Down, down, down

Blood test results are in! My cholesterol has dropped from 6.0 (measured mid-August) to 5.4 (measured at the end of November). My doctor is pleased with my results and said to continue what I am doing (as it still needs to come down a bit more). I have been following the principles outlined in the Portfolio Diet since mid-October, but have added more plant-based sources of protein in the last couple of weeks to support my training. My doctor thinks that doing regular exercise is helping too.

Today's exercise:
- foam rolling
- High Tension, Slow-Mo: Push-ups & Pull-ups
- 10 minutes stair stepping
- walk TJ

I got freaked out while walking TJ this morning as a staffy came running up to us (TJ has been bitten by a similar dog in the past). All good though - turns out it was only a (big) puppy and wanted to play. He and TJ had a great time playing in the water and TJ was still super-excited when we got home. He didn't want to have his lead taken off...



He eventually slowed down for a towel-dry...



Then decided he still wanted to play


He's still just a puppy at heart!

---

Breakfast: mix of oats, water, Sunwarrior rice protein, cinnamon, flax meal, walnuts, almonds and mixed berries; mandarin

Snack: Vega protein shake

Lunch: lentil salad with olive-oil dressing

Snack: warm tofu and vege salad with olive-oil dressing

Dinner: porterhouse steak, mashed garlic cauliflower with Flora pro-active; glass of cab merlot

Snack: Vega protein shake (half serve) with cacao powder

Monday

Have been feeling wrecked the last couple of days due to TOM, plus Saturday's indulgences.

I planned to go for a 20-minute jog this morning but ended up doing an hour walk with Rob and TJ, plus Rob's friend Luke and his lab Harvey. It was a nice alternative.

Breakfast: mix of oats, soy milk, flax meal, mixed spice, Sunwarrior rice protein, walnuts and mixed berries; mandarin

Snack: Vega protein shake

Lunch: warm tofu and roast vege salad (eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, red onion) with olive-oil dressing; cherries

Snack: leftover shake

Dinner: salmon kebabs, broccoli

Snack: soy hot chocolate

Sunday

Rest day

breakfast: smoothie with Vega protein powder, soy milk, pomegranate juice, strawberries, kiwifruit, avocado, spinach

lunch: felafel patty, salad, boiled egg

snack: soy hot chocolate

dinner: polenta-crumbed veal schnitzel topped with a little lite cheese; broccoli

snack: gluten-free biscuits

Saturday

This morning I did foam rolling, Power circuits and walked TJ.

Breakfast and morning snack were the same as what I've been having the last few days, but after that things were definitely not the same as usual.

Lunch was a felafel patty and a few mouthfuls of salad while getting ready to go to the wedding of our friends, Amanda and Vic



After the wedding we had about three hours' down time before the reception, so we went to a pub. Rob and I shared a vegetable pizza



I had a couple of glasses of sparkling wine and Rob had a tasting paddle of beers



Here we are at the reception with the bride


My place tag


Entree (tomato, basil and mozarella salad; risotto balls; gnocchi in napolitana sauce)


Main (beef fillet - I didn't eat the bernaise sauce), with a glass of shiraz (unpictured)


Cutting the cake (it was chocolate - I took a small piece home but TJ snaffled it out of my handbag!)


First dance


Dessert (limoncello meringue tart; creme brulee; lemon sorbet)


I also had three glasses of sparkling wine over the course of the night.

Rob and I enjoyed our meals, and dancing to the live band. We had a great night!

Friday

No foam rolling this morning - I did a fasted blood test (to check my cholesterol) at 8am and when I got home I just wanted to get into my exercise. I had half a scoop of protein powder then headed out to do sprints then walk TJ. By the time I was done I was pretty hungry.

Breakfast: mix of oats, strawberries flaxmeal, cinnamon, soy milk, rice protein powder and walnuts, plus a mandarin

Snack: Vega protein shake

Lunch: veggie patties, gherkin, mustard, tomato sauce, mixed beans and cabbage

Snack: Soyco Japanese tofu; cabbage wedges dipped in salsa

There was a flash flood here this afternoon. We had lightning and thunder directly over the house, then it hailed and poured with rain.

Here's some of the hail on our back doorstep


This 'river' is actually the street that we live on


snack: soy hot chocolate

Dinner: dory, silverbeet, onion and garlic sauteed in olive oil, sweet potato chips

Snack: ultimate chocolate mousse

Thursday

Exercise:
- foam rolling
- Push-ups on the minute
- walk TJ

Breakfast: mix of oats, strawberries flaxmeal, cinnamon, soy milk, rice protein powder and walnuts, plus a mandarin

Snack: Vega protein shake

Lunch: lentil, tomato and basil salad; leftover asparagus and broccolini

Snack: Soyco Japanese tofu, hummus, celery, capsicum, sugarsnap peas

Dinner: chicken and vege stir-fry with almond butter and tamari

Productive Wednesday

I woke up before my alarm again this morning, which was nice. Got up and did my foam rolling, a B-circuit, and walked TJ for 20 minutes.

Breakfast was a mix of oats, cinnamon, flax meal, soy milk, Vega protein powder and walnuts, plus a mandarin.

After showering and getting dressed I headed into town to drop off my work. Disaster struck on the train - my drink bottle leaked all over my work! When I got into the office I went to the ladies' and dried it off as much as I could under the hand drier. Luckily it was all still legible!

Then it was shopping time! My mission was underwear shopping. To say I hate shopping for underwear is an understatement. I am an odd size - I have a small ribcage but am otherwise 'well-endowed' - so often have trouble finding something to fit. I usually come home from underwear shopping empty-handed and in a foul mood.

After fueling up with an Organic Protein Bar, I headed up Bourke St to Lululemon Athletica to try on Ta Ta Tamer. They were as good as the Fitnessista said they were. The store had two in my size, a black one and a blue one, but blue one didn't sit quite right so I only came away with the black one.

Then it was back down to Bourke St mall and into the David Jones food hall for some chickpea and pumpkin salad, and Morrocan vegetable salad. After lunch I went to the women's underwear section of David Jones to check out their 30% off sale.

First of all I wanted to find a skin-toned strapless bra to go under the dress I'm wearing to a wedding this weekend. I tried on about six and settled on a Calvin Klein one.

That mission accomplished, I then wanted to find some new T-shirt bras. I wanted something without lace (too scratchy) but that didn't look like something your grandma would wear. I tried on a Berlei Barely There bra, which was really comfortable. I could have done with an 8DD but they don't make them in that size, so 10DD it was - three please!

It was a very successful underwear shopping day! I stopped in at Evelyn Faye afterwards to grab a couple of things, then had a cajun tofu salad from Habib Wholefoods on Flinders St before heading home.

Rob had cooked some pork loin chops for dinner, so I had one with some broccolini and asparagus tossed in Flora pro-active.

I'd been craving a Magnum for a couple of days so had one for dessert tonight. I reckon I did about six hours' of walking while shopping today, so enjoyed sitting on the recliner with my feet up eating my Magnum.

The rest of Tuesday

Short and sweet - it's been a long day.

snack: Vega protein powder blended with water and silverbeet

lunch: warm roasted vege salad with eggplant, zucchini, red onion, black beans and olive-oil dressing; leftover cabbage salad

snack: Soyco tofu (Japanese flavour), hummus, celery, cucumber, carrot, sugarsnap peas

nap: I think the maca is helping to give me more energy - my nap was much shorter today (30 minutes instead of 2-4 hours).

dinner: salmon kebabs, mashed garlic cauliflower

No time for a walk this evening (I have a Wednesday-morning deadline to meet for work) - just as well I walked for a bit longer this morning. Have got the next week or so free, so am looking forward to spending a bit more time on my exercise.

Roll on the sunshine!

I'm feeling much better today - even woke up before my alarm this morning! It was a hot night last night though - we didn't think about closing the curtains/shutters upstairs yesterday and it was unbearable up there when I went to bed. I ended up testing out the air-conditiong for the first time - it did such a good job I had to get up and turn it off because I was getting cold.

This morning I did foam rolling, a Spartan Run and walked TJ for 30 minutes (I had only planned to do a 20-minute walk but TJ spotted his 'girlfriend' Mia in the distance and so we walked with them for a while).

Last night before going to bed I soaked some oats, cinnamon and flax meal in soy milk. When I got home this morning I mixed in some rice protein and walnuts, and topped it all with some strawberries. I followed it up with one of our mandarins


It looks like it's going to be another hot, sunny day - I'm blogging from my office with my sunglasses on!

Monday 22 November

My glands aren't up any more, but am still feeling a bit low in energy - just doing foam rolling this morning tired me out! I substituted my planned 20-minute walk/jog with a powerwalk.

For breakfast I had a Bfast Cookie. I used a tablespoon each of maca powder and hemp seeds as my mix-ins.

About mid-morning I had this really pressing need to urinate. I was on my way to drop off some work at the time but was very relieved to get there and use the bathroom!

When I got home I did a bit of Googling and confirmed my suspicion that maca is also a diuretic. The last time I felt like that was when I was taking dandelion root as a natural diuretic to dry me out before competing. So looks like I'll have to start with a smaller amount and work upwards!

For morning tea I had a protein shake (Vega).

Lunch was the same as yesterday (a warm roast veggie salad with eggplant, zucchini, red capsicum, red pepper, chickpeas, and olive-oil based dressing)


For afternoon tea I had Soyco tofu (Japanese flavour), cucumber, celery, carrot, sugarsnap peas, hummus


Before dinner I headed out on another (longer) walk. It was over 30 degrees today, so I opted for a walk along the Craigieburn Wetlands, where it was nice and shady. This time I took my camera! There are big river gums like this all along the walking track


Lately I've been finding Sunday afternoons are a great time to pick up marked-down protein at our supermarket. I scored some snapper skewers reduced to half-price, so we had them for dinner tonight, with periperi butter (made with Flora pro-active and Nando's periperi sauce), plus some cabbage salad


I've been reading a bit of stuff by Brendan Brazier recently (via his Thrive in 30 emails), and liked this suggestion of his:

"Find an activity you truly love, one that genuinely fits with who you are and what you’re about, and you’ll look forward to doing it so much, you won’t waste your creativity coming up with another excuse not to do it—instead, you’ll find creative ways to work it into your busiest schedule!" (Brendan Brazier)

I love walking (and weight training, of course). What's your favourite activity?

Lazy Sunday

Today's exercise consisted of a 60-minute walk with TJ, plus a bit of gardening (weeding, moving a water tank and setting up a compost bin).

Thought I'd do something a bit different with my food log today. Here's what I ate, in pictures:

Saturday 20 November

Glands still up a bit this morning but energy levels better.

On rising: lemon water with BCAAs

60-minute walk with TJ

Breakfast: smoothie with pomegranate juice, soy milk, kiwifruit, mixed berries, lime, avocado, spinach, Vanilla Chai Vega and water

Snack: mandarin; scrambled eggs, tomato, asparagus

Lunch: gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active; tofu stir-fry with ginger, chilli, red cabbage, bok choy and red onions

Gardening: dug out a few unwanted shrubs in an overcrowded section of the garden - hard work! We have a loquat tree in our front yard that has lots of ripe fruit on it at the moment. I decided to make a smoothie to have after gardening (along with some gluten-free fruit bread).

Loquat & Banana Smoothie
- 200g loquats (about five - there's not that much flesh once you take the stones out!)
- 50g over-ripe banana
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I used Sun Warrior)
- ice and water to taste



This was so nice - a tangy (loquat), sweet (banana) combination, a bit like drinking yogurt.

Snack: more stir-fry

Snack: 1.5 glasses sparkling shiraz, cashews

Late dinner: grilled pork loin chop, corn on cob, veggie patty
Thought it would be fun to show you a 'his and hers' shot (mine's the one at the back). Rob was salivating over my shoulder while I was taking the photo...

Friday 19 November

Great start to the day (not) - woke up with DOMS, swollen glands and low energy. Decided to take it easy today and get in lots of antioxidants.

7.00: slow walk with TJ and Rob around the football oval.

7.30: smoothie with pomegranate juice, soy milk, kiwifruit, mixed berries, lime, avocado, spinach, Vanilla Chai Vega and water

11.00: mandarin; scrambled eggs, tomato, asparagus, spinach, mushrooms

2.00: gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active; tofu stir-fry with ginger, chilli, red cabbage, bok choy and red onions

3.30: more stir-fry

7.30: chilli beans, zucchini, mushrooms, silverbeet, avocado, salsa, alfalfa sprouts

9.30: ultimate chocolate mousse (avocado, banana, cocoa, stevia)

Also took some zinc, echinacea and Vitamin C tablets. Hope that does it!

Thursday 18 November

Poor TJ cut his pad on some glass at the park yesterday. He didn't even get off the bed this morning when I got up - he knew he wasn't up for a walk.

Today's workout wiped me out (had a big nap this afternoon) and made me hungry all day.

6.15: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

Foam rolling, then
- Push-up drop sets for 20 minutes
- powerwalk for 40 minutes

8.00: shake with protein powder, soy milk, spinach, banana, BCAAs

8.15: shower and get dressed

9.00: protein powder, oats, cinnamon, cherries, flax meal, walnuts and almonds

11.00: leftover cucumber salad; barley, refried beans, broccoli, salsa, avocado

nap

3.00: almond butter, mandarins

4.00: hummus, raw veggies (carrot, celery, cucumber, sugarsnap peas)

5.00: leftover spiced tofu

8.30: mashed garlic cauliflower with Flora pro-active

I can feel DOMs setting in already...

Wednesday 17 November

Forgot to set my alarm so had a bit of a sleep-in this morning. Didn't shower/dress after morning exercise so I could start/finish work on time and get out and enjoy another walk after work. It's supposed to be wet again tomorrow, so wanted to make the most of the nice weather.

7.00: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

Foam rolling, then
- Basic WOD for 20 minutes
- fast walk with TJ for 40 minutes

8.30: protein shake, banana

11.00: sunflower seeds, walnuts, mandarin

1.00: barley, refried beans, broccoli, salsa, avocado

3.00: protein shake

5.45: 75-minute walk along Cragieburn Wetlands - it was lovely looking at the big river gums growing up out of the water.

7.45: spiced tofu, steamed baby bok choy, cucumber salad

8.30: carrot, pear

Your Perfect Body

'Creating your perfect body for life is not about choosing the best program or diet, it's about arriving at a point emotionally and psychologically where you are genuinely ready to turn your life, your thinking and your body around.' Craig Harper

Tuesday 16 November

6.00 lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

foam rolling then
- 30/30 calisthenics circuit for 20 minutes
- power walk for 20 minutes (explored the neighbourhood a bit more)
- walk TJ for 20 minutes (went to the park)

8.00: protein shake, oats with soy milk, banana, cinnamon and flax meal

shower and get dressed

10.30: (a bit too much) almond butter, pear

3.30: protein shake

5.00: fruit and rice chia bread

6.20: 90-minute walk up to Mt Ridley and back. It was flat most of the walk, with a nice steep bit near the end (I like hill walks). Wish I'd taken my camera - some beautiful views of Melbourne city in the distance.

8.30: mandarin, roast chicken breast, Sichuan slaw: bean sprouts, shredded carrots and celery, minced fresh chili, soy sauce, sesame oil and a bit of palm sugar. Topped with chopped nuts and chopped basil, mint and coriander. Yum!

Consistency Wins

'Before you go psycho trying to figure out your post workout meal or order the latest supplements, realize that if you can just consistently exercise and eat clean then the rest of this stuff just does not matter. ' (Jodi Jones, Cathy Savage Fitness)

Monday 15 November

6.00: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

foam rolling then
- walk/run for 20 minutes
- power walk for 20 minutes
- walk TJ for 20 minutes

8.00: protein shake with spinach and banana; oat-bran porridge with soy milk, cinnamon, flax meal and sugar

shower and get dressed

12.00: refried beans, salsa, rice, broccoli, avocado

3.00: eggplant and bean dip in red pepper 'boat', carrot, pear, pistachios and cashews

7.30: pork loin cutlet, peach and tomato salad, veggie patties

9.30: extra lean chicken sausage with fresh lime and spices

What

In my Why post I asked 'Why do you want to look the way you do?'

Leading on from that, WHAT are you going to do to get there?

In order to maximize their fat loss a lot of people (especially in the bodybuilding world) will cut out a lot of foods - things like wheat, dairy, fruit and even coloured vegetables.

I don't tend to eat a lot of wheat anyway (apart from if I'm on the rebound from a low-carb diet, when I'll eat pretty much anything), as once I start eating it I find it very difficult to stop, and it gives me a rash.

I once would have been horrified at the thought of giving up dairy, but now it usually gives me wind, and I've had some really nasty experiences (including vomitting) with whey protein, so it's no great loss.

I won't give up fruit though - I've gotten the leanest I've ever been eating two serves of fruit a day, so I don't see any reason to give that up.

Likewise with coloured vegetables - no 'lean and green' for me.

I won't do Calorie King either: I'm an obsessive, detail-oriented person - it makes me good at my job - but it means that I input everything I eat down to the nth detail, which isn't fun.

I'm happy to play a bit with nutrient timing (eating most of my starchy carbs around training, which is usually in the morning), as long as I still have energy during the day and can fill up on other things (protein, veges and fat) at night. If my mood and sleep start to go out the window, in come the carbs.

I won't 'deprive' myself of anything - that just makes me grumpy and likely to lose the plot. If I want fruit before bed, I'll have it.

I know that I lose body fat best through cardio, and given that I have a big appetite, and like to eat starchy carbs, fruit etc, that means I'm going to have to move more.

WHAT are you going to do to look the way you want to?

Sunday 14 November

Spent some time today looking through photos of when I was leaner. Thought I'd pop one on my blog each day for a bit of inspiration. This one is from 2006, four weeks before my first competition. I love how my back looks here.



Today's food was pretty simple, just the way I like it.

Brunch: protein shake with banana and spinach; gluten-free toast with almond butter

Snack: eggplant and bean dip in a red pepper 'boat', carrot, pistachios, pear

Dinner: pork loin cutlet, peach and tomato salad, cos lettuce, veggie patty

Why?

When I was out last night I was talking to a friend who often does boot camps in the mornings. When I asked her how it was going, she said she'd stopped going because the instructor put too much emphasis on food, always talking about 'good' and 'naughty' foods, and saying that they should only eat one 'treat' meal a week. She said that she didn't want to live that way, and besides, she got enough pressure from her partner to look a certain way.

My question is, WHY do you want to look the way you do?
- Is it because someone places pressure on you to look a certain way?
- Is it because of the images you see in magazines, on TV etc?
- Is it for health reasons?

I said to my friend that no-one has ever put pressure on me to look a certain way - I do it to myself.

I don't have the goal that many do to be 'skinny'. My goal has always been to be lean. And yes, there is a difference. To me, being skinny means you are thin, but have no visible muscle (the way most models look), whereas being lean means you are muscular with low enough body fat to see those muscles.

Several things inspired me. When I was young one of my friend's mothers did bodybuilding (there was no 'figure' class then) - she was fit and strong (she later became a cop).

I saw Terminator II in my first year at university and wanted Linda Hamilton's shoulders and arms.


During university I spent a lot of time at the gym around bodybuilders, and went to watch a lot of bodybuilding competitions. I wanted to compete in one myself one day.

When we moved to Australia I started working in hospitality and my training became sporadic. I put on a bit of weight, but once I got out of that industry I began eating better and exercising regularly again. A couple of years later I started working for myself and had the flexibility to put more time into my training. I still wanted to do a figure competition but at that stage I was way too small - you could see my abs but I had no other muscle to speak of


I did my first competition 12 months later (and in retrospect that was way too soon) and have since done four more. My last competition was in 2008 and my life since has been a rollercoaster of weight on, weight off. Sometimes I think about doing another competition, but there's no sense in doing that when I'm not stable enough in my day-to-day life. So at the moment I just need to train consistently and eat well. To slowly increase my exercise until I'm lean again. Why? Because it's what I've always wanted.

WHY do you want to look the way you do?

Saturday 13 November

Am trying something a bit different with my meal timing: four bigger meals instead of five or six smaller ones. Am sick of getting hungry every couple of hours.

6.00: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

Exercise:
- foam rolling
- Pulling, pushing and crawling
- walk TJ

7.45: protein shake with banana; oat bran cooked with soy milk, banana and cinnamon, and topped with almond butter and fig jam

12.00: gluten-free wrap with refried beans, capsicum, mushrooms, alfalfa, salsa, avocado and cos lettuce; leftover mashed garlic cauliflower

nap

5.00: hummus, vege sticks (cucumber, carrot, sugarsnap peas), pistachios, pear

9.00: (at Hens Party) 2 glasses sparkling wine, 1 slice pizza, 1 slice bread with eggplant dip, a few hot chips

1.00: pear

Friday 12 November

It's been almost three weeks now since I've had any coffee. Woot!

I've also exercised consistently for almost three weeks, and Rob commented that I haven't been sick yet. Usually when I start exercising consistently I start feeling sick (scratchy throat etc). I now know that I need to consume plenty of antioxidants to compensate for free radical build-up caused by intense exercise (I have a negative variation in the MnSOD gene that results in a 30-40% reduction in antioxidation). I take GliSODin daily, and that helps make that 'scratchy throat' feeling go away. I also take a B-vitamin that contains folate, which can help reduce the effects of free radical damage. My diet is rich in fruits and vegetables, soy and garlic, which are all natural sources of antioxidants.

Over-accumulation of toxic substances called xenobiotics (which include caffeine and alcohol) can also cause flu-like symptoms and low exercise tolerance if the body isn't able to efficiently remove them (and mine isn't), so I think that reducing my coffee and alcohol consumption has really helped too!

6.00: lemon water, Combust, BCAAs

Exercise:
- foam rolling
- Sprint 8
- walk with Rob and TJ

7.30: mix of soy milk, sliced banana, raw oats, cherries, walnuts and diced choc-nut caramel protein bar

7.45: shower and get dressed

10.30: eggplant and bean dip with veggies (sugar snap peas, cucumber, carrot, celery)

12.30 gluten-free wrap with refried beans, avocado, coriander, tomato, alfalfa sprouts

3.00: cashews, pistachios, pear

6.00: 2 glasses sparkling wine

7.00: spiced tofu (tofu simmered with hoisin sauce, ginger, chillies and vegetable stock), mashed garlic cauliflower with Flora pro-active

Thursday 11 November

Was really productive with work today. I think substituting the fibre drinks for real food is working in my favour.

6.45: lemon water, Combust, BCAAs

Exercise:
- foam rolling (Leg DOMs made foam rolling quite painful this morning!)
- push up drop sets
- walk TJ

8.00: mix of soy milk, sliced banana, raw oats, cherries, walnuts and diced choc-nut caramel protein bar


closer view


8.30 shower and get dressed

11.00: hummus, veggies (sugar snap peas, yellow pepper, cucumber, tomato)

12.30: gluten-free wrap with refried beans, red and green capsicum, onions, mushrooms and spinach, salsa and avocado

3.00: mandarins, cashews

5.00: leftover garlic mashed cauliflower with Flora pro-active

6.00: BBQ: 2 salmon kebabs, 1 lamb rib, salad

6.30: ultimate chocolate mousse (made with stevia instead of maple syrup)

9.15: apple

Wednesday 10 November

I've now added a third 20-minute chunk of exercise to my morning. I was doing 20 minutes of training followed by about 20 minutes of walking. I'm now doing 20 minutes of foam rolling, then 20 minutes of training followed by about 20 minutes of walking.

I've just about finished my Metamucil. While it's good to help reduce cholesterol, I've decided not to buy any more as I'd rather try and get my fibre from food sources.

6.00: lemon water, Combust, BCAAs

Exercise:
- foam rolling
- Lower body strength
- walk TJ

7.30: mix of soy milk, sliced banana, raw oats, mixed berries and diced choc-nut caramel protein bar

7.45: shower and get dressed

10.30: hummus and veggies (sugar snap peas, cucumber, carrot, celery)

12.00: gluten-free wrap with refried beans, red and green capsicum, onions, mushrooms and spinach, salsa and avocado


3.00: apple, almond butter

nap: 4.30-7.30 (oops, guess the earlier get-up affected me more than I thought!)

9.00: tofu 'steak' with balsamic syrup; mashed garlic cauliflower with Flora pro-active

11.30: cherries

Tuesday 9 November

I've decided to focus more on foam rolling than stretching as it makes much more of a difference to how I feel. As from tomorrow I'm going to start getting up a bit earlier to fit it in, otherwise I won't get all of my workout done before Rob leaves to take TJ for a walk. I'm waking up just before my alarm at the moment anyway, so it shouldn't be too much of a struggle.

6.15: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

exercise:
- foam rolling
- Spartan Run
- walk with TJ and Rob

7.30: banana shake

7.45: shower and get dressed

9.00: oat-bran porridge with soy milk and mixed berries

11.00: fibre drink, pear

1.00: gluten-free wrap with hummus, falafels, wheat-free tabouleh and chilli sauce (pic below), plus some leftover coleslaw and red cabbage


4.30: fibre drink, apple, almonds

8.30: red pepper and garlic salmon kebabs, last of the okra curry

Signing off now, but expect I will have a piece of fruit before bed.

Congratulations!

To my friend Kat, who placed second at the NPA National British Championships.

Monday 8 November

I did some foam rolling for my legs before heading out this morning. It was painful but made such a big difference to how long I could run for. Unfortunately my running got cut short as TJ bumped into one of his friends (Mia, a boxer) so I slowed down to walk with her owner.

6.15: lemon water, Combust, BCAAs

Exercise:
- foam rolling
- run
- walk with TJ

8.00: banana shake (soy milk, banana, water, berry Metamucil, BCAAs)

8.15: shower and get dressed

10.45: oat-bran porridge with soy milk and mixed berries

12.00: fibre drink, pear

1.45: gluten-free wrap with hummus, falafels, wheat-free tabouleh and chilli sauce; red cabbage

4.30: fibre drink, apple, almonds

7.30: leftover okra curry, tofu and basmati rice

10.00: mandarin

Sunday

I had a bit of an epiphany yesterday while walking TJ. I've been doing a lot of pull-ups (palms facing away from me) lately, which basically puts my shoulder in the same position as it was when I busted it skiing in 1993. And my shoulder has been aching quite a lot lately. So since pull-ups 'hurt' I won't be doing them any more. Rob got into my rhomboids, levator scap and thoracic fascia quite hard yesterday so I'm feeling much looser in that area now. I'll just subsitute chin-ups (hands facing towards me) instead, as they don't seem to bother me.

Along with the BCAAs I received on Friday, I also got a Gym Boss Interval Timer, so I've been playing with it a bit today. Looking forward to testing it out properly on Tuesday!

Today's log:

On rising: Combust with BCAAs (out of lemons)

Exercise: walk with TJ and Rob

Breakfast: oatbran porridge with soy milk, sugar and mixed berries

Snack: pear, fibre drink

Lunch: gluten-free wrap with hummus, felafels, wheat-free tabbouleh and chilli sauce

Snack: apple, almond butter, fibre drink

Dinner: okra curry, tofu, basmati rice

Snack: fibre drink, apple

Saturday

Had breakfast straight after exercise instead of a smoothie like I've been having the rest of the week. Felt wrecked for the rest of the day.

9.15: lemon water with Combust and BCAAs

Exercise:
- 30/90 PUSH-UPS / PULL-UPS + CARDIO
- walk with TJ
- stretching

10.15: ruby red grapefruit, oat-bran porridge with soy milk and sugar

12.15: fibre drink, pear

3.30: gluten-free wrap with falafels, hummus and wheat-free tabbouleh

5.30: apple, almonds, metamucil

8.30: lamb chop, corn cob with Flora pro-active, coleslaw, marinated eggplant

9.30: soy yoghurt, cherries

***edited to add the following***
10.30 3 gluten-free chocolate biscuits

NOvember 5

Lovely to have some sunny weather at last!

6.15: lemon water with Combust

Exercise: sprint pyramid followed by 25-minute walk with TJ

7.30: banana smoothie while stretching

7.45: shower and get dressed into non-bag-lady clothes (jeans, white long-sleeve T-shirt, pink jumper)

8.45: mandarin; oats with soy milk and cherries

11.45: fibre drink, pear

2.00: lentil and roasted eggplant soup, gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active spread

5.00: fibre drink, cashews and almonds, 2 glasses of sparkling wine to celebrate finishing my hell week of work

9.00: apple, Bird's Eye steamed fish with garlic and spring onion, Healthy Choice oven chips, gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active spread

NOvember 4

My appetite seems to have slowed down a bit since last week (PMT), thank goodness.

6.15: lemon water with Combust

Exercise: Max Sets: Push Ups, followed by 25-minute walk with Rob and TJ

My sets were five minutes apart this morning, so I got my stretching done in between.

7.30: banana smoothie, gluten-free toast with Flora Pro-active and St Dalfour four-fruit spread

No time to shower this morning, as I wanted to catch the same train as Rob into the city to drop off my work, but I did get changed into non-bag-lady clothes.

10.30: oats with soy milk, cherries, slivered almonds, cinnamon and stevia

12.30: fibre drink, pear

2.00: lentil and roasted eggplant soup, gluten-free toast with Flora Pro-active

5.30: soy hot chocolate, apple, almond butter

9.30: tandoori tofu, brown rice, garlic spinach and tomato salad from Kek's Good Food blog; Metamucil

NOvember 3

I had the option of posting my work back by 6pm today or working a bit later and hand-delivering it on Thursday morning. The only way I could get it done by 6pm today was if I missed stretching and showering. Since it's NOvember, I said NO to skipping my stretching and NO to staying in bag-lady clothes all day, and decided to work a bit later and hand-deliver the work on Thursday.

I've learnt something interesting about myself this week. If I start feeling tired, yawning and can't concentrate, it could be because I'm dehydrated. Often having something to drink makes this feeling go away (I used to have coffee, but that probably only made things worse!).

Here's todays log:

8.00: lemon water with Combust

Exercise: Squat Thrusts, followed by 25-minute walk with TJ

9.00: banana smoothie

10.30: gluten-free toast with Flora Pro-active and fruit spread; oats with soy milk, cinnamon and stevia; mandarin

12.00: fibre drink, pear

1.30: lentil and roasted eggplant soup, gluten-free toast with Flora Pro-active

3.30: fibre drink, fruit, almonds

7.00: chilli-and-honey tofu, brown rice, asparagus, red cabbage

NOvember 2

Yesterday I celebrated seven days without coffee. But what was even more important was it was also seven days of consecutive exercise. I can't remember the last time I did that. I think that the fact that each bout of exercise is only 20 minutes long really helps. Even if the workout for the day is really hard, I know it's only for 20 minutes, so it seems manageable. And then I follow it up with a walk in the park, which is pure pleasure. On the one day where there's no workout planned, I just do a longer walk. If little and often is the only way I can get exercise done at the moment, so be it.

Three ticks again for me for NOvember...

6.45: lemon water with Combust

Exercise: Physical Fitness Test followed by 25-minute walk with TJ

8.00: banana smoothie while stretching

8.15: shower and get changed into non-bag-lady-clothes (same as yesterday)

9.00: gluten-free toast with Flora pro-active and St Dalfour four fruit spread; oats with soy milk and cherries

12.00: lentil and roasted eggplant soup, gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active

2.00: fibre drink, apple, almond butter

4.30: fibre drink, pear

6.30: Bird's Eye steamed fish fillet (garlic and spring onion) on barley; broccoli, peas, pumpkin and red capsicum

9.30 Cadbury Old Gold rum n' raisin chocolate

NOvember 1

It's seven days since I've had any coffee. Go me! I ended up having a lot of naps last week instead!

Anyway, first day of NOvember today, and I did well on all counts:
NO skipping stretching
NO dressing like a bag lady
NO more than 2 glasses of wine at any one time

Bit of a late start today. It's that time of the month and I always have trouble getting out of bed the first couple of days.

9.00: lemon water with Combust

Exercise:
- run/walk for 20 minutes
- walk TJ for 25 minutes

10.15 banana smoothie while stretching

10.30 shower and get dressed into non-bag-lady clothes: jeans, blue jumper, brown necklace


11.45: oats with soy milk and cherries; gluten-free bread with Flora pro-active and St Dalfour four-fruit spread; Metamucil

2.00: gluten-free toast spread with Flora pro-active and topped with lentil and vegetable dahl

3.00: fibre drink, apple, almond butter

8.30: fibre drink, pear

10.15: salmon, barley, broccoli, pumpkin and peas