Back/Shoulders/Arms

1. Warm up - boxing! I'd like to think I was so intimidatingly strong at punching that everyone in the room left.

2. Lat pulldown 5kg (5 x 10)

3. Seated rows 6kg (5 x 10)

4. Chest press 5kg (2.5 x 10)

5. Pec deck 5kg (3 x 8)

6. Deltoid raises 2kg (3 x 10), 3kg (1 x 8)

7. Lat raises 2kg (3 x 10) - why was this so hard??

8. Bicep curls 3kg (3 x 10)

Not much today, but my upper back and shoulders ache like I've been sitting on a plane 8 hours...such a conflicting analogy considering I did anything but sit around all day for once

Total leg day

1. 4.37km bike ride, 87 cal, 11:27 - getting faster and setting it on a higher level!

2. 10kg squat (1 x 10), 20kg (1 x 10), 25kg (2 x 10)...the usual, and then... 

• 30kg (1 x 5, 2 x 10) first time doing 30! I was scared at the start which prevented me from doing it properly, but after the first set, I managed 2 more without much struggle
• 35kg (2 x 10) slight struggle but could still make it to 10 reps smoothly
• 40kg (1 x 10)!! I think I need to make sure my technique is alright though, my knees and back were starting to hurt and I keep forgetting to breathe properly. Could probably push myself more but I think this is just my ego talking...so happy!

3. Seated leg press 10kg (1 x 10), 15kg (2x 10), 17.5kg (2 x 10), 20kg (1 x 10) - felt harder after all of that squatting, but I don't think I've made it to 20kg before so I'm pretty proud of this too

4. Hack squat (3 x 10) - no weight, just cooling down 

Pretty productive workout, and left the gym feeling really good and completely jelly in the legs

Chest day #1

Didn't get a chance to write down my workout at the time, but here's what I remember -

1. Bench press 10kg, worked up to 20kg I think - second time giving this a go but actually trying this time
2. Incline press - harder than I thought (I was probably tired from the regular bench pressing as well) and it felt really strange...could only manage the bar alone haha
3. Hack squat
4. Chest press - Could barely manage 5kg 1 x 5, was completely ruined from the bench pressing
5. Pec deck - likewise.

...okay that's either all I did or all I remember, and it doesn't look like much but it's been 4 days and my chest is still really sore and tight. Hopefully will get less painful once I work this into a regular schedule!

Been slack...

Haven't hit the gym in a long time...warming back into it. Legs still handling it alright, my shoulders/upper back struggling big time :(

1. 4.03km bike ride, 82 cal, 11:49

2. 15kg squat (1 x 10), 20kg (2 x 10), 25kg (1 x 10)

3. Hack squat (2 x 10), 10kg (1 x 10)

4. Seated row 5kg (3 x 10)

5. Lat pulldown 5kg (3 x 10)

6. Deltoid raises 2kg (3 x 10)

Run #6: Hot weather running

New addition to our group! Michelle and her sister joined Mel, Lisa and me for our second run, which we intended on starting at 9:30am to beat the heat but somehow we ended up starting at 10:40am. Had a ham and cheese croissant for breakfast and 2 hours to digest. Very little nausea this time! I tried to keep up with Mel who is super speedy, and I managed to do so until we turned around for the last bit of our run in which I was lagging behind everyone. I've run almost twice as far as this before, but the heat + picking up the pace really wore me out quicker than usual (and everyone else too) so all up it was only about 1.4km. Doesn't look like the weather will get any cooler next week so we'll see if we get another run in before Lisa starts uni :(

Run #5: First run for 2014

Spontaneously decided to run with Lisa and Mel today - we joked about running together but we actually went through with it! 

Left the house at 11am --> Walked from A to B --> Ran from B to D --> Walked from D to E and back to D --> Ran from D to C --> Walked all the way back to A. I was happy running but the others wanted to stop and walk, then run again. BAD DECISION, it was so hard to run after stopping to walk! We originally wanted to run all the way to the end of the trail but we could barely make it 500m before we had to walk again...so in total we ran 1.8km. No nausea or anything this time which was much better - maybe because I had time to digest? Or maybe because I drank enough water this time (so much water that I had to pee as soon as we made it to the trail). We've promised to run again next Friday so hopefully we'll stick to it...

Leg burn

1. 15kg squat (2 x 10), 20kg (2 x 10), 25kg (2 x 5)
2. Hack squat, no weight (3 x 10) - first time using this machine...WEIRDEST FEELING EVER, LEGS SO JELLY AFTER
3. Standing rows 5kg (3 x 10) - first time using this too, I likey 
4. Back extension (3 x 1)
5. Bench press 10kg (3 x 10), 15kg (3 x 10) - first time bench pressing too! It didn't feel like what I expected, although I don't really know what I was expecting anyway...
6. Lat raises 2kg (3 x 10)
7. Deltoid raises 2kg (1 x 10), 3kg (2 x 10)
8. Bicep curls (1 x 10) - abandoned this cos I was really just procrastinating from working out my core
9. Sit ups, Russian twist 3kg ball, plank - ALL UNTIL FAILURE :'( repeat x 3

Apple and Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients
Pastry
2 cups plain flour
¾ cup self-raising flour
185g unsalted butter
⅓ cup caster sugar
1 egg
¼ cup water 
1 tbs milk

Filling
30g unsalted butter
6 small Granny Smith apples
¼ cup caster sugar
6 stalks of rhubarb
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Method
1. Sift together the flour and self raising flour, then chop the butter into small pieces and combine with the flour.
2. Using your fingers, gently rub/mash the butter into the flour to combine the mixture until it resembles fine breadcrumbs, or until there are no noticeable chunks of butter remaining.
3. Stir in the sugar.
4. Beat the egg with a tablespoon of water, then drizzle into the flour mixture and begin kneading the dough. Add the milk and any more water if necessary.
5. Once the mixture forms a dough, wrap it up and keep it in the fridge in the meantime.
6. Peel and core the apples, then chop them into 2-3cm chunks. Slice the stalks of rhubarb into 2-3cm as well!
7. In a pan, melt the butter, then add the apples and sugar. Cook on low heat until the sugar has dissolved - takes just a few minutes.
8. Add the cinnamon and rhubarb, and continue to cook on low heat for another 5 minutes or until the apple and rhubarb have become soft. Drain any excess liquid (or save it - makes a nice syrup!)
9. Preheat oven to 170°C, fan forced.
9. Divide the dough into two parts, and roll one part out into a rough circle that would fit the bottom and sides of your tin. Dimensions of my tin -18cm diameter x 5cm depth (around 1.5L).
10. Place the rolled out dough into the tin and scoop the filling onto the dough, filling the tin.
11. Roll out the other half of the dough, then cut the dough into strips - the width is up to you (mine are around 4cm in width). This is simply for the lattice design for the top of the pie...if you're too lazy, just roll the dough into a circle and cover the pie.
12. To create the lattice, lay down enough strips to cover your pie, leaving a small gap between the strips. Fold back every second strip and lay down another strip. perpendicularly. Unfold the strips, then fold back the alternate strips and once again, lay down another strip perpendicularly. Repeat this process until the pie has been covered. Since I'm not great at explaining, a detailed explanation with pictures can be found here.
13. Cut off the excess pastry around the edges, press together the edges and use a fork to create a pattern along the edge of the pie.
14. Lightly beat an egg and brush the top of the pie - this gives the pie a shiny golden colour.
15. Bake in the oven for around 35 minutes.



YUMM look at all the rhubarb juices and the slightly melted icecream...I wish I could tell you it was delicious, but I've come down with a cold and completely lost my sense of taste and smell. Guess I'll just have to make this again some time when I can actually enjoy it!

Round 2

1. Bike (3.77km in 10:38 mins)
2. Chest Press 5kg (1 x 10, 2 x 8) - still finding this so hard, but this explains my inability to do a pushup...
3. 10kg squat (1 x 10), 20kg squat (3 x 10), 25kg squat (1 x 10)
4. Tricep pushdown 7.5kg (3 x 10) - probably could've tried harder but I did this in my squat breaks. I think the old lady on the ergo was watching me, and went over to the tricep machine after I was done...except she added more weight to it and was mindlessly pulling on the thing as if it was super easy (okok I'm just jealous)
5. Lateral raises 2kg (3 x 10)
6. Deltoid raises 2kg (2 x 10)
7. Bicep curls 3kg (3 x 10), 4kg (1 x 10)
8. Seated rows 6kg (3 x 10) - I'm guessing the little circle weight things are 1kg each? I don't actually have a clue
9. Pec deck 5kg (3 x 10)
10. Seated leg press 15kg (1 x 10), 17.5 (3 x 10) - my ass hurts now

Run #4: Lone Wolf Edition

With Susan overseas for a week, I had to suck it up and run alone. Since I hadn't run for a week either, this was not fun - left home around 4pm instead of the morning to avoid the breakfast hassle, but this surprisingly didn't stop my nausea. No stitch though! Made it 2.5km today (although I have to admit I probably could've run to the end of the trail to hit that glorified 3km mark...) but it was a little tough without having the support of a friend...and also hard not to throw up when I ran past the patches where I threw up last week.

The route: 

I think I prefer the morning run despite the early wakeup. You feel like you've accomplished so much before the day has even started, there's less pollen in the air burning through my nasal cavity, and the sun isn't on a mission to turn me into a baked potato. 

Full Body Workout (Leg Dominant)

1. Bike (4km in 10 mins)
2. First time trying the leg press machine - started off on 7.5kg but it was too light, so I moved up to 15kg (3 x 10)
3. Attempted chest press but pretty sure I injured something after last time...not a good feeling of pain, so I stopped
4. 10kg squat (2 x 10), 20kg squat (5 x 10)
5. Tried the leg extension machine on 5kg. Couldn't carry on after doing 2 reps so I gave up on that too - maybe one day!
6. Back to leg press (2 x 8)
7. Seated rows 5kg (3 x 10)
8. Tricep pushdown 7.5kg (2 x 10) - this initially felt too easy, but then Lawrence reminded me to keep my elbows in place and suddenly 7.5kg got more difficult. Moved up to 10kg (4 x 8) even if it was kinda hard, so I struggled a bit but it was good struggle?
9. Abdominal crunch machine 7.5kg (3 x 10)
10. Calf raises 10kg (4 x 10) - weight of the machine on my shoulders hurt more than the actual calf raise, and now I have weird marks on my shoulders that'll probably bruise tomorrow...

This list is probably inaccurate since I can't really remember all the weights and what order I did everything in, plus I got to play with some new machines today so I was still sorta experimenting. Once I know how to use all the machines and know what weights are comfortable for me, I'll stop being less lost/whiny/annoying (sorry bebe) and start keeping track of what I'm doing. Also I got really mad at my earphones at the start of my workout because one of the earbuds broke and ruined my mojo, hrmph.

Easy Mini Quinoa Patties

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa

1 brown onion

1 clove of garlic

2 tbsp of parmesan cheese

2 tbsp of dried oregano

1 tbsp of lemon juice

¾ cup breadcrumbs (adjust depending on moisture of quinoa)

1 large egg

(Whenever I cook I'm pretty much guesstimating the amount of ingredients I put in so I apologise if the amounts are inaccurate!)

Method

1. Combine the quinoa with some water (the water level should be 1 finger joint above the level of the quinoa), bring to boil and then simmer for 15-20 minutes or until all water has been absorbed. Set aside to cool. 

2. Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic, then fry until they begin to brown.

3. In a medium bowl, mix the cooked quinoa, garlic and onion with the remainder of the ingredients.

4. Using a tablespoonful of mixture, roll into a ball and flatten to create the shape of the patty. Lightly dip both sides into some flour to prevent sticking and assist browning

5. Pour a generous amount of oil into a pan and carefully place the patties down. Cook them on low-medium heat and flip when the patties are slightly brown on one side (at least 5 minutes)

Here's how mine turned out - paired it with a tuna and sundried tomato salad (excuse the bok choy, the asian in me can't help it). If you'd prefer it a little more brown, turn up the heat at the end and give it a minute or so to really crisp it up. Since there's no meat, it really doesn't matter how long the patties need to be cooked for because everything is already cooked on the inside. Enjoy!

Run #3

Decided to wake up earlier so I could give myself an hour to digest beforehand, but at the same as last time: banana, raspberries and an egg. Half an hour later I was already hungry and starting to feel nauseated but I went ahead and walked over to Susan's...except was still in bed so I had some more time to digest. The route for today (2.6km): 

I made it almost to the end of the trail this time! Well the intention was to make it to the end but three quarters of the way in my body gave in and threw up what little was left of my breakfast...gross. We covered less distance in the end but at least I didn't stop (and ran a little faster in Susan's opinion). Next run will probably be next week - road trip this weekend so food posts will be coming...

Mini Pizzas

Mum bought some mini pizza bases today, so I threw together some toppings for a quick and delicious lunch. 

Makes 8
Pizza base sauce
1 small brown onion, diced
1 Truss tomato, diced
1 small avocado
8 slices of ham
Basil
Pepper
Shredded cheese of choice (I used tasty cheese)

I baked it at at 200°C fan forced for 15 minutes, but the burnt bits of ham tell me that 15 minutes was a bit too long...definitely overestimated the time seeing as these things are so small. Nevertheless, this was yum! 

Run #2

MUCH less exhausting this time, even with a week-long gap. Made it about 400m further (total of 2.8km), but still couldn't run all the way home:

Probably only 2 mild waves of nausea this time - not sure if it's because my breakfast was different or if I was just getting more tolerant to running (ate a handful of raspberries & strawberries, a banana and an egg prior to the run). I think I need to start waking up earlier so I can have enough time to digest...yeah that's probably the issue: I like to sleep.

The Color Run™

Even though this was a charity run, Lisa and I walked the entire 5km so we could enjoy the all the colour being thrown at us! The route:

Walking did stop us from being extremely exhausted at the end of it though...probably a combination of the early start and the preexisting muscle soreness from the gym. We were so tired we couldn't be bothered with the afterparty, so we just enjoyed the brief sun whilst watching coloured explosions from afar. Despite rolling on a floor of pink and practically diving into a barrel of blue powder, all it took was a bit of dusting and I came out looking completely clean. 

Lisa and I finished the afternoon with a well deserved bowl of pho from Pho House, which was super delicious and perfect for a gloomy day. Went home to clean myself off, and turns out I was pink from sunburn and not pink from the pink powder I thought I couldn't rub off...oops. Note to self for next year - wear sunscreen!

Current goals for the gym

1. 60kg deadlift - I made it to 30kg tonight, but still working on that feeling comfortable!
2. 10 pushups - sounds pathetic but never in my life have I been able to do 1 real pushup. Starting to think I genuinely lack a muscle or something...
3. 50 situps - let's turn this whale into a dolphin shall we?

Dark chocolate and Orange Cake

With the help of Julia and Mel, we decided to surprise Lisa for her 21st birthday by baking a cake. We made a dark chocolate and orange cake based on this recipe, but altered the recipe to suit the ingredients we had

Ingredients

Cake

1 small navel orange

1 lemon

100g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

3 eggs

1 cup caster sugar

240ml vegetable oil

2 cups plain flour

1½ tsp baking powder

Ganache

200g dark chocolate

½ cup cream

Caramelised orange slices

1 Navel orange

Dash of honey

Caster sugar

We followed the original recipe for the method, but we found that the ganache curdled REALLY QUICKLY. One minute it was perfect and smooth, and suddenly it became totally lumpy and ugly. We also reduced the given amount of sugar (original recipe asked for 2.5 cups...why, just...why) and removed the 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder (wasn't worth buying an entire pack of cocoa powder just for 1 tablespoon). Since my cake tin is also really old and no amount of greasing prevents the cake from sticking, we had to line the tin with baking paper. This basically made the cake really ugly on the sides, and since our ganache was a bit of a failure, we didn't have enough to hide the sides of the cake. Julia is responsible for the caramelised oranges so I don't actually have a clue how to make them - but they were definitely my favourite part of the cake!

Here's the final product:

The birthday girl ate like a third of the cake on her own so I'm guessing it was really good...I had a few bites and it definitely wasn't very sweet but I guess if you're gonna eat a third of a cake that's probably a good thing. Overall an ugly success!

Run #1

Kicked off the beginning of my fitness journey with a 2.4km run! Since I absolutely dread running, I needed all the encouragement I could get from none other than the wonderful Susan. We decided together that by the end of our summer holidays we'd like to be able to run 10km without stopping. 

Here's our route for today:

We ran from A to B, turned around and ended at C (walked back from C to A)

Not gonna lie, if Susan wasn't around telling me to keep going, I would've given up at the end of her road. Went through multiple waves of nausea, a stitch on my bottom left and upper right side, and my legs/ankles were feeling really weak and inflexible towards the end. When I began to feel too exhausted and started walking, it only made the nausea even worse, so I kept up the slow jogging until we finished. I had milk and Belvita breakfast biscuits beforehand, so I'm thinking the milk wasn't a good idea...I guess I should just experiment with pre-running food for the next few weeks until I get it right.

Here's to feeling less terrible next time!