Got that buzz

When you're going out of your way to avoid excercise out of embarresment you can forget just how wonderful the end of a workout feels.

For years as a child and teenager I took part in competitive sport. School and club sports were a very big part of my spare time and I enjoyed them immensely.

The most wonderful part of loosing the weight I have to date is rediscovering the confidence to go into a gym. Although I'm not by a long shot pretty in my workout gear I no longer feel as fat as a house.

So with the return to the gym I have been reminded why I loved excercise so very much, endorphins are a wonderful treat. I've missed them.

Morning after

After work yesterday I went to the gym with another member of my department, it's something we started doing about a month ago now. While he did our usual weights routine I decided to give running a try for the first time since I broke my foot last year.

I've been averaging at least 40mins sustained walking each day for a few months now. Combined with the huge amount of incidental walking and the hundreds of steps at my work I feel confident that I can claim some sembilance of fitness has returned to me.

Running however is a completely new ball game.

I'm ramping it up with incremental training - couch to 5k podcast style- with an additional 10mins of walking included to properly warm up my foot.

I learnt a couple of things from my first session.

New sports bra totally required - ouch! My low-cut ankle support isn't sufficiant for higher impact stuff. Both feet are actually going to require a support - the right possibly requires a knee support too. I don't trust treadmills at all, running on them is a strange feeling. I CAN run, even if I do look like an angry elephant while I do it

I'm proud of myself.

Deadlines are always like this for me

About a month ago my motivation arrived. Hooray!

More later but I'm back.

My Feet. Can't live with them, can't live without them.

I'm slowly giving up the idea I'll ever be able to run again.

Over the past week I've had foot pain varying from slight to enough to think I had a stress fracture.

I've been experimenting with different shoes - different stretches - different times of day, I haven't been able to go above a fast walk without severe pain.

I've switching my higher areobic excercise to biking. I just did a 20 minute ride. My thighs hurt, but it's sure as hell not as painful as the pressure in my feet.

Couch to 5k Resources

A handy checklist
http://shepherdweb.com/lab/2007/Couch-to-5K/Couch-to-5K.html

The podcasts
http://www.ullreys.com/robert/Podcasts/page6/page6.html

These are mostly for my records but if anyone else stumbles across them :) enjoy!

Maintaining

I'm awful, it's been months since I started this blog and I haven't been making any real attempt to excercise.

I haven't put any weight on in this time, which I suppose is good news. There have been some positives such as giving up my additction to diet coke and I am enjoying much more fruit and veg. I just think of the fact I could have easily dropped at least 10kg since the last time I posted and I am ashamed I didn't make the effort to excercise.

I'm going to make this blog my homepage so it's no longer so easy to ignore - I'm also going to hit 'submit', get ready for the day and start day one of the couch to 5k program.

the waiting game

I broke my foot in February. I’ve been waiting since then for the okay from my physio and podiatrist for me to run again.

I thought I was going to get it this week. I didn’t and I’m frustrated.
Eating well only goes so far in the getting fit and healthy process, my body is dying for some exercise.

Breakfast

Last year I attempted the Tony Ferguson program, while overall the program wasn’t to my liking it certainly does get results (I lost 8kg in a month) and the shakes aren’t bad. What I came away from the program with was the realization I like to use the TF shakes for breakfast but not for the rest of the day.

Most of my crappy eating comes from breakfast*, living and working in the city makes it very easy to just forgo eating something at home. Problem is at that time of day choices for something healthy other than toast (which doesn’t last until lunch in my hungry tummy) in the city fast food ‘restaurants’ are basically nil.

That’s lead to a morning ritual of a workmate and I having a second breakfast. Not good, not good at all.

So a TF shake to begin the day and I know I’ve had something that can kick-start my metabolism and isn’t full of fatty-crapness.

*also most of my budget seems to fritter away on food this way