Sunday, July 28, 2013

Weigh-in Wednesday #26 & #27

2 and a 1/2 weeks ago (Wednesday, July 10th), I dropped a colossal 6.5 pounds to 200.1  Then last week when I stepped on the scale I only lost 0.7 pounds on Weigh-in Wednesday #26, but that was to be expected after such a big loss the week before.  And yet, why am I pleased as punch?  Well, I dropped enough weight to put me under 200 pounds...a-thank you!  

So this Weigh-in Wednesday, I wasn't sure what to expect.  Lately my pattern has been 2 weeks of meh...then 1 week of YAY!  Which means I'm going to have to buckle down if I want to reach my goal of 100 pounds down.  Wednesday's scale read 197 pounds...that's a loss of 2.7 pounds, and I'm cool with that...I don't know when the last time the scale has been so low, actually.  I haven't seen a 1 at the front of my weight since probably 1999 just before I moved back to Montréal.    

Starting weight:  292.1
1st weigh-in:  286.8
2nd weigh-in:  280.1
3rd weigh-in:  276.4
4th weigh-in:  274.1
5th weigh-in:  270.6
6th weigh-in:  266.2
7th weigh-in:  262
8th weigh-in:  261.4
9th weigh-in:  257.7
10th weigh-in 251.4
11th weigh-in 247.3
12th weigh-in 243.6
13th weigh-in 241.7
14th weigh-in 235.4
15th weigh-in 235.4
16th weigh-in 227.7
17th weigh-in 223.5
18th weigh-in 223.5
19th weigh-in 221.6
20th weigh-in 221.6
21st weigh-in 215.6
22nd weigh-in 213.2
23rd weigh-in 207.9
24th weigh-in 206.6
25th weigh-in 200.1
26th weigh-in 199.7
27th weigh-in 197 

So what's the plan for this week?  So far, it's been an insane amount of cardio, strength training, and really clean eating.  I'm even skipping potatoes and rice this week.  Just a little.  Wish me luck for Wednesday, if I drop 5 pounds this week...I'll reach 100 pounds down!  The anticipation is killing me!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Good thing it's Camp Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre...and not Camp Crystal Lake!

Upon getting out of the car one morning (from time to time I bum a ride instead of walking or riding my bike...I know, sounds lazy...for me anyway) my husband makes a joke about dropping me off at day camp.  The sign on the door of the Crystal says Summer camps - meet in park.  And going to the gym, well, it's kinda like camp...fit camp...and no, I haven't graduated to bootcamp yet. 

Monday through Friday I go to the gym early in the morning with a backpack that is far too big for me, though it doesn't dwarf me like some of the bags on the other kids.  Inside, I have a packed lunch which is full of healthy snacks and, generally, a sammi that is prepared for me by someone other than myself...thank you to my darling husband.  I brown bag it so that I am not tempted by the vending machines that line the walls of the lobby.  The sign above says Stay Active Eat Healthy at the Crystal Pool & Fitness CentreFrom what I've seen in the halls of this rec centre, the sign does not deter small children from begging their parents for chips, candy, and chocolate, but then again...they can't read...so it's not their fault.  Dear parents, please think of your little ones and offer them an apple instead of the junk that they desire, you don't want them to end up like me (DISCLAIMER: My parents always offered apples, it was I who got addicted to junk food much later in life!)   At least if the kiddies are at the pool, they're active.  I myself currently suffer from episodic tantrums when I am not allowed to drink wine.  What?  I need wine, I gave up everything else I liked to ingest...and I am certainly active. 

Camp clown, nerd, and instigator...Suzie Spitfyre.
After entering the building, I check-in by swiping my card at the front desk....just in case there's a head count.  As you can probably imagine I have made many friends at the Crystal over the last 7 months; I know the administrators, the front desk peeps, the counsellors...erm...trainers, and some of the other kids...um...members.  Plays well with others - that's me.  I start my day at camp unsupervised (I know, it scares me too).  I run, ride, walk, dance, or skip my way through 1 or 2 hours of cardio, while my counsellor presides over everyone in the entire fitness centre (you know he's important because his shirt says FITNESS STAFF.) Occasionally, the ninja/counsellor/trainer/Jonathan comes over to talk to me, give me further instruction, or simply to punch me in the shoulder...it's okay, it just means he likes me.

On Tuesdays and Fridays, after my preliminary play time (i.e. sweating on some sort of cardio equipment) there's recess!  I eat my snack of fresh fruits, veggies, or puffed crispy rice things that come in chip flavours because I am an adult and I can read that sign in the lobby...and you don't what to see what kind of hissy fit I would throw if I didn't have a little dill, barbecue, salt 'n' vinegar, or sour cream and onion in my life.  

The ninja shares his wisdom...hiiiiyyyaaa!
My camp counsellor's name is Jonathan...and he pays me special attention on both of these days.  He makes me play fun games like Duck, Duck, Goose...no wait, it's called Stairs, Stairs, Burpees...and then you run back and forth with a 25 pound dumbbell in each hand...weird how I'm the only one playing though.  Sometimes he teaches me to fight, just in case things get out of control on the playground, I guess...I have a mean left hook, but I particularly enjoy the shin kicks.  We've done some skipping (never in the hallways as it's verboten...and there's a sign) but I can't seem to get it right...even when I sing: "Cinderella dressed in yella, went downtown to meet her fella!"  Truth be told, I think he makes things up as he goes along, and I like that, it keeps things interesting.  What I don't understand is why I keep getting time-outs!  Wall sit for a minute, plank for 45 seconds - Why am I being punished for doing everything he says!?

My week days at Camp Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre are filled with free athletics, recess, guided activities, and lunch.  And what do I do after breaking for a meal and before I go home?  Well, I get to play on the computer and write ridiculous nonsense like this.  Though all that I do at the moment seems like play, it has been and continues to be an unexpected and welcome education.  My counsellor has guided me through both physical and mental challenges with such care and attention that I don't think I'll ever be able to express my gratitude for all that he has done.  For me, summer camp has lasted for an entire 7 months, and I really don't want it to end...I'm simply not ready to go back to school.    

Monday, July 22, 2013

The 12 Trials of Suzie Spitfyre

January 22nd, 2013, Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre, my very first training session with the ninja.  Morning cardio:  20 minutes of stationary bike, 20 minutes of treadmill, and a further 20 minutes on the elliptical = Sweaty mess (Read about my 1st ninja workout here!)  Afternoon training:  1 hour of fitness testing - wall sit, sit and reach, push ups, planking, etc. = I think I'm gonna die.  Weight: 287 pounds...ish.

July 12th, 2013, Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre, was a brand spankin' new completely mental training session with the ninja.  Just when I think I'm getting good at this working out thing, he switches it up, and it's all Greek to me...again!  Morning cardio:  30 minute walk to the gym, 30 minutes of my running programme (walk 2, jog 2, run 1) on the treadmill followed by an attempted spin on the bike, until I admitted to being tired (and also a sweaty mess as always) and Jonathan told me to rest up and eat something...and now I know why.  Weight: 200 pounds..ish.

I have been told that the easier you sweat the better shape you are in, so I must be in REALLY good shape now.  I sweat a lot.  There is always an extra set of clothing (or two) in my rucksack, because the sweaty "V"s down the front of my t-shirts pictured in Sweat T-shirt Contest have snowballed into fully drenched articles of clothing...I'm talking shirts AND pants.  Seriously, you haven't survived a Suzie workout unless your pants are dripping into your shoes.  Ewwww...and awesome, at the same time.  If only I were wearing a chiton, then my elegant wet drapery would be fit for the pediment, metopes, or frieze of the Parthenon.  Alas, I am not adorned in Greek costume complete with diadem though sometimes my curls mat up in a rather Medusa-like way.     

When the ninja, or perhaps I should I call him the επιστάτης δούλων ("slave driver" in Greek), asked me what I had in my backpack that fateful Friday, I simply replied, "Clothes...and food...and boxing gloves (hey, you never know)...and wraps...and my biking shoes, and resealable plastic bags for wet clothes, obviously."  He promptly took me into the office (don't worry, I wasn't in trouble...at the moment), and began to dump my bag on the desk until he realised it wasn't his bag and then he gave it back to me.  So, I dumped it out and then we headed to the weight room.

In the weight room, he found two discs that equated 18 kilograms and promptly put them in my bag - who am I?  Herakles?  No.  We downsized slightly, I think to 30 or 25 pounds, and I put my bag on my back, adjusted the straps and started working out.  Yes, I ran stairs with approximately 32 percent of the weight that I have lost in said bag.  I ran stairs and alternated with burpees...and no, I'm not suing him because in the process I got smacked in the head by my backpack...which by the way is waaaaaay too big and though the straps tighten, and the belt works, the little clip that fastens around my chest that should secure the pack even further does NOT even function because of two very obvious reasons.  

After stairs and burpees x 5, many other strength and cardio exercises ensued.  Wearing my bag on the eliptical proved interesting, as did carrying an aditional 50 pounds of dumbells back and forth umpteen times.  Needless to say, I stayed true to tradition and sweated my arse off.  If only!  But, I'm getting there.  I did buy my first pair of size 14 jeans shortly after this hour long 12-trials-of-Heraklesesque workout.  Though, I did it because I knew it was good for me, and not because I had to atone for killing my sons because I was driven mad by my father's wife, Hera - look it up, Greek heroes aren't as heroic or squeaky clean as Disney portrays them.  And after this workout, neither was I!

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Weigh-in Wednesday #25

Wednesdays are fast becoming my favourite day of the week, I enjoy everything about them except for the insomnia that takes over in the wee hours of the morning because 10,000 butterflies stir in my stomach before I do.  Seriously, wide awake at 5AM.  And, here's the thing...I've been weighing-in for 25 weeks now and it only takes me one blah weigh-in week to get back on track.  I go into emergency goodie two-shoes mode with my food, drink, and exercise again...like it's week 1 or 2 or something.  I don't even go off the rails really in the first place, I just don't have that perfect balance that I need to get consistent losses...and maybe I stop and get a drink in the bar car too often and occasionally indulge in too many potatoes in the dining car.  Train in Vain.  Time to take other transport.

Last week, I explored the option of taking my bike to the gym, did that for a couple of days...but couldn't get comfortable on the roads.  I'm scared of traffic, I'll admit it.  Going over the Blue Bridge for the first time was also quite the experience.  When I sneak in the extra exercise though, I think it really makes a difference on weigh-in day.  Making dates to hang out with people goes a little like this now:  "Want to go for a walk, or hike, or steal a bike so you can ride it with me?"  And speaking of hiking, I'll admit to opting out of stairs after a cardio session with the ninja, but I will not opt out of a hike with Sheenagh.  So last week I also added climbing a mountain to the list of things I do outside of the gym.  We'd tackled Mount Doug before, so this time was Finlayson.  The last "mountain" I thought I had conquered was Iwatayama, in Kyoto.  As it turns out, Mount Finlayson is 2.3 times bigger than that wee little peak in Japan...and has not one single monkey on top.  Sheenagh assured me that I could handle this trail, though many others said it was a steep hike.  It was, but we did it.  Nothing quite like getting lapped by a one-eyed powder puff to make you climb faster - I'm speaking of Laddu, Sheenagh's pirate pooch, tiny, fluffy, and a cyclops due to a Christmas dinner fiasco.  Like, monkey mountain, I forgot all about my burning quads and aching calves as soon as we hit the peak...gorgeous views, glorious sunshine, and that sense of accomplishment that comes from standing at what seems to be the top of the world!  This is my kind of exercising, I get sweaty, but I don't feel like I'm doing cardio...it's more of a communing with nature thang. *Hit gong now*  And that's how my week went, cardio on weekday mornings, cardio on weekday nights, add in a couple of ninja sessions, take Saturday off, attempt to go to the gym on Sunday but get thwarted by summer hours, but then hop on your bike for a 30K ride to Langford and back (unexpected run-in with Slim Sandy, Willa-Mae, and Rad Juli along the way), add some spinning and yoga to the mix...and voilà...lost 6.5 pounds this week!

Suzie Spitfyre - Queen of the Mountain!  Haha...
Starting weight:  292.1
1st weigh-in:  286.8
2nd weigh-in:  280.1
3rd weigh-in:  276.4
4th weigh-in:  274.1
5th weigh-in:  270.6
6th weigh-in:  266.2
7th weigh-in:  262
8th weigh-in:  261.4
9th weigh-in:  257.7
10th weigh-in 251.4
11th weigh-in 247.3
12th weigh-in 243.6
13th weigh-in 241.7
14th weigh-in 235.4
15th weigh-in 235.4
16th weigh-in 227.7
17th weigh-in 223.5
18th weigh-in 223.5
19th weigh-in 221.6
20th weigh-in 221.6
21st weigh-in 215.6
22nd weigh-in 213.2
23rd weigh-in 207.9
24th weigh-in 206.6
25th weigh-in 200.1


Things couldn't have gone much better...losing 6.5 pounds on my 25th week feels darn good.  Of course, I may have attempted to weigh-in 34890328903892 times to see if positioning myself differently on the scale would make it drop just a little more to get me to my goal of under 200 pounds.  It stayed firm on 200.1 and then attempted to give me a number far greater than that...so I decided to give it the boot under the bed, and accept 200.1 - that takes me to 92 pounds lost in total.  I can hardly believe it.  Looking back at my 3rd weigh-in, at which point I had lost the equivalent of an above-average cat...I will now explain how much weight I have lost with a couple of photographs:




  






  
Yes, my friends, I have lost the equivalent of a Japanese school girl...or 6 macaques...or 9 cats.  And in butter?  Well, that's ridiculous!

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Antagonising my Croatian Conscience...and possibly embarrassing myself in the process.

Daniel-san, my Croatian conscience, still teases me about my weight...even though I'm now catching up to him.  So, I thought I'd add some fuel to the fire and send him a scantily clad picture of myself.  Now, the thing is, when you've been 292 pounds...206.6 seems positively waifish. 

Suzie:  
(This isn't the original photograph obviously...I pixelated it, because I'm shy..okay?  More like...I'm not ready for exhibitionism just yet...haha)
Daniel-san:  Is that really you?  Photoshop?

Suzie:  No filter.  No touch ups.  Just took it with my phone camera...obviously.

Daniel-san:  Filter? Or just fitter?

Suzie:  Bahahaha...just me fitter.  Yes.

Daniel-san:  WOW.  You just with a nice body that children won't throw stones at on the beach.

Suzie:  Yes.  Exactly. 

Disclaimer - One of my biggest pet peeves is self portraits taken by sexy freaks & gym addicts where they strike contrapposto in front of their bathroom mirrors and click their iPhone's single button to capture what can only be described as spectacular abs, tiny waists, and perfect pecs, arms, shoulders etc.  So, why, oh why, would I take just such a picture?  Not sure.  I guess if you work really hard for something, you want to show it off...or in my case, you want to shock a mean Croatian.  After all, this is the man that saw me in all my glory after slipping on the wet floor of his tiny micro-flat bathroom in Japan and to steady myself, I grabbed the door handle thus opening the door and landing me smack-dab in the middle of the kitchen on my ass...nekkid.  Konichiwa!

Sunday, July 07, 2013

Weigh-in Wednesday #24

Wednesday, July 3rd, 2013 - Very happy to be writing this blog post, partly because I get to report yet another loss, and partly because it means that I haven't been slain in traffic on my bike.  This WIW was not particularly amazing in the weight loss department, but every pound is progress, right?  Right.

Starting weight:  292.1
1st weigh-in:  286.8
2nd weigh-in:  280.1
3rd weigh-in:  276.4
4th weigh-in:  274.1
5th weigh-in:  270.6
6th weigh-in:  266.2
7th weigh-in:  262
8th weigh-in:  261.4
9th weigh-in:  257.7
10th weigh-in 251.4
11th weigh-in 247.3
12th weigh-in 243.6
13th weigh-in 241.7
14th weigh-in 235.4

15th weigh-in 235.4
16th weigh-in 227.7
17th weigh-in 223.5
18th weigh-in 223.5 
19th weigh-in 221.6
20th weigh-in 221.6
21st weigh-in 215.6
22nd weigh-in 213.2
23rd weigh-in 207.9
24th weigh-in 206.6

206.6 pounds...that's me this week...lost 1.3 pounds.  85.5 pounds down since starting on January 16th, 2013.  I have gotten rid of 29.5% of my body weight so far, and lemme tell you, it feels bloody good!  And, I've achieved 92% of my goal of reaching 199.9 pounds.  Only 6.7 pounds to go before that happens!  It all became clear to me on Wednesday...I WILL be able to get to where I want to go.  My first goal was to lose 5% of my body weight, then it was to lose 10%, then I set 5 pound increments...with 25, 50, and 75 being milestones...and now it's getting to that stage where I get to write my weight beginning with a number 1 instead of a 2!  Then I want to get to 100 pounds lost.  192.1 pounds?  Who me?  Absolutely.

Saturday, July 06, 2013

"It's just like riding a bike..."

...actually it IS riding a bike...a bicycle that has lived in the hallway of my loft for about the last 3 months.  For 2 months it lived in a box that made it difficult to enter and exit the toilet, and for 1 month it has been parked, boxless, in all it's glory...because some lovely bikey people put it together for me at our local Mountain Equipment Co-op.

And on Monday, I finally got back on the bike.  

On an absolutely beautiful and hot Canada Day, Vicky Voodoo and her beau, Julian, came over to whisk me away to Metchosin in the Element to ride the Goose in tree-y goodness.  But alas, our fancy bikes did not all fit with the third seat in place.  Which then put me into a state of panic...because of roads.  And also, biking on them.  Though the Galloping Goose is really very close to our place, all you have to do is cross Tyee and then turn right when you hit the smell of the best baguettes in Victoria.

Note to self:  Do not lean back & stick out your gut in future photographs.
The problem is, I haven't ridden my bike in 13 years.  So, I did a little circle in our driveway....a-ha!  Success.  Then I pedaled up the street for a bit, and then my cycle seized and I couldn't move at all.  Um...how did I break my bike in the first 30 seconds of riding it?  Maybe it's the chain?  I jumped off and fiddled around with it making my hands look very tough and mechanicky.  Now, the chain is on.  And...nothing.  Luckily, Vicky Voodoo is an experienced biker (she is the sister of Captain Hindgrinder after all) who pointed out that my quick release tire had been quick released in the back.  Yeah, that'll slow you down.  Let's just put that on again, shall we?  Done.  And bikey ridey up the hilly again...and...OMG...how was I ever good at this?  I feel the sudden urge to quit now.  Instead I turn my head to look for my friends and I immediately go in a circle.  Note to self:  Don't turn head.  No, wait...don't turn handles when head is turned.  Could possibly lead to sudden traffic death.  And, I am strapped into my pedals and that's making me nervous.  This is no spin bike...can we put my bike on rails?  Or blocks?  How 'bout we go for a nice little walk instead?

On my request we scoot through the garage and walk our bikes across the street to the bike lane.  Um...why am I in front?  Sacrificial lamb?  Climbing mommy and baby mountain goats?  If I take a tumble, can they can just finish me off?  Quick tyre over neck?  I suspect it's so they can keep an eye on me as I have not ridden in over a decade.  Good friends.

Here's something that added to my biking anxiety...other vehicles.  Wow.  I finally get why Victoria keeps adding bike lanes to streets.  And, I would like to say that I fully endorse closing lanes to traffic and giving them entirely to bikes.  There, I said it.  Luckily we were just on the road for 60 seconds or so until we turned onto the Goose.  Oh, glorious Galloping Goose!  

Once off of the streets and onto the trail, I felt free...still remembering to keep head turning to a minimum so as not to land myself in a ditch.  Going along the Gorge was gorgeous (did you see what I did there?  Haha...), then off across the trestle bridge to Selkirk Waterfront.  This is amazing, why didn't I do this before?  Oh, yeah, because I couldn't.  Losing weight and getting fit is like finding freedom.  Sometimes I just run around because I can.  And, in this case, I just biked down a lane on my tiny mountain bike with no Rock Shox because that guy 19 years ago told me:  "You don't really need them for what you're doing."  Tell that to my hands at the end of this spin, Carl!  Jeeze...no feeling in my last two digits on each hand for about 3 hours!  Where were we?  Ah yes...FREEDOM...that fantastic feeling of flying down a trail for a couple of hours powered by your own legs, and so much faster than walking!  I seem to have awakened my inner speed demon...last seen in 1995 rocketing down Silverstar Mountain in Vernon, British Columbia.

Voodoo and Julio - "When shall we three meet again?"  I may have gotten a little over excited and taken off in front a few times (not when the Goose crossed various scary trafficky roads though, no sir).  Just before we got to Thetis Lake, we decided to head back to town.  It was hot, bloody hot...and Voodoo was a bit of a sickie that day.  Julio, the doting boyfriend, lead the charge back to town on his fabulous cruiser bike "Humuhumu nukunuku apua'a" - which I just found out means triggerfish in Hawaiian. 

Conundrum #1:  

To wear sunscreen, or not to wear sunscreen, that is the question:
Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer
The sweat and stinging of outrageous sunscreen in the eyes,
Or to take Arms against the Sun of troubles,
And by opposing end burning. To die, to bike
No more; and by biking, to say we end
The tanning, and the thousand Natural shocks
That Flesh is heir to? 'Tis a conundrum.

Thank you, Hamlet.  Well, I'm for it...both sunscreen and Shakespeare.  So I slathered the cream all over every exposed area of skin very liberally.  You can just call me "White Lightning!"  And then I went out into the sunshine feeling confident in the amount of protection I was sporting.  This is where it gets tricky...there are people that sweat, and people that don't.  I am the former, and not the latter.  I am a sweaty mess if I'm exercising, and biking, dear friends, is exercising.  Half way down a fabulous little hill it started.  The stinging.  The burning.  The "Holy crap I have to close my eyes or I'm going to go blind, but if I do that I'm also gonna die."  Ooooooowwwwwiiiiiiiieeeee!!!  Surreptitiously, I try to wipe my eyes with my sleeve.

Conundrum #2:

Out, damned spot! out, I say! One; two: why, then, ’tis time to do ’t.

A slightly more murky (like Hell...bahaha...Shakespeare fans will get that one) reference there...but I have artificially darkened hair which means I kinda look a little skunky after a month or so, and I use black hairspray to cover up my white stripe *Insert Pepé Le Pew joke here.*  Normally this is fine, but not when you're biking up a storm.  To add insult to injury, when I finally pulled off to the side of the trail to wipe my stinging eyeballs...the sweat, mixed with the thick sunscreen, was also black.  Yes, black.  Are you serious?  Black down my face, black smudged on my sleeve, black.  I am the girl who gets locked in the bank and has to be broken out by a policeman and a skater punk, the girl who gets trapped in her Dublin apartment and is rescued by the fire brigade (yes, I went down a ladder from the 2nd storey living room window), and now...cycling has blinded me by some sort of crude...I know people get oily hair, but this is ridiculous!  

All's Well That Ends Well though, I made it home alive...and so did my comrades in cycling.  I was a bit shaky at first, but as it turns out the old adage is true, it IS just like riding a bike.

Thursday, July 04, 2013

Weigh-in Wednesday #20 through #23 - June revisited!

Well, I have to say...I've been a little lackadaisical in the last little while, no...I have not stopped working out and eating right, obviously I've been doing that so much that it's been VERY tough to get on the computer and post updates.  And for that, I'm very sorry...because I've had soooooo many posts that have been in my brain, but as I never finished the Ukee one, I never started the other ones.  

So, what's been happening with me in the last little while?  Well...lemme tell you!

Starting weight:  292.1

1st weigh-in:  286.8
2nd weigh-in:  280.1
3rd weigh-in:  276.4
4th weigh-in:  274.1
5th weigh-in:  270.6
6th weigh-in:  266.2
7th weigh-in:  262
8th weigh-in:  261.4
9th weigh-in:  257.7
10th weigh-in 251.4
11th weigh-in 247.3
12th weigh-in 243.6
13th weigh-in 241.7
14th weigh-in 235.4

15th weigh-in 235.4

16th weigh-in 227.7

17th weigh-in 223.5
18th weigh-in 223.5 
19th weigh-in 221.6 

Weigh-in Wednesday #20 June 5th, 2013 - Weight = 221.6 pounds.  Stayed the same weight at last WI :-(  Still at 70.5 pounds down though...that's the bright side...sometimes I have to look at that!

Weigh-in Wednesday #21 June 12th, 2013 -  215.6 pounds.  Made up for 2 weeks of the same weight by dropping 6 pounds in one week...and on my 5th month of healthy living...that is ah-mazing.

Weigh-in Wednesday #22 June 19th, 2013 -  213.2 pounds.  Takes me down another 2.4 pounds and to a grand total of 78.9 pounds down!

Weigh-in Wednesday #23 June 26th, 2013 - 207.9 pounds.  OMG...I'm so close to being under 200 pounds, I can't even believe it...lost another 5.3 pounds this week!  How is this even possible?

That's the last 4 weeks in a nutshell...not a very interesting read, but that takes us to now.  And now I can get started on what's in my head.

TTFN.

Tuesday, July 02, 2013

What happens in Ukee...stays in Ukee.

Or, more likely...shows up on the scale on Weigh-in Wednesday.  But, let's not talk shop just yet, let's talk a weekend away in the rugged beauty that is the west coast of Vancouver Island.  Thank you Times Colonist Health Challenge for the prize package including a 2 night stay at the Black Rock Oceanfront Resort & Spa in Ucluelet. 

May was a tricky month for me...it was the month after the wrap up of the Times Colonist Health Challenge, it was my birthday month (and I'm holding onto 37 FOREVER!), my best friend Zeebee from Winnipeg came for a visit, and things started to get a bit squirrely after I had that appointment with the bariatric surgeon...so even if a weekend of relaxation wasn't what my body needed, it was certainly good for my brain.

As I've said before, it's a little bit daunting to go out into the real world of restaurant food and beer on tap without my trusty Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre membership and my personal ninja.  Also, I have a pretty strict schedule of eating that revolves around my workouts...so how will I fare with less exercise and no set itinerary?  I would find out soon enough.  In the past, while being on some sort of diet, I have always thrown caution to the wind and drank and eaten anything and everything I wanted, because it's okay to indulge when you're on holiday, right?  Well, this time I went prepared.  As an ex-Girl Guide, I packed our vintage blue Coleman cooler with everything that we normally eat on a weekend.  There were veggies and fruits, proteins, ingredients for breakfasts, lunches and dinners, for the next 4 days...no bannock though, it wasn't Camp Jubilee!  Fortified after a quick trip to Discovery Coffee, we were on our way up-Island!

Past Duncan and Ladysmith, Nanaimo and Parksville there lies a little piece of British Columbia that figures into the childhood of so many people, myself included...COOMBS! No trip up-Island is complete without a stop at Goats on Roof; there, I usually purchase a weird collection of food stuffs, home décor, art supplies, and wigs.  This time, we took home some avocado and coconut oils, Cajun blackening spice, Muffaletta vegetable tapenade, hot sauce, and ginger marmalade for my mom and dad.  The selection of Japanese pottery wasn't as varied as I remembered, and I already had too many wigs...so no mise-en-scène for me this time.  And after a torrential downpour, we were off...without coffees because there was no skim milk at the Coombs Café!
Side note:  Port Alberni Starbucks, you have nothing on Discovery...not only did I burn my tongue on you, but you didn't taste as good as I thought you would...then I stopped using the straw and you tasted much better.  Haha...

Before the drive across to Ukee, I had to have a little convo with my dear husband the driver.  He promised to go the speed limit, unlike last time when Del and I were threatening to jump out of the moving vehicle and walk the rest of the way.  Luckily, we didn't have to drive light speed to catch the sunset or worry about sheet rain.  All in all, it was a very pleasant experience, one I hope to repeat more than once every couple of years!

We got into Ucluelet early in the afternoon, and before we headed to the resort, the first thing Stéphane picked up was some "Reign In Blonde" and "Tuff Session Ale" from Tofino Brewing Company.  I don't know why I grabbed a cinnamon whisky, but I did...old habits die hard (don't worry, I still haven't cracked open the bottle yet).  Then off to the resort to check in and get the weekend started!

Now, Stéphane and I have been known to enjoy a good boutique hotel like Loft 523 in New Orleans or the Opus Hotel in Vancouver, and the Black Rock did not disappoint!  The design was functional with flair, the colour palette was neutral which showcased the scenery outside.  Not that we spent much time in the bathroom, but it was amazing with a heated slate floor, soaker tub, large walk-in shower with pebbles on the ground to massage your tootsies, and regular or rain shower options.  The rest of the suite was just as comfortable...both the living room and the bedroom came equipped with flat screen televisions and the patio outside ran the length of both.  The kitchen had a 2 burner range, a microwave/convection oven, refrigerator, and a good amount of dishes and pots and pans - I didn't even need to bring the salt and pepper, it was provided!  


After the impromptu photo session of the new digs, we cracked open the beer and wine and had ourselves a patio party complete with music and wardrobe changes before heading down to the lounge for some sushi, and much to my trainer's chagrin...more alcohol.  Being a control freak, I had already planned on getting the sushi platter for the both of us...Stéphane often has to go along for the ride because of my dietary restrictions and/or bossiness!  Ha!  We arrived at Float in our new togs, and settled into a posh paradise of modern furniture and an unbelievable view, topped off by an acoustic set by our friend Lola Parks (who knew a crony from Smith's Pub would be in town to serenade us while we supped on raw fish and rice?)  おいしいですね。  How do you top that off?  Well, I'll tell you...have your neighbour (from Victoria) stop by with 4 of her awesome friends.  I had no idea the Island was so small.  We chatted surfing, UNESCO, make-up, Ucluelet, music, archaeology, and autre chose until the wee hours.  Perfection!

California king...get one...best sleep ever.  Usually, I attempt to relegate Stéphane to the furthest corner of the mattress, but this time my starfish sleeping pattern did not disturb.  I like to think it's because of my significant weight loss, but I have a feeling that it may have been the sheer size of that bed.  A mere 5 or 6 hours after schlepping our weary selves to bed after hijinks and hilarity in the lounge, we awoke to waves crashing and birds chirping.  Decided to take it slow and cook some breakkie in the pad.  Some lovely omelettes later, we were anxious to try out the fancy bathroom!  Nothing quite like testing out a rain shower with a shower cap on...glorious nonetheless.  After primping and preening, we left Ukee for Tofino to meet up with the one and only Vicky Voodoo and her lover boy.


Directions have never been Stéffi's forté, thankfully the road to Tofino is straight.  However, it was me who got confused when I attempted to give directions to my chauffeur.  Thankfully we met up with our friends and then headed to SOBO for lunch - famed for it's smoked fish chowder.  Both Julian and I ordered oysters because that's what you do when there are oysters on the menu, Stéffi got the infamous soup, and Voodoo got something served in tortillas.  Julio also ordered a bacon wrapped stuffed jalapeno...because again, it's what you do if it's on the menu.  Lovely little lunch with lots of laughs and topped off with a gigantic chocolate 'n' hazelnut cookie that I may have had to steal a munch of...oh, glorious cookie.  I'm not even a sweets person, but that cookie was amazeballs.


So what do you do in Tofino after eating bivalves and hazelnuts?  Why you go surf and vintage shopping of course!  Tofino shopping is hilarious, you can get a brand-new crocheted bikini top for top dollar at a surf shop, or get a hand-made, gently-used, crocheted bikini top for a nickle at a second hand place.  Either way, I think you shouldn't get one...for the record.  Perhaps it's because I am not a surfer girl or hippie, or maybe because I like to think I have a sense of style...but I managed to leave Tofino with just a fabulous foamy hat.  Who am I?  Someone who can't stop making gang signs in photographs.  That's who.

So at this point in the trip, I had not yet exercised...but my eating had been spot on...and my drinking..well, let's not talk about yesterday, but I resisted the urge to have a beer with lunch!  Healthy breakfast Saturday morning, fabulous Saturday oysters lunch (wee bit of a cookie at the end, not the end of the world), afternoon walks through town, with some shopping thrown in, and now what?  Well, as I had invited Voodoo and Julio to dinner at the resort, it was back to Ukee with us.  Tacos con carne on the menu at Casa Spitfyre!  Yum.  Of course, when I make tacos, there are whole-wheat tortillas involved, extra lean ground beef goes in the pot, hot salsa, fat-free sour cream, avocados, iceberg lettuce, fresh cilantro, squeeze of lime juice, maybe a squirt of hot sauce...but no cheese in sight.  Usually people don't notice.  As I also distract them with a beautiful salad to go with and appetisers of wise crackers and antipasto.  And, of course there was wine and beer, what?  I'm on vacation!  Victoria and Julian are always entertaining...we can talk for hours and hours and frequently do.  Voodoo even brought over a belated birthday prezzie to go with the book she gave me at lunch...it wasn't a crocheted bikini top *insert disappointment here* it was a set of creepy 50s or 60s porcelain kitties!  Fabulous!

Sunday - Day 3 - Still no "official" exercise.  I'm starting to feel like I'm cheating on my ninja.  So, I will make up for my non-gymminess by trekking along a trail, the Wild Pacific Trail to be precise.  Voodoo works in the bush, Julian is a kite surfer guy, and then there's me and Stéffi who are experts at stationary cardio equipment.  Haha...this should be interesting.  Holy scenery, Batman!  The entire trail is unbelievable...chock-a-block full of tree-mendous greenery, rocky beaches, crashing waves, bald eagles...ah-mazing.  Here, a picture is worth a 1000 words.  So enjoy:
Skunk cabbage!


Apparently, there used to be a boardwalk


This is what I have missed being sedentary for so long, NATURE!


That French Canadian dude, and me.  Dude.


Creepy trees


Vicky Voodoo and Julio


Hi, gorgeous


End of May sunshiny goodness






Did Tim Burton put this here?












There is another shot of Julian mooning the live-cam.  I left that out.




Lighthouse lady


King of the castle


















I guess it gets windy here






Tree swing!




Thanks, already did :-D
After our little hiking adventure we drove into town to get some lunch at Ukee Dogs!  So, here's the deal with eating right and exercising...you can't have the mac 'n' cheese dog like you used to, but you can make your husband get it because YUM!  Doesn't that sound glorious?  Or rather, doesn't that sound like something that you may have really enjoyed back when you didn't mind wearing a hotdog around your waist?  I had a veggie chili dog hold the cheese on whole wheat - it was lovely.  I even ordered a water to go with...change is good.  If I told you how much pop I used to drink, it would disgust you...in fact, when I think of how much money we spent on pop daily (yes, daily) we could probably make our way back to New Orleans.

From Ukee dogs to the Rip Curl Pro Tofino!  Excited to see the surfing.  Apparently Saturday had absolutely zero waves, so we hoped Sunday would not disappoint.  I had never been to a surfing competition, so had no idea what to expect.  What we found as we meandered down to Cox Beach was a whole bunch of people standing near kiosks for various organisations, vendors, and snack shacks, a giant 2 level driftwood announcer's booth that was broadcasting the play by play...and a bunch of people right at the edge & in  the surf...some of them in wetsuits with tripods and very fancy cameras.  Stéphane and I found the Surfrider Foundation set-up and said hi to our neighbour, Jill.  We then ventured out into the surf...but not really...we just went out to watch what was going on.
Julian was interested in setting up his sail...as in kite sail...as in kite surfing, whatever, I have no idea what I'm talking about obviously.  He turned left...we kept right.  He set up his sail by inflating it and a bunch of other things that I don't remember.  We walked the beach some and then met up with him again later.  It was a great day, made especially fun when I recognised Pamela Anderson at the event, and we hung out when the prizes were being given out.  Her son won the U16, well done Dylan Lee!  But, I digress...there was this guy called Julio who was trying to fly a kite but couldn't because he forgot his harness.  Sad face.  Victoria came and picked us up and we all headed back to the Black Rock.  It was the end of the Voodoos' day, but only half way through the Spitfyres'.  We said bye and then bunkered down in our room before venturing into Ukee again for the best darn BBQ I have had since St. Louis!

Barbecue in Ucluelet?  Why yes, and yummy, yummy, yummy BBQ at that.  Recommended by other neighbours that enjoy the good things in life...we headed to Hank's for pulled pork (Stéphane ordered that) and the brisket (that's what I got).  OMG.  I can't tell you how gorgeous this food was...holy moley.  Now, I won't lie, we may have had a few beers before heading out to get dinner.  So when the brisket came with potato salad, baked beans, and fry bread...I didn't even hesitate...I ate them...and they were delicious!  Good thing we don't go out to eat all that much...haha...because I lose a bit of control when I'm at a restaurant.  I suppose I could have ordered something different on the side, but I didn't...and it was amazing, and a treat, and I was on vacation...and possibly slightly drunk.  Those are my excuses.  Don't judge me.

Got back to the resort just in time to catch the last episode of GAME OF THRONES.  And, oh my gods...what was that all about?  I can't say anything because I don't want to give away anything to anyone, but I shouldn't have watched that!  Traumatised and confused was I!  Where are they going to go from there?

Next morning we got up late, had breakfast, checked out (please don't make me leave this glorious place!) and headed to Long Beach.  No, not to reenact Twilight at Incinerator Rock, but to hang out with a really very curious and friendly raven.  We did some beachcombing, checked out some tidal pools, overturned some rocks, took a few pictures, and breathed in the salty and sandy Pacific air.  No matter how many times I go to that beach, it always amazes me.
 
After a couple hours walking and talking on the beach, we hopped in the Fit (How appropriate is that?  Our car is named after what I'm trying to achieve!) and headed towards Tofino to get a coffee and lunch at that little weird collection of shops half way to town.  Café latte from Tofitian and a taco at Tacofino...seared tuna tatakitaco!?  Yes please!  So that makes up for drinking beer and eating potato salad and baked beans last night, right?  I fear the answer is no.  But, at least I did some beach trekking Monday morning because it's a 5 hour drive back to Victoria.  Which is incidentally what we embarked on shortly after finishing our snacks and 'spresso.

Drive back to town was great, and luckily our beachcombing did not result in operation return barnacles to water at Cattle Point ASAP as they are still alive, my mistake, and also I hope we don't screw up this here ecosystem.  This time all of the barnacles were former barnacles, ex-barnacles, shells essentially...which is kinda too bad, because I'm looking for an excuse to go back to Ukee and Tofino.