Once You See Results, it Becomes an Addiction.

Just because my first competition is over, doesn't mean I'm off the hook! In fact, it makes me only want to work harder. It showed me what I need to focus on... I really want to work on my abs and also my calves. I could tell that the judges were really looking for defined abs, because all the girls that won had amazing abs. But I don't want to lose the muscle that I've already gained. I know that it's not realistic to look like you do on competition day, year round. You shouldn't stay that lean, year round. I just want to focus on building muscle right now. I want to keep my habit of working out 5 days a week and I want to up my weight for everything. I want to be able to squat HEAVY. I want to look good year round, even if I don't look as lean as I was on competition day. After competing, it's super easy to put the weight back on because you start eating things you shouldn't. Plus, adding water and sodium back into your diet just adds weight. It's completely normal. A lot of people start to get discouraged because they don't look the way they did on show day. That's where a lot of eating disorders start. The trick is to stay on your old diet and workout plan, even after the show. Have a couple cheat meals after the show, but then try to only add a few extra calories a week. You'll also notice that you feel SO sick when you eat processed foods when your body has been used to eating clean. Which, is kinda helpful because it makes you not crave those foods as much. Anyway, just thought I'd give a quick update! Don't get discouraged and don't quit your good habits! 

I did it!!!!!!

    I can't believe I did it!! I finally accomplished my goal of competing in a body competition!!! It was an incredible experience. I didn't place, but I have loved the whole experience so much. I've learned a lot about myself and I'm so glad that I pushed myself past my limits and out of my comfort zone.
    There were so many women there yesterday. 82 girls just doing bikini. All of them looked so good.  It was the biggest show they've ever had! I got there at 9:30 AM. Prejudging started at 9 but They start with the men and then there are a lot of classes to go onstage before they get to bikini. Since there were so many people there, I didn't end up onstage until about 4:30! I was so nervous all morning, I was tired and a little ornery, because I hadn't had any water. That morning I ate steak and a sweet potato. Then when I got to the show I ate half a grapefruit and some more steak. Tamara had me eating strawberries, rice cakes or reese's peanut butter cups about every 30 minutes depending on what my body needed. Those things made me feel AMAZING. They gave me so much energy and they pumped up my muscles. She also had me do a pump up workout to give all my muscles a little extra pump right before going onstage.
    By the time I got to my lineup I was feeling great. I had lots of energy and I was ready. I was soooo nervous in my lineup. I didn't know what to expect. But the second you walk out onto the stage, you don't feel as nervous. The lights are super bright and you can only see the judges. You're just doing what you've been practicing, without really having to think too much about it. I was sooo glad that I had so many posing sessions with Tamara Watt. Your walk and your posing make a huge difference in the way the judges look at you. When you've practiced it over and over again, you eventually can do it without thinking too much, and that's what makes you really look elegant and graceful and it will make you stand out.
    I competed in two classes. Natural bikini B, and novice. They divide the bikini classes by height. Then novice is obviously all the first-timers. I was amazed how great they all looked. You couldn't tell it was any of their first shows. When they bring you out onstage, you're all lined up at the back. Then they call you out individually. You walk up to the front of the stage and give your presentation. Front pose, back pose, side pose, and then walk back to your spot in the line up. Then you hold your pose in the lineup til everyone is finished. It is really really difficult. I can't imagine how hard it must be for the body builders to hold they're poses, flexing every part of their body for that long at a time. After everyone has done their individual presentation, they call about 5 or 6 people to the front of the stage. Then they compare you with each other. They like to have you turn so that they can see your different angles. It's usually a good sign if they call you out. Especially if they move you to the middle. It means they're comparing their favorites. I went onstage twice during prejudging. That got over at about 5. The real show was scheduled to start at 6 pm. The bikini girls are up first at night, so I didn't get much of a break. But I did get to eat a potato (yep, a REAL potato, not a sweet potato), it gave me a lot of energy. It was actually nice that they did it that way though, because then I was done early, and got to go see my friends and watch the rest of the show!!
    Even though I didn't place, I was so happy and proud of myself for doing it. It is a really scary thing to do. It takes a lot of hard work and determination. It's so scary to be out there in front of that many people, being compared to other women and judged on appearance. But to me, it's more than just the way you look. The whole experience has really made me work hard on being healthy and improving myself. I can't wait to compete again. I'm hoping to do the June show in Idaho (they're really expensive, so we will see).
     I'm so grateful for all the help I had and all the amazing people I've met and the support I've gotten. I've always been passionate about health and fitness, but this has just inspired me to go so much further with it. If you're thinking about competing, JUST DO IT. You have to just commit to it without thinking too much, and then everything will come together. It is SO hard. It's SO scary. But that's what makes it so satisfying and so worth it.

Start to finish. (well not FINISH...I am far from finished :-p). I weighed 114 in the first picture and 118 in the second. Shows that the number on the scale is not what counts!

Difference between my first posing session (4 weeks ago) to now! Thanks to Tamara Watt

pumping up backstage!

Those scary tents behind me... are the spray tan tents. A very awkward experience but I liked how mine turned out.  Martini Spray Tan

Thank goodness for bikini bite (gluing your suit to you so it doesn't budge)!

This wasn't my group, but they all look great!

Tamara Watt

My sweet mama has helped me with everything from buying and cooking my food, to pushing me to the gym when I don't feel like going. She was there all day with me yesterday and I was so glad to have her. I'm blessed to have a mom who supports my goals and shares a passion for health and fitness :)

My friend Krysta looked so good!! She took first place in bikini novice and overall bikini novice in her NGA show a few months ago!

My trainer, Keaton Hoskins. He's the reason I finally decided to just go for it and compete.

So proud of this hot mama for placing in figure!! She has 3 kids and one of them is 10 months old. WOW.

I just felt so little compared to these two haha 

I'm so thankful for the support from this sweet boy!

Tricky Jackson!

Enjoying a nice reese's peanut butter cup.

After. Lol.

It was so cool meeting IFBB pro bodybuilder, Tricky Jackson

This is the difference between 3 days. First one was taken Wednesday and second was taken Saturday. Water depletion and diet can change your body so much. (I mean, obviously don't deplete your water unless you're competing).

Finally. My BBQ chicken pizza.

Two Days!!

           Juuuuust a quick update. The competition is not tomorrow, but the next day!! I am slightly in denial. It doesn't feel real at all!!! As it get's closer I feel less nervous and more excited. I think that's a good thing. Of course I'm still SOOOO nervous though.
           It's crazy how the last week works. I stopped working my legs last Saturday. Then Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I had an arm/back/chest/ab workout. I decreased the weight I was using each day. Then I don't workout until after the show!! So today (Thursday) felt really weird. I felt like I should be at the gym. The point is to let your muscles fully rest. Then right before the show you do a little pump-up workout just to... well... pump you up. That way, your muscle bellies are full and you'll look great onstage.
           I've also been drinking A LOT of water. Over the past month  I've been drinking about a gallon and a half everyday. And ya... I'm one of those people that carries around a gallon of water with me...  and has to pee every 10 minutes. Hahaha but this past week (Sunday through Wednesday) I have been drinking 2 and a half gallons of water each day. Yes. It is almost physically impossible, I think. Then today I am only drinking one and half again. Then Friday I will only drink half a gallon. And Saturday... close to nothin. It's called water depletion. I also am supposed to really limit my sodium. So that way my body will be really dry and my muscle will show more for the show. I'll eat some Reese's peanut butter cups right before the competition to give me that extra fullness in my muscles. I think it's really cool how it all works. I've loved learning about all of this stuff.
           Tomorrow night I'll be getting my spray tan. I'm a little nervous. You have to be super dark because the stage lights wash you out a lot. And it shows your muscle more. I'll look pretty funny when I'm off stage though.
           I'm also trying really hard to resist making banana bread right now. We have tons of bananas that are just brown enough to make into banana bread. Maybe if I wait til tomorrow then it will stay good until Saturday... right???
           I'm loving this whole experience and I'm so excited to see what the whole competition is like. I'm excited to meet new people and push myself out of my comfort zone :) I'm already looking forward to competing again, and I haven't even been onstage yet!

Are Cheat Meals Good or Bad??

I definitely believe that cheat meals are a good thing. They shock your body a little and make it burn fat faster. Plus, food is one of life's greatest joys. I love going out to eat with my friends or trying a new restaurant that I've never tried before. Cheat meals are good for keeping you sane. Just one or two meals a week of ANYTHING you've been craving. Read this article on Carly Rowena's blog! It's all about cheat meals! It gives you some of the science behind why eating a cheat meal helps you burn fat! I cannot wait for my cheat meal in 6 days. BBQ pizza, here I come!!

Some Progress.

I weigh 4 pounds more in the pink swimsuit!

Turn Your Weaknesses Into Strengths.

        The competition is NEXT WEEK! I can't believe that. In 9 days I'll be on stage. I've worked so hard for this and no matter what happens, I'm proud of myself for doing it. I'm proud of myself for changing my body and for changing my lifestyle. I've learned so much about my body and I think it's so fun and interesting to learn. Like I've mentioned in other posts, when I first started out 5 months ago I didn't mind the way I looked. I wanted to put on more muscle and just really tone up. My trainer told me on the very first day that my two weakest points were my butt, and my shoulders. He told me that those were the spots we would have to hit the hardest. I could have taken that the wrong way, and started to hate those two areas on myself. But instead, I took it as motivation. I'm so glad that he told me my two weak points in the very beginning, because it made me really focus hard on them. There were times that I would start to feel a little discouraged, it's only natural. I would look at fitness competitors and compare my shoulders to theirs and I would start to get a little down on myself, but it made me want to go to the gym and work twice as hard on my shoulders. I really started to love shoulders. If you are interested in fitness, you've probably noticed that shoulders make a HUGE difference in the way someone's physique looks. I love nice rounded shoulders and delts. I wanted them so bad. I learned to love my shoulder workouts. My trainer, Keaton Hoskins, really knows what he's doing. When he changed up my workout after a couple months, he told me that we were going to double up on shoulders. Military press, side raises, lat pulldowns, row machine, pushups, rear delt raises, tricep pulldowns and bicep curls. Those exercises all focus on arms. After about a week of really focusing on those exercises, my shoulders started to round out a little. I know that I still have a long way to go, and that they could be better, but they're now my favorite part of my body. The first day that I met with my posing coach, Tamara Watt, the first thing she said to me was, "wow your shoulders are amazing." That felt so good to hear her say that. My hard work was finally paying off.
         My butt is still not as round and as lifted as I would like it to be, but it has come a really long way too. I would always hear people say, if you want a round butt, do squats. I believed that but I didn't realize how true it was until I started doing them. There's no other exercise that works your butt (and hamstrings, and quads, and core, and calves and even arms), quite like squats do. They're amazing. When you do squats, it also helps you build muscle in other parts of your body. When I first started doing squats I HATED them. They are difficult and they really wear me out. I could barely even squat the bar at first and I was discouraged and embarrassed. But I kept at it and kept adding more weight and now I can do 25 pounds on each side. I know that's not a lot to some people, but for me, that was a big accomplishment!
         Anyways, my point in telling you all this, is that it's okay to recognize your weak points. In fact, I think it's important. I also believe that it's okay to compare yourself to people just a tiny bit, as long as it's in a healthy, motivational way. As long as you're looking at those people as inspiration. As long as you're taking your weak points or your flaws and really working twice as hard at them. There's nothing more satisfying, then knowing you've turned something you hated into something you love. <3

Two Weeks and I'll be Eating Pizza.

Two weeks and I'll be eating pizza, guys!! Two weeks!!!!! Pizza has never sounded so good. My body competition is in exactly 13 days. My diet right now has been difficult. We cut my carbs even more. I've noticed that I've been slightly more tired, but other than that I feel great. I figured when I was this close to the competition, I would have no desire to cheat on my diet.... but let me tell you....the temptation is even worse now!! I vowed to myself to not eat ANYTHING that isn't on my diet for these next 2 weeks. Which means that tomorrow for my birthday, I will not be going out to eat. But that's okay!! The pizza will taste that much better in two weeks right? ;) My new workout has been good. We've been really trying to tighten everything up these last few weeks. When I say we, I'm referring to my trainers. My Monday, Thursday, Saturday workout is a lot of legs and abs. Lots of sets of squats and that kind of thing but not as much heavy lifting. It's HARD. My heart rate is up a lot more with this routine than with my last one. I love it. My Tuesday Friday is all focused on arms and shoulders! I love working shoulders. I'm also doing 20 minutes of intense sprinting after every workout. That's the most difficult part for me. I'm not much of a runner. Sprints are so good for you, though. Better than normal running (from what I've learned). If you do them in intervals (sprint hard 30 seconds, rest 30 seconds), you burn A LOT of calories!! The best part is, your body keeps burning them long after your workout. You can do anything for 30 seconds, right?? As for the abs.... that part has been a struggle for me. My stomach didn't bother me before, but my abs are just barely starting to come in. I'm hoping I can really make them "pop" in the next two weeks! Some of my ab workouts: weighted situps, leg raises, wood choppers and hanging leg lifts. I also just learned that using weight resistance in your ab workouts really makes the abs pop out. Sounds obvious but I guess I hadn't really thought about it because I feel like a lot of the time, woman are expected to have a less cut tummy with a couple soft lines here and there. That's great for some people, but for me at the moment I want abs that ripple and pop out. :)

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Make March Count!

It is March, people!!!!!!!!!!!

 February always flies by. I love it. I love March. 

I'm going to give everyday my all.

22 days til the show. 

Let's do thiiiiis. 

I started the month off right this morning with a group posing session, instructed by the amazing Tamara Watt. I love her. She is so inspiring. She's confident and sassy but still very graceful and classy. Ha.... didn't mean to make that rhyme. She really knows her stuff and I feel so blessed to have her as not only a coach, but also a friend. If you need a posing coach or a nutrition or fitness coach and you live in Utah, check her out. She'll teach you to do things the right way. 

Tamara's website

There's so much that goes into posing. I never realized how difficult it is. Competitors usually make the posing look so easy on stage, but it's far from easy. Even for bikini posing, it can be hard to hold those poses and you also have so much to remember. Butt out, shoulders rotated, pop your shoulder, toe turned out more, squeeze your abs, turn your bottom half completely sideways but your top half completely forward, take a big deep breath in but also flex your abs and breathe out, and make sure to relax your hands. 

Add 5 inch heels...

and a tiny bikini....

and a smile....

EASY!! 

Hahaha it's difficult but it is all so worth it. Posing is so important. You can have the most amazing body, but if you don't look confident and smooth onstage, the judges won't look twice at you. It's been awesome learning to pose. It takes so much practice and I know how scary it will be my first time, but I can't wait to be onstage. Today was my first group session. There were three other girls. Two are figure competitors and one is a bikini competitor like me. If you don't know the difference, figure competitors have a lot more muscle mass. It was really cool to learn and be inspired by those 3 girls!