Dome 2 Dome or was that Silverstar Casino 2 Silverstar Casino

Guess who joined me!!

Last Sunday was my first cycle race for the Spring/Summer season.  I opted to do the 40 km.

This was the profile - you guessed it - OUCH!!

The night before the race we went out for our youngest's 6th birthday - a nice Italian restuarant which meant I could carbo-load and not do my diet too much damage.  The kids then went off with my BIL to spend the night with their cousins.  Hubby made an impromptu decision and decided to join me on the race.  Some adjustments on my mountain bike and a spare entry that a friend had, and he was all set to go.  And GO he did!!  He eventually calmed down and slowed down to a pace I could handle.  Relief!! 

I enjoyed this one, well, except for the end bit.  When I do it again I hope it will be a me at goal weight.  My weight is really slowing me down on the hills **sad face**

We finished the race in just over 3 hrs - around 03:08:something.  That hill at the end there killed us.  We walked, chatted and begged for mercy but we got up it.

We made it!!

Fortunately, one of cycling shirts fitted hubby.  Don't worry - one day they won't. hehehehehe  I'll be in skinnier ones.

I tried a new low GI drink on this ride, 32 GI and was very impressed with it.  It cut down on how many gels I needed to take in.  On a ride like this it would have been up to 3 gels - making the calorie intake a lot more than it was.  I also packed a healthy picnic for afterwards - NO greasy boerewors rolls or hamburgers.  **huge grin**

The next race is on the 19th.  I did this one last year so I am looking forward to comparing.  It is the Meals on Wheels race.  Fun times.

Back soon.....

Accountability!!

For the past week or so I have been contemplating if I am going to be continuing with Weight Watchers or not. Don't get me wrong, I fully believe in Weight Watchers but right now all I use it for, is to step on a scale once a week. I rarely stay for the meetings due to time restrictions and two boys who would rather be somewhere else than at WW meeting. This is also a costly weigh in and that money right now could be used for other things. I also pay a Personal Trainer who does more and weighs me. ((grin)) Why pay twice??

The advantage in staying with Weight Watcher's is accountability and support. The incentive to not look like as Ass when you step on the scale. You want to have lost and not have picked up. Not that anyone makes you feels horrid if you have and fortunately it has only happened to me once or twice in my 20 week odd journey so far.

I rarely have big weight losses anyway. I spend a lot of time at the gym : 3 Personal training sessions, 3 Spinning classes and a Zumba class. A couple of weeks ago there were days when I would go to gym twice a day but my PT has insisted that I cut back on the amount I was doing, the concern being I was doing way too much. I am considering sneaking my Pilates session back in. I miss it!! So the scale is not showing much but the centimeters lost is.

I am 100% committed to my new healthy lifestyle and that is just it, it is about the lifestyle and not just about the weight loss. In the past when I have dieted and lost and then returned to bad habits, *voila* all the weight is back on and more!! I wish I had understood this before - losing the weight is not enough!! You need to change your lifestyle to make it a success!! Weight Watchers was the first step in my Journey and that is why a part of me still desperatley wants to hang on to it. But seriousely how many scales do we need to step on???

Shortly after joining WW's, I then signed up at one of the Virgin Active gyms locally and I have gone from strength to strength. I LOVE IT!! I live for how I feel after a good workout. I live for the *good* pain and do my best to avoid the *bad* pain (injury). I have to wonder how many times I have used these words said by Tara of The Biggest Loser : "You can do this, you have it within you. You have to be uncomfortable to grow". I hope I got the quote right, forgive me if I haven't. Those words have got me through many a Spinning session when my muscles are burning and one part of me wants to get off that bike and quit and then I just start saying those words over and over again in my head and next thing I know, I've survived the class and we're cooling down. There is nothing like the feeling of saying 'I did it and SURVIVED!!'.

So my thinking is, I don't need to step on a bathroom scale, a Weight Watchers scale and a gym scale to have them tell me the same thing. One should be enough and according to some, one is too many, but I'm not quite ready to throw my Bathroom Scale away. Maybe one day........

As of now I have lost 10 kilograms BUT I've dropped 2 Jean sizes and that means more to me than any number on a scale.......but the woman in me just refuses to part with the scale....Crazy, I know....