Shredding!

That's fat shredding not paper shredding!

So, I was feeling rather lardy over Easter and thought I'd better get back into doing a bit more exercise and eating a little less chocolate.  I was sat one Sunday evening mutitasking - watching Countryfile and facebooking when one of the girls from my mummy group posted this:

That was the motivation I needed. I immediately found it on youtube and did Day 1 of Level 1.  It's so cool.  I was immediately hooked as it is so do-able.  Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. 

There are 3 levels and I have just finished Day 30 Level 3.  But I am so buzzed about it that I have to share it.

I am not one for going to the gym.  Well I might be, but I have never been to the gym and it doesn't really appeal.  I like to exercise by going from A-B on a bike or walking faster than a small child.  I would ratehr spend a day mountianbiking or hiking than sweating at the gym.  I like yoga too, and I swim 40 lengths once a week.  I am a rubbish runner but had the idea I might do the Munich Sadt lauf (10km) at rhe end of June,  if I ran lots. I am not a natural runner and find it depressingly hard.

Ok, so I have lost the plot a little.  So that Sunday night, I thought, no time like the present and started htere and then. It's 20 mins!  That's nothing. Anyone can do 20 mins a day surely!  What kept me going was that I commented on the thread that the lovely Saarah James had started and there were quite a few of us who checked in each da ywhen we had completed.  Sarah was very motivating and encouraging too.  Bear in mind I have never met these people in real life but have "known" them for over 5 years, and we were all supporting each other.

I started shredding andwas so into it that I started telling my real life friends about it.  My enthusiasm (I'm good at this!) has got loads more of them started.  And we check in with each other online too (but we do see each other too!)  I've got 14 more people doing this!  14!!!!! 

And I'd like to say I am well and truely shredded.  Well kind of.  No weight has been lost but then I haven't been on a diet but I have better abs,  thighs and shoulders.  If you squint at the pictures I think there is a differnce. I feel better anyway, AND I CAN NOW RUN!!!!!!  It really hels with endurance too.  The other week (the last time I ran) I ran and I mean ran (well jogged , which is better than walking!) for 55 minutes!!! Matt thought I had got lost, which in fact I had but I always get lost in the woods.

I am now going to practise runnning and maybe I'll be able to run 10km soo.  But I have also ordered Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 DVD which is similar but harder.  I think I may be a little addicted but Matt also says I should carry on, so obviously I need a lot more work on my thighs and bum :-)

And Jillian Micahels doesn't even annoy me that much, despite being American . . .

 I even bought real weights to use instead of Sigg bottles filled with water.  And Matt says I need to get my mone's worth and keep using them.


So today I have finished my 30 days. I would like to say thank you to Sarah James for getting me onto this. 

Family Powell Shredding!

Can you see a difference?

Camping

A couple of weekends ago we went camping.  The forecast wasn't the best, but it wasn't bad either.  We had a holiday on the Monday so as the previous potential holiday weekend was rubbish weather, and so is this one, I'm glad we went.
 
We don't have to go far for a short child friendly camp.  We went to Chiemsee which is just under an hour away on a good traffic day.  Now I'm sure I have never actually been there but Matt says I have even though I have no recollection of it.  We have always driven past on our way to higher mountains, but with kinders, you don't always need that. 

After a bit of research on camp sites we went here.

It was really very nice and perfect for a few days.

stony ground as usual makes for difficult peg banging.  We must get a hammer!

Saturday was nice weather and after our picnic lunch we went for a small explore along the bike track. There is a 56km bike path round Chiemsee and we did a small part of it.  Well the children did and we walked briskly which made a nice change.

Off into the distance they zoom

Going for a bike ride

We decided to be easy campers and not cook dinner but eat at the on site beer garden which was jolly nice, especially as we were welcomed with a free beer from the small barrel at the entrance by the owner who spoke very good English and was very nice indeed.

Sunday was cloudy and rain was looming but we had a good day and hired an electric boat for an hour on the lake.  Not much effort was required but it was nice to go around the Frauen Island.

Eating breakfast

Motoring on

Looking for fish

 We then went for a spot of geocaching, had lunch as the rain and wind started, found a fun playground, did a bit more caching before heading back to the campsite when the rain stopped for another meal in the beer garden.

Treasure swapping at a cache

Having fun at the water pump (notice Matt is on the slide!)

And the fun whizzing thing

Which Alex fell off of!

View from the campsite towards the mountains

Monday we packed up and  after much playground playing and duck feeding we headed off and stopped at another small lake for a bike ride, play and lunch before coming home.

Ducklings at the campsite

bike riding in the woods

 A good first camp of the summer.  Not sure when we will camp next.  The weather is horrid at the moment.  But the children love it and so I'm sure it won't be long.

I have found a reason to need a Smart Phone…

…Geocaching!  I have looked a while ago at doing it but last Wednesday we had a Bank Holiday and so decided to have a go!  In case you don’t know, it is a Hi Tech  Treasure Hunt.  A step up from Letterboxing on Dartmoor.  So, you go on the website, find where there are caches (boxes) hidden in your area, download the GPS coordinates onto your Smart Phone and off you go to seek treasure!  So there lies my need for a Smart Phone.  Matt can get it all on his Blackberry but I don’t feel quite in control!  And actually you do also need a map. So I take screen shot of the treasure location and spend ages making a Word document with all the info on.  Probably a waste of time really – except the map.   

Looking at the "Map" for our first cache.

There are so many geocaches round us.  So on Wednesday we decided to do a trip along the Hachinger Bach which is the small stream which runs just below us in the valley.  I made the children a treasure map and they were so excited! So off we went on our bikes to find the first cache which was slightly disappointing for them as it was a tiny canister with only a logbook in.  So Matt cycled home to get a pen.  We carried on and had a lovely time finding (or not finding in the case of an elusive one near us which we went and had a good look again on Friday for, but to no avail!).  We ended up at the Beer Garden but couldn’t find the one there either but I think it was very small and we weren’t looking properly.  We’ll find it another time.  And the Beer Garden was packed!  But there was face painting and pony rides and a fine time was had by all.  Alex was amazing on his laufrad and whizzed along for 5km altogether.  He’d have biked all the way but we’d have been out till midnight. 

Fun at the beer garden.  Butterfly face with her friend Kate

And Alex and Mia had pony rides too.

So, after our success and good fun on Wednesday, we decided to go again to today and do some of the ones in the forest.  We had a very successful day and what was nice was that we normally just speed through the forest from A-B and don’t really think it is that interesting but actually there are some nice little spots as we were led up different tracks and had to walk into very rotten undergrowth to hunt for a cache.  Katie loved it as she was a particularly good finder today.  And in the bigger boxes there is sometimes treasure to swap.  The treasure is not very exciting unless you are small as it is mostly kinder egg type toys but the children enjoyed it.  We ended up at the playground at Sauerlach which is only 7km away from us and Katie had fun playing while Alex slept and Matt went and found another cache just nearby.  Then we biked back and found one last one just before we got home.

More searching

Found it!

Off we go again!

And nearly home

And nearly home

Just pick a few flowers before the last stretch.

We have had such a fun day today and it is a great activity to do with children too.  Particularly the easier to find ones, and it’s free.  My only concern is, is that I’m going to become a geocache nerd as I had to log all the info into the computer when I got home and I can see myself spending a lot of time looking at the map to find ones in the vicinity of any of our day trips that we can search for.  Good fun though and children thoroughly grubby and tired too.