SEA DAYS: 2014 RUNNING GOALS

As one of my New Year's resolutions this year i am setting a goal to be able to run steady for 20 minutes with a pre and post walk time of 5 minutes. Since i absolutely dread running when i exercise i've been finding it hard to get into a routine to achieve this goal. Yesterday on Pinterest i found an image detailing a beginner's running challenge. I've decided to incorporate this into my daily exercise to eventually be able to achieve my goal. 

SEA DAYS: HEALTHY SWEETS ON THE REM INSTALLER

Offshore, there is always a never-ending supply of unhealthy sweets in some shape or form. On the REM Installer there are ALWAYS home made donuts, ice cream and cake. Healthy sweet options include only fresh fruit and to satisfy my sugar cravings, I’ve been devouring a lot of it.

To keep myself motivated I thought it would be a good idea to write about all the benefits of the fruits I’ve been eating including grapes, apples, oranges, pineapple, watermelon, honeydew melon and cantaloupe. I hope you all can find some motivation in this post as well!

Jess.

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SEA DAYS: EXERCISING ON THE REM INSTALLER

With my job I am constantly going on different boats and have yet to be on the same one twice. As a regulation, it’s required for vessels to have some sort of exercising option for the crew on board. A lot of the time this option is ‘gym’ although it’s normally a bit different than what you find on land. Depending on the vessel this ‘gym’ can involve anything from a basketball court with a couple of free weights to a closet with an exercise bike. You basically have to take what you get. I got fairly lucky this hitch by being on a brand new vessel called the REM Installer.

SEA DAYS: GETTING USED TO THE FOOD

The first few days of this hitch on the REM Installer, I had massive shocks to my system. I pride myself on eating fairly well at home (every one has bad days), which includes cooking with healthy oils and eating fresh meat. Every time i go on a hitch offshore, my body completely rejects the food at first. I think the main reason I have a problem adjusting to the food is because of the cheap cooking oils used and the processed meat that is prepared.

SEA DAYS: AVOIDING COFFEE

Although i love a good black cup of coffee and it's metabolism benefits, it makes me have to pee A LOT. When i'm offshore and working long hours i need to get as much sleep as possible without having to wake up 5 times during the night. When i'm working a 12 hour shift, i turn to coffee to either keep me awake or keep me warm since the air conditioning is always on full blast in the south.  

TRAVEL DAYS: 'BLUEBERRY POWER' CHOBANI FLIP

Since i don't have time for or like large breakfasts while i'm in Houston, one of my favourite things to pick up at the grocery store are Chobani Flips. These little gems are greek yogurt cups accompanied by a separate ingredient that you 'flip' into the yogurt before eating. 

TRAVEL DAYS: DELAYS & LONG AIRPORT STAYS

Yesterday i started my travels to Texas for my next offshore hitch. Bad weather caused an overnight stay in New Jersey and another early flight the next morning to make it to Texas. In total i was travelling (with delays) for about 35 hours. I tend to subconsciously stress a lot while travelling, which causes me to have migraines and tension headaches.