THE ANSWER TO ALL OF OUR (WEIGHT) PROBLEMS ...

.... is finally here. Ladies we need fear no more. The search is over. We finally have it. THE diet that will have us looking like Jennifer Lopez and Gisele Bundchen (rolled into one, if we're lucky), while we eat whatever we want, to lose 6kg in ONE month in the company of French women, doing it the French way.

THE DUKAN DIET IS HERE and the body + soul liftout from the Sunday papers has all the info - but of course because its so exceptionally good, you'll no doubt want to purchase the book as well (too lazy to insert the link for the book purchase).

No kidding, the opening blurb tantalises us with the promise that  numerous celebrities "live the Dukan life, all of them seduced by its promise of permanent slenderness while eating what you like."

Oh my, I'm so excited, I cant wait to read on. So read on I do and whats the first thing I'm told??? In the Phase One: Attack period I'm only allowed to eat lean protein full stop. No veges. No salads. But lucky me I get to have 1.5 tablespoons of oat bran to relieve constipation (yep that 1.5 tablespoons will make all the difference). I'll have to put up with a dry mouth and bad breath but hey, I'm losing weight so who cares (the price we're prepared to pay!!). Oooh I'm so excited to lose 3kgs in just 5 days (shame its just water but hey the number on the scales is going down!!).

After this groundbreakingly successful Attack Phase (if I havent attacked the biscuit jar or bread supplies) I then have a range of equally exciting phases to work through with rules, rules, rules, restrictions, restrictions and more restrictions but GUARANTEED slenderness. I wont waste any more of my or your time writing about them. I think you can tell what I think of it all by now.

So (breathing a sigh of bewilderment) here it is, another pseudo Atkins / South Beach meets The Zone and .....insert whatver else comes to mind ..... diet to solve all of our weight problems. Irrespective of what its doing for our bowel health, our brain function, our emotional well being and our self esteem. I guarantee its not ticking many any of those boxes.

Yet sadly I'm sure that thousands of women throughout Australia would have started the Dukan Diet today in their desperate struggle to lose weight and feel better about themselves. If only they knew that the answers are not in this (or any) diet book. Rules and restrictions are ingredients in the recipe for failure, low self esteem and personal growth. There is a better way, you just have to trust yourself to find it and follow it because its different for each individual.

And on that note, I'll step off my soap box and retreat back to my happy world of food freedom, choosing the lifestyle thats right for me and enjoying what it brings.

Cheers all

Magda

STEPHANIE RICE

So what does Steph Rice have to do with my blog today you may well ask.

As per my usual routine my alarm went off at 5am this morning. Normally I'm already at least 50% awake by then but today it went off 3 times before I could wake up. Normally I just get staright out of bed and get ready for my morning run but today I DIDNT WANT TO GET UP. I lay in bed for a few minutes with all the "I dont want to get up" thoughts dominating my mind.

Then I thought back to an article I read just last night about Steph Rice and her training schedule.... up at 4.30; runs 4kms; swims 6kms; has breakfast; weight trains between breakfast and lunch; blah, blah, blah and then swims again before dinner.

"Haul your arse out of bed and do your 40 minute run Magda!!!!" I told myself. And because I'm a good girl and always do as I'm told, I was up and out the door a little slower than usual but out nevertheless.

Tomorrow is a day off from training and a sleep in (maybe til 6am if I'm really lucky). Oh and its Friday and my early finish day. I've decided, its gonna be a great day.

:-) Magda

IF IT AINT BROKE DONT FIX IT - NO PLAN :-)

Hi all,

well the blog heading says it all. "Says what?" I hear you asking.

There is some recent excitement in blogworld and beyond due to Tom Venuto's ultimate body reshaping challenge (sorry too lazy to link to it or even to use its correct name). When I first read about it (via Sue Heintze's blog) I thought "Wow. I'd like to give that a go." Imagine winning a trip to Hawaii (and of course I was a dead cert to win) LOL.

Then commonsense kicked in when I realised it was for 14 weeks. Aaaargh!! Previous track record on 12 week challenges hasnt been good. Why would I do better over 14 weeks (which BTW would include my birthday)? Hmmm maybe its not such a great idea.

So light bulb moment "I'll do my own mini challenge over 8 weeks and finish it on my birthday". Oooh how exciting. I'll do this. I'll do that. I'll do ......

So in preparatiion for My Challenge I got on the MM this morning to confirm that I needed this "Challenge" to lose a bit of weight so I can fit back into some now tight clothes. Well did I get a surprise??!!

My weight has dropped by about 1.5kgs since the start of the month. "Thats not much" I hear you thinking to yourselves and have often thought exactly the same myself. But hang on ...... I'M NOT DIETING. Yes thats right. I regularly drink wine and enjoy nibbles with it, have a biscuit with my skim cappuccino, eat carbs when I feel like it, have cheesecake for dessert on a special night out and never weigh, measure, record and analyse my food any more. I run / jog (a lot) but I love it. I dont weight train now because I'm still not set up for it. This is temporary.

So in light of all that, I made the decision to just keep doing what I'm doing because it works for me. For all the bloggers who have embraced the challenge I wish you success and will follow your journeys with interest. But I now know that the "challenge" is not for me. Long live mindful eating and running for my life.

Cheers

Magda

I HAVE A PLAN BREWING

Today I've been able to step back and look at the events of the last week through objective eyes and emotional detachment. Its been enlightening.

More and more I realise that life is like a roller coaster ride. I enjoy my more than fair share of highs but I'm not immune to the lows. They will come and they will hit hard. It pays to have your wits and senses about you so that you can deal with them smartly and effectively. But of course sometimes you cant see the forest for the trees.

Having recently seen the end of a particularly bad low I'm back in touch with my strong foundation of understanding how MY Binge Monster works. It'll be different for everyone but knowing me and mine is what matters to me. I feel secure now back in that place where I can look within and find my answers. I've said it before and I'll say it again. The answers are not in a diet book, nor a whizz bang program written by a top notch PT. Dont get me wrong, I'm not knocking PTs as I've worked with some very good ones but in the end I knew that achieving long term success in weight loss and weight management would boil down to me and me alone. I had to work it out for myself and even now I continue to keep working on it. Another thing I've learnt is that complacency = failure. If I get too relaxed about eating whatever then I know my weight creeps up. I run a lot but can vouch for the statement that "you cant out-train poor nutrition".

I have a plan brewing that I'm pondering over the next few days and when ready I'll post about it. Its quite exciting to see just how it pans out, all things considered.

Good night all

Magda

LIFESTYLE CHANGE # 1 UPDATE ... LIFESTYLE CHANGE # 2

As you are aware I've decided to make some changes to my eating and training habits but am introducing them gradually so as not to overwhelm myself with a massive change on many fronts thats guaranteed to have me going into meltdown and having a mother of a binge in rebellion.

I have gone a week without sugar free lollies. It wasnt a typical week (as evidenced by my huge rant earlier on) but I stuck with this decision and didnt rush out to buy a packet to stuff down out of boredom, habit or whatever.

This week may challenge me more though as I'm back to the normal me and resisting that afternoon urge will take some strength. But I'm determined to stick it out and kick them out of my life once and for all.

So what is the second lifestyle change I want to make? Well it actually logically follows on from the first and that is to eliminate all artificial sweeteners from my diet (bar the odd sugar free gum if a fresh breath emergency arises).

What does this mean for me?

Firstly I'm not going cold turkey and throwing out everything with AS but as those things get used up I wont be replacing them with like. For instance:

Forme yogurt is artificially sweetened. I had the last one last week and have bought no more. My afternoon snack will now be 4-5 brasil nuts and some fruit (figs from the tree in my backyard for today). Or maybe some natural low fat greek yogurt with fruit. Whichever takes my fancy. I dont want a yogurt thats full of sugar as I think thats almost as bad as the AS one.

The real challenge for me will be giving up the SF maple syrup that I have on my oat / egg white / ricotta / apple pancakes on most mornings. Those pancakes are undoubtedly my favourite breakfast and I just cant bring msyelf to have them with full sugar maple syrup as often as I do. I've looked into alternatives to have on my pancakes but not sure that apple sauce will cut it and as for making my own berry sauce ... it just aint gonna happen both from the time and expense perspective. So my plan is to have the pancakes once or twice a week with normal maple syrup and have a different breakfast on the other days. Will experiment and see what works and keeps me happy.

Other than that there are various other products that I'll be ditching but I think they'll be comparitively easy. Mind you I will miss having the occassional Diet Coke which is a sin that I love to indulge in LOL.

So its all about replacing things that arent so good for me with things that are better. We only get one body to live in so where would we live if we didnt look after it? I hope to be living in mine for a long time and I dont want it to get too run down and in need of a major overhaul.

Cheers all

Magda

GOD HAS SENT AN ANGEL TO LOOK OUT FOR ME

And just to make sure that everything continues well for me, God has sent an angel to look out for me in the future should I need it.

Earlier this week I emailed Matti my SP who no longer lives in Adelaide, desperately seeking her help via a phone consult. I didnt hear back from her for a few days and I wondered if she would reply at all or if she would refuse coaching me for whatever reason.

This morning I got a reply from her indicating that she did phone consults and offering to speak to me next week. Funnily enough I dont need to speak to her now but I'll maintain my contact with her should I want some refresher work in future. I cant tell you how relaxed and positive this makes me feel, just knowing that should I need some support, I can turn to her.

Physically I feel better today than I did yesterday. The human body is an amazing work of science. I'm still at that very fortunate place where even after some serious abuse, it can still right itself fairly quickly and easily. For that I'm grateful but I shouldnt take it for granted.

Emotionally I have forgiven myself for the events of this week. Self defeating thoughts, poor choices and poorer actions that are in the past now whereas I'm looking ahead with a more balanced and positive outlook.

If there's one thing that I learnt this week through all the pain and anguish I felt when at my lowest, it was "never underestimate the power of the mind". For me its not the food that is the trigger to binge, its the thought processes that go with non-hungry eating or eating of foods that were previously off-limits. And understanding that goes a long way to managing it and acting differently in future.

:-) Magda

TREATING MYSELF WITH CARING & RESPECT

So after finding some emails that I wrote to Kristy and Shelley about my visits to the SP, I reread them last night and then again this morning. Fortunately I had written in quite a bit of detail what had happened in my visits, what we found, what it meant and how to deal with it all. With every line I read, I just felt better and better. I'm going to print them all off and keep them as a permanent record of my work with Matti. Its amazing that in just 3 sessions costing less than $500 in total I gained SO MUCH. I cant even put a price on it as it really made such a huge difference to my life.

But I forgot that I wrote those emails and over time the details of the visits just faded from my (aging) mind hence my total meltdown at feeling so helpless at not understanding why I was going back to old habits. Its all clear now. I have some work to do but at least I know what it is and can just get on with it.

Mentally/emotionally I felt good today. Just nice and calm and balanced. Physically its a different story while my body balances back to a happy state. It'll come now that I'm treating myself with the caring and respect I deserve. Patience will bring the results I want.

So I face my second favourite day of the week with confidence and a positive headset. Then yippee its the weekend and we are taking advantage of the wonderful cafe precinct we live in. How could I lose touch with all the great things in my life and forget just how good my life is?

Cheers all

M

THE ALL IMPORTANT FIND

Last night I found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. You could liken my discovery to a moderate lotto win. It left me feeling THAT GOOD.

I had been so frustrated by my messed up, mixed up mind and my inability to understand why I ended up back where I was. My discovery was like somebody giving the pieces of the puzzle back to me and showing me how they fit. Yes I have some stuff that’s bothering me but now I know how to work through it.
That nice sense of calm has come back to me and the clouds have big silver linings.
I WILL BE OK.

If you believe it will happen, it will.

REWIND AND TAKE TWO

Rewind to last night and choose a different outlook and course of action. Maybe not immediately but a late start is better than no start.

Take Two coming up when I have more time to post and am thinking clearly again.

Note to self: Blogworld is not your SP. Once again, you're looking for answers in the WRONG PLACE.

M

DAY ONE WITHOUT SUGAR FREE LOLLIES

Hi all, not much to report on the SF lolly front today. My afternoon was taken up with a meeting that I was chairing so there was no missing the lollies or craving for them.

Tomorrow is a different story though as I'll be at my desk all afternoon. I have a strategy though and just need to train my mind into a new way of thinking. (And once I've mastered that I can say goodbye to a whole range of other issues that come back to haunt me from time to time.)

M

PHEW WHAT A WEEKEND

Phew what a weekend!!!!!

After Friday night's carb load of home made pizza (yummo) I was grateful for the opportunity to do a run on Saturday morning. Its not normally my running day but Peter did his run early  meaning I had time for one as well. So I managed about 10.5kms at a very cruisy pace for about 1 hour + 15 mins.

I caught up with the beautiful Miss R (a fantastic friend) for lunch on Saturday. This one had been a long time coming so there was much to catch up on and celebrate, hence a bottle of champagne was in order. Hoowee!! After the bigger than usual lunch I didnt even want any dinner so went without. I just had a red wine with Peter and watched him enjoy his dinner.

This morning I headed out for another run and managed a smidge under an hour. We spent a good part of the afternoon at my cousin's 60th in the country. What a hugely social weekend!!

Now I must confess that I'm feeling pretty run down and like the lurgies are just hiding in the background waiting to knock me down. My throat is temperamental and my stomach feels  ... well lets just say ..... not great!! I would kill for a day or two of R & R but will most likely be ok for work tomorrow so no putting my feet up for this girl.  I hope that a good night's sleep has me waking up feeling fantastic as usual.

Oh and as a post script I must say that while doing my grocery shopping yesterday I went down the confectionery aisle and walked straight past the SF lollies with blinkers on so I wouldnt be tempted. Now to just stay away from the shop across the road from work where I can buy them as a last resort.

M

LIFESTYLE CHANGE # 1 - DITCH THE SUGAR FREE LOLLIES

Well I've given this one quite a bit of thought and have decided to cut out my daily intake of sugar free lollies. Here's the story behind it:

For a really long time I have relied on sugar free lollies to get me through my afternoons. I dont know why but upon finishing my lunch, irrespective of what it is, I have this irresistable urge to keep munching. Sometimes I use it as stress relief if I'm facing an issue or task that is stressing me out. The physical munching provides some (perceived) relief. Sometimes I munch out of boredom. Not because I've got nothing to do but because my energy levels drop in the afternoon and I lose my "rev". (I'm definitely a morning person!!). Sometimes I just want the oral satisfaction (yes I was a smoker many years ago and was off and on for some time). But whatever the reason I admit / confess that I am addicted.

A couple of weeks ago on a particularly bad afternoon, I munched my way through a packet of Eclipse mints and within a short time I had an excruciating stomach ache. I was sitting in a meeting with a skirt band that was too tight (yes I need to drop a few kilos too!!) and my stomach was really hurting. I cant put it down to anything else but my zealous intake of he SF mints. So over the next few days I cut back on how many I had and I didnt get any pains. But since my very upset stomach earlier this week, I've noticed that I'm more sensitive to the SF mints than before. Hence my decision that they need to go.

Now for many this may sound like no big deal at all. I mean how hard is it to give up having a few mints after lunch each day?? No big deal?? Well let me just say that it will be a BIG DEAL for me. I am addicted and it'll be really hard. Can I call the Quitline? "Hello I need help to quit ..... eating sugar free lollies" Would they laugh at me when I told them my unique reason? Probably :-(

I havent thought out my strategy just yet other than just having some SF gum on hand for those times when I need to freshen my breath (I'm not a lover of gum at all so I'm not at risk of replacing the lollies with the gum). Apart from that, it might just be the trusty cold turkey approach and toughing it out.

A small step for man.

A giant leap towards better health.

Maybe.

What are your thoughts? Am I over the top on this or is my take on this and my subsequenrt decision valid? Leave me a comment anf tell me what you think.

Magda

PONDERING FURTHER LIFESTYLE CHANGES

Today my iron constitution kicked in and it was pretty much a normal day for me. I felt ok again after being sick on Tuesday night. I managed a 45 minute jog this morning which half way through I remembered should have been a sprint session. Perhaps I didnt have THAT much energy to burn after a light eating day yesterday. Oh and how lovely to just enjoy lean clean food again and not the deep fried cr*p that some restaurants serve.

I have been toying with making some further changes to my lifestyle in the pursuit of improved health, fitness and longevity. So I'm mulling over some ideas and options and will post more about them if I decide to embrace them. You see I do this every so often but never follow through. Maybe this time will be different if I can devise a workable plan / approach in my mind. I can say though that there have been things that are concerning me lately and I honestly dont think complacency is an acceptable option. Its a cop out and I'm not keen on that either.

Stay tuned and watch this space.

M

RECOVERING

I've spent the day recovering from an onslaught of vomitting and diarea (I know thats spelt incorrectly) from last night. Phew was it awful!! I can only put it down to a Chinese lunch out with everything deep fried (banquet with no choice in courses) and then dinner out and being high in fat also. Again no choice in what to have as it was at my parents' place.  I think my body just said "I cant handle this much deep fried crap. Its gotta go!". And GO it did.

So no running for me this morning and a nice long lie in before attempting to eat breakfast (by which time I was starving). All ok there so it was a day of recovery and just taking it easy. My boys had crumbed calamari for dinner (home made) but I skipped it and had a bowl of veges stir fried in stock and seasonings with some left over roast lamb that I cut up and added to the veges. My body was ok with that too.

I'm looking forward to a normal day tomorrow with an early run and then just my usual meals. Funny how routine makes me happy. Although I love to eat out, quite often I want nothing more than my home prepared meals, knowing they are bursting with veges and abundant goodness. Oh and although I havent had any yet, I'm so happy that brussel sprouts are in season again. How tragic that I love them so much LOL!!

Well not much else to blog about so I bid all good night.

Cheers

Magda

SOMETIMES YOU JUST NEED TO "BE"

This morning as I was signing invoices for payment I noticed the date already being the 10th of May. Double figures in the number stakes and I cant believe its May already. It felt like yesterday that it was still April. The year is zooming by very quickly.

In my private moments like brushing my teeth, taking a shower or just doing something on my own, I find myself reflecting on life and myself and how it all fits together. There has certainly been a shift in my thinking, my attitude and my acceptance of me. Maybe its come with age or with time or just reaching a level of maturity that you dont have in your 20s or even your 30s. However its come, I'm glad its here because I'm a much happier, calm and accepting person than I was say even 5 years ago.

I've always known that I've had a very charmed and fortunate life. I've known little if any hardship and have been blessed well with the important things like family and friends. A lot of my worries I brought on to myself because of lack of confidence, self esteem and just not accepting who I was and being happy with that. But in recent times I've found it easier to be happy within my own skin, to be more accepting of who I am and know that I'm ok.

Sometimes you need to stop chasing a dream that ultimately isnt right for you, despite how you felt about it in those heady days. Sometimes you need to look within to find answers to the hard questions. Sometimes you just need to "be", without all the analysis, goals, deadlines and pressures. Its ok to take time out when you need it. Whatever it is you're taking time out from, will be there when you're ready to go back to it.

Tonight I'll have dinner with my family and a nice long chat with my son about something thats worrying him. If I can ease his mind and get him to a point of feeling ok about it then thats the best and most important thing I could have achieved today. Everything else pales into insignificance.

M

MOTHERS DAY

I have just had the most fantastic day!!

I was served breakfast in bed. My boy gave me my card + little gifts he had made for me at school. Not to mention hugs and kisses about every 10 minutes apart throughout the day. I was showered in them. Lucky me.

After a very leisurely stay in bed where we all piled in to eat our croissants, and a read of the paper I eventually got up and pottered around for a while. My boy and I then played a board game which he won and then we skyped nana in Queensland. By then it was time to have a shower and get ready to go out to lunch with my bestie.

We wandered to my local cafe and shopping strip and settled in to a nice sunny spot and enjoyed a couple of wines and a foccacia each for lunch. Some great conversation followed as did a bit of retail therapy but no purchases for me (I have my eye on a couple of things though so maybe next time).

Not long after we got home my parents arrived for Mothers Day dinner which Peter was making so I could just sit back and enjoy the day. We had some camembert, pastrami and fig paste with crackers for starters followed by lamb racks done on the Weber with roast potatoes and steamed veges. Dessert was individual sticky date puddings with vanilla ice cream.

I ate too much and feel a bit overfull now but that aside, the day was fantastic. the meals were great and the company was excellent. Oh and my boy got to play with my friend's son while we were out. Win. Win. Win. :-)

Magda

I LOVE MY LIFE

With a slight change in plans from our regular Saturday routine I was able to schedule a long run today. I measured it as approx 10.3kms and I ran at a really cruisy pace for about 1 hour + 12 mins. Man it felt SOOOOOOO good to go longer. I really do find the longer distances/times quite addictive.

Then it was the usually busy day with swimming, grocery shopping, domestic chores and of course my treat of lunch out. I head to my local Cibo after finishing the grocery shopping and I order one of their superb coffees and a bisuit (although today I was really hungry so I had a small cake instead). Yeah I know its not exactly lean, clean and nutritious but I love it and I enjoy it and savour it as a treat. And it is lunch not an extra to lunch.

I have a fantastic Mothers Day lined up but I'll blog about it tomorrow. I'm so looking forward to it. My boy has already given me flowers and I know there is a special present that he's made in school as well. I'm going to be so spoilt.

I hope all the mums have a great day tomorrow and I'll be back to post about mine tomorrow evening. Even as I was cleaning the shower today I was thinking to myself how much I love my life. I have so much to be grateful for and I am so lucky in so many ways.

Cheers all

M

PICS AS PROMISED

The original fireplaces have been retained in the old part of the house.

Looking into the family room from the back yard.

One half of the kitchen.

Our ensuite. (Yes that is Metal Monster hiding under the vanity)

Our single fronted cottage. Built circa 1880.

View to our back yard

Looking into our family room from the back yard.

MY RETURN TO BLOGGING

Hi all and welcome back to my blog (if you're still with me).

Since my last post done post Greenbelt (is it ok to use the word "post" twice in the same sentence??) I've been busy, busy, busy. Yes we've moved house which is no menial task and even did some painting of said house before the move. All this while suffering some wicked wicked DOMS from the half marathon. But no regrets that I had the guts to give it a go and meet my private, personal goals of running the whole way AND completing it in under 2:30. In fact today I hopped onto the SARRC website and checked my official time which was 2:26:51 so even better than I reported.

Anyways we are very happy in our new home. The location is superb, just about perfect really and we've finally realised our dream of living in this wonderful area. I love sitting down to enjoy a glass of wine in our family room with the massive glass bifold doors looking out to our backyard and have Peter comment that this house "is just us". I couldnt agree more. (I've tried three times to add a couple of pics of our house but blogger wont upload so I'm not sure whats going on .... SILLY BLOGGER!!!)

On a different note there is another matter that I'm dealing with at the moment which is the main reason I took time out from blogging. I've acquired four unwanted, unloved and ready-to-be-evicted kilos in the last few months. How could I do this while training for a half marathon? There is one famous quote that sums up the answer to this (perplexing) question. "You cant out-train poor nutrition". The author of said quote (you know who you are!!) is famous for their wise words and sage advice and once again they are spot on with this one.

So why the poor nutrition? Well it was more a case of some bad old habits coming back with a vengeance due to the pressure I was putting myself under. That plus a bit ... well actually a LOT of complacency and whammo "hello four kilos ... what are you doing here??" To put things into perspective I'm still at a reasonable weight  and dont feel "fat" but I know how much better I felt and looked without these four kilos. Plus I now have fitted clothes that dont fit and thats just bloody annoying. I refuse to spend on a larger size or stretchy clothes so there is but one solution .... and it doesnt involve dieting!!

Yes I'm determined to stay true to my vow to never diet again (refer back to September last year) and I will do this "my way" to maintain my balance, my happiness and my peace of mind.

So for me this means eating well because thats what I value and enjoy.

It means keeping treats in moderation and not feeling guilty when I choose to enjoy them.

It means trusting my instincts to get it right most of the time.

It means being kind to myself if I dont get it right and allowing myself to just get back on with it without beating myself up.

Its about making lifestyle changes and practicing new lifestyle habits. If its not something I'd do long term, then forget it, as the short term practices dont offer long term solutions.

Funnily enough since the pressure of the Half Marathon has been lifted I havent had the urge to binge (I have a whole other post on this observation but will save it for another day) so things are looking positive already. Plus I'm back running for pleasure which is another tick in my things-that-make-me-happy-box.  So the only things required now are consistency, patience and time. My goal is to evict the four by my birthday on 21st July. Wish me well in this endeavour.

Cheers all

Magda