Some fitness achievements : )

A few months ago I participated in the Gold Coast Marathon weekend in the 5.7km race.   In preparation I started up running.  I started up running for only 2mins at a time, and slowly worked up to over 30 minutes or over 5kms. 

I also started fundraising for beyond blue and with the help of my work colleges and others who kindly donated, I was able to raise just over $1000.00!

On the actual race weekend, Andrew, Owen and I flew up to Qld to enjoy a nice mini holiday weekend.  We got to spend some time in both Brisbane and down at the Gold Coast.

The night before the race disaster struck, I was hit with a nasty bout of food poisoning.  I was really sick,  couldn't keep anything in.  Running did not seem like a good idea.

I got up early the next morning, still rather queasy - yet determined.  I had done all that preparation, fundraising and flown all the way to Qld, I had to still do the race.  

It was a lovely Gold Coast morning, sunshine all round.  I made my way to the starting line (after visiting the portaloos several times haha), and I was off!  

The start was incredibly crowded, it was really difficult to even run for the first few hundred metres.  But it got going.  The race went fairly well (all things considered).   Running past McDonalds made me gag a little and I found the race pretty exhausting after no food and needed to walk for a couple of minutes.   However, I ran most of the way and finished in a time of 40 minutes and 4 seconds, and I am pretty proud of myself for setting a goal like that and achieving it.

Since then I have been participating regularly in Adelaide Park Run (5km run along the Torrens every Saturday), competing in the Corporate Cup with one of the ATO teams every fortnight (4.75km), along with being fairly consistent with the gym.

Last week, Andy and I did True Grit Night Attack, which was a 5km obstacle course at the Adelaide Show grounds.  We did it with a group of guys and gals from my gym.  It was a fun night, filled with strobe lights, ropes climbs, mazes, commando crawling, ice baths, jumping, running and leaping.  It was actually easier than I expected, due to needing to wait in line to do each obstacle (got to catch my breath), but it was a lot of fun, even if the ice baths made me cold for the next few hours!

What should I do next? 

Help me support Beyond Blue

As part of my upcoming run in the Gold Coast, I have decided to fundraise for Beyond Blue. Go to http://www.everydayhero.com.au/melanie_hajdu to see my everyday hero page and to make a donation.  I am really excited about the run, training is going well :)  And I think Beyond Blue is a really fitting charity to support.  Beyond Blue have some excellent resources and campaigns which help those who are affected by mental illness.  The website is great even for family and friends of people affected.  Have a looksy for yourself at http://www.beyondblue.org.au.

Being Happier

I found the following article on Pinterest (aka my time wasting/indulgence go to site), it originally comes from apartmenttherapy.com.  I think it's a really good list - I should try and implement some of these myself (or perhaps all of them)!

10 Simple Things To Make You Happier At Home

 Our homes are an extension of who we are: what we do within the walls of our abodes shapes our mood, affects our productivity, and influences our outlook on life. Scientific studies have shown that we can have an impact on our happiness by adjusting the tiny little habits and routines that constitute our daily lives — we are, in fact, in control of our outlook on life.

It's amazing how a few tweaks to our daily habits can become a catalyst for meaningful, positive change. Here are a few simple things you can do every day to feel happier at home.

1. Make your bed. In a popular post last month, I explained the many benefits of daily bed-making. Gretchen Rubin, New York Times best-selling author of The Happiness Project, explains that this three minute task is one of the simplest habits you can adopt to positively impact your happiness.

2. Bring every room back to "ready." I learned this trick from Marilyn Paul's clever book, It's Hard to Make a Difference When You Can't Find Your Keys. It's a known fact: Clutter causes stress; order creates a haven from it. This mood-boosting routine is simple: Take about three minutes to bring each room back to "ready" before you depart it. (Unless you have a toddler, or a partner who likes to simulate earthquakes, three minutes should be sufficient.)

3. Display sentimental items around your home. One reason that experiences (and memories of those experiences) make us happier than material things is due to the entire cycle of enjoyment that experiences provide: planning the experience, looking forward to the experience, enjoying the experience, and then remembering the experience. Make your home a gallery of positive memories.

4. Start a one-line-a-day gratitude journal. Before bed, simply jot down one happy memory from that day. (If you have kids, you can ask them, "What was the best part of today?") Reflection is an important part of happiness, and pausing to reflect on a positive event from each day cultivates gratitude. (An added bonus: Later, when your memory is defunct, you will already have all of your meaningful adventures recorded!) If you have trouble getting started with journaling, consider buying a book to guide you. Simple Abundance, by Sarah Ban Breathnach, is a great one.

5. If you can't get out of it, get into it. This tip comes from The Happiness Project. I love the message: The dishes are not going to clean themselves, so you will do it, and you will like it! (Unless, of course, you can outsource this job, in which case I say: Nice work!) Otherwise, get into doing the dishes. Feel the soothing warm water on your hands. Enjoy the tickle of the tiny bubbles. Crank your favorite album at an unusually loud volume, do a couple fist-pumps while shouting "Can I get a hell yeah for the dishes? Hell! Yeah!" and pretend you love it.

6. Before you get up each morning, set an intent for the day. In The Art of Happiness, the Dali Lama says ""Every day, think as you wake up: today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it." Wow. What a wise man. I tend to wake up with a strong visceral reaction that says, "Attention human beings: Be afraid of me before coffee. Be very afraid!" Setting a daily intent makes a huge difference. Your daily intent could be something like "be productive" or "enjoy today's delicious moments" or it could be something more specific like "say thank you to my loved ones today." But it should not be another "to do" item on your list.

7. Do small favors for your housemates, expecting nothing in return (not even a thank you!). (That's right, I said it: nothing!) Mow the lawn for your husband, but don't expect him to pat you on the back. Make the bed for your wife, but don't try to get bonus points for it. Take the trash out for your roommate, just because. The ability to cultivate strong, healthy relationships is one of the biggest contributors to health and happiness, but when you start to keep score, the benefit is lost. (No! It's YOUR turn to clean up the dog poop!) It's a well-known fact: When you do good, you feel good.

8. Call at least one friend or family member a day. You can do this while you clean, while you make the bed, or while you walk the dog. Texts and emails do not count! Make an actual phone call to a loved one, just to chat and catch up. We humans are social beings and studies show that even when we don't feel like it, even if we are naturally introverted, socializing with our loved ones makes us feel better.

9. Spend money on things that cultivate experiences at home. Save money for a new grill for parties or a new DVD for family movie night — something that will encourage you to have people over and entertain. Plan a summer barbeque, invite your closest friends, kick back and relax. (And don't forget to print out the pictures to remember the good times.)

10. Spend a few minutes each day connecting with something greater than yourself. Whatever your spiritual beliefs — or non-beliefs — may be, studies show that connecting to a high power is correlated with happiness. Just stepping back to realize that we are part of an enormous universe can put some perspective on your annoyance with the those-are-definitely-not-mine-and-they-are-abso-fricking-lutely-repulsive socks under the coffee table. Before bed, spend just a few minutes contemplating something larger than yourself. Take a walk in nature. Write in a journal. Create a sacred space in your home. (Or if spirituality is really not your thing, create a home spa: light some candles, soak in a hot bath, delve into a good book… are you feeling better yet?)

Being Healthier

I shared last time that I wanted to run some running races.  I did a bit more investigation into what running races are out there and found this website.  I wanted to run an about 5km run around June/July.    I can't do Sunday races, which removes approximately 95% of race opportunities! Especially in Adelaide, which has only one race on a Saturday which involves running around Adelaide University's ovals for either 24 hours, 12 hours or 6 hours.  Quite frankly, I think that might kill me...

I decided to go somewhere interstate instead.  I have decided on doing the 5.7km race as part of the  Gold Coast Airport Marathon Weekend, which will be on Saturday 6 July.

Now to start training and saving for the weekend!

A New Start..

Hello!

Welcome to Mel-iorism, my new blog dedicated to sharing my journey to becoming a better me.  I plan to share some of my goals and my progress in accomplishing them.

My main goal at the moment is to BE HAPPIER.  I think this will always be a worthwhile goal.  At the moment it is particularly worthwhile, as earlier this year I was diagnosed with Post-Natal Depression (PND), so being happier will be challenging and is especially important for me at the moment.  The last year (or so) has been very difficult, I have experienced some of the lowest lows I have ever had to deal with.  It took me a long time to actually do anything about my PND because my depressive episodes did not occur everyday, in fact some days were good and I felt like I could handle it all myself.  I thought perhaps, I was experiencing just the normal ups and downs everyone experiences.  I also felt embarrassed about needing some help, especially after studying Psychology myself.   I also felt guilty about feeling so down when I had such a beautiful baby.   Additionally, I had some reservations about some of the treatments out there, especially the drugs with their long lists of potential side effects.  I eventually got to the point where I was not functioning well and I had to get help, I realised PND is just an illness and not something to feel guilty or embarrassed about.  I wouldn't have so many reservations about getting help if I had a physical illness over a mental one.

I have started making some progress by finally seeking help and getting some treatment.  Speaking out and seeking help has made a huge difference to my wellbeing.

As part of my Goal to BE HAPPIER, I have set several other goals:

• Improve my relationships: especially with my Husband and family, but also with friends making a special effort to be more social.  I want to have more date nights with the hubby, more quality time with my son and invite friends over more often.  I really enjoy entertaining and cooking for other people and would love to do it more!

• Increase my spirituality: my relationship with God is something that has really made a huge difference in my life and has been an enjoyable aspect of my life.  After having a baby, I momentarily lost motivation to make time to do the necessary things to improve and maintain my relationship.  I want to put in the effort and get back what I have been missing and then some.

• Be healthier: I want to eat more healthily, become fitter and as a result lose weight.  I also want to improve my running and eventually run some running races!  I have started making some good progress with these goals.  Since the beginning of the 2013, I have lost approximately 7kgs to date.  I have done this by primarily eating better and exercising more.  I have more recently put in place a better eating plan and a structured exercise regime, with the help of my personal trainer.

• Kick start my career: I want to start using my degree in Law in my employment.  At this stage, I think I want a legal position within government.  I am currently working for government, which is a start, but its not the type of position I am after, and my role is not permanent at the moment.  I have started applying for different graduate roles and other permanent roles.  So far, I have had an interview and gotten to the first stage of the graduate programs.  However, the job search is still on.

• Read more: I want to read more books for enjoyment.  Recently, I have read the Harry Potter series and a couple of other books.  I really enjoy reading, its something I don't do enough!  I am currently reading 'Eat, Pray, Love', so far its been really good.

I'll keep you posted on my progress!

Wish me luck,

Melanie