My Commitment for Round 1

So Im sitting here working through my pre-season tasks. Its the first opportunity I have had since getting back from Brisbane - So here we go!!!

My commitment for Round 1 and the future are:

By the end of round 1, I WILL be at my goal weight of 70kg or below

I will wear a bikini in Thailand at the end of April

I will eat clean and continue being active

I will do everything in my power to get Adelaide the attention it deserves from the 12wbt crew and Mish!! ADELAIDE FOR ROUND 2 FINALE!!!

I will listen to all the mindset videos this round (something I didnt do this last round - naughty naughty)

I will not get hung up on people trying to bring me down, their loss if they dont want to be part of my journey. 

I will not let any jealous people bring me down.

I will not second guess my opinions based on others opinions about me. 

I will pay it forward and help motivate others

I REFUSE and will not become one of those people who forget others around me

I will remain humble, level headed and pass on all my knowledge to those seeking help or advice

I will not control others and will encourage them to express themselves as freedom of speech is paramount.

I will continue to be a Ninja as I believe it is empowering and will name new ninjas to help encourage and empower others.

I will be bold, I will be brave and above all, I will be myself!

and above all 

I will DREAM BELIEVE ACHIEVE!

So tell me, What is your commitment!?

Love this quote - I have it on my diary!

How I live without guilt and Valentines Day!

Ahhh today is Valentines day. As Hubby Ninja and I refer to it as, Happy American Heart Day. We are the last of the true romantics clearly! I already told him yesterday to not even think of buying me roses (to me they are cliche) and said we will just do a quick lunch, no fancy stuff and not to purchase a card, Hallmark have enough money! 

One thing however I wouldn't turn down however, is chocolate. Its definately my weakness (along side my Lorna addiction!) but I have learnt that its a sometimes food (good old cookie monster saying there) and that eating it everyday will only make my arse get bigger. If only there was a chocolate invented that shrunk your arse, Id be all over it!!

Which leads to me to my post regarding how I live my life. I have always been of the belied that the word "diet" is a swear word and that one should not deprive themselves of anything. In saying this however, I do not mean you should eat the chocolate or obsession everyday (wait up, I must get off the Lorna site daily, maybe this can be one of my goals!!) but moderation is definitely the key. When someone goes into any sort "diet", they go into this all or nothing mentality...They deprive themselves of all of life's little pleasures (and I dont just refer to food here either) however when they crave it so bad that no strength of a willpower muscle will hold them back, they get hold of that thing they crave and devulge to an extreme. Which then gives them the guilts for eating it and than we go back to the old mindset of, "oh well Ive fallin off the wagon, may as well continue this way!" Im guilty of this in the past, I could never seem to get a balance. I was the "Ill start again on Monday" chick. 

Using the word Diet is setting yourself up to fail. Diets are short lived. They come and go like the wind and are not sustainable in the long term. You need to think of your journey as a LIFE STYLE change and learn to incorporate lifes pleasures so you dont binge eat or do reckless things that can destroy all your hard work. I personally live by the 80/20 rule. 80% of the time, I eat clean, exercise and do all the right things by and for my body and I allow myself 20% of the time to enjoy lifes pleasures (eg a glass of red, some chocolate etc) WITHOUT GUILT. This way, I dont binge and I enjoy it and I dont become the "Ill start again Monday" chick!

In Brisbane, our group went to a San Churro (anyone not heard of this gem, its temptation city, no lie) for coffee after dinner and some after dinner delights. I had a choc sundae and I seriously made sure that when I ate that sucker, I enjoyed EVERY.SINGLE.MOUTHFUL! I did not regret it because I had been good all week with food and water, I had walked everywhere that day and I was doing so to enjoy something I will never be able to enjoy again (San Churro aint in Adelaide!). I wont lie to you, I did pay for it in the morning, my stomach did not like me, I think during Mish's workout, I wanted to bring it and breakfast back up, but I would not allow myself to feel that guilt. It did however remind me how far I have come on my journey, before 12wbt and through it. I now know the difference between feeling absolutely fantastic and feeling absolutely like crap because of how I have fueled my body. 

 Sweeten thy Soul...Fatten thy arse!! MODERATION IS KEY!

So if your Valentine or secret admirer sends you chocolates today, make sure you enjoy at least a small piece. However remember to actually enjoy it, dont scoff it. Enjoy the taste and feel of it and I promise you, you will be satisfied by simply enjoying lifes little pleasure with restraint!

Happy Valentines Day Ninjas! 

DONT PANIC!!! Im Alive!!!

Before you all freak out and think I have gone missing and start putting my face on milk cartons (which would be kinda cool, maybe I should go quiet....bahahaha who the hell am I kidding!!??) I am ALIVE and WELL (besides the massive burn mark on my neck, more on that later) just extremely busy that Im struggling to find time to scratch my own arse....

Its been go-go-go since getting back from Brisbane. I signed up for Round 1 at the airport (wohoo) but still am in the process of trying to do preseason tasks, my fitness test (to be done Friday with PT Army Ninja), photo will be done tonight. The only thing I have done is my weight (ekk 76kg - Thanks Brisbane for that sucker of a kilo, it was worth it though!!) and my measurements have been done. 

With regards to the Brisbane trip, that story is coming...I promise! We had a BALL!! I had a BALL!! Short sheets and scatters and all! It was brilliant. I bought Lorna...lots of Lorna...

Why so busy? We got the keys for Project Reno on Monday. I got back from Brisbane on Sunday night quite late and back to work Tuesday with every night so far being spent at Project Reno. Lets just say, there is a LOT of work to be done but its quite livable. The only thing I did ask Hubby Ninja and Lorax Ninja to do, was remove this hideous fridge cupboard in the kitchen, as it was blocking the view to the lounge area.

 Enter the brady bunch theme song....

Please take note of how the kitchen is currently. I left the boys alone at it for a few hours and it looks NOTHING like this now... We go back tonight for them to hopefully finish it, or at least get the bones back together. The reason for the move around...well  because they are men and they can...but it wasnt functional. I dunno how people liked kitchens way back in the day, but it doesnt flow...unless you like to flow into cupboards and I do this well enough without needing cupboards in the way (I walk into door frames! I swear they move!). Once its finish, Ill post a piccy!

Other than this and work, I really havent had time to do much else. Its all a bit hectic at the moment but hopefully after we move this weekend, things will start to ease up and I can get back into the flow of things, plan etc. Right now Im living on the fly. I cant say I enjoy this ADHOC stuff either but I keep reminding myself that its only temporary!!

Oh heres my neck btw - did this lovely burn Saturday night with my conical wand when doing my hair for finale...note to self, just pay someone to do my hair for me!

 This sucker got me my 100th D-Head comment!

Yes it hurts and yes I feel like a moron! whats new! Its not something I can hide either. Its a good size burn! 

I hope you are all well and enjoying week 1 (if your new to this round, dont worry, that headache will pass I promise, its not worth caving for!!). 

Tell me, whats your accomplishment this week so far!? What are you proud of? (Im proud you signed up and joined us!)

Leaving on a Jet Plane...

Im ready. My bags are packed, my hair and nails are did, my tan is not so chicco brown now (thank lorna), I have two dresses and dont have to resort to blinging up a garbage bag and Im ready. Now to get through one more day of work without going postal and Ill be on my way to Brisbane, the state which has the best bananas, mangos and pineapple. Nom Nom Nom!

Just a heads up for the next few weeks. Project Reno is empty as of Sunday. Monday we visit it and workout what needs to be done ASAP and what can wait, than the moving begins. Lorna have mercy. So if I am a little quiet in the first few weeks of round 1, please dont be to alarmed (unless you hear of some crazy woman going postal on her husband in Adelaide, thats me so i may need to be bailed out of somewhere...). I will try and update where I can but my posts may become not as many. I also may not have internet at Project Reno which could mean, shock horror, Ill have to actually talk to Hubby Ninja :P There is love I promise!

Also this weekend, I may be a tad quiet, but trust me you will probably be able to hear me from Brisbane if you listen close enough.  I have my tablet pc (NOT AN IPAD!) whilst in Brisbane, that does however prove to be difficult to type posts on but I will endevour to give you a full run down on Tuesday when I return to work!

As I stated in our SA 12WBT Facebook page - 

Today I plan to be awesome, I mean I am Awesome all time time but today Im gonna be REAL AWESOME!! Hope you are all have an awesome day!

We are friends again...

So this morning I prayed before I stepped on the scales. Anyone following me knows, that the scales and I over this last 12 weeks have had a love hate relationship. Its been firey at times. They nearly have been thrown a number of times. I may of done a little dance this morning when I saw this:

I am finally under 75kg. HAPPY DANCE! Now Ive said that, Ive probably jinxed myself however its been 12 weeks in the making that number. Ive been on that lovely rollercoaster this whole round. I started at 76kg, Id get down to 75.6kg, Id go back up to 76.2kg, down to 75.8kg, back up to 76.6kg, down to 75.8kg and the pattern continued like this for the whole 12 weeks. I have however lost cms in this time, not large numbers but the scales always has me beating myself up! Its only in the last 2 or so weeks that Im starting to see it go down again. Since having my DEXA, I have been able to get my head back into some sort of understanding, grounding etc and have read heaps of stuff to try and get a BALANCE with my macro nutrients and what I need to do to get this fat off my arse (and guts)

I have know for some time that I have insulin resistance and in my last lot of blood tests, my cortisol levels have been higher which means the fat on my guts and arse are typically sticking like glue, which clearly means its been not playing nice. This last lot of blood test showed my insulin resistance is still in full flight even though Im coming down in weight and Im fitter than I have ever been. Dr said he will monitor it however could be why Im struggling a tad. This kinda concerns me as well seeing as Insulin Resistance is a precursor for type 2 diabetes and Im clearly smaller than I was say 12 months ago. Its odd balls but my doctor is aware and he is one I trust!

On a side note, operation get beautiful for brissie was in full flight yesterday. I went to get a spray tan...I came home looking like a chicco baby lolly....Its been rather hilarious. The comments were on a roll.

Firstly hubby ninja thought I had been in the oven to long.

Secondly, my father came home with a new bluetooth contraption and hubby ninja was trying to get it to work. Conversation went like this:

Hubby Ninja: Call "XYZ"
Bluetooth: Calling Weather
Dad: "that would be right, she looks like she has been in the sun to long"

PMSL

I honestly cant say right now Im happy with my legs because they seem a little patchy but i think its fixable! All in all however, after Ive washed it off, Im pretty happy with it. 

Not long now ladies! WOHOO!!

Killing caterpillars...

Before you all freak out, I didnt go out into the garden and go all rampage on some innocent caterpillars. Remember, I still live in the concrete jungle when the best plant you will see is a weed...growing bravely from between the concrete pavers...You think Im joking...Sadly Im not... Its worse...

Anyways back to the original story.

We are drawing closer to a huge party on Saturday night. Its okay peeps, I know about this huge party being held in honour of my birthday...I realise there will be loads of people I dont know but hey I love you all for thinking of me! haha!

I fly out of RADelaide on Thursday night with Ms Mother Hen Ninja but between now and than, Im getting myself all ready for the glammed up 12wbt finale (aka my birthday party! :P). There are nails to be done, tanning to be done and some waxing to be done BEFORE the tanning...ekk!  As a woman, it is never an easy task to ensure we look awesome. The serious amount of preening and fluffing we go through for a big event, its crazy, however we all wanna look the hottest we ever have and we go all out! The only thing I personally can say I dont enjoy or look forward to is the waxing. If you like waxing, I assume you have 50 shades of Grey under ya pillow...Kudos to you seriously, me personally, Im a WIMP. With all capital letters!! I hate all sorts of pain. Hitting my not so funny bone makes me want to cry. See. WIMP!

The plan originally was to get a professional to do it prior to my tan tomorrow night, but as many can attest, time seems to have a funny knack of disappearing when your at work, trying busily to get through the mountains of paper work on your desk. 

So tonight I thought, you know what, Im just gonna do it myself, it cant be that hard or bad surely...right?! right!?

So off I went and I got myself this sucker from Woolies (probably a mistake but I have used it once before, many blue moons ago)...

and followed the instructions. I figured I had a better chance of keeping my real eyebrows if I did this. I also bought this one because no heating was required, the last thing I needed was second degree burns on my face for Saturday night. Not a hot look (well my skin would be!)

Seriously, as I said above, Im a wimp. For five minutes, I seriously had to psych myself up to rip the strip off my face. Its so much easier getting someone else to inflict the pain. However I had Mother Hen Ninja telling me to suck it up and HTFU Princess (she is right, she always is!) and I did it! With a few tears in my eyes, I got rid of those sucker caterpillar eyebrows and Im back looking like a human! I got to a point however where I was no longer brave with the wax and I used the tweezers with what I had left! Have I mentioned I dont like pain. 

Plucking eyebrows is sheer torture. I reckon it ranks up there with water torture! Oh lorna, have mercy, I was glad when I was done. I figured if it looked off, Mother Hen Ninja will fix me up with the tweezers in Brissie. Love this woman! Always making sure I dont look like a right idiot (the poor woman seriously has her work cut out for her!!)

Here is one of the finished products - not to bad I thought for a non-professional!

Wohoo I still have eyebrows!

Would I do it again?? Hell to the no, I am paying a professional to do it but i guess if I get desperate again, I always have it here. 

Do you wax your own eyebrows or get a professional to do it?

Down by the ocean...

Up early this morning...Crazy I know, its a Sunday I hear you yell. My body was doing exactly the same, screaming "What the hell ya thinking women!?"" Wheres my bloody coffee?" (sorry bod your gonna have to wait til after). The reason I was up early was coz today was the day I was running 5km with some very special ninjas. 

Up I got, bright and early, even giving the birds a shock , shaved my legs and arms (I wanted nothing holding me back :P) and I got ready to rock the beach. I was decked out in Lorna (of course) and my 12wbt SA Crew Shirt. In the ute we got and headed to Semaphore. Hubby Ninja and Dog Ninja also came along as well to cheer us on. The morning was already stunning! Thank you mother nature, coz last time I attempted this run, IT WAS BUCKETING down. I dont do runs in the rain. Im a bit of a princess like that (I dont camp either in case you were wondering, no hot showers or toilets - Im completely out)

Any who, I met up with the wonderful and gorgeous Phantom Ninja (who was the one who convinced me to do this with her!) and Playground Ninja at the clock. Here is a photo of us looking awesome before the run:

How hot do we look!? 

Off we went at 830am and I have to say, it was definately one of the best runs Ive had in a long time. I ran pretty much ran the whole 5km (except for a drink walk and a short stroll coz my hip was a little sore) and made it to the end in 34mins 36secs! Not to shabby, I thought considering my hip has been angry all week. I maintained a HR of 176bpm most of the way but I felt good and not out of breath!

On the actual run, I saw some new faces, got tap'd on the shoulder by Puffy Tail Dog Ninja who recognised me from our Facebook fun (this never fails to really put a smile on my dial!), saw the gorgeous smiling Duds Guru Ninja who was marshalling (and got a high five!) and meet <3 Channing Ninja for the first time (even though I talk to her all the time online). At the finish line, I saw many other familiar faces of our crew (some of who did the 10k) and some others who I have never met but can finally put names to real faces! 

Our crew did so well and Im so super proud of them all! GO SA CREW!!

Another thing that really made me smile today was the kids who were officially running (numbers and all). This is nothing short of amazing to see! 

I also had a bunch of new songs on my shuffle thing today and I ensured to include a new to me song which I have dubbed our new SA Crew Anthem (unofficially of course!). The song is called A Great Big World (I have the glee version however but this is the original group below. If you want to hear glees version, youtube A great big world - glee). Have a read of the lyrics below, Im sure you will agree this is a winner for our crew (my now mission is to get the crew to learn the lyrics! haha)

Another year you made a promise

another chance to turn it all around

and do not save this for tomorow

embrace the past and you can live for now

and I will give the world to you

Speak louder that the words before you

and give them meaning no one else has found

The role we play is so important

we are the voices of the underground

and I would give the world to you

Say everything you’ve always wanted,

be not afraid of who you really are,

cause in the end we have each other,

and thats at least one thing worth living for,

and I would give the world to you

A million suns that shine upon me

A million eyes you are the brightest blue

Lets tear the walls down that divide us

and build a statue strong enough for two,

I pass it back to you

and I will wait for you,

cause I would give the world

and I would give the world

and I would give the world to you

This is the new year

A new begining

You made a promise

You are the brightest

We are the voices

This is the new year

We are the voices

This is the new year

All in all, today has been awesome!

What did you get up to on this gorgeous Sunday??

PS - Some photos of us after the race :) Still looking awesome!