Day 90: Set me free

all done

Well here we are folks, Day 90 and we’re free… congratulations to all of you! You have all been incredibly inspirational.... and motivating to this day and beyond. Tonight, I'll raise a glass (or three, just kidding!) to each and every one of you. (Heather, Molly, Richard, Aki, George, Geordie, Nick, Dottie, Scott, Andy, Juan, David and Helen, especially, I can't thank you guys enough for all your kind comments and encouragement. It really made a difference).

To the second PCP tier on our heels... keep it going strong.... You are all doing great, past half way and the finish will be sweet! And for those about to rock the PCP, good luck and hang on tight!

Freedom! Yes! I sure feel free in terms of mobility. My body finally moves with ease. I feel taller! It’s also awesome to be liberated from all the fitness traps I set for myself in the past, the obsessions, fad food regimens, exercise crazes, DVDs. Even grocery shopping is easier – just hit the produce, dairy, seafood, grains, coffee, tea – that’s all we'll ever need... and want again. Today I feel I am on a new path, as many of you have said, it's the beginning, not the end.

And just this morning I unwrapped a carton of books from our publisher... My first book (with my sweet love John), Everyday Eden is about to be released. So exciting! Now the real work begins, promoting it, etc. and it feels so good to be in shape for this!

Patrick, coach, master, sensei… my heart is bursting with gratitude. You’ve cut us loose today, but we’ve got the map my friend! You and Chen (thank you too Chen) have given each of us nothing less than a blueprint for a better body, mind and spirit -- dare I say, for a better life. What an incredible gift! I promise to do my best to pass it on, in every way that I can, through my life and work... and through my attitude.

Finally, I just want to say I remember, way back at the very beginning questioning if I could afford the PCP program. I wasn't sure if I could afford the time, the cost and the commitment… basically deep down, I wondered if it would be worth it.

Today, if you are out there and you are wondering about this too, all I can say to you is what Patrick said to me.

“You’re worth it!”

All good wishes, I believe in you.

Chris

before/after

before/after

Day 90: I'll be back

PS: "Milk is for babies. When you grow up you have to drink beer."  Arnold Schwarzenegger

Day 89: Babe Ruthless

Well the supersets lived up to their ruthless reputation. Having read the upchucking comments prior I decided to do the workout pre-breakfast (was not willing to sacrifice my beloved PCP breakfast for anything, not even Day 89). I jumped, then picked out the biggest banana and ate that instead. Ready to kill the sets!

And they were tough. Physically, I could not complete all the shoulder sets without resorting to little tiny micro moves at the end. BURNING. But the real challenge was mental (always the case with me). Push, push, push mentally to get to my physical limits. My inside voice was a bitch.

After the arms/shoulders sets my body actually started shaking and I think (okay I know) I was crying. I don't cry, ever. This was/is mortifying. I basically self combusted in a heap for a few seconds. Strangely, this felt more physical than mental. WTF?

And then I did the abs...

Anyhow, no need to call the funny farm. I'm over it now (ready for breakfast!!!) but that was a very weird experience.

So thanks Patrick, I think.

xx

Day 88: auspicious day

Woke up feeling really strong today. Jumps flowed, easy peasy. Even the workout was nice and even. I felt a breakthrough on the incline pull-ups. Not easy, but less of a struggle pushing to maximum reps. I felt the heat in my biceps and a lasting burn in my shoulders. I hesitate to say I felt "pumped" after the workout (will likely never use that word again without blushing) but I did feel strangely triumphant. And I thought my abs would be ruined today but they rallied... planks were a much more honest failure (kept blackberry face down).

I would like to remember the ease, flow and strength of today's workout.

Because tomorrow looks like a humdinger... of course I looked.

Keep calm.

xx

Day 87: Three sleeps

Three sleeps and it's Miller time PCP peeps! Looking sharp out there........ love reading the blogs and comments on the superFsets. The workout totally crushed me today. Afterwards I had a yogurt-egg-white-frozen-blackberry smoothie which I contemplated pouring over my shoulders rather than drinking. Had to have a nap in the afternoon and double the coffee intake (which is an awful lot of coffee). Now it is nearly bedtime and the coffee is kicking in. GREAT.

Went to the "real" gym tonight as prescribed. Saw the buff boys peacocking (good one Geordie) all tattoos and testosterone, combined with what seemed like a copious quantity of Gucci Pour Homme II (which I happen to like). I hopped on the treadmill and proceeded to frustrate myself trying to work the touch screen for my "amazing 20-minute high/low interval fat-burning training session" which I clipped off the internet. I hope I burned some fat because it sure was BORING. During "cooldown" I tried showing off and doing some long quad stretches but I got way too close to the back edge of the treadmill and nearly came flying off.

Then I re-did my abs from this morning's workout (ouch), trying to fail better at side crunches. Finally used a medicine ball to add a bit of weight. That seemed to help. I was hoping someone might notice and comment on the quality of my V-sits, but I don't think anyone really looked at me until I attached the medicine ball to my head. I also had a slight wardrobe malfunction at that point. Enough said.

The gym is noisy and stinky and I am paranoid about catching germs, so I am very grateful to now have a workout routine I can do independently. Also I found myself fretting about my outfit when I went there, something I hadn't thought about for oh, 87 days... No one was doing any better or worse than me as far as I am concerned. We are all doing the best that we can. But the machines are oppressive and dumb. I was choked that there was no simple chin-up bar, for example....

I had hoped to go to the big city to the gym with the vibrating plate machines and bum wraps you just stand on/in while they "work you out" but I will have to save that experience for another time. They give you a free spray tan afterwards.... tempting.

Be good to yourselves.

Big hugs...
C

Day 86: walking the plank

Okay, I actually like the supersets. Very efficient. Except for the abs. I cheated on the planks. So FB. The numbers don't lie: 2:18; 2:15; 2:10; 2:20: 2:05. I was doing one leggers on some. 2 minutes is how long the LCD timer stays lit on my blackberry. After that I just kind of get bored/give up. I know, that's not failure. I can't seem to "let go" on the planks. Totally failed each time on the V-sits sets though, much easier to tell when your body simply will not go up. Will have to work on my mental blocks re: plank. Watch for road rash on my face next time.

Also had a mini meltdown last night over my snack. It is now making me feel freaky right before bed and the amount just seems ridiculous (whole egg, carbs!, glass of milk, small grapefruit). Had a chit-chat with Master P and it seems I can't really get out of it. So I am going to try and get my grams in earlier so I have a decent amount of time before snack and bed. I am leaning towards a few hours, rather than my usual 30 min. It's weird to be fretting about this so late in the game, but there it is.

It's been 15 minutes since workout and now I am thrashed.

COFFEE.

Keep it going everybody!

PS: Evening update... it's 8pm and I've had my snack grams, sans carbs. But now, after today's brutal workout, I have to admit I am a little hungrier than usual... wouldn't you know it? And so, with P's comment below it's up to me I guess (as it will be completely in just a few days). Got to figure things out without obsessing. Yes, I think that is the lesson here.... 

Gratitude and goodnight. xx

Day 85: bun head

Finally got some new pictures up today.... too shattered after workout to comb my hair, sorry. Tried to do a Molly shot (abs!) but no one does it like Molly : )... and my abs are still wrapped up in a blanket.... oh well! What can you do? Take care peeps! Rock it 'till the finish..... You can do it!

Big hugs!

Day 84: ready or not

Oh lordy those new workouts look PFH to me... Especially given I am totally exhausted today, supposedly our day "off"... Today was a new challenge on the food front as well. I had to excuse myself from an impossibly long boardroom meeting with a hardboiled egg in my pocket because there was no proper snack action going on (unless you count iced pastries and coffee). This was an introductory meeting with new clients from Beijing, so unsure of how the egg white/yolk sacrifice would be perceived, I went to the ladies and proceeded to smash, peel and eat the egg at the makeup counter in private. But there was no garbage can (cloth towels only with a little laundry hamper) so I snuck into a stall to flush "the evidence." But the shells wouldn't go down! Too light maybe.... Funny to wonder what the next person would think. Better not to wonder actually... because as I was leaving, a member of the Beijing team was going in! Just my luck.

During the meeting (6 hours!) I noticed that I was the only one sitting up straight.

Well, it's 7:45pm and I think I will go to bed.

Have a good weekend............ and good luck team.

xo

Day 82: thanks for that

I've been trying to go a bit easier on myself these last few days. Not physically (still kicking ass in the workouts, no mercy!) but mentally. Professionally things have been intense and my workload is off the charts. I can barely hold it all together. But I always go above and beyond. In fact, today I showed up 24 hours early for an appointment (I am known for my punctuality, but that was a first). Instead of being totally mortified, I just laughed it off, "It's these bloody workouts, my trainer... he's an animal!".

Also, I have been thanking my body which just this morning cracked off two proper pull-ups with a kung-fu sit-up at the top. "Dude, you're really pulling through for me. I am sorry for calling you scrawny. You're actually a tough little sucker." 

And I have been taking the occasional big breath, just for the breath's sake. It sure beats sucking my stomach in.

I guess what I am saying is that the tougher this gets, the softer my edges are becoming.

And despite my outward attempts at humour, I really needed to lighten up a bit. Looking forward to ending on a high note and taking time to celebrate. It's a little early to pop the cork, I realize. But I am getting ready...

Cheering you on!

Day 81: A funny thing happened on...

... the way to the fridge.

I realized I was really looking forward to eating my whole allotment of food! And trust me, it's a lot!

Up until now, since last diet change, I had been totally fretting about the increases. I used to run around on so little but then I would crash so hard. I had a saying, "I'm so hungry I could eat my arm...." And now I realize my body probably was, for all intents and purposes, eating my arm (and storing fat to combat my bad habits).

But after just a few days of this all-day buffet business, my body has adjusted. The engine is running higher. My mind is sharp. I am hitting all my grams and I feel great. (Aside from being a washed-out workout wreck, but that's par for the course as I understand it from readng my comrades' blogs.)

I am learning a lot about the power of my mind, metabolism and this amazing body machine.

Grateful to have "gone for it" and trusted the diet... sorry for doubting you, even for a moment PCP!

Let's get ready for the final push...... you are all doing GREAT!

And finally, a magazine assignment I could eat afterwards. It's about time...

Day 80: Next time skip the calamari

Indulgence was last night at a Greek restaurant in a small town (sadly, not in Greece!). The first thing I noticed was the smell. Too much! Feta, brine, lamb. Turn down the smells please!

I was feeling so thrashed that I nearly ordered a coffee, but then decided to have wine. House choices came in colours: I chose white. Two glasses. Nice. (Was hoping for a cheap buzz, but that didn't happen. So, I can still hold my alcohol. Hmmm.)

First course, calamari for the table. It looked crispy and tasty. Everyone loaded up their side plates. First bite I knew this was a mistake. It tasted so oily. I swear I can still taste it. Main course was chicken souvlaki (two big skewers), greek salad, rice and potato plus pita and tzatziki. Everything was so salty! I didn't eat the feta or the olives, gave one skewer of chicken away. Otherwise, it was okay. I liked the pita best and the cucumbers. The company at the table was fun and it was nice to just order whatever, although not much on the menu appealed to me...

Weird thing, I had kind of a reaction on the roof of my mouth later. Like little blisters. They went away but it was odd.

Oh, yeah dessert was awesome. Home made angel food cake with yogurt and fresh fruit. Score!

I came home and ate an egg white and drank three glasses of water.

Day 79: So you think you can jump?

Grateful for Patrick's tips on sustaining a longer jumping practice. I have been trying to do two sets clean (clear of mind and trips) and then having a bit of fun on the last set, learning some tricks. The third set is my reward for getting through the first two! My tricks are not fancy but consist of a few cross-overs, jumping jacks, can-can step, boxer double-step and ski-mogul. As much as I like the quality of my Nike speed rope (I had destroyed three cheap ropes prior) it kills me that the Nike "rope" which is plastic, is still coiled so tightly (even after all these jumps). It makes the tricks difficult. I've tried stretching it, hanging it, pleading with it. So I am going to put it in the oven later (low heat) and see if I can break its springy spirit once and for all. Don't worry, I have a back-up rope in case this gets ugly.

Okay, you've got to see these moves... Floyd Mayweather Jr. I think I've finally found my fitness goal/calling. I really, really want to jump like that! So far, I can keep up to him to the 20-second mark of the video... haha. And, look at his face. Totally zoned out. Kickass!

Day 77: resistance is futile

At first I was really ticked off when I read the new diets. "Hey, I said: no more food dude!" But there it was, plain as day on my BB: more grams of protein and carbs; plus added banana. I have been feeling a huge amount of resistance to the eating part of PCP lately. I am not sure what my problem is or where the feeling comes from exactly. Fear rings a bell. Maybe it is because I am busting out of my skinny jeans. I wouldn't mind "baby got back" if my stomach was flat. You see what I am dealing with here? It's not very deep.

Then I came upon a thin elder man in a T-shirt in the pouring rain in downtown Vancouver holding out his hand. It was lunch time and I was damp and cold even in a winter coat. I gave him some change and stopped to chat for a minute (I don't do this, ever). Take care sir, I said. You too dear and thank you dear, he said.

It was a good reminder to keep my "problem" in perspective. I have been following this program to a T and value it more and more every day. So if the PCP wants me to stuff my face to the finish, well then that's exactly I'm going to do. With gratitude.

Let's eat, friends.

xx