Hello World :-)

In an interesting (for me) turn of events, I seem to have a bit of a problem with my gall bladder.

My whole life, I’ve been vaguely aware I had one but I didn’t expect it to introduce itself to me in such a brash and pushy sort of way.

The Gall Bladder usually just sits quietly under your liver and collects the bile the liver produces. Then, when you eat, the bile is dumped into your intestine, where it mixes with food and helps to digest fat.

What a useful little piece of kit to have!

 

 

 

Sometimes stones, comprised of cholesterol, bile pigment and calcium salts, form in the gall bladder, which in most cases isn’t really a big problem. It’s when one or more get stuck in the ‘neck’ that it can be a cause of inflammation and pain….

 

So, when last I wrote, the boys and I were about to do a four hour drive to another town and the night before we left I had a stomach ache. Unusual but no big deal, probably indigestion, I thought, and dismissed it out of hand. In the morning, we organised ourselves, did the drive, dropped Sam at the team’s residence and went to the Motel.

Zac and I had pizza for dinner, mostly because it was easy and close but it was a bad move, not just for the sake of the diet but because I’m rubbish at eating wheat and because I spent that night shifting around to try and get rid of the pain that had blossomed in my belly. I was glad I’d taken a sleeve of Panadol with me!

Since then, like some sort of ninja pain, it’s crept around to settle and concentrate under my right rib, providing me with endless entertainment. I’ve juggled Panadol and Nurofen, Buscopan and Nexium (how lyrical that sounds), in an attempt to keep it at bay.

As far as illness goes, I don’t really have anything to complain about. It isn’t life-threatening, as far as I know and I’m not nauseous or feverish. It’s mostly just pain, which can be exacerbated by eating the wrong thing (read as anything containing fat of any kind) or moving the wrong way or sometimes just sitting eating an apple. It’s an inexact science…..

The net result is that I haven’t done any real exercise for almost two weeks and I’ve put on a kilo and a half.

However…. I got some ultrasound pictures done and on Monday I’ll find out what needs to be done.

Also, though the 12 week body transformation comes to an end this week and I haven’t burst forth with quite the success I was hoping for, this is a long-term project and I’m not giving up now. Mum and I will start the next round together, on the 5th May. Dad’s already in the middle of the round that followed mine. So I can look forward to a renewal of energy and being support for and supported by them both.

Bring it on 🙂

 

 

Travelling and eating

Two of my favourite things 🙂

This time to a sports event, which will take us out of town for a few days and this time, Zac and I will be foraging for ourselves. I’m also giving my love of cooking free reign as I make things for Andy to eat while we’re not here.

Dishes I won’t make when I’m going to be eating too, or just delicious, aromatic things that satisfy an urge when they’re sizzling, or stewing, or crisping. Getting lost in flavours and textures, smells and the visual pleasures of working with food.

So far there’s a soft, salty, sharply cheesy Bacon and Chicken Pasta, packed into a container for the fridge. Then a thick, rich tomatoe-y Moroccan Lamb, redolent with spices, to be served with a portion of soft buttery couscous.

What else? Oh, next will come a silky peanut-y Thai Chicken Satay, savoury with just a hint of chilli and sweetness, topped with fresh Thai basil and served with rice.

 

Peanut Satay Chicken with Thai basil

Then finally, a simple all in one Roast, ready to pop into the oven, with pre-marinated chicken thighs and pieces of potato, red onion, pumpkin, parsnip and carrot. All sprinkled with fresh rosemary and lovingly daubed with crushed garlic.

Just Mmmmmmm!

Who knows what Zac and I will be eating on our adventure, while Sam billets with his team. I’ll be taking my ubiquitous porridge and we’ll buy fruit for the motel room but beyond that, we’ll be exploring!

(I’ll research before we go of course, and there’ll be plenty of opportunity to walk :-))

 

Anniversary Dinner

Dinner in a dimly-lit restaurant with the tiniest menu font but oh the food was lovely….

Glasses of wine, laughing, talking, seeing each other properly again (despite the lighting)

Tall bald waiter, view of the kitchen, efficient, relaxed chefs.

Crispy Barramundi, zucchini salad, prawn polenta….pink lamb and nutty quinoa

Home to my beautiful sister, holding the fort for us. Coffee, cuddles.

Lovely night. x

Weigh-in…9…for week 10

Ha! I bet you thought I’d gone quiet because I’d fallen off the wagon and was feeling resistant to coming and admitting it here…

That I was embarrassed to write down that I was having yet another struggle with this stuff and I just wanted to shut down and not think about it.

Oh…actually…that’s exactly what happened.

It’s lucky I’d already shopped and filled the fridge and cupboards with good, healthy stuff. As it was, I had a sort of mixed week. I had days where I was mostly on track and days, like Saturday….which were completely off the rails.

and it wasn’t just a treat meal on Saturday….oh no….it was an all day eat fest, just one form of junk food after another. We spent the day at the movies and I took it as license to relax in the dark with crisps, strawberries, chocolate, diet coke….later there was MacDonalds…you get the picture…..

On Sunday morning I felt as though I had a hangover. Complete with headache.

My skin felt greasy, my hair felt lank, my tongue was dry. Way too much fat and salt.

Then I read an article about Scarlett Johansen, where she talks about having a kale-rich diet and my taste buds leapt. I had an immediate craving for kale. Which just tells me that my body knows what it needs.

I had a bunch of kale in the fridge (Thank you earlier me) so I quickly whizzed up a smoothie made with kale, a green apple, a few strawberries and some cold water. Dark green, sweet with a bitter edge, rehydrating….it was perfect and I felt almost immediately better.

mmmmmm

 

So I’ve been having a glass of smoothie and a banana for breakfast the last few days and eating sensibly the rest of the day,  since that morning. Which is only three days ago but still….

Also, this week I did three good walks and a few incidental ones, two with Natalie, one with Dawn, for a total of 15+km

The upshot is that this week I am 1kg lighter. Hooray. Still going in the right direction 🙂

Would I have lost more if I’d been sensible the whole week instead of just half? Probably, it’s hard to know and at this point I’m just glad I’m still going the right way.

The planning I did last week is what made the difference I think, and the fact that I had to come back here and report 🙂

Once a week isn’t enough though, for me. I’ll be resuming normal service from here on in. Well….every other day at the very least…..