Want

I love this dress,  I saw it today walking past Max.  The only problem is, is that Max has most of their clothes (if not all) made in China and I try and avoid purchasing clothes that are made in China.  I'm going to have to have a think about this one.....

Sore

My abs are sore, my butt is sore and my shoulders and chest are sore.  It was the 200 crunches, 250 lunges and 100 push ups from yesterday!  I hope I develop those long, lean muscles*

*just kidding

I actually did enjoy that workout though.  I initially was trying for five sets, and because I didn't feel so tired by the time I reached five sets, I decided I'd go for ten!

I've been getting up early this week; between 6:30-7am.  I know that's not early for most people, but it's early for me as I'm not in the habit of getting up early.  I'm trying to train myself to be more awake in the morning because eventually I'd like to start training in the morning again.  I really would like to try the high frequency training method, up to 5-6 times a week.  I'm not sure how I will cope with it, but like everyone else that is into weight training, I have weight trained 5x a week in the past following a typical body part split and I am still alive to tell the tale.  My lower body workouts in particular were harsh; back in the day I remember doing about 7 different exercises for my legs/lower body, as heavy as I could go for about 3-4 sets of 20 reps.  I could barely walk up the gym stairs afterward (I used to semi-pull myself up the stairs using the railing) and still had to stumble home.  The walk home was about 30 minutes from the gym. Luckily the walk was pretty much all uphill, because unless you're an idiot you can't really fall uphill.  I'm sure that with some determination and will, 3-4 exercises with less reps five times a week is doable for me.

I'm feeling better today than I did this time last week so I am optimistic about getting to the gym tomorrow after work and having an excellent workout.  I'm a bit apprehensive about my deadlifts though; have not attempted those in 2 weeks now and the last workout with them wasn't feeling too promising.  I shall see tomorrow!

And because this is a random post, here's a random picture of Daisy from the other day.  She's eating a snack here

Middle of the Night Post

Just a post for me to have a moan.  I just finished half watching a movie, it's late, I go to bed and toss and turn for half an hour; I can't sleep cos my joints are aching.  I should have taken damn ibuprofen even though I wasn't feeling too bad previously. Now I'm up, I've swallowed 600mg of ibuprofen and I'm waiting for it to kick in before I go back to bed.

While I'm up I may as well post further.

As you may have gathered from the lack of training posts this week, I haven't actually trained this week.  There are a combination of reasons: laziness, busyness, tiredness and no motivation.  I'm hoping to get back into it next week, kicking off with a run around the block tomorrow. I haven't been running in a while actually, but I should do alright.

Today

My birthday today February 2nd when I turned the big 3.2. Unfortunately I feel like I turned 64, so I am dreading the day when I actually turn 64 as I'm probably going to feel like HELL.

I had a pretty nice day today.  I took the day off work (yesterday too, so I had a four day weekend) and we went to Butterfly Creek which is a mini zoo with fish, reptiles and farm animals.  I actually only really went to see the bunny rabbits and I have been going around for the past two weeks calling it "Bunny Creek". They have a mock farm yard there with about 20-30 bunny rabbits there!  I was in bunny heaven!  They were all so cute and had quite a few baby rabbits there.  One thing I wasn't too happy about was the fact that they bred rabbits there.  The fellow that worked there was trying to get me and Matt to take a bunny home.  He said he normally only approaches people who he thinks will give the rabbits a good home.  I guess he saw me baby talking and fawning over the rabbits HAHA!  Firstly, since we don't really have room for another rabbit and secondly I don't really support places that breed animals I wasn't really keen to take one home, even as cute as they were.  If I'm going to get another rabbit it will be from the SPCA where no one loves them and they need a home. I did feel sorry for all the little baby bunnies that had silly children handling them, especially the ones that were screaming that "they wanted to hold a bunny too!!" (cry me a river kid!!)  Although rabbits are docile creatures (most of the time) once tame, they still are prey animals by nature so do get scared easily and aren't as confident with people as cats or dogs.

Here are a few pictures I took of the animals

This lil fella was rolling about in the coral.  So cute!!  I love Clown Fish, they're so colourful

 

 

 

Moth or butterfly?  It was huge!

These red and black butterflies were pretty.  Matt was wearing a red t-shirt and they kept landing on him!  I was wearing a floral dress, but none of them liked me!  Perhaps I didn't smell like a flower? LOL

Cute little babies resting

I is washing my ear!

This beautiful girl had given birth that morning.  She was busy fussing about her pen.

Recovering from being tormented by devil children

Soft, fluffy and adorable *melts*

Yesterday was awesome too.  In the morning I had a Chinese Pedicure at Bliss Reflexology which starts with a foot soak, then they scrape all the dead skin off your feet with sharp blades and then tidy up the toenails.   It is WAY better than a regular pedicure as it is more hygienic (your feet soak in a disposable plastic bag in a wooden bucket) so no toe jams floating around from the previous person. I don't think I'd ever have a regular pedicure at the run of the mill mass produced places again. Although the massage chair is nice and having the nail polish is fancy, all I think about is getting a fungal infection! In the afternoon I had a lovely face and body treatment and About Face.Work kindly gave me a gift voucher for Christmas for a beauty therapy treatment so I redeemed that.  It involved a foot soak, back scrub, back massage and then mini facial.  It was lovely and the therapist Nancy was so kind and professional.  After all that relaxation I went to the movies and saw Black Swan; great movie but kind of disturbing in some parts!  I also must add that I walked everywhere yesterday! I walked to all my appointments and the movie which probably adds up to almost 2 hours of walking at a good pace in total so by the end of the day I was pretty tired.

Back to reality tomorrow with an 11 hour day at work *sigh*

No Cookies This Week!

I didn't have time this weekend to participate in the 12 Weeks Of Christmas Cookies!   Boohoo!  I find my social calendar is either feast or famine;  usually I will have nothing on for weeks and then next thing you know I have things on Friday, Saturday and Sunday!  This weekend I had to go into the city on Friday evening to get a special Christmas gift, on Saturday I had a workmate's farewell and then on Sunday I had my sister, brother in law and niece over for lunch.  By the time they had left, I was just far too tired to attempt to do any more cooking and my kitchen was a mess anyway.

If I have time to today (and energy) I will try and make something this afternoon/evening.

Confessions

I want to quit lifting.

There, I said it.

I'm sick of it.  I've lost motivation and I don't know how to get it back.  I'm desperate to get it back.  I've even toyed with the idea of doing bodybuilding again because I had so much motivation back then. Maybe I want the discipline I used to have but I don't want to put the work in.  Am I lazy or do I just have different interests now?  I don't know.

I do know that unlike most people I feel better physically when I don't work out.  I can actually get up in the morning for work without it being a huge struggle.  I enjoy that.  Mentally though, I feel so much better when I do work out.  I feel like I've accomplished something when I go to the gym and have a good weights session followed by a bit of heart pumping cardio.

One reason why I don't want to quit is because I've set myself some pretty big goals.  I wouldn't mind quitting lifting after I've met these goals but I would feel like a failure if I didn't reach these goals before I quit.
I have aimed to bench press 100kg raw for nearly two years now.  I've also set myself the goal of breaking the current Commonwealth record for the deadlift which at the moment is 190kg.  None of these goals can be reached if I sit on my ass.  They also cannot be reached if I go to the gym maybe once a week.  They require some commitment. Probably more than "some" commitment, more like a lot of commitment.

I don't know what to do.  I feel like I need a break for a month or two (at least) but I don't want to take one because if I do take a break my strength will dwindle and I don't want to spend a lot of time building my strength up.  I feel like I'm stuck!  I've thought about just sucking it up and making myself go to the gym but when it comes down to it I REALLY don't want to go.


These are my thoughts.  Do you have any thoughts or words of encouragement or wisdom? Help!

Baking Soda

Not only good for baking, but damn good at cleaning too.  I'd read about it time and time again being used for household cleaning and I just tried it out myself a few weeks ago.  Holy cow!... it works the same if not better than my regular household cleaners.  Not only is it effective, but it's gentle on your home and the environment.
Try it today!!

And that's all I need to say about that.

I do want to say that I'm scared to go to the physio for my hamstring on Thursday morning.  It's going to hurt so bad.  I actually hate my legs being massaged, I find it very sensitive, especially my hamstrings.  I might end up crying like a baby (I hope not).  I have another day to psych myself up for it!

Made me LOL

....especially since I'm hating my job right now

No training today.  Soccer practice was cancelled as it has been raining pretty heavily all day today and the fields were closed.  Hopefully I will get to post my training plan tomorrow once a certain someone gets off his ass and writes my program.

Hair

I went to the hairdresser yesterday to get my hair cut and he told me that my hair was almost "too healthy".  I thought that was quite funny, but he said something about my hair being on the acidic side.  I was super impressed with him anyway.  For the first time a hairdresser did not freak out at the fact I use my hair straightener frequently and he was pretty much able to read what I needed for a hairstyle based on the condition of my hair, how I like to wear it and how it will "act" in certain weather conditions.  The best haircut I've had ever. Most hairdressers I have been to in the past either 1. Can't believe that I used a hair straightener almost daily or 2. Freak out that I use a hair straightener almost daily, and then look at my hair and realise that no, it's not as damaged as they made out it would be. Morons.

I have noticed a huge difference in my hair over the past few years and wonder if it has something to do with my diet.  First of all the texture has changed -- it used to have a natural wave - not too curly but enough to be nice.  Now it's full of curls (HAET!!).  Secondly it has turned almost oily.  I have had to refrain from putting too much conditioner in my hair.  When I do put it on, I just put a little in only and just enough to detangle my hair.  I don't leave it in, I basically just quickly massage it though (kinda like I'm shampooing the ends) and then wash it out.  If I put in slightly too much, my hair is an oil slick.  Now, my hair used to be quite dry - I used to buy deep conditioning treatments all the time; those V05 oil capsule things.  I used to treat it like a newborn baby - combed it gently, never pulling it roughly.  I even gave up using brushes because I thought it damaged my hair.

My hair's current state has it's pros and cons.

Pros
1. I can use the crap out of my GHD irons and not worry about damaging my hair.  I don't even use a heat treatment product with it (perhaps I should?).
2. My hair is always sleek and super shiny


Cons
1. HAET curls.  My natural curls anyway.  I look like a damned poodle.  I also hate the feeling of too much hair around my face, which is what it feels like when my hair is in it's natural state; like a huge bush around my face.
2. The oil slick thing.  The feeling when your hair has been freshly washed and dried and it looks oily...gah, I hate that.  Funny enough, I can still go 3-4 days between washes, because I don't keep producing more and more oil.

So anyway, I mentioned that I think it might have something to do with my diet.  I've noticed this change over the last 2-3 years and this coincides when I really started focusing on my diet and training.  My diet changed from moderate everything to pretty much high protein, moderate fat and low to moderate carbohydrate.  I also take omega-3 fatty acids (6-10 per day when I remember), kelp,  women's multivitamin and Vitamin D.  The omega-3s and multivitamins have been pretty consistent over the past few years.  The other two I have added over the past year due to change in location.

Just wondering, has anyone else out there noticed a change in their hair since they adopted the bodybuilding/high protein type diet?

I am such a doofus

I am so annoyed with myself right now.  I was supposed to go to a seminar tonight for continuing education points and because I didn't bother to read the RSVP properly, I not only went to the wrong place, I got the wrong time too. By the time I realised I was in the wrong place by the time I could get to the right place I was going to be an hour late. GAH!!

My ankle is still sore, from what I don't know. I was having dreams last night about my ankle being sore because it hurts at night while I'm sleeping. What a pain (pun intended, kinda). I missed my step class yesterday because it would have been a horrible idea to go to step class with a sore ankle. I should have gone to the gym tonight but I just felt kinda lazy. I might squeeze it in after work on Thursday but we'll see.

Unwell

I feel so tired today.  I came home from work early as my body has been aching so bad.  I think I have some mild inflammation of my joints as some of them feel quite warm.  Hopefully I will be better tomorrow so I can do my workout.....I definitely did not make it to the gym this morning!

This Weekend

No workouts this weekend.  All I did was go for a 1/2 hour walk this afternoon.  I'm planning on doing a quick power workout tomorrow and then a step class; I'm looking forward to it.

Eats this weekend have been awful actually.  We had KFC for dinner last night (I had 4 pieces of chicken + potato and gravy).  Today I hardly ate anything: Yoghurt with Pumpkin butter, 100g of Lindt Chili chocolate, some chocolate covered popcorn and a Steak dinner with vegetables.  Not nearly enough protein.  I don't know what it is, but on my days off I don't really feel hungry at all.  It's kinda strange.

I didn't do much today: did some house work, napped, watched a movie and went shopping for an hour.  I saw some nice stuff while I was out shopping so I think I might have to save up to get a new outfit.  It will be mainly for work.  This is what I bought today with some birthday money I got:

 

Just a top for casual wear but it's made of 100% fine merino wool.  I have a few tops in the same brand and they're awesome.  As it's made from natural fibers you can wear it for a few days and it doesn't smell at all.  I hate it when you buy t-shirts and as they get older they start to stink even if you wash them regularly.  This type of top doesn't do that - it's fantastic.

RIP

Sad day today.  I went to my friend's father's funeral.  I'm a baby at funerals... even if I don't know the person very well I still cry.  I did know my friend's father fairly well, he was a very nice man.  He loved to talk and we had some interesting conversations about the most obscure topics.

Some of you may have also heard of the earthquake and tsunami in the South Pacific which affected Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga.  Well, my Aunt, Uncle and my cousin's two babies were killed by the tsunami.  They apparently had about 5 minutes to try and save themselves but did not make it.  Along with them, my mother's family home perished.  So much destruction.

Anytime people I know die, I always lie awake at night thinking about them and life in general.  So, this week I've had quite a few late nights lying in bed thinking.  Anyway, I don't really have much else to say about it so I'll leave it at that.

My Nemesis

This is my nemesis, Freddie.  

She's an asshole.  Every morning is journey to the center of the earth in her litter box - she just doesn't stop bloody digging until someone yells at her.  She's whiny.  She acts like her shit don't smell but it stinks and she never covers it properly.  Her breath smells like something from the depths of hell.  She looks like she's either plotting to kill me or rip my face off.  Case in point:

She stalks me.  She traps me into being nice to her but then turns arounds and bites me or scratches me.  Cats are bastards.  This little cartoon sums it up nicely.

100th Post!

This marks my 100th post and to celebrate, I made a pie!


Well, actually, I made the pie just because I bought a load of pears the other day because they were on special at the supermarket and I needed to use them up.

The pie was really very delicious. There's only like a 1/4 of it left now... haha!

Pear Pie
6 pears, cubed
2/3 cup splenda or your choice or sweetener or even regular sugar
2 Tbsp plain flour
2 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
1/2 tsp crushed ginger
1 unbaked 9" pie shell or your own pastry lining a 9" pie pan

Mix pears, sugar, flour, citrus juice and ginger in a bowl. Pour into pie shell and back at 190 degrees Celsius for 45 minutes.

Most fruit pie recipes have crumble type topping but I decided to make a meringue type topping instead. I used 2 eggs and whipped until they formed still peaks, then added about 1/2 cup of castor sugar and beat it into the egg mixture. About 10 minutes before the pie was done I took it out of the oven and smothered on the meringue mixture and baked for a further 10 minutes.

This weekend has been pretty relaxing. I still have another day to go before my weekend is officially over. I only worked half a day this Saturday and Saturday night we went out for dinner. I had Barramundi (fish) baked with lemon butter sauce, chips and salad. The lemon butter sauce did not fare well in my tummy. An hour later after sitting in pain I absolutely had to go to the toilet. It happens a lot actually, any time I eat something very creamy or buttery or fatty that I don't usually eat, I get the runs really bad (TMI, sorry). I hate my stomach sometimes - it's either bloated or complaining about something I ate.

Anyway, after dinner we went to the bar for beers, conversation and people watching. Met up with a few friends and stumbled home about 1am. Today, I woke up about 8am and really didn't do anything all day. Just read blogs and napped and watched a bit of TV. I found some nice recipes that I want to try out too.

No training at all this weekend. I was meant to go to the gym yesterday to get in an upper body workout and cardio - that never happened. Today I thought I'd go for cardio and that never happened either - just wasn't in the mood for it. Not to worry, I did need a rest as I have been feeling very tired lately.

I still have some pears here that I will use tomorrow. I'm thinking of making chicken, pear and walnut salad for lunch. Also, I found a few soup recipes I want to try. One is an avocado soup the other is a mushroom and walnut soup. Yum! I also just acquired a Ginger Pear Pumpkin Soup recipe... I do have some pumpkin in the fridge too. Oh, the possibilities!

10 Things About Me....

There is a fun thread on a forum I visit called "10 Things You May Not Know About Me" I thought I'd post mine here.

10. I wanted to be a scientist when I grew up.
9. I taught myself how to knit and swim by reading books
8. I had 2 medical operations before I started school
7. I used to be obsessed with insects when I was a kid
6. I've visited over 15 countries in my 20's and I prefer travelling alone
5. I earned a degree in Optometry and paid off my huge loan by the age of 25
4. I was very religious until the age of 21. I am now an atheist.
3. I used to be addicted to sweets/candy (especially those gummy ones). Now I hardly eat them
2. I actually like Shape Magazine
1. I can eat a 1kg steak with sides in under 30 mins

The Weekend is here!

Ahhh, it's the weekend!

I've actually been quite tired this week - it must be the low calories. I've been ready for bed at about 10pm every night this week. Normally for me that doesn't happen until about 11-11:30pm.

I had a good day at work today and a discussion with one of my work mates gave me an idea of pursuing a slightly different career path.  I've been thinking about it for a while actually, but the discussion put it more into action in my mind.

No training or cardio today.  I was going to go for an optional brisk walk, but when I got home it started raining quite hard so I didn't bother.

Meals today:

M1 - Protein Shake

M2 - Sundried Tomato and Capsicum Tuna

M3 - Baked fish and Spinach Soup

M4 - Raw Fish Salad (Oka)

That spinach soup is really good.  It tastes pretty good and it's really filling!  One of the members on the Extreme Physique forums added salsa/tomatoes to it and she said it was very good.  

Don't know what I'm up to tomorrow.  One of my friends invited us to go for lunch on a little island - still debating whether to go as I don't feel like watching them eat food and drink beer :-( Ah well.

Sewing!

I've almost finished my first garment! I spent a few hours sewing today.... and I was so tired by the end of it! It makes sense I guess because it takes a lot of concentration, especially since I haven't sewn for a long time. I remembered a few things from many years ago such as setting up the machine to sew. I was also pleased to discover I can still sew straight... LOL. Just a few things to do before my skirt is finished.

I just bought a new cordless upright vacuum for our apartment on ebay then discovered a 10% off voucher in my email inbox *me throwing a tantrum here* I could have saved $20....GAH! I get really annoyed at this kind of thing...LOL.

My bench workout didn't happen today. The gym is open limited hours on Sunday and I got up late. Tomorrow! Do I sound like a procrastinator or what?

In other news, I've reached the peak of my fatness. I'm actually nicknaming myself "Tubby" :-P So this week in between having some drinks for New Years I'm going to be watching my diet - good, "clean" protein, fruits and vegetables. My diet this past week has been TERRIBLE. Too little good food, too much alcohol and a few too many sweets. It's been a fun past 3 months since my competition.

Merry Christmas!

Everyone!!

Hope you all had a great Christmas, I had a nice quiet one at home. I made roast pork, garlic roasted asparagus and red onion and potato gratin. We snacked on chocolates and fruit cocktails during the day.

I received a very nice an unexpected gift from my husband. A sewing machine!! I am very excited as I've wanted to learn (or re-learn) to sew for a while now. Today I went out and bought some cheap material to practice on and a pattern and good material to make a nice simple skirt. I hope it turns out okay. I shall show you the end result :-P My aim is to make my competition suit for next year among other things! Here it is:


I just got home tonight from dinner and some drinks. We went to this place called Outback Jacks and I did the 1kg rump steak challenge. You have to eat 1kg/2.2lbs (raw weight) rump steak, potato wedges and vegetables in under 30 minutes. With the potatoes and vegetables it ends up being 1.7kg of food. I was the first girl to do it The amount of food wasn't the hard part - I started to get sick of the taste of steak. It reminded me of the time I couldn't eat my tuna during comp prep because if I ate another bite I was gonna barf. I got close to that with the steak but I managed to eat it all.

I got a t-shirt from it too and it's a nice one My friend told me to wear it at the gym as there are heaps of guys there that tried it but couldn't do it LOL. Not sure if it's something to be proud of, but I got a half price meal and a t-shirt out of it so it's a score!

Tomorrow I'm off to the gym to get my 91kg/200lb bench press. Wish me luck. All that rump steak should make me strong.

Checking In

I promise I will update this properly tomorrow. I've just been very tired these last few days. I've been getting home from work and crashing and missing out on my dinner! Poor tummy. I did train on Tuesday and Wednesday, but will update the details tomorrow.

Tonight I was busy doing my Christmas cards to family and friends overseas. Tis the season!