My preparation for The Arnold Classic!

7 Weeks from tomorrow I will be standing on stage in Columbus, Ohio as an Amateur in the Arnold Classic!  My good friend Kristy Thompson went last March so I've heard about it from her & it sounds so exciting, I'm sure it will be one of the best experiences I'll ever have.  Obviously competiting itself is exciting, but I also can't wait to see other athletes & attend the expos & of course enjoy an awesome meal the next day!

I have been training really hard & stepped it up with weights in the last few weeks.  I have a great training partner at the moment, Lance Preddy, who has a powerlifting background - I've been choosing what to do for our leg workouts & he's choosing the exercises for upper body days.  Chest/tricep & back/biceps last week I found intense, trained them on Thursday & Friday & today (Wednesday) the soreness has gone - just in time for another upper body thrashing of some kind today!

Have got a 12 Week Challenge starting for about 15 clients on the 24th of Jan, am going to be running 5 or 6 group training sessions from then (had been running 3) & am training at 3 or 4 girls for their first show in Christchurch on April 30th - the Nabba/WFF Christchurch Grand Prix. 

Writting for the Gofigure website is also keeping me busy & have started doing a bit more online training for people around New Zealand. So all in all - everything is going really well & I'd say it's going to be a jammed packed few months ahead - bring it on!

You can check out my latest aritcle on gofigure here: http://www.gofigure.co.nz/doc/content/blogcategory/31/34/

There are people in life who are incredibly supportive of others regardless of their own situation or what may be going on in their lives, & there are also people who try and knock your down, belittle what you believe in, or what you're trying to do.  I am learning more and more as time goes on to spend my time with/talking to people who will support & respect me & what I want to achieve in life & I will do the same back for them.  The people who can only find negative things to say are most likely unhappy with their own situation, & while it can be easier said than done.. the negative/challenging things don't effect me as much as they have at times in the past,  I know what I want & I'm going after it :)

"I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, & going after your dreams"
- Madonna

Another new year... 2011 is going to be a good one!

I had a quiet but really nice evening on New Years eve with a good friend, having good conversation over good (but healthy) food.  We both have exciting events &/or changes lined up so really enjoyed chatting about that, & was cool to think when we catch up next we should both have some pretty awesome stories!

Just finished an article for the Gofigure website (http://www.gofigure.co.nz/)  today "5 Things NOT to do when making New Year's resolutions".  This one should be up in the next couple of days & will follow it up with another one about how to stay on track with goals for the new year in a weeks time.  You can check out my last article on tips for the festive season here: http://www.gofigure.co.nz/doc/content/view/1179/34/

My training is going well, have been a little off target with my food but more in terms of not eating enough meals a day at times & timing between meals, rather than eating the wrong things.  Holiday mode does that to me a little, I prefer set routines - boring but predictable, as far as training & making progress with that & diet is concerned.  I ate pretty cleanly even on Christmas day - I did interval training for 2 hours during the day so enjoyed a desert of fruit salad, Gelato & sorbet.


Getting back into the swing of it now & excited about starting a new year, which I plan to make a good one!  Had a good workout today, have eaten well & have my goals clearly in mind.  For me having quotes & photos round my home, in my training diary etc, as reminders of what I want to achieve is always helpful.  Nothing like keeping goals right at the front of your mind - so tomorrow I'm going to put some different quotes & pics up on my pantry door, fridge & bathroom mirror :) I found this quote on a fridge magnet while Christmas shopping.  I think it's a great one to live by, start a new year with & finish for today;

"To laugh is to risk appearing a fool,
to weep is to risk being called sentimental,

to reach out to another is to risk involvement,

to expose is to risk

showing your true self,

to place your ideas & your dreams before a
crowd is to risk being called naive,

to love is to risk not being loved in return

to live is to risk dying

to hope is to risk despair

to try is to risk failure

the greatest risk in life is to risk

NOTHING,

the person who risks nothing,

does nothing,

has nothing,

is nothing

and becomes nothing,

only the person who risks

is truly free..."