Life as an ex pat can be tough. Time away from family back in the UK, small things like English TV & Media, Football.
But then every now and then you see something like this building, Rathaus Wien, and realise exactly why you are doing it.
I’ve come here to learn, explore and continue my challenge to conquer Europe by running its marathons, learning its languages and best of all experiencing its culture.
Up, breakfast, get ready to work and then at the end of the day no time left or too tired to hit the gym ?
Your diet and training should go hand in hand, and my advice would be to go through the initial pain and get yourself out of bed 1 hour earlier !
Set the alarm, prepare your gym bad the night before and get to the weights nice and early. The best bit – missing the mad rush in the evening and scrambling for machines.
Set yourself a circuit in the empty gym and work through a high intensity circuit for 30 minutes after a 10 minute warm up. Workout done, 20 minutes for a nice cold shower and to get your suit on.
You will also notice how much more productive you will be in the office first thing 😉
SET THAT ALARM !
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May 2013, Prague.
The comeback ! Prague will bring back bad injury memories of last years disaster. See the Prague tab for details.
But a great place to re start my mission. A lovely city with a very well organised Marathon. 19 weeks worth of preparation begins now, as I look to lose 6kg in weight , put some steady miles in my new trainers and gain flexibility in the key areas that caused injuries last year.
For 2013 I have planned 5 marathons, and making sure I get through this one injury free will be essential.
Here goes !
So life as an expat here is life changing. It opens your eyes to a much larger world where Reality TV, Celebrity and False Eye Lashes are non existent.
One of the interesting thoughts is that of language learning. Most people here speak at least two languages, and many of my colleagues speak 4,5,6 and one guy speaks 7 fluent languages !
This is down to hard work and a different mentality, but also the upbringing at home. One of my colleagues talks to his baby in Portuguese, whilst the mother talks to the baby in German. The 3 year old understands both.
Perhaps something to consider for my boy…
Few guys asking for advice on how to get enough carbs out of a wheat free diet. Here’s a daily example below. Stick to it, measure yourself and watch the bloat reduce !
Breakfast ;
Smoothie – 1/2 bag of frozen summer fruits. 1 banana. Handful of jumbo oats. Scoop of whey protein. Yoghurt, contents of standard pot.
Snacks in between meals ( important ) ; Nuts. Seeds. Meats on Rice Cakes. Keep the protein levels high.
Lunch ; Quinoa & Chicken – flavour as you wish.
Dinner : Meat & Veg / Salad.
Personally when trying to lose weight, i ease of the amount of carbs eaten later in the day, or maybe even have no carbs after the lunch time intake.
Eat like a King in the morning, graze throughout the day.
Keeping off the gluten and wheat will regulate your sugar levels, forcing your body to use fat rather than sugar for its energy source. Once regulated, your energy levels should stay the same all day, preventing desperate cravings for crappy foods. Cut out the processed sugar to help with this 🙂
Enjoy, and let me know how you get on !
Keep the blood sugar levels regulated by keeping off the wheat all together.
No wheat, no gluten. It’s a caveman diet, all natural and just you watch the bloat reduce rapidly, the energy levels increase and your body fat drop at a steady rate.
Me ? I am 4 days in and have lost 1.5 inches of bloat around my waist. The best bit – I am still eating like a king , just the right stuff 😉
The map below shows the views my blog received from 52 countries.
This time next year, I hope to be able to communicate with some of you in your native languages 🙂
Good luck in 2013 with your personal goals, and remember to live this year like its your last !
Switzerland, the financial hub of Europe is a country that is certainly on my agenda. The low tax scheme and high quality of life is one I wish to experience one day.
Interesting how the country is divided into languages spoken. As I am studying German in 2013 as my primary focus, I am looking at a second language to build a base of ready for when my German is good enough to move on. Perhaps Italian as the second ?
Agenda ;
May – Prague
September – Berlin / Warsaw
October – Budapest
November – Athens
December – Lisbon
Anyone joining me ?!
Bayern currently on a two week break, so Mr Alaba popped by in his home town to say hey and was very kind to give me two very nice presents – one for me, one for my baby…
Enduro Coop 