The Weekender – Easter 2013

I was so excited for a low-key long weekend, staying at home, no need to rush with the Easter traffic, and no need to over-indulge on Easter treats   So I set out for relaxation, and that’s exactly what I got.

Sleep ins – tick
Exercise – tick
Quality time with my husband – tick
Some indulgence – tick

Friday, I slept in, made a lovely brunch for myself and Mr. J – can’t go wrong with bacon and eggs.

Look at that perfectly cooked egg!    Anyway(!)  Chillaxed, made some hot cross buns, went for a walk in the sunshine with husband and later I went to Zumba.  I *love that my classes were still held over the long weekend.  Great chance to get out there and do more to make up for the extra treats.

My hot cross buns were babies – the 12WBT recipe called for 15, I made 20.  So they look a little knobbly, but were even more snack friendly!  I didn’t get a good ‘after’ pic, cause we were too busy eating them

Saturday was another sleep in, and I met a gf for chats before Samba Fitness.  Another yummy brunch, before heading out to the shops – Funny how it gets so busy over a long weekend when people can’t go the day before/after (Good Fri/Easter Sun). We scored a
couple of bargains though, and I enjoyed having a leisurely tea and sharing a junior spoil at Koko Black.

Saturday night I made pizza, even the dough(!) and we had a movie night at home.  Talk about domestic goddess; well I try

Sunday the weather was not looking to good, but I dragged Mr. J out to the Lake and we took it fairly easy, but tried to maintain a good pace for 10km.  We were a little slow while checking out the new developments on the Kingston Foreshore – pretty crazy.  Although it
was a little chilly, and threatened to rain; the temp was better for a good pace, and it stayed clear.

Not overly speedy, but good amount for calories burned.

Monday was more relaxation, interspersed with washing and the threat of going back to reality (work) the next day.  Some cleaning and then Samba that night.

Farewell long weekend, see you again in June 

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The Weekender – Googong

Looking for something to do this Easter long weekend?  While everyone else is over-indulging on chocolate and baked treats, perhaps a fun adventure is more your style… or is that just me?! 

After knocking over almost 12km around Campbell and Mt Ainslie, last weekend I was eager to push a bit further.  And looking to see somewhere new.  About a 15 minute drive out of Canberra, over the border, into NSW(!) we decided to do a longer hike/walk out at Googong.  After checking the web, the walks around the dam looked to easy (Ha!), and too short, so Mr. J and I decided to try the 14km, which was classified as a moderate difficulty.

Yep, I would say you could call it ‘moderate’ difficulty, if you are reasonably fit.  I am not sure what fitness level I would consider myself, but hey I finished it, it was tough at times, but the amazing thing >> I wasn’t that sore!  I was expecting major pain over the following couple of days.   But nope!

Some parts were beautiful, some parts were a serious slog – check out that elevation change in the middle!  I guess I am not really selling it really am I? 

But hey, if I managed to jog in the last km, I am pretty sure the moderately fit can handle it.

If not maybe the 4km around the dam might be more your style… I think that is next on our list, I think it would be really pretty.

Now, on to the numbers.  It is official.  For the first time doing 12WBT I reached and then surpassed the 1000 calorie burn!  So all it takes is 3hrs and 14km, and 1100 calories gone.  Ha!

Now the question is… what to do this long weekend?  I think another 10km is in my near future   Plus some home made hot cross buns… thanks for 12WBT recipe Mish!

Oh, and,

Happy Easter!  

And… keep a look out for a giveaway competition happening here on the blog very, very soon!

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The Weekender – Mudgee

I have never been to Mudgee, nor had my Mum and sister so we decided to go for my mum’s birthday / just as something fun to do together   This of course was before I started 12WBT – not quite sure where wine tasting fits in to the daily calorie allowance!

Anyway, I volunteered to drive, so I would taste less, and worry less about over-doing the calories.  It was a good idea in theory, but after my 10km the night before I was pretty sore!

We arrived in Mudgee at about 10:30am, and headed straight to the Farmer’s Market.  The market was definitely smaller than I expected, but nice because there is a rule about the produce being made within a certain distance of Mudgee.  We sampled some fudge, nuts, saffron Turkish Delight, jams, oil, vinegar.  Sounds like a lot, but just tiny bits here and there.  It was a great selection, with really friendly stallholders.  I walked away with some nuts, grapes, and Moroccan cooking paste.

After that we decided on breakfast on the main street somewhere.  So we wandered for a while, until we reached Arbuckles.  After my liquid shake breakfast before 7am I was famished, but went with something simple – poached eggs on toast.  It was a leisurely breakfast – nice to spend some time catching up

After that it was on to some wineries!  After taking a wrong turn and heading toward Gulgong, we turned around and the first stop was the High Valley Wine and Cheese Co.  I was not too impressed with the very expensive giftware, but the fetta – OMG haha!  The pesto is a must try.  I was tempted to purchase some, but was concerned about the drive home, then the drive back to Canberra the next day.  But apparently it is stocked in Canberra – in Manuka and Fyshwick, so I will have to check it out.

Next stop was a gallery, not all that impressed and it was getting pretty hot, so we went in search of something cooler.  Hello Elliot Rocke – and their “ice” wine.  Apparently they make the wine with frozen grapes, I am sure there is more to it, but yeah, awesome!  We sampled the white, sparkling and rose.  The sparkling was the perfect sweetness, whereas I found the others too sweet for me – but nice for some as a dessert wine.  I purchased the sparkling, and I can’t wait for the right occasion!

The other winery worth mentioning was Pieter Van Gent – the atmosphere was fantastic.  Such a lovely place.  I purchased a bottle of the Sundance.  Love it, and love the name.

Then, it was time to head home – What a fantastic weekend!

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The Weekender

I took a long weekend this past weekend.  I wish that I could do that all the time(!)  I felt I was owed one since I missed out on the Canberra Day long weekend

I drove to visit my family for mum Mum’s birthday on Thursday afternoon.  It was so lovely to get there a bit earlier, even though I was feeling under the weather.  I stopped off on the way to buy my an Ella Bache gift voucher to add to my mum’s gift(s)!

On Friday I started the day with a sleep in – I had planned to get up early to smash out an early SSS (Super Saturday Session), but decided that I needed the extra sleep and set my alarm (at midnight) for 7:30am   Mum and I spent some time chilling together and chatting before going to the movies.  We saw Goddess - yes, it is a tad cheesy at times, but overall a fun movie.  And nice to see some Aussie actors and landmarks… Hello Guillaume, how I missed you   The wedding seems so long ago already!

After the movies we did some shopping, and stopped for a coffee – it was such a lovely day!

Friday evening I decided I better knock over my SSS, otherwise I would find more excuses on Sunday.  So I hit the treadmill with the goal of beating my time the fortnight before in Sydney (10km in 90min).  So I decided to run for as long as I could, and “get it over with”.  So I ran for 4km, which is a long time for me, probably longest ever, in fact.  Then I switched between walking and running for the last 6km.  I think I got to 8km in the first hour, and the last 2km seemed to stretch on for ages.  At that point I really wanted to reach the 10km in under 75mins, but just managed it in 76minutes! Knocking a massive 14 minutes off my previous time!!

This of course has made me desperately want a treadmill at home.  I am less self-conscious in private, not worried about becoming a beetroot/tomato head (Ha!), or if I can make it home(!)  Something to talk to Mr. J about   I was a little naughty and didn’t stretch properly afterward, and I was pretty stiff for the next couple of days.  Plus there was some chafing and blisters too.  Time for some new shoes I think.

And then on Saturday morning I was up early for a mini-roadtrip to Mudgee!

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The Weekender

This lovely Canberra weekend began with the goal of walking 10km.  Mr. J and I started in Campbell, and just decided to see where the ‘path’ would take us.  Which, in the end, was over some mega hills and all the way around Mt. Ainslie!

It was such a lovely morning with the sun out, but a cool breeze.  So many kangaroos around, and some joeys too.

Eventually we reached the back of Hackett, and we were surprised that we were that far over, then we followed the Ainslie link, before taking the Campbell Link Trail, hoping it would bring us back to, or at least close to where we started.  Luckily we guessed right, and we were only 1.8km over our initial goal of 10km.  When we stopped to look at the map, I was amazed at our achievement.  And, even better, I felt so awesome afterwards!

I even managed a couple of jogs in there… attempting to boost my calorie burn and reach the ever elusive 1000 SSS 12WBT calorie target.  Not quite, but pretty close.  And just really happy that I felt so great, a year ago I would have been suffering through, let alone jogging!

I am now looking forward to trying out other walks around the Canberra region.  I am thinking Googong Dam might be next on my list.  Who’d have thought I would enjoy this so much!?

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The Weekender

So I am pleased to share that two weekends in a row I have given the 12WBT SSS, or Super Saturday Session a good go.

But I have been finding it hard to eat out on the 12WBT program.  Last week I had a dinner date with my sister on Thursday night, then off to Sydney on Friday for Ed Sheeran, then Saturday night visiting family.

On Thursday night we went to Mecca Bah, it’s been a while since we went in 2011!  I was really impressed last time; this time, not so much.  I had a gluten free seafood tagine, which was great.  They swapped the couscous for rice.  Mr. J had a pizza, and my sister had a tagine too.  My complaints are in regard to the service – I felt as though I had to hurry to finish my meal because my sister and Mr. J finished theirs before me and the waiters cleared their plates.  So there I was as if I was eating on my own… maybe I am being too fussy   Plus it was freezing.

On Friday night in Sydney we didn’t have much time before Ed, so it was boring old Subway for dinner.  Not exactly the exciting weekend away that I was expecting, but hey, it was nice to be able to make a good healthy choice.  We stayed at the Mercure, so it was an easy walk to the Entertainment Centre.  Ed Sheeran, I love you even more now – such a nice guy!

Saturday morning I smashed out 10km on the hotel treadmill – 90 minutes later and I was past the point of ready for breakfast!  Due to the buffet options at the hotel, I managed to make sensible choices again — toast, boiled egg, and as a treat some bircher muesli and rhubarb.  No juice, lots of water, and some tea.

Due to the miserable weather, Mr. J and I passed on the Sydney sight seeing, and decided on a lazy trip to the Blue Mountains to my parents and Mr. Alan.  Miss the lil guy – he seemed to miss me too   As much as a cat can!   It was nice to chill out, before coming back to Canberra on Sunday.

We left early enough to leave me time for some 12WBT preparation – a trip to Costco and Woolies, and I was ready for the week – determined to make a better go at the nutrition side of things.

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The Weekender

This weekend was a weekend of bikram yoga. Twice, I went! 8am Saturday and 4pm Sunday. It seems crazy, but I think bikram is growing on me. Originally I purchased a groupon deal, but I’m thinking bikram may become more of a permanent fixture in my routine. Not exactly sure where it will fit in the budget – what with Samba and Zumba, it would be cheaper just to get outside and run. We’ll see!

I have been going strong with the no sugar. I’m pretty much 95% paleo. I haven’t been seeing a change on the scales, but I’m working on ignoring them! Fitness and health first!

Weekend eats included Sammy’s Kitchen on Saturday (was pretty disappointed and considering it was my non paleo feed with rice!). Everyone raves about Sammy’s but I wasn’t too fussed.

Gluten free bread after yoga on Sunday, with bacon and eggs. I stopped at one slice, but it was yummo!

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Kosciusko Main Range

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The Weekender

Where does 20.45 kms get you?

Check out those hills!!  I am MEGA sore, now two days after that madness!  A little bit of sunburn isn’t helping with the muslce soreness.

And check out that calorie burn(!)  Definitely a personal record.  I can definitely see that I worked for it, it was a hardcore day 

After we finished the walk, we drove to a campsite, which was lovely – by the river.  Shame about the crazy huge flies though >they hurt!  Mr. J did his best to make the day/evening the most comfortable for me.  I rinsed off in the river, before a change of clothes and lots of fluids!  Most of our party of 10 drank wine/beer, but I knew better and stuck to water, and later in the evening – hot chocolate   My bodymedia tells me I got six hours sleep, and I am definitely experiencing some sleep debt right now.

20.45km plus my first ever camping experience – all in one weekend!

Photos coming soon 

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The Weekender

It’s been a while since I have had much to say about my weekends!  Started off my Saturday with the last run of week 4 couch to 5km.  It was hard, as always, > but I am definitely less out of breath and although my pace is slow, I still never stop to walk during the runs!

The rest of Saturday was spent doing errand-y type stuff.  We are planning to camp + hike at Mt Kosciusko next weekend, so we needed to stock up on camping stuff, thanks Kathmandu and Anaconda!  I finally got a rain jacket (Kathmandu, $119.95 down from$329.95!) >by the way, I have never-ever camped(!)  Even in New Zealand I had to emeregency purchase a fleece jacket in Dunedin (yep, just a tad unprepared).

Anyway, it’s going to be a first, but Mr. J loves camping, so what can ya do?  Relationships is all about comprimise and sacrifice — and I’ll never let him forget it

Even though Mt Kosciusko is reportedly “not very strenuous”, to prepare for the 23km next weekend, I suggested to Mr. J that we smash out a 10km on Sunday.  It was hot, and hilly, … and we we’re speedy … so hopefully it was a bit more difficult than Mt Kosciusko will be!

 

And today, I am sore … but in a good way 

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