Charlotte Orr

12 Weeks

2012-01-28T19:59:00.001+11:00

Not sure what’s going on with me at the moment. My pants are getting looser but scale weight is going up (weighed myself this morning for the first time in a couple of weeks). I was a bit stiff and sore after yesterday’s workout though, so perhaps DOMs is playing havoc with the scales. Or it could be all the chocolate I ate last weekend…

Nevertheless, it’s my birthday in 12 weeks and I’d like to be in better shape by then. I’m really enjoying my jogging at the moment (did 8km on the treadmill this morning) so will continue trying to gradually increase my distance over the next 12 weeks (and beyond, all going well). I’m also enjoying what I’m doing in the gym at the moment, and still have about 10 weeks’ worth of old programs to play with. After that I may see about getting some new ones done. Foodwise, I like how I’m eating at the moment but I’m aware I’m probably eating more than I should for weight loss. Time will tell though!

I’ll try and post how I’m going each Saturday.

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Not many greens in my meals today. Need to go shopping…

Am looking forward to going out for breakfast in the morning. See you tomorrow!

Mind-Body Connection

2012-01-27T22:18:00.001+11:00

I started reading Lance Armstrong’s It’s Not About the Bike over Christmas 2010, when I found it on the bookshelf of a relative we were visiting, but I didn’t quite finish it before leaving. I was reminded of it again when Magda mentioned it a comment recently. I ordered it from the library and finally got to finish it, over a year later!

Here is one of the passages I liked in the bit I just finished reading (near the end)

‘the mind and body almost never work cooperatively. Mostly, we are at odds with ourselves, and for a road cyclist, this is especially true: when your body gets tired it’s the job of your mind to override the impulse to stop. Or, when your mind wants more than can rightly be accomplished, it’s the job of the body to tell you it needs food and water before it does anything else. Occasionally, the two work in concert, and what happens then is, you fly up the Hautacam. When they’re in direct opposition, what happens is, you bonk on the way to Morzine.’

For some reason, I seem to really enjoy reading books about athletic struggle. One of my favourites is Ultra Marathon Man by Dean Karnazes. I also liked Running Hot by Lisa Tamati, although the writing in that isn’t as accomplished.

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This morning I did day two of program one. I put my weights up a bit and my glutes were shaking afterwards!

Breakfast was a mixture of rolled oats and barley, yoghurt and grated apple. Usually I’d put some cinnamon in too, but we’ve run out, so I used some ground cardamom instead.

Lunch was a salad topped with dhal, plus a slice of bread with sterol spread (not pictured) to mop up the bowl

By the time dinnertime came around I was feeling a bit dehydrated (tired and headachy) and all I wanted was a liquid dinner. Rob suggested margaritas (LOL) but I managed to find a sachet of protein powder in the back of the pantry and mixed it up in a blender with a litre of water and a couple of smoothie cubes. Once I finished that off I had some rice cakes. Neither were particularly photo-worthy.

Hopefully I’ll be feeling better in the morning. See you tomorrow!

Gluten-free Fish & Chips

2012-01-26T20:01:00.002+11:00

Sometimes I want a particular type of food (savoury or sweet) or a particular style of food (Thai or Italian, for example). Tonight for dinner I wanted a particular texture: crunchy. I decided to make polenta-crumbed fish and some oven baked chips. This is a super-easy way to make gluten-free crumbed fish – just coat the fish in some plain yoghurt, then in polenta before cooking (I used a regular frying pan with a little bit of canola oil). The chips are just baking potatoes, cut into ‘chips’, sprayed with a little oil and baked in a 200 C oven for about 40 minutes.

Rewinding back to this morning, I did a 5K run (outside). It was nice weather out this morning, and my legs held up well after doing a longer run yesterday.

Breakfast was quinoa with yoghurt and mango.

Lunch was egg and salad, plus a gluten-free wrap with sterol spread (not pictured)

Off to watch some more tennis. See you tomorrow!

Patience is a Virtue

2012-01-25T20:42:00.001+11:00

“In the area of training, I have learned that more is not always better. That patience is a virtue. That one must listen to their body and not to the goals that their ego has set forth. That it takes your connective tissues (tendons, ligaments, fascia) much longer than muscle to adapt to training increases. I have learned that it takes more discipline to hold myself back from training too much than it does to get out and train.” (Tim van Orden at Running Raw)

I can really identify with this statement. My mind has always issued orders that my body can’t necessarily carry out. I’ve slowly learnt that it’s better to listen to my body and ‘fight another day’ rather than blindly follow a program that drives my body into the ground.

I’m slowly increasing the intensity of my training, but when last week’s jump proved too much, I took a step back and now I’m feeling better for it.

This morning I did a 7km treadmill jog. It felt good, but it’s frustrating that the treadmills at the gym time out after 20 minutes (even when it’s not busy), so I have to restart and keep going. Might have run outside tomorrow for a change.

Breakfast this morning was quinoa, cherries and yoghurt

Lunch was a Greek salad with roast beef, plus a gluten-free wrap with sterol spread (not pictured)

Dinner was a prawn, cucumber and mango salad

It was nice but I have a feeling I’m going to be hungry again pretty quickly.

See you tomorrow!

Be Your Best

2012-01-24T22:03:00.001+11:00

I’ve just finished reading Be Your Best by Geoff Huegill, which Magda recommended. It was interesting to read about his swimming abilities at a young age, and his approach to training.

A couple of quotes that appealed to me:

“When I first started exercising again, I kept it really simple. The only goal I set was to make sure that I put in at least 20 minutes a day, whether it be in the pool, doing a spin class at my local gym or simply taking a walk. As long as I put in 20 minutes, I was a happy camper. Gradually over time that 20 minutes increased to 30, 45 and 60 – then I decided I wanted so swim for Australia again!”

“Don’t think you are going to be perfect. Everyone has down days. Just be the best you can on any given day.”

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This morning I did day one of program one. I felt quite tired when I got up (still adjusting to getting up earlier for work) but my energy levels seemed to pick up once I started exercising.

I’m still enjoying quinoa and yoghurt with berries for breakfast:

Lunch was a chicken salad, plus some Ryvita crackers with sterol spread (not pictured). Check out the yellow tomatoes!

I wanted to make lamb and tabouli for dinner (with beans instead of cracked wheat) but the supermarket didn’t have any parsley left. (I really should start growing my own herbs.) I ended up using chopped rocket instead. Still tasted OK.

Off to watch more of the Australian Open tennis. See you tomorrow!

No Evidence of Malignancy

2012-01-23T20:51:00.001+11:00

I went back to my doctor this afternoon to have my stitches out. He did a great job – you can barely see where they were. He put a new dressing on, which I have to leave on for two more days, but that’s it. The pathology results showed no evidence of malignancy. The ‘mole’ was an inflamed seborrhoeic keratosis, which can apparently resemble a melanoma but is a noncancerous benign skin growth. Yay!

Rewinding back to this morning, I did a 5K treadmill run, keeping my heart rate at 70-80% of maximum. Afterwards I had some coconut water (good for hydration) and a couple of dates, and will try doing something similar for the rest of the week and see if it keeps away the chocolate cravings.

This morning’s breakfast was quinoa and yoghurt topped with pureed apricots and pureed berries.

Lunch was coleslaw mix with canned pink salmon, plus some Ryvita crackers with sterol spread (not pictured)

Dinner was mixed vegetables and sliced rump steak topped with a tzatziki-style sauce, and some baby potatoes

My favourite part of the meal was the sauce. It was simple (1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, 200 ml plain yoghurt, 1 Lebanese cucumber that I seeded and grated, and 1 Tbsp lemon juice, all mixed together) but very tasty. A friend of ours had dinner with us and he usually covers everything in tomato sauce, but not tonight.

See you tomorrow!

Chocolate Cravings

2012-01-22T21:01:00.002+11:00

Over the weekend I’ve been craving chocolate (pretty unusual for me, since I’m not normally that fussed by chocolate). I’ve had a Bounty bar, a Cherry Ripe, a chocolate milk, and a slice of Mars Bar cake. It’s not that time of the month, so the only thing I can put it down to is the increase in cardio intensity this week, going from about 60-70% of maximum heart rate to 75-85% of maximum heart rate in my sessions.

So next week I’m going to try and find a middle ground with my cardio and keep a closer eye on what I’m having immediately after my workouts in terms of recovery nutrition and fluids.

Here’s a snapshot of some of the healthier things I had to eat over the weekend…

Breakfast Saturday (after a 50-minute jog): overnight muesli (rolled oats and barley, mandarin juice, sultanas and yoghurt)

Lunch Saturday: salmon salad, plus bread roll (not pictured)

Dinner Saturday: Lamb Couscous

I had the lamb dish at a restaurant in Richmond for a friend’s birthday. I don’t make couscous at home as it’s not gluten-free, so took the opportunity to have it while out. The description said it came with roast vegetables, but I had to do a ‘treasure hunt’ through the couscous to find a few finely sliced pieces of pumpkin. Disappointing.

We stayed overnight at our friend’s house. In the morning we broke our tram and train trip home with a breakfast stop at a cafe in Degraves St (near Flinders St station). I had muesli, goat yoghurt and fruit

Sunday lunch was some Ryvita crackers with chutney, ham and salad

Sunday dinner was a pork cutlet with rice salad and coleslaw mix

Off to watch Bad Teacher. See you tomorrow!

Program One, Day Two

2012-01-20T21:47:00.001+11:00

Today I did day two of the program I started on Monday. Here are the strength training exercises I did today:

Plate squats

Push-ups

RDLs

Split stance cable pulldowns

Prone row to external rotation

Side planks

and

Band internal rotation

plus some kettlebell swings

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Breakfast was bircher muesli (rolled oats and barley, lemon juice, grated apple and yoghurt, topped with some sliced banana)

Lunch was a toasted sandwich with ham, cheese and onion, and some cherry tomatoes

Dinner was salmon, rice and salad

See you tomorrow!

Pile of Mulch

2012-01-19T22:31:00.001+11:00

This morning Rob, TJ and I did a 50-minute jog. I don’t like to drink much water when jogging as I tend to get the stitch, so when I got home I felt like having a liquid breakfast.

A berry smoothie

and some cherries with the last of the quinoa I cooked the other day

For lunch I had some roast veges left over from last night, mixed with a little olive oil

and a smoked salmon sandwich

Dinner was lamb cutlets with a chickpea salad

Our mulch was delivered today

We got some of it on the garden this evening. Hope to have it all done by the end of the week.

See you tomorrow!

Elevensies

2012-01-18T19:55:00.000+11:00

I've been tagged by Liz at Last Chance Training to post some things about myself and answer some questions, so here goes...

11 random facts about me
1. I've been with Rob for nearly 18 years.

2. We don't have a car. If we want to go somewhere we walk or take public transport.

3. TJ (our labrador) sits on the couch with us and sleeps on our bed.

4. We had a cat for 13 years who also used to sleep on our bed.

5. I didn't sleep well wedged between a cat and a dog!

6. I think I have Seasonal Affective Disorder (winter depression).

7. I have had my appendix out.

8. I wanted to be an architect when I was growing up.

9. My favourite fruits are cherries and figs.

10. My favourite meal is breakfast.

11. For my 21st birthday I had a champagne breakfast.

Here are Liz's questions (and my answers)
1) Morning or evening person
Afternoon/evening

2) How long does it take you to get ready in the mornings?
Depends on what I'm doing and where I'm going (going to gym/walking TJ/working from home/working in an office). Minimum 10 minutes, max one hour (if I have to wash and dry my hair).

3) What’s your weekly grocery bill?
$250 to $300 (two big eaters and a big dog)

4) How much of your grocery bill is whole foods?
Approx 90%. We eat lactose-free and mostly gluten-free so that means mostly whole foods.

5) Your opinion of daylight savings?
I just wish it was the same time all year round. I have a lot of trouble adjusting to the time changes each year.

6) Mac or PC?
I have a PC (laptop) but have used Macs in the past at work and like them.

7) Grab your IPOD and hit “shuffle” – what’s the first song that comes up? Is it a favourite or so so?
I don't have an iPOD.

8) Your favourite blog of the moment?
I like reading a variety of different blogs.

9) Favourite pizza topping?
Usually something vegetarian.

10) Proudest moment lately?
Re-creating our garden. Nearly there!

11) Your favourite physical activity?
Walking.

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This morning's cardio was 30 minutes on the stepper followed by 20 minutes on the treadclimber.

For breakfast I used the same ingredients as yesterday but put everything together in a bowl instead of a glass

Still tasted just as good!

Lunch was a curried egg sandwich

And dinner was pan-fried fish with roasted veges and potato

See you tomorrow!

Quinoa, Yoghurt and Berry Parfait

2012-01-17T22:21:00.003+11:00

Quinoa is gluten-free but it has quite an ‘earthy’ taste so I don’t eat it very often. I was inspired by a quinoa recipe I saw recently in the O2 Diet, and decided to give it another go.

Last night I cooked some quinoa and put some frozen berries in the fridge to defrost so I’d be able to quickly put together breakfast after my cardio session this morning (50 minutes on the elliptical).

Quinoa, Yoghurt and Berry Parfait

Ingredients

- 1 cup cold cooked quinoa (approx 150g)

- 200g plain yoghurt (I used Black Swan lactose-free yoghurt)

- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 2/3 cup frozen blueberries, defrosted

- 2 Creative Gourmet berry antioxidant smoothie cubes, defrosted

Method

1. Mix the cooked quinoa, yoghurt, vanilla and cinnamon together in a small bowl

2. Gently mix the defrosted blueberries and smoothie cubes together.

3. Spoon 1/3 of the quinoa mixture into a glass, then 1/3 of the blueberry mixture. Repeat the layers twice, ending with blueberry mixture on top.

I really enjoyed this and so did Rob, who usually prefers eggs for breakfast.

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Lunch was a gluten-free wrap with hummus, sliced roast beef and ‘tabouli’ (made without cracked wheat)

Dinner was steak, potatoes and roasted vegetables

I had the dressing on my stitches changed today and everything seems fine. I just have to avoid getting the area wet until the stitches come out on Monday so no swimming for me for the next week or so.

See you tomorrow!

Program One, Day One

2012-01-16T21:53:00.001+11:00

Today I did one of my old programs from a couple of years ago. It was designed by Mike Robertson to strengthen my hips and core, which both need work at the moment, and to address some shoulder issues. It also has a gradual increase in cardio intensity, which suits me as I'm trying to increase my fitness.

Here are the strength training exercises I did:

Pull throughs

DB rows

Split squats

Split stance cable push (I did these kneeling)

Shoulder I, T, Y

Plank

(link)

Exernal rotation on knee

plus some bike intervals

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For breakfast I tried some overnight oats, with lactose-free yoghurt, chia seeds, rolled oats and barley, lactose-free milk and strawberries

Lunch was some carrot and ginger soup (don't know what I was thinking - carrot and ginger juice would have been more appropriate in this weather!)

and some baked beans on toast

Dinner was harissa chicken with rice and a rocket salad

Before dinner I visited my doctor to get a mole on my upper chest checked, as it had grown in size and become itchy over the last few days. He decided to take it out, so I am now sporting a couple of stitches and a great big dressing. Rob says it looks like I have been shot, LOL. I'll go back tomorrow to have the dressing changed, and again in a week to have the stitches out and find out the results of the pathology testing on the mole.

See you tomorrow!

Cafe Sunday

2012-01-15T22:55:00.001+11:00

I like to go out for breakfast on Sunday mornings. The closest cafe to us is about 25 minutes' walk away and also happens to be on the way to Bunnings. We needed a new gate latch, so we decided to walk to that cafe then on to Bunnings to get the latch, then back home.

At the cafe I had berry pancakes

Yes, they were huge, and no, I did not get through them all!

I'm starting back at work next week and won't have time to pop down to the shops each day to get things, so on our return home I wrote up our shopping list then went and did the weekly shop.

After shopping I had an egg and lettuce sandwich

In the afternoon we did a little bit of light gardening. Rob dug out the rose bush at the front of the property

It was the only gap in the hedge along the front. We replaced it with this

Which should grow up to look like the other one we have in the same hedge (with the pink flowers)

Dinner was salmon with lentils and spinach

Tonight we are watching Red Dragon (prequel to Silence of the Lambs).

See you tomorrow!

A Quiet Day

2012-01-14T21:05:00.000+11:00

I was awake until the early hours with a sore stomach so was feeling pretty low in energy this morning. I was quite happy just to plod around the park with Rob and TJ, and Luke and Harvey.

I also walked down to the supermarket to get some more yoghurt for breakfast. I had it with some rolled oats and barley, banana and cinnamon

I ate my breafast while reading the paper, then walked to the garden centre and back to buy a plant to fill a gap in our hedge (pic tomorrow after it's planted)

Then I walked back to the supermarket and picked up some things to make lunch: a turkey and salad roll

So even though I didn't do any 'training' today, I did lots of walking.

I did a few things on the computer this afternoon, then Rob and I made dinner. He did steak, mushrooms and onion on the barbecue, and I did the chips (sweet potato and parsnip) in the oven

Might be watching another movie tonight. Not sure what yet.

See you tomorrow!

Currently Reading...

2012-01-13T20:02:00.000+11:00

I felt tired and run-down last night (I think I overdid it a bit with the gardening) and woke up feeling really heavy this morning so instead of doing a circuit or weights I decided to do some cardio (50 minutes on the stepper).

For breakfast I had some crushed oat brits, lactose-free yoghurt and blackberries.

Lunch was a smoked salmon bagel

It was raining off and on here this afternoon, so instead of going to the garden centre to look at some hedging plants, I read my new book, The O2 Diet. The subtitle is a bit over the top: 'The Cutting Edge Antioxidant-Based Program That Will Make You Healthy, Thin and Beautiful', but the book interested me because of its information on antioxidants. Some of the points I found most interesting:
Sleep 'sleep is one of the most powerful antioxidant tools we have. During sleep, our body actually removes free radicals that build during waking hours. Essentially, sleep - governed by melatonin, a hormone that is one of the body's most powerful antioxidants - provides the body with a natural way to repair oxidative damage.'
Exercise 'Even though exercise and activity are vital to repair oxidative damage, there's a bit of a paradox: Exercise, which works by causing the body to overcome stress, actually creates free radicals. And yes, it is true - the more we exercise, the more free radicals we create. If the number of free radicals created by our workout exceeds our body's antioxidant capacity that day, those rogue molecules will harm the lipids, proteins, and DNA we need for optimal health.'

The book also has lots suggestions for snacks and meals that are high in antioxidants.

Dinner tonight was a pork, green bean and mushroom stir-fry

I feel much better after having a quiet day today. What are you reading at the moment? Anything worth sharing? I'm open to fiction or non-fiction.

All Gardened Out

2012-01-12T23:57:00.000+11:00

This morning I did 50 minutes on the elliptical. As I walked home it felt quite cold out, and the thought of a cold breakfast didn't appeal. Instead I whipped up some porridge (made with rolled oats and barley) with Craisins and topped it with some lactose-free Greek yoghurt.

I really like having thick yoghurt on top of porridge. It's almost like having cream on a winter pudding

The rest of the morning was spent cleaning and doing some errands. Lunch was a mixed bean salad, with a bread roll (not pictured)

In the afternoon I weeded another garden bed. Before:

After:

There's still a little bit more weeding that needs doing, but I'm just about all gardened out. All I feel like doing now is putting things in: some new hedging plants and some mulch.

As much as I love cooking, it was nice to be invited to a friend's house for dinner and a movie. We had roast lamb

and watched Star Wars.

See you tomorrow!

Bigger is Better?

2012-01-11T21:05:00.000+11:00

I've made the pictures in this post bigger than usual. Let me know if they work better for you.

I was quite tired after gardening yesterday and ended up have a (rare) bath then going to bed and sleeping for 10 hours!

This morning I cycled for 50 minutes at the gym. I quite enjoy doing cycling for cardio - it's a shame my gym doesn't do any RPM or cycle classes.

I was going to have some mandarins off our tree for the fruit part of my breakfast but when I opened the pantry door to get the Oatbrits out, the Craisins seemed more appealing

Mandarins made an appearance at lunch instead, in a smoked trout salad with green beans, mandarin and horseradish, which I had with a couple of pieces of toast (not pictured)

The afternoon was spent in the garden again. Rob dug out the plants that I pruned back yesterday. It appears that our house was white at one stage

I did some more weeding, reducing this

to this

I can see mulch (bark chips?) happening soon - must stop all those weeds springing back again!

Dinner tonight was a chicken and vegetable 'paella'. I got hungry waiting for all the liquid to evaporate and ended up dishing it up before it was ready, hence the 'soupy' appearance

See you tomorrow!

2012-01-10T20:36:00.000+11:00

This morning we did the park circuit again, only this time in reverse: walking lunges up a hill, then two sets each of rows, body-weight squats (down to the edge of a park bench then up again), shoulder press, chin ups (this time I tried standing in my band instead of kneeling in it, which made it a bit easier) and press ups. It felt much harder doing the press ups at the end after already working my shoulders but it was good to get legs out of the way first.

I made banana cinnamon pancakes for breakfast, but they were a bit of a failure due to the lack of a non-stick pan.

Lunch was much more successful - pizza!

I started out with a gluten-free wrap

placed it on a pizza tray

topped it with
- tomato paste
- garlic
- a little low fat pizza cheese
- halved cherry tomatoes
- sliced artichoke hearts
- sliced mushrooms
- roasted red capsicum
- chopped ham
- dried oregano
- and a little more low fat pizza cheese

put it in a 220 C oven for 15 minutes

then topped it with a handful of salad leaves - lunch is served!

The pizza kept me going through an afternoon of gardening. Today I reduced this

to this

Hopefully I've pruned the bushes back hard enough so Rob will be able to get in there and take them out tomorrow. There are way too many shrubs in our front yard and neither of us have time to maintain them, so out they come.

Dinner was another success: lamb chops, parsnip mash and homemade sweet potato chips

Rob got some DVDs out of the library today so tonight we are watching some old episodes of The Sopranos. PS, we enjoyed the Rise of the Planet of the Apes last night.

2012-01-09T21:06:00.000+11:00

My feet were a little sore this morning after all the walking I did yesterday, so I opted for a 50-minute swim session this morning for my cardio. I tried a different technique with my freestyle, trying to keep my chest down in the water to allow my hips to pop up, and it worked really well. I was able to use my legs more to propel me through the water instead of doing so much work with my arms, and for the first time in ages my left shoulder wasn't sore after swimming.

We have a rapidly multiplying supply of plums from our trees at the moment so I tried some on my breakfast this morning. Rolled oats and barley topped with lactose-free yoghurt and chopped plums:

Since swimming always makes me really hungry, breakfast was swiftly followed by lunch. First up I had coleslaw mix with grated beetroot and olive oil dressing:

Then a roll with roast beef and chutney:

A banana finally managed to quiet my hunger and I spent the afternoon outside, weeding the garden beds around the feijoas:

Tonight's dinner was a green fish curry:

After watching the Smurfs last night, tonight we are having a complete change of pace and watching Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

2012-01-08T21:10:00.002+11:00

Earlier this week the local paper mentioned that a new cafe had opened in our suburb so I decided to try it out this morning. TJ and I powerwalked up there (40 minutes). I enjoyed some bircher muesli and TJ enjoyed lots of attention! Rob met us there a bit later, then we all walked home together.

I stopped at the supermarket on the way home and picked up a few things for lunch: ham, dry coleslaw, and a cape seed roll with sterol spread (not pictured)

I had a quiet afternoon reading the Sunday paper before preparing a pork, eggplant and pea curry for dinner

This evening we are watching the Smurfs movie (LOL).

Dog Day

2012-01-07T15:21:00.000+11:00

I slept really well last night. When I woke up I decided I felt like doing cycling for my cardio, so after a bit of foam rolling I headed off to the gym for 45 minutes on the bike.

When I arrived home I had a quick breakfast of rolled oats and barley topped with lactose-free yoghurt and dried cranberries

Then we headed out to take TJ for a walk. On the weekends we often meet up with Luke and his labrador Harvey and go for a longer-than-usual walk

TJ and Harvey

Today we walked right down the end of the off-lead zone. It reminds me of a country road in parts

At one stage TJ disappeared into the reeds beside the creek. When he came out he was very muddy and pleased with himself!

Harvey was much more civilised, doing his best frog impression in a clean section of the creek

After we got home I did some sweeping and mopping before my stomach started telling me it was lunchtime. Today it was a big salad (olive oil dressing) topped with leftover chicken sausages, plus a cape seed roll with avocado (not pictured)

Just having a quiet afternoon today. We are supposed to be going to a Vietnamese restaurant for dinner tonight.

The Beast is Out!

2012-01-06T20:58:00.000+11:00

When I woke up this morning my right foot was a bit sore, so Rob taped up both of my feet again. He did them on a slightly different angle this time and they felt better straight away.

This morning we did our park circuit again, but this time we did lunges with the back foot on a bench instead of hill lunges.

Breakfast was the usual: crushed oat brits with lactose free yoghurt and blueberries.

The rest of my morning was spent doing things around the house that I haven't had time to do for a while. Like cleaning the light fitting above the dining room table, which was full of dust and insects. If you ever have to buy light fittings, get ones that direct the light downwards, not upwards. Unfortunately these ones came with the house.

For lunch I roasted a red capsicum and had some in a cape seed roll with some roasted chicken and avocado

Rob dug the rose bush out for me this morning (the beast is out!), so after lunch I went in to tidy up the area. I ended up pulling all the bricks out that bordered the path up to the front door and digging/raking out the soil. I thought it might be nice to make a patio area out there. It seems that someone else had the same idea in the past. Look what I uncovered!

After I'd had enough gardening, I walked to the supermarket to pick up a few things for dinner. The produce department had a marked-down stand with 'fill a bag for $3'. Here's what I chose:

I'm thinking I can use the parsnip for parsnip puree or as roasted parsnips, and the eggplant in a curry. I used the asparagus in tonight's dinner, along with some chicken sausages and mashed potato

I'm planning to spend the rest of the night on the couch with my feet up!

Could you disappoint this face?

2012-01-05T19:19:00.000+11:00

Rob was away overnight so it was up to me to walk TJ this morning. I killed two birds with one stone by making it my cardio session - a 45-minute power walk. My feet started to get a bit sore during the walk, but it was good for TJ to get out and stretch his legs.

This morning's breakfast has been a regular feature lately:

Crushed oat brits, lactose-free yoghurt, blueberries

The rest of the morning was spent giving the downstairs of our house a tidy then taking TJ for another walk, this time to the supermarket and bakery to pick up a few things for lunch:

Big salad (olive oil dressing) topped with leftover dahl, and a cape seed roll with avocado (not pictured)

The afternoon was spent doing gardening. The area around our front door was pretty overgrown:

I weeded and pruned three shrubs back really hard, including my nemesis, the climbing rose:

I called it a day after dropping a rock on my foot then getting smacked in the face with a branch of rose thorns. I actually had to pull a thorn out of my face. Tomorrow the rose bush is being dug out!

After gardening I had another of my current favourites:

Lactose-free yoghurt, cherries, walnuts and almonds

Dinner is likely to be something with chicken.

Double Trouble

2012-01-04T15:00:00.000+11:00

This morning I was still a bit wary about doing anything too high-impact so I spent 45 minutes on a True Fitness elliptical at the gym. It has a fun function called Mix3 which prompts you to go forwards, backwards, stand on the sides and only use your arms, etc.

Unfortunately the plantar fascia in my other foot started to feel sore afterwards so Rob has taped both of my feet up. It might be pool work for me for a bit longer yet.

Pooped

2012-01-03T12:41:00.000+11:00

I woke up feeling the hill lunges I did yesterday. The plantar fascia in my right foot have also been quite sore since Sunday so I decided to do some non-weight-bearing exercise today: a 45-minute swim. So now my glutes AND shoulders are tired. Think the rest of the day will be a quiet one out of the heat.

Park Circuit

2012-01-02T13:41:00.000+11:00

Happy New Year!

This morning after doing some foam rolling I went to the park across the road with Rob and TJ. Late last year the council put in some exercise equipment and we've been using it a bit over the last few weeks.

Today we did a lap of the park to warm up, then started with press-ups: incline plyo push-ups with a clap for Rob, incline push-ups for me.

Rob did a set, then I did a set, then we repeated. (We did this for all exercises except the walking lunges at the end.)

Then we moved onto the chin-up station. Rob did regular chin-ups, I did mine with a band for assistance.

A bit further round is a shoulder press station. There's no weight on this, but it's still reasonably heavy. Rob does his with single arms until he fatigues, then finishes off with both arms. I start with both arms.

Next is an ab station. Rob tried doing some single leg raises.

I used the same piece of equipment, but improvised to work my back again.

By this stage TJ was getting pretty hot, so we headed down the hill to the creek so TJ could have a swim and a drink.

We then did walking lunges back up the hill

I counted about 80 lunges in total (40 per leg).

After that we walked out the stiffness in our legs from doing the lunges, stretched, and headed home for breakfast.

Crushed oat brits with lactose-free yoghurt and blueberries.

I love exercising outside in the sunshine when I can. I would love to be able to walk along the beach every day. Where's your favourite place to exercise?

Christmas Day Food (and Drink)

2011-12-26T12:15:00.000+11:00

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T23:55:00.000+11:00

Super busy day today getting stuff organised for Christmas. Looking forward to having a relaxing break. Merry Christmas!

Adding More In - Friday

2011-12-23T22:43:00.000+11:00

This morning's cardio was a jog/walk in the park with Rob and TJ. My glutes and middle/upper back have been feeling a bit tight the last couple of days, so this afternoon I did some foam rolling work on my glutes, and used a bak ball on my back

physio supplies

I leant against it on the wall, and also lay on it on the ground, so that the ball parts were pressing on either side of my thoracic and upper spine. Felt SO good.

---

Breakfast: crushed oat brits, lactose-free yoghurt, cinnamon, mixed berries

mid-morning: green tea

Lunch: salad with romain lettuce, cucumber, tomato, red onion and tofu, dressing with olive oil and lemon juice. Toast with avocado

Snack: pear, lactose-free yoghurt, walnuts and almonds

Dinner: gluten-free wrap with sliced rump steak and chimichurri sauce. Mashed cauliflower.

Snack: hot chocolate

Adding More In - Thursday

2011-12-22T22:58:00.001+11:00

This morning started with a walk in the park with Rob and TJ. The first circuit of the park was a 'warm up', then on the next two circuits Rob and I used some of the exercise equipment dotted about the place. It was lovely to be exercising outside in the sunshine.

Breakfast: mixture of crushed oat brits, oats, lactose-free yoghurt and cinnamon. Red grapefruit

mid morning: green tea

Lunch: salad with chickpeas, romaine lettuce, beetroot, carrot, cucumber, celery and water chestnuts, dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Avocado on toast.

Snack: lactose-free yoghurt, LSA, hazelnuts and blueberries

Dinner: salad with sliced extra-lean chicken sausage, romaine lettuce, cucumber, tomato and red onion, dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Rice.

Snack: hot chocolate

Adding More In - Wednesday

2011-12-21T21:47:00.001+11:00

This morning I tried out a different cardio machine at the gym - the treadclimber. It's like a cross between a stepper and a treadmill:

I could feel it in my glutes straight away and it got my heart rate up much faster than the treadmill usually does.

Did 40 minutes on that first thing this morning, followed by

Breakfast: crushed oat brits, lactose-free yoghurt, cinnamon and mixed berries

mid-morning: green tea

Lunch: salad with romaine lettuce, roma tomatoes, carrots, yellow capsicum, artichoke hearts, pistachios and canned tuna, dressed with lemon juice. Toast with avocado.

Snack: lactose-free yoghurt, cherries, walnuts and almonds. Green tea.

Dinner: leftover chicken and asparagus risotto with added spinach. Sliced red and yellow capsicum with salsa as dip.

Snack: hot chocolate

Adding More In - Tuesday

2011-12-20T22:31:00.000+11:00

Feeling LOTS better today. Rob even commented on how chirpy I was this morning.

Started the day with a green tea, then a walk with Rob and TJ.

Breakfast: oats, lactose-free yoghurt and cinnamon, topped with chopped plums off our tree

Lunch: dahl, salad with baby spinach, tomato, cucumber and sunflower seeds, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. Avocado on toast.

Snack: lactose-free yoghurt, peach, almonds, pecans

40-minute hill walk on treadmill

Dinner: salmon, mixed veg, sweet potato

Snack: hot chocolate

---

Got a head start on the Christmas food shopping today. Went to the Bertocchi factory shop (in Thomastown, Melbourne if anyone's interested) and got a leg of gluten-free ham, a cooked gluten-free turkey breast and a fillet of beef. A friend is dropping off a freshly caught snapper tomorrow.

At this stage we are planning to have a 'cold' lunch of ham and turkey and a 'hot' dinner of whole barbecued snapper and barbecue garlic beef fillet.

Adding More In - Monday

2011-12-19T23:55:00.001+11:00

My sore glands are gone but I'm still feeling quite tired. Today I've been focusing on adding more antioxidants into my diet.

My day started with walk with Rob and TJ, then

Breakfast: oats, lactose-free yoghurt, cinnamon, blackberries

Lunch: salad with romaine lettuce, grape tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, sunflower seeds, turkey and ham, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. Toast with avocado.

Snack: peach, hazelnuts

afternoon nap

Snack: peanut butter on oat toast, green tea

Dinner: chicken and asparagus risotto

Snack: 'hot chocolate' (lactose-free milk, cocoa, low GI sugar)

Lemon water throughout the day.

Exercise is poisoning my body

2011-12-15T11:35:00.001+11:00

I exercise because it's good for me, but it actually makes me feel sick.

When you exercise intensely, your body produces free radicals. I have a gene that causes a 50% increase in free radical production. Free radicals can attack and chemically alter DNA, and free radical damage can potentially lead to cardiovascular disease, chronic inflammation and accelerated ageing. Usually the body converts free radicals to non-harmful molecules, but my body lacks the required detoxification mechanisms to remove free radicals.

For the last six weeks I've been exercising regularly, mostly hill walks, pump classes or gym workouts. This week I've upped my hill walks to run/walks and replaced my weights workout with a high intensity circuit. How does my body reward me? Swollen glands and no energy.

I'm having the day off today, and am going to pick up some GliSODin tomorrow, which helps stimulate my body's defence against free radicals. And I'll have to keep a closer eye on what I'm eating to make sure I'm getting plenty of antioxidants, cruciferous veges etc to help combat those free radicals.

This happens to me every time I start exercising regularly. You think I would have learnt by now. Frustrating!!!

TM training days 1 and 2

2011-12-13T20:10:00.000+11:00

Yesterday I started training for the Tough Mudder obstacle course.

According to the website, I need to work up to runs of at least 8-10 km, be able to do 15-25 push-ups in a row, be able to bang out 6 pull-ups in a row, and be able to swim 45 metres without stopping.

At this stage I reckon the swimming wouldn't be a problem but I'm definitely going to have to work on everything else.

Yesterday I ran outside for time (40 minutes). Well, it was a run/walk actually. I'm just starting out slowly so I don't burn myself out (I'm good at doing that).

Today I did a modified version of a circuit suggested on the website. Each exercise is related to an obstacle on the course, and is done for 60 seconds with a max of 15 seconds rest in between:
- T push-ups
- single arm db swings
- forward lunges
- bent over db row
- db side lunge
- push up and row (renegade row)
- lunge and twist
- db squat and press
- push up (knees)
- mountain climbers
- assisted chin ups
- plank
- side plank
- dips
- squat with pause at bottom

As I get stronger and fitter I'll add more weight or change the exercise to a harder variation.

Cheeky!

2011-12-12T19:06:00.000+11:00

I was doing some cleaning this morning and heard a knock at the door. When I answered there was an older lady there. She said that she'd noticed we had some little yellow plums on the tree out the front of our house and would it be OK if she took some. I said that she was welcome to take some, thinking she would just take a couple of handfuls, and went back to my cleaning.

About five minutes later I noticed she was still out there, reaching over the neighbour's fence to get the ones she couldn't get from the footpath. A few minutes later I looked out again and she was still there, and then I noticed she had someone helping her and they both had plastic bags and were plucking plums as fast as they could. Then I realised there were hardly any plums left on the tree. At that stage I opened the window and said "Excuse me! I said 'some', not strip the tree bare!". They quickly gathered their things and left, and I stomped around the house for a few minutes afterwards, muttering about the cheek of some people.

Bah, humbug!

New Challenge

2011-12-11T14:47:00.000+11:00

Over the last few weeks I've been thinking about doing some sort of event next year. Vague thoughts of a marathon or half marathon have entered my head. Today Rob and I were at a friend's place and he was talking about doing a 20km obstacle course next year. He showed us the website and I started getting interested. It's on Sat 31st March and Sun 1st April, so I've got time to see how my body copes with the training.

Will start on Monday and report back!

Pumpkin Salad

2011-12-10T19:27:00.000+11:00

My favourite meal this week

Pumpkin Salad
Roasted butternut pumpkin, sliced spring onions, goat cheese and halved grape tomatoes, drizzled with balsamic vinegar.

Served with lamb chops and baked potato.

November on the Web

2011-11-29T17:40:00.001+11:00

Thought I'd do a round-up of my favourite blogs/posts for the month of November.

Desire to Inspire

As well as featuring great interior design, this blog also has a fun Monday's Pets on Furniture post featuring pics of readers' pets on their designer furniture. While a Parisian balcony doesn't technically count as furniture, this pic is beautiful nonetheless.

Desire to Inspire

Stonesoup
This blog usually feature recipes that contain 5 ingredients and can be made in minutes. A recent post on how to master the art of gift giving caught my eye. Here's a brief excerpt:
1. The gift of experiences
This includes things like tickets to a concerts or a show, vouchers for meals in restaurants, or offering to cook dinner for the recipient and their friends.

2. The gift of consumables
Mostly, this tends to be wine related. Champagne is always a winner, or a good bottle of red. It helps to know the favourite tipple of your recipient.

Flowers are another go-to when booze isn’t really appropriate.

3. The gift of something home made
It could be a favourite cake or pie. But more often than not it’s something with a longer shelf life like chilli oil (recipe below), preserved lemons, my homemade BBQ sauce, custom spice blends or infused oils. This year I’m planning on including little recipe cards with each gift to give ideas how to use each item.

The thing is, home made gifts are really personal. And in the age of cheap factory produced goods, the love that comes with a hand made gift makes all the difference.

Not to mention that it’s heaps of fun!

House of Turquoise
An interior-design blog featuring all things turquoise! It's a great source of inspiration, whether you're into turquoise or not. At the moment I'm still deciding on whether to do an island bench in our kitchen or just put our dining table there, like these pics that featured on the blog recently:

House of Turquoise

Love the bench seats and wingback chairs!

The Minimalists
In complete contrast, this blog has essays about minimalism and living a meaningful life with less stuff. A recent post called the UnAmerican Dream was thought-provoking:

The American Dream…
The white picket fence. The large suburban home. The nice car. The big-screen TVs glowing in multiple rooms. The safe, reasonable nine-to-five. The corner office. The suit and tie. The white collar pride. The blue collar pride. The weekends off. The paid holidays. The occasional vacation. The fringe benefits.

In exchange for…
The daily grind. The nose to the grindstone. The rush-hour traffic. The punching the clock. The cubical farms. The spreadsheet eyestrain. The much-anticipated lunch break. The inbox overflow. The arbitrary goals. The late nights at the office. The empty platitudes. The office gossip. The “productivity.” The downsizing. The “doing more with less.” The mounds of bills. The second job. The credit-card spending. The debt. The second mortgage. The beer gut. The mid-life crisis. The retirement at 65. The volatile stock market. The retirement at 67 or 72 or 75. The death before retirement. The unyielding tiredness. The emptiness. The depression. The unshakeable discontent.

You can keep your American Dream. Give us back our time, our freedom, and our lives.

Do you have any favourite blogs you'd like to share?

Lulu

2011-11-21T21:17:00.000+11:00

A couple of new items for my wardrobe:

Lululemon Let it Loose Tank and Turbo Run Short.

They're super comfy and I'll probably end up wearing them a lot on hot days.

My old shoulder injury was still a bit cranky today after 'posing' for this photo on Saturday (silly me) and it was a lovely evening out so I decided to do some fast walking/jogging instead of swimming.

Do you have a favourite brand of exercise gear?

Program or No Program?

2011-11-18T14:23:00.000+11:00

So this week I ventured back into the gym for the first time in a long time. On Tuesday I did lat pulldowns, seated rows and bicep curls. On Thursday I did bench press, shoulder press and tricep pushdowns. I expected to be sore afterwards. And I am. In my biceps, of all places. I can barely straighten my arms today (Friday).

What I most enjoyed about this week’s workouts was just going in and doing what I felt like, until I’d had enough, which ended up being about 4 sets of each exercise, in the 6-10 rep range.

Do you follow a training program, or just do what you feel like?

Recipe Books

2011-11-17T17:42:00.001+11:00

This week I've been working on two recipe books. Most of the week I've been proofreading a book on Street Food for Lonely Planet (which I think is due out in March next year). My days have been filled with food from around the world, including India, Malaysia, Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam. I was warned to 'eat a good breakfast before starting on this book - it will make you very hungry!'

Speaking of breakfast, today I've been editing a book full of breakfast recipes for another publishing company. Here are the recipes I've been reading today:
Blueberries and Yoghurt
Layered Fruit with Yoghurt and Bran
Bircher Muesli
Mango and Orange Smoothie
Poached Eggs on Toast
Fried Eggs and Bacon
Boiled Eggs and Black Pudding
Creamy Scrambled Eggs
French Toast with Strawberries
Sausages and Grilled Tomato
Breakfast Mushrooms
Breakfast Feast
Asparagus Omelette
Basil and Feta Omelette
Fluffy Omelette
Vegetable Frittata
Pan Frittata
Smoked Salmon Bagel
Skinny Eggs and Ham on Bagels
Bacon and Egg Melt
Bacon, Avocado and Cheese Melt
Ham and Mushroom Melt
Baked Bean Muffin
Avocado, Spinach and Tomato Wrap
Chocolate Hot Cakes with Raspberry Coulis
Cinnamon Pancakes
Buckwheat Pancakes
Hazelnut Pancakes with Strawberries
Jumbo Pancakes with Blackberries and Honey
Chocolate Breakfast Waffles with Maple Pears
Waffles with Grilled Banana

Yum!

Have you got a favourite recipe book? If so, what is it?

Morning or Evening?

2011-11-16T17:28:00.000+11:00

So far this week I've managed to fit in a swim (Monday) and a back & biceps workout (Tuesday) and am planning on another swim today. All in the evening. After being at work all day. A few months ago it wouldn't have happened. I'd either do something in the morning or not at all. I'm not sure if it's the extra light at night, or having more energy from the B vitamins I started taking again on Monday, but it's nice to 'want' to exercise again. And I've noticed that I'm not super hungry all day like I usually am after exercising in the morning. Instead I exercise in the evening, have dinner and a hot chocolate then toddle off to bed.

Do you prefer exercising in the morning or evening?

Splish Splash

2011-11-14T22:18:00.003+11:00

I got up too late to go swimming this morning, but was still feeling keen this afternoon so after arriving home I gobbled a banana and a few nuts, did a couple of things around the house then headed off for my swim. Go me!

Don't know if I'll go at that time again though - between the kids playing on one side and the swim lessons on the other side, there were only two lanes in the middle for swimming laps, and one of those ended up with overflow from the swimming lessons, so all the lap swimmers ended up squashed in one lane. Luckily we were all pretty slow so weren't on each others heels. I didn't appreciate sucking in splashes of water from the 'play' side every time I took a breath though.

Have started taking my vitamin B tablets again last night after a six-month break from all supplements (including protein powder). It's the only thing I really felt I was missing. I've been a bit depressed lately, and I know including vitamin B supplements always helps with that. I've been feeling a lot more relaxed and energetic today (hence the willingness to go swimming this evening).

We are getting our hot water cylinder replaced on Thursday (our electric one stopped working and we are switching over to gas). Looking forward to having hot water in the house again!

Location, Location

2011-11-11T15:47:00.001+11:00

One of the main reasons we bought our house was its proximity to things: train station, shops, library, recreation centre and parks. It does mean we get a bit of road noise but at the moment I'm loving being able to get up in the morning, put on my togs, cover up with a hoodie and towel, slip on my jandals (flip-flops), then walk to the end of our street, cross the road, enter the recreation centre, hop in the pool and start swimming. When I'm done, I cover up with the hoodie and towel and walk home again.

It's a nice way to start the day - and it doesn't really feel like exercising, even though my heart rate gets up there!

Does exercise feel like a chore to you? What activity wouldn't/doesn't feel like a chore?

Hearth

2011-11-04T01:25:00.000+11:00

Yes, I think a black hearth will work. Something like this

Hecker Guthrie Interiors via Desire to Inspire

Fireplace

2011-11-01T16:19:00.000+11:00

I was planning to do some gardening this weekend but it was a bit wet out so decided to do something indoors instead.

When we bought this house it was painted with a lot of browns and greens, and I'm slowly trying to lighten things up. This weekend I attacked the fireplace area.

Before, with taupe walls and brown fireplace surround

After, with cream walls and white fireplace surround

I'm still undecided about the little bit in front of the fireplace. I'm reluctant to paint it white because it'll be too hard to keep clean, but I don't think I want to leave it brown. Might get a sample pot of some black paint to try.

Home Office ideas

2011-10-28T19:19:00.000+11:00

I'm spending more time working from home at the moment and I'm bored with my bland little office under the stairs.

I spotted a pic today that I liked the look of:

Elle Decor

It's got wooden floorboards like I have, and I like the idea of the glass-topped desk - it seems to take up less space. TJ could stretch out on the couch while I'm working (at the moment he jams himself under my desk), although the couch would have to be leather - I'm over getting dog fur off fabric. The window is in the same spot as the window in my office, but to suit the orientation of my space (ie avoid cracking my head on the stairs when I get up from the desk), I'd probably lay the furniture out like this

Not very practical (no storage!) but pretty all the same.

Southern Italy

2011-10-27T10:01:00.000+11:00

I'm proofreading a book about Southern Italy at the moment and it's bringing back lots of memories of my trip there in 1998 - can't believe it was that long ago! My sister, her partner and I stayed in Sorrento (south of Naples)

Hotel Loreley, Sorrento

From Sorrento we did day trips to Pompeii and Mt Vesuvius, the island of Capri, and down the Amalfi Coast to Positano.

I studied archaeology at university (among other things) so enjoyed visiting the excavations of the town of Pompeii, which was buried under a layer of burning pumice stone when Mt Vesuvius erupted. After that we trekked up Mt Vesuvius to look down into its crater.

On Capri we had a fantastic pizza with lots of fresh garlic, and insalata caprese, a salad of fresh tomato, basil and mozzarella bathed in olive oil.

My sister and her partner at lunch

The chairlift to Capri's highest point, Monte Solaro (589m), wasn't operating the day we were there, so we decided to walk up. The views were worth it!

My sister and I at the top

Positano was very picturesque, but there's no sand on that beach, just pebbles!

Hmm, I can feel the travel bug coming back again!

How I Drink Enough Water

2011-10-26T09:31:00.000+11:00

I've posted several times about my efforts to drink enough water. I've always been terrible at it, to the point I'd end up dehydrated with a headache. Water just doesn't interest me, unless I'm exercising or really hot. I've tried giving myself a 'target' of a certain amount of water to drink a day, but I usually end up with a whole lot of water to drink just before I go to bed - not ideal! I've also tried drinking water with slices of lemon or lime or even mint in it, but the novelty wears off pretty quickly.

What I've been doing lately is a bit unusual, but it's been working for me. When I was doing a lot of interval training I bought a Gymboss timer

Instead of using the timer for intervals, I'm currently using it as a buzzer to remind myself to drink water. Every 15 minutes it goes off and I have a sip of water. I've been doing it for a couple of months now, and I've actually started to anticipate when it's time to drink - my mouth starts to get a bit dry just before the 15 minutes is up! My hydration levels are much better, my hair isn't as dry and my skin is softer.

Functional Leg Training

2011-10-25T11:06:00.000+11:00

Take one section of garden filled with weeds and rocks. Spend most of Sunday afternoon squatting down to pull out weeds and pick up rocks and carry them to the back gate

Set up a string line, then dig along it and place bricks to create a border. Dig holes and start planting lavender and seaside daisies.

Collapse in a heap with a quarter of the garden bed to go. Have a couple of well-deserved gin and tonics while admiring my handiwork.

Wake up on Monday and Tuesday feeling stiff and sore like I'd done a leg workout.

Hope to be blogging a bit more frequently from now on!

Crockpot Menu

2011-09-04T20:54:00.000+10:00

With the job I'm doing at the moment, it's at least 10 hours from the time I leave the house until the time I get home again, and the last thing I feel like doing when I get home is cooking. Last week I tried putting something in the crockpot before leaving work, so when I got home I was able to dish myself up something straight away. It worked pretty well, so I'm doing the same again this week. Here's what's on this week's menu:
- "Roast" Whole Chicken with a Spicy Paprika Rub
- Devilled Sausages
- Spicy Lamb Shanks
- Beef Stew
- Pork Chops with Peaches

Relaxing Weekend

2011-08-29T23:24:00.001+10:00

I've been doing some really long hours lately so it was nice to get out of the house over the weekend and visit our old neighbours for a barbecue on Saturday. We took TJ along and he enjoyed catching up with his friends too. Here he is with Angel (the greyhound) and Ollie and Zoe (the west highland terriers):

We ended up staying the night and went out for breakfast in the morning. On the way home we picked up some sample tiles for our splashbacks. We chose a couple of different colours to try (white on the left in the pic below; cream on the right) and a few different sizes:

Our rangehood is being installed on Friday so am looking forward to having that done.

A Year without TV

2011-08-20T19:31:00.000+10:00

We moved into this house a year ago. The TV aerial connection was old and we weren’t able to receive a signal through it. We could have arranged to have it upgraded, but we decided not to bother. Instead, we’ve been watching DVDs from the local video store or library, or borrowing movies from friends. Rob bought the entire collection of M*A*S*H and watched every season; he’s just starting watching it for the second time.

I haven’t missed TV at all - I used to get sucked in by reality TV shows (especially on the Lifestyle channel) and would stay up watching them when I should have been sleeping. Rob has missed watching sport a bit and has been making noises about getting Foxtel connected for the rugby world cup. We’ll see, but it’s been great to know that we can manage without it.

Laundry Organisation

2011-08-14T19:46:00.000+10:00

We have a tiny laundry and one laundry hamper for all of our dirty clothes. I got sick of emptying it out and sorting the laundry into piles on the floor before washing, so today I tidied up our laundry cupboard and put in some containers to pre-sort the dirty laundry:

(the bottom shelf is just temporary until I can get a piece of timber cut to size)

So now we have a tub for whites, one for towels, one for dark work clothes and one for dark 'home' clothes, which inevitably get covered in fur, especially when your dog likes to get this close to you:

Eight Weeks!

2011-08-05T16:39:00.000+10:00

That's how long it's taken to get our new oven handle replaced and our kitchen wiring finished off.

The oven handle was delivered with a dent in it, so I asked for a replacement one. I rang last week to find out what was taking so long and it turns out the guy I was dealing with doesn't work at the store any more. I spoke to someone else at the store and ended up having a new oven handle fitted in the middle of this week.

I also got sick of being put off by the electrician who started our kitchen wiring eight weeks ago. He didn't return my phone call earlier in the week, so last night I rang another electrician, who came out this afternoon and finished off all the above-bench powerpoints, and the powerpoints for the dishwasher, rangehood and oven. So we've had a new oven sitting in our kitchen for eight weeks with a bent handle and no power. I'm so looking forward to using it this weekend! And now we can get the rangehood installed and have the splashback done. Yay!

Related Posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out
Taking the Rangehood Out
Recent Work on the Kitchen
Slowly Coming Together
Delivery Damage, Plumbing & Heating
Wiring, Plasterboard and Benchtops
Plumbing Complete
Painting Started

Shopping Day

2011-07-23T17:10:00.000+10:00

Here's what I've come up with for dinners for the coming week. Bit of a curry-fest!

- chicken coq au vin, mashed potato, beans
- grilled lamb rump, baked potato, peas and carrots
- pumpkin, chickpea and banana curry, rice
- Thai red curry with chickpeas, pumpkin, broccoli, capsicum, mushrooms, bok choy & rice
- Thai green curry with fish, zucchini, capsicum, green beans & rice

Experiment in Exercise Minimalism

2011-07-21T12:04:00.000+10:00

I haven't done a lot of exercise lately, what with the kitchen renovation, being busy with work, injuring my lower back, then getting sick. In fact, it's been about two months since my last gym session (although we walk TJ every day). The last week or so I've been thinking about going back to the gym but wasn't sure about how to fit it in, so when I read this post about Exercise Minimalism, I thought it would be a good place to start: 32 minutes a week - I can fit that in! So after walking TJ this morning I headed for the gym and busted out five rounds of close-grip press-ups, inverted rows and kettlebell swings. My upper body is feeling it now, but I'm glad I've done something!

Five Meals

2011-07-17T15:42:00.000+10:00

On Saturday I did something I haven't done for ages - planned the coming week's meals in advance. I'm trying to eat more legumes and fish for dinner, so I chose a few of my favourites plus something new I wanted to try (the fish cakes). Here are the meals I've planned for Sunday to Thursday (in no particular order):

- roast, sweet potato, veges
- Thai fish cakes, rice, cucumber salad
- Moroccan chickpea and pumpkin stew on rice
- salmon stir-fry, rice
- chilli beans and rice

Looking forward to these!

Clothes Shopping

2011-07-08T21:09:00.001+10:00

Thought I'd post something else apart from the kitchen renovation :-)

I very rarely go clothes shopping. The last time was probably at the end of April last year when I did my winter clothes shopping, and got 10 items for $83 at my local op shops. Recently I was inspired by this pic I found on the Herringbone website:

Their retail prices are a bit too pricey for me, so my eBay shopping began:

Total for 5 items: $148.50 (not including postage).

Now I just need some new shoes...

Cold Prevention

2011-06-30T11:21:00.001+10:00

I haven't had a cold so far this year *touch wood*, but I've come close a few times. When I start getting a scratchy throat, like I did yesterday, I do two things: megadose on vitamins, and have a spicy stir-fry.

Vitamins
I don't take any vitamins at the moment, but if I do feel a cold coming on, I immediately start taking Cenovis Echinacea, Garlic, Zinc & C

source
I usually take two with each meal (approx six per day) for two to three days after I start feeling yucky. Apparently if echinacea is taken at the onset of a cold it can help reduce the cold's duration - works for me!

Spicy Stir-fry
My meal of choice is a Thai basil beef and chilli stir-fry. It all started about five years ago when I was feeling unwell and not up to making dinner. I bought a basil beef stir-fry from our local Thai takeaway, and the chilli and onions helped to clear out my sinuses. Since then I often make one when I start to feel a bit sinus-y. The last couple of times I've used Marion's Kitchen Thai Basil & Chilli Stir-fry meal base. The first time I made it according to the instructions on the packet (with red capsicum and beans as my vegetables), but found that the meat needed longer cooking time than 1 minute at the end of the stir-fry process (although I am cooking with an electric frypan at the moment) and it came out quite tough as a result. Last night I cooked the meat as I usually would for a stir-fry: browned it in batches at the start of cooking, removed it from the pan while cooking the other ingredients, then returned the meat to the pan when everything else was nearly ready. Much better!

And I'm feeling fine again today.

Do you do anything special to prevent a cold?

Painting Started

2011-06-26T17:15:00.000+10:00

The electrician still hasn't come back to finish off the wiring (which means no oven or cooktop). Luckily we still have two working powerpoints in the kitchen so the electric frying pan and microwave have been getting a good workout. Rob has been making our espresso coffee on the wok burner on the BBQ.

In the meantime, I decided to make a start on the painting. You might remember that we originally had one green wall in the kitchen, with the adjoining wall a 'taupe' colour

Way back in April I put some prepcoat on the green wall as I was planning to paint it a lighter colour. This weekend I finally got around to painting the walls at that end of the kitchen. The first pic below was taken Saturday afternoon, with painters tape applied to the cornices so I didn't colour outside the lines. The second pic was taken on Sunday afternoon after the second coat of Dulux Clotted Cream.

The paint was still wet when I took the second pic, so it looks a bit patchy. It should look better once it's dry. I haven't painted below the windowsill as the splashback will cover that area. Speaking of windowsills, that's next on the list to paint.

Related Posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out
Taking the Rangehood Out
Recent Work on the Kitchen
Slowly Coming Together
Delivery Damage, Plumbing & Heating
Wiring, Plasterboard and Benchtops
Plumbing Complete

Plumbing Complete

2011-06-13T18:46:00.000+10:00

We have running water again in the kitchen - yay! The novelty of washing dishes in our teeny tiny laundry wore off pretty quickly.

So here's our new sink and tap. The sink is a Domsjo from Ikea. The Aquaport tap has a lever on the left side for filtered water, and a lever on the right side for regular hot and cold water

The dishwasher and gas cooktop have been plumbed in too but won't be operational until the electrician does his bit.

Related Posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out
Taking the Rangehood Out
Recent Work on the Kitchen
Slowly Coming Together
Delivery Damage, Plumbing & Heating
Wiring, Plasterboard and Benchtops

Wiring, Plasterboard and Benchtops

2011-06-11T19:30:00.000+10:00

Edited to add a pic of our new benchtops

On Thursday I finally ordered our new rangehood

The electrician also came in and disconected our old oven, put in wiring for the dishwasher and rangehood, and added wiring for a couple of new power points. We now have little holes all over our kitchen...

We discovered that area behind the old splashback was held together by...
masking tape

No plasterboard, just masking tape then the exterior brickwork. At this stage I realised I didn't have the time or resources to put in new plasterboard before Stuart came to install our benchtops, so I rang him and asked him if he would be able to put in some new plasterboard for us as well (he is a carpenter by trade). He agreed, so in the meantime I began fixing cabinets to the wall that had good plasterboard.

This morning Stuart came and took out the rotten board and masking tape and put in new plasterboard

Once that was done he modified the sink cabinet to fit our new sink, fixed the remaining cabinets to the new plasterboard and installed the wooden benchtops he made for us.

No Exercise = No Appetite

2011-06-09T19:59:00.000+10:00

I've been doing a lot of nothing since hurting my lower back. And as a result my appetite has significantly reduced. I'm not really interested in eating anything first thing in the morning, start to get hungry around lunchtime (have mostly been having soup as it's so cold here at the moment), then eat a regular dinner (spaghetti bolognese has featured a lot lately). I might have a snack in the afternoon or before bed, but that's about it. Rob commented yesterday that I looked like I'd lost weight, so this morning I got the scales out to see if he was right.

For about two years now I've been exercising regularly and usually eating pretty carefully (but way more than what I'm eating at the moment) and my weight has hovered around the 62-63kg mark.

I haven't done any exercise since Saturday (today was the first time I ventured out of the house) and haven't 'worried' about what I've eaten - I had a baked potato with butter before going to bed last night because that's what I felt like.

So what was the number staring back at me this morning? 59.7kg. Huh.

Delivery Damage, Plumbing & Heating

2011-06-08T18:26:00.000+10:00

Delivery Damage
When our dishwasher was delivered I got the delivery guy to take the packaging off and take it with him. I'm not sure why I didn't do that when our new oven was delivered yesterday, but I wish I had. When I opened the box, here is the sight that greeted me:

The handle didn't look quite right, so I took a closer look:

Yep, a bent handle! I wrapped the box back around the oven and there it was, a ding in the packaging where the damage must have occurred:

Luckily it's just the handle that's damaged, so I'm waiting to hear back if I can get a replacement one.

Plumbing
We have been living with the sink like this for a while now

Today the plumber came in and took the old sink and tap out.

He then moved the plumbing slightly to the right in preparation for the new sink and tap

There's a bit of plasterboard there that's going to need replacing

Another skill for me to learn, LOL.

Heating
The plumber also moved the kitchen's gas ducted heating vent, which was sitting where we want our new cabinets to go.

Before, in the floor

After, in a new kickboard, which will have new cabinets sitting on top.

Tomorrow the electrician is coming (fingers crossed!)

Related Posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out
Taking the Rangehood Out
Recent Work on the Kitchen
Slowly Coming Together

Frustrated

2011-06-07T14:53:00.000+10:00

Warning: negative post ahead

I was feeling pretty happy on Friday last week. I finished an in-house contract job and was looking forward to having this week off while the tradies did their stuff in the kitchen.

On Saturday I injured my lower back. You know when you see someone on TV bend over then can't straighten up again? That was me - I bent over to pick up my socks and my back froze. I'd been doing far too much sitting (train travel, lunch breaks in front of the computer etc) and one of my lumbar discs decided to 'derrange' itself. I can't move much without feeling sore, tired or nauseous, so I've been lying on the couch watching lots of movies.

So far this week two of the tradies didn't turn up when they said they were going to so I've had to rearrange everyone else as each bit of work is dependant on what has gone before.

Today our new oven was delivered. The handle for the oven door is bent. Sigh.

Slowly Coming Together

2011-05-27T15:45:00.000+10:00

Monday
Ordered our new oven

LG 600mm freestanding electric oven with gas cooktop

Tuesday
Our new dishwasher was delivered

Bosch, from Appliances Online

Wednesday
Lined up plumber, electrician and benchtop installation for week starting 6 June.

Thursday
Our new tap was delivered

Aquaport tap with built-in filter

Friday
In contact with draftsman about drawing up plans for the permit to take out a structural wall (I should have done this earlier).

Saturday
The ducted heating vent in our kitchen is being moved.

Related Posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out
Taking the Rangehood Out
Recent Work on the Kitchen

SKINS A400 Review

2011-05-23T00:40:00.008+10:00

A while back the people at SKINS sent me some gear to try out.

SKINS A400 Women's Compression 3/4 Tights

I trained for one week with without them, choosing three non-consecutive sessions I knew would give my legs grief:
1. a full-body weights session including pull throughs and split squats (12-rep sets)
2. a full-body weights session including squats and Romanian deadlifts (12-rep sets)
3. a 45-minute run including hills

Straight after doing my first weights session my glutes felt shaky. Twelve hours after I could start to feel DOMs in my hamstrings. Twenty-four hours after, DOMs had well and truly set in to my hamstrings, which ‘grabbed’ every time I moved. Forty-eight hours after I still had DOMs and it was time to train again. The second session didn't seem to have as much effect, possibly because the exercises were a similar style to the ones I had done in the first session and my muscles had adapted already.

The run hurt in a different way - tiredness in my quads and calves afterwards, then painful aching in my quads the next day. In a way, this was worse than the pain in my hamstrings, because they ached constantly, whether I moved or not.

I had a break from training for a couple of weeks while I was renovating, then I replicated the training sessions wearing the SKINS A400 Women's Compression 3/4 Tights.

After not training for a couple of weeks, I expected to feel similar effects from my weight-training sessions. Indeed, straight after doing my first weights session my glutes felt shaky. I decided to wear the tights for the rest of the day after training. Twelve hours after I could start to feel DOMs in my hamstrings. I decided to sleep in the tights. Twenty-four hours after, the DOMs in my hamstrings was only marginally worse, and forty-eight hours after it had diminished and I was ready to train again. So an improvement on the results without the tights. Once again, the second session didn't seem to have as much effect.

The run was where I noticed the biggest difference though. My legs didn’t tire as quickly, and even though I got changed out of the tights straight after my run, my legs didn’t feel as tired after the run as they did in the session without the tights. They next day there was no painful aching in my quads. One of the first things I noticed when putting the tights on was that they were quite firm around the knees, and I think that this compression effect made a big difference in helping my legs during and after the run.

I’ve worn the compression tights several times since for my runs, and would be happy to recommend them to others for the same purpose.

Recent Work on the Kitchen

2011-05-22T23:24:00.000+10:00

Taking the skirting boards out where some of the new cabinets are going to go (the ducted heating vent will be moved)

Sanding and painting the timber kickboards that are going under the cabinets (the plan is timber floorboards, Dulux Antique White USA kickboards and cabinets, and timber benchtops)

A Cockatoo Enjoying Our Apples

2011-05-22T23:00:00.000+10:00

Awesome Weekend

2011-05-17T22:55:00.000+10:00

Some of the food we ate over the weekend

back left: piquillo pepper stuffed with tuna salad, fetta salsa
back right: spanish chorizo manolete, guernica peppers
front: ceviche of yellow tail kingfish, orange blossom, lime

grilled octopus, soya marinated scallops, pork crumble, olive oil puree

slow roasted lamb shoulder, israeli couscous salad

Chilled new season pea soup with spanner crab, blood orange and salmon caviar

Scallop 'pasta', jamon and finger lime

Marron, witlof and vanilla

Caramelised black kingfish, braised pork belly ravioli, shimeji mushrooms and parsnip puree

Baked aged Gympie goat's cheese, brioche and local figs

I particularly liked the ceviche of king fish and the soy marinated scallops (so tender), the israeli couscous (bigger and rounder than normal couscous - great texture), the pea soup (the crab in it was nice but I loved the pop of the caviar), the marron (freshwater crayfish, which I hadn't tried before - it has a similar texture to a balmain bug), the parsnip puree (I'm going to try replicating this at home) and the goat's cheese and figs (great combination).

Happy Anniversary!

2011-05-13T02:34:00.000+10:00

Just finished editing a 120,000-word chapter on Sydney and New South Wales for Lonely Planet. I am taking a well-deserved four-day weekend with my hubby to celebrate our anniversary. We have been together 17 years today. We got married on our 10-year anniversary.

Pics: Thurtell Photography

Back in Business!

2011-05-05T22:40:00.000+10:00

Had a bit of drama on Monday morning. Turned on my laptop and it wouldn't do anything. Turns out my hard drive was damaged (don't know how, as it was working fine on Sunday night). I had a couple of days of panic as I had been a bit lax in backing files up recently and was worried about losing 19 hours of work (that I REALLY didn't want to have to do again) and a few months' worth of photos. Luckily the tech guy at the shop I bought the laptop from was able to recover all my files, and then replaced the hard drive. Big PHEW!

Now I have about four days' worth of work to catch up on...

And just to be on the safe side, I've bought an HP Simple Save external hard drive for my laptop - it just plugs in via a USB and automatically backs up my files any time my computer is idle for more than five minutes.

Taking the Rangehood Out

2011-04-27T13:29:00.000+10:00

Hope you had a great Easter!

Here's a quick recap of what I've been up to...

Getting quotes for our benchtops
We decided on Tasmanian Oak. Click here to see some examples.

Going out to Movida Aqui for our birthday
The highlight was our entree of slowly braised beef cheek in Pedro Ximenez on cauliflower puree - it was melt-in-the-mouth tender and absolutely delicious.

Here's a pic of our main, Paella de Marisco (Bomba rice cooked with seafood and saffron):

Taking the rangehood and splashbacks out
Before

After

All of the old cabinets are out now, apart from the area around the sink, but that is going to wait until the benchtops are nearly ready (in about three weeks). The old sink will come out, the plumbing will be moved, the new sink cabinet will go in, the benchtop will go in, then the new sink will go in and be reconnected.

Ripping the kitchen out has been my 'weight training' lately, but I've been doing some sort of cardio at the gym Monday to Friday.

Related posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer
Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinets - tick
Preparing for New Kitchen Colour
Test Colour
Taking the Breakfast Bar Out
Taking the Pantry Out

Taking the Pantry Out

2011-04-13T22:12:00.001+10:00

I went to the gym a bit later this morning, so my 45-minute treadmill session went uncommented on - thank goodness!

Today I attacked the other side of the kitchen, taking out a base cabinet and wall cabinet, the cupboards over the fridge, and the pantry (to the right of the fridge).

Before

After

It's tiring work!

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Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
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Taking the Breakfast Bar Out

Taking the Breakfast Bar Out

2011-04-12T18:05:00.001+10:00

This morning I did some incline walking on the treadmill at the gym. There is a 20-minute time limit on the equipment, and most of the equipment is set up so that it automatically times out after 20 minutes. If it's quiet in the gym and I want to use something for longer than 20 minutes, I usually restart the machine at the 20-minute mark and keep going.

Today I used a treadmill I hadn't been on before and it didn't time out after 20 minutes. There was another other treadmill free, so I decided to keep going on the one I was on, since there no-one was waiting to use a machine. After I had been going for 37 minutes I heard the woman on the treadmill behind me get off, walk up behind me (to see what my console display said), then go back to her machine. Then I heard the muttering begin: 'Thiry-seven minutes! Grumble, grumble. Thiry-seven minutes! Grumble, grumble'. I couldn't make out exactly what she was saying, but I could gather she wasn't happy about the amount of time I was spending on treadmill. I couldn't work out why, since she was on a treadmill, and there were other machines free.

I finished up at 45 minutes, then spent a couple of minutes cooling down before jumping off. As I walked away I could hear the woman saying 'Forty-seven minutes! Grumble, grumble. Forty-seven minutes! Grumble, grumble'.

I stretched quickly and left the gym, but it wasn't a great start to my day to (literally) have someone talking about me behind my back. And this from a woman who runs on the treadmill while holding onto the console.

Any suggestions about what to do if she does it again?

---

Before the new kitchen cabinets can go in, the old ones have to come out. I have this week off work so today I took out the breakfast bar and surrounding cabinets.

Before

After

I will call the plumber tomorrow about getting the pipes capped so I can take out the sink and remaining cabinets.

Related posts
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Cabinets - tick
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Test Colour

2011-04-11T13:51:00.001+10:00

It's been a while since I last posted. In addition to working, I've been:

Painting
original kitchen wall colour

undercoat 1

undercoat 2

test colour (Dulux Clotted Cream)

I think this will be a nice, light, warm colour when it's applied to the whole wall.

Moving
We hired a truck and collected our second-hand kitchen cabinets. I now have a giant jigsaw sitting in our garage

Shopping
We bought Domsjo double bowl sink from Ikea for our kitchen.

Training
The people at SKINS sent me some gear to try out.

SKINS A400 Women's Compression 3/4 Tights

I started a new program last week and trained without the SKINS tights. This week I'll do the same workouts while wearing the SKINS tights, then write up a review.

Food for Thought

2011-04-02T20:35:00.000+11:00

"Food is to be enjoyed – all food – there’s no single food that one needs to feel guilty about eating. What matters is how much you eat and how often. There are many ways to achieve balance, and how you do it is your own choice."
(Dr Penny Small, The Food Lover's Diet)

Preparing for New Kitchen Colour

2011-03-28T09:32:00.001+11:00

After a busy week of training and travel, I had a big sleep-in on Saturday and spent most of the day reading. TJ was happy to relax too:

I woke up on Sunday feeling refreshed so decided to tackle one of our kitchen walls. At the moment it's green, and I think it's making the room appear smaller and darker than it actually is.

The paint had been applied with cross hatching to create a suede effect, so I first had to sand the paint back so that the surface was even. I used this handy little corner sander that I picked up from Bunnings for $20.

After sanding, I wiped down the walls with a Sugar Soap solution, then filled in some nail holes with Spakfilla. After it had set, I sanded over the filled holes and dusted the area clean.

Then it was time to apply an undercoat. Because I want to use a lighter colour paint on the wall, I needed to apply an undercoat to cover up the green.

I did one coat on the wall, but there is still green showing through, so I will do another coat next weekend, then try out some test colours.

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Life Lessons from TJ

2011-03-24T09:00:00.009+11:00

Julie recently posted about things she's learned from her dog. I thought it was a great idea and wanted to do something similar.

So, here are life lessons from TJ:

Turn your back on the scales

Exercise regularly

Eat healthy food

Along with a few treats

Sleep as much as you can

Value your friendships

Spend quality time with your loved ones

And enjoy everything life has to offer

Have you learned anything from a pet?

Treadmill Workout - Hills

2011-03-23T09:00:00.002+11:00

Thought I'd share my favourite treadmill workout. It's a great one if you like hill walking.

Charlotte's Favourite Treadmill Workout
20 min +, medium intensity, long intervals

Walk on the treadmill at a brisk pace (almost hard to maintain). Each minute, increase your incline by 1% until you hit your max (at least 8%). Stay there for 2 min, then decrease by the same increments. Stay on the flat for 2 min and recover. Start again and repeat until you run out of time.

For example:
Start, incline 0
at 1:00, increase incline to 1
at 2:00, increase incline to 2
at 3:00, increase incline to 3
at 4:00, increase incline to 4
at 5:00, increase incline to 5
at 6:00, increase incline to 6
at 7:00, increase incline to 7
at 8:00, increase incline to 8
at 9:00, increase incline to 9
at 10:00, stay at 9
at 11:00, decrease incline to 8
at 12:00, decrease incline to 7
at 13:00, dcrease incline to 6
at 14:00, decrease incline to 5
at 15:00, decrease incline to 4
at 16:00, decrease incline to 3
at 17:00, decrease incline to 2
at 18.00, decrease incline to 1
at 19:00, decrease incline to 0
at 20:00, stay at 0
at 21:00, increase incline to 1 and repeat

If you give it a go, let me know what you think!

Do you have a favourite treadmill workout you'd be willing to share?

New Shoes

2011-03-22T09:00:00.005+11:00

It was an expensive weekend. In addition to kitchen cabinets, I also bought a new pair of Brooks running shoes. My favourites are Brooks Inspire, but unfortunately they are no longer being made. I've worn them to death but it was finally time to try something else, so on Saturday I went into the Brooks outlet store in Smith St, Collingwood and came home with a pair of Brooks Adrenaline.

Old Brooks Inspire

New Brooks Adrenaline

TJ doesn't care what shoes I wear - he just wants to walk!

Cabinets - tick

2011-03-21T09:00:00.003+11:00

A couple of weeks ago I posted about our plans to buy second-hand kitchen cabinets for our kitchen renovation.

I'm excited to say that over the weekend we bought some cabinets via eBay. Here are some pics. We just bought the cabinets, not the benchtops, sink or any of the appliances.

They are solid timber cabinets that have been painted white. If I find the white is too hard to keep clean, at least I'll be able to sand the cabinets back or paint them a different colour. The cabinets are modular, so the layout can be reconfigured to suit our kitchen, which is more of a galley style. The kitchen will be taken apart for us, so we just have to pick it up (in a couple of weeks). All for the princely sum of $600. Gotta love eBay.

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What does your day look like?

2011-03-18T11:07:00.000+11:00

In this post, Skwigg asks 'Suppose all of your goals are already achieved. You're in your happy weight range, eating your preferred way, looking great, exercising regularly but not excessively. What does your day look like? What do you wear? What's for breakfast? Do you workout?'

For me that day would look something like this:

On rising: weights/cardio at gym followed by a walk with TJ and Rob

Breakfast: oats, fruit and yoghurt

Work from home, in smart active wear

pic from Ads of the World

Morning tea: fruit toast, coffee

Lunchtime: walk to bakery to get a cape seed roll for my lunch. Fill it with avocado, smoked chicken, tomato, cucumber, alfalfa, lettuce. Follow it up with some fruit.

Afternoon tea: mix of sunflower seeds, almonds, flax seeds, yoghurt, raisins and grated apple

Dinner: marinated salmon skewers, rice, steamed veges

Supper: hot chocolate

I'd love to read about your ideal healthy day.

Workout of the Week

2011-03-16T14:40:00.000+11:00

Rob is just getting over a cold. I've been fighting it off the last few days and while it hasn't come to anything yet (*touch wood*), I felt worn out after doing my warm-up yesterday, so decided to avoid the super sets and giant sets I've been doing lately in favour of straight sets.

Not-feeling-well Workout
rest 1-2 minutes between all sets
Chest press, 2 sets of 15 reps
Lat pulldown, 2 sets of 15 reps
Shoulder press, 2 sets of 15 reps
Stationery lunges, 2 sets of 15 reps (per leg)
Step-ups, 2 sets of 15 reps (per leg)
Crunches, 2 sets of 15 reps
Alternate leg/arm raise, 2 sets of 15 reps.

I can feel my glutes today, so I know that my workout was effective, even if it was short and sweet.

Do you workout if you are sick or feel like you are coming down with something?

Quick Barley & Oats review

2011-03-14T16:20:00.000+11:00

Goodness Superfoods have recently put out a new range of cereals, including this barley and oats porridge

The packaging says it has 75% more fibre and 85% more beta-glucans than just oats (beta-glucans help lower cholesterol reabsorption) so I was keen to see what it was like.

The ingredients are Wholegrain Rolled Barley Flakes (51%) and Wholegrain Rolled Oat Flakes (49%). You can see the darker barley flakes mixed in with the oats

The cereal is quick-cooking, and only took about 4 minutes in our microwave.

I topped it with yoghurt

and peaches with banana & mango puree

Breakfast is ready!

The barley adds a slightly different flavour to the oats but it's hardly noticeable, especially when it's topped with cold, creamy yoghurt and sweet fruit

And it's definitely more filling than oats - bonus!

Win a Trip to Mexico to Take Photos for Lonely Planet

2011-03-11T11:24:00.001+11:00

Like taking photos?
Like to travel?

Lonely Planet and Corona are currently running a photo competition. Just submit your best shot from where you’d rather be, and you could be in the running to win a trip to Mexico to take photos for the next edition of the Lonely Planet Mexico travel guide. Click here for details.

pic from Corona

Gluten-Free Gnocchi

2011-03-10T21:30:00.001+11:00

I was checking out the health-food section of Woolworths on Sunday and spotted a new product: gluten-free gnocchi. I really like gnocchi but don't bother making it at home as Rob (who is gluten intolerant) can't eat it. So when I saw the gluten-free gnocchi I couldn't resist putting it in my shopping trolley

I was going to pick up some meat for dinner on the way home tonight, but as I was walking into the supermarket I remembered that we had a packet of gnocchi in the pantry, and a little bit of bacon in the freezer, so I gave the meat section a miss and went to the cheese section instead to pick up some gorgonzola cheese. One of my favourite ways to have gnocchi is with gorgonzola sauce.

Gluten-Free Gnocchi with Gorgonzola Sauce
Makes 2 (large) serves

When I got home I defrosted the four slices of lean bacon and put a large pot of water on to boil.

I put a non-stick pan on the stove on medium heat and gave it a little spray of oil. While the pan was heating, I sliced the bacon thinly, then added it to the pan.

Once the bacon was lightly cooked, I added a cup of skim milk to the pan, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. In the meantime, I put a tablespoon of arrowroot (a gluten-free thickener) in the cup I measured out the milk with, adding a little more milk to make a thin paste. I also used a potato peeler to make zucchini ribbons.

By this stage the pot of water had come to the boil, so I added a bit of salt then poured the packet of gnocchi in.

The milk in the non-stick pan was simmering, so I poured in the arrowroot paste, stirring constantly as the mixture thickened. I added a few knobs of gorgonola to the sauce (probably about 40g), stirred it in, then turned the temperature down to low.

Once the gnocchi rose to the top of the pot (a couple of minutes), I drained them well and then added them to the gorgonzola sauce in the pan, giving the mixture a good stir.

I made a 'nest' of zucchini ribbons in each bowl, then poured half the gnocchi mixture into each, finishing off with some cracked black pepper and a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese.

The gluten-free gnocchi was slightly heavier than regular potato gnocchi (as many gluten-free products are compared to their 'regular' counterparts) but they still had that al-dente texture that I love. Rob and I really enjoyed this meal. I would definitely buy this gnocchi again.

Do you like gnocchi? What's your favourite way to eat it?

Organic Skin-Care Products

2011-03-09T08:25:00.012+11:00

My favourite skin-care products at the moment are by Mukti, an Australian company whose range contains 'only pure, high grade certified organic and 100% natural ingredients'.

The products I have tried so far are:

deodorant & body spray This is great. My husband started using mine so I knew it was effective - he often complains that deodorants don't stand up to the amount of exercise he does. It has a nice smell too.

tinted moisturiser with sunscreen - nano particle & chemical free I use this every day. It comes in a pump dispenser so it's easy to get the exact amount you want. It's light and non-greasy to apply, and it has a nice natural-looking tint.

buzz off balm I don't really like the thought of spraying chemicals all over myself to keep the mosquitoes away. This is an organic, chemical-free balm designed to repel insects. It has quite a strong citrus smell (its ingredients include Geranium, Eucalyptus, Orange, Lemon Scented Tea Tree, Citronella, Lemongrass, Lemon Myrtle & Peppermint) but it does a good job of keeping the bugs away.

tooth powder You dip a wet toothbrush into the powder to form a paste, then brush teeth as normal. Although the website states that the tooth powder is mild tasting, I found it quite salty to begin with. I'm used to it now, but I'm not sure I would buy this product again.

bath & shower gel This has a pleasant 'pink grapefruit' fragrance.

lemon myrtle hand wash This is very lemony! Once it runs out I'll probably use the bath & shower gel as hand wash.

botanique shampoo Unlike some other organic shampoos I've tried, this one actually lathers well, so I feel like I'm getting a good 'clean'.

botanique conditioner Leaves my hair soft and shiny.

For the rest of this week, Mukti has 15% off in honour of International Women's Day - see the voucher below for details.

What are your favourite skin-care products?

Second-Hand Kitchen Cabinets

2011-03-08T08:25:00.006+11:00

A few weeks ago I blogged about our plans for a new kitchen (see related posts below). The main priorities for us are to take a couple of walls down to open up the space and let more light in. Because that is going eat up a large part of our renovation budget, we have decided to make compromises in other areas. Instead of having cabinets made for our kitchen, we are going to buy second-hand ones. I’ve been looking on a few different websites – ebay, Trading Post and Second Hand Kitchens Australia – with a particular set of criteria (needs to be oriented a certain way, fit within our measurements but not be cramped, have timber cabinets, not require us to dismantle it). Hopefully something suitable will come up!

What's your spending style? 'Must have it at any cost' or 'Must stick to the budget' or a mixture of both?

Related posts
Exciting Plans
Kitchen Benches and Cabinets
Visiting the Kitchen Designer

Autumn Fruit

2011-03-07T08:28:00.001+11:00

We are lucky enough to have four apple trees in our back yard. Way back in October last year they started blossoming:

And now they are ready to pick:

We have granny smiths (above), golden delicious and two red varieties. Here's one of the red ones:

The rosellas have been enjoying them too - at least there are plenty of apples to go around!

We also have a nashi pear tree that's the same age as the apple trees. It produced little baby nashis but they didn't grow any further. The nashi has a much younger normal pear grafted onto it and that has produced a few pears so far.

There are some tree tomatoes (tamarillos) on the way too:

What do you have growing in your garden?

Friday Funnies

2011-03-04T09:46:00.000+11:00

A Must Read for Pet Owners

The following was found posted very low on a refrigerator door.

Dear Dogs and Cats: The dishes with the paw prints are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.
______
The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Racing me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.
______
I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort, however. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other, stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out on the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.
______
For the last time, there is no secret exit from the bathroom! If, by some miracle, I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge in an attempt to open the door. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years - canine/feline attendance is not required.
_______
The proper order for kissing is: Kiss me first, then go smell the other dog's or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough.

Thanks to Dad for directing me to the website where these jokes were found.

Lactose-free Yoghurt

2011-03-03T13:24:00.001+11:00

Today Lia asked, 'What have you tried lately that’s been different and healthy?'.

I've been buying two Black Swan yoghurts:

Black Swan Vanilla Bean Greek Style Yoghurt

pic from The Pantry Review

and Black Swan Sweet and Natural Greek Style Breakfast Yoghurt (sorry, no pic)

Both products are sugar-free and free from artificial sweeteners but don't have that tart yoghurt taste that plain yoghurts can sometimes have. I enjoy eating them on their own or as a creamy topping on oats or mixed in with muesli. They also contain the enzyme lactase, making them lactose-free.

pic from The Pantry Review

March = Maintenance

2011-03-02T13:30:00.001+11:00

I've had enough of being hungry. I feel like it's pointless avoiding starchy carbs at dinner only to eat cereal/toast before going to bed. So I'm going to eat more food (including starchy carbs at dinner) for a while. I'll be eating for health rather than weight loss. That will allow me to switch my focus to getting plenty of sleep (as mentioned in yesterday's post) and slowly increasing the volume of my training.

March Goal

2011-03-01T12:33:00.001+11:00

My goals for February were to get to bed by 9pm (for 5am get-up) and to drink a glass of water with every meal. I give myself 5/10 for my efforts. I was fine for the first and last weeks of the month, but terrible in the middle (which coincided with TOM, not training and eating crap). When it falls apart, it ALL seems to fall apart! I'm going to focus on just one goal this month (outside of my training and nutrition) and that is to be in bed by 9.30pm on Sun-Thurs (for 5.45 get-up the next day).

End of Week 8

2011-02-28T12:49:00.000+11:00

Start: 63.5kg
End of week 1: 62.6
End of week 2: 62.1 (TOM)
End of week 3: 61.9
End of week 4: 61.9
End of week 5: 61.3
End of week 6: 61.9 (TOM)
End of week 7: 60.8
End of week 8: 61.2

Weight still hovering around the 61 mark. I did less cardio than usual this week (see below) so not really surprised.

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I trialled the gym across the road last week. It doesn't open until 6am so I've been playing with my workout schedule a bit to try and fit everything in. I did enjoy training there so I joined up this morning. I'll alternate weight-training days and cardio days for the next five weeks while I'm still working a long way from home. Once I start working from home again I'll have a couple of extra hours up my sleeve each day so will amp things up more then.

This morning I did upper body then took TJ out for a walk.

Food so far
- breakfast: crushed Weetbix and Allbran mixed with sultanas and yoghurt
- lunch: Burgen bread with roast beef, pickle, alfalfa sprouts, avocado and cos lettuce; yoghurt and fresh figs

To come
- peach, brazil nuts
- barramundi, warm roast vege salad
- cocoa (milk)

Lose Weight While Eating Yummy Food

2011-02-25T12:36:00.002+11:00

I don't believe that you have to eat boring food when you are trying to lose weight. Life is too short to eat things you don't enjoy. For example, if you have to ask, 'how can I make this tuna in springwater taste better?', perhaps what you should really be asking yourself is, 'why am I eating tuna in springwater if I don't like it? What can I eat instead?'

How long can you maintain a 'diet' where you eat food you don't like?

I hope that by posting my menus, recipes and food pics I can show that it's possible to lose weight while eating yummy food.

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I felt a bit 'flat' this morning at the gym, so I trained back (it needs the least amount of work of all my body parts) and did an easy cycle.

Food so far:

Breakfast: oats cooked with milk and topped with peaches in mango & banana puree and yoghurt

Lunch: egg and lettuce sandwich on Burgen bread; yoghurt, pear

To come:

Snack: ~~almonds, apple~~ gluten-free chocolate, raspberry and hazelnut cake

Dinner: salmon, veggies

Currently Reading

2011-02-24T12:30:00.001+11:00

The CSIRO Healthy Heart Program

Snippets I've found interesting so far:

'Allowing yourself a large range of foods at each meal encourages overeating. Our volunteers say that eating similar foods at the same meal most days reduces the temptation to go for second helpings or extra-large servings. Eating similar breakfasts, morning teas and lunches on weekdays will take your focus away from food and eating. Variety is important when it comes to fruit and vegetables, but research shows that increasing the variety of meal options can encourage overeating.' (p20)

'Your [weight loss] strategies should not be so extreme, however, that it is impossible to adhere to them. There is no value in committing to restraint that verges on starvation and is not only impossible to maintain long term but also dangerous. Research shows that people who are successful at maintaining weight loss are those who reduce, rather than eliminate, their intake of high-fat and high-sugar foods, including fast food. These people are described as having 'flexible control' of their eating behaviour and studies indicate that flexible control is critical to maintaining a sensible weight successfully.' (p52)

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No problems with my shoulders after yesterday's workout, but my legs (from Tuesday's workout) are killing me! Just did a light session in the gym this morning - arms and a hill walk - plus a walk with TJ.

Food so far today:
postworkout: Weetbix and All Bran with yoghurt, sultanas and banana
mid morning: skinny flat white
lunch: Burgen bread with turkey, cranberry sauce, avocado, tomato and cos lettuce; pear, yoghurt

To come:
snack: cashews, peach
dinner: steak, mashed cauliflower, mushrooms

ABCs

2011-02-23T12:45:00.002+11:00

I have a nice case of DOMs today: chest from Monday's workout, and glutes and hamstrings from yesterday's workout. After doing shoulders (and bike intervals) this morning, I'll be surprised if I can lift my arms tomorrow.

Food so far today:
postworkout: Healtheries apple and raisin bircher muesli with yoghurt and grated apple
mid morning: skinny flat white
lunch: Burgen bread with smoked trout, avocado, red onion and cos lettuce; peach, yoghurt

To come:
snack: macadamias, peach
dinner: pork and cashew stir-fry

ABCs
I saw Julie (aka Peanut Butter Fingers) post the ABCs of PBF and thought it might be fun to give it a go myself.

A. Age: 37
B. Bed size: King (to fit me, Rob and TJ)
C. Chore you hate: Dusting. It makes me sneeze
D. Dogs: great company and an (almost) compulsory source of exercise
E. Essential start to your day: saying hello to the two boys in bed with me
F. Favorite color: dark red (burgundy), blue
G. Gold or silver: gold
H. Height: 5'6" (167cm)
I. Instruments you play: violin (but not for a long time)
J. Job title: Freelance Proofreader
K. Kids: None
L. Live: Melbourne, Australia
M. Mom's name: Louise
N. Nicknames: C, Char, Charlie
O. Overnight hospital stays: To have my appendix out
P. Pet peeve: When people use tea towels to wipe dirty kitchen benches or dry their hands on - tea towels are for drying clean dishes!!!
Q. Quote from a movie: usually something Star Wars related
R. Righty or Lefty: Righty.
S. Siblings: One younger sister, Natasha.
T. Time you wake up: 5:45 a.m. on weekdays, later on weekends.
U. Underwear: depends on what's clean!
V. Vegetables you dislike: zucchini (I'll eat them if they're disguised in something but don't really like them on their own)
W. What makes you run late: thinking I have plenty of time to do things then suddenly realizing that time is nearly up!
X. X-rays you've had: mostly teeth (several extractions)
Y. Yummy food you make: tandoori chicken, rack of lamb, gluten-free hot cross buns (can't believe they're selling hot-cross buns in the supermarkets already!)
Z. Zoo animal favorite: too many to choose from!

Feel like playing along? I'd love to learn more about you!