You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December, 2006.
Thankyou to everyone for their tips on Yorkshire Puddings….BUT where were you all when I needed you on Christmas Day - while I was slaving over a hot oven, willing these Yorkshire Puddings to rise!!
I have a feeling that it was maybe the Olive Oil I used for the pan. I don’t keep lard anywhere in our house and the only oil we have is Extra Vigin Olive Oil, which is what I used. Maybe I’ll go buy some lard just for the Yorkshire Puddings.
And I finally got the feed RSS thing to work. It was something to do with the encoding in the options bit. Anyway you can now all subscribe.
Not sure about this Ebay diversion thing though when leaving a comment. I typed a comment myself and I didn’t get diverted at all. Has anyone else had this happen to them other than Beki and Em?
Okay, I’m off to make a Banana & Walnut Loaf. I’ve got a couple of very ripe Bananas and there’s no way that I’m throwing them out, not with how much they cost! Will post a piccie.
Well it’s just about the end of the year and I’m pretty happy about that.
There have been some really good times, but there’s also been some not so good times, mostly related to my running and weight (well, what else is there!!).
I had a few niggles with my knee and my calf this year, and some of my races have been quite poor because of this. Also my lack of motivation added to the poor races. Why would anyone drink copious amounts of champagne and junk food the night before the Great Ocean Road 1/2 Marathon? Then go and follow it up by running the Williamstown 1/2 Marathon the following weekend.
I’m not the type of person to make many goals as I hate the thought of failure, and not carrying out and completing those goals. I have lots of “maybe” things in my brain that I may consider doing.
Maybe I’ll do the proper training to complete a Marathon.
Maybe I’ll actually do some proper stretching so that my knee gets better.
Maybe I’ll start upping my distances again once the knee is better.
Maybe I’ll start looking at my food intake and make better choices.
Maybe I’ll stick to a proper training program.
Maybe I’ll create a proper training program that I can stick to.
Maybe I’ll try and iron every week so that the ironing basket doesn’t overflow.
Okay, enough of the maybes!
I want to say a huge thankyou to my bestest friend Michelle, who, if it hadn’t been for her encouragement and support, I would not have got out to run as often as I did.
When I moved back from the UK in 2003, I didn’t think that I’d ever find anyone that could fill the shoes of my best friends of those in the UK. I was very lucky that I met Michelle. I knew the instant that we started chatting that she was somebody that I wanted as a friend, and it didn’t take long to realise that she was easily going to be my bestest buddy.
And there’s also the fantastic group of people that I’ve met on the Ausrun Forum. I know that there will always be someone who wants to get out for a run and they are always so happy to run, whatever distance or speed we’re going.
Roll on 2007!
Exercise: 7.7km Power Walk - Local Streets (7’s Yellow)
I have been slack. I have been VERY slack! Today is the first day that I’ve even considered getting off my fat a**e and doing any kind of exercise, and even then I had to be cajouled into actually going out. I’d put my stuff on ready to go once Hubby got home, but still had that horrible little gremlin on my shoulder, whispering in my ear “don’t worry about it, you can go tomorrow instead!”
Beki, I ran walked past your old place. Not sure if your HM is still living there or not as there were no cars in the driveway apart from an old beat up Holden down the back.
While I was out walking a bloke ran past me. All I wanted to to was yell out to him “I’m really a runner, honestly!” Not sure why I felt I had to defend myself because I was walking instead of running, but that feeling was definitely there.
(Click on image to enlarge)
I took Alana roller skating on Boxing Day so that we could buy her new skates that Father Christmas had promised her and I actually did a bit of skating myself. Took a little while to get back into the swing of things, but once I’d got my rythmn back it felt great. I’m very tempted to buy some new skates of my own and take it up again…..
Here’s a piccy of Alana with her new skates, taken with my camera phone so the quality is pretty poor (click on it to get a bigger picture)
I’m so glad that Christmas is over. We have now eaten anything that I would consider “not good”. There is only healthy food in the cupboards and fridge now. There is still Turkey, but we are gradually whittling at it and it has been great in salads and sandwiches. I’ve got some pasta sauce and some veggies still in the fridge so I might mix that up with some more of the turkey tonight.
I’ve also found some yummy tasting yoghurt. I’m not really a yoghurt person but I will eat it as it’s a good healthy filler when I’m feeling peckish. Anyway I’ve found some Vaalia Apple & Cranberry flavour which is just delish! And if you cut up some Strawberries in it, it’s even better!
Alana had a great Christmas Day. The only thing that Father Christmas forgot to bring was The Chronicles of Narnia DVD. Okay, so I didn’t read her letter to Father Christmas properly and missed that one! It’s on it’s way now (courtesy of Ebay). We walked around the shops on Wednesday trying to find it and had absolutely no joy. It was only later that I realised that we’d been looking under N for Narnia and not C for Chronicles, but there was no way that I was going back out to battle those crowds again!
Alana’s birthday is in 3 weeks time and I’ve got absolutely no idea what to get her. Any ideas?
I’ve been baking. Since having the new kitchen installed it’s all I want to do. Of course I don’t want to cook good healthy foods, no I want to cook cakes, biscuits etc. My first go at scones was not quite how I wanted them to look!!
My other disaster were the Yorkshire Puddings on Christmas Day. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong, but they just don’t rise. They taste great, so at least I’ve got the right batter, but am just missing something when it comes to them rising. I will persevere!!
Exercise: 25km Bike Ride - Dandy Creek Trail
As Michelle needed to get her long run in, I thought it would be a good idea for me to tag along with her as support. As my fitness has gone downhill, I couldn’t run that distance with her, so opted for the trusty bike!!.
A wonderful morning for a run/cycle, Michelle as usual just cruising along as if she could run a marathon.
Just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. Hope Santa brings you everything you wanted! I’ve already got my Christmas present sitting out in the garage. I can hear it calling to me everyday….”J, come out and plaaayyy!” I just need to get a proper timetable set up so I know what days to run on the treadmill, what days I am running with Michelle and what I can do on the other days to fill in the blanks!
I have made myself a list of food that I need to prepare and cook tomorrow so that I don’t forget anything. Of course the list starts with “open bottle of Champagne and take Champagne Truffles out of fridge - eat, drink and be merry!!”
The rain has arrived - YAY!!
Exercise: 7km Run - MMCT (6’s)
The heat really hit me when I got out of the car to meet Michelle tonight. And it really sapped my energy too. I was sweating so much. And I’d put insect repellent on my face so it was stinging my eyes as the sweat ran.
Okay, so that’s now 2 days and 2 lots of exercise each day!! Keep it up J!!
Exercise: 20 Mins Bike, 5 Mins Rower, Back, Situps
I am determined to lose this excess weight. I want to try and get in 2 lots of exercise each day (tomorrow excluded). I know that my Hubby is going to be there to support me as he wants me to be happy and will do whatever he can to help me achieve this. The question is will I be happy once I get where I want to be? Will it be enough? Will there be something else in the way that stops me from being happy?
I’m meeting Michelle for a run tonight, so that’s another tick in the box!
Exercise: 1hr 10min Power Walk - Local Streets (7’s Blue)
My weight gain is really starting to get to me. So much so that it is really bringing me down and is creating an unpleasant environment at home.
Hubby pushed motivated me enough to get out the door for a walk - I know that I wouldn’t have gone if I’d been at home on my own. I thank him for pushing motivating me to get me off my a**e and do some exercise. It was a beautiful evening for a walk. The sun was this huge ball of brilliant red setting on the horizon. I could smell the BBQ’s as I walked past the houses, and people were plugging in their christmas lights, getting ready for the steady stream of cars that drive by looking at all the houses lit up with the beautiful lights.
Unfortunately the last km was not so good….let’s just say that I was happy to get home, pushing past hubby on the way in the doorso that I get to the little boys room!!
Exercise: 30 Mins Cross Trainer, Biceps, Triceps, Situps
I’ve been meaning to get down to the gym for ages so that I can cancel my gym membership. This morning I achieved this aim!! Yay for me! I think the only thing I’m going to miss at the gym is the cross trainer, but I’ve been looking at a few on Ebay and they don’t seem to be too expensive, so I may invest in one, just for the times when I don’t want to run on the treadmill or outside. We have enough space in the garage so it’ll fit in nicely with the rest of the equipment.
Is anyone else looking forward to having a break over Xmas as much as me?? I’m just counting down the time until Friday when I can put my feet up and just relax…okay there’s the work Xmas party to get through yet, but that’s not really a hardship now is it!!
I’ve bought another Running Skirt. This one is called an Athletic Skirt and has shorts underneath rather than the briefs, which I think will be more comfortable (and no VPL)!! They only come in black, which is just fine with me as black is the staple colour of my wardrobe anyway!
Looking out of the window it’s so hazy. I think it’s worse than last week even. Roll on next week when all the showers arrive!!
Alana’s Quote: “But can’t you just use your credit card to buy it?” (responding to me explaining how expensive Amazing Alison was @ $179)
Okay so I’ve now totally screwed up all the formatting for the blog trying to move it over to WordPress….so I’m going to leave it as is and instead here’s the link to my new blog…..
It’s still a work in progress but I’m getting there slowly…..I’m trying not to make it look just like Em’s new blog but she has alot of good ideas!!
So I’ll see you all on the other side!
Exercise: 9.4km Run - MMCT (7’s Yellow)
The leg is still a bit niggly, whereas on Sunday, when I ran, I had no niggles at all. It may be something to do with the trainers. I wore my Hurricane 6’s on Sunday and the 7’s this morning. May have to look into buying another pair of 6’s and seeing if it makes a difference. I actually felt quite strong running this morning. My fitness is slowly returning. Will try and do a 10km run on the weekend to see if the knee holds up.
I have almost finished the Xmas shopping. Just have to get one more present for Alana and we’re all done. Will do a last minute shop on Sundy evening for strawberries, pumpkin and champers and I’m all sorted with the food too. Am trying to be organised so that I don’t have to race around the shops frantically buying loads of stuff at the last minute. I hate battling crowds of people. Next year I have decided to write all my christmas cards in January so that I don’t have to think about it when Christmas comes around. I can then just add any new ones that I need. I also want to try and buy pressies during the year so that I also don’t have to go trawling around packed shops at Christmas time.
I tried to copy everything over from my Weight of the World blog but it got corrupted half way through so I had to delete it all from WordPress, and when I went back over to Blogger, all the formatting has been corrupted!! Wasn’t very happy!! I’ve just switched it over to Beta to see if it regains any formatting.
Okay, after checking out Em’s new blog I have decided to jump ship from Blogger and create a new blog which has alot more functions available.
Just need to get it sorted into some kind of order……stay tuned!
Exercise: 7km Run - MMCT
Righto, who hit me over the head and gave me a stonking hangover!!! And what fool runs in the afternoon heat with said hangover???…..oh yeah, that would be me and Michelle!
Okay, so after drinking 3 bottles of champers last night (it was Michelle, she made me do it!) I felt pretty ordinary this morning. And somehow during my drunken evening I’d agreed to do a run with Michelle this afternoon, and I couldn’t go back on my decision now could I!!
I was hoping to do 9km but I just didn’t have the energy to run more than 7km. And the fact that we had to run past the cars to do any further than 7km really topped it off for me. I suppose I can say that at least I got out there, even with everything against me!
Before the run we went over to Eastland Shopping Centre so that I could find a new dress for my work Xmas party. Saw Clarkey and his family on the way in. He was on the way out!! Happy to report that I’ve found a dress. Not happy to report that I definitely need to lose between 5 & 10kg!!
We don’t have a full length mirror at home so when I was in the changing rooms it was a bit of a shock to actually see my body full length. Not a pretty sight I have to tell you. I could see exactly where I’ve put all the weight on. I don’t want to be this heavy and untoned any more. I’ll let this week pass by without worrying and complaining too much, but come Boxing Day look out world!
I’m going to copy Em and get myself a new blog at WordPress. Just need to set it up and copy everything over….
Alana’s Quote: Me: “Who do you want to go with Alana, me or Dad?”
Alana: “Dad ‘cos he’s going to the bottle shop!” (I was going to the supermarket)
Exercise: 5.5km Run - Treadmill, 0.5km Power Walk with Incline
I christened the new treadmill this morning. Have to say that I didn’t want to get out of bed when the alarm went off, but the thought of just walking out to the garage was much more alluring than having to get into the car and drive to the gym. So out of bed I got!!
The treadmill is as good as the professional ones at the gym. Unfortunately I’d forgotten how much harder it is to run on the treadmill than to run outside. Running outside I can dictate how fast I run. If I want to slow down, I just slow down. On a treadmill, unless you keep playing around with the speed, you have to keep running at that speed!!
I only managed 5.5km before I had to stop and walk. I was absolutely cream crackered and was sweating like a dog!! But I loved the fact that I was running, albeit very slowly, but I was still out there running!!
At work we were all given MP3 players as Christmas presents. Everybody loved them. We also got Armbands to put the MP3 players in. Okay, both presents have the company name plastered all over them, but a free MP3 player is a free MP3 player. And guess who had the task of actually sourcing them and getting them sent over here!!
I need to go out looking for a Christmas dress. I’m hoping that I can find some time on Sunday to wander around the shops. I’ve got a 25% off voucher for Sussans and a 10% off voucher from Target. Just hope that there’s something nice in the shops. Our work xmas do is next Friday and I’d like to wear it for this and also on Xmas Day….stay tuned!
Boozy day tomorrow. The “Family” Xmas gathering at my parent’s house followed by an enjoyable afternoon at Michelle’s place. I know which one I’m going to enjoy more!!
Must remember to wrap everyone’s presents tonight!!
Exercise: 9.4km - MMCT
It was pleasantly warm at 6am this morning. Thought that it would be okay to add another km on to the run. Okay, it was on bitueman but was only about 600 metres - well 1200 metres if you count the return bit. But my knee felt quite good. Still a bit of a niggle but nothing worse than anything I’ve felt previously. I’ve been massaging it quite a bit myself when I’m sitting at my desk at work and it seems to releive a bit of the niggle.
I don’t understand some drivers. I’m sitting quietly at the traffic lights. I’m at the front of the traffic. There is a car in the lane next to me. The lights change and we move off, the car next to me accelerating quite fast. Then the person driving decides that they want to be in my lane, so they move over in front of me, which is not a problem for me as they’re a fair way in front, and then they slow right down!!! Aaaagghhh! I then have to move into the other lane to overtake them otherwise I’d have to brake and slow down, only to move back into the lane I was in so that I keep to the left. I’m sure they do it on purpose just to annoy me!!
Exercise: 8km Run - MMCT
My hands were so cold during this morning’s run along the MMCT. Even Michelle commented on how cold her hands were. I’ve just checked out Weatherzone and it was 2.6 degrees at 6am. No wonder they were cold!!
I take my hat off to anyone who ran in the heat we had over the weekend. Walking out into it was like walking into a brick wall. Hubby and I went to the cinema on Saturday afternoon, so we were sat in lovely air conditioning. We went for dinner afterwards and sat outside, but had to retreat inside after about 15 minutes as the heat was just so opressive.
Then on Sunday Alana had a birthday party at the Roller Skating rink, so we also got to sit in air conditined comfort for 3 hours. When we walked out of the place the cool change had arrived so we missed the majority of the heat.
My new treadmill is now sitting at home waiting for me to use it. I’m very excited. Just need to remember not to go too stupid with distance….10% rule, 10% rule!!
Alana’s Quote: “Mum, I’ve got the stitches!” (she had a stitch!)
Exercise: 8km Run - MMCT
The knee seems to be behaving itself. This morning it didn’t start niggling until the 6km mark.
The smoke from the bushfires is in the air. I walk outside and I can smell it and it’s very hazy. The sky looks a dull grey colour. I hope we get rain soon. This brings back memories of Ash Wednesday. It was very surreal. I can still remember the red glow over the city and the firece winds…..
I’ve eaten way too much crap food this week. I am now at the point where I have to get my weight back under control, as it’s really getting me down. There is always a weight limit for me that I will not go above and I’m at that limit now! Just need to get this overeating thing under control!!
On a good note, I’ve just bought a new treadmill. It’s this all singing, all dancing one. Hubby is picking it up on Monday so now there’s no excuses for not exercising. I’m going to cancel my gym membership too, as the cost of the membership over a year will pay for the treadmill.
Exercise: 7.9km Run - MMCT
How happy am I!! My knee didn’t start to niggle until about the 6km mark of my run with Michelle this morning. I thought for a little while that it wasn’t going to niggle at all, but it eventually kicked in. Still, if it continues like this I’m hoping that it’ll just ease off slowly and just go away - okay, maybe that’s a little bit too much to ask, but you never know!!
Saw John Henderson along the trail. Nice to see a familiar face. Very rarely when Michelle and I run do we see other Ausrunners.
Work today will be hectic. Food will be in abundance….as will alcohol in the evening. Hopefully I will be restrained!! I can only hope!
Exercise: Netball Game
A really nice warm evening to play Netball (remember I’m not complaining about the heat….EVER!!). We played really well, but just not well enough. The other team were mainly basketballers and I think their goalers missed about 2 shots throughout the whole match, they were that good!! So we lost - but the good news is that we don’t have to move up to the next league.
I have now pulled out the Christmas Tree and all the decorations from under the house. Unfortunately this week is manic and I don’t have a free evening at all to help decorate the tree.
The kitchen guy is now back from his holiday and I’m tapping my fingers with impatience waiting for him to ring so that he can organise a time to come back and finish the kitchen!
Alana’s Quote: “HELLO!!” (as in “Yeah I already know that” sarcastic voice)
Exercise: 18km Bike Ride - Warby Trail
As I couldn’t run the distance this morning, thought it would be a good opportunity to get out the bike and enjoy a bit of a ride….okay it probably wasn’t a very sociable time to go out riding (7am), but it was good to catch up with the ESRG and it meant that Michelle had somebody to chat to while she was running.
It was a very cool morning, but at least it wasn’t raining. Got back to Mt Evelyn just before the heavens opened up….good timing!!
Was home by 9.30am so I still had the whole day to make the most of. Ironing was my priority today….but there’s only so much ironing a girl can do before she becomes a zombie!! And of course by the time I’d cleared a huge basket full, I’d filled another one with all the clean washing that I brought in off the line - it just never ends does it!!
Alana’s Quote: “So what’s wrong with you Mr Grumpy!!” (said to Hubby)
Exercise: 5km Run - Treadmill, Weights - Legs
Okay so I would much rather have run outdoors this morning, but due to time constraints it was the gym that I headed for. Felt good running on the treadmill. The niggle still kicked in after about 3km but once again it didn’t get any worse as I continued. Also left the ITB strap at home to see if it was any worse not wearing it….no worse it seems!! I then did some strength work on my legs. Now I just need to find that tennis ball so I can roll around on it for a little while!!
Have been out trying to choose some floor tiles and wall tiles for the kitchen….how frustrating is it!! There are just so many to choose from, and of course the ones that I like the most for the floor cost $82 per sq metre - now we need to measure up to see exactly how much that actually equates to (gulp!). Probably going to go for coloured glass tiles on the wall. Have found a nice colour but once again we need to measure up to find out how much it’s going to cost us.
Went to Brand Smart while we were out. Picked up a bargain - Donnay bright pink Dri Fit top (well their equivalent anyway) for $20….love a bargain, me!! Also managed to find some more chrissie presents so can cross more people off the list to buy for.
Must get the decorations out of the garage tomorrow…..need to start feeling Christmassy soon ‘cos it hasn’t kicked in yet!!
Alana’s Quote: “He’s so not going to get through!” (watching American Idol)
Exercise: 7.9km Run - MMCT
Woo hoo! - That’s twice in one week that I’ve been out running, and with Michelle too. We had so much to catch up on. It’s amazing how quickly a run goes by when you’re chatting!
The knee is still a bit niggly but once I could feel the niggle it didn’t actually get any worse, and to be honest, by the end of the run it was hardly niggly at all. I think I just may have to live with the niggle for now. Just need to make sure that I do the stetching, strengthening, icing etc. Have a feeling that this is the only way that the niggle will go away!
Christmas is approaching very fast. Too fast in fact! I’m nearly all done with buying pressies, just a couple more to get, and of course they’re the hardest ones aren’t they!!
And with Christmas comes all the evening stuff - next week is horrendous. Netball on Monday night, Dinner with the sales team on Tuesday night, Drinks and Nibbles with the company that we book our flights with on Wednesday night - this should be a great evening though as it’s being held at the National Gallery. Getting my hair done on Thursday night as I can’t go on my normal Saturday as we’ve got the “Family Xmas Do”, then on Friday night Alana is singing with the school choir at Carols by Candlelight in the local park - so busy, busy, busy!
Alana’s Quote: “How does she do that thing with her hips - does she use special effects or something?” (said while Shakira was singing on the radio in the car).
