My day off

Today I decided to have the day off.

Mostly because a friend had the day off and asked me to go shopping. I couldn’t exactly say no, now could I? lol

I haven’t had a real shopping trip (without kids or husband) for ages, so it was lovely.

Always start with a coffee

Of course, I went specifically to buy new clothes (something I rarely do), and pretty much came home with one pair of jeans and a pair of shorts – never anything suitable or in my size when I have money to spend ;)

We managed lunch before I got a call to pick the boy child up from school. High temps means tv and airconditioning for him for the rest of the day.

I did enjoy my ‘day off’ though – looking forward to the next one, even if I have no idea when that will be lol

Give me sushi and a coffee and I'll be forever happy.

When it comes to food, it's just food.

Food is food is food.
There is no ‘good’, there is no ‘bad’.
Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re not.
And yes, that’s something you may actually have to learn. And it CAN be learned.
Eat foods that make YOU feel good physically & emotionally (what works for one may not work for another), and enjoy the act of eating.
Try not to second-guess yourself.
It’s just life, don’t over-think it.

Lifting made me totally bulky

Gee. So totally bulky.

Anecdotal evidence (n=1 obviously) that lifting does not make one ‘bulky’… I’ve been lifting 3-4x a week for about a year and a half now. And I’ve been eating whatever I feel like (note that does NOT mean everything in sight lol) for ages, and I still have people telling me to ‘stop losing weight’.

I haven’t lost even 100g in over 6 months. In fact, I’ve gained a little on the scale.

I just work my butt off.

And no, you won’t see me in a bikini any time soon.

Avocado, Mango & Corn Salsa

My girl can’t eat a lot of tomatoes. Because of the high amine content, if she gets a build up in her system, it leads to migraines and other not-so-fun reactions that leave her feeling really miserable.
So I’m always on the lookout to adjust everyday meals to be tomato-free so she doesn’t feel so left out.

Nachos are a huge favourite in our house. During winter I make up a savoury mince, add a lot of lactose-free cheese and it’s a really nice warm pick-me-up meal on a cool day. But during Summer, that’s all just a little too heavy on the stomach.

Enter all the gorgeous fresh fruit and vegies that we are so lucky to have here in Australia. Particularly mangoes. And avocado. Sooooooo good. I fiddled around and came up with this really lovely salsa that you can either use on nachos (as we did in the above picture, corn chips, shredded bbq chicken and salsa on top) or as a fresh tasting dip.

Avocado, Mango & Corn Salsa
1 mango, peeled, seeded & diced
1/2 red capsicum, seeded & diced
1-2 green onions, chopped finely
125g tin corn kernels, drained
1 lime, juiced
1 avocado, peeled, pitted & diced

Toss together mango, capsicum, onion, corn & lime juice in a bowl. Fold through avocado just before serving.
Eat and enjoy

I really like chin-ups and pull-ups. That’s why I do them.

This is how I do chin-ups in my dungeon gym lol

Because I’m so short I just put a bar at the top of the squat rack. And I still have to stand on tippy toes to reach.

I’m adding chin-ups and pull-ups to my routine because, well I like them. They work a heap of muscles and they are something I want to get better at.

This morning’s NROL session (B) was pull-ups, overhead squats, side lunges, tricep pushups and hip extenstions.

The next session (A) will be chin-ups, Romanian deadlifts, T push-ups, overhead stepups, inverted rows & hip extensions.

I love Supercharged because I set the routine based on what I want to focus on at that time.

I don’t really lift for aesthetic reasons any more. I don’t lift for ‘a butt’ (although I quite like the way it’s turned out lol) and I know I won’t be able to get the high numbers that some can (100lbs is a starting weight for some – that’s more than I weigh). I need to take things slow and steady because of some physical limitations, but I go as hard as I can.

I lift weights because I enjoy it, it keeps me fit, it’s a mental and physical challenge, and it changed my body in a good way.

Although flexing my arms and back in a tank top is nice too ;)