2011 in Pictures

Starting the positivity with a post of the fun things I did this year :)

This is really the only photo I have of me doing a fun run this year haha, and you can barely see me! I'm behind the dude with the white shirt and red bits - wearing blue shorts. But this year I ran in three - Bridges 10k, Run for a Reason 14k & City 2 Surf 12k. Next year, many many more races!

Hiked about 100 km of the Bibbulmun Track in Western Australia, in four days. It was stunning.

A sunset on the track.

Another evil hill, this is the part where I would always get separated from the group (That's me in the red jacket).

Looking exhausted on day four (me on the right)

Went to Vietnam, here is where I rode on the back of a motorbike up the Hoi Van Pass... it was about a four or five hour ride and with some amazing scenery.

A sunset on one of the small islands I stayed at overnight in Vietnam. This was one of my favourite nights there. After spending the day picking fruit, cycling around the island and chilling in a hammock... we watched the sunset and then had a traditional Vietnamese dinner. So relaxing.

I stayed in a five star hotel in Vietnam for my birthday, and when I had returned from the day's travelling, the hotel had left me a card, cake and a REAL bunch of roses!! It made me so happy to receive that when away from home :D

Did boot camp for a month. I LOVED it, but it was really inconvenient! 20 km from my home meant that on my busiest uni day I would be getting up at 5 am, driving there, doing the session, driving to uni - changing in the car!! (No showers at uni unless you pay!) and then being at uni from 7 am to 7 pm... driving home... which took another 40 mins. Was a REALLY long day... plus boot camp is super expensive and not feasible on a student budget. But I would love to do it again!

Got back into kickboxing and fought in a novice tournament after being back for one month :) I forgot how much I missed it till I got back, and can't wait to return after Christmas break.

One of the very few skydives I did this year - There was a Christmas themed party where we jumped in santa suits and elf suits, etc. I am the one I suppose you could say "facing" the camera. Was a fantastic day and so good to catch up with people I hadn't seen for months!

I wish I had more photos to share, but I think I got pretty slack with my camera... so there's not too many. I am not making new year's resolutions for 2012, but I hope to run the City 2 Surf half-marathon and to run as many 5k's as I can find. I also hope to adopt a more positive mindset in general, and to take more photos! :)

The Tournament

 So today I fought in the novice (questionable?!) tournament in kickboxing. I'm half happy with how it went. I fought in two fights. But first of all, here's how I fuelled up:

Breakfast was a crumbled up pumpkin almond muffin in peanut flour mixed with yoghurt. Delicious! Pretty much after I ate this the nerves set in and I couldn't eat much else - so lunch was two pieces of plain toast with jam, and I didn't eat anything else till dinner - not like me at all!

The first fight was scheduled for 3.30 pm, but we pretty much knew it wouldn't go to schedule. The kids fights always go over, which is OK since they are super cute and fun to watch, and some of them have some serious talent. Warmed up upstairs but it was so long before my fight I'd practically cooled down again. Anyway, on the "fixture" it had me fighting a girl who had been doing kickboxing since she was like, 5, appears on all the club's promotional posters, fights in international competitions and I was like... umm... I entered the NOVICE comp right? It only intensified my nerves, but I tried to calm myself down with positive thinking.

Anyway so the idea was that I would fight her and then the loser would fight another girl (who had 20 years experience - compared to me with 6 years - and having just had 3 years off!!!) So you can see why I was struggling to feel positive...

Just before the first fight. We had "coaches" sit behind us, but honestly, this woman said absolutely nothing to me at all. The last tournament I fought in I had a great coach, told me areas I could improve and the other fighter's weaknesses etc, gave you water, calmed you down... this woman just freaking sat there. So mad! 

I'm pretty happy with that fight. I was definitely feeling the unfit-ness of having had three years off though. Although I've been running and doing other sport, it's not the same kind of fitness. Kickboxing is like intense bursts of super high activity for three minutes at a time, and I was half dead before the first minute was over!! I still gave it my all and think I did pretty OK considering. I've got no idea how many points either of us got, but she won. It was also good because I fought somebody I knew, and we were pretty chilled out talking to each other beforehand and hugged after, etc. Made it more fun. As the other girl pulled out and I didn't have to fight her, I was given a silver medal. Score? Kinda feels unearned but I'll take it!!

Before the second fight. I'm on the left with a slightly better coach who at least introduced himself! (Sorry, my mum kinda sucks at photography ;) Sorry mum. This one was against a girl I didn't know, but she was a third dan black belt whereas I am one (requires at least 3 years more training).

The difference was, I felt like I had this one. She looked tired and "over it" after her first fight. I felt good. I got in quite a few good punches, but unfortunately punches are worth 1 point and kicks are worth two. So while I got about 4 punches and she got 2 kicks, that kept us even. Then one of my kicks wasn't counted because somehow they didn't see it (Pissed off.) and they counted one of hers which I blocked. Like what the??! And that fight was over really quick, without me feeling like I had quite put in the same effort as the other one. :( It was 1 point difference, and I lost again.

(I'm the black blur)

Despite losing both fights to much more experienced competitors (after less than one month training...) I had a great time and learned a fair bit. The adrenalin rush is insane, which is possibly why I've been contemplating bed since about 7.30 pm!!!

A little annoyed about the lack of coaching, being placed against international competitors despite wanting to go in as a novice, them missing my kick etc... but I should just suck it up and get over it! Finding it hard though. On the plus side, I had a great time and will definitely be entering again next year, hoping for a rematch ;)