Wow, that smarted a little

Went to do my dead lift after walking for half an hour on the treadmill and OUCH!!  my inner thighs that had tightened up from competing on Saturday went into cramp like I have never felt in my life! It felt as if someone had stabbed right into the muscles and grabbed the fibres and yanked them out! Managed two sets of 12 at 35 kilos and just couldn't carry on, I could feel it in my back because I was compensating for my inner thighs.  I had intended on concentrating on legs and core today, half of that wasn't going to happen!

Half an hour of upper body followed by core, did some absolute killers that I should imagine I will more than regret tomorrow!  Made a point of checking my protein targets and was quite down after lunch, I had smoked mackerel and that is restricted by how calorific it is, so only had 100 grams. So, tea was a piece of salmon, cooked in the oven with salt, pepper and vinegar and I also had 5 fish fingers and broccoli.  These are one of my favourite things to eat! I make sure I get the 100% Pollock ones to do my bit for the sustainable fish market, cod is drastically overfished these days and there is no difference in price and I don't know my fish well enough for there to be a difference in taste!

Tomorrows lunch: a small piece of salmon, cooked the same way as my tea, cherry tomatoes, sweet peppers, butter beans (cooked from dried again, easy now I have got used to it) beetroot (my new favourite addition) and last but not least.... I have treated myself to an entire egg!!!

I am concious that having a smoothie every day is laying on the the sugar quite heavily, I am going to try and switch it around a bit and  not have one every single day, maybe just 3 out of 5 in the week and I never have time at weekends anyway! 

Anyway, I'm supposed to be making an effort to get to bed earlier after my last killer sickness, this is not doing that! Good night all 

Nothing like easing yourself back in gently

After being rotten all weekend, I thought the best approach was to spend the entire weekend working horses, competing , clipping and general horse quaffing.

I haven't sat on a horse since last Wednesday and I rode them all on Saturday and competed one of them.. Considering I have been riding most of my life, its amazing how quickly your muscles forget about it! My inner thighs are feeling it today.  It was worth it though, we managed to come 3rd in the Open Working Hunter, very pleased. To celebrate, we had curry and beer! How naughty, but oh so very, very tasty!

Today was spent getting 2 of them ready for their show next weekend so clipping and mane and tail pulling.  Might not sound too tiresome, but trust me, it is!

#PT session tomorrow, that should be interesting! I haven't worked out at the gym for what seems like an eternity!

Its funny what touches you

I know everyone is affected by different things that they encounter in life and I like to think that its mostly the good things that affect us, or else life would be incredibly tough.

What's prompted this?  I was driving along the road today and I saw an elderly gentleman from the local care home, being escorted along the road by his big burly carer.  The old gent was shuffling along, hunched over and moving incredibly slowly.  His carer gently held his arm through his and had his hand resting on his hand whilst supporting him along his way.  Granted, by itself this situation doesn't seem particularly thought provoking, until you start to think further into it.

I imagine them shuffling along, the old gent regaling his carer with stories of his youth, imparting golden nuggets of advice that can only be gained by those so long lived.

I admire the carers of the world, in my eyes, their day to day job is just so incredibly hard in so many ways that my heart goes out to them.  I am sure that they would also say that it is incredibly rewarding, I just know that with how affected I am by others pain, suffering and loss, that it would weigh far too heavy on me to cope. I would also feel the loss of a persons presence so hard to bear, inevitably, carers must lose many people that they become close to and care for. People that they will have shared stories with about past times and lives lived and learnt from and confided in.  Maybe that's just a romantic notion and they are all in fact grumpy old buggers that give them hell constantly! I like to imagine it as the former though!

I also then start to wonder about other things.  I wonder if the elderly gentleman has lived a good and healthy life, if he spends his day with fantastic memories of times gone by, or if he sits, racked with regrets of missed opportunities and a life unfulfilled?  I wonder if he was happily married and now his days are filled with missing the love of his life.. Again, I prefer to steer myself to the former judgement, as I like to think if I ever make it to such an age, that I will look back on my life with pride and happiness. I'm sure its not all black and white of course! At the very least, I know I will look back on my life and remember the time I took control of everything and changed my body, my thinking and my direction!

See what happens when I haven't got the gym to keep me occupied and so exhausted I don't have time to think!

One step closer

So, the wedding yurt is almost sorted! Save the dates will be on the way out in no time, very excited! Also, very annoyed I haven't been back to the gym yet!  I'm nowhere near ready for exercise yet, I've been working the horses from the ground so that I don't have to exert myself! Makes me one grumpy, hungry lady!!

Photographer is also almost confirmed! He is just checking that his partner is available. I have found the perfect guy, I used to work with him in my first job and he's fantastically flamboyant and works people so incredibly well; as well as having a fantastic artistic eye. He doesn't normally do weddings, his is more pr and media but does small weddings for people he knows. I contacted him as I know he's big into his bands and I noticed he was selling his photography skills; bingo!

I only seem to have gained 2lbs whilst being off, amazingly! I don't know how, I consumed my own weight in crap food whilst I've been ill. Back on track today, as always, its tough to get back on the healthy food wagon after falling off it into a sugar fuelled coma! Still a while off being back on the exercise track, competing at the weekend so I'm hoping the breathing is better by then. Then Monday morning, PT session with Liam. Back into it all in one go.

Have you missed me?

Have I been ill or what!?  I managed one night at Y-Not and then had to come home in the morning, I was back in my bed at 11.30 am on the Saturday.

I spent the whole weekend eating the crap that I purchased to take with me to the festival as Tom was also away and I was feeling sorry for myself.  I couldn't sleep, couldn't breath, couldn't swallow... you name it, I couldn't do it basically, looking after myself properly was right at the top of that list too!

I've just been to the doctors and they have prescribed me some antibiotics as its just not clearing.  I feel dreadful still and can hardly walk to my car without being out of breath! I'm missing the gym, I'm missing my routine and I'm missing being healthy! I just want to be out and about, my horses need working and my poor wasting muscles need working!

Don't really have a lot to offer here, other than feeling sorry for myself and checking in!

I know why they say grate the ginger!

Laziness meant I just checked a chunk of ginger into my smoothie this morning, I am picking strings of ginger out of my teeth now! 

Off to Y-not festival today. Still not brilliant, I'm gonna have to be very careful with myself, but yesterday sleeping helped no end!

First order of the day is to get The Beast cleaned. I have borrowed my brother in laws work vehicle and it is FILTHY!! Not fussed about the outside as that gives us a kinda "we're cool off road kinda gals" look, its a bit like being surfer dudes of the countryside! The inside is rotten though!

Typing from my death bed..

Well, not quite. I have taken the day off though as I felt dreadful when I woke up. I've been trying every cure I can Google! Turmeric, garlic, cinnamon, ginger, copious amounts of fruit and vitamin drink! Good old Beechams, Olbas oil all over me and steamed myself to the max!

Considering I try and lead a healthy, active lifestyle, I am always sick!! The only thing I can put it down to is the fact that I am always so busy and very rarely do I get enough sleep to allow my body to be fighting fit.  I would love to reduce the hours that I work so that I can fit more in, unfortunately, bank balance says no to that one!

This little cutie pie is also helping me get better, he is keeping me super snuggly! I have got up to make myself some food in the form of a super gingernut banana smoothie, take on some more paracetamol and then sleep once more.  Chest feels a lot better, headache is not helping though.  I was hoping it was a caffeine headache so had an espresso; didn't help!

Unlike most people, I can happily drink espresso 'till the cows come home and still sleep.  Tea however, totally different matter, that keeps my mind buzzing just enough to stop sleep.. 

Did my measurements yesterday.  I shall add them all to the stats page, pretty good effort once again, so please go and take a look!