It's been a couple of weeks since my last "blogession" & forgive me for I have sinned! I have not been on track at all & I was kidding myself to think that I'd reach 69.9 by New Years Eve! GRRRRR!
So, I'm just going to write off the rest of this year & eat & drink as much crap as I want & worry about it all in 2014! JUST KIDDING! I will definitely NOT be doing that!
I went for a short 3.5km run yesterday with 2 training buddies & actually knocked 3 minutes off my time for the same distance the previous week! I didn't even realise that until I got hoe & looked at my results - I was pretty happy with that & also happy that I didn't have any foot pain during that run. We then met up with the other 2 groups of friends that were doing different distances & tempos & had a lovely coffee/juice & chit chat. It was lovely & relaxing to sit & chat amongst friends who share similar goals & beliefs & are all really positive. I always leave these gals all fired up & happy! They rock!
The plan designated to me from my physio was to run 4kms a couple of times this week, then 5kms next week if no niggles from the 4km runs, gradually building up to 8kms in time for the Sunset Series in February so that I can run alongside my sister Sharon like we did last year for some cheeky selfies with all the zoo animals!
I think I've been overly paranoid about my foot today, it's like my brain is trying to make it feel sore as it's been plaguing me for so long. But a roll on my recovery ball showed me that it is getting a lot better! Fingers are crossed as I have big plans for 2014!
Anyway, back to the first sentence of my post.....yes, I was all fired up to reach 69.9 by years end, but it's just not going to happen. I've had a cold, a sinus infection & haven't trained as much as I'd have liked to due to work commitments & a new computer system quickly coming our way in February. I know right - EXCUSES, EXCUSES. I sat here thinking "What would Mish say to me if I told her all of this"? I'm pretty sure she'd slap me & tell me to suck it up! And I won't even start to think what Commando Steve would say to me!
As I discussed with one of the girls yesterday, yes it'd be grea tto have the life where you can train effectively every day & eat perfectly every day, but the reality is that it's just not that easy to get back on track & stay there. I think this time of year is worse as everyone's so busy with catch ups etc that I get home & then think "oops I didn't train today" & by that time, it just ain't going to happen! I'm being honest, I just haven't wanted it badly enough whre I've put my training & diet before everything else going on around me.
I have just under 2 weeks until the end of the year, I'll be happy to lose 1-2kgs between now & then to be honest! I do want to enjoy Christmas & New Years Eve. I will however be behaving myself drinks wise!
I've spent some time today on the 12WBT website, printing out recipes & getting organised.
I wish you all a Happy Christmas with your loved ones, please stay safe on the roads xo
Saturday 21 December 2013
Sunday 8 December 2013
Sussans Womens Fun Run - Decisions, Decisions
As some of you know, I had signed up to do my second half marathon at the Sussans womens run yesterday, well before my foot injury from the Melbourne half marathon in October. My foot has been ok, it gave me some grief during the City2Sea & Eureka climb, but held up pretty well afterwards.
I went to change my distance to the 10km but the bibs had already been sent so I could only change on the day. After chatting with my sister, she suggested to leave it at the half and see how I was feeling during the race, worst case, pull out at 10kms. Great idea!
Sharon & I got to the event & did our pre race rouitne of toilet and bag drop & then we were lucky enough to find Sarah & Katherine right before the start of the race. Sarah was running her first 10km & I really wanted to see her to wish her all the best.
The start wasn't the best, there were so many walkers all spread out along the road, we had to go up on the kerb to pass them. Sharon left me at her usual 1km mark - she is 1-2 minutes per km quicker than me - then Sarah & I stuck together until around the 3-4km mark when I encouraged Sarah to go ahead as my foot had started to hurt.
Shortly after that, I helped a lady get her hat which had flown right past me down a side street & then I had a couple of people pass me who had read my dedication bib for the day & say to me "sorry for your loss & good on you for doing this, keep going" - I dedicated yesterdays run to a high school friend who passed away last year from breast cancer, leaving behind a husband, young toddler & also a 7 month old - very sad. It made me really emotional. From there, it was a battle for me to get my head in the right place to even continue running without being emotional about Judy. I then had to stop & put some voltaren on my knee - it's obviously compensating for my foot & that had started to hurt too. I'd decided at the 8km mark that there was no way I'd be able to complete that second lap & get that second half mara, so I just followed the 10km markers to the finish. It was officially my worst ever 10km 1:20:10 - even worse than the dreaded Emma & Toms run that I did last year which was 1:10 & I was disappointed back then. So you can imagine how frustrated I was!
I received my finishers medal & managed a smile at the end then went to find Sarah, Katherine & Paula who had all done really well - big Congrats to Sarah for completing her first 10km, I'm sure there will now be many more to come! I then waited for my sister to finish her half mara & got chatting to an old lady who had walked the 10km & was waiting for her daughter to finish her half marathon.
I saw Sharon come across the line, absolutely spent & gave her a big hug from over the gates. She is a marvel for doing her 3rd half mara, and knocking time off of each one, mind you! So proud to be her sister!
So, I have decided & did decide during the last 3kms of that run, that I need to concentrate on smaller runs until my foot is back to 100% again. Or even do more cycling or eliptical work which will take the load from my foot so that I can still continue to lose weight. I'm seeing my physio tomorrow so I'll see what he suggests & I may even go for that MRI to see what's going on in my foot - even though it will cost around $300 as it's not covered by anything it seems - I think I need to rule out any stress fractures for sure. I'm not liking that this foot injury is now affecting my knee.
I am also hoping to participate in the 60km Weekend to end womens cancer walk with my sister in March 2014, so I really need to know what's going on with my foot to decide if I can attempt that weekend & what steps I need to take to get there - no pun intended!
Yes, this post is a stark contrast to my last post about Bikram, which I received a lot of feedback that a few of you really enjoyed it, but we all have our days, even me.
I'm off to another Bikram class tonight - that should at least get me giggling again.
I went to change my distance to the 10km but the bibs had already been sent so I could only change on the day. After chatting with my sister, she suggested to leave it at the half and see how I was feeling during the race, worst case, pull out at 10kms. Great idea!
Sharon & I got to the event & did our pre race rouitne of toilet and bag drop & then we were lucky enough to find Sarah & Katherine right before the start of the race. Sarah was running her first 10km & I really wanted to see her to wish her all the best.
The start wasn't the best, there were so many walkers all spread out along the road, we had to go up on the kerb to pass them. Sharon left me at her usual 1km mark - she is 1-2 minutes per km quicker than me - then Sarah & I stuck together until around the 3-4km mark when I encouraged Sarah to go ahead as my foot had started to hurt.
Shortly after that, I helped a lady get her hat which had flown right past me down a side street & then I had a couple of people pass me who had read my dedication bib for the day & say to me "sorry for your loss & good on you for doing this, keep going" - I dedicated yesterdays run to a high school friend who passed away last year from breast cancer, leaving behind a husband, young toddler & also a 7 month old - very sad. It made me really emotional. From there, it was a battle for me to get my head in the right place to even continue running without being emotional about Judy. I then had to stop & put some voltaren on my knee - it's obviously compensating for my foot & that had started to hurt too. I'd decided at the 8km mark that there was no way I'd be able to complete that second lap & get that second half mara, so I just followed the 10km markers to the finish. It was officially my worst ever 10km 1:20:10 - even worse than the dreaded Emma & Toms run that I did last year which was 1:10 & I was disappointed back then. So you can imagine how frustrated I was!
I received my finishers medal & managed a smile at the end then went to find Sarah, Katherine & Paula who had all done really well - big Congrats to Sarah for completing her first 10km, I'm sure there will now be many more to come! I then waited for my sister to finish her half mara & got chatting to an old lady who had walked the 10km & was waiting for her daughter to finish her half marathon.
I saw Sharon come across the line, absolutely spent & gave her a big hug from over the gates. She is a marvel for doing her 3rd half mara, and knocking time off of each one, mind you! So proud to be her sister!
So, I have decided & did decide during the last 3kms of that run, that I need to concentrate on smaller runs until my foot is back to 100% again. Or even do more cycling or eliptical work which will take the load from my foot so that I can still continue to lose weight. I'm seeing my physio tomorrow so I'll see what he suggests & I may even go for that MRI to see what's going on in my foot - even though it will cost around $300 as it's not covered by anything it seems - I think I need to rule out any stress fractures for sure. I'm not liking that this foot injury is now affecting my knee.
I am also hoping to participate in the 60km Weekend to end womens cancer walk with my sister in March 2014, so I really need to know what's going on with my foot to decide if I can attempt that weekend & what steps I need to take to get there - no pun intended!
Yes, this post is a stark contrast to my last post about Bikram, which I received a lot of feedback that a few of you really enjoyed it, but we all have our days, even me.
I'm off to another Bikram class tonight - that should at least get me giggling again.
Wednesday 4 December 2013
Bikram Yoga! The Bridget Jones version :-)
I have been wanting to try Bikram yoga for over a year! I've only ever done a couple of yoga classes & that was a few years ago! So when my friend Sarah wanted to try it I thought - perfect - let's do it!
I made sure that I was well hydrated a couple of days prior & especially today - I drink enough water generally - usually 2 litres plus an extra 750ml on training days, but I knew that with being in such a hot room & sweating out all of those toxins that I would need extra.
We rocked up to class, checked in & got sorted & entered the room - it was hot but I thought - this is bearable-famous last thoughts. Sarah & I set up our mats, towels & water bottles & sat there whispering to each other as most of the other participants were lying down relaxing - well except for one - there's always one in every class....you know the girl who does planks & side planks & leg raises right before a yoga class? I whispered to Sarah "What is she doing-is she trying to psych us out or what" - very intimidating. I was scared. Good on that girl though for being so fit that she can do those things prior to a bikram yoga session - but I'd prefer it if you did those at home next time ;-)
The instructor came in then & turned ON the lights. NO - turn them off - I want to bumble about trying to do these poses in the dark please! No such luck....
We started off with a breathing exercise & you had to have your elbows up, head back, elbows touch, exhale, head down. Well let me tell you - I had my elbows up when they were meant to be down & I was forgetting to inhale after exhaling so when the instructor said exhale I was thinking "What - I was meant to breathe again? Oh, ok then!" The instructor spoke quite quickly too so you had to concentrate.
We went through some postures, I couldn't do a lot of the postures fully, so I just did my best - one of the poses is called "Awkward pose" - of course I did that one really well! LOL
And then IT GOT HOT!!! Really hot. Like a furnace. Like there was no escape. I sat down for a bit until the feeling passed & then picked the posture back up again. I looked over at Sarah through my sweat laden eyelashes & was glad that she was there sweating up a storm as well. A few moments later, I accidentally looked at the clock.........IT HAD ONLY BEEN 25 MINUTES!!! I'm done! No way am I going to last in this heat for another 65 minutes! All the while the instructor is saying "right foot up on left thigh, knee down, hand behind back etc etc", oh and my favourite of the class " hold on to your foot with all 10 fingers clasped" - sure no problems - can I just go & dry myself off first - I was so sweaty that my hands were slipping no matter what I was trying to hold on to! Every time she said "hold your foot" I had to stop myself from laughing as I knew what was coming.
I sat down for another minute or so & had a few sips of water until the furnace feeling passed, then stood back up again. Oh, I'm meant to get my forehead to touch my knee whilst my legs are split stance standing? Sure, that will be no problem, how about I just lie down here and have a rest doing the Savasna?! The Savasna is where you lie on the floor on your back, heels touching, palms facing up & concentrate on your breathing. This helps reduce your heart rate & encourages healing - also known as the dead corpse pose. I liked that one - UNTIL we had to do it after each floor pose.
We did approx 30 minutes on the floor & after each pose, we had to do Savasna followed by a full sit up. Towards the end it was hard trying to turn around from the last pose into the Savasana - after doing our rabbits or camels or turtles or whatever other poses we did. I'm pretty sure all of my poses looked like a deranged elephant - arms here when they should have been there, leg up here, not on the floor etc etc At one point I saw myself in the mirror trying to keep it all together & had a silent laugh to myself.
During the "Balancing Stick" I was wishing that I had a stick to balance on!
My "Triangle Pose" was more like a circle.
My "Rabbit Pose", well I'm sure that it would have looked like I was having a nap!
Then the lights were turned off. We made it! We were still alive & we didn't pass out or leave the class! Both soaked with sweat, we got our gear together & were relieved to get outside. We are going back for another session on Saturday & then a couple more next week. It will be interesting to see how we go with the heat the next time. It was hard as I'm not very flexible but I did enjoy it. I will need to take a different towel next time though as my light green towel fluffed all over my dark clothes - not a bright idea!
My last word of advice for anyone that hasn't tried Bikram yoga yet - listen to the teacher when they say only breather through your nose after the initial breathing exercise. I forgot about that & opened my mouth & was smacked in the face by a furnace - I think that's what made me feel a little off for that brief moment as well.
I came home & had a shower and I'm now feeling stranegly invigorated - and not hungry either? I just had a Powerade Zero, some watermelon & more water as I don't even feel like food as such. I will have a decent breakfast tomorrow though. I'm hoping I have a decent sleep tonight & that I'm not invigorated in the "stay awake, can't sleep" sense. Guess I'll just have to practice Savasna then won't I?
Aside from tonight - I've had a 1.4kg weight loss this week which I'm very happy about. I'm in a great place mentally & I'm going to keep going!
Thank you Sezzy for trying Bikram yoga with me, it was fun! (Apart from your parking ticket :-(......)
I made sure that I was well hydrated a couple of days prior & especially today - I drink enough water generally - usually 2 litres plus an extra 750ml on training days, but I knew that with being in such a hot room & sweating out all of those toxins that I would need extra.
We rocked up to class, checked in & got sorted & entered the room - it was hot but I thought - this is bearable-famous last thoughts. Sarah & I set up our mats, towels & water bottles & sat there whispering to each other as most of the other participants were lying down relaxing - well except for one - there's always one in every class....you know the girl who does planks & side planks & leg raises right before a yoga class? I whispered to Sarah "What is she doing-is she trying to psych us out or what" - very intimidating. I was scared. Good on that girl though for being so fit that she can do those things prior to a bikram yoga session - but I'd prefer it if you did those at home next time ;-)
The instructor came in then & turned ON the lights. NO - turn them off - I want to bumble about trying to do these poses in the dark please! No such luck....
We started off with a breathing exercise & you had to have your elbows up, head back, elbows touch, exhale, head down. Well let me tell you - I had my elbows up when they were meant to be down & I was forgetting to inhale after exhaling so when the instructor said exhale I was thinking "What - I was meant to breathe again? Oh, ok then!" The instructor spoke quite quickly too so you had to concentrate.
We went through some postures, I couldn't do a lot of the postures fully, so I just did my best - one of the poses is called "Awkward pose" - of course I did that one really well! LOL
And then IT GOT HOT!!! Really hot. Like a furnace. Like there was no escape. I sat down for a bit until the feeling passed & then picked the posture back up again. I looked over at Sarah through my sweat laden eyelashes & was glad that she was there sweating up a storm as well. A few moments later, I accidentally looked at the clock.........IT HAD ONLY BEEN 25 MINUTES!!! I'm done! No way am I going to last in this heat for another 65 minutes! All the while the instructor is saying "right foot up on left thigh, knee down, hand behind back etc etc", oh and my favourite of the class " hold on to your foot with all 10 fingers clasped" - sure no problems - can I just go & dry myself off first - I was so sweaty that my hands were slipping no matter what I was trying to hold on to! Every time she said "hold your foot" I had to stop myself from laughing as I knew what was coming.
I sat down for another minute or so & had a few sips of water until the furnace feeling passed, then stood back up again. Oh, I'm meant to get my forehead to touch my knee whilst my legs are split stance standing? Sure, that will be no problem, how about I just lie down here and have a rest doing the Savasna?! The Savasna is where you lie on the floor on your back, heels touching, palms facing up & concentrate on your breathing. This helps reduce your heart rate & encourages healing - also known as the dead corpse pose. I liked that one - UNTIL we had to do it after each floor pose.
We did approx 30 minutes on the floor & after each pose, we had to do Savasna followed by a full sit up. Towards the end it was hard trying to turn around from the last pose into the Savasana - after doing our rabbits or camels or turtles or whatever other poses we did. I'm pretty sure all of my poses looked like a deranged elephant - arms here when they should have been there, leg up here, not on the floor etc etc At one point I saw myself in the mirror trying to keep it all together & had a silent laugh to myself.
During the "Balancing Stick" I was wishing that I had a stick to balance on!
My "Triangle Pose" was more like a circle.
My "Rabbit Pose", well I'm sure that it would have looked like I was having a nap!
Then the lights were turned off. We made it! We were still alive & we didn't pass out or leave the class! Both soaked with sweat, we got our gear together & were relieved to get outside. We are going back for another session on Saturday & then a couple more next week. It will be interesting to see how we go with the heat the next time. It was hard as I'm not very flexible but I did enjoy it. I will need to take a different towel next time though as my light green towel fluffed all over my dark clothes - not a bright idea!
My last word of advice for anyone that hasn't tried Bikram yoga yet - listen to the teacher when they say only breather through your nose after the initial breathing exercise. I forgot about that & opened my mouth & was smacked in the face by a furnace - I think that's what made me feel a little off for that brief moment as well.
Here we are straight after the class - sweat is "in" right?!
Outside in the cool fresh air afterwards
I came home & had a shower and I'm now feeling stranegly invigorated - and not hungry either? I just had a Powerade Zero, some watermelon & more water as I don't even feel like food as such. I will have a decent breakfast tomorrow though. I'm hoping I have a decent sleep tonight & that I'm not invigorated in the "stay awake, can't sleep" sense. Guess I'll just have to practice Savasna then won't I?
Aside from tonight - I've had a 1.4kg weight loss this week which I'm very happy about. I'm in a great place mentally & I'm going to keep going!
Thank you Sezzy for trying Bikram yoga with me, it was fun! (Apart from your parking ticket :-(......)
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