I’ve realised I haven’t written a post yet on what life is like working offshore, a typical day for me bopping around in the middle of the ocean.
My job definitely isn’t what you’d call ‘normal.’ We all muse and remind each other of this rather a lot! It’s not your average 9-5 kind that’s for sure.
In fact we work 12 hours shifts, on nights or days. So my typical day is flipped upside down. I set my alarm at 11pm to start work at midnight, and finish at midday. This may sound hurrendous to you, but you really do get used to it. Somehow the 12 hours whizz by, more for me than they do in an office environment.
Currently I wake up to views of this. It’s pretty neat.
We’re like a family on here. We’ve all been working with each other for many years and it’s impossible to not see all shades of your colleagues personalities – the grumpy non-morning moments, the bright and cheerful, the stressed, the tired and hungry…
Nahh we’re not that bad ;).
There’s also the (very) chatty and happy moments, and most importantly the bonding times from connecting and building a strong team together. Those are the best.
The food on here is pretty good considering we’re in the middle of the ocean. We have a large, hot buffet 3 times a day plus a salad bar, freshly made desserts daily and a huge supply of snacks such as nuts, yoghurt, fruit, chocolate etc.
You could certainly come on here and gorge yourself silly for 5 weeks until you eventually waddled off back to land..
But this is not a pretty thought. So I’ve decided to head in the opposite direction and use my time here as a detox. There’s no alcohol allowed, so that’s a pretty good start! And with enough will power, I follow a fairly strict eating and exercise routine as I’ve mentioned in previous posts.
I stick to a breakfast of rice, veg + fish or porridge, snacks of nuts and smoothies and main meals of fish/protein + salad. I’m trying to cut out any processed foods. This means no chocolate, or the disgustingly-greasy yet deliciously-tempting spring rolls and french fries. I just wish we had a juicer onboard so I could crank out the juices from my juice detox, but I’ll just have to wait for that when I’m back on land!
After shift I do the Insanity workouts in the gym with my colleagues. It’s something I’m really passionate about and love recommending to all my friends. Insanity is a home-workout DVD created by Shaun T. It’s claimed to be the hardest home-workout there is, and I’d be surprised if that wasn’t true.
It’s grueling, torturous, crazy-intense, but worth every bucket load of sweat and tears. I can almost guarantee it will change your body. You’ll get fit, toned, feel strong and energised. If you’re looking to lose a bit of weight or tighten up ready for summer, I highly recommend it!
After an hour of jumping around like a loon, I’ll usually go outside for some fresh air before watching my favourite TV shows in my cabin.
Homeland, Modern Family, Brooklyn 99, Game of Thrones and Episodes are all up there. Can you tell I’m a TV show addict? Once I start I can’t stop, although after Breaking Bad it’s a struggle to find anything as brilliant and captivating. (If you haven’t already started watching BB, you must check it out! I’d keep your diary clear for a while though).
I love having a kind of double life. From not having to care about what I wear to work out here (I wear comfy sweats and most of the ‘basics’ from Gap and Zara. It’s a dream), to living a life back on land of travel-adventures, pampering, fine-dining and cocktails.
Working offshore isn’t for everyone, but the perks of having half the year off to travel and do whatever you please is pretty awesome.
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I just want to take this opportunity to let you all know that it’s the Cosmopolitan Blog Award 2014 coming up soon! I’m going to enter in the Best Lifestyle Blogger this year. I truly hope you’ve all been enjoying my blog so far. I would be eternally grateful and happy if you wanted to nominate me! (You have to scroll down to the bottom and click ‘next’ page. The deadline is 2nd June). It would be a dream come true to be a part of this event! :).
