Day Two - The naked crunchie helped..

But the treadmill almost killed me.

At one point, I wasn't sure I could catch a breath.... those 3 minutes were hell.

Okay, not quite after 3 minutes... 9, maybe 10 minutes and I'd broken into a run. Yes, me, running I know! It's been known to happen. Anyway, Gareth had to dangle a naked crunchie (no, that's NOT a euphemism) a few inches from my face but I did it!   And the best bit? The machine didn't break. Bonus.

So today was the fitness test and I was (again) dreading it and (again) nervous. I've been swimming in my lunch breaks for over a year now building up from 30 minutes at a leisurely pace to making sure I do 64 laps (1 mile - woohoo!) in an hour.  But this obviously hasn't been enough.

Gareth started the treadmill and I happily walked fast (almost out of breath) for 4 minutes and then he stopped it. Great I thought - passed with no problems. Nope that was just the warm up. Dammit. 12 minutes of 'run if you can' followed.. yeah, run if I can. Does this body look like it runs at any time?!!*

I ran for about 2 minutes out of the 12 - Pathetic. Next up, some exercises:  a 'plank' where you have to hold yourself up from the floor by your forearms and tiptoes, some push-ups and some squats. Gareth is going to write a post about how I did and where I fit into the national average soon over on the 'Fitness Tests and Results' page (coming soon). Today's exercises were to see where my fitness lies (rock bottom) and to record my starting point.

Overall, the experience was fine and Gareth was very encouraging all the time. Luckily I didn't do anything embarrassing (I think). Unlike the time on a skiing holiday in Andorra....

We'd just finished our beers, sitting in the sun outside a bar up the mountain after a long mornings skiing. We decided to set off again. Everyone stood up to leave.. I stood up to leave. The plastic garden chair that I was sitting in, stood up with me. Attached by the plastic arms to my hips.  Oh how we laughed. (Honestly, I don't need therapy, I'm fine about it).

So the conclusion of today is although my fitness is pathetic, at least I didn't embarrass myself in any other ways. 

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On the diet side of things, today has been a good day! :-)

Breakfast was oats with FULL FAT greek yoghurt and raisins (Gareth says Full Fat is allowed, I'm not asking twice).

Snack was a banana - no, I'm not showing you a picture of a banana.

Lunch was this salad. Three different leaves, tomato, cucumber, orange pepper, red pepper, spring onion, feta cheese  and lastly some 'sprinkle' which is a nut mix of pumpkin seeds, walnuts, sesame seeds, pine nuts. I added a bit of french vinaigrette. Followed by greek yoghurt with raisins.

Dinner was Tuna with veggies and sweet potato (Maybe doesn't look too appetising but it tasted great) followed by strawberries and grapes.

My tasks for this week are:

1. Find out about the Paleo diet (this is what I will be following for the next 12 months)

2. Have a Paleo breakfast every day

3. Do the exercises I learnt today (plank, push-ups, squat)

So if you know any good Paleo recipes or tips, please let me know either by email or in the comments below.

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Did I get to eat the crunchie? Your guesses in comments below! 

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*Husband says there's never a need for multiple exclamation marks. I love multiple exclamation marks so there's going to be a lot of those on this blog. Get used to it. Husband thinks I should be sent to the place where punctuation goes to die. WHATEVER!!!!!!!!!

Let's start at the very beginning... A very good place to start...

Friend: Are you still swimming most lunchtimes?
Me: Yup
Friend: That's great. How are you getting on?
Me: Okay I guess
Friend: My personal trainer's really good.... he mentioned a project he'd like to start..
Me: uh-huh...
Friend: He wants to work with a very overweight person for one year to help them lose weight and get fit....
Me: Riiiiiiiight...?
Friend: For free
Me:...........!
Friend: Yup. He wants to show that his methods work...
Me:...........!!
Friend: He's putting the word out about it and wants to interview people who are ready to make a big change..
Me: (speechless)
Friend: You want his number?!


Now, when I heard about this, I could have been a "good person" and told several people about this amazing opportunity. I could have - but I didn't - that place was MINE, dammit. I was not about to create more competition!!

The only people I told were people who didn't need the help.

So I guess I need to apologise for the teeny bit of guilt I feel - I WON! (She said graciously and with humility).

And maybe to Gareth... you could have had a bigger pool of people to choose from and you wouldn't be stuck with me for a year.

Onto Day One...

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Brownie points to anyone who can name the musical from this post title.

Disclaimer: Brownie points cannot be redeemed for anything. Certainly not brownies. There are no brownies in this house now (I ate them all before Day One..ssshhhh don't tell Gareth).

Day One

I was really nervous approaching the Physio 2 Fit office. I don't know why. It's really exciting and an amazing opportunity - a personal trainer for a year who's going to help me lose weight (140 pounds to be exact) and get fit. I can't believe my luck!

It's just like one of those TV programmes... and now it's real with a blog, twitter and facebook page. There's no turning back now. The pressure is on. Huh, maybe that's why I was nervous?!

Today was our first proper meeting since the interview. Gareth wanted to cover several things today -the (dreaded) weigh in, measurements and photos. Yes, PHOTOS.

Thankfully Gareth did not make me do them in some awful grey underwear. Not that I possess any grey underwear, obviously. I was just thinking of the TV programmes again.. I'm sure he wanted to spare his eyes. Yes that's probably why. The photos and measurements will appear in June when there's a difference to show.

He was/is very friendly and made me feel at ease. The photos and measuring weren't half as bad as I thought they would be.

Gareth asked me to write several lists:

1. What do I want to achieve?
2. Why do I want to do this?
3. Where am I now? How am I feeling now?

(I will post more on these tomorrow. They need more thought before posting).

We talked about the healthy eating programme I will be following. Just before I left, he asked me 'So, what are you planning for lunch now?'

Dammit, I'd planned one last journey to Waitrose for a naughty sandwich, some tasty crisps and probably a cake... Busted!

He showed me the lunch he had prepared for himself. There was a distinct lack of pork pies and cream cakes... ah well! But I admit, it looked better. A gorgeous-looking salad with lots of tasty ingredients. So I went to Waitrose inspired and this is what I chose instead of a sandwich:

And then I fancied some of these:

followed by one of these:

not bad eh? I'm awaiting the verdict. Gareth?

After work, I went back to Waitrose (yes I live in Waitrose and am keeping it afloat) and bought tons of fruit, veg, natural yoghurt and yummy alternatives for breakfast. For dinner we had piri piri chicken with vegetables..

The only bad thing today was a few jelly worms after tea (no photo evidence provided!) But that's it now, there are no more tempting treats in the house!

So tomorrow is the FITNESS TEST - ahhhhhhh! I'm nervous all over again...