Day 90 - It's just the beginning

Day 90 (Rather Day 92!) - It's strange, that this is the day I look forward to so much, the driving force to push on. Now that it's here (or was here), I really miss it. I miss the routine and I miss the food. Rather, over the last few days of "indulgence" (not exercising and not weighing out my food), something is amiss. I felt kind of crappy and unease. I do not know if it's physiological or psychological, somehow, somewhat, I just feel weird these days.

Anyhow, this 90-days challenge is really quite cool, and aside the physical change, the PCP had brought about more realization on myself that am sure, will help me in my future endeavours.

1) Discipline - Outside in vs Inside out
I am not a very disciplined person. That was one reason why I took up the PCP. Health had always been an important aspect to me, but knowing and doing something about it is just a different ball game. Everyone knows that good eating habits and exercising are vital to keeping healthy. But who does it consistently? I for one had been feeding on my self-motivated strength to keep up a program, but the sustainability is doubtful. Hypothesizing that an outside-in approach could work better on me than a self-perpetuated/motivated one, I signed up for the PCP. It's interesting how this could work wonders - I realized that my accountability to someone else's requests outweighs accountability to my own requests. PCP's rules are far more demanding than if I had set rules for myself, yet, I was able to keep up to 90% of the program. Now, this is warped, (this lack of self love is intolerable). All I can say is, the Outside in approach hypothesis is proven. From henceforth, I need to feed on this momentum towards an Inside-out approach :)

2) Public declaration / support / reminder
My PCP had been a topic for the past 3 months. Or at least my BHAG of 6-packs had been talk of the town in my little community of family/friends. Making the public declaration had helped me throughout this process as everyone around me knows my intention and it's cute how people around me got involved in the process unknowingly. They started to take note of my "deviation" when I missed my exercise or if I had not taken my protein shake and started to question when I took up an offer of (someone's else's birthday) chocolate cake. They even celebrated my progress as we counted down the days left when I could finally join them for an indulgence (yes, I was entitled to 2!). It's lovely to see the involvement and I believe that the first step to make it public had allowed me to really focus on the process. Either via outside pressure or inside guilt, the fact that everyone knows about it means I got to make it work to my best ability!

3) Not-too-short term project.
90 days is good. It's not too short, and not too long. A period that needs strong commitment yet, it allows a foreseeable breather as I know it's not that long. The 90days challenge set a pace to my life, it's like, counting down to something tangible, makes it easier to track. I am able to see progression, and pace myself. I believe that's what people meant when they say "set a goal" and "break it down into chew-able size". That's what PCP is about for me. Set the goal of Six-Packs and start taking it a day at a time. Though I am still working towards my goal, along the way, I can see progression on my physique and strength. There's also breaks for celebration (indulgence!) and pushing towards my goal had been a main source of conversation and focus for the past 3 months! Possibly, that's why now I feel a tad lost and missing the daily mails that I get to help me focus on the end goal :) Moving forward, I am looking at more of such "not-too-short/long term" projects/challenge that I can embark on!

4) Finishing Strong
I realised that I am not a strong finisher. Towards the end of the PCP, I find myself letting me go a bit, which is, disappointing. It may be due to the birthday hype/celebrations (yeah, last week was my birthday week!) so that took focus away as I celebrated over dinners (there goes my weighed meals!) and skipping my exercises to chill out with friends after work. Okok, excuses, but I do notice that I have a great tendency to start gungho and towards the end, things dwindle down. Tsk tsk. Starting strong is as important as finishing strong. As I gained awareness on this gap, it is important for me to remind myself constantly and be firmed to close this gap in my next project / challenge!

5) PCP Community support
All in all, I couldn't have push thus far without the guidance of Patrick and my fellow PCPers. I do believe this PCP community, who was going through or had gone through the same process, displayed empathy and support towards one another's journey. I am really glad that I took this on as I had learnt from others and enabled my growth. I will continue my endeavor towards my Peak-er condition and maintaining it as I believe strongly that that's the support system to living my best self.

It's been a wonderful journey and I am truly grateful for this awesome experience!

THANK YOU!!!!

Day 84 - Body Fat %

I had not measured my weight / fat% during the course of my PCP. The only way I could tell if there had been a progress was via 1) visual (from the photos that I took every week) and 2) My clothes size (my jeans are looser, so it's time to buy new clothes!)

A friend sent me a link to a body fat content test - no harm giving it a shot. I counted mine, 17.3%! That brings me out of the category of "below average asian women" and into "top athletes"! Haha, 3 cheers for PCP :)

Day 83 - One week dash!

I think my mantra for the next week is " I AM FINISHING IT - GREAT!!" It's only one more week to the end of my 90 days PCP challenge! Humans are really creatures of habits - it felt incredulous that 83 days had passed yet it seemed like just recently that I had started the PCP. The habits on diet and exercise are somewhat integrated into my daily life - even if there's a moment of letting go to have a handful of sweet delights (chocolates!!) or contemplating if it's too late to start my skipping (at 1230am), the continuous routine that had been instilled allowed decisions to be made at such moments easier. It's much easier to weigh the consequences of doing something un-PCP and action in the rightful manner, or bearing (with greater clarity) the outcome of whatever "un-rightful" action taken.

So for the last Tuesday of light skipping, I am all ready to go full on on the last week of challenge!

Bring it on!

Day 82 - I am not an Athlete

Well, I am not an Athlete - that doesn't mean I will not keep my fitness in tiptop condition. I like the adrenaline rush after my jumps and I love the burn after the last set of each exercise. I like perspiration pouring when I work out and to know that my body is working really hard. I love conquering the lethargy and drag myself to put on my running shoes to start my jump and I love the lightness on completing the last set of exercise for the day. Though I am not an Athlete, I love what I do, to keep myself in peak condition.

Keep up the good work PCPers, work for your cause :)

Day 78;79;80;81 - Sustainability

I know it's the last lap, and I am doing my best to keep up the intensity on my diet and exercises. It felt kind of weird when I said "10 more days to go!" when asked by my peers "how long more are you doing this?". It felt too fast and the next daunting questions from them would be "what are you going to do after this program?" "Are you going to continue this?" etc. I had the same thought - how am I going to make this sustainable? (Especially when I am faced with my favourite rice crackers and chocolates).

I must keep the faith - this journey had somewhat re-tuned my alertness on "bad" food and there is a need for continual awareness of what I am putting into myself. At least now, when I see fast food, the impulse to gorge the soggy fries had subsided. As for the exercise, I am really glad that it had been made portable and no-frills. Momentum is now needed to keep it going.

Day 76 + 77 = Pace up!

My neck's fixed! Woot woot! Went to a chinese physician for a session of acupressure treatment and it's back on track! Though it's just jumps today (I love Tuesdays!), I did the strength training section that I missed out on yesterday. Can't tell you how glad I am that my body is working as a whole again!

Sometimes, I just take the every micro movement I make for granted, like being able to turn my neck to see what's on my side or even walking effortlessly to point A to point B (something much appreciated when I sprain my ankle). Our ability to do just day to day stuff is often overlooked till something happens to remind us of it. It's pretty amazing how our bodies operates and function so seamlessly. Time to give thanks and I am so very glad I can pace up in the last 2 weeks of PCP with my neck fixed!


*beams*

Day 74 & 75 - Slow down

I just sprained my left neck-shoulder, or at least pulled it during the legs-ups yesterday. It hurt when I look down and I could not turn to look to the sides without turning my whole body. It felt like my neck was stuck!

Woke up this morning and my upper back and shoulder was froze up. Ironically, the pain went away when I worked out - guess getting my body "warmed-up" helped ease the tension. But alas! Once I'm done and my body cooled down, the naggy pain struck again.

Boy oh boy, how one appreciates the function of the body only when one gets hurt! At least now there's incentive to do my jumps - pain will go away!

Day 72 and 73 - Surrealism

Sometimes, life is just too surreal, and I feel like I am standing on the verge of reality and lala-ness.

Things happened too fast and time zipped by too quickly. Sometimes, it's hard to keep track the events and people that whizzed by us.

The two days felt too long, chain of events from planning for my yoga course to changing it, comp-let-down to revival, people-come-people-go, pushing through the last burn to recovering in the next set. All is just like a pendulum swing - to and fro, continuous yet bringing about a new cycle when it seemed to end. I guess the only constant is change. Things change, people change, events change, I changed.

Changes are typical "I know" scenarios, yet when change comes, we're often taken aback and find it hard to embrace it.

Guess the only way to really live it up is to soak up the experience and live in the moment of joy/pain in gratitude. All changes that come are to bring about the best in us. There's no good or bad, only consequences that aid as a feedback to ourselves on how to better ourselves.

***

This reminds me of an old favorite of Dali's. . .

It's all about perspective.

Day 69, 70, 71 - Don't look back

The new exercise regime for the week is killer. KILLER! Interestingly, the new requirement for the shoulders today - DaVinci: 5 sets x failure - shifted my paradigm on how the mind can push further when there is no limit set. I was able to push on to 25 reps (the usual was 20 reps) till my face was scrunched up and there was tremendous burn in my shoulders. Reach for the sky and you'll touch the tree top!

The power of mind.

Otherwise, jumps are getting easier and after watching a video on rope jumping, I even did different kinds of jumps in between my regular jumps. It's kind of nice to think about nothing else and just jump/skip along - therapeutic.

19 more days to go, there's no looking back now except to push on forward - full on!

Day 64, 65, 66, 67, 68 - Back in the game

When I see running number (of days) on my blog, that's a sign of laziness and ill-disciplined. For the past 2 weeks, I have been following my diet pretty much, missing my exercises probably once in every two days (that makes 2 times a week for 2 weeks in a row) and blogging once every 5 days (apparent from the latest 2 entries). This is unbearable. The last lap is always the hardest, just like the last set in every exercises in PCP, it takes much more to complete. This is like the last dash before the finish line and I find myself dwindling in spirit. It seems like the inertia is getting greater when I would expect it to be easier to just push on.

I reverted to morning exercises. Made myself wake up to jump and finished my sets for the day.

It's only 22 more days to go. I do not want to waste any more of my PCP period wallowing in this negativity!! I am back in the game! It's gonna be full on for the next 3 weeks!!!

Day 59.60.61.62.63 - Computer Hangover

My computer went dead. I was not able to boot up my parallel and it's annoying. Sometimes, it's a slap in the face when I realised how dependent I am on certain things in life and their failure brought annoyance to my state.

Anyhow, a rant. My discipline on exercise is also proportionate to the emotional/mental (down) state caused by my computer failure. Staring at the clock now past midnight and I had yet to start my workout.

Must push on. ARRGGHHHH.

Day 58 - Pushing through Push Up and Curious Case of Couscous

Finally!!! I managed to push through 4sets of push ups without a single push up with my knees on the floor! Woot woot!!

My first attempt on cooking couscous after 2 months of bread/pasta/wraps. After scalding my broccoli, I added some miso paste to the water (yap, rich with dissolved minerals that had sneakily seeped out of my broccoli), and poured the couscous into the miso stock. Not a very successful attempt as the couscous looks a bit - uhm - sticky/damp. Think there's too much water *shrugs*.

However, the taste was great! I am going to test it out again till I get the water-to-couscous proportion right!

Day 57 - Jump Trance

The timed jumps sent me into a trance these days. I am just breathing, focusing on every jump, doing my best not to get annoyed with any hicks and trips - just continuous jump, hop, skip. The tapping sound when the rope hits the ground coincides with my breathe and heartbeat. Indeed, jump trance. Till of course, the alarm goes off on the 4th minute.

Upon reflecting on the jumps, I saw a correlation with my life pace these weeks. My days just zipped by and I was just so caught up in the passing activities and getting myself physically and mentally challenged that, upon stepping back now, I actually have little clue what I had done.

That's scary.

Then again, probably like the jumps, when I am in the moment, focusing on every skip, I had made subtle changes to my body which I had not given credit to. When the alarm sounded and all ceased, I should be glad that it had passed, and each hop/skip/jump had made a mark somewhere. So I guess, the activities that had passed and been experienced in the past weeks may not have effects that were apparent then and now, but they had shaped me somehow along the way.

Day 56 - Connectedness

Today, I saw and felt gratitude in someone's eyes and tone. It was lovely. Truly, one of the most amazing moment is to feel that resonance of gratefulness in me and others.

When I saw her walked away despondently, head hung low and making a resolution under her breathe on her determined next step, my heart sank. I ran to her and was delighted (and privileged!) to break the great news to her in eagerness. The startled look on her face immediately lit up in brilliance.

Joy is infectious.

The indescribable connection of one's within with without.

*beams*

Day 55 - Roll on!

This is a lovely story by Shel Silverstein and it had been one of my all time favourite. It serves as a reminder to me to take charge and not sit around waiting for other’s to make me complete or happy. Happiness begins with me.

I would like to share this with all and congratulate my fellow PCPers for taking charge of their own health/wellness/happiness!

Enjoy :)

Day 52, 53 (Fifty-trrreat), 54

Day 52 - Zonked out.
It's funny that when you get into the groove of a new habit and the routine gets disrupted, it's rather tough to adjust spontaneously. I get to go off earlier and by rational deduction, I would be able to get home earlier and do my regime. But uh-uh, I kind of felt "lost" and just willed away the time with other stuff till it's the usual timing of oh-it's-late-in-the-night-and-I-better-start-to-exercise.

I start to notice my eccentricity.

Day 53 - Indulgence.
I am a happy girl. Man, today, I went off with my friends to a local vegetarian restaurant for my FIRST meal out!!! Yes, in 53days, yours faithfully had been gorging her own creation of greens and carbs. It's ultra bliss.
My friends couldn't understand my delight as I savour every bit of my food. Well, it's a real treat. Something that I might had taken on a regular basis (it's common to eat out here) is now presented as an indulgent.

Ocean Bliss. Yeahhhhh.

And it comes with a fragrant plate of unpolished rice with long beans! And clear soup!!


To top it all up, a nice cold (non-alcoholic) wheat drink. *burp*

One word: Bliss :)

Day 54 - Back on track.
Today, didn't feel much "hang over" from the indulgence, but I do feel more achy than ever. The battle to wake up vs sleep in is a constant challenge I face these days. Reverted back to my evening exercising regime but bringing it an hour earlier so that I end the day before midnight. Going to make the changes of split workouts tomorrow on. Wish me luck :)

Day 51 - Victoria Secret

I was channel surfing a bit prior to my workout and VS fashion show was on! Now, for those who are not familiar with Victoria Secret, it is well known for its lingerie line and infamous for the annual fashion show (how do I know? Wiki!)

Looking at the "angels" do their walk on the runway without an iota of jiggle on their waist can be a clear motivation (or rather envy) for many. Since the start of PCP, I had understood that it must have taken such hard work and discipline to maintain their physiques. These models had earned my respect - kudos.

Day 50 - Wicked

Wicked wicked. The new set of exercise regime can kill! 5 sets!!! My shoulders nearly dropped off when I pushed through the last set of davinci. I could cry (yes Mel, you're not the only one!).

It's wicked. And guess what? This too shall pass - now, seated in front of my computer happily typing away, I could hardly recall the vein-popping instant as I willed my jello shoulders through the last shoulder fly.

The moment will pass. Grit my teeth and push through it. Shortly after, it'll be a forgotten pain and hello sweet burn.

* * *

In response to Mel's question on timed jump, my preference is for timed jump for now as I can just focus on jumping instead of counting. I set the alarm for 2 min and just jump away till it rang. I managed to jump faster too! Will observed the change as we work through 2min to 3 min etc. Update again!

Day 49 - 7x7

Gosh! It's been 7 weeks!! And it's Tuesday! Today wasn't the only-jumps day - made up for my lack of diligence 2 days ago by working out today :)

Today's energy level was much much better. I felt that the V-sit were more manageable and really getting into the groove of hey-gang-8-min-abs-workout.

I wonder what's up for tomorrow. Always love the anticipation in seeing what had evolved in my diet/workout plan.

Signing out! goodnight world :)

Day 47 to 48 - Confession

I crashed yesterday, yap, I felt totally exhausted when I got home. Under the weather and couldn't willed myself to the regime. Crashed till this morning and I went out without my jumps. Not sure if it's psychological, the whole day I just felt super restless and low energy. I am not sure if it's attributed to missing my exercise or missing my meals the day before or just simply exhausted.
Anyways, I felt totally out of it, unable to really pinpoint what was the cause.

Came home first thing in the evening - exercise! Now I can feel the energy rush. Wooah! I did the Kungfu abs today (suppose to be yesterday, but gonna shift day 47 regime to 48 and 48 & 49 to 49). My palms are hurting more than my abs (Cos my palms kept slipping!).

Any tips to the slipping? Gloves?

Day 46 - Saturdays

Generally, most people's Saturdays are the best days - no work, sleep in, chill.

My Saturdays are the exact opposite. It's one of the busiest day of the week and it's consistently the day that I'll miss out on my lunch / dinner! Today was one of those Saturdays, time simply zipped by and before I knew it, it was already dinner time AND my lunch was still tucked in my bag! Though I had planned out today in my head yesterday, somehow, when one event overrun and ate into the time of the consecutive event, I smell lunch only at dinner time. In the end, I didn't finish my afternoon snack and my night snack for the day.

Not that I am hungry or complaining, but I feel the lack of breather for myself. Tsk tsk.

Oh well, mental note to self - I need buffer time.

* * *

Anyhow, the split exercises are really working for me! It's really less of a mental block to know that I only have to jump and ab-ing in the morning. Makes waking up more enticing knowing that the next 20min is short and sweet.

Day 45 - 1/2 way mark

I will take some time to commemorate this special moment in time - the 1/2 way mark to completion of PCP!!

It's quite a feat to know that I had successfully crossed the half-way mark of due diligence in preparing my meals, exercising and blogging consistently! Somehow, it felt like I had been doing this for ages. Anyhow, it feels really refreshing to know that at best, I had been keeping well to my commitment in this endeavor :D

I am sure the next half of the journey will be a more challenging yet rewarding one. Brace on my fellow PCPers! We are in this, together. *ROAR*

Day 44 - Tangible results

Today, as I took my weekly photo, I was pretty disheartened to notice the little change over the last 2 weeks. I guess I look forward to tangible results especially after the hard work put in. I caught myself in the thought. Probably I am too impatient, possibly I am just too driven by the visual results.

Took a step back and thought about the intangible delights of embarking on this programme and upon reflection, there were pretty much a whole new positive habits formed on my diet, my fitness/energy level and my capacity to persist.

Sometimes, it's a challenge to focus on the intangible benefits. However, I reckon that it is vital to remind myself of these short term motivation/inspiration to move further. Maybe it's like the seedling just beneath the surface about to spring out. Just a little more push. All will blossom.

Day 42 and 43 - Sine Cosine Curves

Day 42 - Top of the peak, my favourite day of the week, Tuesday, blissful jumps - 1500.

Day 43 - Bottom of the pit, a new challenge, toughest part of the week, Wednesday, jumps and more challenging (understatement) sets of exercises.

A week felt like a climb from ground level to the summit. The ascent is tough, but the fresh whiff of wonderful air at the top is worth the climb. Just as I begin to enjoy the little breather of the week's end, the next day brings about a new set of challenge to grow.

Up and down, up and down. Many mountains to climb, each one getting tougher but the scene at the top gets better.

Onwards!

Day 41 - Reasons to Splits

Splits are gooooood! I am loving the morning burst of energizing jumps and 8-min Abs workout. My energy level is up in the day without feeling all jelly-O, fantastic!

I am also enjoying tuning down in the evening with strength training without feeling that I am overtly perked by the cardio workout.

Splits feel more rounded than rushing through my regime and I am able to focus more on each group of targeted exercises. :)

Woohooo!!

Day 39 & 40 - Morning Affairs

It been consecutive 3 days of working out in the morning. Brilliance! Gonna keep it going.
The new paradigm of splitting the workout into two segments works wonders! Today, I had only some time to spare before heading for a class. So, I decided to just do my jumps and the 8-min abs workout. This freed up sufficient time to have a proper breakfast instead of rushing off (if I had done the full regime). Coming back in the evening, I just had to complete my strength training.

Now, this is a brilliant split to help bridge my sleeping habit and early waking! I can now wake up a little earlier (instead of much earlier) to do my jumps and slowly, adjust on my waking habit to fit in the rest of the exercises in time to come! *beams*

Aside, the jumps are great endorphin dose to kick start the day :D

Day 38 - A Brand New Start

Ok, I had learnt my lesson. Today, I woke up earlier and really psyche myself up for a morning exercise. In my head, the only objective is to get through the regime in the morning. This is because:
1) I want to maintain my metabolism rate through the day.
2) It allows me to get an earlier rest (it's just too difficult to get to bed after exercising in the late night as my body is all awake!)
3) It minimizes and negates any possibility of not exercising cos it's just too easy to say, let me do it tomorrow!
4) It's just killer to do 2 sets of exercises in a day given the intensity now. Moreover, it's not effective and inconsistent (yes I hear you Patrick!)

There's gozillion reasons to do so, and whatever it is, I am glad I did it :)

Day 36, 37 - Doubleup

I never did learn the lesson of how a "just 5 min nap" can totally ruin the plans ahead. Yesterday, after getting home late and changed into my exercise gear, my mind just willed my body to "take 5 min nap" before I get outside to start my exercise. 5 min became 50min, and before I knew it, it was dawn!! This seemed to be a repeated matter for some time. Tsk. I am putting my head at how to minimize these as . . .

I need to double up my exercise in the morning and in the evening! Man, that's twice the hard work! Anyways, the pistol squats were killers! I felt my thighs BURN and turning jelly-like as I finished up my last set. Woooo and somehow, the exercises this week is really a big step change. I felt "strengthless" after the regime and my wobbly legs were screaming for support! Bicycle was tough too.

Two work outs in a day is not fun, uh-uh... but at least it cancels out the guilt.

Day 35 - Questions are the Answers

It had not been a great day, started off rushing to prepare my meals and rushing off to work, followed by long day of lessons and ended off with a nagging feedback.

Just not one of those high rara days.

I mean humans are creatures of rationalization. Me included. So I started reflecting on my day as I did my skipping - about how and why this happened to me, why am I so bleah bleah bleah (bad bad negative thoughts). I started to rationalize what happened and became defensive about my actions. In my mind, I was accounting and defending for my responses, giving entitlement to my reaction on the day's situation.

Then the skipping cleared my mind. I began to feel different towards my thoughts/rationalization. Instead of being defensive, I began to feel grateful for what had happened. I acknowledge my lack and took the feedback as a pointer to grow. I begin to question the value I can add to others through this experience and plan for my action to demonstrate the new understanding. It was a liberating moment :)

Truly, questions are the answers. If I change the way I question my day, the process can be a wonderful tool that will lead to a positive growth.

Day 33 till 34 - Sleep

I had been letting myself go on the blog, and had not been updating daily...tsk tsk.

These days, I am feeling rather lethargic, probably due to the lack of proper sleep. Been sleeping at wee hours like 2, 3am. Total flip of my unusual prompt discipline on my meals / exercise. The swing on the latter had been pretty smooth but am still struggling with resting early or waking up earlier for my exercises.

Sleep is my focus in this month. Apparently, I fare rather poorly on this sheep-dash test.

Any tips to waking up earlier PCPers?

Day 30:31:32

Day 30:
Pro-te-in shopping! I was overwhelmed by the variety of protein powders available in the stores! And gosh, they are HUGE!! Mega! I was lucky to have the 2-for-1 deal on the powders and got myself 2 bottles (well, 2 HUGE jars to be precise). History was made.

Proud owner of Whey Powder: Extreme Milk Chocolate and Double Rich Chocolate. No price for guessing who's the chocolate lover.

I was pretty concern on the mixing of the powder (hearsay that it's difficult to dissolve these protein mix) and was intrigued by a simple yet smart innovation of a whisk ball in a shaker!

Being a sucker for such "eureka" design, I bought one of those shaker. *blush*




Day 31:
Protein powder taste funny. Really weird. Probably I didn't shake it with milk. The aftertaste is synthetic. Not a huge fan of it. It's funny to see my peers exclaimed in disbelief when they saw me downing the blend two times in a day. They must have thought that I am mad and probably on my way to be the next . . .

*GASP*

NOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooo.

I just want to be really fit. Not B(poof)uff.

Day 32:
8 min abs is pretty funny! I followed it once but dear dear, my neck is strained. Not much feel on the abs! Got to refine the way I am doing it.....right, gang? *snigger*

Day 29 - Protein Pow(d)er

Whenever I think about protein powder, the image of a bulky body builder pumping irons in the gym immediately comes to mind. The association is extremely strong and vivid. Also, the mega bottles of protein powder that stand loud and confronting (EAT ME!!!) in the health stores never fails to intimidate me.

Never have I imagined the day that I will even taste it, let along buy it. Till today.

You can imagine my surprised look when I saw "protein powder" in my meal plan!


Anyways, gonna go get my protein powder. Note to self - never say never.

Go Protein Power!!

Day 28 - Tuesdays rock!

I love Tuesdays! Why? Cos I only need to skip! :D

Today's brilliant, got my meals on time, skipped in the later part of afternoon (finally there's time for the metabolism to work then be "killed" by my sleep at night!) - right on track!

And yap, I had finally converted from sliced cheese to cottage cheese. Anyone has brilliant recommendations on how to eat cottage cheese? I just spread it over my tortilla and wrap up those veges. Pray share if there's any great ideas!

* * *

It's the start of a new month to PCP, I am really working in anticipation to see some ripping rib results!

Day 27 - Fast week

This week seemed to zip by really quickly! Tomorrow marks the beginning of 5th week of PCP!

Getting the hang of skipping cept for the occasionally bleeps that stop the momentum. Talking about momentum, I can now draw the parallel to the PCP todate. The first 3 weeks were like adjustment and all, and once the routine kicks in, this week just seem to be going on, on it's own. No wonder the zip!

Well. I guess it's always the inertia. When it's overcome, things will start rolling!

Keep it up PCPers, we are 1/3 through it :)

Day 26 - Duck Walking

My thighs are BURNING!!!!!

Man, the creeps are killing me! It was ages since I had done them (it's called "duck walk").

Sheessssh, felt like I was back in my teens, duckwalking along the corridors in school from one check point to another (yes, a physical activity that I engaged in my girl-guiding days). And nope, not just d-walking, we got to cheer/shout/sing (in sync mind you) as we embark on our "duckwalk" to demonstrate our team spirit (yes, we get extra points for that!).

I didn't know what kept me going those days, gritting our teeth as we compete with other teams to finish first. One thing for sure, what kept me going then, had kept me going this evening. Maybe it's determination, maybe it's pride. Maybe, it's the sense of accomplishment.

Whatever the case, I am glad that I completed the task today (and yeah! doubled up!) :)

Day 25 going 26 - Double up

This is my 3rd time doubling up my exercise! I don't know if it's useful to do so as key is still consistency. Yet, I felt this nagging feeling if I just missed it and not make up for it.

* * *

The conscious effort to beat the sleepy bug paid off as I drag myself out of bed to to Part 1 of the double up session today. V-sit is a killer!

Looking forward to my Part 2 this evening. Note to self - Double up is unacceptable!!

Day 24 - . . .

. . .

I am a robot.

*skip skip skip

I am a robot.

*skip skip skip

robot off to sleep.

* Z z z

I think my brain's been displaced. :)

Day 22 & 23 - Taxercise

Man, the exercise for this week is taking a toil on me! Gosh, it's tough! I have to grit my teeth real hard to last through the last set!! I feel that these two days of exercises are draining me out. I can feel the exhaustion when I completed the rounds. Practically like a jelly when am done (and I woke up feeling like one).

I cannot imagine how it will evolve as the weeks go by. Mental note to self - I just got to give my best and work harder to prep myself for the next "peak".

"Tough times never last but tough people do" - Robert Schuller

Walk on!

Day 21 - Having vs Experience

Today, I revisited my goal for PCP and it reaffirms the reason behind my decision to join the PCP. It's really not solely on having a six-packs, rather, it is the experience of having the six-packs.

Some people around me who are aware of my fitness program could not understand why I would even bother so much to get to ribbed abs. It's considered frivolous and just superficial. And I admit, along the way, I kind of soak in this perspective and find it harder to persist.

On revisiting my aim today, I recollect that it's about going through this whole journey to develop a discipline and experiencing the desired physical well being! It's like, why do you pursue so hard to get your dream car? Sometimes, it's not about owning the car, rather, to have the choice to experience how it is like to be driving it.

With this, I am ever more determined to persist. At the end of the day, to succeed, it takes 3D desire+discipline+dogged work. Add a dash of fun/humor and it's gonna be all good :)

Onwards!!

Day 20 - Vegetarian Recipes Wanted!

I decided to get stay up and cook up a new carb for my meal tomorrow. It's time to move away from the bread/tortillas for a while. Experimented with a mixture of wholemeal & vege pasta with a dash of sesame oil, balsamic vinegar and soya sauce. Looks promising!

Let's hope that the dish turn out to be edible tomorrow. Had put the "experimental subject" into the fridge and gonna warm it up before packing it off for lunch!

***

Appealing for "packable", "edible", "appetizing" and "easy to cook" recipes! Anyone with brilliant ideas, please please please leave a note!

Day 18 & 19 - Guilt vs Persistence

Yesterday - I missed my exercise though I had locked in time to do so, things just overrun and it slipped. Felt all guilty and frustrated that I didn't manage to allocate my time well. I just have this challenge of wanting to fit everything into my hours, even if it's filled to the brim.

Today, I missed my lunch , even though I had packed it, somehow, I just started to attend to 101 things but to have my lunch. Lunch became dinner and effectively, I had only 2 meals.

It's just annoying. Seriously. And I am feeling overwhelmed with the guilt bug and all uncomfortable with it. I am not gonna give any excuse for missing my exercise and meal and I just wanna rant this so that the bug is out of my system. Such ill disciplined towards my own goal is just unacceptable. Need to stay focus, laser focus.

Note to self - And probably a little less uptight about all these, enjoy the process of learning and constant feedback to tune to a sustainable life pace.

Persist!!!

“Persistence isn’t using the same tactics over and over. That’s just annoying. Persistence is having the same goal over and over.” - Seth Godin

Day 17 - Quiet moment

Rushed to my class only to realise that it had been cancelled (and I was not informed!). So, I took the chance to have my dinner outdoor (alfresco dining!) in the heart of town. It was surreal munching on my homemade vegesandwich and watching the hustle and bustle go by. It was as if I was surrounded by this invisible glass panel, looking out to the world outside. Such quiet moments are hard to come by and I am indeed lucky to have an unexpected break towards the end of the day.

Vegesandwich goes well with soy latte (my first coffee in 3 weeks!).

Life's little surprises. Thank you :)

Day 16 - Dara Dara

When I was asked to choose an inspirational figure at the start of PCP, I had not idea who I would like to model at. So I started to google online to check out anyone that could inspire me to get to my peak condition.

The thought that ran through my head was - what will be the physical affirmation of my ultimate fitness? I never had flat abs / six packs in my life to date (not the body builder kind, but the really fit and taut sort), so I decided that since that's what I would like to have at least once in my life time, it's time to take action and just get it off the checklist.

That's when I started to google : sports female abs.


And that was how I came to know of Dara Torres (first on the list in google image!)


I had heard of DT during the Beijing Olympics and knew that she was 41 yrs when she took part in the games. But never would I had imagined that at that age, she maintained such a admirable mental strength and physique! Man, I am reaching my big 3 and I am no where near.

I read up more on DT and that's when I decided that she will be my inspiration to my physical health, and also a figure to remind me to persist with great determination and to set the bar higher and higher for myself to be the best I can be.



As I proceed with the PCP, I realised that this is not just a journey to a physique goal, but one that requires much discipline and perseverance that will impact me physically, mentally and emotionally.

Onwards to 30 and more!

Day 14 & 15 - New exercise grounds

Had been doing my exercises at my place for the past 2 weeks. Yesterday and today, I decided to venture into new territories for my exercises (so that I can start those pull ups!) around my neighbourhood.

I packed up my gear (skipping rope, push up bars, resistant bands) into this shoe bag so that I can bring it to wherever for my daily work out :)

Did my routine in the late night just now about 11+pm. In the gentle night breeze, under the sky, it was nice to just lie there after 4 sets of sit-ups (yeah, end of the routine!) and enjoy the quiet time with me, myself and I. A great joy to have just a little tranquility to end off the day :)

This PCP is starting to build into my life.

Day 13 - Getting in tune

Finally. A day that went as planned! Prep my meals (with variety and not just bread!), managed to eat at regular meal times, get my dose of exercise and to blog it down! All in all in the time frame of work, and now with time to spare for a bit of pre-prep of food for tomorrow and some time to chill out.

What more can I say? *beams*

*peace*

Day 11 vs 12

All goes well on the meals for both days, been getting used to weighing out my portions and preping the food gets more systemic and easy!

Missed my exercised on Day 11 but double it up on Day 12 morning and late evening. Guess I got to put in more thoughtful planning into my schedule. Sometimes, I am just too optimistic, thinking that the hour slot after I wake up will be just nice to complete my exercise - well, all's well till I wake up an hour late, jumping off bed to head off to work (with a scheduled packed till late night), making it hardly possible to squeeze in the day's task at wee hours in the morning.

Double up is not the solution, proper planning AND waking up promptly is.

Gonna sleep now and be prep to wake up for Day 13's exercise!

* I really enjoy the morning freshness when I do my exercise in the day. Got a contrast of morning and night exercise today and it's definitely more refreshing to start the day with a "oiled" body :)

Day 9 & 10 - Contrast of 2 days

Day 9 vs Day 10,
Yesterday vs Today,
Woke up early vs Woke up late
Brilliant morning exercise vs No morning exercise
Prep food in good pace vs Rushing to prep food
Took my time to get to work vs Rushing to work in taxi
Finished my meals in allocated timings vs Finishing my meals in weird timings (lunch at 330pm??)
Chill out evening with friends vs Get home to do exercise
Slept late vs [yet to be determined]
Never blog vs Blogging now

Similar activities, different outcomes.

***

On food -
I am surprised that yesterday and today, I could finish all the food that I had prepared, without feeling stuffed! Ironically, I feel hungry about 2-3 hours after finishing a meal! One thing for sure, post eating, I do not feel the urge to eat other stuff. In the past, I have this habit of binging - be in on chips or cookie - after a meal, I would still want to reach out for something else. Now, the voluminous meal is able to curb my binging crave :)

Had been eating the same stuff for the past 3 days! It's been cereal, bread, cheese, eggs, vege (celery, corn, cabbage, alfrafa), fruits (apples, strawberries). Pro: Effortless preparation, as I know exactly what I am preparing and cutting/weighing, so prep time is shortened. Con: I think I will get really sick of the "standard meal" soon!! Time to look for receipes! Calling all PCPers, if any one has a vegetarian receipe for your meals, pray share :D

On exercise -
The post effect of the exercises are felt today - I am achy when I woke up this morning. I really like the idea of a progressive and alternating exercise program cos doing it is really more energising and motivating.

On morale -
Holding strong :) My desire is clearer and my faith is stronger!

Day 8 - Stuffed Pangs vs Hunger Pangs

"Diet" is usually, ok mostly, associated with "eat less". For the first time in my life, I am on a "diet" that requires me to eat more (ok, total understatement), rather, much much much more!! After weighing just my breakfast, I felt like I am eating for the WHOLE day! Too stuffed. I need to eat almost half the box of cereal to make up for the carbs of one meal. *disbelief*

This is one of the best diet plan - I will never go hungry! Prolly by the time I am done with the PCP, I might be glad to stay away from food!

Anyhows, the step increase in the exercise regime is taking effect on me. Feeling the immediate aching. Finally, "reacquainted" with the muscles that I never knew existed! :)

Day 7 - Skip to my lou

It's Day 7!! ONE WEEK! Woot!

Went all over town to do my last minute shopping on the needed gear - got my push-up bars, resistant band (you're so hard to find), weighing scale, vege and fruits! Interestingly, I was stumped by the choices (or lack of them) when I did my rounds in the supermart. I did not know what to buy! It's so common for me to eat out or pack back meals that the idea of daily cooking has since been forgotten (cept for days of instant noodles).

Anyways. Good! Time to sharpen my culinary skills and be more mindful about what goes into my food.

So I consciously grabbed the "good" stuff and zipped past the aisle of potato chips (I am NOT gonna miss you!!). Bought cabbage, celery, corn and alfafa in prep for some cold salad; tofu and soba for hot meals; yogurt, cereal and fruits for breakfast etc.

All set for week 2 :)

***

Just did my skipping - split it into 100-150-150-100. Yeah, 500!

Day 6 - Cycle repeats

Been doing my exercises late at night. The after effect - I sleep later as my mind is so alert after the exercise!

Dichotomy. I aspire to wake up earlier in the day to exercise. Yet, not being able to rest earlier made it difficult to wake up earlier to do my exercise, resulting in me completing the exercise only in the late evening. Vicious cycle.

This loop needs to be reprogrammed as part of the PCP. Rest early, wake up early. As the proverb goes: The early bird gets the worm!

Ganbatte PCPers!

Day 5 - Rainy day

The rainy day did not manage to dampen the mood to carry out my exercise task for the day!
Still having difficulty doing my push up - my arms seemed to give way and not hold my weight with the "boys' style push up" when I reached the 2nd set. Got to resort to doing with knees down during my 3rd set on.

Ok. That's my motivation - to be able to complete my push ups in boys' style by week 2!

***

I love the rain. The fresh cool chill after the pour. Just lovely with a cup of rose bud tea with honey. Sweet Life.

Day 4 - Compass vs Time

I usually have this mental image that workout has to be at a specific timing - ie, either in the morning before work or in the evening after work. If I pass this 2 "golden" slots, it's highly probable that I will not be exercising that day.

Today, knowing that I had to get out of home early and be back home real late, I packed my skipping rope and my running shoes with me with the intention to slip in my exercise task for the day when there's a slot between lessons. Managed to squeeze it in and complete the exercises within 30min!

Goes to show, one reason why things are not done is not about not having the time. Rather, when the end is clear (ie the direction), it's so much easily to flow.

Day 3 - Personal leadership

It's Day 3! No morning workout today cos I thought I was late for a meeting. Turned out that I was one of the earliest as I got in ONE hour earlier! Silly me. Could have squeezed my work out before I left my place. Oh well, saved the work out for a cool night and it turned out to be pretty delightful too. Just done with it so I guess everything has its own merits, just need to recognize and acknowledge them.

Anyways, I thought I will not just blog on my physical progress. I believe that this physical change will eventually spill onto other areas. So, this blog will also be an avenue to record and share my reflections on the mental / emotional goings during this period.

***

There was a discussion on Personal Values today with some of my peers. I had done an exercise a few months back, to sit, think and articulate my core values - what are the values that guides my decisions, that empowers me or what I would like to develop in me. I am a biggie on self-discovery and I believed that values at the end of the day are not just goals, rather, they are beacons that help drive me forward, to be the best I can.

Thus, my endeavor to revisit my beacons today and it dawned on me to add "personal leadership" to my list. Truly, there's tremendous power in knowing that I have the every right to make a choice in every decisions/situations placed upon me. Instead of relinquishing my power, I have the response-ability to choose what's best for or aligned within me.

This is where "personal leadership" can guide me in resisting that yummy double chocolate chip cookie beckoning at me now.

Onwards to Day 4 :)

Day 2 - Morning Perk

A tad late on this post, but the after effect of the morning exercise sure last till now! I am still feeling energised (and a little achy) from this morning's regime. Reminds me how great it is to begin the morning with a dose of adrenaline from the cardio workout.

Feeling a bit hungry from the "half a portion" scheme. Sleep should cure the hungry bug!

A liner from the book I am reading sets me thinking today: "You are never given a wish without given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however".

Quite apt for the PCP I am embarking on now eh?

Onwards to the 3rd day my fellow PCPers! Rock onnn :)

Day 1 - A Fresh Start!

My PCP starts today! Somehow, I felt butterflies in my stomach as I woke up in the morning to take a photo for Day 1.

I had never experienced peak condition through good exercise and diet. It had always been either one or the other, never together, and never sustainable. As I am reaching my big 3, I made a commitment to myself that something has to change. Einstein once said "To do the same thing over and over again, and expect a different result - that's insanity." I knew that if I want a positive sustainable change, I got to do something different. Stumbling upon Patrick's Peak Condition website is probably the ignition to this desire to experience my peak condition.

Joining PCP is a step out of my comfort zone - 1) to be public about this commitment and 2) to engage an "outside in" discipline-approach to my goal of a lifetime of wellness. Health has always been a key note in my life, yet I failed to be sustainable with my attempt to upkeep it. Sometimes, it's just easy to find a rational excuse to let myself off the hook - too busy, no time, just a little treat *open a pack of chips* etc.

I am all geared up to building a set of good habits that empowers me to attain a sustainable wellness!

* * *

Just finished my exercise for the day and guess what, I am actually looking forward to do my exercise task tomorrow!

This is gonna be fun :)

Welcome!

Hey everyone this is Pey's blog, she'll get in top shape right in front of your eyes here!