Things that make me mad

ok so i know i have been on and off the radar for a while now but im still fighting the good fight.

To Summarise, Ive had a few issues with health which has now finally seemed to have come down to a very deficient me in Vitamin D (levels which are barely detectable). This has meant Ive been battling to maintain my fitness due to some of the side affects of low vit D which include muscle and bone pain and tiredness, not to mention the affect on the immune system which has meant it seems like Ive just had one bug after another over the last year. However all that aside im battling on and despite a weight gain over the year of 1 stone im am not to concerned as theres light at the end of the tunnel....... at least i now know im not going mad and there has been a cause to the various symptoms which i just couldnt conect the dots on.

anyway... now that i have filled you in on whats been happening with me on to my main topic which is Things that make me Mad!!!

Now obviously i blog about fitness and health but always try to remain objective and encourage a healthy balance but sometimes you hear people doing or saying things that just make you want to scream:

1. Fad Diets
2. LOW CARB!!!!!
3. Being a slim healthy size yet still saying you need to loose weight!!
4. as long as I count my calories its fine
5. I want to build tone but loose weight

ok so these are just a few of the things which make me mad but they are all very common themes i hear day in day out being discussed by people in the gym

Fad Diets - as I've said and will always say moderate what you consume but do not cut out/replace or overly restrict. if a diet is telling you to cut out one of the main food groups steer clear. we are omnivores for a reason and need every (Natural) food group to help sustain healthy bodies and minds. the worst in my mind is the NO CARB diet..... Carbs are our most important and basic form of energy resource they are not bad as long as you stick to natural unprocessed forms (remember if its white its more than likely processed... nothing but coconut in nature is naturally white)

OK now im all for being aware of what calorie intake you have had in a day..... its obviously a simple equation energy in - energy used = energy stored. But i am not keen on diets which allow you to eat anything as long as you count it..... for example its ok if i have a mcdonalds today as long as i eat nothing else!!! NOOOOO a mcdonalds as a treat if you really want it (and ask yourself if you really do) is fine but please learn not only to be aware of calories but also which foods are healthy choices, and which should be avoided such as highly processed meals/snacks or treats.

Now on to those you here in the gym discussing the fact they cant understand why they arent loosing weight (you look and see a slim toned normal person and wonder what the heck have they got to loose? a butt cheek?)....... ok now when you are carrying excess weight you can slim and tone up at the same time.... however if you have reached the normal to lower levels of your weight range and you are doing a significant amount of muscle building/toning excercises.... well im sorry you are unlikely to loose much weight its known muscle is heavier than fat and you may even put a few pounds on (good pounds) but you will find your shape changes........ GUYS PLEASE STOP OBSESSING ON WEIGHT AND CHANGE THE WAY YOU THINK TO LOOKING AT HOW YOU LOOK OR FEEL....... DO YOUR CLOTHES FEEL LOOSER? YES? THEN GREAT!!!!!! WHO CARES IF THE SCALES SAY YOUVE LOST NOTHING.

At the end of the day people we all make mistakes we all have bits of us we dont like, but please start to be happy with who you are, dont follow trends or new celeb diets or take those models in the magazines to be ideal examples.... just learn to make healthy choices, live energised lives and treat yourself every now and again....... after all we are all meant to be different... imagine how boring life would be if we all looked the same.

Rant over

loving autumn running

ok so maybe its not most peoples idea of fun, and ive gotta admit often I have a full on argument in my head with myself to get that motivation to go out in the cold and run, but once I'm there its really quite peacefull and it feels great to be reclaiming my own time and along with it my own body.

You will all be pleased to know i kept to my word and despite only taking the tiniest 4.5 kilo rucksack with me on holiday to portugal i managed to get in there my trainers and running gear........ oh yeah now your impressed lol... well thats the dedication im putting into myself im determined to shift this bit of weight ive put on this year and get back on track.

Im beginning to slowly but surely get my feel for running back, ive recently downloaded a personal running trainer ap which has a 16 week marathon program on it. so i started it this week (i know winter .... hummm maybe not the best timing.... looks like ill be running in the snow) and although i think 16 weeks may be a bit optamistic im going to follow the program and if one week feels a little tough i will just repeat it then move on ....... but you never know i may surprise myself and do it in the 16 weeks.

So roll on a winter of running, of wooly hats and foggy mornings, of crispen air and frosty footprints.... whatever the season may bring im ready.

ooops.................

Ok so as you all know i have battled for many years with my weight but finally triumphed in loosing over 8 stone and becoming a Personal trainer and fitness instructor.

Well now to the oops................

 early this year i was working in my full time job as a venue manager fo nottingham Trent as well as working between 10-20 hrs as a PT and fitness instructor this meant a total average working week of 60-70 hours. This was fine but training myself was getting tough to fit in but i was just about managing..... but then.............

I fell in love i met my current partner in early january and suddenly i needed to fit someone else in to my life.
As with all relationships early on came the dating.... the eating out, the drinking.... the lets have a takeaway night in etc etc................

initially work stayed the same, so what lost out you may ask? well my training schedule did and as a result so did i.

Everyone says with love comes a belly........ :-) initially mine didnt the high work load and running about kept the weight off, but soon i became run down i did not have enough time for everything. not only this but my already hard hit training schedule was dealt more blows and i was just too run down to train as i always have.

what happened you may ask? well i was happy and initially my muscle mass kept my metabolism high so i didnt see too many adverse effects, however with the low training i soon lost muscle mass and with that came the belly....

i am ashamed to say i have put on just over a stone ooooops

so what do i do? well i soon decided my health and happiness were more important than my work or bank balance and even my clients (what kind of role model am i if i put on weight) so This has meant i have now come to the decision to stop Personal training (for the moment) and just teach my tri club and spin classes with effect from the end of this month.

this means i have now regained some me time, yessssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

i am happy as larry, very much in love but also very ready to banish this belly back to where it came from!!!!

so i appologise everyone for falling of the blogging wagon, but i hope you can see why, and i also hope this shows all of us fall a little now and again but as long as it is recognised and a plan put in motion to stop it in its tracks then we will win

Fat mairi will not get her claws back into me!!!!

watch this space for updates on my progress...

P.S im even taking my running shoes on holiday with me next week :-)

wheelie wheelie fun....

just a short one today.... but again following along the lines that you dont have to go to the gym to get some excercise.

Last year for xmas i bought my best mate shaun a segway rally day for two.... i thought it was a good idea at the time :-)

so off we headed to staffordshire, where we met Dan and DanO.... who begain to run us through segway.... and got us to sign our lives away so that if we damage the machines or ourselves we are liable!

Next we were kitted out in an exoskeleton...... at least we were well protected, and handed helmets... everyone else gets handed a nice black normal helmet... what do i get???? a bright pink on which was slightly too small so sat right on the top of my head... DanO said it was fine though as long as it took away the impact ..Great i thought... i look like an idiot but im protected from brain damage.

once kitted head to toe we were then taken through the basics of how to get on and off a segway by Dan and DanO.... simple you would think but actually far more challenging then first thought.... essentially segways work by feeling where you put your weight... in your toes and you go forward, in your heels and you head backwards, i slight pressure on the handle bars to go left right and pirouet!

so on we get and after a slightly wobbly start we very quickly (and suprisingly for me as lack balance or coordination skills) got used to the movement and soon we headed off to the woods to have a ralley round...this is where shaun decided he was going to massacre a few cones despite Dan and DanO's warnings that we were to avoid them as they signelled hazards....  shauns killing spree held no bounds.... through fits of giggles me and shaun are soon razzing up and down and thoroughly enjoying ourselfs.... it was all over far too quickly we were out for an hour and you could feel it a little in your legs but it was great fun.

so far so good 2011.... keeping active and fit is not all about pounding the treadmill or the tarmac but just as much about getting out off the sofa and having fun xxx

Today has definatly been a Fat Day

It has been so hot in london today..... which completly blew out any plans we had to go wondering far or do revision.

So instead we had a rather unsuccessful trip to primark (short shopping) and then headed to the market where a mahusive slab of water melon was bought and some cucumber and strawberries! yes you have guessed its pimms O'clock and today was going to be a pimms day :-)

We then headed to sainsburys and after getting various bits for sandwiches we also had some mint icecream fall into the trolley along with various ice cream sundae making materials.... such as that chocolate sauce you had as a kid which goes hard on contact with the icecream yummmy.

I know its bad but it was just too hot to do anything today other than chill out, drink pimms and eat icecream.

we all deserve a Fat day everynow and again. but i will do the gym time in the week as penance :-)

Happy Pimms Day

Now i guess i should go on and do a little revision for my Personal Training exam now its a bit cooler.

Woohoo New Legs

well as you all know i have just recently started running again.... well jogging and for just a few minutes at a time :-)
But yesterday i went out for a slightly longer jog with a friend...... 3k no knee pain (well not while i was running) then a little walk followed by another 1k jog .....wehey! god i have missed it and it seems so far so good ...touch something woody (fumbles around and finds a small wooded pencil grabbing it quickly)
Unfortunatly as i havent run for so long albeit my legs seem to be taking the reintroduction to running fairly well my lungs are not!... i have kept fit, but it seems the loss of running has had a severe effect and its going to take me some time to convince my lungs that running really is fun :-) there was a little bit of screaming coming from the lung area they were not happy.... but soon i will whip them back into shape.

so the new plan is up 1k in distance every week with at least 2 runs at that distance each week for 6 weeks. After this time if all is well and the lungs and knees have settled i will up it by 1.5 k each week for 6 weeks which will get me to 18k just befopre the half marathon setting me up for a good injury free run :-)
oooh i do like a good plan :-) bring on the next few weeks and my new legs :-)
(shussssssssssh lungs you will learn to love running again)

Where has my sunshine gone?

we all have bad days and good ones...... i must admit im having a bit of a rough time at the moment! i know crazy huh and we all thought i was invinsible lol....
i think i will always have to battle my evil little inner monkey, and the last few months being unable to run have not helped. i still train 4-5 times a week, but ive missed my running. Ive noticed the naughty snacks creeping back in... i can see it hapening but sometimes its just to hard to resist and you think theres always tomorrow!... well there is always tomorrow but if i want to see lots of them i need to rein my evil little monkey in.
the good news is im now running again... well jogging and only a few minutes at a time while i build up my leg strength, but its given me the light at the end of the tunnel. ive gotta admit work has been tough recently and im now hitting one of the hardest weeks of the year where my training routine will thoroughly be upset and the food on the run more of a frequent occurance. however ive stocked up m fridge at work with fruit and i intend to have a good long session in the gym tomorrow (possibly the only chance i will get this week).
i guess what im tryng to say today is we all have hard weeks, but when you have been overweight like me, its so important not to let them get the better of you.. as its a slippery slope which is easily fallen on. so take stock, dont feel guilty, and prepare the best you can for whats to come. i may not train much this week, but i will be running round like a looney at work and as long as i try to make the best food choices i can this week, i can make up some gym time next week. and i know my sunshine will return...... i may have had a hard few weeks and made a few bad choices but im aware of them enough now to stop it becoming a snowball effect. I even bought myself a new animal top this week a SIZE 14 woohoo.... i love it and its perfect for summer, fat mairi will not win because the new more balanced mairi is now in da house :-)

Having Fun and enjoying my new body

Well as you all know the days of Fat mairi who was 21.5 stone and at a peak a size 26-28 are fading away and ultra fit and happy mairi is appearing. I am sorry to you all that i havent blogged recently but i have had a manic but thoroughly enjoyable and exciting couple of weeks.

Recently it was my best friends 30th! he decided on a heros and villans theme..... now i agonized for ages about what i could go as until someone suggested lara croft to me. Initially i thought no... i cant pull that of (fat mairi was wispering away in my head saying id look fat, people would stare... and not in a good way!)... but i carried on, and began to think why not.... ill go shopping see what i can get and how it looks and if its awful rethink.

Now i have never worn short shorts in my life... except for maybe when i was 5, so the thought of doing this was ultra scary but luckily being summer i had plenty to choose from and finally found a pair of brown short shorts and a black T which i could accessorize. of to the changing room i went... all i could think was nah this wont look very good ill have to think of something else. but i put the shorts and T on and took a look in the mirror!

WOW is all i could think, i can pull this off, and actually i look pretty damn good, nope scratch that pretty damn HOT!

I think this was the first time since loosing the weight that i really believed it, im not ultra skinny im a size 14-16 but i feel i fit my skin, and im starting to fit it pretty well!

i never want to be a size 10 or even 0, and i think anyone who trys for that is setting unrealistic goals (unless your under 5 feet), but a happy 12-14 where you can still enjoy moderate treats... why the hell  not! (please remember everyone has their own body proportions and i am not slating anyone who is naturally thin, but saying that people should be happy with whatever their size as long as they are healthy).

So not only did i head out to the party feeling sexy for the first time in years, i also got a few wolf wistles (of the authentic kind) and had an amazing night with my friends without feeling self concious.

i am truly beginning to love my body :-)

dispite the ruts and pitfalls ....just keep on riding!

Bank holiday sunday..... now most are lazing about, doing a few errands and having a bevy. Me im up and getting my bike gear ready for a trip out. As much as i would love to spend the day lazing in a pub the triathlons i have planned are not far away, and if im to do the iron man 70.3 next year i need a good set of bike legs..... and believe me i dont have them yet.

i decided to try out some of nottinghams cycle routes today, thinking this would be much nicer and easier than braving my life out on the nottingham roads! ive had a near squished bus experiance before which i am not keen to repeat!

today though in the typical blighty style of our fair country despite being May it was pretty cold and miserable outside, and although i know i need to get out on my bike more the weather wasnt making it very easy. but i got my stuff together planned a route and headed out.

now this is where i begin to smile i had a few miles of road to tackle before hitting the bike lanes, and i remember how much i love the ease at which you can pick up speed on a road bike. and being sunday the roads werent too busy so i could enjoy the rush of zipping down the streets.

soon i joined the embankment and had a pleasant trip onlong the river narrowly missing some pigeons who decided to fly as close as they possibly could to my head!

but soon the bike route had dissapeared... to who knew were and i was faced with carrying my bike up some stairs (not too much of an issue, road bikes are light but it was annoying none the less)

soon i rejoined the route only to spend the next half of the route dodging raised tarmac ruts and potholes! i began to realise cycle routes were not made with thought to the road bike user who with no suspention feels every rut and dimple let alone the sysmic holes i was encountering. the road would have been safer!

however i pushed on and after meeting a colleague out at work for a quick chat, i headed back to join the river route..... here i realised it was indeed a good day.

why you may ask? well as i turned the corner i joined the most scenic rive path and suddenly my ride (even if it was still a little bumpy) was becoming more enjoyable. and as a plus the path down here (despite being slightly gravel topped) was far more smooth and suddenly i could get a good pace up again. yes i had to dodge a few ducks, and duck under a few canal bridges but it was so worth it! and i made it home after a couple of hours feeling refreshed and thoroughly suprised that the may bank holiday weather hadnt rained on me!

so despite the ruts, potholes and manic pigeons.... it was so worth keeping on riding (a bit like life!)

2 weeks to go..... my itchy feet will soon feel the tarmac again

well as you all know i have been struggling with ITB syndrome, this has meant over 3 months without being able to run. But good news! i saw my physio yesterday who along with giving me a million more excercises to do (where i will fit them in to my day i have no idea!) she has also said that all being well i will be back to running in 2 weeks! woohoo
now ofcourse this does not mean i will be sally gunnel straight away... its more likely i will be just running a few minutes a day to build up gradually, and believe me i will be listening to all the advice i am given. i aim to run the half marathon again this year and hopefully shave some time off and i can only do this if my ITB stays under control. so a gradual build up it is, first to 5k ready for the triathlons i have planned and then on to the 21 k i need for the marathon. but no problem it will be fine as long as i listen to my body.
i cannot wait to get on that treadmill or out on the road again. i cant believe how much i have missed running. only just over a year ago i would never have even run for the bus.... if i had attempted it i would no doubtedly fall over in a fat sweaty lump and miss the bus anyway! Now i reckon i could beat the bus!
So come on 2 weeks run by so that i too can feel the pleasure of a sunday morning jog or the elation of crossing a finish line... i have missed you my friends.

My Training Buddy Returns!

 Training sessions without my buddy are just arent the same... but when my buddy is there the session has a whole new dimension,  and new energy, especially when eye of the tiger begins!

yup you have guessed it my buddy is my pink ipod shuffle. The other day i was distraught to discover it he was no longer working... possibly due to the recent training session in the pouring rain which im fairly sure didnt agree too much with his little electric circuits! Try as i might no matter how many times i charged it, turned it off and on, held buttons down, or shook him he did not ressurect!...

Gutted i didnt really have the pennies to go out and buy a new one so i just resorted to sulking for a bit ......what would i do without pendulum, lulu and my Bass rutten mixed martial arts tracks just to mention a few.

 But then  realised i couldnt bare to be without it, so began to see if i could get it fixed by dear old apple... and to my surprise discovered my little shuffle was still under warrenty YIPEEE so just a short phone call later i had a new buddy on the way.

And today Finally i have my faithful training buddy back, woohoo, it was straight to the pc to download my gym tracks and then packed and ready for my trip to the gym after work!

ooooh i do love it when you have a good sweat on and your fav tunes are blasting in your ears. I cant wait to get out running again with my buddy, hopefully at tomorrows physio session i will get a better idea of when i can begin to put running back into my routine.. i miss it so much (wow cant quite believe im saying that). Fat mairi is truely gone.

Reasons not to go shopping when hungry....... naughty things jump into ur basket

its never a great idea to go food shopping when your hungry... but a long and hectic week has meant that tonight was the first chance i have had to go food shopping. And as you all know from my manic tuesdays blog i train both morning and evening on this day which made for a very hungry me come food shopping time at 8pm.

But in my defense these items of naugtiness really did jump into my basket and despite all my efforts to throw them out they just kept jumping back in :-)

what are these said items you say?

well i have attached said photographic evidence ...

Ok i know pizza isnt really good but its not something i have often and this is a small vege pizza so its practically calorie free :-) and hey ive worked hard in the gym so i can still enjoy the things i like once in a while.

As for the ice creams well we all deserve the odd treat, and its not like im going to eat them all in one go or even one week (in the old days fat mairi would have polished them off in one sitting), it will be one icecream a week probably at the weekend where i allow myself the odd treat.

and lets also take a look at the rest of my shop... this will put in perspective the changes i have made to my life.... its fine to have the odd treat if the rest of your shop looks like this :-)

Remember its all about balance...... chocolate should never be a sin and training should never be a chore.

the joy of small success's

The weekend always seems to by so quickly. I missed body bar this weekend as i had a night out with friends on friday which meant the likely hood of being in the gym less than 5 hours after i came home was doubtful. But hey i made up for it today and dragged myself off to circuit - its all about the balance.

It was in cicuit today that i realised i can now do full press ups! ......yes i can only just about manage 10 before buckling to my knees and opting for the girly ones but its a success none the less.

I have found that since loosing the weight Ihave now hit a plateu, i think im about 1.5 stone off my ideal weight but dispite my best efforts my body seems to like where it is. but hey im happy with that im a size 14 fit and healthy.... but it can get harder to realise why you do it, its much easier in the days where the scales moved down every week. but ive gotta be happy in the small success's, if my weight doesnt go up, thats a small success, and when i discover i can now do a full press up when this time last year i would have laughed out loud at the suggestion of even trying!.... yet another small success!

horrah for that feeling you get when something that seemed impossible now becomes possible... one day I'm determined to conquer a chin up, maybe even the one armed press up :-).

Ive also made more moves in the direction of completing a personal training course.... i have choosen the course, venue and dates.... now all i need to to is raise the money. I cant wait to help others to do this, and do this is a balanced way.... lets not obsess about the calories but take pride in the small success's