I weighed in only 200g heavier than my end weight for Round 3.  Yes I know that I should have continued to lose weight but I decided to cut myself some slack over the festive season and my aim was to maintain.  And that is exactly what I did but there was a price paid.  Although my weight had not changed much there was a slight increase in my measurements and this has been further proof to me that what you put in your mouth really matters.  My diet was not ideal and I am certain is the reason that I have puffed out a little.  I had observed at the gym a few weeks ago that I was not looking as firm as I had been.  Anyway, lesson learnt and I will endeavour to better next time off-season rolls around.

So back to this new round.  I did my fitness test yesterday and I am thrilled to report that I have now reduced my 1km time trial to a personal best of 5m19s.  Then today things got even better – I set out to run a cruisy 5k this morning and noticed that my pace was a bit better than usual so I made a conscious effort to maintain it and at the 4k mark I realised that if I really pushed in the last kilometre I could get close to the elusive 30min 5k!  And I nearly did it – another PB of 30m20s.  I was so excited I thought about jumping up and down in the air but decided that the celebration could wait until I reach the 30 minute mark.

Food-wise, everything is going great.  I am a tad hungry but the meals so far this week have been awesome and I am really enjoying cooking again.  I have chopped and changed a few things but kept everything within the required calorie limits and some of the results have been awesome.  One of the breakfasts this week has been Berry Bruschetta.  Now I am not a huge fan of toast and would rather eat only one piece than two.  This recipe called for two slice of toast topped with ricotta and berries.  Then it occurred to me that there are less calories in an egg than in a slice of bread.  How about I ditch one of the pieces of toast and use an egg to turn the other slice into French toast?  So I whisked up the egg with a dash of low-fat milk and a sprinkle of cinnamon, soaked the remaining piece of bread and then cooked in a non-stick pan.  Then I topped it with the ricotta and berries and it was just gorgeous.  And super filling.  And great news – it’s on the menu for tomorrow!  Getting excited!

I start out the week with the best intentions but find myself falling apart at the weekends and the minute my 2 year old starts pushing my buttons.  I’m going through a very difficult time with him at the moment, so much so that I am even regretting my decision to have a child.  Every time he does this I have found myself resorting to emotional eating, something that I have not really had that much of a problem with before.  Well obviously I have but now I’m more aware of it and know that this is what I am doing.

Anyhow, I am determined to persevere and I am going to take the advice of my fellow blogger Deb and take it all one day at a time.  I’m just going to focus on getting through one day of eating well  and with the help of that wonderful little app My Fitness Pal, I should have myself eating clean again in no time.

I also think that the structure of the 12wbt program will help me get back on track.  While I know how to create meal plans myself, it is so much easier when someone else is making the decisions for you.  With Mish’s meal plans the decision about what to eat is made for me and I can just tweak the meal plan to suit me.

Pre-season tasks are going well and I am dying to get into the next one – diarise and organise.  This one is my favorite as I can plan out my training schedule and get prepared for those red-flag days. That reminds me…I better buy myself a diary today!

Training had been great but I am still having some hip problems with running. I seem to be able to run about 5k comfortably and whilst I am running there is not a lot of discomfort. It all comes after the run but even this usually settles after a day or two. It is a pain as it has put a stop to my 10k training but at least it has not stopped me running altogether.

Something I do have to train for in the coming weeks is the Sri Chimnoy Multi-Sport challenge to be held in Jindabyne on March 4th. I have agreed to compete as part of a team and will be doing two run legs…a 6k trail run in the morning and a 5k run (along a cycle path) at the end of the event. I am really looking forward to it as it is my first event ever but I better start getting some trail running practice. Luckily the riverside track here should suit me perfectly.

I’m gradually getting my eating back on track.  I really had gone quite off the rails but the past few days I have been using My Fitness Pal to track my calories and while my intake may not have been ideal, it has been more under control.

I have been having some training issues this past week.  It seems that all that extra running the week before (thanks to the Bridge to 10k program) had caused a problem with my hip.  I think it’s a form of bursitis according to my self-diagnosing on the internet (something I know I shouldn’t do) but it does seem to clear up a bit given some rest time.  Problem is that I don’t give it much rest so it keeps coming back.  Maybe a trip to the physio is in order!

I have managed to get up to date with my pre-season tasks.  Found that some new excuses were forming, stupid ones where I think I can get away with eating bad because I have lost so much weight. It’s like I think “I can get away with it!” But I know I’ve been caught out by this attitude before and I am not going to allow it to happen again.  The other problem I have noticed is that I tend to eat badly on the days when I am at home. The cupboard is there and although there is not much bad stuff in there, its more of an overeating issue than an eating crap issue.  For some reason I tend to ignore my meal plans on these days, that’s if I even have a meal plan.  Have not been doing them for a while!  So time to get organised and start planning again.

Sorry this post is a bit of a ramble today.  Just need to get it out there!

But Zuzka is back!  I read with excitement on Facebook this morning that Zuzka had released her first ZWOD (Zuzka’s Workout Of the DAY) on YouTube.  I was so excited for her to be making this comeback after the breakup.  She herself admitted that she had gained some weight and lost some fitness over the past 2 months and she seemed to genuinely struggle during this workout.  And for the first time ever I was actually able to keep up with her during the workout when I tried it today!  It was killer but so good!  Zuzana really is amazing…she is a  beautiful soul, an amazing athlete and a massive inspiration to me – I am thrilled to see her back doing what she does best!

I am really starting to understand why runners run.  There really is something special about it – it’s not just something physical, it’s mental and (dare I say it) spiritual as well.  All I know is that I am so happy that I discovered running – it’s not for everyone but for me it has become a very important part of my life and I am always looking forward to the next run.

It was quite chilly this morning so I donned my thermal compression tights and long sleeve running top, an outfit I used to wear in winter.  What is going on?  It’s January and I’m dressing like it’s August!  But I can’t complain because it makes for brilliant running weather.  On of my greatest concerns coming in to summer was that I would find running too hot but so far this has not been a problem.  In fact, it feels like summer hasn’t even started here.  But that’s life in the mountains!!

I ended up running almost 8km this morning (there was a bit of walking in there too!) but it felt great to push myself just that little bit harder and further.  Sometimes I find it hard to believe that I run – a year ago I wouldn’t even have considered it! 

I started running after reading Mish’s Crunchtime book and realising what an effective exercise it was.  So I thought I would give it a go.  I could barely run for 1 minute but I kept trying – walk a few minutes, run 1 minute, walk a few minutes, run 1 minute.  You get the idea!  Then I discovered the Couch to 5K program and downloaded an app onto my phone.  It was great because a little voice would come through my earphones telling me when to walk and run.  It meant I didn’t have to keep checking my watch every 5 seconds while I was gasping for breath!  It took me a bit longer than 9 weeks to get through the program but I got there and I have been regularly running 5km ever since.  So if you’ve never run before and you would like to give it a go then give the Couch to 5k program a try. 

Ease into 5K App for iPhone

Ease into 5K Android App

The strangest thing about my run today was that there were people around (I usually see no-one).  Turns out there is a rescue search going on – 3 people are missing so the SES, fire brigade and police were all up getting ready for today’s search.  I hope these people are okay because it was cold and wet yesterday and now with this icy wind they will be frozen to the bone!!  At least the sun is out so that should make the search easier.  I sure do hope they find them alive and well.

Now that I am back into my training, I think it’s high time that I start focussing on my eating.  This is what really lets me down at times.  I have a tendency to graze alot during the day, especially when I am at home, and I just don’t realise how many calories I have consumed.  Then there is my habit of eating my son’s leftovers and then there’s also the binging.  I don’t know what comes over me at these times but they only last for about 5 minutes and I will shove all sorts of things in my gob and consume them without even really realising I’ve done it.  I mean I do know I’m doing it but there is also something quite subconcious about it – it’s as though it takes a while for my brain to register what is going on.  I have no idea why I do this – it doesn’t happen often but it disturbs me that it does all the same.  Sometimes I think there is this part of me that just wants to rebel against all this strict healthy eating - I think it’s the “inner teenager” that Mish has talked about in her mindset lessons.  The other thing that I do with these episodes is that I eat the food so quickly that I don’t even have a chance to enjoy it!  It’s like if I eat it quickly enough I can pretend I haven’t done it!  These are all issues I need to address.  Maybe I just need to allow myself the odd treat each week and sit down and really enjoy it!  Make it a part of my meal plan and enjoy it without guilt!  And perhaps if I can stay more focussed on the goal – perhaps visually with a vision board or something like that – the desire to break out like this will be reduced!

Well it was good to get that off my chest!  I think the first step in overcoming a problem is owning and admitting to it.  Putting it out there might just help me get back on track!