end of week wrap up

Wow, it's been a long week and not much blogging going on in my corner of the Universe. Things on the fitness front have been progressing, albeit slowly. I am up to walking on the treadmill at 5.6km/hr and yesterday I went into the RPM room and did a Track 2 by myself - I was huffing and puffing by the end of it - I have really lost quite a bit of fitness. The plan is now to attend RPM three times a week and sit up the back of class and do what feels good and ditch the rest. I estimate it will probably take about six weeks before I feel ready to teach again, but we will see.

Have had two shoulder treatments this week and am achieving much better range of motion. Still have to book in for MRI scan though! I have high hopes of being able to start training with weights again in 4 weeks.

It is amazing how much condition one can lose when you don't consistently exercise - I feel flabby and weak now, but know in the fullness of time, this will be a distant memory. I think achieving a fit body is akin to a small miracle unfolding - it is exciting to progress and get better and better.

Seems like I am PMSing with everyone else in blogland right now - had an unusually large sugar hit yesterday which has seen me pay for my indiscretions with an upset tummy and hangover type headache this morning. Sometimes an ugly eating episode can make you feel so glad you eat well the rest of the time. I feel ordinary now, but in another 48 hours I will be back to my old self. It takes three days to detox from a sugar blowout. I'm sitting here sipping a post dinner peppermint tea - I enjoyed grilled salmon and veggies - a favourite here.

Day Five, Day Six - One Workout Better

Day Five: "training" involved a walk around the block with my two girls doing a bit of "sightseeing".
Day Six: Shannon and I decided to meet up for coffee and chat and I made sure that I whipped into Fitness First and put in 25 minutes on the treadmill. I started off at 5.4km/hr but had to drop to 5km/hr. I am officially the "Treadmill Slayer" - over 5k/hr goal achieved! I had a ball catching up with Miss Shannon. After hubs picked me up we went looking at display villages for new house ideas and I did a lot of walking and going up and down stairs - definitely an active day had by all.
Eating: Have eaten really consistently all day :)

Thoughts about today: The hardest thing coming back from injury or illness is comparing your current self to your pre injury self - this happens to me all the time in the fitness arena. What has really hit home to me is to focus on celebrating the now and the milestones that you achieve in the current journey. Rather than thinking of myself teaching RPM HiPerformance, I am celebrating that I am one step further into my recovery and fitness than I was yesterday - after all, today I made my "treadmill slayer" goal. I had been thinking about when I would next compete, my next marathon, my next adventure race and realized that I had been thinking too big. It is just too much to think of right now - the same feeling I had when I was looking down the barrel of losing 30 odd kilos. It is amazing, however, how much progress you make when you break things into smaller chunks. Tomorrow I see the physio - I have a little less pain in the shoulder now, so things are looking positive there - still a long way to go, but yes, I am one workout better than I was yesterday.

Day Four -Fighting Back by Eating Well

Training today: incidental exercise around the house
Eating: oats, whey, veggie juice, milk, Sydney Breakfast tea
Meal 2: slim secrets bar and small banana
Meal 3: balsamic tuna salad - 2-3 cups mesclun leaves, cherry tomatoes, slice cheese, carrot, cucumber, tuna with 4 star balsamic vinegar. 1 slice Burgen pumpkin seed bread. bunch of grilled asparagus
Meal 4: 170g Dairy Farmers light yoghurt with1/3 scoop whey, 2 cups steamed veggies with cottage cheese
Meal 5: left over risotto and greens
Meal 6: ?

Am not as swollen today but not thrilled by the prospect of the exercise making the swelling worse. Tomorrow's plan is to hop on the spin bike and work those legs again. I knew the TT recovery would take awhile, but when you're actually doing the recovery, it seems like time is moving too slowly for my liking - yet I'm running out of time everywhere else in my life right now. Too weird.

In other news, I've been amazed by the influence of the blogging world. A few weeks ago, folks from Powerade contacted me, asking me if I would like to try their new sports drinks (pre exercise with caffeine, regular powerade and a recovery Powerade with protein) gratis. I took them up on the offer and sure enough a box of Powerade is gracing my desk right now. I'm looking forward to trying it when I'm training hard enough to warrant a sports drink.

Day 3 Back to Base and they call it "Swell Hell"

Today's training: 25 minute walk outdoors. Today I felt like I could walk a bit faster and I enjoyed being outside in the fresh air.
Eating:
Oats, Whey, tomato juice, skim
Stuffed Mushrooms x 2
Turkey,cranberry, tomato melt on Burgen bread
Stuffed Mushroom, half cup Special K (felt like something crunchy)
Risotto with chicken breast, mushrooms and steamed greens
Apple with smudge of cottage cheese.

Despite the exercise, I've been on a real downer today - the cause - what they refer to on plastic surgery forums as "Swell Hell" has set in. My poor old belly is very very swollen today. Apparently this can happen when one begins to exercise, though I don't really count going for a 25 minute amble, barely breaking a sweat, exercise. I certainly hope that lots of mushrooms help!

I am happy to announce however that I purchased my very first T Shirt bra in a 12 C. I remember trying on one in a 10 A and being embarrassed that I couldn't fill the darn thing as I think they give boobs a nice shape. I may think I look massive, but the mirror distorts the true image of your body. Taking a photo is way more honest - made sure I have the spin bike in the background for good measure.

Balsamic Tuna Stuffed Mushrooms

Balsamic Tuna Stuffed Mushrooms - Protein Packed Appetizers!

2 tins Greenseas Capsicum and Tuna 98% FF
250g Low fat cottage cheese
50 g grated reduced fat tasty cheese
10g Sharp parmesan, grated
3 shallots, finely chopped
4 star balsamic vinegar
9 large mushrooms

Drizzle mushrooms with balsamic and then fill with mixture of cottage, tuna, shallots. Top with cheeses and drizzle with balsamic again. Cook in 180 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

These little babies are really filling - 80 cals 2.7g fat, 10g protein and 4.2 g carbohydrate

Back to Base Day Two

Training today: Spin bike - moderate pace, easy to moderate load 15 minutes.
Walking around Uni of Qld and through Indooroopilly 20minutes.

Training Notes: Enjoyed the bike - felt the beginnings of a small glisten of sweat and felt like I could turn up the resistance further. Toyed with the idea of trying a standing climb but told my inner wild child to calm down a bit. Riding the bike felt really good, my core feels really strong and I almost fell into a trance like state as I got into a steady rhythm. As my physio is at UQ, I had a nice long walk from the Athletics Oval and up to the Biology Refec, which is very different from my University days. I always love being over at the Uni and have hopes of doing my Masters in Exercise Physiology one day.

Injury Update and Notes: Saw my physio, Louise, who seems to think that most of my pain is being referred from my tight thoracic spine and rib cage - a common problem in people with a lordotic posture (me!) - there is inflammation in the shoulder capsule, but we are going to treat the spine and see if the shoulder comes into line. After some pretty heavy joint mobilization, I was getting much better range through both a front raise and a full lateral raise, so I am cautiously optimistic. I may still have an MRI just to be sure.

Feelings: Have been feeling rather despondent about my majorly swollen belly and trying to fend off the "I feel fat" thoughts that have been creeping in. I find the best way of dealing with unhelpful feelings and thoughts is the Cognitive Behavioural Therapy style approach - basically proving the inaccuracy of such thoughts and feelings. In the case of "I feel fat", which we all know is not a feeling, I recommitted to eating well today - in my situation, if I'm eating really well, logic tells me that I cannot be overweight.

Food today: Not logged. Unless I need to do some uphill paddling, I don't log my intake too much these days. There is little point in me counting calories, the focus is on my healing and return to health. I am simply eating what I need to be satisfied and eating what is good for me.

Here's what I ate today:
Oats, Whey protein, tomato juice, 1/2 serve vital greens, skim milk, ice,
2 cups mixed veggies and cottage cheese melted on top
Sumo Salad - Thai Beef and a bite of bread roll
Bio Dynamic Yoghurt with raspberries, 1/2 wheyprotein shake
Mushrooms stuffed with tuna, cottage cheese, balsamic and capsicum finished with Parmesan.
Roasted Lemon Thyme Free Range Chicken
Small quantity of mashed spuds (prepped low fat), 2-3 cups of cauli, broccoli and carrots
2 squares Lindt chocolate.
2 Cups Sydney Breakfast tea with dash of milk
water!

It's all about me - back to "base" Day One!

Today I went one step further towards reclaiming my "normal" life with my first workout at the gym. I was actually pretty nervous, believe it or not, about what I would actually be able to do there. My goal is over the next six weeks is to return to a level of movement where I can start building a solid aerobic and strength base - around week 12 -13 post surgery. I have also decided to spring clean my eating and focus on some new dishes. I am taking this time to recharge and focus on myself, hence the title.

Today's training:
20 minute walk on the treadmill at 4.8km/hr (don't laugh, I tried 5km/hr and my belly didn't like it one little bit)
Shoulder/thoracic release tennis ball therapy
Pilates:
TVA /pelvic floor activation 16 full breaths
Telescope x 2
Side Lying Clams 1 x 8

I finished the workout feeling like I could do a lot more and decided that if I am finishing these rehab style workouts like this, then my progression is appropriate.

Eating:
Not dreadfully consistent at all today. Started off OK but was invited out to lunch and had little control over the menu. Dinner - Latina Pasta that has been sitting in the fridge for ages and expires tomorrow.
Breakfast:
Tomato juice
Oats, whey protein powder, skim milk
M2: Slim Secrets plus small banana
Lunch: small serving of Peking Duck, small serving Calamari, Pad Thai with prawns - ate slowly and stopped when full (about 1/3 of the serving)
Dinner: 1/2 a regular serving size of Latina Pasta and sauce - it's amazing that when you eat slowly and listen to your body you don't need as much as you think.

Needless to say I have a lot of veggies planned in tomorrow's menu. I ended the day feeling frustrated that my clean eating plans got waylaid, but in the whole scheme of things it is just one day. The secret is focusing on putting those good days together and creating some positive energy.

In other news, I'm off to the physio again for my shoulder. I have been having problems with my rotator cuff, pec minor and a tight thoracic spine (all common in someone with a lordotic posture such as yours truly). As rest has not improved it and physio hasn't been super helpful, I'm thinking of sending myself off for an MRI to make sure I haven't got a tear. There's one thing that really rattles me and that is carrying an injury. So fingers crossed I will get some good news tomorrow.

Tools for Success and Self Motivation

I thought I would post a few ideas that work well for me in regards to eating well. I often get told that "I eat well no matter what". For the most part, I do eat well, but like everyone else in the universe I will occasionally overeat for a multitude of reasons eg the food tasted so good etc etc.

But after the comp is over or the transformation is complete what steps can you take to make sure that you are actually living a lifestyle and not a diet? First of all check that the way you are eating is not similar to a diet.

Being really rigid about food choices and keeping a list of "SAFE FOODS" - diet mentality.
Seeking perfection - DIET MENTALITY
Being open to trying different foods and experimenting with what works for your body - LIFESTYLE mentality.
Going with the FLOW but being CONSISTENT overall - LIFESTYLE MENTALITY.

What helps me maintain a good LIFESTYLE:
1) Eating for flavour/taste. I recommend eating similar amounts of carb and protein with each feeding for most people, but the other evening, I craved risotto. So I made the risotto per the recipe which was mostly carbohydrate, but then decided to add some poached chicken breast to the end result which was delicious. The ratio of carb to protein was definitely not EXACT or PERFECT, but the end result was CONSISTENT - always a bit of carb/bit of protein. Next meal was heavier in protein and lower in carb - at the end of the day - JUST RIGHT.
2)As outlined above, CONSISTENCY, NOT PERFECTION. One or two off the plan meals won't make any difference, competing or not - if this were the case, then there would be no hope for any of us in maintaining or achieving a lean physique.
3) Acceptance of where you are and intuition. Knowledge is power - if you know you're going to experience a few eating wobbles whilst things smooth out, then they are less frightening than if you're back into the gym and clean eating with your teeth clenched and eyeballs popping, lest you make a "mistake". Be intuitive about what you want. If you're craving an English Muffin with honey, don't eat your way around it - have what you want and balance out the next meal.
4) Eat slowly and eat sitting down - no fail strategies here!

Knowing WHY you want to live lean and love life is always at the cornerstone of a good transformation plan. Having this internal motivation will keep you going when external motivation fades (except for a humungous leverage). Internal motivation, when properly encouraged is never going to leave you. You're no different on the post comp side of the fence as you are on the pre comp .Be prepared to be consistent, no matter what. Failure cannot handle persistence. In other words, if you stumble, keep going anyway.

Keep working towards a LIFESTYLE frame of mind. You will fit and free!

All up to me now

I went for my checkup to the surgeon today and he has given me the all clear to resume light training. I have never been so excited at the prospect of walking on a treadmill in my life! I can't wait to get back to full strength!

Please Welcome Irene!

Before I sign off, I'd like to introduce everyone to Irene - we have been working together for a little while now and I'd love you all to visit her and as I say "welcome her to the pack, Jack!".

Her blogging home is www.irenenesci.blogspot.com

Out and About

I have decided to take a slightly different tack and do a bit more incidental exercise. I was amazed to find that after my afternoon with Amanda which included a kilometre walk and several stairs to find the new bus stop location, that I was moving so much more freely the next day.

With this thought firmly in my mind, I decided to go to Indooroopilly and do my banking and go to Medicare etc. It felt so good to be out of the house. I visited everyone at Fitness First and then had morning tea with Anne (well, rather she had morning tea, because I had forgotten my apple) and then I bumped into my mother. I was very pleased to shout her lunch at Sumo Salad as a small thank you for the help she has been giving me collecting my mail and buying my groceries. We then had a walk around the shopping centre where to my delight, Medibank Private paid out much more of my hospital claim than I had anticipated, so flushed with cash I bought this fantastic breakfast chiller bowl from Storage Space. The brand is called Fit Fresh and comes from the USA. I also bought a lunchbox thinking that it would come in handy down the track when I'm working. It looks like I am going to be doing some one on one PT at Fitness First - I'm finally at the stage where I need somewhere for people to come and physically train with me if they need to and I figured that because I know so many people at the gym, it's will be handy for me in attracting some one on one clientele to fill in the gaps.

Today I woke up at my least swollen yet and least restricted movement wise, so I decided to do some more wandering around and picked up some Sydney Breakfast Tea from T2. My whole abdominal region is feeling a bit tight tonight, so tomorrow will be a rest day at home. Maybe this is the beginning of my training comeback! Me mentioning a rest day..very exciting indeed. I must say it was very exciting to be feeling so much better today.

Back to reality!

Back to reality after another amazing weekend of competition and catching up with lots of different people.

I forgot to mention that I had the opportunity to meet Amanda, who is a friend of Kek's and now a client on the weekend. We had Japanese in the Queen Street Mall which was great and had a good chat about blogging and biking and all things fitness on Saturday. I must apologize for being a bit of a poor date, because all of the moving around left me quite exhausted. I had been lucky enough to poke my head in at Fitness First and see John and Wanda and the excitement of the launches going on must have had a bit of an effect.

On Sunday I got to catch up with Debs at the WNBF show - Deb is looking great and I reckon she's got the best looking "girls" on the Gold Coast. The WNBF show was very friendly and the backstage assistance was fantastic.

Today, it's back into the swing of work and trying to get a little bit better everyday - I have improved markedly but have a long way to go still. I've been really bothered by swelling and hoping that at my appointment next week it has left the building and my surgeon doesn't take another needle to me. I changed my dressings for the first time today and my scar is amazing - even though it runs from hip to hip and initially looked like a shark had been having a go at me, it is slowly but surely fading into a thin pink line. The breast incisions are non existent. I would have to look really hard to see them!

Congratulations Shelley!

Just back from the WNBF show on the Gold Coast where Shelley came 2nd in Figure Novice. As you could enter more than one division, we decided to do Open Figure as well where she also came 2nd. Well done Shelley! It was a much smaller show than last week's INBA, but still a lot of fun nevertheless.

Also a big CONGRATULATIONS to KatieP who is competing in Sydney today - haven't got results or photos as yet, but I am very proud of Katie committing to me for 16 weeks and getting into amazing shape. I had the pleasure of meeting her last weekend and she looked great then.

Dave Greenwalt Does American Idol

For one of the best posing routines you will ever see, check out this link:
http://davidgreenwalts.leannesslifestyle.com/video/david_does_american_idol.html

I learnt everything I needed to know about final week prep from Dave with his program, The Leanness Lifestyle. He doesn't carb deplete, he doesn't deplete water. What's the secret....he gets lean enough in the beginning - he's 5'10", 86.36kg on stage and 3.9% bodyfat...yikes.

Turning a corner

I have been so busy with the events of the weekend that I have not posted any healing updates. I think that getting out and going to the show is one of the best things I could have done - the whole weekend made me forget about my belly which was just fantastic.

I saw the surgeon on Monday and asked why I was so swollen - he immediately palpated my tummy and said - you've got fluid under the skin (with my surgery, the lymphatic system is cut, releasing in fluid build up, hence why there are surgical drains inserted when you wake up). He produced a whopping great needle and instructed me to lie down whilst he drained it. Turns out that I have little pockets of fluid all over my belly and that he would have had to insert the needle over and over again to get it out. He told me that I needed to stand up straighter and he s-l-o-w-l-y pushed me fully upright, telling me that the skin and abdominal muscles needed to rejoin and that by standing up straight, the fluid would be pushed away. In three days I am about 50-70% less swollen, simply amazing. I got clearance to drive and I am taking the girls to and from school. I am still getting very tired, but I am feeling much better. I'm even beginning to consider going Paleo for a few days to give my body a bit more of a detox.

I'm not on a diet

Moroccan Lamb Salad

Lamb backstrap, roasted pumpkin, roasted onion, capsicum , semi dried tomatoes, spinach leaves, feta cheese, chickpeas. Dressing - lemon juice, garlic, Moroccan seasoning, cracked pepper.

The Rules:
. Post a photo of one of your favourite healthy meals.
2. Title the post “I’m Not on a Diet”
3. Link back to this post.
4. Tag 5 other people.

See recipe above. I think everyone has been tagged but I will tag Rae, Lyndsay, Michelle, Leslie and KatieP

More pics!

I love this photo, but the box on the floor, which lines up nicely with my butt makes it look heewwge :) I really think competitions really make those who have pale skin look positively anaemic!

INBA Brisbane Titles - what a great day!

Whew, just got home from the Brisbane INBA comp and know that there are probably some bloggers hanging out for results and photos. I took a bucketload of photos, not just of the girls I trained, but everyone else too (I will leave it up to Lyndsay and Carolyn to post their own amazing pics first though).

The day started off at 10am, picking up Andrea and then meeting Michelle and hubby Mal to organize hair and makeup.Then it was off to the Sleeman Centre (venue) to meet Shelley and Tara. Mal thoughtfully began to park in the disabled zone to drop me off, so I didn't have as far to hobble to the venue. My sister did a fantastic job with Michelle's hair - thank you sis.

Once there, it was time to slam down a sandwich and get down to the business of applying Dream Tan to two very toned bodies, whilst offering them Jelly Snakes, which I think is becoming a Liz N. tradition. Here I have to thank Tara for coming to my rescue and being my backstage helper. Tara is looking incredible, she's been training hard these past few months and my jaw nearly hit the floor when I saw all of the incredible changes that have been going on in her bod (I'm secretly thinking of making box squats standard on all of my programs!)

There were eighteen in Figure Novice which both Shelley and Michelle competed in. Michelle stepped on stage in Figure Short - I have been busting to post an ab shot to show everyone how great Michelle's abs are (I thought, probably the best in her line up) - now I have the perfect opportunity.

Then it was Shelley's turn in Figure Tall - strutting herself next to Carolyn and Lyndsay who also looked incredible. I thought Shelley had the best legs in the line up, Carolyn had a fantastic back going on and Lyndsay's midsection was incredible.

I was feeling very proud of what both girls have achieved by just getting up on stage, when places were called. I'm pleased to announce that Miss Shelley came in 3rd in Figure Tall, the icing on the cake - from what has been a really successful and enjoyable day.

Well done girls!

It was also great to see Selina, Katie (yes, Miss Katie), Alicia, Lisa, Lindy, Dallas, Hillary, Andrea, Nicole , Sue, Di and Raechelle - hope I haven't left anyone out!

Hump Day

I chose this photo today because I can't wait to get outside a bit more. I'm hopeless at fishing though, just another thing I have to try before I die.

I read Andrea's journal today, she was lamenting that she had nothing to write about, as she has been laid up by injury and is feeling demotivated. I hope she doesn't quit writing just yet and jumps into the "I've got to take time out, I'm fed up, but I'm still going to write," boat with me.

I still have a long way to go before I can even think of any formal exercise, but I can close my eyes and imagine that one day not to far away in the future, I am going to be able to really kick some butt. I've been thinking of the road I took back to fitness when I lost all of my weight, and remember that it was very exciting to see the changes and improvements I was making to my fitness nearly every training session that I did.

I am still trying to work out what is going to thrill me the most, restoring my cardiovascular fitness, or my strength. It is amazing how much we use our abdominals for the most innocuous of movements. I am noticing them when I try and open our sliding door, get out of bed or lift up a carton of milk (yes, you read right!). I think, that given my strength is so limited right now, that improving it will be a real joy.

Closer to standing up straight but not perfect - by the end of the day I am swollen and hunched and sport a pot belly. At least my boobs are now always going to be bigger than my belly.....

Dreaming of RPM

Today I ordered my new Les Mills materials for RPM and Bodystep, which of course got me daydreaming about my potential return to teaching - not for awhile though :)

I am pleased to say that I am almost there with "Project Stand Up Straight". I am one or two degrees off being fully upright, except when I am there it pulls like anything and I can feel where the muscle repair begins at the tip of my xyphoid process (that is the bony prominence where the rib cage meets for interested peeps). I am still swollen and feel/look like a fat bloated cow, but hopped on the scales (didn't know if this was such a wonderful idea but you don't know if you don't go) and found that I have actually dropped weight since having the surgery. I have been trying to eat well for the most part but have found the odd row or two of chocolate sneaking in here and there...guess it has medicinal properties after all.

I'm really looking forward to the INBA show this weekend. Both Michelle and Shelley have done a stellar job and I'm looking forward to meeting Miss Katie this weekend too as well as Carolyn and Selina. After being locked up in hospital and the house for the last four weeks, I'm going to try and contain my excitement at the prospect of a day in the outside world.

Happy Mother's Day!!

I hope everyone who reads this blog and is also a mother has had a great day. My favourite part of Mother's Day is the small handmade gifts that my two girls give me and the cards that they make. They are definitely worth treasuring.

We had a breakfast at my sister in laws place this morning which was quite nice - go the grilled tomatoes and poached eggs!

Hmm what else? Did the weekly dressing changes and took photos - best news is that I am definitely less swollen than last week.

Here's to a great week ahead :)

Cabin Fever!~

Today I realized that I haven't left the house after my supermarket boogie a week ago. It's funny, even though I felt like I had researched the procedure well, it feels like the recovery is taking forever.

As you may be able to guess, patience is not one of my virtues! I've also done a bit of reading on various plastic surgery sites that say it's very common to have the 'post surgery blues' at this point. Soooo, when I'm sounding like a bit of a crankpot, tell me I'll get over it.

On the positive side of things, I've managed to get quite a lot of online work done this week and am looking forward to more of the same next week. I'm catching up with my Precision Nutrition materials as I prepare to get my official license and accreditation.

Excitement is also brewing over the Figure Comps coming up in the next few weeks - Michelle and Shelley next week at the INBA Brisbane and Katie the week after at the ANB Sydney titles. Katie put up a sneak peak on her blog today - she's doing a great job - have a look at my sidebar and click "Katie". It's an amazing feeling to see all the hard work that everyone has done and have been part of the process. You go girls!

Still here

Still here and working hard on "Project Stand Up Straight". I'm nearly there but not quite!

I will post more tomorrow - I have been busy busy busy today with clients.

Fitness related - what a hottie!

After my little rant, I'm really thrilled to be able to post some pictures of Miss Shelley who is competing in the INBA Brisbane titles next Saturday.

I first knew Shelley when I was living in Singleton (which was 2001-2004) - we used to cross paths at the local pharmacy, but little did I know that one day we would meet up in Brisbane through Miss Kerryn. Amazing stuff!

Shelley has done more than transform her body over the last year - she's moved to Brisbane, become a personal trainer herself and done her RPM certification (you only need to look at her legs to know that she's heavily involved with RPM). She's completely revamped her nutrition (thank you Precision Nutrition!) and worked hard with her training , especially as she's got a bit of ectomorph in her- she's put up with me asking her if she caned her training for the past six months.

Oh, and she's also put up with me moaning and bitching about being a swollen cane toad....

I'm really proud of her for a job well done - those muscles are looking luscious!

So give it up for Miss Shelley - you're looking hot girl!

So I know I can't dance

Miss S came over today to perfect the last bit of her posing routine. I am still bent over like an old woman, which is a bit discouraging and bloated like anything, so a shapely figure competitor, I am not right now. I was trying not to laugh as I was saying place your foot here, move three steps, point your toes, 1-2-3-4. I could see how terrible I looked in the reflection of the TV, all hunched over and trying to dance..ugh! However, the main thing was that Miss S looked good doing her routine and she does - and posing is looking pretty darn good too.

I was lamenting that this blog has been losing its fitness appeal lately, as my mind and body has been focused on healing from this surgery. My chest looks fantastic, my tummy is taking so much longer to come to the party. I was feeling rather down about everything last night and then woke up this morning feeling much better about things - I will do the best I can with what I can control - eating well, resting and keeping a positive attitude. I WILL turn the corner eventually.

Supermarket Hi-jinks

Today I had my first proper supermarket outing - my mother took me shopping at Woollies today. After several fervent prayers that nobody I knew would see me - I was wearing sheepskin slipper, holey tracky daks and my Mike Robertson Performance Enhancement TShirt (my mother was snorting at the idea that anything I'm doing these days is high performance) - I made it through the door and stocked up on veggies (until I'm well enough to slice and dice it is Steamfresh all the way), fruit and trashy magazines. I estimated that I would have walked around for about 15 minutes, albeit leaning on the trolley for support and when I sat down, boy could I feel where the surgeon had done the muscle repair..ouch.

After a good lie down, I'm feeling much better and am glad that I got out of the house for a bit. I have been at a loose end and decided to read my blog from 2006 (when I last competed) - made me start to think that I cannot wait to write a post about how I trained and what I was up to and reading all the current competitor's blogs, I feel all fired up again to compete in some shape or form. My comp girls are coming along nicely and I can't wait to cheer them on in a few week's time.

I'm still not standing straight yet and was feeling very despondent that I haven't achieved this little mini goal yet, but was cheered by a little bit more progress this morning. I'm not expecting any great shakes tomorrow after my supermarket boogie, but you never know.

INBA Brisbane Show Get Together

Seems like there will be a lot of bloggers around for the INBA Brisbane Titles on the 17th May. I have been thinking that it would be a good idea to have a recovery breakfast or get together on the 18th of May - my thoughts have been at a venue such as the Stamford or the Hilton, where you can basically get anything you need/want for breakfast if you're preparing (or you can hit the smoked salmon and danishes...your choice!). If you would like to come or have a better idea, could you please contact me via my Store Contact form at http://www.thefitnesssolution.com.au/ (I'm avoiding spam here). Thoughts and ideas most welcome!

PS - Can you see my gorgeous Shannon in the pic - my only complaint is that they didn't make her big enough!

PPS- If you are bringing kids, no problem - we can work out how to keep them busy whilst we enjoy ourselves

struggle street

I have to admit that the last two days have been a real struggle. I have been sore, exhausted, cranky and generally impatient about the whole standing up straight process. I think that I am standing up straighter, but boy is progress slow! Apparently it's quite common to be not standing up straight two week's post surgery so I cannot allow myself to think too much about it and get myself stressed out.

The tiredness has made me feel hungry and I've found myself trolling for food, rather than doing the right thing and lying down. Today I have taken a different approach and am spending more time lying down and the food cravings have dissipated.

The "girls" have started to soften a little bit and feel more natural - already I can't wait to buy some new bras (DH has already thrown out all my old bras in anticipation - 10A, don't think I'll be needing that anymore!). I had been concerned about what his reaction to the new additions would be ie did they look fake, but he has been very positive about everything. The tummy was also less swollen last night and with now being able to stand a little straighter discover that I actually have a waist - just amazing.

At this stage I haven't really let myself get too excited about things yet - I'm still very paranoid about post surgical complications as my last two C-Sections were problematic to say the least. So next step is to work on the post surgery complication fears and relax and start to enjoy my new shape.

patience,grasshopper!

Today I went back to the surgeon and had my last drain removed. Another step in the right direction! My next directive is to stand up straight! Yes, that is my next "training goal" - things in the recovery world are slow and I have to be patient to say the least. My next visit to the surgeon is in a month's time and I was told that if all things were looking good then I would be cleared to do 15 minutes cardio, such as a light walk. Initially, I was feeling a little horrified, then had to remind myself that I cannot stand up straight now and that by the time I get there, 15 minutes of cardio will be quite the accomplishment.

I think I may be a little less swollen than yesterday and may be able to get a better look at things when I have a shower (yes!) tonight. I really have to remind myself at every turn to be patient with this - I must be starting to feel better, even thinking of moving around!

Usually I don't mention my family much in this blog but I have had such amazing support from DH whilst I've been recovering, all meals cooked, washing and ironing done, girls taken to and from school plus looking after me and helping me shower, getting me in and out of bed and putting my tracky daks on for me and generally treating me like a princess. I really want to do something special to say thank you to him, any ideas?

Power of the Shower!

Today I had my first proper shower in 10 days. As I have been wearing a tight compression garment that I couldn't get off, I have had to forgo a decent shower for little bird baths. The compression garment has a peep hole for being able to go to the bathroom without taking the thing off and all I have been talking about for the last ten days is how much I want to have a proper shower.

It all went well at the doc yesterday. I don't know how his nurse did it but she managed to shimmy off my garment with minimal pain. My drain still has to stay in until Wednesday and the doc checked out my chest and belly before declaring all looked good. The nurse changed my dressings on my incision which is a very neat looking line running from hipbone to hipbone. I also have two thin incisions on the undersides of my breasts which haven't bothered me so far. Still very swollen but amazed by the difference!

Today I'm moving a lot better and ambling around the house a bit. Hooray!

I think when things are a bit calmer, I will post some pictures - nothing too graphic I promise, but if anyone is interested in the whole plastic surgery process, it may be useful.

Back in blogland..

Phew, I'm back in blogland at long last. Even though I consider myself a bit of a surgery veteran (after C Sections and appendectomy), I still wasn't prepared for the shock of walking in super fit and returning as weak as a kitten. The breast surgery was a piece of cake but the abdominal surgery is a different story.

Here's my story:
Day One: Required to fast 6 hours pre surgery - decided to be very sparse with the oats (which was not such a great idea as my surgery got delayed by 3-4 hours). If you know how much I enjoy eating, you know how hungry I would have been by then! A long period of waiting and feeling nervous - met the anaethestist (sp?) who was a bit of a groover, got put to sleep and woke up four hours later in recovery with a pain pump full of fentanyl and being told by the recovery nurses to push the button for the pain. After hearing a lot of advice from others who have had the surgery done to really utilize the pain relief, I went for it. Unfortunately, I started throwing up everywhere and went on a 24 hour drug trip, so I voluntarily ceased it. After my fentanyl experience, I can't understand how some drug addicts find pleasure in a drug trip. I was continually stressing about making my RPM HiPerformance class, writing a novel and other weird goings on.

Day Two: Still so nauseated I could not eat anything. I celebrated with DH by knocking off a Milk Coffee biscuit for breakfast and lunch. I can't see anything, I am firmly wrapped up in a compression garment but look down at my chest and think, "wow".

Day Three: Feeling much better and as my implants were placed over the muscle, think that I can readjust my pillows and become more independent. Try a different narcotic which works much better. Turns out that all the moving around is causing the drains that have been inserted in my breasts and tummy to start producing more fluid than they should. Have strict instructions from the doc to start acting like a chicken and to keep my wings in.

Day Four: Constipated...ugh. Had to be the worst day of my life and had to bring in the troops ie enema to help. The student nurse that gave me the enema was luckily very patient and understanding and once things had improved, had got on to talking about personal training. She expressed interest in becoming a client.

Day Five: Feeling better and ready to go home. Doc thinks otherwise. Tells me to keep the marathon running to my mind only. Swing out of bed, feeling a difference in my abs - a lot more supported with them stitched up the middle.

Day Six: Still not cleared to go home. I am cheered up by a visit from Shannon and John and Deb E from Fitness First. I had been feeling so frustrated and it really made my day.

Day Seven: Finally get three of the four drains removed and get ready to go home. I get a peek of the girls for the first time. Panic that they look massive! Think this is going to take some getting used to . In reality, I'm not quite filling out the post operative 12 c bra, why do I feel so...uh..big? I'm not used to being a girly girl. Finally get the dressings removed from belly. It's rather swollen and angry, but there is not a stitch of loose skin, nary a stretch mark to be seen. It looks incredible.

I am sent home in a new compression garment with strict instructions to rest and then to shower the next day.

Day Eight: (yesterday). DH and I cannot get the garment off by ourselves so we are off to the surgeon to have him and his nurse remove it. This was something I hadn't been expecting. Wish me luck getting the sucker off.

It's great to be home and to catch up with the online world. I am looking forward to being able to move more freely and each day is a step in the right direction. The best part is that I feel like in the passage of time, I will come back really strong with my training. I know that I will probably become out of shape over the next few months, but I can focus on eating well and being sensible for a perfect recovery.

Thanks for everyone's well wishes - I really appreciate them!

I really enjoyed everyone's six word memoirs..

"I'm becoming a million dollar baby"

I'm off

I'm off to hospital shortly. Thank you to everyone for the well wishes, encouragement, phone calls and texts.

We're always reading about such doom and gloom in our newspapers and about how evil people are. I beg to differ. The further along I travel in life, the more I notice the goodness, the kindness and the love in everyone and my surroundings. I have been touched deeply by everyone's support. I feel very lucky most of the time.

As the big man Arnie says, "I'll be back!"

The week is flying by!

Gosh, long time no post!
The week is starting to race by, so I'll do a quick recap of the week.

Monday: teach last RPM class and have a catch up with Shannon. Try to ensure Shannon has a better RPM experience than last time :) It was awesome catching up with Miss Shannon, who is looking great - I always have so much fun with her and we laugh a LOT! I did have to tempt here with jelly snakes to get up the final hill in RPM. Everytime I see them I think of her :)

Then it was off to the physio - looks like I have subacromial bursitis - I don't know how I managed to bring this upon myself but it has been pretty painful. The prescription is soft tissue release, no overhead lifting and plenty of rest. Needless to say I haven't trained at all this week.

Tuesday: Day at home catching up and writing programs etc. Not much else to report.

Wednesday: Have hair cut and colour - I want to be the best post op chick in the hospital and get my admission details etc. Massage shoulder and do soft tissue tennis ball therapy. It's feeling a lot better but nowhere near functional. I think it's a blessing in disguise that it happened this week and I'll be doing a lot of resting soon anyway.

Off now to watch James Bond :) Channel Nine has been showing a James Bond movie every week. I don't mind watching Pierce Brosnan one iota!

Crikey! Take a look at these little beauties!

Child Friendly Chicken Koftas! OR "FUD", if you're a Gary Larson fan...

To make these little rippers, you need

600 g chicken breast mince

1 onion (sliced and diced)

3 tbsp Taylor's Satay Sauce

2 Slices Wonder Higher Protein Bread (made into breadcrumbs)

1 egg white

1 small carrot (sliced and diced)

Mix whole lot together and shape into koftas on soaked wooden skewer sticks (so they don't burn).

Aah, the nutrition stats: two of these little fellas come in at 25g protein, 10g carb, 4.4g fat and 185 calories. That's the fine print.

I also made Ras El-Hanout Chickpea and Tuna Patties which turned out a little smooshy, but eminently edible. That recipe still needs refining before it's blog worthy!

Here's the dish:

1 big tin of tuna, drained , 1 egg white, 120g drained chickpeas, 400g raw potato (cooked and mashed), 150g cooked and drained carrot, 1 big zucchini, Alexandra's Moroccan Ras El Hanout Spice blend (available at www.shopnewzealand.co.nz - yes, I support those over the ditch :) )

These made 14 big patties. Two patties come in at 160 cal with 16.6g protein, 22g carb and 1 g fat - these would make an excellent post workout meal - I think I am going to indulge in these tomorrow post RPM with a big side of vegetables.

Thanks for yesterday's comments - Lisa, I must say that variety is the spice of life - I started off as more of an endurance type, swung into the strength training and think it may be nice to spice it up with more endurance stuff once I'm better - I just loved the Adventure Race I did in Feb and we were pretty much running or on the road for the 3 hours we were allotted. I just want to experience as much fitness stuff as I'm able to!

Last RPM Hi Performance for a little while!

Today I taught my last RPM Hi Performance class before my big day next Friday. I felt quite emotional telling my class I'd be away for four months. I started off with a handful of participants and this class has grown considerably (full today). I think it's a combination of being a Saturday morning ritual, a good timeslot and hopefully a bit of my teaching ability that's affected the numbers in such a positive way. Anyway, I feel I have been very lucky with the class and learnt a lot from them as well as the other way around.

Had morning tea with Miss S and Andrea and then Miss S came over and we had a look at her in my comp bikini - she looks good, but the bikini top was a bit small - I will obviously have to buy a new suit when I compete again to fit the new additions.

After feeling a sad about having to leave my class, I began to feel excited about all of the things that I will be doing when I'm well again. I turn forty next year and I am having thoughts participating in a full marathon and perhaps a Figure Comp in the Masters Division to mark the occasion! Then there's a triathlon or two to squeeze in - a few of us are already talking about teaming up for Mooloolaba next year - should be awesome fun.

The prospect of recovery and rehab is one that most fitness afficiondos are too comfortable with and I am no exception. However, my goal is to be positive and to take every day one step at a time and celebrate the little achievements. When you become really fit, I think you can become a little bit immune to where you've come from and I will be celebrating climbing the stairs, rather than the great deadlifts I did in training.

The Shiny New Spinner Bikes

We've just traded in our old V-Bikes for 35 brand new Spinner Bikes in the RPM studio. I get to teach my last Hi Performance class on a brand new bike. That will be fun. I haven't broken the news to my class that I could be away for up to four months. I feel a little emotional about this. All of my classes are special to me in their own way but my Hi Performance crew on a Saturday just rock! Part of me wrestles with "sooner" but I am going to the true beat of my rehab drummer which tells me that success rests with the "later" option.

Had a busy day taking Miss S to the doctor and having some blood tests done for her. She was so patient and didn't flinch when the needle went in. She is a terrific kid. I was able to squeeze in teaching my 4.30pm Step class thanks to my parents. It's been great teaching more Step - I now know release 71 so well, I don't have to think about it anymore - pressure's off!

Tomorrow I am talking to some of the Fitness First PTs about Krista and Biosignature testing. I am planning on becoming accredited in the future and I am so looking forward to her visit and learning more about Charles Poliquin. I also enjoy Mike Robertson's work so much - you can visit at www.robertsontrainingsystems.com and read his blog - some great interviews and links to articles he has recently written for T Nation and the like. Highly recommended.

I'm in love...

With Biotest Surge - which is a post recovery workout formula fortified with BCAA's, a high amount of protein and a nice big whack of carbohydrate. You can mix one piddly little scoop with about 700ml of water and it makes this most amazingly delicious chocolate shake. This is perfect for me as I replenish not only carb, but water as well.

I certainly earned my Surge suckdown today - my 700ml of chocolate heaven (I'm not counting the dark chocolate Lorraine :) )~ I taught 3 classes before 2 pm - 2 RPM and 1 Bodystep. I really didn't think I'd have legs for Step but it turned out to be the most awesome class.

I'm looking forward to my next opportunity to really cane things in the gym so I can have some more Surge :)

est

swimming..I love it!

I am hoping that when the time is right post recovery to take up swimming again. There's nothing better than feeling like you are gliding through the water.

Today I taught RPM HiPerformance and got to catch up with Miss S, Andj and Miss J and got to have a post workout Surge suckdown. That stuff is seriously tasty! I think that I'm going to have a look at some of their other products as well in the future. First of all though, I have to get through a 4kg tub of Cookies and Cream, chocolate, soy vanilla and the like. I'm sure that Kek will have some fantastic ideas as to how to come up with tasty concoctions with all of it. I tried making Golden Edge Egg White protein pancakes yesterday - they didn't turn out anything like her Phat Camp blueberry numbers, so I'm hoping for some tips when she gets back from Tassie.

The girls I have prepping for this next round of competitions are all doing well. I'm sure they get sick of me telling them how veggies are so good for them, but I know how proud they will be to get out there on stage knowing that they accomplished something that is hard - and it will be the best feeling in the world!

In other news, I am now thirteen days out from the surgery and I must say it is really at the forefront of my mind. I keep flip flopping between "do I really need to be doing this?" to "I think it will be worth it." In the meantime, I just have to keep busy - I'm teaching three classes on Monday, so that should help!

Wednesday

Original post name ..not much going on today. I went shopping today for PJs for my hospital stay. I'm usually the ultimate grunge meister and wear old TShirts to bed but I need to look half way respectable so I picked up some PJs from Target and Sussan (I had forgotten how nice their PJs are), as well as some PJs for the girls. I didn't spend much on these items - I'm looking forward to hitting the lingerie department in due time instead, hee hee.

The most pleasant surprise I've had today is that my Private Health Fund has picked up nearly all of the cost for the abdominal side of things which is just awesome.

I met Lisa for lunch today and wow, is Wonder Woman looking good or what? Lisa is definitely reaping the rewards of the Biosignature Testing that Krista has done for her and the GeneElite profiling that we also did. Lisa looks as if she is about to jump out of her skin, she is THAT good. We are both very excited that Krista Schaus is coming out to Australia. I have had contact with Krista with GeneElite and I'm looking forward to learning more about the BioSignature testing. Krista will be here for about a week, so if there are any Brissy gals that want to learn about this cutting edge testing, let me or Lisa know.

After lunch, we had a look in Lorna Jane and I purchased two pairs of pants to wear post op with a nice stretchy waistband. I tried on a top that really didn't suit - Lisa said "it does nothing for you" - made a mental note to invite her on my next shopping expedition - I just love people to be upfront and honest shopping partners.

Finished the day teaching Bodystep - and am about to haul the old bod off to bed.

What happens when you pull up a pew..

I'm not one to blog about religious beliefs, but I've had some very enlightening moments sitting in Mass over the years, due to belonging to a parish where the priest doesn't really discuss religion so much and what we should believe, rather he discusses human nature and the challenges we face and draws from philosophy, sociology, current politics and literature, which makes for very lively discussion. Over the years I have seen people take a pen and paper to Mass and jot down notes (yes, I am guilty of this too), it is that interesting to me. And no, I'm not writing this to encourage anyone to change their beliefs or become a Christian.

Last Sunday's sermon was about doing something you know is morally wrong (eg stealing), and the effects of it on your wellbeing in the long term. He spoke about shame and guilt being associated with the event and then he spoke about a term called "concupiscence".

Here is the definition:
The propensity of human nature to actual sin as a result of the original sin, which darkened our intellects and weakened our wills.
Specifically, concupiscence is the spontaneous movement of our sensual appetite toward what we imagine as pleasant and away from what we imagine as painful.
Concupiscence of the eyes is an unreasonable desire to see, hear, and know what is harmful to our virtue, inconsistent with our state in life, or detrimental to our higher duties. An example would be the desire to accumulate material possessions irrespective of the means employed, satisfy our ambitions, or nurture our pride.

In other words - once you go down a path of moral wrong, you are more likely to reoffend as patterns are laid down in your brain (eg through neurotransmitters etc) and this is where challenge lies.

He specifically spoke about eating well and exercising - and said that when you go down the path of overindulgence, you literally set up a pattern or a script in your head that makes it easier for the event to happen again, even though you feel intense shame and guilt at the time. You can FORGIVE yourself but the issue of concupiscence still remains.

Of course this issue pops up repeatedly with my clients - the "I've overdone it" email. You can feel the shame and guilt oozing out of the communication ... "I've let you down, ", "I can't be trusted", "I'm never doing this again" (except it happens exactly a month later - funny how that is with us ladies :) ) . However, to be successful at weight loss and maintenance and to have a healthy relationship with food we must learn to deal with the concupiscence issue - what can we do to short circuit the unhealthy patterns we develop.

The answer is that we need to change our thinking. Don't be fooled into thinking that it's a quick fix - it's the hardest thing you'll ever do. Analysis of my dance with overeating a bit on Saturday led me to work out that I'm anxious about a number of things. What then - you work out whether it's valid to be anxious about said issues and nut the problem out, rather than eat over the top of it. The other issue is that you don't just change your thinking and it's final - you should be always challenging the "stinking thinking" - remember "whatever you think, you're probably right". Make those thoughts work in your favour!

Whew that was deep!

Back to our training diary for today:
1) Taught Bodystep (fun)
2) Taught RPM HiPerformance this evening
3) Tucking into an omelette the size of a flying saucer? Priceless!

Haven't been abducted by aliens...

I've just been on holidays!! DH and I decided to take a five day break with the girls before I have my surgery.

We left last Monday, after I taught my usual RPM class - it was full and pumping! I just felt like I had energy to burn during the class - a fantastic feeling.

We spent the five days in Hastings Point and stayed at a Big 4 Family Park which has had great reviews on "Getaway" - we took the girls swimming in the pool, into the indoor play centre, went for a couple of very long walks on the beach (and had lunch in Byron) and went kayaking on Wednesday morning. This took me back to me back to my Outrigging days when we were first married and lived on the Sunshine Coast. In outrigging, there are usually six to the craft and I was always in position number one or two - the pace setting positions. DH was most annoyed as I was sitting in the front of the kayak and had set off at a blistering pace, yelling at me that "we weren't at the Olympics!" Of course, I eased off somewhat but I wasn't surprised that we easily made it to the end of the designated course and back within two hours. DH has been nursing sore forearms and my lats and abs are sore from the twisting.

I had plans of getting up every morning and going running, but it just didn't happen. Instead I slept a lot and slopped around watching the swimming. I seriously can't wait for the Olympics - I find them inspiring! My body seemed to need sleep - but now I'm raring to go and looking forward to the next two and a half weeks of training pre op. I've had raging PMS this week and ended up having a sugar bender this afternoon - yes, everyone has moments where they overeat or bomb out with their nutrition but getting back on track feels even better! I'm really going to focus on eating well and then gradually switching up to a higher protein diet as suggested by the surgeon. Apparently it's helpful with healing.

Monday is going to be a shock to the system - two RPMs to teach and upper body weights. I guess that is why taking a complete break every now and again is so good for you!

PS - you may be wondering why I chose the "Aliens" movie poster - this was one of the first movies I saw with hubby when I was, gasp, seventeen. This movie is one of our classics and between us we try and find as many situations in life where we can apply a movie line! We also do this with "Star Wars". Tell me I'm not the only tragic who does this!

It's another Take 5 - on Saturday

I'm going to follow Leslie's lead and post another Take 5 momentarily but first a quick catch up. We had a pretty quiet Good Friday and this morning, it was business as usual as I taught my weekly Hi Performance RPM. I had a full room which was nice and I felt really good throughout the entire workout. I arrived at Fitness First about 30 minutes early and did 30 minutes of low intensity/drill work before I started and I think that made a huge difference. As we are going away next week for a family holiday, it made me realize that I only have two more RPM Hi Perfomrance classes to teach before my surgery, which I must admit is rather nerve wracking. I'm planning on really caning these next three weeks in terms of exercise - I will run, swim and play tennis whilst we're away and then I'm going for two weeks of grunt before I go into self imposed slugdom for the next few months. I'm not looking forward to this at all as exercise to me is as essential as brushing my teeth, but from what I've read, going back too soon just extends the healing process further.

Here I go...TAKE FIVE:

FIVE Favourite Snack Foods:

1) apples
2) hummus dip and veggies
3) Slim Secrets bars - my favourite being the Rev Up or the Afternoon Snack Attack
4) My Crunchola Recovery meal
5) nectarines, peaches etc with natural yoghurt

FIVE Favourite Quotes:

1) "The heart has reasons the head knows nothing of" Blaise Pascal
2) "Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent" Eleanor Roosevelt
3) "I have run the great race, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith." St Paul in Timothy 4:7-8
4)"Anyone can do something when they WANT to do it. Really successful people do things when they don't want to do it" .- Dr. Phil
5)"Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right" .- Henry Ford

FIVE Things you love about your job:

1) I get to make a difference in people's lives
2) I get to connect with like minded people with the backdrop of awesome music on a regular basis
3) I get to learn about what makes people tick
4) I see a whole spectrum of emotions in my job and share successes and pick people up when they are feeling down
5) It keeps me feeling young!

FIVE Places I would like to live

1) Oregon, USA
2) Vancouver, Canada
3) Sunshine Coast, Australia
4) Perth, Australia
5) Northern Beaches, Sydney Australia

FIVE Things I love about blogging:

1) I've met some fantastic people blogging
2) I can write about all sorts of dribble whenever I feel like it
3) I have experienced all sorts of perspectives from different bloggers that I really appreciate!
4) It's a way of escaping and connecting with myself.
5) I can practice writing.

Show Me The Money!

This is a little story about extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Anyone who has studied sports psychology will be familiar with these terms - if you're intrinsically motivated, your focus is internal, within yourself (which you have 100% control of) and when you're extrinsically motivated, it's because your focus is external, that is something where the outcome is not 100% controllable by yourself. Preparing for a Figure Competition is a perfect example of this - you cannot control the conditions on the day and who takes home first place, but you can use the date as an external means to achieve motivation. Most psychologists stress the importance of goal setting as a means of achieving mastery and competence in many situations. It does seem to become murkier though when setting an internal goal, such as living a lean and fit lifestyle because that's part of WHO you are - much harder to quantify and where so many people have difficulty in the maintenance phase after weight loss.

Once you learn to believe that you are internally, rather than externally controlled, is when the penny drops and you can learn to become at ease with yourself in any situation.

However the story for me today is back to using an extrinsic motivator as an aid towards achieving a goal. I have done a lot of internal work learning to maintain, but at the beginning of this year found my weight beginning to wander up into the 61s which I wasn't entirely thrilled about. I had been dropping and gaining the same kilo of weight for a few months when I decided I wanted to get serious again and get a bit leaner, in prep for the surgery and just because I like to look good.

So...I borrowed something from David Greenwalt (Leanness Lifestyle) and used something he coins "reverse risk leveraging", that is putting up something of high value against your goal and being prepared to lose it if you didn't meet your goals within the parameters you and an external source had set. I used reverse risk leveraging on a Bootcamp I did with him in 2005 where I had to send a cheque for 250.00 (bank cheque) made payable to a charity in the US which he would mail if I failed to reach my goal. It worked a treat - I exceeded my goal and then some.

A few weeks ago, I decided to leverage again, so I had a money order created to the tune of $750 and made it payable to somebody who I really don't care for. I drew up an agreement with Miss S and signed it, setting sub 59kg as my target to reach by 19th March, 2008. If I didn't meet the goal, Miss S was to send the money order to this particular person.

I got busy - I started to be more particular about what I was eating and returned to logging my meals. Every time I was tempted to pick at something or do some baking I would ask myself whether the indiscretion would be worth that amount of money. Things were looking good - spent most of last week in the 59.somethings but then disaster struck. Somehow my weight spiked to 61kg on Sunday (DOMS) and then 60.4kg on Monday. My RPM class commented on how lean I was looking but I was beginning to feel sick that I wouldn't reach the goal, even though I'd done everything right! Yesterday was more encouraging at 59.3kg - I went semi Paleo on Monday and yesterday and kept it tight, but not insane. I drank heaps of water.

Today I weighed in at 58.8kg. Goal reached. Phew!

I'm not only relieved, I feel a fantastic sense of mastery over nailing this little sucker. The main focus for me is internal, but external motivation in the form of leveraging can work well too when you need a bit of a shove in the patootie. Plus I'm wearing one of my smaller sized skirts today - that's a nice feeling!

Training Update

Pretty busy day here - I had the opportunity to teach Bodystep today. I haven't done a Bodystep fill in ages and I had a lot of fun practising and teaching the new release. Apart from that I've been focusing on eating well and reaching my goal of 59kg by tomorrow for my appointment. I weighed in at 59.3kg this morning.

I'm amazed at how different I look now that I've shed a little more body fat. It's nowhere near my figure best of course, but I certainly have changed shape. I think that's the best part of training really - you maintain for a long while and focus on adding muscle and getting stronger and then you get an opportunity to lean out a little and delight in the changes!

I must admit I'm now officially nervous about this next consult.

More tomorrow

Open Wide, Sunshine..and the rest

It's been a pretty higgledy piggledy weekend for me here which started off with little sleep on Friday and a stinker RPM class on Saturday morning, which I'm sorry to say was not my best effort. It felt like every muscle fibre throughout my body was against me with every pedal stroke I took and I've been sore to the touch nearly everywhere all weekend. I've been drinking buckets of water and taking it easy. It's those less than perfect classes that make me question why I teach group fitness sometimes - however I used my "stinker class" experience to work out how I could improve things for my next effort. I took pen to paper and I journalled about all the things that were playing on my mind - the upcoming surgery, meeting my weight loss deadline, getting more organized and all the other minor stuff such as "what's for dinner?" which is like a shot of potent poison to any tired woman, mother or not.

Today I really paced myself during class as I am still feeling sore and joints are rather reactive. This helped me focus on my teaching a bit more, except in Track Six where I felt a lump in my throat and quickly swallowed it way. Turns out that one of my teeth had cracked and part of it had chipped off and I had swallowed it. This was a tooth that had a previous problem, luckily - so all plans on getting on top of client emails before dinner were shelved and it was off to the dentist. My mouth is still numb from the huge local my dentist gave me. He explained how my mouth doesn't take too well to anaesthetic and wanted to be safe rather than have me in pain. It hurt like blazes going in and now I'm feeling quite swollen and woozy.

In other news, it turns out I purchased the wrong post augmentation bras - which I need for the surgeon on Wednesday. This new round of suckers is quite scary -- I could easily fit in a tennis ball into the B Cup and a rather large orange into the C number. Just goes to prove that you see yourself differently to how you really are - I hadn't realized how much I'd shrunk over the years.

Five for Friday

I've been inspired by Leslie (http://www.be-a-good-one.blogspot.com/ ) and her Take 5 Tuesday, but because I forgot to do this on Tuesday (typical me) I've decided on "Five for Friday instead".

5 Names You Love:

- Sarah
- Georgia
- Julia (that would have been child number 3 if she had eventuated)
- Darcy
- Emma

5 Favourite Breakfasts:

- oats, Vanilla Whey and skim milk
- fruitsalad and ricotta
- pancakes
- bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon
- omelettes with heaps of veggies

5 Favourite Stores (and why):

- Lorna Jane (I love the clothes!)
- Amazon.com (I can lose myself browsing here for hours!)
- Borders (see "Amazon")
- Toowong Village Fruit Shop and Deli - (always get the yummiest fruit and veggies here)
- Officeworks (I'm a stationary tragic)

5 Jobs you've had (and 5 you wish you had)
I've had...
-checkout chick at Woollies
- nightfill diva at Woollies
- prawn deveiner and kitchenhand for a Japanese restaurant
- pharmacist
- Group Fitness Instructor

Wish I had...
- travel compere for Getaway
- travel writer
- journalist reviewing concerts, movies and new products
- gone all the way and become a GP (though no regrets now)
- been a fashion designer...

5 Phrases I overuse on a regular basis..

- "c'mon!", "let's cane it!" and "awesome" when teaching RPM
- "oh crap" (self explanatory)
- "sumting wong!" ( Self Chinese Speak for "Something's wrong!")
- "Ok, Frost, you're driving!" (from the movie - Aliens - describing DH always driving everywhere)
-"I've checked your Calorie King" (all my clients would know this one!)
- "cheers" and "hugs" when signing off emails ---hang on that's six :)


What are your five for Friday?

Facts not Feelings

Today has been one of those days where I've needed to stick to facts and avoid feelings. It may sound a bit peculiar coming from someone like me that really values the power of intuition, however being 100% reliant on your feelings isn't such a brilliant idea.

For example, if I had listened to my feelings and not looked at the facts, I would have:

- blown off my workout because I'm feeling lazy and hey I'm maintaining so it doesn't matter..

- eaten some Anzac biscuits with morning tea today because they were there and looked yummy...

- eaten a big bowlful of icecream because I'm really 'craving' it and hey I'm 'maintaining now' so it shouldn't matter...

The facts are that:

- I've eaten very well today, plenty of veggies, lean protein, water and a decent amount of calories - it's even more important to eat well because you're maintaining.

- I've done my training because it's important to me to feel good as well as look half decent

- there's no physiological reason why I need the extra empty calories today, no PMS or TOM or extra heavy training.

- that maintenance requires effort, as does paddling upstream and losing weight....

-AND most importantly that my long term goals are so much more important than short term gratification.

I do have a little goal that is important to me - I want to be 59.0kg on my second consult date and today I am 59.9kg. In my photos I am 63kg - there was about 3kg of TOM bloat hanging around. If I want to achieve this goal, I must paddle a little harder - not be stupid, but paddle nevertheless.

Training: 1/2 Kenpo X Plus (nowhere near as good as the first one), Spinervals 30 min technique clinic.

Am I fat?

Thought I would post a few photos of what an off season competitor (aka healthy woman!) looks like. Miss S, Andj and I were playing around with the camera ( I was taking some shots of Miss S who is 10 weeks out today) and I asked them to take some photos of me. I wanted to see the effects of the Mike training - would be more obvious if I was in comp shape and I also wanted to post what a healthy weight looks like when you're not competing.

I think many of us fight with the notion of what a realistic off season weight is, especially anyone that has competed in a Figure Competition. We've been very lean in order to step onto that stage and post comp you're placed in an unusual position of having to gain weight. As the size 6s and 8s don't fit anymore, you begin to feel despondent and rather pudgy. Notice I said feel pudgy, not actually become pudgy.

I've been hovering between the high 59s and into the 60kg mark which is 5-6 kilos above my comp weight of 54kg. These photos are taken in the midst of the worst fluid retention due to TOM possible (just to add more normalcy to them). I believe this is a good, realistic off season weight to sit at.

What do you believe? Carrying too much fat or just right?

I also have Mike to thank for this as I think all those deadlifts have added some muscle :)

Weekly Wrap Up and new from Amy

Another busy week done and dusted - I'm really pleased to have squeezed in three strength training sessions and done the one hour and forty minute Spinervals effort in there as well. I enjoyed my at home training session so much that I'm going to tackle something else next week. I'm not sure what I'm going to pull out but with selling all these top notch DVDs, I have no shortage of choice.

Amy Bento is one instructor from the USA whose DVDs I stock. She's just about to release three new workouts - the one above is a kickboxing DVD with 11 different versions of the workout (or Premixes as we call them in the exercise DVD world). At $24.95 it's quite a bargain as you'd be lucky to get a casual visit to a gym for under $15.00 these days and you can pull out a DVD and do it in your PJs and running shoes if you're not up to workout wear. You'll all be relieved to know that I had my cycling kit on for my Spinervals workout!

I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't let limited (or no) gym access get in the way of your workout. You can really get a great workout from a step, an exercise bike (or wind trainer), bands, dumbells and stability balls. Even though I found not going to gym tough when I lived in Woop Woop, I ended up becoming very good friends with my DVD collection, the local park, strategically placed train sleepers (think intensity ladders, zig zags and the rest) etc etc. I enjoyed my foray back to my DVDs that I'm going back to a weekly appointment :)

I've got an RPM weekend lined up - tomorrow is my regular Hi Performance Class and on Sunday I'm filling in for George over at Toowong. Wahoo!

Home on the Range

Today I woke up not feeling like going to the gym - was a bit clogged up in the head this morning and thought I was developing a head cold. I decided to take my workout to home base this morning instead and did Spinervals 25 - Aerobase Builder 5, The Compilation. I think I've mentioned this DVD before - it's basically a workout where you work at about 75% of max heart rate and learn to become aerobically more efficient. It's been a fair while since I've done this, so water bottle and IPOD all connected and Coach Troy's music switched off, I got going. According to my own bad self, 75% max for me is in the 139-145 bpm range and I surprised myself by having to whack on a good bit of load to get my heart rate up which was very challenging. I did 5 out of the 6 working sets - I simply had no more to give to set 6 and 1 hour and 40 very sweaty minutes later, I was done!

Coach Troy says all sorts of interesting things about cycling and technique along the way, including his favourite - "sometimes you have to slow down in order to get faster". Oh so true! Since I've been teaching so much Hi Performance and felt I had a good aerobic base, I've let the concept of aerobic base building slide. It was a good wake up call to remind me of its importance.

Which brings me onto other things - the notion that people are sometimes too accommodating of themselves when trying to reach a goal, myself included. It's the, "this little bit won't hurt me" syndrome. Unfortunately, if you're trying to go anywhere with any sort of resolution, the "this little bit won't hurt me" scenario just doesn't work. I'm talking about not just fitness and eating - it applies to most of life. In order to reach that goal, you need to get rid of the excuses. This is where the concept of balance can get temporarily thrown out and rightly so - has anyone prepped for a competition and kept on top of everything else in life - you can't be good at everything when you're seeking out excellence in ONE thing.

On that note, it's time for a bit of relaxation at Chez Liz :)

Daily Goings On

Today has been a rather non descript type of day - got my training in ( one hour of cardio ), go to the dentist, attend to emails and look after the girls.

Except there are other things bubbling away in the background. I have booked my surgery for April 18th and it looks like I'm having both the belly and the boobs tidied up. My goal is obviously to make sure I'm as fit as possible pre surgery and then say my prayers for an uneventful and speedy recovery.

And now on a totally unrelated thought, has anyone ever been to Abu Dhabi?

Speed Queen!

This photo was taken just as I started teaching RPM Hi Performance this morning. I'm wearing my cool "Team Speed Queen" cycling jersey from www.teamestrogen.com . It's funny how you see yourself completely differently to what you actually "are". I knew I had pretty muscular legs but I didn't realize that my calves were so, uh, formidable :)

We had a great class this morning and afterwards Miss S and I met up with client and blogger, Michelle ( www.michcar.blogspot.com ) for a lower body training session and to check out Michelle's technique for moves such as deadlifts and squats. Michelle and I have never met in person and as far I know, Michelle has pretty much taught herself everything she has done in the gym. We did a few tough lower body drills, including suicide runs for Kerryn (I know she'll be pleased to read that we did quite a few sets of the suckers :) ). Then we moved onto BOSU sumo squats (these are great for establishing a strong squatting position), front squats, Romanian deadlifts and traditional deadlifts. I was thrilled to see that Michelle had fantastic technique! It's one of the biggest challenges I face when coaching online - how do I give clients the tools and understanding to be able to develop really good technique, having never met face to face. This is where I've found Mike Robertson to be fantastic - I've learnt a lot about coaching these moves by how he has taught me - I just wish that I had been as lucky as Lisa and had gone to his seminar!

I was also lucky enough to catch up with Lisa for lunch and marvelled at the changes in her physique after making the switch to powerlifting. I briefly dabbled with powerlifting years ago and I am still carrying around the changes I made to my physique, way back when. To make the greatest changes in shape you need to go for big compound moves and great periodization.

That's about all from me for today - hope everyone is having a great weekend.