Everest has been conquered.... well, my version of Everest!!

Remember me?? Sorry, my bad!! I have been particularly slack over the last week or so doing my blog.  For a change I have been busy with.... um, actually I don't really know what I have been busy doing but come night time (the usual blog writing time) my brain is kaput and my fingers are incapable of typing!!! 

I finished my last blog saying I would talk about the insane High Intensity Interval Training (also know as H.I.I.T) this time.  Well.... I have done it a few times now, the first couple of times I could not complete the 12minutes of fast, slow, rest (repeated 3 or 4 times, I forget at the moment!!) At the end of 12minutes I would be hanging onto the cross trainer with fear of falling off flat on my face, my hands and arms were getting a workout just holding me up, who knows what was going on with my legs during that time, everything was a blur, I think my life even flashed before my eyes at one point!! Then after speaking with my evil trainer Mark, yip evil because he is making me do this!! I was saying that doing H.I.I.T at the end of my workout was not working for me.  I had no energy left after lifting weights so was only giving my cardio 40% of what I should have been doing.... So Mark suggested doing the cardio first.  Knock me down with a feather, why did I not think of that?  The solution was simple and it worked!!  The next time I tried it at the beginning of my workout and I managed to smash it out and finished my 12minutes (still holding on for dear life though!!), however when I finished I collapsed onto the closest machine and was out of breath for about 15minutes, and it took about 5hours to cool down after that!!

So to sum up H.I.I.T... it suxs!!! After lengthy discussions with Mark I decided an S needs to be added in front for 'Stupid'.  Unfortunately I don't think Mark will add the extra letter.... bummer!!  However Mark did deliver some good news which makes S.H.I.I.T not so... shit, after completing 12minutes of excruciating pain the body can continue to burn fat for up to 48hours!!! Awesome!!! 

Today I attempted to walk the Papamoa Hills again.... yes I'm a sucker for punishment!! I was expecting to just make it to the first seat again then do my little walk up and down from there.  Not this time... I made it to the summit!!!!!! YAY!!!! O.K, so I did stop at all the seats on the way up, even stopped at some nice grassy bits because the next sitting area was no where in sight!! Basically it was either stop and recover or keep going and literally have my chest explode open so my lungs and heart could have enough space to work at the same time!!  I think I may have to thank the S.H.I.I.T for getting me to the top today!! Shame about all the sheep poo you have to dodge though!!  Which makes me wonder how some of the people I saw wearing jandals today managed to a) keep the jandals on their feet (I'm thinking monkey toes) and b) how did they not get sheep poo smushed all over their feet?  Hmmm, the silly things you think about when sitting on the side of a hill people watching!!

I guess now that I have done that once I will have to keep going and try to work on the time it takes!!! I just wish there was a suggestion box for the Park Ranger at the bottom of the track.... they need to install one or to more seats, a couple of the distances between seats was a little extreme for a novice like me!!! And if they could put an ice-cream shop at the top, that would be awesome!!

Dam it's hot....

I can not believe the amount of sweat one person can make from working out!!! It's insane, I'm considering making a hat out of those Sham Wow's to try and contain the sweat, actually might try making a long t-shirt too!  Sorry, I know it's bit of a gross subject but it's part and parcel of the whole workout thing!!

The downside to all this sweating is having to replace all the water in your body.  I feel like I have a water bottle constantly attached to my lips, wouldn't be so bad if the bottle contained coffee or flavoured milk but it doesn't, just boring old water!  To be fair drinking the water while working out is easy, it's drinking it when I'm at home or work that is the hard part.  Trying to consume 3 litres of water a day is a mission and trying to do it before 4pm is a challenge.... I have found if I drink it after 4pm I end up spending the night getting in and out of bed going to the loo, be easier to set up a bed in the bathroom I think!! Hmmm wonder if a grown up nappy would work?? Scratch that thought, couldn't handle sleeping with a wet cold nappy on!!  Ahhh, the joys of trying to get in shape!!

Anyway, I have tried out the new program I was given the other day a couple of times now.  So far the weights part of it is good, I haven't dropped any on my head and I managed to keep the embarrassing puku flashing to a minimum.  Although I did lose control of the swiss ball today while doing my reverse curl crunches... the idea is to lie on your back and hold the swiss ball between your ankles, lift your legs into the air and do a crunch (I think I have explained that right!)  Anyway, because of the heat today my legs may have been a little sweaty so when I lifted the ball above me (with some force because I was in a hurry to get this painful exercise over and done with!!) I accidentally flung it across the room....  Luckily there was only one other person using that side of the gym to witness me chasing the swiss ball around like an idiot, could have been disastrous if there was a balance class on, I would have knocked them over like skittles!!

The cardio portion of the program is a whole new story though.... might save that one for the next update!!

Time to get back on the wagon.. S4CFVTVCJ59V

No more excuses now!!!  Everything at home has returned to normal so I can get back into the routine of regular work outs and healthy eating...

Had my first official meeting with Mark for the year yesterday to get my program for the next 3 weeks and check up on the damage done over the holiday period.  Found out something I already knew... I have no self control when there is holiday food in the house!!  I thought about bull shitting everyone and saying I maintained my weight loss from before Christmas then working my butt off to drop some weight fast however I realised Mark reads this blog and he knows the truth... my cover would be blown, dam it!!  So the truth is I managed pig out on just enough food and do the least amount of exercise possible to return me to my starting weight... oops!!  However that will not get me down, (although I did have a teary eyed moment when I looked down at the scales!!!) I have lost it before and I'll do it again!  This time I plan to lose it for more than a week though!!

We had a run through of the new program... it seemed to be ok... more intense than the last one I had but I reckon this is going to work a treat!  The cardio portion of the workout is.... um, how do I put it nicely.... insane??  Mark has me doing some high intensity interval training on the cross trainer which translated into layman's terms means going uber fast, then slow, then uber fast, then slow, then uber fast, then slow, I think you get the picture... and because Mark is soooo generous you only have to do that for 2 minutes the you get to cruise for a couple of minutes before going through that pain again!! To make it even more fun he wants me to hold onto the bars of the cross trainer (you know, so your arms going back and forth) because it burns more calories.... how about I eat less calories and not worry about the arms because I look like a spastic when I do it??  Did I say I only did the fast slow thing for a minute yesterday and nearly collapsed??  Not sure if Mark and I will be talking at the end of this 3 week stint!!

Purchased some new 'running' shoes today (which will be relabeled 'walking' shoes because I don't run!!)  What an exercise that is!!  They had one of those video thingees to see how you walk and what sort of shoe would be best, worked up a sweat just walking backwards and forwards with a bizillion different shoe types on!  But I'm all set now for the next 3 weeks of pain...

Oh in case you are wondering, the random letters and numbers (S4CFVTVCJ59V) in the title of this blog is so a blog directory can verify I am who I say I am... I didn't just have a dumb moment and leave a spelling mistake in the title!  Well not this time anyway!!

The first entry for 2012...

Thought it was time to get writing again.... I think today marked the final day of holiday slackness!!  All the family have left so it's time to get into a routine and get this journey back on track!  Well for a week anyway then I'm off to Wellington for a few days!!!  Where I will be walking the hills so kind of staying on track!

So I thought I would take advantage of all these sales on at the shops and I went on the hunt for some t-shirts to do my workouts in.  What a disaster!!  I was certain I would find a long t-shirt so I would have no more incidences of peek-a-boo puku (stomach)!!  Turns out the shops I went to where all out of long t-shirts, so I have had to make do with the regular length but I have a theory.... as the tractor tyre shrinks to lets say a bicycle tyre around my midsection, the t-shirts will be able to hang like they are designed to and my problem should be solved... make sense?? If I was clever on this computer I would draw a diagram!! So in the mean time, I apologise to all the other gym members who are unfortunate enough to catch a glimpse of some extra white meat!!!  I'll try to keep my workouts to the middle of the day when no one is about!!

I don't know how people manage to keep up their fitness regime during the holiday season but I am sooo easily distracted when it comes to going to the gym, exercising or eating during this time, just one twist of my rubber arm and I'm away!  I planned on going to the gym twice this week and twice I didn't go!  First time I was tempted away with lunch in town and a spot of shopping, the second time I ended up doing extra hours at work and couldn't be bothered to go because I was too hungry (managed to miss my breaks so had not eaten since breakfast), all I could think of was KFC so I raced home in fear of the car detouring (by itself of course!) into the nearest drive thru... it could have easily happened, I have to pass 3 KFC drive thru's on the way home and my car is unpredictable!!!

Today was another day I had considered going to the gym but it was the first fine day we have had in what feels like an eternity so I took advantage to head home and get some of the outside chores done.  Going to the gym would have been easier!!  The killer today was trimming the hedge.... who knew it was so hard to hold the hedge clipper machine thing in the air while trying to cut the hedge in a straight line!!  I have a new respect for Dad, he is a machine because he doesn't moan and complain anywhere near as much as I did!!  Even the dog looked at me strange as I collapsed onto the lawn wheezing and struggling to breathe!!  I think she thought I was about to cark it, hell I was thinking it!!  What a work out it was!! I have found muscles in my arms I never new existed!  Cutting my dinner tonight was a mission, even typing this blog is hard work!!  And do you know what the best part of all this is....... I only got half the hedge done!!!  I have to go through all of this pain again!! Arghhhhh!!!