The Official Logo for An Trek Fada proudly designed and sponsored by Fleur Creative – thanks Mandy as always!
Today in a week’s time I will be standing at the steps of the Titanic Centre ready to embark on my journey back home to Wexford.
Right now I am scared of failing, and am thinking how much more I have to do before I can set off.
It is my intention to take you on this journey with me, but as with all things, there are only so many hours in the day, and until the walking is the only thing I have to do, then my posts will be brief. That should relieve those that know if a blog was a spoken word I would never stop talking!
Yesterday I successfully finished my longest training walk yet – 23km – and am in remarkably good shape today, bar maybe highlighting that my feet must not be forgotten.
Some have been in contact to ask why I have so suddenly ceased to blog, and the answer is simple. I didn’t feel like it. Not an I-couldn’t-be-bothered feel like it…. a slightly down in the dumps, did not feel I had any answers to anything, sorry for myself kinda feel like it. Pathetic I know, but such are the realities of life.
The reality is that the couple of pounds I had lost I had gained in a simple week, and the scales said that there was NO movement after everything. I felt that I had let not only myself, but also all those around me down – especially the chefs at the hotel – who have put so much into it . Embarrassed really…. And then there was this homesickness, missing friends and family, meeting truly wow and in inspirational Americans, and just one of those weeks. You know the type.
But alas! I am back, and one colour bar away from a state of Ketosis! Now you might ask what is this, and to explain it in detail would be way too complicated, and take up too much energy (energy now saved for my daily weight and exercise regime) – but the gist of it, I have over the past 4 days eliminated sugar COMPLETELY from my diet. Yip – not a single Magnum in sight. Here’s the irony – do I feel any hint of a craving?
Not at all – I mean, I cannot force any more food into me if you begged me, and have even had to cut down on some portions. I have not been hungry or craved ONCE! Truly incredible. I will have to confess though, that until this morning I felt lethargic and stodgy – but this morning my eyes opened and voila – they were open – in a bright and bring on the day way!
How did this come about? Simple really – there I was chattling away to some young whipper snapper wizz kid guru and charmer, by the name of Kevin regarding life in general, taking opportunities and the rest – when the subject of my 40.40 challenge came up. I shared my intense frustrations, my lows and my lack of weight loss with him, and he started telling me about this routine. Now I have to add – Kevin is a lanky 6’4″+ and not someone I would call excessively muscular, but will have to confess he looked more buff than the previous beanpole look he sported. So needless to say, I scoffed, because why would someone like him need to go on a diet – or “lifestyle change” as I prefer to call it.
He explained some of it to me, and then said he will get someone to get hold of me and talk me through it.
Now we all know those promises and statements – they seldom happen. But lo and behold, true to his word, enters not so lanky, but ever so buff Paul into my world. He drove all the way from Dublin to access me, and go though every little question and detail I had. He also has been texting, sitting on my arse and encouraging me since then – so not much chance of me getting out of this one.
The long and the short is that I am now on a seriously high fat and protein diet for 14 days – with NO milk, fruit or sweets. I won’t be on this for longer than 14 days, then I will revert to a low Glucose Index diet. This time I am not allowing for any shortcuts – I have bought the recipe books, and am going to give it my all.
Truly, how bad can it be – my breakfast of 2 butter fried eggs, 5 streaky rashers and three table spoons of Avocado and Philly mixed must be my favourtie breakfast EVER! Pine nuts and Emmental Cheese – steak and green beans with butter…. There is only ONE thing I like more than Magnum, and that is a nice extra large free range butter fried egg!
So for all of you who had bought shares in Magnum Ice-creams – I would suggest selling right away, and buy into butter – lards of it!
There’s a new 40.40 challenge on the block – and I have just over two months to get there. Wish me luck!
Yesterday was just simply NOT a blogging day. It was a day for reflection and nostalgia.
Just when people tell me that social networking is over rated, or mostly that they don’t understand it, then you realise how it also brings people together. My post wine-jump expedition on Saturday was followed by more wine, a “braai” and our divorce party. Yes, my Ras is moving out, and as this was our second divorce, we felt that we had to celebrate it. (For those that do not know about our soon to be EX-living arrangement – watch Modern Family)
But I digress – just by chance I tapped my Facebook update on the ol’ iPhone, and there I am met by two posts from someone who is a friend of my mother, and merely a Facebook acquaintance of mine. It was what he posted though that touched me profoundly, and opened floodgates of distance, memories of laughter, love and mostly my mom and my longing for the wisdom of my dad.
The one was Jacques Brel (famous Belgium songwriter and singer) singing Marieke, a song that during my growing up was belted out by a singer Leonora Veenemans on many occasions. It recollects long journeys in a Grey Rover van den Plat to Cape Town, where the tape would be played over and over again. It reminds of chilly nights in Hogsback to a 3/4 beat. It makes me remember my mother varying it with every Elvis track imaginable, and boisterous singing to all corners of South Africa – in heat that saw the tar glimmer oily on the horizon, or in stop start slides down black frosted mountain passes.
The other? The other was a clip where Anthony Quinn (very elderly) meets the composer Mikis Theodorakis in a slow dance and a fast embrace to the now symbolic plucks of the Theme tune to the Movie Zorba the Greek. And in Anthony Quinn’s frailty I see the passions of the past, but in his spoken words I hear the answer to our present. “And I want you to know, the music of Zorba – is the music of life. And to live life fully – you must always love. And I love you” A man must have truly lived to say those words to another man so convincingly, and so unashamedly – such awe and humility in those simple words.
So out of the doldrums that was homesickness, sadness and nostalgia yesterday, I give you today these words from Zorba himself:
Alexis Zorba: Damn it boss, I like you too much not to say it. You’ve got everything except one thing: MADNESS! A man needs a little madness, or else… Basil: Or else? Alexis Zorba: …he never dares cut the rope and be free.
Five pounds down in total – falling seriously behind. Then again -I’m on a journey more thana quick ride?
Calories? Who cares….. rather – Teach me to dance!!
