Great Ocean Rd

Have just had a fabulous weekend away, staying at Port Cambell and spending 2 days driving and walking around the Great Ocean Rd - one of the most fabulous places in Australia. A friend was visiting from Europe so we took him on a tour...


This is me and my friend Christian (he's German, but lives in Prague - yes I will be visiting!!!)

Here's us in front of London Bridge (or what used to be London Bridge!) L-R Berni, me, Jen and Christian

Berni, me, Jen and Jenn

The wonderful and amazing 12 Apostles

Great weekend with too much food and wine and not enough exercise... judging by the 1kg gain showing on my scales this morning. I knew it would happen. I had 3 days without watching what I eat. NOT GOOD! So going for a run tonight and scheduling in an extra PT session. As long as I lose that kilo this week I'll be happy. Then next week back on track... only 4 weeks til I see my parents so I want to drop a few more kgs.

Time for new pics

Feeling a bit better

Well after yesterday's sulking I am feeling a bit better about the whole thing. I think I just have to accept it all, as he is my friend and I want to keep that friendship. Just cause I don't see him as much doesn't mean I have to lose a friend over it. And although the weekend with the 3 of us isn't my idea of fun, I will survive. I am changing my focus from all of this, to losing another 4kg before I go. I haven't seen Mum and Dad since Christmas, so that will be a total of 10kg between visits.

Anyway, after my chocolate and chip fest the other night, plus a few drinks and eating a few wrong things on the weekend, I still managed to lose 0.2kg this week. Happy with that – I thought I was definitely heading in the wrong direction! I ate well yesterday, and am doing the same again today. Personal training today as well. So back on track!

Speaking of what I ate yesterday... I didn't plan my food in the morning like I have been doing. I wasn't really hungry at lunchtime, so I thought I would just keep my calories up by having a Boost juice. I had a berry crush - so all fruit, juice and ice. When I got back from lunch I put it into my tracker - can you believe that baby has 50 grams of carbs! My calorie count was OK for the day, but I ended up with 60% carbs. Way too much! Just goes to show that I am not ready to stop planning yet!

Feeling very blah today

I'm a bit of a sooky sooky la la today. Got upset yesterday and went home and ate chocolate and chips. I knew exactly what I was doing, and I didn't care. It is a very very long time since I have felt that way. I just didn't like myself enough to care.

My best (male) friend started seeing someone over Christmas. She is a great girl, I really like her and I think they are great together. However I never see him anymore. We've done a couple of things as a group, but nothing with just the two of us since before Christmas. We used to catch up for lunch or coffee a couple of times a week so I am really missing him. He always says we'll catch up then cancels with some excuse involving new girlfriend.

My friend and I have planned a weekend away in March - we are going to stay with my parents (this was planned before Christmas). I have really been looking forward to spending some time together. Then last night he says, 'girlfriend' is a bit upset that she wasn't invited. Can she come?

Am I being selfish by just wanting to spend time with my friend? If we all go then I am going to feel like the very single, third wheel.... in my own home (well, where I grew up) and I will hate it. For example we all went kayaking a couple of weeks ago... them in a double and me all by myself in a single paddling twice as fast to keep up. Fun, but not so fun at the same time.

Obvioulsy I need to talk to him about how I am feeling. But I'm not sure how to handle it. I don't want to come across all sulky and selfish, but that's how I feel. I really hate it when people dump their friends for a relationship - and this is what has happened to me, yet again!

So you see I am feeling crap. This friend has been a huge support and influence in my weight loss journey. There are times when I have thought that I couldn't do it without him, but as I have seen less and less of him over the past few months I have learnt that I CAN do it on my own. It is all up to me and I can do this. So last night's chip and chocolate fest is behind me. I am sitting here drinking my green tea and today is a new day. I'm still not sure what I am going to do about our weekend in Melbourne, but I will be skinnier for it - so no more chips and chocolate!

Results

Week 1 of my low carb reduced calories plan, and I've lost 1.2kg. Yay! But that is not the best bit - I've lost 4cm off my boobs in a week! Wooohoooo! They are getting smaller.

Finding it reasonably easy. The only time I feel hungry is at night, after tea, but I have found either 1/2 a protein shake or just going to bed does the trick. I am feeling really good - still have plenty of energy and feeling healthy.

Tuesday's Diary

Breakfast: Rice porridge, yogurt & crunch
Snack 1 slice banana bread toasted
Lunch: 3 soy & linseed rice thins with ham and low fat cheese
Snack: 1 punnet strawberries, 1 glass mineral water with 30ml OJ
Dinner: omlette (1 egg, 2 egg whites, ham, cheese, mushrooms)
Snack: Low fat yogurt

Exercise: 30 min run, 1 hour PT (weights)

Take the survey

Found this and thought it was kind of fun...

TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF - The Survey
Name:	Emma
Birthday:	7 September
Birthplace:	Melbourne
Current Location:	Sydney
Eye Color:	Blue
Hair Color:	Brown
Height:	160cm
Right Handed or Left Handed:	Right
Your Heritage:	Australian/English
The Shoes You Wore Today:	Black Strappy Flats
Your Weakness:	Wine
Your Fears:	Going Blind
Your Perfect Pizza:	Ham & mushrooms
Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year:	Run City2Surf
Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger:	Wicked
Thoughts First Waking Up:	I gotta pee
Your Best Physical Feature:	Eyes
Your Bedtime:	Weekdays 9.30pm Weekends whenever
Your Most Missed Memory:	Can't remember :0)
Pepsi or Coke:	Diet Coke all the way
MacDonalds or Burger King:	eeeewwww no thanks
Single or Group Dates:	Both
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea:	Lipton
Chocolate or Vanilla:	Chocolate
Cappuccino or Coffee:	Neither
Do you Smoke:	No
Do you Swear:	Yes
Do you Sing:	Yes - although not well
Do you Shower Daily:	Yes, sometimes twice!
Have you Been in Love:	Does my dog count?
Do you want to go to College:	Been there done that
Do you want to get Married:	Maybe
Do you belive in yourself:	Yes
Do you get Motion Sickness:	Sometimes
Do you think you are Attractive:	Sometimes
Are you a Health Freak:	Sometimes
Do you get along with your Parents:	Yes
Do you like Thunderstorms:	No
Do you play an Instrument:	Not any more
In the past month have you Drank Alcohol:	Yes
In the past month have you Smoked:	No
In the past month have you been on Drugs:	No
In the past month have you gone to a Mall:	Yes
In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos:	No
In the past month have you eaten Sushi:	No
In the past month have you been on Stage:	No
In the past month have you been Dumped:	No
In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping:	No
In the past month have you Stolen Anything:	No
Ever been Drunk:	Yes
Ever been called a Tease:	Yes
Ever been Beaten up:	No
Ever Shoplifted:	No
How do you want to Die:	Peacefully in my sleep
What do you want to be when you Grow Up:	I don't want to grow up
What country would you most like to Visit:	Thailand
In a Boy/Girl..
Favourite Eye Color:	Blue or brown
Favourite Hair Color:	Brown
Short or Long Hair:	Short
Height:	Not too tall
Weight:	Average
Best Clothing Style:	Casual - jeans & t-shirt
Number of Drugs I have taken:	None
Number of CDs I own:	Lots
Number of Piercings:	Negotiable
Number of Tattoos:	Negotiable
Number of things in my Past I Regret:	No regrets
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

Monday's food diary

Breakfast: rice porridge, yogurt and crunch, 1 cup green tea
Snack: 1 slice banana bread, toasted
Lunch: chicken and salad wrap
Snack: skinny hot chocolate
Dinner: salmon and salad
Snack: 1 punnet strawberries
TOTAL 1282/1200
Exercise: 45 min spin class

Sunday Walk

A Sunday stroll with a girlfriend started as 'active recovery' and turned into a bit of a mission cause we just kept walking – then had to walk all the way back! Found a cool website which has aerial pics of Sydney, so grabbed a couple and mapped out where I went on Sunday. Here's the walk from North Sydney to Rushcutters Bay and back...

And here's where we paddled in the morning:

Exercise Packed Weekend

After a bit of a blow-out at the pub on Friday night, I managed to get in plenty of exercise – and I only have 300 grams to go til I hit 25kg lost! Yay! Went walking on Saturday and Sunday went kayaking for an hour at the Spit (see pic) and then did a 20km walk in the afternoon. Didn't get back til it was nearly dark - but had a great time. Legs are a bit sore, but not too bad considering. Off to a spin class at lunchtime seeing it is too wet to go for a run outside.

2 days down of my low carb/reduced cal plan!

Half way through day 2 and feeling good. Was a bit headachey this morning, but not sure if that was related or not. Feeling good now though. Haven't been hungry at all - I guess cause I am eating so often. Here's Saturday and Sunday's plan:

Saturday
Breakfast: Low fat milk, 1 weet-bix with all bran and 1/2 tub of peaches in natural juice
Snack: Aussie Bodies low carb protein drink
Lunch: 200g prawns with 1 cup salad
Snack: 1 soy & linseed corn thin with ham and low fat cheese, mineral water with a dash of OJ
Dinner: Stir fried salmon with Asian greens
Exercise: Body attack class and 1 hour walking

Sunday
Breakfast: Low fat milk, 1 weet-bix with all bran and 1/2 tub of peaches in natural juice, 1 cup green tea
Snack: 250g strawberries
Lunch: Grilled fish with salad and multigrain roll
Snack: 1 soy & linseed corn thin with ham and low fat cheese, mineral water with a dash of OJ
Dinner: stir fried salmon with Asian greens, 1 cup green tea
Exercise: 1 hour kayaking, 30 min run.

You can really tell I live by myself can't you! Yes I do get sick of eating the same thing 2 days in a row sometimes!! This is all looking so healthy I'd better drop some serious weight this week!

Meal plan for Friday

Found doing my plan for Friday pretty difficult as I am going out for lunch, and then for drinks after work - and I don't want to miss out! So here's what I came up with:

Breakfast: Special K & no fat milk, 1 cup green tea
Snack: 1 slice banana bread
Lunch: Caeser salad - no dressing, 1 390ml bottle diet coke
Snack: 1 punnett strawberries, 2 medium glasses white wine
Dinner: Omlette - 1 egg/2 egg whites, ham, cheese, mushrooms
TOTAL 1214/1200 calories
Exercise: 4km walking

And another post for today

I love my blog! I just pour out all the crap that is in my head. It helps!

Just had a great chat with my PT. What he suggested is reducing my calorie intake from 1500 to 1200, made up of only about 40% carbohydrates (I currently do about 50% carbs), and no carbs at nights - just lean meat and greens. If I want fruit at night I can have strawberries. So I'm going to try it for a week and see. He's not a nutritionist, and doesn't claim to be. But he has done the whole weight loss thing himself, and so is talking from experience.


So here's tomorrow's meal plan:

Breakfast: 30g toasted muesli, low fat yogurt and rice porridge, 1 cup green tea
Snack: 1 slice banana bread, toasted, 1 cup green tea
Lunch: Grilled chicken ceaser salad - no dressing, 1 glass diet coke
Snack: Low fat yogurt with fresh berries
Dinner: 100g beef stir fried with oyster sauce & sweet chilli, bok choy, mushrooms and broccoli, 1/2 punnet strawberries
1 cup green tea

Total 1113/1200 calories.

Exercise tomorrow is 4km walking and 1 hour PT.

Thinking

Have just been reading the WW boards, and it seems so many people are stalling around the same point that I am. I had a good week last week, and lost 0.9, but nothing since (official weigh-in tomorrow). I have been eating well and doing HEAPS of exercise. I had one night drinking last week (admitedly it was a big night!) but apart from that I have been good. Yet the scales have REALLY slowed down. I lost 20kg in 20 weeks, then it has been 4kg in 8 weeks. My eating plan is fairly similar, but I have increased my exercise. There are plenty of other people going through the same thing (that's why I love the WW boards!) - it seems to happen as you get into the 80s. I so want to be a 70s girl by the time I go to Thailand (8 weeks)!

So reading all this got me thinking. Time to take a good hard look at myself. I have made good food choices, but I probably haven't been eating as often as I was before Christmas. So I'm going back to my 5 small meals a day. And I'm planning them - and not deviating from the plan. The question is, can I go for a week without sugar/chocolate etc? There lies the challenge!

I have increased my exercise intensity as I have started running and that has been a big focus for me. But before that I was doing alot of walking during the day. Either at lunchtime, or if I got bored and had nothing to do in the office - just 30 mins at a time, but it worked. So I am going back to that.

All that said though, my body shape is changing even though the scales aren't doing a hell of a lot. I am starting to see muscle definition in my arms, my face is thinner (again!) and my legs look leaner. I am more interested in the size and shape of my body than a number anyway, so I need to keep reminding myself of this!

I know I said I was changing my focus from weight loss to exercise - but I am struggling with that! I'll keep trying though :0)

I've lost 24kg... and it looks like...

A TV! I googled 'weighs 24kg' and it came up with all sorts of things. Kind of puts it in perspective doesn't it!

And thankyou for the lovely comments on my blog yesterday when I was feeling pretty flat. Mwah!

Before & After Progress Pics

Time for some more progress pics. I am having one of those days where I think it is just not happening fast enough! I want to be skinny and I want to be skinny NOW. I am well on the way, but sometimes it is just a bit frustrating.

Bondi Walk

I met some of the gals from the WW boards for a walk on Saturday morning. Left to right, there's me, Timesfour (Carmen), Aempson (Anne), Wombat50 (Jan) and Blown Up Dolly (Nicki). KerryH is missing from the pic - as she had the job of photographer. Had a great time - walked from Clovelly to Bondi, stopped for a cuppa and then Carmen and I walked back. Time flies when you are gasbagging all the way!

Measurements

Last night I did my measurements for the first time in AGES! Since the beginning of this journey in July 2006 I have lost from:
Chest - 14cm
Waist - 11cm
Arm - 5cm
Leg -7cm

That is exciting! My boobs are getting smaller. Yay!!!!

Time for new goals

I am finding focussing on weight loss all the time is getting a bit boring. I'm over it! I am continuously looking for the next kg to come off. And there's still 20 or so of those to go!

So I am changing my focus a little bit, and looking at my fitness. Only a couple of months ago I gave my PT a horrified look when he suggested running. Who me? I DON'T RUN! Well now I do. That first day I ran/walked for 15 minutes and thought I was going to die! Today I ran continuously for 20 minutes (up and down hills and flat) - and then ran/walked the next 20 minutes. I've just built that up by increasing my distance a little bit each week.

I would really love to be able to run in the City to Surf in August. For me, that would be a MASSIVE achievement. But, when I think about it - totally do-able. I'll even be at goal by then which should make it a hell of a lot easier.

So today I bought myself a digital watch that has a stop watch on it. I timed myself to see how long I could run for to set myself a starting point. I want to be able to increase that time every week. It's 26 weeks til August (the exact date of the C2S hasn't been announced yet). All I need to do then, is add 5 minutes of continuous running every week and I should have it covered! I run 2 or 3 days a week usually, so if I can keep that up and keep increasing my time, distance and speed I will get there.

So the exercise plan for this week is:
Monday - 30 min run, 1 hour cardio dance class
Tuesday - 1 hour PT
Wednesday - 45 min spin, 30 min run
Thursday - 1 hour PT
Friday - 45 min Balance
Saturday - 30 min run, 1 hour Body Attack
Sunday - 2 hours kayaking

I hate hangovers

...especially when you have to go to work! Had the best night though... just paying for it today. Nothing a few litres of water won't fix though!

Had a client visit from Melbourne. He was staying in Double Bay, so I got some tips from a friend who always knows the best pubs to go to... and he didn't disappoint this time! Went to the Golden Sheaf - pic above of one of the funky little bars. There were 2 beer gardens, several bars, live music, DJ, juke box, pool tables - it was like doing a pub crawl without the crawling cause it was all in one place. Very very cool. Will be returning!

Had weigh in yesterday. Lost 0.9. Not quite what I was hoping for after a power start to the week, but OK. Had PT last night and really struggled. Making today my rest day cause my body is screaming STOP! And after last night's activities my head feels like the rest of my body! LOL!! So just walking to and from work today and that will do. I can look forward to going home, cooking some dinner and reading my book. Oh I wish I was there now. Bring on the weekend I say.