Do the right thing?

Skating on Monday - started the level 5 moves which include our first spin and cross overs. It's seeming scary but I think achievable atm.

Good run with A yesterday - 45:34 to do the 5.68km which compares to 46:19 on the 20th - definitely progress.

I'm struggling today - I was given a cadburys flake easter egg by a printer and I'm failing to do the right thing - which is to give it away! It has 2 flakes - which are 178.5 cals each....... and I should be saving my cals as it's Husband's turn to cook tonight and I hate saying "please can you make this low cal?"..... but I am planning on going to Body Combat later.......conscience, arrrrrggghhhhhh...

We passsed!

G and I both passed level 4 ice skating tonight - we both felt we'd been judged a bit generously - but the tester did point out that she's looking for us making roughly the right moves, getting the gist of it - not making perfect moves.

Having said that, I was so not convinced that I'd done enough to satisfy one bit (turning from backwards to forwards) that even after she said that I'd passed, I asked to be able to do it again [did it marginally better - but hey!].


Level 4 (in case you are interested) involved skating backwards into a 2 foot glide, going forwards & turning to backwards, going backwards & turning to forwards, one foot glides on the outside edges and forwards chasses.

Nice problem - but still a problem

Dressed up smart-ish for a meeting today - crisis 1 was not being able to find the only pair of smart black trousers that fit me atm. Crisis 2 was not having a jacket that goes with the only smart skirt that fits me atm. Crisis 3 (more of a mini crisis though) is that the only smart skirt is a tad loose - to a level where I will need to be careful to wear long-ish tops with it to avoid displaying underthings to the world - and I only bought it in Jan (tweedy Hobbs thing)....

Losing fat is costing me a small fortune in clothing - and I resent handing over dosh for smart work stuff I only wear once a month or so. And even more bras now need to be consigned to charity shop bags (now 36B - how depleted is that!).

Anyhow, skating went well on Mon although I suspect I won't be passing level 4 at next Monday's test unless I miraculously get better by then or unless the instructor is very very kind!

Last night - good run with A. 46:19 to do the 5.6km route with a good chat as a bonus! Planning on running with work buddies starting next month after work as part of Race for Life prep.

Camouflage shorts and pink wellies

I was rubbish at skating on Monday - for some reason I just didn't feel very stable - ah well! Didn't help that Husband & I made big decisions about mortgages, homes & the future direction of our lives in about 15 mins before I left the house...

Tuesday - gym - 26mins of interval training on the treadmill with no ill effects - it's going well! Snuck in a very brief session on the rower weights machine and 1o mins on the x trainer too.

Body Combat on Wed - the most intense it's going to be for a while as Juliana starts to phase in the new routine next week. So I don't feel too guilty about arranging to go out with a former work buddy next Wed. Some new clothes arrived in the post - very pleased with some long-ish camouflage shorts that are going to look great with my pink wellies at the allotment this summer.

Tonight - proper rest day unless traipsing around the supermarket counts!

Novel Exercise

Just been climbing over pallets of leaflets – very elegant & ladylike! Glad that I’m wearing jeans today & that I managed not to damage myself – mostly because filling out the accident report would have been embarrassing…

Anyhow, skating was good last night – still can’t get the forwards to backwards switch move – but I wasn’t alone. Working on improving my general technique as I tend to push off from the toe pick. Still loving my skates!

Operational Lungs

G was having the same problem last night that A was experiencing on Sunday - phlegm occupying the bits of her lungs that should be devoted to absorbing oxygen. It's given her voice a Kathleen Turner edge though!

I finally nailed sculling backwards last night - even managed a mini backwards glide at the end (and by mini, I mean a glide that could be measured with a normal 30cm ruler!). Still can't handle the switching between forwards and backwards though.

Have Skates!

Bought Skates on Saturday - G and I went on a trip to Basingstoke & both bought John Wilson Mystiques. I also now have a lovely pink skate bag & raspberry pink blade holders.

I had a run of truly rubbish hire skates from Gosport where I felt I was balancing twice - once onto the skate as there was no support for my ankles and then again on the ice. And as for sharpness....
We spent about 45 mins skating with our new purchases - having sharp skates that fit me really does make a difference - I feel I can trust them more and I'm just baalncing on the ice! We both need to play around with the lacing though as G's toes went numb & I got pain in the arches of my feet which eased off when I loosened the laces.

Size 14

Skating last night - really enjoyed the lesson as we ended up with more 1-1 time than usual with the instructor. We tried switching from forwards to backwards - with mixed success but were assured that we were "progressing"! Then worked on trying to speed up our backwards sculling so that we get enough momentum to finish in a glide.... definitely work in progress...

Anyhow, bought a wide denim belt today masquerading as a skirt from Next - size 14 and it fits! Need to consult with Husband to check that it suits me as we don't have a full length mirror in the house - but it fits. And it's size 14.

Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14 Size 14

Did I mention that IT FITS AND IT'S SIZE 14?!

ps Husband has seen the wide belt & it has passed.

Level 3 Ice Skating

We passed!

Level 1 was standing up from a sitting position, basic skating forwards, gliding and dipping, stepping around on the spot.

Level 2 was moving backwards, half snow plough stop, forward skating and 2 foot glide on a curve.

Level 3 was a forward one foot glide in a straight line, 2 foot jump skating forward, forward and backward sculling and one foot glide on a curve - inside edge.

G and I will now be buying ourselves skates as a reward!

Roll on level 4.....

Ireland, Skating, Gym

Jogging on Friday - which demonstrated that rest days are important as I took about 1 minute longer to complete the route than last time!

Fabulous weekend in Northern Ireland - courtesy of C & R's engagement party. Spent Saturday walking around the 60 acres that comprise the Ulster Folk Museum - lots of buildings form all over Ireland from churches to teeny tiny cottages that apparently accomodated families with 7 kids.

Boogying on Saturday night at the party - the highlight was Husband whisking me around to Mack the Knife.

More walking on Sunday - we went up to see Giant's Causeway. The coast was beautiful and it stayed dry! Also went to Bushmills (discovered that I do like whiskey despite hating scotch) and to Dunluce castle. Husband was suffering though - he had pain in his ankles and knees by the end of the afternoon.

Flew back on Monday. Skating with G - our last session before next week's test. A couldn't make jogging last night so I spent the evening cooking soup. Missed Body Combat tonight as I had a dentist appointment - dragged myself down the gym (seriously lacking motivation!).

Week 4 of Skating Lessons

We did one leg gliding, slaloms and chassis last night. The only way I could do the latter was to keep on saying (out loud of course!) "Push, Together, Lift".
G was a natural at the slaloms - and no falling over this week.
Getting sorely tempted to buy skates - everybody seemed to have nice shiny new ones last night from the hire place except me...

Old Winchester Hill

Saw Mum & Dad on Sunday in between the end of their first cruise as staff & their return flight to Newcastle. Went up the Spinnaker Tower - which doesn't count as exercise apart from some steps to get to the Crows Nest.


On the way back to the house, we detoured North & had a very pleasant wander on Old Winchester Hill - unresolved debate about what breed the sheep up there are! Mum & Dad walked the South Downs Way a couple of years ago and I know that they've also been to the hill with us before, but they still seemed to enjoy the views.




Skating tonight - I thought G had damaged her hand badly at one point - she fell really hard on it. She recovered her composure so well - most impressive! We did (more) sculling, gliding on one leg (easy!) and jumping (less easy). Tried to convince the instructor that we were rabbits on ice but she seemed to prefer a frog metaphor - no accounting for taste.

It is Husband's birthday today. He very generously insisted that I go skating tonight - don't think I would have been so understanding if roles were reversed! Very grateful as I was keen not to miss a lesson.

Currently making marmalade - lots of stirring but even I would struggle to justify calculating calories expended! Seems to be taking ages to get to setting point - don't think I have the patience to become a true domestic goddess.

3 days, 3 different activities

Cycling on Sunday - 15 miles in the Forest with SF and M. I was pleased with my speed - kept up with the boys OK - but I was a real chicken with some steepish downhill bits. Both SF and M fell of - SF heroically following a v.impressive run down a slope & M because he was attempting to unwrap a chocolate bar without stopping! Both OK. Puncture again - grateful to M for sorting it out for me so slickly.
No beautiful sunset to show here though coz my camera's battery was flat & my mobile phone's camera button has stopped working. Not sure I can be bothered to sort that out as I intend to change provider in April. It was a gorgeous day and a fab sunset - take my word for it!

Skating yesterday - G was really good at sculling & was invaluable in helping me to get the hang of it. She looks so cool when skating around - makes it look easy. Sculling was hard work for my inner thighs - no bad thing. I'm fighting the urge to buy skates as my hire pair were truly rubbish... we both ditched jeans in favour of leggings (I wore thermal running tights) which made it more comfortable.

Gym tonight - just some X trainer & interval running:
0-2 mins 8kph, 2-4 mins 10kph, 4-6 8.5kph, 6-8 10kph, 8-10 8.5kph, 10-12 10kph, 12-14 8.5kph, 14-16 10.5kph, 16-18 8.5kph, 18-19 10.5kph, 19-20 12kph.
Fascinating huh?

Return of the Sk8r Grls

Started a 6 week ice skating course in Gosport tonight - organised by G. We did penguin impressions, dipping and stopping - helped massively to get our confidence levels up. The instructor was hampered by a very sore sounding throat & not much voice, but she was still good at explaining what we were to do & helping us improve.
Then we spent half an hour whizzing around (comparatively!) - good chance to practise.
Definitely fun, definitely different, definitely looking forward to next week's lesson already!

Playing Catch Up

Weekend in Northumberland with family - very impressed that J&P went running both mornings, but we restricted ourselves to a couple of short walks - into the village & back on Saturday, then a wander with the children on Sunday - I enjoyed racing D's buggy against P!

Skating on Tuesday as a pre-pub thing. I thoroughly enjoyed it (again!) but I seemed to be the only one who did. Husband had a very odd technique - threw himself as fast as he could & then crashed into the safety barrier! Kind of human curling without a broom....

I did go to Body Combat on Wed: 3 tracks from new routine - including the Killer's "Somebody Told Me" - it was tough singing whilst learning new moves.... Then Juliana put in some oldies inlcuding YMCA - very happy!

Today, went geocaching in the New Forest as a work team thing - good fun and my team won. Geocaching is hunting for tupperware boxes hidden at locations you can find through www.geocaching.com - it maybe as simple as going to the co-ordinates posted for a geocache or there maybe puzzles to solve. Exercise wise, probably not bad - we drove between the points but each involved a walk of up to half a mile once parked.

Very foggy - which made it seem very atmospheric - our voices seemed to echo & there was an odd sense of isolation. Walking in the Forest definitely beats glaring at my laptop as an entertaining thing to do on a Thursday afternoon.

Sk8er Girls

Went skating with G yesterday morning at the rink set up in Winchester Cathedral's close - and loved it! Spent the first 5 miniutes grimly clinging to the side but after that, I was OK. Nothing fancy, but managed:

• Not to fall over


• To avoid the small children, both prone on the ice & still standing

Atmosphere helped too - beautiful setting & a brass band were playing Christmas Classics like Sleighride & Lieutenant Kije.

G is really good - looks confident & cool on the ice. She can balance on 1 skate & showed me a mini jump. We're planning to do skating lessons in Jan.