h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

As in, hammering it, at the gym, of course>

A little background.... My PT is using me, as his 'subject' for his next exams and tests, he's doing, for whatever the qualification is, for personal training, etc...
The reason he's using me, is, as he says "You're the only person I train who can keep up fully with me, through one of my own training sessions..." and, "You're completely insaine, if I suggest something to you, no matter how completely not the sort of thing you'd get a blind person to do, you don't just do it, you then figure out how to do it more difficult... backwards... with an added weight... etc., etc.,"..

This morning was good, was just cardio no weights, so may go back tomorrow, and just do an hour weights

Started off on the new (to me), really peculiar cross trainer/elyptical/ski machine; its weird because the length of the stride, and angle of rotation on one's feet, alters, depending on speed.
Only the second time I've used this one; today I was doing it with no hands plus doing intervals.
Did that for half an hour...

Then on to the stair treadmill thing (like an escalator you walk up the wrong way...), for aobut 20 minutes; second time I've used that, and today I got doing it hands free

Then to the metal step things... set higher than before, about 4 ft off the ground, jumping off, whilst lifting/raising a medicine ball... Then did regular 'steps' on it (lowered a bit), including raising the medicine ball...

Then did squats, using the medicine ball, whilst balancing on a weird inflated err... flying saucer shaped thing... - the inflated thing was only a few inchs wide, but that must do a lot of core stuff, plus legs, balancing on it, whilst squatting...

Then did the punchbag, for about quarter an hour, kicks, and punches... - I've a really nice bruise coming up on my right hand knuckles... - guess I should have put the gloves on

Then we moved nextdoor to the weight room;
we did the exercise ball, balancing on it (I'm hands free on it most of the time now, just knees) did some moderate weights, whilst balanced on the ball

~Then into the climbing frame thing... holding on to the dip bars, and standing two foot kicks, up to above head height, to hit just on top of the pad at the back... sets of twenty; holding the feet up on the final one, and doing twenty deep dips whilst suspended

Then, turning round to face outwards, holding onto the top bars (useually for pullups), and whilst holding them, kicking high, to try* get the legs to hand height... - I can't quite do that.... well impressed the PT could, I guess his abs are better than mine

That took us a bit over the hour.... his next client had arrived.... - and very 'kindly' said I could have some extra time, the first ten minutes of his session if I wanted.... - so, I did a dramatic collapse on to the floor, as an answer... my tee shirt was actually dripping by then

Then... the PT offered to take W and me to lunch... so W and I got back home, and both showered, then went to meet my PT, at, obviously, the Kebab shop/café/shop

proper kebab... I think its a Turkish one really, but the shish (chicken),, was very Lebonese style to my taste.... had a lot of olive oil with/on it, during cooking, was with rice, and various salad bits and a couple cups of Turkish

= the main reason for taking us to lunch, was so he could get us t help fill in various forms, for a 'case study' of a 'client' which is part of his course thing... - If all goes to plan I'll be doing these qualifications in the future too.... because I think becoming a personal trainer, is definitely the kind of weird I need (plus it'll get me free gym membership at our gym)

Gosh. purely by chance, W saw something on his phone, this evening; my weight, from a year ago, as that was about the time I started trying to loswe weight.

I was 16 stone, 6 Lb exactly a year ago...
I'm now 13 stone. - which doesn't really convey the fact I'm thinner, leaner, slimmer, more toned than I was when I was 17, before I lost my sight.

I'm noticing weird things with my body... this way my arms no longer touch the side of my body, 'at rest', as the sides of my body have 'shrunk', back.... the completely straight lines, down my sides, from bust ish area, to about mid thigh, and on the front the straight line from bottom o my sternum, down to my well groin - that thing when you tuck a tee shirt into jeans... and its flat... yeh... that's a shock to have finally achieved that, at age 41, and oddly, a stone heavier than my lightest ever adult weight... - I assume these muscle things weigh a lot... I can't recognise my arms, tops of my shoulders, or the tops of my legs... I've only got two wobbly bits left really and I don't think they're showing any signs of reducing, even if the solid muscle behind them is err.... more substantial

Did some more stretching, and exercise ball work this afternoon at home, then just had a nap... had a short nap earlier, about 4 PM, and now, as my food diary for theday has just under 1500 Kcal in it (my daily calory intake), yet, the calories remaining shos over 1000 I think we'll go to the pub then maybe gym tomorrow for just weights, and again Thursday and Friday for mix cardio/weights, and again the mix, on Sunday...

Asides the gym... not much... dinner tonight was the final of the three pyrex oven/baking dishes of cabbage layered lamb in tomato sauce I made (less than 400 KCal per portion, and really filling), - so I guess as we've eaten all that now, I'll have to find something else to cook tomorrow.... maybe some fish for a few days, for a change, then another bulk cooking towards the weekend...

Oh, was boared yesterday, so made some bread rolls, that came out well....

Finally have an app through for the metabolic bone clinic, I don't think I want to start any meds for that, unless they'll measure my bone density again, a years exercise oughta have improved it a lot, and its now over a year since the last bone density scan

Testosterone injection in the next couple weeks, so I oughta be on the low end of normal, or below at the moment... - they've moved the gap between injections wider, as my dip level, last time was still quite high, will be interesting to see what that level is this time, just befor eth einjection (though of course one doesn't get the result of the blood draw, until a week or so after the injection of testosterone)

Didn't make it to the gym today... went out into town lunchtime (after meds, takes that long to get them in me with all the delays in eating, having coffee etc., after the levo), went to Sainsburries, for chicken breasts, then the bank, then Lush for bath essentials (more jelly bath bombs ) W bought me the bath bombs I bought William a date stamp... which he's wanted for ages, from a stationary/office supply shop... Hunted for socks, but didn't find any that loked like they'd survive more than a handful of washes, so didn't get any....

Waited in for electrition.... no electrition, he's rebooked to come tomorrow morning, before we go to gym

had a long bath tonight and weighed myself after... hurrah... finally dropped below 13 stone, by 1 Lb
had boiled egg for breakfast, I made hotdog for lunch, with chicken sausages and the last of the rolls I made earlier in the week.... cooked tuna steak tonight, and made a mushroom pilaf to go with that, and had some green beans and sweetcorn too
May make pita tomorrow, as we've got the chicken breasts in, and grill some of that up, make some hummous, and have that with bulghur and pickled chilis and plain yogart for lunch tomorrow no idea what dinner will be tomorrow... maybe again tired today and my temperature sensing is entirely wrong... I could barely tolerate the bath temp tonight, with my feet, legs, and most of my body, yet it felt fine to both my hands and William's... I managed to get in, then had to surrender, to the eronious neurological sensory signals, and add in more cold water, which is something I rarely do in the bath; normally I just add more and more hot coconut shampoo and coconut conditioner, rose bath oils, magnesium salts (lots), and a marmalade jelly bath bomb tonight...
almost supper time, and probably bed earlier than useual

Still maintaining my rate of five pounds weight loss per week as of yesterday, though I've my doubts I can do it another week, still trying.

My belly roll is disappearing, but that makes my remaining unresolved hernia stand out like half of a large grapefruit or half a small cantaloupe under my shirt.

Surgery on that up coming in the spring.

Eating mainly oriental fried rice, with chili with beans and chunks of beef, with avocado.

Sometimes simple foods are best.

Also an occasional cup of potato salad with a handful of peanuts.

I've pretty much stopped using milk, simply too fattening, instead haviñg half a can of fruit with a tbspn of sour cream with my cereal, either hot or cold.

Next batch recipe, macaroni salad with cheese, celery, papaya seeds and a topping of seeds and nuts, when the potato salad runs out.

Another session of physical therapy yesterday and tomorrow for tendonitis and osteoarthritic problems in my lower spine.

Hurts like hell, but no pain no gain.

They started me on a balance board exercise yesterday.

OOo... I seem to recall they have some kind of balance bord thing, at our gym... I never got to use that yet; one of the personal trainers I had a while back was going to get me to use it, but I think we must have got distracted, and now he's reduced his hours at the gym, I don't get to work with him

I've got a loverly set of bruises come to fruit now, on my knuckles on my right hand; I assume that was the punch bag Tuesday I must* wear the boxing gloves next time

I remember when I first started loosing weight, this time last year, I was shifting 4 or 5 Lb some weeks; a lot was all the fluid retention I had from medication at that time, plus, I think it seems easier at first when you start increasing activity, whilst reducing calories... with time I think the body adapts - I'm so pleased to have finally just* nudged below 13 stone... I was stuck for a long while just over 13 - I know for changes in body shape, etc, the exercise and calorie counting is working, but it is nice to have the scales confirm it occasionally I've probably not got much to lose really, cept for personal preference, getting a bit nearer to 12 stone would be nice if I can, but I'm not in a rush to get there anymore, as the exercise and body changes are all going well, and the 'diet' just is my diet now, as I've adapted to such smaller portions, and eating even more healthier than I was...

Breakfast today was porridge, with flaked almonds, and a little jam,

Lunch was homemade pittabread, with pickled chilis, and homemade hummous, and with a bit of roast chicken

Dinner was an invented soup.... - leftover bulghur wheet, already cooked, some sweetcorn from the freezer, an onion, a bit of garlic, and a tiny bit of roast chicken... half blended once cooked and ... blinkin gorgeous

Was seriously shocked, to count up its calories afterwards; less than 270 KCal per portion, and I'm plenty full after it... - did have an apple and a banana after dinner, for my fruit for the day Looking at about 1400 KCal intake for the day, plus did the hour at the gym earlier (15 minutes interval training on the elyptical trainer, 10 minutes on the abdominal crunch mac hine at 28 and 35 KG, then about thirty minutes in the weights room) Would have been longer at the gym, but there was such a megalomaniac PT in the weights room, 'chatting up' a female client... and I just couldn't stand to be in the room any longer, listening to his moronic attempts and apauling insistence on speaking so loudly to her - I think i'll take my headphones and IPod to the gym in future, so I have it, if I need it

No gym tomorrow as far as I know.... unless we get really boared then back again Sunday, off Monday, and bac k with the personal trainer on Tuesday...

Asides gym today spent most of the day cooking really - my cooking suddenly seems to have gotten really good... Just being a bit more inventive I think, and experimenting with a few different things, plus having the new oven helps

Weight as of today holding at 212 pounds, just over 15 stone.

Next official weigh-in Tuesday, next week.

Much to my amazement, the physical therapy is apparently beginning to work and I'm begining to get reductions in pain in my lower right back where I'm missing the right flange of the lowest lumbar vertebrae.

Its apparently not all that unusual a trait,

I've seen it on classroom skeletons besides my own and my Mom's Xrays.

Presuambly its adaptive somehow.

The forced stetches the trainers are helping me are still very painful, though.

Weight loss training and physical therapy are separate, the first on Tuesdays, the latter Wednesdays and Fridays

Hurrah, the reduction in pain must be a relief

I've still yet to find out about my back, its just over a year since I was diagnosed with the osteoporosis, and at about the same time, the endocrine consultant, accidentially looked at one of my old CT scans (from neurology? oncology? I'm not sure), and spotted I've got a fractured spine - first I knew of it T10 and T12 are fractured I think, so low ish down I think... from memory I think they're near or at the final vertibray to have ribs attached to them (my old biology degree is getting very rusty on some things, memory wise) They know think the fractures are fragility fractures, caused I assume by the osteoporosis, although at first, they thought they may be damage from my road traffic accident in 1993, that had just never been noticed at th etime I do at least finally have an appointment to see someone in the metabolic bone clinic, in April I think so will see what they say then I have full flexibility on my spine, (moreso since starting the exercise/gym), and don't get any pain from it, that I am aware of anyhow

Have a large gammon joint cooking today, in the slow cooker, with apple juice, onion, cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, peppercorns and some rosemary - will roast/bake it for a short while once its basically fully cooked from the slow cooker, and we'll have some of that tonight, with broccoli and some tiny new potatos we got the other day in the supermarket
had porridge again for breakfast today, before gym, and had a late lunch of grilled chicken sandwichs with a little cheese added

did the cross trainer again today for cardio, doing intervals, then did quite a lot of weights, mainly squats, dead lifts, shoulder shrugs, jerks, curls etc .. Plus did some stretching and dips etc, between sets on the weights - almost starting to feel like spring might not be too far away now