Day 13

Things have been absolutely hectic! University starts at 8 and ends anywhere from 3-4.30 and it's been a big adjustment getting used to this set up again. Last week was mainly assessments and aptitude tests so a lot of the day was spent sitting around waiting for the next item of our timetables to come up. It's more exhausting than it sounds! My challenge has been on the back foot the last week, but I managed to swim 1km and only 60 of each item of the challenge on Saturday.
Yesterday I swam 1.5km in 50 minutes which is not too bad - every week it's getting a little further a little faster. So that's good. Today I have made a start on the challenge. I know I won't be able to finish 3000 this month but I will finish it and hopefully up the exercise. I'm still keen to see the transformation of my body over the year (they say a 6 pack takes about a year to get right) so we shall see!
Just trying to find the balance with the hectic studies (medicine is no joke!) will be tough but I have to do it to keep the balance in my life and keep sane and healthy!
On the good side, I finally got my gym contract! Keen to do some pilates and zumba classes and maybe a bit of yoga and definitely some treadmill running! Can't wait to get started!

Day 8

In a rush this morning to get to varsity on time and take my measurements and photos first thing in the morning.
Weight: 54.8kg

Arm: 29cm
Bust: 83cm
Waist: 63cm
Hips: 94.5cm
Leg: 54.7cm

Photos (just a flexed front and back) but was in such a rush they are not the best shots:
Week 1                                   Week 0

Week 1                                       Week 0

I can feel a difference but not sure if you can see one yet. Too early to see. Battling with fitting in the exercise : today I only got home after 8pm!

Day 7

Zzzz. So tired this morning after a long day at university (until 4pm and not used to it anymore!). But the exercise and diet front was much better again. Although not 100%, I feel semi back on track.
Yesterday I managed half:
50 lunges (10 of them with 3kg weights)
50 push ups
50 seconds of plank each side

Diet:
1 coffee + 1 sugar
Muesli (no milk - milk was sour!)
Nectarine
1 and a half cheese and mayo sandwiches
Large salad
Brown rice and mince
1 cup of tea + 1 sugar

Also did a 1km swim yesterday. Yawn. Another long day at university ahead and think I will probably need an afternoon nap! Oh arg and have an appointment with the gym at 5.30pm ...

Day 6

Wow so this weekend flew by with a flurry of unexpected events and running from one thing to the next such that I didn't end up having time to do anything!!! :( BIG SAD FACE. So Saturday was crazy busy from the minute I woke up until my friend's birthday party at 6.30pm - which ended at 4AM the next morning! Bad life move wow. I didn't drink when we went out but going to bed SO late meant that I was absolutely finished and actually felt sick on Sunday. So what was supposed to 1 days rest turned into 2. Now it is Monday and I only got home from university now at 4pm (today was my first day of med school!)

Mondays I am supposed to go swimming so I don't know how much of The Challenge I am going to get through. Am starting to fall behind!

Not feeling too happy about my recent lack of progress after such a good stint on Friday where I completed the day's challenge. I suppose there are always ups and downs and you have to weather the storm and do the best you can!

Day 4 back in the game

Yeah baby!!! Whoohoo!! Yesterday I did it!! I managed my 100 push ups, 100 secs plank each side and forward and 100 lunges and a very short 1.5km run/jog/walk effort. I wanted to do a full on proper run but the boyfriend had surgery 8 days ago with a big gash across his chest and the wound/stitches were pulling and hurting so then we couldn't run anymore. But at least we did something! Muscles today are ok, arms a little sore but basically fine. Today I am going to attempt to do it again and Sunday is my rest day, which means I am starting to lag behind on the 3000 challenge but even if I can't finish it in 29 days, I will finish it!!
Diet yesterday was okay:


coffee + 1 sugar
muesli +1 scoop meal replacement + fat free milk
1 multivitamin + 1500mg vitamin c
apple + 0.5L water
1/2 milk tart slice without the crust (just the milk filling part) (off program but oh well..could've been worse)
1 banana
1 large fillet of hake fish (not crumbed)  and half a potato (+1 glass of water)
15 thin slices of biltong + 0.5L water
2/3 - 1 cup wholewheat pasta in naptolitana (tomato based sauce) with chicken and a few pieces of the BFs pasta (basil pesto penne with chicken) + water water water

I nearly stopped at 70 push ups but I knew I could do more so I persevered and got through it. Stoked!

Day 3

Yesterday was like hitting a pothole in the road and realising you don't have a spare tire for your car. Basically it was pretty much a disaster!! And I am a bit disappointed that I couldn't keep up to speed on the program! :( I have a LONG way to go! Yesterday was pretty dismal:
75 lunges
70 seconds plank (each side + front)
30 (YES :(... ) pushups

I really tried to do more but my arms were so incredibly sore they were not wanting to move. I took a disprin to eleviate the inflammation and put on some Deep Heat like cream to try help. They are still a bit sore today but much better. Today I will reattempt but today I also need to do some back exercises. I also want to go for a run today with some sprinting laps. AAAH why is the day so short!!

I suspect this will not end up being a months challenge!
The diet was pretty good until we went to the night market:
7.30am - cappuccino + 1 sugar (with the bf's mom)
9am - muesli + 1 scoop meal replacement + boiling water (joy, no milk in the house!)
10.30am - 0.5L water + 1 whole papaya fruit (like a paw-paw)
11am - 1 small block of cheddar cheese
12.30pm - 2 slices of low GI bread + 2 boiled eggs + 1 tbls mayo + 0.5L water
2pm - 100g yoghurt + 2 glasses of water
5.30pm (Night market) - 1/2 an EXTREMELY large lamb tortilla wrap with pineapple, cheddar, lettuce, carrot, tomato) (This I felt bad about, because it is super high in calories and probably totally not on plan) but I couldn't be rude as my friend was buying it as a post-birthday present. My mom went to the Greek stall and bought a whole lot of milk tart slices...mine is still in the fridge - of which my younger brother has now eaten half..lol)
6pm - 1 Homemade lemonade (night market)
Walk on the beach until 7.30pm
0.5L water

My arms are feeling more solid and so are my legs so thats a good sign of progress even although I feel like I am failing miserably! I am wondering if I can substitute some push ups for some bicep curls and tricep kickbacks (my fav exercise! :))

FRIDAY - LETS DO THIS! BOOM!

Day 2

My arms are crying today hahaha. And my boyfriend whilst trying to motivate me, decided to coach me and push me to do them, but in doing so I think I hurt my arm a bit but we will have to see when I come to do today's push ups!
Yesterday I managed the 100 lunges quite easily which I was amazed at - thought I'd battle the most with that! Maybe it's because I normally do lunges with 3kg weights, but yesterday I just used my free body weight. The plank was fine, but the pushups - YOH. Crying. ... I only managed 70 out of 100 in the day but I guess you have to start somewhere and maybe by the end I'll be a machine and do 100 in less than an hour as opposed to 70 across the day. LOL. How sad :) Got to start somewhere though!
So yesterday I did:
100 lunges
100 seconds of plank forward and on each side
70 push ups
0.5km swim (took it easy because I didnt want to over do it but also didn't want to give up my swim)

Today besides my arms being sore, my lower back is ever so slightly sore.

My diet yesterday was as follows:

7am - 1 cup coffee 1 sugar fat free milk
9am - 1 cup muesli, 1 scoop meal replacement, 1 cup fat free milk
1 multivitamin, 1500mg vitamin c, omega 3
10.30am - 0.5l water ( I normally have a snack here like an apple but was in a rush to get somewhere)
12 - 2 slices of low gi bread + 1.5tbls sweet chilli sauce + 1 chicken breast
1pm - 0.5L water
2pm - 10 almonds
2.30pm - 1 apple
3pm - 5 pistachio nuts, 10 cranberries + 1 glass water
4pm - 1 slice of low gi bread + 1 tablespoon peanut butter + 1 teaspoon honey + 2 glasses of water
6pm - Swim (0,5km)
9pm - (had to wait for the bf to finish training underwater hockey) Calamari salad (incl tomatoes, pineapple, avo, cucumber) at The Keg (Restaurant food - if you order salad - can't count as fast food!) with some side veg I stole from the bf of mushrooms, creamed spinach and 1 small piece of butternut... and um a coke light - which I remembered only after I'd ordered and received it, was a banned drink (fizzy) but to be fair, it only has 3kj so not too bad but still. I did forego the mint after that comes with the bill ... :)

Lol. This is how I feel. Struggling along - I feel so weak! Remembering how many pushups we used to do at gymnastics, at least 150 in a training session and now I can't even do 70 in a day! Shocking!! But it's okay, it will get better! A challenge isn't something that should be easy, else it isn't a challenge. It has to be something uncomfortable, something that makes you battle and I will get to the end of the month as a success! :)