Tag Archives: change

Signed up again! 6 weeks to go and toothache did not interrupt training!

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Yep, so I’ve signed up again to do the 2015 Palace-to-Palace cycle ride – 45 miles of cycling from Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle on September 13th. Last year it took 4 1/2 hours of cycling to do it. This year, I’d really like to try to break the 4 hour mark this year if possible.

Unluckily for me for the past 10 days or so, I’ve had toothache! Yesterday I finally managed to get a dental appointment. Penicillin has been prescribed as it seems I have some kind of infection with a few more appointments to look forward to.

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I didn’t let it a little bit of toothache stop me from doing a 13 mile training ride last night! It’s all for a great cause, as the Prince’s Trust does amazing things to help young people in need. They aim to 58,000 young people this year, so every little helps as they say!

If you’d like to donate, please do so here – thank you!:

https://www.justgiving.com/Andrea-Davis2015

10 days to go! Cycling 45 miles (72 kms) for the Prince’s Trust

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So it’s 10 days to go and my knees hurt! The other half acquired some new lights for our bikes this week so we could do some evening cycling training (really?!) We went out last night after work and cycled 14 miles around 2 lakes in the pitch black. Pitch black! Not that keen on that I have to say – a little spooky – despite the mega-wattage lights!

The longest training ride we have done so far is 32 miles. Just once. After that, I was exceptionally pleased to be home and on the sofa. 45 miles will definitely be a stretch. And I am still trying to convince myself that I like hills! I love hills. I love hills. I love hills…

Of course, aching knees/shoulders/legs/bottoms aside, this is really all about raising funds to help disadvantaged young people in the UK to change their lives and get into work, education or training. This year, The Trust aims to support 58,000 vulnerable young people, helping to give them the skills and confidence to find a job – for this they need to raise over a million pounds a week! We’re hoping that our Xerox extended team of over 100 people will contribute a massive £20,000 just from this one event – which would be absolutely amazing!

Thank you to those of you who have very generously donated already – you are very kind! If you haven’t, but you’d like to, thank you in advance for your support! Every Pound, Euro, Ruble or Dollar etc. helps! https://www.justgiving.com/AndreaLouiseDavis/

UPDATE: Thank you, thank you, thank you! It took 4 and a half hours but we did it!

My final total was £785 raised – far in excess of what I could have hoped for. As a team of around 100, we raised around £30,000! Seriously, you guys are awesome. Thanks again.

Before - at the start!

Done - 4 1/2 hours - but done!

Done – 4 1/2 hours later – but done!

Snake’s alive – there’s a snake in the grass!

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No one mentioned snakes when out cycling! There we were cycling in the beautiful Buckinghamshire countryside and I spotted a coiled up snake at the side of the road as we rode past. I thought it was dead. I have never seen a live, wild snake in the UK before, so it was a bit of a surprise!

We turned our bikes around and approached it cautiously, caused a mini traffic jam in the road (it was a narrow lane) and then the snake moved. It had decided to make a run (slither) for it. Up its little head popped and it started to make its way across the rood – cars or no cars. We were looking for a stick to help it on its way and stop the snake from becoming roadkill!

At this point a man stopped his car complete with gun dog in the back of his car (a beautiful looking German Short-haired Pointer, I think) and asked what was up. So we showed him. He said “no point in killing something you are not going to eat” and promptly found a blanket from his car, calmly picked up said snake with the blanket, took it to the other side of the road into the grass.

The snake played dead. After a couple of minutes it started to move and headed away from the road and into the fields beyond. You can’t say this cycling training business is boring!

You can just see its head on the left

You can just see its head on the left

Off to safety!

Off to safety!

We managed 23 miles with hills that day and the pace was okay considering I wasn’t feeling 100% – sore throat and cold. And we’d like to have done some more but after all we had the Monza F1 GP to watch and I had plans later on with my Mummy.

Surely saving a snake is worth a little donation to the wonderful Prince’s Trust who do amazing things to inspire young people? 🙂

Please donate here if you can: bitly.com/1qK2Bg6

Training ride to the most south-westerly in Europe

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I managed only one gentle cycle ride out this past week on holiday in Portugal. The hotel rented out mountain bikes – they were okay but the hotel staff seemed seemed surprised when I asked about a borrowing a helmet. I guess I have become used to wearing one now, from hating them just a few weeks ago. I rode out before breakfast while everyone else had a lie-in (even though 2 other lazy monkeys had their cycling gear with them!).

The journey was good – lovely and quiet – too early for the tourists – just the locals – and me! There were little markers on the way with messages such as “so far, so good” – right by the road so you would only see them if you were on a bike or on foot.

It was a beautiful sunny morning at the hotel, but in under 5 miles the Cape (St Vincent) was misty and cold. You couldn’t see the lighthouse, just hear the foghorn! No wonder they need the lighthouse there!

Under 10 miles in total but at least I did something! If you spare a little to help The Prince’s Trust.. you’ll be contributing to helping 50,000+ young people this year. Thank you!

http://www.justgiving.com/andrealouisedavis

Mist at Cape St Vincent near very big cliff drops!

Mist at Cape St Vincent near very big cliff drops!

Foggy, misty morning but you can just see the lighthouse on the left!

Foggy, misty morning but you can just see the lighthouse on the left!

Me at Cape St Vincent in the mist!

Me at Cape St Vincent in the mist!

Lighthouse the day before

Lighthouse the day before

A stressful day tested my resolve!

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Work yesterday was stressful. Not like life or death stressful. But stressful nevertheless. I was constantly interrupted so that I couldn’t get anything of substance done. It was unfortunate, but I did need to react to the interruptions for long-term … Continue reading →

4 changes of clothes before breakfast!

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So I set the alarm for 5.30am but somehow didn’t leave the house until 7.45. Why? I couldn’t find what I thought was a flattering outfit to wear for work. This is not for lack of choice, but simply due to the bit of extra padding my dresses are tighter and shorter – they rise up due to the extra around the middle and bottom bit. So that’s why I tried on four outfits before I was happy enough to leave the house!

That’s one of the things I disliked so much about being heavier – the care needed to disguise unflattering lumps and bumps. And conversely, one of the things I loved, loved, loved about being lighter – being able to have much more choice about what to wear. Plus … early mornings are not my best time in the day so those few extra minutes in bed were fabulous! 

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Shoe choice was equally lengthy - one must get the silhouette right!

Having got over the clothing dramas of the morning, I did manage to successfully complete day 2 of the new ’13 weeks to the beach’ mission. My food diary is complete and pleasingly I did not feel hungry or deprived on 1,200 or so calories a day!

Good luck to anyone trying to do something similar!

Until next time.

Back on track … nearly!

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I am in the pre-contemplation phase.

It’s 13 weeks to a beach holiday so plenty of time to get back on track. Have had a bit of a splurge recently with food and drink.  Have kept off half the weight for a year. So I guess my current weight is my new “maximum, I have to stop now, weight”. Time to stop messing around and get back on it.

Went for a cycle ride at the weekend (then rewarded myself with a bottle of wine). Oops.

Today I am back… let the 13 week mission begin.

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Dinner was lovely, but now it’s time to rein in the treats.

36 hours to go in the 4-week focus…

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36 hours to go in the 4-week/9-day push. In the last 36 hours, I achieved the 9-day target and my gym goals 🙂  The problem with achieving your goals is that you then need to set some new ones! So, new gym goals have now been revised and the programme revised with some even more evil-sounding exercises … including way too many squats for my liking!

It didn’t dawn on me until I was driving home that in my new programme, my repetitions have increased by 50 percent! Wah! Okay, okay … that’s the 6-week goal. But still … wah!

Breaking things down into smaller goals works really well for me – into manageable chunks that don’t seem too overwhelming – both in terms of time and difficulty. It’s amazing what can be achieved when fully focused on a short-term goal. It seems silly to even say it, but the short-term goal thing is so obvious, yet so effective.

4-week focus … time is nearly up. From a weight-loss perspective, I may  be a pound or two adrift from the four-week goal, but you never know what might happen in 36 hours!

In any case, I’ll be able to enjoy my birthday in the knowledge that it’s all in the right direction. One step at a time.

Good luck with your own goals, whatever they may be!

It’s the weekend and (eek!) treats are in the house…

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5 days done, 4 to go on the 9-day push … and things are on track … but …

There’s a whole load of temptation in the house, though, as Wayne went food shopping and bought treats as his (17 and 15-year-old) daughters are staying for the weekend. So it’s a danger zone for me… the lure of crisps, chocolate (mmmm… maltesers!) or whatever might prove too much for me.

Normally I’d let myself have a little treat to avoid feeling deprived – but am very focused on this last push, so I am trying to avoid calorie-dense, nutritionally-low value foods – to make every calorie count! It’s amazing how much you can eat of ‘real’ food in comparison to, say, even 4 squares of chocolate. So I’ve put those ‘treats’ out of sight, so I am not so tempted. I think I’ll be okay, but I generallly find healthy eating more difficult at the weekends. If I stray, I’ll compensate by being more active –  walking or going to the gym. I have a gym review booked in tomorrow afternoon anyway – having body fat percentage measured (eek!) so I hope it is down a little and to have met my other 4-week gym goals.

Am now very close to my 9-day goal, I might even be able to beat it … and possibly hit the original 4-week diet goal. We’ll see! I’ll be happy with hitting the 9-day goal, the 4-week goal or anything in between!

Whatever you are doing this weekend, have a happy one, y’all!

9-day push update, slightly obsessive scale usage and boiled eggs

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Super-quick post tonight.

I’m so pleased that I have digital scales. They measure increments of a quarter of a pound or 200 grammes.

Yes, I am getting on every day, and so far the scales are going in the right direction, even if is a quarter of a pound down a day. I fear I may be slightly obsessed though, as I took the scales to an overnight hotel stay with my other half earlier in the week. Sorry, Wayne!

So sticking to the diet IS tough, but seeing the scales go down is great motivation to stay on track. And also knowing it’s only for a short while, then I can stablise again.

There are 3 of us in the team at work trying to lose a little weight, so that definitely helps that there is not so much ‘naughty’ food around to tempt us.

And finally, thinking forward to next week, for our birthdays, we normally bring in cakes, donuts or other goodies to work. I think I’m going to have to bring some healthy snacks in as well next week! Healthy suggestions welcomed, as I don’t expect anyone will welcome a hard-boiled egg as a snack!