the end, or the beginning!

ok so, I chose the day 1 workout yesterday! ah, it made my partner and I laugh. I have come a long way from day 1!

I cant believe it has been 90 days! this has been an emotional and tough journey, but so so rewarding.

I was thinking today, it mustv been some time back, mayby near the beggining of the PCP, where i was talking to a work mate about staying in shape and eating healthy. She was telling me how she very rarely if at all eats takeaways, and that she cooks her dinner every night. I could not understand how anyone

could go without ever eating takeaways. they were such a huge part of my diet that i just couldnt really get it. If i was tired, couldnt be bothered cooking, or felt unwell

- i usually had takeaways for dinner. mostly mcDonalds. But

now... i have no desire for McDonalds or takeaways. Now i get it. of course i have the odd oh yum! when i see it on tv, but i think about it a bit longer and imagine how greasy and unhealthy these foods are. This guy at work has takeaways at least 3 out of 5 times a week for lunch, i used to look at his food and really want what he had. now i look at it, and am a little disgusted that he puts that crap into his body so frequently. I also have the urge to say something to him - but as hard as it is i keep it to myself. ive said things before and he just looks at me the way i looked at my workmate when she told me she never eats takeaways, and people (my workmates) look at me like im a little nutty when i try to explain these things.

I wish i could spread my new goodness onto others, but really, unless you go through this magical journey of PCP or are really into the health scene yourself, people just dont get it, or dont really care. I sortv wish that my partner did this with me - he is reasonably healthy, and i tell him about what ive learnt, but ive found that unless you go through this process yourself, in one way or another, you just dont really get it. im not sure if that makes sense.

I no longer want to eat all those rotten processed foods at the supermarket (minus some items) such as bolonase sauce, white rice etc. i want freshness. i was gona buy some tandoori paste to put on my fish (try it its good!) but i decided not to buy the pack, but to make my own! haha.

an important thing that i have learnt is that gimmecks and quick weight loss regimes dont work. not in the long term anyway. the most important thing to be healthy and get into shape is the right food and daily exercise. I hear this all the time, but until i did the pcp, i just didnt get it. i was trying all sorts, i even brought the lemon detox diet before pcp and its still sitting in my cupboard. This was not the right way to go about loosing weight and keeping it off. so, i dont know what to do with it now. id give it away, but then it would be better for me to refer people to the PCP than to give them the detox!

Anywho, the thing is, not only have I lost weight and gotten into good shape thoughout this journey, i have learnt so so much, and i am so grateful to Patrick, his zen-ness and grate wisdom. The PCP has taught me so much and i hope to continue my new habits and what i have learnt and spread the word (to those who want to listen.haha) So thankyou Patrick!

Also, i want to thank my team SEXAAY team mates, you guys have been my rock throughout these 90 days, and i could not have done this without you! you guys kept me going on those days when i just wanted to give up! your support and wonderful comments really kept me going and i thankyou from the bottom of my heart!

I wish all the best to the current pcpers, keep going, you guys are doing great! it is so worth it at day 90.

and, congratulations to my team mates! we have made it! you guys have done a great job and are all looking amazing! woohoo!

ooh ooh, i did 3 full pullups on Sunday! holy moley!

So, my post pcp dinner was grand. prawn stirfry (with fish sauce, oyster sauce and singapore noodles) with a glass of wine, or two! yum. felt a little tipsy after the wine!

this is my last official post. but im not ready to say goodbye to ya'l yet. so im gona still post with some post pcp posts.

here are some day 90 photos!

Day 90 Day 8

Loose pants New work skirt

Day 89 bad bad week. old habits. last day tomorrow

wow so its our last day tomorrow! im excited to have it all over with but at the same time so so scared!

so i have a confession. ive had an extremley bad week. i havnt been feeling well, work is really shit and i sortv fell into old habits. i thought this was something i had under control, but my emotional eating reared its ugly head this week. ive had non pcp food this week. ive had chocolate a few times, some icecream and sundried tomatoes and olives in my salad. I did find that eating junk food made me feel even worse after because i didnt even need to eat it. it wasnt satisfying. so, i was gona keep that to myself as this is really stupid when i only had 1 week to go! worst way to end my journey, but its best just to put it out there.

so this is the biggest challenge i have ahead, not going back to old habits! i really dont want to undo all my hard work.

what does everyone else do when they are having a crap day?

Ive actually found too that exercising really makes me feel better. i feel better about myself and just happier. like how in one of emails Patrick was saying something about the endorphins. i have learnt so much over these past 3 months! im really really glad i did the pcp with my wonderful team mates and Patrick. ok so will check back in tomorrow with my pics for our last day!

Day 87 - nearing the end!

So, the last couple of days i missed my workouts due to feeling not so good. im at home today (really should be at work) and those super shoulders sets are killer. so so painfull! i had my music on so was having a bit of a boogie during as i had to take my mind off the pain. although i know Patrick said to focus on the pain, it hurt!

i did my first pull up the other day! and did one today too. wow. usually my partner has to lift me! so thats cool. only 1 tho.

woah, only 3 more days to go! i cant believe its almost been 90 days! its been so so great to be on this journey with team SEXAAY!

so i was thinking, when is it ok to have a treat? and how much is too much? is it ok to sit down every friday night with a dvd and some chips and chocolate? i dont really know when its ok. Can i have chocolate whenever i feel like it? you know, as long as i keep up my daily exercise?

as we near the end i am worried about this stuff. sometimes im just outa control when it comes to chocolate.

last weeks pics

Here are last weeks pics. for this weeks ill try change the resolution like Patrick said and wel see if i can get them on flicker. aaaargh no tights this time!

Slow internet

Well, i was gona post this weeks pics up, but it takes so long to get 1 picture up! Flicker wont let me upload either - error connection lost or something. so mayby my internet connection is too slow. but it worked before so i duno whats happening. so will have to put pics up when have some more time. gota get to bed soon, i wana get up early for my jumps!

jumps were a little tough, mostly cause my feet were hurting and my calf bone at the front gets sore. even tho the times are longer, i like that theres only two sets. its kinda the same times, but it tricks my brain. only 1 more set. yessss!

arrgh its only monday. boohoo. i want this week over already! work is so boring. and my tea and google search buddy left so its even more boring. boohoo. i have no one to waste time with.

ooh, i went shopping on the weekend. love that i have an actual size now. woohoo. before it was more like trial and error with clothes. and clothes just fit better now. its great.

my friend and i are gona start bikrum yoga soon - in the heat. should be good!

my belly just will not budge. it refuses to leave the vacinity. im not working as hard as i should be really.

ok night all.

Day 82

I had the yummiest tea tonight. pizza! but a healthy one. wholemeal wrap, i made the sauce with tomatoes, onion, basil and thyme, put some chicken, mushroom, capsicum and cherry tomatoes on with some spinich! and a sprinkle of parmersen. heres a pic - it dosnt look so great half eaten, but i was quite impressed with my base sauce! no need for that bottled stuff or cheese for that matter!

I had some of a brownie today. it was heaven. it was my friends last day at work. I wanted to eat the whole plate. but I ate my fruit. I know im going to continue healthy eating after pcp and i dont want to buy all that processed crap anymore. but chocolate, i just cant kick it. so, im gona have to have self control. im scared about that.

man, ive had a few confessions the last few weeks...

man those shoulder workouts are killer! ouch.

day 80

ok, so i didnt do my workout yesterday! i know i shouldve done it. I had a headache after work then i didnt feel that great for the rest of the night, so i didnt do it. naughty.

I just havnt been getting much sleep cause of my constant peeing throughout the night. it such a pain! even when i have nothing to drink like a couple of hours before bed - im still up what seems every 20 mins! what the hell.

I havent been swimming for the last couple of weeks either, or climbing for about a month! im being lazy. but my sore back isnt helping. its getting there tho.

im loosing motivation and it shits me. i keep forgetting to take this weeks photo! will do that in the morning and put up. i pretty much look the same as the last few weeks i think.

Day 77 - last indulgence

so, i had my indulgence on saturday, i knew what i wanted! so, i had a cookies n cream kit kat chunky bar which was so so good! then i had about half a pkt of grain waves - the first few chips were so tasty, then i had this awfull saltyness in my mouth - kindv like when you eat chillies and your mouth burns, except this was like salt and greasy burn if that makes sense. I then had half a choc muffin with half a white magnum icecream - this was just meh. well it all was really. But, i did quite enjoy the chocolate bar. I love chocolate. made me feel a little bit ill after tho.

so again, especially with the chips - i prob wont be craving those anytime soon.

2 more weeks to go!

Day 74 tough tough workout

so, my workout this arvo was bloody tough! man those shoulder exercises were killer. swiched pistol squats and creeps for lunges and squats cause knee still cant do those.

Im good at the jumps now. man, i found 3 mins so hard, now 6mins is a piece of cake. well sort of.

Ive been craving chocolate. mmm snickers.

my boss today while I had my egg white - 'you better not have too much protein or youl be big and bulky' oh yeah, shutup. he thinks he knows it all. im like hello ive been doing this for the past couple months, i dont need your know it all comments! and hes so wrong everytime. oh well.

its friday again! woohoo. im worried because i am so looking forward to the end of pcp cause i want chocolate. but i dont want to binge and get fat again. im also not where i want to be yet and i dont think i will be by the end (due to my daily honey eating etc), so in that case im scared too, not ready to finish, you know?.

ooh but it will be so nice to be able to do drinks and dinner with friends!

flicker is still being a pain in the butt so here's this weeks pics!

Day 73 Bloated

I get bloated everyday. little tummy in the morning, big tummy in the arvo. is there any good remedy for this? i hate it!

jump ropes are going really good, the workout yest was tough on my shoulders.

Im not making that much progress, and i cant stop eating honey. I really really want to get rid of my tum. I want a flat stomach and some abs. i need to work harder really.

I couldnt do my jump ropes this morn as it was raining. boohoo. so im going to the gym after work to do my workoout there (more room to do it there).

I kindv feel sickish alot - like a chocolate bar or something tasty would fix it. im getting sick of chicken i think. i have it like everyday.

25mins until i finish work! this arvo is dragging on!

Day 68

Jump rope for 5mins is so much easier now, ive figured out switching between feet kinda thing makes it way easier to keep going the whole time. so jump ropes are going really good.

i have to substitute other leg exercises for the pistol squats and creeps - my knee is bung again. it got better then i attemped pistol squats and it bunged up again. bugger.

have to substitute leg ups too, cause they still aggrevate my lower back. it was getting so much better after going to the chiro, but the leg ups stuffed it again.

I had macas for tea last night - just a garden salad tho! we had no vegies and its just down the road so got that and added my own chicken. haha the other week i had no fruit so went down there and got a packet of the kids apple slices! so thats handy.

Under my armpits and my shoulders are sore - must be workin them good.

felt like corn chips today. had an apple instead.

Im watching grease at the mo, great movie!

flicker photos

Ive posted my photos up here as I havnt been able to get them onto flicker.

Day 63

Day 57

Day 65 great workout

I had a great workout today. Got up at 5thirts to do my jump rope, then did the workout after work, it was fricken tough, but i got through it. needed a couple more seconds between leg ups but only a couple and pushed (struggled) through. was surprised i made the 6 sets!

feeling good again. definitly out of the valley. thankgod. starting to look good too. weoo! mu butt flab has gone down. yusssss!

still a bit more fat to go, mainly on my belly!

went for a swim last night - was great, i had the lane all to myself.

ok thats all for now. chow!

Day 64 - raw eggs

Ive been having the raw egg white blended with yogurt/and or milk with some cinnamon and nutmeg, yum, thanks for that suggestion guys! its soo good. however, I googled 'is it ok to eat raw egg white' and it came up that theres a possibility of getting salmonella from them, this is a little worrying - its only like in 1 out of 30,000 eggs, but still! so thats a bugger to know.

Got up this morn and did the jumps! this is rare - but i want to really give it my all this last month, so im plannning on doing these before breaky each day. 5 mins is a little tough, but when i change it up a bit (like swap feet etc) its not too bad and i can make it! minus the tripping.

I like this weeks menu, vege and protein for dinner! and fruit for evening snack...yum.

I still havnt done the 8min abs! need to get onto it.

I have 1 more confession. I didnt do day 60 workout as I got home late from visiting friends and was buggered. I just did the jump rope. I think ive past that stuck in the valley phase now and am on my way to the otherside, so I will be doing my best till the end. no more non compliant eating or skipping a workout.

everyone looks really great! congrats, chow! oh and i still cant flicker to upload my photos! is anyone else having this problem? ill put them up on the blog tonight.

Day 62 - crash and burn

ok, so confession time. tonight we went for dinner at my partners aunty and uncles and I ate what they cooked (had 2 pieces of ravioli, salad and garlic bread. so not too bad in the big scheme of things. then......i had the most delicious cupcake sized sticky date pudding with icecream! i am very disapointed in myself. although this is my first non compliant pcp binge - i shouldnt have done it. what can i say really, no excuses. naughty. shivers, i also had a couple (well 4 to be exact) crackers with a smidgen of cheese (which was greasy and gross by the way). i feel like i have let the team down, and myself, i was doing so well.

The motivaton i had before seems to be slowly fading, i dont know why, and i want to really put in 100% this last month, but its hard to stay focused if that makes sense, why now? its such a pain these feelings of 'ive had enough of this' wont go away.

ok so theres that out of the way. hope everyone else is going well

nite.

day 60 - trying to stay positive

Ooh its been a couple days since i last blogged. Ive been feeling a bit over it all - a bit like Taras last post, and finding it hard to stay positive and hang in there.

Yesterday, I was feeling like i was ready to give up and i was even contemplating whether to do my workout. Ive been feeling like im not putting enough effort into the workouts, like shortcuts -and for the plank i dont use a timer, I count in my head (which is prob way too fast). So really, i dont think ive been putting in 100% latley. Conversastions at work didnt help, where the guys were telling me that ill just go on a binge fest when im finished, and , i told my manager it was working and he was like 'really?', wtf was that supposed to mean.

ANYWHO, feeling a bit over it all and ready to give up, my partner told me that my little side lumps by my butt have gone down since last week! this completly turned my day around, and i got into the workout and got it done! positivity and support does wonders.

I havnt been able to post my photos this week, dam flicker, ive tried a gazillion times. will keep trying.

woah day 60 already! go team seXAAAY!

Day 56 - stuck in the valley

Im feeling it hard to hang in there. I think i must still be in the valley. Ive had enough of the diet and the exercise. Im still plodding along but its hard.

I don't like the dinner or the evening snack, I want something tasty and satisfying like spag bowl or something.

Im not getting much sleep, as I have to get up and pee like 4 or 5 times during the night. So im gona have to have an early cut off time for cups of teas which will be hard.

Jump rope in the mornings is not really happening, its so hard to get up early and do it!

oh winge. I need to get out of this valley!

in my dream last night I was eating chocolate and stuff. I felt guilty in my dream but did it anyway. was relieved when I woke up that I didn't do it!

I had a chicken and salad wrap for lunch and I toasted it - its so much better toasted! yum. of course it wouldv been even better with cheese. mmm cheese. oh god.

alright, im gona go swimming tonight.

chow!

Day 53 - Indulgence

so, i had my indulgence...I went over my allowed calories, and now I feel a headache coming on, there is grease on the top of my mouth and i have wierd heart burn! So, all in all, it wasnt really a pleasant experience (apart from the first spoonfulls of the sundae).

So it was kindv good but not. the first chip I had i could taste and feel the grease real bad. the coke was just not good so i didnt drink the rest. the big mac was good, but not. I could really taste the salt in the big mac, and the sundae was way more rich than usual.

anywho it was a really wierd experience. Now, i wish i had just made a homemade burger with grainy buns and had that with a glass of iced water. I feel like I put a whole lotta crap in my body and it wasnt worth it!

I chose mcdonalds because its something i used to always eat, and I thought just as much it would make me feel this way. hoping ill nip that craving in the bud. but Im just scared for how im gona go post PCP because pre pcp i was eating alot of takeaways - mostly because i hate cooking and was too tird, easiest thing to go for when hungry etc. although this experience was mostly unpleasant, im scared im gona fall back into those bad habits.

ok. oh i feel awful. off to bed soon im so tired! night all!

Day 52 - still hungry!

So, nights are still tough these last couple days. cravings are back and im still hungry at night time. Im kinda getting sick of yogurt and boiled egg whites too. Last night I had an extra piece of fruit. And tonight ill put some milk in my tea, thanks for those tips guys!

am feeling really tired, not getting much sleep so finding it hard to do the workouts, getting sick of them.

I havnt had my indulgence yet, but im prob gona have macas! im waiting till the weekend I think. Im really looking forward to it, but then im not looking forward to how ill prob feel afterwards.

Am waiting for my belly to go down. I know its the last to go but still, waiting waiting...

Im really bad at the 3min jump rope, I havnt been able to go 3mins straight, I could keep going, but my legs get really sore and my feet. Although, Patrick and Naoko are right - it can be done.

Have been to the chiropractor twice now, she did some clicking. My pelvis was outa place and my back and neck dont have the proper curve. hopefully this back pain goes away soon.

hungry. hungry. tired. yey its friday tomoroow!

Day 49 - hungry at nights

last night i couldnt sleep, all i could think about was s&v chips, chocolate, macas etc. it took forever to get to sleep! I get hungry at night time and pretty much every night I want a piece of toast. so have just been trying different types of tea.

Indulgence #2 woohoo! ive been waiting for this. although thats not really a good thing is it.

Ive been eating too much honey, i cant help it! ive prob had it on toast almost everyday for the last week. shivers, i need to stop. but its so good.

I had fish for breakfast the other morning with vegies - it was so gross. I dont really like fish unless its battered (thats so bad, I know!), especially not for breakfast. most of my protein is from chicken and egg, and the ocassional fish. salmon is ok.

I just got back from a swim, feel so good after but really lethargic.

So, im glad to know we have all been feeling the same - tired, had enough of the exercises everyday, some cravings are back etc etc. we are in the Valley! well i hope we come out of it soon!

wow day 50 tomorrow!

Day 46

Day 46! woohoo. did i read right, theres another indulgence coming up? cravings have pretty much gone, but sometimes I smell fish n chips in the corriddor and I want them.

So, i quite like the new jump rope workouts, i prefer it this way - and it gives me more of push to see how many I can do in 2mins! 306 is my highest so far, but thats going mighty fast.

the lunges are back! i hate them with a vengence, however in saying that, i feel sore, but it feels good sore you know, like im doing it properly. i havnt felt sore for a few weeks so its good, I feel progress.

My triceps are sore too, and ive been watching them like Patrick said - it feels like im one of the bodybuilders, quite funny but it works!

I dont mind squats for some reason, I think ive become accustomed to them.

still hate the plank.

Its friday again! this year is going mighty fast.

My partner said I look like a new person! there are changes this week, its great!

The email this morning came at the right time, I was asking my partner about why I was always bloated looking. about two years ago now, I was very bloated looking and chubby like in the face - when i exercised and ate better it went down, when i stopped it came back. I couldnt work out why, now I know! too much salt!

Day 44

So the last couple of weeks ive been feeling worried about putting the weight back on and not being able to lose the extra fat I want gone on my lower half. I spoke to Patrick and he made me feel better about it all. what would i do without you Patrick! just having the support there works wonders. pre pcp, when i felt down about things or didnt see the changes I wanted, id have a chocolate bar or junk to make myself feel better, then id feel bad and so the spiral continued. I guess im just worried that im not going to progress anymore cause this is about the point I got to on a diet i did last year - then it went downhill and I put the weight back on. This time I am determined to stick with it, but it gets a little hard mentally with the time and what not you have to put in to get there.

a couple of people at work are really shitting me latley. they think they know it all and have to comment on my diet pretty much daily and what im eating and say things like ' you dont need to diet - just exercise more and eat less', or ' just stop eating breakfast'. I dont even start the conversation - so I dont get why they need to make those comments and get worked up about what im eating! im the one doing it not them. There was one comment where someone said that Marilyn monroe was a hepher! wtf..no wonder there is all this pressure on young girls to be stick thin these days - ridiculous comments like that.

My work mates know im on the PCP but I havnt told them about my blogs etc . hence my little rant. Its not that i think i might give up or anything like that - not at all, im in this fully, but Im sick of the little comments on my food everyday, so this is my thing.

on a more postive note - a collegue told me my diets working this morning and ive lost weight, lookin good. that was quite nice. he was quite sceptical when i told him what i was doin. he told me to just run every morning - but thats easier than it sounds!

The workout last night kicked my butt. had a cry, but got through it. Was meant to get up and do the workout this morning, but was way too tird, went to bed late. was meant to go climbing last night too, but didnt get there.

ok rant over.

Have had a look at your guys photos, you are all looking so good! congrats for day 44!

Day 41 - bung knee

oho, my left knee has bunged up. I dont know how I did it, but i couldnt do the pistol squats or creeps tonight, which was a pain in the butt. so swapped them for squats and jumps. its gone all tight so i hope that goes away soon! can still do jumps but with a slight pain.

I went swimming today, did about 40 laps, was really good, so am gona do that regulary. Am hoping it will help fix my back. My back seems like its getting worse, so am waiting on what the posiatrist says then im gona go to a chiro. man, i feel like such a granny! My new contacts are giving me grief too, so all round, things arnt so great at the moment, but hopefully that will change soon!

heres a pic of my breakfast wrap with egg, tom, onion and avocado. it looks pretty good, but it was actually average. the wrap just fell apart!

Ive been craving honey on toast last few days. Ive been having it sometimes for brekky, but now im wanting it all the time! i never really was a honey eater so thats wierd, but its so fricken good! i know where not meant to have it too frequently, so im trying to keep it limited.

im watchn karate kid at the mo, then off to bed. nite all.

Day 39 Friday

Best day of the week. sleep in tomorrow! although, i think its Thursday for you guys in America today?

right, as per patricks email this morning, im gona start jumping in the morning, its gona be a bit hard cause its cold and dark, but i reckon this will be better, and give me more time after work.

The pistol squats are really hard - i dont think im doing them proply at all, both knees click when i go down and it feels really wierd.

still hate planks.haha. the bicycle was tough last night! struggled to keep my legs up.

I think im gona get out alice in wonderland and shutter island tonight. have been watching entourage episodes too, great series!

gona get into swimming this weekend too and make it a twice weekly thing i reckon.

I went shopping yesterday for work clothes and what not - man it feels really good to fit into stuff a whole lot better and in a smaller size! am lookin so much better in a skirt. woohoo.

Day 37

I look slightly bigger in this weeks photo - i dont know if thats from the lighting or that i actually put some beef on.

I forgot to have my eggwhite after exercises yesterday! woops i forgot about the new diet. when I realised it was after i had my vegie snack at about 7.30pm so too late. woops.

those piton squat things are very hard - i dont think i did them properly. planks are still horrendous! incontrolable shakeing!

Not alot to report on today, except I still feel like a blob - I must be expecting instant fat blasting or something. although, the fat under my butt is slowly tightening, interesting. Im so annoyed I let myself get this way - i remember saying to my friend years ago - 'im starting to fill out around my belly and bum'. but for some reason I just went about my usuall lazyness and bad food for another 4 years. whhyy! guess it didnt really bother me until the last couple of years. now im payin for it! oh well hooray for the PCP! If i wasnt doing this and had your guys support, I would have fallen back into a mountain of chocolate, chips and takeaways by now.

so thankyou guys for all your support, and Patrick and Chen for this great program!

Day 35 woot!

Hooray, i cant believe its day 35 already! it seemed like yesterday that we were the new pcpers! thankgod that first month is over - it was hell getting through those cravings!

My partner and I made some grainy bread yesterday, it was sooo good! had it for my carbs at lunch - small confession - i had a smigen of low fat margerine on it ;). i wont do it again. I took a picture to share but dont have the camera with me at work.

I hate planks and leg ups. Ive been grumbling through the exercises this last week.

So im gona try 8min abs at some stage - instead of the legs ups - the leg ups seem to give me a sorer back.

havnt done my 1400 jumps yet, will do those after work - but should be all good!

Finished the second season of True Blood yesterday - man I love that program!

also, my floor jumps dont look like Patricks photo - Its difficult to keep my legs bent in the air, it is way hard!

I quite like the banana, apple, milk and egg white at dinner, i have this earlier - round 5ish, then have the vegies around 7 when my partner eats, so it works in good. Ive been having yogurt instead of the milk too, so its de-lish. I have the egg white boiled. i tried it with cottage cheese, like how Patrick has it, but i duno about that.

happy day 35!

Day 32

This was me last night after my workout, man it was tough! the floor jumps are hard! I struggled through the leg ups and felt the burn real good, pushing through it tho! and the plank, i don't like that one. I always feel like im not gona get through the sets, but somehow I do which is fantastic. seeing results gives me more determination to finish. Im getting pretty good at jump rope too.

Im looking forward to watching the new twilight this weekend! ive been hooked in.

Hooray its friday! this week has gone fantastically fast. thankgod!

Everyone is looking really good in their pics! hoooraaay! its a great feelin.

Day 30

So the last few days ive been feeling like im not progressing much. I havnt been climbing that much or doing any other exercise apart from our PCP ones. I know Patrick said low intensity daily ontop of what we were already doing. but i wasnt doing much before. but Should I be doing more? like going for walks etc aswell, or is just doing the PCP routine ok? im not sure. I went climbing last night and did the exercises after and was absolutly nackid come bed time, so that was really good. Feeling like id done enough.

Im not sure what im expecting to see right now - although there are some great changes in the mirror, theres still lots of fat. Im in two minds - Im glad there is still 2 more months to go as I have a lot of extra that I want to work on getting off, but i have moments where I want to eat what everyone else is having. Oh well, tough. Im sticking with it for sure.

Ive been eating alot of chewing gum, its sugarfree but its still calories isnt it, so I dont know if this is ok either. could it be hindering my progress?

I loathe the jumps, they hurt! the plank is mighty hard too. and the creeps.

ok thats all for now. wow! the end of our first month! congrats guys!

Day 29

Woah, sorry guys, I didnt realise it was so long since i last blogged! ok so, my indulgence was alot like Elena said, meh. I wanted to have a piece of hedgehog slice - yum my favourite with a cuppa! but for a piece it was about 600 cals! so I went with a kit kat chunky around 340 cals or something like that.

It was good, but I couldv gone without. Id been stressin a little about what to have, so just settled for that. Not long after I felt a little ill too. And I felt like I was ruining my progress.

I went out for lunch on sun for a bday, and had a vegie salad, i felt bad cause it had dressing on it. I felt sickley after that too.

Exercises have been going ok, those planks are horrendous! and I can only do 2 proper pushups max. Im such a weakling. So, for now its pushups on the knees. Im pushin through the burn.

Jump rope is good, but tripping frustrates the hell outta me, especially when I trip first jump round! Cant do 1000 all at once tho. I just go till I can then rest, then keep goin. When Im feeling lazy I do it in my tiny unit apartment, the people underneath us must get feed up!

I went to the podiatrist, and my feet are flat causing my knees, legs and pelvis to turn in putting pressure on my back causing the pain! so hopefully orthotics help. Im getting hard contact lenses made too, so I can see better - they are absolutley awfull, theyr like bricks in my eyes! everyones doing great! woah, 29 days!

Day 23

Have just finished the exercises, was alittle tough, my back is getting worse. Ive gotten way fitter with the jump rope so thats going pretty good! Deborah, heres a pic of my rope, its just a simple one from k-mart, i think the brand is sportte or something like that. its simple but really good and you can shorten if need.

Today was a liitle hard, i was hungry and everyone around me was eating muffins and hot chips! oh well i just stuck to my sandwich for lunch. seeing changes this week does make this easier to keep strong!

This is a pic of pumpkin, spring onion and zucchini soup i made, with

water. Its pretty good! although I think possibly the boiling might take out the nutrients? not sure. Ill have some for lunch tomorrow.

I was going to make bread last weekend and use Elenas recipie, but i cheated and brought a bread mix box. haha. i forgot the yeast tho so ill make it this weekend. yum!

you cant really see, but this is my wall calendar all crossed out till day 23!

everyone is doing and looking so great, keep it up!

isnt this a cute bunny.

Day 22 - woohoo changes!

Patrick was right! this week i have noticed some changes..my jeans fit good again! they were difficult to pull up and I struggled to do them up, but now they fit, hooray! have lost 3kgs also.

1000 jumps went really well yesterday, they are getting much easier, apart from the tripping!

Ive been on a groundwater course last couple of days - they had muffins for morning tea! yum, but i stuck to my fruit. We also got given lunch bags today with goodies, man i wanted to eat the chips! but theres no way im gona give in, so i brought it home for my partner.

My new jump rope is great, it was 4buks and is perfect!

Ive been watching the first season of true blood too...its pretty good. adictive.

im stoked too, cause our work ball isnt until september, so i should be looking good by then and ill be able to drink! yey.

happy day 22!

Day 19/20

I saw a reflexologist lady for health day at my work, she reckons it may be my feet thats giving me back problems, so im gona go see a podiatrist! makes sense i guess, cause if i have no arch support in my shoe whilst exercising i get really sore feet too.

these last couple of days have gotten better. Except for the dinner the other night...we went to an amazing italian restaurant. I had chicken and salad. I had a bite of garlic bread but.... i thought about it and discretly spat it out! i was quite proud of myself. I felt bad tho, I forgot to ask for no dressing on the salad, and it was covered. I ate it and it was good, but then i felt sick after. My meal was massive,but only ate about a quarter of it I reckon. I couldv eaten it all tho, so glad i didnt. was difficult, everyone was drinking wine and eating really saucey pasta...it looked so good! so id prefer to stay away from those things, but its tough when its someones going away or bday. Whether your on a diet or not people still expect you to go.

exercises are going well, the last couple of days ive had the soreist butt! mayby I worked out harder on the lunges and squats then usuall, im not sure.

I think my tummy is tightning, still a little pot tho. And my butt has gotten slightly smaller, but theres still massive fat on the outer parts. cant wait to get rid of it!

This morn for brekky i had an egg on toast (poached in balsamic vinegar), and a pumpkin soup and spring onion concoction that my partner made last night, with piece of toast. Was nice to have a break from the tomato, mushroom, avocado and egg on toast.

hmm, ok i think thats enough for now.

3 weeks! hooray!

Day 17 - Hungry hungry

Hmm, the last few days have been really difficult. ive been getting hungry, at night time mostly - i guess its not so much the cravings now, but I feel like I want to eat after ive already had my food. Its a pain.

Ive also got a sore lower back, its been like this for a couple of months now, but seems to be getting worse - i think from the abs stuff. deep heat is great but I might go to the doctor.

last night I got through the jumps pretty well! 200 intervals but I had alot of dam trips so they gave me small rests.

Tomorrow night its my friends farewell to europe dinner for a few months, so I should go. ive looked at the menu and looks like i can get grilled chicken or fish and salad - its marinated tho. So I may get that and eat a small portion of it. Or a salad.

ooh, those pushups are the worst! i only just bearly finish them! ouch. I am slighlty learning to like the burn, but not really.

Good job everyone so far! day 17! have we come up with a team name yet?

Day 14 - Dam cravings!

Last night and tonight, this..

has me made feel like this..

Well I am having cravings. Real bad. so Ive eaten quite a bit of sugarfree gum (hopefully gum is ok). Oh man its hard to not beable to eat what I want. But, I just think of you guys and how great we will all feel at the end and it gets me through. I will definitly not give in, but its a little difficult. i was fine, no cravings..then i saw my favourite chocolate bar at the dvd shop and all those desires came flooding back in. since then the cravings havnt left the vacinity. Ive had so many cups of tea, their starting to taste dull and yuk. I might have a lemon drink.

Havnt done the 800 jumps yet, so will get onto that soon. I need to buy a new rope as mines too long, I have been twisting it around my fingers, but it tangles and i get sore hands from holding the dam thing.

ok ive been a bit of a sad sack. so apart from that...

my resistance bands are great, got 3 diff strengths.

oh man, 9 push ups per set....i was struggling last night! they were tough.

I think ive lost 2kg, but my scales say something different each time! my thighs are still massive. cant wait for them to go down.

Im having trouble being creative with the food, so ill get onto those recipes again.

ooh our diet sheets are cool! theyl come in good handy. thanks Patrick!

Day 11 - thankgod its the weekend!

Its Friday!!

man, i found it so hard to get through the jump rope today. I kept tripping up, which was really brassing me off and I was so tired. I almost had a little cry. But I got through them, phew. Im not sure, but I really think the lethargy is coming from my lunch time carbs, is this possible?

heres a wee pic of my lunch - brown fried rice w/ egg, chicken and vege. so i pretty much just chucked it all in the pan (only a smidgen of olive oil

spray). .

I had a chicken, tomato, cucumber and red onion toasted sandwich for tea, was tasty. added a smidgen of sweet chilli sauce, im not sure this was allowed?

woohoo! day 11!

Day 10 - Feeling tired after big lunch

Today I am feeling sleepy.

so it was hard to get my exercises done after work. Of course I got through them tho, thankgod thats done.

Diet is going well, well I find it hard to get all of my lunch down but i get there in the end.

Those recipies will come in handy Deborah! im def finding it hard to be creative with the food.

Fruit is so good. I think my chocolate cravings are lessening, I havnt felt like it for a few days now... I was given a crunchy today, and I didnt even think 'man I want that'. I brought it home for my partner.

Its a little difficult as I have to drive past mcdonalds everyday... the cravings are getting less tho. oh man but when that sweet sweet smell lingers through the car window I imagine how good it would be to eat a big mac. oh and that sauce... yuuumm. I know this couple who dont even crave junk food, at all. amazing. I think they were a little shocked when we suggested macas for tea after a day of climbing.

The soreness has gone now, but man, im with you on those lunges Royce, I get so bord, they take so long - theyre probably the exercise I dislike the most.

Yey day 10!

Day 8 - first day eating plan

Well, this morning I had no eggs! way to start the diet I know.. So had everything but that. Im going to the supermarket very soon, to start the day off proper tomorrow. Im am so thankfull we can have a whole egg not just the egg white. I had tomato on toast..its a little dry without marg! and two pieces was tough to eat.

I had my planned lunch, but I couldnt eat it all! is this ok? If my calculations were correct on the scales, I had one sandwhich and a half, with measured amount of chicken and vege and I just couldnt get it all down.

Exercises were great! i think that rest day off strength stuff yesterday helped alot, cause it was much easier today and not sore. Although now my back/shoulder muscles are hurting! I guess from the resistance bands and pull down. Hmm.. now I couldnt find something to do the incline exercise on, so I used the lat pull down machine at the gym. I need to find something thats not in the gym so Ill see how I go on that.

Im a bit worried about the replacing fat with muscle thing...my thighs are already massive, i want them to shrink not build....hmm see how we go. Same with my arms.

! I know this wont happen, but still. aarrggh.

will have some brown rice or something like that in my meals tomorrow.

hope everyone's first day on the diet went well!

Day 7

Well, I was very hungry today.. it was a public holiday today, so spent of most the day at home. Being at home and not over eating was hard. Cups of tea helped. But its so good to have small portions as I usually overeat and feel horrible and full. Now I feel good after ive eaten (after the initial, 'I want more' has past).

I watched mega shark, giant octopus...(as per Jennys blog) it was an awful movie! haha. I also watched moon, which was a bit better.

My jump rope went pretty good, 500 jumps! however, I had to do it in 100 jump intervals. Might take some time before I can do it all in one go! My dam rope kept twisting too and id trip up. So as per Marens comment t0 Tara, I put the rope into boiling water and hung it up, and all the kinks have come out! brilliant advice..thanks Maren!

I didnt know what to have for my 'last' half meal. I was thinkin something yummy like spag bowl, or homemade pizza - but decided not to go there, as I always over-eat when I have these. so, I had chicken stroganoff with brown rice and zucchini.

ooh tomorrow we start our eating plan!

food today:

Breky: Banana and berry smoothie with lowfat yogurt and milk

half piece of toast with vegemite

Lunch: some chicken and coleslaw (small portion)

Snack: mandarin

some rice crackers with avocado

Dinner: Chicken stroganof with brown rice (small portion)

and about 4 black teas I think.

hmm, and perhaps for desert ill have low fat yogurt and half banana. yum.

Sex in the City/day 4-5

Yesterday, was an ok day....still sore, but its good sore. Slightly sore when going to sit down...but I love this feeling, it means im getting somewhere, and I feel really good. Not the usuall sluggish obese that i felt before PCP. I went to see sex in the city 2 last night at the drive in movies....man it was difficult to see all the lollies and chocolate up on the screen (telling you to go to the candy bar before movie) - i knew this would happen so I took along some low fat yogurt and cutup apple and banana, which did the trick! Oh man did I want to go out for a cocktail after watching that tho. It was a good movie too, those 4 ladies are in great shape! im going to be like that. yes.

A group of mates are getting together for dinner and drinks tonight... im still deciding whether to go, can I stop at half a beer and half a meal? I will have to, but I dont know if I want to face the challenge... but then again as Patrick said something along the lines of..the more you dont give into your cravings, the easier it gets and the craving goes away. same sort of concept isnt it, if i can go out and eat half a meal and only half a beer and socialise without drinking - thats a great feat for me, and it will make me stronger - I will learn better self control.

ooh man those abs exercises...I feel great relief once Ive gotten through them.

Day 3 - sore body!

I am feeling very sore today! I couldnt get up for exercise this morning as my whole body hurts! so Ill get onto that after work. I have a gym membership (which dosnt get used alot) but its good I have it there for the winter coming up, its getting cold! so ill prob do my exercises there today and a run on the treadmill.
The abs workouts and pushups are so hard! ooh I felt the burn. And this week is easy, man if this is easy I dont know how I will cope with the following weeks exercises. Tripped up a few times last night with the jump rope, I didnt have any shoes on which didnt help.

So, its only 10.23am but I know what ill be eating today:
breakfast: banana, blueberry, yogurt, skim milk smoothie with spirulina and acai berry powder.
snack: half an apple, cup of tea (will prob have about 5 teas today I reckon)
Lunch: half an egg sandwich and cup of tea
snack: a carrot, some yogurt (oh, I guess this should be half a carrot)
tea: small portion of chicken stirfry
snack: yogurt and banana

Im feeling hungry after my half apple. Im off to make a green tea!

Day 1

Hmm, first day and I am feeling a little hungry! I just had half a sandwich for lunch (and a lemon drink - Im getting a bit of a sore throat - worst timing!) its ok tho, If I keep reminding myself how great I will feel at the end of this, itl keep me going! Ive had a few cups of tea also to keep my hunger at bay (hope cups of tea are ok?). I was meaning to get up this morning for a run, however my power had been turned off and it was pitch black, so a little hard to find anything. I will be starting my exercises and possibly a run tonight. I hope this week goes fast so I can get used to eating small amounts! how is everyone doing on day 1? I hope it is all going good!

Goodbye Junk Food......

Im going to miss this, alot. It is the night before we begin, and I am already craving a big mac...... but I can do it, I have to! Im hoping by the end of this I will no longer crave junk food. Im not sure if this is possible, but wel see!

One thing I am looking forward to getting rid of for a while is alcohol, I had a shocker weekend and spent all day Sunday in bed!

This is going to be tough, but I love the idea that we will all be in this journey together!

Bring on the PCP!