Trying Out Some New Supplements

Hello!

Happy Easter. It's a happy holiday, but I kind of wish my gym still opened up at it's normal time. I've been antsy all morning to get in there and do some cardio. My trainer Julie told me to do 40 minutes of high-intensity cardio 6 times per week, plus four 30-minute sessions separately from that. Sounds like a lot, but it's doable. I'm getting increasingly excited for my competition as the days pass by.

I am still needing to cut down on body fat and drop a few pounds in these last four weeks. I was reading the new issue of Muscle & Fitness Hers magazine yesterday, and I came upon an article called "Kiss Fat Goodbye". It examines several fat-loss supplements, including caffeine, green tea extract, yohimbine, capsaicin (the stuff that makes peppers spicy), and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). The article recommended that people looking to drop fat (i.e. ME!) should take ALL of these supplements daily, and they explained when & how much to take.

I already consume caffeine, of course (what competitor doesn't??), but I do not currently use the other supplements. But with only four weeks til showtime, I took this article seriously and ordered a couple of the supplements from Bodybuilding.com (green tea extract and yohimbine). I will begin taking them when they arrive in the next few days and report back the results.

One thing that had me raise my eyebrows a little in the article was the amount of caffeine that M&F Hers recommended consuming. Most resources online recommend 200-300 mg of caffeine per day. So I've been trying very hard not to exceed that. But the section on caffeine in the article recommends "200-400 milligrams of a caffeine supplement between meals two or three times a day with one of those doses 30-60 minutes before workouts on training days." Hm. That adds up to a lot more than 200-300 mg. I will have to do some more investigation into the caffeine question.

Off to the elliptical machine! :-)

Nicole Wilkins' "Pursuit of a Dream" DVD

I am so excited to soon receive in the mail a new DVD just released by one of my biggest role models, Nicole Wilkins! It's a documentary following her as she works her butt off to prepare for the Figure Olympia. And ... she's going to autograph my copy! Doesn't get much better than that! :-)

Her DVD can be purchased here:

http://www.nicolewilkins.com/store/dvd.php

This is my army of asparagus I cooked last night ... since it's a diuretic and helps you drop water weight, I am eating this stuff like there is NO tomorrow!

Today was a long workout day. I woke up at 6:30 AM (on a day OFF from work -- that was my "sleeping in"!), had a little BSN Syntha-6 whey protein, and headed to the gym for 35 minutes on the treadmill (steady-state plus a few intervals thrown in). Then I ate Meal #2 (eggs, tuna, grapefruit) and returned to the gym for a back/glutes workout and another 40 minutes of cardio (elliptical). *Whew!*

I am 4 weeks out from my first competition and I think I'm going to have things under control in time for the show (crossing fingers!). I have almost everything lined up -- tan, makeup, hotel room, bikini, sportswear-themed outfit (I will explain in a moment), hair extensions, support system (i.e. my wonderful boyfriend).

I feel good about my body right now, but my trainer Julie does want me to drop another 6 pounds or so before May 21. In order to do that, there will be even MORE cardio than I could ever imagine during these next 4 weeks. But I don't even care -- I am motivated and excited! Some of my motivation has come from comments from people I've received recently that have really brightened my day. One co-worker's daugher declared that I seemed like a "Miss America" contestant. A stranger at the gym noted that I'd really "toned up" and that I looked great. Since I tend to be extremely hard on myself, these kinds of comments cause me to pause and give myself a little mental pat on the back.

Also, my diet needs to be spot on. And I have been doing well! I feel like I'm constantly cooking, grocery shopping or filling little tupperware containers with measured-out food portions. It takes a lot of time for all this, but for me, it's worth it. I'm realizing that all the fitness pros are right when they say that diet is KEY to success.



Here is my costume for the "fitness-wear" round of the competition. I don't really understand what this round is all about, but apparently all Fitness America shows include this. So reluctantly, I ordered this costume from 3wishes.com. And actually ... I really like it! I guess I have my Halloween costume lined up for this year as well :-)

Examples of meals & diet macros

Picture of the same breakfast I eat every single morning (although today I had 3 oz. of ahi tuna; that could also be lean ground beef, chicken, or another fish). When I am not preparing for a contest, I replace the grapefruit with 1/2 cup (uncooked) oatmeal. Also please note the Red Hot -- hot sauce has become a staple in my diet!




Also a picture of the massive amount of fish I cooked for myself the other night. That was Sunday night, and today is Tuesday, and it's almost already gone!

Today I entered my current meal plan into MyFoodDiary.com to see the breakdown of macronutrients. Here it is:

Calories: Approx. 1500
Fat: 62 g (About .5 g for every pound of bodyweight)
Carbs: 64 g (About .5 g for every pound of bodyweight)
Sugar: 30 g
Protein: 158 g (A little over 1 g for every lb of bodyweight)
Fiber: 16 g

We will see how Julie changes the diet between now and May 21 (contest date)...

(Slightly Less Than) 5 Weeks Out

This weekend I traveled to visit the law school I'll attend this fall for a "Preview Day". I am proud of myself, because I kept up my clean eating on the trip! I bought this massive cooler and packed a TON of food. I used my new fancy food scale to measure everything out into tupperware -- ground beef, salmon, chicken, protein powder, etc. It was a carefully calculated operation, and it was successful! I didn't eat any of the free (unhealthy) food offered to me. I ate my own food, and only purchased one meal (a salad from California Pizza Kitchen). I think this was a great success! I proved to myself that it IS possible to prepare to a high degree for traveling.

I also managed a workout in the (tiny) hotel gym. I ran intervals for 40 minutes on an empty stomach before the law school event.

I have been a lot better about being strict with the contest prep diet. I know myself better now: if croissants or Oreos are sitting out in the open at my house, I WILL break into them late at night when I'm tired and my motivation is down. So, I hide them from myself. Also, I have been good about cooking massive amounts of food ahead of time, so I never run out of sources of lean protein or veggies. And I am seeing results! My stomach is the most difficult area for me to change, but it's leaner and tighter!

I have also been doing massive amounts of cardio. Last week, Julie had me do 6 sessions of 40 minutes at high intensity. This week, it'll be 6 sessions of 60 minutes each. Weeks 3 & 4 will be 7 sessions of 20 minutes each, doing intervals. I have been weight training as well, with a focus on legs/glutes, but still working out every body part at least once weekly.

With less than 5 weeks until the competition, I am a little nervous, admittedly. This is my first show, so I don't entirely know what I'm doing. But, I do think of myself as an intelligent, hard-working person, so I know I won't totally screw this up. I purchased another set of Jessica Simpson Hairdo extensions yesterday because it seems like most of the top bikini pros wear extensions to their competitions. The look of having full, big hair seems popular. My next big challenge is posing. I'm going to start housesitting this week in a big, beautiful home -- and I will have privacy! -- so I am going to film myself practicing posing, then send the video to Julie for analysis. I have performed on stage before as a dancer, so I know a little bit about stage presence. But these bikini pros really have a lot of attitude, confidence, and swagger that I will need to work on developing. I've been watching YouTube videos of girls like Nicole Nagrani and Jaime Baird posing, and it helps me get an idea of what I'm supposed to do.

Gotta get back to work -- 'til next time.

5 Weeks & 2 Days ... *Deep Breath* !!

Five weeks and 2 days until I will be a 130-lb, abs-and-glutes-of-steel machine walking onstage in some high heels and a very small bikini! I am so excited!

That's not to suggest that the last couple weeks have been easy. This diet is definitely the biggest challenge for me during contest prep. I love the workouts, especially when I get to lift heavy and feel that burning sensation in my muscles. But the diet ... it makes me mildly cranky ALL the time, which is not how I want to come across. Is this worth it? I hope so. I am serious about this, and the opportunities that it could possibly bring in the future (if all the planets align!). I would LOVE to be sponsored or be in a fitness magazine like the ones I read. I would love to have a body that people were inspired by. I really think I have all the qualities to become that -- dedication, motivation, work ethic, etc. Now if I could just get my brain to BELIEVE it, 100 percent. Little lingering doubts float around my mind ... they aren't as prevalent as they used to be (which is a great sign!) but they haven't disappeared completely.

Here's my current diet plan:

5 AM -- I take one OxyElite Pro capsule and one Lean Out capsule and head to the gym for 40 minutes cardio
6 AM -- Return home and eat Meal #1: 3 egg whites + 1 full egg, 3 oz. lean protein (often ground beef), and 1/2 grapefruit with Splenda
8:30 AM -- At work, Meal #2: lately I've been making my version of a blueberry muffin ... 1/4 cup frozen blueberries microwaved with 1 scoop BSN protein power and a little water. The consistency makes my brain think it's a treat!
12 PM -- Meal #3: 5 oz lean protein (today, chicken) with 2 cups veggies (salad + fat-free dressing)
3 PM -- Meal #4: 5 oz lean protein + 1/4 cup almonds (or 1 tbs peanut butter)
6 PM -- Meal #6: 8 oz lean protein + 2 cups veggies (lately my favorite is asparagus with balsamic vinegar and a teeny bit of vanilla extract -- thanks to Rachel Mac!)
8 PM -- Usually have some SF jello + fat-free Cool-Whip for dessert

Once a week is the carb-loading night where have a ton of carbs, including 1 cup oatmeal or brown rice, a sweet potato, a banana, etc. It's a big meal, and I usually can't eat everything that Julie wants me to eat.

I am trying to be more creative with my diet, experimenting with new recipes -- and I bought bison for the first time the other day!

That's it for now ... time to look at some motivational pictures so I keep myself on track!

Inspired Again!

Today, I started out grumpy. Mainly because it's SNOWING outside! It's APRIL for pete's sake! I am so mentally exhausted of the winter. I want the sunshine and the springtime! So I came to work with a chip on my shoulder because of that. It's a stupid reason, I know.

Since I started out the day this way, I needed a little inspiration to perk me up. Fortunately I found that in a wonderful blog by Rachel Mac:

http://blog.questproteinbar.com/the-rachel-mac-transformation-part-1/#

I particularly fell in love with this blog because Rachel is a litigator, working sometimes 12+ hours per day -- but she still found time to enter her first bikini competition (the amateur competition at the Arnold). She describes herself as a "bookish" girl who didn't find much success in team sports in middle or high school, but she finally found her sport with competing.

I could relate to Rachel so much. Her blog gave me hope that when I start law school (and later become an attorney), I will still be able to pursue what I love -- training, eating clean, and competing! I have been worrying for quite some time that I'd have to cut all that short when law school begins this fall.

Thank you Rachel for inspiring me! I think the day will go better from here :-)

Back on Track Post-Sickness

I am finally feeling "back on track" after my sinus infection (actually, the infection isn't totally gone yet; the doctor said they are quite slow to get out of your system, and the antibiotics work for a full ten days, but I feel a great deal better). I worked out yesterday during lunch (weight training) as well as after work (35 minutes treadmill sprint intervals). The back of my jaw still hurts a little but otherwise the pain from the infection has subsided.

I am approximately 7 and a half weeks from my competition, and I am more excited than nervous at this point. My body looks pretty good (and my trainer Julie seems to agree), so now it's mainly a matter of keeping tightly to my diet and dropping body fat for the next several weeks. I've been doing well on the diet (I'd say I stick with it 90-95 percent of the time). I start to make poorer choices when I'm tired, late at night. Last night, for example, was a high-carb load night, so I had a huge bowl of oatmeal with a ton of blueberries. That was fine, but as I got more tired, I ate the frosting off a sugar cookie (thank you Mom for leaving those out in the open -- I plan to throw them away discreetly today!) and a little piece of sourdough bread. These choices are not the "good carbs" that Julie wants me to be eating. Plus, I'm pretty certain by now that I'm at least sensitive to gluten. My stomach makes gurgly noises (in protest!) when I eat bread or other gluten-filled foods. This has helped encourage me to avoid them and stick to oats, veggies, and fruit for my carbohydrates.

My two competition suits should be coming in the mail soon. I think I've decided on my "themed sportswear" too, with Julie's approval. It's a little tennis player Halloween costume that's white with red trim. It's about $35 from Amazon, so it's not too bad; I am still slightly annoyed that I have to buy another outfit in the first place, but that's okay.

That's it for the current moment. Trying to remind myself to take deep breaths and let go of the negative thoughts that frequently want to take over my mind (judgments, comparisons, etc.). I have to keep believing and trusting that I am a beautiful, strong women who deserves to be in a bikini competition because she works very hard and looks fabulous.