How I get through (boring) cardio

Long story short, I read.
Long story long, it's all about flow.

See the book I've been reading the last few elliptical sessions (did 45min today, Woop) is all about human emotions. How they work, what they're for, how to use them, all that good stuff. Very very insightful and interesting book, well worth a look for just about everyone.
So, as I'm striding along on the elliptical today, book in hands, I was reading about a chapter on empathy, related to which is something called 'flow'. Flow, as far as I understand, is when you get so into an activity that you lose yourself. It's like a transcendental state of hyper concentration, yet simultaneous oblivion.
We've all had at least one experience of being so wrapped up in what we're doing that it feels like we're not even giving orders anymore, our body is just performing on autopilot, and nothing outside of that even registers.
The author says sex, *good sex*, is an example of this. (Good sex sans wandering, interruptive, toddlers me thinks)

And I realised, I get this feeling of flow sometimes when I'm reading. Which is why I can go on the elliptical for an extended period of time without even realising how hard I'm working.
I'm no good at running, I feel every little pain and discomfort, and I get bored, even with music on. The time just drags. Lion King can. He talks (and writes) about getting this flow while running.
We're very different.
But reading, on the elliptical, the time passes without me even noticing. It's fantastic!
It's like I just settle in to read this interesting book, and suddenly this machine is beeping at me saying I've burned all these calories and I'm dripping in sweat and my legs feel like jelly.

So if, like me, cardio doesn't really engage your interest, find something else to do (while you exercise) that does!
Apparently just by concentrating and focusing you can get flow, and this exercise without remembering you're exercising.

...But, there's a catch. The task has to be the right level of difficult. If it's too easy, you'll be too bored to reach flow, but if its too hard you'll be too frustrated.
So don't go for calculus, but possibly not a picture book either.
Books about emotional intelligence work perfectly.

Or, you know, if you hate reading as much as you hate cardio, just find something else :)
What else is good to do while exercising? Music? Audio books? Podcasts? Watching TV? Knitting?
Lets share ideas :)

Day 5

Breakfast was a coffee with coconut cream in, and a few spoonfuls of breakfast pudding that I made for WildChild.

Gym at 1:30
320cals on the elliptical (4.64km) which is a bit disappointing really, because I went hard out today. Oh well. Whatevs.
Then did:
3 sets of [10 sit ups, 20 Russian twists with medicine ball]
30sec plank
40 hip extensions on each leg
10 side leg lifts each leg (this was *really* difficult for my injured left side
30sec plank

Thought about doing some more stuff in the shower, but then I didn't.

Got my nails done... I feel so posh and girly haha this is bizarre.

Small smoked salmon salad (from my fav, Sumo Salad).

Now, am drinking vodka cranberries in anticipation of going to a comedy evening :)
Will add any further fooxernal details for tonight, tomorrow.
Toodaloo!

Day 4

Got up at 7:30
Had two black coffees

Went to class
Lunch was a chicken, bacon and salad roll, but I didn't eat the roll. The chicken was breaded though. Thank gods I'm not coeliac, because I think my uni doesn't even acknowledge their existence, even the salads are full of what products!
Also had an iced coffee.

Gym then. Elliptical machine for 4.49km and 311 calories. Wasn't feeling so crash hot, I think it was because I'd just eating, and I usually do it the other way around.
Also I bought a month membership for the gym. Now I'm committed. $20 a week is a pretty good deal I think, and the manager said she'd let me even sneak into yoga classes for FREE (you are supposed to pay for the gym and the classes separately), win!

Watched an episode of True Blood (OMG everyone has gone so EVIL, I'm horrified!), got WildChild, then got some groceries.
Ate one small spoonful of chocolate ice-cream, and three grapes lol.
Had a few sips of an iced coffee but decided I didn't want it.

Dinner is bratwurst, mashed potato, roasted broccoli and sweet potato (in coconut oil with garlic and cayenne)

No wine tonight!

I just want to say, to end this, that I am in love with the elliptical machine. It makes me feel like I'm running, but it doesn't hurt my knee at all! Also my boobs don't feel so much like they're pendulum swinging from my chin to my belly button!
Three cheers for the elliptical! Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray!

The end :)

Day 3

Yesterday didn't end so well. I ended up eating some Doritos and chocolate after dinner, watching a Doctor Who marathon with my brothers :-/

Oh well, new day :)

Got up at 8:30 (bed late...)
Two black coffees and an apple/macadamia/coconut mix that I made for WildChild. She rejected it and had coconut and honey instead.

Epic shopping spree (I LOVE that there's a Bardot store right near my house that always has amazing things on the sales racks)
Lunch is a small Sumo salad, mix of beef & roast pumpkin and chicken avocado. And a bottle of water.

Gym at 12
Did my usual elliptical "run", apparently burnt 316calories. Does anyone know, is that even possible? I thought half an hour of cardio was waay less effective than that. Hmm.
Also did 50 sit ups with 4kg medicine ball, and 100 Russian twists with the medicine ball too.
Annnd in the shower I did 20 half squats and 20 rear leg lifts each side too.
All in all I'm feeling pretty worked out.
Iced coffee for recovery.

Another iced coffee at 3, meeting up with a group member for uni.

Afternoon I played in the pool with WildChild for about half an hour too.

Dinner was a stir fry (I really should post the recipe too, it was delicious)

And I'm being bad, and because I had two glasses of wine too....

Damn. I'm really not getting the hang of this at all... Lol


Well... Here's a picture of what I wore today. I thought I looked a bit cute :)
Too bad I was already in my swimmers and about to jump in the pool when I thought of taking a picture :-P

Day 1 and 2

Day 1:

Got up at 6:30, had two black unsweetened coffees
While drinking them did :-
40 lifts each leg, front and back
40 knee lifts (this is really hard on my left side)
30 half depth squats

Gym at 9:30
Did 28min on the elliptical, it told me I burned 256 calories (based on weight and age)

Small pesto chicken salad from Sumo Salad and water at 10:30

Iced coffee at 12pm

Frozen pizza at 3:30pm, I know that's terrible. WildChild was desperate for food and the fridge was not very well stocked because I've been away. I could have just not shared it with her, but I did. Oh well.

Dinner was meatballs and salad. The salad was delicious :)

NO Wine!! :-D

Day 2:

Got up at 8:30 (Lazy!)
breakfast was a black unsweetened coffee

Lunch was chicken and avocado sushi and an iced coffee

Gym at 2:30
28min on the elliptical, it told me I burned 311 calories and walked (strode?) 4.49km. Pretty damn good I say for a girl who's got an injured knee!
Iced coffee for afternoon tea, after I picked up WildChild from daycare.

Dinner was spaghetti (lol joke! it's julianne peeled carrots) bolognese, with a little side salad left over from last night.

see?

My food and exercise Journal...or Fooxernal!

So I'm going to journal what I eat and do with my body for the next week. Maybe two. We'll so how fun/interesting/crap it is first.

I injured my knee at the start of the year, and it's still not better. This has caused me to lose all semblance of muscle tone in my left leg, and about half of it in my right. I don't like it!
But the thing is, that it's really difficult to exercise with a knee injury. Can't squat, can't run, sports are definitely out, and I can't even swim properly! UUGGHH there goes everything I ever did for fitness!

I also drink way too much wine. It's my way of relaxing of an evening. And when it's the weekend. And when I'm celebrating. Or commiserating. And when I'm bored... But I think it's giving me wine-waist and that is just not acceptable. I'm going more for the hourglass shape than the wine glass shape.

So anyway this Fooxernal is just to help me reflect on and be more aware of what I'm putting in my body, and what I'm doing with my body.

It's kind of an experiment too. I want to see how easy or hard it is to change parts of myself, and whether I feel like the changes warrant the effort involved. I'm not calorie counting, or measuring food or anything crazy. I have tried that in the past and it is waaayyy more annoying than helpful. I know what is healthy and what is not, I don't need to know every kilojoule to work that out.
Mainly I'm just going to limit my alcohol intake, increase my cardio output, and see whether it helps. And how much.

Here's a picture of me. I'll take another one next week :)

aand, clothes ON this time. Think I got my facial expressions mixed up.