Week 9, Spring in2it!

I am writing this blog entry a few days early as I will be on Annual Leave for the week commencing 17 October - back at work after the long weekend. Reflecting back on this week, I think that I am making some progress with exercising - last week I wanted to give up completely! I went to the gym Monday and Thursday with my PT & she worked me very hard but I also went ALONE on Tuesday! How about that? I also went to my pilates class in Mosgiel on Wednesday.

This next week, I am going away on a Road Trip with my husband - Ashburton, back to Timaru then through Tekapo, Aoraki, then to our caravan at Alexandra for the long weekend. I hope that we can watch the rugby finals somewhere. I do hope to get a bit of walking in during this time away.

Have had a word with my doctor who has advised some changes in my life-style - good food, exercise & yes, I can still have a glass of wine!

Week 7 & 8, Spring In2it!

I have been a bit slack & not updated the blog for a couple of weeks. Week 7 I wasn't very well & had a couple of days off work - so only managed some stair climbing on a couple of days, the gym once & didn't get to pilates. Week 8 was still feeling a bit slow but by Wednesday e tama was able to encourage me to start climbing the stairs again! Went to pilates that week & even went to the gym on my own! I really am not a gym person and have only been going when my PT has been with me. As she has been on holiday, I was expected to go it alone. I coped very well , I think, (despite the fact that I sat in the car outside trying to decide whether to go in or not) & even pushed myself along a bit with what I did. I had almost decided to give up on this whole Spring in2it stuff but encouragement from the team has kept me going.

I think that I may have even lost a bit of weight as I had a visit to the Dr when I was sick & I am sure that there was a bit of a difference (perhaps his scales were wrong?). Need to have a change of diet as well so no more sugar on my cereal in the morning or in my tea!! That will be a challenge as I love my cups of tea. Am trying to drink green tea instead.

Went for a bike ride on Sunday around the Taieri for about an hour which I enjoyed & hope to do more of. And off to the gym again tonight!!

Week 6, Spring In2it!

Now completed 6 weeks of Spring In2it. In my last entry I mentioned that I was off to be measured, weighed, etc. Very disappointd that the results indicated that there has been NO CHANGE! Perhaps I should be taking a much more technical approach to this programme as our colleague, Bronwyn, has done. Therein lies the difference, I suppose. My wee PT has ramped up the exercises at the gym in an effort to help me achieve some portion of my goals. The stair walking continues although apparently if I am not hot & sweaty by the time I reach the top of the stairs then it has been an exercise in futility! But it does get me moving, away from my "arse-place" (pidgin speak)& I am able to have 'stair-meetings' with my colleagues on the way.

And I haven't been drinking wine - probably only two half-glasses in the past six weeks. No citrus slice.....

But I have signed up at the gym for another 6 months - instead of buying a dishwasher! How tragic is that?

week whatever ... progress is being made

Thin person by thekirbster

 Aiming for this look and level of fitness. Well! I was very pleased the scales told me I lost 1.3 kg last week over just a week. I was inspired by the Health Foods weight loss plan and suggested menus which arrived in the post with the latest magazine. The Healthy Foods website has lots of online Tools to use to help with weight loss.

I had made a serious attempt to reduce the kilojoules by cutting down on servings of fruit, and replacing them with the 'lower energy' veges such as lots of salad greens, celery, pepppers, tomatoes and sprouts. I have also been sticking to more lower energy fruits - blueberries in porridge and smoothies, and oranges. Cutting down on the high starch veges has also helped, and making sure crackers are at a minimum even ryvita and rice crackers, and even less bread than usual - one slice a week if I am lucky. I am trying to stick to a higher protein, low GI and lower carb intake with tons of salad greens and the low energy salad stuff and green veges. So far so good it appears to be working - tomorrow will be the real motivator if the weight is still coming off. I am aiming for 62 Kg by the end of the year. Wine has hardly touched my lips recently but then I hardly drink it anyway....makes all the joints go creaky.

Oh and the newest fad in our house - 30 minutes of Ashtanga yoga - the gentler version - every morning. It was a killer on the first working day once the clocks went forward.

Week 5, Spring In2it!

Goodness, we have completed 5 weeks of Spring in2it! I am very disappointed that the scales at home have not shown any reduction in weight. In fact, I was so disappointed over the weekend that I gave the scales a kick!!

Stair climbing continues to be a challenge but we have continued to persevere. As I had been unwell & off work for 3 days, I had a number of flights to catch up on which I have nearly done! Thank goodness I have e tama to motivate me.

I keep going to the gym and am grateful that I have a very patient PT who continues to encourage me but this old girl is not used to all of this exercise & I nearly conk out! Well, off to be tested again to see if I'm making any progress.....!

One third of the way there

Some great work by the Colleagues! Our numbers are looking good, keep the hydration up team, but our exercise is looking great.


Nearly half way there and just over a third of the way up Aoraki. All looking to be on track, just a couple more catch up days to go!

Week 4, Spring In2it!

The end of the fourth week! But not a good effort due to the fact that I was unwell last week & had 3 days off work. No stair climbing or walking or gym or pilates!!! I did continue to eat reasonably well & kept the fluids up.

Will have to make a big effort this week to get back on track.

Week 3, Spring In2it!

Have survived another week of Spring in2it! Great belonging to a team as this has motivated me to keep going. It is so important to me that I chose to go to the gym on Friday evening at 5pm rather than stay at work for 4.04!! How serious is that??? So, last week I had two sessions at the gym as well as my pilates class. My wee PT must struggle with me a bit as I am not the most energetic person & am limited with what I can do because of some difficulty with nerve pain in my right arm. Mostly focus on core exercises & using those awful moving machines. But I keep going back.....

Still walking the stairs with e tama & we have been joined by some others from the team recently too. We will all have 'thunder thighs' by the end of this. This week we will reach the 'first quarter' of our stair climbing.

Last week I went to Mike Wright's presentation on 'spiritual wellness' - his main focus was on fasting! I have been fasting from my favourite citrus slice from Fluid & have not purchased any since the beginning of Spring in2it! How's that for fasting!!!??

No weight loss yet but certainly feel the benefits of the exercise.

Changes

Had to buy a new belt today! the old one broke. Job related stress! I thought I could go down a size. Not quite yet. Hopefully I can trade it in in eight more weeks.

Was a bit naughty last night. Whitestone Windsor Blue: it will get me every time.

Alcohol consumption is way down. Only one box of beer and half a bottle of wine in the past week. the recycling bin is only half full after a fortnight, usually overflowing after a week.

The only issue with that is the neighbours might think I'm throwing my recyclables out! might have to buy some empty bottles to keep up appearances.

Starting gyming soon with Nikora my PT, and a game of rugby in two weeks. Time to lift it up a bit!

Week 2, Spring In2it!

Have survived the second week of Spring In2it! Only went to the gym once last week (PT was sick so missed a day). Also went to pilates. Walked the stairs with e tama, 4 x /day, 5 days/wk (it is not getting any easier!!!). Had a couple of short walks in the evening last week. Busy weekend so no exercise really - my wee Andrew was 17 on Saturday. Not doing so well with hydration but food is OK. However, still focused so that is positive. Really helps being part of a team as we check in with, & motivate, each other.

Attended the "Heart Healthy Lifestyles" presentation by Mary Spiers, Heart Health Advocate, last week. Perhaps a few changes might be needed including giving up butter and 'proper' milk.....hmmm?

Also went to LBlock to learn how to plant seeds & grow healthy food with Kim Thomas. As a result now have some packets of lettuce, zucchini & corriander seeds to plant at home.

Aoraki / Mt Cook

Ron Bull and Catherine Lindsay have started climbing Aoraki / Mt Cook, one step at a time.

Apparently* there are a total of 20757 steps to the summit of Aoraki. The stairwell in H block has a total of 10 flights (5 storys) of 11 steps each. This makes a total 110 steps to the top of the building.

By climbing these (more or less) 4 times a day over the ten week period (440 x 5 x 10) we will have climbed the distance to the summit of Aoraki.

Follow progress on the wall chart in the EDC office.

The rest of the team, and any others that wish to join, have a bit, but not too much, of catching up to do.

*This is according to the information displayed on the stairwell of h block and is deemed as being correct for the purpose of this exercise. No correspondence (or stair measuring) will be entered into.

Week 1, Spring In2it!

Spring In2it! started last Monday 15 August. As luck would have it, it snowed so I think that gave me permission not to do anything. Tuesday back at work but still too cold to do much! However!!! On Wednesday I was encouraged to join e tama on a mission to climb Aoraki - 20, 757 steps - by climbing to the 6th floor of HBlock 4 times per day, I think about 191 times. Our esteemed colleague, PB, questions whether appropriate research has been carried out to ensure that this calculation is correct. PB has done some research himself, including measuring the height of the steps, and has come up with a slightly different answer than e tama about the number of times we need to climb the stairs!

I also go to "THE GYM" (usually twice a week) with my "PT" so was working pretty hard on Thursday night. I am not a 'gym' person really but somehow accepted an invitation from the Sports Institute to have my own "PT"! This is a real challenge as I am not keen on those moving machines.....

On the weekend, I worked for 3 hrs on Saturday in the garden which was quite physically demanding & finished on Sunday by loading up the trailer & going to the tip (oops, not PC, I meant Rummage or the Recycling Centre).

While one of my goals is to feel better about myself during this Spring In2it programme, it would also be great to lose a few kgs. So, no more trips across the road to Fluid to buy my favourite citrus slice.

Day One of Spring In2it and wouldn't you know it Dunedin is snowed in! I came up with some great exercise for the day that I posted to the Spring In2it site on Facebook but the bright pink, ice cold checks on the faces of two family members having ventured out deterred me.

So here I am multi-tasking, typing on my iPod trying to keep my balance whilst striding it out on the treadmill. (Yes I know this is a bit of a luxury!) Snowy landscape in front of me and lots of thoughts racing through my mind as I plan an OER to facilitate a candidate undertaking APEL for the GCTLT.

3 kms coming up so time to stop. Stretch. 3 glasses of water down already. Perhaps a banana would make a good snack then it's time to sit down, get back on the email and think about action recommendations to support an Academic Dept in need. And it's only day one !

PS note above is the edited version, here are some of the words from the non edited version - typing and treadmills don't mix well :-)

exercie failmy 'glSses of wTer' "the emIl Mf think" Vademic