All in the Mind!!!

Posted on October 28, 2013 by natalietrew

This morning when I got up at 5.30 to go for my 5k run, I was mentally in a great place! I hadn’t run since my 10k last Thursday, I’d had a fairly relaxing weekend and I’d just woken from the best night sleep in a week. My legs were fresh. I told myself that this morning would be the day I run 5k under 24mins and that I did…..

As I left my driveway, I went out hard and fast. I kept telling myself to ignore any pain in my legs and to push through it. The first 500m seemed hard and hurtful, but I ignored it and pushed harder – as I approached my 1k mark I looked down and was surprisingly happy when I saw 4.35mins. When I have my mind set on a PB, I always aim to run the first kilometre around that time. I was feeling ok but felt at my maximum at this point. As I looked up at my 2k point I was hoping to reach a time of about 9.30mins so when I saw 9.20mins on my watch, it was received very graciously. By this time I kept telling myself once I get to 3k I only have 2k left and that’s easy. When I reached 3k in 14.06mins, I was starting to think that I’d reached my maximum and that the next kilometre, which is usually my slowest, was going to really let me down, but I kept pushing. I knew I must of been at my maximum because I was starting to feel that ‘I want to vomit’ feeling and when I saw 18.50mins at 4k I knew I had it in the bag.

As I started my 5th kilometre, I had no pain anywhere throughout my body. I felt strong, I felt fit, I felt like I could have taken on the world! When I made my last turn down Warrigal road to run my last 500m I knew when I hit my 5k mark and stopped my watch it would show 23mins something….I was thrilled and over the moon when I saw 23.25mins!!!!!!!!!!!! I would have been happy to see 23.59 but 23.25….a fist pump and a shout out of relief was definitely appropriate for this point in time!!! I was pumped, shocked and excited all in one! I did it finally. After running 5k in 24mins several times in the last few months, I knew I would crack it eventually, all I had to do was wait for the perfect moment and back myself every step of the way!

A run like this morning, signified to me how important our mental state is when trying to achieve anything. If I got up today with a negative attitude and no willingness to run hard, then I wouldn’t have come close to a PB, instead I smashed it by 40 seconds!!!!! If you want to achieve something, you will as I believe it’s ‘all in the mind’!

MissFit….

Posted on October 16, 2013 by natalietrew

It’s been a while since I posted a ‘fashion’ blog and I’m missing playing with my love of fashion! It is my intention to spend some more time on this section of my blog in the coming weeks:) But this week’s findings are a great one! If you’re after a new sportswear range of clothing for your wardrobe and you’re sick of wearing the same gear you’ve had in your cupboard forever, then look no further I have found the perfect range for you!

Kate Beeley is a healthy, fit and dedicated mother of 2, who has her own personal fitness business – MissFit Personal Training and in 2011, she designed and started her own sportswear range for her clients and anyone looking for comfort and style! Kate is a wonderful role model for women, especially mums who are looking to get back into shape after having a baby and need the motivation and encouragement to do so.

MissFit is a quality and affordable range of sportswear that I highly recommend. There are several items to choose from which range in style and colour to meet your needs. You can either browse and purchase online or visit the store which is located on 429 Old Cleveland Rd, Coorparoo.

I haven’t had the pleasure of visiting the MissFit store yet, but I have full intentions of doing so in the near future. Instead I made my purchase of my MissFit sportswear online and I’m happy to say it was a pleasurable experience. It was easy and I received my goods within a few days of purchase. I was also lucky enough to be able to take advantage of the 30% off sale that MissFit was offering last weekend, in conjunction with the Brisbane Health and Fitness expo held at the Convention Centre.

These were my purchases:

Shorts:

Simply and comfortable black running shorts…I wore these yesterday and they are amazing!!!

These are MissFit’s new range called bubble shorts…I love anything with rainbow print. The leg length can be adjusted with the side laces – also very comfortable!

I feel like I should be out playing a game of tennis in my skorts…the material is super soft and beautiful to wear!

Tops:

My favourite top, not only because it has the rainbow print, but it’s firm and the material is lovely to wear. It also has a shelf bra to keep the ladies firmly in place!

Perfect for summer this mesh top is going to be worn heaps on my 10k runs!

I love yellow, so this top sold me straightway! Nice lightweight cotton material and could even be used casually with a pair of shorts!

Simple T style shirt but a beautiful quality material that is perfect for cooler mornings.

The total of my sale came to $157 with free postage as I spent over $150. With the 30% off sale, I saved myself $70!!!!

These are my first MissFit purchases so far. I’m all fitted out for summer now, well so I thought until I saw some of the new stock that I MUST have!! I wore my first MissFit outfit yesterday and I was so impressed with how comfortable each piece was, especially the shorts!! I find as a runner, I need my comfort to be not only in my shoes but my shorts or tights. I was so happy to finish my 10k (flat) run yesterday with the second fastest time I’ve ever run (48.32mins) – must have been the outfit…thank you MissFit;)! I look forward to wearing each of my new pieces of MissFit sportswear as I start a new week of running!

Be sure to head over to the MissFit website www.missfitsportswear and check out the full range of MissFit sportswear and pricing. MissFit Sportswear also has its own Facebook page, where you can be kept up to date with all the new stock and current promotions and discounts!

Celebrating Us….

Posted on October 12, 2013 by natalietrew

This week has been a lovely week and is always one of my favorite weeks of the year! It was our wedding anniversary:) This year marked 9 years and last month on September 21st marked 16 years together! Because the two dates are so close together, we always do one big celebration and this year was perfect!

One of the best days of our lives:)

It’s the only time of the year where we go away for the night and concentrate on us for a change. We spend so much time pouring our energy into our children, it’s so nice to be able to spend quality time alone together and have a decent conversation and meal where we are not interrupted by little voices (even though I wouldn’t change that for the world!)

On our actual anniversary day, we had a reasonably quiet day. I cooked dinner for us all and we celebrated in the comforts of our own home, as a party of 5. It was lovely actually, thinking about the day we became husband and wife and looking at what we’ve created since!

This year’s night away was amazing!!! Kane secretly booked a night away at the Stamford Plaza…we stayed there the night of our wedding and hadn’t been back since! It was so worth the 9 year wait as it’s the most beautiful place to stay. The foyer is so exquisite, the decor of the rooms, the classical music constantly playing in the background of the lifts, the friendly staff who can never do enough for you….they really make you feel like royalty and when you’re upgraded to a deluxe suite on the top-level, I really did feel like royalty lol!

For dinner that night, we had the most beautiful seafood buffet at the Stamford Plaza, with views of the Brisbane river and a lit up Story Bridge, it was so peaceful. Following our dinner we went for a leisurely stroll along the boardwalk and then finished the night with a couple of drinks at the bar – a truly wonderful night full of good conversation and laughs!

The next morning we woke to an overcast morning where we went for another leisurely stroll along the boardwalk followed by a beautiful buffet breakfast and spa! It was one of the best times we’ve had together since becoming parents. I think as one child turns into eventually 3, you really learn to appreciate the time you have alone. I’ve always loved my husband’s company. We make each other laugh and that’s always been a favourite pastime with the man who is my everything!

Now that we are back to the land of reality with our 3 beautiful babies, we will cherish the memories of our night away and look forward to next year’s celebrations, the big one – 10 years!!! Plans are already in the making:) Thank you to my wonderful husband, Kane Trew, who is my lover, my best friend, the man whose shoulder I cry on and the man who drives me up the wall, but I wouldn’t have it any other way….or maybe lol! Jokes babe…I love you forever!!!!

2 Years On…Bigger and Better!

Posted on October 10, 2013 by natalietrew

It’s been two years now since I started my journey of discovering the ‘old’ me. The fitter me, the healthier me and the lighter me! I’m happy to say that two years on, I feel the best I’ve ever felt, both physically and mentally. I feel fit and strong enough to cope with life’s challenges in a far better manner than the past. I’m simply just happier in myself, therefore I’m more in love with life and the beautiful people and things that fill it. It was the best thing I could have ever done – taking the plunge to put on my runners has changed my life forever!!!

My journey started with the want to lose my ‘baby bearing’ weight. I was the heaviest I’d ever been without being pregnant and with a diagnosed heart condition, the lights were flashing to do something about it. Originally I changed my eating habits by simply ‘cutting out the crap’ and reducing my meal size. Thankfully for me, I’ve always loved eating fruit and veggies so doing those two simple things with my diet helped me immensely!! After a couple of weeks of eating well, I lost a couple of kilos really easily, but I felt I needed more and it was after a long hectic day at home, with three kids under 5, made me come to the realisation of needing some time to myself. With that I put on my runners and the rest is history.

It took me 6 months to lose the 13 kilos of weight that I had gained since getting married and having three babies and since the very first day I started running until now, I’ve worked consistently week in and week out, building on the distance and speed of my running. Bit by bit I pushed myself to run further and faster and to date, my longest run is 10km (pb 48.52mins) and my fastest run is 4km (pb 18.47 mins). It’s been an awesome two years and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every step my foot has run on the pavement.

It hasn’t been easy though. There have been days where I’ve had to force myself to go. Winter mornings are a killer, it’s been challenging fitting exercise in while juggling work, 3 kids, a house and a husband who works really long hours and the pain from my ‘netball’ knees has at times been unbearable! But none of this
has ever allowed me to lose focus on what I want to achieve. Running is one of those exercises where your competitor is yourself, so the only person you’re letting down by not going, is yourself! That’s what I love about running though, the challenge to better me and the feeling of a pb never ever gets old…this week’s pb was my 4km hill run 19.21mins – makes you feel so pumped!!!

As I reflect over the past two years, one of the things that’s has assisted me in not giving up, is to constantly set goals. Running especially, can be an exercise where it becomes boring very quickly and because my lifestyle and my heart condition doesn’t allow me to go to gyms or bootcamps, I’ve had to choose an exercise that is convenient and non competitive. When I do feel like I’m getting bored, I know that I’m ready for a change. In the past most of my changes were an increase to distance and then I would spend several weeks or months improving on the speed of that distance. I’ve hit a safe limit for distance for my heart now, so a change now is either in routes or routines.

My mantra:)

In the past couple of weeks I’ve started a new routine and I’m LOVING it!!!! Now that it’s light at 5am, I have more time in the mornings to exercise. So I’ve decided, instead of my two work days being my rest days, I now exercise every day Monday-Friday and have my rest days over the weekend. Last weekend was the first weekend in two years I didn’t go for a run…it was lovely not having to fit it in over an extremely busy weekend, but by Monday I was chaffing at the bit to run lol! This routine also allows me time to catch up over the weekend if I’ve missed a day through the week for some unforeseen reason…meaning children lol!

My new routine:
Monday – 5k run
Tuesday – 15min power walk, 10mins of planks, squats, leg raises and lunges using my tiny pink weights, finished with 5 min power walk.
Wednesday – sprint/ short distance 3 or 4k
or 1k sprints with a minute rest between for 4km.
Thursday – same as tues
Friday – 10k run hill run 3 weeks in a row and in the 4th week a flat run
Saturday & Sunday – family fun!!

The lifestyle I lead now isn’t something I have to force myself to do. Now that I’ve been exercising and eating well for so long, it comes naturally to me each and every day. I love nothing more than to start my day with exercise. It allows me to achieve so much more in my day. I crave salads and veggies (especially if we’ve had a big weekend of get togethers) but I never deprive myself of my favourite treats…all in moderation!! The energy I have now is so fantastic and when faced with a stressful situation or a crazy busy period, I feel so much more in control rather than throwing in the towel and feeling overwhelmed by it all! I feel I’m a better mum and wife where my limits stretched now far our do my limits of the past! I encourage anyone who wants to become the best ‘you’ you can be, to start with something that makes you happy….for me that’s running:)

When I was diagnosed with a dilated aorta of the heart 2 and half years ago, I was so scared and so overwhelmed with what was inside my body. My first thought was I can’t not be here for my babies!! Now that I’m at my perfect weight for my height and I’m as fit as I’ve ever been, I’m giving myself the best chance for my heart to not get any worse. I will spend the rest of my days continuing to work to help my heart, so I can live a long and happy life with my beautiful party of 5 and inspire my children to be the best they can be!

“I think I’ve made it!!!”

Posted on October 6, 2013 by natalietrew

As the school holidays come to an end, I’ve been reflecting back on the past two weeks that have been absolutely wonderful! No stress, no rushing, no deadlines to be met…to me that is what I call bliss! The kids and I have spent many a morning snuggling in bed and days where we’ve pottered around the house in our pjs. We have done so many wonderful things from – beach play dates, to bowling, to playground visits and have swam, swam, swam! The weather at this time of year is always lovely, but this year it has been exceptional!!!!

For the first time since becoming a parent almost 8 years ago I think I can finally say “I’ve made it!!!”…through the “baby” years anyway!! It’s the first school holidays where my littlest baby Mia (who is 2 and a half) doesn’t seem so much of a baby anymore and has happily joined in with everything the two older ones have done. She is getting to such a great age now where her day naps aren’t as big of an issue anymore and she is so happy just to cruise along with what we are doing without any fuss. In the past, we would plan our days around “the baby” and choose activities that were “baby” friendly and having 3 babies in 5 years, those years of “baby” planning have gone on for a long time!! I even managed getting my toes done with Mia in toe and she was an angel!

I have spent so many hours just sitting and watching my babies play together (nicely most of the time). I seriously could do this forever. I get so much enjoyment watching their faces when they are happy and having fun. The excited looks on their faces when they’ve discovered something or created something. I’ve kicked footballs with them, taught Sienna all the passes in netball, I’ve chased each of them and been chased by each of them, we’ve walked and scootered many kilometers and my favourite – have been kissed and cuddled a million times over!!

We have spent most of the school holidays without Kane as he has worked really long hours and is currently in Sydney for the NRL grand final, but that hasn’t stopped us from having fun, even though we are our happiest when we are all together! It hasn’t been all roses. The first week was close to perfect and then the second week hit, Mia woke with croup and the two older ones started to get on each other’s nerves – but we got through it and not once did I hear anyone say “I’m bored!” Despite some downs, it really has been an awesome two weeks! And this weekend with Kane away the kids have been brilliant! So helpful to me and to each other – so lovely to see!

Now, as we prepare to face another term of work, school, homework and recreational activities, we will cherish the time we have left before Tuesday morning is upon us and we hit the ground running for the next 10 weeks! I hope everyone has had a wonderful time on the school holidays and good luck for the last term of the year – seems so crazy saying this! It’s almost Christmas – OMG!!!!!

School holiday highlights…