Australian Trip

Tony and I were up at 6:30 and headed down to the hotel breakfast. Cereal, toast, milk, vegemite. None of which was appealing to me. After we ate Tony got all ready and pretty, and off we went to iPT Australia, just up the block.

Note from TG: any aspiring fitness professionals in Australia should consider contacting iPT Australia. Without question it’s a place that best sets up future fitness professionals for success. While it’s much more than this, what you can expect is a 26 week course that prepares you with all the skills you’ll need – assessment, anatomy, exercise technique, programming – to become a bonafide personal trainer. You’ll basically become 007, except without the license to kill.

Soon we met Jess, one of the day’s attendees, and then James, accompanied by his girlfriend Gill, and Brendon. As Tony and the boys got set up, Gill, Jason and I talked about what I would do with my day, since Tony was gracious enough to encourage me to go out and enjoy Sydney, instead of staying at the seminar all day.

I was asking about the Market on the Rocks during the weekend, and when Gill heard Jason and I talking about this, one eyebrow went up, and she said, “I’ve never heard of that…” She pulled out her phone, and after a quick Google, she was reading about the where and what of the market. I started to say goodbye and excuse myself, and Gill said, “want some company?”. Yeah!

So Gill and I set off.

First to a big fancy mall, where I got myself some Uggs, which are Australian in case you didn’t know. Not big boots, but these super warm + cute moccasins that I will TOTALLY rock at work so that no longer will my feet be freezing while I sit and meet with patients every single day! Yay.

Australian autumn is just beginning, so lots of summer stuff was on sale, which of course made me want to buy up everything. But I controlled myself. Prices are higher, and I guess that’s either because we’re in a major city, because Aussies say everything is more expensive in Australia, or both.

Gill and I were fast friends. You may not know this about me, but I am a shopping Jedi. Bargain huntress. Clearance Ninja. I do not give out shopping prowess compliments easily, but I must say that Gill is equally skilled. I was lucky to have her company all day. Here we are together in front of Hyde Park:

The Open Market on The Rocks happens every Saturday and Sunday, and I was worried I would have to miss it, since we would be in seminar Saturday and flying home Sunday. But when Tony encouraged me to Carpe Diem, I was thrilled to get to check it out! Look, isn’t it wonderful?:

It reminded me of SOWA (South End Washington Street) market, in Boston during the summertime. I helped myself to some Australian souvenirs, and of course got a little gift for Tony (Which you’ll see later on).

After shopping Gill popped back into the seminar and I returned to the hotel to start packing. I took care of about half of it, and then went to the seminar to observe Tony wrap up the day. When I came in he was coaching a deadlift and answering some questions:

The day ended just shy of 5:00pm, and Tony was satisfied with how much material he covered. He was happy to have another attentive audience! Special thanks to all of the Sydney Seminar participants.

Here we are with James and Gill, just before saying goodbye:

Once back at the hotel, I presented Tony with his congratulations-on-two-Australian-seminars-completed gift:

As you can see, he put it right on, and we headed out for dinner.

Tony’s friend and colleague, Mike Cambell (and author of bestseller Unleash Your Alpha) recommended a nearby spot for dinner. Riley’s Garage is, in fact, a renovated garage.

It’s amazing! One of the most fabulous places I have ever been. We showed up without a reservation, but being the early birds we are, there was one more table we were able to snag. I’m not kidding you, the place was brimming with fabulous Australians.

I, on the other hand, was not looking Australian or fabulous. Today being my third-and-a-half day of not-feeling-so-hot, being under the weather has taken its toll on my appearance. So you will not be seeing a picture of Tony and I out to dinner at Riley’s Garage.

The food was delicious. Tapas style with shared-everything, we had some beetroot salad, and I actually got Tony to say yes to ordering the whole fish! It’s a favorite of mine, but if it’s not pristine, boneless, and lacking all semblance of an animal, Tony’s disgusted by it. But tonight, he decided to live on the edge, and I was so glad!

After dinner we needed to head back down Victoria Street in search of an ice cream place that colleagues of Tony’s told him he must have before leaving. Messina was a happening ice cream joint, with sexy music and customers. Actually, the entire neighborhood was happening and sexy.

At this point I turned into a pumpkin. But not just any pumpkin; a tired, chills-ridden, angry-tummied, I-am-sick-of-being-sick, irritable, cranky pumpkin. Poor, poor Tony. So we weren’t happening, fabulous, sexy young Australians on our last night in town. But we did our best. Hopefully whatever this is will be all gone tomorrow so that I am not dealing with any illness on a 13-hour flight!

Good night and talk to you tomorrow,

Lisa and Tony

12 hours of sleep! I was a new woman this morning. I did need to hatch though, and not do my normal catapult out of bed (I am a morning person). So Tony and I searched Australian TV, which is slim pickings (who needs TV when you have all of this amazing weather?!). But, we came upon a gem this morning. Something so special.

Friends, please say hello to Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo:

Skippy is Australia’s answer to Lassie. Created and released upon happy Aussie boys and girls everywhere, and then syndicated in the US in the early 70’s, Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo is an amazing friend, pet, and detective.

He is ready to help at all times, and can hop like nobody’s business. I don’t know what you have to do, but whatever it is, do that in order to watch this show!

While chanting the theme song to Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo, Tony and I hit the hotel gym. (Here it is:

Skippyyyyyy,

Skippyyyyyyyyy,

Skippy, The Bush Kangarooooooo!)

Actually, it was more like we tapped the gym. Or gently spooned it. My calves are wrecked from the last few days, and overall I think our bodies are just tired! We followed that up with a nice big breakfast at the hotel, and we had a great view from our table, where we could see the rain start to fall.

After packing and checking out of the hotel, we took advantage of the free wifi in the lobby. Unfortunately, my bug has not run its course yet, so I also took lots of medicine and availed myself of the hotel lobby bathroom a conspicuous and embarrassing amount of times.

But still an improvement from yesterday. BTW, we love the Sir Stamford Hotel! Jarrod and Troy, the concierges (is that the plural?), were mega-accommodating, and locked away our luggage so we could go to the Taronga Zoo.

Unfortunately, it was raining. We left with water, wallets, and shorts on, and that’s it. Not smart.

We realized the extent of our lack of preparedness (which we can mostly blame on not being parents) when we were freezing and in need of an umbrella!

Here I am waiting for the ferry to take us across the Harbour from the Quay to the zoo itself:

And when we arrived, we took a quick picture of the entrance:

Despite the “bad” weather, it was still amazing. Overall we lucked out, and ducked in and out of coverage when it really came down. I was not feeling good, but when there are giraffes, and wallabies, and Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo, who can complain? See some pics:

That’s a Wallaby in the forefront, and a female kangaroo in the back.

Also, the zoo is in a prime location, so you get amazing views of the city:

My favorite, naturally, were the kangaroos. I think I was taking kangaroos for granted all this time. Look how gorgeous they are!:

And see how big and muscular they are!:

Amazing. They are now rivaling the giraffe as my favorite animal. We also sang to them:

Skippyyyyyyy,

Skippyyyyyyyyy,

Skippy, the Bush Kangarooooooooo!

Tony and I hopped the ferry back to the Quay, and sadly, checked out of our fancy-assed Sir Stamford Spot. Jarrod, the fabulous concierge, offered us some keys to the locker room in the gym, so that we could change, and even shower if we wanted.

We hopped a cab over to our final hotel, the Ibis Budget in East Sydney. Here is our room:

It is the same size as the bathroom at the Sir Stamford. There are no drawers, no hangers, and not even a hook. It was… interesting. However, it did have amazing view!

We ran out for dinner, and discovered Sydney’s answer to Bare Burger (<— Tony’s favorite burger joint when he visits NYC)! Grill’d offered all grass fed meat, fresh produce, and yummy everything. I was very hungry, but feeling nervous to eat. What would the sensible person do? Get some broth and a ginger ale and play it safe. What did Dr. Lewis do? Order a lamb & hummus burger with a ginger beer!

As you can see: Tony is ready to pounce on his burger. The “claws” are out.

The ginger beer was amazing. It was water, ginger, sugar, and alcohol. How could that not be good for your tummy? As for my burger, I hoped for the best, and was able to eat most of it. For the rest of the night, we’ll just keep our fingers crossed….

So, tomorrow, Tony’s off for Seminar #2, taking place nearby, and I’ll do a Tony pick-up and drop-off with some exploring and shopping in between! Tonight, we’ll serenade ourselves to sleep, with “Skippyyyyy, Skippyyyyyyyyy, Skippy, the Bush Kangaroooooooo…..”

Thanks for reading. Stay tuned!

Lisa and Tony

Dammit. I was up most of the night with an angry tummy, and when Tony got up a little after 6:00am he needed to go out and get me some Tylenol, Imodium, and water. I was having shakes and chills, and feeling crappy.

Note from Tony: Lisa will kill me for putting this up, but the picture says a thousand words.

Dammit! Who wants a bug on vacation?!

I felt sorry for myself for a few minutes while Tony was out, and once I took a bunch of medicine, I decided NOT to chuck a sickie (Australian for calling out sick from work).

My best friend Leslie is a trooper when it comes to travel, and also of being a sport when she’s sick, so I decided to channel my inner Leslie and not miss out on any of the fun scheduled for today! Off Tony and I went, to spend the day with our Sydney host, James (Garland).

We met James at the same gym we trained at yesterday. I tagged along with Tony on his bench day, since my legs were shot from yesterday’s leg day + bridge climb. After our workout, we jumped in the car with James and headed north. First we had some brekkie at The Bent Spoon in Ja Freshwater, then got back in the car and checked out Freshwater beach:

Then back in the car again headed a little farther north to Avalon beach and took a hike up to Barrenjoey lighthouse. Here are some pics:

It was great to be able to see such amazing sites! James knew where all the good photo ops were. Don’t you love this one, where Tony is totally striking a pose?:

I always find the decent is tougher on my legs than the assent, and as we walked down I could feel the leg day + the bridge climb (and descent) making my legs shake! We found a different route back down, and here are a few more pictures:

We jumped back in the car again, and James dropped us off at Manly beach! One of the “must sees”, Manly was recommended to us by almost everyone who knows anything about the Sydney area.

Unfortunately, the Tylenol I took had worn off, and I was freezing in the 82 degree weather, and ready for a nap! Tony and I lay right down in the sand and passed out for a good half hour. I am not kidding.

For lookers-on, it probably looked like we had been up for two days and had 35 shots of tequila. After sleeping soundly like a pair of hobos for 30 minutes, my plan was to jump in the ocean, but I was cold and feeling so weird (is there another way to describe what a fever feels like?) that I couldn’t do it! I did give it a try though:

Thank goodness Tony was tired too, because I felt like a buzz-kill. Eventually we walked up Manly beach and down a street lined with shops to the ferry.

The ferry from Manly to the Quay was also highly recommended to us, and reminded me of the Staten Island Ferry – except for its not being free.

Now I was full-blown lame, and fell asleep on the Ferry. But Tony took some pictures:

Luckily our hotel is a 5-minute walk from the Quay, so we were back at the hotel in a jiff. I fell asleep again, but not before taking some more Tylenol. Tony was in the mood for pizza, so we ended up at a cute little place called Zia Pina on the rocks, and then we got Tony an ice cream cone afterward.

When returned to the hotel at 7:00pm, I got in bed and really couldn’t get back out! Mega-lame. I tried to catch up on my writing, but was kind of a waste of space. Every 5-7 minutes I needed a mini-nap-break. Tony was down in the lobby using the free wifi, but I still felt bad about our boring night. I am praying that it’s just a little 24-hour bug, and that I’ll be as good as new tomorrow!

Fingers Crossed and talk to you then,

Lisa and Tony

We slept in! 6:00am and feeling good!

I only woke up kicking the Transformer-Kardashian-Wooly-Mammoth Spider of the bed once, so that was good. As I was typing up yesterday’s blog, Tony noticed a little something out of our back door, and BAM! Kangaroos first thing in the morning!

Breakfast was included with our night’s stay, and DANG! The biggest breakfast ever, and very Australian. There were eggs, chipolatas, beans, bacon, tomato, fruit loaf, quiche, bircher muesli, and vegemite!

The Aussie ladies sitting next to us instructed me so that I knew what to do: first toast the bread, then smear some butter, then a little vegemite. They thought I would hate it, but I didn’t.

Salty, goopy, and weird, but not horrific or anything. Kind of like Worchester sauce jam. Except non-horrific.

Anywho, we were so full we did not eat again until after 3. But even then we just had a snack (This is the equivalent of a normal couple saying they did not eat for two days after brekkie).

Off to explore! We checked out of our Tuscan mini-villa and met again with Jayne, who was so lovely and helpful. We got the HOOK UP for a tour at the Tyrell’s Winery, and some other little suggestions about a few to-do’s before heading back down to Sydney.

We checked out the Hunter Valley Gardens shops, and FINALLY found some flip-flops for Tony! Here he is – happy to be freeing his feet:

Then, on to Tyrell’s Winery. It looks gorgeous, it smells gorgeous, and of course, it tastes gorgeous. We were a little early for our 10:30am tour, so they offered us a glass of bubbly while we checked out the beautiful grounds:

That’s Brokenback Mountain in the background; not to be confused with Brokeback Mountain for you movie/Heath Ledger fans.

Then Damian provided a 90 minute tour, with the most informative lecture on wine making I have ever heard! I’ve been lucky enough to visit wineries in Sonoma, Napa, Tuscany, the Alsace, and the Winstrasse in Germany, and Damain surpassed all of those experiences. Here is Damian next to some insane smelling Shriaz grapes:

Note from Tony: Lisa totally had a crush on him.

After the tour we (I) tasted a little. Damian provided, “Water for the dry bloke!” (That would be Tony). All along I’ve been thinking I’d FINALLY be in a wine region with my kind of wine! Full bodied, masculine, lots of structure, and a smell like a forest floor.

Unfortunately, it is so hot in the Hunter Valley that the grapes ripen too quickly to produce this kind of wine. So the Hunter Valley Shiraz (to me) is like a Sonoma Pinot – thin, light, and pepper at the finish. I think the positive-sounding word is “elegant”, but to me it is puny.

So Damian and I talked it out, and apparently I’m more of a Barossa valley wine drinker. Tyrell’s makes a few wines with grapes from this region, and I was very happy to take home a shiraz with grapes grown in Barossa, but turned into wine right here at Tyrell’s.

Overall, it was a wonderful morning! I was very happy to learn that Tony enjoyed the tour as well.

Onward to the Hunter Valley Gardens! Just kidding.

When we got there we learned entry was $27 per person, which included admission to a garden which takes an hour to walk through… we didn’t think so. But here is the entrance, isn’t it nice?

We made a few more stops at a few more wineries, but didn’t pick up anything else. I think Verdelho is my favorite in the Hunter Valley, and I picked up a bottle of that yesterday – so we decided we were all set, and started our journey back to Sydney!

Tony was a pro and stayed to the left all the way back to the airport. We dropped off the car, and took a shuttle to the hotel… Wanna hear about the hotel?

I love bargains, so naturally I was looking for a bargain way to stay in the middle of the city. Hotwire has this function where they offer a certain quality of hotel for a rate, but it’s a “secret” which hotel you get. You essentially you can select 3.5 or 4 star, see the rate you’ll pay and what kind of hotel falls in that category, and then go for it! So Tony and I kept our eye on the rates for a few weeks, and then decided we could afford the 5 star for 3 nights if we went this route. We ended up with the “Sir Stamford Inn” right in the Quay:

Our room is lovely!

Spacious and cozy with a little Juliet balcony. My favorite is the bathroom. It is H.U.G.E. When you walk in the lights automatically go on. There’s a room on the right that’s the shower, and is bigger than my office back home. Then there’s another room with the toilet inside. Then there is an enormous bathtub.

The rooftop pool and lounge are a fav as well:

We unpacked, changed, and busted back out on the town to find dinner! Once again, thanks to our warrior brekkie, we really didn’t want a big meal, so Tony was in search of a salad, and I wanted to try another new fish. Tony had the folks at “Bar 100” slap some grilled chicken on a “rocket” (aka arugala) and watermelon salad, and I had the Barramundi with a prawn!

We found Tony some ice cream after dinner:

And then back to the hotel we went, but not without taking some candid shots of the our walk back “home.”

We sprung for the expensive internet so that we could get yesterday’s travel blog up, and I am hitting the sack! Tony will be up for awhile so he can catch up on emails and whatnot.

Thanks for reading, and talk to you tomorrow!

Lisa and Tony

Lisa’s daily dairy of our Australian Adventure continues……

Greetings! Tony and I made it all the way to 5:30am, so our clocks are just about re-set to Aussie time. Since we’re quick to acclimate to local culture, we waited until 7:00am before heading out for brekkie.

As directed by Shannan, we went to The Gallery Café and asked for the “Raw Brekkie” menu. (Shannan’s gym is “Raw Fitness”). As I imagined, a Meathead’s dream menu – Check it out:

Since I’ve been eating non-stop since we got here, I didn’t really feel I had the room (or the need) for four eggs + accompaniments. So I got some home made muesli with fruit and nuts. And of course, a flat white. Did I mention I love flat whites?

Tony on the other hand, ordered a big-assed omelet:

Stavi gave him a pat on the back after finishing, and we were both happy campers. We got our workout clothes for later on and jumped in the car with Shannan to start day 2 of the Because Heavy Things Won’t Lift Themselves Seminar. Here are some pics of the morning, which was part lecture and theory:

And part practice and demonstration:

Just before lunch, Tony and I piloted my being part of the show! As you may know, sport and exercise psychology is part of my educational background, and a major part of my personal passion. Specifically, and as you know if you’ve read my articles on Tony’s website (HERE and HERE), I care very much about motivation and exercise motivation.

Keeping in mind that Tony and I are visitors in a different culture, and speaking to an audience with a broad range of beliefs, orientations, and client populations, my goal was to approach psychological components of working with clients that are universally applicable. Naturally, I started with Ryan and Deci’s Basic Needs Theory, a component of The Self-Determination Theory of Movitation (American Psychologist, 2000).

My hope was to help trainers to consider the impact of their verbal and non-verbal interactions with clients, and how their own personal style, beliefs, and goals intersect with their clients’.

I was lucky to have a ‘first practice’ with an engaged and open audience. I imagine many of the trainers present are highly competent and successful in their practices, so I heard insight and self-knowledge from participants in regards to their relational style. Tony and I wanted to add a psychological component to the seminar, because the psychology of clients and the relational style of the trainer are major components of participation, persistence, and enjoyment of physical activity.

We think today was a good start to addressing this aspect of being a successful trainer!

I learned a tremendous amount about cultural similarities and differences. In addition, I was reminded that although psychotherapy and counseling is a normal, healthy, accessible resource to me, it’s still stigmatized, embarrassing, and indicative of severe psychopathology , or, “being a nut” to many other people in many other places.

When I write for Tony I tend to include some sort of “when in doubt refer to a therapist” recommendation, but today helped me to remember that for some (or many) trainers and their clients, this suggestion could be insulting or feel like rejection or judgment. There may also be less access to professionals, or professionals with adequate expertise and competency to be of service. Although I know the session was not about me, I benefitted a great deal, and was reminded of some things that I’ll cognizant of when I sit back down with clients next week.

After my session we squeezed in a super-quick lunch, and I grabbed a chicken sandwich from a nearby bakery.

After lunch Tony jumped right into the “hands on” portion of the show. Deadbugs, Birddogs, and squats, naturally. The day wrapped up with some discussion of programming, and Tony said thanks and G’day a few minutes past 5pm. Two full days of hard work! Nice job babe.

We were dying to move around and train! We got in a little session with some deadlifts and such. After getting hot and sweaty, Tony took some photos with some of the trainers and they even had him sign the wall of the facility:

After the quickest shower ever, Tony and I walked around a bit before settling on a restaurant called Twenty Nine, just up the street from the hotel. The manager brought the chef out so that Tony could get exactly what he wanted – a big ass salad with some chicken on top. I got to try a new fish! Dory:

Reminded me of flounder.

And here’s the view we had during dinner:

We were fading fast by the end of dinner, so we made the quick trip home, grabbed the last piece of carrot cake from the hotel restaurant, and came back upstairs to pack it up for tomorrow.

We will miss Ballina!

The people are lovely. The environment is relaxed and happy. The food was great, the breeze never ceased to be amazing, and it always smelled like your nose was stuck inside of a Gardina. Man it will be hard to go!

However, tomorrow we’re flying to Sydney, renting a car, and driving (on the left) up to the Hunter Valley!!!! Talk to you then!

Love, Lisa and Tony