Yes we can! Number 42 on my Daisy List was to spend 3 months getting my body in shape. Well, the 3 months is up (my how time flies when you’re supposedly having fun) and the results are in, but first…
A Recap
I’ve made quite a few changes but my focus was on three main areas…
1. Exercise plan
If you saw my Part 1 post on this Daisy List goal, you’ll remember a critical element of getting my body in shape was to hire Captain Agony (aka my personal trainer).
I am one of those crazies who actually enjoys exercise but I’d lost my mojo and was bored with what I had been doing. As a result, I’d plateaued and wasn’t reaching the health and fitness goals I wanted. I felt it was time to get some help, up the ante and hopefully rediscover my mojo. Enter stage left, Captain Agony.
The Captain uses various forms of motivation – encouragement, threats, yelling. Case in point; On one occasion I was doing leg squats and Captain Agony yells, “COME ON SAMI, STICK THAT BUM OUT” to which I breathlessly replied at the end of the set, “Steve, if you really want to take a look at my bum, you just have to ask.”
2. Eating healthy organic food & drinking filtered water
My second focus was on the food side of things. Chris and I decided we wanted to start reducing our intake of chemicals and toxins so started eating organic food.
I’m obsessed with cake so I wanted to find a couple of recipes that were healthier versions but didn’t taste like lettuce flavoured cardboard. I also wanted to up my intake of raw fruit, raw veggies and water.
3. Meditating
Being a Type A personality, I can be a little wired, am prone to stress and am known to have the occasional meltdown. In the interests of public safety, in particular, Chris’ (poor soul), it is necessary for me to counteract this with a strict regime of stress management.
Exercise, meditation and beating the living daylights out of the nearest pillow do the trick. Throwing myself on the floor whilst kicking, and screaming obscenities also works but for some reason isn’t as socially accepted.
I have meditated sporadically in the past but really wanted to make it a more habitual part of my lifestyle. The solution was to form a meditation habit (of the routine kind not the nun kind).
The Results
The results of the exercise; As well as the 1 hour weekly torture training sessions with Captain Agony, I was already playing a weekly game of mixed touch football and just recently added a weekly 1 hour boot camp with a different trainer who we shall call, “Major Move Your Ass”. I now have 3 high intensity exercise sessions a week with a mix of strength, cardio and interval training.
I’m now feeling far less tired, have visibly toned up, and lost a total of 5.5 centimetres from various areas of my body that shall remain nameless. I’ve lost weight, although I don’t know how much because I don’t own scales for good reason – they’re lying little bastard machines. I go by centimetres lost and clothes instead. My clothes are now either fitting well or slightly loose. I’ve also noticed a big difference with the quality of my touch football game.
For the uninitiated, touch football is the type of sport where you are required to think on your feet, which for all intense and purposes are supposed to be moving quickly.
It’s a fast paced game where you’re on the field working (or rather, playing) hard for intervals of about 5 minutes and then subbing off for roughly the same amount of time. It’s high intensity followed by a fast recovery. If you’re unfit, your intensity is non-existent as is your recovery, meaning your mind is one play behind everyone else and your body is 2 plays behind. It’s kinda embarrassing, doing a late switch with someone only to find your team has left the field for half time.
Lately, I have found my intensity has increased, my recovery time has shortened and my ability to read the play and make decisions on the field has improved a great deal.
The results of healthy eating; The results here have been big. So big in fact, that I think I’ll have to do a separate post to cover them all. Here’s what I did though (the short version); I’ve been eating a snack every 2 hours to keep my metabolism up, lunch has been the main meal each day, no carbs after lunch, reduced the size of dinner, dinner has predominantly consisted of protein and veggies, found healthy cake recipes, also found healthy recipes using raw fruit and raw veggies, have increased my intake of fruit and veggies but I plan to up it some more, treats like chocolate/healthy slice/healthy cake couple times a week and half a glass of wine a night with 1 or 2 nights alcohol free. Note: I did a food diary for a week for Captain Agony and he gave me a lot of these tips.
As a result, the noticeable changes I’ve found are; energy levels far greater, we’re eating less overall, sleeping more soundly, stopped craving sugar, don’t ever feel overly hungry so no food rage (both Chris and I can be a bit titchy if we’re really hungry) and are generally more contented (possibly due to the fact that we feel good about putting chemical free, fresh, healthy food into our bodies whilst doing our bit for the planet).
I’ve been averaging about 5 glasses of filtered water a day which is better than what I was doing but I want to get to 8.
The results of meditating; This hasn’t been quite as successful. I still haven’t managed to set a habit for this. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I’m thinking I need to meditate at the same time every day to create a routine and possibly use a meditation CD given I have the concentration span of a lemming on speed.
Are We Done Yet?
Well, no, not quite. Despite these very pleasing results, I’ve decided to add another month to this goal (call it a woman’s prerogative to change her mind). The last bit of tweaking is to get the meditation routine happening, up the water intake a bit more and lose a few more centimetres.
End date for completion of #42. Spend 3 months getting my body into shape: Now early August, 09!
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Good on you, Sami, for all these things! Congratulations for sticking with this … and for even adding another month! You’re a champion!
I’ve been doing something similar this summer with my 12 weeks here in the States. On June 2, I started a gym routine that includes 5-6 days of cardio (45 – 60 mins each) and 4 strength training sessions, alternating upper and lower body. While my weight loss hasn’t been that large (boo. hiss.), in one month I have lost an inch each in my bust, waist, and each thigh. Not bad, eh? I’m determined to see this through for the next 7.5 weeks allotted to me … and then revive it back in Greece. Anyways, I say this because I am with you on going by inches lost rather than the almighty (boogery) scale. The scale would have me believe I’ve had very little success at all.
So glad these changes you’ve made (and are making) are producing the positive results you wanted. I look forward to having you check back in with us again in a month. You go, girl!
Great job, Sami!! I’ve gotten back into the work outs, and I’m eating healthier, but I’d like to give up sugar and white flour all together. Maybe not forever…but at least for 2- 4 weeks, as a cleanse. It would be great to see what kind of a difference it makes.
Wish I could advise you on the meditation. I don’t know. I’ve done it off and on for a bit, but never stuck with it.
@Chania Girl
Hey CG,
Thanks very much. Wow, you’re doing some serious exercise Chick! I’m not in the slightest bit surprised that the scales aren’t showing a loss. You’ll be putting on muscle for sure. The fact that you’ve lost inches proves that. Good on you! You’ve had some awesome results yourself. Good luck with the last 7.5 weeks. I feel your pain!
@Kirwin
Hi Kirwin,
Thanks. I can highly recommend giving up the white flour and sugar. We’ve been off white flour, bread, pasta, rice and sugar for a while now and noticed a big difference in our energy levels quite soon after we stopped eating them. We now actually prefer the taste of the wholemeal equivalents (except Chris isn’t too keen on wholemeal pancakes – he reckons they’re just not the same).
Yeah, I need to look at the meditation side of things. I think getting a CD will help.
Well done you Sami! Your exercise plan sounds great – I like the variety you have added. I have been at it for about 3 months or so too, but as we have no spare cash at all, I have had to motivate myself and have been fitting in 30mins of exercise followed by 15mins of stretching most mornings before work! I have found I have lost cm (loose clothing) but pretty much no change at all on the scales. I agree, I think they can have a negative influence to motivation. Trying to eat well, but being on a tight budget can make it hard at times and also Max having a massive sweet-tooth doesn’t help my will-power. As for the meditation, I have found that when creating a habit it can help to do it the same time of day – it’s worked with my exercise routine.
Good luck and I can’t wait to hear about the results in August!
@Valeska,
Thanks Vee. Sounds like you’re doing great considering the obstacles you have! It seems from everyone’s comments that the scales really are lying little bastard machines. How your clothing fits and cms lost is the go.
Yeah, I think finding a time of the day that works for meditating and sticking to that time every day will help with building a routine. I’ll see how it goes.