Not a Second to waste…
22 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
Last week was an utter fail-fest. I have to say I am bored of crashing into a wall, falling off the wagon and just ending up bloated and full of self-loathing with a sugary taste in my mouth.
What I can’t get my head around is what is it that is stopping me from achieving my goal of a fit, toned and healthy body and mind? Why do I falter and crash? I don’t want to look like a dried out, fat old woman – who does? I know the only thing/person standing between me and my dreams is ME. Like a recovering addict I need to take it one day at a time.
In January I wanted this year to be the one I lost the weight. We are not too far away from May so the months are slipping by. There is not a second to waste…
I am off work for the next two weeks so I am going to use the gym, there are a few classes scheduled, bike rides and I am planning on at least having a go at running (even if it is treadmill running). The fridge is full of healthy food and all the junk is gone.
Lets see how taking it day by day works… x
It Started with a Bootcamp…
09 Apr 2012 Leave a Comment
Life has been up and down but lately I have found a little groove and have managed to settle into a sweet little routine which I have enjoyed. I have enjoyed it so much I have actually lost 11lb. It started with a 4 week Pilates boot camp. I decided that I was going to have a go and put some real effort into this one. It came as second nature to me to begin a healthy eating routine at the same time. I hated leaving the chocolate ditch I had slipped into after falling off the wagon again… but I kept it up for the first week being a miserable cow, having headaches, eating little packs of chopped celery and carrots each day to keep the hunger at bay. Slowly, very slowly it all started to turn around. After the first week I found I had lost 5lb, the second week 1lb and this third week I have managed another 5lb. To log my calories and exercise I decided to subscribe for 3 months to the Biggest Loser Site. It is basic and does the job so I am happy to use it. My exercise has increased so much, gym visits have increased and I have started to feel good again. Having just had a long weekend I decided to have a few health suite sessions and have steamed and bubbled all weekend. Exfoliated, epilated and moisturised my way to a minor grooming triumph. I have also had a tiny wardrobe revamp and have planned another wardrobe clearout for the end of the month. These horrid black trouser I hate so much will be gone in this next session.
Portion sizes have been cut, chocolate intake has been cut but not through annoyance rather through genuine choice. I could easily have eaten the stuff but I just have not wanted.
Today I am starting the 30 Day Shred and I am planning on doing it all. Why not while I am enjoying being active. This week I am hoping for another loss but more important I will be taking part in a Charity bike ride of 30 miles for Altzheimer’s Trust. I am sure there will be photos. xx
What a Rollercoaster that was…
15 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
My goodness… the last few weeks has been such an emotional rollercoaster. My dear old dad died last month following an infection after suffering a massive stroke. The weeks following his death have been bizarre from being amazed at experiencing the loss of a parent to feeling desolate at the loss of a parent. I have experienced so many emotions I am not sure where I am, what the date is and what the hell is going on. I have been off work for the past 5 weeks and I have started to notice that I am getting bored. I am going to pick my self pitying ass up and get back to work on Monday.
I have also noticed a few other things that have me concerned:
- My clothes are tight
- it is a real pain to get up off the couch – literally as my joints ache and I feel I am heaving myself up
- my skin is really dry to the point of being painful
- my joints are really sore
- I feel like I am exhausted after a short walk
- I have heart palpitations
- I am thirsty all the time
- I can’t bend over to tie my laces
- I can feel my belly lying on my lap (again)
- I have gained plenty of lbs
Well that is for starters…
Plan:
- water, water, water – drink it all in
- get moving. I have downloaded the couch to 5k and I am going to get running again
- back to regular classes at the gym
- for 1 week only to kick start my weightloss I am going to do the Special K one week food plan starting Sunday.
I hope in a week I will no longer be straining in my trousers. I only have 2 pairs left I can wear and I am beginning to really hate them. I was so close to buying the next size up but I refuse to do so. I binned several pairs of size 18s and I am not buying anymore. I need to try something new this month as I promised for each month this year. I was actually thinking about having some beauty pampering treatments. I have never had anything like manicure, pedicure or eyebrow waxing so I am going to having something done. Last month was a bit of a wipeout where goals are concerned. I did manage to start clearing out the clutter and I did also start a plan to get rid of the debt and increase the savings. burying my dad was the ‘try something new’ I know he would have howled at that one, bless him. x
Numb…
21 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
January goals are out of the window… My dear dad died on Tuesday. I will bury him next Wednesday. Life has just been put on hold. I have never felt so sad. xx
2012…
25 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
what will you bring? I guess only what I ask and work at. Having spent the last two weeks feeling rougher than a bears ass I am craving healthy vegetables and movement. It is Christmas tomorrow but Santa visits Pagans on 21st December so he dropped off my gifts on Wednesday. I was so lucky to have been given really lovely gifts including this: 
Not only does it fit in with my kitchen stuff already but is made in England (such a rarity these days), even better than that it is made in Liverpool (how amazing is that?). They have been made in the same factory using the same style of machinery since the 1920s. Keeping old skills alive and employing local people is so close to my heart. I have decided to buy one for each of my friends with the local links highlighted. Thankfully Liverpool is now more to me than the Beatles.
Also it is easier to use than cups for American recipes 
I also had this beautiful mixing bowl from Cole and Mason. I had an original one a few years ago that I spied in a charity shop in Sussex but it cracked one winter when left outside in the garden (don’t ask – it wasn’t me).
I am itching to get out and find my health again, get to the gym, use the health suite, eat healthily and feel that great feeling of losing weight and gaining my confidence. I still feel pretty ill so not going to be doing too much. To be honest I am dreading stepping on the scale and seeing the damage. I have not been weighed for a few months and healthy eating has gone right out of the window. I need to get back control. Nothing felt as good as losing weight did and I need to hang on to that feeling.
I need to set up goals for the coming year. Month by month and month within month. One thing I have realised is I need to plan and to have my goals visible. A few months back I wrote a list of goals and promptly left it in my purse. Only when I was looking for my card did I find it again. I wanted everything on the list but because it was hidden to me I forgot it. I am going to use my blackbirds on a wire to make the goals visible.
More thought on goals for my next post… I am actually getting pretty desperate to get to the gym and get moving. xx
Busy busy busy…
13 Dec 2011 2 Comments
Christmas is almost upon me. I have been busy making little gifts for my team mates at work. I decided to make each person a bag of Sweeties. I know they love mint and I found a really easy and delicious recipe for Peppermint Patties, thanks Amanda. Maybe adding a little silver bell to the ribbon would make them festive… well yes…and why not make tiny festive houses from modelling clay painted with acrylic and tiny lights in the window… oh where will it end…?
The Houses…
Ok I started here with the basic shape of the house…
Added small brass hooks and then painted them to make these little cuties…
I am going to attach one plus a little silver bell to each package of Peppermint Patties and hand them to each of my work mates…
I hope they go down well. I have initialled and dated each house on the bottom. I have never made anything like this for my colleagues so fingers crossed they actually like them. I hope the little houses end up on their trees.
The Patties…
Ingredients…
those chocolate buttons are uber luxurious.
She was readied up and all set to go.
after much measuring, mixing and messing (which I loved). The minty dough was ready to roll out. I added more icing sugar and rolled up the dough kneading it until it was smooth and soft. Using a shot glass I pushed out a few batches of patties. Each one was left in the freezer while I melted the chocolate…
The addition of the coconut oil made the chocolate far easier to play with. The patties …
The final product…
I handed them out this morning to delighted squeals of delight. Phew xx
I am in Love…
21 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
with this little guy…
It finally arrived around lunch time and I eagerly opened the boxes (it was VERY well packaged).
and came with a free set of Dualit kitchen scales which I don’t need just yet so will remain in the box.
It has a home now in the kitchen and fits in so well with all my retro and original 1920s kitchenware.
I can’t wait to get started…watch this space… xx
Excited? Hell yeah…
21 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
I read blogs where people pee themselves with excitement at the prospect of their KitchenAid mixers. I thought they were a little odd. I mean how can a kitchen appliance inspire such drama? Well, that was until today. I ordered my first ever KitchenAid Artisan mixer and it is en route to my home as I type. A short recap:
For my birthday 2 years ago a very good friend bought a cupcake book as a gift for me. I drooled over the pages and asked her which one she would like as a thank you for my gift. She chose the chocolate hazelnut with nutella frosting. So I went home and checked out the recipe. I had everything EXCEPT the electric mixer. I decided to buy, just one a cheap thing from Argos for £5. I was just going to have a go after all. I made the cakes to the prescribed recipe and duly handed them out. I was suddenly inundated with requests for more. I began thinking of my own combinations and I even began getting orders for parties. My dear little hand mixer died a spectacular death halfway through a lemon frosting. I borrowed my sister’s hand mixer and decided that really I ought to have a decent one. After the decision was made I checked out the possible options and decided on my favourite brand I opted for a Dualit hand mixer.
I LOVE my hand mixer. It has served me well and on seeing it in my kitchen has even inspired a friend to buy one. My cake orders have increased as I am making them for charity and I decided to buy a KitchenAid after lusting after one for a few years. I am not certain of the exact point at which this decision was reached but I knew I WANTED ONE.
The dilemma that affects all people who buy a KitchenAid is – COLOUR. I adore the 1950s cream and pistachio palette. I have my trusty cream Dualit toaster and an original 1920s pistachio breadbin but I wanted to play with colour. Red and black were out immediately as was white(sorry if you own these beautiful colours but I wanted something special). I also decided against cream. I played with bubblegum pink, bright pink, chrome and yellow then I found it… Pistachio. Oh the disappointment on discovering it was only available in US was palpable. I even went through the option of having it shipped over and buying a transformer but then I found it… Ice Blue. The closest to pistachio and still quite a sweet colour.
So here I am a few days after ordering the ice blue KitchenAid with a glass bowl and a steel bowl. I have been tracking my order and after a painful waiting period of a weekend it is now on the truck and en route to me. I am sitting in my bedroom on the edge of my bed having taken the day off. I feel the same sense of anticipation I have read about and dismissed but it is so real. All manner of recipes are going through my head. Last night I made and frosted 40 cupcakes and it took 5 hours. I am looking forward to the mechanisation of this event and cutting my cupcake time down. I am playing with the idea of making individual lemon meringue pies. xx
Half Marathon Training Day 1…
07 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
Ok day one is here and has started with a quick weigh in. Stats this morning: weight 13stone 13lb (phew JUST under 14stone). I have gained almost 10lb in the last few months since I fell off the wagon. I refuse to beat myself up about this. Body fat is 49%. I am confident I can get back down this month with my plans for running.
New running shoes have arrived and I love them. We went for a trial walk yesterday along my local beach where I will be running.
I love the new running shoes they are Brooks Adrenaline boys size 5 and fit perfectly. They are neither girly nor ridiculous looking.
This morning is very frosty but yesterday it was glorious weather outside and this is how my running track was looking. The tide was right out and the running community was in full flow.
New shoes on terrified feet… the very THOUGHT is terrifying. I am thinking about lugging my great chunky…. oh but WAIT… I said goodbye to her yesterday at the airport. I am no longer a huge wobbly person but a work in progress to get fit and healthy.
It is really strange how well voicing my goodbye to the fat person worked. I took the opportunity to look at myself in my swimsuit and concentrate on the good points, the curves I have and my proportions…
Today I will be sitting down and formulating my running plan. I have 19 weeks to get myself fit and ready to run. I have to work out how much weight I want to lose (around 30lb), my pace and my schedule. Until then I have a date with the steam room… more later. x
I Did it…
29 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
I registered for my first race. It is the Liverpool Half Marathon in March. Oh I feel a little dizzy with excitement now and have to plan my training. My fear is that I don’t finish or that I take an eternity to finish. I needed new running shoes so a little trawl on the internet and I found these…
They are boys size 5 so should be fine. My last pair of Brooks went to my housemate as they were size 5.5 and a bit too big for me. 5 should be perfect. They should be here for my return next weekend from my trip to the Canary Islands. I won’t be running alone. I have the support of a good friend who is an experienced runner.
Now that I have registered for the race I know my training is going to be more serious. It starts the week I return from my trip so that gives me 20 weeks to get my running up to speed and distance to finish in a respectable time. I am off to start planning…
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