Ælfric’s Diary

alligatorob said:
What is the timing of your four meals?
Click to expand...

Thanks for checking in.

Nominally the four meals are breakfast (usually about 8:30–9:30, depending on when I crawl out of the cave—I was never a morning person at the best of times, and the depression makes getting up even hard, and since I started swinging the 'bells that usually happens before I eat); lunch (generally between 13:00 and 14:00); dinner (18:00 or so) and supper (21:00–22:00).

I once worked shifts, and it seemed silly to call the meal at 8:00 breakfast when you were about to do to sleep for the day; and equally strange to call the meal at 16:00 when you woke up breakfast, and more so since I was flipping back and forth between day and night shifts every few days {I had jet lag continuously for about six months, and I never left London during that time], so I just started numbering them from when I woke up, and ignoring when they were and what function they served. I never really switched back to thinking of them as named meals when I stopped working shifts.
 
Hey there! I'm also doing W30 - I've found it works well for me as I don't like counting calories and it gets me off the junk food. I also totally get the meditative effect of the kettlebells - I feel the same way when I lift weights or run - there's something about the repetition that is very calming. Looks like you're off to a great start - keep at it! :)
 
20/08/2020

Food

Meal One: Chick broth.

Meal Two: Pumpkin soup with gribenes. I had the skins from four chickens that I rendered the schmaltz from, and gribenes is the crispy skin left over after all the fat has been cooked out. They're reputed to be quite nice, but I wasn't impressed, so the rest went in the garbage.

Meal Three: Salmon and vegetables in black bean sauce. The bottle of sauce is open, so it has to be used.

Meal Four: Banana and mango smoothie.

Exercise

Kettlebells
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
Yoga

About 45 minutes of poses.
 
Ælfric said:
I had the skins from four chickens that I rendered the schmaltz from, and gribenes is the crispy skin left over after all the fat has been cooked out. They're reputed to be quite nice, but I wasn't impressed, so the rest went in the garbage.
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Sounds similar to pork scratchings, which many people here love. I´m not a fan. They´re very low-carb (I have a friend who uses them for a low-carb nacho alternative) but definitely not low-calorie!
 
20/08/2020

Food

Meal One: Eggs sunny side medium and salad.

Meal Two: Pumpkin soup with olives, anchovies, and fresh basil, marjoram, and oregano.

Meal Three: Vegetables in black bean sauce.

"Snack": Apple juice. This is what happens when you don't get your hydration sorted correctly, you drink whatever you can get your hands on.

Meal Four: Banana and berry smoothie.

Exercise

Kettlebells
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 16 kg × 50 two handed swings
 
Hey thanks for explaining your four meals, that makes sense. It has some similarity to what I do, my evening snack has kind of morphed into a fourth meal.

Do you still do shift work? That would be very hard on me, I don't reset my body clock very well.

Good to see your consistently nice food and exercise, you are doing well. Does eating right and exercising help you feel better? A little less depressed? Hope so.

Thanks again for your help on the weight training thing, that is much appreciated.
 
I have no idea what the bug I caught was (but I know what it wasn't). It was evil, vicious, nasty, and persistent. Upper respiratory symptoms, fever/chills, and gastro at various times across a week and a half.

Anyway, now that I'm almost back to normal, here we go again:

01/09/2020

Food

Meal One: Smashed eggs and tomatoes.

Meal Two: Pineapple.

Meal Three: Chicken, pumpkin and sweet potato curry.

Snack: Olives and chicken.

Meal Four: Banana and berry smoothie.

Exercise

Kettlebells
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
Lowered the weight to ease back into things.
 
02/09/2020

Food

Meal One: Eggs over medium-hard (overcooked half the eggs, but the other half were perfect).

Meal Two: Peaches.

Meal Three: Chicken, pumpkin and sweet potato curry.

Snack: Kippers and Olives.

Meal Four: Banana and strawberry smoothie.

Exercise

Kettlebells
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
 
03/09/2020

Food

Meal One: Scrambled eggs.

Meal Two: Apricots.

Meal Three: [The last of the] Chicken, pumpkin and sweet potato curry.

Snack: Kippers.

Meal Four: Banana and blueberry smoothie.

Exercise

Kettlebells
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
  • 8 kg × 50 alternating swings; 12 kg × 50 two handed swings
I finished work at close to the correct time for once, and with the sun setting somewhat later now that spring is here, I got some gardening done (one of the advantages of a 5 metre commute).
  • The pumpkin seeds have done what seeds are supposed to do, so I have tiny pumpkin vines growing.
  • The possums continue to graze on the parsley.
  • I mulched most of the remaining vegetable pots.
  • I got the hibiscus tree into the problem pot, which turned out more problematic than expected. It was full of soil, not potting mix, so I had to empty it out completely. I refilled it with a 50/50 blend of potting mix and the soil, so it should have a lighter consistency. Now all I need to do is concrete the hollow in the stump it was sitting on (the water leaking form the hole in the bottom of the pot has rotted the middle of the stump), put the saucer I bought under the pot, and put it back in pride of place in the centre of the garden.
45 minutes that was soothing for the soul.
 
LaMaria said:
That´s all you can do as a layperson - although false negatives do exist. Whatever it was I´m glad to hear you´re feeling better.
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Thanks.
Given that there are only about 30 active cases in Queensland, and none in north Brisbane, I'll trust the test.
 
04/09/2020

The whole week was a struggle with the depression, but today was a total write-off.

Food

Meal One: Green eggs. Heat a small amount of milk, and add a whole lot of assorted dried herbs. Leave in the fridge overnight, and then strain. Blend the herbed milk into some eggs. The medieval original recipe was baked, but I cook it as an omelette.

Meal Two: Peaches.

Meal Three: Turkey kofta curry.

Snack: Protein bar.

Exercise

Nil.
 
05/09/2020

Food

Meal One: Two bananas and a protein bar.

Snack: Protein bar.

Meal Two: Peaches.

Snack: Protein bar

Meal Three: Turkey kofta curry.

Meal Four: Banana and strawberry smoothie.

Exercise

Cycling

102 km in 4:57 (6:15 elapsed time). A mere 124 metres of climb. Nundah → Nudgee Beach → Nundah → Pinkenba → Toombul → Nudgee Beach → Nundah → Boondall → Curlew Park → Boondall Wetlands → Nundah.

The advantage of basing the ride out of the carpark at the criterion circuit at Albert Bishop Park is that I only once got more than 10 km from the base, and then never more than 20 km.

The day started with dead still air, but a bit of a breeze picked up mid morning.

The section out to Pinkenba wasn't entirely planned. The maps show the bike path ends part way through the airport, but the the roads were deserted and flat, so I kept going. I now know where the Pinkenba boat ramp is (the closest point to the mouth of the Brisbane River you can launch a kayak).
 
alligatorob said:
That is impressive!! As soon as it cools I want to get back into riding my bike, but I am no where near being able to do 100 km in a day!
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You might be surprised how far you can ride in a day. I've done 200 km in a day (once). A lot of it comes down to planning.
  • Pick a flat course. Hills will slow you down, and wear you out.
  • Pick a course that has natural shade or cooling if the weather will be hot. The 200 km ride was done in the middle of summer, but the whole ride was alongside the River, and about a third of the distance was under an expressway and so in the shade.
  • Hold a steady pace. The tendency is to go out too fast, and then get slower as the ride goes on. Better to ride with something in reserve the whole time.
  • Plan regular stops. Meal breaks, comfort stops, leg stretches.
  • Hydrate. Drink about a litre (quart) of fluid an hour.
  • You're sweating, so you need some salt intake too.
  • Keep trickle feeding carbs into your system. Not a lot, but you'll metabolize fat more efficiently if you consume a smidge of carbs. I combine the water, salt, and carbs by drinking very dilute juice with a pinch of salt added: about 125ml of juice in a litre of water (half a cup in a quart). The juice I use is a blend of fruit and vegetable juice, so it has somewhat fewer carbs than straight fruit juice.
  • Have a comfortable bike. On my racer, 80 km was my limit, by which time my lower back was screaming at me. Now that I'm riding a touring frame, the range is vastly increased.
Now, go surprise yourself.
 
Sunday was a write off with the depression (the weather didn't help either).

Monday was better. Went Scottish Country Dancing now that we're allowed to play "sports" again.

Today was so-so.

Food has consisted of the kofta curry, chicken broth, eggs, fruit, fish, and fruit smoothies. For some reason my system keeps wanting protein, and particularly fish.
 
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