Hi all,

Firstly a big welcome to Melbourne Jojo!! I cant believe you are finally, actually here and am really looking forward to meeting you Monday morning. I am sure you will enjoy Ballarat, its a lovely town that has a lot of history, especially around our Gold Rush days and many fine old buildings. Its known to be freezing in winter, but hopefully you will get sunshine tomorrow. You will also see a bit of Victorian countryside on the drive there, still nice and green before it goes yellow for the summer.

Hello everyone else. Great to hear things getting under control with your mother Smiffy, sounds like your brother got the message too! Sometimes we have to spell things out! Try the chicken with honey and sesame, its lovely. I only had chicken breasts in the freezer (recipe says thighs) but I just cut them in half and counted each as two thighs – they didn’t dry out like chicken can. Lemon stolen from neighbours tree was lovely and juicy! Enjoy your break in Wales, sounds perfect.

RT, sorry I meant to thank you for that recipe. I made it Friday night and it was yum. I prepared it early and let it sit with the garlic and lemon juice whilst I had a day in the garden. Then it cooked whilst I had a shower after gardening in the rain….. it was so yum, definitely a keeper. We did not have it with rice as suggested, just some salad for me and a microwaved spud for the lad. Very simple to make but very tasty. Did you enjoy it? Fabulous news re your wife, she is doing so well with her weight falling off so well!! I hope your fingers are still intact – one word for the mandolin – respect!! Mine is not an expensive one, $30 only, but works fine. I have seen them for three times that, but don’t think its necessary. The cars we saw today (in town for the Targa) were amazing. Different classes, so a big variation in cars – big V8’s right down to an original Mini and baby Fiat. Several Lotuses, and too many Porsches to count! Even a Delorian!!

AO its great to hear you sounding chirpy again. Glad you are working out ways to help with your rehab. You sound very busy to me!!

Our youngest and his girl very excited today, have booked venue for their Aussie wedding next September. From two very slow starters, we will now have two weddings, plus the Hanoi shindig, all within 11 months! What fun!

Amazon I am glad you sound your old self again. My experience with grief is that it does sneak up when we least expect it, but each time it gets a tiny bit easier and we learn to ride the wave. I am lucky enough to have three dear brothers, I dread the thought of losing any of them… As Smiffy says, its so important to treasure every day.

xx

Hello Fast Trackers
Nicky Emel and Aussie O in South Australia Nama in Victoria Bay in ACT PVE in NSW WiWi & Barata in NZ and Jojo SAMM HappyNow Amazon Herm Lizzy Ply Tartan lass Smiffy Lor_PA CakeyWakey Sarah103 HealthCoachB Tessy pen nib Iona72 and Hello World (You All know Who You ARE) 😉

Welcome to Australia Jojo Hello Melbourne I do sound like a lead singer in a rock n roll band 😆 bytheway anyone seeing AC/DC Rock or Bust Concert over the next 2 months? Adelaide Oval here I come I can’t wait 21 November.. The thing about researching and learning or discovering new menu choices fasting options exercise or NOT as it where is still all a study of one what suits you and what works for you. I used chicken thighs on the bone which was fantastic I used to love the chicken Maryland which still had the drum stick attached to the thigh I had a simply Greek salad and for alittle extra pizazz a sweet potato cooked in foil then cut in half yumo. Glad you gave it a try as well AO fabulous to see you again and the year 2015 has been very trying way to many pot holes to try and go around so 2016 straight down the freeway no stopping Cheers Smiffy and Bay I thought it would be like whenever we seem to do anything major like shift house it is a confrontation of where what why how etc but this seems more balanced a well I watched you do it she is not a leader but a follower and we have a natural partnership of understanding so body language tells me more than verbal yeah I know it’s a gift 😉 She has a linen party on today so I am outa here 😥 off to see Dad and 2nd son and catch up with the grandies.Happy Sunday People.

It’s better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life.
Peace RT

Welcome to the main island, Jo. I’m sure you’ll enjoy Ballarat.
Thanks Smiffy. My sentiments exactly. I’m pleased you have your mum settled in, have dragged in some backup and getting some “me” time. Enjoy ☺
Good to hear both the A’s are feeling more positive top. Keep it up gang. P

Good afternoon fellow fasters – I started this epistle in Word early this morning but have taken all day to finish (between work stuff). Seems ages since I posted, needed time and energy to respond properly (in alphabetical order) ….

Amazon, emoticon queen, your trip to Cambridge sounded lovely. Spent a very happy time there once at a conference. Glad to hear your physio designated exercises are giving some relief, even if hard – good to know you have been doing the right thing all along. And what a win with your new mattress. Anniversaries associated with loved ones can really catch us off guard, even when we think we’re well over it. Time dulls but doesn’t cure the pain. Glad your sleep restored your balance. Sending big hugs.

AO, such good news that most of the time you don’t need pain meds any more. Please take it easy though. Well done on the fasting – good to get back on track.

Barata, good to hear you and Jo could rendezvous.

Emel, I symphathise with your dilemma about staying/moving on. Change is always challenging but hope we can stay in touch, even if you move away from our village. I get the impression you don’t have much family in Adelaide – maybe Clare would be good as older female rellies can be very nurturing when needed. As RT says, your commitment pie chart seems to be >100% now so do remember to take care of yourself, even if it’s just going to the gym – a great mind clearer IMO.

Happy, “Two years ago I would have thought you were mad if you told me I’d crave natural yoghurt instead of refined carbs!” I haven’t quite tamed the carb dragon but definitely notice a change in my taste preferences. Walking is a marvellous opportunity for meditation.

Jo, what a wonderful set of memories you have stored of your time in New Zealand. Hope your Australian memories are as good. Now you are here you can enjoy the cricket :). By my calculations you are due in Adelaide on Thursday? I’ll bet you and Nama hardly stopped for breath today. If you would like to meet, please send me a text – I’ve messaged you on FB with my phone number. I definitely second AO’s recommendation on sunscreen – our ‘English’ skins will burn in 15’ even with cloud cover at this time of the year.

Nama, thank you for your kind reminder about ‘me’ time. It’s been a bit short lately but the extreme busyness is now mostly done. Had a lovely afternoon on Saturday baking with my granddaughter, quietly accompanied by the cricket on the kitchen TV. Your son’s new garden sounds fantastic – all my favourite colours/plants. Well done on avoiding the scones. To echo RT, your description of your weekly muesli is such a positive endorsement of this WOL. Very wise words about growing-up boys – my teenaged brother ran off the rails after our mother died young, but turned out a loving husband and father of two boys, and now grandfather of two. Always nice to get a compliment on our changed bods. A fellow I hadn’t seen for 9 months at ‘my’ gym came over and complimented me the other week. Helped me to remember how far I have come, as opposed to how far still to go….

Purple, Mount Warning climb in March sounds great. I haven’t been there for >20 years but seeing the sunrise was an unforgettable experience. Knowing we were the first people in Australia to do so that morning made the climb in the dark worthwhile. Hope Mr P can settle down to retirement. Mr F hasn’t made the full jump yet, despite being home-based, still getting the occasional consulting gig. Hard for them to let go – a big life-change.

RT, congratulations of the forthcoming grandchild – they are such a joy and after many sons, a granddaughter is a bonus for you both. Mrs RT continues to triumph in the IF stakes – another milestone to celebrate. Well done on your Cup selections – Prince of Penzance did you proud. Thanks for the giggles.

Sarah, good to hear from you. To live life to the full? A wonderful goal! Well done on the 6-week no sugar challenge, a bit of a breakout is no sin. Hope your father’s recovery is continuing and you get more than a text next time.

Smiffy, lovely to hear from you. What a challenging time you are having – a bit of chocolate is cheaper than a psychiatrist! 😉 You need lots of hugs too.

Wee, hope the man den decorating is going well. With that and your crafty crochet, not much time left for snacking.

Wiwi, nothing like seeing skinny minnies to reset our resolve 😉 Glad to hear your brother’s stroke seems to be having a positive outcome. My knees have improved out of sight, at least partly due to IF (new metal knees helped too). However, my now-normal non-medicated blood pressure is entirely due to IF – love it!

Good fast days last week, even though fell down a little on Saturday after the baking ;). Nearly the end of Monday fellow fasters – keep up the good work. Anyone joining me for another round tomorrow? Cheers all. n xxx

Morning/evening all,

Monday again already 😮

Gym this morning, first time for a week and I am so looking forward to it. I often lie in bed thinking I don’t want to go, but what I don’t want to do is get up! Once I’m upright all is well 😆
Nicky,
I always enjoy your Monday posts, catching up with what you’ve been up to. It is so nice to get compliments isn’t it, and certainly reminds us how far we have come.
I was very relieved to discover that I’ve no tbeen making things worse as far as my back is concerned, but starting the exercises made my back slightly worse and it is now settling down, and I wasn’t in the right frame of mind for anything for a couple of days. I know I’ll have a really good workout later.
I’m doing B2B today and tomorrow, following the successful plan I stuck to before I went to Cuba last year, hence the 7 week plan.
I used up the last of the pumpkin yesterday and made a pumpkin and lentil curry with a few brussel sprouts chucked in as I have a bagful in the fridge. I bought Scotch Bonnet peppers last week and used one in some chilli. I could barely taste the heat so I put two in the curry. When I tasted it for seasoning yesterday I had to eat some yoghurt to cool my mouth down, so eating a bowlful will be an adventure!

Nama, your day with Jojo sounds lovely, she’ll love Australia every bit as much as NZ.
I am jealous as I’ve not been to Melbourne yet…..
I need to get moving, have a good one everybody ?

good way but you must eat healthy food

Afternoon all,

Back from the gym. They had a problem with their heating or someone turned up the thermostat too far and the pool area was boiling. They had had to open the connecting door to the gym and the aqua class instructor was practically melting ?
Unfortunately that made it hotter in the gym which is usually a nice temperature so I drank twice as much water as usual.
I decided to give the pool a miss and did 15mins on the bike in addition to my usual workout. I tried to spend more time on the cross trainer using arms and legs rather than just legs and the result is aching shoulders!
The good thing is that I really enjoyed working out this morning and realised that my spirits have lifted to their normal level.
When I finish on the rowing machine and stand up my back is usually very stiff and I noticed an improvement today so the painful stretches are doing something.

I had a sugar free protein drink made with almond milk to keep me going until curry time along with a vat or two of coffee 😉

Jojo, Melbourne is on my list of must see places when I next visit Australia. I want to do the Great Ocean Road so my plan is to persuade my Adelaide friends to meet me in Melbourne for a few days and then drive back to Adelaide, but they might not want to drive both ways so car hire might be an option, something I’ve not done before although I have driven in Australia before. If they don’t I’ll have to join a tour.

I’m getting too far ahead of myself here as I’ve already got two trips booked and another in the pipeline so it’ll be a while before I get back Down Under as the piggy bank needs filling up again first ?

I’ve got to tackle the ironing now, can’t put it off any longer as I’ve run out of trousers that don’t fall down ?

Thanks Nama.
I once spent a long weekend in Victor harbour and we stayed at a house right at the top of the hill and could sit on the upper floor balcony and watch the ocean. It was the home of friends of my Adelaide friends who had gone to Robe for a week and offered us the house. They were originally from South Africa and their garden was filled with a mixture of Australian and South African flowers. It was stunning and very colourful.

Good morning all.

Amazon, I felt for you with the overheated gym as we had 37C yesterday – even at home it was ‘only’ 30C. You obviously know Adelaide and environs very well – we share several favourite haunts, including Encounter Bay.

A Great Ocean Road trip is to be recommended, travelling east to west is the better option IMO as you’re always on the sea side of the road and get better views. My long-departed father and stepmother lived in Mornington after they retired so after visiting them we always came home via the car ferry from Sorrento on the Peninsula side of Port Philip Bay to Queenscliff and then along the coast, taking two days. Our favourite stop for the night was at a B&B in a village on the top of the Otway Range in the superb temperate rainforest. Writing about it makes me want to do it again!

I’m not surprised you have aching arms after the cross-trainer. I try to do 5′ flat out before my weights session on Wednesdays and invariably have to ease off towards the end, not so much because of the puffing 😉 but because my arms are complaining.

Emel, good luck with the interview. Hope it doesn’t contribute further to your dilemma … Would appreciate a critique of the local gym if you find a moment.

Fairly good FD yesterday with dinner of Purple’s recipe, stuffed Portobello mushrooms but … (How many of my sentences start like that?) After dinner I cooked a bunch of beetroot and some bargain local asparagus (8 bunches for $10) to pickle and had quite a few nibbles – just to test if it was cooked enough you understand 😆 I used to buy a NZ brand of lovely crisp pickled asparagus in glass jars but last year discovered that they had moved their operations to China. Unfortunately Chinese hygiene laws do not seem to be well policed, so now do my own.

Happy fasting Amazon and anyone else. Take care n xxx

Are you going to join us on Mt Warning, Nicky? I was born in its shadow, but have not climbed it.
For non Aussies…it is above the most easterly point of Australia (Cape Byron) so greets the sun first.

Jo, you’ll have seen more of Australasia on your trip than most residents! So now you know why I looked short next to Nama. She’s statuesque. Glad you gals had fun.

Thanks for the weather forcast RT. We have your yesterday’s glorious weather now. Rain tomorrow I guess ? P

Mmm – our asparagus is in season, how would one pickle it NIcky? Similar to beetroot? Sounds yum.

Freezing here today, Jojo has seen Melbourne’s temperamental weather at its best. Up to 22 tomorrow hopefully Jojo, so your final day should be pleasant. Wondering what you will get up to – lovely to see someone embracing new experiences so enthusiastically.

Back to the ironing, at least its keeping me warm as I fast!!

Hi everyone

Bay, your coleslaw sounds fantastic, definitely on the list for this week.

Nama, yes pickling asparagus is similar to beetroot – steam until just tender, then pack into containers (I use preserving jars because they are straight sided and tall enough for the stalks to stand upright) and cover with spiced hot vinegar. Cover with clingwrap or the preserving jar lid if stainless steel (vinegar will rust non s-s) and store in the fridge. Ready to eat within days and keep for ages. I cut the stalks off to fit into the jars and then cook the woody bases in the water used for steaming and freeze the lot for a winter asparagus soup – sieve out the woody bits! 😉

Amazon, your list includes some of my favourite places – Moana and fish and chips brings back memories of happy teenage years surfing (and my bikini!). Haven’t been to most for years – need a visitor to show around!

Two FDs done and dusted, looking forward to my first cafe latte for the week in 4 hours. Take care all and keep up the good work. n xxx

Hi girls

Purple would it have something to do with being ‘retired’ and having time to explore your backyard?!

Nicky thanks so much for the asparagus tips (!) I will definitely try them! Enjoy your Sunday meet up, should be lots of fun….

Hi Purple and Nama,
You both sneaked in while I was correcting my typos!

Two glasses of water and off to bed, Amazon. You can do it mate 🙂

No Nama, I started it after we returned to Sydney with our kids now much older. I was working fulltime, but needed to force myself to not work on at least one day each weekend…other teachers will understand 🙁 I don’t think it helped the weight, though. We often found great food-based venues!!! P

One thing worse than going to bed hungry and that is lying awake with indigestion so I won’t be eating anything!
I am also looking forward to being bathed in smugness tomorrow having completed B2B.

Night all ?

I want to be bathed in smugness too! ?

Anyone who can go 24 hours without food deserves smugness!
Enjoy wallowing in smug….so much better for you than wallowing in mashed potato (or ice cream). ? P

Hi Amazon,

I’m with you on high leg cutaway swimsuits. I don’t think they’re particularly attractive, even on supermodels. And if you’re less than body beautiful, why on earth would you want to ‘lengthen’ your legs? Does showing some hip actually lengthen my legs or hide my thunderthighes? I think not. It’s still the same dumpy legs, just looking even more ridiculous 🙂

Good luck with the weather! We’ve got heavy rain and squally wind again, lots of flood water about already 🙁

Great posts today . Wallowing in ice cream 🙂 🙂 .

Jims man den finished and looking great . all papered and painted and carpeted . Still got the curtain pole and new curtains to go up . We have started to put things back in but this is going to take some time .
I have made an attempt at a FROZEN style hat with a big pigtail . really pleased with it and some fingerless gloves . I can’t sleep because the ideas keep going round in my head . The great thing is that crochet helps me not eat so much .
Jim pointed out that I hardly ever snack now and he is right . I also don’t eat as much ” rubbish food” more choosy in what I pick .
I am loving this WOL and yes I am happy to live like this forever . I am so grateful for you lot too . I honestly don’t think I would be where I am today without you xx

It’s OK RT as it was a metaphorical bath 😉

Good luck with the water fast. I tried a liquid only fast and it didn’t ring my bell ?

Another B2B beckons tomorrow and Friday so that’ll keep me out of mischief until my wine tasting adventure on Saturday ?????

I’m so disappointed Simcoe! I saw you’d posted, and assumed you were commenting on the swimsuit discussion ? P

Thanks heaps Simcoeluv for the links and the information i will most definitely take full advantage of all of that.

Cheers RT