Final Wednesday weigh-in

Well, I can hardly believe how fast this past 12 weeks have gone. I definitely had a few ups and downs with my eating but overall I gradually shrank ;)
This week I only lost 400g, but I did start to back off the exercise a bit to try and achieve a level of activity that will be possible to maintain in the long-term.
Anyway, the stats:
Fat 22.8% (down 0.2%)
Total body water 57.2% (up 0.1%)
Muscle 36.7% (up 0.1%)
Bone 2.1kg
BMI 21.2 (down 0.2)
Daily kcal requirement 2185 (down 20)
In total over my first round of 12wbt I have lost 8.2kg, or 12.8% of my body-weight. I've decreased my bodyfat % by 2.8%, increased my muscle % by 1.1%, and dropped my BMI by 2.6. I'd still like to aim for a couple more kg lost to get rid of the last bit of blubber on my tummy :). But I am going bathers shopping with my sister on the weekend, woo-hoo!
I'm about to enter the dreaded swot-vac/exams period for the next 3.5 weeks, so this will be a real test of my willpower. I hope to chip away at those last 1.8kg or at the very least not gain anything - after all this I've got to look really good when I go to Fiji!
I posted on the 12wbt page after last week:

'My aim for 12wbt was to lose all the weight I gained on a trip to Europe last year. And this week, I've done it! In fact, I've surpassed it, and now weigh as little as I recall weighing in my adult life. I'm proud of me, and literally in my WHOLE LIFE have never had as many compliments as I've had during the 12wbt program. Today I had 3 compliments from 3 different people: that I looked glamorous, that I looked really good, and that, from a gay friend, if he was a woman he would be intimidated by me based on how good I looked! Haha! There is now rarely a day that goes by that someone doesn't tell me how good I am looking - and let me tell you that is an incredible feeling!
I feel my self esteem has really had a massive boost and I'm sure it is reflected both in my internal happiness and in the way I portray myself to others. I smile and laugh more for sure!
I can now run 15km non-stop, which surprises even me given I couldn't run 5k non-stop a few months ago. I now run 5-10k nearly every day, and 15k once a week!
I am not going to do another round (though if I fall off the wagon I will return for round 1 next year), but will definitely keep blogging, using my heart rate monitor, and logging my calories in myfitnesspal. I have not found this restrictive, but rather a useful tool to use in my daily life. I eat 12wbt meals for most meals, nearly all lunches, though never eat the breakfasts. I have saved all the recipes to keep using.
Anyway, before I started this program I never thought I had the willpower to lose weight. So, I am proud of me. In fact, this might just be one of my proudest achievements to date. And it wasn't even very hard!!!
My hope is that, with my new-found confidence, happiness, and self-belief, I can find that elusive Prince Charming who has so far escaped meeting me '
Here's what I managed in the final week:

Wednesday (previous weigh-in)
Cals out 485, cals in 1771. Went out for dinner with ~300 other Gippsland women and watched the documentary 'Happy' - really worth seeing. I felt inspired to do a few more things to increase my happiness (but the 12wbt has definitely helped!).

Thursday
Cals out 515, cals in 1156. Had Mish's vietnamese beef noodle soup for tea. Super yummy & easy! Would definitely make this again.

Friday
Cals out 530, cals in 1309. Had Mish's chicken cacciatore for tea. It wasn't bad but wasn't one of my favourites either.

Saturday
Cals out 400, cals in 1210. Had Mish's veggie burritos again for tea, to keep using up the tofu. Yummy!

Sunday
Cals out 500, cals in 1223. Burritos for lunch, Mish's roast pumpkin salad again for tea to finish off the haloumi.

Monday
Cals out 905 (ran 12k & walked my doggy after class), cals in 1328. Mish's cajun chicken with sweet potato & avocado salad for tea. Enjoyed it, though tend to be less of a fan of salads generally, not finding them as filling.

Tuesday
Cals out 465, cals in 1000. Not that hungry today. Had Mish's chargrilled beef with avocado & corn salsa for tea. Yummy & super quick which was good as I had 2 hours of prac exam practice in the evening. Not much time to eat which probably explains the low cals!

Wednesday (today)
Cals out 615 (8k run & dog walk), cals in 1116 plus some plain roast chicken meat. Made Mish's beef moussaka today - yummy, but ended up making 4 pies instead of 2 with the quantity of ingredients listed so was super low on cals!

Another goal achieved!

Well, two Wednesday weigh-ins have passed since I last wrote so I thought it was time for an update :)

Thursday
Cals out 651, cals in ~2500. Urgh. Had a friend's b'day dinner where there were heaps of plates of deliciousness, so this is just an estimate but likely a fairly accurate one!!!

Friday
Cals out 755, cals in ~2000. My sister came to stay this weekend, which means a weekend of indulgence - I know it didn't have to mean this, but one of our shared passions is food, so I was willing to sacrifice a weekend of healthy eating for this!

Saturday
Cals out 221, cals in 1880. 1200 of these were snacks! Pretty poor effort on my part. Had fun visiting the Korumburra Farmer's Market, trying the Rusty Windmill cafe in Leongatha (the salad with my burger was AMAZING!), and going for a bit of a bush walk.


Sunday
Back on track with sis heading home today. Cals out 320, cals in 1171. Had Mish's beef, pumpkin & prune tagine for tea and REALLY enjoyed it!

Monday
Cals out 1185, cals in 1657. Ran 15k in 77min 37sec which is my best ever effort! Beginning to think I need to eat a protein bar immediately after a big workout to stop the crazy snacking. With some trepidation I decided to cook Mish's vegetarian burritos for tea. I'm not a huge fan of tofu, and was unsure whether the $5 spent on tofu would just be wasted. Well, I was very pleasantly surprised! It didn't taste like much, certainly wasn't offensive, and was a fine meat substitute. I would definitely eat this meal again.

Tuesday
Cals out 360, cals in 1162. Made Mish's roast pumpkin, haloumi & brown rice salad for tea. I knew I liked haloumi so knew I'd like this dish, though the haloumi was a bit expensive.



Wednesday

Cals out 605, cals in 1762. 8k in 39.45 which is my fastest ever. Had 2 sausages in bread at lunch to support a new med student mental health wellbeing club, in addition to my leftovers from the night before. A bit excessive! For tea made Mish's chickpea, ricotta & tomato salad for tea. Enjoyed it, but overdid the ricotta so it was overly creamy.
Surprisingly, despite the shocking stats of the last week, particularly the weekend, I managed to lose 300g! Any downwards movement I am very happy with!
Fat 23.5% (down 0.1%)
Total body water 56.8% (up 0.1%)
Muscle 36.4%
Bone 2.1kg
BMI 21.8 (down 0.1)
Daily kcal requirement 2244 (down 10)
Aiming for another 300g loss at the next weigh-in!

Thursday
Cals out 250, cals in 1141+. Final day placed at Leongatha Hospital, which I am sad to leave!

Friday
Cals out 706, cals in 1240. Made Mish's tasty tandoori chicken for tea - I don't know if the chicken thigh fillets I bought were just super tiny, but I felt this meal was rather sparse to be honest! What there was of it, though, did taste good.

Saturday
Back in Melbourne & big day at work so no exercise today. Also MASSIVELY overdid it on the intake today, guesstimate would be 2300cals in. Best friend & her partner came over for tea, so I made Mish's butter chicken which I love and they did too, but they brought with them cheesecake & cookies & cream icecream (my favourite). Anyway, we had a lovely evening.

Sunday
Was going to go for a big run this morning but was far too tired. Went for a short run with the dogs & my sister later in the day, burning 210 cals. Cals in ~1350. On the walk/run my sister literally said 'You are SO LEAN! In fact I don't think you could BE any leaner!' - haha I have never been called lean IN MY LIFE! When I got home my Dad also commented on how good I was looking, and said he was really proud of me!

Monday
15ks on Mondays seems to be part of my routine now, so managed that, burning 1126cals. 1186cals in inc Mish's hot dog with crunchy slaw, though ate a whole sausage in mine rather than a half, which just seemed silly! Basic meal, but yummy.


Tuesday
8k and 520 cals at the gym this morning, plus an 80cal dog walk = 600 cals out. Wasn't very hungry this day, or the previous, so only 798cals in. Had Mish's korma lamb cutlets with mint yoghurt and rice which were really yummy and very easy!

Wednesday - today
Weigh-in day! Stepped on the scales hoping to see a 300g loss, and was 1.1kg down! YAY! This means GOAL ACHIEVED! I am now lighter than I was before I LEFT for my 2.5mth Europe trip last year, and in fact lighter than I can recall being pretty much since high school (though my memory has never been wonderful).
Fat 23% (down 0.5%)
Total body water 57.1% (up 0.3%)
Muscle 36.6% (up 0.2%)
Bone 2.1kg
BMI 21.4 (down 0.4)
Daily kcal requirement 2205 (down 39)
My total weight loss so far with 12wbt is 7.8kg. I was aiming for a total weight loss of 7-10kg on the program, so I have achieved my aims. I hope to lose at least 200g this last week!

Yet another Weigh-In Wednesday

So it's definitely time for another blog post. Today was weigh in day, I was happy with my results, I've now lost a total of 10% of my body weight (700g this week) which feels like a bit of a milestone. A few days ago a friend described me as waif-like so that was pretty nice, haha! Still haven't QUITE got to my pre-Europe weight though - 600g to go!!! And still don't quite have a bikini-ready body but I'm getting closer and closer....:)
-fat 23.6% (down 0.3)
-water 56.7% (up 0.2)
-muscle 36.4% (up 0.2)
-bone 2.1kg
-BMI 21.9 (down 0.3)
-total kcal requirement: 2254 (up 19??)
Today we had some nutrition lectures. I actually learnt quite a bit. The lecturer was talking about all the ways we can measure body composition so I went up afterwards and asked her about how much her clinic charges to do DEXA scans. Turns out they are currently recruiting people for a DEXA scan trial so it will be FREE! I am super super keen and will definitely be getting in touch with her to organise that, hopefully it all works out!
Anyway, here are my stats. I didn't do well with my eating over my 'break', but managed to maintain my weight and neither gain nor lose anything so I was okay with that.

Friday
Cals in 1181, out 402. Dad didn't eat the teriyaki meal I made for him. Not sure why I bothered!

Sat
Cals in 1229+, out 606 (Grand Final breakfast then GF party at my sisters)

Sun
Cals in 1293, out 450. Out for lunch and had Vietnamese bun (a rice vermicelli salad dish), this is absolutely delicious and if you haven't tried it you absolutely should!!!

Mon
In 1274, out 1628. Geez I can't even remember what I did this day but I must sure have exercised a LOT!!! Oh yes now I remember. I did a massive run in the morning, then took the dogs for a walk (totalling 15k between my run then a few kms walk), then did an hour of aqua aerobics in the evening. I hadn't done this before but I had a FABULOUS time, it was more tiring than I thought it would be!!! Made Mish's chicken strips with cherry tomatoes, broccolini and beans and I enjoyed it. Stayed the night at my sisters which was really fun - had to take my own dinner as she was fasting for some fructose testing the next day, but this meant I kept within cals when normally I wouldn't have as we would have headed out for tea!

Tue
Went for a short run in the morning burning 451cals. Spent the day with my best friend at the Royal Show, had a fabulous time sampling all the delicious gourmet foods (and how cool is the vertical Masterchef herb garden! I want!). As a result, didn't eat lunch. Made Mish's beef fillet with roast pumpkin, beetroot & gingered spinach for tea. This was really yummy. Best estimate of cals in is ~1400+!

Wed
Cals out 500, cals in 1652 of which half were scones! Ooops! I tried a new scone recipe and it was a bit too delicious....!

Thu
No exercise today as drove my Mum down to my grandparents to see them and have lunch. Had a creamy pasta for lunch. Didn't eat dinner but a likely cal blowout regardless. Cals in 1425+. Saw my allergist in the morning, he has now started me on an asthma pump I have to use up my nose! Feels odd but is hopefully going to be effective as if it doesn't work I think my only options to make the polyps go away are oral steroids or surgery. On the upside, he says if we can fix my nose my asthma is likely to disappear, and I'm almost certain he's right about that.

Fri
Cals out 800. But another blowout cals in. I think I may need to add protein shakes or bars to my diet as I am nearly always craving food - I am doing a lot of exercise so I know I need to eat a fair bit, but it needs to be quality nutrition not just extra snacks!!! Made Mish's chicken parmagiana for tea which was just alright. Cals in 1633.
Did my fitness test this morning. 1km in 4min17sec. Didn't have wheezing as badly so perhaps the asthma treatment is working.

Sat
Cals out 589. Cals in 1337. Had Mish's roast beef, avocado and cottage cheese wrap for lunch. Didn't really like it. Not a fan of deli meats generally so not sure why I thought this was a good choice! Oh well! 99% of the time I have been really loving the recipes so it's no problem! Cals in is just an estimate. I can't even remember what I did on Saturday but I must have been out for dinner...

Sun
Cals out 615, cals in 1575. Had Mish's chicken with mustard sauce, roast tomatoes and asparagus for tea. Nearly forgot about the tomatoes in the oven but thankfully my housemate realised! I quite enjoyed the meal though it certainly wasn't up there amongst my favourites. Back to Gippsland for the last part of Semester 2 before the deliciously long summer break.




Mon
Cals out 930, cals in 1569. Made Mish's grilled lamb with pumpkin and pine nuts for tea. This was realllly yummy and I can highly recommend it.

Tue
On Tuesday I ran the farthest I have EVER run before. I managed 16.4km (on the treadmill) in just under 90min. I was very proud of myself. Perhaps I can run a half marathon after all! Also took my dog for a walk after uni, so burnt 1187cals all up. 1504 cals in.






Today (Wed)
Cals out 585, cals in 1187. Made one of my favourite Mish meals to date tonight: beef bulgogi skewers. YUMM!!!! I marinated the meat overnight and it was just delicious.

To finish with, I promised energyandemily I would post a pic of me in my zebra jumper. So here it is! :)

Holidays!

I'm officially on holidays! I am glad, but they haven't started too well.
Last night was my sister's 26th birthday. I was really looking forward to having a family dinner, as we hadn't had one since my Dad got back from his 6 week holiday. I was looking forward to it all week. Well, of course I took one look at Dad when I arrived at the restaurant (after a 6:30am start and a total of 3.5 hours driving) and knew he'd ruin the evening, which he then proceeded to do. He was in a foul mood and like usual took it out on the rest of us. My poor sister was so upset. Dad ended up saying that he was tired, it was not his kind of food, and left. He went and ate a kebab somewhere. I was terribly angry and disappointed. He was acting like a petulant child. He later returned, to our amazement, and though things started okay, he then deteriorated in his mood again. After dinner he went home & Mum & I went to my sister's place for a bit. I snuck off and got her an icecream cake as not only had Dad's mood soured the evening but her workmates had completely forgotten her birthday and she had had no cake. So I did what I could to salvage the evening. I felt really sorry for her.
ANYWAY - probably should backtrack a little while.

Friday
The footy last Friday was good, though tarnished by a few things, first of all that my sister & I weren't able to sit with our family, then that we were told there were no more seats available and we would have to stand (at $140/ticket I was pretty livid about this), and then Dad finally scrounged us some seats but they were single ones amongst strangers. So I spent the first quarter sitting by myself, eating some hot chips, and they stuck in my throat a bit because the whole thing I enjoy about the football is spending time with my family and here I was sitting by myself. The second quarter was better as I became friendly with my 'neighbours' and they were willing to move around a bit so my sister could come and sit next to me. After half time we were heading back to our seats and all of a sudden my sister leant down clutching her face as a big tall dude, in his haste to get back to his seat, had 'shouldered' her right in the eye (accidentally). Her glasses were broken, she had a few cuts, and I could see it was already starting to puff up, so we spent the entire third quarter at St Johns with her holding her an ice pack on her face (she still has a black eye a week later!). Anyway, the Hawks did eventually win the game, so that was good, but I have to say it wasn't the most enjoyable game I've ever been to by a long stretch (and, it was definitely the most expensive! :P). Cals in 1339, cals out 600.

Saturday
Big day today. Had work, which is usually straightforward & I usually finish bang on time, but today there were lots of complex cases (dog with fulminant heart failure, cat with abscess that I had to lance, blocked cat etc etc) so I finished late. It was a mad rush to get home, change my shirt, then head straight back out to do my interview (for an assignment) of a patient with a chronic illness. That took 2 hours, then I headed home before heading out for dinner with a group of 20 vets who are all now pursuing, or thinking of pursuing, alternative careers. It was a very enjoyable evening. Cals in 1328, cals out 0.

Sunday
Determined to burn off some of my indulgence with a decent workout this morning, so started the day with a 10k run (in just under an hour), then did about another half an hour of jogging & jumping around to take the cal burn up to 1000. Made Mish's mediterranean chicken for tea which was reasonably enjoyable though I've discovered I definitely don't like squash! Cals in 1148.

Monday
Had a 707cal workout to start the day. Made Mish's chickpea & veggie pies which were quite yummy (though needed a little salt for flavour) though made 4 pies instead of 2! Guess what I'll be eating for days! Cals in 1310.




Tuesday
650cal workout today, 1259cals in. Am really loving strawberries dipped in Chobani greek yoghurt. I have heard that the pineapple flavour is amazing but I haven't managed to find that yet. Didn't feel like dinner tonight so just had some healthy snacks instead.

Wednesday
Weigh-in day! Argh! I always dread this day. Anyway, I lost 300g. I'm okay with that. Since 12wbt officially kicked off, I have lost 500g/week (but, actually, most of my weight was still lost in pre-season!). As long as it's a loss, however small I will take it.
Stats:
-fat: 23.9% (down 0.1%)
-water: 56.5% (constant)
-muscle: 36.2% (constant)
-bone: 2.1kg (up 100g)
-BMI: 22.2 (down 0.1)
-daily kcal requirement: 2235 (down 9)
I had the day off from uni which was super pleasant. I slept in a bit, then went to the local shops to buy a few new clothes. The weather was warm so I went to pull on some shorts, and I was shocked when they were so loose they nearly fell down around my ankles! I bought 2 pairs of shorts, a new top, and a dress, and all were size 8, I could hardly believe it. I also tried on some pants in one shop, and size 8 was TOO BIG?!!! Amazing :) I do feel like I've lost some of my love handles, I like the shape of my legs & arms, but I definitely still have work to do around my tummy, especially my 'rib fat'. I feel my goal weight is still a realistic goal to aim for.
Headed to the gym after shops, 633cals out, 1012cals in. Had Mish's beef fajitas for tea again, didn't have mexican seasoning so used moroccan seasoning and this was AMAZING! Definitely one of my favourite recipes.

Thursday
Largely described above. Cals in 1660, was definitely doing some emotional eating after Dad's mood & there was no way I wasn't going to eat some of the icecream cake & make my sister eat it all by herself. Not bothered at all by the cal blowout as it is a rarity these days. Was a bit upset when I got home, and worked up, so I had to take a sleeping tablet to get to sleep. I feel so frustrated at the situation.

Today
Mum's in the hospital having another operation today, this time on her shoulder. It's made me rather anxious, as it does everyone when their Mum goes under an anaesthetic, I'm sure! I'm looking forward to being able to take care of her next week, as I'll be living at Mum & Dad's during my mid-sem break. Dad has no idea how to look after himself let alone himself & Mum, so this is definitely necessary. I've heard she's woken up from her procedure now & I hope to be able to visit her this afternoon. I'm going to make Mish's teriyaki chicken & vegetable stir-fry with noodles as I think Dad will tolerate that. Went for a 5.5k walk/run and burnt 400cals.

Plodding along

So the Wednesday weigh-in came and went and to my great surprise I managed to lose another 900g. I was almost certain I'd have a gain so this was a very pleasant surprise indeed. My stats were:
-Fat 24% (down 0.3%)
Water 56.5% (up 0.3%)
Muscle 36.2% (up 0.1%)
Bone 2kg
BMI 22.3 (down 0.3)
Daily kcal requirement 2244 (down 35)

Multiple times a day now I am having people comment on my weight loss. My pre-Europe jeans are now completely comfortable rather than a bit tight (and at the start, completely impossible to get on!), and I am starting to notice changes in my face (more angular - more attractive I think??). My legs are looking more muscular with all the running I am doing. The thing I am most looking forward to, despite forgetting to list it as a goal at the start, is the crease marks (from when I sit down and my tummy fat bunches up) to go away, and what I call my 'rib fat'. Besides the general tummy area I am now happy with my body shape. I do think my arms are thinning out a bit too & they have been my nemesis for a while, with my torso being a size 10 but my arms occasionally meaning I have to go up a size or sometimes even 2!!! 

I feel proud of myself and what I have achieved so far. Mentally I am in a good place. My body has long been a source on unhappiness for me and I am now starting to feel I have control over it rather than it having control over me. Sometimes it tries to fight me though as I have outlined in previous posts! I just hope what I have achieved is sustainable. I will likely do another round of 12wbt - another lean & fit if I have not achieved my goal weight, or lean and strong if I have. I hope this might cement these changes into my psyche permanently :)

Today we had a clinical skills day. This involves learning about examination of different body systems, and today was endocrine. I was feeling really exhausted and a friend was practicing on me and took my heart rate - 48 - and my blood pressure - 105/60. Haha no wonder I wasn't feeling great! She fed me a chocolate frog and about 20 minutes later we were doing blood glucose testing, and mine was 5.4mmol/L, which is consist with if I had been fasting, rather than post-lunch and post-choccie frog as I had been (for which normal is anything up to 11.1). Good to know I have absolutely no signs of diabetes anyway :)

Anyway, here's the latest summaries. Monday's cals finished up at about 1669 in, 1200 out.

Tuesday

1233 in, 403 out (toning day + dog walk). Made Mish's beef & broccolini stir-fry for dinner which was yummy and the portion plenty. 

Wednesday

1418 in, 1184 out. You'd be horrified to hear that, no joke, 584 cals of that was chocolate brownie! In fact I only ate one proper meal today cos I just wasn't hungry for some reason, so I just grazed instead. Had a final goodbye at the local Salvation Army crisis centre where I volunteered last semester. The first thing people did when they saw me was exclaim over how much weight I had lost. It's amazing how much of a difference losing just 5kg obviously makes!!! In the evening I attended a psychological first aid workshop run by a fellow student. It was really good. Pizza was on offer but I was good and took along a 12wbt cauliflower & chickpea curry instead. I enjoyed this but the serving size was a bit too big, so next time I'd split it into 4 servings instead of 2.

Today

Today started out well with a toning day at the gym before class, burning 400cals including my dog walk after uni. Couldn't control the snacking afterwards though, not sure why, just cravings rather than hunger, also feeling really tired at uni. Makes me wonder when I get super super tired at uni whether my blood sugar's just dropped really low. I'm going to try to eat more low GI foods & see if that helps. Maybe I should eat a bigger breakfast post-gym too (or higher protein), as my normal brekkie on uni days is just 2 corn thins with cheese.

Heading to the footy tomorrow night. Really excited. GO HAWKS! It will be great to hang out with my extended family and it will be the first time I have seen my Dad in a few months as he has been away for a while in the US. Poor thing flies in at 8am tomorrow and I cajoled him into going to the footy that same night! I plan to start the day with a 1000+cal gym session to really get my weekend kick-started :) Won't have time for exercise on Sat as I have work, then a patient interview, then out for dinner, but I'm happy to have a day off.

Exhausted.

I've hit a bit of a wall tonight, so I've decided to take the rest of the night off from study and just do some relaxing things. I didn't get enough sleep over the weekend and it was also a very full on weekend with a full day of an Indigenous Mental Health First Aid course each day.

Friday
Made Mish's bimbap for tea; really enjoyed it. Total cals out 1044, in 1236.

Saturday
Couldn't rouse myself to do any exercise before the course this morning. Had a ton of the provided pizza for lunch. Luckily wasn't hungry at dinnertime so just had a small cheesymite scroll Mum had got free. Cals out 0, cals in 1276.

Sunday
Really tired. Rediscovered how good Arnotts raspberry shortcake biscuits were at morning tea time...also had a few other lollies that were going. Cals in ~1339. Managed to JFDI after I finally got home (course ran overtime again), and while the sun was setting walked the dogs then ran for a while, total 7.7k

Monday
Back at uni, so this morning started with a bit over 2 hours of driving. Thankfully a short day so decided to blast it at the gym. Had my biggest session since owning an HRM to date - 1200cals burnt! Phew!!! That consisted of running 11.3k (1hr) on the treadmill, jogging/walking 1.2k on the cross-trainer on level 12 (20min), then walking my dog when I got home. I think it's certainly why I'm so tired now, and looking for snacks despite not actually being hungry. I have made passionfruit and coconut creme caramels for my housemate's belated birthday, so we will be enjoying those after she has had dinner. I'm already up to 1400cal for today but I don't care given my epic gym session, and I know I will do better tomorrow, the day before weigh-in.
The good news is that no part of my legs (besides my blistered feet) hurt much at all during my running today.

My body is fighting me but I am fighting it back

Well it hasn't been the greatest week. Mentally, I'm on top of the world! Physically, hmm, not so much!
So of course my right foot has been giving me a fair bit of grief as previously mentioned, though it has been less sore since I have been having a rest from wearing the runners.
As I've also mentioned, I've been wondering if I've been getting asthma, despite not having it since I was a little kid.
Last night when I was at my wonderful doc's, getting yet another dust mite desensitising injection (one fortnightly one to go before I start monthly jabs!), I mentioned it. She had a look up my nose, and said no wonder I couldn't breathe through it as both nostrils were nearly entirely occluded (blocked off) with nasal polyps which develop when you've got chronic rhinitis/sinusitis like I have had for the past couple of years. Greattttt. And she says yup, what I've described is definitely asthma, and probably worsened by the fact I can't breathe through my nose, as the nose plays a vital role in humidifying the air before it hits the lungs, as cold air makes your air passages close up.
So anyway, I'm to use a steroid nasal spray morning and night, use an asthma puffer (steroid & to widen my airways) morning and night, and if we're still not making progress, she's going to put me on oral steroids to try and shrink the polyps, which she otherwise says will take forever to decrease in size (surgery is an option but she says they often just grow back).
I'm happy to get started on the puffer & love the idea of being able to breathe through my nose again but the thought of oral steroids doesn't excite me as I know they lead to weight gain, bloating, and other yucky side effects.
Anyway, in more positive news, I had some thick insoles in some old shoes at my parents place, which fit in my new runners, and elevate my heel to the point where my bone is no longer bashing against the side of the shoe. Happy days! Today I tentatively (keeping my recent asthma diagnosis in mind, plus my physio's 'NO RUNNING!' advice) set out to see if I got pain in my legs after a while. Because of asthma and just starting on meds the previous night, I walked some of the way, but managed a bit over 10k including hills in about 1hr 7min. Not a bad effort. And the best part is, I got NO pains in the part of my foot that has been hurting recently, and I didn't get pains in my knee til about the 9k mark. I did get some pains in the outside of my left knee (great!!!) but I may just need to take the extra insole out of that shoe. We shall see! Came home and jumped around for a while to take the cal burn to 1004. If I can get on top of my asthma a half-marathon may be do-able after all :)

Thursday
Big day of driving (2hr45min) & long day at hospital placements & then at docs & chemist, so no exercise today. Days like this only happen once a fortnight so I'm okay with that. Unfortunately didn't reign it in food-wise too well, so ate about 1500cals including going out for dinner & having a mexican bean burger & chips :P

I DID IT!!!

YAYYYY!!! First weight-loss since 12wbt officially kicked off! I lost 1.5kg this week, bringing my total weight loss to 4.5kg - nearly halfway to my goal. I can taste that success...
My pre-Europe jeans are fitting pretty comfortably and I've had four or five people comment that I'm looking good or ask me have I lost weight :)
Fat 24.3% (down 0.7%)
Water 56.2% (up 0.4%)
Muscle 36.1% (up 0.3%)
Bone 2kg
BMI 22.6 (down 0.6)
Daily kcal requirement 2279 (down 52)

Barefoot at the gym today - some incline power walking on the treadmill, then some cross-trainer action. Burnt 604cals. Kept waiting to be kicked out for being shoeless but it didn't happen :)
Kept my cals light on during the day as I was really looking forward to a treat meal tonight - chicken & chips from apparently one of the best takeaways in Gippsland. Oh it did not disappoint! I think it tasted better as I haven't eaten it for a while. Let me tell you they did a lot better job of it here than the place near my parents in Melbourne, haha! Anyway, including 750cals for dinner (!) total cals in was 1387.

Bit nervous about the weekend. I'm heading back to Melbourne tomorrow afternoon, am going out to dinner tomorrow night, then at a course (with pizza day one, Subway day two apparently) all weekend (luckily I hate Subway). Plus Mum usually has some delicious baked goods available! Lots of red flags... Hopefully this week's weight loss will be the motivation I need to JUST SAY NO!!!

Oh, and another nice thing happened today - one of the girls at uni (a physio, but not the one I've mentioned heaps) said I've inspired her to get running and she managed her first 10k the other day. That made me really happy.

Although I'm not willing to verbalise it to anyone as it seems an impossible dream with my knees/feet being as biomechanically useless as they are, I would love to run a half marathon....

Exam done - PHEW!

I'm having a nice time sitting here after having done my 3 hour mid-sem exam this morning. I think it went largely okay apart from having to draw a Wigger's diagram in full detail. I suggest you Google it (try wikipedia) and laugh along with me about how that was certainly not going to happen!
Headed to the gym afterwards, then my physio friend took another look at my poor old foot. He has absolutely forbidden me to run for the next 4 days minimum, and pointed out all the bruising on the bone underneath my ankle. He says I'm heading straight for stress fracture disaster and I'm sure he's right. So, for now, it's barefoot on the cross-trainer, weight-training, and I am really looking forward to seeing how my old runners go when I head back to Melbourne on Thursday night. In the meantime, he has taped me up and added a couple of heel wedges into my shoe to see if that helps.

Sunday
Ran 5k and walked 2.5k, burning 616cal. My foot was really giving me grief so couldn't manage more than that, and knew I shouldn't procrastinate too much from study! Food was generally good, had Mish's steak sandwich again for tea which I really enjoy. Cals in 1257.

Monday
Hit the gym before class, doing 4k on the cross-trainer at level 11-12, then 4.5km on the flat treadmill at 10k/hr. Burnt 1014cals which I was really happy with. Ate a few too many bikkies provided during our morning tute, but total cals in was 1290. Had de-frosted 12wbt leftovers for lunch and tea, mindful of not procrastinating too much with cooking, with my big exam Tuesday morning.

I went to the gym after the exam today - cross-trainer for 1/2 an hour & some weights stuff, burning 670cal. Leftovers again for tea as I can't be bothered going to the shops and I've got plenty more good frozen 12wbt options in the freezer.

I'm hoping for a big number tomorrow - 1kg+. I have definitely put in the work, with a cal deficit of 300-1000 per day (though making sure never to eat <1200cal). I'm not sure what I'll do if I haven't lost at least 1kg. Please keep your fingers and toes crossed for me!!!

SSS

Well its now Saturday, and I can definitively say that an SSS is no challenge at all when you have an exam on Tuesday that you are desperately procrastinating for!!!

Anyway, Friday first.
Attempted forefoot running with a strike rate of 175/min as per my physio friend's advise. Managed 50m max I'd say, for 2 reasons: 1) I established I don't normally run that fast anyway! and 2) Foot was killing me. The med student in me did some researching and discovered it's my fibular/peroneal trochlea that's getting pains from my shoe. Still, I somehow managed to run 7.5km and burn 604cal despite the intermittent pain (seemed to lessen as I went along - perhaps my running style changes as I fatigue?).
It was a day of 12wbt meals for breakfast lunch & dinner: boiled eggs w/ vegemite soldiers, then last night's leftover stuffed capsicum, then a delicious sausage w/ mash & balsamic onion for dinner. Rather than 2 generic low fat sausages I ate just one delicious turkey, cranberry & basil sausage that I'd bought at the farmers market (if
you've never eaten one of Lockton Gourmet's sausages, you are seriously missing out!), and accounted for the extra cals in MFP. Couldn't resist some of my housemate's homemade apple pie afterwards, which would have kept me within cals apart from I also couldn't resist a scoop of her honeycomb & butterscotch icecream. Oops! Cals in 1355 for the day.

Got up at 8am looking forward to some SSS-procrastinating though slightly concerned about my foot. Folded up a sock inside my shoe to lift up my heel and that definitely helped, so I will try 2 socks tomorrow and see if that fixes the problem entirely, until I can get some heel wedges.
It was a beautiful morning. I ended up running 10k and then walking a further 2k. I passed (lapped) an elderly couple doing my same route in the opposite direction to me and of course much slower, but it was funny that we said hello 4 times! The best bits of the morning were 1) managing 10k despite my sore foot 2) saying hello to other people out enjoying the weather and 3) creeping over that elusive 1000cal barrier again. Managed 1006cal all up in 82min. Had the last of my AMAZING farmer's market oranges for breakfast, lunch was leftovers, and for dinner made Mish's beef with creamy mustard mushroom sauce & beans. Pretty yummy. Cals in 1206 WOO-HOO!

Mentally I'm really struggling with not getting past the 4kg weight loss barrier. I know there's 8 weeks left but I highly doubt I'll get to 10kg weight loss in that time. I DO fit into my pre-Europe jeans, which was one of my goals, but I certainly wouldn't look good in a bikini yet! Wish me luck and willpower and the ability to say NO to snacks! ;)

Winners and losers...

Definitely about time for another update.
So, this week's weigh-in was not good. Up 300g :( Pretty disappointed as I exercised at least 500cal worth every day. Did have a few red flag meals (including the night before weigh in!) but tried to have no snacks during the day to account for them. Hmm actually there were 4 meals out now I count them!!!
Did improve on the fitness test though - can now run 1km in 4min 33sec. Definitely felt an asthmatic wheeze coming on again during it though - must ask my doc about it (given it only comes on with super exertion, she will probably just tell me to avoid that!). Managed 51 knee push-ups in a minute, extended plank time by 1min, no change in wallsit time. Have lost a couple of centimetres but no great change there either.
Here's the week's summary.

Thu
Cals in 1562 due to some binging when I got to Mums after a long day. How to avoid this???! Did make Mish's beef pad see ew for dinner which was yummy. No exercise today due to a long day with a TON of driving (3 hours or so).

Fri
Pub lunch (happens just 4 times a year due to being at city campus of my university) and a couple of snacks meant my cals in were about 1379. Did do a 6k run before uni though and burnt 532cal. Was supposed to go out for dinner/drinks after uni but was mega-tired and didn't want to have an absolute cal blowout so went home and rested and studied instead. What a nerd, haha!

Sat
Big day at work then out for dinner - thai. Shouldn't have had the spring rolls but did so came in at 1813cal for the day with only 100cal out on a brief dog walk. Hmm starting to realise why I had the gain this week!


Sun
Reigned it right back in today cals wise, burning 500cal and eating 1234cal including Mish's beef & guinness pies for tea. Made it with red wine instead and it was yummy, Mum enjoyed it too. I think this was the day I did the fitness test. I got my 1k time down to 4min33sec which I thought was good until I started googling it, haha! Did get asthma again at the end which I MUST ask the doc about (having not had asthma since I was in early primary school).

Mon
I believe cals in was about 1000, and cals out 634, but hard to say as I was out at a function for dinner which was a selection of canapes (all of which I did my best to log into MFP, but who knows!).

Tue

Out for dinner with Mum & sis, guessing 750cals for dinner alone - chicken parma & 2 slices of thin potato pizza? Prob more... Big day on the exercise though with a 6k run, 2k dog walk, 3.4k walk to dinner & back, totalling 814cal out (and about 1377 in).


Wed
What began as an attempt to eat well dissolved into eating icecream...oh dear! Made Mishs' thai kangaroo salad for tea. Visually it looked good, but I couldn't handle the taste. Ate about half of it then gave up. Cals in ~1475, cals out 576

Today
My new runners are giving me terrible pains just below my right ankle. I over-pronate, meaning my foot tilts inwards and my shoe impinges on that part of my foot. I usually wear orthotics but they make my whole foot ache with these shoes. A physio friend has suggested trying to run on my forefoot so I am going to give that a go tomorrow. In any case, burnt 551cal (2k on cross-trainer level 12 in 30min, and 3k on treadmill no incline 18min) and ate 1337 (couldn't resist 2 pieces of choc after dinner!). Made Mish's quinoa, lemon, chilli & fetta stuffed capsicums and really enjoyed them.

10k, 58min, 780cal

So it's weigh in day today. I was feeling pretty good about today's weigh in - I hadn't eaten perfectly, but I'd eaten MUCH better than the week before at the conference, and the week prior to that when I couldn't stop snacking. So I was definitely hoping for a loss rather than a gain like the past 2 weeks!
So I stepped on the scales, and found out I'd lost 1.3kg! Hooray! This is quite a lot given I'm not super heavy (or tall) to begin with. Those couple of 1000cal exercise sessions paid off! Finally, I've started to head back in the right direction, after a few crappy weeks.
So, my stats were:
-24.9% body fat (down 0.4%)
-55.9% water (up 0.3%)
-35.9% muscle (up 0.2%)
-23.1 BMI
-2322 cal needed per day (up 9?)

Well, the weekly round up as usual:

Sat
Ended up with ~1162 cal in and 1006cal out. Stoked with that.

Sun
Opted for one of Mish's salad options for lunch: baby spinach, pear, walnut & chickpea. Rather delicious and quite filling! Tea was Mish's butter chicken and this was REALLY yummy. I made double so I could store 3 lots in the freezer (which is getting rather full!). Ended up eating some more of my housemate's chocolate pudding so ended the day with 650cal out and 1395 in.




Mon
Decided to see if I could do an SSS much faster if I did pure cardio. Theory proved correct when I managed 1042cal in 90min. YAY! Felt so good afterwards, though my knee was still bothering me a bit. Splitting up my running between the cross-trainer and treadmill is really helping though. Had Mish's not so naughty nachos for tea, which I didn't enjoy as much as the bean nachos, and overdid the snacks a bit, so 1412cal in. Not too fussed given my epic morning workout.

Tue
Shorter gym session today as I had a long day at uni. 1151cal in, 511cal out. Had Mish's lamb with spiced rice for tea and this was quick & easy, and really yummy!

Today
Went hard at the gym today, and ran 4.5k on the cross-trainer in 25min and 5.5k on the treadmill in 33min, burning a total of 780cal! The sweat was literally flying off me. Again felt great afterwards; those endorphins are really flowing! Avoided the free bbq at lunch and had leftovers from last night instead, but couldn't help but support the global health bake sale - had a piece of choc cake with peanut butter icing (plus a taste of a marshmallow frosting red velvet cupcake and a cream cheese icing carrot cake!!!) so my cals will probably be blown out of the water. I'm going to be pretty good for the rest of the day, though I couldn't help but buy a block of Cadbury mousse raspberry coulis chocolate on sale for 99c! At 2 squares or 125cal I'm happy to incorporate that into my cal allowance. I'm making Mish's thai chicken burgers for tea which I think should be rather yum!

It's the weekend!

Yay for the weekend! :) I'm staying in Gippsland this weekend which means I have heaps of extra time to get stuff done, including my Super Saturday Session! Anyway, to recap:

Wed
Beef stroganoff was pretty good. I wayyy overcooked the beef though so I burnt a few extra calories trying to chew my way through it, haha! Total cal in 996, total cal out 750.

Thu
Had Mish's breakfast crumble with yoghurt again. Cos it's not very filling and so high in sugar I probably won't have it again. Dinner I tried Mish's cannellini bean stew with crispy polenta. Not bad, but needed some added salt for flavour. Only managed 300cal of exercise with today's workout plan, and ate 1469cal. Whoops!

Fri
Burnt 475cal on the treadmill today. Knee is still playing up which is making anything involving knee bending a bit painful. I'm still trying to push on through it while I wait for my new runners to arrive! Had Mish's bean nachos with chilli guacamole for dinner and they were fantastic! Yum yum! Afterwards had some chocolate pudding that my housemate made. Total cals in ~1762 including the 580cal of the chocolate pudding!!! Oh yes, and my big positive for today was that a girl at uni said 'How much weight have you lost? You look so skinny!' Hooray! Given I've done nothing but put weight back ON the last 2 weeks, this was a welcome comment.

Today
Had Mish's banana bruschetta for breakfast (not bad), then headed to the farmer's market this morning, it's only on once a month and often doesn't coincide with when I'm in Traralgon so I was pleased to be able to go. I bought 2 packets of gourmet sausages (chicken, cheese & chive, and turkey, cranberry, basil), 3kg of delicious oranges, a bunch of coriander, and some flowers to brighten up my room. A really pleasant way to pass the morning. After going to Woolies to do the rest of my shopping, I decided it was time to do my SSS. I have never burnt 1000cal in one go before, and decided today was the day. I started with Mish's Ignite and Burn 700 SSS (finishing it off with a 5k run), then I did Friday's core & stretch workout, then I had to run another ~1.5-2km, then stretched, then jumped around for a bit, and FINALLY, 2 hr 35min later, I had burnt 1006cal! Geez it took forever though and I was completely beat, I found myself shutting my eyes at times as I was doing some of the stretches. With full-time study and part-time work I do not have time to be doing that every weekend!!! So this might be my once off. Had Mish's steak sandwich for lunch which was REALLY yummy. Off out for dinner tonight but I've got 440cal remaining for the day to hit 1200, and after my SSS I'm not going to feel too guilty about a bit of a (controlled) binge! :)

Wednesday Weigh-In

Well here I am, sitting here a little morose, but it's all my own fault as I showed a decided lack of willpower while I was at the Canberra conference. I won't bore you with all the details but let's just say there was hash browns, chocolate brownie, portuguese egg tarts, fresh bread and butter, black forest cake, chocolate espresso cake, scones with jam and cream, pavlova and cheesecake involved, just to list a few things! Deary me. Considering I have only managed to gain 500g I probably escaped quite well out of it. Sadly that makes 800g gained in two weeks of 12wbt, after going so well in preseason and losing 3kg. *sigh*. I now weigh exactly the same as I did 3 weeks ago.
Anyway, I'll post my ins & outs so I can least try and keep myself accountable:
Thursday:
-360cal out at the gym in about 40min
-at least 1700cal in
Friday:
-694cal out doing a 9.5k run around Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra over an hour. I was pretty proud of myself with this one, I've never run that far outdoors before!
-at least 1000cal in not including lunch & morning tea, I forget what I ate but no doubt I'd be at least hitting 1700cal again
Saturday:
-332cal out doing a 4.91k to the lake and back in 30min.
-at least 1700cal in not including lunch, I forget what I ate but I no doubt would have exceeded 2000cal
Sunday:
-headed home on an early morning flight. Thank goodness for that. I'd turn into a blimp if the conference had gone for much longer!
-550cal out
-1232cal in including Mish's basil & walnut pesto spaghetti with roast pumpkin & tomato. This was super delicious despite the fact there was such little sauce - it didn't matter! And no oil!

Monday:
-back at uni, planned to be good but willpower deserted me again when there was free pancakes at the student union. 1384cal in, including Mish's korean hot pot for tea which was quite yummy and filling.
-615cal out doing Mish's fitness fat burner workout at the gym. Definitely gets the heart pumping!!!

Tuesday:
-finally hit that magic <1200cal number again with 1112cal in today, including Mish's Korean-style omelette today. Pretty bland to be honest.
-380cal out doing total body toning & abs.

Today I've been good. I had Mish's breakfast crumble for breakie which wasn't bad (though probably not filling enough for me), and had the omelette again for lunch with the addition of salt, pepper, and about a tablespoon of light soy sauce - this significantly improved the overall taste!

So far I've 674cal in and 750cal out, with dinner (& probably a snack or two) to go. Tonight I'm having Mish's beef stroganoff for tea so that should be pretty yummy I hope.