I feel great. Yesterday’s modest victory has spurred me on, I am quite confident that I can tock all my boxes, today. So…exactly the same routine, I think if I can just follow the exact routine from yesterday, I’ll manage to get through the dreaded two day detox period.
Halfway through the day, I am still feeling strong. I have had my tea, NRG capsule and my shake. I have loads of energy and I really do feel quite happy and positive.
The day was actually quite busy and I even forgot to eat! Half my vegetables are still in the pack. And this is not a big pack, just 300g (10,5 ounces). I also had a green apple.
18h00, and I am feeling so good, I am going out for a brisk walk!
I am back and feeling really good about myself; what was meant to be a 30 minute walk became almost an hour of walking, so I am definitely making progress. I even rewarded myself with a 300gram pack of grapefruit!
It’s the end of the day and that Stand ring is just refusing to close! As I said, previously, if you mess it up during the day, it really catches up with you. I found myself chalking up my 11th stand after 11PM, so I know there’s no way I can get my 12th one. Still…a very successful day. The dreaded detox days have come and gone.
I woke up, put my watch on, and I went to the kitchen to make my Iaso tea and take my NRG capsule. As I said, elsewhere, I need to be extremely mindful about the watch. I need the encouragement of closing those rings every single day. It just gives me this massive sense of achievement.
Day One Meal Plan…I grabbed my protein shake at about 10 AM. Just the powder with water, nothing fancy added to it, and it still tastes pretty good. I have a big bottle of water that I carry around with me everywhere.
I won’t lie, I am feeling a bit miserable, but I know this is more mental than anything. I am not hungry, just…angry. So I popped into a convenience store and bought a pack of broccoli and cauliflower to keep me company as I drive around. I HATE them both, but strangely, eating them raw is very satisfying. That crunch just makes me feel like I am eating something else completely. I don’t thing I’ll ever eat them boiled and soggy ever again!
Day 1 and 2 are total detox days, so there is no meal at all for me. And you know what, it really wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. I had another cup of detox tea in the afternoon. Be warned…that stuff really makes you poop. I highly recommend it, for people who struggle with being regular.
Day 1…done! Oh, and I didn’t manage to close my rings at all. I closed the Move ring, twice over, came very close to closing the Stand ring, and had 21 minutes of exercise, which is 9 minutes shy of my goal. But, you know what? I got through this day and I’ll chalk that up as a victory.
In the past, I always followed the generic “30 minutes of moderate exercise” model, but this time around, I am shaking things up! My exercise goal is to close all three rings on my Apple Activity App, every single day.
I have left the goals at default, for now, but will probably increase the goals as my fitness levels increase. I have come to realize that even though the targets seem quite easy and achievable, they also require a certain amount of discipline and goal oriented mindfulness.
Let me explain what I mean; The Move Ring (the pink one) is the easiest one to complete. This is the one that measures your movements (effectively your steps) in a day, and consequently your calories burned. So whether you are getting up to go to the bathroom, walking to your car, or walking from the loving room to the kitchen, those all get added to your daily total. As a result, that total is quite easy to achieve and beat.
The Exercise Ring (the green one) measures the amount of SUSTAINED exercise that you do. This requires you to be intentional. It needs you to get up and exercise, and keep going for at least 30 minutes. Even a brisk walk counts as exercise, just as long as you do it for a straight 30 minutes. This is also a fairly achievable goal in your daily schedule.
The Stand Ring (the blue one) is the one that can be a bit more challenging. See, this requires you to get up, for at least a minute, every hour. This needs to happen for at least 12 hours in a day. Understand that this means you can be on your feet for two straight hours, and that will only give you two points, towards your 12 Stand goal. You need to repeat the standing process once per hour, twelve times in a day. Fortunately, the Apple Watch gives you hourly reminders to do this.
So along with all my diet goals, closing my rings daily, is my daily goal. Certainly over the next nine days, but hopefully sustained beyond the nine day period.
I have taken a look at some of the things that have served me well in the past, I will mix them up, get a hybrid program that works for me. I may chop and change it along the way.
1. Detox; This part is crucial for me. I was advised that one of the biggest causes of relapsing after a diet is the lack of detox. Water is great, but not enough. So to help the process along, I am using Total Life Changes Iaso Detox Tea. It is virtually tasteless, so that helps. I can’t stand bitter herbal teas.
2. Energy; Once again, I am relying on Total Life Changes NRG capsules, which are really amazing. All natural! I have used them in the past and they have served me very well. These capsules have the energy you would normally get in an energy drink, without the down side and the crash at the end. The energy literally lasts all day! Two more things that appealed to me; Each capsule burns up to 300 calories! And it contains something called 5HTP, which helps your mind release serotonin (the happy hormone). And yes! I really do feel happy when I have taken them!
3. Lots of water. 3 liters of water per day. No salt in my diet. No sugar, fizzy drinks or carbonated soft drinks at all.
4. Meal replacement protein shake. I really enjoy Herbalife blueberry flavored shake. It tastes like rainbows!
5. Free Foods/ Snacks; Most of the time, we are not really hungry…we eat to have something to do! We snack while driving, and we snack while watching tv. So if you have an assortment of guilt free things to snack on, half the battle is won. So, my go to snacks are apples, apricots, asparagus, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, grapes (red), grapefruit, kale, kiwi, lettuce, oranges, peaches, pears, plums, prunes, raspberries, soya beans, strawberries, spinach, string beans, tomatoes. That’s a LONG list of things that you can snack on, pretty much guilt free!
6. Safe Foods; 600 calorie meals and less. Grilled Chicken or Turkey breast (no spices), with any of the vegetables listed above. Simple salmon, with vegetables. I have also enjoyed grilled sweet potato fries. All of the proteins can also be eaten with brown rice.
I am ready!
I have done this diet thing several times in the past, with varying degrees of success. Some have been very successful while others made me so miserable along the way, that I lost the will to live! I chronicled my 13 Day Diet journey and by day 7, I didn’t want to write any more.
I was miserable and I was awful company for the entire month after that and within days, I went straight back to burgers and fries!
But I am getting ahead of myself. I think from reading this, many of you already have a mental image of me being a contestant on the show My 600 Pound Life…I am far from it. I am 1,75 (5’9) and the heaviest I have ever been was 93kg (205 lbs), but my ideal weight, where I am at my absolute best is 80kg (175 lbs). So we are literally talking about a 13kg (28 lbs) difference between me at my heaviest and me at my slimmest. But on a frame my size, that difference is immediately noticeable, so I really do need to work hard to keep my weight down, all the time. I am always one undisciplined month away from my heaviest weight.
My goal…is just to look good look good in a buttoned up suit and out of it. No more big belly and for Heaven’s Sake, no more Man Boobs! I hate those things!
So here we are; Day 1. You have the background, now I will share with you what I am doing to change my situation. But this time, it will be permanent. I really don’t want to be back here on Day 2 again.
Travel blog #1
I wrote this two months ago and I totally forgot about it, until now.
My wife and I have always loved traveling. It was a huge passion of ours. And sadly, our careers just wouldn’t allow us to indulge this passion in the last few years. We found ourselves working all the time, working on a living…more accurately, surviving.
Then along came a business opportunity that promised to allow us time freedom, the ability to work from home and to still get financial freedom in the process.
Needless to say, we thought it was just another one of those, but I cannot tell you how glad we are that we took the leap and joined Forever Living Products, as independent distributors.
In our third month in the business, we had already reached the target that we had set ourselves, the amount that we felt was our “back to stability” moment.
Long story short; As I am writing this to you, we are in our third month in the business, and at our second holiday in the three month period. But this…this is truly special.
I saw this beautiful picture on a friends wall on Facebook, and it really captured my imagination. I read so much into this picture. Clearly a very private beach, in a beautiful, secluded area, where one can get a massage, right at the beach. There were several more pictures, showing the lodge and where it is, relative to the beach. It was something straight out of a dream. And it was in Inhambane, in Mozambique.
I spoke to the friend, Thelma Mntungwa Wopula, and it turned out that she recently bought the place and has just opened it up to the public, after renovations.
We arrived yesterday in sunny Mozambique. After taking a connecting flight via Villanculas. And four hours after leaving O.R Tambo International, we were in Inhambane Airport.
It was actually quite an experience, arriving at this tiny airport, watching the luggage being offloaded and brought towards us. Yes. The airport is that small. You stand there, a few meters away in the tiny terminal building and you watch them offload your luggage, put it on the little trolley and cart it to you.
Welcome to Mozambique.
The drive was to the lodge was quite an experience. The driver was very friendly and chatty, and he drove like a maniac! Blowing the hooter every few seconds, while continuing with the conversation. Interestingly, we drove past a few schools, and he would slow down in the school zone, almost to crawling pace. And the moment we passed it, it was back to breakneck speed.
But the scenery, though! Palm trees and white sand everywhere, even though we hadn’t spotted the ocean yet. It felt like we were on an exotic island. It was just beautiful. Even the shacks and shanties dotted along the way did nothing to take away from the peace and serenity of the place, albeit witnessed at race track speeds.
When we arrived at the lodge, we finally saw the ocean and it was amazing! As I am writing this, I am on the deck, outside our villa, with nothing but unspoiled ocean ahead of me. It is 20-30 meters away, beautiful and blue, with white sandy beaches leading to it.
We got a very friendly welcome from the staff, who are also very friendly and chatty. Some in fluent English and some battling with a few words, but generally our conversations flow. The guys really do go out of their way to make sure that we are comfortable and are looked after.
When we are in a room, we are left alone to our devices. And when we decide that we want to eat, drink, talk to the staff, watch some tv, drink, get a wifi connection, oh…did I mention drink?
The Barman keeps coming up with exotic drinks that we have never heard of in our lives. Interesting and often very strong mixes, which leave you weak at the knees. But hey, we don’t care. We are not driving anywhere. Needless to say, there is plenty of seafood in offer. Everything set up do beautifully, we can’t help but take a picture of everything.
I don’t think I will do much writing until after this holiday. We are enjoying this place too much. This morning, before breakfast, we took a long walk on the beach. It was interesting to note that our beach actually connects to Tofo Beach Hotel, which is quite commercial and relatively busy. But it is far enough for the visitors there to not really bother us in “our” beach.
Day Five; Yes, I haven’t written since day two. I don’t see how anybody can be productive, in this place. It is beautiful. It is so natural and so unspoiled, you literally feel at one with nature. Don’t even get me started on how amazing it is to dine with the ocean as your backdrop. Whether from the dining area or from our villa. Did I mention, there are only seven villas in the place, and from our one, which is the last one in the lodge, you can’t even see the other villas except when you walk past them on our way to ours.
Everybody here is so friendly! Even random strangers in the streets will just indulge you as you start a conversation and ask them about the place. I don’t even remember what normal life, back in South Africa looks like. I don’t see myself ever going back to South Africa. If you see us again, just know that we have moved to Mozambique and they have accepted us as their own.
You will find me at Verrandas Dos Indico, Tofo Beach, Inhambane, Mozambique.
We might pop into Mzansi once in a while…maybe.
Very few of us have ever died and come back. In fact, very few of us have had near death experiences. But the one thing I have picked up from the few people who HAVE had near death experiences, is that they came back viewing life totally differently.
They come back with a renewed passion for life. And they attack life voraciously. More importantly….they find their purpose in life. Call it a religious or spiritual awakening, or just a newfound passion for life. Because they realise that life in itself is a gift. Therefore every trial and tribulation that comes their way is nothing but a small hurdle. The bigger picture is being alive. The bigger picture is living to see another day.
Now……here is my plea to you. Start with that. Start with being grateful that you are alive. Before you take stock of everything else in your life, take cognisance of the breath that you are able to take. A lot of people didn’t make it this morning. Millions didn’t see the sun rise this morning. And they would have been so grateful to do so.
Before you complain about all that you don’t have….be thankful for all that you DO have. Somewhere out there, there is somebody on life support, as we speak. Hanging on to life by a thread. Somewhere out there, there is somebody waiting, praying for the phone to ring, telling them that they have found a healthy heart or a healthy kidney or liver that will save their lives. And they will give all their worldly goods, just to be healthy again.
So, if you happen to have your health….trust me, you are fortunate already.
Before you complain that you don’t have the fancy house and cars that you feel you deserve, take a minute to think about the homeless person, who calls a cardboard box his bed. The homeless woman who lives under a bridge. The child who was abandoned this morning and may never experience a mother’s love.
I am not here to preach. Lord knows I am far from being a preacher. But one thing I do know is that, I am as guilty as the next man of getting so caught up in all that I don’t have, that I often forget about all that I DO have.
Here is MY epiphany: Towards the end of last year, through the Wakeup Woman Group http://www.facebook.com/groups/456627244360205/ I came up with the crazy idea of collecting Christmas gifts for the underprivileged. We discussed it within the group and decided to include the following, in our gift pack: 1. A Facecloth. 2. A bar of soap. 3. A Toothbrush. 4. A tube of Toothpaste. 5. An item of clothing. 6. A toy. You wrap all these in a shoebox and gift wrap it and viola! You have a gift to present to a child.
Somehow, miraculously, we were able to gather or buy 54 gift boxes for the 54 children at Ethembeni Orphanage in Doornfontein. And it became one of the most fulfilling things I have ever done in my life. All I did was to use what resources I had, what little influence I have on the social media and somehow, we made it happen.
I have found my purpose. To be a philanthropist. I have said so many times that you don’t need to be wealthy to be a philanthropist. Sometimes all you need to do is to turn ONE person’s frown into a smile. Sometimes all you need to give is your smile. Your time. Give a smile to somebody who needs it and somehow, YOUR smiles will be multiplied as well.
This year, I’d like to take it to the next level. If I can get people who can “adopt a child”. Pay for ONE child’s survival per month. To all those who are blessed, spending R500 to make sure that one child gets fed for a month….that is small change to you, but it is survival to one child. R500 is what you spend on a Friday night at News Café. It is very easy to give.
But let’s not limit it to those with a lot of money. Every little bit counts. And even if you have nothing to contribute….even your TIME is valuable. Help raise funds. Talk to companies. Companies always have Social Responsibility Programmes where they are more than welcome to help.
Speaking of time…..if you are able to pop in and see the children. Play with them for a few minutes. As you can imagine, the staff at an orphanage are often busy. They are exhausted by the end of every day. They really could use somebody to just come in and play with the children for 30 minutes. Imagine looking after 54 children aged 0-3 years old. If you are a parent, you KNOW what a handful just ONE toddler can be.
As I have said…I have found MY purpose. And I am grateful to have done so without having a near death experience.
Count your blessings today.
There is a phrase that I see all the time that says “A man is not a financial plan” and yes…it is very true. But I’d also like to give a new one to you;
The lotto is not a financial plan!
It breaks my heart to notice that we, as a people, have become so hopeless, that the only way we foresee ourselves coming out of poverty, is through the “miracle” of gambling. Whether at a casino, or more commonly, through the lotto.
Believe me when I tell you, I have been there.
I couldn’t imagine ever making R1Million or R10Million in this lifetime. So, I figured, my only shot at it, was the lotto. I dreamed about all the things I would do with it, the day I win. I even became addicted to the dreams. The dreams were far more beautiful than reality. So, during the day, I would walk around just calculating and spending my money. It got so bad, I became a lotto snob. I stopped buying the small lotto jackpots of R1M or R2M. No, no, no. Not for me. I only played in the R10Million league, because dammit, if I am going to dream, then I might as well dream in the big league.
Here’s the thing. I wasn’t addicted to the lotto. I was addicted to the dreams and the possibilities that it carried. I was addicted to how it COULD change my situation. And I loved that hope that it gave me. Because I was hopeless.
I very rarely actually went and checked if I had the winning tickets. Most of my tickets just sat there, a symbol of what might be. I was afraid of cashing the tickets, because then I would confirm that they didn’t win. But, for as long as I had those tickets, there was the lingering hope and I could continue dreaming.
I am happy to say that I have moved on from that episode of my life. My book has made me believe that I can do anything! Yes, I have done well. And Mrs Y is doing amazing things with her baking. And all of that has boosted my confidence and told me that we can do any and every thing that we put our minds to.
Now, my dreams are goals, rather than dreams. I dream of selling 10 000 copies of my book every month. That is a projection, more than it is a dream. I have a plan in place, to make that happen.
I dream of me and Mrs Y having our coffee shop and our talk/cooking shows. Once again…a work in progress already.
I dream of us traveling and seeing the world.
I dream dreams that can and will actually happen. I am declaring them and I am making the affirmation right now. And I am not afraid to step up and cash that ticket.
Once a group of 500 people were attending a seminar. Suddenly the speaker stopped and decided to do a group activity. He started giving each person a balloon. Each person was then asked to write their name on it using a marker pen. Then all the balloons were collected and put in another room.
The people were then let into that room and asked to find the balloon which had their name written on it within 5 minutes. Everyone was frantically searching for their name, colliding with each other, pushing around others and there was utter chaos.
At the end of 5 minutes no one could find their own balloon.
Then, the speaker asked each person to randomly collect a balloon and give it to the person whose name was written on it. Within minutes everyone had their own balloon.
The speaker then began, “This is happening in our lives. Everyone is frantically looking for happiness all around, not knowing where it is.
Our happiness lies in the happiness of other people. Give them their happiness; you will get your own happiness. And this is the purpose of human life…the pursuit of happiness.”
Those who know my wife and I, know that we have been working extremely hard, lately. We literally worked until after 21h00 on New Year’s Eve, when most people were already partying and celebrating.
In fact, we have been so busy that we didn’t get the chance this past year to do our favorite thing; travel. We really enjoy traveling and have taken a vow to make time for lots of travel in 2015.
As a small compromise, I searched for a place where she could just relax for an hour or two, kick back and recharge. Only for an hour or two, mind you, because her beautiful cakes are in demand (more about that will surely follow in another entry someday soon).
That is when I stumbled upon Marple Skin Care on Facebook. At first, I just thought they manufacture and sell skin products only, but as I read more, I found that they do everything from massages to nail treatments and all of those sorts of things. And to my delight, they are barely 5km from our home. So I went and checked it out.
Now, I often drive through Crowthorne. And I have been to Papachinos and even seen Plantland and indeed the little corner with Shaguma Cafe in it, but had never actually been inside the little centre. How do I begin to describe it?
It is almost as if somebody has uprooted one of those small, rustic mining towns from Mpumalanga and just brought it to Midrand. All the little shops have a quaint, small town feel to them. You almost feel like you are around the corner from God’s Window (without all the tourists). I even spotted a few bunny rabbits hopping around. For a few minutes, as I strolled around, I really felt like I was far away from Joburg!
So I made the booking, with Martin and Judith, who own Marple and we had a lengthy chat about their spa, their brand and their products, which they developed and manufacture themselves.
“Our son had severe eczema and we had tried many products, without success.” Explained Judith. “All the products just seemed so harsh and they inflamed his skin. More importantly, we wanted something made from natural products. Too many products claim to be natural, until you read the label carefully. So, in the end we decided to make our own product.”
And that was how their Hydrating Body Mousse Oil was born.
I wanted to hear more about this and other products, but time was against me, so I made the booking for the next day, for a full body massage for the next day.
We arrived about ten minutes early and found them already waiting to receive Mrs Y. They took her through to the back, for her massage, while I went through the products some more.
See, this eczema story really spoke to me, because I have had issues with dry, flaking skin since time immemorial. My scalp and the skin in my beard area tend to flake and peel off quite often, leaving unsightly patches on my skin. I have also tried everything under the sun and most things, instead of helping, just exacerbate the condition. The skin on my entire body has actually always been extremely dry and flaky.
They had different soaps, protein soaps, lavender soaps scrubs and something interesting called a massage candle. You light it up, like a normal candle, and as it burns, giving off soothing aromas, you can take the melted wax and use that to massage each other. Mutual massage is such a fun and sensual activity, I highly recommend it for all couples! The candle contains no kerosene, so it will not burn you, when you pour the melted wax.
Before I knew it, the hour was up. Mrs Y emerged, smiling like a Cheshire Cat, looking like she had just come back from a week long vacation.
I bought us a body scrub, the Hydrating Body Mousse Oil and that magical massage candle and look forward to using them, in future.
So, here we are…two days later. Yesterday, while taking my shower, I tried the body scrub. Luxurious is the only word that springs to mind. Normally these scrubs are quite abrasive and harsh on the skin. This one was so gentle, I even put it on my face and my scalp. When I got out of the shower, my skin was literally glowing. I didn’t even need lotion. But, just for good measure, I used that Hydrating Body Mousse Oil. It looks a bit oily when you apply it, but within minutes, the skin absorbs it and leaves you with a healthy sheen.
I honestly felt like I also got a full body treatment, so I can imagine just how good Mrs Y is feeling.
I highly recommend the spa, just for a quick hour’s escape from reality and the hustle and bustle of city life. And I certainly recommend the product for an amazing daily feel good!
Time to jump in the shower again…
lindayende 