12 weeks!

Please join me on the next phase of my journey. I will be doing another 12 week challenge- this time with Body For Life. If you would like to join me please email me and I'll happily share the address with you!

Ash
xo

October calorie burning challenge!

At The Healthy Body Club we have a challenge going to burn a target amount of calories (set by self) by the end of October. I set myself 8000 cals and boy is it proving to be a challenge however it is helping me get into good training habits for the triathlon!!

Last week I did:
1 x spin class 689
2 x 60 min swim sessions 1745
1 x 30 min brisk walk 184
1 x 20 min vigorous upper body weights 184
Total: 2802
8000-2802 = only 5198 to go!!

This week has not been quite so full on but here is the progress and plans...
Thursday: 1 x 30 min moderate walk 152
Today: 1 x spin class 689 and lower body weights 184
Friday: Early morning 60 min swim fast/slow intervals 437
Sat: rest
Sun: 4 km fun run 367 (??)
Total: 1829

Would anyone like to set a target for themselves to reach before the end of October??

I went to see Becky on Singing Bee the other night- we had a blast but I can't divulge any details until the episode airs.. sorry!!

I have been sent a Body for Life pack with some inspirational DVDs and am feeling another burst of weight training enthusiasm coming! Planning to get back into serious weight training after the triathlon as I am focusing on building my cardiovascular fitness right now. I know that the only way I am going to get lasting results in my body shape is to train with weights.. I have done it before with a lot of success and I'll do it again!!

Congrats to N and N on the safe arrival of their new baby daughter Miya. She's absolutely gorgeous!

Okay, that's enough from me!

Ash
xox

Going great guns...

I have been pretty quiet recently so I thought it was time for an update...

Health:

I'm feeling great. Had a few weeks of blah with poor food choices and not much exercise but have since picked up again with the looming 4km fun run and triathlon pink helping me to keep motivated. I am eating very well right now as I know that everything I put into my body will affect how well I am able to cope with training and the events. I have been training four times a week alternating swimming, cycling, jogging and walking. I know I should be doing some weights but I just don't have the time and I'm trying to concentrate on building my cardio fitness again. Not sure if I mentioned that I lost 9kg during my 12 week challenge- then put on 2 and lost them again *lol*... If anyone wants to do some tri training with me please let me know as I'd love some company.

Family:

My dear family are doing well. John's out playing a gig at the Espy right now- very late for a school night! Dear dear! He has also moved his recording studio (Cherrystone) to a new spot in Parkville. Very noice! Molly is now 9 months old and getting cuter by the day! She is now crawling and pulling herself up on furniture and beginning to walk along the couch. She's also able to do a few signs "drink" being her favourite, and is saying mumma, dadda, bubba, and calls my mum's dog Buffy by yelling out "Buuuupi!" She also waves and says "buh bye" and "ta ta" and puts both fists in the air when we say "superman!".... Clever little cherub!

On the home front:

We are moving house toward the end of the year. Very excited as we will be moving in with my best friend (John's sis) and her hubby and little boy in Footscray- trying out living in intentional community. I have a lot I could say about this but wont start here as I'll never stop writing. If you are interested in hearing more about it please email me. We will be part of a house church living out Micah 6:8 "do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God"... Definately our style... and we'll be very active in community life (including a community garden yay!). We feel we have come to the end of our time here caring for our housemate (he has a disability and we live here rent free in exchange for us acting as live in carers)- there is only so long you can do a job like that for and we feel we need our own space and more room for Molly.

That'll do for now!

Brief I know, but that's about all that's been going on!

Here's some photos for you all!

Ash

xox

Freaking out!!

Just registered for the Spring into life 4km fun run in October and Triathlon Pink in November!!! AAAARRRGH!!!

Need to start training! What a way to get me motivated!!

Anyone have a bike I can borrow??!!

Ash
xox

Photo post...

Molly having fun with her great-poppy

Nearly crawling... She drags herself around on her belly using one arm and one leg. Looks like an injured soldier!

A kiss from Grandad's dog Missy

Aren't dogs the funniest!!?

Cute eyes for daddy

More cute eyes from the car seat

Just ate a WHOLE big banana for lunch at the Collingwood Children's farm farmers market.. Her hair looks very ginger in this pic

Guess whose learned to point!?

And again...

Fun on Great Nan and Pop's lawn... gotta love trainers and a hoodie!

Ash

xox

Comic Relief...

Check this out... I tried to post it straight to my blog but it wouldn't let me. It's very funny- go have a look!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-ia__1d_rM

Wow! It's been a while!

I can't believe my last post was August 13th! That's ages ago! I guess I haven't had a lot to report. Just plugging along with my eating and trying to exercise enough. As you will probably have guessed I have kind of lost my mojo a bit and the end of my 12 week program has come and gone but I have been maintaining my weight since then. Not on purpose- but I am glad I haven't put any back on.

I really want to lose 10 kilos by christmas- that's about four months away and if I am going to do it I need to get serious again! My MIL wants to change her lifestyle and is using me as a bit of a counsellor and moral support and I have been finding myself giving her advice that I know I should be taking on board for myself. I'm struggling to say on track with food and I need to get out and exercise more. John's really busy at the moment and hasn't been able to look after Molly while I go to the gym. There is a creche there but I have been nervous about leaving her there with the bad flu that has been going around. Once that passes I'll feel better about it again. The weather has been great and I have been getting out for walks quite a bit which has been lovely. I have been sunburnt twice already! Whoops!

My aunty and I have found a new happy place- The Collingwood Children's farm... if you get a chance, go there! Becky, next time you're in town with Bradman we're going there! It's so peaceful yet all the workers are busily tending the animals and plants. We watched a cow being milked and all of the sheep had been lambing in the last week. CUUTE! I am going to volunteer one day a week as I have been wanting to learn more about veggie gardening and they have a horticulture person there who teaches the volunteers. My aunty is going to look after Molly.

What else?... I smashed my toe yesterday on the leg of the bed at mum's place and it has gone all black and yukky. I haven't been able to wear a shoe on my right foot today. I think it might be broken. Oh well- not much you can do about a broken toe! Ouch!

Happy father's day to all the daddy's out there!

That'll do from me today!

Ash
xox

Monday morning...

Baby is down for her morning sleep,

Drinking cranberry and elderflower tea,

Still in my big red pj pants,

Feeling cruisy.



Dishes and laundry to do,

They can wait- no need to rush,

Taking time to just be,

Sitting in the morning sun.



Love it!

How to have more money...

(Great tips from Kindred)

Regaining Sanity: Discovering the Balance between Time, Money…and your Life Part I
By Anna Jahns

Want More Money? Spend Less! Frugal families find ways to use less money by purchasing mindfully, asking, is this in sync with our family values? Voluntary simplicity's philosophy of conscientiously reducing, reusing and recycling is summed up as ‘Use it Up, Wear it Out, Make it Do, Do Without!'

• Think cooperatively! Form food and babysitting co-ops.
• Borrow and share rarely used items.
• Take light-on-the-earth, light-on-the-pocket holidays — go camping, share equipment and costs with friends and family.
• Buy secondhand wherever possible; especially clothing and furniture.
• Browse through classified columns full of creative possibilities to repair, reuse, restore, refurbish!
• Enjoy eating and entertaining at home, and friends' homes — including birthdays and holidays.
• Consider eating lower on the food chain more often, involve children in growing your own veggie garden.
• Car pool, bicycle ride, or use public transportation wherever possible.
• Remember all the ways to economise with gas, water, electricity, telephone, to reduce household utilitites in everyday ways.
• Use cotton cloth diapers instead of disposable diapers, and save $4,000 per child. 7
• Buy in bulk, check out places like www.thebulkwarehouse.com.au
• Shop less often, (once per week) and only from a pre-prepared list (and NEVER when hungry!).
• Collect coupons, plan meals by the week with special offers, check for sales.
• Compare at least 3 well-researched quotes for any large purchase.
• Keep a handy list of better things to do than shopping or watching TV!
• Make gift giving a creative family effort — birthdays and Christmases are so much more meaningful when loved ones receive handmade gifts.
• When starting a family, consider taking on the financial burden of a mortgage once the children start school, not from the moment they are born! Stepping back to a single income for the first three years only takes a small percentage away from the average couple's entire working career — and yet, in these few years, the entire emotional foundation for their children's life is established, something that cannot be overvalued or made up for further down the track.

Great food philosophy...

In the persuit of gaining a buff mumma body I have unwittingly lost track of my own food philosophy- aka the way I want to live the rest of my life and the way I want to teach Molly to live. I have been living on less and less whole foods and more supplements and protein powders (which have their place when weight training but should not constitute the bigger part of your diet).

Beck has recently posted about getting back on track and focusing on eating real, unprocessed foods and she has reminded me of what I have been striving to achieve for the last few years- a natural, whole, nutritious diet free of unnecessary chemicals and additives. Thanks Beck!!

I just stumbled across this video (the bottom one with the lady) online about whole foods and it provides an excellent explanation of wholefoods and why 70 to 80% of our diets should be made up of them. I would highly recommend going to have a look if you're at all interested.

John has been sick over the last few days (but is better now) and molly has been very irritable with teething (they're now through praise the Lord!) and hasn't let me leave her side so I haven't been to the gym this week. I have been for a couple of brisk walks and have done one home weights session. I have Personal Training tomorrow night (the last of my free triple pack- Thanks Jadey!) so I just need to do a couple more cardio sessions and one more weights and my exercise will be sorted for the week. Cripes! It's Thursday- better get a wriggle on!

Food has been OK but I've certainly had better weeks. I feel a change in the air with this fresh look at wholefoods and the way I want to live so it's all good.

Molly had swimming today- she's adorable! Today I let go of her under the water for the first time and she kicked up to the surface like a little frog. She also had a try of floaties and an inflatable ring- she frog kicked all over the pool. The instructor said she is very pleased with Molly's progress. She has caught up to all the other babies who started at the beginning of the year and we've only been going for 5 weeks! Clever little sprocket!

That'll do from me today!

Ash
xox

Questions...

Thanks to everyone who asked me questions! Here are my belated responses.


How many children would you like to have???

2 or 3 I think. We'll have to wait until we have the 2nd one before we decide if we'll have a 3rd. It actually depends on lots of factors... money, space, whether I want to go back to work and use my hard earned degree etc etc.

What did you do for a living before your gorgeous baby girl came to be???

I just graduated from Social Work at RMIT and have been working in social and community services for the last 5 years.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now???

Hmmm.. the 5 year question- In my dreams we'd have our own home somewhere, John's band and recording studio would have taken off and I'd be spending my time looking after the kids, working with and supporting people in the community and persuing the things I love to do. I'd love to become a childbirth educator and doula as I felt such a strong connection with the whole process of childbirth. I also feel I've neglected my creative side in the last 4 years and would love to be painting, drawing and singing regularly.

The Rove question- Who would you turn gay for???

Umm... never thought about it- I think The Waifs are pretty unreal but I wouldn't go as far as saying I'd turn for them! *lol*

How do I motivate myself to turn a bad eating/exercise week into a good week???

Not a good week to ask me that question! Haha... Don't know what's gone wrong but the wheels have fallen off the wagon in a bad way recently. :( In the past I have been able to sit down and reevaluate my goals- write new goals down and tell people for accountability. But more than anything- when it comes down to it- to quote Nike (boo hiss) "just do it"- as motivation doesn't last but just plodding along and getting on with the task at hand really does work. It may be a 2 steps forward, one step back scenario biut at the end of the day you're still a step ahead arent you?!

I'd better go.
The screen is getting blurry as I'm so tired! I can barely type- I'rm surprrrised yyou can stiull understandd whats I'm talkkkkking about zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

STOPPPPP!!! AAARGH!!! Get back on track!!!

I have had a BAD week!!

I need to get back on track this week... only 3 weeks left of my training package and I need to make the most of it!

SO! What am I going to do this week??? Eat clean and train hard!

I am calling the gym creche on Monday morning to book Molly in for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings so I can do upper body, cardio and then Lower body... Then I have Personal training on thursday night and all I will have to do is another couple of cardio sessions and I'll be swwweeeet!!

OK. Bad week over- got some chocolate eating out of my system... feel better now.

NOW! I'm bored! Ask me anything and I'll answer honestly! Go on!! Come on lurkers- time to surface!

Ash

xox