Wk 8 & the Zone Diet

Tuesday's are definitely busy, and I have no time to post anything, so even though my weigh-in's are Tuesday morning, I don't get around to posting my results until the following day.


This week, I weighed-in at 60.75kg...up by 500g.

Not as bad as I thought, considering Sunday afternoon (as I commented on Judy's blog) I kinda jumped off the wagon and indulged in some Mc Donald's cuisine...french fries and a caramel sundae...lol... And that was after a work BBQ where sausage sangers on white bread with BBQ sauce was the order of day, and not one green salad vegetable in sight! And I had no feelings of guilt or remorse whatsover. I really enjoyed my caramel sundae!

Admittedly, it was an emotional response and release to a big week where I stressed big time about AA tests. The last week has seen me do three of them that I'd been dreading since my return from Kapooka. The traumatic experiences I had down there just came flooding back and the fear of failure preyed on my mind constantly during the week. The last one which was Sunday morning was the swim test, and all I could think about was not being able to go the distance and drown in my cams.

But as Clay from Crossfit reminded me a couple of weeks ago, prior to a reallly tough workout..."The thought of Death is worse than death itself". Sometimes I give too much credit to 'worst case scenarios', and not enough credit to my preparedness and ability.

I passed all of my tests, and I'm glad that regardless of the fear I felt, I persisted in going through with them and giving it my best. In hindsight, they weren't as bad as I thought, and I felt that the last week I've grown personally by tackling these fears. I even relaxed a little on Sunday and started to enjoy things. After the swim test we had a great time with a water polo game of soughts , which was more about just having fun, and have fun we did! It's great to get paid for doing fun stuff in the AA every now and again.

Anyway...the Zone Diet...

I started yesterday and just went cold turkey. It was recommended that I continue with my present diet and change the macronutrient ratio, to bring it in line with the Zone recommendations first (P/C/F - 30%/40%/30%), and then change completely to the Zone, once I felt comfortable with that. But, I'm an all or nothing kinda gal, and I find that once I make a decision I like to begin straight away.

I wasn't hungry until last night when I had to work, and had my last scheduled snack at around 10:30pm on the way home. I admit to having a few extra cashews before bed...lol...

Anyway...so far so good. Some of you may be wondering why I decided to change my nutrition plan. Especially those of you who know me through Ideal Bodies Online, as successfully completing a program (or four), and as a Personal Success Mentor.

It basically comes down to the fact that my energy requirements have changed. It's that simple! My IBO program was mainly about fat loss and improving my fitness, plus maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I've achieved that, and am happy with how I've maintained. I'll never go back to the previous weight and unhealthy lifestyle I had before. Since completing my programs, I haven't looked back. The type of exercise program warranted the nutrition program I was following. It's time to move on, simply because I've moved forward in my health and fitness goals. That's a good place to be.

However, my exercise or type of exercise has now changed, and in order for me to make gains in Crossfit and endurance type exercise overall, I knew that I needed to change my macronutrient ratios to allow for the increased intensity demands. I'm an avid believer in following the example of those that are achieving in your chosen field of endeavour, to experience lasting success. So I aspire to those elite athletes in Crossfit, and those who are achieving success are following either the Zone, Paleo, or combination of both diets. I've also been very tired since late last year, so I've known for a little while that something needed to change to have me working at my optimum.

Does that change my ability to help IBO clients? Not in the least! The principles are still the same. I still know what it takes to succeed as far as fat loss and achieving goals. I just see this as being the next leg in my health and fitness journey, and I can now help guide people onto the next phase, or at least inspire them to continue on, regardless of whether they decide to continue with the IBO program (for maintenance) once they've achieved their weight loss goals, or they decide to take a different path.

The most important thing that I want clients and others to take from my example, is that once you've achieved your initial goals, that life and the habits you've formed once you've completed your program/s shouldn't be immediately forsaken to return to former habits. You need to be constantly moving and progressing and creating new goals, otherwise you will become complacent and things will become stagnant. That's a dangerous place to be!

Life is constantly in flux, and if things are not changing for you and they've become stagnant, it's a warning sign. Life cannot remain still. Inevitably, you will go backward. So you need to be constantly working on your health and fitness and to remain focused and vigilant if you want to continue to enjoy the benefits of all the hard work you've put in and reap the rewards far into your future. It's important you build upon the foundations you've worked hard to put in place.

It's been a mixed bag this year, in spite of setting goals at the start. I've been experiencing a continual flow of out-of-left-field encounters. Though it's to be expected when you're charting new territory, which is what this year is all about.

This evening I visited the chiropractor. I knew my pelvis was out of alignment big time, probably from the run I did for my fitness test on Saturday. It was the first time I'd run in 4 months and I was pleased at how my body held up initially. However, the muscular imbalances, and in particular, the RHS glute weakness is still there and it times like these that are needed, as a reminder to keep up the isolation exercises, which I haven't done for at least a month.

I have also strained some muscles in the top of my foot, and have had pain coursing through it since Saturday. Not only have I strained some muscles, it seems that the bones in my feet were 'out'. As the chiro said to me..."you just keep finding new ways of injuring yourself". So today was a 'first' for having a chiropractic adjustment on my foot!

Well that's about it folks for this week. Until next week...keep slogging away! ;)

Wk 7, Coffee & on being a Tortoise

"The hare ran as fast as she could but it was too late.

The tortoise had won!

"You see, I told you I would get there in the end!"

said the tortoise.

"Slow and steady always wins the race."

- 'The Tortoise & the Hare', Aesop's Fables

Yesterday I finally got to meet the HAWT, young Judy in the flesh! Judy is one of the many amazing success stories of Ideal Bodies Online. She started on the IBO program twelve months ago, and she's still going strong! Judy has been a wonderful inspiration to those on the weight loss journey, and what makes Judy's story so inspiring is the amount of weight she has lost over this period, and what she's gone through to arrive where she is right now. I hope Judy doesn't mind me sharing this, but she started at 120kg, and is now under 100kg's! I think (I can't quite remember the stats) she's now about 90kgs??? I can't even imagine the sheer persistence and determination it took Judy, as I know that she found it a real hard slog for some time before seeing any visible results in weight or measurements. It was also exciting to see that her story so far (because there's more to come) was published in the new Shape magazine. I look forward to seeing Judy's continuing changes, progress and achievements in 2010!

Of course, it was lovely to catch up with Hilary too, and to meet her gorgeous little package, Skye, who is now 7 weeks old! Hilary is currently having a break as Ideal Bodies Online feedback coach to take on her challenging demands as a new mother. The last time we actually saw each other was at the INBA comp back in May last year at Chandler. It's sad to think we only live 10mins apart, but our lives are so busy, we can only catch up every so often. And Kristin couldn't make it yesterday, being the busy little beaver she is, so I hope to catch up with her soon.

On a different note, I weighed-in on Tuesday, and I'm back down to 60.25kg's. So it's up and down like a yo-yo from week-to-week. The important thing is, my weight is still steady and hovering around that 60kg mark (though not below). I won't see any further loss until I get into more Crossfit training and more regularity. My diet has been mostly good, though I haven't been as strict as I was when I was on program with IBO. I'm not training as often either, so it comes as no surprise there. I hope to start on the Zone/Paleo diet in the next couple of weeks, so I'm hoping for some great results there, and the goal is to improve my training performance and results, my energy levels, and also to get and stay lean. Today I finally get around to seeing one of the trainers about the zone diet, and tonight I'm attending a Crossfit Sport Psychology Workshop at Crossfit Brisbane. So, with all these things brought together, and once I can get some consistency in my Crossfit training, I'm hoping to see some good results.

But I'm plodding along like the tortoise this year, and just taking things in my stride. It's definitely a change from my Hare existence of 2009. Man, what a ride that was last year!

Anyway...weekend is nearly here, so enjoy the rest of your week and the weekend, and I'll catch up early next week, as I'll be Armying this weekend.

Ciao for now...Kerry :)

Your Comfort Zone...is it really working for you?

"The greatest enemy to your human potential is your comfort zone."

- Author unknown

Upon reaching the age of 40, I started thinking about this...my comfort zone. I was quite comfortable being overweight. I hadn't worked for a number of years, and I'd gotten into a nice, steady pace, and I was leading a nice quiet life. Well...as quiet as it can be raising children. Still, my (our) aim was to bring up Philomena in a quiet, stable, loving and nurturing environment. Life was pretty cruisy and at that time I thought I was really happy. Becoming a mother later in life changed my perspective, and I came to appreciate simple yet significant things, like the creation of a child (and the fierce maternal bonding feelings) and the fragility of life itself.

However, in spite of what I thought was a happy life, I was not content. For me, being fit and healthy has always been part of my persona. It's what resonates with me and keeps me grounded. It wasn't until I lost the weight, and returned to my previous fit and healthy lifestyle, that contentedness entered the picture.

I think the problem is, as you get older, you start to get into your 'comfort zone', where you've lived your life a particular way for so long. You've been there, done that, and you've been through most of the emotional turmoils of youth, love, relationships, children, work, etc. You feel like you've arrived, and you pretty well much have gone through what there is to go through, apart from latter stages of life's natural cycles, i.e. more children, grown-up children, empty nest, retirement, etc. Materially, even though there's things you still want, you've achieved what you need to, to live comfortably.

My Fit-and-Fab-at-40 journey started in July 2008, when I started a fat loss program with Ideal Bodies Online. Determined to once again be the person I've always known myself to be, I approached the program with 110% commitment and determination. It was the first time, in a long time that I started to step off the ledge, and walk out of my comfort zone. Was it scary?...yes...Was it exciting?...yes...Was it worth it? Hell Yes!

It was about six months after starting the program (my second IBO program), that things in my life started to change. Probably because I was changing. Not only from the outside, but more importantly from the inside. At this stage, I started thinking about the possibility of what I could do. The strange thing was, once I began doing this, that pandora box of opportunity was opened, and a whole new life and direction was borne from my subconscious. I started to think of this next stage of life and the perfect opportunity to fulfil lifelong ambitions, regardless of how impossible they may have seemed at the time.

What got me thinking about this topic (comfort zones) was a discussion I had with Leisl S, a client of IBO. I had coffee with her yesterday and she'd just come from a photo session after completing her first 12 weeks on the Ideal Bodies Online program. To say she was excited, is an understatement. Leisl was literally jumping out of her skin! And meeting her for the first time and seeing her transformation, I can understand her excitement, because I'd been there and I knew exactly what she was going through. Leisl looked AMAZING! Young, gorgeous and looking extremely athletic, I'm really excited about seeing her professional pics! Leisl is a very determined young woman, and she's been through her share of challenges to arrive at the place she is now.

I think what stood out most in our conversation was our agreeance about what happens when you do step out of your comfort zone, heading off into the unknown, and about what opportunities you begin to create in taking that step. A whole new other life is opened up to you of something you may never have imagined, and unless you take that leap, you may never get to discover what's out there waiting for you.

And you know, once you've stepped off the ledge the first time, it doesn't end there. In the act of stepping out of your comfort zone that first time, you get to a place where your present experience of the world and what you thought becomes obsolete and outdated, and you realise that what you know and what you've achieved is so miniscule in the big scheme of life.

That's what I've come to realise anyway.

So, once my life started to take on a different direction, that's when things started to become challenging. I hadn't realised that by making a decision and taking a different direction, that life would then be continually requiring me to step out of my comfort zone again and again, and again.

Life in the last 20 months has been just that. And you know...it's been really tough. I hadn't realised how comfortable my life had become. Going through all the changes necessary, and all the training and rigmarole I had to endure, leading up to and joining the Reserves was the hardest thing I'd ever done. Ask another person (20 years younger) in the same situation, and they may have told you they've enjoyed the process. But honestly, I haven't. Confronting the fact that I had indeed gotten older, and my body just couldn't handle physically what it could 20 years ago, became startingly apparent.

Returning to martial arts and having the mind of a beginner again...learning new skills in the Army and doing things I've never done before or felt comfortable with doing...starting at Crossfit and realising I wasn't as fit and strong as I thought I was... it's all messed with my head, because I'm continually uncomfortable in my ineptness.

The thing is...it's so uncomfortable because I'm continually fighting the need to do everything perfectly...the first time. Physical skills have always come fairly easily for me, and I've excelled in whatever physical pursuit I've aimed for. Mind you, I've always trained with complete committment and a sense of purpose. I don't mind doing the basics - in fact, I love doing the basics until I can get it right. That's the perfectionist in me. Problem is now, it's hindering me to the stage that I've become so fearful of making mistakes that I become so stressed and I begin to doubt my ability.

It's been a major discovery for me. I've been constantly afraid of failing and I'm stepping out of my comfort zone a number of times in any given week. So this year I'm consciously endeavouring to change my approach to being out of my comfort zone. Instead of approaching it with apprehension and fear, my aim is to approach it with a healthy respect, and realisation that I indeed do have the ability; to give it my best shot whatever the outcome; and be happy and confident that I'm living my life to my fullest human potential.

So why don't I just stop? Why do I continuallly throw caution to the wind? Because stepping out of my comfort zone is now part of my life if I want to reach my goals. And unless I give it my very best shot, how do I know what I'm truly capable of, and how much fun, excitement and mystery am I missing out on? And anyway...I like to keep people guessing.

Tik Tok

Feeling great! It's amazing how crappy I felt at the start of the week, and how the break has got me jumping out of my skin. I'm going to need all that energy for tonight for today's Crossfit WOD.

Listening to Ke$ha...Tik Tok...that's how energetic I'm feeling. Wish I could feel like this all the time. So gotta take advantage of this burst of energy.




I'm still a fair way from reaching any real and lasting intensity as far as my training. It's building and there's this feeling inside me at the moment like a slow, steady, build of energy and intensity. I think it will take me about until mid-year to reach my Zenith, and I'm banking on the last six months is when I'm going to achieve my best me for 2010....a lean, mean, fighting machine, and staring down the barrel of Sexy Bitch (that's the hope and intent anyway..hee..hee...)!

Wk 6 & Spinning Rooms

"...Plans are useful, but don't get attached to them, life has too many surprises..." This was part of the quote on my last post, and I just shook my head when reading it again, because that's exactly what life has provided for me once again, in a matter of weeks.

Come Monday, I was feeling great. I only trained twice in Crossfit last week, because I wanted to give my shoulders and upper body a rest after a pre-dominantly upper body caning. I did a 3 hour Dragon Pole training session on Saturday, and knew that I wouldn't be able to get through this unless I rested up on the Friday (so no CF). I'd also had a girl's night out on Friday night, and as hard as I tried, I still didn't get home until a little after midnight. I couldn't 'not' go, since the night was in honour of my birthday.

I was super organised and had my all my clothes ready for Wing Chun on Monday, my gym clothes ready for Crossfit on Tuesday, and my uniform and stuff ready for Army Reserves on Tuesday night. I sat down for Meal 4 at about 5pm on Monday, got up and felt a bit woozy, thinking to myself...o-oh!...this doesn't augur well. Within 20minutes the room had started spinning and I was beginning to feel nauseous. By about 7:30pm I couldn't sit up and had that urgent sense of wanting to lay completely flat, and the room was definitely spinning, and I was feeling very sick indeed. So AW helped get me into bed where I lay down as still as possible, with the room as dark as possible, my eyes closed with the room still spinning, and still feeling like I wanted to throw up. I did find some relief lying on my RHS though, whereas the LHS just made it worse. I obviously drifted off to sleep at some stage.

Fark! Bloody (benign positional) vertigo again....arghhh! I haven't had a bout for at least 18 months or more. I've had the CT scan, hearing tests, balance tests, etc, and nothing has shown up. The doctor says it's viral, and it tends to rear it's head when I've been ill or I'm fighting off a bug or something similar. It's a nuisance, and I thought I'd seen the last of it.

So Tuesday was mad! I couldn't get out of bed Tuesday morning, AW was leaving early for an away trip, everyone who usually helps out was not available, and I had to call my sister to come and get Philomena ready for daycare, pack her lunch, etc and drive her there. And she washed my dishes too...thanks sis if you're reading this! I felt terrible, because she'd taken the day off to help my dad, as it was his first day with the kidney dialysis machine at home, and I had to call sis away, for help.

I was able to get up yesterday, and open my eyes, but I couldn't move around too much. I spent most of the day on the recliner, watching DVD's, snoozing and getting up to go to the toilet or get something to eat. I did pop onto the computer for a little while, at a few different times, but just looking at the screen made me feel woozy, so I wasn't on so much yesterday.

I didn't get to work last night, and Phil, who was staying at the in-laws anyway, and so I decided it was best we leave this arrangement. So last night I had the luxury of doing sweet F'All and seeing what normal people watch on TV. Needless to say, there's so much trash on TV, I'm not missing much. Though I do enjoy watching ABC when I can. I went to bed at 9:30pm and didn't wake this morning until 8am! Wow...a whole 10hours sleep...I was stoked! It was obviously what I needed.

Anyway, today is another rest day, so no CF or Wing Chun. I'm feeling more energetic today, though my head is still feeling a little strange, and even sitting here typing this is making me feel a little funny in the head, so I'll give it a rest on the computer again shortly. I've got some work I need to attend to on the computer, so I'll just have to do it in spits and spurts today.

Okay...the weigh-in...60.8kg's. An increase of 700g from last week...pffftttt! Who gives a flying rip! I'm not particularly concerned, even though I haven't got back down below 60kg's. I'm surprisingly nonchalante about it. I think it's because I'm really getting the hang of this 'going with the flow' thing, and really listening to my body. I'm not stressing unnecessarily, and I'm happy that whatever challenges I'm facing, once I'm over them, I get straight back on the wagon.

Nutrition hasn't been 100% because I've had a lot of social things on, but even then, I just get straight back onto plan (for the majority of time). And even with social things on, I haven't been going crazy. When I train, I train hard and I rest once I've achieved my weekly goal of training sessions.

My measurements aren't a great surprise. I haven't lost that much in the way of cm's. I've lost off the obvious places, such as chest and waist. I'm not really confident in the measurements though, as I had to do them myself this time around.

I'm still carrying more bodyfat than what I would truly like, but I also know that it's unrealistic to expect anything more, as I'm not training as frequently as I was this time last year, and as consistently, and my nutrition isn't 100% on track. The consistency has increased over the last few weeks, in spite of the challenges, so with everything that's happened, I'm happy with where I am at.

As far as starting the Zone Diet, that's going to be happening in the next couple of weeks. I am scheduled to talk to one of the Crossfit trainers about this in more detail, before I embark on it. I have some questions and some things I need to find out a bit more first, before I begin. I thought it would be a good idea to consult with someone who has been training in CF for awhile who follows the recommended Zone/Paleo diet format.

Well that's my week so far. I'm sure it will be on the improve, and hopefully I'll be ready to start back at Crossfit tomorrow. I'll only get in a couple of sessions again this week, but I'm happy with that. As long as I can finish the week strongly!

Have a great week! :)

More 'Aha!' Moments

...reading 'Sacred Journey of the Peaceful Warrior', by Dan Millman.

"Just handle what's in front of you now, and the future will take care of itself. Otherwise, you'll spend most of your life wondering which foot you'll use to step off the curb when you're still only halfway to the corner."

"What about planning ahead, and preparing for the future?"

"Plans are useful, but don't get attached to them; life has too many surprises. Preparation, on the other hand, has value, even if the future you planned never comes."

Iluminations II

"In my life, I've learned that at precisely those times when life seems to get worse that you may actually be getting ready to make a leap. When you feel like you're getting nowhere - stagnating, even slipping backward - what you're actually doing is backing up to get a running start."

- from the book, 'Sacred Journey of the Peaceful Warrior' by Dan Millman

Rules to Live By

This great little article was in our chiropractors newsletter. I quite enjoyed it, and thought you might too. It's by a columnist called Regina Bryant, whom at turning 50, published her most popular column, called '50 Life Lessons'.

• Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
• When in doubt, just take the next small step.
• Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
• Pay off your credit cards every month.
• You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
• Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
• If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
• Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
• Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
• Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
• Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
• Over prepare, and then go with the flow.
• Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
• No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
• Always choose life.
• What other people think of you is none of your business.
• However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
• Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
• If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
• The best is yet to come.
• No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
• Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Have a great weekend everyone! :)

Wk 5 & Taking a Different Path

Todays Weight: 60.15kg. A loss of 1.45kg...go figure! I wasn't on plan over the weekend due to a wedding on Saturday, and I couldn't resist a couple of slices of 'Bee Sting' when visiting mum and dad yesterday...lol...

Next week is wk 6 of when I got back on plan, set some goals and got back on track with exercise and nutrition. It wasn't an immediate thing. It's been gradual.

As of today, I'm feeling good and more confident about my direction this year. The goals I set originally at the start of the year, I thought I may have to change, because the type of exercise and activity has changed. It's not so black and white as I originally thought, and I've come to realise that the path I was heading down, wasn't congruent with Crossfit, martial arts and even the army.

It doesn't mean my goals have changed, it's just the way to achieving them has. It also requires of me, patience and the faith to dive into the unknown. It also requires complete trust in following a path of those I aspire to.

I'm looking forward to the possibilities and am starting to get my head around the fact that my body will constantly have to adapt to varying stimuli and working intensity. This is good, as long as I can be consistent. I'm also starting to become more intuitive with how I feel and am listening more to my body and what it's telling me. The last week especially has seen my recovery improve within a short period of time. And within two weeks of doing Crossfit consistently only 3 times per week, I'm already seeing changes to my body.

Anyway...after wk 6, I'll still be weighing in, though the scales won't be so important. I'm trying a different nutrition plan...The Zone Diet, which is more appropriate for Crossfit. I will be following the meal plans strictly until I get a feel for it, and will then tweak it, depending on how my body responds. I may need to alter it, depending...maybe more Paleo...I may need to increase the fats, etc, etc. I'll be more interested in how I look and feel, and what my measurements tell me. I'll also be looking to improve my overall training performance and results over time. So, it's a slow process, but I'll be taking my measurements and stats every six weeks, along with photos, to see any changes and/or progressions.

Okay...gotta go. No training today. Didn't sleep well and I wasn't feeling that well yesterday. But gotta take Miss Phil to daycare. So I will be catching up on sleep today. First night back at work tonight too, so I need to get some rest.

Have a great week all!

Iluminations

"The real voyage of discovery consists

not in seeking new landscapes,

but in having new eyes."

- Marcel Proust

Taken from the book, 'Sacred Journey of the Peaceful Warrior', by Dan Millman