Blogger Challenge Week 1 - Introduce Yourself

Tell us a little bit about yourself. What makes you, you?

I'll try to keep this short because I like to talk, and write...there you go, there's a bit about myself already :)...hmmmm. I am Michael's (aka Hubby) wife and Madeleine (Maddie) and Cassandra's (Cassie) mum. My girls are 16 and 13 ... which is an interesting time in all our lives. Hubby and I sometimes think about divorcing our teenagers, but sometimes they just make me go all warm and fuzzy and my heart sings with joy...remind me I said that next time I whinge about them. I also share in the care of my mum. She spends three weeks at our place and three weeks at my brother's. Now before you start to tell me what a wonderful daughter/human being I am for doing this,be warned : I don't always do it gracefully...you will find many bitchy posts if you look back through my Blog. I am human. Hubby and I run our own business from home, so it means we spend just about all our time together. We both love it. We are best mates and also a really good team, both professionally and in our everyday life, but it doesn't mean we don't have our tiffs like everyone else, like I said I am human.
What makes me "Me"? - I have the loudest laugh you've ever heard...I love my pets so much (we've always had a bit of a menagerie), I would kill for my kids, I love flowers in my garden and in my house, I love beautiful things, I'm not crafty but I wish I was (I've started countless quilts but haven't finished any) I believe in the power of positive thinking, I give thanks for the life I was given and strive to be the best version of "Me" every day.


Why did you decide to do the 12WBT?

You could say I let myself go over the last 18 months...

Hubby gave up his 9-5 in July 2010 to come and work in our business. At that time I weighed in at around 67kg, with my goal weight being 60-62kg...our new working lifestyle gave way to daily coffees, Hubby does not have a weight problem. He's a runner and can basically eat whatever he wants...I joined in his daily banana bread, stopped going to the gym regularly and as a result, found myself weighing in at 77.9kg on New Year's Day 2012.

What are you hoping to achieve through the program?

My main focus is on weight loss and improved health. My mum has Type 2 Diabetes and a myriad other conditions, all brought about by a not-so-healthy lifestyle. I want to increase my level of fitness so I can enjoy my life to the fullest.

Why have you decided to blog about the 12WBT? What will be the main focus (eg, food, exercise, a bit of everything?)

My Blog has always included all aspects of my life. It is only natural to want to document and share my 12WBT journey on my Blog as well.

How will you be exercising this round? Gym, home, outdoors or a mixture?

I love group fitness classes at my gym (esp RPM), so I've scheduled those in. I have recently started C25K with my #runningbuddy, and I love getting out for long walks around my neighbourhood, so it's a real mixture...just keep moving will be my mantra.

What is your greatest strength that will help you?

This is a very hard one...I think I'm resilient, fall down seven times and get up eight...no matter how hard things get I always manage to come back up and give it another go...not sure I've answered this one ??

What are you afraid of?

I'm afraid of bad health in old age...every time I look at my mum I see what a lifetime of smoking, not eating mindfully and uncontrolled stress can do to our bodies, and ruin not only our life but that of those around us.

What are you looking forward to the most over the next 12 weeks?

The fact that everything is there for me. I don't have to think about what to eat or how to workout. Mish has done it all and the evidence out there is that this works. I look forward to JFDI!

What is your downfall? Food? Exercise? How will you overcome this?

My downfall is in planning. If I don't plan ahead I am likely to miss workouts or eat something not on plan, so I started planning four weeks ago when Pre-Season kicked off!

If you had to pick one word to motivate you over the next 12 weeks, what would you choose?

It's four words, to quote Michelle Bridges : "Just F***ing Do It"!