Lessons learned from competing…

I wrote this before the competition but forgot to post it! Maybe the lack of carbs… lol…

So I’ll put it up now and then write some ‘post-comp’ thoughts soon.

Preparing for this competition has taught me so much more about myself. I really feel that I ‘nailed’ the balance this time – in my 7th competition (good things take time?!). I totally enjoyed the whole process!

Some of the many lessons I’ve learned –

– Chill time and taking time out for myself to just relax is SO beneficial!! It’s not a luxury, it’s a necessity.

– Doing cardio starving doesn’t work for me! I used to do it, but now I have a green vege smoothie or protein shake and my results are much better and I’m a happier camper, more sane, and retained more muscle.

– Going starving full STOP doesn’t work for me!! And I don’t think many people benefit from this way of dieting. I eat. A lot. And often. I just make sure I eat the right things now so I’m not ‘wasting’ my calories on foods that don’t help me achieve my goals. So I get to eat more. Yippeee! Sometimes 7 small meals a day. And I lose fat each week without feeling deprived. Works for me!

– Sleeping more than I ‘think’ I should – but actually what my BODY dictates – is SO important!

– Planning WORKS! This is nothing new, but this time I’ve really honed in on pre-planning my meals and training a lot more regularly! I’ve been doing it every night on the train and it’s a habit I’ll continue – ‘cos it works.

– Eating a protein based ‘dessert’ a few times a week (with whey protein & rhubarb or quark & berries) makes me happy and sane enough to not be tempted by sugary foods. I love the fact I can eat like this and still lose fat! Woohoo!!!

– Mixing training up works SO well for me. I’ve trained for 16 years and I get bored easily. I’m all for planning and sticking to a program for the right amount of time can work wonders. But for me – this time – I needed to mix it up. I followed my gut instinct and practically every workout did something different.

– I didn’t shy away from some of the ‘scary’ exercises I use to avoid in the past. Things like pull ups – without assistance. Free tricep dips on the parallel bars – going deep. 1 arm press ups (still working on this one!). Spin classes. Very steep incline treadmill walks. Things outside of our comfort zones are the key!

– I didn’t weigh myself but went on how I looked and felt. I’m a person very motivated by numbers, but I focused on outputting the right way knowing that the result would come. Cause and effect. Eat right, train right = right results. Simple!

– Less running worked for me – as much as it was hard to reduce. Having a very sore hip flexor throughout most of the competition preparation meant I couldn’t run – which was a blessing in disguise! I LOVE running, especially outdoors and missed it like crazy. But I’ve run for years and years and my body needed a change. Ronni – who helped me prepare for the regionals, got me doing incline treadmill walks and a lot more biking which really hardened up my legs. In just a few weeks, I could see the definition a lot more.

Any challenge is called just that – because it’s challenging. It’s not easy! Easy is not the goal or the point. How can you ever know your limits if you don’t try and stretch them? Push them? There are days where I feel no one understands me. There are days where people say things that aren’t helpful – and could easily bring me down. But I’m learning to be more like a rubber ball – and bounce back up.

The physical, emotional and mental battles are worth fighting, because – (as Christina Aguilera sings about), they make us more of a fighter – they make our skin a little bit ‘thicker’.

The head space I’ve put myself in day after day has helped immensely – more than words can express. I didn’t have this in my previous competitions. I don’t know why, maybe I’m just growing up! Moving to London has taught me a LOT! If I don’t have positive people surrounding me, I prefer to be alone. I put positive people’s words into my ears instead – via books, the Internet and my I-pod – it’s filled with audio-books teaching me how to be more motivated, how to think big, how to manage my time, live an exceptional life and much more. All of these resources are at our finger tips! Great people have written great books and they are so readily available to us, I’m SO grateful for this!

Sometimes I feel alone, but not lonely. I am more than content – about where I am at in my life. I’ve truly, thoroughly enjoyed this season – knowing it’s not forever, but that it has taken me up a level physically, emotionally and mentally.

I have many more battles to fight. Especially in finding ‘maintenance’ and a healthy eating plan that will give me a body composition I’m happy with as well as the lifestyle I want and some more time back. After being in a calorie deficit for so long, I need to work out ways to continue to eat clean and healthy and not go overboard on treats I may feel I’m ‘allowed’ to have or ‘deserve’ to have after my competition. I have to figure out – going forward, the best way to find balance in my life and ensure I remain healthy, humble, as well as confident in my abilities and potential to improve.

Everything is organised and all is well. I just feel so relaxed and peaceful. It’s a super nice feeling!

Will blog again after the competition. I’m off to Spain a few days after so I may be off my laptop for a while. But I will try and get back on to share some pics from some gym training I did yesterday. I had a massage, then got my make up done at Mac at Harvey Nichols (so divine) and had a relaxing day, taking photos with my friend Neil at Jubilee hall gym, then with Gemma at LA Fitness.

Here’s a sneak peak – will post more next week 🙂

Final Countdown to the NPA British National Championships

Ahhhh sorry I’ve been M.I.A – every spare second is spent with clients or helping my online clients, along with 2 hours training a day, preparing all my meals, posing and routine practicing. Ahhh the life of a figure competitor. I love it! It’s frantic, but just for a season – a GREAT season that is so exciting and fulfilling and worth every bit of sacrifice.

Anyone that can make it along to cheer, would LOVE to have your support – it really does make a difference!

Here are the details –

http://www.npabodybuilding.com/ViewArticle.aspx?articleID=6cc810b0-50df-46f6-a277-d300b9b292c4

Just wanted to give a bit of an update!

I’m trying a few new things with my diet and training this time. Basically going even cleaner, playing around with things – fun stuff 🙂

Tonight was my 2nd to last legs workout and I beasted them to near tear-jerking point – they felt like a mixture of lead and jelly afterwards if that’s possible (I’m sure you guys/gals that train hard understand!) followed by cardio then posing practice. Walking home tonight felt very slow…

Tomorrow I’m hitting upper body for the last time before the competition – gonna do circuit style to absolute limits.

I’m so excited about hitting the stage again. There are 13 competitors in my class – eek! Some of the ladies are champions and winners already so I know that the competition is very fierce. But I can honestly say, I’m proud to have simply qualified. It means so much to me. I know that it’s going to be such great fun – and that is the main thing. I compete to have a great goal and sense of fulfillment and accomplishment. I’ve already achieved this!

I’ve pushed my body to it’s limits and I feel like a winner. Because I have ‘won’ already in –

– Sticking to my diet plan, even on holidays
– Saying no to many many many tempting foods when it would have been easier just to eat it (nothing worthwhile is easy!)
– Eating many, many, many meals that I didn’t particularly enjoy
– Going all summer without a drink! (people that know me well will testify to this being a huge achievement in itself!)
– Doing serious damage to my muscles in my weights sessions – many, many, many painful reps…
– Leaving the gym no earlier than 9.30 – 10pm every night, when everyone else had gone home to relax, then doing admin. work at home and cooking til after midnight each night
– Spending my Saturdays and Sundays at the gym (train, coffee, work – repeat)
– Disciplining myself to get up every morning and do cardio – I mean EVERY morning without fail, for 4 months – bar 1 day. That was my birthday and I didn’t rest out of ‘choice’ so much but cos I had a plane to catch. It wasn’t a treat to me because exercise makes me feel so great.

I know many people say you MUST have a rest day, but for me – I choose not to. I exercise every single day and it’s a choice I’ve made to continue doing. I listen to my body and if I hit a ‘wall’ I take it easy. I go light. But I feel worse resting. I just simply believe that if you train right and properly (with varied intensity and allowing muscle recovery) then you can move daily. We’re designed to move. Our bodies are not designed to sit around. My energy and motivation goes out the window if I laze around and I hate breaking my habits. I’m not saying this is right for everyone – but it works for me.

I have learned a lot more about myself and my body and what it’s capable of. I feel I have achieved a great deal of balance this time and really enjoyed the whole process.

I feel that I’ve ‘tested’ myself, and passed! Because I have learned so many lessons, which I will share in my next blog post.

I still have a long way to go. I still have areas in my body and my habits I’m not happy with – as we all do.

But I know I’m on a journey of discovery. It’s exciting. It’s never-ending, which is what I love about health and fitness. We can all improve, little by little.

I’m less worried and stressed about perfection, cos it doesn’t exist. And I’m learning to accept that! If we know we’ve given all we could have given, that’s the best any of us can do.

And if not? No regrets.

The past is gone – we only have today.

Kat

Kat’s chats – ‘Diet from Heaven’ and competition lead up

Well I’m now in my final countdown to my upcoming figure competition and I wanted to share a bit about my journey back to the figure stage.

It’s only been 18 months, but it feels like so long ago that I tied up my bikini, smelled that delicious tan and put my feet (my ‘oh-so-used-to-trainers’ feet!) back into 6 inch heels. Very excited! But have been so busy training and working, I’ve barely stopped to think about it all. In some ways this is good and works for me – just head down, getting on with it – like an Ostrich. I’ll look up soon and go ‘What did I just do?!’

I really feel that I’m starting to nail the competition diet and training process for myself now. I understand my body so much better than when I first started this in 2006 – not having a clue about the bodybuilding world. Man, I’ve learned SO much! In all sorts of areas of diet and training – things like the importance of pre and post workout nutrition, monitoring everything in detail, how important extra sleep is and mostly – how HUGELY important the emotional and mental state of mind is. The most valuable lessons have been personal and internal.

I always eat pretty clean anyway and I don’t let myself get too far above my competition weight. But it certainly has been more challenging being in a new country.  My focus has been more on building my business and adjusting to a new life with different challenges. On a practical level, I now understand the best way to change things gradually as a process, so my body adjusts week by week. In the past I would throw myself into something too hard, and my body was not able to cope very well. I’d push and push and push to tears – literally. The price was high – the results felt glorious, but I was a bit of mess at the end of it all.

This time I have taken my time and more of an intelligent approach. I started thinking about competing again at the start of the year, but I just let the idea brew in my head for a while. I started eating more calories (that was fun!) taking creatine, and training heavy with lower reps. Slowly as the year has gone past, my vision for what I wanted became clearer and once I set my date, there is no going back.

Ok, now to the diet.

It has been a process of intense analysis as to what is going in and out daily. I have been able to week by week change things in my diet and my training as I go and I’ve been able to enjoy the process a lot more because I’ve ‘weaned’ myself to this stage by making one habit change at a time. Each week I reduce my calories slightly and take something out, substituting it for something else. I’ve treated it like a fun game, and it’s actually been thoroughly enjoyable! I can honestly say I’m not missing anything. The biggest surprise for me is not missing alcohol at all. Something has shifted in my mind. In my last competition diets, I was always hanging out for wine and feeling envious of people who were drinking it. This time my mind is stronger and my internal language more powerful. It’s at a subconscious level – I walk past 7 pubs on my way home from work every night, and have absolutely zero desire for a wine. This is a first for me! And compared to how often I was drinking when I first arrived in London, I’ve surprised myself by how little I care! Even though it’s summer and I often run past people enjoying a drink in the sun on a balmy Saturday evening, my eyes are set on my goal and nowhere else. It’s a very freeing feeling!

Often bodybuilding diets involve 12 or 16 weeks of the same diet, getting very strict at the end. I decided this time to do a process of changing things each week, so I wouldn’t have cravings.  I always like to have things to look forward to in my diet and if I keep variety in, I don’t have any desire to cheat. I’ve learned this about myself over the years and it really works. I also need to keep flavour in as long as possible until I really start seeing results in my body, then the great feeling I get from seeing the changes gives me a new dose of motivation where I literally don’t care what I eat – I could eat grass as long as my body is changing every week. I just really enjoy feeling smaller and seeing my abs!

I stopped drinking 13 weeks out. Easy, just made the decision, then it’s not an option. I only find it tough if I give myself options. Then I waste mental energy deliberating on ‘should I, shouldn’t I’ and it’s a waste of time. I enjoyed a delicious glass of Pinot sitting by the Thames, put my glass down and said ‘That’s it’.

At week 12, I started adding more and more vegetables and learning and practicing new ways to cook them. I dropped my carbs back by about 50g a day, actually without intending to, just by adding so many fibrous veges I was too full for anything else. Each week I just dropped whatever I felt like at the time, I don’t really plan it much, it just kind of falls into place instinctively.

At week 9, I dropped carbs back again. I stopped buying yoghurt and increased veges again. Around week 7, I stopped buying cottage cheese and quark. If things aren’t in the trolley or basket, I don’t eat them.
It’s not that these are unhealthy foods – they are very healthy, but as your calories drop, you need to save them for the foods that give you the most nutrient and ‘satiety’ so you’re not getting so hungry. So I stick to my shopping list and I’m sweet. Week 6-ish I stopped eating sweet fruit and just stuck to berries. I drink a lot of green smoothies too which are really nice and gentle on the digestion and give loads of healthy benefits.

Each week, seeing the fat loss keeps me going. It’s never enough for me; I always want more, but that’s just human and in our nature I think. I’m learning to accept that my body isn’t always as fast at letting go of fat as I’d like. It doesn’t like being in calorie deficit and the lower I go, the more it fights me every step, but that’s just part of the price you must pay. Weight loss is not easy, that’s why so many diets fail. That’s why there are 50,000 diet books for sale on Amazon. Everyone’s looking for answers. But it’s not ‘one size fits all’. It’s a process. And it takes time and commitment. As challenge as it is however, it can be such an enjoyable adventure! My motivation and energy is great! I get tired of course from all the cardio (I’d be worried if I didn’t!), but eating clean really makes you feel amazing and seeing changes in your body is so exciting and motivating. Physically, sometimes I feel like I’m dragging a dead body up the escalators in the train station at 10pm every night. But that’s a good thing, I know I’m pushing my limits 🙂

I’m now at 3 weeks til comp day and this last month really is the ‘diet from heaven’.
I was tempted to call this ‘The diet from hell’ – but really, it gives great results – nothing hellish about that! So, ‘The diet from heaven’ (our words are powerful!) begins. I’ve cut everything from my diet that’s not white or green. I call it ‘White and green fun month’ and make it like a playful game, trying to do as much as I can with green veges (there’s actually a lot you can do!) and white protein – chicken breast, turkey breast, fish and egg whites. Plus a bit of vanilla protein powder – which will be dropped soon, and then it’s all super duper natural – which is where the definition and fat loss magic really happens!

I’ve come up with all SORTS of things that I really enjoy eating! My taste buds have completely changed and I’m truly appreciating the flavours of everything now. Cherry tomatoes became my ‘lollies’ a few weeks ago – my treat for movies or Saturday night. When you eat a lot of greens – man, tomatoes taste super sweet! A few weeks ago, red pepper became the main flavour for my dishes and I can’t believe how sweet it tastes now. I’ve discovered and experimented with lots of spices, herbs, rubs and natural flavourings – and even have the most delectable egg white pudding every night – egg whites, vanilla flavour drops and stevia – a natural herb sweetener (my life saver at the moment!), blended and cooked in a muffin pan. So quick, easy and delish!

So, here I am 21 days out and feeling on track. Things are not perfect and never can be; I still worry my bum is too fat, my thighs are too big etc. etc. but I’m choosing not to waste valuable time thinking about those things. If I’m doing everything I can to be the best I can be, I’m more than happy. At the end of it all, I know I’ll be proud of the choices I made.

Dwelling on things you can’t control (like genetics and where your body likes to dump your fat!) is a waste of energy.

Focusing on enjoying the process, the lessons I’m learning, on kicking my own butt, pushing my absolute limits in the gym and finding ways to enjoy my ‘diet from heaven’ is much more fun!

Til next time,
Kat

Kat’s Chats

Hi All!

A day in the life of Kat is very busy as usual – but very productive of course 🙂

My latest passion is audiobooks – I love them. I can listen to a book every few days – it’s so much faster than getting through reading books – although I love that too, I find listening while I walk and commute fantastic. I’m learning and growing so much. HIGHLY recommend www.audible.com – one of the best (cheap!) investments I’ve ever made – and anything by Jim Rohn or Brian Tracy is amazing, they are like my Godfathers/mentors.

I’m also into listening podcasts; just wish I had more time in the day to listen to all the great content out there!

Training –

This week my training steps up a level. I’ve been doing cardio every day and weights every night, now it’s time to add in another cardio session and it’s time to hit the machines for a shock to my body and something different. I don’t generally use cardio machines as they bore me to tears. I much prefer outdoor running and body weight circuits, but with the right motivation and music, I’m determined not to let the machines beat me. I’m out to conquer them!

On Saturday I did an hour at the gym – steep incline hill walking, stepper and X-trainer, plus recumbent bike; I hate that you don’t burn many calories on the bike or get your heart rate up – and I hate sitting down at the gym, but I got a really good Quad burn which is what I need! My upper body is getting lean but my legs are lagging behind – as usual. 1000’s of walking lunges are helping, but hopefully this extra cardio will be the deal clincher. I talk to my legs often – as though I’m a Sargeant Major and they are my soldiers (Come on girls, push yourselves harder!!) 😉

This week I take my calorie output up by 2,000, my high rep leg workouts up to 800 reps per session (700 last week) and will be training heavier on my upper body to try and get as much muscle on my shoulders and lats as I can (anything to create the illusion my waist is smaller helps!)

Nutrition –

Nutrition this week is stricter. Taking the berries out of my morning shake so now it’s protein powder, barley grass, cinnamon, wheat bran and spinach. And lots of ice. Still very yummy! Cutting fruit out except post morning workout.

Now having oats 1x a day (in the form of a muffin with stevia and egg white powder – great texture!!), and the rest of the day is chicken breast, egg whites, turkey breast, lean mince (less than 5% fat 2x a week), salmon 2x a week and loooooooad of my best friends – vegetables! I’m up to 7-9 serves of veges per day now. They keep me full and satisfied – mentally and physically!! I’ve been researching new quick vege recipes and coming up with some great ways to make them more interesting 🙂 Veges are a major KEY to fat loss!

Well done…

to all my ‘Improvement challenge’ Personal Training clients – there are some fabulous results with everyone pushing their limits in the following disciplines –

1 minute box jumps
Pull ups
30 second Inverted Rows
1 minute press ups
1 minute sit ups
1 legged Plank
5 minute Treadmill distance
Sit and reach test
Swiss ball balancing – with ball throws and bicep curls!

Everyone is going for it and it’s great to see how much a bit of ‘healthy competition’ can help us strive to better ourselves 🙂

I’m also doing a lot more nutrition coaching online which is fantastic, technology is brilliant!

‘Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail’
Harold R. McAlindon

Until next time, keep pushing your limits! We all place WAY too many ourselves – dare to have a day where you make no excuses!

Kat

Kat’s chats – July 2010

Hi to my loyal readers,

I appreciate you! Sometimes we can feel alone in our journeys despite being with people constantly. Lately I’ve received some lovely emails and encouragement – so thank you to those people, you know who you are 🙂
Particularly this week I’ve had a few emails come in with people telling me different ways I’ve inspired them – those things can really lift our spirits! How great to build one another up in our pursuits – especially as the world can seem to want to pull us down at times and can sometimes make us feel like our dreams are too big or too crazy!

I’ve been listening to some fantastic audiobooks lately – it’s my new obsession. I listen to them while I walk to the train and home, and I also go for a power walk every afternoon with Brian Tracy, or Jim Rohn, or another guru. It totally motivates me and gives me s regular burst of energy and inspiration that I’m finding invaluable in improving my life. (I get mine from audible). I just finished one called ‘Getting things done’ – amazing, and I’m currently listening to ‘The Power of Less’. Highly recommend them both! I’ve realised how much I’ve been trying to cram in to my life and doing waaaaay too many things and having waaaay too high expectations of myself. I’m now focusing on doing only a few projects at a time and doing them well.

My main focuses at the moment are of course my Personal Training clients and their own achievements and motivation, training for a figure competition in September, running a Nutrition seminar and then regular workshops, and now studying (a Nutrition diploma online).

It still sounds like a lot; but before I had over 10 projects I was trying to work on – including a recipe book, a video-log, a podcast, writing my body transformation book, doing more coaching study, corporate health packages, writing more regular articles and group training – all of which I’ll do in the near future, but one thing at a time!

My training is going fantastically – I’m doing cardio every morning – either an outdoor run or a high intensity cardio session in my lounge room. I need to find some good aerobics/dance DVD’s – if anyone knows of any, please let me know! I get an achy hamstring if I run too much so I like adding lots of variety in my workouts.
I’m doing weight training for an hour every night plus 10-15 minutes of stretching and foam rolling – including the splits which is one of my goals. I’m about 5cm away – it’s painful but doing it every day is so great. I close my eyes and it forces me to breathe and switch off.

I’m also incorporating more relaxation into my life – things like a weekly massage, and trying to stay present and in the moment more, walking daily and sitting in the park and eating my lunch without multi-tasking etc. I feel a lot more relaxed!

The 12 week challenge with my clients is going really well – everyone is pushing themselves to achieve and improve. My clients inspire me – especially when I see them incorporating new disciplines into their lifestyles and sticking with them – and reaping the benefits. Sacrifice now – rewards later. Always.

Hope you’re all having a great week and looking after your most important asset – your body.

Kat

New goals for Kat

I’m going to attempt to journal a lot more regularly, particularly now as I start my 12 week diet down to stage!

I’ve decided on my new goals – and I think I’m keeping them pretty simple (simple is different to easy) for a change! Here goes!

*Compete in September – aim for musclemania, possibly other events (there are a few happening and will decide a bit closer to the time)
*Burn 2,500 calories per week – 3x morning runs, 2 sprint sessions, 2x 1,000 rep workouts, plus X-training and fast walks – either incline treadmill or outdoors – I have bought lots of new audio books to listen to – can’t wait!
*6x weight training sessions per week – 3 day split, each muscle group being hit 2x per week
*Increase flexibility – particularly hip flexors and lower back. Be able to do the splits! Stretch/foam roll – 10 mins per day, have a massage every week (that’s my indulgence for 12 weeks instead of wine!) 😉

Half of me hasn’t even decided whether I’m really ready to commit to doing this or not, but the other half wants to do it so badly, it is willing to share the idea on the Internet (?!), so maybe this is my way of cementing my new goal – so that I actually do it!

To be honest, I’m a little bit freaked out by the whole thing! I know that I have a lot of hard times ahead, but nothing worthwhile is easy, and I’m really, really craving having that discipline and hard-core goal focus again!

When I compete, I totally throw myself into my training like never before – and my head-space is so different. I feel like nothing could or would ever stop me doing it. I love that feeling!!! I get very addicted!

I remember feeling so strongly about sticking to my plan that I wouldn’t even let a tiny iota of carrot get past my lips in my coleslaw (if it wasn’t in my eating plan) or insy bit of egg yolk get into my egg white omelette. I want that type of gutsy determination back again. Sounds obsessive, but I love having a strict plan with all the calories laid out, so I have peace of mind that I will get results. No ifs, buts or maybes.

So, I want to do this in a healthier way than I have in the past (where it just about killed me), now that I’m armed with more knowledge and experience.

That’s not to say I will be having a boring diet. I’ve learned so much over the last few years about nutrition and how the body needs variety. I never want to eat the same thing day in and day out – and I don’t believe it’s good for our bodies to do this.

This decision has been an interesting one, because I’ve been questioning why I want to do this again.
To be totally honest – mainly with myself, I can truly say that it’s not to qualify for anything, to prove anything, or to place in the top 3. I want to do this to get my laser beam focus back, a certain type that has escaped me a bit since I’ve hauled myself half way across the world and set up a new life in a new country. I’m not annoyed at myself for losing certain habits that I had in NZ. On the contrary, it’s all been part of the process of getting me to this point. I have no regrets, and I’ve learned a load about myself.

I feel like I’ve come full circle. I went totally strict for my last comps, then lived it up a bit too much (I do love to party), then started slowly changing things, in a healthy manner. I don’t like the sudden shocks to the body, I don’t believe it’s good. The quality of my diet has improved and improved every year, along with my mindset.

One of the best things at the moment, is that I’m the strongest I’ve ever been. My body fat is higher than I like it, but I love feeling strong, and have really enjoyed putting on muscle through eating clean – and eating lots of clean food! Although I’ve partied a lot since I moved to London, I have stayed around the 60kg mark, no higher, for the past year and a half.

So I’m not beating myself up for not staying in ‘competition’ shape. I just know that there is a lot of dieting to come – lots of saying no, lots of temptations to overcome, lots of having to really dig deep to find some internal and mental strength to make the right decisions. Plus a lot lot lot more cardio. I’ve been hitting weights almost daily for the last year, but cardio only 3-4x per week and the volume/hours/calorie burn will need to more than double that.

And of course, no drinking. I find that to be the hardest aspect of this whole thing. I’m very focused with training, and diet – once I’m in the swing of it. But alcohol is my downfall. I think it will be a bit harder this time ‘cos I haven’t had summer for a year and a half, and it’s so nice to finally have light, warm nights! (Since I did 2 winters in a row – one in NZ, one in London, I’ve missed it!).

Summer and me (like so many people) = drinking in the sun! The thought of total restraint kinda bothers me, but it also very much excites me when I focus on the result I will get from it. If I can go through the whole 12 weeks of summer without drinking and without eating those yummy summer things we all like (including on my birthday), well let’s just say, it’ll make me feel like a stronger person!

I don’t have to get into a bikini and get on stage to achieve this, but it certainly helps. Having a bigger goal really keeps me focused. I love training for the event almost more than the event itself. I love seeing what my mind and my body is capable of.

So, bring on the chicken breast, fish, egg whites and veges!

I can honestly say, I’m SUPER excited!! 🙂

Kat’s Chats – Leg combos, I dare ya to try!

Hi everyone!

Wow, what a gorgeous day 🙂 I’m sipping my coffee and looking forward to a run along the Thames in the gorgeous sun.

I love weekends! I usually run, cook all my meals for the coming week, and generally get myself all organised – it’s a great feeling.

This week’s training I tried 2 different days of high rep legs –
Day 1 – Started with 550 walking lunges on the treadmill. I broke it up into sections, starting with 120 lunges, then walking at speed 6.5 for a bit, then 110 lunges, more walking, 100 lunges and so on down to 80 lunges. Instead of timing my walk between lunge sets, I just walked until I felt ready to lunge again – and clocked in the 550 lunges at 13 mins 49 secs. You can break it up however you want. I like the numbers reducing hence why I did 120, 110, 100, 90, 80 = 550.

Dare ya to give it a go and see how long it takes for you to get 550 lunges. I’m going to try and beat my time this week as this was a bit of a trial and I know I can improve on it.

I then followed this with 500 box jumps, broken down into sets similar to how I do my walking treadmill lunges.
I use quite a low step and just bounce up and down. Some sets i do forwards, and some sets I straddle the step and jump up in the middle – like a star jump.

In-between sets I did ab crunches with my legs hooked over on the Lat pulldown machine. You can lean right back and towards the end of the set I got a nice shake going on in my abs.

This week I did 120 jumps, 25 crunches, 110 jumps, 25 crunches, 100 jumps and so on down to 80 jumps at the end – making a total of 500. Next time I’m going to repeat it as it’s quick to do. I’ll probably time it too and try to beat it. I love beating things!

After this was powerplate combos with kicks and lunges. I really like high rep legs, you get a great burn as well as a good sweat up!

On other days I did my usual weight training nights, plus an outdoor run on Tuesday (from the Millenium Bridge along the Thames) and boxing Friday – I LOVE the boxing bag at the gym 🙂

Next week I’m doing a new plan of doing 3 part splits instead of 5. I’ve been doing 5 or 6 part splits now for a while now (don’t we just love our favourites!) and I want to get comfortable with the uncomfortable – so it’s time for a change! (The best workout you can do is the one you’re not doing!) I try to also apply this principle to my Personal Training clients.

So this week it’s –

Mon – Am. Outdoor run / Pm. Shoulders, arms, core

Tues – Am. Legs / Pm. Cardio

Wed – Am. Chest and back / Pm. Boxing, abs, powerplate

Thurs – Pm. Shoulders, arms, core

Fri – Am. Legs / Pm. Boxing, abs

Sat – Chest and back

Sun – Outdoor run or walk (depending how the bod is feeling)

Can’t wait!

Bring it on!

Kat

Kat’s chats – 20th Feb

Another week has slipped on by!

Spring is on it’s way – only a week and a half away (officially)

I’ll pound straight into my week recap…

Mon – Did back biceps and abs. Can do 5 pull ups on my own now and did 3 sets wide but with assistance. Felt good though! Still feeling my lats and it’s Friday 🙂

I don't usually do the smith machine but didn't have a spotter on this night

Tues – Did a morning circuit with sprints on the treadmill – 30 sec sprint, 30 sec walk x10. Each minute the sprint got faster until I hit my P.B – 20 kph for 3 of the minutes – felt amazing! Man my legs were gunning it! Have lost my Ipod so cardio is not so fun at the moment. Need to buy a new one a.s.a.p as I know it makes me go a lot longer and harder.
Marcal, one of the Personal Trainers at the gym gave me a circuit afterwards with lots of lateral leaps, jump lunges, ab circuits – I felt so alive! What a great start to the day!
At night I did a circuit of high rep legs and abs with power-plate, more plyometrics and walking lunges plus some chest.

Wed – Cardio in the morning – was so bored without Ipod after 10 mins running so I jumped on the rower for a change. Got bored with that after 10 minutes too so I decided to do more box jumping. Set a goal of 500 jumps and split it up with farmers walks, kettle-bell swings, high-rep biceps and calves. I did 10 lots of 50 jumps and got a mean sweat up. Loving it!

Trained with Hani in the evening – shoulders and triceps. I lead the session (which are always the best sessions of course ;-0) and we did DB shoulder press, 1 arm upright rows, military presses, rear delts on the cables, dips on the machine, narrow press ups, and cable kick-backs

Thurs – Cardio morning, PM – Heavy legs session. 80kg squats – am really into squatting at the moment. Will be

adding front squats and overhead squats to the routine soon for a change.

I love kettle-bells

Fri – Sneaked in an hour of ‘play’ training between clients (sore muscles). 10 mins hill walk on treadmill, 10 mins recumbent bike I’m reading a lot about lactic acid training for G.H – Growth hormone – apparently helps target belly-fat. Some new research done about whether ‘spot-reduction is a myth’ is actually a myth. Well, at least whether it’s that ‘cut and dried’. Apparently the recumbent bike (incorporated into a decent program) is good for lactic acid training because of the angle of the legs. Interesting. Also did some swiss-ball, foam roller mobility, lower back strengthening (it needs work)

Then after clients I did another 1/2 hour session of box jumps, press ups and bits and pieces. Tomorrow I’m going to the Canary Wharf L.A Fitness gym for chest and back. Hoping to run in the afternoon also if it’s not too rainy.

Goals for next week – 3 morning sessions, 2 lunchtime sessions and 5 evenings. Plus 1 on the weekend. I usually like doing around 11 sessions per week it’s not too little or too much for me at the mo. My focus will beto do more body-weight resistance, more stretching and to try and increase the weight on every exercise. Plus do 1,500 jumps onto a box throughout the week (it’s a lot easier than it sounds, it’s quick to get out 500 so I just need to do that 3x this week). Want to focus on plyo’s for a while – they’re fun. Beats boring machines any day in my opinion!

My food is still very clean, but with this ‘muscle mass’ phase I’m doing, I’m feeling quite full on the amount of calories I’m having to put on some decent muscle. It’s tricky finding the good balance. I’ve never really done a proper mass building phase with higher calories, so it’s interesting and will be worth it if it makes a difference.

I’m looking forward to cutting down a bit next month. Loving feeling strong, but not loving feeling bigger. I’m burning quite a number of calories during the day though, with doing a lot of boxing sessions and also getting more involved with some of my client’s workouts. I find it very un-motivating if a trainer just stands there and counts reps, so I try to get as active as I can with people if it’s going to help them push themselves more.

I’ve been getting up at 5.45am most mornings this week and still at the gym until at least 9.30pm is a long day, although I get a nice long break in the middle to sit in cafes with my laptop, which I love doing. Some days I have 9-10 or more clients, but I’m not getting tired. Clean food, decent carbs and keeping active during the day helps me stay awake and feeling energetic and alive!  (I’m sure it’s not the triple-shot americano’s from Starbucks – surely?!)

I have a lot of new people that have signed up recently and I’m so looking forward to working with everyone towards some great goals.

Until next time, I’ll leave you with this thought –

Know clearly what you want to achieve. See it, feel it, go after it!

Kat

Want better results?

How do I get better results?

Here’s your Action plan!….

*DEMAND MORE from your body. When you’re grinding that bike or gunning up that hill – If your lungs scream at you, tell them to shut up!
Can you go higher?
Deeper? …  Harder? … Longer?
What limits are you placing on yourself? Are they genuine or are they just excuses?

Do you want to walk out of each session feeling like you’ve done your very best?
Only you know when that is…

*Remember – Pain is temporary – Quitting is forever. You don’t want any regrets.
Think back to what your goals were when you started your particular program. Are you on track? EVERY WORKOUT COUNTS! Each time you stop yourself short – whether it’s 1 bad attitude day, 1 workout, 1 rep, 1 min – you’re 1 step behind in your goal. Make every moment an opportunity to use wisely and not waste it!

Calculate what % of your time you’re devoting to your health and fitness.
We all have 168 hours in our week to ‘spend’. How are you spending your 168? Is there any way you can sneak an extra hour or 2 in of activity somewhere?
Your mind will straight away come up with excuses why not to do things. Otherwise, you’d be doing them now. Get creative. Turn off the voice of doubt and starting thinking WHAT IF. Why not see how far you can go? Is it really that impossible?

Consider – Adding a 30 min brisk walk 3 mornings a week would rev your metabolism up for the day, give you some additional and probably well needed ‘you time’ and add up to an additional 6 hours of cardio in a month, just by making a simple and ‘do-able’ change in your lifestyle. Can you just for a minute take some time to really be honest with yourself. Adopt some WHY NOT thinking!

What have you been putting off?
When are you going to do it?
If not now, when?
Why not see what you can become or how much you can grow?

*Find at least 3 pictures from a magazine or the Internet that you will look at daily to help reinforce your goals.

Print out and put in at least 2 places – e.g. fridge, wallet, bedroom wall.

PICTURES ARE POWERFUL! This one task can literally change your thinking when you’re deciding what actions to take.
Focus on physiques that you would like to look like, or people that are doing things you’d like to do.

Every morning when I wake up, I look at a page of pictures I have stuck on the wall by my bed – they are of fantastic women sweating, boxing, running up hills and pumping weights – and they all look strong and toned. It makes me hurry to strap my Ipod on and head out for my run.

Enjoying your life through having the best health you can is a great reward for disciplined and consistent effort.

It pays off in numerous ways!

You feel energised, strong, alive and ready to take on the challenges of life!

Training News

6 week challenge

The 6 week challenge is going fantastically!

Everyone is really gunning for it, and I think going especially hard with the shorter time limit and the finish line that wee bit closer!

Have had many great progress reports and we still have over 2 weeks to go! Lots of ‘hardcore’ challenges being met 🙂

I have been referred to as ‘Big Brother is always watching’ as I’m texting people constantly to stay in the zone – there is no escaping! I really really REALLY want everyone to achieve their goal!!!

getSlim

It is SO exciting seeing all you wonderful ladies –

Progress … laugh … journey … enjoy each other … support … empower … buddy up … lose weight … feel more in control of your choices … challenge some negative thought patterns.. get to know yourself and your tendencies better … share thoughts, ideas and tips – and so much more!

You are ALL winners – and it is wonderful to have so many LOSERS!

Of particular note –
Keri – 8.1kg!
Richelle – 7.2kg!
Sepora – 5.1kg!

Keep up the great effort!

As a group you have lost…. 43kg!!!!! WOOHOO!

‘Strengthen your mental muscle’ seminar

Life-changing concepts that will challenge and inspire you

Wednesday 8th July 7.30pm and Saturday 11th July 11.30am

Les Mills New Lynn
20.00 per person (1 hour session) Numbers limited

Includes healthy snacks and Horleys giveaways.

First 5 people to register receive a wee prize pack of goodies!

Registrations by email only – info@katmillar.com. Don’t miss out!

sixfor600

This was a fantastic day – I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a 10km run so much!
I LOVED IT!!!
I was smiling and buzzing pretty much the whole day (except for the Old Mill Road hill of course!?!) but it was just the best feeling ever! Glorious sunshine, wonderful volunteers clapping you on at the corners and a cheering crowd at the finish line!

Thanks heaps to Nga, Neil, Jo, Kylie, Midi and Tash for joining me – esp to Nga and Neil who came back and ran the final stretch with me! Legends! I finished in 62 mins 50, which was better than I thought with my hamstring quite achy lately and I enjoyed it so much I’m thinking I coulda pushed harder! Ahhh well, next time!

Thanks to everyone who sponsored me 🙂 I really appreciate your support – great cause!

No excuses cardio blast

Thanks and well done to everyone who took part!

Bea Leatham, Kym Amani, Nga Beavin, Rochelle Johnson, Richard Kalka, Keri Pewhairangi, Hayley Fuller, Danielle Maurice, Nilesh Bhuthadia, Lara Paterson

It was a tough challenge..
But you all did me really proud!

Congrats!

10 mins each – Cross-trainer, Bike, Rower, Treadmill

Best distances!
Nga – 14.29km
Nilesh – 12.10km
Kym – 10.11km

GREAT EFFORT!

We are ON again!

No excuses cardio blast 2

Sat July 11, 9am cardio theatre.

Email me to secure your place!
All welcome!

And Finally…

Well, just a reminder that my last day at the gym is Friday July 17 and to book in your session times to ensure you don’t miss out! If you need a new program to continue on with or anything else, please let me know asap!

Start your plan to keep the momentum going and maintain the intensity, focus and perseverance!

‘Destiny is not a matter of chance, it’s a matter of choice’

Until next time 🙂

Kat