So the world didn't end, and I realise now I was totally remiss not to clean my house from top to toe and make a special visit to the boys bathroom left behind for people (sinners mostly) to comment on in case the rapture occurred and there was any kind of unclean activity in the bathroom area.  Anyway, all solved now until the actual real end of the world happens, which no one knows the date of so will just have to keep a toilet brush at the ready.....

Dare I even talk about my own run today?  Perhaps not.  I am, however, prepared to talk about my beetroot addiction. 

As you know, I have beetroot in some shape or form every day.  Shape or form mostly being juiced.

Today I tried roasting a beetroot in the oven.  It wasn't that nice.  A man in work swears by this recipe and to be honest I added my own flavour to it, but it wasn't really that nice.  So the plan was a bed of rocket, a roast beef, cooked rare and sliced finely, roasted beetroot sliced finely and a horseradish and cream sauce to dress.  The rocket, roast beef and horseradish sauce were all fab, but the roast beetroot was not great.  I wonder if I did something wrong, so if there are any beetroot roasting genius's reading this (and that is highly unlikely as I think I have a readership of two) could you please give me pointers.

I have been making my own beetroot and carrot juices and they have been amazing.  I am still totally addicted to beetroot juice, and I have never had clearer skin since I swapped my protein bars for vegetables.  Although sometimes my stomach doesnt know what to make of it all and I am able to leave silent but deadlies on the train at the very best moments, like when the fat smelly man sits down and opens his broadsheet newspaper right in my personal space whilst breathing yucky garlic over me......

Today 11km with Simon - it hurt.  Hip hurt, achilles hurt but I kept on.  Pleased with the run.  Then another 6.5km later today to pick up banjaxed car.  That really hurt.  By then achilles and hip had gone into protest mode.  Worried about tomorrows 26km trail run.......

IOMS

My dedication knows no bounds, and yesterday morning, yes, Saturday, I got up at 5.30am to meet Simon at the river at 6am to run.  This really has been my first flat road run in ages, up here it is impossible to find flat.  We did 11km and I ran much faster than usual (keeping up with Simon who has now become very fit).  I have had DOMS before, but I swear, I had IOMS (instant onset muscle soreness) afterwards!  The fronts of my thighs were burning!  So I did what any sensible woman would do and went back to bed for a few hours after the run.  This morning my legs felt like I'd run a marathon, so I took them, my hangover and the dog out for a 8km run which HURT - EVERYWHERE!!!

Last night I caught up with some girls I haven't seen for around 15 years.  We were all the "soccer wives" from way back when, and have lost contact over the years as life moves along.  Amazingly eye opening evening, hearing everyones stories.  One girl was a heroin addict for nearly ten years and basically lost 10 years of her life - can't remember a thing.   Another went through a marriage break up and moved cities.  Another had a daughter who played professional soccer and became a lesbian (I am not sure if I put that right - do you "become" a lesbian?) - another lost everything when her husband had an accident leaving him almost a paraplegic and unable to work again.  I think back on the last fifteen years and I have really been blessed.  Really lucky.  I might take the piss about the end of the world and all that but I am pretty certain there is someone up there taking care of me and for that I am very very grateful. 

1.7kg thanks to beetroot and tomatoes

So after feeling really really guilty because of Sundays pizza and wine (but hell, it was FUN!!!) I spent the week reminding myself at every given opportunity that my arse was way to big and only sensible food intake and careful choices would get me back on track. 

So - a couple of months ago I picked up a little book called Slim for Life.  Aspirational title.  Anyway reading it makes a lot of sense.  And it is stuff we all know.  Shit like sugar makes your legs go wobbly and crave more sugar.  Sugar is the devil.  Sugar is really the key to everything.  And starch, but to a lesser degree.  So this week I have devoured the labels of everything to assess sugar content.  And, result.  1.7kg off my rather rotund arse.  Actually I have no idea where it came from,  but it is gone. 

I am proud to say despite my 3 hours of train travel daily, the freeezy frosty temps and life in general, I have still managed to get out for three runs this week and plan two at the weekend, am meeting the HC tomorrow for a run early in the morning and will do my fave local trail run Sunday - so that is good and I have been doing weights at home just as an incidental thing - a few squats with the pump bar before my shower in the morning, a few bicep curls before bed, AND I HAVE DONE MY PHYSIO BUM EXERCISES EVERY DAY.  My bum is the key to everything.  My glute muscles, despite being FUCKING HUGE are really fecking lazy.  So Physio reckons if I "fire up" (his words) the glutes, I will stop getting injured.  So religiously doing exercises each night.  Sick of running with pain.  Looking back, I was soooo lazy when uninjured.  I should have done more when I could.  Anyway, according to the Zealots, tomorrow is the end of the world and we will all be either sent to hell or raptured up to heaven.  Personally, I don't classify myself as "The Meek" so I guess I know where I am going.  At least it will be warm.....
Until tomorrow......

Biosolids - putting me firmly off "out of the punnet" nibbling....

A mixture of a hangover, a gently nagging hip, a loudly complaining soleus and sub zero temps made this mornings run rather unpleasant, but even a totally crap run is better than no run at all and I arrived home with very pink cheeks, a runny nose and the radiant feeling that I might have made some kind of dent on last nights excess, not that I can remember much after the second bottle of red was produced from a bag under the table.  I do recall someone asking me to order a medium pizza rather than a small so we could share, and then quietly snorfing the lot of my own before anyone even got a chance to sample it.  Tonight Curtis advised me that upon returning home I proceeded to finish off his not very secret stash of mint chocolate and I found a half finished glass of vodka....so whatever good intentions I had at the weekend of eating clean and excercising and generally utilising more calories than I injested was an abject failure.  All that fecking porridge and brown rice was a total waste of time.

So - where are we this week?  Starting the week feeling the usual guilt at overindulging at the weekend and declaring the week to be DRY (again) and fruit, veggies and protein (and of course fecking porridge) to be the only thing to pass my lips. 

I might have to re-connect with my beetroot fixation, or at least find a veggie juice that isn't such a bright colour that could harbour clot like substances in it murky midst.  And all that guff in the papers about biosolids really put me off eating my Romatherapy Tomatoes straight out of the punnet.....

Chilly times

Despite the fact I am sitting her typing this in my undies, it is actually the worlds coldest day ever here in the FOOTHILLS of the Blue Mountains (god forbid should I refer to my place of residence as "The Mountains" - it's makes the REAL mountaineers very upset indeed.)  Anyway, up in the REAL mountains (as opposed to these pretend suburbs) it is currently SNOWING. 

Anyway, weekend training went much better after a visit to Mr Very Clever Physio Man - I managed 11km on Saturday and felt really good throughout the run, although I did stop and have a stretch halfway through.  Then Sunday I did the same 11km but didn't feel quite so good, but still a heap better than before my leg got put back where it belongs.  Then Monica and I did a 2.5hr hike up stairs and mountains and the like, so Monday was always going to be interesting, and yes, I do think I overdid it - but man - it was such BEAUTIFUL weather and sparkling sunny crispy days that you just HAVE to get out into.  Anyway, I have a new favourite spot.  It is a lovely little sun trap on a trail about ten minutes from home.  It overlooks a valley and you could literally be in the middle of nowhere, but it is five minutes from suburbia. 

The only thing about my new favourite spot is being a sun trap, I think the local serpents might also favour it, so need to be specially careful.

Life at the Oir Tee Aye continues to amuse, except today I have a horrid horrid experience, and one that may hinder my new found love of beetroot smoothies.  You can get a beetroot, carrot, celery and parsley juice made up on the spot, or you can buy an already made up one.  I have had such a longing for them, I have been buying two every morning.  I love them.  Correction.  I LOVED them.  Todays offering looked odd from the get go.  I opened the lid and there was like stringy membranes from the lid to the bottle.  Odd.  But I persevered.  I took a deep swig of my new favourite drink.  Well, you know the consistency of a juice.  It is viscous and watery and JUICY.  What I had in my mouth had the consistency of a blood clot.  It was like a took a swig and a whole lot more that was joined on to it made its way into my mouth.  A blood clot is the only thing I can think of to describe it.  It was truly horrible.  Both bottles went in the bin and I did a bit of half vomity carry on and had to have some chocolate to forget the sensation.  Urrrghhh.  Yucky poo poo.  So my love affair with juiced vegetables is well and truly over.  I couldn't even face my punnet of tomatoes this morning after the previous red food had been so revolting.  I am going to have to find a new gimmick and given that this is North Sydney, that probably won't be hard.....

Secret Squirrel

I wasn't all that thrilled when I realised my name could be googled and anyone could read my waffle here.  Especially when my name is all over official govt letters.  And I was taking the piss a bit of a certain Oir Tee Aye.  But I think I have fixed that now.  So I can get right back down to poking fun at them again.

Actually, I have been very very surprised by the sorts of people I am now working with.  I don't think I have seen one cardigan, let alone a grey one.  For the most part, everyone is lovely, committed to their jobs and are pretty relaxed whilst trying to juggle some real challenges.  I say 'for the most part' because there is an exception to every rule - isn't there, people who sent out the Kiki letters? 

So anyway, today I ran 11km!!!  And I didn't feel like my leg was attached around the wrong way which was sort of how it was feeling before.  The last few weeks I haven't stopped running, but certainly my normal 6.5km night time run felt like a freaking marathon because nothing was working right or in the right place.  Today felt so much better.  Not only was I manipulated and prodded and pushed back into shape, I also have my hips strapped up.  It looks very glamorous, I can tell you.  But it is "meant" to be holding them in the right place. It just looks like a home made tummy tuck.

The achilles did get sore and so did the hip, but I stopped and had a stretch and a listen to the birdies in the forest and it was ok.  I now have a fantastic optimistic feeling that everything is going to be ok.  All last week, because I was afraid I was going to end up the size of a house with no running, I ate more vegetables than I think I ever have in my life.  I have discovered beetroot, celery, parsley and carrot juice and there is a juice bar in the basement of our building.  So I am having two of them a day.  I think I am now addicted.  And for morning tea a punnet of little romatherapy tomatoes.  I am eating really well at night too and NO DRINKING.  Well, until last night when I found Johns stash of crunchies and despite having to climb up on a barstool and hang on to the top of the fridge, I managed to scale all obstacles and stuff two in my mouth. Well, it WAS Friday. 
So all in all, feeling much better about the possibility of maybe being able to train for something.  Chris in work showed me where the shower and lockers were and said I could come on a lunchtime run with him next week, so I am going to bring some stuff in and leave it there, so if I am having a quiet day (it does seem unlikely, but you never know) then I can sneak some exercise in during the day which would be FAB.  So on a scale of Madonna to Roseanne Barr I think I can say I am feeling lots more positive.

My physio is a genius

Went to see him about the dodgy hip.  He can "find" the strangest things, not sure what he was looking for, but he did mention "the vortex" - anyway he found a spot on my thigh and manipulated it until whatever was misbehaving was released.  He appeared to be putting my pelvis back in place with what looked like a seatbelt.  He did some other stuff and made me pull my knee up to my chest.  First time I did it before he did anything, it hurt on the hip.  The last time he got me to do it after doing all this manipulation, it wasn't sore.  Genius!!  Anyway, the hip is not fixed but the bits and pieces that were tight and making everything in the wrong place appear to be back where they should be (there is a spot on your bum cheek called your piriformis - he had a go at that - amazing the difference it made once "released".)  Anyway I think I need a good sports masseuse to do this sort of thing when I get tight and sore before it sends everything skew whiff. 
The plan going forward is to get my bum muscles working better and I have exercises for that, and stretches for the hip.  The only thing I shouldn't be doing is running down steep hills (think Mitchells Pass) otherwise I am good to do as much as I want.  Happy days.  Going to test it out right now!!!  One happy camper.

Trains

Those intercity trains should really have an overhead locker for people to put their bags in.  And perhaps a drinks cart after 5pm.  It would be great for Commuters (who now deserve a Capital C, as they demand a new respect from me, putting up with pushing and shoving and other peoples smelly breath and people taking both elbow rests and people kicking the back of your seat). 

Somedays

Some days are just better than others.  Today is such a day.

Progress

We went to the pub at lunchtime.

Moxy Fruvous - My Baby Loves a Bunch of Authors

This is fab and silly andwill stick in your head......

Shopping Ultra

My legs feel like I have done the long version of the North Face or climbed the Matterhorn, but in reality, yesterday I had a shopping ultra.  I shopped from 1pm to about 5.30 in stilettoes OH MY GOD the new Westfields in Pitt Street - shops I have only read about in magazines and that NEW BUILDING smell - shopping mecca - heavenly.  But by god the feet were sore and I organised to have a beer with a girlfriend and I was thinking that walking up Hunter Street, I might not make it, and I don't ever recall my feet being this sore in any long run. - THEN we had our night out with the gang from Novartis at the Argyle and THEN we were so drunk we got lost walking back to the hotel so now my feet are good for nothing except being immersed in a bucket of hot soapy water and being pampered by a small Thai lady wielding tangerine body scrub and a loofah.

The Who Horrorscope continues to amuse, this week being cited a good week to GET MARRIED!  Right, now where did I put that Decree Nisi?  Mind you, it appeared to mistake a "romantic prosposal"  for a tongue pash - when I leaned in to kiss someone on the cheek goodbye and the action was misread.  By about five hundred miles.  Maybe getting married is too literal and I will be married to my new job, or get a piercing or some other life long appendage.

Anyway the challenge now is to get my sore and tired self out for a run before tonights entertainment starts!

Normal Service Resumed

Got over being sad really quickly and bounced back to my normal self now.  This morning met up with Simon at 5.30 am (yes, on my day off!!!) and ran down Mitchells Pass with him - he was going on to run round the river, so I ran back up on my own.  It was pitch black, raining, and frankly, very goddamn creepy!!  There are no street lights, no houses and a large drop down one side.  Fear of the bogey man spurred me on to run as fast as I could up there, I will be honest and say I was terrified.  No more running around dark spots at this time of the morning. 

However, being back out there did feel fantastic, despite my old bits still being old and silly.  My hip really hurts and my achilles is still banjaxed.  I think the hip is related to the achilles as it is on the same side.  I think I need to resume the old core stability work.

So - yesterday was my last day at Novartis and today I am unemployed for a day and Monday I start the new contract with the RTA.  I was driving into work (on the M2 which took an hour an a half because everyone was slowing down to look at the people standing at the bus stop) and had a call from one of the reps which set me off and I spent a good 15 mins in the car having a cry.  However, being determined not to ruin my mascara was a great motivator to pull myself together so by the time I got into the office I was happy having got all that girly crying business out of the way in the car.  Did all my stuff, left just after lunch and treated myself to an afternoon getting a pedicure and some waxing, then came home and had a nanna nap.  What better way to finish off a really enjoyable contract?  Plus they bought me VODKA!!  And choccies!! 

So my new adventure starts Monday!  But for now - back to bed!!!

Training

Sunday - 7km
Monday - 8 hilly kms
Tuesday - 6.5km
Wednesday - fuck all.  Wallowing in a massive big wad of sadness and music and vodka. Feel like I am right down the very bottom of a large hole.  Knew I should run, knew it would make me feel better, but didn't.  I am very shite.

Farrrrkkkkk!!

Then this week got BUSY!!!  Yay it got busy, in all sorts of ways.  Running came back to life.  Simon came back from Adelaide and we ran together and for the first time in ages he was all fit and fast and I was all slow and sore.  Gotta fix that.  And I went back to PT classes and I did runs on my own at night and I can feel my calves hardening up again, so that is good.  A lady stopped me at the ATM machine in the pub last week and said she had to tell me how great looking my calves were.  Probably a Blue Mountains Lezzo but still.  It was a compliment.


Farrrrk!  The Who Magazines' horrorscope was right!!!  I would be the recipient of a "Romantic Proposal" - unfortunately it did not specify from whom, and whether it would be reciprocated!!! 

I got a job!!!  OK OK it is a Contract, and is initially for 3 months but it is exciting and new and really far away and I will have to get a train into the big smoke and I have never worked in the City before and I am quite excited / nervous / thrilled / shit scared.  The job itself is really exciting and I suppose the really positive experience I have had with contract work at Novartis has helped me be a little more confident about my ability to walk into something completly new but still make a difference.  So thank you lovely little Company.  I am really going to miss my little job there and all my gorgeous colleagues and friends.  I am saying goodbye to everyone in stages because our team is so spread out and it is odd to be hugging people goodbye every day for three weeks.  Anyway, Thursday is my last ever day and then on Friday we are having a big night out in the city which should be fun.  And I am going to shop Friday afternoon.  Happy days.  But I feel like crying when I think about not being there any more because I really loved everyone.  The job was ok too.  But on the other hand I am more excited than I can remember about starting a new job with this new one.  Maybe contracting is for me.  I like the challenge of new things, and I do get bored a little too easily.  If I could line them up one after another I think I could be very happy and it would keep me well out of mischief.

Have been gettng my arse out on the pavement too, although having had three weeks of colds, flus and viruses has meant that I am not in top form and strangely despite the big rest, my achilles is still very sore.  I am very very scared about this big race which is in about three weeks time, but will keep training as hard as I can and hope to God my fitness returns for the big day.  This weekend have Woodford to Glenbrook with Monica although we are taking it easy as she has a big one on Saturday.  Simon is sending gloating text messages about how fit he now is and I am running with him tomorrow, hello pain.  How the tables have turned, for a while I was fitter than he was.  Farrrrkkkkk!!!

So all in all, training back on track, job situation on track, nice weekend with the Leader of the Opposition in the Southern Highlands, Offspring bouncing back from a pretty difficult time.  All in all, things are good. 

The Week That Wasn't

So - what happened this week?  Not bloody much, except some germs came to visit, no sooner had I banished the head cold, another creepier one appeared, this time sporting very sore throats, sore heads and strangely still, sore legs.  And I hadn't run now for THREE WEEKS!!!  Farkity fark that is the longest in ice ages.  In fact since I had the now famous bout of swine flu. 

However, today I finally felt better after a lovely sleep in following on from a wonderful night out with the girls last night.  I might add it was wonderful because I was home and in bed by 11pm.  But J9 had some of her friends turn up so it was a nice mix of old and new and my throat is sore from laughing.  Good for the soul.

So I decided to run to the pub and get my car.  I took my trusty friend Buffy, who was looking at me beseechingly saying PLEASE MUMMY TAKE ME WITH YOU.  At least I THOUGHT that is what her big sad brown eyes were saying.  Clearly I was mistaken.  We ran to the pub, got the car, got in, and Buffy boked up her breakfast in three large chunks all over the nice leather interior of my car.  Hmmmm, I forgot to mention that Buffy got the leftover lasagne with the pasta and cheese bit that appeared to have been epoxy welded together and only a chisel could part them.  So the beseeching eyes were really a "mummy I feel sick" and not "can I come on a run with you".  You live and learn.

But I feel good for having run and will go again tomorrow.  I have missed it but somehow I couldn't find the energy to go.  So happy now that I didn't feel destroyed and had that big ENDORPHIN smile on my face today.

In other news, I have given up on the Who Magazines Horrrorscope predictions.  Last week WASN'T a good week for signing contracts or entering into agreements and quite frankly, I don't believe this week I should "prepare to be amazed" or be the recipient of a romantic proposal.  So, despite their advice to throw away the rule book, I will be keeping the rule book firmly in my sights thank you very much. 

Where will you be five years from today?

I bought a book with this title.  It is not a self help book but a series of thought provoking questions and statements.  When you are in a time of change in your life, you go for this kind of shit.  Trust me. 

Anyway, one of the questions was " List five people who can help you achieve your dreams and goals".  And I couldn't think of one, let alone five. 

What is life for?  It is for you.  And at the moment, it is just me.  On my own.  Scary.

Todays Random Thoughts.

• What is so freaking difficult about filling a prescription?  Why does it take forever?  Don't they just stick a sticker on the box and be done with it?  
• I like running with Monica because she smells nice.  
• My personal trainer annoys me.  I understand goal setting and the like - but sometimes life gets in the way.  My conscience is enough of a guilt trip so back off.
• Am I mad enough for this job?
• I'll never do a sprint triathlon. 

Resistance is futile

According to the Who Magazines horoscopes this week, lots of stuff is going to happen (again, the fault of uranus) but they said RESISTANCE IS FUTILE!!!  The horoscope equivalent of "Suck it up Princess".  So that is going to be my motto for the week.

This week I have done NO RUNNING AT ALL!!  None!  Two weekends in a row on Six Foot Track and some time trials and my achilles were jingling and jangling and my legs in general have been jumpy and sore.  And to top it all off I have a headcold.  And anyway, quite frankly, I had better things to do this week.  So next week I am going to dive back into it head first, with the benefit of a rest week behind me. 

But now - a nap!

Uranus. Revisited.

Judging by the stats here, people from all over the world are reading my blog.  Which is really quite freaky.  Tonight I read that people from  Mexico, India, Germany and even South Australia were reading!!!  Wooo hooooo!!!  I think they are doing word searches such as "shite"  "crap"  "slayer" and "shag"....heheheh I am really quite evil.....

Another el bizarro week....but this time for different reasons.  Like I feel in control and the Who Magazine Stars tell me that is because Uranus is aligned with something.  I can't quite remember what.  Might have been Pluto.  Or perhaps someone elses anus.  Regular readers will recall my reliance on The Who magazines' stars for determining my future and the meaning of life in general.

Anyway, they did say something profound would happen this week and it did.  I came to my senses!!!  That's pretty profound!!!!  I always like a bit of coming to my senses.  Quite different to my usual "cloud cuckoo land" as my mother used to describe it.  But tonight I feel normal.  In charge.  Like I know what is going on and I can control it.  Might be a temporary thing, but things seem clearer in my mind.  Which is a start.