Sarah's Weight Loss Adventure

The Reason For My Long Silence

2013-08-18T15:27:00.001+08:00

Alhamdulillah... After a misscarriage last year, after 2 years berhempas pulas I got my gift from Allah.

My son was born on the 1st day of Syawal... Padahal my due date was 20th of August. Syukurlah, time tu cuti sekolah. Less havoc.

Alhamdulillah jg sebab dapat lahir secara normal... VBAC! Although I have a second degree tear. After a couple of hours sdh dpt jalan sendiri pergi toilet comparing when I had csect last time, third day baru disuruh bejalan.

I hope I will be able to resume with this blog soon. Meanwhile, Selamat Hari Raya kepada sesiapa yg terbaca this deserted blog of mine.

Curbing My Coffee Addiction

2012-11-09T08:00:00.000+08:00

Firstly Alhamdulillah, for this usaha which I think is totally hard for me but do-able and mesti hati kental that I have reduced to coffee once in 2 days only. If you must know.. or not.. I am a huge coffee drinker. I used to drink 5-6 cups a day!! Two teaspoon's a cup and creamer as well. Peqat Peqat!

Then I stopped making my own coffee at home cause I went to McDonald's everyday just to buy the 16oz coffee. 5 sugar and 5 creamer. When I drank half, I would put half more fresh milk in the cup and put it in the freezer so I can enjoy it later.

The amount of sugar was reduced to 4 and then 3 packets with the creamer packets still 5 packets. I made sure they got my order right. I made them repeat. That's how you get your orders right from the Mc Donald's drive through. Don't be afraid of people honking you behind because of one wanting a perfect order of coffee, sugar and creamer! LOL!! Just remember, make them repeat one by one what you want. Although they say it's all in the bag but once they repeat you know where they have forgotten. This is my experience of having to deal with Mc Donald every single day. Gendang genduts!

Don't get me wrong, I only buy coffee. I succumb to the double sausage McMuffin oh so not often. Honestly!

I don't know how long it took but currently I have managed buy McDonald's coffee on every other day. Meaning, alternate days. There aren't any half milk and half coffee afterwards either. I try hard to just finish a cup and that's it. No sweetened drinks on alternate days. Hard! But manageable.

My ultimate motivation is the peplum Jovian kurung. My husband is taunting me saying I'll never get to a size 9 because you don't have enough motivation to be a fit person.

Here's hoping that I would just drink coffee once a week. Not that I don't love coffee but I would love to cut back on sugar intake(pure black coffee is such a no no, cannot tahan... so much of a so called big coffee drinker kan!).

Only Willpower to Stop from Wheat Addiction

2012-11-07T23:53:00.002+08:00

I was browsing around on how to curb wheat addiction. I just can't stand eating 1 bread after another. It's so addictive. My brain usually just gives in.

This article so far is the most interesting one.

If you try to quit smoking, you've got "crutches" like nicotine patches and gum, Zyban, Chantix, hypnosis, and group therapy sessions. If you try and quit wheat, what have you got? Nothing, to my knowledge. Nothing but sheer will power to divorce yourself from this enormously destructive, diabetes-causing, small LDL-increasing, inflammation-provoking, and addictive substance... source

Another interesting read about how bad wheat's are is from the Wheat Belly Blog. There's a book as well titled Wheat Belly.

Well, here goes everything. I'm trying it again. Last time it lasted for frigging 3 months. Bismillah...

69 Please ;P

2012-10-24T20:00:00.000+08:00

Please let the scale be 69kg for me, PLEASE!!!!!!!. Weigh in 2 more weeks for that to happen hopefully.

New Circuit Training 45 Minutes

2012-10-08T20:40:00.000+08:00

I was set to train today. Dengan diet plan baru and circuit plan baru. Tiba2 terjangkit bug my son (horrible flu and sakit tekak) and tambahan pulak period and energy drain. On the morning pula have to go with my son to the paed and then kebetulan no more food in the house. What an eventful day! Tiring too.

Anyhoo, here's the circuit if you want to try it out.

Chest press X 20
Squats X 20
Dynamic Side Plank X 20 each
2 side step to squat X 20
Rest 1 minute
Lunges (static) 20 each
Seated crunch X 20
Step ups X 20 each leg
Rest 2 minutes

Repeat whole circuit.

No rest except the 1 minute in between and 2 minute at the end. This circuit will take about 45 minutes but can take longer if you are doing it more slower. Get to a weight that you can do until 20 but is not too hard or too easy. You have to experiment at first which one is the best weight for you.

You can do this either Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Mon, Tues, Thu, Fri.

I'm doing it 3 times a week with rest on the weekends. For cardio day, it'll be running for 30 minutes listening to my running mix. I was really excited to find mix songs. Ended up with LMFAO, David Guetta, Usher, Chris Brown, Pit Bull, Will.I.Am and a couple of electro dance songs. Yes, everyone was once young and loved parties.. but I still know my music! LoL..

Joining a Gym Lah.

2012-09-24T14:18:00.001+08:00

WTF... Seriously, I need some motivation. I want to join the gym. Boring gila senaman 1 org and using the gym at home. Macam forever alone. At least if I join FF I can see other people's lemak juggling and hot ladies walking around in tight pants... or handsome fit men.

I do want to join a nearer gym ... C.h.i F.i.t.n.e.s.s but my husb said the parking is quite dark and truth be told, the building is haunted.

I hope I'm going to pengsan in the FF classes. But I'll have to wait till hubby buys a second transport. The car that he drives to work got stolen right outside of our house.

Now, lets see what happens next.

P/S: Hubby will only buy me Jovian kurung when I'm a size 9. HUWAAAAAA!!!

My Daily Burpees

2012-09-05T22:51:00.000+08:00

Well, not 7 days a week though. 5 days only. FYI, I'm so lazy my husband forced me to do at least 100 burpees a day. Since I'm so out of shape, I only managed to do 50 burpees today... while hubby watches.

Before this I told my husband I wanted to run just to warm up before doing anything serious but he told me burpees are much more beneficial than just running because although it's good for the heart and get you going, a more challenging exercise and much more shorter one because I totally am in not the mood to exercise would do better which is burpees.

Lepas ni, mau jaga makan lagi. InsyaAllah, kena kuatkan semangat!

Take a look at these burpees variations. Banyak pulak..

Measurements July 2012

2012-07-03T23:02:00.001+08:00

3/7/2012

Arm - 37cm
Tummy - 94cm
Buttocks - 109.5cm

Alright, I'm ready again to lose inches, eliminate fat and get pregnant. Go go Sarah!

27/10/2012
Arm - 35cm
Tummy - 87.5cm
Buttocks - 107cm

16/11/2012
Arm 34.5cm
Tummy 86cm
Buttocks 105.5cm

6/12/2012

Arm 34cm
Tummy 84.5cm
Buttocks 103cm

Did 30 Day Shred Today! No More Back Pain!

2012-05-30T00:27:00.001+08:00

Let's see... after 2 weeks of miscarriage I started light exercising. I tried, running, yoga, pilates, some 20 minute post natal workouts.... semua tidak memberi kepuasan. But okay lah, dapat stretch here and there.

The 3rd week... 30 Day Shred la terus. Mati kutu... didn't know what else to pick! I did the modified version, did it light and easy. I was totally drenched with sweat, I can start feeling my abs hurting, my biceps hurting and my calves hurting. Ahhh........ baru puas hati.

Oh and I forgot to take my measurements today. Soon!

I'm so happy to be able to start exercising again and trying hard to go back to 1200 calories after just 2 months and a half slipping out of habit.

This time after getting my menses in order, I'll be stuffing myself with some supplements, getting doctors advice what to do before pregnancy and during. Be it if it's gonna be expensive. I only want 1 or 2 kids more. Not a lot. Let's make this another sweet journey :)

Btw, Alhamdulillah, by the 3rd week my back is perfectly fine. I feel ecstatic!

Curing a Back Ache Requires Patience!

2012-05-22T13:01:00.002+08:00

Life is always full of surprises isn't it? Refer to blog post here. Last week I got a week off. Due to a bad back after D & C, I asked for another week of cuti. Currently trying to do 10 minutes of pilates because that's the only minute my perut and back can tahan.

Seriously back issues stink! Jalan shopping pagi and petang, malam malam sakit belakang.

Went back to work yesterday after an appointment at DSH, even though half day, malam malam sakit belakang.

My boss is so kind for not letting me go as I'm just a temp. I did decide to her that she can find a replacement for me but she decided to keep me. I'm quite happy even though I'm not paid as much.

So to cure a bad back is proper posture, simple exercise to strenghthen your core and time. In case of a miscarriage, it's due to the weak stomach that makes the back work extra hard. Also the ligaments were loose during the pregnancy and it takes some amount of time to be normal again. That's why kalau orang orang yang buncit(minta maaf la yea) selalu complain sakit belakang, your back is working hard for you to tampung the weight of your belly, stomach.

Here's to another week of rest.

Ditch the Belt

2012-05-12T09:39:00.003+08:00

Never, Ever Give Up

2012-05-08T22:38:00.001+08:00

Have you guys seen this video? Truly inspirational. It has been shared a couple of time on my Facebook wall. You guys should watch it too :)

Pregnant!

2012-05-07T21:59:00.003+08:00

Alhamdulillah. It's been a hard struggle. 11 months struggle to get a baby number 2. But I think those 3 months of exercise I did starting in the year or 2012 that made all the difference.

Strict healthy menu's and consistent workout for 3 month made me pregnant. It made me drop my weight and my hormones were in order Alhamdulillah.

Seriously I am so thankful! I thought I could never get pregnant again. Being 33 and all...

My first 2 months was pretty nasty. I was so tired all day and whoever invented "morning sickness" is such a liar. Morning sickness can last the entire day. For me, it just has to get one tiny trigger, for instance a smelly room can get my morning sickness last until 1 hour. Dugaan betul.

Estimated due date is around the middle sipi sipi November. My son's birthday is on November as well.

Coming to the 3rd month pregnant I think I can start my exercise routine again. This time some kegels and light exercise.

Ketawa aku laki aku suruh buat Kegel.. I said, what? Petty exercise like that has no effect. But of course I know it's important. I don't want another C-Sect. This time insyaAllah aiming for normal delivery.

Stalled Progress

2012-03-19T22:11:00.000+08:00

I'm not feeling so good. Probably this site will stall for a while. Happy exercising everyone!

Hubby Interviewed by FIT Malaysia

2012-03-14T23:33:00.003+08:00

Recently, my husband was interviewed by FIT Malaysia, the institute where he got his ACE certification. Here goes the interview...

What makes you want to be a personal trainer?

Back when I wasn’t busy being a graphic designer, I found myself enjoying my time at the gym or the park more than anything else. When I was working out I was always pushing myself and achieving new goals. With this passion I thought it would be great to help other people do the same thing, and here I am today.

What top 3 qualities you think a personal trainer should possess?

Perseverance, Assertiveness and Pro-activeness: more often than not clients will struggle with their goals and we need to help them through it, push them through and understand their obstacles ahead even before they face them.

What was your previous job? Why did you change job?

I was a freelance graphic designer. While the money was all-right, I found that I was loving my time at the gym more than in front of the desk. Once, someone asked me how to do a particular exercise – and as I taught him, seeing him being able to properly execute it, something clicked. The rest, of course, is history.

Understand you took the Personal Trainer course from FiT & now you are ACE certified, what have you learned that helps you in your practice now?

Without FIT’s ACE certification I would never have gotten my job here in the first place. You see, Pinnacle Fitness requires that all trainers be certified and won’t hire just any trainer so everything I learnt helps. However to give you an example, at Pinnacle Fitness every single client has their own training program which is customized to their needs and goals. These programs need to be written by the trainers and approved by Vanessa, our Programs Director. Now, understand that not all exercises share the same name and that it can be quite a hassle to describe certain stuff to the Program Director! One thing that I’m extremely thankful for would be Sanaz’s hard work in hammering into us exercise naming conventions. So when Vanessa tells me I should include a multi-functional exercise such as a Side Lunge with Unilateral Dumbbell Reach and Trunk Flexion, I understand exactly what she is talking about.

You are now a personal trainer at Pinnacle Fitness, what will be your typical day like?

We have 2 gyms, one in RSGC (Jalan Tun Razak) and the other in Bangsar. So I usually have early morning RSGC clients, then I travel to Bangsar (15 minutes ride) just in time for lunch. While I do sometimes have clients at noon, after lunch till evenings are for exercising or paperwork, or for some further study. Once paperwork for the day’s done it’s usually time for more clients – all through the evening. Fun stuff. Read more...

Training

2012-03-14T23:17:00.000+08:00

Me: Oooh lasaknya training aku harini.
Hubby: What did you do?
Me: Ripped in 30 week 2.
Hubby: Oooh, lasaknya training I harini. You lasak, I lagiii lasak.
Me: What did you do?
Hubby: Crossfit.
Me: Hands down..... okay, you win. *Pretending to frown*

New Measurements.

2012-03-11T10:00:00.000+08:00

8/1/2012

Above stomach - 95cm
Left arm - 39cm
Buttocks - 109cm

16/2/2012

Above stomach 87.5cm
Left arm 37cm
Buttocks 104.5cm

27/2/2012

Above stomach 87cm
Left arm 36cm
Buttocks 104cm

11/3/2012

Above stomach 85.5cm
Left arm 35.5cm
Buttocks 103cm

Makan Makan Makan

2012-02-29T23:37:00.002+08:00

It has been a tough 2 days. Yesterday was my aunt's kenduri for today's birthday. Makan makan makan. Balik around 940pm. Tidurkan my son and I also tertidur sampai ke hari esok pukul 4 pagi baru terbangun.

Today, my step mom inlaw's brother's family from Sabah came to visit us. So makan makan dan makan until 1030pm at Bora Asmara. No exercise.

Dear God, permudahkanlah my senaman until the end of this week!

One great news is that I can FINALLY fit into my wedding ring. LAST pakai was tahun 2005!!!!!!!!

New Measurements

2012-02-27T23:21:00.001+08:00

I'm going crazy with these measurements. At least it's more solid than weighing myself everyday. It doesn't bounce back up so far. Alhamdulillah.

16/2/2012
Above stomach 87.5cm
Left arm 37cm
Buttocks 104.5cm

27/2/2012

Above stomach 87cm
Left arm 36cm
Buttocks 104cm

30 Day Shred Week 3

2012-02-27T21:38:00.001+08:00

Today's the first day of 30 Day Shred Level 3. The level is so intense, I didn't even realize it was over. The last circuit with jumping jack, air boxing and butt kicks with dumbbells are just da boooomb! My back is pretty much ACHING.

I totally looove looooooove Level 3. It irritates you like nothing else in the world for 20 minutes.

I just need to get the inches off of my wings lah. So lambat. My pretty baju kurung boleh muat but the only problem yang tidak muat is the arm! Frust bergolek golek atas lantai ni!

Also still trying to keep up with 2 apples pretty hard. So far my meals are 4 meals perday only. 5 meals perday tu jarang.

Anyhoo, will be doing 30 Day Shred Level 3 until this weekend before joining MyFitnessPal's Ripped in 30!

New Measurement

2012-02-23T12:00:00.000+08:00

Alhamdulillah. Crazy crazy results! Macam boleh pakai size 10 by end of March! InsyaAllah. Keep consistant with diet, keep on moving every week... my goal is 100 days so I can say "I USED TO BE FAT!"

I wonder what's my current weight?

Update: I got to tell you guys, although with these results, my max workout per week with this video is 4/5 times only. A lot different from weight training which is usually 6 times a week. The extreme jumping hurts my shin so bad... still. I prolly do need to buy shoes with good absorber... need to get my priorities sorted out.

8/1/2012

Above stomach - 95cm
Left arm - 39cm
Buttocks - 109cm

16/2/2012

Above stomach 87.5cm (-7cm)
Left arm 37cm (-3cm)
Buttocks 104.5cm (-5cm)

30 Day Shred Week #2

2012-02-19T21:42:00.001+08:00

Today I started week 2, yes on a Sunday which is supposed to be my free day and maaan.... it's nothing like level 1. I like it so much because it is not boring at all. I stand corrected.

But the thing is, although it only has 2 circuits but yes it's pretty much intense. Much more simpler than week 2 from Ripped in 30 but still can make you out of breath and sweat ferociously.

Can't wait to be stronger on the end of this week. Yarrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!

New Measurement

2012-02-16T07:37:00.000+08:00

16 Febuaty 2012

Above stomach 87.5
Left arm 37cm
Buttocks 104.5

I'm now a size 12. Although my chicken winged arms only has a little perubahan. Ayayay! I might just turn into a chicken wing monster.

Anyhoo... I'm still looking forward to look much thinner after 100 days. Geram lah tengok that girl can kurus in 100 days and I cannot? (In I Used to be Fat MTV's show) Mana boleh. Harus kurus in 100 days jugak ni!

Happy exercising everyone.

30 Day Shred Week #1

2012-02-14T22:30:00.000+08:00

Second day of 30 Day Shred. I've decided today... to end my boredom with this video to which I don't know why.... I followed the advanced moves. Goodbye are the days that I do modified version for video one.

Lepas buat tu, baru lah heart beat gila2 laju. Yang paling kurang minat is the last circuit of strength exercise. Sakit gila gila. Sudah lah paling last punya circuit. Memang sengsara. Okay la tu kan. Cukup challenging. Mana boleh cakap bosan lagi lepas ni!

I MUST finish 30 Day Shred this month. At least I'd get to know what it feels like in week 2 and week 3.

Note to self:

Eat last meal 3/4 hours before sleeping time
Apples for snacks
No wheat, grains and potatoes
Permitted sauces: balsimic vinegar and worchestershire sauce only.
Calorie intake 1220-1400 daily

Duration: one month.

Lepas tu ada la cool down period :D tapi tidaklah makan seperti badak... Definitely not!

Update:

I thought I had gained some fat for the past few weeks but didn't. My baju kurung is getting longgar as ever.

Managed to buy new pair of sandals. I'm now size 6. Kurang 1 saiz woooh. Time "glory days" my feet size is usually size 5. Kalau dapat turun 1/2 of the size on March pun happy sudah saya!

Terbantut Seketika

2012-02-11T12:52:00.000+08:00

Okay, progress terbantut selama 2 minggu. 1st week tu, sakit boobs yg teramat sangat. Second week pulak, been having on and off sakit perut. I am one of those people that have terrible pre menstrual pains. At least I did manage to exercise 3 times within the 2 weeks.

I just realized that when I weight train and run, I didn't have these problems. Reason because I didn't have to do much jumping. Also... When this happens next time I'm going to change my exercise. It was so blurrrrr of me that I didn't thought of doing other exercises and waited out those precious two weeks.

So on Monday, I'll be doing 1 week each of 30 Day Shred until end of 1st week of March. I need to get an exercise bra pronto. Hubby said they really work. They don't call it exercise bra for nothing.

On the 5th of March, there will be another Ripped in 30 challenge in My Fitness Pal (requires you to log in for you to view the challenge thread) . Game on playa!