confession time....

I love the companionship and the motivation that I have and share with my two other team mates but along side the 5k training I also have my own personal challenge.

Confession time...

I am the most overweight of the team, and my personal challenge is to lose 50lbs t(o start off with ) from August 09- August 10- I picked August because that was the last time I had my picture taken before I started healthy eating, pretty attainable you would think..

I am a typical yo-yo dieter and would love one day to wake up a size 10 (uk size) but it aint gonna happen,

I dont know what it is but I feel 'ready' for it now, in the past I have tried both weight watchers and slimming world with varying - limited sucess, whether it being, willpower, or not fitting into family meals ( I cant expect the whole family to have red/green days - Slimming World peeps will know all about them !!) or having to take a calculator around with me on the weekly shop to work out how many Weight Watchers 'points' are in each item.

So I am doing it the old fashioned way and calories in v's calories out - and to be honest I am not even counting calories I am aware of them and know roughly my intake but I really dont want to be one of those people with a photographic memory who can recite the exact number of calories per ounce of every single food item -

I also dont want my daughters to see mummy constantly dieting and counting calories and eating seperate 'diet' food - I personally think that kids these days have enough pressure on them through the media without the comfort and safety of family to fall back on.

Admitidly it is coming off slower but I have noticed that with the exercise I actually look better because it is toning up

BUT it REALLY gets me when a friend of mine ( and yes there is a small part of me that is jealous!) has gone on a really restrictive diet of 500 calories per day (food replacement) and has lost 11lbs in her first week - I am pleased for her though although she knows what I think of the diet !!

I'll keep you all posted on how Im getting on - whether or not you are interested !!! lol and of course also let you know about my Race for Life training - 1st post coming tomorrow

I just have to remember the old Aesops fable about the tortoise and the hare and in true 'Lets Fight This' tradition -

Its not the winning - its the taking part that counts !

The Next Step

So, Where do I go from here? (!!).
Well, I managed to raise a total of £171 for SHINE - a bit short of my target, but as most of that was from a large collection of £1 and £2 donations for raffle tickets it's not too bad!!
MY next step, with @munchkin75 is the 5km Superheros walk/run in Grenwich park on June13th. We both doing the event in aid of the St.Thomas Lupus trust, and I am to got BIG on the fund-raising for this one!
I'm planning to run it, and beat last year's 5k times (so - i need to do it in under 27 minutes), and training is already in progress. Yesterday I hit the Gym for an 'Active Core' class - lots of aerobics followed by about a million squats, then in the evening I made a very happy return to my running club. I made it around the course, and had a wonderful time chatting with my chums (that is - until I ran out of breath and they zoomed off into the distance!).
Onwards and upwards!!!

Where do we go from here??

So the big event has come and gone, tweets & texts have been flying back & forth checking if we are all ok and comparing ailments - none of us seemed to have faired to badly - aches and pains but recovering well.

I figured that walking/running a marathon must be like childbirth you forget how painful it was as soon as it is over and start planning the next one ......

Which is exactly were we are at now - We have already committed ourselves to doing next years moonlit marathon (albeit with a few tweeks in tactics/training) but we loved it so much we are looking to ways that:

1. We can keep our fitness up

2. Still keep meeting up as a team for fun (along with the promise of lunch afterwards !)

3. Still keep raising awareness/funds for causes that are close to us.

So at the moment we are gearing up as a team to do the Race for Life 5k in Sefton Park, Liverpool July 18th a womens only fun run in aid of Breast Cancer Awareness.But before that @joesgirl74 is doing a 5k in London in June supporting the Lupus charity which I know is a cause close to her, so for the time being @joesgirl74 will be multi-tasking in true women fashion and using her training for the Lupus 5k to start and continuing on to the Race for Life.

Never let it be said that blockhead are lightweights !!

Well, WE DID IT!! Here are my pics......



We got there in good time, and before going in we had to pin on our numbers.....

Once inside Manchester Central (aka the GMEX) the athmosphere built up and there were THOUSANDS of Balloons!!







Outside we were standing in the queue for what felt like ages, but considering the number of people it was not too bad really!!!


















We made the first 13 miles easily, if a bit slowly and frustrated at having to dodge the crowd, by mile 13 it thinned out a bit, then by mile 21 we were all in pain and longing for the end.... which by Mile 25 was delightfully in sight!!

So.... we made the last stretch, then collaped on the floor and enjoyed bacon rolls and cups of warm brown liquid....



Then we dragged ourselves to the station - managing to go the wrong way and walking MUCH further than we needed to!!! Just what we needed!!!









We made it back to Lime St.... Medals around our necks, sore feet, aching limbs but really happy. We had a GREAT experience, despite the pain, and we're already planning more walks as training for next year!!!

and we lived to tell the tale !

I have officially never hurt as much as I did on Sunday !!!

There I said it and got it out the way..... now for the fun bit recalling the past few day's events...

Although it has taken until now to get some sort of recollection back, caught up in the moment or blocking it out ? not entirely sure all I know is that I keep getting flashbacks .... some good... some bad.....A LOT painful !!

but here are my memories of the day....

Team 'Lets Fight This' arrived in Manchester at approx 8.00pm then had to find our way to the start....

Went inside to see what we had to do, and to put bags etc in storage, and that all important loo stop (while they were still semi - hygenic !)

Everybody was given water and survival blankets to take with us and a helium balloon with a light in blue, pink, or white, - we actually ended up with 1 blue and 2 white so I swapped with a very manly man who had a pink one ! so we had one of each

then we waited...

Until 10.00pm (ish) and then we were off, through the streets of Manchester through a big Arch with flames out the top, then it was o-oh here we go - see you on the other side !

We reached the first pit stop reatively for another toilet stop and more water, then onwards, we then came to one of the bigger pit stops at I think 7 miles?, where there was some sort of light ceremony where (as Ive since found out) you could buy a lantern and have it lit in memory of someone these were all on the ground and spelt out SHINE - we could also pick up apples, water, or a hot drink - we all thought that it was very civilised and that wouldnt be as bad as we thought - hmm famous last words ....

Balloons were popping all over the place or getting tangled up - still attached to backpacks - funniest thing EVER was when you saw balloons sticking out of toilets OR people coming out of toilets and being pulled back because their balloon was still trapped inside.... not so funny when you are walking behind somebody and you have to keep batting their balloon out the way - I dont want to see another balloon for a VERY long time !

Then we had to contend with 30,000 people all along the pavements as none of the roads were closed, so either go slow or play chicken with the cars - most of the time we chose chicken - find a gap and go, go, go - and of course not forgetting the banter from all the pub goers !

And on we walked, and on, and on ....through various miles and pit stops till we had gone in a big circle and were back at the major pit stop again.. this is where our first strength of will power came in - we literally came to a crossroads

<- 26miles .......... 13 miles->

AGHHH it was so tempting - theyd never have known ! but no we didnt dwell on it just dont think just turn left and keep going - **but we could be home in 2hrs ** - no head down ignore the signs - keep going.

And then we were off on the road again, one of the great things we found out is that although the team had all trained, we had done it seperately never together but we all seemed to gel really well and had all seemed to have trained at similar paces and so no-one was struggling or slowing down - one thing we didnt account for was training with back packs on !

And we walked, and walked, physically we were ok we had some pains and strains but were managable, although Maz kept threatening the dawn chorus if it didnt stop - nothing worse than walking ALL night without being reminded of it by birds twittering !! - I dont think it helped mentally that we hit a really, really long road and were all exposed around the Trafford Centre and industrial factories that were all closed up just as dawn was breaking and although we were walking with others it just felt (to me) we were very isolated and in the middle of nowhere.

The toughest part mentally and physically was to come at around 21 miles though...

I had heard of the wall but thought that because we were 'only walking' it wouldnt affect us... boy was I wrong - we hit 21 miles and all 3 of us went quiet ! the pain that we had managed to keep at bay hit BIG TIME and mentally it was 'I cant do it' and all 3 of us agreed that we darent stop for the last pit stop at 23 miles or it would be so hard to get going again - all you could hear from us was ughhh, ahhhh, hmphhh as we were tring to get up and down kerbs or even taking a longer detour so we could go up the sloped bit, cars had no chance - it was a case of ' we CANT stop so you will have to ' funny - hurting- but funny..

and then for some reason we got to 24 miles and BAM we were away again final burst wouldnt say that it was a sprint or that it was a scheme from Chariots of fire- wouldnt say we picked up the pace any quicker but we mentally brought ourselves out of it and then .......TADAHHHHHH we were HOME .......WE FINISHED .......YEAY .......
we ran (or walked) the whole gamet of emotions, 21miles it was NEVER AGAIN, at the end it was THANK GOD THATS OVER... Sunday night despite having to crawl up the stairs the tweets were already flying discussing tactics for next year ... so its a DEFINATLY MAYBE... why... I dont know... suckers for punishment... and do you know what I CANT WAIT !

and just take this opportunity to say thank you to all of the SHINE TEAM they did a fantastic job and for a 1st event it couldnt have gone any better - obviously a few tweeks cant be helped but we had a BLAST thank you, thank you

HERE WE COME

Wow, I cannot believe the time is almost upon us. As ddubsgirl says, we've all been through a lot, plagued by silly accidents and injuries, but here we are, ready to go. I have a wedding to go to during the day tomorrow, so here's to hoping I don't sprain an ankle or develop a blister in my nice new shoes!
I'm really excited and so proud to be doing this!
Keep posted after the walk for other events - we're not stopping now!!!!
LET'S GET THIS!!!

honoured to be walking with my blockhead sisters x x

1 day to go - doesnt sound too bad if you say it quick - but think -



1 day....... 24 hours.........1440 minutes........86,400 seconds...... its like the opposite of waiting for Christmas..



but then you think - how should I be feeling now ? should I feel ......





nervous?


scared?


calm?





Or in my case all of the above? although it is more nervous than anything - its the first time any of the team have challenged ourselves to this extent - although Joesgirl has done running before



In the paperwork it says - for the last few days take it easy and try and get as much rest /sleep as you can - so taking all the advice into account where was I Wednesday night - all tucked up in bed early ....... NO.... in A&E with my daughter until 2am who had an allergic reaction to something and came out in a rash....



I was smiling to myself and still am (and no its not due to lack of sleep) .... because if you think about it , what the whole team has had to go through over the past couple of months, Maz and myself are mothers with young, young children, and joesgirl has been posted over to Egypt for 6 weeks during our training time...



In an ideal world we could put our all into the training plan - but life happens, work happens, family happens with somehow trying to fit in training



And still we are here... waiting for the big day we have done as much as we can.. we are still friends (although ask us Sunday Morning on the train on the way home see if we are still speaking !!lol ) - all of us walking together along with thousands others in aid of one common cause..



I am honoured to be walking alongside my fellow blockhead sisters and wouldnt want to do it with anyone else x

LETS GET THIS LADIES !!!

Rest if you must...But dont you quit

Ive always loved this inspirational poem - but now it seems more relevant.

Dont Quit

When things go wrong

as they sometimes will

When the road your trudging seems all uphill

When the funds are low

And the debts are high

When you want to smile

but you have to sigh

When Care is pressing you down a bit

Rest if you must

But dont you quit

Sucess is failure turned inside out

The silver tint on the cloud of doubt

and you never can tell

how close you are it may be near

when it seems afar

so stick to the fight

when your hardest hit

Its when things seem worst

that you must not quit

Doubting Thomas

Not long to go now, and I must admit that the self doubt is starting to set in now, I went on my last LONG training session on Monday and you know that self doubt that creeps in when you least expect it, thinking - 'what have I done?!' and 'Im not going to be able to do it' I really wasnt in the right frame of mind to do any training, so I thought what do I do?

Do I go OUT and train and miss the last day that Hubby is off work with it being Easter Monday and I was in work on the Tuesday - but have the distraction of the outdoors

OR

Do I stay IN and train on the treadmill? still technically with the family albeit stuck in the kitchen, and watch a couple of films?

I chose the latter, 5 hours I was on the treadmill for covering a total of 30k I WAS NEARLY IN TEARS AT THE END - I thought the films would distract me for however long they were on for - diddnt work just reminded me when it finished I still couldnt go anywhere - I had watched Donnie in Southie, and then Spy Kids, followed by actually a really inspiring documentary showing how introducing a classical music programme in deprived areas can improve academic performance which just happened to be based in Liverpool

- BUT

I was still on the treadmill so no improved performance here and no, not even Donnie could distract me!

then ironically after watching tv when on the treadmill, after having a shower and changed, I then sat infront OF THE TV !!! because I couldn't move - I was laughing at this point (and not because it was funny either!)

So.... what do I do?... I knew it was going to be hard, I knew it was going to be tough.

I asked Mark how he felt whe he was running marathons and apparently it is a phase that you go through - He said, It doesnt matter how much training you have done, you can cover the milage and more but you can still walk up to the starting line and not 'feel right' more of a mental issue rather than a physical matter.

I felt a bit better after that, at least I knew that it wasnt due to lack of training and that I can physically do it, although sometimes I think it is easier for it to be a bodily problem at least you can see and feel any changes - attitude is something else completely

On a better note, since then I have been feeling better and am feeling more confident, think to be honest it was more of a blip than anything serious, probably just the nerves starting to kick in ... at lease I hope so !

14 days to go

14 days to go,..... if you say it quick enough it doesnt sound too bad ! but then something springs up to remind you ..... today it was in the form of our smiling postman delivering our team t shirts and banner... Now all Ive got to do is avoid the Easter eggs for the next two weeks, which for a house with 3 kids it is SO hard... but after the marathon - look out eggs IM COMING FOR YA !!!

HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY !

Who is more fool, the fool, or the fool, who follows the fool?

Still plodding along merrily, but it can be soul destroying having to go out in the rain, hail etc, dont mind if it starts raining when Im out, but when I have to force myself to go out and it is already raining, and I could stay in the nice warm house... I'm walking (or stomping ) round in a bad mood, and looking at all the cosy houses - I feel like tiny Tim at Christmas looking at all the festivites with his face pressed up against the window !

but then I think the way the weather is at the moment at least we will be prepared if we do have adverse weather on the night - which for the UK is highly likely -

and is of course nothing compared to the stuggle for the people & families who are being diagnosed with all forms of illnesses worldwide daily.... because of the cause we are all doing this for and as the date gets nearer, I personally find myself thinking more and more of the people we are trying to help and hope that the money we raise can do some good.. and it is this that pushes me through the bad weather ...

I still moan all the way round,and I WILL TRIP UP the nex jogger/runner that sails past me with a spring in their step and I look like a drowned rat..just keep thinking of that hot cup of tea at waiting for me ...hmmmmm !

Take care @ddubsgirl4life x x