Lunch

To continue on the inventive streak (due to a lack of desire to go shopping) this is today's lunch:

LENTIL, GRILLED EGGPLANT AND PINE NUT SALAD with a Greek yoghurt dressing.

Kj: 1050 (251cal) Carbs: 21g Protein: 15g Fat: 12g


It was a little bit bland, so I'll have to try and add some more flavour if I make it again, but otherwise good. And definitely healthy!

Getting inventive

I'm getting my act together again!

For around a month I have been trying out intermittent fasting, where I would fast for 24 hours twice a week. It seems to have been really working for me; it quickly got me over my first plateau and I've lost around 4kg since I started it. It also made me slightly more relaxed with food, not having to worry so obsessively about calories on the non-fast days!

Unfortunately I think I'll have to stop doing it for the time being. I only get 1200 calories a day on the 12wbt and I shouldn't be eating less than that overall. Plus I can't imagine doing a hard workout without food! I also think that having to be consistently good with my food from day to day will be good for me, as it's something that I've struggled with.

So I've been getting pumped for the start of the 12wbt, going all out in my workouts and getting strict with my food again for the past few days.

Tonight I was tested. The parents went out for dinner. My brother comes in and says to me, "There's steak and some sausages we can have for dinner. I want steak". I tell him I don't eat sausages and there's enough steak for both of us since I only need 100g. When I go into the kitchen to cook my dinner I see what he's left me... A tiny bit of steak that's practically all fat. Basically the scraps I would cut off my meat! Are all brothers so selfish? So I had to get inventive with the (extremely limited) food we had in the house and create myself a healthy meal. I actually have fun doing this, so it wasn't so bad! I like setting myself calorie targets and then trying to get as close as I can to test myself.

This is what I came up with:

MEXICAN STYLE SWEET POTATO MASH with green beans

Kj: 1,623 (388cal) Carbs: 53g Protein: 18g Fat: 11g

I often get my mum to try and guess the kilojoules when I make meals, because while she generally eats healthily, she tends to underestimate how quickly things can add up. And when you're trying to lose weight, this knowledge is important!
She guessed 1,200kj for this meal because it's deceptively small. But the cheese and sour cream will do it every time! Even when they're low fat and portion controlled. You just have to decide if it's worth it.

Tonight it totally was! But only because I have been good today and had enough calories left over ;).

Really pushed myself today

Today I feel great! It's like I've come back refreshed and raring to go after a slight lapse in the past week or so.

It's funny how both times I've hit a major milestone (running 5km and now losing 10kg) I kind of lose my focus a bit and start thinking "well, now what?". You would think that the success would be an extra motivator to spur you on, but for me it feels like a slump. I've worked so hard and have been looking forward to reaching the goal, but then I do reach it and I feel awesome... until I start thinking about the next goal. It's like starting at the beginning all over again I guess, knowing you have to make more changes and work even harder. And the confusion about what these changes should be, food and exercise wise, just makes it worse. So instead of deciding what to do next I just do nothing... Sitting in the glory of my latest achievement for just a tad longer!

I guess that's why I thought the 12wbt would be good for me. This way I will always know the next step to take to push myself to the next level.

I'm not sure why, but as I said, I feel great today! And full of determination again. I'm thinking it might have something to do with posting my progress picture. It made me look at my ultimate goal again and see the 10kg loss for what it was, progress, but not the complete journey. I like to put everything I have into my latest short-term goal, but when I start isolating them too much I lose track of the bigger picture. There is still a lot more to do and now is not the time to start slacking off!

The 5th 12wbt preseason task was released today, but I couldn't really do it. Which I'm kinda proud of actually. We were meant to throw all our rubbish food in the rubbish (where it belongs), but I actually didn't really have any of these kinds of foods in my house. This is probably because I've already taken steps to be healthier (eg. Eliminated sweetened beverages), plus a combination of my nutrition education and my upbringing I would say. That's definitely one thing I can thank my parents for. I might have felt deprived with my brown bread and watered down juice when all the other kids had chips/ roll-ups/ soft drink/ fruit loops etc, but I am so grateful now for the healthy, varied diet I was brought up with.

The main problem I face is having tempting foods brought home by a family member as I don't have the authority to throw it out! But luckily this doesn't happen too often and we don't really share the same taste in junk food. I just have to watch out when my stepdad arrives home bearing armfuls of ice creams because the work fridge has malfunctioned again!

So instead of completing today's task, I challenged myself in another way. At the gym. For 2 hours! Normally my workouts don't exceed 45 minutes, so when I saw that the Saturday Sessions on the 12wbt can be up to 2 hours and that I should burn 1000 calories (my usual is 300-500) it did freak me out a little bit. So I tested myself today with a pump class followed by a CX-Works class and then 30 minutes of cardio. Almost burnt 700 calories, which is not bad considering most of if was strength training. Needless to say, not quite so daunted by the prospect of a 2 hour workout now!

P.S. I'm sure the exercise also added to me feeling so excellent today.

P.P.S. 1000 steps tomorrow! Will finally get to test their calorie burning powers.

P.P.P.S. I really love my heart rate monitor :-P.

Being proud and putting my achievements out there!

I've been thinking that since I put my goals for the future out there for anyone to see, I should be able to look back and put what I've already achieved out there too. In the form of progress pictures!

This is really daunting for me because it gives people a glimpse of me at my worst, and you can't get more vulnerable than that! But it also shows just how far I've come in the last 5 months and that effort really pays off (which we all need reminding of every now and again).

So I'm going to be brave and post my first 10kg loss. If it can motivate and inspire even one person, that's an added bonus, but ultimately this is for me. I need to stop being ashamed of my past self, embrace the present and look forward to reaching my ultimate goal; being the fittest, healthiest, happiest version of myself... With a rockin' body ;).

So without further ado...

Commitment to myself

The current 12wbt pre-season task asks us to put our goals out there and make a public commitment to achieving them. This task couldn't have come at a better time.

For the past week I have found myself floundering a bit. With a few weeks still to go until the start of the 12wbt I am at a bit of a loss and have noticed some old bad food habits returning. And with all my assignment due dates arriving, I have been a bit slack on the exercise front... Though the fact that my new concept of slacking off still involves 3 workouts this week suggests that not all is lost!

So this post is really more about a recommitment to myself. I have worked really hard to lose those first 10kg and if I want to reach my goal weight I will have to work just as hard over again and then work to maintain it! So here are my commitments to myself from here on;

MY COMMITMENTS TO MYSELF

Food-

• I will stop eating because I am bored/ sad/ happy/ the food is there. 
• I will stop eating secretly. If I feel ashamed of my behaviour there is a good reason for it. 
• I will stop eating chocolate and lollies and ice creams just because the 12wbt is coming up. Sure, they won't be on the menu, but it's only 12 weeks. I've been minimising these foods for the last 4 months anyway with no dramas. I will not let myself be threatened by the idea that some foods are off limits. 
• I will stop eating the calories that I burn through exercise. Doing a workout is no excuse for over eating or eating crap. 
• I will start fuelling my body with healthy, nutritious food... Consistently! 
• I will stick to the 12wbt food plan. 

Exercise- 

• I will keep up my current exercise regime of 5 days per week with a minimum of 2 strength days until the 12wbt begins. Then: 
• I will stick to the 12wbt exercise plan. I will work harder than I have in my life to become the fittest version of myself ever. 

Mind- 

• I will believe I can achieve my goals 
• I will leave all my doubts and past failures behind 
• I will be proud of my achievements 

All these add up to my ultimate commitment; to lose 7kg during the 12wbt and reach my goal weight. 

I know this will be a challenging 12 weeks, but I am prepared to do the hard work. 

I am recommitting to the journey. Starting now. 

Let's start again!

So, this is my third attempt at blogging. Third time's a charm, right?

I started my journey towards a healthier me in November 2012 because I felt disgusting and miserable, having reached 75kg. My heaviest ever!

Having failed before, I was determined to do things right this time. That meant diet AND exercise. A huge challenge, since I have loathed exercise for most of my life. While I know that a healthy diet is the major player in weightloss, I had finally worked out that I wanted more than that. I wanted to be fit and toned, I wanted more energy, I wanted to sleep well and I wanted to be happy.   

As a nutrition student, I know a lot about healthy eating, but I still had a long way to go in terms of portion control, getting on top of my sweet tooth and my tendency to eat due to boredom, or just about any other emotion!

I started exercising 4 or 5 days a week and kept at it for about 5 weeks. This was a huge achievement for me, but I became disheartened by the lack of results. A knee injury set me back even further and the exercise stopped around Christmas. Then came all the food and alcohol that mark the festive season and I felt like I was back where I started.  

It wasn't until mid January (after attending a wedding feeling bloated and revolting) that I decided to quit feeling sorry for myself and do something about it. My knee was fine again, the parties were over. There were no excuses!

This time I decided to be much stricter with my food and to focus on cardio for the time being, particularly learning to run. Finally I saw results. And fast!

As of last week I have officially lost 10kg and can run 6.5km on a good day!

Since the weather is getting colder (and wetter!) and I wanted to start doing some strength training now I've lost a bit of weight, I finally caved last month and joined a gym. I was hesitant since I've wasted a lot of money in the past, but I figured I'd been doing the exercise thing for long enough that it had become a habit. So far, so good! Though the weights area still scares me!

While I am now within the healthy weight range (according to BMI), I still have a lot of body fat, especially around my stomach (not the healthy kind!) and figure that I should lose at least another 7kg. To me, this will be the most challenging part. So when I saw a post about Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation on facebook, I was extremely tempted. This could be just what I need. If I can get my eating and exercise spot-on for 12 weeks, those 7kg will be history!

I asked around about the 12wbt and EVERY single person had positive things to say about it, or knew someone who had loved it. That sealed the deal for me. So after getting my mum to commit to the food with me, I signed up.

The 12wbt will be starting in a few weeks, making it the perfect time to start blogging again. This way I can track my progress and be accountable as I embark on the final, but probably most difficult, stretch of my journey towards a healthy, happy me. Wish me luck!