A word of advice

Always read the label before you put anything in your eye!! I picked up what I thought were my eye drops this morning but unfortunately, they were Sammy's ear drops!! That at 5am is particularly unpleasant I can tell you, mad sprint to the kitchen for some milk to bathe it in and then of I trotted to they gym, yep you did read that right... The gym!

Possibly wasn't the best choice I could've made, I should have gone to A&E then as it would've been quieter. I just couldn't face sitting and waiting when I knew we were really busy in work and I was in on my own.  Luckily we had a contractor start and he is pretty savvy, so I have taken myself off to the Manchester eye hospital emergency room. After 1hr I have been triaged but I am now say waiting to be seen, and I have been sat waiting for an hour and a half.  As it is an emergency ward, more important cases get to be bumped above me unfortunately.  It gets to a point where you feel impelled to stay as you have waited it out this long and the other part of you just wants to get gone.. They put some antibiotic drops in when I was in triage and that felt fantastic, unfortunately they have worn off now and I'm fairly uncomfortable.  They tested the ph in both my eyes and they are the same, so that means that at least the damage isn't being worsened.  However, having a dry piece of litmus paper shoved in an already sore eye is not a pleasant experience. 

Its funny when you are in hospital or the doctors and they ask you on a scale of 1 to 10 how painful it is.  I never really know how to gauge it and also , how is that a proper scale to judge on?  Not only is it all relative to other pain you have ever experienced, it is also down to personal perception.  For all they know, I could be hard as nails and my eye is blistering up as I sit and wait... It isn't, but you get my point!! The triage nurse was saying that its a really common occurrence and people come in with things like super glue on their eyes!! OMG, I can't even begin to understand how that feels. I have managed to injure my eye a few times, the worst was when I stabbed myself with a juniper branch.  Mum had been trimming her plants and this branch had got stuck under my car, I yanked it out and it went straight into my eye.. Super painful I can tell you but no major harm done then either.  It really is amazing what we can put our bodies through and they still carry on going!

I am sooooo bored!! I wish I had brought my revision with me, I hate feeling like I'm waiting time! 

A chemical burn and 3 and a half hours later and I am free to fight the Manchester rush hour back to work!

Only happy when I'm hurting!

Or not!! Finally got myself feeling pretty much normal again by Friday and then had my work xmas do. Obviously, I just had to wear heels so now my feet are killing me; even though I danced barefoot all night! I then decided that that clearly wasn't enough to be getting along with so rode with my SI belt on, and whilst it felt a lot better when I was riding, damn, my hips are sore now! But that just wasn't enough either, whilst I was cleaning the house I turned and smacked my knee cap straight into the edge of the door.  I have the knobbliest knees ever and that smarts more than a little, normally it wears off but this time it hasn't... Brilliant.  On the plus side, my size 8 shorts are too big!! They must be sized on the big size but I have lost another inch on my hips since I bought them.

We went to watch the theatre production of War Horse yesterday at the Lowry theatre, Salford Quays. The production was done by The National Theatre company and I don't think there are words that could explain just how unbelievably amazing it was. They use 'puppets' for the animals and the detail was mind blowing, whoever directed it made sure that every knew EXACTLY how horses behave at all times, you totally forgot that they weren't real and as a horse owner, this was a magnificent thing to behold, as they captured what makes these animals so incredibly beautiful and noble and I was truly blown away. It was also a cry fest from start to finish for me, very, very emotionally drained after and I don't think I saw a single person who wasn't crying on the way out.  I can't recommend going to see it enough, you have to see it to believe it.

I don't even want to weigh myself in the morning, so don't think I will! Save myself the pain, it has not been a particularly healthy weekend, finished off by a beautiful roast lamb tea followed by a fantastic pineapple pie; all made by my dad so I would imagine it was all heavy on everything my diet avoids... But soooooo tasty! I need to make the most of it over the next couple of weeks though, as I plan to really step it up a gear in the new year!! I sat up in bed the other day and I have unbelievable abs now, I just need to shed the last bit of fat from there so I can see them!! I may have to speak to a specialist to get my diet bang on, as it is not going to be easy but I REALLY want to see these bad boys!! Bring it on, pretty excited about it tbh, I love pushing myself like this.

Blood, sweat and tears

I haven't been this sore for some time, that is the joy of low intensity workouts; they lack the exuberance to destroy every fibre u posses, including that of your being! My quads have always been a sore point for me, quite literally. When they tie up they do it in style and day 2 is always by far the worse.  A couple of PT's have told me that I mustn't be getting enough protein in my diet, I protein loaded on Monday, but was somewhat lacking yesterday and that was possibly a mistake.

I had to give in and get some ibuprofen with codeine yesterday as my back was really giving me some sh*t! I have never ventured into this world before but felt that I was making it worse by favouring it.  Anyway, no ill effect other than the urge to clear my throat constantly!! I have just read that its a naturally occurring opiate; I really should've expected a little more from my foray!  It was only over the counter stuff though, so I wouldn't have thought it would be particularly strong. It was more my lower back, lumbar/sacral region yesterday rather rather than the SI pain I was getting the day before, progress of sorts.

I rode again last night and this eased it considerably once again! So riding may well be the cause of a lot of my woes, but currently it is somewhat my saviour in a way. Interestingly though, Millie, who I rode last night is one of the trickier horses for me to get right for reasons I always blame on myself. She is quite long in her back so seems to really suffer with my imbalance, this manifest itself by her being tense and resistant to certain movement. However, when I first started riding and was sore, she went exceptionally well and it was only when my poor, achey body started to bed in that she started to play me up. I think it was down to the fact that as I was sore, I was actually guarding myself by holding onto my posture correctly and carrying myself through my core; basically not being lazy.  This just compounds my thoughts on her issues being my issues, poor lady.

I have continued to go to the gym throughout this, I know, smacks a little of an obsession but I feel so rubbish if I don't go and doing gentle exercise means there is a small chance it will ease my pain. I did a short spin on the decline bike (not a clue what its actually called!) and then stretches to ease the pain in my back.  This did work until I decided I could be working on my neck flexibility whilst my back was bad... Erm, its all joined dear! So, this morning I am on the same bike thing, getting myself a bit warm and then may attempt some stretching. My glutes are currently numb from sitting on them in this position, I really do lack resilience in any way!

As I was getting changed yesterday, a lady came over to me who I know from the classes I used to do and she said how impressed she was with my transformation and how amazing I look, which is always great to hear. She had noticed that I have been doing a lot of yoga and asked if it was purely down to that.  Whilst I attribute a lot of my latest toning to yoga, I also had to break the news that no one wants to hear... The way I have done it is to be strict with my calorie intake, stop drinking all the time and be 100% committed to getting myself in the shape of my life.  Her response was the same I hear from most and one I used for many years, along the lines of loving a drink and a good meal. You have to want this more than any of that unfortunately. There are no quick fixes, no miracles.. Just good old fashioned, blood, sweat and tears!!!

As sure as eggs is eggs

Or is it? I was making 'healthy cookies' and my eggs were Chia seeds! You add water to them and they go to the consistency of eggs, great idea and less calorific, looks somewhat like frog spawn though! 

The rest of the cookies were coconut, mashed banana and cocoa powder... The result, not worth the effort tbh. They really didn't taste great and the texture wasn't brilliant either, quite gutted as they tasted pretty good before cooking.  I couldn't quite put my finger on why either, which is pretty annoying.

I also got to use my red quinoa, it cooks much bigger than the white quinoa and isn't quite such a strong taste.

 Pretty little tails!

 Tasty goo

The finished items, they look like burgers !! 

Ah well, lesson learned anyway. 

We were out in Manchester on Saturday, one of Tom's mates was over from Peterborough and we thought we would show him the delights of Manchester and the Xmas markets.  We also went to watch a potential wedding band who were brilliant, just need to see if they are available now! 

Unfortunately, the afternoon/evening drinking super strong beer did nothing for my health.  I felt dreadful when I went to bed and I felt no better through the night and the next day, my stomach took huge umbrage to our shenanigans and had no intention of letting me get away with it lightly.  

This weeks pain! 

I had a PT session this morning with Martin, the trainer that left a couple of months ago. It's was an absolute horror, he had me doing circuits of weighted squats, pull ups then clap push ups for 20 mins solid.  I really, really struggle with squats anyway; they are something I want to drastically improve and just don't seem to get very far.  Tbf, I haven't worked that much on them since Martin has gone and I need to get back on it.  He said I looked in good condition and my legs were showing some good form, which is always good to hear. I am now struggling horrifically, my sacroiliac joint has been screaming all day and I also have terrible tummy ache.  I needed to ride tonight though so I had to put up with the pain, it was Breeze and Lara's turn tonight and I can't lunge them due to one injury or another that they are carrying. 

When I first got on Breeze it was like someone had a blade in my pelvis every time she moved, it was really quite unpleasant.  I had to really concentrate on holding my weight using my core, otherwise it was unbearable and then all of a sudden the SI pain was gone! Obviously something had gone into spasm and riding opening up my SI joint helped release it.  It still a tiny bit sore but the majority of the pain is now in my lower back and stomach; which as a rule go hand in hand for me! I desperately want to be able to work out, pain free.  I really wish I knew why I was so flimsy, it's so damned frustrating.  Will be interesting to see what state I am in in the morning! I have ordered an SI belt to hopefully help me get through my latest useless body failure! 

A yummy little surprise

Well, not really a surprise as I ordered it; but still yummy

We have Quinoa in the red and black variety, it's somewhat of an elusive beast in shops around me so it had to be ordered online.  Along with it there are some cacao nibs, again as rare in the shops of Manchester as a bikini in Iceland! And whilst I was on there, I got some cacao butter too.  So far, I have had the nibs in my yoghurt and mixed into some overnight oats and I love them.  A slightly strange experience by themself, but I absolutely love the texture.  I only ordered a little bag as I didn't know if I would like them, I will be ordering a bigger bag next time.  I got the cacao butter as it is meant to be amazing for your skin, I just need to find out how to get it on there as it is totally solid.  It smells fantastic and it's taste is pretty mild and very creamy, almost silky.

I had my second yoga PT with Danny this morning, we went for the hour and it was a killer! He's been going to sessions in the week and practicing and had a great session ready to hit me with.  It pretty much worked the entire body and there were some killer holds, it's these that really get the blood pumping and the heart pounding.  It amuses me that we are both stood there, bustin some moves that to the untrained eye, basically look like nothing, yet we are huffing and puffing and merrily sweating our asses of. Love it! We did some moves that are great for strengthening the lower back too and I was pretty pathetic, we are going to ensure that no matter what else we do in a session, we will always do lower back.

I got a text from Martin the other day, my other PT that left recently and I was gutted.  He is taking some sessions on Monday in the gym so I have booked myself in for that! Pretty excited, will see how I have been doing whilst left to my own devices! 

Sports massage and manipulation.

I had the afternoon off work today so booked myself in for a sports massage and then an chiropractor appointment with David.  My knee has been bothering me again so thought I should just get checked out even though I was only there a couple of weeks ago.

They ask you to fill out a form that includes questions like: what area are you having problems with? My entire body When did you first notice this? I can't remember not having problems What causes your pain? life 

Poss not the answers she was expecting.  Anyway, she cracked on and got stuck in. I absolutely love sports massage and will defo make a point of going more often, she really got into my sub scapula area and the tops of my shoulders (can't remember the name of the muscle) were really knotted.  Also, unsurprisingly, my ITB's were pretty damned sore, but she said they weren't dramatically bad.  The right side was far worse than the left though.  She said my quads and ham strings were beautifully soft and smooth and complimented me on the tone and shape of my legs. Woop!! 

Cacao butter update! 

It melts with the warmth of your skin, we are now two little greasy balls. It smells soooo good!

Happy birthday to me!

This is how I spoil myself on my birthday: thick sliced whole grain toast with a slice of hot smoked pastrami, topped with Chorizo and wild mushrooms.. It is one of my favourite feasts in the world and is so unbelievably full of saturated fat and a billion calories... But my gosh, it is worth every unhealthy bit! I used to scoff this every weekend, no wonder I had so much weight to shift. 

We have had a lovely day, I get BYOB (book your own birthday) day off work, so Tom booked a day off and joined me.  We started the day with a nice ride out down an old railway track about half an hours drive away, we haven't been out in the wagon to ride together for months, so it was nice to give Toms improved riding a run out.  He looks a little strange I'm theis pic as he has his body protector on under his jacket! 

 Two very hairy ladies with him!

Action shot! 

 View of the road ahead, nice to get away from the traffic! 

We didn't do a huge amount in the afternoon, just made the sneaky snack at the top of the page and then went and checked out some chairs that the church hall have an we can use for the wedding, they're perfect, and all for a small donation to the church. Every little helps! 

We had plaice for tea, was quite a let down.  The recipe said to cook it in the oven but I think it should've been grilled or pan fried as it was really quite boring.  It had lemon and capers with it and it just wasn't really igniting any flames for us.  Dessert however, was a different story.. Another naughty little birthday treat; mum had made me a chocolate sponge cake with Buttercream filling, mmmmmmmmmmmm.  She used the Green and Blacks organic cocoa powder and it made the buttercream absolutely incredible.

Mmmmmmmmmmm

We had weigh in and measure in, results of weigh in was I am a touch lighter (can't remember the figure now!) but body fat is the same.  Measure in; lost a quarter of an inch around my thigh and bicep and half an inch around my waist, the rest have stayed e same.  I'm quite impressed with that, I have been working my trunk more this month and it seems to be working. 

Pics, comparisson with last month.  I think I look bigger in the side shot this month! The one I am most pleased with is the back view, I think it looks quite a bit better.  

Well, that wasn't so bad

The hangover has been bearable, although it has to be said that I didn't enjoy the drink as much as I thought I would.  It was a great catch up with Tom's brother and sister-in-law, we went to watch the rugby league final at Old Trafford. The game was incredibly boring actually, which was a shame but we mooched into Manchester and had a few drinks and some food. We got the last train back and I insisted that we walk home to burn some calories, it's only about 2 miles, but when you're a little bit rough around the edges it's a loooong 2 miles. I haven't braved the scales today, should be interesting in the morning! 

We have also achieved quite a bit today which is a surprise, we started the day off with a little exercise in the form of us racing each other around the kitchen table whilst pushing my niece and nephew along in boxes! They were squealing with delight whilst my ham strings and glutes were screaming! It was really quite hard work and actually made me feel quite sick. I then went on to shave Sammy and Milo, this makes my lower back go numb. It must cause a nerve to be pinched in my lower back when I am leaning over at that height, not great.  

We had our lentil soup thing that we love for lunch and then headed over to the horses so I could clip Millie and ride. I absolutely hate clipping, getting covered in little tiny flecks of spikey hair for over an hour; in your eyes and up your nose.. Not nice, but worth it for the end result! 

She's starting to lose all the weight she had wedged on over the summer, which makes my life considerably easier! 

For tea I tried something new. We quite often have quorn sausages and chicken pieces, but we bought some mince the other day and I made it into a cottage pie tonight with sweet potato topping. It wasn't my finest triumph, I used corn flour to thicken it and I should've used gravy granules really.