That Look

I have so much to write about but I guess I'll just start with this one.

I have had this experience a few times this week and to be honest I love it. I'm in the middle of teaching a class or a training session and I'm pushing my clients through the session. By pushing I'm not yelling at them just non-stop encouragement. I'm also trying to push myself because yes we all need a bit of motivation. And then I get that look...

It's THAT look, you know that one? The one where I know for certain that my client cannot possibly push themselves any harder. The look that tells me they are at their peak and thats where they have to stay. The look that screams at me, 'When is this going to finish? I might puke.'

And that's when I say well done. I can't do anymore than that. No I don't want you to vomit and I certainly don't want you to push yourself to injury but I want everything you have got.

In my years of experience, yes I can tell when someone is faking, telling me 'this is so hard,' but their body language and the way they do things is completely saying 'I'm lazy,' or 'I don't like to push myself.' You have got to get out of that. What changes are you going to make to your fitness or body if you sit within this no mans land? Not much. One of my favourite quotes I use is 'fatigue is your friend,' and it's so true. You need to reach fatigue in order to improve at all. I'll repeat, You need to reach fatigue in order to improve. Did you hear that?

If you don't reach fatigue you will never change and this comes from within. I can yell and scream and keep pushing you to your limits but it comes from within. It's that little voice inside that actually screams at you, 'I.Can.Do.This,' and you know what? You can. You just have to ignore that voice inside that tells you to stop. Until you can't physically keep going, you can't breathe or your body will no longer move, You Can Do It.

And when you get that look, I know you're there.

Things are changing around here

That moment when you write an award winning blog post and you go to finish it off and publish it only to realise you didn't actually save it? I hate that, I feel like Tenacious D with Tribute;

'This is not the greatest song in the world, no
This is just a tribute
Couldn't remember the greatest song in the world, no, no
This is a tribute to the greatest song in the world
All right, it was the greatest song in the world.'


So I'm just saying that this is a tribute to the greatest blog post I have ever written and unfortunately not that same blog post but I will do my best to recreate it.

Things are a changin' around here. So while I have loved blogging my adventures and photography I have deliberately left out a very important part of me. I would say that this part of me really is me. It's me and I am it. I can no longer distinguish the line between me and this part of me so I have decided that I will use my blog and facebook together to bring you this part of myself. I have enjoyed this space where I can separate and compartmentalise my life but the time has come to introduce you to my other half and that is fitness.

Most of you will already know this (because mostly family and friends read this space here) but I am a Personal Trainer as well as an Accidental Country Girl as well as an emerging photographer. I have been a Personal Trainer for the past 8 years. I started young, I know you were wondering how I could've possibly been in my career for so long whilst looking so young. I can tell that was running through your minds but I started this journey when I was just 21.

I have worked in almost every role within the fitness industry. I have trained children (no joke, they hate me), Golden Oldies classes, mine-site health and wellness co-ordinator, pre and post natal training and everything in between. I class myself as a personal trainer, gym instructor, aerobics instructor, Pilates instructor, small group training instructor, transformation specialist, health and wellness co-ordinator, group fitness manager and business owner. I know it's busy right but this is me. This is all of me.

I want to bring you my adventures, my photos and my fitness.

I don't know why I have been reluctant to become an 'expert' within my field but I really know whats going on in my industry. I have been there through the fads, the next latest and greatest, and the real deals. I know how to get results, I know what foods are your best to eat and I know the best fitness to complete but not many others know that the secret to getting results from your clients is the mental. You have to get into their heads. Until you do that you are just receiving empty money. I think I was reluctant because a lot of 'experts' in our industry are just the ones who yell the loudest to get attention, or they hold onto one training technique or idea and promote that as the latest and greatest (which probably is until the next thing comes along or its proven wrong). At the end of the day it all goes full circle and the next great idea is what I have been quietly doing all along.

So from today, from this little blog you will enter my life and I will enter yours. You will hear my adventures, you will see photos and you will experience my lifestyle and my fitness tips which can I just say are solid tips with real life results and experience. I try everything before I recommend it.

So please feel free to share, absorb or ask questions at any time at accidentalcountrygirl @ gmail.com or fivefitness @ live.com.au obviously all together. I love hearing your stories, your experiences and questions so I can post about them, chances are someone else is wondering the same thing.

I look forward to hearing from you and hope you look forward to hearing from me, Kelli Rowles Fitness expert.

Best wishes from the girl who was a trainer when the humble egg and banana were on the outer (poor banana I still ate you even though I was receiving disapproving looks).

Kel xx.

This is me

When I first moved to the country. This is my studio.

This is something I do in my spare time

Yes I take pictures of myself exercising

Demonstrating a burpee

These are a year old and I should probably update them

 My clients at a client event: Dubbo Stampede

 My philosophy

My logo

And then Stella got her groove back

Well when I say Stella I really mean Kel. And that's me. I got my groove back and it feels so good and I feel so organised and I don't feel like I'm treading water anymore 'Just keep swimming, just keep swimming'.

In general I think I'm turning more into a hippy every day. I'm not talking Woodstock (even though I would have LOVED to have been there). I'm talking Earth Mumma. I'm loving the nature and my whole world is loving it too.

So what has been going on you ask?

Well I was homeless for a while. This might be a slight over exaggeration (hold on, I sound like my mother), I wasn't really homeless I guess I was more roomless but not in a I don't have anywhere to sleep way more in a housesitting, staying in spare rooms, staying in cousins bedroom while he is overseas way. I have loved the time, the experience and the financial freedom but it was time to settle and pull my lovely desktop computer out and actually do some work.

So how did I become homeless you ask (total exaggeration again)? I just couldn't decide. I was looking to buy, I was looking to rent in town but I just couldn't decide. I couldn't decide what budget I wanted, I couldn't decide when to get pre-approval, I couldn't decide how I was going to go about it.
Then I found a house I loved. I wasn't sure about the area, lets be honest in my town some areas are better than others (when I say areas I mean streets). Anyways I loved it. It had a magnificent kitchen and a room I could teach Pilates out of, oh my win, win for me. So when deciding whether I should put an offer in subject to sale or wait for pre approval it sold :(. Big sad face for me, I loved the house the first one I loved so it made me make some decisions.

Decision 1:
Wait. Wait until you decide what you WANT to do. What do I want? I don't even know. Do I want a small mortgage with a sweet little 'do me up'? I don't know but I do like the sound of the small mortgage. Do I want to wait to see if an established home comes on the market with a magnificent kitchen and a Pilates room in my budget? I don't know but I do know if I wait until next financial year, my budget is increased. Do I want to build? I would love to but do I want to wait 12 months for a home? I don't know. I could build an open plan home though with a Pilates area...

Decision 2:
Board. I decided not to rent as 1. There aren't many rentals in town and 2. I don't want a lease because as mentioned earlier, I don't know what I'm doing. So in the meantime I have moved permanently into a friends spare room and my computer is set up in the office with internet, Yay!!! It works well I'm home when he's not, he is home when I'm not we don't get into each others way.

Decision 3:
Get organised. Get your diary organised, get your paperwork organised and get it physically organised so you can find everything. It feels so good and I can handle my workload so much easier (and it's big but thats ok, I work well under pressure).

Decision 4:
Become Earth Mumma. When I say Earth Mumma I don't mean that I live in a commune or that I smoke any form or drug or other smoking substance. I mean eating from the Earth. Eating wholefoods and super foods because they are super (man I'm funny), but seriously eating as clean as you possibly can which is as easy as exchanging this for that. That it all, that is it.
I'm investing in a Thermomix. Have you heard of one? I like to call them the most magical machine in the world. I say investing because when you see the price you will understand but... It will cook my dinner, it will mill my flour for me and for someone who should really be eating a gluten free lifestyle this will make it all the easier, it will mince my meat for me, I love our local butchers as I know that when we buy beef it is so close to fresh that it is virtually still mooing. They buy from the closest beef sales which are just down the road and when they tell me I could have my meat in the fridge for 1.5 weeks and it will still be good, well this gets me excited, but I do want to use a good cut of meat for my mince. You don't really know what cut goes into your pre-minced meat. It will knead dough for me, this is possibly one of the most exciting things for me. Friday home made pizzas, oh my. Finally it will poach eggs and make hollandaise sauce ALL at the same time.
I am also becoming a consultant because let's be honest, I'm already selling them anyway.

So as I head into this next phase I'm excited, I'm happy and I'm GROOVY!!

Here are some shots of what I have been up to, enjoy.

My mum has one of those cameras, BOOM, Pose.

Our 'Christmas' break up at lawn bowls. It was hot!!

Our little superstar Lochie with his bowl. This kid is amazing.

The Dingo

Crazy cousins

Offensive but yes I do like the shot.

Princess who? Look at you with dark hair!!

The shyest children in the world!!

The newest member of the family. You should see home now.

One of the craziest weekends of my life. I'll post about that another day.

Very rare view for me. The ocean from my table.

Visiting the ancestors.

Kel xx

Lyrics are my life

This is a very personal post. Just a warning.

So hi, this is me,as you know I'm Kel and I am unlucky in love. When I say unlucky I mean ridiculously unlucky, like what the?

I'm not even sure why. I personally think that I have a lovely personality. I'm very easy going which I can see why I put up with things I shouldn't. I'm a nice person which I know is the reason complete weirdo's head my way, I have a nice face and I think this is why they like to chat to me. I'm not an ugly person but looks aren't the be all and end all with me, this I know is half my problem. As my mum told me water finds water in my case not so much. Sometimes for the man he tries to find his water and well that just messes with a whole heap of self esteem issues.

Moving on, what I'm wanting to say is that I try to find love. I'm careful with my love. I don't just fall in love, I like to take my time and 'try' to pick well. My problem is that when I do fall I fall hard. I want to see the best in everyone and I want to believe that my spouse is everything I want them to be. It hasn't happened yet but one day, I have faith. If it doesn't happen that's ok too I just hope that I am saved the hurt because when you fall for someone and they aren't the right person, don't feel the same way about you or your personalities just don't mesh it hurts. It hurts bad and it hurts over and over again. Unfortunately for me, I know that hurt. I knew it the whole time I was in that relationship and I still know it now it's over.

I love music and I listen. I really listen and when I get fixated on a song I like to know why. Why am I listening to this non stop? What is it telling me?

Well I found one. This one is beautiful and I think you will agree, it was talking to me.

My song at the moment is Mumford & Sons 'After the Storm'.

'And there will come a time, you'll see, with no more tears.
And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears.
Get over your hill and see what you find there,
With Grace in your heart and flowers in your hair.'

So I have faith that love will not break my heart.

Link

Point & Shoot: Sydney Pilates

I'm very excited to be linking up with Lou's Point & Shoot. I haven't done this forever and what a better weekend?

So Friday just before 5am I left my little farm house and headed to Dubbo to catch a flight to Sydney. I love flying to Sydney because instead of a 6 hour drive, it's a 45 minute flight, time efficient. I headed to Sydney to complete my Pilates course that I had been preparing for for 2 months so lets just say I can add Pilates instructor to my list of qualifications but to be honest I can't wait to start teaching this as I truly believe that it is so important.

So I guess I'll let my pictures say a thousand words.

These images are a combination of iPhone and DSLR.

The photos are all out of whack but I'm using my iPad and the Blogger App so just think of it like Pulp Fiction and try to sort all the images out in chronological order.

I selfied myself. I love Lululemon, it's a fitness brand but I just feel that it is where fitness meets fashion. The clothes are amazing so I checked that out.

Caught a lil sneaky shot of the course, what happens in a Pilates course...

I bought new Glow in the Dark running shoes (kind of love fluro) and had to test them out so I headed out for a 6K run with a beautiful photographic tour walk home.

Finally I was stuck in the airport :( my flight was delayed by nearly 3 hours. From a 7pm flight we boarded around 9.45pm. After a full on weekend, lots of pain from exercises and just pure exhaustion if the plane was delayed again there would've been tears. So I busied myself with some shots around the airport.
I added some final pics of my doing my Pilates. Self-timer is amazing.

I hope you had a great weekend too, what did you get up to?

Kel xx