Coming home with unwanted luggage

I heaved my wheelie backpack onto the scales at the request of the airline hostess... 47.2 blinked on the screen! 'Holy shit' was my first reaction until I remembered I was in North America and that was pounds. Not smart enough to do the calculations in my head I waited until I passed through several forms of security before asking Google to do the conversion on my behalf... 21.4kg.. My bag had put on around 8 kilograms in the 86 days I travelled through the United States and Canada and as my tummy jiggled a little more than usual as we bounced down the runway on the first leg of my trip home, I must confess I knew it wasn't the only thing that was coming home a little heavier. 

for Thankful Thursday!

It's been a while since I linked up for a Thankful Thursday post but today I have something I want to share.....

In 12wbt world, as many of you know Wednesday is Weigh in day and while I am no longer officially part of the program I intend on keeping to this tradition....I was away from home and staying at a friends place Tuesday night so could not weigh in Wednesday so did it this morning and.........

BOOM!!!! Goal Weight! So excited!!!

So what am I thankful for....

• the amazing friends who have supported me through this journey
• the 12wbt support crew and Michelle Bridges
• the fact that I have the ability to be able to pay for a program such as this and buy the food to make the difference
• the ability to fit exercise and the gym into my life but the knowledge to know it's not the be all and end all

I am sure there is so much more to be thankful for but my brain is fried after a big day at work...... and as I said in my final update on Tuesday this is not the end but I am so happy to have reached this milestone!

Linking up with Francesca Writes Here for Thankful Thursday

for a 12wbt wrap up!

Sunday I officially finished my second round of Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation! Even got the certificate to prove it!

If you want to read about my progress then check out here..... and here..... and here....or just check out my archives for all the updates!

To be honest I've been completely customising my meal plans for the past few weeks now and in a sense 'going it alone' so I decided not to sign on for another round. It became easier for me to be organised in advance by freezing meals and just grabbing what I felt like at the time rather than following the meal plan to a T.

That was one of the biggest light bulb moments for me.....being organised is definitely the key, especially the way my work and general lifestyle is at the moment. I have always lead a relatively healthy lifestyle but this was just that extra bit of education and motivation I needed to get it right. Another big learning curve for me has been portion size. I always cooked and ate more than I needed to but I think I have that sorted now!

The thing I found with the 12wbt was that while it was all good and well to think that you HAD to follow the nutrition and meal plans exactly as prescribed then I think you would be doomed for failure and disappointment. I continued to live my life and didn't deprive myself of the things I loved and the events I wanted to go to. You have to be realistic and give yourself a break if things go a little astray from time to time.

Anyway, here goes for my stats..... Apologies in advance for the photos you are about to see! Lol.....

Pre Season Round 1 - Jan 2013                  End Round 2 - August 2013
Weight = 68.3kg                                        Weight = 60.4kg
Arms = 30.2cm (r)   29.7cm (l)                 Arms = 27.6 (r)   27.3 (l)
Chest = 82cm                                            Chest = 76cm                      (noooooo! lol)
Waist = 82.8cm                                         Waist = 76.5cm
Hips = 110.8cm                                         Hips = 101.5cm
Thigh = 60.3cm (r)   60.2 (l)                     Thighs = 51.5cm (r)   51.0 (l)

Quite happy with that! Obviously this is not the end of my journey and I am sure I don't have to point out my target areas! Lol....Must get on to a few more of those squat challenges I think!

During my first round my 1 month goal was to run 5km without stopping, if you have been following with this journey you'll know that almost all of my running has been done on a treadmill, my 12 month goal has always been to run a half marathon... So I reached my milestone in March running 5km on the treadmill with a time of 42:45mins. Since then I have improved that time and 2 weeks ago again ran 5km on the treadmill but this time in a time of 35:27mins! So stoked!

Have been working on a few plans that will change my lifestyle and how I can go about my training and once the weather warms up a bit more I am looking forward to testing my running speed outside.. Stay tuned for that one!

This is by no means the end of my health and fitness journey, in fact I feel like it's only really just the beginning. Doing the 12wbt wasn't just for a short term, reach my goals, fix, it was a lifestyle change that I intend on honouring for the rest of my life. Have there been times where I've slipped ...absolutely... have I reached for the chocolate/wine/pizza/cake/lollies/hot chips from time to time....absolutely, but I didn't beat myself up about it, I saw it for what it was and moved on.

One of the downfalls of this process though has been how much it has cost. While you can't put a real price on your health I'm not going to lie, it has cost me. Losing weight is a wonderful feeling and Friday I learnt the value of a plaited belt! lol....

 

This GAP belt that cost me a small fortune used to fit me!

I have so many beautiful clothes that no longer fit me and while I'm not really complaining I know that I kind of am, about the money it is costing me in replacing them...

If you have been considering joining the 12wbt journey...JFDI!!!

Linking up this Tuesday with Essentially Jess for IBOT

to review Week 6

WE ARE HALF WAY DONE!!

It's hard to believe that we are half way through the 12wbt! It does not seem like 6 weeks but it has been great! I am not the sort of person who has gone all gung ho on this program, to be honest I don't get involved in all the forums and rarely get on the website, except to get my meal plans and dowload recipes. This is about ME! It is my journey! I don't need to read all about other people's problems, stresses etc. There are some awesome blogs out there that are both inspiring and motivating and these are the ones that I draw my inspiration from. I must admit I half heartedly watch the weekly mindset videos as a lot of what Mish talks about I feel doesn't apply to me (for various reason but don't think I don't think she's great because I do!)....Having said all of that, would I recommend the program to anyone else.....ABSOLUTELY!

That obviously wasn't the best advertisement for people wanting to sign up for the 12wbt but I am loving it so far. As I said this journey has been about me and I need to do this for me! Not because a trainer on a video told me to, I can see that some people would need this type of motivation and I applaud EVERYONE who is giving this their best shot!

I have joined a few Facebook pages for support groups for people in my area but I am rapidly finding they are becoming more of a whinge group. I am sorry to say that they frustrate the shit out of me. It seems all people want to do is whinge about how they have 'fallen off the wagon'... 'just ate some ice cream and I feel so guilty'... 'oh my I haven't exercised for a week and now I feel bad'...there was even a "I'm so drunnnkk!' posted close to midnight one night! And it's like they want validation or acceptance or the it's OK from someone, who knows....
I don't read them often because I know this is my issue but occassionally there is some really helpful advice on there. 

The way I see it is this, I have decided that I am still going to live my life. I have made this lifestyle decision but it is not going to rule my life and I am not going to miss opportunities to live it. For example, On Thursday I had an extremely emotional day, I picked up my brand spankin' new car (excited much!) and found out my Mum's Uncle had passed away (sux big time) all within the space of an hour. So when a friend of mine suggested we catch up for Friday afternoon drinks to celebrate the pending end of term, I didn't bat an eyelid! Off we went, 2 bottles of wine and a deep fried tasting platter later I was heading home feeling better! I didn't/don't regret it (although I did have a slight headache and tummy ache during the night), I didn't feel the need to get on a forum or on a FB group and beg for forgiveness instead I got up, got on the treadmill smashed out a run and got on with my day. I am confident I will get to my goal weight and have lived and enjoyed the journey and learning new things about myself along the way.

The reaction I have gotten from some of my friends and colleagues along the way has been varied. Most people wonder what the food is like and ask if we actually get to eat real food! A friend had a look at my folder of recipes and was shocked "Oh my god it's actually real food!" I was warned before I started by someone who knew someone who knew someone (you get the picture)who had done the program to "stock up on chickpeas coz that's all you get to eat"

So I am here to bust some myths! YES it is real food! YES it is delicious! YES there are options and you can change your meal plan if it doesn't suit! YES there are options for Vegetarians, Gluten Intolerant, Pregnant ladies and all other manner of needs. I can assure you, you do not need to have a healthy appetite for chickpeas to enjoy the meals with this program, I have had to use them in 1 recipe and didn't even notice! If you do have an appetite for fresh vegetables and herbs then keep reading! 

Here are some pics of some of the amazing recipes! (mostly breaky ones sorry..)

Yep, that's pasta! and bread! omg......Truth be known, I swear I have eaten more carbs on this eating plan than I have eaten in the last 5 years of trying to lose weight on my own and this is working! If there was one bit of food advice I could give anyone considering this program it would be to start a herb garden now!

I have had to cut back on my exercise due to my back and neck issues and I emailed the 12wbt support crew and they told me to do what I could, heed the advice from my Chiropractor, keep it low impact if need be but that diet was more important for weightloss anyway... My gym put this picture up on their Faceook page and I thought, besides it being a bit cute, it is SO true! I think for once my attitude is right, my eating is right and my exercise is as good as it can be at the moment!

Now if you are really brave and want to scroll down a little more I have finally decided I am brave enough to share some pics of me! I was really starting to notice the difference in my clothes this week and while the scales remained exactly the same as last week I am not disheartened because I have had to start a "no longer fit me because they are too big" pile of clothes in my bedroom! So I decided that seeing as we are half way through I would do a pic and compare it to my 'before pic'.... Feel free to press the red cross in the corner now if you do not wish to see it! I know I still have a ways to go, but it is such a good reminder of where I've come from and keep me focussed on where I'm heading...... here goes...

So if you have been wondering if you should do this, then my advice would be DO IT! What have you got to lose?

Because it's Tuesday of course I am linking up with Essentially Jess for IBOT

and Dear Baby G whose blog inspires me every week!

for week 4

So last Tuesday I signed off with the Wednesday weigh in looming...I really wasn't sure how it was going to go despite being happy with my diet, ok with my exercise and feeling much more organised for the week ahead... I had a 1.5kg weight loss! I was so excited. So that's a 1.9kg loss since the official start and a 3.1kg loss since I signed up a few weeks prior to the official start.

I came across this little quote about weight loss which I think is so true...(Hopefully you can read it)

  
If you look at me you probably would not even notice but I know that I am feeling so much fitter and stronger even in such a short space of time.

Week 4 is mini milestones week and so I looked back to what I wanted to achieve 4 weeks into the program. My goal was to be able to run 5kms without stopping. Given that the weather has been so shite here (we have just clicked over 9 days straight rain I think!) and that I am more of a treadmill runner than an outdoor runner, Sunday morning I thought I would test my goal! I am SO pleased to say that I did it!!! I set the treadmill at 7.0 which I know is not very fast and I shouldn't call it 'run' but jog, but I didn't change the speed, in fact I changed it up at the end for a big finish, and jogged the entire 5kms! So my goal now will be to try and do it that bit faster next time.

Week 4 also meant that we had to re-do our fitness test and measure. This I was a little more nervous about but it really wasn't that bad. I improved in every area and have lost centimetres off everywhere as well. Not much, but the numbers are certainly heading in the right direction! YAY!

I have gotten into a bit more of a routine with the eating that seems to be working better. I spend an hour or so on a Saturday morning (after a good workout!) sitting down and going through the meal plan set down for us and then altering whatever I need to and chosing recipes from the oodles of recipes in the recipe index to work out my own version of a meal plan. Then I only buy what I need for the next 3 days and then make another trip later in the week. I am making sure I work with what I already have in the fridge/freezer/pantry and select meals that can be reheated or frozen for later use. I am finding that this is saving me so much more food and I guess money as I am not throwing out so much food.

Thanks to everyone who has been commenting on these posts. Your words of support and encouragement mean a lot and I am glad you are reading! Keep 'em coming...

Fingers crossed for weigh in day tomorrow!

Because it's Tuesday of course I am linking up with Essentially Jess for IBOT but also Dear Baby G for a fitness blog

 

for week 3 weigh in...

Tomorrow is weigh in day for the 12wbt and I am not feeling too bad. I feel like I have had one good week this last week, there were a few things that challenged and tempted me (Staff morning teas, a student giving me a Mars Bar as a "thanks for teaching me" gift) which I calmly and proudly refused.

I learnt from my lessons in the previous week and sat down over the weekend and got super organised for the week ahead. I studied the menu guide carefully and re-worked it to suit me and my week and will hopefully minimise some of those issues I was having! I even weighed and measured out little snack bags of almonds so I know exactly how much I'm eating.

On Friday I had a PT session at my gym. I am not going to make it a regular thing at this stage as I feel that I am doing well on this and there really isn't anything that she can offer that I am not getting from Mish. She did remind me of the fact that muscle does weigh more than fat so I am not expecting big things in tomorrow's weigh in. I know that I don't have a lot of weight to lose so expecting big numbers is unrealistic. I think the true test will come next week when we measure. I don't know how I am going to go, it is still early days but I do know that I am feeling great! I don't have that 'full in the belly' yucky feeling.

Saturday was my first SSS workout and I must admit I was a little perplexed by it all. The SSS, for those not in the know, is the Super Saturday Session. It's where we are meant to push ourselves to burn at least 1000 calories. I decided to work through the 'At Home' version that Mish has on the website. I printed if off Friday afternoon and studied it well so I knew what I had to do. It involved A LOT of push ups, different styles and actions. It was interval type training with knee ups inbetween sets of pushups.... I am certainly not known for my upper body strength (if you've looked at pics of me closely you've probably already figured that out..lol..) so the thought of all of these push ups did not excite me but I went into it determined! So Saturday morning I woke up early, hooked up my brand spanking new Heart Rate Monitor and got to it! It was killing me, I was puffing and sweating and making sounds that would make a beached whale proud and was determined not to give up... I will admit I didn't finish all the sets and skipped the last 2 but instead jumped on my treadmill and did some interval sprints. I felt like I had given it everything I had, was sweating more than I ever had. So I pulled up stumps after 48 mins and checked my calories burnt.... 320.....WTF??? I could not understand it. How could I have worked that hard and only burnt that many calories... I jumped on the facebook page for some advice and support and to ask if theis seemed right. I guess I would have thought that since it was the program that Mish had written then it would burn the calories she expected us to burn... another lesson learnt. Feedback from my post was that most of the girls found they needed to exercise for about 2 hours to get to 1000 calories..... :-/

A little disheartened I had breakfast, showered, cleaned and then got ready to go to Body Balance, which I desperately needed. I decided to continue to monitor my calories to see if I had any hope of burning more. The best way to describe Body Balance is a mix of stretching, yoga and mediation and after an hour long class I managed to burn another 236 calories.... I am still a little confused as to how I could burn that much in quite a relaxing slow paced class but only 320 with an average heart rate of 142 earlier when I was huffing and puffing like there's no tomorrow. Anyway I am not going to dwell on it but it is again a lesson learnt and I will know what to expect and prepare for for next week.

Saturday also meant treat day. If we skip snacks and keep our calorie intact down we can have a treat meal Saturday night. I had saved 600 calories by dinner so got myself a burger from a fave burger place in town. I had been thinking about it and looking forward to it all day! I was so hungry by the time my sister arrived with it that I feel like I enhaled it! And afterwards had that "full in the belly yucky" feeling :-( Not sure I'll bother with a full treat meal from now on as it's amazing how your body gets used to eating well that the moment you don't, you regret it.

Anyway as I said, I feel ok about tomorrow and looking forward to seeing what it brings.....
Stay tuned...

Linking up today with Essentially Jess for IBOT

 

for week 2

So week 2 of 12WBT has begun...

Week one ended with quite a few red flag days as I flew up to North Queensland to help one of my best friends celebrate her 30th birthday party.

Generally speaking I think I was pretty well behaved. There was no exercise involved in the weekend but I did try and eat as healthy as possible and limited the cocktails and drinks as much as socially acceptable (it was her 30th afterall and will only happen once!).

Am not expecting big numbers this week and wouldn't be surprised if perhaps my numbers go up slightly. I am mentally preparing myself for this.

Week one has also taught me a few lessons that I need to sort out as I go deeper into this program..

First and probably the most important is that I need to get more organised (I can hear Mish saying....durrr I told you that!). I feel like I have been pretty organised but since starting I have realised I need to look closer at the meal plans and perhaps make a few adjustments. Last week I went gung ho and bought all the stuff on my shopping list without really giving it much time and thought. The result was I ended up with far too much food that went off before I got a chance to cook it and then had to go re-buy stuff.. Felt like such a waste of time, food and money (none of which I can afford to lose right now). I don't want to have to go to the shop every afternoon so I think I need to really study the meal plans and maybe re-jig things around so they suit timings better. Lesson learnt..

Am also considering a herb garden of some description. It was something that Mish talked about in pre-season but I thought it easier to just buy what I need when I need, however that failed me last night as I went to the grocery store and they didn't have any fresh basil! Lesson learnt...

The other thing that is grating on me a little is the fact that I am doing this solo and all the recipes are for 2 serves. In some cases this is great as it means I can cook the 2 serves and have one for lunch the next day, fantastic! In other cases it's slightly annoying and another reason I need to look closer into the recipes. Last nights recipe called for 200g of Pumpkin (so 100g for me), now you can't buy 100g of pumpkin so what to do with the rest when no other recipe this week calls for pumpkin.....Lesson learnt... Time to get organised!!!

I also had yet another fail in the exercise department both yesterday and again this morning. Turned up at 5:55am for my 6:00am PT session yesterday only to have no PT arrive! Annoyed doesn't begin to describe the feelings I was having. I was SO tired from only arriving home from my weekend away at midnight but thought JFDI and dragged myself out of bed. So I got on some cardio machines and gave it a good crack but feel so disappointed it wasn't the workout I had planned or hoped for. Even more disappointed that I left a message for the trainer to find out what happened but they never got back to me. Today I turned up at 5:25am for the 5:30am Body Pump class only to find it had been cancelled, apparently they put something on their website...Lesson learnt, check website the night before! On both occassions I could of done with that extra half hour sleep in!

So I think I will play catch up this week, learn from my lessons and as I have no plans for this weekend I am determined to smash out a big SSS, get organised and give week 3 my all!!!

Today I am linking up with Essentially Jess

to begin the 12WBT

So it has begun!

Michelle Bridges 12 week body transformation. If I was a brave person I would put up my before photo so you could see what I'm working with.... but right now I am not that brave.

Yesterday was day 1 and I must say, so far so good. Banana Bruschetta for Breakfast, Yoghurt for Morning Tea, Roast Beef, Avocado and Cottage Cheese Wrap for Lunch and it was meant to be Grilled Fish for Dinner but not being a fish fan I looked through the tonnes of substitute recipes and made Asparagus and Sweet Potato Soup (YUM!). Also thought this would be good to have in the freezer for those nights when I get home and don't feel like cooking (I know they will happen!)

I was so strong at morning tea as it was a staff members birthday over the weekend so there was cake everywhere! But I held strong and sat away from it and munched down on my yoghurt.

The lunch was delicious although it was made at about 6:30am and not eaten until about 1:15pm it was a little soggy! Another downfall of being a teacher..

My difficult time is always that stretch between when school finishes and dinner and today I will say I was starving! I got home from work and had a couple of slices of the Bega Light Cheese that is on the allowable snack menu before changing and heading off to the gym for a Zumba class....or so I thought...there lay my first fail. I turned up an hour late! On the class sheet they gave me it has that Zumba was a 5:45 so I turned up at 5:30 only to discovered that it had just finished. :-(
So instead I jumped on the tready and the bike and tried the best I could. I know that I would not have burnt as many calories as I would have doing the Zumba class but I like to think of that saying "Even if you are walking you are lapping everyone sitting at home on the couch!"

So it's early early days but I am feeling good, fingers crossed I can keep it up!

Today I am linking up for the first time with Essentially Jess for IBOT