This is what I woke up to this morning. So I went straight back to bed. No training required when it's the end of the world or when you have TTOM like a motherfucker!
The End
Showing posts with label 100 Day Challenge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 100 Day Challenge. Show all posts
Wednesday, 23 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 41 - Help ! The Sky has Fallen
This is what I woke up to this morning. So I went straight back to bed. No training required when it's the end of the world or when you have TTOM like a motherfucker!
The End
Tuesday, 22 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 42 - I Was the Most Beautiful
An English naval officer was marooned on a remote island in the South Pacific. He had befriended a native man to whom he was constantly trying to prove his superiority. For the Englishman, everything was a contest. This puzzled the native, for whom life was fun, like a game.
One day the Englishman, in a typical fashion, threw down a challenge to the native. Pointing out a spot about half a mile down the beautiful sandy beach, he announced, "We will have a competition from here to that distant point."
The native agreed. The Englishman, always taking charge of things, set up the conditions: "We will train in our own style, privately, for two weeks. On the fourteenth day, we will compete."
When the day arrived, they took their places on the starting line and set off. With his usual intensity, pushing himself to the limit of his physical ability and grimacing with the strain, he drove himself through the sand until, gasping for breath, he lunged for the finish line. Exhausted and soaked in sweat, he turned to see how his opponent was doing.
To his joy and amazement, the native was only about halfway to the finish line. The Englishman watched him float gracefully along the shoreline with long, comfortable strides, a smile on his handsome face. When he finally pranced across the finish line he found the Englishman jumping and down and shouting "I won! I won!"
The native looked at the Englishman in disbelief. "What? You won? No, I won, I was the most beautiful!"
from
Body, Mind, and Sport: The Mind-Body Guide to Lifelong Health, Fitness, and Your Personal Best
One day the Englishman, in a typical fashion, threw down a challenge to the native. Pointing out a spot about half a mile down the beautiful sandy beach, he announced, "We will have a competition from here to that distant point."
The native agreed. The Englishman, always taking charge of things, set up the conditions: "We will train in our own style, privately, for two weeks. On the fourteenth day, we will compete."
When the day arrived, they took their places on the starting line and set off. With his usual intensity, pushing himself to the limit of his physical ability and grimacing with the strain, he drove himself through the sand until, gasping for breath, he lunged for the finish line. Exhausted and soaked in sweat, he turned to see how his opponent was doing.To his joy and amazement, the native was only about halfway to the finish line. The Englishman watched him float gracefully along the shoreline with long, comfortable strides, a smile on his handsome face. When he finally pranced across the finish line he found the Englishman jumping and down and shouting "I won! I won!"
The native looked at the Englishman in disbelief. "What? You won? No, I won, I was the most beautiful!"
from
Body, Mind, and Sport: The Mind-Body Guide to Lifelong Health, Fitness, and Your Personal Best
Monday, 21 September 2009
Sunday, 20 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 44 - Hunger Torches the Fat
The old miserable Katie used to hate hunger. It used to be a constant gnawing emptiness that made me cranky and unpleasant to be around. Now hunger is my friend.
I make sure that I eat large, nutritious, physically and psychologically satisfying meals that keep me comfortable and full until the next scheduled meal. And when I start to feel hunger before my next feed I am happy.
Hunger is feedback. It means I have eaten the amount of food my body needs, it has processed it all and used it all up to fuel my activity, internal organs and my brain. It has run out of the good stuff and is asking for more.
Here's the part that I love. I tell my body that more food is coming soon, but in the meantime, there are plenty of fat cells it can consume to access extra energy. I imagine a Pacman game, with little munching mouths gobbling up the blobs of fat. When the hunger subsides (which it always does because hunger comes in waves) I know that I'm still moving and functioning because I'm torching the fat.
There is also no reason to fear that getting 'too hungry' will precede a binge. This is my limiting belief and makes no sense under close examination. Naturally lean people get hungry every day and they don't eat until they are sick as a consequence.
The urge to binge is always precipitated by a feeling of pain or deprivation so my correlation between hunger and bingeing is a result of my old feelings that hunger was uncomfortable, continuous and painful so I wanted to soothe that pain with food. Now that I know that being hungry is an opportunity to access my energy storage units (fat) and is only temporary while my body switches fuel sources, I don't find it painful or uncomfortable at all.
Nom nom nom nom nom nom nom gobble up that yummy fat, there's plenty to keep us going ☺
I make sure that I eat large, nutritious, physically and psychologically satisfying meals that keep me comfortable and full until the next scheduled meal. And when I start to feel hunger before my next feed I am happy.
Hunger is feedback. It means I have eaten the amount of food my body needs, it has processed it all and used it all up to fuel my activity, internal organs and my brain. It has run out of the good stuff and is asking for more.
Here's the part that I love. I tell my body that more food is coming soon, but in the meantime, there are plenty of fat cells it can consume to access extra energy. I imagine a Pacman game, with little munching mouths gobbling up the blobs of fat. When the hunger subsides (which it always does because hunger comes in waves) I know that I'm still moving and functioning because I'm torching the fat.
I'm coming to get you -- nom nom nom fatty fat tastes good
There is also no reason to fear that getting 'too hungry' will precede a binge. This is my limiting belief and makes no sense under close examination. Naturally lean people get hungry every day and they don't eat until they are sick as a consequence.
The urge to binge is always precipitated by a feeling of pain or deprivation so my correlation between hunger and bingeing is a result of my old feelings that hunger was uncomfortable, continuous and painful so I wanted to soothe that pain with food. Now that I know that being hungry is an opportunity to access my energy storage units (fat) and is only temporary while my body switches fuel sources, I don't find it painful or uncomfortable at all.
Nom nom nom nom nom nom nom gobble up that yummy fat, there's plenty to keep us going ☺
Saturday, 19 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 45 - It's Our Special Pirates' Day
Ahoy there me hearties, grab your parrot, peg-leg and grog water bucket -- it's International Talk/Blog Like a Pirate Day today.
Shiver me timbers gang, our deeds are so famous on the seven seas that the whole wide world be giving us Pirate love.
Arr, what can ye do today t' celebrate? Maybe write a list o' all the great thin's you have accomplished on this quest, or be taking a look at ye treasure map and see if ye gettin' close.
Me parrot concurs that today be the day t' live as your authentic self. Weigh anchor and surrender the excess booty!
If ye be competing today, I hope ye bikini looks like this. Blimey, good luck ye gorgeous lasses. Arrrrrrgh, be bloody proud of being a sexy wench!
Smooth sailin', an' fair winds t' ye!
Shiver me timbers gang, our deeds are so famous on the seven seas that the whole wide world be giving us Pirate love.
Arr, what can ye do today t' celebrate? Maybe write a list o' all the great thin's you have accomplished on this quest, or be taking a look at ye treasure map and see if ye gettin' close.
Me parrot concurs that today be the day t' live as your authentic self. Weigh anchor and surrender the excess booty! If ye be competing today, I hope ye bikini looks like this. Blimey, good luck ye gorgeous lasses. Arrrrrrgh, be bloody proud of being a sexy wench!
Smooth sailin', an' fair winds t' ye!
T' me,(c) Tom Smith
Yo, Ho, Yo, Ho,
It's "Talk Like A Pirate" Day!
That time in September when sea dogs remember
That grown-ups still know how ta play!
When wenches are curvy and dogs are all scurvy
And a soft-wear patch covers your eye,
Ta hell with our jobs, for one day we're all swabs
And buccaneers all till we die!
So hoist up the mainsails and shut down your brain cells,
They only would get in the way,
Avast there, me hearty, we're havin' a party,
It's "Talk Like A Pirate" Day!
Yo Ho!
Friday, 18 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 46 - Why Calories are not the Whole Story
We all know that eating more calories than you burn results in fat storage and consuming less calories than you burn results in weight loss.
So why is that some people can eat a great deal of calories and not gain weight and others just eat a single donut and put on a kilo overnight? If a donut is the same amount of calories for a slim person and an 'easy gainer' why the difference in result?
The difference must be in the calories burned. Is it just a cruel metabolic joke or is there another explanation? It can't only be metabolism because sometimes I can get away with more calories than I would expect, and at other times, a strict adherence to a calorie restriction program gives me much less fat loss than the sums would suggest. This is the reason why my maintenance level has always been baffling.
The answer to the calorie quandry is indeed metabolic, but not in the way you imagine. Let me explain.
In order to fully utilise the incoming calories for energy, repair and eliminate the waste the body has to use its parasympathetic nervous system [rest and digest].
It explains why I ate a beautiful HUGE post comp meal in a calm, relaxed manner and didn’t even register a blip on the scale, and yet weeks and weeks of calorie restriction with my body under stress doesn’t result in any significant weight loss. It also explains why my weight was the most stable it has ever been the week I purposely did no exercise at all and focused on relaxing.
Intense exercise also stresses the body, but is not a reason to stop if you enjoy it – I think the feelings of enjoyment and pleasure cancels out the stress reaction or at least gets you back to relaxed fairly quickly. But when you exercise while feeling sick, stressed, rushed, guilty, or punishing yourself for your "sins" you enter the sympathetic state (shut down digestive system) which means you won’t be able to burn your stored fat as energy, you’ll just get drained.
On the other hand, simple walking, yoga, stretching, using a fitball for a chair [my latest craze!] can also torch the fat cells if you are calm enough to access your fat when you need extra energy.
So it is not what you eat but HOW you eat that matters. To burn up all the excess fat simply and easily all you have to do is enjoy the food while you are eating AND afterwards (when digestion is taking place), be as relaxed as possible during and after meals and think happy thoughts!
It is possible that calmly eating chocolate cake with love and acceptance will result in more weight loss than eating lean chicken and green beans with gritty determination quickly followed by anxiety while you count down the hours until the next meal.
It is not what your exercise choice is but HOW you exercise that matters. If you enjoy it you will be re-energised as body releases it's stored energy but if you are doing it under sufference because you think you have to you will be depleted and hungry ("can't get to the food I've got inside me -- give me some more")
EASY when you know how. It is entirely possible to love yourself thin ...
Do you agree or am I talking through my very relaxed sphincter?
So why is that some people can eat a great deal of calories and not gain weight and others just eat a single donut and put on a kilo overnight? If a donut is the same amount of calories for a slim person and an 'easy gainer' why the difference in result?
The difference must be in the calories burned. Is it just a cruel metabolic joke or is there another explanation? It can't only be metabolism because sometimes I can get away with more calories than I would expect, and at other times, a strict adherence to a calorie restriction program gives me much less fat loss than the sums would suggest. This is the reason why my maintenance level has always been baffling.
The answer to the calorie quandry is indeed metabolic, but not in the way you imagine. Let me explain.
In order to fully utilise the incoming calories for energy, repair and eliminate the waste the body has to use its parasympathetic nervous system [rest and digest].
Parasympathetic fibers slow the heart; stimulate peristalsis; promote the secretion of lacrimal, salivary, and digestive glands; induce bile and insulin release; dilate peripheral and visceral blood vessels; constrict the pupils, esophagus, and bronchioles; and relax sphincters during micturition and defecation.In the event of stress, guilt, self criticism, conflict, exhaustion, fear and anger, the sympathetic nervous system [fight or flight] takes over and shuts down all the above functions. [The parasympathetic system also controls the sex organs so there is a hint as to why my period stops when I diet].
(The sympathetic nervous system is) the part of the autonomic nervous system that is concerned especially with preparing the body to react to situations of stress or emergency, that contains chiefly adrenergic fibers and tends to depress secretion, decrease the tone and contractility of smooth muscle and increase heart rate.If we eat when we are under the control of the sympathetic nervous system [stress], none of our food (or our stored fat reserves) is processed properly and ends up in storage (fat) instead.
It explains why I ate a beautiful HUGE post comp meal in a calm, relaxed manner and didn’t even register a blip on the scale, and yet weeks and weeks of calorie restriction with my body under stress doesn’t result in any significant weight loss. It also explains why my weight was the most stable it has ever been the week I purposely did no exercise at all and focused on relaxing.
Intense exercise also stresses the body, but is not a reason to stop if you enjoy it – I think the feelings of enjoyment and pleasure cancels out the stress reaction or at least gets you back to relaxed fairly quickly. But when you exercise while feeling sick, stressed, rushed, guilty, or punishing yourself for your "sins" you enter the sympathetic state (shut down digestive system) which means you won’t be able to burn your stored fat as energy, you’ll just get drained.
On the other hand, simple walking, yoga, stretching, using a fitball for a chair [my latest craze!] can also torch the fat cells if you are calm enough to access your fat when you need extra energy.
So it is not what you eat but HOW you eat that matters. To burn up all the excess fat simply and easily all you have to do is enjoy the food while you are eating AND afterwards (when digestion is taking place), be as relaxed as possible during and after meals and think happy thoughts!
It is possible that calmly eating chocolate cake with love and acceptance will result in more weight loss than eating lean chicken and green beans with gritty determination quickly followed by anxiety while you count down the hours until the next meal.
It is not what your exercise choice is but HOW you exercise that matters. If you enjoy it you will be re-energised as body releases it's stored energy but if you are doing it under sufference because you think you have to you will be depleted and hungry ("can't get to the food I've got inside me -- give me some more")
EASY when you know how. It is entirely possible to love yourself thin ...
Do you agree or am I talking through my very relaxed sphincter?
Read another opinion here.
Thursday, 17 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 47 - The Magic Question
Richard turned to me in frustration and said "It really annoys me that the last mail pick up is at 3pm in the afternoon. My morning's are really busy and I don't get to respond to my correspondence until the afternoon but I am never finished by the time the mail is picked up so I am always a day behind. This place is so frustrating!"
So I asked the magic question ..."What would you like instead?"
"That's easy" he said" I'd like the mail to be picked up at 4.30pm."
"Why is that important to you?" I asked
"Because I could get all my work done in the afternoon, sent in the mail that day and my clients would recieve a speedy response from me".
"So go ahead and ask" I said "but instead of saying what you don't want, ask for what you want instead and why."
Richard phoned Alan and instead of saying how annoyed he was about the present situation he said "Hey Alan, I was wondering if we could change the time the courier picks up the mail in the afternoon to a later time. I am finding it difficult to get all my mail ready by 3pm so a 4.30pm final pick up would really help me out."
"No problem" said Alan, "I'll phone the courier service and get that fixed up for you right away".
If Richard had picked up the phone and said "Hey Alan, I am really frustrated about the stupid rule that the last mail pick up is at 3pm, please sort this out" Alan would have felt criticised as well as being responsible for trying to come up with the right solution that would make Richard happy. Alan's response to Richard would have been totally different.
The magic is in asking the Universe/God, yourself and others "what would I like instead? and why?"
I am really cross that I am carrying more weight than I'd like because I've haven't been on plan
I would love to feel at peace with my body, to appreciate it's beauty and eat in a healthy sustainable way so that I can be happy and joyful right here and right now.
It is destructive and self limiting to react badly to a number on the scales and I wish I didn't do it.
I would love to weigh myself without an emotional reaction to the number because it would allow me to be appreciative for my progress and give me feedback on my body's reaction to my choices.
It drives me crazy when you leave your room all messy because you get cranky when you have to spend the weekend cleaning it up.
I would love it if you would pick up your clothes, make your bed and pack away your books in the mornings before you go to school so that you have a relaxing, welcoming space to come home to and you won't have to spend the weekend tidying up a big mess because you will have done a small amount each day.
It is really disappointing that you have made a careless mistake in the estimate and your client is going to be charged more than he expected when he gets the final invoice
I think it would really help you out if you could get someone else to check your estimates before you send them because someone else will be able to see your work with fresh eyes and spot any accidental mistakes. I am happy to do it if you'd like. Then your clients will be amazed at your accuracy and attention to detail when their invoice matches the estimate exactly.
What would YOU like instead? and why is it important to you (or to them)?
Give it a try with you family, friends and co-workers, see what happens and then try it on yourself.
Imagine how wonderful it is going to be when you get what you want ...
So I asked the magic question ..."What would you like instead?"
"That's easy" he said" I'd like the mail to be picked up at 4.30pm."
"Why is that important to you?" I asked
"Because I could get all my work done in the afternoon, sent in the mail that day and my clients would recieve a speedy response from me".
"So go ahead and ask" I said "but instead of saying what you don't want, ask for what you want instead and why."
Richard phoned Alan and instead of saying how annoyed he was about the present situation he said "Hey Alan, I was wondering if we could change the time the courier picks up the mail in the afternoon to a later time. I am finding it difficult to get all my mail ready by 3pm so a 4.30pm final pick up would really help me out."
"No problem" said Alan, "I'll phone the courier service and get that fixed up for you right away".
If Richard had picked up the phone and said "Hey Alan, I am really frustrated about the stupid rule that the last mail pick up is at 3pm, please sort this out" Alan would have felt criticised as well as being responsible for trying to come up with the right solution that would make Richard happy. Alan's response to Richard would have been totally different.
The magic is in asking the Universe/God, yourself and others "what would I like instead? and why?"
I would love to feel at peace with my body, to appreciate it's beauty and eat in a healthy sustainable way so that I can be happy and joyful right here and right now.
I would love to weigh myself without an emotional reaction to the number because it would allow me to be appreciative for my progress and give me feedback on my body's reaction to my choices.
I would love it if you would pick up your clothes, make your bed and pack away your books in the mornings before you go to school so that you have a relaxing, welcoming space to come home to and you won't have to spend the weekend tidying up a big mess because you will have done a small amount each day.
I think it would really help you out if you could get someone else to check your estimates before you send them because someone else will be able to see your work with fresh eyes and spot any accidental mistakes. I am happy to do it if you'd like. Then your clients will be amazed at your accuracy and attention to detail when their invoice matches the estimate exactly.
What would YOU like instead? and why is it important to you (or to them)?
Give it a try with you family, friends and co-workers, see what happens and then try it on yourself.
Imagine how wonderful it is going to be when you get what you want ...
Wednesday, 16 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 48 - In an Instant
It can happen in an instant ...
It only takes a second for your life to change. It doesn't have to be struggle, hard work, determination or white knuckle willpower. Sometimes change happens in an instant.
And when it does, decide to hold on to the good things for as long as they last, and choose to let the bad things simply fade away. There are no guarantees that anything is forever, but the miracle of transformed thoughts and renewed attitudes can be as permanent as that feeling you still have when you look into your partner's eyes.
Love at first sight
One moment in time and your life is transformed forever
Your world changes in a heartbeat and the change is permanent
A tragic accident
One moment in time and your life is transformed forever
Your world changes in a heartbeat and the change is permanent
A single decision to pick up the phone and talk to a stranger
One moment in time and your life is transformed forever
Your world changes in a heartbeat and the change is permanent
It only takes a second for your life to change. It doesn't have to be struggle, hard work, determination or white knuckle willpower. Sometimes change happens in an instant.And when it does, decide to hold on to the good things for as long as they last, and choose to let the bad things simply fade away. There are no guarantees that anything is forever, but the miracle of transformed thoughts and renewed attitudes can be as permanent as that feeling you still have when you look into your partner's eyes.
Tuesday, 15 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 49 - Triumphant Tuesday
Tuesdays are bad days, and typically binge days. I have 2 meetings at 11.00am and noon that bore me to tears and make me frustrated and cranky. I don't need to be there except for show.
Tuesdays are also the day I have my weekly meeting with my boss at 4pm. Although we get on quite well most of the time, when it comes to our weekly meetings I feel like a naughty school girl in the principals office. He never compliments me but just points out my shortcomings and makes me feel useless.
Snacking normally commences about 2pm as my crankiness turns into anxiety. My meeting with my boss always runs over so I get home late from work and I am starving for dinner. After another crappy Tuesday at the coal face, I fall face first into food.
Today was different [even though I have a semi-migraine today to add to the mix]
♥ I felt the frustration and anger in the first meeting and sat through it (the emotions and the meeting)
♥ I chose not to stay for the second meeting because I needed to eat more than I needed to sit through the meeting
♥ I scheduled another meeting from 2pm to 3.30pm that was walking the route of a planned event so I was (a) active, (b) with people I liked and (c) not required to concentrate or think too hard
♥ I went to my meeting with the boss and it was the usual crap but I chose to let as much of it as possible just slide off me
♥ On the way to the ferry one of my co-workers who I rarely speak to (because we work in different areas not because I don't like her LOL) congratulated me on my decision to go on extended leave and to take time out for myself. She is one of the very few people who understand why I am doing this. Her support made me feel great.
♥ I had healthy nachos for dinner - rice crackers, sweet chilli sauce, chicken, baked veges and cheese melted on top with sour cream - I had twice the number of crackers (a whopping 50g ☺) and 1/2 the chicken I normally have. Yum!
♥ Then I treated myself to dessert - dates and ice-cream and then I stopped. Dates have been my new trigger food - once a packet (500g) is open, I keep going until they are gone. Do you know how many calories in a 500g packet of dates? ... 1300 big ones!
♥ I made a new friend on the other side of the world and we chatted for an hour
So today was triumphant Tuesday. Let's celebrate this miracle and look forward to many more.
Tuesdays are also the day I have my weekly meeting with my boss at 4pm. Although we get on quite well most of the time, when it comes to our weekly meetings I feel like a naughty school girl in the principals office. He never compliments me but just points out my shortcomings and makes me feel useless.
Snacking normally commences about 2pm as my crankiness turns into anxiety. My meeting with my boss always runs over so I get home late from work and I am starving for dinner. After another crappy Tuesday at the coal face, I fall face first into food.
Today was different [even though I have a semi-migraine today to add to the mix]
♥ I felt the frustration and anger in the first meeting and sat through it (the emotions and the meeting)♥ I chose not to stay for the second meeting because I needed to eat more than I needed to sit through the meeting
♥ I scheduled another meeting from 2pm to 3.30pm that was walking the route of a planned event so I was (a) active, (b) with people I liked and (c) not required to concentrate or think too hard
♥ I went to my meeting with the boss and it was the usual crap but I chose to let as much of it as possible just slide off me
♥ On the way to the ferry one of my co-workers who I rarely speak to (because we work in different areas not because I don't like her LOL) congratulated me on my decision to go on extended leave and to take time out for myself. She is one of the very few people who understand why I am doing this. Her support made me feel great.
♥ I had healthy nachos for dinner - rice crackers, sweet chilli sauce, chicken, baked veges and cheese melted on top with sour cream - I had twice the number of crackers (a whopping 50g ☺) and 1/2 the chicken I normally have. Yum!
♥ Then I treated myself to dessert - dates and ice-cream and then I stopped. Dates have been my new trigger food - once a packet (500g) is open, I keep going until they are gone. Do you know how many calories in a 500g packet of dates? ... 1300 big ones!
♥ I made a new friend on the other side of the world and we chatted for an hour
So today was triumphant Tuesday. Let's celebrate this miracle and look forward to many more.
Monday, 14 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 50 - Pirates Council
Happy Pirates Council check in day for Phase 5. We are now half way through this challenge. How are you going?
My check in :
In the past ten days I have made wonderful progress with my thought processes around food. My binges have become shorter and less intense and are primarily just overeating and not gorging until I feel sick.
I am now getting some help with my issues through a miracle of the universe. Through one simple email, I have connected with Dr R. who has a great deal of experience in dealing with disordered eating through prolonged dieting. She is teaching me how to enjoy being fit, lean and healthy and how to confront my issues head on. I cannot begin to tell you how much of relief it is not to have to carry this burden on my own anymore. I am on an intensive program that will transform my life. Stay tuned for insights and ephiphanies!
And remember -- you are beautiful and special just the way you are right now. Give yourself the gift of care and attention because your imperfection is your greatest asset.
And don't forget -- it's 7 days until International Talk Like a Skinny Bones 100 Day Challenge Pirate Day. On September 19 all blog posts must be in pirate speak.
My check in :
In the past ten days I have made wonderful progress with my thought processes around food. My binges have become shorter and less intense and are primarily just overeating and not gorging until I feel sick.
I am now getting some help with my issues through a miracle of the universe. Through one simple email, I have connected with Dr R. who has a great deal of experience in dealing with disordered eating through prolonged dieting. She is teaching me how to enjoy being fit, lean and healthy and how to confront my issues head on. I cannot begin to tell you how much of relief it is not to have to carry this burden on my own anymore. I am on an intensive program that will transform my life. Stay tuned for insights and ephiphanies!
And remember -- you are beautiful and special just the way you are right now. Give yourself the gift of care and attention because your imperfection is your greatest asset.
And don't forget -- it's 7 days until International Talk Like a Skinny Bones 100 Day Challenge Pirate Day. On September 19 all blog posts must be in pirate speak.
Sunday, 13 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 51 - Recap and Prepare for the Pirates Council
Phase Five Recap -- Mutiny
Day 59 - The Struggle
Have you resolved the struggle between the opposing forces inside of you?
Day 58 - Wordless Sunday
What does your week look like in pictures?
Day 57 - Issuing the Right Commands
Does your crew understand what you need when the winds are blowing?
Day 56 -Re-Invent the Past - Mid Point Challenge
Did you go back to something in the past you had forgotten about that gave you pleasure?
Day 55 - I can't get no Satisfaction
Do you prefer big meals or small? Are you connected with your hunger?
Day 54 - Walk the Plank
Have you walked the plank yet?
Day 53 - What Would You do if it Wasn't Impossible?
If you didn't want something that felt impossible, what would you just get on and do?
Day 51 - I Haven't Forgotten
Did you spend all your weekend making a new friggin' blog template with your new computer? I didn't think so!
Day 51 - Prepare for the Fifth Pirates Council
Day 60 marks the completion of Phase Five and the fifth Pirates Council. This post (the one you are reading now) reviews the highlights of this phase. You can catch up now if you have missed anything.
Tomorrow I will post my official Phase Five check in. If you are finishing Phase Five with me, or are close enough then you can add your information by commenting ON TOMORROW'S POST (it will help me if it is all in one place):
Check in information is:
Heave Ho Me Hearties ... We're half way through ♥
If you missed Phase One you can find it here.
If you missed Phase Two you can find it here.
If you missed Phase Three you can find it here.
If you missed Phase Four you can find it here.
Day 59 - The Struggle
Have you resolved the struggle between the opposing forces inside of you?
Day 58 - Wordless Sunday
What does your week look like in pictures?
Day 57 - Issuing the Right Commands
Does your crew understand what you need when the winds are blowing?
Day 56 -Re-Invent the Past - Mid Point Challenge
Did you go back to something in the past you had forgotten about that gave you pleasure?
Day 55 - I can't get no Satisfaction
Do you prefer big meals or small? Are you connected with your hunger?
Day 54 - Walk the Plank
Have you walked the plank yet?
Day 53 - What Would You do if it Wasn't Impossible?
If you didn't want something that felt impossible, what would you just get on and do?
Day 51 - I Haven't Forgotten
Did you spend all your weekend making a new friggin' blog template with your new computer? I didn't think so!
Day 51 - Prepare for the Fifth Pirates Council
Day 60 marks the completion of Phase Five and the fifth Pirates Council. This post (the one you are reading now) reviews the highlights of this phase. You can catch up now if you have missed anything.
Tomorrow I will post my official Phase Five check in. If you are finishing Phase Five with me, or are close enough then you can add your information by commenting ON TOMORROW'S POST (it will help me if it is all in one place):
Check in information is:
- your milestones - e.g. weight loss, inches/cm lost, days without bingeing, physical improvements
- your victory over the Pirate of Powerlessness
- your intention for the next 10 days
Heave Ho Me Hearties ... We're half way through ♥
Saturday, 12 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 52 - And You Thought I'd Forgotten!
Drive by blogging on the run today ☺1. I bought a new computer today because I was running a screen and keyboard/mouse off a really old laptop and it kept crashing and going super S- L-O-W. I am now the proud owner of some new Dell tower thingo [Inspiron 545s] with Vista that flies like the wind!
2. I don't like my blog template at all any more, I want something funky and arty. I am going to strip back all my widgets and probably rename it.
3. Happy birthday Liz - love you ♥
4. A woman who is self-reliant, positive, optomistic, and undertakes her work with the assurance of success magnetizes her condition. She draws to herself the creative powers of the universe. ~ Norman Vincent Peal
Friday, 11 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 53 - What Would I Do if it Wasn't Impossible?
Sometimes it seems that my dream to have a strong, lean body without counting calories, monitoring my macros and exercising to exhaustion seems impossible for me. I am working on my beliefs and having faith in the fact that other people have achieved it but it is a bit of a mind f*ck.The way to get through this is to keep asking "What would I do if it wasn't impossible?" Then I act "as if" if were easy, effortless and natural.
My daily actions include
- letting go of obsessively logging all my food
- letting go of limiting my calorie intake
- eating unprocessed food in amounts that keep me satisfied
- really thinking about what would satisfy me at that particular meal
- appreciating my body as it is right now
- stating my intention each day to reduce the importance of food in my thoughts
- having patience with myself if I eat when I'm not hungry or for comfort
- celebrating every positive decision I make
- expecting that today is the day when my eating will be as unremarkable as the rest of my bodily functions
As long as I know what I want, and why I want it, the 'how' doesn't matter. Think of all the great things you have been given in your life without having to struggle and strive for them, those wonderful gifts that just fall into your lap. There is no reason why this can't be one of those delightful gifts the universe delivers to me. Freedom from dieting hell is on its way and I'm excited ♥
Thursday, 10 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 54 - The Plank Was Walked
Yesterday I asked my boss if I could take 6 months off work from 1 Jan 2010. He agreed.
If all goes well and I can build an online income stream, I am hoping not to go back to work at all.
Sometime next year I will be living my perfect day.
What am I going to do in those 6 months?
Write a book. Or an ebook. Write poetry and publish it on the web. Create interesting, lovely or funny videos, put them on You Tube. Be passionate. Write a web app that will solve a problem in people’s lives. Become a watchdog to replace the faltering newspapers. Explore the world, and blog about it. Try something you’ve always been afraid to try, and put it on video. Be yourself, loudly. Start a new company, doing only one thing, but doing it very well. Start a business that does a service you’ve always wanted, or that you are frustrated with in other companies because the service sucks. Put your heart into something. Say something that no one else dares to say. Do something others are afraid to do. Help someone no one else cares to help. Make the lives of others better. Make music that makes others want to weep, to laugh, to create. Inspire others by being inspiring. Teach young people to do amazing things. Write a play, get others to act in it, record it. Empower others to do things they’ve never been able to do before. Read, and read, and then write. Love, and love, and then help others to love. Do something good and ask others to pass it on. Be profound. Find focus in a world without it. Become minimalist in a world of dizzying complexity. Reach out to those who are frustrated, depressed, angry, confused, sad, hurt. Be the voice for those without one. Learn, do, then teach. Meet new people, become fast friends. Dare to be wrong. Take lots and lots of pictures. Explore new cultures. Be different. Paint a huge mural. Create a web comic. Be a dork, but do it boldly. Interview people. Observe people. Create new clothes. Take old stuff and make new stuff from it. Read weird stuff. Study the greats, and emulate them. Be interested in others. Surprise people. Start a blog, write at least a little each day. Cook great food, and share it. Be open-minded. Help someone else start a small business. Focus on less but do it better. Help others achieve their dreams. Put a smile on someone’s face, every day. Start an open-source project. Make a podcast. Start a movement. Be brave. Be honest. Be hilarious. Get really, really good at something. Practice a lot. A lot. Start now. Try.
~Leo - zenhabits~
Wednesday, 9 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 55 - I Can't Get No Satisfaction
As a professional dieter, I have spent 5 years ignoring my hunger. I was either constantly starving or eating beyond the point of fullness until I was so stuffed I felt sick.By tuning into my hunger signals and trying the 'eat when you're hungry and stop when you are full' approach I have slowly realised that I have got the signals all mixed up.
Being hungry does not mean that your stomach is completely empty of food, there are strange grumbling noises and you feel slightly nauseous. That, my friends, is fall on the floor starving. It is not normal HUNGER.
Similarly, if you finish a meal and you say ... "that barely hit the sides, I could eat that all over again" and then stare off into the distance wondering how you are going to get through the next three hours before you get to eat again, then you are not FULL. You are not even close to being full.
Somehow along the way we have programmed our thinking to believe that (a) we need to be starving in between meals when we are in a calorie deficit and (b) having a completely full tummy is to be avoided because it means we've eaten 'too much'. Worryingly, we almost prefer that empty feeling because we are 'putting in the work' and doing what it takes to get lean.
First of all, I need to remind you that most medical sources claim that 2,000 calories is maintenance for an average female. Are you average? How much lean muscle mass do you have? How much do you train every day? How active are you during your daily routine?
Then consider the types of food that you eat. Are you eating foods with high calories and low volume (processed crap) or is your food primarily fruit, vegetables, whole grains/legumes, and lean protein.
I am willing to bet (because I've been experimenting) that if you ate a 500 calorie breakfast of oats, natural protein powder, banana, bran, peanut butter and greek yogurt you would be wonderfully full and contented when you finished it. By the time lunchtime came around you would be just starting to feel like you could maybe fit some more food in. If your lunch was 500 calories of chicken, wholegrain pasta or a potato and vegetables, I am thinking you wouldn't even think about food again until about 4pm. If you then ate a piece of fruit, I suspect you might make it through to dinner quite easily. After a 500 calorie brown rice, vegetable and tofu stirfry dinner, I think you might be so full that you couldn't even fit in dessert and you'd sleep soundly and peacefully that night.
Even without trying you have only eaten 1600 calories and you are never fall on the floor starving at all. If you've worked up at sweat at the gym that day you probably still have a few hundred calories left to play with and still be in a deficit. You could fit in that hot chocolate and a small scoop of real icecream and still lose fat.
If you like thinking about food all day and counting down the hours until your next feed from your 42 tupperware containers in your cooler bag then aiming for 1200-1400 calories in 5-6 small meals might suit you.
But if you want to eat like you did when you were a skinny kid, or the way that the naturally thin girls I know do (because I watch them and ask them) then have 3 decent, filling, delicious meals a day and snack wisely either to tide you over or to have a small treat. If you train like an athlete, and you carry a decent amount of muscle then you can eat much more than you think.
Hunger is not starvation and gluttony is not being full and satisfied. Once you give yourself permission to eat large healthy meals you realise that you can get lean and stay lean without ever wanting to chew off your arm. AND you feel fantastic and full of energy.
- So what do you prefer? small meals or large?
- How long has it been since you've been completely full and satisfied from healthy food (not a binge/overeating episode)?
- Do you think that you have to 'pay the price' of continuous hunger to be lean?
Tuesday, 8 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 56 - Mid Point Challenge - Re-invent the Past
Over a year ago I had a raging imaginary affair with GB. We grew tired of each other and we broke up. I haven't seen him for a long time.Last night I went to see him on the spur of the moment. I wanted the comfort of a dark room, loud music that drowned out my thoughts and the feeling of sweat running between my breasts.
Somehow every word he spoke was kind of sexy ...
Come on ... keep going
We started together ... let's finish together
Give it a squeeze ...
Give me just a little bit more ...
*heavy breathing*
In the silence and darkness of track six tears ran down my face, cleansing me and washing away the crazy guilt and shame of not living up to my own ridiculously high standards.
At the end of it I was emotionally spent and could barely walk.
And as a bonus I burned 865 calories -- I think I'm going to see GB again soon.
- Pirates : Your Mid Point Challenge is to do something that you used to enjoy but you haven't done for ages.
Monday, 7 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 57 - Issuing the Right Commands
As Kaptain Katie of the good ship "Awesome" I am in charge of deciding what to do and I issue commands to my crew in order to get it done.
Unfortunately, what most pirate captains don't realize is their workers find it difficult to hear orders because of all the noise - the sails beating in the wind, the crashing of waves and the shouting of their fellow pirates. What the pirate crew end up hearing is only the last half of the instruction.
So when I give instruction to my loyal, hardworking and competent crew, I make sure that they can understand my request even if they only hear half of the command.
The wrong way
The right way
Unfortunately, what most pirate captains don't realize is their workers find it difficult to hear orders because of all the noise - the sails beating in the wind, the crashing of waves and the shouting of their fellow pirates. What the pirate crew end up hearing is only the last half of the instruction.
So when I give instruction to my loyal, hardworking and competent crew, I make sure that they can understand my request even if they only hear half of the command.
The wrong way
I say: I don't want to binge ...
They hear : ... want to binge
Result = bingeing
I say : I don't want to be lazy
They hear : ... want to be lazy
Result = nil exercise
I say : I am not going to be hungry today
They hear : ... be hungry today
Result = hungry hippo all day long
The right way
I say : I always treat my body with respect
They hear : ... treat ... body with respect
Result = NO bingeing
I say : I am more balanced and centered when I exercise
They hear : ... balanced ... centered ... exercise
Result = love to workout
I say : I am completely satisfied by small amounts of nourishing food
They hear : ... satisfied ... small amounts ... nourishing ...
Result = NO hunger
- What commands are you giving your crew?
- Are you cranky with them because they always get it wrong?
- Maybe its your fault and not theirs after all?
Sunday, 6 September 2009
Saturday, 5 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 59 - The Struggle
When two equally matched forces pull against each other it is an exhausting ongoing struggle. To the unobservant eye, it looks like nothing or very little is happening. There is no significant movement in either direction. And yet a great deal of energy is being used to merely stay static.
On one side, there is the part of me that loves to be lean, strong and healthy. The gift it wants to give me is self confidence, resilience, pride and wellness. I imagine this part of me as a star resting in my right hand.The symbol is hard and metallic. It has sharp pointy edges and it is cold. This side wins for long periods of time.
On the other side, there is the part of me that loves to break all the rules -- to eat large quantities of rich sugary fat laden food and lie around sleeping and watching TV.
The gift it wants to give me is peace, contentment, relaxation and a healthy dose of rebellion and individuality. I imagine this part of me as a peace symbol resting in my left hand.
The symbol is smooth and round. It has comforting curves and it is warm. This side lays in wait (weight!) for the star side to get tired, or distracted and then it takes over.
The star understands what the peace symbol is trying to achieve and the peace symbol appreciates the honourable intentions of the star. In the absence of rules and expectations, in spite of logic and considered thought, the two parts of me can finally commune.
My two hands come together, the palms meet and join into one.
When I open my hands I see a beautiful new image.
It has the qualities of the gold star with it's colour and sharp edges, but it also has characteristic of the peace symbol with warm, smooth, sweeping curves and the form of a dove.
Instead of being at war, instead of pulling in two different direction, I hold the dove of peace in my hands. I place it in my heart and the symbol multiplies and floods every cell of my body.
Now the two opposing forces are working together to bring me the gifts of self confidence, peace, resilience, contentment, pride, relaxation, individuality and total wellness to my life.
The fight to get lean and stay lean is finally over. I have inner agreement and inner alignment. I am lean, fit, strong and healthy AND relaxed, contented and slightly rebellious easily and effortlessly.
The tug of war rope has finally been dropped on the floor and discarded in the corner. I might use it later for a skipping rope!
Update: Guided meditation experience courtesy of Renee Stephens' Sabotage Self Sabotage (I have no financial affiliation with this product).
Instead of being at war, instead of pulling in two different direction, I hold the dove of peace in my hands. I place it in my heart and the symbol multiplies and floods every cell of my body.
Now the two opposing forces are working together to bring me the gifts of self confidence, peace, resilience, contentment, pride, relaxation, individuality and total wellness to my life.
The fight to get lean and stay lean is finally over. I have inner agreement and inner alignment. I am lean, fit, strong and healthy AND relaxed, contented and slightly rebellious easily and effortlessly.
The tug of war rope has finally been dropped on the floor and discarded in the corner. I might use it later for a skipping rope!
Update: Guided meditation experience courtesy of Renee Stephens' Sabotage Self Sabotage (I have no financial affiliation with this product).
Friday, 4 September 2009
100 Day Challenge - Day 60 - The Pirates Council
All of the time it takes me to keep this Challenge on track is doing my head in, and not even required. As usual, I am overdoing things and making them too complicated.
So - the Pirates Council for today is whatever you want it to be. It is Day 60 and for me that is an important milestone, the end of Phase Four and the beginning of Phase Five so I'll post my 'Proud as a Pirate with a Parrot' list.
In a minute ...
First of all an update on what has been going on.
I have been working through the Inside Out Weight Loss program which is based on the (in my opinion TRUE) premise that behaviours come from thoughts so to make lasting change we have to address the accumulated mess in our brains.
Imagine for a moment a room filled with books and documents and magazines strewn all over the floor. No one inch of floor or furniture is visible because of all the paper spread all around the room. That is where I started.
Then imagine a room with all the books on the shelves, the papers filed in neat piles and the magazines stacked in tidy bundles. Suddenly the room looks cleaner, bigger and more welcoming. Nothing has been thrown out or destroyed, it has just been moved to its rightful home.
In order to tidy up such a messy place, things get worse before they get better. If you were to walk in, especially at the start of the process, it would look like a bomb had gone off.
In the past days a bomb has gone off and my head got messier and messier and it felt like my eating behaviours were getting worse instead of better.
But if I gave up half way through the process, then I would never see any results of the work I had put it. So I kept on going.
I am still a long way away from having found the rightful home for all of my thoughts, beliefs, inner dialogue and sense of identity and there are things I have uncovered that I haven't seen for years, but the chaos is worth it. Slowly things are getting better, and as they do, I can sense real change taking place.
Now I feel a growing sense of control, I will use the rest of this challenge to journal my own personal transformation. After all, I can't help anyone else unless I help myself first.
Proud as a Pirate with a Parrot
The future has unlimited potential, and I get to create it right here and now. I can only dream of what a day free of stressing about food and my weight might be like, but I know that that day is coming very soon.
So - the Pirates Council for today is whatever you want it to be. It is Day 60 and for me that is an important milestone, the end of Phase Four and the beginning of Phase Five so I'll post my 'Proud as a Pirate with a Parrot' list.
In a minute ...
First of all an update on what has been going on.
I have been working through the Inside Out Weight Loss program which is based on the (in my opinion TRUE) premise that behaviours come from thoughts so to make lasting change we have to address the accumulated mess in our brains.
Imagine for a moment a room filled with books and documents and magazines strewn all over the floor. No one inch of floor or furniture is visible because of all the paper spread all around the room. That is where I started.
Then imagine a room with all the books on the shelves, the papers filed in neat piles and the magazines stacked in tidy bundles. Suddenly the room looks cleaner, bigger and more welcoming. Nothing has been thrown out or destroyed, it has just been moved to its rightful home.
In the past days a bomb has gone off and my head got messier and messier and it felt like my eating behaviours were getting worse instead of better.
But if I gave up half way through the process, then I would never see any results of the work I had put it. So I kept on going.
I am still a long way away from having found the rightful home for all of my thoughts, beliefs, inner dialogue and sense of identity and there are things I have uncovered that I haven't seen for years, but the chaos is worth it. Slowly things are getting better, and as they do, I can sense real change taking place.
Now I feel a growing sense of control, I will use the rest of this challenge to journal my own personal transformation. After all, I can't help anyone else unless I help myself first.
Proud as a Pirate with a Parrot
- No desire to drink Diet Coke
- Turned down the offer of takeaway for dinner because I didn't feel like it
- Practiced EFT on my cravings
- Never gave up
- Accepted and appreciated my body as it is right now
- Wrote out my affirmations and success journal most days
- Totally abstained from guilt exercise and severe restriction after over-eating
- Forgave myself
- Faced the tough stuff
- Had more good days than bad days
- Did yoga because I love it, not to burn calories
- Went for a walk because I love it, not to burn calories
- Rested
- Took some down time watching TV
- The difference between the highs and lows was less
The future has unlimited potential, and I get to create it right here and now. I can only dream of what a day free of stressing about food and my weight might be like, but I know that that day is coming very soon.
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