Day 5

Today we were treated to a morning of burpees and squats! Our butts are going to look incredible!

This was followed by a hike around a beautiful little beach. Wasn’t so anxious this time, when really I should have been! We walked up a huge hill to get back!

We were given the afternoon off as the hike took longer than expected and we all worked hard.

Can’t argue with that!

Day 6

Last day of exercise, I have my weigh in this morning as I am leaving early tomorrow morning.

I couldn’t sleep in the night as my mind was racing thinking about whether I would have lost any weight and what to do if I haven’t.

The goal Wez set me at the beginning of the week was to lose 7-10lbs.

I lost 14.6lbs!!!

A whole stone, gone!!

I could not believe it.

Went to join everyone for the first class of the morning and shared my news, everyone cheered and gave me high fives. One of the things I have loved about this boot camp is how everyone shares their victories, whether it’s completing an exercise or losing inches or weight, we’re all cheering one another on.

We are rewarded with a night out to celebrate our week of hard work together. We had chosen the Jockey club which was a restaurant situated on a beach, so as soon as our morning of workouts was over, we made for the beach!

After all that hard work and great results I did treat myself to one beer!

This concluded my week at ‘fat camp’ I achieved an awful lot in a short space of time and learnt so much. All I have to do now is stick to it…and so onto the next challenge!

Day 4

Start with HIIT workout this morning, weighted this time, my mind was up for it, my body wasn’t aching, it just seemed like my body wasn’t listening to the commands of my mind! I don’t think I was the only one feeling like this, and we had been warned that Wednesday can be a hard day.

We all pushed ourselves hard and thoroughly enjoyed our breakfast of smoked salmon, scrambled egg and spinach!

Smoothie as a snack, little bit of rest then a boxing circuit.

I’m pushing myself as hard as humanly possible, but couldn’t help feeling a bit deflated when catching my reflection in the mirror as I was changing. I know it’s only been a few days, but all this work, you kinda expect to see results quicker for some reason. Makes you realise that just walking the dog for exercise is never going to cut it!

The boxing was gruelling, especially in the heat, but we all kept our spirits up and encouraged each other and pushed each other.

We were rewarded with a mozzarella salad and an afternoon off.

Weird how without the classes there is not much to do, sure we can lay by the pool but I’d prefer not to anymore.

Wez did give us a nutrition brief which was interesting and informative as I know I won’t reach my goal in this week alone but it will definitely give me the tools to keep moving forward and achieve it.

Day 2 & 3

Getting out of bed with that ‘my body aches in a good way because I’ve worked out’ feeling!

First workout is uphill running. Not going to lie, I found this really hard, to the point where it was a major turning point for me, because I found this so challenging I thought to myself ‘if this is what it takes to burn off a slice of pizza, you can keep the pizza!’

Chia seed pudding for breakfast which made my day!
Second round, boxing! It was hard but good, we’re all motivating each other and pushing ourselves! Feels good.

Day 3 (Tuesday)

HIIT training before breakfast.
Overnight oats and banana for breakfast.
Hike after breakfast, don’t know why but I’m apprehensive about the hike.
Drive to our drop off point and start walking around the coast, the views are incredible and there is a forgiving breeze.

We walked over 6 miles! In the sun. Little break on a little beach before we head back home.

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Salad for lunch which was so welcomely recieved after the hike!

An hour or so to chill out, then half an hour of boxing training, snack time, an amazing ball off goodness all wrapped in chocolate!

Yoga, which was lush, stretched out all the aching muscles and Kate, the yoga instructor gave us all a mini massage on the shoulders which was where I needed it most!
Pool time now to further relive the muscles.
I am walking funny, but as Wez the trainer said ‘squat until you walk funny’. Mission accomplished Wez!

Day 1 Fit Camp

Today is an introduction to the exercises and format of the days so we know what to expect.

Seven o’ clock start ready to meet for our first session which consisted of an introduction to High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).

A Breakfast of scrambled egg, tomato and spinach, little rest to let that go down and then the Fit test.

We’ll be doing another fit test on the last day to see how we have improved, right now I’m giving it everything!

Rest time and a Snack, then onto Introduction to Weights.

Lunchtime and a longer rest giving us time to chill by the Pool.

After resting and sunning it up we get ready for a mini Hike. I thought I would find this easy, it’s just walking! Walking in the heat of the Ibizan sun on very few calories!
I struggled!

On our return we had another Snack, this was followed by boxing. Although it’s hard, I do find this fun as you can really get some energy out! Even Wes the trainer would say to visualise your old self and punch hell out of them!

Dinnertime and that’s it for the exercise for the day!

Just being here, knowing I’m surrounded by like-minded people and I’m doing something positive about my health, has boosted my confidence already.

Relaxed on the roof terrace watching the sun go down over Jesús.

Fat camp

I should really say Fit Camp. Since Mom was diagnosed I have turned to food for comfort, not an excuse, a reason to why I am now nearly 3 sizes bigger in 18 months.

Obviously I recognise I need to do something about my weight before it becomes a health issue not just a ‘Nothing fits me’ issue.

At home I can’t seem to get myself motivated, I know exactly what I need to do as I’ve done it before and I know I can do it again. It’s just that initial kick start.

So, my thinking was to remove myself completely from my rut, shift some weight which would then give me the motivation to keep going.

So today I am leaving Ibiza town where all the drinking and partying takes place, to go to a villa and exercise and detox!

Who would have thought you could detox in Ibiza!

I have a few hours to go so I am soaking up some more rays of sun while reading on the terrace of the hostel.

At this point I have mixed feelings, as I have now been away for nearly a week, have eaten fairly healthily with smaller portions and walked about 20,000 steps a day with a backpack on, but I don’t see or feel any changes. So I am feeling doubtful that a week in fit camp is going to do much.
On the other hand, this camp and its personal trainers are there to push me and feed me the right things and it’s their job to get results, so they must be able to help me!

First to arrive at boot camp. The villa is stunning!!

Once everyone arrives, we have a welcome talk and measurements are taken. If the scales are to be believed, it turns out I have lost 2lb in the last two weeks! So that’s encouraging! Wes the trainer has set me the goal of losing between 7-10lbs. That would be an amazing kick start for me and I’m already feeling more positive about putting actions into place when I go home.

Everyone just chilled and got to know one another, jumped in the pool before a dinner of butternut squash curry was served.
Early night ready for the early morning workout before breakfast.

http://www.no1bootcamp.com

Ibiza Town

When visiting Ibiza I have usually opted for staying in San Antonio which is where all the carnage happens. I’m not here for drunken tomfoolery on this occasion!

After getting in at 5am from Pacha I was looking forward to a lay in in my private room.

First time I’ve woken up this trip and not really had a plan with what to do with my day.

Beach was definitely on the cards, and also breakfast seeing as I didn’t have white bread and jam to look forward to this morning!

Set off for the beach with a view to also finding the DC-10 merchandise shop as I know there isn’t one in San Antonio and it’s my favourite club.

It took me a forty minute walk to find the shop. (I made a note of the fact that it is next door to a burrito restaurant where I will be stuffing my face later.) The shop, unlike the club is disappointing, and everything is made for very small sized persons, which is a shame.

Playa d’en Bossa is one of my favourite beaches, not for beauty or cleanliness, but for its character and diversity. People from all over the world are here, chilling, drinking, enjoying, partying. It has a good vibe. And I like it.

When the evenings draw in, the planes start coming in low over the beach and sends everyone into a frenzy of more celebration!

Gone are the days where I can sit exposed to the sun all day so I did fork out for a lounger and parasol. So worth it, I finished reading one book that I brought with me and now started reading Stephen King’s ‘Cujo’. Although I’m sure everyone is familiar with King’s work, I’m not a huge fan of scary things because my imagination takes everything to the max, so I’ve never had the guts to read his work as yet. I cannot put this book down (I did long enough to write this obviously).

Eventually had to tear myself away from the beach as the sun started to cool, and my belly started to rumble.

By this time I couldn’t face hot food so opted for a salad and as this is the last day before my healthy regime, treated myself to a gelato!

Last night in Ibiza town before heading off to…fat camp!

Whoa! We’re going to Ibiza!

I always find it both sad and exciting packing my bag knowing I’m going onto a new destination.
I had a long wait until my flight and one by one the people I had shared the Valencia /Tomatina experience with were slowly disappearing onto their next adventure.

After packing I joined one of the girls in getting a smoothie on the way to her catching her train. I’m not a huge smoothie fan but this was more like a dessert, which I am a fan of! Puréed Açai topped with (my choice) banana, peanuts and chocolate. As she made her way to her connection, I ambled back to the hostel in the hope of catching the walking tour.
I got lost.
Not scary lost, just annoying that I missed the walk lost! Obviously I found my way back eventually and as I’d missed the walk went to a cafe to kill time.

I then ended up going to a park to sit in the shade to read with one of the girls, no reading was done at all! We sat there talking the whole time until it was time to catch my metro to the airport.

When flying from Cardiff to Ibiza the airport is full of people dressed in neon, or matching hen/stag t-shirts. Valencia is different. No neon to be seen, instead they seem a bit like me, moving on from one destination to the next. (Speaking for myself) looking a bit exhausted and bedraggled.

This isn’t my first time in Ibiza, so I do know what to expect. It is the first time staying in Ibiza Town, the ‘quiet’ side of the island.

No matter when I seem to book a flight to Ibiza, it seems to land in the night, we get showered and dressed and head straight out.
This will be no exception.

I will arrive at 2140 and intend to head straight to Pacha to see David Guetta once I’ve freshened up!

Walked in to the sounds of Robin Schulz, reminded me of why I love coming here for the music!

Awesome night, had been awake for nearly 24 hours and was more than ready to flop into my bed. So glad I have a room to myself!

Writer’s block?

Not so much writer’s block as just not knowing how to put everything into words.

So I won’t.

This is a blog about travel/saving money and seeing as I’ve been doing neither of those of late, how can I write about it?

Now. I am currently in Spain, Valencia to be exact, to take part in La Tomatina. ‘The World’s biggest food fight’.

This tends to be a ‘bucket list’ item, although I’m ashamed to say it wasn’t truly one of mine until more recently.

Due to financial/work reasons I find myself wandering alone on this occasion. And I had forgotten how liberating it was! From little things like not having to confirm with anyone on times/prices of flights and hotels to being a bit more social and making friends with people on the trip!

The whole trip for La Tomatina I booked through STA with Busabout. This is my first time dealing with this particular travel company and I have mixed impressions.

The hostel is the Purple Nest. It’s in a really good location away from the more touristy side of things which made finding cheap, local and authentic places to eat much simpler.

Rooms were clean and quite full which is standard for hostels, luckily I had a bunk to myself so I could spread out!

There was an orientation walk around Valencia on arrival, but I arrived too late to catch it, so instead socialised on the terrace bar.

Dinner was included on the first night, a traditional Valencian Paella and sangria. Im not much of a sangria drinker so I stuck with a local beer.

As we all started go get to know one another it turns out the majority of the group were Australian, with a few other nationalities thrown in!

After food everyone met up for a pub crawl a short walk away from the hostel. I had been up since 3am so I’m ashamed to say I only stayed for the one drink, but from the states people were in the next day, I think I made the right choice!

The whole trip is organised by Busabout and different activities were available each day. So the first day was a beach day for me and some others. It was pretty hot, a few clouds that I was grateful for as my skin has not seen the sun like that in a while!

The group of girls I was sharing a dorm with suggested going for tapas which I was up for, it’s food! We ordered nearly everything off the menu and had a taste of everything in a little tapas bar called Sol y Lluna (sun and moon).

Early night for us all as we had to be up at 6am the next day for La Tomatina!

After the included breakfast of white bread and jam, we all loaded onto coaches to head out to Buñol, the tiny village where La Tomatina takes place, a population of 10,000. 20,000 tourists arrive for one day to pelt fruit at one another!

We all crowd in to the centre of the village to watch the initial part of the festival, the clamber for the ham. A ham is placed on top of a pole that is greased up with lard. Anyone can compete to reach the ham which they can then keep.

Needless to say it was a spectacle to watch people attempt to climb up to reach it!

At 11 o clock the trucks start rumbling through the village loaded with tomatoes and a rocket is let off to signify the start of the fight! People on the trucks throw the tomatoes down to everyone and everyone starts throwing at everyone else! It gets very messy, very quickly! It is advised to wear goggles or a snorkel mask, and I’m glad I did!

Tomato gets in places you didn’t know tomato would ever go!

The trucks continue to bring tomatoes in until there is an ankle deep soup in the road. People are swimming in it, filling buckets and flinging it, it’s tomato mayhem! At 12 the second rocket signifies the end of the fight.

Tomato sodden tourists traipse their way to the showers, passing locals who help hose them down. I went to the river to wash off, I wasn’t very successful and was still finding bits of the fruit as I made my way back to the coach.

The return journey was reminiscent of having a day at a theme park as a child, going crazy for a day and nodding off on the way home.
We were pooped!

A long shower to remove the remaining fruit particles that had firmly embedded themselves in my hair and dried on my skin. I was ready for a nap, but first, food. We had been told of a sandwich place that made mini sandwiches (bocadillos) for €1 each. We stuffed up on carbs and most of us returned to the hostel for a nap before the Tomatina after party.

Again, we were loaded onto coaches to take us to the party destination which was in the middle of nowhere and able to hold all 20,000 Tomatina survivors.

Another kind of mess took place in the night.

I managed to bump into someone who was also heading for Ibiza the following day so the journey continues…