12WBT Round 3 Workout and Finale

Yesterday I attended the Michelle Bridges Round 3 12WBT workout and finale. As I mentioned in my previous post, a friend of mine completed the program this round and got tickets for the event for my husband and myself.

The workout took place at Queens Park, Sydney. We arrived just in time to see Michelle present her new OneActive workout gear, which is exclusive to BigW. I have quite a lot of the range and I love it! It's super comfortable to exercise in and as casual wear. We then watched the finale of the fitness challenge...and let me tell you...those ladies were inspiring! They were machines!!

Mish and her team then lead the giant workout. Over 1000 people exercising together. The workout was a high-intensity aerobics workout, with some group activities and running thrown into the mix. I loved it and enjoyed every moment. It was great to be doing a workout with such an inspirational and motivating instructor...Mish is one fit chick!! I was so excited to meet her and extremely happy that I got to have a photo taken with her as well!

After spending the afternoon getting ready for the finale, we headed to the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park. Everyone looked amazing and Michelle was as exquisite as always! The night began with the Top 20 being announced and the overall winners being awarded their prizes. After the formalities concluded, canapes were served, drinks flowed and the dancing began!

The beautiful SWSyd Crew all dressed up at Finale

It was an unbelievable day...and the best part about it was sharing the experience with my beautiful husband. 

I am so thankful to have met Michelle and am so inspired to continue on my weight loss journey.

I'm sitting down tonight to write out my meal plan for the week, plan out my exercise and get ready to lose the last few kilos to see me back at goal.

Michelle Bridges, here I come!

Today I will be meeting Michelle Bridges and attending the 12WBT Round 3 Workout and Finale! I'm so excited!

I participated in a previous round of 12WBT and like most of you know,  I'm part of the SouthWestSyd Crew (we have a Facebook Page for past and present 12WBTers) and we're all rocking up in our super sexy shirts this morning! A friend of mine got us tickets for the workout and finale and am so thankful to her!

The event kicks off at 9:30am...and there is a fancy dress competition this morning...do you like me workout attire?!!!

Will post more pics later on!

Triathlon Pink - Saturday 6th October 2012

Today I competed in my first ever triathlon! I loved every minute of it!

I created a video of my amazing day...I hope you enjoy it!

One more sleep...

One more sleep until I compete in my first ever triathlon!

I'm nervous and excited, especially because I've had less than 2 weeks of preparation for the event.

I had decided I wasn't going to take part in the triathlon, rather sign up for the Pink Fun Run instead...that was until some dear friends encouraged me to still enter and give it a go ;)

So, Triathlon Pink short course, here I come!

Some of us ladies in the SWSyd Crew are going to wear our team shirts, pink hats and tutus!

My girls wanted to dress up too...so here they are ready to cheer for mummy and the SWSyd Crew tomorrow!

I've signed up for the Triathlon Pink event!

Yesterday I finally got together with some ladies from our SWSyd Crew for a 6km power-walk around Mt Annan Botanical gardens and then a swim session last night.

The walk was fantastic, with the real champions of the day being the kids. It was great to finally participate in a group event and my girls loved being with the other kids. It's great that we have a Crew where even the little ones can get involved.

Last night a few of us hit the pool for a swimming session. It's been a long time since I've been in the water, and I realised last night just how much I've missed it. I loved doing laps up and down the pool, with freestyle and backstroke being my strongest strokes. I'm going to make swimming part of my weekly exercise routine from now on.

At the beginning of the week, I had decided that I'd do the Pink Fun Run instead of the Triathlon Pink event due to lack of preparation...but last night Geanina and Rachel encouraged me to compete in the triathlon...and I did the craziest thing by accepting the challenge! 

We've decided to do the Triathlon Pink short course 100m swim/3km cycle/1km run. I think it's a good distance for our first ever triathlon and if I do well, my aim is to compete in the Women's Triathlon Festival at the Sydney International Regatta Centre, Penrith on the 25th November. The distance is longer for this event with a 250m swim/10km cycle/2km run. A distance that will definitely be a challenge.

I'm excited about next Saturday and can't wait to get in there and have a go. It's something I've always wanted to do and I'm finally going to try and tri!! I told my daughter that I'm racing for her next week. As many of you know, she suffers from General Anxiety Disorder. I told her that mummy is racing for her to show her that it's fun to try new things and the most important thing is to give it a go, have fun and smile. She promised she'll cheer me on the whole way!

I would love to crack the 70s and be in the 60s by next weekend for the event, so I'm determined to shed the 1.6kg to get me there...I've increased my workouts so fingers crossed the scales go in a downwards direction!!

The hardest post I've had to write...

I haven't posted in over a month and so much has happened in that time.

I should have been in Perth tonight, partying hard with the SWSyd girls at the Round 2 12WBT finale but unfortunately am unable to travel. I thought tonight was the best time to reflect on the last few weeks and share with you what has been happening.

So here goes...

During Week 8, I found out I was expecting. I was extremely excited, but nervous as I had had a miscarriage in February this year and hoped that history wouldn't be repeated.

I eased off the exercise, but continued to eat really well. I felt fantastic...but extremely tired! My blogging fell behind, as all I wanted to do was sleep...I was so exhausted and would be in bed by 8:30pm most nights.

I hit 6 weeks and was relieved...I had gone past the dreaded 5 weeks...where I miscarried last time.

I continued to walk most days and stuck to my healthy eating. I felt fantastic and on Monday 20th August I had a dating ultrasound (I was 8 weeks pregnant). Our little jellybean was doing well...a great size and had a strong heartbeat.

My precious little one

We were so excited and told our two gorgeous girls. They were going to be big sisters and were very happy. Life was great...

...that was until I woke up the very next morning.

I was bleeding and I broke down. I went straight to my GP and she took bloods. They raced through the results and told me that my HCG levels were great...not to panic and to have bed rest. So that's what I did. I tried to stay as calm as possible and rested. It got to Thursday (23rd Aug) and I was still bleeding. I rang my obstetrician and explained what was happening. He brought my appointment forward and I saw him on Monday (27th Aug). He examined me and performed another ultrasound...he could still see the baby and heartbeat. Even though I was relieved to hear this news, I was still extremely worried. I was still bleeding and the baby's growth had slowed down. I was instructed to continue on bed rest and was to return on Thursday (30th Aug).

Thursday morning came and back to my obstetrician we went. I walked in and the first words I said were "I'm still bleeding". He performed another ultrasound and explained that he could see the baby, but couldn't get a good picture of the heartbeat. I was sent for further ultrasounds and my worst fears were confirmed...at 10 weeks pregnant, my baby's little heart had stopped beating.

I was booked in for surgery the very next day (being last Friday). I came out of theatre and was in recovery for two hours. When they moved me back into the day surgery ward, my blood pressure dropped really low. I had absolutely no energy and just wanted to sleep, but the nurses brought me some food to eat, to try and get my blood pressure back to normal. It stayed quite low for the remainder of the day but I was allowed to go home.

We were devastated...and the hardest thing was telling our girls. My family have been so beautiful and extremely supportive. My hubby, my mum and dad have been amazing. They knew when I needed a cuddle, a shoulder to cry on and dropped everything to make sure I was ok. They shared school drop-off and pick ups and looked after our girls whilst I was on bed rest. I love them all so much.

I was in a lot of pain last weekend (both physically and mentally). I didn't do much for the first few days after surgery...I was just totally exhausted. I'm feeling a lot better this weekend (and have even managed a few walks on the treadmill)...but I'm STILL bleeding...19 days now. I'm over it. I just want the bleeding to stop. I see my obstetrician for my post-op appointment this Thursday. Hopefully he has some test results and can shed some light on what caused the miscarriage.

I want to thank three special SWSyd ladies who have been so supportive over the last few weeks. To Carly, Jayne and especially my gorgeous Rose...thank you for your words of encouragement and your prayers. Your messages really helped me through this difficult time and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

So to reflect on Round 2...
I am so proud of my achievements.
- I managed to shed 7.8kgs and maintained (and even had a few small loses) during my pregnancy.
- My fitness increased...and I even ran 3km without stopping.
- I've lost heaps of centimetres from my body and am starting to like what I see.
- I was in the top 15% of Round 2.
- I made some amazing friends...and love our SWSyd Crew.
- And my biggest  achievement...I beat emotional eating. Through everything that has happened, I have not had one binge. I have not had the urge to turn to food...and that is just mind blowing! I'm in control of my emotions and I'm not letting them rule me.

So, where to from here?
I missed Round 3 registration, so am unofficially doing 12WBT this round. I have decided to not count calories, but to go back to counting my ProPoints (Weight Watchers). I've counted points for the last 12 years (so it's kind of embedded in my brain!!!). I enjoyed the break that counting calories gave me, but I'm a true WW at heart and just feel more comfortable with the points system.

As soon as I get the all clear next week, I'm going to start training again. I'm going to follow the 12WBT Intermediate exercise plan and look forward to running again...did I actually just say that?!! I really want to participate in our SWSyd group workouts and events this round (as I missed out on all of them last round due to illness and then the pregnancy).

I hope to fall pregnant again in the future and pray that everything goes well. For now, I'm giving myself a few months break. We've been trying to conceive since November last year and have had two miscarriages within 6 months. I emotionally need a break. I want to concentrate on my health and my weight-loss journey. I am determined get to my goal weight by the end of the year. I know that I can do it...I've overcome my biggest hurdle...emotional eating...and know that with the amazing support from my family, our SWSyd Crew...and my two little angels...I will get there.

Inspirational Prints

So Round 2 has officially started and I've had a great first two days.

I am loving all the support from the 12WBT Members in the forums and SWSYD Crew and I thought I'd pay it forward!

Not many people know, but I've just started a graphic design course. I'm only teaching one day a week this year (on a beautiful year 2 class) but I miss teaching my art and music. So the creative chick in me needed an outlet. I've always LOVED creating and have designed digitally (logos, website graphics, advertisements, business cards, invitations, candles etc...) for over six years! I love designing as much as I love teaching, so I thought it was time to get a formal qualification! I'm currently studying a Diploma in Graphic Design through CATC Design School.

So, I know what you're thinking...What the heck does that have to do with 12WBT?

Well, in an aim to keep myself motivated this round, I have created a series of inspirational prints...and I want to share them with you!

I've created them in A4 size, so you can download, print and insert these into a frame...too easy!

The first print I am releasing is...

Click on image to download the PDF file.

I hope you have had a great start to this round.  

Look out for more prints soon!

What inspires you and keeps you motivated?

The dreaded scales...

Image via HERE.

Today is Wednesday, and to the 12WBTers it means weigh-in day...but what is it about standing on a scale, and staring down at a number that freaks us all out so much?

Put simply, scales are an instrument for weighing...but scales are so much more than that! They assess whether we have stuck to our commitment and achieved our goals. They often rule our lives, and in particular our emotions.  They can either motivate us, or send us on a downward spiral.

I don't have a good relationship with scales...even when I like the number displayed, my scales and I are still not friends. Let me explain...I have struggled with my weight my entire life. I started Weight Watchers at the age of 19, and during my first weigh-in I was mortified. I had to stand on the 'old fashion' scales and watch as the woman measuring moved this little lever further and further to the right.

Image via HERE.

Each week I would weigh in and the little lever would move closer to the left...what a relief! I reached my goal weight of 58kg a few months later...but no one had told me how hard it would be to maintain and I became fearful of the scales...wanting the number to stay the same and not move up!

My weight hovered between 58kg and 64kg for a few years, but when I became pregnant with my first daughter, everything changed. After following the Weight Watchers program for 5 years, I thought all my Christmases had come at once when I heard the words "You're pregnant!" Awesome...I now could eat anything I wanted because I was eating for two! On visiting my obstetrician I was again faced with the 'old fashioned' scales and watched as the little levers moved further and further to the right...every...single...month. By my due date, I had put on 30kg...ahhhhhh. I thought the weight would just disappear after giving birth...how wrong I was! I worked very hard during the first year of my daughter's life and at her 1st birthday I again weighed 58kg.

During the next two years my weight again hovered between 58kg - 65kg...you see, once I reached 'goal weight' and saw that 'magic number' I thought I had reached my destination...and still hadn't comprehended that it was a constant journey that I would travel.

When I fell pregnant with my second daughter, I was determined not to put on 30kg...this time only putting on 15kg...which I was proud of...but guess what? I haven't been able to shed the weight this time and MAINTAIN. I've gotten so close to getting under 70kg (my new 'magic number' and milestone), but whenever I get close...my body...my mind decides that I'm not worthy of achieving my goals...and I binge...and binge....and binge, until I'm back to exactly where I started.

So you see, the scales and I are not good friends. Even when I like the number that I see, the scales turn into my enemy, and the mind games begin.

Image via HERE.

I'm tired of being ruled by the scales...and I'm not going to let the scales beat me this time round...who's with me?!!

We're in charge...and if we all support each other on Weigh-in Wednesdays, than hopefully weighing-in won't be such a daunting task...because we're all in this together...

Remember: Life is a journey, not a destination!

What's your relationship like with your scales?