Trying to lose!

Snowdon – Challenge – REVISED

Hiya All!

If you read my last post you’ll know I suffered on the day after starting my challenge.

Well, that agony continued!

Paul massaged my calf muscles on Friday and Saturday night… I went through the roof! or would have done had I not being laying down! Paul decided it was funny to comment on what the neighbours would think if they heard me… Not sure I could have really given a damn given the pain I was in 😀

Paul did take pics, but I’m not gonna scare you with pics of my fuzzy pins 😀

My calves remained swollen, rock hard and red for a good couple of days, by Monday I was able to walk up and down the stairs without clinging onto the banister, the pains were much less, and I could actually feel a bit of give in my calves on gentle prodding!

Today, the the residual pains are only slight and only when going up the stairs.

I’m going to ask Paul to massage my legs again this evening. I pray it’s not gonna be as painful.

So… Where does this leave me?

I am still gonna do the challenge, I’ll be starting from scratch, hopefully tomorrow!

However, I shall be starting very, very small! I’m going to walk up and down the stairs every work hour, just twice! I know, I know! it’s really rather pathetic! However, there is no way I’m putting myself through that again!

My hope is that I’ll suffer no pains the following day and so can start building up on that.

At this rate it will take me 30 days to complete, so assuming I can build up a bit, I’m going to aim to actually complete this in 21 days, although I will not over stretch on this.

So there we go, that was a non starter, but can be rebooted, as off tomorrow… all being well!

Good night for now 🙂

9th April – who knew stairs could create such PAIN?

Evening all, hope you are all well and safe.

Turns out a couple of 5 minute stair walking has the power to cripple me! I almost got out of bed during the night and yelped! My calf muscles have been rock hard all day, and hurting… a lot! 😆

I have done as little moving as possible, clinging onto the banister up and down the stairs, and feeling a bit wimpy.

And I think Paul gates me! He suggested I use this…

NO! JUST NO 🤣

I might revise my challenge, I’ll see what I can do tomorrow, and how it affects me the following day… I’ll keep you posted!

Now for something lovely.

I heard a knock at the door and saw a kiddie running away, even though I assumed it was knock down ginger, found this…

How lovely 💖

The children at no 15 are lovely kids, the little boy in particular asked if he could help when we were moving from no 14 to no 7.

Gonna stop writing this post for a while, got a video call with mum and sister.

And… I’m back.

That was a nice chat 😊

So where was I, oh yes…

As well as agonized calf muscles, I also woke with a bit of a cold, first one in a year! It’s not very bad, I’ll be ok if it stays like this. And I’m still on 😩. Other pains haven’t been as bad today though, so that’s good 👍

Sleep was ok, not awful. Felt fairly rested.

Exercise – not a single bit!

Fluid – 200ml of milk, 3 cups of tea, 3 welsh liqueurs, 1 glass of water.

Food – 40g natural nuts, 90g dried fruit, 1 cheese portion.

Paul prepared a nice boiled egg salad for lunch.

And, as it’s Friday… FISH SUPPER!

Healthier option of course!

So there we have it, my day.

Hoping for a marvellous sleep tonight, and a good exercise day tomorrow!

Stay safe friends.

Night 👋

8th April – a good day!

Hey all, hope you are safe.

I’ve decided on a substitute workout programme, walking every day, no less than five walks a week, strength programme three times a week.

And then I had a daft, simple idea! I would use my stairs to climb the height of Snowdon! Now spontaneously, I decided six x 5 minute sessions would be a walk in the park… I was wrong!

The first session I did was fine, 14 times up and down those stairs, yes I was well and truly out of breath after 2.5 minutes, but I kept on! I used this session as my template for my new challenge.

The following sessions became harder and harder to maintain… I still managed… but it was sooo hard!

I am stuck on this idea now, so I intend to carry out this challenge but tomorrow I’m going to try a different way.

Today I managed 61 stair climbs, that equates to 457.5 feet elevation. Snowdon is 3560 feet, that leaves me 3102.5 feet.

I’m hoping to complete 50 stair climbs tomorrow, with no less than 7 climbs each session. That will be 375 feet elevation every day. I shall give myself the target of completing this in ten days. This I feel will be more achievable, though obviously I’ll push myself to finish earlier.

It’s worth mentioning that I am not counting any normal stair use in this.

I’m still on! I think unless things calm down, I’m not going to renew my contraception. We’ll see.

Something lovely today, one of our nieces turned 7 today, so Paul and I went to my sister’s to give pressie and card. We stayed long enough to watch her open pressie, and we stayed outside with a glass window between us. We bought Amelia a telescope, and she loved it! Her parents were going to try and set it up so she could look at the moon tonight 😊

Ok, let me regale you with my daily details!

Sleep – it was ok, certainly don’t feel worn down today.

Fluid – 200ml of milk, 3 cups of tea, 2 glasses of water, 1 glass of pineapple juice, 1 can of Pepsi max.

Food – 40g natural nuts, 90g dried fruit, 1 cheese portion.

For lunch we shared a jacket spud with the remaining chilli and cheese.

Then Paul made duck stir fry for dinner. Very tasty! I cut the fat of most of the duck.

We shared a bag of healthier crisps.

Exercise – 4 x 5m stair climbs, a slow (body doesn’t like me) walk.

So that’s my day. Let’s see how tomorrow goes.

Keep safe, keep well.

Night

A New Challenge – Snowdon at Home!

Good morning all.

We are now booked to go to Wales in September. Obviously this might not happen, depending on the situation.

And the training I had set out for myself isn’t happening, because of isolation and motivation.

My targets now are to do my strength programme three times a week, and walk as many days as possible.

I probably will not be fit enough to walk up Snowdon even if we do get to go, but I have a nicked idea!

It’s a nicked idea because I’ve stolen it from someone else!

I can’t remember where I read the headline, but there is a chap who’s climbed the height of Everest… on his stairs!

So… guess what I’m gonna do!

I started this morning! Six times throughout the day I’m going to do 5 minute stints of walking up and down my stairs!

There will be times I can’t, body or motivation, but I’m gonna give it my all when I can!

Based on my first 5 minutes today, if I manage to do as I hope, I’ll have completed this challenge in a week.

I’ll keep you updated via my nightly post 🙂

Wish me luck!

7th April – a better day.

Hey all, hope you are keeping well and safe.

Today has been a better day. I didn’t have the most amazing sleep, but it was much better than the night before.

Work was work. Nothing to report.

Pains have been sporadically non existent and very bad. Also still on 😦

I did a strength programme today, it’s good to do something I know I should be doing, and not putting it off. Hey, maybe this time, i’ll keep on with it!

So, without further ado, here are my daily specifics:

Sleep – much better, don’t feel as worn down.

Fluid – 200ml of milk, 4 cups of tea, 2 glasses of water, 1 can of Pepsi max (I know I had it, but I don’t physically remember it… odd!)

Exercise – yes 😁.

Food – 40g natural nuts, 90g dried fruit.

Cheese and ham sandwich (1.5 sarnies) for lunch.

Gammon, sweet potato fries (shop bought) and cauliflower for dinner.

Greek yoghurt with seeds and honey for supper.

So things I am pleased with today are:

I’ve had 3 dairy portions
I’ve had 2 glasses of water
I’ve done my strength work out
I cut the fat of my gammon
I’ve had 5 portions of fruit and veg

That’s it from me people. Stay safe, stay well.

6th April – Feeling drained

Hey all, hope you are keeping well.

Today has been quite a rough day. I had just over 5 hours sleep, so have felt worn out all day. On top of this, still on, and pains from years ago becoming worse 😦

Looking forward to seeing mum and Chelle later, we’re having a video call 🙂

Ok, as nothing else really going on, let’s get on with the daily details.

Sleep – urgh!

Fluid – 200ml milk, 1 glass of water, 3 cups of tea. I’ll have another glass of water this evening.

Food – started the day with my usual 40g nuts and 90g dried fruits

Apple, mango, dates, strawberries, pineapple, banana, cherries, raisins, almonds, pistachio, macadamia, brazil, cashew and peanuts

We had some bread about to turn, 2 slices and the ends, so we had cheese on toast for lunch, spread with garlic puree and mixed herbs and then cheese on top with a good slosh of Worcester sauce! very tasty!

Remember the chilli from last week? Reheated that last night with the chopped up sausages from weekend breakfast and lamb from last night, then today Paul reheated about two thirds of it tonight and cooked up some basmati rice, so we basically had a very filling free dinner tonight – WOOHOO for wasting nothing!

Exercise – yes, it was hard work today, I felt absolutely worn out and physically uncomfortable, but I did do a 45 minute walk. So no great shakes on speed or distance, but still, exercise done!

That’s all I’ve got to tell you tonight.

Stay safe.

Bye 🙂

5th April – Another lovely day!

Good evening all, hope you are keeping safe and well.

Here in our little part of the world the sun has been shining all day!

Our food has not been brilliant today, however I refuse to feel upset about this, we enjoyed our food, and actually treating ourselves to a roast dinner this evening just made me feel like the world was normal for a little while.

We watched a few Dr Whos this morning, Matt Smith ones. He is definitely my favourite Doctor, though I do love all of them! Also love Jodie Whittaker – so great to have a female Doctor Who!

It wasn’t until we started talking about going out for a walk that I remembered the situation out there, it was nice to have some reprieve.

Pains are not quite so bad today, even the worrying pains recurring from a few years ago are not as severe today!

So what happened with my day…

Started the day with a cup of tea and two healthier hot cross buns with real butter.

Watched Doctor Who.

Went for a walk. We decided to do the same walk I did yesterday, however we needed to cut it short a bit (needed the loo!)

Mine and Paul’s trackers do not match, as per usual! Below are our two trackers:

I reckon my walk yesterday was about 6.5km in total as the walk I did yesterday was a good 800m more than today! Still 5.7km today is pretty cool – not the 11km we should be doing, but still a good walk!

This afternoon Amy and Katie popped down for a natter – it’s nice they only live a couple of doors away, it means we can see them without being anywhere near each other. definitely adhering to the 2m distance!

This evening we had lamb, roast spuds and cauliflower with gravy for dinner.

Remember the chilli we had for dinner a couple of days ago? we added the chilli, left over meat from dinner today and remaining cooked sausages from breakfast yesterday morning (was a pack of six, we used four for breakfast) to a pan, reheated and simmered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, that will do us another meal in the next couple of days, and probably a lunch too!

Now I’m relaxing, another hour and i’ll be thinking about going to bed.

I’m not looking forward to this coming week, another week of sitting in front of pc’s. Waiting for work to come in is very boring! I read somewhere that furlough has to be for a minimum of three weeks, so I guess if Liz and I can swap (which I sincerely hope for) that it might not be for another couple of weeks yet. ah well. Hot water bottle!

Good night all. Stay safe if you can.

Sam – Slow Cooker Curry

Thanks Sam for the interest in the slow cooker curry, Paul’s given me his recipe :). Recipe gives two decent plates of food.

INGREDIENTS

1 x onion – chopped
0.5 bulb of garlic – chopped
3 x frozen lamb chops – defrosted and diced (about 300g of any meat – as slow cooking, cheap cut will be fine – we just used what we had)
6 x small mushrooms
100g curry paste from a jar (a decent tang – not mouth burning)
1 x tin chopped toms
1 x tablespoon oil

120g basmati rice cooked to instruction – usually about 10 mins and drain (Paul likes basmati rice, I like brown rice – healthier than basmati – both will work fine for this)
1 x tablespoon oil
2 x eggs
soy sauce

RECIPE

heat oil in pan – medium heat
add onion and garlic – 2 minutes
stir in curry sauce – 2 minutes
add lamb and mushrooms and stir till meat browned
add all from pan and chopped tomatoes to slow cooker
slow cook on high heat for 4 hours

Rice can be cooked and stored ahead of time (airtight container in fridge) If not cooked ahead, start this bit about 15 mins before end of slow cooker time

Cook rice as per instruction
drain rice
heat oil in pan
add eggs and stir to start scrambling
add soy sauce as eggs thicken
add rice and mix well

Serve and enjoy

Enjoy your meal Memes and quotes. Discover Bubsimouse food pics ...

4th April – what a beautiful day!

Hi all, hope you are keeping well.

Today has been a good day on the whole.

Paul went for a bike ride today, and I decided to go for a walk. I wanted a long walk given that this would have been a day when we would be going for an 11k walk usually.

The day was perfect, sunny, a little bit breezy.

I had no particular plan to my walk, just go where my feet took me. Where I live is good because I can extend my walk as I’m going, and still be sticking to within the new rules of 2 miles within home.

So how exactly did my day pan out?

Well my sleep was appalling, thanks to mouth pain, ended up downstairs at about 4.30 in the morning, taking tablets and having a ciggie. I’d have made a cuppa, however the kettle would have woken Paul up.

Paul and I started our day with venison sausages in brown seedy bread. I gave up my beloved butter and had olive spread instead, and swapped my bbq sauce with healthier tomato sauce. Obviously there was tea, in fact there were 2 more teas during the day, but I also made sure I had a glass of milk.

Then we went out on our respective exercises. My tracker shows I did 5.8km in total, however that seemed short, turns out it was, and i’ll explain that in my next post – again, my tracker not perfect! In fact the tracker turned off at points, so I had to restart my workout!

However, over 80 minutes of walking. Walking listening to the birds, appreciating the lack of people and cars, watching as butterflies fluttering around. Feeling the sun on my face. It was a lovely walk, a walk for the sake of walking, not for trying to beat times 🙂

Here are my trackers.

During the afternoon, the girls came down and sat in my garden. It was lovely having a chat with them, and I’m pleased they had also gone out for a walk during the morning.

After the girls had left Paul and I had 90g dried fruits and 40g nuts, just to keep our 5 a day going as much as possible, and because they’re tasty 😀 We also had a cheese portion, giving me two portions throughout the day.

For dinner we had salmon with chips and sweetcorn and peas.

I had a can of pepsi max and then a glass of water during the evening.

I also fancied chocolate, and instead of having a square of our usual dark chocolate, Paul raided the cupboard with kid treats in, and we both had a Fredo each! i assumed they were a chocolate biscuit mix, not pure chocolate! It’s going to take a lot of will power now not to have the lot!!!!

I have had to take tablets throughout the day, and at points I’ve wondered whether to have my prescription tablets, but I really don’t want to unless I have to, but with every single pain and ache from the thighs up, it’s been hard to resist.

Anyway, that’s my Saturday.

Keep well folks.

3rd April – A good day!

Hey All, hope you and yours are all well.

Work was another rough day of staring at my computer, occasionally doing a bit of work. Paul and I have been playing scrabble online, he’s a cheat ladies and gents, he’s a total cheat! Words Paul has used today: Ous, Wof, Jai, Ki, Jin, Thar, Breve, Mook, Zoot… to name but a few!

I had the hot waterbottle all day easing my coccyx and lower back, much more bearable.

I am still dealing with the monthly!

My mouth is beginning to hurt quite a bit, my own fault, I haven’t been using the corsodyl gel morning and evening, which I should have done as off a couple of days ago! Needless to say, I’ll be more diligent with this from now on.

So what am I happy about today?

I have had a glass of water
I have had no pepsi max
I have been on a very good walk
I have not had any naughties
I have had milk and cheese – still not three dairy portions, but not bad for me

Ok, ready for the daily info?

Sleep – got up a few times, but the later get up time is definitely a positive for me, I don’t feel quite so knackered throughout the day.

Fluid – 4 cups of tea, 1 glass of water and 200ml milk.

Food – 40g natural nuts, 90g dried fruits, 1 cheese portion. For lunch we had a fried egg sarnie – 2 eggs each cooked in a couple of squirts of 1cal spray in two slices of seedy bread and butter with low fat/sugar ketchup.

Paul cooked chicken in a maggi bag with little onions and mushrooms, with peppers and courgettes oven cooked (frozen mix) and oven cooked spuds, some of which I left.

Exercise – Paul and I went for a decent walk tonight – we went quite late, however I’m glad we did as about 45 minutes after finishing dinner, my stomach definitely needed to visit the loo, and that would have stopped me from doing the walk I did! I’ve had to use Paul’s tracker, which is a lot more accurate than mine. Our time matches, however my distance shows as 5.72km, when we actually did 6.51km!

So all in all a good day. I’m now watching Peter Kay, great fun 🙂 Though Have I Got News For You was a bit strange with everyone being at home and watching them on individual screens. Still good fun though 🙂

Paul’s just brought in fat free greek yoghurt with honey and seeds! Well, at least that’s my three portions of dairy!

So all, have a good weekend.

Night