This afternoon it rained, really heavily. The roads were flooded again. I am tired, we went for a long walk on Chobham Common yesterday and I took Wilson for a 2 mile power walk in Horsell Common in Woking this morning. I’ve also been a taxi mum today, and have been speed shopping, and have been working on looking for a job which is much more exhausting than actually doing a job.
So I was tired and it is cold and wet.
The last thing I wanted to do was to get into my running gear & go out
This is not what I looked like tonight! Me all dressed up ready to run, July 1992. No rain, no middle age spread!
But, I have a dress hanging up in my room that I want to be able to wear by Christmas. I don’t need to lose weight to fit into it, I just need to tone up! It’s an unforgiving material, shows every bulge. Would have looked great on me in 1992, but I would have noticed imaginary bulges in it then too. I wish I could look in a mirror and see myself as others do. I still have anorexic eyes, even if i don’t behave anorexically or bulemically any more.
To cut a long story sort, I geared myself up, got into my running clothes & put on lots & lots of layers (6!) gloves, hat & scarf & headed out. Arriving at the meeting point and seeing lots of other women jigging around in the cold staying warm, ready to go, and already I felt less tired. Christmas dress firmly at the forefront of my mind, I was off
45 minutes of circuit training later I felt so much better, positive, energised, physically enlivened & utterly unable to do one more press-up, not even the girly ones. I pushed myself, I worked hard, & I’m determined to go back for more on Wednesday! Thanks Melissa & Nel & all the women who turn up rain or shine & are so inclusive & welcoming 🙂
Some photos below of me in 1992 when I used to run 200m for Belgrave Harriers Athletics Club. It would be nice to be that shape again, A pity I never appreciated it at the time!
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- Me & my dad, July 1992
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- Me all dressed up ready to run, July 1992. No rain, no middle age spread!
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- Approaching the finish line
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- My Coach Harry at my club Belgrave Harriers, and my Dad
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- My friend pinning my number onto my back… hard to avoid stabbing each other!
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- Practising starts
Other posts about my progress since September 25th this year (2012) when I joined Fit4mum 🙂
Oh Help (PS I’ve lost half a stone at least already)
Day One 
I hear you on not valuing our figure and strength in our younger days (how could I have even for a minute thought I was fat back then – darn media!) You look like you were really enjoying yourself in these pics!
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Lol, appearances can be deceptive, I remember not feeling very well that day, Heavy night the night before! Luckily I had stopped smoking then, but I still felt wrecked… legs felt like led! I was so glad my dad was there to take the photos, cos they are the only ones I have of me running, and in retrospect I looked quite good!! Didn’t look ‘heavy legged’ at all!
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Whew, I’m tired just reading your agenda for the day. Not to worry Barbara, you look wonderful.
Blessings ~ Maxi
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Yes, it was a bit mad yesterday… I was helping my friend out with the school runs as her husband was away…. I felt like I was in the car all day! Amazing how exhausting school runs with crazy traffic can be!
Thanks Maxi 🙂
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In my teens and twenties and through my early 30’s I was very active and also taught aerobics back in the day. I’m still active, but don’t push myself has hard as I used to. I love bicycling which is my main exercise activity. I still run and weight train (but not as religiously). I guess my outlook on life and exercise now-a-days is to exercise in order to stay healthy, but not so much about the weight anymore. When it comes to weight – I focus more on my diet, and try to eat, smaller, healthier portions. But, I don’t deprive myself :).
Best of luck with all your goals. You look great BTW. So don’t be too concerned with the material of that dress. I’m sure it will enhance nice features too.
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Thank you :). I need to get fit as I have been sedentary for far too long (9years) and I have fibromyalgia which means that until I get fit, getting there is very painful!!
Also, eating ‘normally’ for me has always been a problem, so the healthiest thing for me to do is just eat what I want and worry about it later…. Which works fine when I was exercising , but not so good when I stopped!!
Anyway, getting there with my training. Keeping it very sensible, just once or twice a week. And trying to avoid whole tubs of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Phood. (I’m an all or nothing girl, you may have noticed!!). 😀
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How come I missed this post? Maybe I was up a ladder at the time playing with a paintbrush. Goodness these photos bring me back, no I was not there, but your proud dad sent copies of the photos to me. take it steady and you will look wonderful in the dress!
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Lol, I think you were recovering from overdoing your decorating. It’s no surprise we are related! Didn’t manage to go training last night. Doing job applications at the moment, utterly exhausting and tedious beyond belief!
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ahhh…horsell common,i drove through that a few times when my sister lived in woking…..also where H,G,Wells said the first cannister landed
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I would never have connected that place with his book. Will look with it with new eyes next time I go there!
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You cut quite an athletic figure. Track and field has always been one of my favorite spectator sports. It’s so you against the world. I did discus and shot put in high school but never took it further than that.
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Lol, I read that ‘I did discuss shot put in High School’. I did athletics because I have 2 left feet and am utterly uncoordinated. I have only recently managed the ‘keep your eye on the ball task’ and then actually hitting it, kicking it or catching it is usually still beyond me.
Throwing a stick onto the river for Wilson last summer, I accidentally threw the stick into a nearby boat & hit a lady in the face. I’m not good at throwing either 😦
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After several moments, I just finished laughing about your stick throwing incident (hoping no one was seriously hurt, of course). Both my wife and daughter would completely understand that. Wait a minute……I’m laughing again…….alright, I’m OK now…..wait, no I’m not……..
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I was completely mortified, but then the man on the boat started shouting at me ‘what on earth did you do that for?’
I used to go to that beach every day to throw sticks for Wilson, and there weren’t usually any boats there. The boat was moored really close to the beach.
I couldn’t answer, he just kept shouting at me and I kept trying to apologise, but they were so horrible eventually I just gave up & went home. I don’t think the lady was hurt, but it was so embarrassing!
I can’t throw sticks for Wilson now unless there is no one anywhere around me for fear I might hit someone!!
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This is one of the most blogworthy stories I’ve heard in a long time. The world needs to hear it! The fact that the couple were so belligerent about it and wouldn’t accept your apology, also gives some real drama to the story. Please write it.
Got to go, I feel another laughing fit coming on…..
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Lol, I’ll go take a photo of the beach tomorrow & then you’ll be able to see my humiliation in 3D
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Good, look forward to seeing it. . If you don’t want to work on a blog now, at least get it started. Sooner or later there will be a daily prompt for humiliating experiences and you’ll be ready.
We’ve all certainly had them and it’s good to be able to look back at them with humor.
Have a great evening!
Your pal, Al
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It’s a good idea! Stop me obsessing about my ‘Egypt’ slideshow
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