Exercise is about to become a good friend of mine.

Yesterday I joined a gym :) I'm so excited and so nervous all rolled into in.  Mixed emotions do my head it :/  Tomorrow is going to be my first time using the gym, I am planning on doing my SSS (instead of today) then. I just hope I don't make a tosser out of myself  in front of lots of people.

I so need to embrace the gym though because the 12wbt just isn't cutting it at home with what I am surrently doing. My losses have been only slight and it is getting me down. I so want to rock this last 10 weeks so I will be going every day most weeks. Hollie has a calisthenics comp for the next 2 Mondays so I can go then and I work Monday nights so again that's out. But the other days are fine. While it is school holidays I might even take the kids with me some days as the gym is a YMCA one that has pools and slides etc :)

Bring on my goal of 15-20kg by December.... I am already 7kg down so going ok.

Week 2 Wednesday weigh in.

I am both disappointed but also not surprised. I lost 300grams ! I am sure it has a lot to do with the red flag day on Saturday with no exercise and also giving it at the Mexican restaurant for dinner. Other than Saturday my food choices have been clean. The exercise has been pretty hit and miss. I did go jogging 3 days but I didn't go out very hard. I did some DVD workouts at home but again I only gave about 50% effort.

I am missing going walking around my area a great deal, but the thought of the magpies just terrifies me. :(

My birthday is coming up in a few weeks and I am wondering whether I should ask Clint and my parents to buy me a gym membership?? I have had one many years ago and lost interest in it quickly. But I have never been this keen and ready to lose weight more than now, so I know I will use it. The cost os more daunting than anything though :(

I'm at 97.7kg now. So down 7.8

Pinched from another blog !

1. Describe yourself in 25 words or less...
35, carefree, loves to laugh, lazy, Grey's anatomy lover, 80 music lover.

2. What brings you to 12wbt? Getting fitter? Losing weight? (Gaining weight?) Are you first timer, a repeat offender?
I'm a first time 12wbt'er who is trying to lose weight. I have tried every program out there but have always lost interest after losing 5kg. I have now lost 7kg and still here :)

3. Why do you blog??
It is a place for me to talk without judgement .

4. Who is your biggest inspiration in life and why (doesn't have to be weight loss)
hmm this is a toughy ! I have never really had a 'hero' or someone who has really stood out as inspiring to me. I mena of course my parents are awesome but not inspring if that makes sense. My kids are great and do amazing things each day and I totally live for them. But right now I think the inspiring people in my life atm are all the 12wbt'ers who have lost massive amounts of weight. I definitely want to follow in their footsteps.

5. What things in life bring you the most joy?
My kids...no doubt about it. Jeremy who is 13 is a wonderful kid. He is smart and funny and truly is a good kid.. everything he touches he excells at. Hollie who is 11 is my princess. She has had a rough childhood with lots of operations and procedures. It has been a struggle a few times with recovery but she always gets through it in the end. She is so sweet and so loving and just loves life. Her girlfriends are her world as well as Justin Bieber !!!! Callum is 10 and boy oh boy he has made me earn my parenting stripes. He is in his own world and only really concerns about himself. but OMG he is the most hilarious kid I have ever met. He is just so freaking funny !

6.What do you think your greatest challenge is going to be this round?
Actually sticking to the 12 weeks !

7. What are you most excited about 12WBT?
Learning to love the right foods. And learning to love to cook.

8. And what scares the pants off you?
Failing!

9. Tell me - right now - today - how do you feel about exercise in no more than 10 words.
The pain it gives scares the crap out of me.

10. Complete this sentence - in 12 weeks time - on the last day of 12WBT I am going to be feeling....
relieved that I actually completed the full 12 weeks. I am going to be feeling overwhlemed with losing between 15-20 kgs. I am going to be stressing about how will I cope over the Christmas holiday period and I will be counting down the days until Round 1 2012 starts.

This is where I have been going most days

I am finding a new love of jogging. I never thought I would be able to jog but I am getting better and going further each day I go here. This athletics track is brand spanking new in my local area. It is open to anyone by just a push of the button :) This is where I did my fitness test. I can't jog around the whole track in one go just yet, but my goal is by the end of the 12 weeks I will be able to. Right now I can jog around quarter by quarter. That is much further than I ever thought I could do :) I love how the track feels on my feet and legs, it is so soft and bouncy. Much better than a regular footpath.

Week 1 done and now on to week 2

Week 1 has now been completed ! All the food was delicious and very easy to prepare and make, which is exactly how I like it. Saturday was my major red flag day. Hollie had a calisthenics competiton from 7am to 3pm. I made some salad sandwiches to have there which was good. At 4pm I started work until 7pm. So there was no exercise done. Saturday was also Clint's birthday and he had chosen to go to Nachos for dinner. I had big plans of choosing the right food choices but I gave in :( I had some nachos and also a burrito thingy. That has been my only slip up for the last month.

On Sunday I was going to go to the 1000 steps with Hollie while all the boys worked on our new decking, however, I slept in till about 11am (these late night shifts are killing me) and then after that I did some housework and just couldn't be stuffed leaving the house. Yeah yeah I know EXCUSE CENTRAL!!! I did however, stick to the right food choices all day.

Yesterday (Monday) I was determined to try the 1000 steps. After dropping the kids at school I went straight there. It was so busy ! Oh it was a killer workout!!!

Going along nicely !

Today is Day 3 of the 12wbt program and I am loving it. The food is amazing. Everyone in the house is loving it. So far my favourite is the chicken with herbed yoghurt sause and salad. Tonight for dinner is Jen's Lasagne. Lasagne is a favourite of my kids so I can't wait to hear their verdit on this one. :)

Exercise is going good. Yesterday I went to our local athletics track and jogged and walked 3km and I actually enjoyed it. I am going to try and do that everyday. Today I didn't make it there but will go out for a jog tonight with Clint when he gets home from work.

Today was weigh in day and I lost 700grams, at first I was disappointed with this but then realised it was 2 days worth so that is actually good. Can't wait for next Wednesday's weigh in now. Since starting the pre season I am now down 7.5kg :)

Fitness Test completed.

This afternoon after my 2 son's football presentation we all went to our local brand spanking new athletics track so I could complete my fitness test. Even the dog came!!!

The results are in -

• 1km time trial - 9 minutes 51 seconds
• the push up test - 8 (not sure if I was doing them correctly!)
• abdominal strength test - I couldn't do this - so level 1
• wall sit - 15 seconds
• sit and reach test - -20cm

I got the beginner level in all tests, which was no surprise.

2 more sleeps...

until the 12wbt starts officially !

I am a little nervous, although right now I am more nervous about doing the fitness test tomorrow. 1km doesn't bother me, I will walk/semi jog that. I am more concerned about the push up test. I tried to do a push up today while doing the Boot Camp DVD and I struggled BIG TIME ! Also the Abdominal test is daunting. I only managed to do one of those today. That really hurt my lower back (moreso the laying down hurt rather than doing the actually sitting up. The wall test and the stretch test I can handle for a short time.

I was going to go and do the fitness test with some girls from my area in the 12wbt, but I don't want to look like a goose so I might just do it with my hubby instead. Still undecided.

I really need to start exercising up a notch if I want to see the results I want. My goal is a 20kg loss and that won't be happening if I stay at the intensity I am up now. I need to give 100% effort for the whole workout not just in spurts.

I am sort of still struggling with my head and the excuses. I am working on it though, I need to listen to my good thoughts and not the naughty thoughts. I am fine with my food choices, in fact I think I am going awesomely in that department, it is the actual moving of my body I need to work on more.

Before photos - WOW

This photo was taken today (September 10th 2011) weighing 98.7kg.

This 2nd photo is quite painful to look at...

Week 1 is about to start

Yesterday I received my week 1 exercise plan, nutrition plan, shopping list and weekly surprise. The surprise is I need to do a fitness test. This semi scares me ! I will be completing my test on Sunday at the local athletics track when Clint can help me.

The nutrition plan sounds great, there were no 'yuk' meals listed so I am really looking forward to starting that on Monday. Today I went shopping for everything on the list and I spent $50 on the fruit and vegetables and $210 on the rest of the stuff. Over the next few weeks it should be cheaper as some of the ingredients will last a while.

The exercise plan is exactly how I thought it would be. As I am doing it from home and also outdoors, I can stick with my DVDs and also set up a course in the backyard.

I took a photo of my filled up fridge with all the devine fruit and vegies.

Exercise

My main form of exercise so far on this journey has been walking. I started off walking for 30 minutes for a few days and then I graduated to walking at a faster pace for an hour. I strap my ipod on and put my dog (Maggie) on her leash and off we go. I was really enjoying it.... until Spring hit !

I have a real fear of birds, they totally freak me out if they come near me. In my area we are surrounded by big trees and magpies. The magpies have been in full force this week with swooping so much already and Spring has only just started :(

So unfortunately I have stopped walking and I really miss it. I need to find another area where I can walk safely without continually looking around to see how close a bird is to me. This will more than likely mean I will have to drive somewhere to go for a walk.

Pre Season Tasks completed !

• Task 1 - Introduce Yourself - I hopped onto the forums straight away and introduced myself to everyone. I joined a few groups - 30+kg to lose, Melbourne group, Beginners group.



• Task 2 - Get Real - I listed my excuses and things that were/are preventing me from succeeding. I have taken account for my own actions and decisions. I have found solutions for my excuses.



• Task 3 - Set your goals - My 12 week goals are to lose 12kg, jog 1km without stopping. To be under 90kg. To be able to make the right choices in food.



• Task 4 - Gear Up - I like this task as I got to spend money! I bough new runners, a HRM, some workout DVDs, training clothes, fit ball, cookbooks.



• Task 5 - Say it out Loud - I am still working on this task.



• Task 6 - Kitchen Makover - This was quite easy as I had already stopped buying crap when I first joined the program at task 1. I had a couple of things that I threw out that were mainly out of date.



• Task 7 - Organise and Diarise - I am still completing this one.



• 
  
  Task 8 - Measure Up- I have added my measurements in the post before. I still need to take my photo though. I will do this in the next day or so as I waiting for my dreaded cold sore to clear up first.

Tomorrow I will get the menu and exercise plans, I will then go grocery shopping and do some cooking. Then on Monday it officially begins. Bring It On !!!

Stats

Age - 35 (36 in October)
Height- 164cm
Pre season starting weight- (15/8/11) - 105.5kg
Pre season BMI - 39 (severely obese)



Official start weight -(7/9/11)- 98.7kg
BMI 37 (severely Obese)
That is a loss of 6.8kg already!

My other measurements are -

chest - 115cm
waist - 112cm
widest - 128cm
right thigh - 70cm
left thigh - 70cm

Michelle Bridges 12WBT

Things are changin' - yeah I know I say it all the time, however this time it is the real deal. I AM going to lose weight and change my eating lifestyle and family lifestyle to eating and enjoying wholesome nutrious foods.

On the 15th August I joined Michelle Bridges 12 wbt (week body transformation) program after hearing it on the radio and seeing so many people's lives changed on the facebook site. The results have been amazing and I want to be one of those amazing transformations !

I have completed all the pre season tasks and am ready to start the program officially on Monday. I have already made some major changes, I have now been COKE (all soft drinks actually) and CHOCOLATE free for 24 days. This is an awesome effort for me as I used to have a block of chocolate every 2 days and I could easily drink 2 litres of coke EVERY day !