As I write this blog, my head is still buzzing from the excitement of my final weigh on Monday! This was my final week in the Who 12 Week Challenge and aside from my usual ‘oh my gosh, how has it been (insert number) weeks already?’ routine, it has felt really surreal and a little nerve racking. I have been feeling a little nervous about leaving the protective bubble that the challenge has brought me, but today after my final weigh in, it felt as if I was graduating from school. It was exciting and happy and that particular moment is a wonderful memory that I will hold dear to me forever.

As most of you probably know by now, I started off this challenge at 102kg and had set myself a personal goal to lose 20kg during the 12 weeks. I know this was setting the bar high, and at times I truly didn’t think I was going to reach it. I was just so set on reaching that goal. It may surprise you to hear that I was never sporty or athletic in my childhood (I used to get kicked out of the library at lunchtime when I was at school because I was spending too much time in there and was told I needed to go and get some fresh air. I also have a biography written by 10 year old Kylie in year 4 that lists my favourite subject at school as ‘silent reading’. I think you get the picture.), and I’ve never won any trophies or had that experience of completing a physical challenge so I think that this was psychologically part of the reason why I wanted to prove to myself that I could accomplish this.

When I weighed in on Monday with Shereen and Jason, it was a real time of celebration as we saw the scales come to rest on 81.6kg for a 20.4kg loss. I am absolutely over the moon that I reached my goal! It was also a huge shock when I realised that I struggle to lift a 20kg weight in the gym, yet I was carrying that around with me all day every day for a couple of years. Crazy! I honestly don’t know how I physically managed to move each day… no wonder my hip joints were always aching. I’m pretty sure that I spent most of Monday walking around in a complete happy fog, I was giddy with excitement and adrenaline and that was definitely one of the happiest moments in my life! Thank you so much to everyone who left warm wishes and encouraging messages for me – I read them all and they were appreciated so very, very much!

I go off to the photo shoot for the magazine later this week and I’m really excited for this part of the experience (the sit down and get pampered part!). I can’t wait to see the results in the early January issue of the magazine and I can’t wait to share that with you all!

I owe so much to the two beautiful people who made this possible, Shereen and Jason. You’ve changed my life and have given me the most amazing gift – my health. You’ve made me excited for life in a way that I’ve never been before and I can never thank you enough for that. Thank you for seeing potential in me when I couldn’t see it in myself. I can’t wait to show you what I can do next!

Finally, I’d like to thank you all for reading my blog – I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it! It’s been fantastic to be able to share this experience with you all, the highs, the lows and the in-betweens. I’ve had an absolute blast doing this challenge and if you’ve been thinking of doing something similar, making changes big or small, I hope that my journey has encouraged you. Trust me when I say that if I can do it, anyone can!

Kylie x