Weigh in Wednesday

I want to do a happy little dance for turning things around!


A major goal for me was cracking into the 60's.  I had worked hard to lose weight a few years ago, and managed to get down to 71kg but couldn't get the scales to shift afer that - probably because I lost motivation and decided that I was happy with being that size.  Well, then I inevitably regained, and this time was aiming to actually make it to my ultimate goal.


I cracked into the 60's during round one, which was my goal for the round, in about week 9.  Then I stupidly decided "great, that's it for me!" - an internal excuse that I was not expecting! - and stopped to wait for round 2.  At least, that's what I told myself.  I then managed to go up and down a few times, broke into the 60's, then left again, for weeks on end.


This week, I decided to turn things around and have a new beginning. I'm thrilled to say my weekly weigh in had me cracking those 60's again - this time for good!

Wow, you can really tell when I lost the plot and ate everything in sight...

I've also recently developed a bit more body confidence.  My stomach has always been my least favourite part, and I never like to wear tight-fitting shirts because I hate drawing attention to it.  Lately I've discovered the joys of leggings and t-shirt dresses - so comfortable, and I can even get away with it for work!  So I bought myself some of these bad boys from Black Milk Clothing (obviously these ones are probably not for work...)

Now I am by now means as svelte as these beautiful models, but they're pretty amazing leggings all the same.

Back on track!

Phew!  I have managed to get through 48 hours without cracking and gorging myself on chocolate.  I went to my gym orientation session, and was actually pretty impressed with how far I've come - it was one of those "learn to use the equipment" sessions in a group of women.  I was pretty proud of myself because I already knew how to use them, and I volunteered to demonstrate a few times.  In fact, it was almost annoying because there was only one other person (in a group of 7!) who volunteered to "be a model" - the rest all clustered in the back and muttered things like "oh I'm only here to do Body Balance..." or "I came for orientation, I didn't know we'd have to do some exercise..."  


I don't start work until 1pm today, but work up earlier so I'd have time to fit in a session and still cook myself a decent breakfast - since I'm going to be working until around midnight and it's been a long time since I've done ED.  I psyched myself up and actually did some weights, so now I'm feeling smug and pretty pleased with myself.

I'm pretty chuffed with that effort - and with my shiny new HRM!

Delicious high protein breakfast - mine was not as well presented though!

I'm feeling pretty good about how things are going with getting back on track.  Now just hoping I can stay away from the snacks during my shift this evening - and that it isn't too crazy!

New week, new start!

This week is all about new starts for me.  I haven't had the best beginning to 12WBT, but it's time for me to shake things up.  I'm starting in Emergency this week, which means the return to dreaded shift work - but on the upside, at least now I can go to the gym during the day when it isn't as busy!


I'm going to repeat my measurements and fitness test as part of the "mini-milestone" week, but it's really going to be the baseline for my 8 week body transformation.

Not exactly stellar progress so far... but you just wait to see what it looks like in 8 weeks time!

I have today off work (yay!) so I have an easy-going day planned.  Going to lounge about in my pyjamas planning my meals, cooking healthy lunches, and then I have my Ignition orientation session at my new gym booked for 5pm.  I'm excited to learn about all the features - particularly because I noticed that the cardio equipment has a USB port - perhaps I can watch all my tv shows that I've missed?

I can go from this...

... to this!  

I even have my brand new HRM, ready to go.  It matches my gym clothes (which makes me happy), I've updated my settings, and I'm good to go.  It just needs a name...

My precioussssssss...

I'm going to go enjoy my delicious breakfast, do some laundry and countdown until my new gym opens.  Hello positive attitude...

Exhausted

To be completely honest - round 2 has been a struggle.


I'm completely exhausted, my job has been crazy and when I'm home I just can't face the idea of doing anything except sitting on the couch or sleeping.

I feel like this pretty much all the time...

I have shiny new gym clothes and a shiny new heart rate monitor, but even that hasn't managed to persuade me to get up and do something.  I start in Emergency on Tuesday, and my new gym opens on Monday.  I've been using that as an excuse to not do anything this week... and unfortunately I've also been too busy to eat at work.  So when I do eat, it definitely isn't the beautiful-but-time-consuming meals laid out in the 12WBT meal plan.  It's more along the lines of sugary fatty badness...

Damn those Reese's peanut butter cups...

So I'm accepting that I've had some obstacles.  I'm telling myself that a setback is not a failure, and that I shouldn't just throw the towel in and give up.  One of my favourite sayings is "if you get a flat tyre, you wouldn't just slash all the others and give up - so why do that with your diet and exercise?"

I'm going to sit down on the weekend and do some organising and diarising.  I'm going to work some timing adjustments into the meal plan so I can fit it around my shifts, and I'm going to plan out my gym sessions.  It's not too late for me to turn things around and drop these last few kilos before the wedding.  And beating myself up doesn't burn calories like a boxing class would!

Blogger Challenge - week 2

I almost forgot to participate in the blogger challenge - I've been faffing about all week, not really accomplishing anything, so this week is about refocusing.  What better way than to evaluate my reasons?  Courtesy of Jayne - http://www.jayne12wbt.blogspot.com.au/


Tell me or show me! When and where do you workout? Are you doing anything different this round? Or is it your first time exercising? Is there anything that you'd like to do? but not yet done?


When do I work out?  Well, in my imagination I wake up and flit about my house putting all my designer gym clothes and admiring my svelte body before heading to the gym so I can run gazelle-like and serene at 5am every day.


In reality, I'm a bit hit and miss!  I've been attempting the early morning workouts because I tend to finish work unpredictably late, but there's only been some limited successes so far.  I work out at my local gym, because I'm not a fan of road running and I think if I went with the home exercises I wouldn't really do anything at all!  I quite like going to the gym, it promotes a good mindset - you're there to get the job done, not for anything else, so get on with it!  But my current gym isn't that well-suited to me.  It offers a lot of Body Attack classes, which I don't like, and not many other cardio classes.  The women's workout area is pretty sparse, and the shared area is dominated by pushy men doing supersets and using about 6 machines at once - god forbid you gently move their towel to use the seated row, it's the end of the world!


My new gym opens next week, which I am very excited about.  I'll also have to overhaul my timetable given that I'll be on shift work for the next month and a half.  


This isn't my first time exercising - I've been a member of a gym for about 6 years, and I've tended to average out to just one session a week.  There are times when I go 4-5 times a week and am really motivated, but there's also been periods like 2010 when I didn't go for 6 whole months!


Things I'd like to do are pretty simple
- run 5k without stopping
- do a push-up on my toes
- learn to swim properly 

Banana bruschetta and a week of red flags

I'm normally dubious of cottage cheese, but tried the banana bruschetta again this morning - so much more delicious than I remembered!  Definitely a winner!


This week is full of red flags for me - it's end-of-term so I'm going out to dinner tonight and drinks on Friday.  I'm also going to a pharmaceutical company presentation with dinner on Wednesday - though it's on treatment of Acute Coronary Syndromes, so I'm hoping the food won't be too unhealthy (seems a bit ironic if it is!).


Next week is a bit daunting - my new gym opens, and I'm excited to check it out.

Already seems more fun than my current gym!

But unfortunately next week marks the end of my regular working hours job, and I'm going back to Emergency for 5 weeks.  Shift work is a tricky beast.  If the hours are regular and predictable, it's not so bad.  But this roster is all over the place, and doesn't make much sense.  Last time around I struggled, I made it to the gym once in the entire 10 weeks, and I discovered the 24 hour McDonalds near my house.  Bad move.  The 4am Big Mac is my downfall, so this time I'm going to be making a marked effort to organise and diarise to avoid any pitfalls.


The added bonus is that by being on shift work, I'll have some random days off to go and try out all the classes my new gym has to offer.  Cheerleading?  Why not!  Burlesque?  Hip hop?  Boxing?  These are all such novelties, I hope they can break me out of the Pump/RPM rut....

Oh my gosh, it's week 2 already!

Having a long weekend at the end of the first week of a weight loss program may not have been the best timing.  I fell off the wagon with a thud, and proceeded to eat - turkish food, Grill'd, Arnott's biscuits - you name it, I've probably eaten it this weekend.


So, after spending yesterday feeling a bit shellshocked, and this morning seeing a somewhat depressing 300g weight loss (on top of my 100g from last week - at least it's better than a gain, but still disappointing), I'm back on track.  I've got my lunch packed for today, the chicken is defrosting for tonight's dinner - no cheating and ordering pizza, even if it is Origin night! - and my gym clothes have been set aside.


The early morning wake-ups are again my challenge.  Why must it be cold outside, and so toasty and nice in bed??


On another note, I have finally started making some progress on wedding planning.  Reception payments have been made, I've booked the photobooth, and now I need to get my salary packaging reimbursed so I can pay for some of the honeymoon.  Hooray!  

Vision board

The weekly surprise this week was to make a vision board - now sadly, I am not technologically savvy, and I am very impatient.  I signed up to get an invite to Pinterest, but then didn't want to wait for that so went ahead and made an attempt using the one program I know how to use - Word.  


Yep.  Word.  Not the most advanced photo editing suite out there, but it gets the job done for me!

My vision board attempt

My goals are to lose weight and be fitter.  I don't want to let excuses stop me from reaching my goal.  I want to be a beautiful bride, and I truly value my wonderful friendships.  Being debt-free has been a long-term goal of mine, and the day I see a fully credited bank balance will be a very happy one.  I want to replace my old car, but am waiting for a bit longer - so I'd love to own this black shiny beauty.  The travel pictures are of my honeymoon destinations, and I'm desperately hoping to be accepted to the anaesthetics training program for 2013.


When I finally get my Pinterest invite, I'll re-do my vision board - so hopefully it'll be prettier!

Blogger challenge - week 1

The amazingly inspirational Jayne (http://www.jayne12wbt.blogspot.com.au/) started a blogger challenge for round 2, which I'm pretty excited about participating in.  So here goes!

Introduce yourself and tell us why you're here

My name is Shannon and I'm a 26 year old junior doctor.  I had always struggled with weight, I can remember barely fitting my high school uniform and being so envious of my sister (who at the time was size 8 and looked amazing).  I've been on the dieting/regaining see-saw for years, and was starting to think that maybe I would never get to and maintain my goal weight.  Then my fiance proposed, and suddenly I was filled with mental images of myself on my wedding day.  I want to be able to show people my wedding photos in 20 years time, and be proud of how fit and healthy I was (and still will be!). 

I'm on blogger because I figured it would be another great way to meet people who are going through the same thing, share triumphs and support pitfalls. 

Why did you decide to join round 2 of Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation?

A friend of mine had just signed up for the 12WBT, and I'd seen her posting on the Facebook page so was curious.  I asked her about what it entailed, thought it sounded pretty good - and so I signed up for round 1.  I was really motivated in preseason and the first few weeks, and managed to drop 5kg.  I lost momentum around week 6 and struggled through until week 12, lost another 3.5kg and then plateaued.  

I signed up for round 2 because I'm still about 7kg off my goal weight, and I really want to get there for my wedding.  This round finishes the same day as my next wedding dress fitting, so it's great motivation to keep it together.  

How have you prepared for the challenge?

I am a compulsively organised person, so preparing for this challenge was the easiest part for me.  Staying committed is going to be my hurdle!

Nutrition

I printed out all the recipes from the website and put them all into a display folder.  I've also bought Mish's cookbooks (The No Excuses Cookbook, The Crunchtime Cookbook and The Last 5 Kilos), and stocked up on kitchen equipment.  I never used to cook, I was using Lite'n'Easy for about a year before starting 12WBT and I've never been a very good cook to begin with.  So I had to buy a lot of equipment and I've been teaching myself as I go.

Now I'm pretty proud of myself every time I cook something new.  It's something unexpected, I didn't realise that this program would teach me how to create beautiful meals (I signed up focused on the weight loss, but have now discovered so much more!).

Every Thursday I write out my meal plan - I don't follow the suggested meal plan because it's difficult to fit the options around my job (which is pretty demanding, can have some shocking working hours), so I tend to repeat breakfasts and lunches a lot.  After writing out my meal plan, I go through every recipe and make my shopping list of all the ingredients I need to stock up on.  This process takes about an hour every week, which can be frustrating since it would be easier to just print off the plans and go, but it just wasn't feasible with my job so I've been making this work.

Exercise

Ugh, this is where I struggle.  I tried going to the gym after work last round, with pretty limited success.  This round, I've set my alarms and I'm going before I start work - so I've decided to follow the gym machines program rather than the gym classes (that way I'm not stuck having to follow a class timetable).  On the downside, I'm starting shift work in the Emergency Department in a few weeks which will through all my routines out of whack.  But on the upside, my new gym also opens in a few weeks with extended opening hours and more classes available.  So for the next fortnight I'm going to stick to my early morning exercise, and when those shifts start I'll just have to take it day-by-day.

I have quite an impressive collection of gym clothes accumulated over the last 18 months.  I just bought a new outfit from Lululemon yesterday (to celebrate my drop in size!) and I'm going to check out Mish's clothes from Big W today.  My HRM has been my gym buddy for a few years, but sadly died earlier this week.  I've ordered a replacement, but am still waiting :-(

Mindset

This blog is my new change for mindset.  Posting on here is a good way for me to clear my head and see how other people are coming along.  I love the forums and check them a few times a week, I wish I could devote more time to them because they're a fantastic resource.  Mish's videos are another favourite, so I've been getting them as podcasts to relisten to later in the round.  I'm a member of a fantastic and supportive Facebook group, so I love checking out how everyone's doing there.

External excuses

Sadly, that night on call set me back a little - I ended up having to go into work in the morning anyway, so skipped my workout in favour of getting a few hours of sleep.  It was a pretty rough day yesterday, I felt exhausted all day.


I went over my calories with dinner (my friend came over and cooked for everyone, which was lovely), but I figure that can be my "cheat" meal.  I went back to the gym this morning, despite the little voice in my head saying "No HRM means no workout..."  I did buy a shiny new HRM so I hope it arrives in the next few days.


Oh - and it's weigh in Wednesday!  I've only lost 100g, but it's better than a gain and I'm hoping to see better numbers next week.  


It's a no-picture-post today because I'm still pretty tired and can't be bothered.  And I'm running late for work - if only running late actually counted as running!  I'd be so fit!

Day 1 down!

So - today was day one of round 2.  How did I go?

Well, my multitude of alarms (see below) worked - I was up, dressed, had a quick coffee and gathered up my exercise print-out before heading off to the gym.  I hadn't been to the gym for a few weeks, and rarely manage to get there at 5:30am, but it was nice to get things out of the way early. I did every step of the workout, which I was really proud of (especially since I'm doing the Intermediate program this round - which was a bit of a surprise!).

Although, tragically, my HRM died during my treadmill segment.  It wasn't reading at all, but it was fine when I was on the bike/cross-trainer.  So it would have underestimated my calories... I think it's the battery, since I've had this battery for awhile, but it's the excuse I've wanted to check out buying a nicer coloured one so I may have a browse through the Polar website.

Still, even with it not counting some of the time, that's a good effort!

I made my pre-planned breakfast, but sadly forgot my packed lunch so had to buy food.  I cooked my dinner even though I was on call, so all in all managed to stay under my calories.  Unfortunately, I was called back in to work (so another 4 1/2 hours on top of already working a 10 hour day - ugh), so I've only just gotten home at midnight.  Looks like 5am tomorrow might be a bit ambitious - but since I was in so late, I don't have to be in at work until a bit later, so I'm still planning on fitting my workout in.  I need to do it in the morning since I still haven't written my research grant application, and apparently we're having friends over for dinner tomorrow...

First toning workout tomorrow - weights/toning have always been my Achilles heel, so this should be interesting!  

Ready to start....

Round 2 officially kicks off tomorrow.  I've written up my meal plan, bought my groceries and printed off my exercise program.  I've made my chicken rice paper rolls for lunch tomorrow, and laid out my gym clothes.

My alarm(s) are set to wake me up bright and early.  I've done all my preseason tasks.  I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be - so fingers crossed I can drag myself up out of bed and stick to my commitments!

I need to get into the habit of exercising before work - I'm trying to write a research grant proposal before Friday (which means I need to try and finish a draft by Tuesday), and ideally I'd like to be able to spend a few hours in the evenings doing some primary study.  I finish this ward job in 3 weeks, and am going to Emergency after which means the return of dreaded shift work.  I want to get a routine established where I exercise before work, so that it doesn't matter what time I start... that's why I've chosen to follow the gym machines program this round, even though I've always preferred gym classes.

Well, I'm off to bed nice and early to get a decent sleep before all these alarms go off!