SWEETIESAL

Last night I was very fortunate to be invited along to the Pavelka Health Revolution Tour at the Village Hotel in Cheadle, organised by Ledigo PR.

Now, I have to give attendees some serious credit, as I know alot of them are VERY fond of Jessie and no girl likes to not look her best in front of their crush (not saying any of you looked bad I must add!) but each and every one of them absolutely smashed the bootcamp element of the evening.

The temperature topped an insane 86 degrees mid way through so imagine an hour that would make you sweaty anyway and then imagine doing it in a sauna, as that's what it felt like...!

With a mixture of cardio and body weight exercises, participants worked their way round a circuit of sprints, squats, push ups, push press and barrel relays (amongst other things!) all over seen by the motivation squad made up of; Damien (Head Trainer), Jessie Pavelka and Chris Main (whose name you might recognise as the poor soul who trains me).

After the bootcamp it was time for refuelling, selfies and the meet and greet with Jessie. The Village had prepared an amazing health food buffet for the visitors, which they certainly earned during the bootcamp session! After that it was over to Jessie for the Q&A part of the night.

I think Jessie's strong point is just how incredibly motivating he is, in terms of weightloss. He is very appreciative that it's not something that comes easily and requires a dramatic change for some people. His speciality seems to be helping people make life changing differences to their day to day eating and training habits such as his work on the TV show, 'Obese: A Year to Save My Life'. He is a patron of the Charity, Helping Overcome Obesity Problems and I think this is a perfect pairing, given his experience in the area.

We got to hear his views on a number of topics and also heard stories from some of the audience which were incredible. The one who stuck out for me was the lady who had lost an incredible 11 stone and gone from a size 28 to an 8. She has kept this weight off for 3 years and it took her 2 years to lose the weight initially. Just goes to show that you can achieve it if you set your mind to it!!!

From a personal perspective, this was just what I needed.

A bit of a spark in terms of reminding myself how amazing the human body can be, once you set your mind to training and fuelling it properly. I have gone through my own weightloss battles and I think when you reach a bit of a plateau or take a break from it, it can be very hard to throw yourself back into the swing of being a little more structured with diet and working out.

I have struggled with motivation since turning 30 and took a bit of a break and quite honestly have eaten what I wanted. I have put weight on and not been to the gym as regularly as I used to. I look back over my facebook memories each day and almost always a year ago, I had checked in at the gym.

I seem to work better when I am answerable to my actions and have something to work towards. I am THAT annoying person who checks in at the gym, but for me it's not a case of being smug that I am there, more that the words of encouragement I get make me feel inspired to go and be proud of my achievements. And I have to say, that for me, is what gets me to that gym when I am too hot or too tired or hungry or have to colour coordinate my wardrobe (you know those excuses you pluck out to avoid going..!)

So this is my public statement of intent that I need to get back on the wagon. I am human, and of course I have to life my life in the most fun and healthy way I can. That said, I've p!ssed about for long enough now and I need to get back into a routine as once I do I really find that I am alot happier and have more energy. I am by no means doing this because I feel pressured to do so!

So who is with me?

My weightloss and chatty workout posts always seemed to get the most engagement from you guys, so it's over to you - what do you like to see and read when it comes to the dreaded diet?

I personally find some fitness blog posts and stuff a bit too unrealistic if I am honest. I always prefer hearing the stories from people who work damn hard and actually have had to really make some changes, as they are the voices who resonate with me. Not those who like to prance around in skimpy workout outfits on the premise they are giving workout advise when let's face it, they have never had a weight issue, nor have they had to make the sacrifices you sometimes need to make in order to make it happen. So hopefully you will come along with me for the journey?

It starts, now.