This one is for my Mum......she hates these photos when I am straining with veins popping!!!!

In Action!!

Slave driver!!!

My coach may look all smiles and pleasant 10 mins after the medal ceremony, however my 1 week of rest is up and I am back into the gym in 3 hours time. Apparently as I have no injuries and I have pulled up well means I should be training.

The next comp for me is the Aust Junior and Masters in Melbourne the last week of April, so we have 4 months to execute "the plan". I know I agreed to "the plan", but I am thinking I may have been in a post comp state of confusion. The components look like this;

Training

• 3 days PL training consisting of all 3 lift each day - ouch.
• 4th day will be to build upper body size and strength for bench improvement

Technique

• Working with Aust squat legend one day per week to change my feet position and tweak other form weaknesses.
• Changing deadlift style from conventional to sumo.

Equipment

• I am changing bench shirt brands. I will need to work with the Titan shirt 1 day per week to adjust to the benching style.
• I will order a smaller squat suit.

Nutrition/recovery

• maintain nutrition and recovery protocols as they seemed to work very well for me
• maintain body weight at 57/58kgs for the entire preparation.
  

For those of you that are in Melbourne I will keep you updated on the comp date and venue, but it would be great to have a support crew come and watch. It is generally free, and if you stick around to watch the 82.5kg - 100kg men you get to see some great bodies under tension!!!!!!

Lisa

A few more details

I actually tied for first place but the South African lifter was 200gms lighter than me at the weigh in and therefore won.

It was a very tough day and I am absolutely exhausted and covered in bruises and lacerations. I have learnt so much in my first international competition and can't wait to get back home to put it all into practice and really nail my Elite qualification next year. The referees were much tougher on the technical rules than a National competition and many of the other girls bombed out on an entire lifts. My total was down quite a bit on what I was looking at but the reasons are varied and I won't go into the list of things I learnt yesterday. So I will leave you with some positive thoughts of my journey.

• I have a killer bench and was 17.5kgs clear of the silver medalist
• My squat is coming together and the final 115kg lift had plenty left - look out 2008
• In the past 12 months my total PB has increased 30kgs.

My total was;

• Squat 115kgs
• Bench 70kgs
• Deadlift 130kgs

Total 315kgs

Commonwealth Titles quick update

Silver overall

Silver Squat

Gold Bench - yeah!

Bronze dealift

more details later

I'll be back!

This is my last post before I leave for NZ. To say I am excited is an understatement, and packing my Australian tracksuit and t-shirts today has really brought the reality home. I am going to lift for Australia. OMG! I feel like a kid before Xmas.

My last week of lifting has gone very well and my opening lifts are as follows;

• Squat 110kgs


• Bench 70kgs


• Deadlift 127.5kgs

I have done all these lifts many times in the past month in training and I am confident of a good start. I also have a new breathing technique that is providing more stability and leverage, and while I am not keen on adopting new techniques so close to a comp I believe it is a very positive change.

I will need to put some work into making weight, but I am in range already 3 days out so I feel relieved about that. The only new component for me will be the flying, but I have my upper & lower body skins and flight socks and heaps of green tea bags with me. It is only 3 hours from Brisbane to Christchurch so the impact will be a few hundred grams at worst. I need to finish packing my bags and I am ready to go....I feel ready

One last thing before I leave and that is to thank all my friends here on blogger. There are so many and I would hate to miss any names in my current state of excitement so to all of you......

I will get a message to someone on Thurdsay to let you know how I lifted.

Anything can happen in a competition, but I am well prepared and focussed so BRING IT ON!!!!

Lisa

Focus and nerves.

This was taken just over a year ago at a local comp. I don't recall what I was listening to, but I do know it was before my squat and I was running thru my technique. This is what I have been doing today. It is a simple lift, but sometimes you forget the most simple things under pressure.

• Take my time
• feet under the bar and get the pacement on my back correct.
• big breath, stand up and control the weight.
• stay tight...3 steps only back.
• head up, pause control the weight
• receive the signal to squat
• big breath fill the chest, push it to the stomach against my belt
• lock elbows down, close my mouth.
• Squat.....control......drive...successful lift

Easy!!

When I come back from NZ I will have finished my ASCA certifications and will be starting strength training under the supervision (initially) of my coach and his Bodyworx business. This is my new t-shirt!

Lisa

THE SQUAT TECHNIQUE

THE GRIP

The bar should be gripped slightly wider than shoulder width apart, with the hands evenly spaced. The novice can initially adopt the same width grip as the bench press. Over time lifters tend to adopt a preference for either a wide grip or a narrow grip. In the wide grip technique the bar is gripped near to the sleeves, in competition the grip will therefore be taken outside the racks with the officials requested to set up the bar with “racks in”. A close grip technique involves grasping the bar close to the marks with the hands slightly wider than shoulder width, as described above with both grip-width techniques it is important to keep elbows together and under the bar to assist in pushing the chest out.

THE SET UP

To set up the lift stand well under the bar with chest out and back tight. This initial preparation is vitally important in helping to maintain a strong upright position. The bar should be positioned on the back just below the top of the deltoids.

Once set up under the bar there should be a momentary pause before taking one step back. This one-step set up procedure is recommended as a means of quickly and easily establishing a stable stance with the minimum of wasted effort. In competition, once set up, the lifter would remain motionless awaiting the referee’s signal to squat.

TRUNK POSITION

The set up procedures described above assist in producing a good trunk position. There are several points that define a good trunk position:
§ the back is hyperextended,
§ the stomach pushed out against the belt for inter-abdominal support,
§ the chest is pushed out,
§ and head up and in the traps.

FEET POSITIONING

The width of the stance is defined by the feet positioning. In the initial stages of teaching the squat, recommend a foot position wider than shoulder width with toes pointed slightly out.

DESCENT

The descent must be controlled. In addition, for a good descent the knees are kept out, the hips move down and back with an attempt to keep the shins vertical.

REVERSAL AND ASCENT

During the reversal from descent ascent ensure that the hips are locked and that there is a well controlled transition through the bottom of the squat. The reversal phase should be sufficiently slow to avoid the appearance of dropping or bouncing but rapid enough to take advantage of the stored elastic energy in the muscles. In the ascent, it is vital to keep the head and chest up and elbows under the bar to maintain an upright trunk position.

"One down and one to go. If I know you, you'll over come this last one with flying colours Lisa. Let it go and have faith in yourself and those around you. :o)"

- thanks Lia - how can you know me so well?

I had a very rough day yesterday as I struggled with the weight increase from TOM. It is easy to rationale these things, but 6 days out from your first international comp rationale often flies out the window and you are left with a very tired, emotional, wound up and frustrated powerlifter! I have to admit to having a cry last night too.

However after 10 hours sleep and a 800gm fluid drop, I am back on track..........

In 2 hours I will be squatting for the last time before comp. I have 3 people assisting me today. This sport is amazing when you get world class athletes offering their time to help a relative novice athlete like me.

I know when the bar is loaded on the platform I am alone, but the support I have received from this forum, family, friends and the powerlifting community is the reason I am even on that platform at all. Thanks to everyone here.

I had better go and stir up a bit of testosterone to nail these squats!!!!

Lisa

Bench is all good. I have been using the Inzer brand bench shirt, and it was suggested I use a Titan shirt. I struggled with the Titan for 2 weeks, and we pulled the pin on it yesterday. Today I put on a new smaller Inzer shirt and it is all good. I am right to go on Monday at my last bench session..........what a relief!!!

I knew it was good news Friday.

Lisa

It is good news Friday!

I have 2 challenges to over come before I leave for NZ. The first is a fluid retention issue from heavy lifting that is holding my weight up, and the second is a struggle I am having with my new bench shirt. I am doing absolutely everything right in relation to the first challenge so I just need to hang tough and not let it effect my mood and lifitng. The second will be resolved today with a decision to lift in the new shirt or go back to the older one. So I have decided that today is good news Friday, because other than these 2 items everything else is on track. I am in an incredible position to have an amazing experience that most others won't, so I refuse to let 2 small things bring me down.

I hope you all have a good Friday to set youself up for a wonderful weekend.

Lisa

My natural love of all things organic and healthy is reinforced every day as I am lucky enough to live next door to an organic health store; otherwise known as the the hippie store. My daughter recently started working there after school and on the weekends which pleases me incredibly. She is also a lover of health and fitness and having access to naturopaths so early in her adult life is very fortunate.

Today the manager made up some herbs for me to help me cope with the stress, bring down my fluid and generally keep my energy up and I felt like I was flying after the first dose. One of the great benefits of having a 'clean' system is that these types of remedies are immediately effective. I know Rod will be very happy today to have a calm athlete at training!!

Lisa

8 days to go!!

I received all the final details yesterday (and I also have a tracksuit that fits - kinda)

I am lifting in the Master 1 (M1) category on Thursday December 6th. Weigh in is at 10.30am & lifting starts at 12.30pm. Venue is the Holiday Inn in Christchurch NZ

I was meant to be in the open, but my nomination wasn't changed in time. There is no difference to me as my goal in NZ is to lift 340kgs and get my Elite grading to qualify for selection in the Aust team for World Titles next year. It is an aggressive and challenging goal, and I do get 2 other chances next next year should I fall a little short in NZ - after all anything can happen in comp. The very positive thing about lifting in M1 is that my chances of coming home with a medal are increased. I have to say that is would be very cool to have a medal from the Commonwealth Titles!

Rod and I arrive into Christchurch on Tuesday afternoon, so I have a day and a half to get rid of any fluid from flying and focus on making weight and lifting my best.

I AM SO EXCITED!!!

FOOD!!!

I have just visited a number of blogs that I read and it seems like everyone is obsessed,worried, or hating food right now. You know it must be the end of bodybuilding season when all the figure girls are having huge self esteem issues as they adjust to putting on a couple of kilos of post comp weight. Now I have done a few comps in the past so I am no one to preach, but seriously girls..............why do you keep doing it to yourselves???????????

You do realise that the reason you are putting on weight is so that you can build a better physique to present the next time you lean down right?

(I don't mean to offend or to be insensitive to any one's struggles, but I figure that if you have the right to obsess about it on blogger I have the right to offer some perspective)

I have just left my day job and am on leave until I get back from the Commonwealth Titles. My work mobile and laptop are turned off and will not be fired up again until I am back in Australia. I am sure it will take a few hours to de stress and forget about work, and organise my schedule for the next 6 days before I leave. I am sure there are a stack of last minute things to be done to keep me busy.

So yes, tonight it is time to breathe and reboot.....tomorrow I wake up as a full time athlete.

Good Morning Lia!

This is just some of the equipment that I have collected over the past 18 months of competing. In fact I have bought the following

• 3 squat suits (1 too small)


• 1 deadlift suit


• suit slips


• 3 x soft suits ( I like to have a spare one)


• 4 x knee wraps


• 1 x wrist wraps


• 4 belts - 1 broke, 1 wasn't legal, 1wasn't comfortable


• shin guards


• squat shoes


• 3 bench shirt (progessively buying them tighter despite getting bigger)


• deadlift shoes


• 2 gear bags - the latest one on wheel to easily drag all this stuff around.

I have also ordered another bench shirt (different brand) wrist wraps and knee wraps for next year, and I am thinking about a new squat suit.

I also have the bruises and scars to match all this gear!!!!

I have rested well the last 2 days and I am off to the Uni tomorrow to rip out another squat PB.

Lisa

Tonight I am paying tribute to my coach.

I had a really tough session today, and in fact in my eyes it was a total failure. It was my second last Deadlift session and I struggled - seriously struggled getting 125kgs to lock out for 2 reps. Rod dropped the weight to 120kgs and when I feared worse on the next set he called it a day.

I knew as I was going to have a tough session as I was tired, hungry and generally fatigued all day. I have dropped some weight in the past week and PMS is upon me, and I didn't manage to disconnect from work etc etc. So while I feel like a failure now, I am sure the morning will give me some good perspective. I hope. When I walked back into home I was greeted by the image of my Aust track suit hanging on the door and I did smile a little.

But back to Rod. His patience and understanding of my moods and energy levels and requirements are wonderful. He has been my support over the past 2 months, and I know he will be 100% focused on me over the next 2 weeks and 1 day. Thanks Rod.

I think it might be time for a small treat meal and a hug from hubby.

I know I can do this................

Lisa

One very exciting development for me lately is that I have started my Level 1 coaching certifications with ASCA. I am hoping to have my qualifications completed very soon and am interested in working with other athletes, and female strength althetes in particular. Some of this is going to have to go on hold for a couple of weeks while I am away competing, but the New Year should see me ready to take on some clients.

Lisa

I finished the session with 1 x 115kg squat. It was probably the best squat I have done - maybe ever. Very happy now!

It is squat day today. While I had great success last week with my 110kgs squats you can see the damage the equipment does to my mid section and upper thighs. This photo was taken last Sunday, however most of these have faded now. I do have some pale white marks on my thighs and arms that I may have forever as a result of continual use of equipment.

Today I am going to use my red Inzer Hard Core suit to squat in for the first time this preparation. It takes some time to get in to, and also to stretch into to get the required depth so I am expecting today's session to be challenging, and fortunately Pavel is coming along again to spur me on. We are going to have breakfast after and I hope he can impart some comforting words about international competition.

The Commonwealth Titles are less than 3 weeks away now and I am getting quite anxious. Only 2 more dead lift sessions, 3 more squat sessions and 5 more bench sessions.

Lisa

Tomorrow I am off to Carins for a work conference for a few days. It will be a good time to take a moment out from my preparation and relax a little. It is a annual conference that I really enjoy as there will be some engaging people there and it is always held a a beautiful venue, and this year does not look like it is going to disappoint. The travel is very civil as I don't leave until 10.30am tomorrow and my flight get s me back in town by 3.30pm on Friday - very considerate!

I dead lifted today and had a solid session; 3 sets of 3 reps @ 120gks. It didn't take too much out of me which is a a bit of a change. This contrasted to yesterday's bench session which was a very average 3 sets of 2 reps @ 70kgs. There was nothing really wrong with it, but my speed went missing and then I beat myself up for a few hours after.

I am a bit weary so it is time for bed ......

Lisa

It is our 6th Wedding Anniversary today.

110kg squat

Today was the day...the squat session that I have been waiting for. Pavel, a friend and former world no.6, came out to the Uni with Rod and I to sort out my depth issues. I had mentioned that I have been disappointed in my squat, and while there was plenty of power I kept pulling up short. The first thing Pavel asked me was what did I want to squat today, and I said I wanted to do 110kgs for 2 reps. He then asked how many sets, so I said 3. Now my PB is 105kgs, so shooting for 110kgs for 3 sets (even @ 2 reps) might have seemed a bit aggressive. Pavel was fantastic, incredibly encouraging and yet tough. He said that if I go short than that rep is a waste, it is a waste of a session. After my warm up we went to 100kgs, and it looked ok. I was nervous going to 110kgs, and a couple were short and couple were ok. He was really happy with my last set and felt they were both great reps.

He gave me some great tips on walking out, breathing, head space and Rod picked up some more experience on other things including knee wrapping technique. It was such a valuable session and one I am sure I will remember as a turning point in my powerlifting career.

I learnt;

• squatting deep with a heavy weight is scary for everyone, and
• there is more power there....just squat hard (or go home)

I am totally exhausted now, but I have a sense of relief and expectation of what is to come.

Lisa

PS Lia..I wore my WW T-shirt you gave me..thanks!

The count down has begun! Yesterday was the 4 week mark to Commonwealth Titles, and Rod feels I am pretty much on track. I thought I would be freakin out at this stage, but everything is under management and looks to be falling into place. So this is where I am at

Logistics; airfares and accommodation are all organised.

Clothing; Team tracksuit is here, and waiting on t-shirts

Equipment; I have all my equipment except a smaller bench shirt that was ordered last week and should arrive next week. I do need to buy a new bag to carry it all in though.

Weight; I had a tough week last week due to a 1.5kg spike due to TOM. However today I am back to where I was this time last week, and back on track. I need to drop around another 2-3kgs of bf, then I will manage the last few days as I normally do. I am at the same weight as my preparation into Nationals, so I am at a good place. Just need to be consistent and disciplined.

Nutrition: I am very comfortable with my current plan. I love the food and really have no issues sticking to it. It seems to be providing me with the correct amount of energy and allowing a speedy recovery.

Recovery ; It is a constant effort to keep my recovery program up so I am in the best possible condition to train heavy 4 days a week. The nutrition is the easy part, but I had been a bit slack with sauna therapy so I have been 3 times this week. I am doing a light walk then hitting the sauna in the morning and I enjoy this process. Rod gives me one session a week when I do light technique work and stretching - this is now my favourite time in the gym! Massage once a week, although this will increase soon. I am removing as much stress as possible from my life right now too.

Lifting; All my lifts look strong, and the only issue I have at present is missing the depth on occasion on my squat. This is only happening on the heavier lifts so it is clearly a confidence issue. On the positive side this is easier to fix than a technique floor so close to comp.

So all is good, and I am off the take my kids to breakfast.

Lisa

I am feeling strong today. It was deadlift day and I pulled out 5 reps @ 110kgs and it was fast and snappy. I am pretty pleased with my progress, and to be honest up until last week I wasn't sure I was going to see improvement this comp in my deadlift. I have been spending quite a bit of time pre training getting it the zone, and Rod has me doing an inter-set routine that is recommended by Ian King. It all seems to be coming together now.

Lisa

I am feeling like the "benching queen" right now. It is just going from strength to strength and I am amazed at what I am doing in training. My new coach has built on the great work Nic had done in the 6 months before he went to Russia, and yesterday I did 5 reps @67.5kgs - which is my current QLD bench press record. I am looking at a high 70kg lift for the Commonwealth Titles. I am so happy!!!!!!!

Lisa

It is extremely hot and humid in Brisbane tonight, however I was excited to receive my team tracksuit so I braved the humidity and tried it. As you can see the tracksuit is too big, so needs to go back for a smaller size (or 2).

Lisa

This is my top injury of the week.....although it has faded so I hope you can see it. Somehow my power belt managed to inflict an injury at the top of my abs on Wed while dead lifting. After the session I had a small round lump, about the size of a large grape on top of the muscle and it really stung. It has all but dissipated today and all that is left if a tiny bump and this yellow bruise.

Lisa

I am feeling pretty happy tonight. Everything is travelling well for me, and while I have my challenges I am seeing nice improvements in my technique and strength. My weight is dropping in a controlled manner and Liz has me humming along very nicely with my nutrition.

My recovery is most impressive and with the combination of the right food and supps at the right time, stretching, sauna and deloading sessions I am surprised at how quickly I am ready to go hard again. As well all know the more quickly you can recover and train again, the faster and stronger you become.

Heavy squat tomorrow, so I must go a sleep.

Lisa

I was moving the big iron today - lol!!!! I have been struggling with my deadlift and today I decided it was time to get serious. I did a great preparation before training, so when I arrived I was in the right headspace. I lifted 105kgs for 3 sets of 5 reps and it is far to say it was the best deadlifting I have done in months. I still need to pick my game up, but my speed off the ground returned and it was flying up (well until the very last reps). My lock outs seemed very strong, and coach and I will review video from my past last preparation at the same weight to see what it looks like. BIG sigh of relief.

Yeah!!!!

I did a 2 hour squat session on Saturday! In that time I was probably only working for 10-20 mins, but it was my first session in a while with suit and knee wraps - which means more effort, heavier weights and longer rests. After warming up and getting into the gear (which I think amused some of the folk at Goodlife no end), I did a warm up at 70kgs and 80kgs, then sets of 3 reps @ 90kgs. It felt great. It really hurt, but it felt great!!! I really needed a killer squat session to boost my confidence, and I now feel very excited about my squatting. I am looking forward to nailing my deadlift this week, and my focus will be complete. I am also having some consistent weight decreases which means I have hit the "sweet spot" on my diet. It is all about consistency and faith.

Lisa

I am very challenged right now; or to be more specific my mind is. I have so many thoughts, questions, concerns and emotions that keeping level is becoming tough. Now don't get me wrong I am not a basket case, but the difference between approaching a bar knowing you have the lift and thinking it will be heavy is the difference between good lifter and champions......and I wanna be a champion!!!!

I have an excellent team supporting me, not to mention the unwavering support of my family but when that "bar is loaded" it is up to me and my preparation. Even though I have a weight management and nutrition plan, I sometimes go to training with the worry of dropping another 3 kgs. I attempt a deadlift and it is heavy, and I think it feels heavier than last comp; I must be loosing strength. I freak out that the Commonwealth Titles is less than 6 weeks away and I don't deserve to be going. Crazy thoughts.....driving me crazy!!!

Then I push out a comp PB twice in training and I am on fire and I am going to smash it at comp. What a roller coaster ride....

At Goodlife last week one of the sales consultants came up to me and said how they were talking about me, how amazing it is that I can do chin ups and that she has watched me doing my power lifting. She told me I was "Wonderwoman" - I just smiled and said thank you.

Lisa

Yep, it hurts.

I really had to work today, but O guess that is deadlifting for you. after the warm up 1 rep @ 110kgs, 5 reps @ 100kgs, then 2 sets of 5 @ 90kgs. I am currently deadlifting at Goodlife and it is not really the atmosphere for hardcore lifting so we are off the Uni PL club next week. We started squatting there last week and it really improves the head space. I am suffering CNS fatigue right now, the first time this preparation......I can bearly type I am so whacked.

I feel the lifitng was OK, but not sensational and I need to address my mental approach.

Lisa

I have been flying....well to Sydney and back anyway. I have been away for a few days for work, and am so pleased to be home. It has meant that this week I will miss my 5th lifting session, however this is not a bad thing as my body can do with the rest right now.

On Monday I had a sensational bench session and benched my comp PB of 70kgs twice. I am doing a different style of training where we load up on a 1 rep max lift and then drop about 10% for 5 reps. I quite enjoyed it, and it is very confidence boosting to see those big numbers up there so far out from competition. I am deadlifitng today, and last week's session was very promising however it is a menacing lift and quite frankly scares my quite a bit. I know I have written this before but it is just all hard work and pain. It is the one lift where I really need to be present and prepared mentally without distraction.

Off to work.....then big lifting.

Lisa

This preparation I have been working with Liz on the Precision Nutrition (PN) eating lifestyle. I have to say that I am absolutely loving it and expect that it will be this way forever. My lifting is progressing well with increases in strength and speed, but best of all my recovery is pretty amazing. After one full week of training - 5 lifting session and 3 HIIT session - I should be unable to move but I am just a little tight. I have been using my bench shirt which causes laceration under the arms that usually take 1 week to heal. However right now with the combination of the superfoods from PN and my trusty arnica cream I am healing with 36 hours. I am spending a significant amount of time ensuring that I am complying with the program however I believe it will give me another 20kgs in 7 weeks time and that will qualify me for World Titles next year, so it is worth it.

I am a girl who loves her vegetables. I mean I have no issue eating them at every meal, so when the PN plan includes the use of a greens supplement I thought it wasn't meant for me. However I bought them and now I can't live without them. Goes to show that even the most disciplined of us can always do with more veggies!

It is 6.30am on Sunday and I am having my first meal which is a super shake consisting of;

• soy milk
• iced green tea
• greens
• vege protein
• glutamine
• hazelnut spread

I know it sounds odd, but it is a amazing and will set me up for the day.

This week I benched 60kgs, squatted 65kgs, and deadlifted 90kgs. My bench was with a shirt so it is about 10kgs higher than a raw lift, but it does seem odd to be benching almost as much as I am squatting. Obviously the squat will increase soon, but we have done a lot of work on the bottom of the squat and are being careful to keep the new groove!

Well, now that my shake is finished I am going to get out and have a nice long steady state walk to loosen my glutes from yesterday's squat session.

Lisa

I have finished my first week back at training and my first week of preparation for Commonwealth Titles. It does seem odd having my training week finish on a wed, however I lift on a Thursday in Dec so we have adjusted my lifting days so my preparation is in sync. In summary the holiday was well needed as I have come back strong and focussed. My recovery was pretty dodgy in the first few days, however I am recovering faster now and at the end of next week I expect that I will be back in the groove.

Off the the gym now to do some HIIT to melt off some of that fine Italian food I was indulging in.

Lisa

This is where I am off to tonight. What a day! I know we have to work for living, but I REALLY worked for my living today. I am thinking about 1 hour in a sauna protocol should melt away the stress and total frustration I am feeling right now....in fact just thinking about it is draining some of the tightness out of my shoulders.

breathe and reboot....isn't that how it goes?

How busy am I?

I am so busy settling back into work and training that I don't seem to have time to do anything extra.......like blogging.

Training is great and although it is early stages in my prep for NZ, I am seeing some strength increases already. I am training in the bench shirt from the beginning this prep and I will be targeting an 80kg+ lift in 8 weeks.

I have just packed my food for tomorrow, set the alarm for 5am so I can go thru another day of the same. Off to bed....

Lisa

This is my girlfriend and I on the tourist bus on our first full day in Rome. If you think the arm hole of my singlet looks a little big, it is. Both Chris and I had our luggage "lost" for the first 2 days in Rome. In a cruel twist, the 2 of the 4 bags that did make it thru belonged to the boys and while they had all their gear Chris and I had to borrow of them; hence I am wearing Michael singlet (however the purple bra is mine - a rush purchase the night we arrived)

Lisa

Back to it!

My first training session on Wed consisted of 3 sets of 6 reps of all 3 lifts. At the time it seemed pretty easy and I felt like I didn't even break a sweat. After all a 60kg dead and squat and 40kg bench is hardly taxing, or so I thought.....until the DOMS set in. Today, 2 days later, I did my first bench session and I was still so sore that I had trouble getting my arch positioned on the bench. I was pretty exhausted after 45 mins and just wanted to have a frozen yoghurt and go and lie down....is it this hard all the time? How much punishment do I put my body through on a weekly basis? I have to squat tomorrow afternoon and I am only imagining the hard work that will be. Am I really suppose to do this 5 times a week for the next 8 weeks............who let me go on holidays?????????????

In the Ancient Center of Rome

I know people are waiting for my Italy update, but I am so fatigued and busy that I won't have time to do this until Sat.

I went back to training today, and did light squat, bench and deadlift. I am happy to say that I haven't forgotten my technique. I am feeling nervous and worried about my lifting and I need to spend some time sorting my diary out and getting my weekly routine planned so that I feel more comfortable about the whole big scary thing.

Lisa

Hi everyone, I am back. We arrived early yesterday morning, and since then I have been flat out at work and organising my fridge - so much food is needed to feed the machine!! I still have heaps to catch up on and sort out as my 8 week prep into Commonwealth titles starts tomorrow an I want to be totally ready to roll.

I loved Italy and my favourite place was Rome, favourite site was the Colosseum, favourite food was the seafood, favourite drink was chanti, favourite purchase purple Armani ballet slippers.

I will download my photo's and give a more detailed update later.

Lisa

Firenze

I am enjoying Florence a little more than Venice, however there are still loads of tourists.....what can you do?????

I love the food here and I can see why the Italians here are in such great shape. Lots of fruit & veg, seafood, lean meat, salad and olive oil. This is complimented by healthy carbs and chianti - loving the red wine here. This is "accidental Precision Nutrition" - otherwise known as the Mediterranean Diet.

Ciao!

Lisa

Off to Florence tomorrow....

As lovely as Venice has been, I am looking forward to the next and final leg of our holiday. We plan to use all of our left over cash to buy clothes and accessories, so we look fabulous running around Brisvegas.

Lisa

Boungiorno!

A flying update from Italy. We are just over half way thru our Italian holiday and are planning the next visit already. I LOVED Rome.....LOVED, LOVED it. Cinque Terra (Italian Riveria) was fun, but due to the weather we were limited in the things we could do.

Venice is beautiful, but there are too many tourists. We have bought some great souvenirs and clothes etc.

About to be kicked off the web......ciao

Lisa