My old videos are helpful! Who knew?

I got a little stuck on YouTube this morning...
Which, I guess, is okay considering I have Doctor's orders to rest for a couple days.
(I had a minor procedure done, but there was a complication, means risk of infection.
So I'm taking it easy (not that I mind :)
But back to YouTube...
After a bit of wasting time,
I thought to look back into my own video's I uploaded over the last couple years.
Wow, that was not a waste of time.
It makes me glad I made the vid's in the first place!
In fact, I think it's important, for my own well-being, that I continue!
I'll be uploading a new one this week.
I find it so helpful to see where I've been, to clear the way for where I'm headed.
For example: I forgot about diet's I had tried, and had success on!
I was in the middle of a good diet that worked for me, when I switched to Michelle Bridges 12wbt, which was the beginning of the end.
Her plan works for some people, I know, but for me, it was unrealistic.
It messed up my values, my focus, and messed up my confidence.

But today, after listening to my old videos, I think I know what I need to do now.

What works for me:
Gym. As long as I can be consistent.
If I find it's not possible to go to they gym, Plan B is a DVD.
This works for me!
It helps with my depression.
It creates energy.
It motivates me to eat more healthy -  and in fact:
I am less hungry when I work out!
What works for me:
Calorie Counting. As long as I can be consistent.
I don't like calorie counting, but it works!
Plus it is easier with MyFitnessPal ap on my Iphone.
What works for me:
Smoothies & Tea
If I have a chocolate or vanilla protein smoothie, or a Chai tea, this always curbs my cravings for dessert.
I can watch my children eating ice cream and chocolate, but I can resist the temptation because I know I can wait for my healthy but delicious alternative.
It works!
What works for me:
Fast-5 IF.
Watching my old videos, I realise that Michelle Bridges doesn't work for me.
As most (if not all) major diet plans, it teaches you to eat small meals, eat all day long.
But common sense says that eating all day long makes you think about food all day long.
I love food.
I fantasize about food.
Eating all day long means I'll fantasize all day,
planning for my next meal, every 2-3 hours.
So I need to have boundaries set so I can stop and think about what I'm doing.

With that said, here's my diet plan - which I "stole" from my September 2011 self.

First of all, in everything, pray and ask God for help.
He's in control and I trust Him to guide me well.

Sunday - Thursday I will follow a Fast-5 window, eating only from 1-6pm.
That's two meals, lunch and dinner.
My goal on these days will be to net 12-1300 calories.
Net Calories means if I exercise 300 calories off, I can eat 15-1600.

Friday & Saturday - my "trouble" days - I'll only calorie count, 1700 net max.

Simple. Starting today.

Pressure for Young Women to be Thin

So, I had my first Gym session this morning.
5:45 Pump. So happy I went.
But as I looked around at the crowd, I felt sad.
Remembering back to 12+ months ago, the last time I went to the gym,
I remember a crowd of
young people,
older people,
some in their 70's!
thin people,
curvy people,
heavier people,
very heavy people,
guys,
girls,
all sorts,
all ages!
Diversity.
This morning, all I saw was healthy, thin, young women.
I was happy to think they were all there because they wanted a stronger body...
but I couldn't help but think of the possibility that all these girls feel deep pressure to stay thin.
There were a handful of girls with curves, they looked good.
But there were also girls, most of them, with no curves at all... stick thin.
They were all thin, or at a healthy weight, already...
Did they feel pressure to stay thin?
Does society want them thinner?
Do they think society wants them thinner?
Are they so afraid of curves that they fight them back?
I was the only person "over" 30 (I'm 30 exactly, don't need to be reminded)
and certainly the only person who has let herself get ugly fat.

I just have to find my optimism and hope that these women are just
normal beautiful girls who love to feel strong.
I hope...

Because that's what I want for me.
Strength.
And curves.
If I ever start to lose these curves - do me a favour and remind me they're beautiful :)

Back to the Gym! Hello 5:20am!

I've been planning for a few weeks to sign back on to my Gym.
I miss Pump, Balance & Yoga!
I don't miss cycle, but I know it's good for me :P

I don't want to waste my money, so I've proven this week, just to myself, that I can exercise regularly, 4 work-outs last week :)
So I signed back on today!
First class is tomorrow, 5:45 am - Body Pump :)
Alarm set at 5:20. It's ON!
I'll take the class ridiculously easy, so I can keep going back to the gym this week.
The first Pump class I took, musta been 2-3 years ago, I pushed myself...
As I always am inclined to do.
But then wasn't able to walk for 5 days, let alone continue with gym sessions.
That's not what I want.
I want to go every day. Yup.
EVERY 
DAY.

Here's my Plan A Gym schedule:

M- 12:15 Yoga (possible 6am cycle)
T- 12:15 Body Pump (considering doing 5:45am regularly.... not convinced it's such a good idea yet...)
W- 10:15 Body Balance (possible 5:45am cycle)
Th- 9:15 Body Pump
F - 6:00am Cycle or Treadmill
Sat - Outdoor running, 5km training
Sun - REST

6 days a week :)

Filling out forms at the gym, and one question asked,
"Why have you decided to become a member?"
New Year Resolution!
Duh!
And of course, Tough Mudder... HA! We'll see...
Let me get a 5k under my belt first.

Back to the gym!

Yesterday was good.
Went on a 45 min bike ride for my exercise.
Ate, oh, ya know, 2200+ calories.
Psh... whatever.
I'm a work in progress.

Today I haven't exercised...
It's bloody hot, so I'll do that after dinner.
Dangerous sentence, I know. But I'll have to commit.

I'm at 900 calories, and it's 4:30pm.
Doing much better!

OH! I also asked my old running partner if she still has a gym membership, and we figured out we can work out together a few times a week! I'll sign up for that tomorrow :)

I'm totally doing this!

How in the h*ll did I get here..and How do I get out?

Thanks for your magnificent post Chris!
And all of your blog, actually.
I'm stealing the title from your post the other day (I'm guessing you won't mind, because I don't really have many readers anyway - readers are not really the point of this blog, it's more a personal diary, but Yes, I also love encouragement sometimes... hint hint ;)

Anyway -
This post will be very different to yours Chris, because I'm meaning it literally.
I mean, it's 2013.
And I'm still at my all-time high weight of 180something.
(I'm praying the scale doesn't actually say 190something when I weigh in tomorrow!)

How the hell did I get here?

Laziness.
I have this new thing called an Iphone... which I can often get lost in.
I also have Foxtel (pay TV with DVR, like Tivo).
I've become a couch potato.
It started last winter (in Aus that's June/July) when my sister and I started the bad habit of lounging on the couch, eating whatever we craved, and watching TV.
We knew she had to move back to the US, and we just loved spending the time together!

Blah, blah blah - not important why.
No more excuses.
The cold hard truth is I've let myself be Lazy!
Every day!
Not acceptable.
I don't accept it in my children, and I cannot accept it in myself.

Down to the cold hard facts - the specific things I've made into habits...
The habits that got me to 180something...
On with the Confessions... Du Du DUUUUH! *evil music*
Yikes!
Courage.
Here I go.

• I sometimes eat breakfast, sometimes not.
• Sometimes my breakfast includes 3 fats, such as egg fried in oil, topped with 1/3 avocado and maybe even a slice of cheese! Sandwiched in 2 slices of bread. Healthy! NOT!
• I sometimes eat fast food for lunch! Hungry Jacks (Burger King) used to gross me out, like Maccas (McD's). But I've been eating it, and it's like a drug! I can't get enough! Sometimes a whopper get's into my head, and I just let myself fantasize about it. I can't stop thinking about it, no matter how much good food I can dream up to make at my house. My shift ends at 11am, so I make a detour on the way home. Tsk Tsk.
• After my fast food, I come home, and I'm still hungry - cuz there's no nutrition in fast food. So sometimes I eat asparagus, or an apple, but sometimes it's chips, chocolate, or cookies! All while catching up on an episode of Grey's Anatomy... or Once Upon a Time... or Homeland... or Revenge... Drama is my fav, if you couldn't tell. I've even been recording movies, so my afternoons are pretty much always full of lounging on the couch.

Wow... the more I confess, the more I can see that I'm not even who I thought I was! I'm nearly always thinking about being healthy, even while doing the above! So I think (or convince myself) that I'm "Not that bad".... YES! I AM!

Keep going...

• The kids come home from school, and I'm too busy doing chores (that should have been done after lunch) so I have them help me, and then homework, and dinner, and more chores or cleaning... 
• Then I'm TIRED! Again. Cuz I haven't exercised. Exercise gives me energy, but the couch potato life drains it.
• So I take a "break", tea. Finish dinner if it wasn't already, dishes may or may not get done... then back to the couch, while I digest my food with a beer or three... or five. Sometimes a few glasses of wine for dessert.
• Then Johnny watches his boring finance or sport shows, and after that, I'm free to watch my other shows I haven't seen yet.

HOW THE H*LL DID I GET HERE AND HOW DO I GET OUT?

Well, I did take a small step this evening. 

I've been on holiday two weeks, and craving a New Years Resolution.

I did a 20-min workout. 

It was hilarious! 

My 5 1/2 year old did it with me! 

The WHOLE THING!

My other two (older) kids always give up on the cardio ones after 3-4 minutes.

But the little ball of energy was totally into it!

Afterwards, I went for a shower, and she wanted more!

So I put on her favourite Yoga one. 

LOL.

Okay. Now here's the plan (thank you again Chris, for the inspiration!)

I WILL, I will lose 48 lbs this year.

That's 4 lbs a month.

One pound a week.

I CAN do this. Small steps.

Break it down:

January Goals:

• Lose 4 lbs.
• Start my exercise regime, 3-5 days/week.
• No more fast food or fatty breakfasts.
• Keep a calorie-count diary.
• Blog my work-outs and calorie intake daily.

I won't change much else this month, because I don't want to burn out. That's a lot for now.

Feb Goals:

• Lose 4 lbs.
• Start back at the Gym 3-4 days/week.
• Start training for 5km running.
• Tighten up my diet.

March

• Lose 4 lbs
• Increase my weights @ the gym.
• Register for 5km run, keep training.
• Shift diet as needed.
• Reward myself with my Tattoo and a Salon visit!

April

• Lose 4 lbs
• Increase weights & do the 5km fun-run!
• Register for a soccer team! (I've been talking about joining an amateur team for ages! This year I must!)
• Press on!!!

I'll re-evaluate my goals in March/April.

Here's to New Years Resolution!!!

Finding health... ha

After two good weeks, I spent this week in bad health.
Considering I've been teaching snotty-nosed kids to swim for 5 1/2 months now, I'm surprised it took that long to pick something up!
I only called in sick one day, so had to endure it all week.
I learned something:
Head-colds and swimming don't mix.
It's miserable!
On top of that, my shoulder has Bursitis.
It's easily fixed with an injection of Cortizon, or so my doctor said.
But after yesterday's shot, my shoulder hurts worse than it did before!
Before I could at least function, it was just a dull pain, an irritant.
Now, I have to be very careful which way I lift my arm or I get sharp pain.
I'm hoping it's just because of the needle, which will heal in a couple days.
I hope I hope I hope!

Diet.
Today I have a few hours during the day.
I'm going to plan meals for a few scenarios (day schedules) that I can foresee.
Back-up plans too.
I need to do this for real.
Tired of back-tracking after something irregular pops up.

Exercise.
Eh..... not so good. That's okay, I'm working on it :)

Waking up from Winter Hibernation

I have been very quiet on blogger,
very active in life.
After gaining over 15 lbs this winter (by being a couch potato with my sister, don't regret a moment!)
I've now decided to start making the most of this life.

I now teach swimming at three different pools,
about 16 hours a week, broken up into 7 shifts, 6 days a week.

I am also on 3 different volunteer committees at the kids primary school.
1. Playground (we're building a new one)
2. Library (we're upgrading the old one)
3. Garden (there's 4-7 major projects coming up in the next two years).

And last, but certainly not least, I'm losing weight!
Actually quite funny, I'm following in Annie, the Amazing Shrinking Girls' footsteps, and building muscle!
My old Bootcamp trainer, Brad, has earned his official "MP Trainer" certificate.
It's all about building muscle so your metabolism burns energy.
It also includes eating 6 meals a day, each meal including a balance of carbs, protein & omega-3 fats.
Which type of carb (there's a list) depends on when you work-out, and what type of work-out you preform.
Pretty much, I'm cutting out breads and high-GI carbs for every meal unless it's 3 hours after a Resistence Training (weight-lifting) session.

So far (1 week) I've lost 3 lbs!
Silly me was pretty disappointed about day 4 with what felt like no results.
Today I'm feeling it in my slightly-looser clothes! YAY!

So there it is. My busy life in a nutshell.
I'll check in at least weekly and let you know how I'm going.
In the mean time, if you want to find a MP trainer in your area click here.
It's working for me :)