2 Days out - NPC Governor's Cup (BIRTHDAY!)

Here it is - Prep Time! I always overestimate and underbudget my time. On Sunday I started carb depleting. I worked out in the morning and was pretty much miserable the rest of the day, spending a lot of napping time in bed. This is where we do our lifts to keep the muscle full and pump out the carbs and water. Also I am still doing cardio. Tomorrow is my last lifting day. WHOOHOO! Also, I get carbs at most of my meals! ANOTHER WHOOHOO!

I did get a bed tan this time on Sunday and again today. Tuesday is the last time to bed tan as the tan caused inflammation/water retention. I will start my new tanning process with ProTan Line either tomorrow night(like before) or on Thursday morning(2x/day) as recommended. I'm antsy! I'm done being miserable and now I just want to BE THERE! I'm SUPER excited because I have met quite a few girls who are also doing this show, and one of them is my LONG time co-worker and friend whom I convinced to get on stage when I did my first show over 10 years ago. lol then I gained a bunch of weight after mine and couldn't do it with her and our other co-worker. She has since gone to Nationals and I am so proud of her! I am really excited to reconnect.

Interesting note - TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY! I am conflicted, lol.
Negatives: NO dinners, NO drinks, NO nights out(well i did have grilled chicken at Hooters on St Patty's), NO parties, etc etc. I'm tired, cranky, depressed, stressed, hungry..... No time off(I worked and did collections) and did my workout and prepared my food. blah.
Positives: I CHOSE THIS. This was my 'gift' to myself. I have a history of not so good Birthdays and I didn't want to rely on anyone or be let down, so this is ALL on me. I am doing a competition and looking the best ever have, I am celebrating ME. AND, some of my closest girlfriends will be there and my dad and we will be celebrating my Birthday after at Cheesecake Factory so THAT is my reward! And I can't wait!

THOUGHTS
At this point of the season, I have been dieting for approximately 5 months. I believe in overall health, and a Competition Diet is NOT HEALTHY. Most trainers(good ones) will make you take time off after a certain length of time. Your body and mind will wear down, and it will show in your stage presence. I am looking at 16 more weeks after this, including the Contra Costa in May, West Coast Classic in June and San Jose in July. My body is breaking down, my mind is not comprehending. Burnt out. October - July...that's 9 months of HARD training and dieting. "Eating Clean" is NOT the same as a Competition Diet. When you are eating clean, you can eat ANYTHING that you can 'pick, kill or catch'. Any fruit, veggie, protein, grain, etc. You have a large variety and many different nutrients. A competition diet is vary specific and limited. This is why we rely on supplements. I am planning my 'mental' breaks so that I can continue. If I don't, I will end up as before, rebelling and eating out of spite. I don't believe in extremes. I quit before because I saw too many girls become obsessed with their food and lack of realistic lifestyle. I saw it ruin friendships, marriages, etc. BALANCE is KEY in ALL things. And if I start to feel like a flipping apple is a 'bad' thing, that's out of control. It's not in a competition diet for me, but it's not 'bad'. This sport is truly what you make it. And you need to make it work for YOU.

Closing Thoughts
I have planned 'mental' breaks, where I will eat 'clean' but let my body refuel and then decide to move on. I WILL move on, but I need to check in with myself and make sure it is the right thing to do. I want to be able to keep pushing myself and enjoy the process, even the crazy parts!  I am SO excited for this weekend! I have more muscle than ever, and have worked super hard for this. I can't wait to compare this season's pic to last years! mmm....Birthday Cake! :D

HELL WEEK - "Miracle"

  So I was behind for this show, the Iron Man Magazine Naturally NPC Competition. I never diet through the holidays and this was very rough for me. I also had gained a lot after San Jose. Coach told me not to do this show, but I'm not a quitter. These pics are taken 9 days out, Wednesday.

 

I went through 2) 3-day carb depletions, with very little carbs in between and leading up to the show.  It was crazy. I dropped a lot of water, and NEVER want to have to do that again. SO glad I have that behind me and 8 more weeks to train for Gov Cup. 

The back pose was very painful for me to see, as I was shocked to see it this obvious at a heavier weight. I need to keep building muscle but I'm worried about how much more my body will shift, and how it will affect my spine. 

Ironman Naturally, -3 Days

Well, they're comin'....want some DEEP cuts for the next Comp!

Wow, today! I had originally thought I would be okay working through this week. I'm even teaching my classes, at least through tomorrow(Wednesday). But there were a few things I needed to do so I thought I'd give myself breathing room, boy did I NEED IT! I took today of and first item was SLEEP! I woke up at 11am. what?! Already behind. Guess what? I had forgotten to move my food from the freezer to the fridge or leave out to thaw. I needed to workout, but needed to eat food first. So, off to the store I went to get fresh tilapia and chicken for today.

Got my 4oz of chicken on my new scale. (Haven't unwrapped it yet, lol)

So I did a lot of cooking, did my YouTube blog for Today, went to the gym with mom, went to the chiropractor(I think she got my shoulder back even with the other), got my eyerows waxed, then came home and did some more cooking while doing a little Zumba in between. I vacuumed and am aiming to put some clothes away and pack a lil. Or add to my packing pile.

Looks like my spot's been taken... <3

My "Packing Pile" - Hmmm....what to wear. to party w/the girls after the show? ... ;)

I'm trying to catch up on meals. I am just about finished with my 2nd fill of my water jug(2.2L) This is Day 1 on my second carb-depletion. I won't have to do this again. I can NOT get behind and go crazy. I need to stay where I am at and continue my fine-tuning and progress from here to the next shows.

(2.2 Liters) x 2 !

Tomorrow I will go to work, then teach cycling @ Bally Total Fitness, then back to work, then back to Bally to teach BOSU, then back to Ray's Built Tuff for posing practice with Robin and train Leslie for her last workout. Tomorrow is the last workout day. Thursday and Friday we rest. Thursday I JUST go to work. Sounds SO simple! :D We do go to check in with Fatima at Ray's Built Tuff after work. Then we should be able to have some carbs to fill out. Friday we fly out. There will be me, Leslie(we are the 2 competing), Cori, Brenda(my former client and Bally class member) all on the same flight. SUPER fun! Becky might also be driving down, and my dad should be driving down.

4 DAYS(3 really)!! - Ironman Mag Naturally

Ok, I'm close! I checked in today and coach said I looked a LOT better, not there yet, but i will be! I got CARBS!!! So my last 4 meals today I got salmon(OMG, I used to HATE fish and I can't tell you how happy I was to get that, haha) and Brown rice/oatmeal. SO great! Tomorrow I go back to my carb depletion for another 3 days and we will check in again Thursday night. We will be getting our next food in preparation for a lil carb load Friday.

I loved working out today! Well, visually, lol. I have dropped 4lbs so I'm now 126lbs. And I got a mystic tan last night so I'm a bit darker. I'm starting to look like a competitor again. PHEW! When we check-in next I will post before/after pics so you can see the changes made in this last week. It's AMAZING what happens in the last week! :D

We basically workout to just maintain the muscle we have and get rid of the water. We workout through Wednesday, then Thursday and Friday we rest and carb-load while weaning the water. So I'm taking tomorrow off. Workout on my own, go to the chiropractor for an adjustment, prepare my food for the next few days and start packing.

I also sold my tubs of Lana's Egg Whites, so I will be ordering more. Such a great deal for people who use egg whites. I got them from her and sell them for $30 so they save the shipping cost. I will get to add my eggs and protein shakes back into my diet after this show since I am now lean again. Then I can just fine-tune for the following shows.

HELL WEEK - "Miracle Week"

So it is the Sunday before the competition. This is when we start playing with our carbs and drinking tons of water. It is SO crazy! I usually take them out today....but I was behind. I need a "miracle".  Coach told me the only way to make it was to take out my carbs. OK! Call me masochistic, but I will do what I need to to make it happen! I did not come all this way to fail. So when people complain about their diet to me right now, I'm not very understanding. But when my girls complain, I can totally relate because I have done it ALL. I did something I NEVER do and bought fat-burners to get through the day. If not, I wouldn't be able to get out of bed with no carbs. But today I am hitting the wall hard. As per the instructions I upped the dosage....and then fell asleep! Craziness!

So far my nails are done, we got our hair done yesterday, and our makeup the Saturday before, so really just need to pack. I got a new roller suitcase for my comp stuff and sponges for the ProTan and GemTac glue for the stones that have come off my suit.

It's hard with all the stress in life, the holidays etc. I started out with a team of 5 girls. Things happen and people don't always make it. Times are tough, people lose jobs, travel, get sick etc. So now there are two of us actually competing. We were a little down at first, but we are doing this for ourselves. And we have accomplished a lot! Cori is still coming and it's actually gonna be awesome because she can see first-hand how everything goes the day of a comp. Also, she can help us and I'm VERY relieved about that! I am excited for her to do my hair! Also the show is earlier as it is part of the Expo and sharing the stage with other events so we can actually SHOWER and THEN go eat and continue out at night looking hott and being CLEAN!!

I am documenting my prep for this show, so if you would like to see more, check out my YouTube Channel at:
www.youtube.com/coachnict

Things to do:
Full body shave/Jantana hair remover
Cook Food
Protan: Wed, Thurs, Fri night
Pack
Tanners, makeup, suits, heels, FitStars Warm-ups
REST!