GSD (Getting Stuff Done) Day

So I still have the lurgy.

I finally went to see my GP yesterday after umming and erring over the weekend, waiting to see if I'd get better. I didn't. So yesterday I toddled along to my local group GP practice. Despite my 'fruity cough' (I like that description :-D) my chest is apparently relatively clear, my throat is very red though and I have liquid behind my left ear-drum... which explains the constant ringing and inability to hear properly. That is somewhat of a relief as I thought that perhaps my fondness of live music at loud gigs might have finally caught up with me! aside from that, the hot and cold sweats and the fact that I've been ill so damn long, the doc was also worried about my headaches and so sent me for blood tests... results of which should take 3 working days (read that as 'a week') and I'm now on Erythromycin which is an interesting shade of super-bright red and therefore goes against all my healthy eating principles given that the coating is choc-full of E nummbers, bah. However, I might make an exception just this once ;-)

so, anyway, I've decided to do what I should have done weeks ago and take some time off work to recover. It's really tough as I have a huge guilt complex as we're horrendously busy in our small systems team, but I think if I don't rest I'm never going to get better!!

So, I thought I'd use this opportunity to do something productive, like sort out some sort of plan for the next 12 weeks (and not sit on facebook all day!! :-D ) It's like 13 weeks to when entries for the Maximuscle Body of 2009 have to go in so I reckon that's a good round target.

I was going to sort this out yesterday but my eyes hurt so much I had to lie down with an eye mask on to block out the light. I've got some pretty powerful co-codamol from my doc though which seem to be helping, hurrah!

I think I'm going to break it into 3 blocks, I've not really made any solid decisions yet so all this could be totally changeable, indeed I might just do two blocks of 6 weeks... who knows?!

I think 3 stages would be good though, perhaps an initial 4 week fat-loss blast, whilst building up my strength again as haven't lifted properly in about 2 weeks. Followed by 4 weeks of strength-building, then 4 weeks of sculpting (i.e. shaping up the bits that still wobble)

I'm very much convinced that I can succeed as I've done well already.


This hasn't just been about losing weight, it has also been about doing it in a healthy manner whilst overcoming my food demons.

I have been very slim in the past, as you can see in this pic which was taken over 2 years ago when I was 8st 12/13lbs - that's more than 2 stone lighter than I am now!

my weight-loss methods were hugely detrimental to my health and truly unsustainable.

I'm really glad to be out of that cycle now, it was a very dark and lonely place to be :-(

So, anyway, I'm now at the lightest I've been since October last year. I'm just hovering over the 11st mark but I'm afraid that the weight loss might be down to muscle loss so I'm not going to count that against my log.

Here are my goals that I have set myself for my weightloss journey, some of them have been attained already - woo hoo!:

Goals

Overcome eating disorders
Complete - 16/17 years of destructive slimming tactics have been overcome, my bones and teeth have suffered but I'm still here - hurrah!

Lose weight naturally by developing a more healthy relationship with food
This has been a by-product of the first and most important goal. I'm pleased to report that food is no longer the enemy and I've started eating breakfast again for the first time since primary school!!!

Get into my 30th birthday party dress
done

Look good in a bikini for secret garden party
One month to go for this, I have to explain: I went to SGP (the most amazing wonderful little festival around) last year and was astounded by how many amazingly toned looking people were walking around... while I covered up. This year I hope it to be different.

Get back into size 10 clothes
I am please to not be a size 14-16 anymore, more like a 12-14. It would be nice to be able to get into some of my old clothes!

Win the Maximuscle Body of 2009 Competition!!
It would be a dream come true :-)

To stay at a healthy weight and be strong and lean for the rest of my life
Obviously (hopefully!!!), it'll be a while before I realise this goal ;-) but I really want to permanently instil in myself these good habits and avoid so many of the lifestyle-related ailments that afflict the older generation

anyway, I realise that I've been typing for bloody ages and it's about time I actually put my money where my mouth is and got on with my plan!!

I'll post later/tomorrow with an update on what I've decided.

I'm going to be overhauling my supplements too to ensure that I'm getting the right amount of everything I need.

A bodybuilding friend recommended Alpha Lipoic Acid so I'm gonna read up a bit more about that...

more later

excited!

TJ x