Laura is motivated.

Scared of 'Straya Day

2012-01-26T09:52:00.001+11:00

I really love Australia Day! It can be a bit controversial for several reasons, but I love being Australian and I celebrate that.

Every year my Sister and Brother in Law host a Hottest 100 party.
For non-Aussies, a nationwide radio station - Triple J - play a countdown of the best 100 songs of the previous year as voted by their listeners,every Australia Day, a great excuse to have a party!
Emma and Charlie put on a big barbecue, we listen to some great music, there is a prize for the person who picks the highest rated songs (everyone picks 5), the weather is usually awesome, the boys get a bit drunk, and sometimes there is a kids paddling pool involved.

Sounds like an awesome thing right?
So why am I scared?
Well maybe I'm not scared, just a bit anxious. The reason? Two years ago, when I was at my ED worst, I went to the party for about an hour or two then had to go home. I binged so badly in that time (the worst binge I ever had) that I had to go home and lay down for the rest of the day, I couldn't stand up straight because my stomach was so full. It was horrible, there was no off button. I think I even ate more when I got home. I was so out of control. It was so weird that I was doing it in front of people (although I'm sure nobody noticed), because normally I hid myself away in the pantry where nobody could see me. I hated not being in control.

Whilst I am mostly in control now, every now and then I do eat too much, and I hate that too full feeling.
I'm going to have to be really mindful today.

On an unrelated matter..... today's Smoothie Breakfast:

Spinach

L-Glutamine Powder

Vanilla Pea Protein Powder

Stewed Apricots (from my tree!)

Vanilla Coconut Milk

This week I have been putting topping on my smoothies, something I used to do all the time but haven't done for ages. I found Chocolate Chia Crumble Topping over at Choosing Raw last week, and thought it was an awesome idea. Being someone who hardly ever follows a recipe, and because I have had some sunflower seeds sitting round for quite a while, I changed it up a bit. My topping was made from sunflower seeds, dates, shredded coconut and cacao nibs. I have had it every day this week, it's delicious :)

And in the best news for a while, I am still off the fizzy crap! Just lots of water for me, and a little bit of juice to mix with my herbal supplement (the one that tastes like death). I think my stomach is getting better.

Time for a walk before heading to the party.

Do you have big plans for 'Straya Day?

Shopping Day

2012-01-21T17:53:00.002+11:00

It has been too long since I planned out our meals for the week and did a big grocery shop. So long, I really could not tell you when the last time was.
This week I got really fed up with having to go to the supermarket pretty much every day, spending a bucket load of money each time. I also got sick of the whole post work 'what do you want for tea', 'I don't know, what do you want for tea' dilemma.

So today I shopped, like, mega shopped.

First however, I had breakfast:

A Choc Cherry Protein Smoothie, with a Cherry on Top.

A Big Handful of Spinach

2 tablespoons of Nature's Way Chocolate Protein Powder

About 1 cup of Frozen Cherries

and

I have been using these little single serve milks in everything lately, I love the mild coconut-y vanilla-y flavour it adds to my overnight oats or smoothies. It probably isn't very cost effective but there is no wastage, unlike when I open a carton of other non-dairy milk, only to tip it down the sink a week later because I haven't used it in the recommended time frame. It probably is safe to drink after a week, but with my stomach, I'm not risking it.

After breakfast it was time for some exercise. I have been laying off running the last few days out of fear that I will crap myself (TMI?), but I was reminded yesterday that last week I had promised someone I would run with them today. It was an awesome 1km in 9mins 31secs...........

With Georgia!

She is so cute. We got smiles from strangers on the bike track.

When we got back to her house she wouldn't come inside and just sat on the steps frowning. She wanted to run some more :)

After I had gone home and showered, Mum picked me up for our massive shopping date.

First stop was Eumarrah.

I haven't been there for so long it's ridiculous. We were walking around the shop and almost at once I recognised another shopper - famous Aussie Chef Kylie Kwong! Mum didn't believe me at first, not until one of her companions said her name. Pretty cool to see a TV Chef in your favourite local health food shop.

Here's what I got:

Sorry for the blur.

Mary's Cookies!!! I sampled them and they are deeelish

Corn Pasta

Salsa Verde - a new thing for me

Almond Milk - giving it another try

Coconut Milk

Amy's Refried Black Beans - can't have mexican without them <3

Our next stop was a shoe repairer.

Where we lined up behind Boonie - Australian Cricket and Beer Drinking Legend! Perhaps not so surprising since he is Tasmanian, but still, we were wondering who would be next. (nobody actually!)

I have had two pairs of shoes in the boot of my car, waiting for me to take them to get fixed for over a year. Slack!

Note to self - remember to pick them up next week.

Next was Target for some new undies. Butt cheek covering undies for wearing with jeans that go dangerously low when I sit down. I don't like to show crackage. For some reason all of the butt cheek covering undies in my drawer have massive holes at the sides where I pull them up. Perhaps I need to file my nails more often.

Then it was time for the delicious aromas of Spiceworld! Love that shop.

Hot Smoked Paprika

Tagine Spice(or Tajine as they have called it)

Harissa Powder

Pine Nuts

Then onwards to Gould's to see a Naturopath about my stomach issues. The girl I spoke to was so helpful and really seemed to understand my problem - maybe because she wasn't on a 15mins per client timeframe like doctors generally are. She took the time to explain to me what she believes is happening in my stomach, gave me some L-Glutamine powder to add to my smoothies, some Zinc tablets to take, then mixed me up some liquid herbs. I am hoping if I stay off the fizzy crap and take all of these things as directed, my stomach lining will heal and maybe I will be able to eat Greek Yoghurt again. I really miss that stuff.

Another Health Food Shop Stop came afterwards - City Organics for some more supplies.

Vanilla Coconut Milk

Passata

Bread - with Dates and Walnuts

Steel Cut Oats - can't wait to try them

Then we grabbed some lunch for me and some to take to Ben who was working at our land. I got a delicious Salad of Salad Leaves, Chickpeas, Tomato, Mushroom, Green Capsicum, Kalamata Olives, Carrot and Tandoori Chicken. Well, it was mostly delicious, except for the second bite, that had a bit of salmon in it. Total Gag!

Speaking of gagging, I had some of my herbal liquid prior to lunch. I was told to mix it with some water and have something very close by to chase it with because it tastes very bad. Holy Shit! She wasn't kidding. I hope none of our future neighbours aren't religious or easily offended because as soon as I had swallowed, I let rip with a very loud 'FUCK'. I have to take it three times a day.....

It had better be worth it.

After lunch I had a mostly successful trip to the Fruit Market. They can be a bit hit and miss sometimes, but I got most of the things left on my list.

Spring Onions

Snow Peas

Zuccini

Salad Leaves

Pumpkin

Mushrooms

Potatoes

Red Capsicum

Bananas

Carrots

Tomatoes

Cucumber

Sweet Potato

And finally, I went to the supermarket.

Pizza Bases - obviously for Ben

Lemons

Chilli Garlic Olives

Up n Go - for Ben

Bacon

Salami - Ben

Feta - Ben

Mozzarella - Ben

Red Onion

Brown Onions

Pizza Sauce

Smoked Salmon - Ben

Spinach

Rolls - Ben

Lamb

Beef

Toothpaste

Mouthwash

Phew!

And after all that, I finally got around to tidying my pantry - it's been on the to do list for about 4 months, gave my sister a PT session, and baked some Pumpkin - that turned to smoosh :(

Dinner time!

What was in your trolley/basket today?

Seriously x5

2012-01-19T20:42:00.000+11:00

Happy Thursday night everyone :)
It's not Friday, but it's oh so close.

We have had some seriously crazy weather this week, two 32 degree days in a row, electrical storms, and some very loud, very heavy rain.

I seriously got recognised by a blog reader on the weekend.(Hi Bek!)
Probably not so unusual considering I know her sister and was at a farewell party for the both of them at their parent's house - Phil is returning to England after getting in some Christmas and Summer at home, and Bek was also home during the holidays before moving to a new state. However, it was still very exciting! It's fun to meet new people and to know that somebody reads my various ramblings. I should have taken a picture with Bek, but instead, here is one of Phil and I.

I am seriously having tummy troubles this week. I won't gross you out with all the details. But it is so bad that I have gone cold turkey on all fizzy diet beverages in an attempt to calm my stomach down.

I seriously had the best massage ever yesterday, and I had very few knots - just a little one in my right shoulder! Last time I had a massage, my body was a total mess of knots. Yay me :)

And, I just want to be taken seriously...
I forever feel, no, I know that people don't take me seriously.
My best guesses on the reasons why, would be:

because I have issues with depression
because I don't have a uni degree
because I have been big
because I have been too skinny
because I'm a bit indecisive, but hey, who isn't?

I'm not book smart, I know that and I don't claim to be a genius, but I do have common sense and I put 100% in to everything I do.
I just want a bit of respect that's all!

That last one was a bit heavy, but it has been playing on my mind all week.

Do you have a 'seriously' from this week?

7 years

2012-01-15T16:36:00.001+11:00

Seven years ago today, I married my best friend and soul mate <3

Today, to celebrate, we went out in matching Wayfarers.

That is all.

Saturday, snapped.

2012-01-14T20:04:00.000+11:00

Running for Chocolate?

2012-01-08T16:06:00.000+11:00

Today I ran in my first race for 2012, the Cadbury/Running Edge 5km.
It was part of a carnival, that included a Marathon, Half Marathon, 5km and a 1km for kids.

As usual, I wore a Lorna Jane Inspirational Singlet <3

The last race I ran only had about 340 competitors, this one had heaps. I was number 1095, there were people everywhere.

The course took us from the Cadbury Factory, around the Claremont Golf Club, then back to the Factory.

It was hard! I would go so far as to say it was the hardest run I have ever done, and that is counting the ones I did back in 2010 when I was fit.

Running on grass was a lot more difficult than I thought and the ground was mostly uneven.

The sun was SCORCHING, and there was no shade.

My body wanted to walk about halfway in, but I stayed strong and refused, and eventually I was back on the bitumen.

I'm coming!

Thumbs Up.

Nearly there.

Done.

I finished in 33.03mins. Charlie came in about 2 minutes ahead of me.

I really can't wait to get my fitness back. I want to be able to easily run 5km and sprint across the finish line again.

Hopefully with enough training, I will be able to do that in my next race - in early March.

The 'Run the Bridge' is on 12th of Feb, but I have other plans, that involve my other love. Food!

Today I was running for fitness, fun and the lovely endorphin high.

But it turns out I was also running for chocolate.

I'm sure Ben will enjoy it :)

'More Bang for your Buck' Vegan Pizza

2012-01-06T19:48:00.002+11:00

I like pizza, a lot.
In my big girl days, I used to eat large amounts of it rather frequently.
These days, it has to be dairy and gluten free, so the chances of me buying a decent takeaway pizza are pretty slim.
Besides, most pizzas that you buy are very light on with the toppings, and I am all about the toppings. I used to be all about the thick, fluffy, white crust - my how things have changed.
What hasn't changed, is that I am for sure a volume eater, so in order to get my massive amounts of toppings, I needed to find a way to have a fairly decent sized base, without it being stupidly high in calories.

Enter these babies:

Source

Which, with some killer veggie toppings and soy cheese, made my:

The alternative name was 'More Pizza for your Calories', but I think the above name has a better ring to it!

Base -

2 Small Corn Tortillas, sandwiched together with a tiny bit of grated soy cheese.

(kinda like those dodgy cheese stuffed takeaway pizzas that you can buy, but without the heart attack)

Toppings -

1 Sachet Leggo's Pizza Sauce

2 Artichoke Heart Pieces

4 Sundried Tomatoes

1 Small Mushroom

1/8 Large Capsicum

A Few Jalapenos

A tiny amount of Chopped Red Onion

About 5 Chilli Garlic Stuffed Green Olives

A bit of Grated Soy Cheese

Shoved in an oven at about 220 degrees, until the cheese is melted and the base is a bit crispy.

A whole lotta yum for around 325 Calories!

Yes, it does taste a little 'corny' but I don't mind that.

What are your favourite Pizza toppings?

The way to a man's heart

2012-01-04T20:06:00.004+11:00

Is by buying him some kick arse birthday presents - such as a new John Deere Hoodie and The Hangover 2 Blu-ray with bonus Labrador T-Shirt!

And cooking some of his favourite things.

Ben does so much for me and puts up with a lot, so for his birthday yesterday I really wanted to give him a treat!
He is so lucky that his birthday is in summer and my parents are always willing to let us party at their house. I'm so jealous, I wanna have pool parties in 32 degree heat for my birthday :(

My day started with some salad prep:

Greek Salad

Quinoa, Pumpkin & Pinenut Salad

(Ben actually doesn't like this, but I needed some 'me friendly' food)

Meat Marination:

Snack Distribution:

Yep, Mini Babybels on Cheese Platters are very classy (but Ben loves them)!

Then it was time to chill out and swim til we were good and wrinkly and the meat looked like this:

For the record, I despise lamb!

The marinade I used was Jamie Oliver's Best Ever Barbecue from his Jamie at Home book, which is totally awesome on grilled eggplant :)

Obviously we sat down to a huge feast, which also included New Potatoes fresh from Mum's garden, Ben's favourite Caesar Salad - made by his Mum, and some fluffy white Dinner Rolls (I just bought those).

I gave everyone a bit of time for digestion before bringing out the dessert:

Fresh Raspberries from Mum's Garden

Ben's Mum's Eclairs

And the all important Birthday Cake:

A Lego Brick!

Every year Ben and I aim to out-do each other with awesome Birthday Cakes.

I think he was pretty happy with it.

It just occurred to me that I have never posted the recipe for the Quinoa, Pumpkin and Pinenut Salad, which is one of my favourite things to eat. I will get onto that.

Are you back at work yet?

I went back today and was really dreading it, but the day went relatively quickly so I guess it wasn't as bad as I thought.

Goodbye 2011

2011-12-31T09:39:00.000+11:00

2011 wasn't the year I had hoped it would be. I remember saying it would be 'my year', and it did have some good points - became a qualified personal trainer, started racing again, no dramatic weight losses or gains - but overall it wasn't fantastic. So I am happy to be saying goodbye to 2011 tonight.

I'm really hoping for a freaking excellent 2012, I think I deserve it.
I have 4 little goals that I think will help me make that happen:

1. To be Healthy
This isn't always going to be within my control, but dammit I want to be healthy this year!

2. To just be Me

I need to stop trying to be somebody I'm not.

What I am:
Exercise Junkie - I truly love it
Indecisive - especially when it comes to my hair colour
A MEGA Potty Mouth - and I'm not going to make any apologies for it
Obsessed with food, food related t-shirts and all things Lorna Jane

What I am not:
A Stick Figure - I tried it and it wasn't healthy
Labelled - this really fits in with the whole indecisive thing, but lately I have had cravings, MEGA cravings, for......Chicken! Strange I know.
My newly discovered food allergies are restricting me enough, if I am craving something, and it isn't going to cause me pain, I am going to eat it. If that craving happens to be for meat, then so be it. I am done with restriction, I will eat what I want to eat, when I want to eat it and I'm not going to feel guilty about it.
Therefore, I'm not going to label myself a Vegetarian, a Vegan or any other label.
That being said, my main source of nutrition will still be a mostly plant based diet, because that is what I like the most. I love cooking and eating Vegan food and that won't change.

Vegan, Vegan, Not Vegan!

3. To run as many races as I can

Source

I love running. I really do.
Sometimes, towards the end of a run, I hate running. But when I finish, and that endorphin high kicks in, I am totally in love with running again. There are so many races throughout the year and rather than say I am going to do them all, which might not be realistic, I am just saying I want to do as many as I can - the key ones being 'Run the Bridge' and the Burnie 10.

4. To start running my Personal Training business
I have been saving up a bit of cash lately and finally this week I was able to sign up for Fitness Trainer insurance. Having insurance means I now have everything I need (minus some bits of equipment) to run my business, yay! I am hoping to start running outdoor group classes by the end of January.

What about you? Do you have any goals for 2012?

Don't forget to stay hydrated, make every second drink a water if you are having a 'big one' tonight ;)

Raced

2011-12-28T15:29:00.001+11:00

Hi Friends!

This morning, I 'Raced to the Taste' :)
The Taste being the Taste of Tasmania - a big food festival we have here between Christmas and New Year.

Just after crossing the line

Stopping 'Gary the Garmin', who decided not to record my data again :(

With today's running buddies - Charlie (my brother in law) and Phil (world famous, award winning blogger, and all round awesome chick!)

Getting our hydration on.

So how did I do?

6.22kms, 39.47mins

Hooray, I was hoping for 40mins and came in just under.

To be honest, around the 6km mark I started thinking that I wasn't going to make it, but I knew there wasn't far to go, and I couldn't betray the mantra on my Lorna Jane singlet. It was however, heaps of fun and I can't wait to do it again.... on the 8th of Jan, in the Cadbury 5km :)

My Christmas Wish

2011-12-27T10:04:00.004+11:00

Comes with a language warning....

Yep, that was my Mum's wall, I am such an awesome daughter.

But Health really is all I am wishing for, for Christmas and for the coming year.
Maybe if I'd told Ben that, he might not have bought me so many presents...

I was a very spoiled girl and got the coolest surprise present ever:

Yep, I really am just a big kid.

Anyway, back to the Health thing. After my lovely polite comment on my Mum's status, I didn't get off to the best start with Christmas lunch. I decided it would be 'worth it' to eat some things I am a bit allergic too, so I ate Cauliflower with Cheese, Garlic Bread, and little pieces of Icecream Cake and Gingerbread House. Thankfully again this year I was able to control myself and not eat to the point of exploding, but about 30mins after eating these things I did look a bit like a blimp. And later on I didn't have a very friendly trip to the toilet. So, was it worth it... maybe, kind of, I don't know?!
I'm certainly not going to be in a hurry to do it again.

I think it came about because at this time of year, I am just feeling so damn deprived. Allergies really do suck. Feeling so deprived because of my allergies is making me re-think some other things that I can eat, but choose not to, but I will go into more detail on that another day (when I have had a chance to fully think it through).

Have you been keeping up with your workouts over Christmas?

My training schedule hasn't been going completely to plan, but I am still relatively happy with how I am tracking. (I am really hanging out for the time when I can do weights again - my left elbow is still giving me grief.)
I did my two gym sessions last Wednesday and Thursday, and my 5.5km on Saturday. But yesterday, I really didn't feel like getting up at 6.30am to go for a run. It was my first real chance to sleep in and I took it.
Besides, I had a blood donation at 9.15am that I needed to be nicely hydrated for:

I had a chat to the nurse who did my donation, hoping he would say 'yeah sure, you can go for a run this afternoon'. He didn't recommend it.

So I settled on a shorter, quicker run this morning, hopefully that will be enough to prepare me for tomorrows race.

I am hoping for a time of less than, or low 40's.

Keep your fingers crossed for me :)

1.5 to go

2011-12-20T21:02:00.003+11:00

Hey Friends!

I had meant to be back sooner, but life - mainly my busiest week at work EVER - kinda got in the way.

I have been meaning to tell you for the last week that.....

I have signed up for a race :)

And I'm so excited. It's my first race since May 2010.

And it's in 8 days.

Source

Initially I was a bit nervous, my last 'outside' run wasn't hugely successful. So I decided to do some 'indoor' training on the treadmill, just to try to get my running fitness back. Then on the weekend, success!

Bam, 5kms! And you know what? It wasn't overly hard. Although it wasn't overly fast...

So the plan from there was to run on the treadmill a few times this week at lunch time. That hasn't happened yet, hello 10 hour days with no breaks!

Plan B will be some very early visits to the gym for the next two days, a day off on Friday, then I'm on holidays so it will be 5.5km on Saturday and 6km on Monday with my brother in law (who is entering the race too), a rest day, then race day.

The race is 6.5km (hence the '1.5 to go' title), but I'm sure it won't be a problem, especially since it is all downhill :)

Wish me luck!

Though I'm sure I'll be back before then.

P.S. 5 more sleeps!!!! Are you excited about Christmas? I am. I'm getting various sized dumbbells for gifts :)

A not so lazy Sunday

2011-12-11T21:17:00.001+11:00

Well, kinda lazy, I'm doing another picture post.

Choc Raspberry Protein Smoothie

Post Run Sausage Fingers

My sisters future McMansion

The rather unimpressive run stats, there was lots of walking

Hamster!

A visit to The Market, where a cute new necklace was purchased

The two princess's at Machine Laundry

Not as good as Chilli Ginger, but not bad

The only thing on the menu I could eat was consumed very quickly

A bit of cooking

And cleaning

Some new Christmas Placemats

My method for crushing nuts, because really, who doesn't want to bash Miley Cirus with a rolling pin...

Delicious Salad (the recipe is coming!)

More exercise! It makes me happy.

Hope you had a great Sunday :)

What's Green and tastes like Cake Batter?

2011-12-08T06:47:00.001+11:00

Green, Banana Cake Batter, Protein Smoothies!

Eaten 3 times this week.

The Recipe

Throw into the blender:
A big handful of Spinach
A couple of Ice Cubes
1/4 cup Oats
A Banana
1/2 scoop of Vanilla Protein Powder
1/3 cup Soy Milk
and the secret ingredient that gives it it's cake batter-y-ness:
4 dates - soaked overnight

Whizz it all together for a few minutes, top it with some crunchy cereal (I use Crunchola), and devour.

Today, in iPhone pictures

2011-12-03T21:12:00.001+11:00

Green Banana Cake Batter Protein Smoothie

Plasma Donation

A disgusting drink

A delicious drink

Spicy Noodles at the Thai Veggie Hutt

A little chocky snack

Trapped in the suburbs, unable to cross the highway for 45mins due to the Annual Christmas Toy Run

A random dinner - Salad topped with hot pasta

There was also a 1.5hr walk, Christmas Shopping, a Tracy Anderson workout, and dessert - two rows of Green and Black's Chocolate and 5 (oops) GF and Vegan Gingernut Biscuits.

A clean bill of health!

2011-12-02T17:24:00.001+11:00

That's what I have. HOORAY!!!!!

Well, except it has been determined that I am:

Wheat and Dairy intolerant - the cause of the stomach problems
Very low in iron - the cause of the tiredness and probably headaches

I have an inflamed tendon in my left arm, and I still need to get my girly parts looked at by a Gyno (couldn't get in until the 1st of Feb).

And I have some kind of strange unexplained quirk that has me waking up some mornings with a swollen middle finger on my right hand (maybe I should stop sticking it up at people so much?).

But aside from that, I'm just perfect :)

So, basically my diet going forward will be mostly Vegan. My body behaves, and I feel, the best when I eat a Vegan diet. I don't eat many Eggs or much Honey anyway, but I'm not going to 'label' myself, I don't think its necessary.

The tendon thing means, no weights for a while. Bugger!
But I am taking it as the perfect opportunity to try out the Tracey Anderson Method. Tracy is a trainer to the celeb's, and her workouts are done using just bodyweight.
This morning I did Cardio Combination 1 and Muscle Design Sequence 1 from her 30-Day Method book and it kicked butt. I loved every second of it. And if it does what she says it will, I will still be on my way to 'Guns of Steel' and maybe even 'Buns of Steel', whilst I have a forced break from working my left arm with weights.
(Even though I am a qualified PT, I like to research what other trainers are doing and hopefully pick up some killer moves.)

Do you ever have a fling with a certain food?

At the moment, I am having a love affair with Stuffed Chilli Garlic Olives. Most meals I make for myself at the moment contain them. I'm hoping we never break up! (Meaning I hope I don't eat too many and get sick of them)

Monday Night:

Barley Risotto

Wednesday night:

Pizza

Tonight:

A big salad topped with roast Veggies, Hommus and Avocado Oil

All Vegan and Gluten Free, all delicious.

What do you have planned for the weekend?

Tomorrow I am walking into the city for my blood donation, then I'm Christmas Shopping with my Mum.

If you are in Australia, and are able to, please make an appointment to donate blood. The Red Cross have very low reserves at the moment, which isn't good with the silly season (aka prime accident and injury season) just around the corner.

Protein and Pants

2011-11-26T14:50:00.001+11:00

By now you all know about my quest to get 'Guns of Steel'!
Being a Vegetarian, it is especially important to make sure you are getting enough protein - something the nutritionist stressed to me when I was seeing her last year.
Of late I haven't really been thinking about it, but certainly haven't been doing it. So aiming to improve my protein consumption (and help my Guns grow) I have been having protein smoothies for breakfast again:

After my vitamin/drug cocktail of course!

Banana, Ladybird Chocolate Brown Rice Protein Powder and Lite Soy Milk, topped with Crunchola and LSA.

At the moment, I alternate between these two protein powders.

But to be honest, they are a little strange :(

The Ladybird one has a great flavour, but the texture is a bit too gritty for my my liking, even after EXTREME blending!

The Vital Protein is fine texture-wise, but I just find it tastes a bit funny.

I was trying to try something other than soy protein, but I think I will have to go back to my old favourite - Nature's Way.

Do you use protein powder? What is your favourite?

I packed some protein into my lunch too:

Toasted Sourdough Rye with, Tofutti (Soy Cream Cheese), Sundried Tomato Pesto, Pumpkin, Sweet Potato and Refried Black Beans.

It was good and gooey!

Today I am wearing my new favourite pants! The pair I am wearing are new, but I do have another pair that I have had for a few months. They are without a doubt, the most comfortable trousers I have ever worn. And I need comfort at the moment since I can go from zero to '9 months pregnant' bloating in a matter of 10 minutes.

So what are they, you ask?

Source

Lorna Jane Flashdance Pants!

They are quite sporty, but still able to be dressed up a bit. Perfect for me, I can wear them to work. I do work in a casual environment though.

My newest pair have the logo stitched in baby pink!

Total awesomeness <3

In other news, I fixed my hair today, it was looking pretty faded.

Before

After

And to end with some humour, today I discovered how badly I suck at taking mirror shots....

There were worse ones.
Yep, I'm pretty special :P

Have a fabulous Saturday!

None the wiser

2011-11-25T19:40:00.001+11:00

Well, that's not entirely true.

I went back to my GP yesterday to discuss my test results.
We now know that I don't have Cervical Cancer - good to know. I didn't really think I did though.
And I don't have any abnormally strange bacteria living in my belly.

So that's the good news, but it means we still don't know what is wrong with me.
I am booked in to see an OBGYN re my girly part problem, but the soonest I could get in was the 1st of Feb! I'm glad we know my problem isn't urgent.

I am going back to my GP again next week so we can see how I am going with my nausea and bloating, so hopefully I will know something then. I also had another test done, so I will get the results of that then too.

In the mean time, I am keeping a food diary to try and work out what is hurting me. So far I know that wheat and dairy are evil, so I am taking them back out of my diet. I have sworn off diet coke as a daily drink (or maybe for good), and am not drinking alcohol.

I don't have any good food photos today, just a couple of dark iPhone snaps, which is disappointing since today I had a colourful Berry Protein Smoothie, an Apple, a mega Greek Feast, a very yummy Veggie Burger wrapped in Lettuce, and a Soy Ice Cream and Berry Parfait! I'd like to say it was all delicious, but the smoothie made me more nauseous than usual! The Greek food was fantastic, the restaurant even had GF bread for me, but I got a very sore tummy afterwards - I think it was the ooey gooey Saganaki.

Just for fun, here are some photos from my 'Holiday at Home' last week:

Ready for Mum's Party

The Cake!

MONA

The Aunties, at Amigo's

Jack's awesome 1st Birthday party table

G buying a pretty rose

Bowling!

My tummy hurts

2011-11-20T21:34:00.001+11:00

A lot has happened since my last post.

I have been getting really nauseous, for over two weeks now. And it was getting increasingly worse. As was my bloating - I ate the tiniest bit of cake on Thursday night at my nephews birthday dinner and cried all the way home because I was so sore. And I have had headaches every day.

With all the nausea, I really thought that I might be pregnant for a moment there, I actually did a test on Monday, but it was negative.

On Tuesday I decided that I should call the doctor, and got an appointment for Thursday morning.
I explained what has been happening and the doctor handed me this specimen jar, and prescribed me some tablets that reduce stomach acid.

I thought to myself, that's weird, aren't they usually clear with a yellow lid? She kept talking about the tablets for a bit and then said, by the way, it's a POO SAMPLE. Holy crap (literally)! That was really not a nice sample to collect on Friday morning and to be honest, I will never be able to look at glad wrap in the same way ever again.

The doctor said that I could have Gastritis, I'm not really sure what that is as I never really pay enough attention at the doctor's, but I think it is some kind of tummy bacteria problem.She is testing for some other things too.

While I was there, I also had to have one of those delightful tests that us women have every couple of years. For me, it had been a bit more than a couple of years. And as it happens, there is also something wrong down there. Once I get my Pap Test results back, I will be sent off to a Gyno, fun. But I will go into more detail on that if I need to later. I'm not really that keen on talking about my lady parts. Unless its about waxing, then I usually overshare.

So the tears on Thursday night were about more than just my horrible, sore, 9 months pregnant looking bloating. They were also a bit of a 'why me?'. I am so sick of being 'that person', always complaining about having something wrong with me.

But I know that there are far worse things happening to other people in this world. So, to quote my wonderful, reassuring husband - we will get through this.

The tablets to reduce my stomach acid, seem to be reducing my nausea, but not getting rid of it. I have been told to give them two weeks, then we will see how I feel - depending of course on what the Poo Test says.

I am convinced, every health issue I have now is due to my previous eating disorders. Not that I really have any enemies, other than foods, but I really would not wish any form of eating disorder on my worst enemies.

My 'Guns of Steel' haven't seen any action this week, I have just been walking as that is about all I can handle at the moment. Although I did play basketball tonight. I had to. My team was in the Grand Final! We have never even played in a Semi before. We didn't win, but I am stoked to be a B Grade Runner Up :) I am really tired now, and my tummy hurts.

Hopefully I get some test results tomorrow, I will keep you posted.

Decisions decisions

2011-11-12T10:44:00.001+11:00

Hi Friends!

Today has been a fun filled day, which included:

Smoothie Goodness

Exercise biking
Walking
Shopping - groceries and mums presents
A fringe trim (yay, I can see now)

More wrappy yumminess for lunch

Lots of blog reading (still have 151 in my reader)
House moving (my friend Amy, not me)
A takeaway dinner at Mum's house

And a couple of champagnes

Now, about these decisions.
I mentioned yesterday that I have gone off my medication, that itself was a big decision.
Whilst my moods were stable, and my anxiety was better (not 100%), I found that I was very blasé about way too many things. Food being the big one. I found myself eating unhealthy things quite regularly, and just not caring. I felt more out of control than when I was at my eating disorder worst.
Since going off the meds, I have been able to make decisions, much easier.
Such as giving up meat.
I have been on, off, on, off for the last few years. But I was never a huge meat eater anyway. I would much rather live on plants, with the occasional bit of yoghurt and cheese, and not hurt any animals.

I also decided to stop spending so much money on hair and waxing and have gone completely DIY again (Except for the odd haircut, like this morning's fringe trim. Last time I did that myself, it was so very crooked). These things are luxuries that aren't really affordable when you are building a house and have 2 mortgages.

My love of the kitchen has come back too, and I am making things from scratch again. Like my pumpkin hommus, YUM!

And I am generally a lot happier.

I have only had 1 upset moment and 1 moment of cracking the shits, which is pretty good since I have been off the drugs for about a month now.

Hope your Saturday's have been as enjoyable as mine!

Although, I have an aching belly from the takeaway dinner - the pizza was Mum's choice, I really should have just made myself a salad. So I am taking my bloated body to bed now.

What did you get up to today?

Oops, I did it again.

2011-11-11T19:15:00.001+11:00

I went MIA on you.
I am a bad blogger.

My day job has been super busy, and when I get home, I just don't feeling like jumping straight back onto the computer. I am on holidays for the next week, so expect to hear from me a lot. Hopefully this will give me my blogging mojo back, and I will feel like blogging after work again.

I'm not having a tropical holiday or anything fun like that, I'm just having a holiday at home. I needed a break and with my Mum's 60th birthday coming up, my rarely seen aunties have come to visit Tassie, so it was the perfect time to take some time off.

When I left you, I mentioned that I was taking myself off to the dentist. Turns out, I had to have not one, but both top wisdom teeth out. And, I am proud to annouce that I am no longer scared of the dentist. Clearly dentistry has improved since I was a kid, and I honestly didn't feel a thing, the sound of the teeth coming out (which used to seriously freak me out) was nothing. However, I did have a very sore mouth for a week afterwards.

Other that being very busy at work, I have been very busy working out. I am pretty sure I have walked the equivalent of a marathon over the last few days. I have been working on my guns, that unfortunately I have neglected a bit since my last blog post, and am still aiming for guns of steel and the personal trainer body I desire. And, I am looking a little smaller and feeling a lot healthier.

I have also stopped eating meat again, which I think will be permanent this time. It just really doesn't interest me anymore.
I am slightly more decisive now, which I attribute to coming off my anti-anxiety/anti-depressant medication - again! But more on that another time.

I spent most of today in the kitchen!

I made breakfast in bed for Ben - Bacon, Tomato & Poached Eggs on toasted Focaccia (which I didn't take a photo of - didn't want the eggs to get cold).

And Pancakes, taken back to bed for me:

Coconut & Buckwheat Pancakes with Greek Yoghurt & Raspberries

I had a mega Coconut Flour pancake fail last weekend, so I was totally stoked when I discovered that half Coconut, half Buckwheat was a winner. If you remember my enemies post, you will remember that dairy is one of said enemies. However, if I only eat small amounts of my enemies in one sitting, and take a probiotic tablet daily, my tummy doesn't get too bloated and scary.

Late morning, Emma and Georgia came over to make Mum's birthday cake:

Melting yummy mud cake ingredients

Stirring in the flour and eggs - very quickly apparently!

The finished product - a chocolate mud cake, and a caramel mud cake.

Why on earth is blogger doing that to my photos? It took me about an hour to get the first two photos to upload without the weird lines and colours, then I just gave up.

Anyway, while the cakes were in the oven, I made the yummiest veggie wraps ever for myself and Emma for lunch, they consisted of - Rye Wraps, Basil Pesto, Spinach, Pumpkin Hommus, Mushroom, Capsicum, Tomatoes, Sundried Tomatoes, Chilli & Garlic Olives, home grown Alfalfa, and Grated Carrot.

Once the cakes were out, we spent the afternoon decorating. Even if my photos would upload properly, I wouldn't put them up. They will have to wait until after Mum's party on Sunday. Don't want the birthday girl seeing her cake ;)

Dinner was another delicious veggie creation, a bbq'd Veggie Burger, on Toasted Focaccia (yeah, I'm paying for that wheat indulgence now), with pretty much the same ingredients as lunch minus the pumpkin hommus. It looked and tasted so yummy, wish I could show you....

And now, I have a date with the exercise bike, weights, then some green nail polish.

I reckon you might hear from me again tomorrow!

Night.

Being a Grown Up

2011-09-19T20:23:00.000+10:00

Being a grown up can suck...

Example 1:
You are offered a job as a PT on a part time basis, and your current workplace is happy to let you stay with them part time. However, due to the 'contractor' term of the employment, hours and therefore money is not guaranteed and you are building a house, so you have to say no. *responsibilities*

Example 2:
You decide that the pain in your jaw when you yawn, and the headaches you have been getting, are probably due to the impacted wisdom tooth that popped its way partially through 3 years ago. So, you book an appointment to see the scary dentist. *stoopid grown up teeth*

Example 3:
You don't get about 14 weeks a year of holidays. *damn those kids on school holidays*

But it also has it's good points....

Example 1:
Your tastes change, and you discover delicious things like avocado, coriander, and delicious spicy curries. *yum*

But its ok to use a kids placemat!

Example 2:

Everyone around you starts breeding and you get adorable nieces and nephews. *so clucky*

Isla <3

Example 3:

You enjoy celebrating your accomplishments with a nice glass of champers (stuff that costs more than $6 a bottle and doesn't have one of those dodgy plastic corks) *I'm looking at you Trevi!*

Yep, I passed!

I am now a qualified personal trainer! Yay!!!!!!!

Cardio and Quinoa

2011-09-05T20:12:00.000+10:00

Some days are just cardio days. Today is one.
I wanted to do some work on my guns, and my abs, but I just wasn't feeling it.
So I am sticking to the exercise bike. I have already had one ride, and am going in for another soon (while we watch True Blood, man I love that show).

Today is also a quinoa day. I had a very delicious and easy mexican themed dinner.

Quinoa, topped with onion, capsicum, baby corn and spinach, stir fried with taco seasoning, topped with avocado and taco sauce.

Three layers of deliciousness :)

I have some big news for you, although, not as big as Lisa's..

I handed in my last PT course assignment yesterday, and I have booked in for my final practical assessment, and I have a job interview at a gym tomorrow.

So now I am off to paint my nails and pick out an outfit (sporty or businessy?).

Sore Guns :(

2011-08-31T12:58:00.000+10:00

My muscles are a little bit achey.

So today in the gym, I attacked my arm workout in a different way:

The Warm Up
3 mins on Spin Bike - 1 sitting, the other 2 standing with pretty high resistance

Part 1
Boxing - 10 Punches, 1 Squat, 20 Punches, 2 Squats, 30 Punches, 3 Squats, 40 Punches, 4 Squats, 50 Punches, 5 Squats
Lat Pulldowns with 3 weights - 15 reps
2mins on Spin Bike, standing with pretty high resistance
Repeat x3

Part 2
Dumbbell Chest Presses (7kg) - 15 reps
Tricep Extensions (7kg) - 9 reps (my Triceps suck)
Russian Twists with 4kg Medicine Ball - 30
Bicep Curls (7kg) - 9 reps per arm
Repeat x3

Stretching
Quads
Hamstrings
Glutes
Biceps
Triceps
Lats

And now for some delicious muscle recovery

Slim Pasta

2011-08-29T18:46:00.000+10:00

Last night on twitter, I announced that I had found a new super dooper low calorie pasta.

It is also, Gluten Free, Low Carb & High Fibre!

And endorsed by the Australian Institute of Fitness - surely that can't be a bad thing.

And the best bit...... 6.4 calories per 125g, no, that wasn't a typo - 6.4!!!

It is made from Konjac, which is a vegetable apparently, so I didn't go into this expecting it to taste like pasta. It is kept in liquid, which I assume is water, and it smelled a little bit funny when I opened the packet. As for looks, it appeared to be more like rice noodles than pasta.

The Verdict:

It didn't have a very strong taste, I'm not really sure what it tasted like, but I really enjoyed it and it was filling. Win!

It was $5 per packet, but still, 6.4 calories!!!!

I served it under some Sunday Stroganoff.

Just make sure you drain it really, really well. I ended up with a puddle at the end.

Baby Guns

2011-08-28T16:14:00.001+10:00

Are what I have at the moment. But they aren't as small as these:

Isla's Guns!

Isla is my 4 day old niece :)

I started today right with some fun in the gym.

Warm Up
5 mins on the spin bike

The Workout
Seated Cable Rows (2 weights) - 15 reps
Lat Pulldowns (3 weights) - 10 reps
Lateral Raises (3kg) - 15 reps
Tricep Dips - 15 reps
Chest Presses (7kg) - 15 reps
Bicep Curls (7kg) - 15 reps per arm
Up downs on spin bike (mega hard resistance) - 1 min

Repeat x4

Yesterday I went for a long walk and had a bit of pain in my right hip, in the past I have had this pain due to my weak glutes, so I ended my workout with some bum exercises!

Glute clams x 10 per side
Bridges x 10

Repeat x2

Stretching
Quads
Hamstrings
Calves
Biceps
Triceps
Deltoids
Lats
Pecs

Today I have also washed my car, done some gardening and I am planning on a bike ride later.

Great sunny Sunday :)

Show us your guns!

2011-08-26T15:38:00.000+10:00

source

I didn't take any photos today and I don't like having all text blog posts.

Today's 'Guns of Steel' workout was done during my lunchbreak so it was short, but still awesome - I went HARD!

Warm up:
Walk to the gym then 2 mins at 9km p/h on the treadmill

Workout:
Seated cables rows (2 weights) - 15 reps
Lat Pulldowns (3 weights) - 10 reps
2mins at 9km p/h on the treadmill
Dumbell Chest Presses (7kg) - 15 reps
Tricep Dips - 15 reps
2 mins at 9km p/h on the treadmill

Lateral Raises (3kg) - 15 reps
Bicep Curls (7kg) - 9 reps per arm
2 mins at 9km p/h on the treadmill

Repeated 3 times

Stretching:
Deltoids
Triceps
Lat Dorsi
Pecs
Biceps
Quads
Hamstrings

Is there a standard size of the weights on cable machines? If so, does anyone know what it is?

Pumped!

2011-08-24T08:14:00.000+10:00

Who didn't see that title coming....

This morning I went to the gym and worked on getting those 'Guns of Steel'!

Here's how it went:

Warm up - 2 mins walking on treadmill (kind of lazy, I really should have done more)

Squats with 20kg on barbell - 9 reps
Leg Presses with 30kg - 10 reps
Bicep Curls with 7kg Dumbells - 9 reps
Tricep Dips - 9 reps
Chest Presses with 7kg Dumbells - 10 reps
Lat Pulldowns with ? (2 weights on the machine) - 10 reps
2 mins on spin bike

Repeated 4 times

15min hill workout on treadmill at 7km p/h

Lovely Stretching

Now I feel..... pumped!
I love working out.

And I love Lorna Jane Inspirational Singlets:

Have a happy Wednesday!

Guns of Steel

2011-08-23T22:22:00.001+10:00

Yes Guns, not Buns!
I don't have them, yet. But I will soon, I hope.

This is what they look like now:

They hardly look like the arms of a PT, and I will be a PT in a couple of weeks.

So therefore, today I declare that there will be no more F**king Around! It's time to get a PT's body. My eating is finally in check, but my exercise routine has been somewhat lacking. Now it's time for some serious working out. Starting right now!

Well, I'm actually in bed at the moment, but today I walked at lunch, did pilates after work, and rode the bike for 30mins a little while ago. I have a killer full body workout planned for tomorrow morning.

Night night!

P.S. I measured said guns, their circumference is 31cm (same on both sides), let's see how much they change :)

My Enemies

2011-07-22T09:48:00.001+10:00

I like to think I'm not the kind of person who would normally have enemies. Well, except for that girl who described to me how ugly I was in primary school, but that's another story.

Anyway, it seems I have gained some new enemies, food enemies!

They are:

Wheat
Yeast
Dairy
Alcohol

They do nasty things to my stomach, and I suspect they have friends which I am yet to discover as I by no means have a normally functioning stomach/bowel at the moment :(
Not fun. I am attempting to eat as clean as I can, in an attempt to cure myself, and am once again going cold turkey with my old friend/other enemy Diet Coke.

I know I have been absent for a while, but I have been busy!

I had my session with a PT as part of my study, then she offered me a week of free group classes! Which were awesome. I went along to three morning classes last week at 6am, which meant I had to leave home at 5.30. The classes were hardcore, I got a total flogging. I had trouble with stairs for most of the week due to insanely tight quads and calves, but I have never had so much fun. I feel so inspired and am trying to push myself just as hard, though I don't seem to be able to.

Here is what I have been up to:

P.S. - Support 'The Great Fundraising Act'! - http://mealsandmovesblog.com/the-great-fundraising-act/

Feeling Free

2011-06-30T20:41:00.000+10:00

I went for another run at lunchtime today. On my own because Lennie had the day off.

Here's what it looked like:

I am happy that I did a little better today and I know I will be running the whole way soon. I felt so free running on the long straight path across the bridge with the sun on my face and a light breeze cooling me down. Running back up the hill to work wasn't so pleasant, I conked out about halfway, but I will conquer it soon.

Today's Food:
Breakfast - Same as yesterday! Vanilla Soy Yoghurt and Vanilla Berry Crunchola Cereal
Snack - A handful of Brown Rice Seaweed Rice Crackers
Lunch - The same Salad as yesterday but without the mushrooms. The portions from the cafeteria at work seem to be getting smaller every day :( Will be packing my lunch for tomorrow for sure.
Snack - Plain Vege Chips
Dinner - Vegetarian Pad Thai (yay it's made with rice noodles!)

followed by a wheat and dairy free choc chip cookie

Today's Workouts:
Obviously I went for a run!
And tonight I did this:

Back into it

2011-06-29T21:31:00.000+10:00

Yesterday I started running again.
And I'm fitter than I thought. I seriously believed that I would run about 100m and collapse in a sweaty, wheezing mess, but I managed to run about half of the journey. The longest I went without stopping was about 1km - the length of the bridge. I'm stoked with that.

Here are the stats:

I would have run at lunch again today, my running buddy Lennie did, but I had an induction at a gym near work. My membership starts on Monday, can't wait!

Today I also got in touch with the personal trainer who is going to give me a free arse kicking as part of my PT course. It's next Tuesday and I am very excited. But it does mean that I will miss yoga for the second week in a row.

Todays Food:

Breakfast - Vanilla Soy Yoghurt with Crunchola Vanilla Berry Cereal
Snack - A Banana and a Gluten and Dairy Free fake TimTam
Lunch - Salad with Roasted Veggies, Marinated Mushrooms and Sundried Tomatoes
Snack - An Apple
Dinner - Rice & Corn Pasta with Passata, Mushroom, Onion, Sweet Potato, Sundried Tomato, Artichoke and Garlic

Today's Workout:

30 Mins on the Exercise Bike

Rockin it

2011-06-16T21:27:00.003+10:00

Good evening all!
I'm feeling great and I'm rocking this new approach.
No scales for me, my eating is getting better, and I have been doing some killer workouts this week - 1 of which severely affected my ability to get in and out of chairs.

You know what else I'm rocking?

A Onesie!!!

Woo hoo! My Mum ordered it for my birthday and it finally arrived today. It's so warm and cosy :)

Today's Food:

Breakfast - Apricots, Oat Bran, Greek Yoghurt and Walnuts

Snack - Gluten Free Walnut Brownie

Lunch - Poached Chicken and Roast Veg Salad

Dinner - Mushroom Barley Risotto

I came across this recipe at ohsheglows today and had to try it. It was delicious, I can't wait to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. You can find the recipe here.

Todays Workout:

Exercise bike and upper body strength training - lots of fun :)

I am totally getting my mojo back.

My Birthday Weekend, in pictures.

2011-06-13T20:59:00.000+10:00

Endota!

Fresh skin, after an organic facial.

Lunch with Emma at The Cupping Room on Thursday

The richest hot chocolate ever

Thursday Dinner at the in-laws

Pre eyelashes

Lovely long lashes

Heartfood for lunch with Mum on Friday, cool decor

Cute teapot, didn't like the tea

And they must think vegan food doesn't need flavour, this was bland and boring

G at Tiny Tots Soccer on Saturday morning

Pasha's on Saturday, pre guests

All dolled up

Em, G & Charlie

Dad & Mum

Nathan & Calli

John

Ba & Mel

Lennie

Pressies!

Awesome, awesome cake, made by Ben

Sunday, Hangover Lunch at Nando's

Now, its Monday night and I'm in my snuggy watching Glee Season 1 (a birthday present). Sooo don't want to go back to work tomorrow.

A quick hello...

2011-06-07T21:35:00.000+10:00

Just to say.....

5 MORE SLEEPS!

Until my birthday, when I enter the last year of my 20's. Scary.

Here's what my birthday last year looked like:

A New Approach

2011-06-06T20:20:00.001+10:00

Yesterday I mentioned some wobble issues and some obvious weight gain.

So here is the real, no nonsense deal.
I need to get in shape again, but here are the rules for my new approach:

The scales are dead to me
I don't need them. I recently watched an episode of Canada's Next Top Model where Harley Pasternak (celebrity fitness trainer) was training the contestants, he made the point that according to the scales, he is clinically obese. Then he smashed a set of scales with a sledge hammer. I think he made a good point. The fit of my clothes will be enough for me.

I need to eat for health again
But not take it too far. Everything in moderation (except wheat).

I will do about an hour of exercise daily
Because I enjoy it, not because I need to burn every calorie I eat plus an extra 1100.

I will make time for fun
And find things other than food and exercise that I am passionate about and enjoy. My psychologist put it this way: Do I really want to have someone give a speech at my 60th birthday, and say, 'well, she was always losing weight'.

Today's Exercise:

Every 5 mins, I took a break from the bike to do 10 bicep curls and 10 tricep kickbacks.

Today's Food:

Breakfast - Low Fat Greek Yoghurt, Blueberries and Oat Bran

Snack - An Apple

Lunch - 2 pieces of Gluten Free Toast with Homemade Sweet Potato Hommus, then a small handfull of dried Pawpaw, Pineapple and Strawberries

Snack - Apple & Blackcurrant Puree and 3 pieces of Lindt Fruit and Nut Chocolate

Dinner - Avocado Salad (Spinach, Rocket, Tomatoes, Feta, Avocado and Lime Juice) and 2 Gluten Free Wraps

Dessert - A Hot Chocolate, a few Gluten Free Chocolate Animal Cookies and a piece of Carob Honeycomb

Me, Wheat Free!

2011-06-05T20:58:00.000+10:00

I'm baaack!

I haven't finished my study yet, but I'm getting close, I can almost taste it.
I missed blogging :(

A lot has happened since March (has it really only been a couple of months?)!

I got knee, back, hip and neck pain - due to weak glute med and crappy posture.
I went to see a physio, for ages! I wasn't allowed to do any running or ellipticalling (not that I had really been doing any), then I finally graduated a couple of weeks ago - with permission to run again.

I saw a psychologist, then graduated from that too.
She taught me how to ignore all the negative self talk in my brain that tells me I'm not good enough, I'm fat, I'm ugly etc.
It worked a treat :)

And in more recent times, I discovered I have a sensitivity to wheat.
I have always got very bloated after most meals, I get diarrhea fairly frequently, and I fart like a trooper (seriously, more than any man I have ever known). Overshare I know.
Ben suggested to me that maybe I am allergic to something, which I had never really thought about. So I did a bit of research on good old doctor google, and a lot of evidence was stacking up that perhaps I am allergic to wheat, dairy and yeast.
I decided to start the ruling out of things with wheat, and I feel soooo much better, no bloat or diarrhea to speak of, and I fart maybe 2-5 times a day (again with the overshare, but lets be honest, we all fart).
I'm not saying I'm allergic, I have been tested for celiac disease and that was negative, but I am sure that I have a sensitivity to it.
I'm not sure if I will bother cutting out dairy or yeast, I'm confident I found the culprit.
My reading also told me that these issues can sometimes lead to a poor immune system and depression..... hmmm, check and check. Let's hope both of those areas improve, I have a cold again.

In building news, the shed we are building is wrapped in the blue stuff, has a roof, and windows.

I have also got rather wobbly and am almost back to a size 14 in pants, eek.
But thats a story for another day.

What has been happening in your lives?

Today's Workouts:

The cycling also included sets of 10 weighted (9kgs on bar) squats every 5 mins.

Today's Food:

Breakfast - Low Fat Greek Yoghurt, Blueberries, Oat Bran

Snack - 1 piece Carob Honeycomb

Lunch - A GF wrap with Homemade Sweet Potato Hommus, Spinach, Rocket, Mushroom, Tomato, Avocado & Feta, then some dried Pawpaw, Pineapple and Strawberries and a piece of Carob Honeycomb

Dinner - Homemade Chicken Korma, with Peas and Potatoes, on Brown Rice

Desert - Another piece of Carob Honeycomb

There would have been pictures of lunch, but I can't seem to upload photos on my computer today :(

Blogging Break

2011-03-21T11:53:00.000+11:00

Hi Friends!

I am having a blogging break, while I try to finish studying and get my life in some kind of order.

Thanks for reading and I will be back, I promise :)

Frustrated (Training Runs No.7 & 8)

2011-02-23T19:30:00.000+11:00

It is really frustrating when you can't do the things that you could do this time a year ago....

I would have shat this in last year, but alas, here I am struggling.

I will not let this piece of bike track defeat me.
Please send all your good runnings vibes my way.

Backtracking - Sunday 13th - Festivale in pictures

2011-02-21T20:02:00.000+11:00

The nacho's and brownie were shared. The rest, was all mine!
There may have been a couple more champagnes in there somewhere....

Quorn Burrito for Dinner?

2011-02-21T19:28:00.000+11:00

Yes please :)

Recipes Schmesipes

2011-02-20T17:01:00.000+11:00

I have rediscovered my love of experimenting in the kitchen.

Last night, I made a thai inspired curry:

I made a paste using assorted red and orange chillies, ginger, garlic, coriander, lemongrass, lime juice, a splash of sesame oil and a third of a small can of coconut milk. Marinated 2 chopped chicken breasts in it for a few hours. Then plucked out the chicken, stir fried it, added the snow peas, tipped in a mixture of the leftover marinade and the rest of the coconut milk and simmered it for a few minutes until the chicken was cooked through. And served it with basmati rice. Yummy!

And today, I made this:

A very seedy loaf of bread!
It was made from: chia seeds, flax, sesame seeds and buckwheat - all of which I ground up in my coffee grinder, wholemeal spelt flour, bread improver, a little bit of normal white bakers flour, yeast, sugar, salt, water!
I have never made a loaf of bread that has risen this much....... I must be due for an epic cooking fail.

In other news, I haven't been for a run this weekend, it rained yesterday, has been raining on and off today and its so windy I think I would blow away :(

Backtracking - Monday - Training Run No. 6

2011-02-19T15:46:00.000+11:00

I was in Launceston last Sunday and Monday, and got in a great run on Monday morning. I RAN THE WHOLE WAY!!! I was so proud, especially since I had a few glass of wines on Sunday and no sleep at all that night in our horrible hotel.

It looked like this:

1.7kms more and a few less minutes and I will be ready for the Women's 5km in ummm 2 weeks....

Backtracking - Last Thursday - Indecisive

2011-02-16T09:13:00.000+11:00

Hey dudes! I am speaking to you from the past...woooo.....freaky.

I think I mentioned last week that I was working on a really hard decision, it was either in a blog post or on twitter, I can't remember. Anway, that decision was whether or not to eat meat again.

Lately I have felt off, like I am missing out on something. Clearly I am missing out on iron as I have to take tablets but it was more than that, I have felt deprived. And when I feel deprived of something I am more likely to binge on everything.

Don't get me wrong, I really don't like when animals are treated inhumanely, and I do generally prefer to feed my body with veggies, fruit, grains and a bit of dairy. But I think my body is telling me something. And after going through what I have been through in the last few years I have learned that I need to listen when my body is talking to me.

So on Thursday, I ate my Mother in Law's Lasagne:

And it was delicious!

I have never claimed to be a decisive person....

Stitched up

2011-02-10T22:10:00.000+11:00

Today was the day for The Sock Monkey's surgery.

He was prepped for the operation

Stitched up

And bandaged

He rested in the recovery room, and now he is snuggled up between us in bed. He's a bit sore, but he will be just fine by Sunday, when we are taking him somewhere special.

An Injury

2011-02-06T19:49:00.000+11:00

:(

Last night, Ben,The Sock Monkey and I went to Mum's house for dinner.

We had a roast, it was too yummy!

And then, after dinner, disaster struck!
Georgia and The Sock Monkey were playing in the loungeroom, and I think things got a little rough. Perhaps he was swinging from his tail to much. Georgia brought him over to me, to reveal this:

A broken tail :(

He will be having surgery on Thursday night, and although I'm sure things will be fine, keep your fingers crossed for him, just in case.

Training Run No.5

2011-02-05T09:43:00.000+11:00

This morning, I ate a delicious breakfast of yoghurt, blueberries, oats, pepitas and coconut. Then lazed about in bed watching Family Guy and Keeping Up With The Kardashians while I tried to talk myself out of going for a run. I really want to be a runner again, but I think my brain knows its a bit hard at the moment. I won the argument with my brain and went for a run on the same route as Training Run No.2 run. Although for some reason the distance and elevation don't exactly match up, I have improved, yay! I ran until I felt like I was going to pass out or spew before taking a walking break.

Compare it with Training Run No.2

In other news, I am loving The Biggest Loser! I don't have a favourite family but my favourite contestant is Lara, you can see how badly she wants it. While I am watching, during the ad breaks, I have been doing strength training and I tell you what, I can really feel my glutes, quads and biceps at the moment. Every little bit helps :)

Balsamic Love

2011-01-30T18:19:00.000+11:00

I have quite a thing for Balsamic at the moment.
Today I roasted up some Beetroot and Sweet Potato with Balsamic, Garlic and Rosemary.

I boiled up some Barley and mixed it with the veg, sprinkled over some Feta and it made a simple and delicious dinner. Very filling too.

I am so excited, the new series of The Biggest Loser Australia starts in 11 minutes!!!!

Training Run No.3

2011-01-30T17:44:00.000+11:00

And 4!!!

Two days in a row, I am pretty happy with that.

Saturday

Sunday

Today's run just wasn't working for me. I don't think I was hydrated enough.

But I am feeling pretty confident that I will be able to run 5kms on the 6th of March.

I'm so happy!

2011-01-25T11:44:00.000+11:00

Curls made me happy! But its more than that.

The weather is great.

Matt, Sue, Ethan & Ellen arrive for a visit from QLD today.

Our building is coming along beautifully.

And...................I'm losing weight. (slowly and sensibly, I promise)

I am back into a regular exercise routine, and am loving my morning workouts. I am eating great healthy foods, with the possible exception of the meal replacement bars I am having for lunch most days (with an apple), but hey, they are easy and delicious (I'm serious). And I am not denying myself the occasional treat - like the yummy choc chip cookies that a co-worker made for morning tea. I am no longer caffeine's bitch and I feel fantastic.

Life is good :)

Hope it stays that way.

P.S. Congratulations Phil for getting into the London Marathon!

Training Run No.2

2011-01-23T10:24:00.000+11:00

I felt very unfit today :(

Oh well, there is still over a month left until my first fun run of the year!

My day in Black & White

2011-01-22T21:40:00.000+11:00

Off and running

2011-01-16T18:38:00.002+11:00

This morning I went for a run. Well, it was a walk/run.

Beforehand I fueled up with a banana, cacao & date smoothie.

It was meant to be loaded with spinach but my spinach was a bit too old.

After my run, looked like this:

Hopefully I can run the whole way next week.

6

2011-01-15T21:37:00.000+11:00

6 years ago today, I married my best friend :)

P.S. Here is my new before photo. I don't really like posting any full length shots of myself at the moment, but in order to document my return to health, I need to be able to show where I started.

My year begins.

2011-01-13T11:37:00.000+11:00

Happy New Year!

Have you missed me? I spent most of my time off sleeping and carting lunch to builder Ben who is working on our shed and granny flat that we will live in while we build our dream home.
I got zero work done on my PT course assignments - naughty, naughty me.
But I did manage to exercise most days.

Now that I am back at work, I am really trying to focus on my food intake. I'm not having snacks because I discovered whilst on leave that I didn't get hungry between meals. I eat at work out of boredom, or to take a break from staring at my screen. I really need to get back to cooking, I have been mainly eating salads, frozen meals, or having dinner at my parents, or Ben's parents houses.

I have managed to exercise before breakfast on three workdays, which is an improvement on last year. I intend to start exercising every morning again. And as for running, I have decided I won't be ready to 'Run the Bridge' and will make my first run for the year the Women's 5km, which was my first fun run ever. I have downloaded a couch to 5km podcast to get me ready, now I just need it to stop raining so I can get outside. (not that I can complain, I don't live in QLD, I feel so bad for them)

I got some great exercise gear for Christmas - a medicine ball, a resistance band, and some bathers! Yay! And, for the first time in my entire life, I didn't walk away from Christmas lunch feeling like I was going to explode, I am so proud.

This seems to be a rather random and vague blog, but I promise I will be back soon with something more interesting and perhaps a new 'before' photo.

P.S. I have lost 2kg.

And the winner is......

2010-12-20T21:13:00.000+11:00

Candy Cane covered Peppermint Choc Ripple Cake

YUM!

And the other winner is.....

Lisa!

Yay, the random number generator did a good job considering 3 out of the 7 comments were family members and 1 was me. Email me your postal address and I will send you a little pressie - laura@crump.net.au

Did you know........

It's beginning to look at lot like Christmas!

I am TOO excited :)

Help!

2010-12-16T16:59:00.000+11:00

I can't decide what to make for my department's Christmas afternoon tea at work on Monday!
Which also includes the giving and receiving of our Secret Santa presents :)

I am normally at bit grinchy with Secret Santa and choose not to participate. Whilst I love buying Christmas presents for people, I find it hard to pick out the perfect gift for some of my family members, so why would I attempt to buy something for someone who I don't really know? I gave in to my team mates this year, but luckily I picked out someone who has been relatively easy to buy for.

Anywho, back to the afternoon tea.
I have two 'not too nutritious' original dishes in mind, but will only be making one. I need your help with the decision on what to make.

Option 1 - Christmas'd up Choc Ripple Cake
A twist on the traditional, choc ripple biscuit and cream 1970's monstrosity. I will add peppermint essence to the cream and cover the top in crushed candy cane.

Option 2 - Candy Cane Truffles
The usual truffle mix - choc ripple biscuits, condensed milk, but instead of coconut I will add crushed candy canes into the mix, and I will dip them in dark chocolate.

There seems to be a choc ripple biscuit pattern emerging!

Ok people, you decide! Please post a comment with your vote.

As an incentive, I will pick a comment at random and send you a little present. (Aussie readers only)

2011 will be MY year

2010-12-08T21:27:00.000+11:00

Because clearly 2010 hasn't been.
It started off OK, I stopped counting the miniscule amount of calories I was eating and starting eating more (healthy food), I was running and feeling pretty great.

Then my binges became more than just a 'once every couple of months' occurrence. They happened sometimes more than once a day! Not surprisingly, the weight gain started.

I shipped myself off to the psychiatrist, who advised I am obsessive, anxious and depressed. The answer - drugs.
The binges slowed down and eventually stopped, but now I had the problem of eating all kinds of foods that I wasn't eating earlier in the year and justifying it with an 'I'm not depriving myself' mentality.

I saw a nutritionist, who was helpful, but in the end, we agreed that I know how and what to eat. I had just stopped putting it into practice.

I got sick, a lot! And am currently. I had some blood tests done which showed that I have pretty low iron levels. I have done some reading and discovered that low iron can affect immunity.

So here I am in December, I no longer see the psychiatrist, I am generally a happier person than I was in June, but technically I am back to square one healthwise. I am overweight, by a fair bit, I am about 20kgs heavier than I was in November, my clothes don't fit, and I feel like a hypocrit. Maybe I should change my blog title to 'Laura has lost the plot!?'.
With everything that has gone on this year, I am determined to make 2011 my year! I will get back in shape - slowly and healthily. I will get back to eating the healthiest way I can - but without depriving myself. I will finish my studying and become a PT. I will move house. And my life will be totally under control.
Not that I am waiting until 2011 to start getting things in order. It starts right now!

I'm running again!!!

2010-11-21T10:10:00.000+11:00

Rather slowly and not very far though :P

Charlie and I decided today was the day to get back into running. Ben had a big night last night so wasn't able to join us.

Here's what it looked like:

Now I have that amazing post run feeling! God I've missed it.

I will keep you posted on my progress, we are hoping to do 'Run the Bridge' - a 10km race from Bellerive, across the Tasman Bridge to Salamanca, in February.

Sweaty!

2010-11-10T20:59:00.000+11:00

I haven't had a workout that good for a while! 60 mins on the exercise bike on a fairly warm day was the cause of this glistening delight.

No, I don't have a pixie hair cut, my hair is just glued to my head with sweat.

I have really ramped up my exercise in the last few weeks and it feels great. The reason?

The workplace walking challenge has unleashed the competitive monster inside me. I am so determined to win. I have the most amount of steps overall (the website where we record our steps converts other forms of exercise into steps). However my team is not winning. We have done 772,545 (371,801 of which are mine) and the team that is currently in first place has done 1,077,089!

Their team does consist of a martial arts guru, a marathoner and some kind of crazy guy who climbs mountains (not sure what the fourth guy does) - my team consists of 3 other women who aren't quiet as keen as I am about fitness. They still put in a reasonable amount of effort, but I am trying to pick up the slack.

Don't worry, I am fueling my body well :)

P.S. I got an iPhone woo hoo! A borrowed second hand one from my brother in law, but still, I got an iPhone :)

10,000 Steps a day?

2010-10-27T20:18:00.000+11:00

Pfft! I am averaging 21,000 :)

On Monday, I started participating in a workplace walking challenge. We are in teams of 4 and the winners will be the first team to reach 1,800,000 steps - which is the equivalent of walking from Rockhampton to the Gold Coast. I am sooo determined to win, but sadly at the moment, my team isn't on top.

Too bad the challenge didn't start last week. Last Thursday I did a whole lot of walking. It looked like this:

All up it was 19.1kms. The first walk was from the City to Big W, the last one was a lovely evening foreshore walk with Ben. And the second walk, was to go see these guys.......

At the show! They were so cute. But I got sad when I saw this:

It actually made me feel like vomiting. I have been experimenting with vegetarianism lately, to see if I still feel happy and healthy without meat, because I have been feeling increasingly guilty about eating animals. I feel great and seeing this sign confirmed - I am a Vegetarian. Bordering on Vegan.

So much cake

2010-10-21T16:19:00.000+11:00

Has been consumed in the last few months.

Georgia's Birthday Cake - Saturday 17th

Rob's Retirement - last night

But I do eat other things I promise! I had a yummy Banana & Cacao smoothie for breakfast this morning.

I hadn't had one for ages and it didn't disappoint.

1 Banana

A handful of Spinach

1/2 cup Oats

1 tsp Flax Seeds

1/2 cup Low Fat Soy Milk

1 tbsp Cacao

A sprinkling of Bran

Some surprising results

2010-10-20T22:28:00.000+11:00

My class on Monday night was the second part of the nutrition module and included lots of different health tests.

The results that interested me the most were:

I have a large frame - measured by using callipers to determine the distance between the two bones on either side of your elbow when your arm is bent up.
My bones weigh 3.4kg! Considering what they do and how big they are that really surprised me.
My muscles weigh 23.4kg. I want to work on increasing that figure.
I currently have 31.1% body fat. I definitely want to decrease that figure.
My Waist to Hip Ratio is currently 0.79, which is good. I want it to be excellent.

Can you guess what I had for tea......

Surprise, I didn't go to Thai Veggie Hutt. I got this delicious Eggplant Channa from Taste of Asia.

Silly Sausage

2010-10-13T19:14:00.000+11:00

I was trying to have a meat free week, but I had a slip today!

My work allows staff to have one paid volunteer day per year, I used mine today at Ronald McDonald House - which is full of lovely people who do lovely work. Myself and 2 others went to help them out by doing some baking and cleaning. I made Anzacs and Banana Cake (which was a bit of a flop, I took it out of the oven too early and it sunk in the middle), and one of the guys made Sausage Rolls. They smelled absolutely delicious so I popped one into my mouth without even thinking. Oopsies.

I also had sausages for tea, but not ordinary old sausages, Sanitarium Veggie Sausages! They are delicious. I chopped them up and used them in a pasta sauce.

My workouts so far today have been a walk this morning and lots of running up and down the stairs at the house - the cleaning we were doing was on the roof deck and the kitchen was on the ground floor so I did lots of running up and down three flights of stairs. I am going to let my tea settle for a while, then I will do some ellipticaling, squats and lunges.

Happy :)

2010-10-12T21:46:00.000+11:00

I am one happy camper today!

Even the rainy weather didn't bring me down. I am getting my food intake under control, I got up early and worked out this morning - including some weight training, on Monday I moved into a new office at work, in about two weeks we are going to start building our new flat/shed, and tomorrow I am getting paid to do some volunteer work. (I will give more details on that tomorrow)

There really isn't much to be unhappy about in my life at the moment.

No prizes for guessing....

2010-10-11T21:53:00.000+11:00

what I had for tea tonight.

Pad Thai - Thai Veggie Hutt, yum!

Tonight's PT class was strength and conditioning, some theory, some prac. It was lots of fun.

I just cranked out a very sweaty 30mins on Eric (the elliptical trainer), it was pretty warm today so my house heated up heaps. I am posting quickly so I can cool off, get into my PJ's and watch some True Blood on the couch with Ben.

Lunch today was a bit excessive!

I am going to try to lay off the chocolate a bit starting tomorrow. (not give it up completely though, as it would be unhealthy to give up something I enjoy!)

Sunday Summary

2010-10-10T22:33:00.000+11:00

Three delicious C's

2010-10-07T19:21:00.000+11:00

Cinnamon, Chocolate & Curry!

Cinnamon, Pie Apples, Sunflower Seeds and Oats - mixed and left overnight, then topped with Greek Yoghurt this morning.

No Chocolate pictures, but I had a bit too much of it this afternoon. Yes, my calories are still ok, but I had way more than I needed.

Curry Mountain! So much curry for not a great deal of calories. Ben had takeaway curry, but I had Fennel that needed to be used, so I mixed it with a tin of Tomatoes, 1 tbsp of Madras Curry Paste, and 1/4 cup of Quinoa. It took about 10mins, was simple, healthy and totally yummy.

I was only going to have my leftover veggies for lunch, but it rained at lunchtime, so rather than going for a walk (and taking one of my new pairs of sneakers on their maiden voyage), I went to visit my sister. She has been making her own sourdough bread, pretty much every day, for a while now and she had a fresh loaf that looked heavenly - I couldn't resist. I had two slices with cream cheese and strawberry jam. I did take some pictures of the loaf on her camera, but she seems to have forgotten to send them to me. I think I might have to get her to do a guest post about her sourdough soon, if she is happy to share her methods.

Due to the rainy weather, I have only done one workout today - an exercise bike ride before breakfast whilst reading Eat, Pray, Love. I really have to hurry up and finish reading it, it came out at the movies here today and I am thinking about going to see it on the weekend. Maybe my second workout for the day will be another bike ride, although I do have an episode of America's Next Top Model to watch. Difficult decisions...

2 for the price of 1, again.

2010-10-06T20:51:00.000+11:00

And this time I am talking about a great bargain!

Today I went to Paul's Warehouse and ended up leaving with four pairs of shoes. Ben and I both needed new runners and he wanted a pair of converse all stars, so I went to Paul's knowing they had a 2 for the price of 1 deal on. My second pair, was the same as my first:

I can't wait to test them out tomorrow.

Mmmm overnight oats!

2 dinners and a lunch!

The idea for this dinner came to me somewhere between last night and this morning, I got some steak out of the freezer last night without a clue what I was going to do with it. It turned into a very delicious dinner of roasted root veg, with spicy meatballs in a madras sauce.

P.S - I had some icecream with choc chips whilst waiting for my photos to upload. Yummy :)

Light Nights

2010-10-05T21:12:00.000+11:00

I adore daylight savings :)
Its like I feel all refreshed and new, and dare I say it, motivated!
Today I went for a beautiful walk at lunchtime and got some warm rays on my pastey white arms, then after work Ben & went for a walk and I got some more sun on my pastey white legs. Throw in dinner at Mum's and some time on the Elliptical trainer watching the simpsons and it makes for one happy little me.
Oh, and my tummy feels better today, what a great day.

Yummy yummy pear oat bran

Tasty curry, thanks Mum.

Dr Laura's self diagnosis

2010-10-04T21:41:00.000+11:00

Backed up by a second opinion from Dr Emma!

I have been having some stomach issues for about a week now. It feels like it is burning most of the time. My diagnosis - not enough good bacteria, the cause - antibiotics and waaaay too many fizzy diet drinks, the cure (hopefully) -

I had a great weekend, how about you?
I slept, a fair bit. I went to a 1st birthday party, I walked twice and played basketball, I did some house painting, and yesterday I spent a glorious few hours on my father in laws boat in the sunshine. Oh, and I forgot to mention, it was 23 DEGREES! It is again today too!

Today for the first time in what seems like ages, I was up at 5.30am to get on the elliptical trainer. The work day was pretty standard, except for a trip to the cadbury chocolate factory to stock up the work fridge (I didn't buy anything for myself!!!). At lunch time I went to Emma's house to eat lunch with the munchkins (Georgia & Hamish), who were being too cute. After work I got to eat tea with Ben for a change, before heading off to Zap (a gym, that is quite close to home) for my class. Then, when I got home, I had another go on Eric. Fun day!

2 for the price of 1

2010-10-01T21:47:00.000+10:00

Nope, I didn't get some kind of amazing deal today, I was just too tired to blog last night so I am doing two posts in one.

I haven't really done anything overly thrilling in the last 2 days other than going to my inlaws for tea last night - which was delicious satay chicken and salad on pita bread, and have a grand final lunch at work today - hence the party pies you will see in my food diary. (I passed on the big fats savs, they are all kinds of wrong)

Oops, forgot the tomatoes in my food diary

Insert title here

2010-09-29T20:45:00.000+10:00

Clearly, I am struggling with creativity today.

Today was a much better food day than yesterday, I had heaps of vegetables - even though I went out for lunch to Pasha's with work, I had ice cream, and I still ended up on a pretty good amount of calories.
I have no doubt that I missed off a few ingredients from the Veggie Stack I had for lunch, but I'm not aiming for 100% accuracy all of the time (boy how I have changed).

Speaking of good changes, I saw my psychiatrist on Friday and he is really happy with how I am recovering. I don't have to go back for 8 weeks!

I mixed my breakfast up last night and left it overnight in the fridge, squishy bran is great, try it.

I'm turning over a new leaf

2010-09-28T20:37:00.002+10:00

To hopefully help me recover from disordered eating and get my nice body back, the healthy, non obsessive way.

I am going to show you my food diary daily, to keep me in check - from overeating or undereating.

Don't let me go below 1200!

Today I had a bit much food and am feeling quite full now. I also haven't done any exercise, I am really, really tired.

I am getting better

2010-09-27T20:28:00.000+10:00

Finally, slowly.

I worked a full day today for the first time since last Monday! (I went to work for a couple of hours on Thursday morning but got sent home)
I even managed to do a little bit of exercise yesterday and today.

Tomorrow I hope to be back to full or almost full capacity with everything, and hope to start blogging daily.

To keep you going for now, here are some pics of what has been happening:

Lots of Vegemite on toast

A mountain of pasta

The re-appearance of Greek Yoghurt

A pizza night at Emma's house for her birthday

Where, of course, we had cake!

This is Lookta, who we believe is Georgia's imaginary friend. I got her to draw it so we could make it into a cake.

Sick, I am.

2010-09-21T21:47:00.000+10:00

Today I sound like Yoda, or Grover. Same thing really.

I woke up this morning (after a very unrestful night of tossing and turning) sounding very funny indeed - seriously, everyone I spoke to today laughed when they heard me speak. My chest hurt really badly when I coughed, my throat felt like someone had scraped it with a fork, and I generally felt a whole lot worse. Perhaps I learned a valuable lesson, don't try to workout when you are sick!? I lasted less than 10mins on the Elliptical trainer last night before declaring defeat. Anywho, I called the doctor as soon as the clinic opened and managed to score a 12pm appointment.
I spent the morning on the couch, before my sister picked me up to take me to my appointment. She had to go into the city so she kindly dropped me off at my appointment about 10mins early. I was with the doctor within a minute and out in 8 - before my appointment was even scheduled to start (surely that is some kind of miracle!!!!). She said, after having some kind of virus last week, I now most likely have a secondary bacterial infection, so I left with an antibiotic prescription and medical certificate in hand - I'm not allowed to go to work tomorrow :(
The rest of my day was spent on various couches: Emma's after she fed me lunch, mine after Ben picked me up, then Mum's after she fed us dinner.
Clearly, there was no exercise today, walking to the pharmacy after my doctors appointment was hard enough, so here is the food:

Breakfast

Raspberry & Banana Smoothie

Topped with bran, coconut & almonds

Lunch

(it looks enormous, but it wasn't really!)

The bread knob with basil pesto

2 pieces of toast with vegemite

Grapes with a few pieces of dried fruit and nuts

A little piece of a smartie cookie

Pre dinner rice crackers plus a couple of lavosh crackers

Dinner

Yummy, yummy, yummy Beef Tagine with Cous Cous and some french bread (thanks Mum)

I also had a few pieces of Mrs May's Pom-Raspberry Crunch before I went to the doctor, a few sultanas for afternoon tea, and a hot chocolate and an anzac biscuit for dessert.

Time to snuggle in bed and watch the Kardashian's. Goodnight :)