Monthly Archive for April, 2006

Ready!!

Published on April 28, 2006 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

All packed and ready for bed. It’s 8.30pm. I did my cardio this morning, under a bit of sufferance from this cold – I actually stopped half way through the class and reverted to the treadmill as I wasn’t feeling too crash hot. I was determined to finish though, and I did. Then drove home via the chemist to get some herbal cold/flu drugs, as I didn’t sleep very well last night.

I piked on the training tonight. I spent all day in my dressing gown (very sexy, NOT!!) working in the lounge with the heater on. I got all my programs out to clients, phew. By this time it was about 4pm, and my eyes were closing, so I had a little lay down. I didn’t sleep for long but it was enough to keep me going. I felt very weak, and did not think a hard training session was in order, and since I have to get up at 5am tomorrow, I need a good night’s sleep tonight, so that hopefully, I can train well over the weekend! I’m ‘allowed’ to do Jen’s leg session on Sunday so that will be cool. Not allowed to do Bootcamp though. I will do my own training for the other stuff.

I am now going on my own – Damien has had a really bad sinus infection for almost 2 weeks, and today it was that bad that he was really worried about flying, so I cancelled his flights. He’s been on antibiotics but it’s not really helping. He then got in to see the doctor, who told him to take some cortisone and it would be better in a couple of days, and that he should be fine to fly to Melbourne. So, he tried to get the flights back but they were gone :( Or, could have paid $360 for a one way!! RIGHT! So, now he will stay home. We won’t get to spend our first anniversary together :( The things I do in the name of fitness…

Thanks Selina, yes very busy, I don’t think it’s about to stop either! I will be sure to enjoy Phat Camp, and will post some pics when I return!

Sent my pics through to Richie this afternoon so waiting to hear the verdict :)

Almost time for bed…will check in with Camp details when I can!

Surviving!

Published on April 27, 2006 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

Feeling very tired right now though. I didn’t sleep too well last night, and then was up quite early to have skin folds done – of which I was really happy with the results! I need to take some snaps tomorrow and send through to Richie for his critique. I lost more in this last 2 weeks than I had in the previous 3 weeks. After I had those done, I did my 50 mins of cardio and went home.

Today was so busy. We had quite a bit to clean and tidy still, for the inspection at 5.30pm. We had our lovely cleaning lady here to help us for 3 hours, and she did a great job. I did the office and the bedroom, and I was buggered after that. We shipped poor little Rexy off to Mum’s to get him out of the house. He hated it!! He was terrified! I didn’t like leaving him there on his own (mum wasn’t home) but I had stuff to do! We got the house looking so smic – I wish it would stay like that!! I went up to mum’s for a shower and a little lay down (couldn’t mess up the house!) because this cold is making me a little tired. I also wanted to check on Rexy. I couldn’t find him. Had to rattle his kibble to get a meow out of him. It was a very disturbed meow too. I found him curled up in a tight ball, in a corner. Poor Rexy. He was better after that, but still very traumatised over the events of the week! He’s now back home and very contented :) So, they apparently liked the house, but of course our price is too high! Well, too bad, because that is what we want! So will see what happens…

I trained after my tiny nap, I forgot I had leg training again today – I managed to eek out 30 mins of cardio after that too.

Went to chiro yesterday who told me I had ‘toned up’ noticeably in the hips and thigh region. I lost 2 more cm’s off my hips, so that’s a cm a week so far :)

Tomorrow I have a cardio class, then training in the arvo. I have to finalise a few programs and then pack and cook for Phat Camp trip!

Hope everyone is doing well, and hope you enjoy day 1 of Camp without me! See you soon…

Sick as a dog!

Published on April 26, 2006 in Uncategorized. 5 Comments

Yesterday I was ‘busy as a beaver’ – I’d much rather be that than sick as a dog! I’m not quite that bad yet, but it’s coming on. I blame the STOOPID woman at the gym who was coughing and spluttering all over me and the equipment yesterday. Did not even put her hand over her mouth when she coughed! She’s like “Oh this flu is KILLING me!” I’m thinking, “Hello?? What the heck are you even doing in here??”. Why do people do that? No thought about the germs they are spreading everywhere. One of my pet hates. Why don’t they go home, and go to bed and get better. Was like that at work, people would come in sick, like they are doing the company a favour, and proceed to give their germs to all the healthy people.

Grrrr. So, I am feeling the sore throat coming on, but, am dosing up on Vit C and Durathon, had a sleep (after getting up for my cardio class at 5.30am!) and will train tonight but give the extra cardio session a miss. Then, get a good night’s sleep – day off training tomorrow, cardio only.

If I don’t get to answer your email, for a little please forgive me! I have someone coming through the house tomorrow so things are a bit of a shambles. Then got to pack and cook for Phat Camp. I SO hope I am not sick for that.

Got a lovely email from a client today :) Made my day.

This may sound silly, but I read your blog almost everyday and I truly find inspiration and motivation to keep on training hard when I read about how much hard work, effort and dedication you have to strive for success in the midst of selling and moving house and running such a successful and busy business. You are amazing!

Selina, I read your blog, and your mail, sounds like you had a blast, and next year I want to do Filex!!!

Busy as a beaver!

Published on April 25, 2006 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

We have someone looking at the house on Thursday, which is highly inconvenient I might add, but, it has made us get off our butts and do what we have to! We’ve washed carpets, patched and painted walls, cleaned out a lot of things we’ve ‘hoarded’ over the years, put a new flywire screen on, washed windows, and have curtain cleaners and regular cleaners coming tomorrow to finish things off. I managed to break one of the drapes out of the wall on Sunday – oops. So we will have to show the house without it. I still have the study to clean up, but that won’t be too hard.

Sunday was my day off so I got a lot done that day with regard to the house. Monday was back to training, and today was legs/bis. I didn’t get to do my cardio today, but I have mapped out tomorrow and will do a class at 6.15am, then back later for chest/tris and some more cardio (it’s a short training session anyway).

Starting to notice some more definition in the chest area, and my face has definitely lost it’s puffiness! Weight has dropped a little also.

It’s 8.15pm and I am almost ready for bed! I got stuck into feedback emails today, still have a few to finish off tomorrow. I also have to get nails done and a chiro appointment in there.

Thanks Lauren and Jodi, for your input on the previous post.

Bad advice

Published on April 25, 2006 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments

I have received some disturbing email, which I believe needs to be ‘aired’, so to speak. It’s been brought to my attention that there is some really ill informed advice going around the fitness blogging community and in particular, a certain Fitness Forum, and the people that have emailed me are quite concerned (and rightly so).

If you are reading recommendations for a low/no carb diet, and that carbs are not essential – then please listen, and listen good! We NEED carbs in our diet. Especially when training, carbs are essential for wellbeing, recovery, growth, and for our brains to function! A competitor will often use a diet lower in carbs to get to an extremely low level of body fat. But to maintain this sort of regime year round is ridiculous, not to mention ridiculously unhealthy. Sure, you might feel fine for awhile, but that’s because you are running on adrenaline due to the stress you are placing on your body! Too much adrenaline over a period of time spells BURNOUT and major health issues.

I am speaking from personal experience. I too used to get up at 4.30am every morning to train and do cardio, work from 8 to 5pm, then home to more training and cardio. I didn’t even need the alarm to wake up, I was ‘wired’ all the time. I used to train with a trainer in Melbourne, so in addition to the above, I was driving 6 hours to Melbourne every 3-4 weeks, for 4 days, training every day whilst there. I did all this while on a diet with very little carbs. I lost body fat, yes, but I lost a lot of muscle too, and in doing so, I screwed up my health. Down the track a little I started to experience problems. Then, after 2 years of continued exhaustion, sleeping problems and uncontrollable carbohydrate cravings, that were all getting worse, I started extensive research because I wanted answers. I saw doctors, naturopaths, specialists. Finally it was discovered I had adrenal exhaustion and low thyroid function, and I am now I am on continued medication for both. I feel very much better now, but I do have to rest and sleep when I feel the need to and I have definitely learned my lesson about taking on too much at once!

I have had a few different trainers over the years and have learnt a LOT of things. One of them, and I have discussed this with other highly successful competitors and trainers, is that long term low carb/no carb diets are not necessary, and are most certainly, detrimental to long term health. Even when competing you have to eat carbs, unless you want to look depleted, stringy and flat!

My opinion is, low carbs may be required and can be ok for as short a time as possible IF YOU HAVE NO OTHER OPTIONS. Ie if you want to make 10% body fat or under and you have a body that resists being that lean – you will probably have to take some drastic measures. But you do it only for as long as you have to and you CAN NOT, and SHOULD NOT, eat like this year round.

Please email me at sue@idealbodiesonline.com if you would like to discuss the carb issue further (or any other issue – believe me, I have more info than I am able to publicly write here) – as a trainer and someone who is passionate about the industry of health and fitness and the health and wellbeing of my clients and readers, I am disturbed that this ill informed info is flying around out there. It seems that many people agree, yet are a little afraid of speaking up. Please DO speak up, it’s the only way to nip this bad advice in the bud!

I hope the person handing out this bad info has some good public liability insurance!

Phew, needed that!!

Published on April 23, 2006 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

What a huge sleep! 11 hours. I woke up a few times in the night, but went straight back to sleep. My body really needed it so my rest day has come exactly at the right time.

Just finished my caffiene hit, and attending to a few emails, and will have some breaky, and then will start on my piles of clothes! We don’t have enough wardrobe space, so I have to pack some up into boxes to make some room. We also need to wash the windows, and get rid of our coffee table, clean up all the nick knacks and junk lying around, and paint the walls and put the flywire screen back on. Busy day!! Then we need to wash the carpet and curtains!

I need to answer some new enquiries while I eat brekky, then it will be all go! I received a lovely email from Gillian, who has just finished her 2nd program with me, thought I would share:

Hello Sue,

How are you? Well, you have done it again. This program has not only been enjoyable but it has certainly exceeded my expectations. As you know my main priority was to have an eating plan that not only provided me with plenty of energy to train for the half marathon, but also that I might continue to do weight training and get a bit of muscle definition. Well!!! Not only has it done that in abundance but yesterday at the gym one of the muscle bound guys was telling me how good I was looking which made me feel great. So a million times thankyou for another great experience, which I now feel has become a way of life for me with both the eating and exercise. After the half marathon I want to really get into the weights and develop a lot more shape. What I have found is that by eating more protein and including weights in my program my recovery from the long runs has been a lot faster.

As you know my starting skinfolds fat % was 16.7, and when I went back this morning I was a bit apprehensive. I knew I was harder in my body and that I was getting little muscles growing especially in my triceps and stomach, but I wasn’t sure that my skinfolds would be much different as I had only lost 1.5 kg. Guess what! Iam now down to 13.7% which was a real shock to both myself and the sports dietician-in fact she checked it twice! Not only that but I now have biceps. When I started this my normal bicep measurement and the flexed measurement were the same-how sad is that! This time there was a 2 cm difference in the flexed position -pretty neat aye!!!

In my skinfolds I have lost the most off my thigh and triceps which is good.

I just want to say thankyou so much to both you and Sharleen for everything. You run such a professional and supportive organisation where the programs and advice are so up to date and very effective (you really know you stuff). Your training and diets totally work with very little hardship. I don’t think I ever felt hungry and actually worried that I might put on weight because I was eating so much.

Have a great Sunday everyone.

Early to bed tonight!

Published on April 22, 2006 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments

Hit a bit of a brick wall tonight – felt great all day, met with Kerry for a step class this morning, which was great, and we had a good chat afterwards.

Did a bit more work this arvo, then a little nap, and then back again to the gym for chest/tris. My strength is not diminishing at all, which is great.

Tomorrow is my complete day off training so I am looking forward to that – and it’s high carb day too! It won’t be a relaxing day though, we are starting the big clean up around the house! Long list of things to do. Need to have all programs accomplished by Friday next week, as I’m off to PHAT Camp on Saturday! Can’t wait to catch up with everyone!

So, it’s almost 9.15pm and I need to get to bed :)

Well done to Shelly, Gillian and Jenni who all recently finished their programs, all with great results! Going to have a little giveaway on my forum, so if you are a client, get on there and have a sticky!

Quick catch up

Published on April 21, 2006 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

Trained legs and bis with Lisa today, was great to train with her. We spoke about continuing programs for her, and after getting a good look at her in the flesh, I will come up with something that will help her continue progressing. Lisa has great legs, and a great set of triceps – the triceps come from her work as an osteopath. So, we spoke about balancing up her biceps, and building some width to her back and shoulders. She’s like me – she needs a ‘goal’. My goal is competition, and that way I can continually strive to improve where I need to. Lisa has been thinking about her future goals, and we spoke about them briefly. As I said to her, I can’t stress enough, the importance of knowing your “why”.

My diet and training is ticking along nicely. Damien tells me I’m ‘getting scrawny’ already, his way of telling me it’s working :) I had two compliments at the gym today, on my back. One from Lisa, thanks Lis, and another one (who shall remain anonymous).

I am looking forward to PHAT Camp next weekend! It has come around very quickly. Time is going to fly this week and I have so much to accomplish in a week!

My revamped website is coming along nicely!! I want it ready for early May as I am doing some advertising in the US.

Tonight I went back for cardio, and took my MP3 with me and cranked it up loud. That way I could almost forget I was actually doing cardio :) Usually the ear plugs fall out and annoy the hell out of me, but for the most part, they stayed in well. I gave my calves a rest training legs today, as they have been getting well and truly overworked with all the incline cardio. Tomorrow Kerry is meeting me at the gym for a step class, so that will be fun. Then will need to go back in the arvo for chest/tris.

I got my huge shipment of Myoplex Lites :) ) I decided to try one and yes, it must be a different formula, as the shake comes out really thick. Which I prefer. So, well done Shar, you are a legend. I emailed them today to purchase the remainder of their stock!!!! Got a nice discount too. So I think I have the world’s entire remaining collection of Cappuccino Ice in my hot little hands :)

I have ordered my next suit with Jo Rogers. I changed my mind again. :) I can’t wait to see it.

Ok, time for bed, early night, feeling a bit worn out, but not exhausted. I had the BEST massage yesterday! Well needed.

Published on April 19, 2006 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

Here’s another of the lovely Selina, since I know some readers want to see!

I just finished my Myoplex Lite (always a highlight of the day!), and will give a quick rundown of my torture session today. I was up early (early for me) so did my 30 mins on the incline tready before food. Then later this arvo I did my first ‘additional’ leg session. 5 mins on step machine, 30 walking lunges x 3 (no rest), then 5 mins on steep tready incline at fast rate, then plie squats and stiff leg deadlifts x 3 – no rest between anything. Took me 46 mins and I’d definitely had enough by then! My legs are feeling a little sore still from last ‘real’ leg workout. I cannot wait for my massage tomorrow!!

Today is high carb day and I am feeling hungry, so my metabolism has got to be going through the roof.

Richie is a believer in more carbs/calories and burning the fat off with more cardio (like Tom Venuto). I would take the carbs and extra cardio anyday, over a lower calorie diet without carbs. You NEED carbs to train hard and to recover and keep/grow your muscle, AND to stay full and hard, rather depleted and soft. Richie is aiming to bring me in more full this time around.

Time for a shower and some sweet potato!!

Big day

Published on April 18, 2006 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments



Huge day of training today. Feeling a bit buggered tonight! Met with Lisa V at the gym this morning and we both trained chest & tris – but separately. Then we did 30 mins on the ellipticals, chatting the entire time, and then walked another 20 minutes outside. It was fantastic to meet her, she’s absoulutely lovely! She gave me a bit of osteopathy treatment after our walk and that was very interesting. My left hip was rotated (I think that is what she said!) due to a tight hip flexor, and I was also out in the top of ribs on the right, and a number of spots in my neck. It was amazing how she treated me – very talented lady. Also advised I should get orthotics for my high arches, if I was to do much running in the future. We are going to train again on Friday.

Tonight I went back and did a hi/low class – for 40 minutes. I was starting to hurt by the end of it, my feet, legs, calves etc. I did most of it low impact. I did that one today so that I don’t have to do 3 tomorrow! So, have a cardio, and my new torture leg session. I have a massage on Thursday, thank goodness.

Shar – you are brilliant!! I found some Cappuccino Ice! YES!!!! I am having 10 boxes shipped to me tomorrow. Yes Hils, I’m definitely junkie material :) n So with that, and Michelle’s stash, I will be stocked for awhile to come :) I’m happy again!

Congratulations to Selina, and Sharon & Garth, who have all finished their challenges this week. I tried to put Selina’s pics up yesterday but it wouldn’t work :( Will try again tonight. Yep, they worked – doesn’t she look fantastic?

We have had someone interested in our house already, so looks like we have to get it spic and span by next Friday!!! Busy week coming up. Ok, well that’s about all I can manage tonight – I think it will be an early one, I need to recover, feeling a bit drained!