely could at the end of it :)

Onto today's facts and figures;

Calories in         1189
less training        557
less BMR            1455
deficit              823

And we're away

Round 2 of 12wbt started today and I've had an AWESOME day.

Tossing up between the two advanced programs, Lean & Fit (L&F) or Lean & Strong (L&S), I've decided, after yesterday's awsomeness, to work on my fitness and running, plus loosing a couple more kg's, therefore, the winner is Lean & Fit.

Honestly, looking at the Day 1 exercise program, I didn't think I could get through it.  I was a bit tender in a few places from the fun run yesterday, so mentally, I was considering throwing a rest day in. Would have been easy to just roll over and get another hour's sleep..

BUT NO EXCUSES

H . A . P . P . Y . with that - yes I am.

The last cardio part of today's workout involved sprinting intervals on the treadie.  You know the sort - 30 seconds on then 30 seconds off with the belt still running.  First "set" was at 10kph x 2, then upped it to 12kph x 2, finishing with 14kph x 2.

Tough.  But done.  And just a little bit proud.

So today's facts and figures;

Calories in         1241
less training        522
less BMR            1455
deficit              736