BMI in the normal range!

It's been two weeks since I wrote on here. Been a lot of umming and ahhhing about whether I should continue to blogg. Why am I actually doing it? For whose benefit? Until I know the answers here is what's been going on:

Healthwise a lot has happened in the last two weeks. I have been to the gym 5 times a week both weeks and am loving it! Have increased the weights on all but one of my weight training exercises. Tough but the sense of achievement once I complete the repetitions at the new weight is just amazing.

Icing on the cake yesterday was weighing myself at the gym and finding out that my BMI is now just within the normal range at 25.8. Back in January my BMI was 28.8. A huge improvement  - don't think my BMI has been in the normal range since before I was pregnant with our youngest (and he turned 5 in January!)

I have a trip back to UK in a couple of weeks to spend time with my parents and will see my sister and her family too. Hope they will be impressed with my hard work!

I am working out a training plan for my week away which will include the fitness band that I bought specifically for the trip. It was cheap and weighs almost nothing and more importantly,  it takes up no space in my case!

So far on my list of training ideas are:
Plank
Situps
Squats
Burpees
Range of things with fitness band
Intervals

Think I want to write a proper plan and run it past Eliisa,  the PT.  Really don't want to lose momentum!

Off now for day out with our 5 year old
:-)

Eating habits have changed

The old me loved caffe latte or even better chai latte. I would buy one or the other at any opportunity and invariably something sweet and chocolatey to munch on to go with it. ..regardless of the time of day.

The new me isn't even interested. I had the day out with our youngest today and had decided that I should have one if I wanted one when we were out. I read somewhere recently allt men inte alltid. Which basically means: everything, but not all the time. I am not on a diet so NOTHING is excluded. Nothing is out of bounds. But the plain fact is, I simply did not fancy a latte and  cake. Tea it was.  My son had the cake :-)

So why have my cravings for sweet things all but disappeared?   Maybe it's as simple as this. I am more in tune with what my body needs. I am eating much less fat and much fewer carbs.  The protein I am eating is almost 100% from eggs, kvark, cottage cheese, fish, other seafood and chicken. I read somewhere that increased protein in your diet fills you up. And I would agree. Although I would add that the full feeling I get these days is much different to the bloated, sluggish full feeling the old me had.

Time to Google more recipes.....

Forward planning is the key. ..

I work shifts (daytime or late afternoon and the whole evening) and alternate weekends. This means that I often have a day or two off mid-week. I usually have our youngest home from nursery when I am off one day mid-week.  He's 5 and here in Sweden kids start school the year they turn 6. As you can imagine it takes a great deal of planning to fit in my training around family and work.

This means that planning ahead is absolutely vital for me. It also means once something is written on the calendar it has to be done!

How does this week look? Later on this morning I am trying afro-circle with two friends (no idea what this means by the way - will report back later!). Wed is box night.  Thurs I am doing the first new strength session with the second on Friday. I finish early on Saturday so will do a short interval session on the way home. Sunday and Monday will be total rest days - just work and life!

Phew! What a week! :-)

Progress update

It was the second session with the personal trainer Eliisa today with my good friend Sara up at the gym, at 8am on a Sunday morning!

Since 10th Jan this year I have reduced my belly by 14cm and my waist by 14cm too. I have also lost 7.9kg. Feeling pretty pleased with myself and the progress so far. And so I should be!

Here's the photo proof....I see the change really clearly.  Hope you can too....?

Both Sara and I got an updated training plan from Eliisa which includes two strength sessions a week, one interval session plus one other session such as box, circle-step or a longer run. Feeling very motivated right now.

Changing

It really feels like I am changing. I feel healthier, happier, more energetic. I have started wanting to cook new things after losing all imagination. ..and the kids and my other half are appreciating it (I think! ).

Last week I got a shock when I measured my waist and tummy. I had lost 10cm off each! Take a tape measure around your tummy, by your tummy button and then let it out 10cm. I couldn't really quite believe it. Talk about feeling inspired to carry on!

On Sunday I will be taking my one month photos. If I decide not to put the photos up yet then I will write more detail on what has improved and how. The machine that the personal trainer has even gives you a body age - I was not happy.  Am keeping everything crossed that I have improved this number with all my efforts.

Motivation is great right now. Why wouldn't it be if I am feeling so much better and seeing results already?  Need to have a look at my goals again.  They may need updating... 

Back on track!

Yes, I am officially back on track with my training after my cold.  Did box session on Wednesday, strength on Friday,  intervals and tummy on Sunday and went to a circle step session today.

If I am not beach-ready this summer then there is something really wrong with the world!

But it isn't just exercise that I am doing,  I have adjusted what I am eating and drinking.  Drastic reduction in intake of carbs and am eating low-fat products too. I can't get my head around how LCHF can be good for you even though I know a few people who swear by it. It just goes against everything I know!

So moderation and not 100% exclusion is the way I am handling my food and drink.  I am definitely NOT on a diet. Diets are temporary.  I have changed my eating habits, permanently this time. And this is why I am not excluding anything.  If I want that wine at the weekend then I will have it.

The truth right now though is I am not even feeling tempted to eat treats or drink alcohol. With my increased efforts with my fitness I am thinking much more about how to properly fuel this body I live in and am trying to change.

Actual weight loss isn't my actual target after a certain degree. I am much more interested in centimetres lost, how I look and how I feel. This being said, finding I'd lost 2.5kg in the first two weeks of my new lifestyle is very motivating!

First of March is the next official measuring and photo taking.  I wonder if there will be any visual changes by then. Or is that adking too much? 

Power walking and colds

Well I can confirm that I have a cough and cold. Not a bad one, but bad enough to make me go easy on the training. Will have to make up for it later in the week!

Power walk it was yesterday and same again tomorrow I think. 

But why exactly is it called a power walk? Is it because you use lots of energy i.e. power when on one? Or is it because it's an empowering way of saying going for a walk? Why did we start calling it a power walk in the first place? Maybe it's because a brisk walk sounds more like something your granny would do than something a wannabe fitness addict would do.  

Spinning - fitness training or torture?

So, I tried a spinning session on Friday with Sofie (my fitness addict friend, who is a real miss motivator) for the first time in my life. 

How can an innocent looking stationary bike turn so quickly into an instrument of torture?! Well I did the sprints and generally cycled a bit, but I totally failed on the standing up and pedalling bits. I don't think my legs have ever felt like that before! Ouch!

New mini-goal: to make it through a whole spinning session!

I am now nursing a cold so will take it easy a day or two. I took a power walk in my lunch break at work today and due to the weather will take a long walk  on the treadmill tomorrow. Box group again on Monday if my cold has mostly gone.

Bit of a progress update: 6cm off my belly since 10th Jan! Real spur to keep me going. Maybe I need to start saving for a new wardrobe too? 

A little more about my training plan

I work shifts and today is my day off which I am spending with my youngest (who just turned 5). But before we venture out into the snowy winterland I thought I'd write a few more lines about my training schedule and how the box class went.

Yesterday evening was my second go at the box class....Incredibly tiring but what a buzz afterwards! I was there with three other girls who all work at the same place as me and it was the first time for two of them. So thankful to Sara for introducing me to this group training and so thankful to Sofie who, when she saw I was starting to flag, shouted "beach 2013!". Somehow I managed to dig deeper and carry on. If anyone needs to relieve stress, this type of exercise is perfect!

After the box class Sara took some more "before" photos of me. I WILL post them....but further down the road.

So, I said I was going to add a bit more info about my training.  In addition to the four parts I mentioned yesterday I am also using an app on my phone which helps you work towards being able to do 200 situps. This all within six weeks, three times a week! I am currently on week 3, day 2 being my next session. Week 3, day 1 was a total of 110 situps but not done straight off. You do a certain number that the app tells you to then rest one minute. It's tough but a good challenge.  I even have a couple of friends doing it too!

The other element to my training is generally being more active like, for instance, taking a brisk walk on my break at work - note to self here: stop chickening out just because it's snowing!

Have a good day one and all!

Training

So, I thought I'd write a little about my trainings plan. If it's out there then I really need to make sure I stick with it!

In essence I am going for four sessions a week, roughly as follows:

(1) Intervals and then focus on tummy and back using a couple of machines at the gym followed by doing sit ups and three different forms of the the dreaded plank!

(2) Strength training using machines at the gym with focus on legs, arms and shoulders. Some hand weight exercises are in there too to finish off with.

(3) A longer run.

(4) Box training or some other similar group training with all round fitness and strength. When the spring comes this could be Crossfit Outdoor.

That's the plan.

When I feel brave I will put up my before pictures....but that may wait til there's some after pictures too!

Thanks for reading - off to box class later after work!

New beginnings

New beginnings. Well that's how it feels right now. I made a decision a couple of weeks ago to really make 2013 the year that I get to be the fittest and healthiest me yet. I even started with a personal trainer one session a month for six months with a good friend to get some extra support and serious butt-kicking as appropriate.

My goals are to:

1) Run a 5km race in under 30 mins
2) Lose the belly
3) Get down to 73kg

I am going to do this through hard training at the gym, reducing the carbs, eating more fruit and veg and generally getting my lazy off the sofa and doing things!

Please follow me on my journey ....who knows whererit will take me!