Four Weeks to a Beach Body?

On Saturday I embarked upon my mad-scramble to get beach ready in earnest!
The previous Wednesday was weigh-in at Slimming World. Over the festive period I put on 4lbs. It’s more than I would have liked to put on, and perhaps I should have been a little more conscious of what I was eating. However, I can’t un-eat what I have eaten, so instead I have to get back on the plan.

Anyway, I’ve been sticking to the plan since Thursday, and with the help of those syns, I’m sticking to it well! However, I feel like I need an extra boost, something to give me some tone as well as aiding that weight loss. So I picked up my copy of New Rules of Lifting for Women, and set to.
We have a pretty nifty set-up in the garage, the only thing we don’t have is a cable column. I’ve been able to do all of the exercises called for in the program with the exception of lateral pull-downs, which are easily replaced with pullovers.
I’ve tried this regime before, though it was back before I started going to Slimming World, when I was a stone-and-a-half heavier than I am now. I was disheartened when I couldn’t see visible improvement. I was stronger than I have ever been, but all the muscle was hidden under a layer of fat. I am hopeful that this time, because I have already lost a lot of the weight I want to lose, I will see the results more clearly. This will hopefully boost my confidence, inspiring me to work out more, and thus begins a cycle. I hope.

As I said, I started on Saturday. It’s now Monday. I have therefore done two workouts, one each of workout A and workout B.
Both workouts are intended to be full body workouts, and I can certainly confirm that my full body feels like it’s been worked hard. I’ve pushed myself on all of the exercises. I was only able to manage 5 full push-ups, but I did my full second set by doing knee-push-ups (also known as “ladies” push-ups.)
I also opted to do regular crunches rather than ball-crunches, and after falling off the ball several times I also went for crunches rather than ball jack-knife.

My next workout will be on Wednesday morning, and then in the evening I will be weighing in at Slimming World for my first post-regime-change weigh in.
Fingers crossed, it’ll be good news.

All Go (hopefully)

So, we’re due to exchange and complete on our new house on Friday next week.

Exchanging and completing on the same day is making me nervous, I’ll admit. I’m one of those people who like to know what’s happening for certain, and plans stuff. I find I’m not very spontaneous these days (I like to think I used to be, but it could just have been circumstance)

Well, anyway, we’re making plans based on the exchange and completion happening together on the Friday. Everyone involved is keen for this to happen, so it should be fine.

That means we’ve been booking the movers. This has turned out to be more taxing than I expected. The movers we were going to use are fully booked. So my fiancé has had to ring round to find someone. We decided to go with the people who answered the phone, who could fit us in, and who don’t cost an arm and a leg (though I suspect that the cost element might be the one we have the least control over!)

Now we just have to explain that we have a bunch of stuff stored at some friends’ house and we’d like that to be picked up too. We’ll see what he says when he comes to look at our stuff on Tuesday.

I guess we’d better tidy the house some more!

In knitting news, the socks I have been designing have been frogged. I liked the way they were looking, until I got onto the 4th repeat when the colours started to do weird things. So I’ve decided that they’re just going to be plain old vanilla socks. Yarn Harlot’s recent pair where two of the ribs continued down the leg were nice, perhaps I’ll do that (I’m such a fangirl)

Another workout today:
dead lift – front squat – push press, 20kg, (20, 10, 5; 20, 10, 4; 20, 10, 3) (that’s an improvement!)
bench press – sit ups, 20kg/bodyweight (12, 20; 8, 20; 7, 15)
kettlebell swings – kettlebell rows – kettlebell curls, 12kg/12kg/8kg (10, 8/8, 8/8; 10, 10/10, 10/10)
I didn’t do the jammer press, I think I’m going to ask for an alternative when I see my PT on Wednesday. I have been shown how to do a hamstring stretch on the “power plate” which is cool. (if you’ve never seen one, a power plate looks like those really old fashioned scales, but the floor plate is wobbly and vibrates. It’s odd)
I did do the X-Trainer again, 3 mins between each superset.

I reckon, if I keep improving on the dead/squat/press I should be able to manage the full 5 push presses with 20kg for all three sets soon, and then I get to put the weight up! Woo!

Limbo

That’s how I feel at the moment, like I’m somehow held in limbo.

The house move is probably going ahead, there’s no reason for me to think it isn’t. Even so, we don’t have a confirmed move date (though I’ve speculatively booked a day off work when it’s meant to be!) nor do I know if we’re waiting for anything further.

I’m still looking forward to the move, and settling in to the new house. If all goes to plan we’ll be moving on the bank holiday weekend. Obviously that’s great from a moving in perspective. I hope it works out from a buying appliances perspective too! However, if all we manage to sort out is a fridge then that will be fine – we’ve got a week off not long after to tidy up all the loose ends! Hopefully we’re visiting my sister in the weekend there too, with a trip to Costco, which will mean that if we do have a chest freezer by then (here’s hoping) we can buy some stuff to fill it. Woot!

The wedding is definitely going ahead (ahaha) but there are a whole bunch of things that I can’t do until we’ve moved house. I’m not setting anything in motion until then either. That means that after the move I have to visit the dressmaker, visit the registrar, confirm our new address with the photographer, the venue(s), and anyone else, and make invitations for everyone. I’m actually quite looking forward to making the invitations. It’s a nice excuse to spend a few (!) hours in my craft room making things. I’m less looking forward to sourcing addresses for people I don’t have addresses for!

Fiancé has sent off his passport to be renewed, well in advance of the honeymoon. It may or may not get back to us before we move. In either case we’ll be redirecting our post for a few months – an annoyance but a requirement. Until I have the confirmed move date there’s not much to do other than sit and wait! We’re still deciding on where we want to go for the honeymoon. I’m quite keen on a twin centre holiday with a first week of doing stuff and a second week of doing nothing. My favourites so far are Mexico and Sri Lanka / Maldives (or Thailand / Maldives I think is also available). Fiancé hasn’t expressed a preference yet. Still, that’s something else we want to get started on sorting out soon.

The shawl is coming on nicely. It’s one of a small number of things I’ll share in their entirety with the blog because it’s lovely. And it’s not really a key element; it’s just to keep me warm. I’m not sure whether I’ll knit any other semi-circular or circular shawls – the number of stitches is phenomenal. I’m in the last section now, but one row is taking almost an hour!

(Picture to the right is from knitty.com - more information about the pattern there.)

And the gym, that’s also in limbo right now. I’ve not been getting on with the program that my PT left me before he went away, and then the car broke down so we didn’t get to the gym, and I just haven’t mustered up the desire to go back. I have another session on Thursday, so we’ll see if he can come up with anything else. I haven’t enjoyed the “weights as cardio” thing in the program – I know that’s what turbulence training is all about, but it’s not for me. I enjoy lifting weights. I appreciate that I need to do some sort of cardio to get the results I want, but the all cardio nonsense I’m doing right now is just depressing – and it’s not giving me any results. Honestly, I’ve lost more weight in the two weeks I haven’t been able to get to the gym (but have been dieting) than I did in the two weeks where I did this program three times a week. Either I’m doing it wrong, or it doesn’t work. And I suspect it’s the former – even though I’m killing myself to get round fast, I must just not be going fast enough for long enough.
I have been for a run twice while I couldn’t get to the gym. Neither time was especially pleasant, but I made it round my 2 mile course in less than 30 minutes. No, that’s not fast. I think it might even be quite slow.

One week in

So, as I mentioned, the working out just wasn’t enough for me and my drive for results. (I have a suspicion that this is also hindering me on my shawl, more on that shortly)
Well, I’ve been trying hard to eat sensibly, while still reducing the number of calories I’m eating – basically trying to be more aware of what it is I’m eating. There were two “challenges” last week in the form of the Department Night Out (more on that later) and movie night with friends. I fared better on one than the other.

So, how did I do last week?

Well, we worked out twice. I decided against working out with a hangover (remember the DNO?) so, I’ve stuck with “sedentary” for my formula, which kind of makes sense.

At my start-of-week weight, my maintenance calories was 1902
My average calories per day were 1379 (a deficit of 523 per day)
My lowest calorie day was Wednesday with 1165 calories consumed (approx)
My highest calorie day was Thursday with 1663 calories consumed (approx)

I tried seven new meals last week. I think that the carrot soup was the most successful, but it uses up a lot of carrots. I’m considering trying the same thing but with different veggies next time. Broccoli and chicken salad was also a success as a packed lunch. Brilliant!
One of the hardest things is making sure to have healthier snacks to eat when I’m feeling peckish. I’ve rediscovered my love for Granny Smith apples, which is rather nice.

So, what was it about Thursday that gave me that extra 300 or so calories? Well, if it hadn’t been for the Department Night Out I suspect I would have done much better.

I had my usual breakfast: Instant Oats made with 200ml skimmed milk and 40g of sultanas, I also had a cup of tea with a little semi skimmed milk. ~345 calories.
For lunch I was doing pretty well, I had salad with two hard boiled eggs, and 4 olives in oil. ~427 calories.
I also had a nectarine and one more cup of tea that day. ~ 51 calories.
Dinner is where I let myself down. It was a barbeque. There was free drink. I had some canapés (mostly with brie, cheese is my nemesis) which I’ve estimated at about 158 calories (yes, just for the canapés) I had one sausage and one burger (about 192 calories for both). I didn’t eat the salad, much coleslaw or the bun. I did have some sauce, but compared to what’s coming it is negligible.
I had three glasses of champagne (267 calories) and about 4 glasses of wine (356 calories) That’s one glass being 120ml.

So, it was the alcohol that did for me, I think.

As for the shawl? It’s progressing. Very. Slowly. It’s not the most exciting knit – it’s basically miles of stocking stitch, interspersed with really complicated counting rows. I have to be in the right frame of mind to do the counting rows, so it frequently stalls on those rows. I’m nervous about knitting it while doing other things because I don’t want to go wrong, even though it’s really simple! I love how it looks, and I’m sure it will be worth it in the end, I’m just glad I started nice and early, and that I’m not knitting the same thing for anyone else!
As I said above, I think that I want to see progress, and the shawl isn’t that kind of project. With it being semi-circular, the rows get so much wider that each row takes an age. I’m lucky to get one row done in my lunchbreak – and if I need to do something else, it’s not going to happen at all!

Getting Fit? Not Really

So, I've been following the program set by my PT for 3 weeks.
It's hard, very tiring, and yet - I'm not seeing any results. That is pretty disheartening, as you might imagine.
I weighed myself just prior to starting this section of the programme.
I haven't really changed my eating habits - though I've stopped eating chocolate at work.

I weighed myself after one week and I had lost 2lbs. Woo!

However, since then I haven't lost any weight at all.
I have seen a change in my measurements, but I'm not sure how much of that is my dodgy measuring and wishful thinking.
None of my clothes fit any better...

Now, I confess, I am supposed to do two repeats of the program (at least) which should take 40 minutes. About half of the time I do two repeats, though it takes more like 45 minutes. I'm not really getting on with the concept of rinse and repeat. If I hated it the first time, I'm hardly going to look forward to it.
I've discovered some interesting things about how I like to exercise, which is good.

• I don't mind cardio. 3 minute bursts are fine.
• I dislike the bike and cross-trainer.
• I don't dislike the rower (at the moment) and can row 600m in 2:40 if I try, at the lowest resistance.
• While I like weights, doing them like cardio sucks.
• Olympic lifts are fun!
• I get bored easily - three weeks in and I want to change stuff!
• I have results focus - I want to see changes in my body, I want to weigh less, have less girth, feel better

Now, I can't wait for my PT to sort this out. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, or what. I'm probably not going fast enough on the cross trainer, but that's only one out of 3 cardio bursts.
I know I'm belting through the weights - to the point that they're not fun.
I'm shuttling between items, no rest, barely time to have a drink.
And yet - no change.
It's not acceptable!

So, it's been suggested (by my fiancé no less) that it’s not possible to out-train a bad diet. I begrudgingly accept that this is probably true. So, I’ve looked up some recipes with reasonable calorie counts (in the 300-400 range) to have for dinner with veggies, potatoes or pasta (another 100 cals for pasta!) or to have on their own for lunches. The aim is to create a deficit in the number of calories consumed as compared to the number required.

I’m using a formula to calculate the number of calories I need to consume which is as follows:
BMR = 655 + (4.3 * lbs) + (4.7 * inches) - (4.7 * age)
(BMR is basal metabolic rate)
Maintenance Calories = BMR * 120%

So, for me that’s
BMR = 655 + 922.1 (sorry, not telling you my weight, height and age!)
BMR = 1577.1
Maintenance Calories = 1892.52
To lose 1lb per week, you need to eat 3500 calories less*
That’s 500 calories per day
So, to create a 500 calorie deficit, I need to eat no more than 1392.52 calories, or expend more calories.
Several sites recommend not reducing calories lower than 1200 calories.
So, that’s the plan. I’ve never tried calorie counting before, but we’ll see how it goes.

Tuesday night’s food wasn’t quite the number of calories I had planned because it seems that I can’t read a recipe! I scaled down all of the ingredients from a 4 person recipe to a 2 person recipe. Except I didn’t. I forgot to scale down the cheese (the cheese will be my downfall). While this made the mustard-and-cheese-stuffed-chicken-breasts very tasty, it also made them an extra 200 calories! Whoops! I had a little bit spare from having my über healthy porridge and sultanas for breakfast (I love it!) but I was probably only under by about 300 calories in the end.
Nevermind, I’ll do better today.
I’m not going to beat myself up about it, in the end if it gets to April and I’m exactly the same size and shape then so be it. All in all (and sending many good vibes to the Karma Gods) I’m the happiest I have ever been at the moment, and why shouldn’t I be? Okay, work is a bit irritating, but there’s some interesting stuff happening at the moment, we’re buying a fab new house, we’re getting married in the spring (in the Spring!!) – it’s all good, I can’t (or rather, shouldn’t) complain!


And anyway, my dress is going to have a built in corset in it.


*this is a generalisation, I gather, but should get me close enough

Training, and not knitting!

This morning I was at the gym again. (I know, that’s no excuse for the chocolate I’ve eaten today. Diet is something I need to work on!) I have been working through the programme that I’ve been given by my Personal Trainer. It starts with some high-intensity low-weight cables. I like that; it gets my heart rate up. Once I’ve done that I do squats (I’m using a 15kg bar right now, aiming to get the form before I up the weight – do it light, get it right!) and dead lifts (also 15kg) and then clean-and-press (10kg) which isn’t the same exercise as the one we do in body pump. Then I have around 30 minutes of cardio work, which takes about 40 minutes including travel between machines and stopping to breathe so I don’t die.

I’m getting on okay with the cardio. It’s something I really don’t like doing which makes it a challenge. Even when I was doing quite a bit of running, I never liked that. I spend time on each of the static bike, treadmill and cross trainer. I don’t really like any of them, but I know that I need to get my cardio fitness up.

Still, at least I’m doing something in the gym, and it really does make me feel better for the rest of the day!
Well, until the aching sets in! I’m looking forward to a nice long hot bath!

On the knitting front, I haven’t been! I know – it’s a shocker. I bought a big bunch of new yarn recently – the pictures I took of it are rubbish!
Some of the yarn has plans. The bamboo is being made into a bag (as mentioned before), the Noro Silk Garden Sock is going to become a shrug, all being well. I need to do a bit of planning on that one, like deciding whether to knit it in stockinette or in garter – or something else! I don’t want to do any fancy patterns; Noro SGS is beautiful enough on its own.
The other Noro, I don’t know what I’ll do with that. I’ve been toying with the idea of some sort of felted thing, although it’s expensive yarn for felting with! Failing that, perhaps something smallish – a vest top or a shrug maybe. I have 5 balls, which is about 500yds I think. should be enough for a vest – especially if there’s openwork/lace somewhere on it.

A friend of mine kindly provided me with another herb! Yey! Now I have another variety of mint, Apple mint. It’s lovely, and was the other one I considered getting at Yorkshire Lavender.

So, it’s all good.

In which I get Personal...

...Training.
Yes, that’s right, I have a personal trainer. How wicked is that?

Originally I had organised to join a fitness class; 10 weeks, including nutrition and fitness advice, a programme to work to and group work. Sadly, there weren’t enough people interested in the evening class, so it was cancelled, but the trainer offered me 6 hours of personal training as a replacement. One to one personal training is not cheap, and this is bargain basement cost, so I decided to go for it.

I had my first session on Monday, where the PT checked out what I can actually do. He’s pleased with the weight lifting, but (unsurprisingly) wants me to up my cardio rather a lot. Well, from nothing to about 20-30 minutes for this first fortnight.
It’s not so bad when you have someone telling you what to do, how fast to run, when to stop. I’ll see how easy that is when I’m doing it on my own. I need to do the program he’s set me at least 5 times before I next see him. Given that we’re off to visit fiancé’s folks over one of the weekends in between, that’s going to be hard – but not impossible – to fit in.

Swallowtail Shawl(ette)

I’ve finished my Swallowtail shawl. I’m really pleased with it, though it's not really big enough to be a proper shawl, more of a scarf or shawlette.

Here’s the knit down:
Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn A. Clark
Yarn: Violet Green Merino 2ply Lace Yarn (I think it’s discontinued, sorry)
Needles: 3.75mm, 100cm long circs
Modifications: Used beads instead of working the nupps.
Notes: I used Kim’s mileage chart for the budding lace section, very useful.

Here it is before blocking (dimensions: centre back to tip 15”; wingspan 33”; tip to point 23”)

And after blocking (dimensions: centre back to tip 24”; wingspan 46”; tip to point 33”)



So, other news…
Well, the wedding-free-house-free weekend wasn’t. We’ve now been to see a mortgage advisor and got a mortgage in principle agreed. I hunted for turquoise shoes (no win). We went to see the jeweller where we got my engagement ring to ask about vintage wedding bands. It seems that there aren’t many – with the price of gold being as high as it is, people are having them melted down for the cash rather than selling them on which isn’t worth as much. We confirmed that I want a rather narrow band (2mm) and that we can’t justify the cost of having diamonds in it, and also that 18ct will be okay with my 15ct engagement ring. We also confirmed FH’s ring size, the width of band that he’d like (6mm) and the fact that his colouring suits a white gold band better than a yellow gold one. We looked into a house we liked, but sadly discovered that it’s sold, so back to the hunt for that.
Oh, and I signed up for a weight loss program and some body pump at the gym!

Start-itus

I don't know if it's the new year, or the amount of stuff going on at the moment, but I have a terrible desire to start new projects at the moment.
I've knit a new hat for Boyf (pictures soon) using Jared Flood's Turn a Square (Rav Link) using some lovely DK yarn I got in a swap a while ago. I'm pretty pleased with it!
However, this hasn't sated my desire for more new knits. And it's not like I don't have enough on the go already!
However, I did work on the Elephant today, one ear completed - that leaves just one more ear, eyes and blocking to go.
I've also turned the heel on my first welly sock.
But none of it calls to me. You know, that feeling that you want to get home to pick it up, that you could stay up for just ten more minutes...
Well, then there's the cardigan. I'll get back to that soon, I do like the yarn, I love the pattern I've created, it's fab - it's just a bit cumbersome, and I'm not a fan of the needles I'm using to knit the sleeves in the round. (I could switch to some circs, but my gauge might change)

To combat this, I've been doing a spot of appliqué, on a quilt that NotMIL bought me a couple of Christmas ago. It's lovely, and will eventually have chickens on. Currently it has one heart on it.
I've also been doing a spot of beading. After the success of the bauble, I've made myself a necklace. It needs fastenings attaching, but I'm pretty pleased with that too!

The gym-going is going well though, we made it three times this week just gone, and I've done both programs all the way through now. It's an hour worth of stuff though! The diet is pretty easy to stick to as well. It's all a combination, the food, the gym, and ignoring what everyone else says.
I don't care if you think the diet is too complicated. I don't care if you think that just giving up beer is enough. Not for me it's not. I want more than just to lose a couple of pounds. I'm going to be that woman that you see on the beach and think "Bitch" - almost as if to say "how dare she look good when I don't?" Well I intend to look great. I've seen what I can do with weights - I bought some size 12 jeans at Gap the other day. I've not worn a 12 for over a year. Okay, so my weight hasn't gone down, but looking back at my Diet Blog from this time last year I've dropped some fat %! (Wicked!) I'll be keeping some track of stuff over there, unless it goes the way it clearly did last year!

Well, perhaps I have earned the new sports bra I've just paid for...

There's an app for that

Thought for today:
It isn't what you eat between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, it's what you eat between New Year’s Eve and Christmas!
(From Rachel Cosgrove’s Blog)


Mum and Dad were up at the weekend. I had a good time. Mum and I left Boyf and Dad to turn around the door to the kitchen (it’s much better now, despite a minor plastering issue we now have) and we went into town.
It was very busy, but nonetheless we got some shopping done. I got a new dress shirt for Boyf, as his old on had curry on from last Christmas’s Christmas Curry, some gifts for the boys in our lives and…
Drumroll please…
An iPhone!
I wanted one of these when they first came out on O2, but there was no way I was going back to them after the poor customer service I had a few years back. Orange have always been very good to me, and I get free broadband with them. So, I was very excited when they announced that Orange was getting the iPhone. Excellent!
I’m really pleased with it! The only (minor) issue that I had was regarding ringtones. There is a function in iTunes where you can turn a song (mp3) into a ringtone, but it’s only available in the US. Frankly, Apple, I expected more of you. However, I downloaded a (free) program which can do this for me, and so I’m now happy once more with my Imperial March ringtone, and Captain Scarlet for the Boyf when he calls. Woo!

Now I just need some more nice apps. I have one game, a Wallace and Gromit comic and the Orange apps for Orange Wednesdays and Orange online billing.

Getting back to it

So, I was sick a couple of weeks ago, and I only went to the gym one day last week due to car and boyfriend things.
That means I’m a bit out of practise. Or so I thought! I’ve actually done pretty well this morning. I made some reasonable lifts, and I think I can go heavier on some of them. Here’s today’s workout:

• Warm up
• Bench press, 8x20kg, 8x23kg
• Squat, 2 sets 8x60kg
• Upright row, 2 sets 8x15kg
• Bent over row, 2 sets 8x15kg
• Shoulder press, 2 sets 8x15kg
• crunches with 5kg weight, 2x15
• treadmill (eep) random elevation, 8 mins at 6.6kmph, 3 mins cooldown

I don’t really like the treadmill, but looking back to when I was running, I looked pretty good.

Though in that pic I was struggling to run – too hot! Hence the red face. But that was back in August 2007. I’m not as slim now as I was then, but I am stronger and more toned – or I think so anyway.
I am really enjoying the weight training, but I think a short burst of running might help me to feel more like I’ve worked out. I’ve been reading Rachel Cosgrove’s blog, she talks about not feeling as toned when she’s training for running events (Iron Man) as when she’s doing her normal regime. Hopefully I’ll get her book for Christmas.

In other news… the car needs some more work. Yey. We had a new exhaust fitted at the service and it seems it’s been done wrong. The result of this is twofold – one is that we don’t really trust the local garage any more; the other is that we need to get it fixed because the exhaust is “blowing” and that’s not very efficient. We also have to get the fuel filter fixed because it’s leaking. So we’re going back to VW by the looks of things. The prices they quoted for those things aren’t bad, so I don’t mind too much.

On the knitting front? Well, my sock design is now being test knit. No pictures because I’m hoping to publish it. The sweater is also going well. I’ll probably have that test knit before I self publish that. Quite exciting!
I’m going to have to try to get through some of my outstanding knits, I have quite a lot on! There’s the toy for a friend’s baby’s First Birthday, the mittens which I may or not finish. Booga bag just needs a photo to stop being a WIP. The hat for Boyf might have to be frogged; the pattern calls for DK and I’m using Aran and it’s not really working for me, it’s just too stiff. The bag I crocheted on the plane needs lining, Boyf’s socks will remain a WIP until published or rejected. The rare pillow is a nice easy knit, I just need to get on with it. Phoenix (the jumper) is half way down the first sleeve. The two lace scarves… well, I plan to finish the one from VLT, but I’m umming about frogging branching out. I’m not sure I like it enough to finish it, I fancy making something a bit more interesting – not that I dislike the pattern, but it’s not memorise-able (for me) so I end up having to read the instructions each time…and the yarn is lush and should be made into something nice. And Boyf’s cloth just needs the ends weaving in and a photo taking! (Oh, and a quick wash and dry to neaten it up).

Back to the gym

I’ve learned something new today. In the gym this morning I saw a girl doing what I thought was a squat with very bad form. Having asked Boyf about this, I have learned that there is an exercise called “Good Morning” which looks a lot like what the girl was doing. According to Wikipedia, there’s a school of thought that suggests that this is a move which is likely to cause injury. Now, I don’t do that exercise – mostly because I’ve never seen it before, but also because I would be very concerned that I might hurt my back and/or legs in doing it. I’ll stick to my squats thank you.
Speaking of squats, I’ve upped my weight on my first session back from holiday! Woo! I squatted my third set at 67.5kg. I’m quite proud of that, now I just need to get the weights up on some of my other lifts. I struggled with the shoulder press at 17.5kg, but I did manage to complete both sets of 8 lifts. I added a new exercise this time too; I did 8 bicep curls. I didn’t enjoy it! I managed to use a 15kg bar for those.
I’ve also stopped the slim fast plan. I really can’t stick to it for long periods, and it’s been several months anyway. I’ll be trying to eat healthily though. I intend to make packed lunches for Boyf and me, probably starting next week. I think I need to buy some more lunch boxes, or possibly some differently designed ones, to include snack compartments.
This morning after the gym I have had a Promax Diet shake. I made it up with a whole pint of milk instead of the 350ml of water it recommended. I had that at about 9:15 and I’m still not hungry at 12:15, so that’s good. I might get one of the snack bars while I’m getting my lunch today, but if I do I might not want my tea tonight!

One of the hardest things about eating healthily, for me, is being organised enough to eat healthily. I don’t dislike the sorts of food I should be eating, things like salmon, tuna, chicken or turkey fillets, eggs – I have absolutely no problem with those sorts of food. I’m not a big fan of lettuce or other salad leaves, but I like tomatoes, cucumber, and things like that. In fact, there aren’t many foods I’d list under dislikes. Black olives, beetroot, and celery – those are my least favourite. I’ll not eat black olives at all, and I avoid beetroot and celery where possible.
Prior to the holiday Boyf and I had two wheat-free days. It was great! Boyf missed having toast, I think. For me, the main benefit of bread is its convenience. However it’s not exactly top of the list for foods to eat while dieting! If I could slice the home-made stuff a bit more thinly that might help. Still, now that we do make our own bread i get to choose what goes in it, so we can have some very exciting loaves! I have all sorts of flour (somewhere in the boxes of stuff that is yet to be moved into the kitchen).
So, yesterday I posted a picture of me in my bikini (sort of) and I wondered about doing a before-and-after type thing. Sadly there isn’t a picture of me in the same getup “before”.
However, I do intend to lose even more of that flab, so perhaps this photo can serve as the before for the next phase. Though the chances of me being in a bikini at Christmas are slim…

Not about the kitchen!

I know, I haven't posted in an age. Bad blogger!

So, anyway, I know I promised a post about the kitchen. I'm afraid that I've failed in that respect. We haven't uploaded any photos of the kitchen and I'm now in a situation where I don't have access to a wire to do so.

The best I can do is post old pictures which went on a while ago, or else take photos with the camera on my laptop.
Which is actually not bad, for a webcam.

So, anyway, instead of talking about the kitchen, I have a bunch of other things to talk about.

Lifting
As I breifly mentioned at the end of the last post, I've been lifting some pretty heavy weights in the gym. I have mixed reactions when I tell people about this. The majority of people seem to be concerned that I might get “too muscular” or something. Well, if that were my goal then it would be none of their business, but it's not. I'm not worried that this will happen though. I'm already squatting 65kg (yep, a new personal best again). I bench 20kg, I dead lift 20kg, I can shoulder press 17.5kg, but it's hard.
I read two really good blogs about women and training, specifically weight training rather than cardio. (I hate cardio with a passion, really – who enjoys spending hours running on the spot in a dull old gym?) one of them is Cassandra Forsythe. She's a nutrition expert, and has co authored a number of books about weight training for women, including The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift like a Man, Look like a Goddess which I own. The programs in there are pretty tough, and there's a lot of bizarre exercises, but the main point of the book is that women can, and should, lift heavy weights. The other blog I read a lot is Rachel Cosgrove. Anyone who has looked into male fitness might recognise the name. She's married to a famous male fitness expert, but is well qualified in her own right. Anyway, go on and take a look at those two blogs. Especially at the photos on Rachel's blog. Then come back and tell me whether those ladies are too muscular.

Anyway, I haven't just been lifting – to be honest until about three weeks ago we haven't been going to the gym regularly enough to make a proper difference. However, about three weeks ago we started going every morning. One morning we do strength training, the other morning we do 15-20 minutes of slow swimming (and then sit in the spa/sauna for a while too!)
I'm finding that pretty satisfying. However, it does make breakfast a challenge. I have been on the “Slim Fast” diet. Yeah, I've slimmed. My work trousers are a bit big around the waist now, which is quite satisfying. Also my stomach (my current least favourite part) looks more toned. (But not enough to show you pics)
Anyway, I've had enough of the slim fast. My actual weight hasn't changed that much, and while needing a belt for my jeans and having work trousers a bit big is nice, it's really not enough.
That's not to say I don't feel pretty good, I've bought some new bikinis for my holiday in the sun, and I'm reasonably confident that I'll look okay on the beach. Perhaps even pretty good, if I'm having a good day.
Not having been to the gym for a week prior to the holiday will not help, and I might have to do some crunches or something to make myself feel better.

So, yeah, that's going well. I'm going to move on to a low(ish) calorie diet. The main points I plan to hit are: high protein, low wheat (at least baking our own bread means we can do that!), eating little and often. Lots of grilled fish, chicken or turkey, and prawns!

Knitting. Crochet. So, as I alluded to above, I'm off on holiday soon. We're going to the Canaries again...
After much debate (mostly with myself) I'm not going to take my knitting on the plane. Technically knitting needles aren't in the forbidden list, but the FAQ clearly states that knitting needles are not allowed. So, I am going to crochet. I have tried this before and created nothing of use, so this time I have a very simple pattern: [rav link] The Easy Peasy Crochet Bag [Non Rav link]. I'm going to make it out of some yarn I have purchased especially, it's two shades of Sirdar Crofter (60% Acrylic, 25% Cotton, 15% Wool). I'm usually a yarn snob (avoiding synthetics) but this is great because it's inexpensive, hardwearing and pretty. Here's a webcam picture of it!

I'm actually quite excited about the bag, I haven't yet decided whether to go for the handles as described in the tutorial or another sort.
It's a four hour flight, so I might even finish it! Though I do have two magazines to read (and two more in my luggage for the way back or the beach) as well. Boyf just has a book, so I might have to talk to him!
I'll almost certainly have some pictures for you after the holiday, some of which might even be of me in my bikini (then you can judge for yourselves exactly how much further I have to go...)

Til then, TTFN.

Mostly Knitting

I’m on the last repeat of the shawl. I’ve done some maths and I think that after this one I wouldn’t have enough yarn for another repeat plus the 8 finishing rows and the two row cast off. I’m really excited to block it and see how it looks! The colours are amazing, there’s no other way of putting it! I think I’ve learnt a lot from this project too, about reading my knitting and correcting mistakes without tinking (knitting backwards, un-knitting) or ripping back to a lifeline. Incidentally, I haven’t used a lifeline either. Touch wood, it’s been fine! There were a couple of moments when I thought I should have, but I’ve recovered from both problems!

Once the Shawl is finished I plan to cast on for Corsica. I should also work on the cardigan for mum. Maybe now I’m a bit better at reading my work I’ll be able to do it justice.

As it’s knit-night tonight I will probably be working on the baby jacket for JJ’s baby. I believe that it’s due any time now. I hope he’s not holding on until the sweater is finished! It’s looking so cute now though, I’m on the left front. Then I have two lace panels to knit and if there’s enough yarn left I might make a matching hat. I also need to buy buttons, so I’ll be making a trip to Duttons soon I think. The elephant isn’t going to be ready in time.

I’m also progressing well with my Violet Green Knit-a-long socks. I’m at the heel flap now. I’ve decided on two pattern repeats (like in the picture on the pattern) which is about long enough. After blocking it should be spot on. It’s such a funky pattern too! it came in the kit (pictured) as a gift from Not-MIL for my birthday. It’s not quite as dark as in this picture. The needles are nice, though I am used to shorter ones I have got on with these well so far. They have a good weight to them. I like it when I get to the heel flap, it feels like I’ve made progress.

The KAL is going well on ravelry too, we’ve got lots of participants and everyone seems to be joining in. Some people knit much faster than me, and some have more time for knitting, so there are already finished objects available for the KAL, which is pretty inspiring. It does make me wonder about upgrading the socks from lunchtime knitting – which I might have to do if I want to finish them by January 31st! Argh!

In non-knitting news, there isn’t much going on. The gym is going okay (updates are on the diet blog) and I’m not disliking any of the workout, even though push ups are really hard, even “lady push ups” where you do them on the flat bit of muscle above the knee (not on your knees, that’s really bad for the joint, and means you can cheat by using your legs)

I mentioned the disturbance last night with the wing mirror smashing (it happens about this time every year, oddly) and it seems that it was a good job that we fold our (red) mirror in. (our car is green).
When we came back from the gym there were at least four cars on the street without wing mirrors on that side. That’s just the ones who were willing to park on the street again! I’m pleased we don’t need to replace the wing mirror again, who knows what colour we’d end up with!

Dressed down

Today I will write my plan for achieving my gym-based goals.
I have already set up a spreadsheet with my current stats in, and I’ve reinvigorated my “diet blog”. I’ve done it more for myself than for sharing, somewhere to record my thoughts and hopefully my progress. It also means that I will not clutter up the real blog too much with random gym/thin stuff. It was a chuckle looking back at the old posts, and at how well I was deceiving myself. Funny that. Anyway, the new stats are truer – I got OH to do them for me. If I’m not honest with myself then I can’t achieve those goals.

I had planned to make a dress for the wedding we’re attending in a little over a month. I’d mentioned it at the hen night (Saturday just gone, good fun.) and I was reminded that the bride will not care, she’ll be too busy to notice, and everyone else is looking at the bride anyway. So, since it’s probably not worth the neck-breaking that I’d need to do, I’m not making a dress any more. So I went out and bought one instead. It’s pretty; it’s a bluey purple colour. I’m not entirely sure that it goes with the shawl I’m making, but I think I can carry it. OH thinks I should wear pink tights too, to tie it in. I might do that!
I’m still making the shawl. I’m not really making the shawl for the wedding, you see. I was always planning on making the shawl. the wedding is just a good deadline. I’m afraid it looks a little like brightly coloured yarn-barf at the moment, but lace has a tendency to look a little scraggy until it’s finished and blocked.

Anyway, moving on from weddings…

We’re continuing on our Organic drive in my house. We planned to visit a shop in town which has some nice organic products in (specifically, I’m looking for face wash) but they were closed on Sunday. (other than the dress, the shopping trip was pretty much a failure) so I still need to do that. As it stands I’m using my soap-free-soap at the moment. I can’t remember why it’s soap free, I’ll have to find the leaflet again some time. I cut it in half and put half in my gym bag. Unsurprisingly that half is lasting a lot longer than the half in the bathroom, but they are still both going strong. I’m slowly becoming more aware of what goes in to some of the things that I use. Like palm oil, which is used to make Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (that’s a foaming agent) for your shampoo. Palm oil, when responsibly sourced, isn’t an issue – it’s renewable, it doesn’t need masses of pesticides. You can even get organic palm oil, I think. No, the problem is that it’s very profitable to grow palm oil, and to do so rainforests are being deforested and replaced with palm oil crops. This means that our lovable friend the orangutan is running out of habitat (and it’s not only them, they’re just an example). It also means less trees to “filter” the carbon dioxide out of the air. If you don’t believe that humans are causing global warming then you must still see that wiping out a rare creature like the oranguatn just so that you can have foamy shampoo is a little on the silly side.
Some things we’re avoiding by buying organic are more obvious too. Bleach is one of them. Generally speaking we try to keep bleach off our skin, it’s not very good for you. Why then do companies keep on bleaching things like tampons and sanitary towels? There’s no need really, when you consider what you’re going to do with them, does it matter so much if they’re off white? Really? I find bleach in those products is an irritant, and I’ve been doing my best to avoid it for some time. Organic is a great way to do that!
We know from things like the nicotine patch that you can absorb things through the skin and into the blood stream, so if you’re watching what you eat then why not watch what you rub on your body too?

Anyway, I’ve still got an hour or more before lunch and I’m already wondering whether I can justify a chocolate bar. I can’t, but there you go. I have prunes on my desk, but they’re not doing it for me this morning. Ho hum. I’ll find something else to do.

Nothing else to say

I gather (from my sister) that I pretty much just blog about knitting.

And it's true, I don't blog much else these days. With good reason.

If I were to blog about my day you would all be bored to tears (rather than just those of you who aren't into knitting being bored to tears).
If I were to blog about work you'd all get depressed from reading it and I'd probably write something I shouldn't and get fired.
If I blog about what I do the rest of my time, when I'm not knitting, then my blogs would be about going to the gym and shopping for groceries.

Ah well, I'll try to be a little more inclusive. Nobody but a knitter (or the long suffering partner of a knitter) can really understand the knitting thing.

So, in an effort to not discuss knitting...
Oh, wait. Is sewing out too?

Seriously though. We did go back to the gym over the weekend. It takes up a chunk of the day which is always disappointing. I wasn't as badly out of shape as I thought I was - I managed 10 minutes running at 9kmph, squat 20.4kgs (45lbs - an olympic bar) without issue, did some shoulder presses, chest presses, lunges and bent over rows, all at the same weight as my last session at the gym. I don't know how motivated I will be to do the same programme each week mind. Staying motivated is very difficult, especially with the cold weather and the dark nights. But motivated I must stay if a heffalump I don't want to be.

It doesn't help that I self-vet these posts so much. At least knitting isn't controversial.

Anyway, sod it. I'm off to bed where it might be a little warmer than the current semi-Arctic state that my living room is. Not that the bedroom is much warmer and I still haven't convinced OH that the 4tog duvet is too thin, but since the other option is 13tog...

For those who are interested in the knitting, my hat is coming along well. Will post when I have pictures.

At least I have a hobby, and I'm less stressed as a result of knitting, which makes the world a better place. :)
Edit: Actually, I do have another thing to blog about, which is ethical/environmental shopping. But I'll save that rant for a day when something has annoyed me into action.

SP12 – Q' of the week! (23 June 2008)

What is (are) your favourite place(s) to knit?
Gosh, that’s tough. I guess the most social place I knit is in a local pub every other Tuesday with the York Stitch n Bitch. There are usually a handful of us there, and the pub we go to (Brigantes) serve lovely fruit beer!
Otherwise, I like to knit in front of the TV, or in bed! I knit anywhere that I’m comfortable really.
If the weather was better I would like to sit outside in the sun to do some knitting too.

What supplies (besides yarn & needles) make the setting perfect for knitting?
I like to have a cup of tea, though if I get engrossed I end up with a cold cup of tea! Generally I have a nice blanket (sorry – not one I’ve knit, yet!) and something mindless on telly so I can concentrate enough on the knitting. I have the box-set of Sharpe which OH bought me for Christmas that I’m working through, but anything which can be “watched” without actually having to watch is good. On a warm day I might replace the tea with a gin-and-tonic, but only the one!


So, more knitting news, I’ve been continuing the monkey sock. I’m part way through turning the heel now. I still love the yarn and the pattern! I have been writing down ideas for another self-designed sock pattern, but I don’t know when I’ll have time to knit it, or what yarn I will use. Perhaps when I have a go at the Kool Aid dying I will use some of that. Before I do that I want a niddy noddy though. And I probably need to clean the kitchen.

I have also finished the back of the Urban Vest. Well, the stitches are on hold as it calls for the three needle bind off. Also, it has me cast off the neck part and then pick up stitches for the collar. This seems silly to me, so I’m leaving them live like I did on manly. I think it will be fine (though I don’t think I can do that around the V at the front, which would be easier, wouldn’t it? Sadly, some of it is vertical – no stitches to leave live) though I am playing with the idea of not using casting off as my method of decrease at the V. I think that the pattern calls for me to cast off one stitch at the v edge every so many rows. I was wondering whether it might look nicer if, once I’ve divided for the neck, I simply decreased with a left leaning decrease on the left side of the V and a right leaning decrease on the right side (as you look at it). That way I could slip stitches along the neckline for picking up, which might be neater. Also, then I can decrease on the same rows either side of the neck.

I’m off to the gym tonight. I’m feeling pretty good about the gym-going at the moment. I have accepted the fact that I’m not going to get any lighter if I’m building muscle. I am instead measuring myself with my tape measure. Before I began at the gym I wrote down in a notebook my hip, waist and bust measurements. Each time I complete one of the phases I will write down the new measurements. As I’m not making it to the gym 3 times a week (I think we average about 5 times a fortnight, which isn’t bad) that’s not too often to get measured. I do think that I’m still eating too much, and too much rubbish too. I tend to have a chocolate bar or crisps which I think is my main downfall. I have weetabix in a morning with a good helping of fresh fruit at the moment (strawberries, raspberries, now blueberries and blackcurrants, all from the UK!) and I have sandwiches at lunchtime (two rounds of seed-crammed bread, usually meat, often salad) and we have reasonable sized dinners. Either my idea of a reasonable dinner is actually unreasonable or there’s something funny going on.

A productive weekend

I have had a productive weekend.

On Friday we went to see the York Rising Stars’ production of Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett. It was pretty good, and I was entertained. Even OH liked it and he hadn’t read any of Pterry’s books.

During Saturday we tidied up so that we could have people round on Saturday evening for a song-filled evening playing on Singstar. Which is way more fun than it should be, and we should have switched to guitar hero at some point. I blame Lint for winning too often. OH and I have our work cut out to re-win some of those high scores! Haha!

I felt rubbish on Sunday, which is odd because I hadn’t drunk much G&T at all. So I mostly knit the Sock-swap socks. And OH helped me to compile the music to go with it. (It’s the “music with sox in” swap, so requires music and socks)
The socks, well, I have just the toe on sock 2 to complete. I’m so pleased with them! It just goes to show that with the help of a stitchonary and a basic sock pattern anyone can design a sock! I intend to knit another pair of the same pattern for myself, perhaps after I finish the jaywalkers, as long as I don’t get too way-laid with other things (like the new design of socks I’ve been scheming about)

In other news, I have set myself a challenge. The challenge is to lose 1lb per week until we go on holiday in August. That should take me back under 11st, which would be nice. I know, I know, if I put on muscle it weighs more than fat but takes up less space. Trouble is, I am meant to be getting rid of the fat first! Ho hum. So, I think I’m about at the end of the first stage of the weight-lifting program from the book that OH got me. I have one week of workout 2 left to do. Then I need to email my instructor with the new program. I’ve been toying with the idea of signing up for personal training, but I am not sure whether it will help or not, and it’s not cheap!
Still, a good part of this is not to do with the gym, but requires me to eat more sensibly. Not eating cake (whoops) and chocolate so much. We do have some nice beef, which technically isn’t the leanest meat in the world. Sod that though, I like beef. I’ll just have smaller portions! I’ve been good today though, it’s 16:14 and I have only had the muffin I brought to work with me (I baked at the weekend for the party) and my sandwiches. I have had two cups of tea and about 100ml of water (don’t even go there, I drink enough water for me)

Well, that’s all folks. See you again soon.

Robot Chicken

So yes, the previous post was a little on the brief side. Though what else needs to be said except “Robot!”?

Anyway, other than the robot painting, I’ve been spending a lot of my time making costumes for the PTH. There is only one more weekend between now and then, so I do really need to crack on! The boys’ costumes are ready to be cut out (always the scariest bit) and then they just need sewing together. I even know what order I’m sewing the pieces together in! My costume is ready, but needs some finishing touches. I hope to do some work on these on Thursday night. (Tue = knit, Wed = gym) and then finish them over the weekend.

We’ve also spent a lot of time at the gym. I’ve been five times in the past couple of weeks. I think. We went on the day that it opened, which I think was the 14th (my brain is like a sieve!) and I began my program from the “New Rules” book I mentioned before. So far I’ve been able to squat with a 15kg bar, row with 20kg and shoulder press with 6-8kg each arm! Yey! I haven’t really noticed any difference, but I haven’t measured myself since we began. I plan to weigh and measure myself once I have completed the first “stage” of the program (in another 4 weeks if we keep up with the 3 times a week).

I’ve joined another secret swap on Ravelry, the CSI Swap! (Sorry, it’s closed now) The idea is that you buy some goodies for your pal (who doesn’t know who you are) and then you send the goodies to the pal along with some “evidence” as to who you are. I’ve ordered the yarn that I’m sending and I hope to also send some needles to go with, and maybe even a pattern to show off the yarn, who knows… in any case, it’s all good fun. I hope that my upstream is enjoying deciding what to get for me! The evidence bit is quite tricky though, I’d like my pal to be able to guess who I am based on the evidence, but also for it not to be too easy. I’ll work it out.

Knit-night has fallen well for me. I’m back to Telford on the 6th, but since knitting is happening on the Tuesdays either side of that all is well. The week commencing the 5th May is going to be hectic to say the least! On the 4th my parents are visiting, then the 5th is (in theory) free, on the 6th I’m off to Telford, on the 7th there’s the meeting and then I come back from Telford, on the 8th it’s the PTH, on the 9th I have my official gym induction and also need to arrange a haircut. On the 10th we’re off to a wedding (I’ll be wearing this dress) - What a week!

I’m toying with the idea of taking some more time off, but we have to decide whether or not we’re going to Australia. It’s not really a place that has ever called to me, to be honest. While the reef and the rock are surely spectacular… well, if there weren’t people I know there I don’t think I’d be inclined. I don’t know. But if we’re going to go all that way we’re not going to go for a week, it would be for two, or even three weeks. If that’s the case then I have a limited amount of holiday to play with!

And finally…
At the weekend we went to visit a local farm shop, who also had a petting zoo type thing. Here’s me holding Helen the Chicken. I had so much fun! Helen the Chicken was so sweet, she didn’t mind being picked up and held at all. In fact she was dozing off in my hands! Bless. She is a Belgian Bantam. There were also some chicks. They were normal chicken variety, some were brown (those ones were going to the hen coops to lay eggs) and some were yellow. The girl told us that the yellow ones would be “taken away and then brought back again.” I don’t think that the other people there understood that she meant that when they came back they’d be going into the fridge in the farm shop. I guess she put it like that because of the children who might have been upset. That is the way of things though.
I look forwards to having room for a chicken.

Ow.

We went to the gym last night. I got my fitlinxx number (yes, once again I’m a number…) and I also did the first “workout A” of the first section of the program. This consisted of a warm up (10 minutes on the treadmill) a semi specific warm up (some odd-looking stretching) and the into the weights. I did the squat, with 10kg of bar-weight. I did some 45º push-ups, I rowed using 15kg, and did a move called “step up” with 6kg.
This was all well and good.
My legs ached a bit this morning, which I expected. I still think I could squat more. But after carrying my laptop to and from our out-of-town office (on the bus) my chest muscles are really hurting!

On the up side, it didn’t stop me from knitting on the bus on the way back.

Thank you to everyone who has left such nice comments about the dress. It’s nice to hear that other people think it is nice too. I hope it looks as good on me as on the dressmakers’ dummy! And I must find something warm to wear with it!