More inspired than ever!

Hi friends,
Im almost there! 32 days to go till the INBA Novice and rising star classic and im starting to see changes in my body everyday. All the hard work is slowly paying off... yes there has been a lot of hard work, Blood sweat and tears....did i mention tears?
Im a little bit tired and feeling carb depleted but otherwise im bursting out of my skin with excitement.

i had my first posing class tonight in the bikin, i have never felt that exposed before, it is the tinest thing i have ever worn. Its really pretty though and i cant wait to share pictures of it with you all once im in it on the day :) untill then its my secret to keep!

Support from others is a huge contributing factor in this journey, and i have said this before and i have to say it again i have the most amazing team behind me. My trainers Bruce and Nicole always push me beyond limits i thought i even had and have got the best out of me thats for sure. They believe in me more than i do sometimes which so flattering. I also have some beautiful friends near and far who have been following my journey on facebook and have been so supportive.

Training has stepped up a knotch now, im doing 2 cardio sessions per day 5 days a week, this equals 16 workouts a week now with my weight training, and its starting to take a toll but i am enjoying the results and i can see the light at then end of the tunnel (a huge cheat meal) so im pushing through it all. Diet wise im still having my 62grams of carbs in the morning which i love...i never thought i would get so excited over oats!! Next week is the start of the final phase where ill cycle the carb meals only having 62grams of carbs every third day, it will be challenging yes, but i thought the same for everything else i have changed, it will be hard but i have adapted so far and will continue to adapt further... why and how.?? BECUASE I WANT THIS. Simple as that. If you want to do something with your whole heart you will find a way of making it happen. Ive found a way through many obsticles the past 28 weeks to continue ( thats a story for another blog), the one thing i have found is that you must believe in yourself.

thats it for now i must go to bed, doing 3 workouts a day between work and study makes me one tired and cranky girl :s



xx

Perseverance

i read this today and had to share it with you all, it inspired me as im finding this week a difficult week energy wise for training/living in general.

" the point where most people give up when things get hard is just before they are about to succeed,

Just perservere and success will follow" 

one day at a time!

The "Journey" into the world of bodybuilding.

HI FRIENDS!!!!
oh my goodness me!! has it been this long? Oh dear... i have a really good excuse i promise :)

In week 21 of training now and have 7 weeks till i get up on stage. CRAZY how time flys. I really am not sure where to start, i hate the word "journey" it sounds so cliche but to be honest its the only word i can think of which describes the emotional rollercoaster ive been on preparing for this comp..

I laughed with my trainer today when i ask her if she thought i was an idiot when i told her 21 weeks ago  i was going to train to get up on stage for the first time and walk 100km charity walk 3 weeks before... Of corse she thought i was silly, apparently she told me i needed to be 100% focused on one goal...but i didnt listen ...i thought i knew it all. I Needless to say i will not be walking 100kms ...I learned pretty quickly that comp prep required an all or nothing approach.

In the past 2 and a half months i have been training 6-7 days a week (active recovery/cardio on day 7), 3 days a week i work out twice a day cardio then weights in the evening.
Between training i have started a new job, been studying to be a PT (which i love), nannying and completing placement for my course. Sometimes i feel like i have to remind myself to breathe.

The diet has sent me into an emotional rollercoaster at times.(lol the people around me would be saying most times)..i have experianced the highest highs and the lowest lows. Teaching my body to accept and function with carb cycling was difficult, then training my body to only fuction on carbs for breakfast ...feels like a constant challange.. 3 weeks out ill drop them completely.. we shall see how that goes.. I have complete trust in the guidence of my coach, im sure it will be fine.

The past 8 weeks i have really come to realise the value of having a support team behind me. For me my support team is my coach Bruce and my trainer Nicole, both have been on stage and both know the challenges and emotions that come with training and diet. I can not thank them enough.

I have come to notice that there are things that are not openly spoken about in the bodybuilding world. The main one would be struggles... everyone likes to make it out like its not hard. Like their diet arnt making them a crazy bitch, like they dont have problem dropping body fat because frankly their bodies are awsome, injuries..?? who has those? supportive families and understanding friends.. yep everyone has those too.. fatigue? no one ever mentions about this..

 Starting to see a pattern? Im not winging about the process. I understand that what i said can be looked at me trash bagging the sport..Im not.  I love it. I love the changes im seeing in my body and the challenge it presents me everyday. But im am quickly learning that its all about doing one thing, feeling one thing and presenting a different picture. I'm being real! Its a sport about deception .. making it look easy, and then getting up on stage standing a certain way, flexing this and that and smiling till your cheeks hurt and you want to pass out.. those poses are dam hard especially when your exhausted!.  Not only is it about presenting a certain package to the judges but also the other competitors.. this will never be me, im too raw with my emotions to fool any competitor, on stage well, thats where the practice comes in.

My coach has been real with me all the way through this and im so glad i have his guidence and support, but there are people out there who will tell you its easy, for one reason or another.

What i have learnt is that if your not focused on your goal, results wont come. There is no down time your always planning your next training session and timing your meals around life.. LOL i feel as though im forever cooking chicken (bless those little critters)

hence the word JOURNEY!

I have 7 weeks to go. Im more determined than ever, i push through the lows with my friends coach and trainer who are AMAZING and the highs are so rewarding. I cant wait to share with you more of my experiance, and for those who have asked the pictures are coming.. at the end lol

yours in fabulous health and fitness xo

Where I'm at..

Hi there!
I havnt forgotten about you all, gosh time does fly!
Im 13 weeks into my training now and i want to tell you how amazing i feel, but to be honest right now im pretty emotional ill expand more on this later. This whole experiance has been a roller coaster with lots of tears sweat and a tiny bit on blood (dont drop weights on your toes they hurt). This experiance is everything i could ask for in a goal, everyday i push myself to a point that i thought i would never reach and its an amazing feeling.
Where im at:
DIET10 days ago Bruce (my coach) and i decided to get serious about my diet, although i was eating very well and my diet was clean i have to up the anti to get into competition shape. This means having one day where i eat carbs for my first 3 meals (i now eat 5 even meals a day). And for the 3 days that follows my only carb meal is breakfast and the other 4 meals contain mostly protien and small amounts of vegies. So basically its one day of carbs and 3 days of mainly protien.  This is taking some getting used to, my energy levels are feeling loopy and on most days i could cry on cue, but as i said my body is just adjusting and like my first post where i said i was craving sandwiches and lattes, they went away. Basically my body is in a bit of shock and it has to get used to it.


BODY apart from energy levels which are mostly related to the sudden switch in diet my body feels great. Yep DOMs kicks me butt majorly and i am sore most days but its a feeling im growing to love. I have stoped noticing results lately, my body was platueing  from having the same diet and training for too long so im looking forward to seeing new muscles but its a long slow process for me as im starting from scratch. I just keep telling myself comp prep will never be is hard again! I'll let you know if this is true later down the track. Upper body is coming through nicely, legs are being stubborn but they are always the last parts to show, so im told. Body fat is at 18.4% .. i started at 22% and i have to be at 12-14% so we some hard work ahead, this means being in the gym some days twice doing weights and cardio ...i just try and keep my eyes on the prize... in this case for me its that bikini.
i just saying this over and over..

 and no pictures till im on stage... sorry to the people have asked but lets be honest, before pictures look better when you have something amazing to compare them too :)


Bikini: and finally the fun part!! (funner..my diet is a ball!! still trying to re train my brain to think so)
The lovely Jo Rogers is designing my stage bikini, she has been so helpful and it is getting sewn as i type! Not going to give a lot away but its very sparkly!! I figured if i was going to have the dedication to get through the diet and training i may as well go all out bikini wise, and let me just say this is the most expensive item of clothing i have bought in my life! Yep more $$ than my debute dress shoes jewerly and bag put together, quite a scary thought when you put it like that...but its not a cheap sport..as im finding out.


Support: I'm so lucky to have the support i do otherwise, particularly at this point, i wouldnt be able to do it. I have the most wonderful coach who makes himself available 24/7 for me to call for advice, vent and cry too (yes i have cried more than i would have liked). I have a lovely trainer who will make me cry every time we train legs.. yep and thats exaclty why i want her to be my trainer! My friends and family who deal with me 24/7, complaining about diet, not being able to go out and eat and drink with them but love me anyway and loving me when im possessed by the devil on my 3rd day without carbs and am in a teary messs THANKYOU!!! (i just painted a really unattractive picture of myself then, im not that bad ALL of the time...promise)
No one can do this alone, not for the first comp anyway.. honestly it would be a little dangerous not to seek professional and experianced advice about diet and exercise changes.


THE DATE: The date of the comp has been changed! YES coaches and trainers are always right. i hope they arnt readers.. lol but i wont be my best self if i get up on stage in April. Yes this means more grueling hours in the gym but it means i will look better in my bikini and have more of a chance of placing (which is the aim of corse!)

so thats it at them moment, i aim to keep you posted more often than i have been lately..:)
xo

hungry?

learning lessons the hard way..

hi friends..
Hope your all doing well and smashing your goals one day at a time! I'm certainly trying here.

 

I'm in week 5 of training and seeing new muscles every week. I have been working hard with my PT and found a gym that will help me with the final details of training and prep and see me through to comp, which realistically is looking like it'll be in May. Most of you know that i plan on doing the oxfam challange in melbourne on the 20-22th April which involves walking 100km in 48hrs, so doing a figure comp on the 25th of april might mean that my body isnt ready. Time will tell..

 

So yesterday i met with the gym, had some pictures taken and really looked at what i have to work on to compete... I almost knew what i was going to be told be a suppose was reasuring to hear it from a proffesional.. MY LEGS.. need work ...they need muscles. My sholders also need to grow some muscles to create the illusion of symetry with my hips. Being a woman i have a pear shape and the judges look for symetry.

 

It hard work is going to be balancing my weight, becuase i'm quite active i have losing lately, so this means eating more... And not more chocolate..more healthy, clean, protien rich food. The results of not eating right were felt today.. I'm in love with the current Les Mills body attack #75 it challenges me in so many ways, but the last track today really hit me, i was so dizzy and went so pale, i spent the whole morning dazed /sleepy.

                                            

(this was so true in my case)

At first i was clueless to why i felt this way and assumed i was just having an off day, untill later on in the day when i realized i had forgotten to fill in my food diary from yesterday.  I sat down and as i did it, it all began to make sense. I spent the whole day yesterday running around doing little jobs, meeting gyms, dropping into work, having a PT session, playing a netball final, swimming to aviod DOMs. My food was off, i only ate 4 meals and although thats quite a lot of food for a regular person, not enough to maintain my energy levels..

 

I feel so stupid..i thought i was on top of it all and the first day i let it slip this happens.

 
I plan to do some food posts in the future so show what i am actually eating, but the genral plan looks like this:

• Breakfast
• Post workout meal
• Lunch
• Afternoon meal
• Dinner
• Evening meal

each meal is supposed to be well rounded with the main source containing protien then secondly carbs and thirdly fat. Each meal should contain between 300-400calories. The one i struggle with most is late at night, this is where all my trouble started today. Sometimes this means eating when im not hungry but when my body needs it. for example at 11pm i dont feel like eating tuna.. but thats what my body needs sometimes.

so people, thats where im at. Learning life lessons the hard way but either way learning knew things everyday.


 Has anyone else taken the new Les Mills body attack? what are your thoughts?

Natalie xo

A new direction..

Hi friends..

How are you all doing? hoping the warmer wedding is giving you that extra motivation. I have exciting news to share with you all.. i have a new direction and a brand new big goal!

Most of you who come here often would know that my goals lately have been all about running, which is great! I love running....but my body, especially my back....didnt so much. Im putting running on hold for the moment. Not saying good bye but only doing a nice 5km once a week would suit me fine. My body was screaming at me i just needed time off.  I had made this decision before the last fun run  i entered about 7 weeks ago, it was time for a  rest. So after the fun run which i struggled through my back was not a happy chappy being all achey and mean to me i decided i was done for this year and would start again in march.  The problem was ...this was when the excuses started....after a long day at work when i was tired i would allow myself to sit on the couch and not gym or run.."resting is fine" i would tell myself. I began to recognise a pattern forming...only making it to the gym 4 times a week and i began to feel sluggish.

I work best when i have a goal to work to, and i new i had once under my sleeve but the problem was i assumed it would be something i would never do. Perceptions of others have held me back, i have allowed peoples negative veiws to interfere with what i was passionate about.. and thats no way to live!

I am so lucky to have a job where i am surrounded by amazing people, also  a job that allows me to meet people who chase their dreams within our community.  5 weeks ago i met a lady who was trying on clothes in our fit room who told me how she was about to go to new york to compete in a figure competition.. and i found myself saying..'ive always wanted to do that'!  This beautiful lady began to tell me that she used to wear a size 12 and be quite out of shape and if she could do it anyone could. I knew she was being modest and she had put alot of hard work into the body she had, but she inspired me!

Im going to be a figure competitor!

Yes i know, i have six long months of training and boiled chicken and broccoli to get through but im in week 4 right now and i feel amazing! My body is leaning out and i am noticing new muscles everyday.

This is difficult, scary and makes me want to cry sometimes when i want a sandwich and a latte.. the thought of being on stage nearly naked is horrifying at the moment ...thats why have to do this above all of barriers i have put up i really enjoy lifting weights and this is an experiance i have always want to have.   Goals have to be a little scary, otherwise where is the challenge!??

My goal is to compete in april, my trainer has advised me to wait and see how my body goes. I have decided to compete in the sports model category  which is the lowest and is quite natural but still requires a lot of training and very strict diet (yes christmas is going to be a hard time food wise).

 After my intitial comp, then i will assess my body and my training experiance and see if i would like to compete further in the next category. But right now im working towards April!!!

so at the moment im going for this look, which is more natural than the body building ladies..but we shall see what the future holds ;)

 

cant wait to share with you all my experiance with food and training and life in genral

stay tuned for a goal setting session soon

READERS QUESTION :

Whats your big scary goal that you have achieved or have always wanted to do? What inspired you/ what is holding you back?

xoxo