So, what's next?

Well, I've had a few days of basking in the glory of what I've done - thank you all for your kind comments and emails. I still can't quite believe how much I enjoyed the triathlon.

So, what's next for me?

I need to shift my focus back to controlling my eating. This has been meandering around in the last few weeks. As I've said before, I think I was saved from gaining weight by the heavy training load I was carrying. So back to careful planning and tracking.

This weekend we have a team of 25 people (workmates and clients) taking part in the Great Lake Relay in Taupo - 18 legs of walking and running around the lake - it's about 160km.

I'm Camp Mother, so I'm not doing a leg, although I am a reserve. Instead I'll look after the base camp and all the meals - because, after all, surrounding myself with food is such as sensible thing for me to do!

One thing I've learned from the triathlon is that I'm more motivated about exercise if I have something to train for. So my next goal is a duathlon on Easter Sunday. I'm still not absolutely sure I'll be in town for this, as I may be on tour with the rugby boys, but I'm training for it anyway. And as I'm on the rugby committee I should have some influence on when we go away!

This duathlon is a 3.5km run/10km bike/1.5km run. It's based around our lovely harbour, so we have that small miracle in Wellington - a flat course! This will mean a quite different training regime from the last one - and no swimming, hooray!

Starting next week the training will go something like this:
1 x 15km ride per week
1 x 7km run/walk per week (building towards being able to run the whole thing)
1 x 3km run per week (working on improving my time each week)
1 x 'brick' training session - run/ride/run - starting with short distances and building each week
That will take care of my cardio and I'll do 3 or 4 days a week at the gym and see if I can throw in some kickboxing occasionally as well.
My 15km ride will include the actual duathlon course - I can ride to it from home.

There we are then. I have two main goals - do the duathlon, and be a 70s' girl when I do it. Just over eight weeks to go.

1 hour 3 minutes 5 seconds

Well, the weather didn't improve. It was too rough to do a proper swim, so we did about a 100m run in thigh-deep water. Cold, very cold.

Then 500m along the beach (I ran most of this), up a steep hill (I didn't run) then 1.2km to the bike transition (ran the whole thing).

The bike course was pretty tough - pouring with rain much of the time and a VERY strong northerly. The uphill section was straight into the wind. I do recall a burst of laughter from some spectators as I screamed 'Bitch!' at a gust that almost stopped me completely. The second time around I had my cadence going better and didn't find the hill so hard.

Unknown to me, at this stage the weather was so bad they were talking about cancelling the race halfway through - prompted by the fact that the marquees and finish line were being blown away!

Then it was back into transition to drop off the bike and finish with another 2km run. Most of this was flat (alternated running and walking), finishing with a bit of off-road - up a steep track (ran), along the ridge (ran), drop back down (walk) and then across the park to the finish (ran).

Now the really surprising bit - I had a lot of fun doing this. The weather was vile and the ride was hard work at times, but it really was enjoyable. And the sense of achievement at the end was overwhelming.

It's hard to work out how good my time was, considering most of the swim was dropped, but I'm happy with it anyway, especially given the conditions. This is the time I took on my watch, as the official times aren't on the website yet. Update later in the day - official time was 1 hour, 2 minutes 39 seconds. 586th out of 1100 finishers.

Big thanks go to lots of people for their support - family, friends, colleagues, blogland (especially blogland) - because everyone has been so positive.

Huge thanks to Mark and Jake - for getting up at 5am this morning, for their support and encouragement.

4.30am on race day

We have a strong northerly. Which I will have to ride into on the uphill sections of the bike course.

Oh, and it's raining.

I'm off to wake up the boys. No way I'm suffering this alone.

Sleepless in Strathmore

Although I sleep much better now that I exercise regularly, I do still have bouts of sleeplessness. I have put up with this for most of my adult life, so I don't let it stress me out and I know I can easily get by on three or four hours sleep.

If I'm lying awake I like to be able to read, but the man is a darkness freak so I can't turn the light on. I often get up and sit in the lounge reading for an hour or so, then go back to bed for some more sleep.

I used insomnia to my advantage when I was studying. Most of my papers were written in the small hours of the morning. In my single days I often used to do housework then too - but vacuuming at 2am soon stopped once I started living with someone!

Right, now that I've revealed what a freak I really am...

This morning at 4am I was stupid enough to go on the internet and pop into one of my favourite blogs - Waiter Rant. So going back to bed for more sleep never happened - just straight into the shower at 6.30 instead!

Mummy skite - my lovely boy (yes, folks, the babe from the fridge) made prefect at school this year.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

The week has finally arrived, now it's just five days till the triathlon. I have a nice light training week, with none of my usual extras added in. I am doing no exercise in the mornings, so my alarm will be going at 6.30 instead of 5.30, to ensure I am well rested. I am not tracking my food this week, just watching what I eat to make sure it is healthy, with plenty of good proteins and carbs.

So, how do I feel about what is coming up on Sunday?

Pretty proud of myself, really. I have no doubts I will be able to complete this course. I may not swim like a fish, and my run is more of a trudge, but LOOK HOW FAR I'VE COME! This triathlon is more about how I got here than the event itself.

This time last year I weighed 132.5kg. A 3km walk on a level course was a major achievement. Walking up the stairs in our new house was a bit like climbing a mountain.

So, on Sunday, I may not be the thinnest or the fittest, but I think you'll be hard-pressed to find someone happier!

Finally, fridge fotos!

First of all, let me introduce you to my fridge.

I love my fridge. As you can, see, it is a very large side-by-side fridge/freezer. The kitchen was basically built around it. It is kept white and pristine on the outside, except for the temperature gauges and controls on the front.

But only three people live in our house - why do we need such a large fridge? Because we have a teenage jock to feed. And, as you will see below, he can practically eat the fridge bare in one sitting...

Road kill

I'm feeling a bit like I've been run down by a truck at the moment. Sorry I have been absent from blogs this week - haven't even had time to comment, although I have had a few quick peeks.

So, time for one of my update lists...

Had a great day at the races last week. The betting was the usual washout - we never seem to do well at Trentham. But who cares - I looked great (so modest) and got lots of compliments. For the first time the famous Cup Day heat (29 in the shade this year) didn't really bother me; not only am I so much lighter, but I could wear something light and floaty instead of the dress equivalent of a boiler-suit and a balaclava to hide my body! Yes, photo to come. Oh, and I drank an ENORMOUS amount of champagne and got quite silly.

My favourite weekend of the year starts tomorrow - the Wellington Sevens! I just love this tournament. Our little stadium rocks with all the people partying - the costumes are a spectacle in their own right. I take all of Friday off so I can ease into the day - and get there in time for the first game. Unlike many of the people who go, I love the rugby as well as the party, and try to watch every game! One of my favourite things is that the crowd always adopts an underdog country and supports them in full voice! And we're not as mean to the Aussie team as we used to be...

We get an extra day off on Monday, too, for Waitangi Day, so I've got an extra long weekend. Having a few friends round for a BBQ in the afternoon.

Another reason for my run-down-by-a-truck feeling is that I got a new programme at the gym yesterday. He took me very literally when I said I needed more of a challenge. I always find the first few weeks tough - more about the co-ordination than anything.

Just over a week till the triathlon now. PZ (my friend who's doing it with me) and I did a walk-through last Sunday. We very quickly realised we need to stop training in the pool and get into the sea. The water at Titahi Bay was freezing! Although it did wash away the last vestiges of the champagne from the day before.

And a week after the triathlon we have the Great Lake Relay in Taupo. 160 kilometers around the lake, in 18 legs of walking and running. I'm not actually participating (although I think I'm a reserve by default), but I am the organiser (it's people from work and some clients). I'm really looking forward to it - being Camp Mother brings out the Nazi in me!

Yes, it's a pretty busy time at the moment - as this time of year tends to be. Just the way I like it. I've had a pretty average week with the tracking, what with all the champagne and the Chinese New Year banquet as well, but I should still be in for a small loss.

Enjoy your weekend! And for you Kiwi girls with kids - they finally go back to school next week!

Batting average

Well, this week's 1.3kg loss has meant I've kept my average at very slightly over 1kg a week. Translated into cricketing terms, this would make my batting average better than all the Aussie batsmen in yesterday's underwhelming win over Sri Lanka, except Gilchrist.

This week I've been going through my annual build-up to Wellington Cup Day. I've got a new dress: white with red poppies, quite tight-fitting so it looks like I've still got reasonable sized boobs. Several days of fake tan applications have given my legs a golden glow. The nails have been painted bright metallic red. A small red satin handbag has been purchased - and will probably never get used again! The never-worn red lipstick has been dug out of the make-up kit.

Believe me, this day has nothing to do with the horses!

Keep at it!

In the blogs in the last couple of weeks, I've noticed a certain amount of disillusionment.

Most of us did pretty well at maintaining or only gaining a little over the festive season. On the whole, those who put on weight have since taken it off again.

But now some lethargy seems to be creeping in. I see lots of comments about how difficult weight loss is at the moment.

Everybody needs a good shot of OOMPH!

One of the questions in the tag that's going around is what you'd do if you were a millionaire. Well, I would visit each and everyone of you and appoint myself as your personal cheering squad and motivational expert.

But, I can't do that - at least not without selling the house! So it's up to you to do it for yourself.

And you've been doing a good job of it up till now. Most of you have come a very long way. Many of you don't actually have very far to go. You need to find that motivation again.

Motivation is different for each of us, but here are some general thoughts about it from me:

• Think about why you started losing weight and how you felt at that time. Many of you have these thoughts in writing - in diaries, in your WW books, on your blogs. Go back and read all this stuff again. Remember why you are doing this.
• Remember the first time you looked in the mirror and could see the difference? How great did that feel? How much better will it be when you look in the mirror and see what you look like at goal?
• Go back to some of the techniques we all used early on. Visualise what you'll look like, how you'll feel, what great clothes you'll buy, how much energy you'll have.
• Sit down today and write a Pollyanna list. Philippa has just written a great one. That list will help you remember how strong you are, how much you've achieved, what you are capable of doing.
• We've all used the 'back to basics' method at some time. No matter what plan you're using, go back and start all over again. Read the literature, follow the 'rules', track, weigh portions, plan your weeks food, the lot.
• There are lots of people - family, friends, colleagues and the blog-world - who are cheering for you. They all care and they're all important. But YOU are the most important person. You need to be doing this for yourself.

Maybe it's time for some more changes in your life. If you feel like you've been doing this forever and it's all a bit dreary, change some things to make the journey more interesting, rather than abandon it all together.

Try some new recipes - lots of people who are less lazy than me post their recipes, so they're easy to find. Try one or two new dishes every week. Try the 'rainbow' approach - there must be at least 3 vegetables of different colours on your plate for dinner every night. Next time you're buying produce, pick up something you've never tried and work out how to prepare it.

Change your exercise routine - and make sure you challenge yourself. If you go to the gym, tell your consultant you want a new programme. Add an extra 15 minutes or a couple of big hills to your daily walk. Become obsessed with the science of exercise (like me, I'm such a nerd), so you understand what works, why it works, when it works.

Do you think about it too much? Maybe you need to introduce something into your day or week that has nothing to do with your weight loss. Read books by authors you've never read before, repaint the spare room, go along to the kids' sports practices, help out at the local soup kitchen.

I've rambled about this for long enough. My main point is - you can do it!

Updated times

Over the last week, I've redone my time trials for all three of the triathlon disciplines. They are as follows:
300m swim 8:56 (was 9:53)
10km ride 28:32 (was 31:06)
3km jog/walk 21:12 (was 23:24)

I'm particularly proud of the last one, as it is only 2 weeks since I last tested it. In that time I've increased my intervals from jog 1 minute/walk 3 minutes, to jog 4 minutes/walk 2 minutes). I also feel my jog-style has improved from the trudge I was doing before!

So, pleased with my improvement and looking forward to the triathlon in 3 weeks. Who would have thought it!

Fridge pic coming soon...

Tag

Here's the stuff-about-me tag. Keep watching for the fridge pic as suggested by AGR - I think it might need a clean first!

1. What were you doing 10 years ago?
Estimator at a printing company, but about to stage a coup and take over as production manager.
Wearing size 20/22 clothes.
Suffering through Jake's '7 year old boy' stage. That's right girls, he wasn't always perfect!
2. What were you doing a year ago?
About to move into a brand new house (which we still haven't paid for because it still isn't quite finished).
Starting to plan for my 40th birthday bash.
Wearing size 24/26 clothes but hatching a plan to do something about it.
Skiting to everyone about my perfect teenager.
Selling over 600 of my books on the internet. Along with lots of furniture and other stuff - moving from a 5 bedroom house to 3 bedrooms required drastic action.
3. Five snacks I enjoy:
Answering this isn't as much fun as it would have been a year ago!
Vine-ripened tomatoes chopped up, sprinkled with lime juice and smothered in freshly ground salt and black pepper.
The divine coffee friands from the cafe round the corner from work (an occasional 2.5 point treat).
A mini Callipo ice block.
WW raspberry jelly with fresh strawberries set into it.
WW French Vanilla ice cream, with two of my home-made brandy apricots chopped over top.
4. Five songs to which I know all the lyrics:
Not counting the hundreds of show tunes I know!
Welcome Home - Dave Dobbyn
Slim Shady - Eminem
Sweet Home Alabama - Lynard Skynard (sp?)
The Rose - Bette Midler
Banana Pancakes - Jack Johnson
5. Five things I would do if I were a millionaire
Buy my man whatever motorbikes his heart desired.
Hold the next sisters' meeting in Prague instead of Noosa (my treat girls).
Shop. Tirelessly.
Help Jake set up a business when he qualifies in whatever he's going to do (still undecided between plumber, builder and personal trainer).
Take the 1st XV on tour to Japan.
6. Five Bad Habits:
Getting up at 5am, no matter what day it is.
Correcting people's grammar in conversation (usually only in my head, but it's still vile).
Not believing that someone else might know more than I do.
Talking too much about my weight loss.
Not taking my make-up off before bed.
7. Five Things I Enjoy Doing:
Going to the gym - sorry, that's sick.
Sex.
Having the house to myself, turning off all the TVs and stereos and lying on the couch reading a book (in the past there would have been a box of chocolates in this scene).
Organising sports trips, tournaments etc.
Having dinner at the table, all together as a family - even though there are only three of us, this is much harder to arrange than it sounds!
8. 5 Things I Would Never Wear
A hat to the races (still can't get over years of yelling at boys to take their hats off at the table).
White - I'm a dirt magnet.
Heels higher than 2cm - it cost years of pain and $3000 to get my feet fixed, not going there again.
Anything that shows the broken veins covering my thighs; a rule I have to break to swim.
Shoe string straps.
9. Five favourite toys:
ipod.
Laptop.
My home PC for playing Sims 2.
The kitchen.
Other people's minds.

Just some stuff

Thanks for all the compliments you've been giving me on the look of my blog - it's certainly my favourite so far.

Racing didn't come about for Mark on Sunday, although he watched plenty of action out at the track (I stuck that out for about 10 minutes - absolutely not interested if my man's not involved!).
Instead I had brunch with our dear friends who came over from Hawkes Bay for the day, followed by a visit to Mark at the racetrack, then a bottle of wine at a lovely hotel in the hills, overlooking the lake.

In response to a couple of questions I've had about how I look after myself with all this training...
Lots and lots of stretching! Obsessively. But only ever of warm muscles. So far I've managed to survive a small Achilles twinge, but I definitely don't want to get an injury at this stage. I do have the occasional massage, but that's more treat than therapy. I have quite a bit of trouble with the toenails on my little toes, so I'd better get in to the podiatrist in the next week and get those tidied up.

I went to the Zebrano sale on Monday. Zebrano is a big girls' shop with fabulous clothes. I have bought almost all my clothes there for the last 12 years and eagerly anticipate the two sales each year. This will be my last sale there - I bought two things off the size 16 rack, which is their smallest size. Soon I'll be too small to be allowed in!

I don't want to became addicted to events, but I am concerned that I'll do the triathlon and then just stop and get lazy.
So now I've signed up for the Special K duathlon as well. It's on Easter Sunday, 8 weeks after the triathlon, which will give me 2 recovery weeks, then back into training. This one is 1.5km run/10km ride/3.5km run - all on the flat, so an easier event.
The only possible sticking point is that we haven't yet decided which week we're taking the 1st XV on their pre-season tour - that will be in the school holidays, so might coincide with Easter. Have to see how that goes.

Tried to became a hood ornament for a bus while doing my 10km time trial the other day - misread his signal at a roundabout. Luckily I was on the mountain bike, so it was fairly easy to chuck the bike (and myself) out of the way, not a manoeuvre I would have been capable of a couple of months back. Nearly went from fat to flat! I'll post all my trial times at the end of the week.

The search is on for a frock to wear to the Wellington Cup next weekend. We always go with Mark's work and some of their clients. I'm not doing the hat thing though - I just can't get over that it's bad manners to wear a hat when you are indoors and eating, even though I know it's acceptable at the races and in church!

Anybody seen a couple of hints in your comments that I'm coming to Sydney (good spotting Jodie). We're planning a sisters' meeting in Noosa in May, so I'm hoping to do a few days in Sydney on the way back. I'll keep you posted on that. Perhaps I'll be at goal...

Have a great day everyone!

Training times

Twofold meaning to this heading:

What time of day is best to train?
In Taupo, it is best not to train to 5.30pm on a day when it is 28 degrees!
I decided I couldn't fit in the gym AND 90 minutes riding before I left Wellington yesterday morning, so I juggled my schedule. Went to the gym in the morning and was left with a 45 minute walk/run to do when I got to Taupo.
It was so hot. Even though I got to go around the lake front on the lovely path from Kaiwaka Point to Wharewaka Point, there was no breeze at all. I really struggled to keep up my 3 minute walk/1 minute run intervals for half an hour. When Mark arrived 45 minutes after I got back, I still looked like a fluorescent beetroot!
By contrast, I went out again this morning at 7am. Overcast, cool and a gentle breeze off the lake! Ran intervals for a full 50 minutes and now I feel great.
Shaping up to be another scorcher here in Taupo today.

How do my training times look?
As part of my training in the last few weeks, there have been time trials for the race distances. The different disciplines are tested on different days.
My current times are:
300m swim - 9:53
10km ride - 31:06
3km run (walk) - 23:25
Some of these times are quite old - the swim especially, timed on the 8th of December. This week I am going to re-do all my time trials.
These are the times I used to set my triathlon goal of 75 minutes, taking into account transition times and the fact that I have to do all these things one after another!
I still think my goal will be quite hard to reach, but it is better to aim high and fall short, than to be aimless!

Racing update: while track-testing at Manfield yesterday, the bike suddenly stopped! Appears to be an electrical fault that Mark hasn't managed to pinpoint yet. Barring miracles (in the guise of some clever motorbike man), it looks like he'll spend today as a spectator.

I didn't mean to mislead you!

Some of you may have taken the inference from my last post that Mark and I were off to Taupo for a romantic weekend. Ha ha! Wrong!

The weekend itinerary goes something like this...

Tonight Mark will load the race motorbike in the van, drive to the Kapiti Coast and stay with a friend - to cut some time off his journey in the morning. Saturday he will drive to Manfield (racetrack near Palmerston North). A group of them have booked the track out for a 'fun day'.

The definition of a fun day: not structured racing, but lots of testosterone-fuelled competition against your mates, riding round the track and trying new lines etc. Plenty of the usual standing around, drinking coffee, telling lies and smoking. Oh, and making essential adjustments to the bikes.

Saturday morning I will - go to the gym, go for a 90 minute bike ride, then drive to Manfield. I will stay for the shortest time possible - make sure Mark sees me, give him a fresh Thermos of coffee and try not to get hugged by too many greasy motorbike men. Then I'll drive to Taupo.

Mark will drive to Taupo after they've finished at Manfield, so I don't expect to see him before 7pm. This is where the spa bath comes in - he'll be tired from a day on the track, and that 48-year-old body will need easing back into shape for the real racing the next day.

Mark will get up early Sunday morning and head to the track for the second in the summer racing series (3 events). He is currently lying third on the table in the hybrid section - fascinating, I know!

I will get up a bit later and go for my 50 minute walk/run. I'm then catching up with friends for brunch. After that I'll go to the racetrack, watch a couple of races and then drive 5 hours home. Mark will drive home either later that night or on Monday morning.

So, not many opportunities for romance there. But we'll have had a bit of time away together and I will have shown sufficient interest in Mark's racing that I can safely ignore it for another six months. And Jake will have had the house to himself on Saturday night for the boys' gambling night.

If you look at my weight record on the sidebar, you'll see I've lost another 1.1kg this week. Good going, but I'm actually a bit annoyed about it. My eating discipline has been poor, with far too much sneaky eating and too many sugar points. Because I'm training so hard, the weight continues to come off, so I need to make a conscious effort to curb the bad eating before it becomes a bad habit.

In hot water

Another of those strange side effects...

I've always liked my showers and baths really HOT. If Mark used the shower after me he always complained I was trying to scald him!

Now, however, I can't handle the water hot at all - it's more like tepid.

So, did all those layers of blubber used to insulate me against the heat? Illogical, when you consider the nerve-endings are in the skin. Maybe it's related to my fitness or some other physiological change?

At least we won't squabble over the temperature in the spa bath at the motel in Taupo this weekend!

Life in the slow lane

Well, I'm still the slowest person in the swimming lanes in the morning, but not by much. I've definitely got faster since that rude cow tried to kick me out. Unfortunately the other people who swim slower than me don't seem to have returned from their holidays yet.

I have got over my need to cut through the water like a silver arrow (for those of you with kids, that reference is from a Margaret Mahy book called 'The Great White Man Eating Shark: A Cautionary Tale'. It's about a strangely-shaped boy called Norvin and a great story to read to your kids). I have decided I will be quite happy to breast stroke the 300m of the triathlon - particularly because it will be in the sea.

My main reason for this is when I do manage to freestyle 300m, I'm completely stuffed at the end - not a good way to be with the ride and run still to come.

Just four weeks to go till the triathlon, so I figure it's about time to front up with a goal time. Here goes:

My aim (apart from just finishing) is to do the 300m swim, the 10km ride and the 3km run/walk in under 1 hour and 15 minutes, including transition times.

There, I've said it now!

80's girl!

At this point I should write a deep, introspective post reflecting on how far I've come, how this milestone makes me feel and what is to come in the rest of my weight-loss journey.

Sod that. I'm just going to shout:

Yippee, I'm an 80's girl!

The worst thing about being back at work?

Having to wear shoes!

And make-up. And girlie clothes. And waking up to an alarm again - took me a while even to work out what that strange noise was.

It doesn't help that that Mark isn't back at work until next week, and that Jake doesn't go back to school until 7 February.

But at least it's only a 3 day week.

Resolve

As I've got back into wandering through people's blogs, I see lots of comments about New Year's resolutions. Lots of people are making them; many also comment on how they think they're a waste of time, or have never been able to keep them in the past.

I've never been big on resolutions myself - if asked I'll usually reply 'This year I resolve to take up a new vice' or 'My resolution is to never make resolutions'.

But something is different this year. Most of the blogs I read show their authors have no need for New Year's resolutions. These people have shown enormous reslove already in the last year - losing weight, getting fit, improving their lifestyle.

I'd like to applaud you all for what you achieved in 2005 and encourage you to keep going in 2006. I'm certainly proud of myself, and you should all be proud of yourselves too.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Well, 2006 has dawned, and it's going to be another great year.

Mark and I had a fairly quiet New Year's Eve - went to King Kong with friends and then out for dinner.

That left the house free for Jake to have 20 or so friends round for drinks. They all took off into town about 11, so when we got home the house was empty - and not too much of a mess.

Just picked up all the cans and bottles, wiped a few benches down and left the floors etc for Jake to do today. I heard him come home around 4am, so I don't expect the cleaning will be done too soon! There was a bottle of spray and wipe and a cleaning cloth left in our bathroom. I'm figuring someone was a bit the worse for wear - but at least it got cleaned up!

I'm just easing into the day - the gym doesn't open until 9am, so I have an excuse. It's going to be another gorgeous day here.

Best wishes for the New Year, everyone!

I'll probably got shot for being unpatriotic, but I think King Kong is one of the stupidest movies I've ever seen.