Looks like im not superwoman!

Today I want to cry, everything just all seems too hard, iv still got so far to go, weight wise and mind set wise!

Monday my run didn't happen, it was pouring and pitch black, I run behind a prison so not something I feel safe doing in the dark! If I wait till it's light I don't have time before work. Not a big deal, I went to the gym and smashed over 1000 calories

Getting down to business, exercise isn't (and rarely has been) the issue.

Food. Food. Food

What the f*#k is wrong with me?!! Seriosuly?!! I manage to be perfect all day up until I get home from the gym, while im cooking dinner I raid the cupboards (or my partners lunch bag) and eat crap!!

Plan of attack - days i get home from the gym later ill chuck a muesli bar or protein shake in my gym bag so I dont get home starving!

Weigh in Wednesday? Outcome to be determined tomorrow! Combination of me forgetting and my scales being annoying meant it just didn't happen this morning. A little bit crap since im not feeling very good bout tomorrow, expecting a gain, scientifically speaking, I havent eaten enough over to gain weight, but I think when ur head gets in the way it holds onto everything!

Bring on tomorrow, regardless of the scales I will prove to myself that I can do this!!

Feeling very lucky to have some people that i can message (my version of saying I need help) and get replies of exactly what I need to hear!

Keeping myself accountable!

Just putting it out there, I WILL get up tomorrow morning before work to do my 3km run that is scheduled on the 10km running program, and I will also do my normal gym session in the arvo. Aiming for a few 1000 cals day to get me back on track for weigh in!

Hope everyone has a great Monday :)

Week 2 Weekly Surprise

The task this week was to nominate a blog, whether it be your own or another 12wkers - i love/hate this task. I love getting to read so many amazing blogs, and adding them to my list to follow, but i hate having to narrow it down!! I also hate how it becomes a popularity contest, some people decide its a perfect time to spam people and groups with links to their blogs.

My nominations had to go to the two blogs that ALWAYS have inspired me and motivated me to keep going!

Jayne (GI Jayne) is one amazing lady!! I still remember staying up late the night i discovered her blog so i could read all of the entries!
http://jayne12wbt.blogspot.com.au/

and

Kate (Coco girl), she reminds me that we all have what we perceive to be failures, but as long as you don't give up u can get there!!
http://cocogirlbutter.blogspot.com.au/

also some others that i love to read are;
http://daynamorphic.blogspot.com.au/
http://pythasnewlife.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.shehascuterunners.com/
http://www.kathytyndale.com/ (Blogger of the round - round 4, 2012) 
http://donna83-my12weekjourney.blogspot.com.au/

All of the above have inspired me in some way or another!!

Also i need to say a HUGE thankyou to Jayne and Zoe for nominating my blog!! It's great to know that some people read my ramblings :)

That time of the week again!!

Weigh in time!!
Who would have thought i actually look forward to it every week! Stoked with a loss of 2.2kg - could not wipe the smile off my face. I was a little nervous that i would struggle this round, luckily enough i didn't seem to get any post finale blues, thanks to some lovely SA ladies i was able to get closure on a few things, and with that came the determination to absolutely smash this round!!

I am within reach of goal (by within reach, i actually mean around 15kgs), but that absolutely feels doable this round!! I've decided to aim for the lower end of what my dexa scan said to aim for, and in Melbourne i will have another one and reassess from there. I'm not going to beat myself up if i dont get there, but i am going to give it my absolute all!! I will have to beat myself up if i don't lose atleast 10kg though! My roomies from finale in Brisbane and i made an agreement that we all have to lose 10kg this round, or we have to do a brutal workout involving lots of burpees and turkish getups come finale weekend! I am proud to say that we have all had a great loss this week!

Must head off to bed now, i've been a sick one the past week so am making sure i'm getting plenty of sleep and drinking a bucket load of water! (not literally a bucket load, but seriously, get water into you! it definitely has played a big part in my awesome start to the round cos im making such a conscious effort to get 3L during the day and an extra L when i exercise!) Just a tad excited to get back to the gym tomorrow now i'm starting to feel a bit more human!!

Bullying

 “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go...” - Dr Seuss

This may not be the most up-beat post, but i believe it is something that effects so many of us, and sadly, the first time i experienced it since moving states was once i started this program. Obviously, a bunch of women get nasty, but the experience of trying to get healthy is hard enough without saboteurs getting in the way.

Since Brisbane, i've received a lot of messages, some from strangers, some from friends, and some from people that i had thought were in my past. Now, them coming back into my present is by no means a bad thing, these people either judged me based on other peoples opinions of me, or were people i had had a small falling out with, or basically were people i'd just drifted away from. It made me wonder, did these people only want to reconnect because of my success, or had i changed? was i a person that people wanted to be around more so then the version of me i was 12 months ago? Personally, i believe the only thing that i changed about myself was removing toxic people from my life, Mish had mentioned it atleast once each round, but i didn't realise the power it would return to me until i did it last round. I think that's where this message is heading, whether you have been bullied or are being bullied, remember that you hold the power to guide ur life in whichever direction you choose, you can let them win, but it is by far more empowering to know that u have risen up against all that life has thrown at you, and you have come out on top.

Next time you hear something has been said about you, take it with a grain of salt. It says more about them then it does about you. Those that are worthy of being in your life will ignore it, those that believe it are doing you a favour by judging you, they're not the people you need in your life.

And most importantly, believe in yourself!

“I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!” - Dr Seuss

Inspiration board - Week 1

For the past few rounds, i've used the same inspiration board, why? because it inspires me, and i am lazy! lol
Decided to stop being lazy this round, so here is my inspiration board :)

Week 1 Recap

Week 1 is nearly over, many moons ago this is when my excitement would disappear, these days, i'm only just getting started!!

Weigh in after Brisbane, 2.5kg down!! This round is starting out perfectly!!
What are my goals for this round? well, i'm yet to sit down and do my pre-season tasks (on my to do list for this weekend), but i think my ultimate goal for the round is to hit goal weight. After having a dexa scan in brisbane, i found out that my original goal weight was impossible (55kg), as i have 55kg of muscle, revised goal is now around 65kg, give or take, and will have another dexa when i get closer and see where im at, so, is goal possible this round? we will see. i know it means committing 110%, and that is ok with me. I'm back working 7 days a week, and uni is about to go back (i'm also at uni full time), so its make or break time. Organisation is going to be crucial for me this round, but organisation is what saw me succeed last round! Bring it on i say!!

This week i did no shop, i spent my money in brisbane so the budget was tight, and i figured i had enough in the freezer to get me buy - for those that have asked what my routine is, breakfasts i did smoothies all week, lunch was a bit of this and a bit of that (fruit salad featured a few days), and dinner was leftovers, tonight i tested out my new George grill (part of my prize from last round), and it was amazing! it was just grilled chicken with Moroccan seasoning with salad and vegies, but it was so so good!! so those that say they can't afford the food, every few weeks look in ur freezer and u will see that u can skip a week of shopping, and just buy the bare minimum! and even if u have nothing in the freezer, fajitas, nachos etc are super cheap and can easily do a few nights!
Exercise this week has been the 10k running program, plus boxing mon, wed, and team pt tues :) 

Tomorrow i have to make sure that i get my before pics uploaded, get my inspiration board done, and get through a shift at work without caving in the food department! And on top of that its a 3k run on the schedule, eeek, i haven't tried to run that far in years! i'm hoping its raining in the morning or else im gonna struggle to do it in this stinking weather!

FINALE!!!!!

This is going to be one BIIIIIIG post (and one full of photos), so if you're gonna read it all, might be time to settle down with a cuppa first!!

I guess all good stories should begin at the start, (because right now i feel like i'm still living in a fairytale!)

Fri - 8th Feb - 4am alarm! Off to the airport to board my flight, arrived in Brisbane and had to wait about half an hr for my roomies to rock up. Now i use that term loosely, i had never met these people before, i was hoping they weren't crazy people, but how can one tell?! Well, luckily for me, my weekend started off pretty damn good. This was what greeted us at the airport, the lovely Kate! After squishing bags into the back of her car, and squishing people into the back seat, it was off to the hotel :) 

 

 

 

And so began my weekend with a bunch of strangers, that i now gladly call friends!

Fast forward a rainy afternoon in Brisbane, to a workout put on by former Biggest Loser winner Margie, I knew another 12wker that was doing the workout, so met up with her there :)

 Liz ended up being another person that played a huge part in an amazing weekend!

The workout was good, not run as well as i thought it would have been, but it was a workout all the same, and it was a way to see a bit of Brisbane by ferry :)

Dinner ended up being at Satay hut, was reminded once again that anything deep fried now tastes disgusting! But was still a great way to end my first night in Brissy!!

Saturday - 9th Feb - This round i decided to volunteer at the finale, mainly because knowing the workout was indoors, i figured it may be carpet and my shoes are too grippy (my knee would probably choose that moment to dislocate!), in the end, as much as i wanted to join in, it was wayyyy too crowded and i had fun watching everyone! I was part of the water crew, next round i'll probably volunteer, but will also jump in the workout :) Favourite part of volunteering, was seeing Mish in a relaxed environment, she was so willing to talk to everyone, sign people shirts, get photos etc. I look like a complete gronk in them, but here is one i got (note to self - next finale, hat off for photos!)

How AMAZING does she look?!!! I spent a good part of the workout watching her on the screen drooling over her body!! hehe

What happens after the workout? Lunch and time to frock up!! This is the part where i should probably insert that all i ate all day was half a sandwich! Why?! Because i was a nervous wreck all day!!



I received this email Thurs night, (why on earth would they send it at night? it meant limited sleep before my 4am wakeup Fri! lol) Anyway, obviously i was stoked!!! BUT it meant going on stage infront of over a thousand people! That terrified me, and was the reason for all of my nerves!! So my lack of food meant that i had to make sure i didn't drink much at the party, or i'd become a trashy mess!

After hair and makeup was done, it was time to frock up (after eating a peanut to keep my roomies off my case about eating :P) I don't want to sound up myself, but i absolutely loved the way i looked. I loved my hair, i loved my makeup, and i loved my dress, i'm getting there in the loving myself department!
Here are some pics pre-finale :)

The time came to head to the stage and get ready to go up, i was lucky to find the wonderful Kate, Logan and Kathy there! (as well as all the other wonderful people, but these three i knew in person, i had been in contact with on the forums), knowing that they were all terrified as well calmed my nerves, right up until we were called on stage, IN THE WRONG ORDER!!! i was meant to be towards the end, but nope, Mish decided to call me second! ARGHHH!! anyway, i managed to get through my little cat walk attempt without falling flat on my face, so that in itself was a win!

Here are the results of the awards, (insert Mish's voice reading them out)

The Round 4 WINNERS are: Quiet Achiever: Jenelle Connors (Jensy1974). Inspirational Role Model: Steve Ball (StevieB) and Sarah Ziino (missz). Blogger of the Round: Kathy Tyndale (Ozgoddess). Lean & Strong 1st Place: Karen Dunick (Jemma), 2nd Place: Kellie Socratous (Kel28), 3rd Place: Louise du Toit (Louise 971). Overall Transformation 3rd place: Logan Madeley (Dustyfaith), 2nd Place: Tracey Bennett (Tracey) and Overall Transformation Winner: Belinda Marshall (Bel.M)

I think i'm still in shock that i finally got my shit together, i lost a huge chunk of weight, AND I CAME SECOND!!!!! 

This was my prize

2nd Place Prize valued at over $8,000 includes:
Trip for two to the Golden Door, 5-day retreat
3-month membership to Fernwood Fitness
Natures Way Protein Figure
Starshots Perfection Gift Card Pack including 20 × 24 inch portrait valued
George Foreman Pack including Steamer, Juicer & Jumbo Grill
Fitbit ONE
Philips Actionfit headsets

 

After this, i was asked if i would do an interview for the 12wbt blog, to be honest, if i wasn't in shock i'm not sure i would have said yes, but if it can help even just one person then it was worth it!

Again, i think i'm still in shock! This program has been totally life changing, i've made amazing friends from all over Australia, i've gotten to a place where i know that without a doubt i will get to goal, i had the courage to go to finale on my own, and it was the best finale i've been to!! 

 I've heard some people say that the 12wbt is a cult, while i don't believe that, for those that do, what better cult to be part of then one that is focused on having a healthy mind and body?

And of course to the people that supported me throughout the entire round, the 30+ crew, SWSYD crew and the Pirates from the Den, thank you for cheering me on when i was on stage, and calming my nerves prior. Without your encouragement over the 12 weeks, i would not have gotten to where i have! 

To the SA people that i have reconnected with recently, thankyou for always believing in me :) 

To the haters, haters gonna hate, i was the one on stage, not you, so i clearly kicked ur ass :P 

My fairytale continues with 12wbt sending me this email, after thinking on it, i'm going to do it, but request that they hold off until closer to the end of this 12 weeks, that way it gives me some more time to just focus on myself.  

My advice for anyone doubting themselves, consistency!! and focus on nutrition, without the foundations of that, you will find it so much harder then it needs to be xx

And finally, because so many people asked to see them, here are my before/afters  

 

Wow!!

Words can't really express how I'm feeling right now!

I was absolutely stoked a few weeks ago to win a weekly surprise, and Brisbane well and truly topped that feeling!!

Will post more once I touch down in Adelaide and get myself organised for next round!!