Online-stopwatch.com has an interval timer you can download. I downloaded it but haven't tried it yet. The online one works well.

My sister-in-law emailed me this link, The Highly Sensitive Person.  This is so me and I probably need to get that book.

Fat Girl Running is a new to me BLOG - I hate running so I don't understand why someone would actually volunteer to do it, but she is so funny and so motivated. Love reading it.

Week 23

What's Motivating Me This Week?
Last Thursday at Zumba the person behind me came up to me after the workout and told me that I looked good, the instructor also said that I have great legs.

What's Puzzling Me This Week?
I got my Swiss ball blown up this week and have been using it as my office chair.  I don't think it is hard enough though. How full should it be?

What's Bugging Me This Week?
Nothing much - I ate my dagwood dog, had an ice-cream cone and bought lots of fairy floss yesterday, but I'm okay with that! I also did well in the photography sections - husband came runner up for the whole show.  So I'm pretty chuffed with myself.  I do have heaps of marking and report cards to write still... but nothing about my health is bugging me.
 
What's Encouraging Me This Week? 
That I didn't find level 1 of 'Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred' too hard.  I had to stop more than a few times to pull my pants up, I did modify some of the exercises and I did my push ups against a bench. I'll keep doing that a few more weeks, I think, until it really is easy.

What's the Plan?
Workouts in pajamas to encourage me to get out of bed when it's cold.
Wednesday is now my rest day - between two Zumba nights.
Week now starts on the Saturday.

Gimme Gimme Lucy

 Hands up if you can make this dress yourself?

Oooh, That's me. I know this one! Pick me!

(you'll just have to imagine me enthusiastically waving my hand around to catch the teacher's attention.)

I have a pattern I have patterns that look just like this.

No I just need the fabric... cotton silk... Radiance Silk by Robert Kaufman fabrics...

Original price $168 ( I can't believe I just typed that).

My price $80 at the most expensive price I can find including misc.

Show Time!

Well the show is in town this weekend which means show rides, dagwood dogs and fairy floss.  I'm totally going to blob out!!! I also have report cards to write -_-

So this week I did the same-ish thing as last week. Two nights of zumba, I did the Sparkpeople kickboxing video.  I skipped Wednesday's workout because I'm thinking of changing Wednesday to my rest day, and I also didn't workout Friday because I had a athletics carnival ALL day to attend.

But anyhoo,,, this morning I decided I really need to find something that I can do in my pajamas...


I found this easy video on YouTube and 'thought that's a goer!' It's a nice warm up and I did it my PJs this morning - I then did my weight ball exercises and push ups. I'm only just getting through the 10 reps I have set myself for each exercise but I'm getting better.



I also saw this, just had to watch. Despicable Me is one of my favourite movies. I had an 'I Love Evil' cup that I bought for my own Xmas present; I took it to school and used twice before someone stole it. Rat bastards.

ASOS dreams

While I don't frequent Anthropology, I do like Asos. The prints are usually so fun. I could so make this dress easily with some black and white print.

This skirt is just a tube with elastic!!! I love the fabric. 

 Would this skirt give me enough reason to buy this fabric from Tessuti?

After buying a body myself and noting how easy the pattern was - I really want to make my own - I want boy legged ones though.

I have almost the perfect fabric for this.

PINK!

So my fabric arrived a week or so ago - you know the black/white print, the bright magenta and the citron. So I have been touching them and holding them against me every now and then.  The first two simply cannot be made into pant - but I'm thinking maxi skirt.

That's where this random page I came across today just happens to fit in. Loreena Bucks has made a pattern to knock on this Lengthening Rays Skirt from Anthropology. I'm not a anthropology shopper nor do I really look at their website. I hear it is expensive but beautiful - so maybe I should check it out more often for ideas.

 

+

=

Very pretty maxi skirts in the near future

Photos of interest

I thought that this would be a simple post - just sharing my reward system etc. But the photos ended up being sideways - so I had to Google a fix - turns out I need to use Picasa - so I did that.  Anywhooo,,, photos!

This is my weighing station - just outside of the bathroom sits my scales, my shoes and my shoe calendar.  I'm going to write up my weekly weight on Mondays when I remember.  I'm also using stickers on the days I workout. Please ignore the case of beer there - they are probably out of date but here people use a barter system for favours - my husband must have done something great to earn a whole carton of beer!

This is my cat Squish.  He's the baby and has abandonment issues, so has to know what you are doing at all times. I'm taking a photo of you, der...look how worried he is...

Cute jar that at one time had awful toffees that were thrown out.  It sits in my office on top of my stationary draws. The white box with the grey pattern contains the glass pebbles. The storage containers behind them are just plain old boxes that I trimmed up and wrapped in some fun jelly bean wrapping paper.  I do that a lot.

Cutest top ever! While I was sick I decided to cheer myself up by buying some clothing that was cute and that before I had lost weight wouldn't have fitted into!  It's a size 18 but it comes from a 'normal sized' clothing company, not a 'plus sized' one. I also need to take it in at the sides.  Oh, you can just see our other cat, Chihiro sitting beside the top - that white fluffy thing.

Week 21

Ignore the fact that the picture says week 20.

What's Motivating Me This Week?
Stickers and glass pebbles - photos to come.

What's Puzzling Me This Week?
Still stuck on the fringe - I even dreamt about it last night - but in my dream my hair was too thin for bangs but I tried cutting them anyway and it was a disaster.

What's Bugging Me This Week?

Remember a while ago I bought a pair of jazz pants? I put them into the cupboard and didn't wear them because they were a little tight and I thought I would spare the world that look. I wore them today for my workout,,, and now they are too big. I kept having to pull them up. I do like the look of them so I might have to look into a pattern to make my own, in the meantime I'll take these one in a bit because they were pretty expensive only to have worn once.

 
What's Encouraging Me This Week? 
All these new to me fitness videos on YouTube.

What's the Plan?
GET ACTIVE!

Perfect Strangers prediction

According to the ultimate prediction game - 'Perfect Strangers: Nothing's Going to Stop Me Now', I have a 82% chance of getting fit!!!

Although note in the 'The Dream Board' someone else has a 100% change of getting fat!

And then I received my highly suitable ranking - Rank: #4 - Pumping Iron Jennifer...

Oh yes,,, this blog is the best ever!

Links and motivation

Great YouTube channels include:
Popsugartvfit - 10 minute workouts
Redrita12 - longer vids some taken from Exercise TV. Lots of these look hard - I like the look of the Dorm Room Workout.
FigureRobics - Not necessarily a single channel but an example of where you can get it from. Cute Japanese doing workouts.
Sparkpeople - the first youtube fitness vids I found
Blackcutegirl's - Lesmills Bodyjam videos

I'm really trying to motivate myself into exercising. I really have taken a step backwards and feeling demotivated, mainly because when I do exercise I am disappointed that I'm not a fit as I think I should be. I know that in other people that would be a great motivator - like competing against yourself to get fit again.  I'm just not competitive. So for now I'm looking for extrinsic rewards.

I used to use stickers as a reward - but I no longer print my exercise sheets out - I should but I don't. Maybe I will buy some new stickers and start that again.

I kind of like this idea - sorry I don't know where it really came from other than pinterest.  But my money is my money and I can spend my money when I like within reason... plus I never have any change to put into a jar.

This one I've seen around heaps. Would work well, but I'm metric and kilos are larger than pounds so it would feel like I'm not getting anywhere.

Maybe I could combine those two together - every time I exercise I put a glass pebble into a glass container? That way I can see my progress.

I did this workout this morning: I didn't find it hard, I was just really clumsy. This is going to my video for the week.

Going to go and find a pretty jar or something...

Awesome!

We raised just over $170 today - not bad for a week's notice.

So now I need to get back into fitness - seriously.

This is a new to me tumblr that I love!

I found blackcutegirl's YouTube channel. It has some awesome fitness videos on it! I've been watching them to see what ones I could do.

Polka dotty pants

Oh yes, these so could be in wardrobe.  Tessuti has some great dotty fabric that would work for these pants, but I have no idea where they came from.  It was a random pinterest post with out a link back to the store - grr..

It's $34 a metre - a little expensive for me because I have to buy more fabric than most, but it comes in a few colours.

So unfit

I can't believe how unfit I feel. 

I went to Zumba last week twice, as well as on Tuesday.  But today I had off, I've corked my calf and I have been baking up a storm for tomorrows biggest morning tea that we are hosting at work. It raises money for cancer.

I jumped on the scales and I've lost a bit more weight - no where near the 80kg yet but slowly going down.

Black Milk Leggings

I dooo love Black Milk's leggings.

They would never fit me, and the ones I really want can't be custom made for you :(

Just a quick look on eBay for lycra I found these fabric.  There are heaps more available out there though - try Spandex World.

 I haven't found anything to match the galaxy leggings yet.

This fabric is just because I love the pattern and think it would be great as a pair of leggings, dress or top.

Oscar de la Renta colección crucero 2013

Oh baby - I saw this and went - I WANT!

I have a few patterns that would do this, and I actually already have a black and white print on a larger scale that would so work!!!  I think it's a cotton/Lycra sateen from Spotlight - lovely stuff.

P.S. The fabric I was talking about in the previous posts have actually been posted to me and are on their way to my greedy hands.

Week 20 - Almost forgot!

I was just thinking that I should get ready for bed, when I thought back over what I had accomplished.

Dyed hair - check
Vacuumed up drill shavings around wardrobe I had to fix yesterday - check
Printed out assessment sheets for this week - check
Put videos for lessons onto USB stick - check
Loaded apps onto ipads for school - mostly check
Exercised - check
Uploaded photos and work out plan - ch... hold on!

What's Motivating Me This Week?
Getting physical again after being sick for almost 3 weeks

What's Puzzling Me This Week?
Should I get my fringe/bangs cut again? It looks cute but it's annoying sometimes when it gets longer especially when I'm exercising

What's Bugging Me This Week?
Investing in some more 'beginner' workout DVDs. 

What's Encouraging Me This Week? 
I will be able to do a proper push up! I just have to work up to it.


What's the Plan?
I did the mile walk today using the 1kg dumbbells - no problems - maybe I should try the 2kg for the last arm routine to see if I could do it.  The other strength exercises using 2kg feel great too.

Today is the first day in weeks that I feel human. I can't seem to hold down a whole big meal at the moment since I wasn't able to eat much while I was sick and I think my stomach shrunk, also my throat is sensitive from so much coughing, but my coughing has subsided to mornings and evenings, I have my voice back, I'm not feeling sore, I'm thinking relativity clearly.

Time for a little motivation now to do some exercise again.

Come one Pammy! Get up and do something physical!!!

My exercise ball and 'dumbbells' arrived yesterday. Dumbbells are in quotes because they actually sent me toning balls - Doh! I sent them an email letting them know their mistake but honestly I can't be bothered to return them.  We'll see how we go.  I also have to figure out how to blow up the ball - that way I can use it as my office seat and look out for some fitness videos for it.

Photos tomorrow I promise.

Lilac Dot Dress

I don't have a problem with pastels, it's just that I am a really messy and clutsy person so I have long realised that light coloured pastels are a magnet for any number of stain inducing accidents. But sometimes I see a pastel number and think,,, 'I want'. For instance this outfit from Scathingly Brilliant - who I must admit I have a little crush on. Fuck, I want her hair.

This is a Dorothy Perkins dress, it's 32 pounds which doesn't seem too expensive to me - but alas if only it could be guaranteed to fit - and once again I don't like the back - bras people!!! Also the neck line would make my bust look gi-bloody-normous.

Fabrics that I think would work for this dress:

Cotton Fabric- PURPLE DOTS 1.5 yards

Purple Yellow Large Polka Dot CANDY PARTY by Kokka Lemon

Michael Miller Fabric Ta Dot Grape

Rile Blake Promenade Purple Dots by Cyndi Walker

So now that you know about my crush on Kate from Scathingly Brilliant, I'll also link to Miss Tallulah Porkchop. I've always like the name Tallulah, and one of my cutesy nicknames from my husband is Porkchop - it's like I was destined to find this woman's blog. Her shoes, her tights, her whole outfits.

Butterfly top

As you can see from this polyvore that I made a year ago, I want a butterfly top. I still haven't gotten one.

 There seems to be some nice butterfly prints out at the moment, maybe now is the time!

Edit: I just found this dress from Modcloth... drool worthy?  $107? I don't like the back treatment (come on what about a bra?), which is good because it's the only thing that lifts this dress from being any number of basic dress patterns that I have.

think pink pants

For 190 pounds I could buy these magenta pants.

Or for I could have gotten these from Kate Spade for about $300.

Or I could buy 2m of this polyester gorgette for $20 from that seller previously, or even cheaper here. Or find a linen blend or similar.