| We're Going to Run This Town Tonight |
[07 Nov 2009|11:13pm] |
Smashed out a big semi-final game on Friday - we took it home by almost 20 points. We played the same team last week and beat them by about 6 points? Just shows what we can do when our team puts our mind to it....I played man-on defense on their girl all game and she's very good but she just FLIPS out when someone mans on her. She was all elbows and was trying to elbow me in THE THROAT and also pulled my headband off. I confess, I reacted badly and pushed her back in the head and drew the foul. I told the umpire I didn't care if she shoved me but I draw the line at someone pushing me in the head. I don't get rough players who whinge when people play rough on them - you get what you give. After that I just resorted to my normal retaliatory tactics - shoving in the back (oh hai kidneys), elbows in the ribs, angled legs to cause stumbles, chesting with the hands up with the slight lean and my favourite shoulder check. She got so upset - I think she's used to walking over girls in this comp and they back off. Unfortunately, she was taller than me, so her elbows were at a really good height to hit me (um, throat, face) but I was fitter and stronger than her, so by the second half she was stuffed. I was such a little shit too, yelling when I was on the sidelines 'WIN, you have this - SHE IS SO TIRED, RUN HER DOWN''
I also confess that I sometimes got too caught up with trash talking - BUT she only scored 4 points the whole game and I only racked up 2 fouls (3 spare!), which means I call it a good outcome. My favourite trash talking moment:
Her: What are you doing? Trying to swim or something, the pool's over there!!!' *girl points at pool next to court*
Me: I don't have to swim, you're the one who's UNDERWATER *Nadz points at scoreboard which shows we're in the lead by 18 points*
Ahahaha so childish, I LOVE IT.
I also confess that I screamed the following at B-mac from the sidelines when he failed to box out and a girl grabbed a rebound over him:
B-MAC!!! WE NEED YOU TO FUCKEN BOX OUT. I'LL BE YOUR FRIEND AFTER THE GAME, BUT WE NEED YOU TO FUCKEN BOX OUT NOW!!!!!!
Who says that to a friend/team-mate on a work team? A team that isn't just playing every Friday to have fun! Well, we do play for fun - WINNING IS FUN.
I've fallen into this super obsessive captain mode where I just want our team to win SO BADLY. It's ~~just~~ a work team, but you better believe that there's inspirational emails and game themes each week. This week's theme was INTENSITY and out went the pre-game email filled with pictures of Kevin Garnett screaming his head off.
LOVE LOVE LOVE it. And we hit the court with intensity from the start - we have this terrible habit where some weeks we just hit the court and dawdle for the first 5 minutes. My team is also no good at recovering from being down...so it's easier for us to just go out and get our lead.
My work team is so great though - we may not all be 'the best' players, but there's a lot of heart on this team and I think you'd be hard pressed to find a team in the comp with more passion than this one. Our girls are definitely the fiercest defenders across the competition (most other teams have one girl who is really good at offense, but is kind of left on her own when it comes to defense). We don't have the tallest team (which meant we did lose 2 teams this season when our centre was missing and we just couldn't match up against the bigs) but it doesn't matter!! We've got grand final on next Friday and I've already compiled my inspirational email for the team for next week (there's a backing track - ha, Rihanna + Jay-Z + Kanye West 'Run This Town'). I used some photos from our last grand final this year - my friend Phil took some shots. I've shared some of my favourite ones here, because these are my team mates and the half an hour I get to share the court with them every week is one of the best things in my life.
Come meet my team!!!!
Winter 2009 grand final team...We're missing our centre because he was out with an injury. You should see him now, he's ready to lay the smack down next week because he missed out last season. The fire!!
( We're gonna run this town tonight... )
Now, we've just got to go back-to-back next week!! We're playing Citibank who we beat last season in the grand final (and they will be baying for blood) and traditionally, we've always had a fierce rivalry with them on the court. Here's my sports journalist quote - they bring out the best in us...so. ROLL ON NEXT WEEK.
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| New Hurr |
[22 Oct 2009|10:56pm] |
I got a new hair cut today and Toshi has outdone himself. I love him SO much. I worked on this cut from my last one - letting it grow out a bit so I had more length for him to play with (he also cut off a lot). Most importantly, my back tail is going great guns. I can't wait til it gets longer!!!
I took in two pictures and then let him do the rest. God bless his little haircutting heart.
Front view, parted to the right, as intended. Looks pretty tame I think from the front. I still really like it.
( +6 more hair pics under the cut )
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| Struggle Street |
[19 Oct 2009|09:33pm] |
I am struggling a bit at the moment....I just can't seem to nail my diet and I'm having cravings. I never really jones that hard for stuff but at the moment, I just want to eat sweets and potato chips until I burst. I started logging my food again on Calorie King and I am struggling to get enough protein. I am not actually eating too much caloriewise, but I just can't get my macronutrients right. I'm eating eggs, chicken breast, kangaroo, tuna, shakes (not all of them, every day!), but just can't seem to get enough protein (aiming for 40 - 50%). I think it's because I'm eating too much carbs. Hard to eat 40% protein, when you're eating too many calories from carbs.
I also feel really soft around the middle. I thought I was bloated but I've been like this for a week. Maybe I'm just getting fat. I don't know. I think I look fine to everyone else, but I just feel more jiggly than I'm used to. Will wait and see for another week and if this doesn't change, I guess it's not bloat, but plain old weight gain :(
My back has been a massive mess of knots from computer typing. Has made my life a bit difficult and lifting my arm over my head has been a bit more troublesome than I'd like. So I've tried to take it easy over the last 2 - 3 weeks, which is killing me more than going a lot.
ALL negatives so far, but one thing that is going well is PSFG. Upped my weights last week (but only did one session, rather than my normal two) and proudly got my bench up to 20kg. 30kg next and then onto 40kg! Just trying to be safe first, so am taking it slowly when bumping up my weights. If only Juanzo was here to spot me. Never mind, will just bump them up slowly and carefully.
Another positive is that I'm feeling really good cardio wise. I had lofty goals to try and do 7 dedicated cardio sessions last week (excl basketball), but my body got too broken so I took it easy in the latter half of the week. It's funny, I only did weights once last week and cardio and I feel like it was a 'light' week. But in fact, it was pretty busy - I managed 3 interval training sessions, 1 45 min body attack class, 2 games of basketball and 3 hours of pick up basketball (1 hour full court at lunch, 2 hours half court after work - ALL on a Friday!). I love that feeling when you're on the court and you sprint to get back and you just feel in control and fitter than everyone else on the court. It doesn't happen often and am sure that the next time I play a younger team I will feel like old lady Nadz again.
I never thought I'd say this...but I was so relieved that my Wednesday basketball comp was over. Was looking forward to returning Wednesdays to PSFG night as opposed to sub-standard ball night. And then I got an email from our captain saying that we've got ANOTHER game this Wednesday. Like wtf, we lost our semi-final already. But apparently we have to play for 3rd. HOW tedious. I love basketball, but Wednesday comp just makes it too hard for me to fit in my weights for the week. I haven't done lower body workouts for 2 weeks. Oh yeah, cause on top of my knotted back, my right glute has been so tight!!! Not in a toight sexy way, in a tight busted, walking funny, sitting painfully kinda way.
HOWEVER, I did some kettlebell for the first time yesterday and my thighs/glutes are killing. Can't wait to do more...It's a different kind of strength training compared to normal weights. I was watching Pavel Tsatsouline's DVDs yesterday - and he's this ripped up Russian dude who gets these girls to do kettlebells while insisting they hit each other (so they know which muscles to tense). Very soviet, but still - just taking it slowly so I get my technique right.
...
I am wondering whether my lack lustre eating/effort is because I am quite lonely atm and missing my man a lot. I think I've just got to try and streamline my routine and tough it out til December when he's home.
x
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| You Know You're My Saving Grace |
[08 Oct 2009|10:46pm] |
In case you were in need of some inspiration - check this girl out:
http://jessicakluth.blogspot.com/2009/10/progress-pictures-25-days-out.html
AMAZING!!!! Look at her transformation from July to October. I consider my progress against this (not that I'm looking to compete) and I think I really need to knuckle down. For anyone that is making excuses (ie. My body can't process carbs, I'm too big, I'm too busy, etc.), look what you can do with hard work and discipline. So inspiring.
I know EXACTLY where my weakness is at the moment - I keep going out to dinner, drinking on Fridays and not packing my work food with military precision like I used to. I am just so sick of shredding vegetables. I need a thermomix - I don't have the energy to prep my food every night. Abs start in the kitchen and I'm just too fricken tired to line up.
Side note: I want to organise a thermomix demonstration in Sydney (they come to your house and make 6 dishes in 2 hours) - if anyone is interested, let me know and we can tic tac!
I have been assessing my program and have decided that after this season finishes, I'm going to stop Wednesday night ball. I love basketball, but I don't want to play this comp anymore because:
- The games always start late. Which means that you get there 10 min before advertised start, then wait 30 mins (10 min to start, 20 mins late). Play your game. Finish and wait for train. Get train home. 2.5 hours later you finally get home. Like who has the time for that?
- The refs are TERRIBLE. And not just in my favour but against me. Which is just poor!! I know refs don't see everything, but there are times when even know I am blatantly fouling and I don't get called on it. It's a 2 ref scenario too - my 1 ref comp on Friday is better than this! Oh, some of the refs have bad BO too. WTF!?
- The court is so small. It doesn't even have a full size 3 pt line! I took the ball cross-court because I judged my distance from the 3pt line and then realised I was actually over the half court line!
- My team doesn't show up every week in week out. I hate playing teams where different players show up every week. There hasn't been one week when every single person has showed up.
- Our last 3 games have been cancelled or forfeits. We have made the finals, but I feel like we barely played to get there.
- The competition is so shabby - like they let you get away with not even wearing singlets with numbers or the same colour. If you dress like a joke, it feels like a joke. Omg, tyrant much?
- We have 4 girls on the team, and although we rarely all play, when we do, we get like 0.000001 min* of PT (playing time) each. * May or may not be an exaggeration.
- Wednesday night used to be my blockbuster night at the gym - like 45 mins of cardio and a legs set or arms set. With basketball, 1.5 hours of gym power has been replaced with 20ish minutes of game time at a subdued pace. My week is busy, I don't want to be missing core cardio/weights for sub-standard ball in a sloppily reffed competition!
I am such a basketball nazi. I am just loving it at the moment though, our Friday comp team is having a bit of a crisis (we lost some games), but we are getting the confidence and feeling back...I even have researched my inspiration quote for tomorrow morning, pre-game to get my team g'd up. Yes, it's a work comp. Yes, we're pretty serious about it!!
So once I drop Wednesday ball, this is the new plan:
- Monday - Body Attack at lunch and arms weights after work.
- Tuesday - Pickup ball at lunch (if the weather's good) and technically, yoga to stretch my busted body out (in reality, I'll probably do nothing or weights instead...)
- Wednesday - 45 mins cardio + legs workout
- Thursday - rest
- Friday - basketball at lunch (highlight of my week) and cardio/arms after work (NOT DRINKING and eating McDonalds ON YOUR OWN, like last Friday)
- Saturday - cardio + legs workout
- Sunday - shoot around + basketball game at night.
In reality, I'll probably not end up doing that much cardio...but I'm feeling a bit chunky at the moment (combination of bloating and maybe eating a touch more than normal) and some intensive cardio will strip that off in a week or so. Ugh, just feel pretty average at the moment - the cold weather doesn't help either.
ANYWAY, I am still pretty happy with PSFG so far - it's been bloody hard work, so I'm not finished but am in a better place than a month ago. I've had some moments when I really just want to skip out on that last set of pull ups or dips or whatever, and I really just have to dig deep, channel 'What Would Dwight Do?' (my favourite big gunned NBA player) and remind myself that excuses do not feature ANYWHERE in PSFG. Then I force myself to look at all the ripped up guys and see the intensity they are channelling, look at all the flabby girls slowly peddling and remind myself this is what I need!!
I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results. - Michael Jordan. That's right Michael!!
I am looking forward to next week when I change my program to the 2nd month where I'm going to drop my reps and up my weights. WOOP, I've never really done lower reps, so this is quite exciting to me.
I have taken it easy this week though because of my back and my glutes just being so tight. Trying to stretch more and just look after myself. I am dreading my remedial massage on Saturday, but I know ultimately it's for the best
...
In other news, I am feeling like a 13 year old boy at the moment. No partner, playing xbox (Halo ODST) and basketball. Hahaha, just need to get my undercut reinstated and I will have the full 13yo package downpat.
And in closing, I just want to say - WTF IS UP WITH THIS COLD WINTER SHT GOING ON IN SYDNEY?! OOOOOMFG KILL ME IN THE FACE WITH SOMETHING HEAVY!!!! *dead soldiers in the snow*
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| Adjustment |
[05 Oct 2009|01:26am] |
I trained well this week, but kind of blew out towards the end...On Wednesday, I had a really stressful day at work and my back pretty much seized up with this massive knot forming in my right shoulder. So, I still played ball on Friday and did some weights/cardio on Saturday...but I also saw a remedial masseuse on Saturday to try and sort out my back. It was pretty brutal - this masseuse went to town on me, digging her elbows and thumbs into me and I realised just how tense I was (and not just my back). The worse was my glutes and my calves, I thought I was going to cry. I have a pretty high pain threshold for massages, but I am a bit softer in the lower body. My back is so tense and knotted that my therapist says I need another session to sort it out. I've been told not to do anything where I raise my arms over my head (ruling out basketball and any upper body weights really), so as much as it kills me - I've just sat home today to rest.
I've just been putting tiger balm on it, applying heatpacks and sitting on my massage chair. It's starting to loosen up, but it's got me thinking about my exercise plan and whether I need to add a pilates/yoga/Body Balance class to the mix, to try and make sure I don't end up in this tight knotted mess. Of course, the eternal question is how do I fit this in? I've got so much on the go already that if I have an unexpected day, I can barely fit my planned stuff in. I don't know, I'd always rather spend an hour lifting/doing cardio than doing yoga...it's just what I enjoy doing.
But I don't want my back to explode on me either!!
I am pretty happy with things so far, but I would like to be a bit leaner. I know exactly what I have to do to get leaner, but I'm just having a bit of problem executing - more cardio (I probably only need 1 - 2 more interval training sessions a week over what I am doing), less junk/drinking (but I have these big weeks at the office, I'm lonely and people say - oh hey, come out for a drink, and I am all over it) and eat less carbs (I usually eat a normal amount of carbs even when I'm being on track - but at the moment, I'm eating a CRAZY amount of carbs...like close to 200g pasta servings which is really like 2 servings!!). I just have to switch my head on, it's almost like I'm trying for a 'off' period for some reason. I don't know, it's slack and I think I've almost had my full of it and I'm ready to commit again.
...
I am really missing my Juanzo atm. It does not help that I slept in this morning and missed his desperate calls to get on line. This means that it will probably be one week before I properly get to talk to him (as he has to get a hardwired point in order to do video chat with me - and we pretty much only manage to do this every Saturday morning). Sucks. The lovely man that he is though, he bought me a gift voucher to go and get a 90 min La Prairie caviar skin massage tomorrow - which I imagine will be a far more pleasant experience than the remedial massage/beating I had on Saturday.
Sigh, no J til December. It's a long time :(
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| Week #2 and regrouping |
[25 Sep 2009|12:07am] |
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music |
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Anything Goes - Cole Porter |
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Week #2 Summary:
Last week didn't work out so well for me - I just didn't nail my nutrition. A combination of not prepping my food at night, just not eating enough carbs (I think) and eating so much sugar (I pretty much never eat sugar - and on Thursday I made a cake for work and got stuck into cake + cream + frosting....I think my body went into meltdown). It degenerated by the end of the week completely. I just had no energy and decided to just do light cardio/play ball in the 2nd half of the week.
The body is a funny thing...you can do the same weights/sets as the week before, but you don't fuel up right and you just can't complete the same reps/sets. I couldn't do more push ups, I couldn't feel stronger...I think I was just tired. I felt a bit bad, because I had plans to do WEEK TWO and be on point, but I just couldn't.
I was pretty disappointed overall, and it felt like a 'light' week, but it wasn't that bad really...I did one upper workout, one lower workout, one 45 min stint on the cross trainer (Cardio Coach), played 2.5 games of basketball (0.5 because Wednesday Comp had 4 girls playing - so I got like 15 mins of court time, which is barely worth writing about), played pick up basketball once and shot around casual hoops for about 3 hours on the weekend. Not too bad!
Week #3 so far - well, it's really Week #2...
As Week #2 of my program was a bit of a fail, I decided to start my Week #2 weights again this week. And so far, it's going pretty well. I've managed to up my weights on quite a few things (including the almighty bench) and am slowly creeping up on the push ups.
I am finding the One Hundred Pushups program really challenging. I am unable to complete the days and then do the next day. It takes me a few goes to master doing all the reps I need to do without breaks. I'm surprised by how quickly the reps ramp up - yesterday I had to do sets of 20, 25, 15, 15 and 25 = 100 in total with about 90 seconds of rest inbetween it. I'm throwing in some push ups with my feet elevated just to put more weight and do the upper pecs too. It's so vain, but I like how my arms/chest look after push ups :)
Anyway, it's Thursday and I've punched out so far - both my upper body workouts for the week, my hated lower body workout (one more to go), played pick up ball twice and have done Body Attack. I haven't done Body Attack for ages. I haven't gone because I've been busy, doing other things and Iker went and got married and I don't like the other instructor. However, he is back, I'm back and I'm ready to smash it up. I hate all that plyometric stuff in it (or as I call it 'jumping and shit'). Who wants to do jumping lunges over and over? NOT ME. But some good must come of all the jumping and shit surely?? It's tough going, but I have to love any class which gets my heart rate over 185 bpm. So all I have to do to round this week off is one more lower body workout, play ball on Friday and then I'm just going to shoot around on the weekend.
My Sunday comp is in recess for 2 weeks (we got kicked out of the finals :( ) and as much as I love ball, I'm SO GLAD to have a break on Sundays. The Sunday Comp ran for 20 weeks! That's insane!
Food/Nutrition
My aunty is visiting from Malaysia and she brought us sweet kueh (cake) and I am getting stuck in. My favourite is the buttery pineapple tart. I'm eating those bad boys for breakfast and dinner. There's only a few left though and no more fun food in the house...There's only a handful left and I know I should just stop eating them because pineapple tarts do not feature anywhere in PSFG but I love those little buttery suckers so much.
I have gotten my work food largely back on track. I've also upped my carbs because my workouts/basketball games were dying in the ass and I am feeling so much better. I just make sure to have some sorj/flat bread with my cabbage salad. Yes, I'm back on the cabbage! Mixing it with tomatoes, zucchinis, carrots, avocado, grated apple (sometimes) and a teaspoon of pesto and light sour cream at the moment with a squeeze of lemon juice, lots of pepper and some salt. WOW, pretty exciting hey?
It's a good thing that I'm upping my carbs...my sister went to order 4 potatoes (or so she thought) but then our fruit box arrived and there was no less than 4 KILOGRAMS of potatoes. That's like 21 potatoes!! A kilo of potatoes usually lasts us 2 weeks. I am having some mashed potato (minimal butter, some milk, salt + pepper) for a mid-arvo snack with some protein (generally chicken breast or kangaroo) and it makes me feel happy and good when I'm at the gym. I don't know how people with no carb/very low carb work out properly? Maybe it's a personal thing, but I just can't do anything and feel strong when I'm not getting my carbs.
For some reason, I can't bring myself to calorie king at the moment - I'm not eating badly, but just the tedium of logging food isn't working for me. I should try and get back into the habit - when I do, it's great to see if you get the right macronutrients. I am still weighing my food. I just can't be bothered logging it. EXCUSES. I hate excuses. What does excuses get you? UNINSPIRING RESULTS. BUT I just don't want to at the moment.
Motivation
As you all know, I am totally focussed on PSFG. But sometimes, it's cold, I'm tired and I just want to go home. I have been channelling my thoughts down 'WWD12D?' or in its entirety 'What Would D12 Do?'. D12 = Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic's built centre and my favourite current NBA player.
So when I'm waivering about lifting or going to work out, I just think WWD12D? And we know what the answer is - keep lifting and don't make any excuses like GOING TO THE PUB. And pray. He's pretty religious. Fun fact: D12 used to get depressed when he was in high school that he was so skinny. He spoke to God and God said to him 'If you put your trust in me, I will take care of the rest'. D12 kept praying. God kept up his end of the bargain, don't you think?
Fun fact: I'm wearing my Dwight singlet right now...inspiration for the rest of the week!
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| Modification and Week #1 Gone |
[14 Sep 2009|11:46pm] |
I have decided to leave Air Alert/Vertical Leap program til the basketball off-season. I can't fit it in with everything that I want to do. I'm playing basketball 3 times a week and I'm enjoying shooting around casually too much. I don't want to grind through my workouts, so I'm going to scrap it. To be honest, my time/effort will be better spent working on my shot/dribbling, so I will do that.
My goals/affirmations are going average - probably about a B-. Here's why (omitting Vertical Leap):
- One Hundred Pushups Program - this is going well actually, it's bloody hard work though. I've just finished Week 2 of it (this is about 81 push ups in a work out) and I can do about 30 on my toes non-stop. It might actually be more when I'm rested/not sore - but I was pretty much busted towards the end of the week. Onto week 3!!!
- 3 hours of cardio a week, minimum - this was easily smashed this week. As I always say, it's easy when you find something you love. I smashed out about 5 hours this week, but about 2 hours of that was just casual hoop shooting, so it wasn't too intense.
- Do weights 4 times a week, x2 upper body and x2 lower body work outs - Oh boy, this was a bit of a struggle to fit in. I always drag the chain on lower body workouts because I just have so much more fun lifting weights and I have the bright lure of GUNZ to keep me going. I know, I know, I need to do leg work to help with guns. But that's not the point!!! I am loving dead lifts and calf raises at the moment. I am still hating lunges. I really want to master my form on the squat, I keep trying to think about it a lot - but I think I'm doing it wrong. There is a gym trainer (not a personal one) who power lifts (I see him on the weekend with his chains, blocks and foam). I am going to hit him up for some advice next week.
I just find it so hard to fit in my lower leg work outs. I had to end of backing up on Wednesday night (ie. basketball Wednesday evening and then went to the gym to do weights) and on Sunday, I shot around at a local court with a team mate, went to the gym to do my lower leg work out and then a game at 10pm. Yes, I rested in between. I hate doing leg weights on game day, but I had to fit it in before end of the week!! I was just so tired on Saturday that I took it easy and didn't do any weights.
- Commit to eating 5 small meals a day - I started the week off well but spiralled into a mess by the end of the week. It was my mate's birthday on Friday, and we went out and had drinks (with a fried chicken chaser), had a pub lunch on Saturday and then out to dinner for the same mate for his birthday on Sunday. I haven't been home enough to think of the food I need to prep. I'm getting there. Oh, but did I really need to have like 10+ drinks on Friday night?!?! My food effort this week was probably about a 5 out of 10.
- Commit to taking my supplements religiously - I went average with this one...I took my protein shake and glutamine/creatine pretty much exactly when I should have. As for my fish oil supplements, that was a total fail (um, 3 capsules this week). And I took zero multi-vitamins. Oh, and as for the gluggy calcium caseinate powder - I can't find the stuff anywhere in the house?? Where could it be? It has NO OTHER use than to be in the kitchen!!
- Sleep more - TOTAL AND UTTER FAIL. I THINK there was maybe one night when I got to bed just before midnight. WHY DO I DO THIS TO MYSELF? I am seriously thinking of seeing a hypnotherapist about this - has anyone tried one?!
So overall, I am doing all the activity right, but not getting the food/recovery right. I need to get my diet/supplements right - otherwise there's no point working so hard about it all. I have had a total fail today on the diet front too, because I gave blood today and I was just like a deflated balloon after that. I was just so flat and was craving sugar hard. I had a chocolate milkshake, choc chip cookies, mars bar and doritos after my donation and then went on to have a caramel toffee chaser at the office. For those that no me, I NEVER EVER eat candy at work. So at least there's a pretty logical reason for it - I gave away 600mL of blood and my body wanted a bit of sugar.
BUT THERE ARE NO MORE EXCUSES TOMORROW FOR EATING LIKE THAT. Well, unless I decide to give away another 600 mL of blood :)
I read this girl's blog (Fit Lizzio) and she wrote a great post about stuff that she loves about her lifestyle. It really inspired me - so here is the list of things that I LOVE about my lifestyle/choices that I make:
- I love it when I set up a solid screen on the boys at basketball, and I can take most of the impact without moving. My head swells with pride when the boys on my team ask how much I squat cause I'm so solid on my screens. Oh, and I don't squat a lot at all :(.
- I love it when we've just played a fast paced game of ball, bull doze the other team, secure the win and I'm breathing so hard at the end I think I'm going to pass out.
- I love doing weights at the gym, pushing myself on how heavy I can lift and getting my form right. I take secret pleasure in watching girls doing weights all wrong.
- I love doing more pushups every session, more than the one before. I love being one of the few girls at the gym who bothers doing them on my toes.
- I love when I do get my food right (both in amount and timing) and I am never hungry, eat the right proportions of macronutrients and train with heaps of energy.
- I love it when I see a vague hint of a future vision of PSFG. Come on guns, I am ready for you!!!!
- I love having a nutritious, tasty meal after a killer session.
- I love knowing that I am better this week, than I was last week.
- I love hearing about other people who are taking charge of their fitness and are just going for it
How are all you guys going? Tell me about it!!
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| Recommencement of PSFG |
[05 Sep 2009|03:58pm] |
Since coming back from holidays, I'm trying to get my head around changing up my exercise program and cracking back down on the diet. I was pretty happy with how things were going before holidays except for the last month when I was sick, tired and just really depressed about everything (you know, the three deaths and all of people I knew, kinda made it hard for me to drag myself to the gym all the time). Never mind - it is a new month, new 3 month bachelorette stint (J went back to the Solomons on Thursday morning) and most importantly, I've got a new desire and sense of commitment to fitness and health.
So, to reaffirm my next 3 months - these are my new goals/affirmations:
- Complete the One Hundred Pushups program - once I get this under my belt, I am going to go and smash out 100 push ups, non-stop in front of my former trainer who told me that he would struggle to do 100. Whatev, bitch - I'm better off without you. I'm currently only half way through the second week and it's pretty tough. You pretty much do 4 sets of varying different reps with a 60 - 90 second break inbetween. It does mean that already on Week 2, Day 2 the total reps is already over 70. I challenge all the girls out there to man up, get off your knees and start doing proper push ups!!!! If you're doing Pump/Combat, try and do at least one set on your toes.
- Improve my vertical leap - I'm going to start doing Air Alert next week, which promises to increase your vertical leap 8 - 14 inches. I am NOT looking forward to it, because it's a plyometric workout (plyometric = "jumping and shit", well that's what I call it) and I HATE plyometrics. It pretty much requires jumping/stepping/lunging every second day for 15 weeks in total. I can touch the bottom of the net at the moment and not to say that it will happen, but if I could touch the rim this would make me so unbelievably happy. J reckons that I'll be able to dunk (UM, OK) because he says I have a core of steel that I don't even know about when I set my mind to something Let's see and let the jumping and shit begin.
- 3 hours of cardio a week, minimum. This shouldn't be too hard actually considering I'm now playing on 3 basketball teams a week (two mixed teams via work and one girls team on the weekend), usually playing 1 'pick up'/informal outside basketball session a week and the Air Alert commitment. Add a couple of Cardio Coach sessions and Body Attack, and I will be laughing!
- Do weights 4 times a week, x2 upper body and x2 lower body work outs - I was messing around with x2 sets of 20 reps and I largely do x3 sets of 8 - 12 reps. But I've found a program I'm going to try...where you do x3 sets of 8 - 12 reps for the first month, x3 sets of 6 - 8 reps for the second month and x3 sets of 4 - 6 reps for the third month. I'm going to cry like a baby!! But I'm also interested in seeing how heavy I can go without busting my form.
- Commit to eating 5 small meals a day - with each meal containing the right base macronutrients (ie. carbs, protein, fats). I'm not going to go totally clean and I'm still going to drink / eat out (unfortunately, that's where our society really socialises isn't it). But, it's not going to be like Bali...ie 4 cocktails with every meal, with a pannacotta chaser. This isn't too bad actually, because it's pretty much what I've been doing over the last few months. But boy or boy, does it take a lot of time to prepare all that food for work.
- Commit to taking my supplements religiously. I started trialling glutamine and creatine, but it didn't work out that well because I stopped training regularly (due to all the stuff going on) and you are meant to take the stuff for 30 days continuously to see if it has any effect. I need to start taking my fish oil supplements every day. I need to take my multi-vitamins. I need to take my protein shakes after training and need to commit to the heinous night time calcium caseinate shake. On top of that, I have to prep all my food. My life is pretty fkn exciting.
- SLEEP MORE. I will fail at this. I know I will. Especially cause I end up watching Ultimate Fighter 8 at 12am (and it finishes at 1am) almost every night. I really need to sleep more. I am desperately sleep deprived but I can't stop staying up. FAIL FAIL FAIL.
I'm actually struggling a bit with figuring out how to fit in all the push ups, weights, cardio, basketball + plyometrics and letting myself have adequate rest. I've recently joined a third basketball team for Wednesday nights and I think it won't be too taxing as it's only 2 x 15 min halve and we have 4 girls playing (x2 on court at any one time) So I will get 3 mins or playing time probably (ok, exaggeration - but I hate playing with anymore than 3 girls for a mixed team). I am, no joke, going to have to open up excel and draw up a spreadsheet to figure this out. I don't want to overtrain because it will just mean that I will blow up mentally and/or physically. Yeah, and work is full on too at the moment. I think I might even have to (GASP) do before work work-outs, which never usually work for me because I like sleeping in too much (oh, and I go to sleep at 1am cause I'm watching UFC...)
Coming back from holidays, I always maintain the best thing to do is just hit the gym hard ASAP. No easing back into it, just shock your body and let it realise that the fun times are over. The holiday wash up hasn't been too bad - I've lost a little muscle, I feel a bit thicker around the side chubbas and my cardio fitness is gone. But it's not been an out and out weigh gain, no gunz scenario. I must confess that eating 'healthy' is much harder once you have been on an out and out splurge for 2 weeks. I miss drinking cocktails. I miss French cheese. I miss croissants for breakfast. I miss dessert with meals. But, I am just settling back into my normal routine.
The cabbage shredding has begun and yesterday was my first red cabbage salad in weeks! I love it - as a fibrous cruciferous vegetable, it has more fibre and bite to it than lettuce and makes me feel full for longer. I usually grate up 300g of cabbage, mix it with whatever veg I have on hand (tomato, avo, carrot, zucchini), some roasted turkey breast and mix it with lemon juice (to break it down a bit), olive oil, salt, pepper and sesame dressing and split it into 2 portions for work. I added a shredded Granny Smith yesterday on ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) spookylolly's suggestion and the sweet tart apple just gave it another dimension. LOVE IT.
I've also got a new favourite snack - I freeze peeled bananas and then I blend one up with a teaspoon of peanut butter and it's like ice-cream. It sounds crazy, but the banana goes creamy, rather than icey - and if you use ripe bananas, it's sweet. If you don't like bananas, this will be a dessert fail for you. But if you do like bananas and miss having ice-cream, I'd recommend giving this a go.
Anyway, it's 4pm and I was hoping Juanzo would be online (but he wasn't). Should look at dragging myself to the gym!
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| Bali Photos #3 - Outside of Seminyak / White Water Rafting / Ubud |
[05 Sep 2009|12:46pm] |
Last lot of Bali photos - a barely distance memory now...
These are photos taken on Juanzo's camera in its underwater case. Which he usually uses for diving but allows for some sweet white water rafting shots. It wasn't rainy season so the water wasn't that high. It was still good fun though. It wasn't particularly challenging though - but just nice to see the countryside. It was down the Ayung River and through Ubud.
( +white water rafting adventures )
Ubud Day Trip
We hired a driver and a personal guide for the day for about USD100. I was a bit apprehensive at first because it seemed like a really expensive thing to do. But then you think about it and you get your own private guide and driver, in a nice air conditioned car for just over USD10 an hour (we had them for 8 hours). And you can't really feel too bitter about it then, can you? We went out to Ubud and checked out the local scene. Of course, with all guides, there's the normal thing where they shunt you into the stores they have agreements with, so they get a cut. However, it was totally up to us and if I had gone 'NO, I do not want to go', they wouldn't have made us.
Babi Guling @ Ibu Oka 2
For those of you that have seen Anthony Bourdain's 'No Reservations' you would have seen him go to 'Ibu Oka' and have Balinese Roast Suckling Pig, known as Babi Guling. Ibu Oka is now immensely popular and they have 2 locations in Ubud. We went to Ibu Oka 2 and had the most amazing pork experience of my life. You get the roasted suckling pig (basted for 6 hours with coconut water) and stuffed with spices. A M A Z I N G. And you get some sides with it too - pig blood sausage, fried intestines, some sort of token bean salad and some soup. Of course, this was probably Juanzo's highlight. For any of you in Bali who love your food, you must go and check it out.
smelsworst and talluleh - YOU WOULD LOVE!!
Juanzo with his 2 favourite things in the world - me + pig.
( +More adventures in Ubud )
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| Bali Photos #2 - Noms in Bali |
[30 Aug 2009|06:32pm] |
As I said in my previous post, I've never been so consistently impressed with food, drinks and service on a holiday. With a town that is so reliant on tourism, the Balinese have really gone all out to make sure they have top notch restaurants and bars. Incredible.
Prices were expensive relative to local food - but still cheaper than Australian prices. Relatively, entrees would be around AUD10, mains around AUD30 and cocktails around AUD10. But the quality would be far better than what you would expect at those AUD prices.
I didn't take as many photos of the food, because with the low lighting in most of these places, they didn't turn out that well. Either that, or the noms came out and we just got stuck into eating, rather than taking photos. Don't get me wrong, I love having photos but nothing irritates me more than going out and people take AGES taking food photos, rather than enjoying the food!
Funnily enough, I didn't take any photos of our favourite meal at Hu'u Bar, because everything was just so beautiful and spot on, I didn't want to ruin our dining experience by disrupting the flow with photos. Ah well, I'll just have to remember it...and go back to Bali and have our wedding there to take more photos!! Note to future Nadia self - you had a spicy salad for entree, pasta vongole for main and shared a pannacotta with Juanzo for dessert. And you ordered a lychee sorbitini cocktail which saw some attentive barman mixing your martini at your table to ensure optimum non-meltage.
Not hard to enjoy yourself when you're eating 5 star pretty much every night and this is the view from your table...
( +food noms - OM NOM NOM NOM )
Now, it's back to trying to reign in the calories and hit the gym again. I can't say the tubs of cabbags with lemon juice, salt and a touch of olive oil really stack up to the above experiences. Why do the best noms have to be so bad for you??
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| Bali Photos #1 - Hangin' at The Villas and Seminyak |
[30 Aug 2009|05:59pm] |
So, the main reason for this holiday was to spend some quality time with my man and just relax. I am hopeless at relaxing in Sydney. I am always working, going to the gym, shredding vegetables and sitting on the internet. No joke, that's pretty much my life when J's not here. You know you have serious issues when you're coming home on the train at 9:30pm at night because you've finished work late, hit the gym late and then before you know it, it's 10pm and you're just getting home. FAIL. Anyway, our mate Julls recommended that we stay at The Villas Bali, which is where he stayed last year. We weren't disappointed! I have NEVER spent so much money on accommodation before but it really was worth it. Next time, I would try to use my villa more (read: more sunning by the pool). It was just so tropical and lush - oooooh! We loved it!!
( Luxury Pie Adventures +12 )
Streets of Seminyak
Seminyak is meant to be the 'boutique' end of Bali, just backing onto Kuta. It's got lots of shops with not so bargain basement prices and despite the boutique tag, the roads are still haphazardly built with gaping cracks in the pavement. Regardless, it was quite a cool bit of town to go and have a poke around the shops. Maniac mopeds and taxis just careen around, honking at each other and surprisingly, no one dying. I had this grand plan to build a 'resort' wear look for the week - it was going to involve turbans and flowing sundresses and gold sandals. However, the shops just had dresses which didn't fit the bill and no room for luxury turbans. Shame.
I did see a lot of tourists who were far too big, squeezing themselves into tiny cheesecloth white dresses. Ruddy skin, bulging cheesecloth and dirty sandals...Not quite the look I was going for.
There were some very nice boutiques though...I stumbled on a gem inbetween Kuta/Seminyak called Ming) and if they'd had my size in all the stuff I wanted, I would have tumbled home with at least 8 of their pieces. Unfortunately, they only had my size in 2 tops and I bought an obi to try and console myself. So sad.
( Seminyak = +5 )
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| Adventures in Luxury Pie |
[29 Aug 2009|05:33pm] |
We are back in Sydney after 9 days of PURE LUXURY in Bali. I've never been to Bali before, so it was interesting in that regard. My verdict of Bali is that it is an awesome place if you want to go for Luxury Pie (ie. fine food, cocktails and spa treatments) but perhaps not the place to go if you want stuff for the mind. It just depends on the holiday you want.
We stayed at the Villas Bali which was one of the most amazing places ever. It was such a different experience to staying at a hotel - because you had your own backyard/pool and there was no fighting off _______ (insert nationality of your choice - I know which one I would insert here) tourists who have reserved deck chairs from 2am with a towel. Big high walls which ensured privacy. Beautiful tropical gardens. A giant stone Buddha which oversaw the whole affair. Every morning a breakfast crew would arrive and cook you breakfast in your own villa (which you would select the day before what you wanted). We just spent time tanning, internetting and reading books. J hit upon this gold idea where we'd order cocktails from room service and then put the spare ones into the freezer so we didn't have to leave the comfort of our lazy boy.
I haven't eaten and drunk so much in ages...Prior to going to Bali I have had one croissant this year (I can remember it vividly, a chocolate croissant from Bourke Street Bakery) and in Bali, I pretty much ate croissants EVERY DAY. If not TWO croissants. Fun fact - did you know that one croissant (no toppings) has as much fat as 10 slices of bread?
I kept seeing those internet ads that say 'one trick to lose belly fat' and I can tell you that it probably starts with 'DO NOT indulge in 2 croissants a day for breakfast' and if there was a second tip it would probably say 'You probably shouldn't have 4 cocktails with every meal'. But the eating in Bali was amazing - and not just the Indonesian food....the fine dining experience there is amazing. Great bars/restaurants with impeccable food and service. Now I'm back in Sydney where I have to furiously knit my eyebrows or get down on my knees and beg some snooty waiter to please please PLEASE take my order or help with something.
Absolute highlight has to be Hu'u Bar, which was just in this beautiful setting, complete with pool and had the most impeccable service I've had in years. Groups of attentive waiters ensuring that everything went perfectly, mixing sorbet cocktails at your table to ensure they didn't melt from the bar to your table, apologising profusely when the scotch you ordered wasn't available and right down to ensuring all water bottle labels were facing you appropriately at all times.
This all means that PSFG has had a serious set back (we went to the gym once!) and as for PCTA - well, that's been postponed for an even longer period. But that's ok, I was having such a stressful time before we left that to be able to just sit down, chill out with J and enjoy life was awesome.
I also went hardcore on the spa treatments - we went to Prana Spa which was just this beautiful fortress of Indian stylings - with orange walls, guilded features and attentive Balinese women who massaged/treated me til I passed out (literally sometimes). Balinese massage, reflexology, shirodasa (Aruyvedic treatment where they pour a stream of warm oil on your head - this was AMAZING) and hot stone massages. J and I rounded off our last day with a mega 3.5 hr deluxe spa treatment (hot/cold plunge pools - between 39C and 14C water, whole body sea salt scrub, rain shower massage, clay body wrap with steam room, 1 hr balinese massage, 1 hr facial and then a hair cream mask/scalp massage).
I'm still going through all my photos at this stage - but here's the best one that Juanzo took on the trip - OH HAI
Back to work on Thursday (when J leaves). I keep thinking about my own mortality and well, everyone else I love as well. Can't believe he goes so soon :(
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| The Sound of the World Breaking |
[10 Aug 2009|11:26pm] |
Got to work today and the place had that familiar pall that fell over just less than 2 weeks ago when the news of Jim's passing was there. We kept talking to each other with the scant facts that we had and I tried to get the bare basics of work done (fail) and then just worked on my basketball match report (because I had to keep myself busy). Just kept waiting for any news...Kept reading his facebook to see people writing on his wall praying for his return. My favourite message was from one of the girl's from his team who wrote:
"Brian, praying that God will watch over you tonight and return you to us safely in the morning. You love the sea so much, may it hold you carefully tonight and let us have you back as the sun rises. "
And I knew it was all bad at around midday when Pauline came up to me and goes 'Nadia...we have news....Michael was diving and they've found Brian's body'.
Michael is one of our colleagues too. How do you recover from finding the body of your mate? I don't even know. News story here...
I was stunned and first and then I just sobbed. My team head pulled us all into our office with the 2 other girls my age and we just sobbed. And some people went quiet. And everyone just held us and we cried and we hugged each other and just sobbed some more. How does any of this make sense? How do we lose a 31yo guy with everything to live for? I don't even know where we found these tears, but it's only by 11pm that I'm empty of the tears (for now). I held one of my best work colleagues today (Billy, he plays in my bball team) and I just cried my eyes out on his shoulder. My other bestie, Marie, was so shattered and she just wailed and we held each other.
We went and gave support to his team but then decided to get out of the office. My team boss was amazing, telling us to just go and take as long as we need, counselling if we wanted it and thrust fistfuls of cabcharges at us, telling us to book a hotel room if wanted to just hang out together tonight and charge it all to the company. Pauline drove the three girls to Vaucluse and we sat at Nielsen Park. Billy and Phillip came down and I texted them to bring down two bottles of red wine that I'd bought off Brian in the last month (Brian was a crazy wine buff - check out his wine cellar), listened to songs and just sat on the beach thinking of him and praying for him (for those that it suited). Marie and I had our swimsuits with us, so we got changed and ran into the freezing cold water and just jumped in for a few minutes. It was so cold, but also so nice to feel like we were a little closer to him. After a few hours of just appreciating the water (Brian's love) and the beautiful day, we wrote our final messages to Brian on HSBC compliment slips, folded them up, sealed them with kisses, chipped in some money so we could leave him some money for the afterlife and put them into a bottle. We went to the top of Nielsen Park which is on this giant cliff and spent a few minutes remembering him, listening to Bone Thugs N Harmony's 'Crossroads' and threw our bottle into that big blue sea and the rest of our wine into the ocean.
 (a photo from the web which is pretty much where we were)
Headed back to the city. Had some dinner/food with another colleague. Then headed down to CEO for some karaoke in memory of Brian. Sang lots of sad songs and some happy songs to. Lots of tear jerkers by Mariah Carey (One Sweet Day, Exhale), Beyonce (Halo), U2 (With or Without You), Take That (Back for Good), Boyz II Men (End of the Road) and Jordin Sparks (No Air). Sounds cheesey but it made us all feel a little more peaceful in our hearts.
Such a sad day, but also a really beautiful day to remember him by. It also makes you remember how many great friends we have at the bank and how lucky we are to know each other.
There is so much sadness at the bank at the moment. If they have his funeral before I leave Sydney, this will be the third funeral I've been to in the last month. My heart can't break anymore, there is nothing left. We miss his smile, we miss him...just can't make sense of all of this...
Tell the ones you love how much you love and care for them today. Don't wait until tomorrow or when the time is right - just do it now and don't ever regret anything.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
Rest in Peace Brian - we all miss you already and hope you're in the Sky Ocean doing what you loved.
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| Ballin' To Be a Banker |
[09 Aug 2009|02:09am] |
On Friday it was my birthday. This was secondary to the biggest reason for Friday - WINTER SEASON BASKETBALL GRAND FINALS!!! My team played their hearts out and from the first second we got onto that court we smashed it!! It was so awesome. We take it all pretty seriously actually - some examples of why this isn't just your ordinary work team:
- We're the only team in the competition that has the full basketball kit. It's pretty fly isn't it?
- The kind folks at Skins 'sponsor' us and provided our whole team with Skins tights. They must be doing something right, because we're now the champions!!! I am a huge fan of wearing Skins to bed (rather than game day) to help with recovery. All the boys wear them for game day.
- I'm the captain and not only do I trawl the net for inspirational NBA photos to send to hte team, I also maintain a spreadsheet which records player notes on the other team, so we know how we can beat them the next time we meet.
- At least 3 people (incl me) claimed we were going to cry if we lost. I don't doubt this would have happened.
So I guess some people play for fun, but we definitely play to win (because that's the best fun)
Anyway, we smashed it - 36-17 over Citibank. Citi are a great team, except they lack height (so do we - AND our centre was injured) and they had no offensive power. Most of them are really good sportsmen too which is really nice. I can use the sports media ready quote and say 'They bring out the best in us'. One of our team's strength is our supreme defence. We play 2 girls at the top of the key and 3 boys at the base and if I dare say so myself, our girls are fiercesome defenders. Which means that they can't get into the key at the top, they have to swing around to the base and then the boys shut them down.
It was actually really awesome - a whole bunch of people came down from work to watch (like at least 20! Some with signs!!). I met some of them later at drinks after work and they were like 'You were the girl with the headband weren't you? You were going up against guys and putting the shoulder in!'. Hahaha signature Nadz move. The other comments said to othe rplayers included how well we play together as a team and how 'the 2 Asian girls on your team are psycho'. Our other girl is just as good and a better shooter than the two of us. I was faceguarding up a storm too (when you put your hand in front of a player's face so they can't see - it's technically illegal but it barely ever gets called by the refs). Our boys were so fast and just running the fast break. And on the boards (rebounds), they were just eating them up and grabbing them. What I love is that when we put our minds to it and actually step up to the plate, we can destroy any team in the competition. We just sometimes get complacent...Never mind, I love my team, I love this game - just love it!!
It's also sweet that Brian (no #8) always calls me 'Captain' and introduces me as his captain. Awwwwwww.
Our centre couldn't play hence why he's not in the gear. How ugly is that trophy? Doesn't matter. WE WON, IT WAS AMAZING, BASKETBALL CHANGED MY LIFE!!!
Oh yeah, and it was my birthday on Friday - BEST present my team could have ever given me :D
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| New Hurr |
[09 Aug 2009|01:41am] |
Went out last night and thought I was going to get blitzed due to it being my birthday and...winning basketball finals!!!!!! However, the gods smiled on me and the next day I was relatively ok. This was despite at least 1 beer, 4-5 vodkas, a shot of sambucca, a shot of tequila, a shot of cointreau and just to mix it up some more, about 2 scotch and dry. WHOA, where did my hangover go?? Doesn't matter...I woke up, booked me a hair cut and here is the results...
Oh hai, that looks pretty normal doesn't it?
( +5 - how does it end?? )
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| Things to Commit To |
[30 Jul 2009|12:39am] |
2 weeks off from the gym and I am carrying a bit more around my middle than I like. Nothing that a one week blitz won't fix (ie. i can see and feel it, but I doubt most other people have even noticed). I have to knuckle down hard and am going to try and do 3 days lower carbs/cals (around 1800 calories) and 1 day higher carbs/cals (around 2100 calories). It's not all that glamorous though - for dinner tonight I had 150g of shredded cabbage, 170g of kangaroo and 100g of chicken breast. I bulk out my lunches with shredded carrot and zucchini. I'm never hungry because I eat all the time, but sometimes the vegetable excitement is a little too much for me.
NO BOOZE either unless it's a) my birthday b) a work dinner or c) our team wins the basketball grand final. I've got a work dinner on 06AUG and it's my birthday next week too - my sis and I are going to celebrate it on the Saturday and I intend on drinking at least half a bottle of champagne.
Things I am going to commit to (even though I am breaking one of them right now):
1. SLEEPING MORE. I am chronically sleep deprived. I know exactly why this is - I work late, I go to the gym and by the time I get home it's usually 8:30pm or 9:00pm. So I eat some food, wash up, prep my food for the next day, relax for like OH, 5 minutes and it's 12:15am. Then I wake up 6 hours later. This is not good for my health, sanity or training.
2. MIX UP MY CARDIO. I am loving basketball and cardio coach still. But I want to keep things fresh before I get bored...I'm even thinking about learning to play touch footy even though I've never played pointy ball sports in my life. Apparently there's a casual Wednesday muck around that goes down in the city and my boss (who plays) reckons it'd be the top place for me to learn. I always get so apprehensive learning new sports, but then when you do, it can take over your life, heart and dreams!!! (Exhibit A: HOOPS).
3. COMMIT TO LEGS WORKOUT. I HATE doing legs. Seriously. Omg, cue spookylolly's voice right the fuck now 'If you want guns you need to thrash your legs so you get the human growth hormone'. I KNOW I KNOW. And I do my legs workout but I don't like it and it's boring. I'd take upper body ANY other day of the week. Ha, and in fact I do.
4. TAKE MY DAMN CALCIUM CASEINATE SHAKE EVERY NIGHT. I fucken hate this shit, I really do. It's so hard to manage and despite the website claiming that it can be made in a shaker it is an OUT AND OUT LIE. I tried it tonight and it made lumps of congealed protein everywhere. Then I tried to transfer it to our blender...except the base wasn't screwed in and it leaked all over the bench. Then I used my sister's new stick blender which worked a treat. Except I forgot to put my raw cacao powder in. And now I'm having a lumpy shake anyway. And had to wash three different appliances. Shame this stuff is so good for you. Shame it is so gluggy and such a pain in the ass to prepare which is why I always wuss out on making it!!!
5. TAKE ALL MY SUPPLEMENTS REGULARLY. I need to start taking y fish oil capsules religiously. I need to make sure I do things consistently. I need a good multi-vitamin which isn't Ultivite Swiss. You heard me google ads, which ISN'T Ultivite Swiss. Put that in your ad generator.
6. GET TO 50 PUSH UPS. I'm not doing too bad on this one, I can punch out 20ish on a good day. But I just gotta commit to doing them often.
More as I think of them...think I will order my kettlebell to arrive for Monday!! They're so expensive though...Oh well, with my trainer gone, I have a little bit more $$$ to spare.
Back to finishing my shake and then committing to sleeping...
...
Almost 2 weeks and my man is home!! I can't believe I haven't seen him for 2.5 months :( Then, we will soon be chilling in Bali together, drinking booze and having a hardcore relax. Can't wait.
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| Back to Reality |
[27 Jul 2009|11:53pm] |
Back from Perth yesterday...pretty tough week on everyone. I've never been to the funeral of someone who is really close to you before. I'm too tired to write about it properly or think about it - but while it's sad and I miss my Mah-Mah a lot (and haven't really gotten used to the idea that I won't see her again in this life), she wasn't having the best time when she left us. I just try to think that she wouldn't want us to be sad but to remember the good things. I gave the eulogy at her funeral which I was so scared about losing my composure at - but I asked her to give me the strength to only remember the good things and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be to hold it together. I didn't get to tell the really great stories though, like when she told me 'Mah Mah say, how you say in English - FUCK YOUR MUM, not bad English at all lah'. Ahahahaha, what a legend.
We also went to the casino in her honour and her number came up 3 times on the roulette wheel. We left her chips/Burswood card in her purse when we buried her, so we know where she is. Not bad, we made $400 out of $20! The numbers that came up were her birthday (13) - TWICE in a row and the date of her birth (17). Cue the Twilight Zone music...
All I can say is that to those of you who still have your grandparents, call and see them as much as you can now...I tried to call mine as much as I could and it's nice that when they do go that you don't have any regrets about not having made the effort. Don't leave it too late!
I really feel for my gramps though...60 years (almost) of marriage and now he's all on his own. I don't know what I would do without my Juanzo and it hasn't even been 4 years!! I mean, he'll get a carer 3 times a week and my mum will see him for dinner most nights...But still, breakfast on your own, lunch on your own, sleeping on your own...He hasn't touched any of her stuff and wants to leave it all there (like her reading glasses by the TV and all her stuff in her bathroom) and he says he still feels my gran sleeping beside him - which is really sweet but utterly heart breaking at the same time.
...
In the more mundane, I've pretty much had 2 weeks off for training due to having some virus and then having to go to Perth this week. I also took 2 weeks off from eating properly and in Perth it was a white bread, buttery pineapple tart, eating out disaster fest. I did Body Attack today and wearing my favourite Nike workout outfit couldn't even help this jiggly puff. PSFG has had a serious set back (I'm hoping some brutal arms sessions will get them back and mean that months of effort hasn't disappeared totally) and as for PCTA...I'd mentally committed to doing it, but now I'm going to have to do a bit more leaning before it can happen.
I was so lost for food today because our house has no fruit or veg in it...I had to buy lunch and not have tubs of snacks with me. It was quite upsetting. I had great plans to hop straight back onto the fitness/diet bandwagon but no food in house + late night at work = average diet + 1 body attack class today. Tomorrow I have lunch at Bambini Trust and then after that NO MORE BETS *does the roulette table action* PSFG/PCTA is recommencing!! I'm even thinking of seeing if I can cut my cals back to 1800...I dunno, my dietitian told me I was allowed a cool 2000 a day and I shoould still strip fat.
While in Perth, I also had a bit of a splurge and bought a Cohen Et Sabine matt silver mini sequin v-neck dress (it's pretty outrageous - human mirror ball or bream, I'm not sure which), a Cohen Et Sabine matt black sequin top with crochet detail and a Won Hundred (Danish brand) black dress with crazy twist detail. I really want some outrageous heels to go with them, but not quite sure where to get them from and more importantly, can I really be bothered with heels?? If a totally sequinned dress doesn't inspire me to keep flogging my ass at the gym with Cardio Coach and PSFG - WHAT WILL?
Thinking of ordering my kettlebell for Monday...exciting!! :)
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| The End |
[20 Jul 2009|10:20pm] |
On Friday:
Trainer: 'If u would like to continue dont worry about paying for this w. U are always reliable and I appreciate that and I know your sick this wk. Sorry again. Hope u accept my apology'
I couldn't be bothered texting back cause I was so sick and more importantly ANGRY. Yes, that's right - I am always reliable!!! Genius!
On Monday:
'Hi, hope your feeling better. Did u get my text on fri?'
SURE DID BUSTER.
Me: 'Yes. Sorry have been meaning to text back. You're a good trainer and I'm not upset. I have just decided to pursue my fitness goals on my own and try a few new things. Will drop your cash off tomorrow.'
In retrospect, it would have been funnier to have perhaps have used '$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$' instead of cash or even 'CASH' instead of 'cash'.
I'm so angry!! But you know what, it's probably for the best because I didn't really need him and he was expensive. I'm excited to start doing things for myself again and reading/researching what to do next. I think I want to try kettlebells and resistance bands next. And kayaking in the summer. And more basketball outdoor hoops. Maybe picking up tae kwon do. And fine tuning my diet so I can lean down further (I'm in ok shape, my fitness is ok, but I'd like to be leaner) and just trying new things.
You don't need people who are 'aiding' your fitness who can't cut you a break when you're genuinely sick. Sure, the guy has got to eat, but you have to cultivate relationships in order for them to keep them going. Professional or personal. I hope he enjoys the last $80 from me - he could have probably got a few more sessions from him.
To the next chapter - PSFG and PCTA here we come. I think I'm going to try it (when I'm back from Perth). I did a trial run today and ate a lot of chicken breast, cabbage and measured carb serves. It wasn't that bad but it wasn't that exciting.
Flying to Perth tomorrow...will be a tough few days.
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| Boring Diet Talk |
[19 Jul 2009|05:35pm] |
I am contemplating whether to up the stakes a bit and for about a month, try and commit to PCTA (Project Commit to Abs) - note that it's 'commit' rather than 'get'. Abs are so far away still!!! PSFG still remains the primary focus. Anyway, in preparation for thinking about committing to abs (that's a lot of non-concrete outcomes there) - I've been researching diet and what you would have to commit to. I pulled out 'Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle' by Tom Venuto and he suggests the super-charged way to do this is low carb/high protein for 3 days (macro nutrient profile for total calories to come from 30% carb, 45% - 50% protein and 25% - 20% fat) and then higher carb/higher calorie on the 4th day (50% carb, 30% protein, 20% fat). I was thinking about trying a real diet crackdown for about a month to see what difference it made to results (with still the occasional dinner out or 'fun' meal). The proportions are similar to other diet suggestions I've read...I couldn't even contemplate doing a no carb or one of those scary very low carb diets. I'd kill myself - NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.
I don't do very well on reduced carbs - I'm a carb monster!!! So for the last day or so, I've had excel open (omg, yes, I'm a total dork) and Calorie King open and after a lot of thought and some trial and error, I've managed to put together a 'reduced carb' eating plan that I think I could stick to. I decided to post it here, just to see if anyone was interested and/or what thoughts people had? It's not particularly exciting is it though?
( Cut for length and boredom - do you want to see what 30% carb / 45% protein / 25% fat looks like? )
It was so surprisingly difficult - I had to cut out things like banana, apple and carrot to get it under these proportions. I think I could only manage this because I'd still get to have starchy carbs for my 2 morning and lunch meal.
I'm just wondering if I should try it for a little bit to see if it works? I must confess, I feel a little inspired to strip down a little harder just to show my now ex-trainer that I didn't need him. Nothing like spite to help with the progress of PSFG!!! When I get around to finding other combinations that work, I will post up the macros/details for that!!
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