Another 12 days, another 6.8kg

The hard work of  the last 12 days has paid off, I was a little dubious due to the fact that we went away as well and had Emma's birthday in between but keeping the working out going, it has worked out fine. Tomorrow I am going to see Dr. Champion, the Endicronologist and to be honest, I am not really looking forward to it. Mainly due to the fact that I actually do not know what he is going to do, or not do for that matter.
Last Sunday I actually rode home from work on the bike for the first time and that was awesome, I canot wait to be able to ride to and from work every day. Yesterday, I walked home from work for the first time and I made it! Something I did not think I was going to be able to do a little while ago.
Still dieting of course, keeping things moderate, saying no to things I never even thought twice of in the past. Yesterday evening, I came to a horrible and absolutely shocking realisation. Even though I can still have the Dutch Cheese Fondue, I cannot actually have it on something because the fondue is eaten by dipping little pieces of bread in the cheese stew. I am gutted lol
So, I will report here after I have been to Dr. Champion tomorrow, wish me luck !

First Time More Than 10K!

Today we drove down to the Regatta Centre, however, due to flooding the bicycle paths were closed off. Now that was a bummer, because I remember from in Holland I used to love riding alongside the water, it shaves off a couple of decimals of temperature ;)

Anyway, went back to Jamison Park and had another great ride with Emma and Beth. It is quite funny how long the lap around Jamison Park actually is, because it does not look big at all. I would like to be able to do at least 20k in an hour within the month or so. Once I start riding from and to work as well the workouts will come almost automatically. 

I feel better than I have in a long long time to be honest, not that I felt bad but now that I feel better than I did I know that something was not right before my episode over the Christmas time.

I sure have a long way to go though but steady as she goes and I will get there, I am 100% confident :)

 

Today we drove down to the Regatta Centre, however, due to flooding the bicycle paths were closed off. Now that was a bummer, because I remember from in Holland I used to love riding alongside the water, it shaves off a couple of decimals of temperature ;) Anyway, went back to Jamison Park and had a ... http://the-diabetes-adventure.posterous.com/first-time-more-than-10k

Am I The Biggest Loser ? ( Shut Up Aaron )

At some point in time I actually watched an episode or two of the Biggest Loser and such shows. It seems that those shows put an emphasis on going hard, missing out on things and so forth.
I have now come to the conclusion that you probably have to do the above if you want to lose the amount of weight they need to lose for that show. However, it does give the wrong impression to people who are watching it that it has to be a "go, go go, shut up bitch, work' sort of scenario.
On the contrary, I actually do not feel I have been missing out, I have not been going incredibly hard, I have just been doing my own thing, eating regularly, excercising regularly, going out for dinner, doing normal things really but in moderation.
I really believe that that is the key word of dieting, moderation in everything and the weight has been dropping of me like nothing else. I actually am flabbergasted by how it has been going.
I tried those bars and shakes and what not that you can buy, all I can say is, fuck that shit! I would rather have only half a sandwich of something I really like than a bowl full of soy shit that I do not like lol
I am not losing the amount of weight those people on those shows do, but in my own little world I am .. the biggest .. (go on say it)

Max To The Max

Well, today marked the first of the slightly longer rides, together with Emma (who got kicked off the bike for one lap by Beth!) we rode our first training session :) The ultimate goal of it will be for me to be able to ride to and from work and the plan will be that on the way home from work I will do 30 minutes around Jamison again. Reason? Sharon works till 1800 and I only until 1700 so if I do that, we will probably arrive sort of at the same time at home.

We had a lot of fun today, I really really forgot how much fun bike riding actually is and I am almost ashamed of that because being Dutch, it is in our blood! Hell, there are 3 times more bikes in Holland than there are people for crying out loud!

Anyway, this was another murmur, tired but satisfied, I will talk to you all again soon :)

Well, today marked the first of the slightly longer rides, together with Emma (who got kicked off the bike for one lap by Beth!) we rode our first training session :) The ultimate goal of it will be for me to be able to ride to and from work and the plan will be that on the way home from work I will ... http://the-diabetes-adventure.posterous.com/max-to-the-max

Setting goals and challenges for myself

I have been getting on the treadmill every morning, early if I have to go to work or a bit later if it is my RDO and even though at first it was hard to reach the 30 minutes at even a low speed, now it is getting easy even at a much higher speed. I am not running, I am walking as fast as I can, I do not want to wear out my joints any more than I have too. I will run at some stage but I have to weigh a lot and I mean a lot less first before that will happen. 

I use this app called Nike+ ( see the link in the top bar) which calculates, calories burnt, steps taken, pace, distance and time. It also lets you set your own personal goals and challenges.. some even to beat your own personal record. It lets you listen to your own music and all in all, it is an awesome and extremely useful app.

I am going to be off next week so I am hoping to be able to do some cycling at the Regatta Centre, if not it will be Jamison Park again but as I found out the other day, losing calories is a lot more fun outside and on the bike ;)

At the end of next week we will go on a short break so I won't be able to go on the treadmill but apparently the beach is right near where we are staying so I am hoping for actual beachwalks of longer than half an hour, so I am really looking forward to that.

I am winning already, I got some clothes out that did not fit me anymore which now fit me again, my workpants need to be replaced because even on the tightest fit, they are starting to fall of me. I am so SO stoked about that, it is an incentive to keep on going and push even harder and that is where the bike comes into the equation as well. Anyway, enough for today, thank you for reading and see you again at the next blog :)

I have been getting on the treadmill every morning, early if I have to go to work or a bit later if it is my RDO and even though at first it was hard to reach the 30 minutes at even a low speed, now it is getting easy even at a much higher speed. I am not running, I am walking as fast as I can, I do ... http://the-diabetes-adventure.posterous.com/setting-goals-and-challenges-for-myself

Max Gets Dizzy ...

The other day we bought a car rack that does not need a towbar to be attached to the car. Rather elegant solution really. They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so have a look:

When it was a nice day, I hooked it up to the back of the car, which takes a few seconds only and we went down to Jamison Park to have a test ride. Got the gear on, got the bikes ready to go and away we went. For the both of us it was like we had never stopped riding a bike, we had no trouble getting back into the swing of things. 

One of the things I love about bike riding is that flies and other nasty little flying critters, cannot swarm around your face like the little bastards that they are. 

It was only a short ride to test the bikes and the rack and all the other gear we had bought but in the short time we rode, we still got rid of 392 calories. 

Now that we are a little bit further down the road time frame wise, Beth is going to want a bike as well and join in the fun because above all.. I sure had forgotten how much damn fun bike riding is!

The other day we bought a car rack that does not need a towbar to be attached to the car. Rather elegant solution really. They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so have a look: When it was a nice day, I hooked it up to the back of the car, which takes a few seconds only and we went down to Jami ... http://the-diabetes-adventure.posterous.com/max-gets-dizzy

iDiabetes ...

Life as a diabetic is a lot easier now I reckon than it was say 25 years ago. All the small devices that we carry around like the phones, pads and other gadgets serve as databanks instead of the pieces of paper or little books that a diabetic would use in the past to write down their BSL results etc.

An app I have been using since I was diagnosed has been MyNetDiary, absolutely brilliant little app to control your daily intake of.. well.. crap really lol

Basically how it works is: you put in what you eat and it will tell you all information that is needed for you to know using a point system whether or not to actually eat it, or how much of it, or not at all. 

On my travels of the Net I also ran into this particular very interesting video, worth a watch if you are interested. It really confirmed my personal feelings of being able to live and thrive with diabetes, rather than becoming someone who cannot do anything else other than complain.

thrivingwithdiabetesbroadband.wmv Watch on Posterous

 In a couple of weeks from now, I will have to go back to the Educator, who originally actually told me the wrong thing about one of my medications, the dietician and a chap called Dr. Champion, who will do .. things lol Tomorrow we will need to make some appointments for some eye and feet specialists just for checkups and well, that is it then.

To be quite honest, when all is said and done, I feel better than I have in a very very long time, so if I have to go through all of the above, so be it, darn easy choice, that is for sure :)

 

 

Max meet world... world meet Max ...

Getting told you have diabetes makes your heart skip a beat and your mind starts going at a million miles an hour, questions are being asked inside yourself, things like:

Am I going to die soon?

What does this mean for the people around me?

Why did I get it?

What have I done to deserve this?

 

Well, I will answer them one by one:

Am I going to die soon? No, I am not providing I take the actions that the people who know have told me to take.

What does this mean for the people around me? This, by a longshot, is the most important question out of the four I asked myself. They are going to be afraid of losing me if I keep doing the same old, same old. So, let's not do that. In that second that they told me that I have diabetes, I decided for myself and moreover for them, that I will do everything and anything in my power to get healthy so that I can spend as much time with them that I can. The healthier I am, the more chance I have reaching 80 ;) What else does it mean for them? Well, it means that I am driving them nuts with all the dietary things I am looking up, keeping track of and wanting to get out there and do the right thing.. by them and myself.

Why did I get it ? That is a question that did not take too much self-reflection to actually answer. I got it because I lived incredibly unhealthy, lollies being my forte, eating too much of the bad things and not enough of the good things. Being Dutch, fats are a mandatory part of my diet, which of course is NOT a good thing. The silly thing is that now that I am on a diet and living healthy, I am actually not missing it at all, I am guessing that is because every time I think of a lolly or something unhealthy that little voice inside me reminds me of my wonderful Sharon, Emma and Beth and the craving subsides. The short answer to this question though is: "Because I am an idiot"

What have I done to deserve this? The better and more accurate question in retrospect would be: What haven't I done to deserve this? I am aware of this, I take full responsibility for the fact that I have diabetes, I am just glad that I got a warning at the beginning of this year and not the final and last call.

Anyway, I am getting a little teary, so I will introduce you all to my new friend.. Max The Bike, him and I will be seeing a few cobblestones in the coming years :)