Bad week

Well, since Easter we have been going downhill in the exercise department (the royal we, you understand, not implicating Liz and Blondy here!). Did the treadmill once over the long weekend then overindulged slightly. Ok, more than slightly!! I had some easter eggs, and some hot cross buns and some banana bread!! Then last week my son got sick, vomiting and the rest of it, a touch of gastro. I was totally amazed that I was up half the night with him but still wanted to exercise in the morning so onto the treadmill for me!
But...... he gave me his bug! So Friday was a bad day for me. And Saturday (but I did go for golf lessons!). Then Sunday I got real bad sinus and earache which have persisted so not too much more exercising going on.

Though on the plus side the weight has dropped a bit. I will go for measurements again next week.

Liz update

(Sorry this is a bit out of date, Liz better send us a new update!)

Well it's been a good week this week.
Last week the weigh-in didn't go very well. I gained 0.9kg and wasn't sure
why as the week was very good.
I was feeling a bit depressed but I persevered and had another good week.
At yesterdays weigh-in I was down 1kg and I'm at 90.9kg.
We didn't measure cm's. We'll do that next week.
I haven't been able to exercise this week.
Still reading Dr Phil.

Yay, 1kg down, let's crack that 90kg mark!!

Exercising at home

What happens if you need to exercise but are too shy to go to gym and don't like running? Or too self-conscious to run? I have worked out some things that you can do at home without needing extra equipment. I have listed some for you:

• Stepping: most of us have some steps somewhere at home. All you need are 1 or 2 so that you can do step-ups. Slightly higher steps are better. Do 30 reps (repeats) changing the leg you start off on.
• Run around the house: I am not saying you should just run around and around in circles but if you combine it with some of the other exercises it gets your heart-rate up.
• Shuttle runs: Run up and down the passage or the back garden, touching the floor at each end. Go fast.
• Lunges: walking lunges are brilliant for your thighs and bum. Do a normal lunge (without the dumbbells) and then step forward into the next lunge on the other leg. Lunge all the way up the garden or down the passage. Alternatively you can lunge in one spot and every time you come up you kick forward with the leg which was behind you. You can do this in a standing lunge or walking.
• Squats: Also great for your thighs. You can do a normal squat (without the dumbbells), just going up and down. Or a variation is to stop halfway up and go down again ie half a squat, or 1 1/2 squats. The sumo squat is another favourite of mine - NOT! Go down into the squat position, then jump up so your feet leave the ground but you stay in the squat position.
• Skipping: get a skipping rope. I used to hate skipping but now, although I don't love it I will even do it voluntarily now and again.
• Side kicks: stand next to a wall and lift your leg out sideways. Kick. Feel it in your waist. Do 30 or so reps. Up, down, up down!!!!

See?!! You don't need fancy equipment or to go running or to a gym. You can vary the above exercises, for example, run around the house (or the pool) 2 or 3 times. Stop and do 20 step-ups every time you come to steps. Do lunges up and down the garden 2 or 3 times, stopping at each end to do some squats. Then run around the house again or do shuttle runs. There is a lot you can do, you just need the motivation. And I can tell you this, you are not going to lose oops! get rid of that weight if you don't exercise more. I am going to do another post on bum and tummy exercises soon.

Update

Went for measurements on Thursday. Yay!!! Lost 1.7kg of body fat! Things are looking up! Plus
a total of 19cms since my last measurements in December. Unfortunately one of the first places to lose weight is always the chest but at least the hips are not doing too badly either.

So, how am I doing it? My approach so far has been to cut down on sugar and carbohydrates and to increase my exercise. I have been quite strict with the eating, refusing dessert, not eating pasta, rice and potatoes especially in the evening. I have been trying to drink more water. As you can see above my water percentage is up. This last week I exercised every day!! Can you believe it? I almost can't! Monday - treadmill, Tuesday - boot camp at the Zen studio, Wednesday - treadmill, Thurs - boot camp, Fri - treadmill, Saturday - spinning at Zen.

Whenever I am on the treadmill I use the time to catch up on programs I have missed, like Lost, Desparate Housewives, Private Practice. Works out well, since once you have removed the adverts, they are about 35 - 40 minutes long, perfect workout time.

The treadmill (in case you were wondering) was my 15th anniversary present from hubby. Some people may think it a strange anniversary gift but since we are both so into getting fit and rid of weight, it was perfect. I gave him a heart rate monitor!

Liz, I haven't forgotten about you, I left your latest details on my work email, will post it tomorrow. But I can report that Liz has also lost weight! Yayy!!

Does drinking make you fat?

There was an interesting article in the Fair Lady in December. They talk about the kilojoule content of drinks. So we watch what we eat and diet carefully the whole week but over the weekend we go to 1 or 2 social get-togethers and even though we don't overindulge in the food, we have a few drinks. What do you drink?

Here is a link to the actual article but they don't show the chart which was in the magazine which shows the exact calory and carb content of the drinks. I am not going to do the whole chart here but have picked a few to show you.