I cannot believe how quickly our three week stay-home holiday flew by! In a previous blog post, which you can read here, you would have seen that I had planned a few activities for the kids and I to do. We had three weeks of slow mornings, a few pyjama days, fun outings, play dates and I even managed to get a few walks in.
June saw my return to Root 44 parkrun. I was dreading going back, purely because of that hill. But the parkrun bug has bitten me, good and proper and I have even improved my personal best time to 55:35...which I am very happy with as it means a shaved off more than a minute. Some Saturday mornings have been absolutely FREEZING and this past one was wet and muddy, but I have loved every minute of it.
The grass was covered in ice on our first parkrun.
Those who have been following my blog from the beginning will remember that I came stone last in the first few parkruns I did in 2015. I am pleased to say that there are now about 90-100 people who cross the finish line after me. The day I walked my PB, I did it alone as my usual walking buddy is soaking up some sunshine in J-Bay for the holidays. However, having a friend to talk you through that loooong hill definitely makes it seem less painful (even if you cannot respond to their conversation because you need to concentrate on breathing), so hurry home, Lee! So I was so happy to see one of my besties, Ali, return to parkrun last Saturday. Even though we didn't walk together most of the way (Ali is training for a 10k race), it was good to know that she was there and waiting for me at the end.
Ali and I in the rain at the start of parkrun.
The kids went back to school yesterday, which meant that we can regain a little bit of routine. I will definitely miss the slower mornings and not having to pack lunchboxes but I love routine and my kids thrive when they know what's coming.
When I started walking again, I was cautious not to over-do it as I didn't want to hurt my foot again. So I stuck to the safety of walking laps around our school field. However, after completing parkrun now and realising that I can actually do it, I decided to try out the vineyards surrounding our school. That way I can also train on an incline to prepare for the parkrun hill. The elevation of the incline at school is 71m compared to that of parkrun which is 87m. So hopefully that will help me tackle my Saturday morning nemesis.
Halfway down the hill at school.
I have also been seeing Amanda on a weekly basis for a quick weigh in and every fortnight for an in depth session with her. A couple of weeks ago I hit a bit of a plateau with my weight. After consulting my GP, Amanda increased my Glucophage to 1000mg per day. This seems to have gotten the weight moving again. Last week I lost 600g and 7cm in total. I am happy with that. After all, this way of eating is a lifestyle for me now and not a diet...so I don't expect miracles overnight. I need to make a conscious effort every day to make healthier food choices. I can tell you, it was not easy during the holidays when we were out and about and everyone was eating delicious smelling slap chips or drinking chocolate milkshakes! But I survived!
My total weight loss since starting with Amanda is now 5.4kg and I'm not sure about the total centimetres....but I can definitely feel a difference in my clothes and generally feel so much better - emotionally and physically.
Until next time,
XX-L
