If there is anything I hate more than waiting, I have not discovered it yet.
Nov 4th seems very far away as I make my way through the antibiotics, and foul tasting Chinese medicine. And especially so when I think I already have my diagnosis. I don't feel if these two weeks are going to make much of a difference to my status. The tumor is not going to miraculously disappear. And my second opinion doctor and the TCM specialist apparently thinks so too, though they did not couch it in such brutal terms. So I just wish we could move the dates up and get it over and done with, chop-chop.
We are in a bit of a quandary regarding doctors. I am definitely ditching the doctor they will assign to me under the hospital's subsidised care scheme. No offense to the doctor (whoever he/she is), but it seems that even in healthcare, you get what you pay for. So we decided to go private. However, the private doctor who gave us my second opinion has declined to take on my case, and has referred me to another doctor. I have not seen this third doctor yet, but I have been given to understand that he is very experienced and in high demand. In addition, he also holds an extremely senior position at two hospitals. Now we are starting to worry that he will be too busy to devote much time to my care, me being no biggie in particular.
So after Nov 4th, I have to wait another two weeks to see Doctor No. 3 and if he turns out unsatisfactory, we may have to look for Doctor No. 4 etc etc. And I will have to wait and wait to go under the knife. Oh, the waiting sucks.
****************************************************
I feel rather like shit these few days, probably because what I put in my mouth also taste like it. For all the advancement made in traditional chinese medicine, they never did find a way to make their herbal concoctions look and taste more appetizing. My life revolves around the two times a day I have to take the concoctions. It seems like I am already dreading my next bout before I have even swallowed this one. I don't know if this is a good thing, but the Chinese medicine has caused me to lose my appetite somewhat. For someone who loves to eat, it is certainly a new experience to need my mother to crack her brains to think of novel ways to tempt my appetite.
I also feel the occasional urge to brain my father, who has totally taken this organic produce thing too far. We have "JT's grapes" and "Daddy's grapes" in the fridge, "JT's veges" and "Daddy's veges" on the table. Mine are all organic, Dad's not - therein lies the difference. I have no idea why we can't all take organic produce together.
The only time I feel good is when I see a fast-food advertisement on TV. What won't I give for a nice juicy Mushroom Swiss burger now?
Showing posts with label Diet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Diet. Show all posts
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
Sunday, 14 June 2009
OF TRAINING AND AFTERNOON TEA BUFFET AND DARK CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM
As one can see from the mish mash in the title, I am getting sick of titling everything “Training Updates - XXXXX” and yet not in a creative enough mood to think of anything more interesting.
I had a relatively good week of training. In particular, I had a great training day during the week itself. The day didn’t start out so good. In actual fact, I felt like I was coming down with a serious flu halfway through the week. I spent the day sleeping and resting and by that evening, I felt fully rested and energetic. By the time I reached the gym, I could feel the power coursing through my limbs, and felt the incredible urge to pull heavy. I thought Popeye probably felt like this every time he got some spinach. I felt so good that I told Coach E that I could do anything that night and probably get some PRs. And I did – back squats at 55 kg. I really do believe I could have done 57.5 kg or maybe even 60 kg if I was in a mind to do so, but decided to be prudent and hone my form on 55 kg. Chin ups was great – finally able to get my chin above the bar and managed controlled lowering for up to 3 sets.
The weekday bout probably tired me out for the Saturday lifting, so I found myself making single lifts of 60 kgs and not being able to do anymore. But I wasn’t too concerned.
Muay Thai has become kind of a roulette wheel experience. I never know whether I am going to have a good session or be wiped out halfway. I can’t even pinpoint, much less control the factors which affect each session. So I guess I can only hope for the best until I graduate from bootcamp and put an end to Saturday heavy lifting and concentrate on Muay Thai. Anyway, I managed to survive this week quite well.
My planned derailment from my diet finally arrived on Saturday afternoon – a glorious afternoon of gourmet delights at Chihuly Lounge, Ritz Carlton. The Chihuly Lounge afternoon teas have always been one of my favourite treats, and the chocolate and nuts theme for the month of April to June was definitely not to be missed. I was not disappointed.
The savoury canapés deserve their own honorable mention. I kept going back for the Wagyu beef sandwich, crab wrap, crab salad, and the asparagus wrapped in beef. The last was a combination of taste and textures that was simply heavenly. I never realised asparagus tasted so good.
While I had meant to gun mostly for the desserts, I could only endure so much sweetness and richness before I had to take a break. I took a little of most of the chocolate stuff, and avoided the peanut butter items, which was too rich for my liking. But the crowning glory of the day was all those scoops of dark chocolate ice cream – best I ever tasted. If logistics didn’t intervene, I would probably have smuggled a whole tubful home to enjoy at leisure.
I go back onto my strict(er) diet regime today. Breaks like yesterday’s afternoon tea makes it all worthwhile….for if I didn’t make the effort to maintain a certain level of diet cleanliness normally, I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy yesterday’s spread without any guilt.
And I also believe, however blasphemous it may seem to people of certain persuasions, that if God really made the world, the best thing he did was when he uttered, “Let there be chocolate...and ice cream.”
I had a relatively good week of training. In particular, I had a great training day during the week itself. The day didn’t start out so good. In actual fact, I felt like I was coming down with a serious flu halfway through the week. I spent the day sleeping and resting and by that evening, I felt fully rested and energetic. By the time I reached the gym, I could feel the power coursing through my limbs, and felt the incredible urge to pull heavy. I thought Popeye probably felt like this every time he got some spinach. I felt so good that I told Coach E that I could do anything that night and probably get some PRs. And I did – back squats at 55 kg. I really do believe I could have done 57.5 kg or maybe even 60 kg if I was in a mind to do so, but decided to be prudent and hone my form on 55 kg. Chin ups was great – finally able to get my chin above the bar and managed controlled lowering for up to 3 sets.
The weekday bout probably tired me out for the Saturday lifting, so I found myself making single lifts of 60 kgs and not being able to do anymore. But I wasn’t too concerned.
Muay Thai has become kind of a roulette wheel experience. I never know whether I am going to have a good session or be wiped out halfway. I can’t even pinpoint, much less control the factors which affect each session. So I guess I can only hope for the best until I graduate from bootcamp and put an end to Saturday heavy lifting and concentrate on Muay Thai. Anyway, I managed to survive this week quite well.
My planned derailment from my diet finally arrived on Saturday afternoon – a glorious afternoon of gourmet delights at Chihuly Lounge, Ritz Carlton. The Chihuly Lounge afternoon teas have always been one of my favourite treats, and the chocolate and nuts theme for the month of April to June was definitely not to be missed. I was not disappointed.
The savoury canapés deserve their own honorable mention. I kept going back for the Wagyu beef sandwich, crab wrap, crab salad, and the asparagus wrapped in beef. The last was a combination of taste and textures that was simply heavenly. I never realised asparagus tasted so good.
While I had meant to gun mostly for the desserts, I could only endure so much sweetness and richness before I had to take a break. I took a little of most of the chocolate stuff, and avoided the peanut butter items, which was too rich for my liking. But the crowning glory of the day was all those scoops of dark chocolate ice cream – best I ever tasted. If logistics didn’t intervene, I would probably have smuggled a whole tubful home to enjoy at leisure.
I go back onto my strict(er) diet regime today. Breaks like yesterday’s afternoon tea makes it all worthwhile….for if I didn’t make the effort to maintain a certain level of diet cleanliness normally, I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy yesterday’s spread without any guilt.
And I also believe, however blasphemous it may seem to people of certain persuasions, that if God really made the world, the best thing he did was when he uttered, “Let there be chocolate...and ice cream.”
Sunday, 7 June 2009
IT’S BEEN A GOOD WEEK….
…..the title says it all.
Work has been relatively uneventful for the past two weeks, which is really a good thing in this line. No news is good news. At the very least, I am not constantly plagued by those moments when I sit down in front of my work station and start typing resignation letters. The phone is silent for most part, and my inbox have contained a current low of 46 emails for three days running, which is totally unheard of in my career so far. I ignore that little unsettling voice in my psyche that whisper that this is only the eye of the storm, and the worst is yet to come. After all, the holy mountain prophet predicted bad times at work in the months of October and November. But for now, I am counting my blessings when I can get them and taking a breather until those dreaded months arrive. This good week may be all that stands between me and the train tracks if the predictions for bad times do come true.
Training has gone relatively well this week. Due to several absences for the bootcamp, I was able to do the heavy stuff instead for most of the week. No new personal bests, but no major boo-boos either. I did manage to up the deadlifts to a 62.5 kg 1RM, which is more than what I have managed for weeks. And I continue to feel appreciable improvements in my upper body strength. Push ups, chin ups, overhead and flat bench presses are all significantly better. Muay Thai was not too bad either, although coach wasn’t too happy with some kicking and landing techniques. Still, I am happy overall. And whatever soreness I was feeling throughout the week is just another reminder of a reasonably good training week.
I have also been rather good with my diet this week, with only one major “surprise” when my mother managed to sneak in fried rice for one of my lunches. Fried rice is one of my big weaknesses, and my mother’s fried rice is out of the world, so guess who won? But other than that, and a planned cheat with 220 calories worth of Ben and Jerry’s chocolate fudge brownie ice cream (soooo good…), I had been doing well….and the scale appears to agree.
By the way, I have spoken to Coach J, and will “graduate” from the bootcamp after one more term and sign on for PT instead. Details have not been worked out yet, but I figured I would probably be training two to three times a week at the gym, and Saturday mornings would be for Muay Thai alone. No more feeling like I left my lungs and limbs somewhere else after Saturday training(s). The only thing I haven’t yet decided is my training goal. I would have continued to gun for fat loss, but I suspect the limiting factor for that is ultimately my diet and nutrition, so I may as well train for maximal strength anyway, and work at fat loss from the nutrition angle.
I have not been a total jock this week though, and managed to enjoy two theatre productions over the weekend. My father jokes that I am trying to be what the Chinese call 文武双全 or literarily “being well-versed in both the scholastic and martial endeavours”. I don’t think I have anything that lofty in mind, though I do hope to be as well-rounded as I can within the constraints of my own personal interests and available free time. I have to admit that I do miss the presence of the softer arts in my life these days, and have been considering bringing my trumpet out of storage and joining a band again, if I can find one that allows me to practice without performance commitments.
I also managed to catch up with some friends while attending the theatre performances, so now I feel more socially connected as well. Facebook, for all its virtues, can only do so much to maintain ties. We all still need the human connection. Oh, something else came out of our small gathering – a date for an MCR game two weeks hence. It has become embarrassing to tell people that I have not played for months after the Straits Times Life! article was published, so now at least I won’t be lying exactly when I say I am still playing. I only hope that we can at least continue with monthly games, if not weekly. I still haven’t given up the dream of competing at WSM one day.
The crowning touch for this week? I received my monthly statements for my equity investments today. My investments have rebounded somewhat, and are at the pre-recession levels. My paper losses are no more as of this moment. But I shall, as instructed by our ruling big brothers, be only cautiously optimistic instead of wildly overjoyed.
And I remain cautiously optimistic that the coming week will be just as good.
Work has been relatively uneventful for the past two weeks, which is really a good thing in this line. No news is good news. At the very least, I am not constantly plagued by those moments when I sit down in front of my work station and start typing resignation letters. The phone is silent for most part, and my inbox have contained a current low of 46 emails for three days running, which is totally unheard of in my career so far. I ignore that little unsettling voice in my psyche that whisper that this is only the eye of the storm, and the worst is yet to come. After all, the holy mountain prophet predicted bad times at work in the months of October and November. But for now, I am counting my blessings when I can get them and taking a breather until those dreaded months arrive. This good week may be all that stands between me and the train tracks if the predictions for bad times do come true.
Training has gone relatively well this week. Due to several absences for the bootcamp, I was able to do the heavy stuff instead for most of the week. No new personal bests, but no major boo-boos either. I did manage to up the deadlifts to a 62.5 kg 1RM, which is more than what I have managed for weeks. And I continue to feel appreciable improvements in my upper body strength. Push ups, chin ups, overhead and flat bench presses are all significantly better. Muay Thai was not too bad either, although coach wasn’t too happy with some kicking and landing techniques. Still, I am happy overall. And whatever soreness I was feeling throughout the week is just another reminder of a reasonably good training week.
I have also been rather good with my diet this week, with only one major “surprise” when my mother managed to sneak in fried rice for one of my lunches. Fried rice is one of my big weaknesses, and my mother’s fried rice is out of the world, so guess who won? But other than that, and a planned cheat with 220 calories worth of Ben and Jerry’s chocolate fudge brownie ice cream (soooo good…), I had been doing well….and the scale appears to agree.
By the way, I have spoken to Coach J, and will “graduate” from the bootcamp after one more term and sign on for PT instead. Details have not been worked out yet, but I figured I would probably be training two to three times a week at the gym, and Saturday mornings would be for Muay Thai alone. No more feeling like I left my lungs and limbs somewhere else after Saturday training(s). The only thing I haven’t yet decided is my training goal. I would have continued to gun for fat loss, but I suspect the limiting factor for that is ultimately my diet and nutrition, so I may as well train for maximal strength anyway, and work at fat loss from the nutrition angle.
I have not been a total jock this week though, and managed to enjoy two theatre productions over the weekend. My father jokes that I am trying to be what the Chinese call 文武双全 or literarily “being well-versed in both the scholastic and martial endeavours”. I don’t think I have anything that lofty in mind, though I do hope to be as well-rounded as I can within the constraints of my own personal interests and available free time. I have to admit that I do miss the presence of the softer arts in my life these days, and have been considering bringing my trumpet out of storage and joining a band again, if I can find one that allows me to practice without performance commitments.
I also managed to catch up with some friends while attending the theatre performances, so now I feel more socially connected as well. Facebook, for all its virtues, can only do so much to maintain ties. We all still need the human connection. Oh, something else came out of our small gathering – a date for an MCR game two weeks hence. It has become embarrassing to tell people that I have not played for months after the Straits Times Life! article was published, so now at least I won’t be lying exactly when I say I am still playing. I only hope that we can at least continue with monthly games, if not weekly. I still haven’t given up the dream of competing at WSM one day.
The crowning touch for this week? I received my monthly statements for my equity investments today. My investments have rebounded somewhat, and are at the pre-recession levels. My paper losses are no more as of this moment. But I shall, as instructed by our ruling big brothers, be only cautiously optimistic instead of wildly overjoyed.
And I remain cautiously optimistic that the coming week will be just as good.
Saturday, 30 May 2009
TRAINING UPDATES – 30.05.2009
I’m a mess. I have bruises, big and small everywhere, from my foot to my shoulders. The ones on my shoulders and collar bones are from the front squats earlier this week, the ones on my shins are either from Muay Thai or deadlifts today, the ones on my left foot is definitely from Muay Thai. My knuckles are also scrapped and bruised, though how that happened when I was wearing my hand-wraps is a puzzle. Calluses – check. Sore abs – check. On top of everything, my throat feels rather raw from all the yelling during Muay Thai. No yells, no strength.
Strength training - analysis with Coach E today made me realize I have been too used to the Romanian deadlift form. In Romanian deadlifts, there is less bending of the knees and more bowing and use of upper body strength, as opposed to conventional deadlifts, where I have to set up lower, more like a squat, and drive from my legs. Well, it seems that I have been relying more on my upper body strength for conventional deadlifts, and as such limited my lifts. Some adjustment today improved matters somewhat. At least 55 kgs was a given, although 60 kgs still felt hard and I couldn’t complete 5 reps in a single set. I have no idea how I managed 60 kgs so easily the last time. I am also starting to believe that the 1RM of 65 kgs that I achieved weeks ago was just a fluke. Did I perhaps ingest some spinach accidentally before lifting that time?
The mind is a strange thing. Weeks ago, those barbells looked friendly and inviting. Today, I got this sense of dread when I see them lying there. I wonder if my mind set me up for failure before I even started. I never thought the day would come when I would have preferred to squat rather than deadlift. It is true then, that we always enjoy better the things we are good at.
Anyway, I have left my ego at the gym door, and shall work my way up slowly but surely from 55 kgs. No way am I going to chance a back injury just for the sake of loading the bar too quickly. At least after the adjustment today, I am happy to report that my legs and abs are sore, but my back is fine, and my calluses don’t hurt like they used to. I can take comfort, albeit a little cold, in the fact that I am doing things properly.
By the way, did we know that we are ideally suited to deadlifting and squatting, because our limbs are shorter (so we have less distance to move the weights)? I never thought the day would come when having shorter limbs would actually be useful. But frankly? Give me longer legs, and I would gladly give up 20 kg off my PRs. But since this is what the good God has seen fit to give me, I have been advised to make the best use of it.
Muay Thai today – poor. It looks like I need not have forgone the last set of tabata jump squats, since it appeared to have made no difference to my performance at Muay Thai anyway. For the first time ever in a long, long while, I had to call for time-out in the middle of a padwork bout because I was seeing black around the edges of my vision. I managed to rally and finish up, but it was still tough. Half the time, I was on autopilot, because I was so tired I couldn’t process the instructions. Pad here, punch here, pad there, kick there, pad high, punch high, pad low, kick low. It was actually kind of cool that I could go on autopilot, because it means quite a bit of it has been internalized. I seem to be taking a lot of my comfort cold, though.
I repeat again, my throat is raw. When one has to “Urgh!”and “Argh!” hundreds of times in an hour, it happens. It honestly amazes me how much additional strength and momentum I get from making those noises. And it seems I am not the only one. Earlier this week, I was watching the earlier session bootcamp ladies do their stuff, when I realized they were all making louder exhalations from the exertion. Take about 8 ladies, each of them making soft groaning noises rather rhythmically, you get the picture. I was pretty amused at how suggestive it all sounded. I wondered if anyone else also had their minds in the gutter like me…and made the connection, though.
Finally, I have decided to move on from the bootcamp to proper personal training, and plan to speak to Coach J on Monday to see if something can be worked out. I do not see otherwise how I can continue to maintain the barbell lifting session and Muay Thai training on a single day, one after another. I refuse to continue with crappy performance when I know I am capable of much better.
By the way, I think I have gained back some dreaded inches after the poor food choices in the last one to two weeks. I had to exert a smidgeon of extra strength to close the snaps on my shorts today. Alert! Alert! It’s no-no to sweets until further notice.
Strength training - analysis with Coach E today made me realize I have been too used to the Romanian deadlift form. In Romanian deadlifts, there is less bending of the knees and more bowing and use of upper body strength, as opposed to conventional deadlifts, where I have to set up lower, more like a squat, and drive from my legs. Well, it seems that I have been relying more on my upper body strength for conventional deadlifts, and as such limited my lifts. Some adjustment today improved matters somewhat. At least 55 kgs was a given, although 60 kgs still felt hard and I couldn’t complete 5 reps in a single set. I have no idea how I managed 60 kgs so easily the last time. I am also starting to believe that the 1RM of 65 kgs that I achieved weeks ago was just a fluke. Did I perhaps ingest some spinach accidentally before lifting that time?
The mind is a strange thing. Weeks ago, those barbells looked friendly and inviting. Today, I got this sense of dread when I see them lying there. I wonder if my mind set me up for failure before I even started. I never thought the day would come when I would have preferred to squat rather than deadlift. It is true then, that we always enjoy better the things we are good at.
Anyway, I have left my ego at the gym door, and shall work my way up slowly but surely from 55 kgs. No way am I going to chance a back injury just for the sake of loading the bar too quickly. At least after the adjustment today, I am happy to report that my legs and abs are sore, but my back is fine, and my calluses don’t hurt like they used to. I can take comfort, albeit a little cold, in the fact that I am doing things properly.
By the way, did we know that we are ideally suited to deadlifting and squatting, because our limbs are shorter (so we have less distance to move the weights)? I never thought the day would come when having shorter limbs would actually be useful. But frankly? Give me longer legs, and I would gladly give up 20 kg off my PRs. But since this is what the good God has seen fit to give me, I have been advised to make the best use of it.
Muay Thai today – poor. It looks like I need not have forgone the last set of tabata jump squats, since it appeared to have made no difference to my performance at Muay Thai anyway. For the first time ever in a long, long while, I had to call for time-out in the middle of a padwork bout because I was seeing black around the edges of my vision. I managed to rally and finish up, but it was still tough. Half the time, I was on autopilot, because I was so tired I couldn’t process the instructions. Pad here, punch here, pad there, kick there, pad high, punch high, pad low, kick low. It was actually kind of cool that I could go on autopilot, because it means quite a bit of it has been internalized. I seem to be taking a lot of my comfort cold, though.
I repeat again, my throat is raw. When one has to “Urgh!”and “Argh!” hundreds of times in an hour, it happens. It honestly amazes me how much additional strength and momentum I get from making those noises. And it seems I am not the only one. Earlier this week, I was watching the earlier session bootcamp ladies do their stuff, when I realized they were all making louder exhalations from the exertion. Take about 8 ladies, each of them making soft groaning noises rather rhythmically, you get the picture. I was pretty amused at how suggestive it all sounded. I wondered if anyone else also had their minds in the gutter like me…and made the connection, though.
Finally, I have decided to move on from the bootcamp to proper personal training, and plan to speak to Coach J on Monday to see if something can be worked out. I do not see otherwise how I can continue to maintain the barbell lifting session and Muay Thai training on a single day, one after another. I refuse to continue with crappy performance when I know I am capable of much better.
By the way, I think I have gained back some dreaded inches after the poor food choices in the last one to two weeks. I had to exert a smidgeon of extra strength to close the snaps on my shorts today. Alert! Alert! It’s no-no to sweets until further notice.
Sunday, 17 May 2009
LOUSY TRAINING DAY, AND I GOT INJURED TOO
I recently gave someone a pep talk about having bad training days. I guess it is only poetic justice that I had one too today. Note to self: Stop giving pep talks.
Another note to self: Never do yoga before lifting day. It might be other factors that resulted in today’s poor showing (like the fact that I am actually really weaker than I thought), but I am sticking the Friday hot yoga session in the scapegoat’s seat for today’s debacle.
Anyway, the gist of today’s lifting session was that I was struggling with 55 kgs deadlifts when I was lifting 60 kgs, and even 65 kgs two weeks ago. And even with 55 kgs today I had to abort the sets halfway. And the bad thing about lifting once a week is that I don’t get to wipe out a poor record with a nice fresh one by Monday. I have to wait two weeks to prove my mettle again. Sad, that.
Muay Thai was better, but not fantastic either. The best I can say about today’s session is that I lasted the entire bout, but it was obvious I was tiring early and not at my best. The last twenty minutes of the session was run on willpower alone. At that point in time, I honestly felt for those pro boxers who have to keep going during their matches. Mind over body takes on new meaning for me.
And to top it all, today had to be the day I broke my injury free training record (muscle aches that felt like trucks rolled over me do not count). It feels like a strain in my left foot, which feels rather painful when I walk or flex my foot. It is actually very minor and definitely not serious enough to halt my training, but it still sucks. And the thing is I can’t even remember sustaining it. I only started feeling the pain after my long, wonderful afternoon nap today. I suspect I must have gotten it during Muay Thai, when I misjudged the distance to the boxing bag and kicked it with my foot instead of my shin. Now I feel like a klutz on top of everything else.
I have to keep reminding myself that I’m into all this fitness stuff for FAT LOSS, otherwise I may just hide under the blankets and cry. Strange how priorities shift subconsciously. Anyway, there is good news on the fat loss front. Pinch test measurements this week revealed that I lost three bodyfat percentages since mid February, which leaves me just 2% away from acceptable bodyfat percentage range. Just 2% more and I will be officially not overweight anymore. Of course, BMI and WHR and a host of other ratios will not agree, but I have decided to adopt bodyfat % as my guiding light and the other ratios can retreat to the acronym retirement village. A girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do.
The pinch test measurements also revealed that I have got to sleep more, which means no blog hopping and Facebook for me during weekday nights from now on. This pinch test is as good as a psychic reading when it comes to my lifestyle habits. The last time it was done, my coach correctly analysed that I was still piling on the carbohydrates, hence no loss in the love handles though I went down everywhere else. This time, calves showed no losses, which apparently translates to sleep deficiency. Some girls lie to their coaches to maintain a good impression or to avoid incessant nagging. There is no sense in lying to mine. He’ll just grab my fats and prove me wrong.
A few days ago, I went window shopping and tried on some stuff in some shop. These days when salespeople ask me what size I wear, I’m kind of clueless. Given my obsession with fat loss, it is kind of weird that I’m not obsessive compulsive about tracking my clothing size. But my body composition keeps changing on me and it gets difficult to judge what size I should be getting. Anyway, the salesperson seemed to have some kind of built in size radar and got me all the right sizes to try. Then I found out that I was trying “M” sizes. That clinched it. I walked out of the shop with a shopping bag full of clothes I hadn’t intended to get. I haven’t worn “M” sizes since forever. Of course, it could be that the cut of the clothes in that shop happened to be bigger….but an “M” is an “M”. It is like artificial sweeteners. You know they are not real sugar, but who cares if they taste sweet anyway?
And I got yet another compliment today about my visible flab loss, which kind of makes today somewhat less lousy.
And lastly, when I went to my favourite pork chop place for lunch after Muay Thai today, the cute maître d’ personally served me my pork chops and commented that he didn’t see me last Saturday. I didn’t even realize he remembered me from my weekly visits; much less that he missed me when I skip a visit. I was so flabbergasted that I don’t remember what I mumbled back. Last note to self: Need to practice more at spontaneous flirtations. Nevertheless, the pork chops tasted extra nice with a serving of his sunny smile.
And it wasn’t such a lousy day after all.
Another note to self: Never do yoga before lifting day. It might be other factors that resulted in today’s poor showing (like the fact that I am actually really weaker than I thought), but I am sticking the Friday hot yoga session in the scapegoat’s seat for today’s debacle.
Anyway, the gist of today’s lifting session was that I was struggling with 55 kgs deadlifts when I was lifting 60 kgs, and even 65 kgs two weeks ago. And even with 55 kgs today I had to abort the sets halfway. And the bad thing about lifting once a week is that I don’t get to wipe out a poor record with a nice fresh one by Monday. I have to wait two weeks to prove my mettle again. Sad, that.
Muay Thai was better, but not fantastic either. The best I can say about today’s session is that I lasted the entire bout, but it was obvious I was tiring early and not at my best. The last twenty minutes of the session was run on willpower alone. At that point in time, I honestly felt for those pro boxers who have to keep going during their matches. Mind over body takes on new meaning for me.
And to top it all, today had to be the day I broke my injury free training record (muscle aches that felt like trucks rolled over me do not count). It feels like a strain in my left foot, which feels rather painful when I walk or flex my foot. It is actually very minor and definitely not serious enough to halt my training, but it still sucks. And the thing is I can’t even remember sustaining it. I only started feeling the pain after my long, wonderful afternoon nap today. I suspect I must have gotten it during Muay Thai, when I misjudged the distance to the boxing bag and kicked it with my foot instead of my shin. Now I feel like a klutz on top of everything else.
I have to keep reminding myself that I’m into all this fitness stuff for FAT LOSS, otherwise I may just hide under the blankets and cry. Strange how priorities shift subconsciously. Anyway, there is good news on the fat loss front. Pinch test measurements this week revealed that I lost three bodyfat percentages since mid February, which leaves me just 2% away from acceptable bodyfat percentage range. Just 2% more and I will be officially not overweight anymore. Of course, BMI and WHR and a host of other ratios will not agree, but I have decided to adopt bodyfat % as my guiding light and the other ratios can retreat to the acronym retirement village. A girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do.
The pinch test measurements also revealed that I have got to sleep more, which means no blog hopping and Facebook for me during weekday nights from now on. This pinch test is as good as a psychic reading when it comes to my lifestyle habits. The last time it was done, my coach correctly analysed that I was still piling on the carbohydrates, hence no loss in the love handles though I went down everywhere else. This time, calves showed no losses, which apparently translates to sleep deficiency. Some girls lie to their coaches to maintain a good impression or to avoid incessant nagging. There is no sense in lying to mine. He’ll just grab my fats and prove me wrong.
A few days ago, I went window shopping and tried on some stuff in some shop. These days when salespeople ask me what size I wear, I’m kind of clueless. Given my obsession with fat loss, it is kind of weird that I’m not obsessive compulsive about tracking my clothing size. But my body composition keeps changing on me and it gets difficult to judge what size I should be getting. Anyway, the salesperson seemed to have some kind of built in size radar and got me all the right sizes to try. Then I found out that I was trying “M” sizes. That clinched it. I walked out of the shop with a shopping bag full of clothes I hadn’t intended to get. I haven’t worn “M” sizes since forever. Of course, it could be that the cut of the clothes in that shop happened to be bigger….but an “M” is an “M”. It is like artificial sweeteners. You know they are not real sugar, but who cares if they taste sweet anyway?
And I got yet another compliment today about my visible flab loss, which kind of makes today somewhat less lousy.
And lastly, when I went to my favourite pork chop place for lunch after Muay Thai today, the cute maître d’ personally served me my pork chops and commented that he didn’t see me last Saturday. I didn’t even realize he remembered me from my weekly visits; much less that he missed me when I skip a visit. I was so flabbergasted that I don’t remember what I mumbled back. Last note to self: Need to practice more at spontaneous flirtations. Nevertheless, the pork chops tasted extra nice with a serving of his sunny smile.
And it wasn’t such a lousy day after all.
Friday, 1 May 2009
SOME FITNESS RAMBLINGS
In the last two days, several people have commented on my visible flab loss. I say flab loss, because alas, the scale weight is still not moving.
In addition to the comments, the other day during training, I was discussing the situation of my flab loss with the BIG COACH while resting between sets, when he suddenly reached over without warning and grabbed my love-handles, while the rest the entire gym population looked on, and held on for (what I felt) the longest time, while he reassured me that there was improvement in that area. I was really happy to know that, but it was SO majorly embarrassing! We normally do the pinch tests and measurements in the privacy of his office, so I never did expect my flab to be "revealed" to the world like that. But I guess, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I am determined to lose all that flab so that it can't happen again. =)
But anyway, I am much gratified with all the comments, and thank these kind souls with all my heart, for their timely pick-me-up. I did think I looked somewhat better, and I did manage to fit into some clothes which had been tight three months ago. But the human mind, sorry, human FEMALE mind, likes to play games. So despite my own observations, there was this little niggling doubt that I was maybe deluding myself, seeing improvements where there were none, being too confident too early etc etc. The comments did me worlds of good, and has pushed me to watch my diet and training even more closely, now that I know that things are really working out. Bikini days look possible after all. =)
One thing that I am helpless to change though, is that in the past year of slimming, I have lost my "upper body endowments". I found myself in the same company that consists of Stephanie Sun, Kate Moss....and airport runways. Very very dismal. I had to stop wearing tube tops, because there was nothing much to hold them up, and having to keep tugging them up is not sexy. I found myself poring over the Figure Athletes website, trying to figure out how those gorgeous ladies managed to keep their figure while leaning, and found many had probably had augmentation done. Sigh....looks like there is too much of a good thing, and no "best of both worlds scenario" in this case. These days, I am always looking at bust boosting ads, and maximiser bras - rather amusing sometimes.
Last night on my way home from my workout, I suddenly recalled this conversation I had with a cab driver in my last trip to Norway. He was an African immigrant in Norway, and his parents still lived in Kenya. He recounted a conversation with his father, where he described the life of a typical Norwegian and mentioned going to the gym to workout, a practice which left his Kenyan Dad all confused.
Dad: You mean these people, they pay the good money to go to these places to run and lift heavy stuff and sweat?
Cab-Driver: Yeah.
Dad: Heck, why'd these people actually pay money to do these things when they can do them here for free?
I had to agree with the irony of the situation. Here we are, slogging from a young age to do well in school so that when we grew up, we could sit in an air-con office all day instead of a sweating on a construction site carrying heavy stuff and running around, in order that we may make more money to pay for the privilege of sweating it out in expensive gyms, carrying stuff and running around. Seems like we could have saved ourselves the trouble and enjoyed our childhood to the fullest, since we end up doing the same things anyway.
Then again, you don't get to wear Adidas by Stella McCartney on a construction site, and the rest are but small inconveniences when measured against this fact....haha.
In addition to the comments, the other day during training, I was discussing the situation of my flab loss with the BIG COACH while resting between sets, when he suddenly reached over without warning and grabbed my love-handles, while the rest the entire gym population looked on, and held on for (what I felt) the longest time, while he reassured me that there was improvement in that area. I was really happy to know that, but it was SO majorly embarrassing! We normally do the pinch tests and measurements in the privacy of his office, so I never did expect my flab to be "revealed" to the world like that. But I guess, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I am determined to lose all that flab so that it can't happen again. =)
But anyway, I am much gratified with all the comments, and thank these kind souls with all my heart, for their timely pick-me-up. I did think I looked somewhat better, and I did manage to fit into some clothes which had been tight three months ago. But the human mind, sorry, human FEMALE mind, likes to play games. So despite my own observations, there was this little niggling doubt that I was maybe deluding myself, seeing improvements where there were none, being too confident too early etc etc. The comments did me worlds of good, and has pushed me to watch my diet and training even more closely, now that I know that things are really working out. Bikini days look possible after all. =)
One thing that I am helpless to change though, is that in the past year of slimming, I have lost my "upper body endowments". I found myself in the same company that consists of Stephanie Sun, Kate Moss....and airport runways. Very very dismal. I had to stop wearing tube tops, because there was nothing much to hold them up, and having to keep tugging them up is not sexy. I found myself poring over the Figure Athletes website, trying to figure out how those gorgeous ladies managed to keep their figure while leaning, and found many had probably had augmentation done. Sigh....looks like there is too much of a good thing, and no "best of both worlds scenario" in this case. These days, I am always looking at bust boosting ads, and maximiser bras - rather amusing sometimes.
Last night on my way home from my workout, I suddenly recalled this conversation I had with a cab driver in my last trip to Norway. He was an African immigrant in Norway, and his parents still lived in Kenya. He recounted a conversation with his father, where he described the life of a typical Norwegian and mentioned going to the gym to workout, a practice which left his Kenyan Dad all confused.
Dad: You mean these people, they pay the good money to go to these places to run and lift heavy stuff and sweat?
Cab-Driver: Yeah.
Dad: Heck, why'd these people actually pay money to do these things when they can do them here for free?
I had to agree with the irony of the situation. Here we are, slogging from a young age to do well in school so that when we grew up, we could sit in an air-con office all day instead of a sweating on a construction site carrying heavy stuff and running around, in order that we may make more money to pay for the privilege of sweating it out in expensive gyms, carrying stuff and running around. Seems like we could have saved ourselves the trouble and enjoyed our childhood to the fullest, since we end up doing the same things anyway.
Then again, you don't get to wear Adidas by Stella McCartney on a construction site, and the rest are but small inconveniences when measured against this fact....haha.
Sunday, 19 April 2009
TRAINING UPDATE - NEW PR
Upped my Deadlifts to 60 kg on Saturday. Although I thought my form was not exactly perfect at that load, plenty of rounding of back and shoulders. I suspect this is my max for some time though. Unless I start training this heavy more frequently than once a week, I probably won't see any further increase in loading for months to come.
I hope we get to do squats next Saturday. I want to see where I am now. Suspect around 30 kg to 40 kg back squats.
Note to self - need to improve upper body strength. C'est terrible now....
Started keeping a food and training log to see if it would help me to meet the target fat loss of 2 kg by mid May set by my coach. I am not too stressed about it, but it would be nice to be able to report something positive by the dateline. Well, it seems so far that I am not eating too badly, I just have to start eating less. So....here we go.
A colleague at work came to me for advice on losing weight last week. Unlike some others who had asked me before, she was actually willing to continue listening once I informed her that I took no shortcuts and had no magic pills. I was happy to share (imagine that, me giving nutrition and exercise advice! Me!). I will keep track of her progress with interest. May bring her to bootcamp if she is interested.
I am staring at the container of almonds/peanuts that I have prepared for work. Have to put it away now before I succumb. Mid May.....mid May......
I hope we get to do squats next Saturday. I want to see where I am now. Suspect around 30 kg to 40 kg back squats.
Note to self - need to improve upper body strength. C'est terrible now....
Started keeping a food and training log to see if it would help me to meet the target fat loss of 2 kg by mid May set by my coach. I am not too stressed about it, but it would be nice to be able to report something positive by the dateline. Well, it seems so far that I am not eating too badly, I just have to start eating less. So....here we go.
A colleague at work came to me for advice on losing weight last week. Unlike some others who had asked me before, she was actually willing to continue listening once I informed her that I took no shortcuts and had no magic pills. I was happy to share (imagine that, me giving nutrition and exercise advice! Me!). I will keep track of her progress with interest. May bring her to bootcamp if she is interested.
I am staring at the container of almonds/peanuts that I have prepared for work. Have to put it away now before I succumb. Mid May.....mid May......
Saturday, 11 April 2009
KICKING ASSES
Didn't manage a really good Muay Thai workout today, in part due to a bum knee acting up. Coach is starting to really tear my techniques apart, and nitpicking quite a bit, which is kind of good, as it means he considers me past the beginner stage. But oh god, it can be demoralising, as I have to relearn certain moves all over again. What I thought was working apparently wasn't. Generally felt like a rank beginner today. It feels like I'll never be good enough to start sparring.
Anyway, there was this other couple also having their session alongside me. I got to sit and watch them a bit after I ended my session. I wasn't so much impressed with the man, but his wife kicked ass! Including his! She is one strong woman, and her punches and kicks packed lots of power. But mainly I was entranced with her moves. She was so fluid and smooth, so sharp and strong, and so unlike my own clumsy and unstable attempts, and I fell in love with Muay Thai all over again just watching her. It looked so beautiful, poetry in motion. I imagine this is why the genre is called martial arts in the first place (and no, I don't consider wrestling martial arts, or any kind of art form for that matter).
Oh, by the way, I finally managed to put on the hand wraps all by my little self, although it took me some time wrapping and unwrapping every so often.
And we are going to start regular strength training (once a week) over at my other gym in addition to the metcon work that we've been doing for the last few months. This came at just the right time, as I was considering switching fully over to strength training. I love strength training, and I suspect part of the reason why I really like it so much is because I'm good at it. OK, at least better at it than any other sporting or fitness endeavour I have ever undertaken. No need to further elaborate on the psychology behind this then. So yes, I'm really excited to start testing myself and finding my limits, and pushing on, improving and kicking asses. The only down side is that the sessions are going to be just before my Muay Thai every Saturday, so I hope I don't kill myself in the process.
On a side note, the recent carbs cutting seems to be working, in a way. Scale weight is unchanged, but there is some improved body composition. I am feeling somewhat leaner, tummy appears to be slightly flatter. And I recently noticed that I seem to have lost some girth in the thighs (yay!). Managed to fit into a pair of shorts which I couldn't wear three months ago. On the other hand, I have been losing my temper more at work and kicking my team members' asses, and I can't figure out whether it is because of the lack of carbs, PMS, or just generally having reached the venting point after all these months of unhappiness and general suppression of emotions at work. I suspect it is more of the latter, though hormonal changes from PMS and cutting carbs might have exacerbated things a little. Whatever it is, I am quite the unpopular person among my subordinates these two weeks.
I guess I am just going to let things ride for a while and see what happens. But I do know that I am not giving up my newly svelte (ok, nearly there) body for anything in the world, so the carbs can just stay where they are (in the rubbish bin), and my team can just grin and bear it, until someone votes me off the island.
Anyway, there was this other couple also having their session alongside me. I got to sit and watch them a bit after I ended my session. I wasn't so much impressed with the man, but his wife kicked ass! Including his! She is one strong woman, and her punches and kicks packed lots of power. But mainly I was entranced with her moves. She was so fluid and smooth, so sharp and strong, and so unlike my own clumsy and unstable attempts, and I fell in love with Muay Thai all over again just watching her. It looked so beautiful, poetry in motion. I imagine this is why the genre is called martial arts in the first place (and no, I don't consider wrestling martial arts, or any kind of art form for that matter).
Oh, by the way, I finally managed to put on the hand wraps all by my little self, although it took me some time wrapping and unwrapping every so often.
And we are going to start regular strength training (once a week) over at my other gym in addition to the metcon work that we've been doing for the last few months. This came at just the right time, as I was considering switching fully over to strength training. I love strength training, and I suspect part of the reason why I really like it so much is because I'm good at it. OK, at least better at it than any other sporting or fitness endeavour I have ever undertaken. No need to further elaborate on the psychology behind this then. So yes, I'm really excited to start testing myself and finding my limits, and pushing on, improving and kicking asses. The only down side is that the sessions are going to be just before my Muay Thai every Saturday, so I hope I don't kill myself in the process.
On a side note, the recent carbs cutting seems to be working, in a way. Scale weight is unchanged, but there is some improved body composition. I am feeling somewhat leaner, tummy appears to be slightly flatter. And I recently noticed that I seem to have lost some girth in the thighs (yay!). Managed to fit into a pair of shorts which I couldn't wear three months ago. On the other hand, I have been losing my temper more at work and kicking my team members' asses, and I can't figure out whether it is because of the lack of carbs, PMS, or just generally having reached the venting point after all these months of unhappiness and general suppression of emotions at work. I suspect it is more of the latter, though hormonal changes from PMS and cutting carbs might have exacerbated things a little. Whatever it is, I am quite the unpopular person among my subordinates these two weeks.
I guess I am just going to let things ride for a while and see what happens. But I do know that I am not giving up my newly svelte (ok, nearly there) body for anything in the world, so the carbs can just stay where they are (in the rubbish bin), and my team can just grin and bear it, until someone votes me off the island.
Saturday, 14 March 2009
I LIKE IT HEAVY
I updated my personal record today. I deadlifted 50 kg (5 sets of 5).
I am starting to really enjoy the heavy lifting. For one, no panting like a dog, and perspiring like a....a....whatever (couldn't find an appropriate analogy). Everyone knows THAT is majorly important for a girl - image, image and image. And I like the gungho image that doing things MEN do give. Hey after all, I'm dabbling in a traditionally male dominated industry at work, I box and I play real time strategy games. Haha...all the trademarks of a sound masculine mind. Maybe I should also start hogging to remote control (to channel surf), DON'T ask for directions when I'm lost and cursing female drivers when I drive. And lastly, it is that sense of achievement that I get when I set a new PR for myself.
I also started on HCl and fishoil supplements last week. In order to avoid the inevitable questions and comments from family about the wisdom of supplementing, I have been skulking around and trying to take the stuff as inconspicuously as I can. I find it rather amusing to have to:
1) leave the dining table halfway into the meal
2) walk to my room and pretend to look for something and while in the room quickly puts the HCl capsule on my tongue
3) siddles furtively to the kitchen and gulps down a cup of water with the capsule
4) walk back nonchalantly to the dining table
5) 5 minutes later, casually walk to the refrigerator with my spoon (acting like I've forgotten I'm holding a spoon in my hand)
6) Casually open the fridge door and pretend I'm looking for something (yeah, again).
7) Here is the tricky part - quickly extract the bottle, pours a tablespoon of fishoil, swallows, repeat, cap the bottle and put it back into the fridge. All the while keeping my back to the dining table and still trying to pretend I'm looking for something in the fridge.
It is a good thing I eat most of my meals alone. Otherwise the whole process is going to give me indigestion before the supplements can cure ANYTHING.
I am starting to really enjoy the heavy lifting. For one, no panting like a dog, and perspiring like a....a....whatever (couldn't find an appropriate analogy). Everyone knows THAT is majorly important for a girl - image, image and image. And I like the gungho image that doing things MEN do give. Hey after all, I'm dabbling in a traditionally male dominated industry at work, I box and I play real time strategy games. Haha...all the trademarks of a sound masculine mind. Maybe I should also start hogging to remote control (to channel surf), DON'T ask for directions when I'm lost and cursing female drivers when I drive. And lastly, it is that sense of achievement that I get when I set a new PR for myself.
I also started on HCl and fishoil supplements last week. In order to avoid the inevitable questions and comments from family about the wisdom of supplementing, I have been skulking around and trying to take the stuff as inconspicuously as I can. I find it rather amusing to have to:
1) leave the dining table halfway into the meal
2) walk to my room and pretend to look for something and while in the room quickly puts the HCl capsule on my tongue
3) siddles furtively to the kitchen and gulps down a cup of water with the capsule
4) walk back nonchalantly to the dining table
5) 5 minutes later, casually walk to the refrigerator with my spoon (acting like I've forgotten I'm holding a spoon in my hand)
6) Casually open the fridge door and pretend I'm looking for something (yeah, again).
7) Here is the tricky part - quickly extract the bottle, pours a tablespoon of fishoil, swallows, repeat, cap the bottle and put it back into the fridge. All the while keeping my back to the dining table and still trying to pretend I'm looking for something in the fridge.
It is a good thing I eat most of my meals alone. Otherwise the whole process is going to give me indigestion before the supplements can cure ANYTHING.
Friday, 6 March 2009
EATING OUT RANTS
Nothing irks me so much as having my orders messed up at a restaurant after I had taken pains to articulate them clearly and concisely and even repeat them umpteenth times. I especially hate it when it happens to take away orders which are prepacked in the kitchen and you don't discover the screw up until you get home and it's too late.
It seems like I am on a roll where this is concerned recently. Since I'm on a low carb diet, I usually request for sides to be substituted with salads. The waiters/waitresses very nicely write my request down and some even repeat them to me. But inevitably, the dish comes with the much dreaded carbs. Sometimes, I send the dish back, sometimes, I am just plained resigned. It makes no difference the level of the restaurant that I am patronising. It happened at a posh French restaurant somewhere in Dempsey and it happened at some fast food restaurant.
It is not so bad when they replace the entire dish, or at least give the appearance of doing so. But I really hate the hastily scrapped off affair.
Maybe I am anal, or just damn fussy, but these things happening just never fail to take the enjoyment out of the meal. It makes me feel ignored and unimportant and I feel worse when I have to fork out huge amounts for such service. The entire anticipation of a quality meal of stuff I WANT to eat ends in anticlimax.
Just what is so difficult about vegetables anyway???
It seems like I am on a roll where this is concerned recently. Since I'm on a low carb diet, I usually request for sides to be substituted with salads. The waiters/waitresses very nicely write my request down and some even repeat them to me. But inevitably, the dish comes with the much dreaded carbs. Sometimes, I send the dish back, sometimes, I am just plained resigned. It makes no difference the level of the restaurant that I am patronising. It happened at a posh French restaurant somewhere in Dempsey and it happened at some fast food restaurant.
It is not so bad when they replace the entire dish, or at least give the appearance of doing so. But I really hate the hastily scrapped off affair.
Maybe I am anal, or just damn fussy, but these things happening just never fail to take the enjoyment out of the meal. It makes me feel ignored and unimportant and I feel worse when I have to fork out huge amounts for such service. The entire anticipation of a quality meal of stuff I WANT to eat ends in anticlimax.
Just what is so difficult about vegetables anyway???
Friday, 6 February 2009
GREEN "EGGS" AND HAM
I never did believe a person's food preferences could change SO much until I experienced it myself.
All my good friends and family knows of my carnivorous habits, back when I was real....horizontally challenged (after all this time, I still can't bring myself to use the word "fat" or "obese" on myself). My adversion to anything green was well known. I'm the girl who eats veggies by the STRAND.
These slimmer days, I'm the original rabbit...or maybe cow or sheep. I shovel in vegetables by the pound. While I used to be upset by the non-appearance of meat in my meals, these days I'm more liable to feel weepy when I don't see enough vegetables in my lunchbox. The other day, Mum apparently ran out of meat and packed me a vegetarian lunch, with two types of vegetables and some rice....and I was happy....and at the same time, part of me was on the outside looking in and wondering who this vege-loving stranger was. It was a weird feeling.
Sis insists that I'm taking my diet a little too far. I guess she had some cause when I ordered tomato salad for my entre in a posh French restaurant, when there were stuff like scallops and lobster, and....and....foie gras!! on the menu for the choosing. And when I got upset when the waiter forgot my instructions to change the side of mash potato to mixed salad for my beef onglet main. But I couldn't help it. I want my veggies....
But animals needn't feel happy so early, I still love my meat too....
All my good friends and family knows of my carnivorous habits, back when I was real....horizontally challenged (after all this time, I still can't bring myself to use the word "fat" or "obese" on myself). My adversion to anything green was well known. I'm the girl who eats veggies by the STRAND.
These slimmer days, I'm the original rabbit...or maybe cow or sheep. I shovel in vegetables by the pound. While I used to be upset by the non-appearance of meat in my meals, these days I'm more liable to feel weepy when I don't see enough vegetables in my lunchbox. The other day, Mum apparently ran out of meat and packed me a vegetarian lunch, with two types of vegetables and some rice....and I was happy....and at the same time, part of me was on the outside looking in and wondering who this vege-loving stranger was. It was a weird feeling.
Sis insists that I'm taking my diet a little too far. I guess she had some cause when I ordered tomato salad for my entre in a posh French restaurant, when there were stuff like scallops and lobster, and....and....foie gras!! on the menu for the choosing. And when I got upset when the waiter forgot my instructions to change the side of mash potato to mixed salad for my beef onglet main. But I couldn't help it. I want my veggies....
But animals needn't feel happy so early, I still love my meat too....
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