1. Tell us a little about you

My name is Leisa I'm 36 yrs old. I have been married for nearly 16 yrs and have two beautiful daughters. 2. How long did it take you to put the weight on in the first place? My weight gain was gradual. I had slowly put on 10kgs over the last 10 yrs just due to poor eating habits and being addicted to Coke. 3. How did you feel about yourself? I'm a tall woman and my weight gain was slow so it wasn't really dramatic or noticeable. I didn't really start to feel bad about it till very recently. I just didn't like what I saw in the mirror any more and I started to feel the extra weight I was carrying. 4. What have you tried in the past to lose weight / get fitter? I really hadn't tried anything. I was never a really huge woman so the desire to lose weight or try to be fitter never really hit me until recently.Even with the extra weight I was semi active anyway. My family likes to camp and hike and swim at the beach every summer anyway so I'd never considered a serious effort to loose weight. 5. How important is good nutrition in getting fitter / losing weight? Nutrition is so important. You can train all you want but if your not eating good food its counter productive. One of the biggest benefits I got from doing the challenge is a total over haul of my eating habits and my general attitude towards food. I never used to eat breakfast and would skip meals and then just binge on high sugar foods and Coke because I needed the energy. The difference eating regular healthy meals makes is amazing. Progress Tracker for Leisa Ireland Measurement Beginning End Difference Weight 70.4kgs 61.6kgs -8.8kgs BMI 22.7 19.9 -2.8 RHR 78 60 -18 Waist 92cms 72cms -20cms Hips 104cms 92cms -12cms R Thigh 54cms 49cms -5cms Skipping 53 jumps 188 jumps +135 jumps Push ups Advanced 9 23 +14 Wall Squat 34.9secs 1min 7secs +32.1secs 6. Leisa's Sample Diet during the 12 weeks challenge I ate 5-6 small meals a day, High Protein Low Carbs. It just worked for me because I basically had to train myself to eat again. It was hard the first week but after that it was great. I never felt bloated or over full or hungry either. Breakfast- Cereal or Eggs Morning Tea- Fruit or Yoghurt or Nuts Lunch- Chicken Caesar Salad or Salad Wraps Afternoon Tea-Nuts or Crackers n Dip sometimes Protein Bar Dinner- Lean Meat and Veges After hard training days I would throw in Protein Shakes for some snacks or meals. And if I was still hungry after dinner I would have a cup of Chocolate Jarrah made on boiling water. Since completing the challenge my diet has changed, I'm no longer eating for weight loss so I'm not as strict about Crabs intake. Its about moderation and maintenance now. Although I still haven't has a Coke, its 14 weeks now. 7. How would you describe your exercise program over the past 12 weeks? My program was pretty loose. I interval ran for 30-40 mins using Couch to 5K 3 days a week and walked for an hour the days I didn't run. Then I did whatever else I felt like on the day. Lots of Tabata's which I love. Fit ball routines, weight training. Stomach and core work, skipping. Later in the challenge I started to box again and I got a kettle bell which I love to train with. I even fired up my Wii Active when I was desperate to get a work out in. As long as I did an hour a day I wasn't that fussy about what I did. 8. How did BMFC help/support your efforts to get the weight off and increase in fitness? I was inspired by other woman on the site. Knowing that other woman were out there trying to improve themselves motivated me. I got really discouraged only once during the challenge and I posted about it in the forums and got a nice pep talk from another Busy Mum. The support is great and posting regularly in the forum help to maintain my focus and inspire me when I read other womens stories and challenges. 9. What do you think the key to your success was during this 12 weeks? I  Honestly it was just the right time in my life to do it. I'd known for about a year before the challenge that I needed to get my act together and become more healthy but I just wasn't ready yet. When the challenge came around I was ready and I was motivated and I really can't explain why, it was just the right time for me. In 10 years time I would be 46 and 20 kgs over weight and it would of been so much harder. I know people who are starting to have serious health problems as they get older and its because they failed to take care of themselves in earlier years. I don't want that to be me. My head knew and my body knew it was time to take control, so I did. 10. How are you going to ensure you do not regain weight and lose fitness? I have no set plan to ensure I maintain my weight and fitness, I just know in myself that I will. I reached my weight loss goal but I am far from being where I want to be in terms of strength and fitness so that will drive me on initially. I have plans with my family that will require me to stay in shape so that will help too. Other than that I know in myself that the challenge was just the beginning, the rest of my journey starts now. Bring it on and prepare to be dominated!!

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