2011 is here, folks – are you ready to get fitter than ever? I know I’ve been a bit absent on this blog, if I ever had a new year resolution (and I hate that word, I like GOAL SPECIFIC better!) it has to be that I will try my best to blog at least twice a week if not more.  Life in 2010 was challenging but also rewarding;  I left my permanent job as a spirit consultant and started full time running my own company, Fork and Glass. I completed my first figure competition, not to the placement I had hoped for but I am trying again this year. The most important thing was that I definitely got the results I wanted – I dropped 15% in bodyfat and lost 35 lbs from my frame, ran my first half marathon and went from a couch potato to a fitness buff in less than a year. I had a minor relapse in December, where I went to Norway for Christmas and definitely indulged in too much food.  Going home has always been difficult for me, where a lot of the focus is on food and it is extremely challenging to not participate. Another challenge for next year! I felt run down, mostly physically – between working hard and doing a million jobs to make ends meet, in addition to hardcore training almost every day – and wanted to “reward” myself by not thinking very much about dieting and being strict. Well, this “reward” definitely doesn’t feel like one – I am softer and heavier and it’s now back to normal!! I am doing online coaching with my biggest motivation, Pauline Nordin, again this month  – who no doubt will be a big contributor to me getting back to my regular shape.  I am planning to enter a show in June – again with INBF, although I’m also toying with the idea of doing an NPC show, but time will tell if I can fit it in, both time wise and financially.  My body is definitely changing shape (and I’m not talking about the fat, lol!) – getting more muscular and stronger each day and my work outs continue to go very well, which is motivating and inspires me to keep going.  I had a great few days in Norway at the local gym in my home town where I trained with a friend of mine and so I definitely maintained, if not progressed through the holidays.

Let this be a lesson to myself and to anyone else who reads this and is tempted to ‘stray’ from healthy eating – it’s not worth it! Then again I knew that, but you learn as long as you live and I refuse to beat myself up about it.  I love being back to eating my oatmeal, egg whites, vegetables and greek yogurt – and my body is thankful too! I wish you all a wonderful new year – and look forward to going through it with you while striving towards becoming fitter, stronger and even more motivated!!