Everyone needs a bit of motivation

Yes I've decided to become an amateur Triathlete! Strange thing to suddenly wake up and decide to do but here is a bit of background......

Two and a half years ago I was 5 stone heavier. Its hard to believe this now but this is how it all started.
My husband proposing to me didn't even trigger the need for change but some holiday photos did (see below). We were looking at some snaps from a recent trip to Madeira  Now anyone who hasn't been to Madeira - its pretty hot (in June anyway!) and very hilly so the photos of me were always ones where I looked knackered and red in the face! The thing I noticed the most was my size though.
I'd always been 'big boned' and just accepted the fact that dieting was too hard, I hated exercise and I was going to always be a 'curvy' lady.

After looking at those pictures I deleted most of them that featured me but I started to panic about our wedding photos. I didn't want to delete memories of what I hoped would be the best day of our lives. I wanted to show them to people and display them around our home without cringing every time I caught a glimpse.

At that moment with exactly a year to our wedding day I decided that only I could change me and the wedding was going to be my motivation. That evening I joined my first Weight Watchers meeting.

I'm not going to say it wasn't hard but in 10 months I had reached my goal of losing 4 stone. During this time I started to get more active. I'd always cycled to work but found it hard and tended to reach my destination very short of breath and in a bit of pain. Throughout those 10 months it definitely became much easier and I started looking at different routes in order to vary my distance and make things more challenging.

 Our wedding day was magical and everything I hoped it would be. Our wedding photos are a constant reminder of the day but also my achievement and they are in pride of place around our home.

Since getting married I floundered for a bit not really having a target to aim for. I didn't gain any weight but definitely found it harder and lacked motivation. Then the summer of 2012 hit. Not only did I turn 30 but London hosted the Olympic games. I've got to say I've never been more proud to say I'm British after that summer of sporting achievement and national pride.

One of the events struck a chord with me though - the triathlon. I love cycling and can swim but I have never run for anything in my life. Could I actually do this? I enlisted the help of a fantastic personal trainer and together we tackled everything I wanted. We worked on my core stability, resistance training and cardio including running on a treadmill! I won't say it was the scariest moment of my life but it definitely features high up there! Within a month I was waking up early on a Saturday to go for a run...............!!!!

Over 4 months I could feel and see myself changing into a lean athlete and I've got to say I've been bitten by the bug! 2013 will be a big year for me and so I wanted to share my journey with the world (well those who are a little interested!). Each week I will be blogging on what I've been up to, how I'm feeling and events I've entered.

Jonny and Alistair Brownlee are my inspiration - maybe my achievements and this blog might be yours?