The Path to Figure Competition

I'm in week 3 of working out 7 days a week and feeding my body chicken, fish and veggies. The workouts continue to be as challenging as they were the first day.

The diet is incredibly strict and the food is starting to taste the same. At this point I'm eating to nourish my body in order to build a long and lean physique for the November competition.

Socializing is no longer about food as it is about engaging in meaningful conversations. I traveled over the long weekend to see my close friends and their children. I'm fortunate that the friends we stayed with were more than accommodating to my workouts and meals. I continued to train while out of town, making adjustments in the schedule with my kids, to get it done. Working out at significantly higher altitudes proved to be a physical challenge. I'm anxious to get home to see how my workout compares after training in the rocky mountains for 4 consecutive days. Sprinting in the great outdoors while beautiful, was a killer to the body's abilities. I'm not sure I could see anything around me because my body was being pushed to do something it didn't want to do...the mind had to do a lot of the work therefore I wasn't really taking in the beauty around me. At times the mind and body got defeated to a point where I couldn't push myself any longer.

Eating outside of my environment took strength, courage and planning ahead. Think of the gatherings, BBQ's and events you've gone to where food was strategically placed all around the venue...ensuring you didn't miss a nibble. Imagine having to walk by each table, knowing you can't have one single thing. The willpower has got to be in complete check in order to pass up cheese trays, vegetable trays, chips and guacamole, cocktails, beer, wine, brownies, popcorn, sourdough bread and butter, croissants, pizza, BBQ ribs, home made chocolate chip cookies, pistachios, peanuts, fresh strawberry, blueberry and blackberry salad, bananas, peaches, beautiful green salads with dressing and more!

It took willpower, the hard work I've put in at the gym, the goal to compete in the competition and my mind to make it acceptable to be surrounded by all this food. Was it easy? It wasn't hard...it required a great degree of discipline.

People ask me what I crave. I don't have cravings. That's likely a result of the protein/complex carb ratio, I eat at every meal. The combination satiates your appetite. The other reason might be the fresh food. I'm not consuming any processed products which are known to have a high glycemic index. Those foods will increase your appetite and cause you to sprint to the store for a quick fix. This can be a cyclical situation for many and will sabotage your weight-loss goals.

The cravings are gone but not the appeal!

My diet like any other diet which has restrictions, can take up to 2 weeks for your body to adjust too. If you pay close attention to your body, you'll notice you will experience both high and low energy days. This can be a result of cutting calories, carbs, fats and or sugars that your system has become custom to.

I've had quite a few low energy days, but it's not stopped me from keeping with it. The low energy days are teaching me to get to bed early and enjoy a cup of black coffee every morning. I know I said I couldn't imagine drinking coffee without creamer but let me tell ya, the effect out weighs the bitter taste!

I'm back home and trained with my coach Trish and the team this morning. I value these team workouts and know they are the key to my success...as is Mike my nutritionist coach. His simple travel tips have made it easier to stick to the diet while traveling.

We all could use coaching and guidance in life; it gives us skills and knowledge to help us grow; allowing for improvements within ourselves that we couldn't have a achieved on our own.

Thanks to my wonderful friends who have genuinely shown an interest in my experience, and have not only supported me emotionally, but have paved an easy path for me to continue to stick to my eating and workout schedules. Your love, kindness and reinforcement are invaluable!

Until next time...