Another day, another box of tissues

I wish I was posting to tell you all how much better I am feeling but sadly, me and my box of Kleenex are still having intimate relations. While Friday and yesterday were spent with the feeling that a Mack Truck had run over my face (fricken sinus problems...did I mention that I have polyps in my sinus cavity blocking the entrance to my nose on one side, and therefore any infection is hard to dislodge. I have had surgery twice to remove them but unfortunately the lil fuckers just keep growing back). Well last night after my 4th or so nap in the evening I woke up and the stupid infection had travelled to my chest. So while my head isn't as stuffy as it was, it now feels like a lung is going to come hurling out my mouth every time I cough. Charming visualisation there, I know.

Anyway I am really hoping that this shit clears up overnight so I can get back to training. My body is feeling great for the rest but mentally I am going fricken insane. I can't do this no training shit for much longer!!! I am actually scheduled to cover a Spin class tomorrow night during my shift at work as the normal instructor is OS at the moment so being able to breathe through a 45min high intensity cardio session would be very helpful, like NOW!!

OK rant over.

I have spent lots of time doing not much of anything but had a couple of outings today which was nice. Not that they were massive but sooo good to get out of the house. The first was to the grocery store. Not much of an outing I know. I needed eggs and some other assorted bodybuilding staples (OK chicken, broccoli and rice to be exact) and while I am in the fruit n veg section I bumped into none other than my mother. So we finished our shopping and then went to a little cafe at the shopping centre for a coffee. As I said nothing special but nice to have coffee outside of my loungeroom!

Next outing was to World Gym to do the posing workshop. The girls showed up and the changes are really starting to show on them now. They are leaning out at a quicker rate, and their posing is getting much much better, and more natural. Caught up with Mark (the manager) while I was there, he competed in the CCI last weekend and took out the Mens' Novice category, he looked sensational. Well we got talking about what other comps he is doing this year and he is going in NABBA and the IFBB (same one as me) - turns out that NABBA Nationals are in Sydney this year for the first time in forever. NABBA/WFF haven't run shows in Sydney in a few years now...it is 2 weeks before IFBB...and I am contemplating doing it. I think I would definitely have to go for WFF though as I am so not big enough for NABBA...but will have to look more into it as I am not sure what the height/weight ratio is for WFF Figure and I may struggle to make the weight I think. Anyway something to research.

Not much else to report on. No more movie reviews for you, I have been watching SATC since yesterday afternoon, starting at Season One all over again. I watch the entire 6 series once a year so this may as well be it.

OK gonna jet off as have ranted enough. Need to go speak to the Universe about this waking up recovered thing :)

So til next time, train hard and be good.

Vic x

Headspace 360

I am posting today from work. I woke up this morning feeling pretty good, so made and ate my brekkie, got ready and came into work. Mistake. By the time I got here the sinus pain that I had last night (it was pretty bad last night) came back to bite me on the ass. I am halfway through my shift and am trying to survive as long as I can...which probably won't be much longer...this aircon is not doing me any favours.

So I am still off the training which I am itching to get back into but at the same time I think my body is loving the rest. But I have also had plenty of time to think over my options and goals. And I have decided the following. I will not be doing the INBA comps. There is no way that I can be ready in time in a healthy manner. It's not a dieting competition so there will be no starvation to get lean enough. And I won't get up on stage unless I am ready to get up on stage. SO...I will be doing IFBB only, which is 11 weeks away today.

I thought that I would be feeling disappointed if I had pulled out of the comps, especially since I had been looking forward to competing in the Olympia this year. But I don't - actually I am feeling really positive about doing the IFBB (NSW/Australian Titles). I like doing IFBB comps so why not? And I have 11 weeks now so am well ahead of where I need to be.

Speaking to Miss Ferny last night and I am going to be accountable to her for the next 11 weeks so that I don't feel so alone. Besides, doing my own training/diet etc, I have slacked off on actually having a SET diet plan and also taking my measurements. So we made a deal. I will now be emailing all my plans etc, and measurements, through on a weekly basis to her. And if I fall out of line, I expect her to haul my ass back in. So I guess on the 100 Day Challenge, she is now one of my recruits :)

Despite being sick my water intake has been well up - I know I need to be keeping the fluids up especially now. Food has been good, yesterday I did a bit of intuitive eating and included some bread and bananas in my meals (which I don't normally do) as I felt being unwell that it is not a bad idea to give my body nutritious food it is craving. I even managed to keep my calories and carbs within my set range, despite having bread and extra oats in my day. So thumbs up for that :)

Rest - well I can't be faulted on that for this last few days. If I have any more rest you will need to get a chisel to remove my butt from the couch!! Lol. Seriously I have definitely caught up on the rest thing.

And for those waiting on movie reviews (cos I am such an expert), well Benjamin Button never happened, but the nice man at the video store let me swap it for another movie. So I got one called The Last Word, with Ray Romano and Wynona Ryder in it. It was very bizarre. About a guy who makes his living from writing suicide notes for people who are about to top themselves, who falls in love with a client's sister. Yep, weird!

After that I watched Twilight...FINALLY! Yep, it was pretty good. Not that good that I would watch it every single day, at least once (would you believe I have a friend that actually did that, for like, a month!!) or develop some weird ass cult obsession with Edward, but pretty good, enough that I *might* consider reading the book/s. Don't hold me to that though...that's just a 'maybe'...

Anyway kiddies I best be getting back to my Sudafed and Kleenex before my head explodes (no really, I think it may).

So til next time, train hard (and do some for me, please!!) and be good.

Vic x

Update from the couch

We are now in day 3 of no training and I gotta tell ya, I have very itchy feet! The good news is that my fever seems to have abaited...the bad news is that whoever came overnight to collect it obviously ran over my head with a Mack Truck. Oohhh my sinuses are hurting today and if there are any Kleenex or Sorbent people reading this, a sponsorship would not go astray at the moment. I think I am keeping the tissue companies in business!!

I have become seriously reaquainted with my loungeroom. My doggies are loving having mummy at home all day at the moment too. I got through 2 of the movies last night, He's Just Not That Into You - which I loved, and the Stiffler movie, which is called Role Models - which sucked. I just seemed to drag on and on and on and on and I ended up using the fast forward button on a few occasions. I have tried to put Benjamin Button on this morning but the universe is against me and it won't play for some reason (which I am secretly happy about as I don't think I'm in the mood for a serious type movie?) I think I might head down and pick up Marley and Me, which I have watched before but LOVED. It was all out yesterday when I was at the video store so hopefully it's in stock today.

I have this insane feeling that because I am not training I must be getting very fat and am sure I have put on a few kg's this week. As unrealistic as I KNOW that is I can't help feeling it. I am DYING to get back in the gym.

OK kids I think it's time I got out of the pj's and headed back to the video store for some more trash to watch!

Til next time train hard and be good. And have a GREAT weekend!!

Vic x

Me and my couch

OK so it seems my germs are not going away anytime soon. Woke up feeling like crappola again today so figured I should probably haul my ass to the doc's. I apparently have myself a respiratory infection, which isn't going anywhere in the next few days, according to my wise GP. So no training, no work, doctor's orders.

Last night I was fretting a bit about having missed some training and the prospect of missing some more. Today I have put a positive spin on it. Not that I am in the least bit impressed about being unwell, but I am taking it as an opportunity to get me some much needed rest. My taking into account that I needed to alot more time to rest during the 100 Day Challenge means that I subconsciously know I haven't been getting enough of it lately. My body has obviously come on board with this belief now, and is forcing me to take some time out. So for once, I am listening to it. I have taken myself to the local video store (why are they still called video stores anyway? do they even stock videos anymore? i haven't even noticed lol) and got myself the following movies:

* Benjamin Button (whatever the full title is, can't quite think of it and the case is a whole 3 feet away which is much too far for me to bother checking)
* He's just not that into you (which I might add, I expect to be trashy, I am in the mood for some trash)
* Twilight (I think I am the only person on earth who hasn't watched this one yet and I want to see what all the bloody hype is about...it better not have been a waste of a 4 for $10 movie selection)
* Some other movie with Stiffler from American Pie on it (see Benjamin Button excuse for not putting the name of said movie here)

So if you will excuse me, I have a date with my couch, dvd player and diet jelly to attend to.

Vic x

Missing training :(

Still sick today. Woke up to my buzzing alarm clock, which was set at 5.30am for the 6.15am spin class I normally instruct on a Wednesday morning...but knew instantly I would not be taking said class. Razor blades in the throat and coughing up lurgies confirmed that one. Back to sleep til 8.30am for me and then transferred my butt to the couch.

Mum called me after brekkie to see how I was feeling and suggested I go there for the day as she has Wednesdays off work. I eventually hauled my sorry butt over there in my pyjamas (why is it that the one day I leave my house in my flannies, every neighbour possible, at both ends of the journey, are out in their front yards. Had a few odd looks thrown my way as I walked from my house to the car and from my car to mum's house in my hot pink flannies with polka dots (do you all have a nice image), hair a mess and looking very disoriented.

Hung out on mum's couch all day watching lots of the Ellen show (on Fox, then on normal tele) and sleeping.

I obviously didn't train today and I hate that, I know when you are sick your body needs the rest (and there is NO way I can train like this, I have zero strength) but I can't afford not to if I am gonna compete in 6.5 weeks... and to be honest I don't know if I am gonna compete. I am seriously tossing up the options at the moment. The INBA NSW is on in 6.5 weeks and I am thinking that I might just see how I am looking and decide closer to the time if I am going to do it. After giving it a lot of consideration, even if I do the show and qualify for the Olympia, I won't be doing it. Realistically I can't do it financially - as the NSW is only one week before the Nationals (and for NSW competitors a pre-requisite of doing Olympia is competing at the Nationals), I would have one week to organise and fund the trip to Melbourne, entry fee, tanning products etc, and then another 2 weeks to fund the trip to the Gold Coast, pay accommodation, more tanning gear, and the massive $100 USD entry fee they are charging on top of all that. Realistically I am not in a position at the moment to do all that. SO my options are see how I look closer to the NSW comp date, and/or just do the IFBB NSW/Aussies 5 weeks later - which gives me 11.5 weeks prep time from now. Which right now is more realistic. OR not compete this season - which appears to be what my body is telling me to do. It is fighting me every step of the way at the moment. Effectively I have been comp dieting for like 10 weeks already and haven't seen that much progress, and I have been sick a few times. SO big decisions to make at the moment.

Now would also probably be a good time to mention that the diet has been very 'how ya going' today...have eaten a bit off plan in terms of food weight/meal times, plus I also managed to down 2 rows of chocolate today :( BUT it's happened, it shouldn't have happened but it did (and could have gotten much worse, I was pretty tempted to hoe into the cafe style fruit loaf in my freezer tonight and/or the jar of nutella in the pantry) and the best thing I can do is acknowledge that I ate stuff I shouldn't have and move on. So that's what I am doing.

I am hoping I wake up feeling better tomorrow, really want to get back into training BUT I will restrain myself if I am not well enough. It is meant to be legs day so need the proper energy to do that one. Wait and see how I feel in the morning.

Anyway better get this body off to bed for some MORE rest.

Vic x

Back on the Chicken Soup

I *should* be writing my 100 day challenge update but to be honest with you (and me) I have been pretty slack in this department. I have not been doing anything to earn extra skinny bones, nor do I have any idea how many bones I actually have? Or what day I am even up to? Bad form, I know. My challenges are going *OK*. I say OK because I have been spot on with water consumption and with the training rest/new split program but sleep has been a bit of a write off. I had 4 hours Friday night, 7 hours Saturday night, can't even remember Sunday night, and under 5 hours last night. Not great, I know. But it's the truth.

I am feeling a little crappy today as woke up with a bit of a sore throat. It wasn't too bad at all this morning, just a little 'how ya going' so went and did my back workout. I only squeezed 20min on the stepper in after my weights session as I had to get home to meet a PT client for outdoor training, and figured I would just make up for it tonight by doing extra cardio. Didn't happen. I turned up to start work at 12pm and the aircon did me no favours. I left work at 4pm with the pain having spread to my ears, stingy/itchy eyes and body aches and pains. I have since been on the couch and have had a home delivery of mum's famous chicken soup, which I have eaten about a litre worth of. Feels like I now have razorblades in my throat and I am dreading the thought of teaching my 6.15am spin class tomorrow morning. But at the same time I hate missing cardio. I am less than 7 weeks out and am not in a position where I can afford to have time off training so it's really bugging me. I just hope I miraculously wake up feeling awesome in the morning...but to be honest it's not looking good...

In other news...hmmm there isn't much!! lol... On that note I think I might chuck a dvd on and crash out on the couch. What is it about falling asleep on the couch when you feel sick?? Or is that just me?

Weekend wrap up

So if I learned one thing over the weekend...it's that I soooooo need to stop leaving shit to the last minute. I am such a crammer. Always have been and unfortunately most likely always will be. Following last blog post, exhausted as I was, I decided I would wrap Meegan's wedding gift, because as it was I had to be at her place at 7am and still had a gazillion things to get done. So waking up even earlier than I already had to was not going to be fun in my books. LUCKY I had this thought. The gift (I should say gifts, there were 3 separate boxes) took more wrapping paper than required. Probably because gift number one was a massive, mutant sized clock on steroids. I swear this thing is sooo huge it literally took 4 entire sheets of wrapping paper. Which was a bit of a shit, seeing as I had only picked up four sheets of wrapping paper. And not only did I run out of wrapping paper - I also ran out of sticky tape before finishing with the intricate clock-wrapping procedure. As you do. So I couldn't finish the wrapping off even if I had more paper. Anyway by the time this took place and I got myself showered and food all prepped for the wedding day, I didn't toddle off to bed til 1.30am. And my wake up time had gone from 6.30am to 5.30am as I now needed to get my ass to Coles at opening time to get some more paper and finish the wrapping procedure before presenting for hair and make up duty.
As it turned out, mission failed. Coles had no more of the paper I had picked up only the night before (yes I had even left the purchase of said paper to the last minute, and the Newsagency had closed by the time I turned up to buy wrapping paper on Friday night). Clearly I was so tired during the purchase that I didn't notice I had taken the last few sheets. So now not only was I in a mega rush, but I was going to have oddly matching paper. Meh, whatever. It was only gonna get ripped off the present anyway (lol as it turns out, when I told Meegan the reason for the oddly matching paper she laughed and told me I should have just wrapped it in newspaper. Gotta love her!! hehe) Anyway I managed to wrap the pressies with no further kafuffles (spelling?) and despite it looking like the biggest rush job in the world (it was), Meegan literally tore the paper off in 12 nano seconds that morning!
The day went so smoothly, not one drama at all. Meegan made an absolutely stunning bride (and I am not being biased, that's the honest truth!) and was the happiest bride I have ever seen...to the point where in the church service, after the 'pronounce you man and wife, kiss the bride' bit, she started jumping up and down on the spot, like a kid who just got their shiny new bike for Christmas! It was gorgeous...I have never seen her so happy. And the look in Ben's eyes as he looked at her was just priceless.
I did pretty good with the food thing. During the getting ready bit (hair, makeup etc) the girls ate brekkie (toast etc) and Meegan had organised a platter of chocolate-dipped strawberries, which looked divine and sooo juicy...but I resisted temptation (just!!) I had taken along some protein apple and cinnamon muffins that I had made for brekkie and then for lunch I ate my tuna with steamed greens while the girls nibbled on Subway sandwiches that Meegan's mum went and picked up. I planned to have my cheat in the evening and I did. I had about a glass and a half of champers during the afternoon, ate the dinner (which they had given me without sauces) and had a piece of their wedding cake and a couple of little chocolates that came out with coffee. That was pretty much it, nothing too extravagant.
Sunday was spent training, then having lunch at Mum's with the Melbournites and my grandmother and an uncle. My sister-in-law flew back to Melbourne in the late afternoon as she had to go back to work today but my brother is staying til tomorrow night, so had a scheduled hang out with him. We were both too exhausted to go anywhere so we just ordered a movie on Foxtel and had dinner and watched that.
OK I have just realised how much I have written so I better jet before putting anyone to sleep lol. I will post some of the wedding pics later tonight or tomorrow some time.
Til next time...train hard and be good.
Vic x