The Best Things In Life Are Free!

Forget there's no such thing as a free lunch, that's just a whole lot of negativity!

I believe in Fate (when it suits me to and life goes in my favour)

After being good girls at one of our early morning swim session's, Juliette spotted something amazing - a poster in the changing rooms, from a personal trainer saying they were looking for people to train FOR FREE while they built up to their level 3 qualification. You can teach from level 2 you see. Anyway I would have walked past it because really at 7am I am not really in the most alert frame of mind, but my eagle eyed side kick was on form!

Funny feeling came about though. When she told me about it, I felt nervous. What if this trainer was really strict and made me hate exercise when I'd just got to a point where I was enjoying it? What if they made me do things I didn't enjoy? What if I started to rebel against routine?

Anyway that decision was thankfully taken out of my hands because Juliette called and explained who we were to the personal trainer and what we've been doing and where we're hoping to get to. She was keen to take us on as a duo and we've been working with her eversince.

She is amazing. She does not come down hard on us like a ton of bricks but at the same time, she sets goals that are realistic even when we are surprised to think we can do them. She is so thoughful and often comes up with ways for us to better improve or tactics to try to help us. It's brilliant. I would pick a female trainer over a male anyday now and had you asked me that question before us meeting ours, I would have said a man, for no particular reason. But she really listens and picks up on things. This xmas she bought me a little pink diary with shoes on the front. Now as a technology person, who relies solely on my phone to keep my life in order, I really didnt know if I would use it. I use this diary as an example of how small things can make a big difference.

Using her other method of post it notes with motivational things written on them, I have placed one per week in this diary and will rotate them. I now write everything in there and the post it note is a good constant reminder of my thought of the week. I'm converted back to paper! n constantly thinking of shoes, yippee!

So I'm not perfect and sometimes I am having a chocolate bar or too much of this and that but it's all about training my mind. I've given myself too much freedom and now I am paying the price for this by being overweight. I'm doing a lot of talking and less doing and I am now changing this around by being more active and trying to make better food choices.

I think about the celebrities I see on tv or girls my age and then I look at people older than me and I think you know what, THIS is my prime time. I should be fit and healthy and carefree and happy and enjoying life not working off weight that I've allowed to creep on myself because I was not in control. Time to TAKE control.

I also got a copy of Paul McKenna's Easy Weightloss CD. I found it really effective before in my quest for weightloss but I just stopped listening to it. If it's your thing, I find it very relaxing. If not for any other reason, buy it! You can sort of switch off your mind and get into some relaxation while all this useful information seeps into your brain. I love that. I do remember things. One of them is to visualise yourself as the you that you want to look like (harder than you'd think actually) and then to open the door to your own home and look at the you who you want to be and imagine how you feel seeing you. Very powerful stuff. I dont listen to it every night but quite a few nights a week as it's not for long. I really rate it.

Anyway back to the trainer. She really motivates me. Really she is standing there watching me and telling me to go up a level or pushes me for an extra few minutes. These are things I simply wouldn't do alone. I would be like AAAHHH enough, give up! But someone telling you what to do and I just do it. Like a lemming, but a bloody keen one.

I've got a great workout plan going now and I train with her twice a week. Sadly I don't think I will be able to afford her twice a week when the freebie comes to an end. She has offered me a FAB rate til sept, when the plan we put together finishes (the deadline is me being a bridesmaid...i say whilst eating a donut :-( ) so I need to carefully consider. Because there is every chance of me going off the rails without her. However I like to think that really, I have earmarked Monday's and Thursday's as my work out days now and this has been in place for a while so hopefully I will just be able to get into a groove and keep it going. It surely wont be the same without her though. I need another payrise already!!