About a month ago, I was training a lovely client of mine. While in the middle of spotting her barbell chest presses, we had a quick chat about gaining muscle and how gorgeous that looks on women. We spoke about people who looked great and everntually the conversation then turned into something like this;
She said, “Yes – I love muscles! One day I
really want to look like Michelle”
Silence. Crickets chirrping.
Me, frantically thinking to myself – did she just say “Michelle”? Or was that a
muffled “Kirsten” ?
Me, “ummm…..didn’t catch that…pardon?”
She repeated very clearly, “I said I’d love to look like
Michelle one day”
Me, - she did
just say Michelle!! What the %%$$$??!! What am I – chopped liver????? Gain composure Kirsten. Gain composure. Clarification needed again.
Me, rather curtly, “Michelle who?
She said, “Michelle at the front desk. You know
– Michelle!”
Me, - oh for god’s sake!! What’s up with that???
Me, “What am I??!!!! Chopped Bloody
Liver???!!!!
She happily chatted on with, “hahaha – no – you’re too muscly…..”
Me, - ahh, suddenly I am at peace with the world again.
And I got to thinking just how much
of an impact Michelle Broughton has around town. Why wouldn’t she? She looks
and is extremely fit, very well muscled-up and just gorgeous to boot! She kicks my butt at anything cardio, can always match and meet me with weird, new exercises we spend all day trawling the net to discover, and she's up for just about any challenge. So I decided to
interview my dear friend so that you get some insight into how she looks like
she does.
I have to say, right from the
outset, that it’s rare in life when you stumble across a person who turns out
to be one of the best human beings you’ve ever met. And that’s what I think
about Michelle. I really can’t speak highly enough about her ethics in life –
work, family, friendships, health, fitness…you name it! But what’s special to
me is our friendship. The loyalty, the honesty, the humility and ability she
has to teach me so many new things without being condescending or patronising.
She tirelessly listens to my training and diet woes, is always at the ready to
help me with whatever I need and is just so much fun to be around. Last year
there was a dirty rumour that she was leaving town to return to some dirty, muddy
old creek in the middle of nowhere. While I wanted to support this decision, I
had a little private grieving phase to go through in preparation for this big
event. I didn’t know if I would ever find someone to run the Gorge track at
midday in 40 degree heat with me again!! And who would force me into Crossfit
when I had moaned so much about it!! And who would get so nervous for me on
comp day that they had to down a gin and tonic just after lunch!!! Well – that person
is my extremely special and very appreciated friend, Michelle Broughton. You
are tops my precious friend.
Have you
always had an interest in health and fitness? If so, what did you do?
I have always been interested in fitness through my ongoing
plight to fight the ‘frump’. As a kid, I
was a member of the swimming club, pony club, played netball….participated in
school sports…. As a young adult I quickly steered from previous physical
activity to b & s binges, pub crawls and a hefty social life. Eventually I
realised my waist had rounded nicely,
NOT! I joined up: The Gym (and group fitness-step to be precise)! Scary and
intimidating but I had to. Fortunately this
became my new social life. Just by luck I learnt running to be missing link in
shifting some detestable body fat. Pre boyfriend, training was about 5 out of 7
days a week. Luckily I landed a friend who loved to train! Most fun indeed! Sometimes I rode my bike and swam. Not daily,
year after year, but I had long bouts of exercise when I did it. I enjoyed
exercise and how it made me feel-may sound a little anal but I wouldn’t have
done it otherwise.
Earlier, much earlier in my exercise life I had very little
concept of the important connection between health (nutrition) and fitness. I
sought the advice of a sports dietician once and the program failed-from both
sides. Didn’t do it againL
Has your
weight always been in the healthy range? If so, what do you think your parents
did to encourage this? Or was it just luck?
There’s no luck when it comes to my weight. I’m really a fat
magnet! Growing up my parents were very regimented and disciplined in our daily
routine. This included entry to the fridge! Typical weetbix brekky, sambo lunch and 3 meat
and veg for tea. My parents always encouraged healthy eating habits, grazing
was not permitted, meals were at meal times. We ate what was in the cupboard
and occasionally went out. Not to say I was neglected and didn’t get ‘other’
food in my childhood, like ice cream etc. I certainly did.
There was always plenty of activity-sport, gardening, chores
and more chores. I grew to be grateful of these routines as sitting on my butt
leads to unnecessary nibbling. About the
time I first joined gym as a 22 year old I was 56kg. Independent of my mums
meal prep I was a typical yo yoer fluctuating between 52- 58 kg. Not what I
consider healthy at either end. I try to
sit somewhere in the middle, a more realistic, easily maintainable weight for
me.
In the last couple of years I’ve paid particular attention to
my overall health. I’ve ditched foods that don’t agree with me, even though I savoured
the flavour, it was very hard to first time round. I am a lot stronger where need
vs want.
When did you
develop a strong interest in cardio activities?
As I accidently learnt cardio was good for shrinkage, particularly
running, it became a tool for a couple of things. Not always consistently in my
daily life but always available. I found cardio great for a re-charge, get some
‘me’ time, rid the ‘frump’ (even if it was only til the next day), little stress
relief and to ultimately maintain some degree of fitness, whether it is a 4 km run
or 40 minute HIIT. Run, bike, circuit albeit very convenient and free. The last
18 months or so I have upped the cardio am am feeling fitter than ever. The
birth of bootcamp ramped it up 10 fold!!
How do you
incorporate resistance (weights) training?
I have tinkered with weights on and off. I certainly like the
dynamics of the gym although I had to get over my mirror phobia. In 2012 I
started training at The Muscle Inn (!) (ed note: The Muscle Inn is my humble little garage gym) and
registered online to participate in the MAXs challenge. With a nutrition plan,
exercise plan (all supplied) and a couple of training buddies, I had a whole
new insight to the amazing affects weight training has on the body especially when
coupled with nutrition. Throw in a bit of cardio you will only see great
results.
You have 2
beautiful girls-what do you do, even now, to encourage them into a healthy
lifestyle?
The girls have always been active
and, like most kids, have energy to burn and enjoy the socialisation of sport. I
encourage Eden and Paige to commit to one sport for the wet season and one for the
dry. They see Paul and I actively exercising. It is accepted as part of our
lifestyle. One of my favourite things to do is exercise with company and the
bonus for the kids is also fun with friends.
Within their own swimming
training they are gaining a greater awareness of their nutrition requirements.
They experience a huge appetite after training. I would like the girls to
appreciate their bodies and understand what a healthy body requires. For their
own health reasons (genetic disposition) it is essentially important they
maintain healthy weight and I make good nutritional choices for them now, so as
young adults they will continue to look after themselves appropriately.
Can you give
us a snapshot of your typical week in relation to exercise?
My training at present is focused towards an adventure race. Therefore,
strength endurance, stamina (med distance running), HIIT (high intensity
interval training), hill sprints, and weights are all components I endeavour to
include (at some point!)
Monday (am) weights/circuit, (pm) run
Tuesday (pm)
bootcamp
Wednesday (am)
cardio/crossfit or weights
Thursday
(pm) bootcamp
Friday (am) cardio /HIIT/weights
Saturday (definitely
am) sleep in/rest/????
Sunday whatever I feel like!
And how about
a typical day of nutrition?
5.00 1 whole egg + 2 egg
whites + coffee with almond milk (my fav at the moment) + 1 dspn vital greens
7.30 Another
coffee
9.00 After workout I
will have a protein shake straight after or if no workout usually brown rice
and tuna/nuts or trail mix + (another) coffee
Lunch Massive bowl of salad
and tuna, chicken or full fat organic cottage cheese (delish!) or leftovers from
previous night
Afternoon Snack of some sort, usually
random…I try to go for almonds or walnuts. Sweet potato or rice cakes with
cottage cheese and tomato, s & p (a firm favourite) if bootcamp day. This
is usually my worst time of day, I find if I stop still for too long I will eat
and graze at great length. + Time for another coffee.
Tea Salad or veg with
meat, mostly white. Something tasty but easy, carbs (sweet potato/brown rice)
after exercise
Bed time Another
coffee with almond milk
Water! I don’t get enough daily but I aim for 2 litres.
What are your
biggest food temptations and how often do you indulge in them?
Tall flat white with soy milk, half strength, extra hot!! Hold
the froth for Petes sake!! By far my biggest indulgence! I’ve withered this
craving down to a few per week from almost a daily fix, practically a habit! (ed note: when we go
to a coffee shop together, the barista’s generally try to hide!! Even friends
now avoid coffees with us! The ½ strength, extra hot, hold the froth ‘thing’ is
all too much for them! And we’re not scared to complain if it isn’t right!! Hehehe!!!)
Cookies with my coffee!! Snakes or chocolate will not last if
they are in the fridge or cupboard! Kabana! Microwave popcorn! I’m salivating!
….Toast! I have certain restraint issues with opened packets of treats. I will
indulge sometimes if and when I buy sweet items for the kids. Sometimes I just need
to satisfy a taste, I don’t allow it too often because they will indulge just
for the sake of it too.
What
strategies do you do to avoid temptation?
I avoid particular isles at Woolworths. I don’t buy things
that are going to sit in the cupboard and tempt me. I’ve changed my mentality
toward processed food, some of which is the yummiest and just crap! I try to maintain an awareness of where our
products come from, processing and not be fooled by health gimmicks.
Do you drink
iced coffee? I ask because when I arrived in Katherine I found that just about
every new client either drank iced coffee or coke zero in huge quantities.
No! I used to love it! I would even freeze it and scoop it
out with a spoon! It goes on top of the ‘crap’ pile. After a long time I realized it did not agree
with my stomach-width and digestion. (ed note: one of my goals is to truly convince people just
how crappy this drink is for anything other than an occasional treat)
Coke zero?
How much/often?
Yes I drink coke zero because sometimes it’s refreshing to me
and I enjoy the taste. I’ll have 3-4 cans per week. Yes I am aware of the
ingredients!
And what
about your alcohol intake?
I always like to have a bottle of Cienna in the fridge. I
enjoy a glass occasionally, sometimes the bottle (with Paul). I am an
occasional drinker. I don’t seem to recover from alcoholic indulgences too
well!
Bit of a
curly one for you - do you allow your kids to indulge in what you would call
‘unhealthy’ food? If so, how often, what and why?
My kids love Mc Donalds frozen coke, ice cream and frappes.
They will probably eat anything unhealthy if it tastes good. It’s whether they
get the go ahead from me! Occasionally they will be allowed …. I may want a tall flat white soy coffee, half
strength extra hot from Mc Donalds (because they have the best coffee beans)
and I will shout the kids a cone or 6 nuggets. I consider whether the kids have
already consumed a substantial intake of food, if they’re chasing a snack, or
it’s a matter of convenience for me, or it is a treat? Then I will consider the request. One
extremely good trait Eden has is stopping. She eats to satisfy not overfill. Paige
and I will eat to finish. I am still getting my head around food for fuel, not
fullness...Nearly there!
What supps
and vitamins do you take regularly and why?
I cannot finish a workout without my protein (isolate) shake.
For one it is yum, secondly I feel I recover well from a workout. I add
glutamine (amino acid-to my shake) to help promote growth and help reduce
muscle breakdown. During a workout I
drink Extend-BCAA for muscle fuel, support in the strength and power department
and promote recovery. Sometimes I am really hopeless and forget but I try to
remember to take one glucosamine tab in support of all joint and tissue health
and my 6 weekly chiro appointments! My extra strength fish oil is on the
microwave next to the supps but I tend to overlook that one…I’m not a pill
popper.
What are your
health and fitness goals for the future?
My focus right now is May 2013-Blood sweat and fears! To
complete the 21km and tackle as many obstacles as I can head on. Maybe a Tough
Mudder later in the year?? By the end of 2013 I would like to have completed my
Cert IV in Fitness.
Do you prefer
group or single training?
I don’t mind training in large groups because I can maintain
focus and block things out, I don’t like distractions. I do prefer to train in small groups eg. 2 or
3. I can cope with training alone if I have to, but do enjoy a little
conversation between sets!
Do you have
any aspirations to follow your mental friend into body building?
I would love to train to compete if I can only get my head
around almost nuding up in front of a whole bunch of strangers! (ed note: it’s
true!! You do just-about nude up in front of strangers!!!) Putting
myself right out there. To rid my guts of several layers of unwanted belly
would be the most insane achievement! It would amaze me to just see if and how
much I could transform. Wish I could just flick a button and ..whamo!! Stage
ready!! Having watched the comp last year, I admire the competitors and
appreciate their journey to the stage…..
Being so
close to Kirsten, what do you think are the toughest aspects to bodybuilding?
Body builders are athletes! The preparation requires 100%
commitment. Nutrition, training, shopping, sleeping, water, supps, focus,
timetabling, picking a bikini, accessorizing bling, shoes-walking in those
shoes…it all seems tough! I understand preparation comes down to planning,
organization, and individual goals and a good support is essential. Most of all
I would think the depletion and cutting phase with increased cardio would pain
the most. And mastering balance in those shoes with a belly full of nerves.
Do you think
Kirsten turns into a cranky pants when she’s carb depleting?
Yes, 2012 certainly did see Mrs Cranky pants emerge! However
it was an amazing transformation to watch in those last few months. I have a
feeling Mrs Cranky pants will not be so prevalent this year J……(ed note: you aint seen nothing yet baby!!! And bootcampers
beware – lack of carbs means killer workouts – hehehe!!!!)
So there’s a little insight into
the life of our very own Michelle B. Nothing she has achieved has been by
accident. She doesn’t maintain her fitness by reading books about it. And she
certainly doesn’t look like she does by chance. It’s all a set plan and she
clearly loves it!
We train differently, we eat
differently because we have different goals. The key is focusing on your own
goal and not allowing anything to come between you and the realisation of that
goal.
Hope she has inspired you as much
as she inspires me. And that is an awful lot!!!
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