7-Day Challenge: Day 1

The first day of this challenge and it's been ok. Nothing interesting really. I was actually a little disappointed that I didn't faint, suffer from massive hunger pains or die during the day.

I woke up feeling like something had hit me over the head and left a gaping hole in my stomach. Now usually I'd have a bowl of muesli or Special K with strawberries or my recent discovery - liquid breakfast (as gross as that sounds I'm always up for something that is quick and convenient) - tetra packs of Up & Go that I can have on my way to work. But since I wasn't allowed grains this made breakfast a little tough to figure out. I finally settled on a banana as I battled my way through peak hour traffic (who would have thought when heading AWAY from the city??).

As soon as I got in I knew I need caffeine. And fast. I'd inject it if I had to but luckily for me the coffee machine produced a half-decent skinny milk latte which I had without sugar.

So far so good.

I found that I was a lot more thirsty than I normally would be and drank quite a bit. Which is awesome because I always have trouble drinking enough water. I had my almonds and my fruit before lunch which kept me going.

Lunch was rajma - Evs had made some brown rice to go with it but again with the no grains/rice rule I had to forgo the brown ricey goodness. But I could still have the rajma.

Problem no.1 - there was no microwave at the client. And trust my luck to be at a place so high on security that I almost needed an escort for the loos. The only microwave was in a place so ,so far away that I wasn't going to risk my lunchbreak finding it. So I ate my rajma cold. Wasn't bad :D

The rest of the day went pretty fast - i wasn't as hungry as I thought I would be - it might have had something to do with the second coffee I had around 3pm.

Then I got stuck at the client because they all decided to disappear while we waitied to conduct our exit meeting and get out of there. I was getting impatient because while I knew the meeting was important (I wasn't planning on driving all the way back for a 15 minute briefing) every minute that ticked away was making it harder and harder for me to try and get to my Body Step class in time. FINALLY they showed up and I was out of there by 5:45pm. My class was at 6:30pm and I still had to drive across the suburbs in peak hour traffic, get changed and nab aspot near the fans.

This is important because it's a very popular class, to the point that it gets OVER-crowded and I usually end up feeling extramely faint and have to leave to gulp in some fresh air before I collapse. I think Lady Luck was on my side. Except for one...err...slight incident where I cut an angry motorist off (not my fault!!!) I zoomed my way there (adhering to the speed limits of course. Sorta :P) and made it in time.

Two hours later and a gruelling session of Body Step and Body Pump where my legs were all wobbly and arms aching, I was done. Dinner was simple - just some corn cobs and a green salad and I was full.

Day 1 was over.

Summary:

Tuesday, 31st March 2009

Daily Summary

Food Energy In: 897 cals Exercise Energy Out: 90 mins, -830 cals Net Energy: 67 cals Net Energy Budget: 1300 cals End Result: 1233 Calories Under

Glasses of Fluid: 8 Steps: 0 Under

Breakfast

Item	Calories	kJs
1 medium,170g with skin, 16cm/6" (110g) of Fruit, fresh: Banana, raw, edible portion	108	451
1 small container (220mL) of Coffee Shop: Caffe Latte, Skinny w. skim milk, no added sugar	70	297
Total	178	748

Lunch

Item	Calories	kJs
1 1 serving (197g) of Rajma Curry: Red Kidney Beans	230	961
Total	230	961

Dinner

Item	Calories	kJs
1 kernels from 1 ear (77g) of Vegetables, cooked: Sweetcorn, boiled	83	348
1/2 tablespoon (20mL) of Kraft: Salad Dressings: 100% Fat Free, Italian	5	23
1 serving (30g) of Cheese: Feta, Reduced-Fat	70	294
1 salad of Meals: Salads, Garden / Side Salad, small	100	420
Total	259	1085

Snack

Item	Calories	kJs
20 almond (1.2g) of Nuts: Almonds, raw, w. skin, edible portion	138	578
1 medium (100g) of Fruit, fresh: Plum, average all types, raw, edible portion	46	192
1 medium (100g) of Fruit, fresh: Plum, average all types, raw, edible portion	46	192
Total	230	962

Exercise

Item	Calories	kJs
45 mins of Body Pump	-415	-1737
45 mins of Body Step	-415	-1737
Total	-830	-3475

7 days...challenge?

Uhhh....

Why am I doing this??? I've tried Rad's challenge before and miserably failed. So what makes me think that I can do this??

Well, for one thing - I have done this before. Evs and I trialled a detox diet a few weeks ago that follows pretty much the same rules. This one is a little bit different with a few major changes:

• One week, starting tomorrow (Tuesday 31st March) to the next Tuesday. Okay, done. March 30th Thru April 06
• No sugars. That's easily done - don't have sugar with my coffee anyways and it's really only through fruit
  
• No Alcohol. Noooooo!!! Hahahah this'll be easy - wait....what about Friday night drinks...??*sob*
  
• No Grains. Nooooooo!!! Ahem. I love my carbs. Which is what has probably gotten me into this mess in the first place. I did it before with the detox diet but man was it HARD. No wheat or rice. We had to eat gluten free for the whole time....yech.
  
• No processed foods. Yup, this can be done.
  
• Not eat out at all. Dammit - I just promised to go to lunch tomorrow with some friends. I'm sure a salad will be ok :D
  
• Workout everyday. Will try this one - I go three times a week as it is so the other days going to go for at least an hour walk (~3km)
  
• Eat veggies. Done
  
• Eat Fruits. Oh so done.
  
• Eat meat and eggs. Woohoo - at least I don't have to starve!! :D
  
• Fast for 18 hours. Oh what??!!! This will be the toughest I think.....

I am going to try and blog about my progress with this every day - either here on on Twitter (you know for those updates when I want to scream or about to faint :P).

Ok....here's the vital stats:

Start weight - err.....58 kilos (*in a small voice*)

Goal weight....hmm....let's hope for a 1kg loss shall we?? I haven't had much luck with the weight dropping off as fast as it should be so a 1kg loss is a realistic and hopeful goal. If this works - it might be something to continue.

Wish me luck!!!

New Year Countdown - Day 24

Ahem. Yes I'm back doing this again.

It didn't quite work for the last one did it?? But hey - we all make mistakes and besides, it's the new year. A new start, a new beginning.

So, one of my resolutions goals for this year was to lose the 8 kilos that I have piled on since the beginning of 2008. More specifically since I got married. And since I never thought that I would ever gain weight (Pfft. Me go all auntie-shaped??) this realization after a long year has been one that has haunted me and made me despair at the same time.

My current aim is to lose 3 kilos by the 22nd of February, with a check in at the end of January. Why this date? - it's my birthday and I think that if I can look and feel fabulous by then, I'll be on my way to losing the rest of the weight.

Like Rads did with her countdown - I am going to list the foods that I ate and the exercise I did for that day. According to Calorie King I should be eating around 1200 calories a day and doing 30mins of exercise if I want to see results. I usually go over and don't exercise enough, so that's something I want to change. Right now I am more focused on changing my diet and exercising regularly that I'm not too fussed if I go over a bit. Plus we all need treats now and then :P

But here's to a new start:

Wednesday, 7th January 2009

Daily Summary

Food Energy In: 1471 cals Exercise Energy Out: 85 mins, -591 cals Net Energy: 880 cals Net Energy Budget: 1200 cals End Result: 320 Calories Under

Glasses of Fluid: 4 Under Steps: 0 Under

Breakfast

Item	Calories	kJs
3/4 cup (55g) of Muesli: Muesli, toasted	161	674
1/3 serving (200g) of Gippsland: Yoghurt: Organic, Fat Free Natural	35	147
3 medium strawberry (30g) of Fruit, fresh: Strawberries, raw, edible portion	30	122
Total	226	943

Lunch

Item	Calories	kJs
1 medium (120g) of Fruit, fresh: Nectarine, raw, edible portion	53	222
1 medium,170g with skin, 16cm/6" (110g) of Fruit, fresh: Banana, raw, edible portion	108	451
1 serving, 20 medium (30g) of Nuts: Cashews, dry roasted w. salt	173	721
Total	333	1394

Dinner

Item	Calories	kJs
1 serving (200g) of Ingham: Chicken Dishes: Crumbed, Breast Schnitzel, Fresh	282	1180
1 serving, 1/10 packet (100g) of McCain: Vegetables, frozen: Potato, Superfries, Extra Long French Fries	142	592
1 teaspoon (5g) of Continental: Stock Powder: Chicken, dry	15	61
1/2 serving (25g) of Coon: Cheese: Shredded, Light & Tasty	42	174
10 g of Five Brothers: Pasta Sauces: Oven Roasted Onion & Garlic w. Wine	5	21
Total	485	2028

Snack

Item	Calories	kJs
1 rounded teaspoon (1.8g) of Coffees: Coffee, Instant, Granulated, Ground (Regular or Decaffeinated), dry	4	18
15 mL of Dairy Farmers: Milk, fresh: Skim	5	22
1 1/2 level teaspoon (4g) of Sugars: White	24	102
1 medium (300g) of Fruit, fresh: Mango, raw, peeled, edible portion	165	690
1 serving (70g) of Gelati Italia: Ice Confections: Sorbet, Lemon	82	343
2 teaspoon (5g) of Cadbury: Chocolate Powder: Bournville Cocoa, dry	32	132
1 cup (250mL) of Dairy Farmers: Milk, fresh: Skim	88	370
1/2 miniatures (10g) of Cadbury: Chocolates: Block, Dairy Milk	26	110
Total	426	1787

Exercise

Item	Calories	kJs
40 mins of Spinning	-461	-1930
45 mins of Pilates	-130	-543
Total	-591	-2473

Looking at that, I still need to drink more water and cut down on the sugar. And I snacked heaps. It was hot and I had a craving for something sweet so I had some lemon sorbet :P And it's mango season - how could I not??? And then in the evening, Evs made a delicious hot chocolate.

Went to the gym for 2 hours. Since I am still at home for this week, I was able to make the weekly Pilates class. Shame it's on not on later or more often. Today I actually feel a lot better and I'm lot more aware of my posture :)

Spin class always makes me sweat and getting back into it after the holiday break, I pushed myself a little harder. I find that the girl who takes the Monday class works us harder than the Wednesday class.

Tomorrow will be a better day :)

Day 20

Ok - so this is going to be really tough.

With all the Christmas parties and amount of work I have to get done before the Annual Firm Shutdown (where we are "encouraged" to take Annual Leave) - I am eating pretty crappily and not exercising as much as I was about a few weeks ago.

So yesterday's tally:

1. 1 2-egg omlette with tomato, fetta, chilli and spring onions
2. 1 glass of breakfast juice
3. 1 cup of instant coffee with skim milk, 1 sugar
4. 1st glass of water
5. ~30g Lindt dark chocolate with orange
6. 2nd glass of water
7. 1/2 katoree mattar paneer
8. 3rd glass of water

At the Christmas BBQ at one of the Partner's houses. (this is where it went downhill)

9. Handful of maltesers
10. 4th glass of water
11. 1/2 can coke
12. 1/2 sausage in a white bread roll, buttered and with American mustard
13. 50g Ceasar salad
14. 60g Roast lamb salad (with pumkin, beetroot, baby spinach, walnuts)
15. 1 Heaven ice-cream (Caramel flavoured).
16. 5th glass of water.


Didn't exercise either - got home and was too knackered from getting lost in the suburbs when my GPS decided to fail to find a signal and reulted in me doing circles. But - does playing with the dog for 20 minutes count???

Still - not enough water and too much sugar in my diet. The Ceasar salad while it sounds healthy, wasn't, but I only had a little bit and more of the lamb salad which was much nicer.

I didn't have any alcohol while I was there (because I was driving) and while tempted to have a nice cold glass of white wine, I was pretty happy with the water I was drinking. The Coke was way too sugary - this is after switching to Coke Zero for quite a while now - but had no other choice. Didn't have much lunch as I was going to this BBQ - but I was working from home in the morning and I remembered I had some paneer in the fridge that I had bought in the thought I'd make mattar paneer.

Since, however, I have been out for dinner more often this week than at home, I wasn't sure when I'd get the chance to make it. Plus, after catching the cooking bug before I was itching to try to make this. I had attempted this before while I was living with my in-laws and it didn't turn out so well. So I determined to do better.

And...yes it was great!!

One thing I find though - I have signed up to the this Calorie Counting website that it hand to work out the % of nutrients I am getting from my diet and see exactly how many calories are in the food we eat. However, it's hard to calculate how many calories there would be in an Indian dish like mattar paneer.

The site tells me that I should aim for 1200 calories a day and I often get there or over by a bit and have found my diet is too full of fat and carbs. So - that's some food for thought.

Tonight is the Firmwide Xmas party - a Venetian masked ball theme. No sit-down dinner but finger food and PLENTY of alcohol. So this is going to be an interesting night.

More tomorrow.

The wagon keeps moving

After reading Rad's successful attempts to lose weight by really not doing too much at all - I am inspired to get back on the wagon.

My goal is still the same - actually it's gone up - so let's just say it's 8 kilos. Rads goes about by listing all the food she eats at the end of the day, making sure she has her 8 glasses of water. She does about 30 minutes of exercise a day and in about 2 weeks she has lost 4.1 pounds (1.89 kilos)!!.

That is a fantastic result!!

So my goal time is 31st December - just in time for this year to end. My goal is to lose 2.5 kilos in that time (5.5 pounds). I think it's doable. 3 weeks exactly - an average of 0.83 kilos a week.

This is going to be hard because I have parties and functions throughout this period, and will be eating like shit but a goal is a goal.

Sigh.

So let's do it.

Day 21 - dinner with the Girls tonight

1. 1 medium Granny Smith Apple
2. Large Skinny latte (400mL/skim milk) with no sugar
3. 1st nectarine
4. 1st glass of water
5. ~8 Arnotts Chicken Crimpy biscuits (they were there!!)
6. 1 sachet (40g) of Sunbeam Natural Fruit and Nut mix (sultanas, raw - peanuts, almonds, cashews)
7. 1 cup of daal-chawal (toor daal, no tadka and white rice)
8. 2nd glass of water
9. 2nd nectarine
10. 1 peach
11. 1 cup peppermint tea
12. 1/2 small lemon custard tart (met up with Yogi)
13. 3rd glass of water
14. 4th glass of water
15. Lamb with broad beans and this filo pastry thing
16. 1/2 Honey and date cheesecake (it was tiny - so not worth the price!)
17. 1/4 slice of chocolate cake (that Mike fed me at Yogi's place!!)

Exercise - all up about 45 mins of walking at ~ 4 kmph

So not quite the start I was looking for...but it's there.

Less sugar, less carbs, more exercise.

Guess who's back!

Yeah guess who's back.

Not Slim Shady (which would be ironic both in the nature of the name and the rumours that he has ballooned since his last album) but MOI.

It has been...how long since I last blogged here?? March....to....October. That's like 7 months! Almost to the day as well.

Yeah well. Got busy.

In that time my weight has gone up another 2.5 kilos and I have nobody to blame but...the Melbourne weather. Primarily the onset of Winter and the carb-loaded goodness that one tends to eat while freezing their ass off.

Settling into full-time work has also brought a new set of challenges but am dealing. Not buying lunch every day like many of the people here do - but have the luxury of a husband who can get ready in 20 minutes and thus has the time to create a gourmet sandwich for my eating pleasure.

We bought a new house and moved out of the parental home, also signifying the ends of an eating era. Gone would be the dinners swimming in butter and cream (courtesy of Ev's Dad's chef skills being flourished before us) and we would start to create meals of our own - some reminiscent of the food that Ev's Dad would cook and some that we made ourselves.

My wholesome Indian vegetarian food that my mother made while I was living at home has taken a back burner - I have many of the ingredients to cook it but a laksa always wins. Plus I'm lazy when I have a fully-functional husband to deal with the cooking stuff :P

The biggest thing so far in the midst of all the moving, settling and putting on more weight was that I rejoined the gym. *cue dramatic music*

Yes I did! Currently am on a trial membership that allows me to have a taste of all what the gym has to offer without having to fork out the moolah-lah.

And...I have to say - I love it!!!

It's a great gym - about 10-15 minutes from home and the train station meaning that there is no excuse for me to NOT go past it and then stop by. It is a women's only gym - something that I wasn't actively looking for but appreciate all the same. Because there is nothing to hide there. Women of all ages, all body shapes come there and nobody takes a second look. Well - maybe if there was a Megan Fox lookalike but there isn't. We are all, convincingly normal. (Except for the woman that was there that was literally pounding the machines like they had wronged her not only in THIS life but 3 more before this)

I walked in feeling a bit nervous. As you do when venturing into a place that was once so familiar to you (I sound like I had an intimate relationship with...say...the Stepping machine. Oh I did. I HATED it like nothing before.)

But this time I was determined to get the butt wiggling and thighs jiggling and I was sure that the poundage would just drop off. PLUS - the best thing about this gym is that they had Spinning Classes. If you don't know what that is - let me enlighten you.

Spin classes are the upgraded, turbocharged, Version 5.0 of the exercise bike routine. A semi-circle of these funky bikes are in a room while a peppy, lithe instructor (also known as the Torturer) will be at the front of the class. She will usually speak in bursts of sweetness and military-style yelling to get you all going through flats and hills and won't even break a sweat while you almost drown in the puddle at your feet. It is like torture in a classroom. Why women would voluntarily sign up for this torture is because you see and get results - fast.

And that's what I want.

But this time I was going to take it a little slow so I didn't drop dead soon after running, and just hit the treadmills with enthusiasm. And what treadmills they were! I was swooning when I saw them - high-tech machines that gleamed under the lights just CALLING me to use them. They each had a TV screen IN the machine so I could watch Friends while keeping an eye out on the number of calories I was burning. I walked and even took it up to a steady jog for about 20 minutes before the image of the Pussycat Dolls on MAX started to blur as the sweat dripped into my eyes.

I took one of the complimentary wet towels and wiped myself and the machine off while I caught my breath. As I was heaving and potentially about to heave up a lung, I saw on the timetable board that the next class was Body Balance - a mixture of Tai Chi, Yoga, Pilates and Meditation. Sounded like just what I needed after a long day at work and I slipped into the classroom just as the instructor told us all to go into "Down Dog" position.

A What-Dog position?? I looked around to see whether I was in the right class and not the Fit For The Bedroom session and saw to my relief that it wasn't what I was thinking at all. We stretched and twisted and balanced (By the way - I SUCK at balance. I fell over so many times that the instructor just told me to stand still) and then finished with the Happy-Baby position. By the time the class was over I could do the Down Dog, Up Dog, Happy Baby, Twisted Lotus, Salute the Sun and something that I like to think in most humans would be impossible.

I left the gym feeling refreshed and happy that I had made the effort to come once again.

Now let's just see if I can stick with it.

Ok - so it's been a while since I posted here - my weight loss obsession fluctuated from extreme (crying in my walk-in closet for hours) to nonchalant (Daaaym - I still don't look- half-bad so why obsess?) along with many of my blog readers insisting that I wasn't fat. They are right - I don't LOOK fat - I just FEEL fat. And without the clothes - it's a different story. Cellulite and wobbly bits everywhere.

The only thing I like about my body is my breasts. I used to like my waist but that is slowly disappearing.

Anyways - since starting full-time work my eating habits are slightly better - the only thing is I haven't had the chance to exercise much. And while at training - they provide lunch and it's always these little sandwiches and fruit which are so yummy but thank-god healthy so I've been doing ok.

But I did decide to do something drastic.

The Lemon Detox Diet.

It's the one that Beyonce swears by having lost 10 kg's in 2 weeks for her role in Dreamgirls and it's the one that Tania Zaetta promotes and now it's the one I am going to try.

I have never been on a diet before and this is going to take effort.

You basically make up this drink which is a combination of water, tree syrup, lemons and cayenne pepper and drink that instead of eating. I am aware enough to know that it is a sort of starvation diet but it isn't bothering me much. Every Tuesday last year I used to fast along with my Dad - eating only fruits and nuts and having only dinner. THAT was torture for me when I first started and I used to CRAVE carbs and sometime sneakily eat some bread or something. But other days I did it on eating that or less. So I have some faith in myself for completing this. It is meant to last about 7 days and it is somewhat of a test on myself as well if I can refrain from not only eating but eating crap.

This first day has been ok - I woke up late (about 10am) because I was exhausted from the 5:30am starts all week and got busy in housework until I realised I hadn't eaten yet. So I made up a day's worth of the drink and decided to have some.

And it's not bad. I love lemons so that iss fine, and the syrup sweetens it. The cayenne pepper gives it a extra zing, a bit of spice and it's not too bad. I have had cravings for food but every time I do, I drink water or have another glass of the Lemon drink. Evs and I also went to play tennis, but due to the bloody heat we stayed only for an hour. But that was good - I got some exercise in as well.

They say that it's the first couple of days that are the worst and I'm bracing myself for tomorrow where I might experience headaches and dizziness. But so far I have been doing ok and if I lose the average 4 kilos that they say you can lose within a week - then it'll be so worth it.

I know I am crazy, but I am going to see if this works. If not - then I will bow down to all the 'I told you so's' that I know I will deserve.

Wish me luck :)