Lets break it down... 26 August – 17 September

Wow – what an amazing couple of months I have had since my last blog (26 August). So much has happened that I have decided that the only way to catch you all up (and not write 6 pages worth) is to break it down – so for this blog I will simply cover since my last entry until 17th September.

So back to the 26th August – this was a little over two weeks before I left on a plane overseas for my wedding. I was full steam ahead with eating as best I could and working out as hard as I could.

Even though I have never put it on here, I had set myself a goal weight that I wanted to be for my wedding – and I tell you what, in those last two weeks before the wedding I didn’t think I was actually going to make it!

On the 4th of September, as I’m sure you will all know, Christchurch was hit by a rather large earthquake – this really disrupted life as we knew it and I certainly struggled to keep any sense of normality. This of course included eating and exercise. With my workplace off limits and much of the city cordoned off, even the short journey from my home to the gym became a difficult one. I did my best to be good though, as did everyone else.

Friday 10th September – my final BIA before leaving Christchurch early Sunday morning for the wedding – this was it – what all the work of the past year and a bit had been working up to.

I showered in the morning at home and when I got out I couldn’t help myself – I had to weigh myself - after all, I had resigned myself to the fact that I wasn’t going to make my goal weight, so let’s just see how close I got and then I can deal with the disappointment in the privacy of my own home and not at M1nt when I do the official weigh-in for the BIA.

On I step.....

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Right from the outset of this blog I have declined to put my actual weight on here – after all, what girl advertises her weight?!?! (honestly anyway). But I did make a pledge – once I made it under 100kg (which incidentally was my goal weight for the wedding) then I would broadcast it. WELL I DID IT!!!!! 99.8kg – and yes that DOES count as under 100kg!!!!!!

I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried either – actually to be more accurate I bawled my eyes out. I’m not sure why, excitement, astonishment, disbelief, and also probably the over-tiredness due to the constant aftershocks may have had an impact. But I cried! Double digits – that’s the first time I’ve weighed double digits since I was about 20!

The heaviest I have ever been is when I joined M1nt in August 2009 - I weighed 117.8kg, so I certainly believe that getting less than 100kg was an achievement!

Anyway... back to the story.

I arrived at M1nt nice and early for my BIA (me, early somewhere!?!? Wow!!!) Di came upstairs and I told her the good news. It was sooo heart-warming to see the genuine excitement on her face, and also later on Mike, Vanessa and Brian’s faces. That genuine interest and excitement that everyone at M1nt has shared with me in my weight loss has been so valuable to me. They honestly do care, and honestly do get excited with you when you achieve. It really helps.

Needless to say I walked out of M1nt for the last time before my wedding, feeling like I was walking on air :-)

So off to Rarotonga I headed the happiest girl around. After spending a wonderful few days on the island AJ and I were married on the beach on 17th September surrounded by special friends and family. I look at the pictures now and I always look first at my face and love how genuinely happy I look, and secondly at my waist – I actually have a waist that goes in!!!!! AMAZING!!!

Anyway girls... below are some wedding snaps for ya – it was honestly the most beautiful and perfect day that I could have ever imagined. And I owe soooo much of that to M1nt. I was honestly a different person at my wedding because of them.

I am so lucky :-)