Sorry – long time no blog.

Firstly, a few features of the Christmas period:

MY IDEAL XMAS DINNER, as kindly provided by sister and brother in law. Granted, it’s not very traditional, but it couldn’t have made me happier. All my favourite things were there. Oysters (very very nearly vegetarian), rice paper rolls, pumpkin and fetta tart, garlic bread, and smashed roast potatoes. And champagne (well, sparkling wine) Followed by raspberry PAVLOVA!

A family trip to Maria Island, where I went biking and hiking (up Mt Maria and Bishop & Clerk) and swimming. It was great! I was relunctant to do the big walks and bike rides but I’m glad I was pushed into it.





Now, for those health goals of 2011.

Get more sleep was mentioned on my other blog, but probably my most important task of this year will be rehabilitating my knees. I’ve never had good knees but it’s got to the point where they are so useless they are nearly disabling me. I can’t get up off the floor without pulling myself up with my arms, and I have to go down stairs and hills sideways and groaning.

This will probably involve expensive trips to the physio and lots of exercises but I don’t see any alternative. I have had to quit running over the last year just so I could keep walking, but I don’t want to have to stop playing basketball and squash because I’ve let things get even worse. Hand in hand with the fix knees objective is the improve flexibility one. I feel apathetic about both these ideals but like I said – no alternative.

Continue with weights is another goal. I’ve managed about twice a week (most weeks) over the last three months and I have got stronger, slowly. I don’t like doing weights so if I can just maintain these 2 hours a week I will be pleased. Doing what I’ve been doing is a goal of 2011, swimming twice a week, exercising at least 5 days out of 7 etc etc. Although challenging at least it’s nothing new I need to develop. I’ve managed this so far by careful planning – every week I map out my exercise sessions on a spreadsheet, and each day I contemplate what needs to be done the following day to fit it in. I think ad hoc statements such as “I’m going to exercise more” rarely work without this kind of planning…it’s the same with eating. “I’m going to eat more healthily” has to be translated into a plan which involves what and when and how (food must be pre-purchased/prepared).

Instead of getting caught up in same old same old I’d like more variety in my exercise. For example I could do the dance game on the wii or take the mountain bike for a ride along Old Summerleas Road. I’d also like to get my exercise done early rather than leaving it til last thing at night (there have been times I’ve put on a Pump DVD at 10pm), though this goal is hard to fit in with the rest of the family and also my get more sleep ideal. I have some ideas however.

Basketball goal – practise shooting once a week! Because I’m crap.

Spose we should talk about nutritional goals, and one my biggest here is EAT MORE PROTEIN. As a vego I rarely get enough, which means I rarely get enough Vit B and Iron. I take supplements. Lots.

Vit B, Iron, Vit D (most Tasmanians are deficient), Multi-vitamin and fish oil. I’ll still need all of these, but if I can work some protein into every meal I think it will help. By protein I mean soy milk or cheese or nuts tofu or lentils/chickpeas or chia seeds or linseed or whatever else I can think of. By the way I would never consider not being vegetarian because I just don’t agree with the way animals are treated for this objective at the moment. I was really please the other day when I went to the supermarket and all the free-range eggs had sold out – there were only cage eggs left. Of course I didn’t buy them though. Still, this kind of community culture change has taken SO LONG TO ACHIEVE and this frustrates me. I bought free range eggs 25 years ago when there was usually only one alternative on the shelf. For the last 25 years hens have been suffering. Disappointingly, I know people who still buy cage eggs to save money.
Another goal is pretty run of the mill – snack more on fruit and less on other stuff. Eat more vegies, eat more raw food blah blah. Shop regularly – have the right food on hand.

Writing these goals makes me feel quite proud of all I’ve achieved since I was a teenage, junk-food eating refuser of vegetables. I’m pleased that I eat a really healthy diet and exercise regularly and it’s really just refining behaviours more than developing completely new things. It may have taken me a looong time to get here but this age-wisdom thing really works. I wish I’d had it 20 years ago before my turbulent years of binge eating, yo-yo dieting and general extreme behaviours that probably plague every female between the ages of 15 and 35. Sigh.

Only problem now is my mortality. Apparently, I’m not going to live forever. And neither is anyone else.

All of this is probably very boring for you, the reader, but it’s not about you. Ha. It’s me, writing down my objectives. Failure to plan means planning to fail.

Now, I have some health goals for the kids, too. Mainly related to removing them from their pathways to teenage diabetes. This can be achieved but parental consistency is the key. I know I can manage this but keeping Rob on the straight and narrow will be tedious. He can be quite lazy with regard child nutrition. I will have to prepare lists for him such Useful Snacks for Offspring, Nutritious Ideas for Kids Meals and notices such as If-I-see-Jamie-with-Milo-at-6.30am-any-more-I-will-kill-you.