Love is like a pair of socks

Bear with me on this one. I had an epiphany while folding laundry. Please disregard the fact that I am on painkillers....

Have you ever noticed that love is like a pair of socks? I marvelled at how happy I get each time I match a pair of socks while folding the laundry. A feeling of satisfaction - not at a job well-done, but at helping one find its mate. Then I realized that real life love can be just like the socks we wear.

Think about the sock who is without its mate for as long as you can remember. I mean, you KNOW you bought the whole pair, but you haven't seen the stray in ages. Yet, somehow, this sock shows up in your laundry every week. You have checked the drawer to see if its mate is there. It isn't. So you save this sock until the laundry is entirely finished. All washed, dried, folded and even put away. Except for this sock. It is one of your favorites. Fits your foot just right. Doesn't get eaten by your shoes. But it has no partner.

Since you love the sock so much, you want to keep wearing it, but obviously it has to be worn with another sock. It would be silly to just go out with one sock off and one sock on. That would be like My Son John...or were those shoes....?(http://www3.amherst.edu/~rjyanco94/literature/mothergoose/rhymes/diddlediddledumplingmysonjohn.html)

Of course you have other socks without mates. You have the ones that fit your feet very nicely and also don't get eaten by your shoes, but look quite different from this one. And you have the ones that very closely resemble this one, were probably even part of the same package when you bought them. So you do what any reasonable person would: you match this sock up with one that very closely resembles it.

Chances are no one else will ever notice. They both fit your feet well. In fact, you rather like the way your feet look with these socks on them. Your shoes are agreeable to this slightly mismatched pair. Best yet, the part around the ankles is identical, so what the public sees is a perfectly matched pair of socks taking care of your happy feet inside your happy shoes.

But inside, you know the truth. You can't see it. You can't feel it. But you know that these socks are not meant to be together. You know that your favorite sock has stripes on the sole. Its partner has no stripes. There is nothing wrong with no stripes. No stripes are just fine. You feel quite satisfied that there are no stripes and you keep matching this pair together week after week after week. They go together quite well. But not perfectly.

Every week while folding the laundry you keep your eyes peeled for that other striped sock. You don't really know why...I mean, chances are that it is never to be seen again. And you get along just fine the way things are. People tell you, "Hey, nice socks!" and you thank them, smiling happily because you ARE happy. You have comfortable socks that protect your feet nicely and make your toes appear to be shaped just right when you bend them just so. Sometimes you even pretend you are a foot model with an important photo shoot for socks. You admire your feet from many angles.

If only the socks matched exactly. You will never get a sock modeling gig with this mismatched pair!

One day you get ready to head out for a run. You reach into your sock basket and pull out a bundled wadded up pair of socks. Opening them you smile as you see your striped sock. Wait. Striped sock? You wore your striped sock just two days ago. You remember because you were modeling it while watching "America's Next Top Model" and thinking about how they should have an episode dedicated to foot modeling and how you should be featured in it - just for that one episode of course - and how you can be the foot modeling example: you and your striped sock foot. You dash over to the dirty clothes hamper and dig around. And dig around. Gads, it was just two days ago, they should be here close to the top. You start to throw clothes out of the hamper, shaking each article to ensure that no socks are clinging.

There. At the very bottom of the hamper. There it is. A striped-sole sock.

You raise it up, holding it carefully with both hands. Must. Not. Let It. Get Away. You walk to the recently unbundled pair. Yes. The original striped-sole sock is still there. You have TWO. You hold them side-by-side to really compare: striped soles? Check. Low ankle? Check. Adidas logo? check. You found the true match!

Elated, you dance with them in your hands, holding them close to your chest so they can feel your heart pounding with excitement. United! Once and for all. You swear they will never have to part from one another.

And yet....the socks left behind. You feel sorry for them. They are good socks. They served everyone well. Your feelings for them have not changed. Your life would not have been the same without them. Mismatched or not, you have happy memories that will never die. Now these socks can be on a quest for their true sole-mate.

On again, Off Again

Here's a post after a long hiatus!
Rule number 1: don't beat yourself down if you don't achieve your goals as successfully as you intended. BUT get back on track as soon as you realize you're off! The good news is that some great changes are in store for me...but they probably won't happen on this blogspot. Stay tuned for more info....

Rule number 2: Turn it into a Lesson!

On Again Off Again refers to more than just my dedication to this blog. It also refers to INTERVAL TRAINING!

Of course, interval training doesn't mean exercising one week and resting for 2 weeks. It refers to much smaller intervals that happen within a single training session.

Intervals are GREAT for:

• Burning a lot of calories in a shorter time frame


• Improving your performance in either speed or endurance or both!


• Putting a spark in your workout when you've become bored with it


• Keeping your mind focused on how your body is responding to the workout (rather than what song is next on your iPod)

So how do you do interval training?

You may have to experiment with the times, based on your own fitness level, but I recommend that everyone start out with a 1:2 ratio. This means for every 1 (time period) you WORK, you will rest for 2 (time period).

For example, let's say you like to run. You can run at a steady pace for a whole hour, no problem. Well, what you'll do instead of running at a steady pace, you'll SPRINT (run as fast as you can) for 30 seconds. After that 30 seconds, you'll walk for one full minute. Note the 1:2 ratio. Repeat this 10 times. Ultimately, you will sprint for 5 minutes, with a full minute of recovery in between each sprint.

Don't worry if the first 2 or three seem easy, it will get tougher. If after 5 repetitions it still seems easy, then try decreasing your rest time so that you have a 1:1 ratio (or you could increase the Work time accordingly).

Your body will tell you if you need more rest vs. more work. But be sure you are still challenging yourself. You should feel comfortably uncomfortable. It should be difficult, and you should be all out fatigued at the end of your work period, but your recovery period should be long enough to allow you to be able to do it again!

Imagine you are someone who wants to improve their time to run a mile. Intervals are a great way to do so! After warming up a bit, start running at your goal pace. Maintain that pace as long as you can and take note of that time. Walk for your recovery, but walk 2x the time you ran at your goal pace (remember 1:2 ratio). At the end of the recovery period, begin running at the goal pace again. Repeat this interval several times, and for several training days. After 3 training days at this interval, reduce your recovery period so that you have a 1:1 ratio. Train with this ratio for several days...you might need more than 3 at this interval or you might not. When you feel ready for another challenge, INCREASE your work time to double, but MAINTAIN the same recovery period. Now, you have an interval that is 2:1. Try it on for size. If it is too difficult, increase the recovery time, but keep the work time the same.

Continue in this manner, slowly increasing work and decreasing recovery until ultimately you are running the full mile at your goal pace!

At that point, be ready with your next goal!

Of course, this doesn't apply only to running. Lately, I've been using the stair mill at the gym. I hate the stair mill. Using intervals, I have worked up to running -- yes, running on the stair mill -- at level 20 (I don't think it goes higher on this particular model) for one minute and one minute of rest. That really gets my heart rate up and gets me burning lots of calories!

Tell me what you plan on doing with Interval Training!

Morning of the Show

Good morning, Dear Readers!

It is 5 am on the morning of the contest and I lie in bed awake. Since 3:30. I woke up in a major sweat - which is reasonable considering I had to sleep fully covered to try to protect my spray tan. A Mystic tan, this ain't. And following my severe sweating, it can hardly be called a tan at all. "Mess" comes to mind. I am told there will be people backstage to fix it. I sure hope so..... Surely I'm not the first person this has happened to.

Flashback to yesterday: It was a whirlwind! I started the day the same way all self-respecting women do: with a PROFESSIONAL hair-styling and a PROFESSIONAL make-up application. This was in preparation for my PROFESSIONAL photo shoot. Let me tell you, that alone makes me want to be a PROFESSIONAL movie star. Why have I not done that before? Oh yeah - I have to pay THEM. Fair enough.

The make-up artist also has a blog that can be followed at www.3vanities.blogspot.com. She and 2 others manage it and they blog about style and fashion tips for the non-celebrities out there. You know, the "commoners." So I immediately became a follower. She did a fantastic job, and when I become famous, I will hire her for my everyday makeup. That way The Enquirer will not have any unflattering photos to publish.

On to the photo shoot, where Sandra Lynch, http://www.sandralynchphotography.com/, was actively taking shots at a group of other competitors from the gym I attend. Sandy is awesome at capturing the ripples of each muscle, and I cannot wait to see the images we built together. I took some shots in my posing suit as well as a couple of other fun and sexy outfits. Each of the competitors helped each other with posing and fixing our outfits or moving hair out of the way. It was a very collaborative effort and I am happy to have shared it with those beautiful women (thank you, Heather, Ty, and Kay). It is easy to get used to star treatment! But where was my limo....?

I could have used a limo from there on out. From the photo shoot, I ran home to pack my bag for the road trip to Plano, which is a 30 minute drive according to Google Maps, but in reality, a 2.5 hour drive in traffic with highway closures. Figures.

En route to Plano, I drop by The Cake Ball Company (www.thecakeballcompany.com) to pick up my evening snack of, you guessed it, Cake Balls. Little doughy balls of deliciousness in a variety of cake flavors. I chose Wedding Cake, German Chocolate (my personal favorite), Strawberry, Brownie, Red Velvet, and Chocolate Toffee. Mind you, I'm sharing these with my trainer. And incidentally, we got to enjoy them last night. The sugar is necessary to fill the muscles and make them look "swole up" for the contest the following day. Let me tell you, I tried only a few of them and they were phenomenal. They ship around the country. I'm just saying.

I had to wait until AFTER weigh-in to have the cake balls because I wanted to be sure I stayed in the Lightweight category. Weigh-In consisted of a meeting for all the competitors, then measuring everyone to be sure we'd be placed properly. By weight for bodybuilders and by height for Fitness, Figure, and Bikini competitors. The Officials check all the ladies' suits to be sure they are "classy" enough, as if string bikinis sewn of velvet or spandex and loaded with sparkling crystals could be considered classy. But that's neither here nor there.

They measured the height of all Fitness, Figure, & Bikini ladies. That took care of about half the room. Then they called for the Male Bodybuilders. That took care of about 90% of the remaining people. Thus leaving about 6 Female Bodybuilders.

I managed to stay in my Lightweight class, weighing in at 119.6 with a cut-off of 124 being the max. CAKE BALL TIME!! There was only one other Lightweight competitor, so I guess that means I'm guaranteed a trophy of some sort. Either first or second place....Right? Right??? How embarrassing it will be if I don't place....

Time for me to start contest day, so I'll leave you with this to chew on:

The tanning experience is really the most eventful of the entire day and will receive a blog entry of its own. That's the only way I can give it its due respect. Yes. I'll call it "respect." Let's just say that if you go in as a modest person, you don't leave as one.

Welcome Back Carbs!

Today, I got the pleasure of reintroducing carbs to my diet. The purpose of doing losing the carbs, as you probably know, is to shed the last bit of fat that I can so that the muscles will show through easily. The hope is to achieve the "ripped" look.

I was surprised that I could go ahead and have carbs a few days prior to the contest. In fact, I had more carbs before 7:30 AM than I have in the past 7 days put together! The point of reintroducing them now is to let my muscles start to swell again and look full. Of course at the contest, I want to look as full as possible, but also as lean as possible.

On today's menu I got to enjoy oats and bananas and an apple! In fact, I discovered that putting instant espresso powder in my oats makes a very tasty meal, with a little pick-me-up too! Adding cinnamon (my favorite spice) gives it a little Mexican flavor, reminiscent of Mexican hot chocolate (but without the chocolate).

For my lunch, I had 4 ounces of 96% lean ground beef (seasoned with garlic powder and black pepper, and browned), and I actually mixed a chopped Granny Smith apple into it. Much to my surprise, I REALLY enjoyed the apple and beef together. I'm thinking that adding a little shredded fat free cheddar would make it even better! It's amazing what strange things you find yourself eating (and enjoying) when faced with so few options.

Tomorrow & Friday will be more of the same - which I am looking forward to. Saturday will include rice cakes and peanut butter & honey, as well as lean meat (of course) and protein bars and sweet potatoes.

I'm working on practicing posing these days. I have two routines to learn. The morning routine is without music and just takes me through a standard set of mandatory poses. The evening routine is to music of my choosing. It is less formal, not having mandatory poses, but more formal in the sense that my suit is flashier (with Swarovski crystals) and I get to wear lots of sparkly jewelry that is not allowed in the morning.

So far, my posing coach still makes adjustments to my poses, but there are fewer corrections than I started with! At least I'm making improvements, but I wouldn't say I feel totally comfortable with it yet either.

So what am I doing writing this now.....? I have some rehearsing to do!

How Are You Succeeding?

As you know, I'm new to this blogging stuff, and I just this minute realized that a few of you have posted comments! Wow! I had no idea! So please forgive my lack of responsiveness....

Since we are nearing mid-2010...can you believe it...let's check in on our Goals and how well we are meeting them. And let's be sure to put a positive spin on it. Rather than focusing on what you "failed" at and what slipped through the cracks, talk about what you did well, and then expand on how you can improve upon that.

- I have succeeded in keeping my blog going, and I can improve by spending less time worrying about preparation for it. I will spend that time by following Nike's advice and "Just Do It." I realized that I wanted it to be so perfectly planned out, that I never thought an idea was good enough or interesting enough to discuss. While I DO want it to be interesting to my readers, I also want them to have something to read!

- I have succeeded in training a minimum of 6 days weekly to prepare for my 1st bodybuilding show -- which happens to take place 6 days from today! I can thank Coach Adam and my family for helping me achieve this goal. Without them, it would have been impossible to have come this far. To improve upon it, I simply need to stay the course. My real goal included a specific number of contests in which to participate: 3. It just so happens, I'm enjoying this enough to actually WANT to keep going. There is another in August and September. I will discuss it with the family and Coach Adam before deciding which is next.

Where are YOU in achieving your goals? Now that I know people might respond, I'll be looking for your mid-year status report!

RECIPES
A dear follower friend has asked a few times for more snack ideas and I have unintentionally neglected her! To be honest, I wanted the ideas to be perfect and fabulous, yet nothing seemed amazing enough to post. Following my own improvement advice above, I'm just going to put some of my regulars out here!

Baked Cinnamon Apple (1 serving, can certainly be increased to desired amount)
- peel and dice a large Granny Smith apple
- squeeze 1/4 fresh lemon over it, or use a tsp bottled lemon juice
- sprinkle 1/4 tsp cinnamon over apple
- sprinkle 1/4 tsp Splenda (or other sweetener) over apple
- toss to coat
- bake in toaster oven set to 375 until apple pieces are easily pierced with a fork (try 10 mins first and see how they are...increase time as needed).
For larger quantities, bake in a regular oven (and use more of everything). Adjust seasonings to meet your family's tastes!

Desserty Cottage Cheese (1 serving)
- 1/2 c. Low Fat or Non Fat Cottage Cheese
- 1 tsp Splenda
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
Combine ingredients and enjoy! I love this one.

Actually cottage cheese is quite versatile! It offers a decent helping of protein with very little fat (if you go the Low or Fat Free route). I love to mix a serving of yogurt with it (choose one of the low cal, low fat yogurts) - Boston Cream Pie being my favorite combo; you could even put the cinnamon apples in the cottage cheese. Fresh berries in cottage cheese is another tasty choice. Basically, I believe that cottage cheese should be a staple grocery item.

Here is one that feels very decadent:
Ginger Pears (4 servings)
- Crush 2 gingersnaps into each of 4 dishes
- Dice 2 large fresh pears and divide evenly over the gingersnaps (you can use canned pears, but unless fresh pears are unavailable, I don't know why you'd want to)
- mix 1 cup vanilla yogurt with 1 tsp cinnamon (can you tell I like cinnamon?) or pumpkin pie spice (or chai spice...whatever spice you like, actually)
- divide the yogurt mixture evenly over the 4 dishes
- Top with a few more gingersnap crumbs if desired and chill about 30 mins to 1 hour or until serving.

This one is easy and delicious for breakfast (or anytime, really)
- 1/2 cup of regular oats (please avoid the instant kind)
- 6 egg whites
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
(you can also add mashed banana or other fruit or sweeteners, or chopped nuts)
Blend with a hand blender, and cook on the griddle like pancakes. It's very runny, so be sure your griddle is HOT and pour carefully.

Other easy snacks:
- low fat string cheese (can dip it in sugar free pudding...)

- low carb tortilla rolled with turkey or roast chicken, lettuce (okay, it's a sandwich)

- mix Canadian Bacon in your egg whites & scramble or make an omelette with diced mushrooms and onions -- this is currently my favorite breakfast

- grill canadian bacon and serve with chunks of canteloupe or pineapple

- oatmeal mixed in yogurt, or oatmeal with the above cinnamon apples (add in a scoop of vanilla protein powder to make the meal similar to apple pie a la mode - but healthier!)

- Smoothies are always great and versatile! Mix up the fruits, mix up the protein powder flavors, even mix up the liquid you use for endless possibilites.
- vanilla protein + orange juice + bananas + unsweetened shredded coconut = tropical shake
- chocolate protein + water + brewed coffee = mocha shake
- chocolate protein + water + peppermint extract (just a touch) = mint chocolate shake
- vanilla protein + oats + water + vanilla extract + blueberries = blueberry muffin shake
- vanilla protein + canned pumpkin + pumpkin pie spice + water = you guessed it!

I could go on and on with smoothies. If you don't have a hand blender, you must remedy the situation right away. Do not pass Go, Do not collect $100. Seriously. I'm not joking here. I recommend the Cuisinart Smart Stick. It even comes with chopper and whisk attachments!

So let me know --
1) How are your goals coming along?
2) What is your favorite healthy snack?

One Meal at a Time

Over the course of the past few months I've eaten uncountable number of meals that consisted only of fish or chicken plus green veggies. So many people where I worked would comment on it: "Fish AGAIN?" or "How can you eat just that?" or "Have some of this cake -- you can spare it."

Well, yeah, I can spare it, but that's not the point. The point is to achieve a goal. For me, the goal is to get up on stage with the best physique I can muster. In order to be able to achieve that goal, I have to eat a certain way. Food is fuel, not entertainment. Not emotional support. Not a social event.

I have been known to carry my dry salad & chicken & broccoli to sporting events just so I'll have something to eat other than the standard stadium fare. Other members of my group scoffed & laughed and thought I was being ridiculous. That's okay. In fact, it just made me more proud of my decision to do what it took to meet my goal.

I know that when I get on that stage, even if I don't place well when compared to the others, I did the best I could. I ate the right way. I burned the right number of calories. I didn't give up.

Sure, I've had moments of weakness. I binged once or twice, but those "binges" included fruit. Yes, berries. A granola bar. A NutriGrain bar. Or a Sugar Free 60-calorie pudding cup. I didn't binge on ice cream. Or a bag of Cheez-Its, even though we had those in the house. You can say it is because I have amazing will power, but that's not entirely true.

I made a conscious decision to binge. I weighed the options in front of me. Cookies? Yes, that would be delicious, but it's all sugar, no health benefit whatsoever. The granola bar was a comparable cheat -- sweet, crunchy, but consisting of oats and nuts (in addition to the honey sweetener). I calculated how long I'd have to work out to burn that extra 200 calories -- or I saved other calories earlier in the day.

The will power is more about eating consiously than it is about "power." There have been many times when I wanted a cheat snack, looked in the pantry & freezer, weighed all my options: calories vs. satiating-abilities, only to choose NOT to have a cheat snack.

Achieving a goal of weight loss requires discipline. Discipline to go to the gym when your legs are too tired to do anything. When you feel too weak to put on your gym shoes. Get there knowing that doing something is better than doing nothing. And often once you get there, you will do more than you first thought you could.

When it comes time to eat, you choose what will best serve your goal. Ask yourself, does this meal help me achieve my goals? If not, how can I modify it? I went to Macaroni Grill just this week. A restaurant meal 2 weeks before a contest? An ITALIAN restaurant meal 2 weeks before a contest?? Yes. I knew I could specifically request that the food be prepared a certain way. And it is MY body and MY goal, so I'm not afraid to ask for it. Plus, Macaroni Grill has the Mediterranean Grill menu items which are lower in calories and fat than most of their other menu items. I ordered the Shrimp Spiedini, which is the lowest calorie meal they have. Yet, I still modified it: no oils, no butter, steamed veggies. I stressed to my server, Chris, that it was very important for me to follow this diet. Chris understood and he explained that spices are already included on the shrimp and the standard veggies have olive oil so that they don't stick to the pan. Chris became a PARTNER with me in meeting my goals because he understood it was important to me. I let him know the spices were okay, and please replace the standard veggies with just steamed -- not grilled.

One meal at a time. Make those decisions. Don't be embarrassed to request special meals. When a special meal preparation is impossible (such as at a stadium) bring your own food. They WILL let you bring it in. If they try to give you grief, ask if they sell grilled chicken with no oils or butter and steamed broccoli. Chances are, they don't. If you tell them you are on a special diet (which you are), then they can't deny you sustenance. I guarantee you are NOT the first person to walk through those gates who has special needs.

It is YOUR body. They are YOUR goals. You ARE special and you are worth the effort. If you don't achieve your goals, you have no one to blame but yourself. Eat consciously. Schedule your workouts and never cancel. If you have trouble with that, hire a trainer. For me, Having Coach Adam has been a complete blessing. I don't want to make him waste his time waiting for me. He never lets me down -- how could I let him down? He is ALWAYS there when he says he will be. I don't want to be one of "those" people who cancels or shows up late. I don't want to be the client he dreads or doesn't trust to do as told.

Sacrificing cookies and crackers and ice cream and birthday cake is not easy. But I also realize that this process is temporary. When I am done with the contest, I can slack a bit and enjoy those things (in moderation) again. They will still be available. Face it, these are the United States of America. I can get those items on every corner. They are not in scarce supply. So there is no need for me to feel obligated to eat it tonight.

Let me know your struggles. What is your most tempting treat? How do you avoid giving in to those temptations -- or do you avoid it at all?

My biggest temptation just might be German Chocolate Cake. Or the On The Border brownie. Yum. How do I say no? I weigh my options. And I realize there will be an opportunity down the road to enjoy that yummy dish.

Two Week Countdown

I was reminded yesterday by my mom that I haven't posted anything to this blog since March. I didn't realize it had been quite that long!

I weighed in this morning at 123 pounds, and my goal is to get under 119 so that I can be a "lightweight" in bodybuilding. I'm told that about 5 or 6 pounds will be water weight that I'll shed the last day...let's hope. I really don't want to go up against those "middleweight" women.

Today is Saturday and I awoke at 3:30 unable to fall back asleep due to all the excitement in my head. I still have so many things to prepare:
- Posing to practice
- Music to edit for the evening routine
- Outfits to find & buy for a photo shoot
- Contest suit to try on (that ordeal is another story...)
- meals to prepare...

Speaking of meals to prepare. What is it I'm eating these days? Well, meat & veggies (of the green variety) and every 4th day I get to have an apple and what equates to one medium sized sweet potato and 1/2 cup of oats. That 4th day is my Carb Day -- which happens to be TODAY! To be honest, it's nice mainly because it puts some variety in the meal. I'm actually feeling okay with so few carbs. At least now I am. When I first switched to this diet, it was really challenging for the first week and a half. I sneaked an extra carb in once, I think.

I'm not sure how many calories all this is. But I get 4 oz of protein at a time (chicken or fish), 5x daily. I get 6 oz of 96% lean beef 1x daily. And with each meal I get 4 oz of green veggies. And you already heard about the changes on Carb Day.

In addition to this, I'm training (or rather, I should be training) daily and burning 700 calories each day. Those don't all have to be at the same training session...but I'm unlikely to go back for more punishment if I don't get it all done at once. At least I know my weaknesses, so I know how to mitigate failure. In fact, today, I need to burn some extra calories for a couple of days I missed due to hair appointments or meal preparations! YIKES! I plan on running to the gym, literally.

I'm not nearly as prepared as I hoped to feel at this point. the good news is that I only have one week left of corporate life, so I have no work or school for the full week leading up to the show. That will let me tie up loose ends and really give it my all. I hope that's enough!

My mantra lately has been, "Today, I will do what others will not, so that tomorrow I can do what they cannot." I don't know who gets credit for originally saying that, but it has helped me stay focused.

Well, it's time for me to get dressed for my jog to the gym. It's only 3.9 miles from my house to Coach Adam's gym. Recently I ran home from LA Fitness - Lewisville and that was more like 7 miles. Not sure I'll be doing that again anytime soon. At least I hope not!

I have a video of my posing routine, but I'm kind of a techno-dummy, so I have to figure out how to add it here....

Let the Posing Begin!

For those of you who have never seen a figure competition, it consists of walking onto the stage, standing in front of the judges and turning quarter turns to display all sides of her physique. Then the competitor walks & stands to the side of the stage while the rest of the contestants do the same quarter-turn routine. Once all competitors have had their individual moments in the spotlight, the judges will call out certain women to stand side by side for comparisons. The ladies who have not been called must wait in a relaxed* position of the stage.

It all looks pretty simple. Walk on stage. Turn around a few times. Walk to side of stage. Stand there. Come when called. Return to side of stage. Walk off stage.

Turns out it's not quite that simple. I have had the pleasure of working with my Posing Coach, Sheilahe Brown, twice now. Sheilahe is a National Level bodybuilding competitor who looks absolutely FABULOUS. And her personality is bigger than she is!

Sheilahe showed me how to properly stand for the judges in a *relaxed pose. It's just like standing any other time, except that I hold in my belly, stick out my booty, lift my chest (she didn't care when I said, "That's as high as it goes!"), hold my arms like parentheses at my sides, relax my hands, hold fingers in a "ta-da" position, push my shoulders forward (to show off the lats), tilt my torso backwards, hold my head up high, keep feet together, turn knees outward, slightly bend knees, no - straighter, no - bend them again, and smile. See what I mean? Relaxed.


Once I got that down, the hour was up. Okay not really. I haven't gotten it down. Yet.

We did actually work on other things in that hour. We worked on a proper turn - relaxing the arms, keeping eye contact, tilting shoulders properly for the side views, stepping to the side vs. stepping back, turning on toes, always keeping the belly tight and smile working! Lucky for me, the back view is just like the front Relaxed view -- so, No Sweat.

Oh wait. I forgot to mention the sweat. Let me tell you it is not easy keeping everything contracted and tight and lifted and tilted while trying to look relaxed. I think I sweat more during my posing session than in a normal training session. "Sweated"? "Swote"? shrug.


The good news is that Sheilahe didn't make any adjustments to my walk, other than keeping my torso turned toward the judges. Imagine the Egyptian paintings: feet and hips face forward, shoulders turned sideways. And keep my strut. You got it. (Insert Bangles joke here.)

I'll be working with Sheilahe more in the future - the more comfortable I get with how it should be, the easier time I'll have on stage. Any given moment at home or around town you might see me practicing the Relaxed Pose. If you see me sweating while standing still, please make sure I'm smiling. And that my chest is up. And booty is out. And....you know the drill.

Competition Update - January

It's been a while since I mentioned my personal experiences. I'm still training with Coach Adam 3x each week and it has made a huge difference in what I see in the mirror.

We are "officially" training for a competition on June 5 that will be held here in D/FW. I put "officially" in quotes because I have verbally committed to it, but I haven't filled out any paperwork. I don't expect to back out on this, but Coach Adam tells me the last month of preparation is a pretty grueling experience. I'm hoping my family can put up with me long enough to see it through!

We take my body measurements each Saturday, and my body fat percentage is on the rise, but that is to be expected right now. It shouldn't get too high - hopefully I'll top out around 17%, but I'm nervous about that because I hit it yesterday! I was hoping it would take a little longer before getting there. Probably the delicious tapas on Friday night was the culprit (see I do take the opportunity to enjoy good food every now and then).

Chest circumference measurement is down overall - that figures. That is the one place I wouldn't mind keeping some inches, if you catch my drift. But it seems to be the first to go. Waist is about the same as it's ever been, and my hips were down and are back on the rise.

I'm trying to eat between 1800-2000 calories daily right now, which is actually kind of hard for me. I feel like I'm constantly shoving food in my face. Oh yeah - keep in mind, it is supposed to be lean proteins, fruits, veggies & starches. It's easy to hit 2000 calories if I ate fast food all day. Heck - one meal at most restaurants can easily hit it. When I do go out on a limb and eat incorrectly (like the tapas on Friday, or not eating enough calories), Adam can always tell. I'm consistently amazed by it. Sometimes I think I might eat poorly just to test him. Sure enough, he called me out on a couple of lower calorie days! I guess that's why I pay him the Big Bucks...

I chatted briefly with a woman who is a judge for these competitions and she will start working with me in April so that I can achieve a good presence on stage. From the walk onstage to each pose and standing off to the side, I will be judged every moment. I want to be sure I'm on pointe (as a ballerina might say).

There are a few different kinds of body competitions: bodybuilding, figure, fitness, and bikini. Bodybuilding is for the very muscular ladies, and they can get pretty big. For those who prefer not to gain so much mass (which, by the way, is only possible with the help of pharmaceuticals), there is Figure. Figure competitors do have muscle tone, but also still look quite feminine. A large number of fitness models would fit into this category -- and the competition is fierce due to the high number of women who are interested in it. Fitness is for the women who have some muscle tone, but who can also incorporate dance and gymnastic moves into a routine. They are very talented women! Alas, I do not have their talents. Finally, Bikini is a relatively new competition (at least in the world of bodybuilders) and it is just what you imagine. Women who look good in bikinis -- they should be fit, but not particularly muscular.

I prefer the Figure category, but Coach Adam says I could have a chance in the bodybuilding category as well. When I explain how I don't want to be as large as a man, he tells me not to worry - at the local level, the women are not that big. So right now, I'm just keeping my options open, trying to eat the right number and the right quality of calories, and I practice smiling a lot. I am sure other drivers are wondering what the heck I'm so happy about.

Try smiling non-stop for 30 minutes, believe me, you don't feel all that happy about it. But just like all training, it gets easier!

The pictures were taken in my back yard in July - 2 months before I began training with Adam. Soon I'll get My Darling Husband (DH) to take some updated photos.

Meal Planning - The Macronutrients

I get asked a lot of questions like, “Can I eat this?” or “What should I eat before my workouts?” I am super happy to hear questions like that because nutrition is THE MOST important part of a Body Improvement Plan. A good work out cannot out work a bad diet!

So while I love to give tips on training, you will be able to see major improvements just by changing your diet.

The good news is that I’m not recommending any specific “DIET.” What I’m talking about is truly changing the way you eat. For good. In fact, if you eat the right foods long enough, you will think less and less about eating your former favorites. Chicken Fried Steak smothered in cream gravy used to be my favorite meal. These days I’m always shocked to see it on a menu. Do people really still eat that?

Nutrition is pretty simple. There are no secrets. You’ve seen the Food Pyramid. It’s not rocket science. Lean protein - Whole grains - Vegetables - Fruits - Dairy - Minimal fats & oils. You already know that, don’t you? Since you are fueling your body, be sure you are putting in high quality fuel. You wouldn’t fill the tank of your sports car with 85 octane gasoline, would you? You say you feel more like a Corolla? Well, to get the best performance out of your Corolla, you still need to meet the manufacturer’s requirements. Guess what YOUR manufacturer’s requirements are? Yup. Lean protein - Whole grains - Vegetables - Fruits - Dairy - Minimal fats & oils. And all of it in the proper proportions.

Let’s break it down.

PROTEIN
Protein is your body’s basic building block. Meat-eater or not – you need protein. The best protein choices are lean, meaning they are low in fat; specifically saturated fat. Included on any lean protein list are white meat chicken and turkey, fish, and certain cuts of beef like sirloin (sorry, not bacon – not even center cut bacon). What you may not realize is that egg whites, soybeans and tofu also fit on this list. (Actually, I’m a firm believer in the health benefits of the entire egg, but if you are focusing on lowering your fat intake as well as your calories, then you should stick with just the whites).

You should eat a lean protein at every meal. Not only does it provide important nutrients, it will help keep your belly full longer. I recommend that you prepare the protein in such a way that it stays lean. In other words, grill it, smoke it, or bake it with non-stick utensils so you don’t have to smear on the oils or butter. Add fresh or dried herbs if you need more flavor.

Your portion size is also important! A standard portion of meat is about the same size as the palm of your hand. For people who are actively weight training, you may need to eat more in order to attain a daily guideline of one gram of protein for each pound you weigh.

CARBOHYDRATES
There are a lot of recent diets that have given carbohydrates a bad name. Face it: Carbohydrates are important! Sure, those folks lose weight when cutting out carbs. When you cut out about 50% of your calories, you are going to lose weight. But you cannot live without carbs. Fruits, veggies, and grains are all a part of the carbohydrate family. Carbs are used for energy production, digestion regularity (fiber!), and they keep people from being overly cranky.

Be aware of what kind of carbs you eat:
Potato chips = bad carbs (and really more of a fat)
Baked sweet potato = good carbs
White bread = Bad
Whole wheat bread = Good

Let’s make this even simpler: eat carbs that are as close to nature as possible.
Orange = Good
Fresh-Squeezed orange juice = Good
Orange juice from concentrate + added sugars = Less good
Orange flavored soda = Bad!

Read the ingredients list (if there is one – fresh fruit and veggies don’t have ingredients lists). If there are more than just a few ingredients, you’re probably better off looking for something else to eat. And if you can’t pronounce some of the ingredients, put it back. For breads, always choose 100% whole wheat. That’s a no brainer. If you see enriched flour as a main ingredient – put it back. Grab another bag that uses whole wheat flour. Just do it. Quit arguing. And always choose brown rice. Don’t even think about white rice. And no, fried rice does not count as brown rice even though it is brownish. And while I personally don’t eat a lot of pasta, there are some good pasta choices out there including some sprouted grain pastas which make them a little higher in protein as well as being a whole grain.

A reasonable portion of carbohydrates is about a handful, or about one cup. Again, this will vary based on your own caloric needs.

FATS
Yes, I admit it. Fats are a necessary part of your diet. But again, we want to focus on good fats. A good fat is unsaturated. I won’t get into the science of what makes it a saturated vs. unsaturated fat (it has to do with how many hydrogen atoms are in the molecule), but unsaturated fats don’t cause as many blockages since they can’t pack together as tightly as saturated fats do.

You know darn well what some examples of saturated fats are: animal fats (chicken skin, many cuts of beef), butter – basically any fat that is solid at room temperature. Unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, and olive oil is a great example of one that is heart healthy, when used in moderation.

Other “good fats” are nuts like almonds and walnuts, and avocados. Fats should be used sparingly, even the good ones. No matter what kind of fat it is, it still contains more calories per gram than either protein or carbohydrates (combined!).

PUTTING IT TOGETHER:
You’ve heard of a balanced meal, but do you know what that means? A balanced meal contains a proper portion of a lean protein and a proper portion of carbohydrates along with some extra veggies (vegetables are nice and low in calories, so it’s difficult to overdo it on veggies). Don’t forget, how your meals are prepared will impact their caloric value! If you smother the lean chicken breast with cheese and bacon, or fry it, it is no longer lean. A leafy green salad with grilled chicken breast is a great lean option. But once you add ranch dressing, bacon, cheese, and candied pecans, or if you bread and fry the chicken, you’ve just created a thousand calorie meal!

You should eat 5 or 6 times a day in order to keep your metabolism active. Remember when 3 square meals were all the rage? Well, eating only 3 larger meals a day means your metabolism slows down right before it’s time to eat again. If you eat every 2-3 hours, then the metabolism doesn’t get a chance to slow down, and you don’t get a chance to feel hungry again – making it easier to not overeat.

PERSONALIZE IT
Remember the goals you made at the beginning of the year? Take them out and look at them. You need to understand what your daily calorie intake should be for your goals. And based on those needs you can adjust your caloric intake. For folks wanting to lose weight, you’ll need to consume fewer calories than you need just to get through the day. For folks who want to gain weight, you’ll need to eat more. For active people and athletes who are at their desired weight, but just want to “tone up” you’ll REALLY need to focus on the quality of the foods you eat. If you need help with determining your personal needs, email me! I’m not a dietician, but I do have lots of experience with adjusting food to meet different needs.

Let me know what changes you are making to your diet! What is working for you and what isn't? What item do you crave the most - maybe there's a way to improve it's nutritional profile!

Resolve to Have Successful Resolutions

Happy New Year!

A new year is time for new beginnings! It is time for a fresh start. Don’t worry if you have attempted the same resolutions every year for the past decade. This is the year that you will achieve your goals!

Use this week to assess where you are and where you want to be. All the mistakes of last year can be forgiven and all the lessons that you learned from those mistakes will be brought forward to help you in the New Year – you did LEARN something from them, didn’t you?

Henry Ford said, “Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.”

So let’s begin 2010 more intelligently! Write out your resolutions if you haven’t done that already. They can be general right now because you’ll refine them later.

Where Are You Now?

Sticking to a New Year’s Resolution requires more than just writing it down and a desire to improve. Anything worth doing is worth doing right, and to do it right you need a plan.
You have to know where you ARE, where you WANT TO BE, and how you PLAN to get there. Let’s start with where you ARE.

To know where you are, you need to be measured. What to measure depends on what you resolve to change. If you want to lose weight, you’ll need to measure your current weight, and possibly the circumference of your chest, waist and thighs. If you want to improve your body composition (muscle vs. fat), then you’ll need to measure your current body fat percentage. If you want bigger muscles, you’ll need to measure the circumference of those body parts (biceps, chest, thighs, calves). If you want to improve your time to run a mile, then you’ll have to know how long it currently takes you to run a mile (avoid the treadmill in this measurement, as it hampers your natural speed adjustments. I recommend finding a mile-long path and a stopwatch). You get the idea…

For many measurements, you should enlist the help of a trusted friend to handle the measuring tape or stop watch. Ideally, it is a friend who will help motivate you when you are struggling, and possibly someone who wishes to improve their health in the same way you do. If you are a member of a gym, ask one of the trainers to give you a full assessment. The initial consultation is generally offered free of charge.

Where Do You Want to Be?

Goal setting seems easy enough; however, “I want to get in better shape” is not really a goal. If it were, you could go out running every day for a week and technically you would be “in better shape” than you were before. To make resolutions that you can successfully achieve, you need to set SMART goals. SMART is a common acronym used in goal-setting....I'll explain:

• Specific – Write down how many pounds you want to lose. Write down your target body fat percentage. Write down how many miles you want to be able to run (and how long you want it to take you).
• Measureable – Remember those things you measured in order to determine your starting point? Those statistics should be included in your SMART Goal because, obviously, they are measureable.
• Accountable – most resources say the “A” is for Achievable, but we’ll cover that on the “R” and there’s no need to be redundant in an acronym. I like to use “Accountable” here. This means that you make yourself accountable. How? TELL EVERYONE what you are trying to accomplish. At the minimum, tell one other person who will encourage you.
• Realistic – Achievable. Don’t set a goal to run a marathon in a month when you can barely run a mile now. It is more realistic to set a goal to run a 5K in a month. Also good: to lose 2 pounds a week for 8 weeks.
• Time-Framed – Always include a deadline. This also aids you in the “accountability factor” since you will not be able to procrastinate without impacting your ultimate success.

Here’s my SMART goal: I will train at least 6 days each week in preparation to compete in at least 3 NPC figure & bodybuilding contests, with the first contest in June 2010.

How Will You Get There?
Now you know where you are and where you want to go. Now it’s time to make your road map to successfully achieve your goal.

• BABY STEPS – Behind every SMART Goal, there are baby steps to reach it. Break down your goal into smaller steps. For example, I included the baby step of six training days each week in my SMART Goal statement. I could also break it down into steps for weekly meal planning and weekly measurements to ensure I stay on track.
• RESOURCES – Make a list of the resources available to help you reach your goal. Do you know how to use the gym equipment, or how to design a workout plan? A trainer at your gym can help or you can subscribe to a fitness magazine. There are even entire television stations designated to health and fitness programming. For me, I’ve not trained for a contest before, but my trainer, Adam, has years of experience of preparing women & himself for competition. He is my main resource for information and motivation.
• RISK ASSESSMENT & MITIGATION– What could get in the way of your success? Every goal has something that could impede upon its success. Make a list of the impediments that you foresee. It could be your own motivation, lack of time, get-togethers with tempting foods, lack of family support…any number of things. List every risk you can think of.

Once you have your list of risks, come up with a mitigation plan for each one. That way, if you come up against that risk, you are already prepared to move past it. For me, registering for the first contest as soon as possible will keep me committed – I want to look my absolute best on stage! I’ve listed a few suggestions for you below.

Common Risk Mitigators

• Risk: Motivation
  - Schedule a professional portrait sitting that coincides with your deadline date.
  - Book a beach vacation - as long as you’re going with people who are motivating to you.
  - Save money every time you successfully complete a Baby Step & use it to do something nice for yourself when you achieve your goal.
  - Re-measure weekly. It helps keep you accountable to yourself.
• Risk: Lack of Time
  - Prioritize your training! Schedule it in your calendar and don’t book anything over it. (If that same hour were booked to help someone else improve their health, would you skip it?)
  - Waking up earlier and working out first thing is a great way to fit everything in.
• Risk: Tempting Meals with family or friends
  - Eat a snack beforehand to limit your portions of the tempting foods
  - Request a special item to be included on the menu for you (if your diet was vegetarian, they’d surely accommodate, so why not have the same expectation when your diet is lean foods?)
  - Drink lots of water – it curbs the appetite and makes your skin look great in the process. Add Crystal Light if you need flavor.
• Risk: Lack of support from family or friends (This is a tough one, yet quite common. Often, they don’t know they are sabotaging your efforts by saying, “Come on, one brownie won’t kill you. You can afford it.”)
  - Be prepared with statements like, “It’s hard to stop once I start.” Or, “That will cause my training session from this morning to be a complete waste.” Or even, “There is a reason I am so lean, and it’s because I don’t have brownies in my diet.” I recommend that last one for repeat offenders.
• Risk: Unidentified
  - Have a mentor. When you experience a risk to your success that you didn’t plan for, it’s best to talk to someone who has been through this sort of thing. Maybe it is your personal trainer, or your trusted friend who is working toward the same goal, or another person who inspires you. Identify this person early on so that you will know where to go when the time comes.

Get Started!

There is no time like the present! Start with your general resolutions, take your starting measurements, turn your general resolutions into SMART Goals, break it down into Baby Steps, then identify & mitigate your risks.

You are on your way to achieving your goals in 2010!

Post your SMART goals below to start making yourself accountable right away!