Thursday, April 14, 2011
Where to find me!
I am here! http://mindsweat.com.au/articles/ Subscribe and join the forum, we learn and grow from others!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
And the tears come...
Before I start this post, I want to quickly thank everyone who posted on my comp pics! One lady was given a pro-card (it wasn't me) but I was very happy with my condition and will be hitting the stage again this weekend.... more on all this later when my comps are all done, I just want to share other things today....
I posted about 'Going my own way'. Well, back on this topic. Wednesday morning I put my I-pod on and on my run, I ran past the venue of my dads wake (or Celebration of Life) as we called it. With the song playing I was overwhelmed and in the dark sobbed like a baby unable to see where I was stepping. I wont say sobbed, I howled. I have been feeling very vulnerable this week (as we all do sometimes) and remembering driving into the venue with my dads ashes on the seat next to me, which I had brought almost 3000 miles all the way from Singapore, combined with a song that reminded me of him and we used to sign off with at his Celebration, brough the raw emotion I thought I had lost back. I recalled speaking in front of a couple hundred people at the Celebration, what I had to say about him, being in Singapore, finding him in bed, seeing him go into the infernery, being handed his bones (not his ashes) and not knowing what to do. I recalled his laugh, his hug (or more his grip as I fondly remember it as because it was more like a headlock or a tackle around the shoulders) and his smile (which I defientely inherited). And whilst going through a vulnerable week, I try and think what he would tell me.
He will always be my strength and I need him right now. Today I am sourcing it and I will find it.
I posted about 'Going my own way'. Well, back on this topic. Wednesday morning I put my I-pod on and on my run, I ran past the venue of my dads wake (or Celebration of Life) as we called it. With the song playing I was overwhelmed and in the dark sobbed like a baby unable to see where I was stepping. I wont say sobbed, I howled. I have been feeling very vulnerable this week (as we all do sometimes) and remembering driving into the venue with my dads ashes on the seat next to me, which I had brought almost 3000 miles all the way from Singapore, combined with a song that reminded me of him and we used to sign off with at his Celebration, brough the raw emotion I thought I had lost back. I recalled speaking in front of a couple hundred people at the Celebration, what I had to say about him, being in Singapore, finding him in bed, seeing him go into the infernery, being handed his bones (not his ashes) and not knowing what to do. I recalled his laugh, his hug (or more his grip as I fondly remember it as because it was more like a headlock or a tackle around the shoulders) and his smile (which I defientely inherited). And whilst going through a vulnerable week, I try and think what he would tell me.
He will always be my strength and I need him right now. Today I am sourcing it and I will find it.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
Mind Sweat @ FitX
Come and visit Nicky and I at the Mind Sweat stand at FitX.Saturday 12th March to Sunday 13th March
Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre
STAND F05
Mind Sweat is an online publication and forum designed to entertain and inspire. We explore genres including: fitness, nutrition, travel, politics, fashion, lifestyle, finance, current affairs, motivation, business; the list limited only by what we believe will evoke your opinion. Mind Sweat will encourage you to evolve and challenge your thoughts.
Come and register to subscibe for FREE to Australia's newest online resource for women for your chance to win a gorgeous gift pack. :)
We hope to see you there! x
STAND: FO5
Come and support me competing!!! Show starts at 10.00am on Saturday, I am in Figure Open which is the 4th line up!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
M/Y "Sam"
From one of my favourite lyricists.
Mind Sweat is coming!
And it can get rough out there I know,Josh Pyke - Lines on Palms -
But a woman is a sail that remains unfurled,
So stay ahead of the wind man, or you won't catch her.
Mind Sweat is coming!
Thursday, February 24, 2011
You Can Go Your Own Way
This Fleetwood Mac song we played at the end of my dad’s Wake. Ordinarily, any of the songs we choose bring tears, but last week I stepped outside at 4.50am, put my iPod on and choose this song to start my 1hr run, I wanted to feel that raw emotion that comes over me when I think of dad as 'gone'. As I ran down the first street in complete darkness, I was expecting to be struggling to see through the usual tears and squinting while I watched the pavement. Instead, I was thinking of fond memories of the man I view as symbolising ultimate strength and self belief. My memories taking me to a time when I would have been somewhere around 8 years old.
At first I felt cold as ice because no tears came, had I really lost all emotion over loosing dad? Until I realised that it wasn’t that. You Can Go Your Own Way was chosen because dad always did what he wanted to or believed he could do. I realise these last 6 months have taken me on a journey to following my own dreams. I feel like I am finally 'going my own way'. Instead of feeling sad, I was thinking how happy I was that I was becoming that vision of ultimate strength and self belief that I respect and dad is actually in me.
This morning I again played this song as my first, second and third tracks to start my run. I feel strong. I am going my own way, big changes have been made and my future is positively exciting.
At first I felt cold as ice because no tears came, had I really lost all emotion over loosing dad? Until I realised that it wasn’t that. You Can Go Your Own Way was chosen because dad always did what he wanted to or believed he could do. I realise these last 6 months have taken me on a journey to following my own dreams. I feel like I am finally 'going my own way'. Instead of feeling sad, I was thinking how happy I was that I was becoming that vision of ultimate strength and self belief that I respect and dad is actually in me.
This morning I again played this song as my first, second and third tracks to start my run. I feel strong. I am going my own way, big changes have been made and my future is positively exciting.
Monday, February 14, 2011
You have to watch this!
Christopher McDougall: Are we born to run?
For the past 8 weeks I have averaged 60 to 70kms a week, I am injury free... oh and can I add, on a calorie restricted diet and low body fat? Yep! We are born to move. I find distance running quiet primal, I also find it is mentally challenging, its not usually the body that wants to give up, its the mind, lucky I live by MindSweat, makes it so much easier!
My fav quotes from this video:
'imagine a world where everybody could engage in exercise'
'restore our natural ability'
'whole lotta fun'
Trust me, it is fun. We are born to do it, so why wouldn't you?
Thanks so much to fellow B Attack instructor Heath for sending me this video :)
For the past 8 weeks I have averaged 60 to 70kms a week, I am injury free... oh and can I add, on a calorie restricted diet and low body fat? Yep! We are born to move. I find distance running quiet primal, I also find it is mentally challenging, its not usually the body that wants to give up, its the mind, lucky I live by MindSweat, makes it so much easier!
My fav quotes from this video:
'imagine a world where everybody could engage in exercise'
'restore our natural ability'
'whole lotta fun'
Trust me, it is fun. We are born to do it, so why wouldn't you?
Thanks so much to fellow B Attack instructor Heath for sending me this video :)
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Info for those asking......
I will be in the Amateur show starting 10.30am on Saturday 12th. I am not sure what time my division will be on, but will be finished before 1pm as the Pro's come on then.See you there!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
In a whirlwind!
Realising I have a lot to do and little time to do it in! 6 weeks from today I will have arrived in Melbourne for FitX www.fitx.com.au to not only compete, but to launch Mind Sweat. The following week I will be in Perth for the NPC-IFBB 2011 O'Mara Classic. The week after that in Sydney for the IFBB Australasians. March will be amazing! From there? Who knows.
Right now, I eat, sleep, train, work, cook, parent, cardio and when I can, lye in the sun :)
Had a great shoot on Tuesday with Marc Thyssen www.marcthyssen.com , and had a ball doing it with Chrissy from www.alterreal.com.au. Lots of laughs, Chrissy you are a funny gal! and there where some awesome pics taken :)
Gotta go, train hard!
Right now, I eat, sleep, train, work, cook, parent, cardio and when I can, lye in the sun :)
Had a great shoot on Tuesday with Marc Thyssen www.marcthyssen.com , and had a ball doing it with Chrissy from www.alterreal.com.au. Lots of laughs, Chrissy you are a funny gal! and there where some awesome pics taken :)
Gotta go, train hard!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Why do people not care?
The way you present yourself affects the way you feel about yourself and the initial impression people will have of you. I can not believe what I see in a professional environment sometimes. Sloppy shirts, inappropriate footware, ill-fitting pants... I could go on. Today, its someone young that is irritating me, especially, why they would not care about at least looking like they are young and confident. Call me superficial if you want, but presenting a confident, respectable looking self, will attract like minded people into your life.
All it does for me is make me think 'well if you dont give a damn about yourself, I can't be bothered with you either'.
All it does for me is make me think 'well if you dont give a damn about yourself, I can't be bothered with you either'.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
Are You Magnetic?
Apart from this being a great song by Faker, the chorus has been buzzing around my head:
And you check your phone 'cause you're looking for an escape,
sometimes when we fall we just land in the right place,
'cause we're magnetic and we land in the right place,
are you magnetic do you land in the right place?
Sometimes it is easy not to make a decision because the consequences can seem quiet overwhelming. Although this song has a completely different meaning than what I am taking from it, imagine if, everytime you made a major decision you went into it with only possitivity. I like the idea of feeling 'magnetic' and feeling at the end of the day you will land in the 'right place'.
Let yourself fall and try feeling magnetic today, it is quiet empowering!
And you check your phone 'cause you're looking for an escape,
sometimes when we fall we just land in the right place,
'cause we're magnetic and we land in the right place,
are you magnetic do you land in the right place?
Sometimes it is easy not to make a decision because the consequences can seem quiet overwhelming. Although this song has a completely different meaning than what I am taking from it, imagine if, everytime you made a major decision you went into it with only possitivity. I like the idea of feeling 'magnetic' and feeling at the end of the day you will land in the 'right place'.
Let yourself fall and try feeling magnetic today, it is quiet empowering!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
New Years Day Rant!
Yeah yeah Happy New Year blah blah blah.
I mightn't sound it, but trust me I am my 'usual' self full of enthusiasm, it's just another day thats all.
Don't be suprised that at some point last night I may have been over enthused and pushed my views upon unsuspecting guests at my house, now, don't think he reads this (but should my guest be reading this) don't take it the wrong way. As I said, awesome work, he has lost 10kg! Ok, but, here's where I started to preach.... If you loose weight through cardio alone, at some point, your body will start to break down muscle (if it thinks you are not using it) as an energy source to fuel you while you are in calorie deficit and preserve a little fat. So, perhaps not all 10kg is fat. If you have broken down muscle you will have reduced your metabolism (in simple terms you need less energy and therefore less food to function for the day).
Now, my second point was that to combat it you need to weight train PROPERLY! Stuffing around and moving some weights here and there on an inconsistant basis will not necessarily make your body believe it NEEDS that muscle and must keep it. You need to make your body feel the pressure, that functioning daily without that muscle will be hard... Body, don't even think about breaking that muscle down or it will hurt next week! CONSISTANT training, combined with CHALLENGING workouts will ensure you set your body up to not only hold your muscle but gain some, with that, an increase in your metabolism and therefore, you require more fuel (food). If you are not lifting heavier on at MOST a monthly basis, you are doing something wrong, ie, not eating properly for your training, or simply just not trying hard enough.
Now this is where it gets scary, I talk about this all the time with people, it scares the crap out of me, but apparently for most people, spiders, heights and snakes are more scary......
IF YOU DO NOT RESISTANCE TRAIN .... PROPERLY ( see my description of properly above :) ) you will loose about 0.5% of lean muscle mass every year from the age of 24!!!
What does that mean??? Well lets use me as an example. My lean body mass or LBM (ie my organs, bones and muscle) weight is around 48kg on a dexta scan. So should I decide today never to resistance train, new years day 2012 my LBM will decrease by about 240gm (48 x 0.5%) so with the reduced LBM, a reduced metabolism, and well, then accordingly I should reduce my food consumption on a yearly basis to match this so I don't put on weight with age.
If I decide not to train for the next 5 years, I weight 60kg today, and in 5 years time I weigh myself, and I weigh 60kg ........ how good am I? at 37 I weigh the same I did at 32!! (hope my sarcasim came through) but why does my body seem a little 'flabbier' must be age.....in reality oh crap! I have gained about 1.2kg of fat! (240gm over 5year) and lost 1.2kg of muscle! Trust me muscle feels better than fat so you will feel 'flabbier' even though you weigh the same.
Scared yet? because you should be.
Don't blame your age, you CAN combat this muscle breakdown. You just gotta use it! Not only can you combat it, you can make it go the other way, you can add LBM by building muscle (therefore increasing your metabolism)..... that means you can eat more, not less with age. Don't 'fluff' around.... Your body is MADE to move and lift things! Go heavier, go faster, do more reps, I don't care, just don't lift the same amount of weight for the same amount of reps week in week out. Get stronger.
New years day 2012, ask yourself, did I CONSISTENTLY train? did I CHALLENGE myself? am I in fact stronger and can lift heavier? If your answer is NO...... make sure you eat less in 2012, because your body will require less energy. Ask yourself today, do I need to eat less everyday in 2011 to ensure I don't put on weight because I lost muscle over 2010?
HAPPY NEW YEAR
oh and sorry if you have a hangover and feel sorry for yourself and this post just made you feel even sorrier for yourself...... :) haha
I mightn't sound it, but trust me I am my 'usual' self full of enthusiasm, it's just another day thats all.
Don't be suprised that at some point last night I may have been over enthused and pushed my views upon unsuspecting guests at my house, now, don't think he reads this (but should my guest be reading this) don't take it the wrong way. As I said, awesome work, he has lost 10kg! Ok, but, here's where I started to preach.... If you loose weight through cardio alone, at some point, your body will start to break down muscle (if it thinks you are not using it) as an energy source to fuel you while you are in calorie deficit and preserve a little fat. So, perhaps not all 10kg is fat. If you have broken down muscle you will have reduced your metabolism (in simple terms you need less energy and therefore less food to function for the day).
Now, my second point was that to combat it you need to weight train PROPERLY! Stuffing around and moving some weights here and there on an inconsistant basis will not necessarily make your body believe it NEEDS that muscle and must keep it. You need to make your body feel the pressure, that functioning daily without that muscle will be hard... Body, don't even think about breaking that muscle down or it will hurt next week! CONSISTANT training, combined with CHALLENGING workouts will ensure you set your body up to not only hold your muscle but gain some, with that, an increase in your metabolism and therefore, you require more fuel (food). If you are not lifting heavier on at MOST a monthly basis, you are doing something wrong, ie, not eating properly for your training, or simply just not trying hard enough.
Now this is where it gets scary, I talk about this all the time with people, it scares the crap out of me, but apparently for most people, spiders, heights and snakes are more scary......
IF YOU DO NOT RESISTANCE TRAIN .... PROPERLY ( see my description of properly above :) ) you will loose about 0.5% of lean muscle mass every year from the age of 24!!!
What does that mean??? Well lets use me as an example. My lean body mass or LBM (ie my organs, bones and muscle) weight is around 48kg on a dexta scan. So should I decide today never to resistance train, new years day 2012 my LBM will decrease by about 240gm (48 x 0.5%) so with the reduced LBM, a reduced metabolism, and well, then accordingly I should reduce my food consumption on a yearly basis to match this so I don't put on weight with age.
If I decide not to train for the next 5 years, I weight 60kg today, and in 5 years time I weigh myself, and I weigh 60kg ........ how good am I? at 37 I weigh the same I did at 32!! (hope my sarcasim came through) but why does my body seem a little 'flabbier' must be age.....in reality oh crap! I have gained about 1.2kg of fat! (240gm over 5year) and lost 1.2kg of muscle! Trust me muscle feels better than fat so you will feel 'flabbier' even though you weigh the same.
Scared yet? because you should be.
Don't blame your age, you CAN combat this muscle breakdown. You just gotta use it! Not only can you combat it, you can make it go the other way, you can add LBM by building muscle (therefore increasing your metabolism)..... that means you can eat more, not less with age. Don't 'fluff' around.... Your body is MADE to move and lift things! Go heavier, go faster, do more reps, I don't care, just don't lift the same amount of weight for the same amount of reps week in week out. Get stronger.
New years day 2012, ask yourself, did I CONSISTENTLY train? did I CHALLENGE myself? am I in fact stronger and can lift heavier? If your answer is NO...... make sure you eat less in 2012, because your body will require less energy. Ask yourself today, do I need to eat less everyday in 2011 to ensure I don't put on weight because I lost muscle over 2010?
HAPPY NEW YEAR
oh and sorry if you have a hangover and feel sorry for yourself and this post just made you feel even sorrier for yourself...... :) haha
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