May...be She's Born With It

Dear May,
   You are dedicated to moderation. Moderation in food. Moderation at the gym. Moderation in general. After living a fairly extreme life, I'm ready for a more "normal" schedule and lifestyle. Here's to you, moderation May!

ps I met this cute boy named Tom and... <3

My First Bodybuilding Competition!

I began training in December for the NGA Northern States Bodybuilding show, Bikini Tall Division. It was three months of the cleanest eating, no alcohol, gym 5 days a week, and then gym 2-a-days 5 days a week at the end. I was pushed to my limits emotionally, mentally, and physically. I lost 8% body fat, going from 25% to 17% for the show. The day before the show, Mireya Krause (my chosen sister-friend) came with me to get my "color" (ridiculously dark spray tan) and I was pretty convinced that I wasn't ever going to compete in a bikini show again. I was totally exhausted, and pretty discouraged that my water weight hadn't completely dropped. The next morning, April 14th, my body was almost exactly where I hoped it would be. When I walked on stage for the pre-judging at 10 am, I felt like a million bucks! It was the moment that ALL OF MY HARD WORK had been leading up to and I OWNED the stage. I felt confident that I would place. That night, with all my family and friends watching, I took the stage again with even more confidence and placed 2nd in my very first competition! It was so exciting and fulfilling. It's truly unbelievable that my body could transform so much in just 3 months with extreme hard work and dedication. I am so grateful I competed in the NGA show. I learned that I really am capable of doing just about anything I put my mind to :) SUCCESS!!! And, I totally built myself an ass. I think that may be what I'm most proud of. I built that city on rock and roll ;)

Um...How is it APRIL?

March flew by! I was right on track to reach all of my goals on March 2nd. Then, March 3rd, illness struck. After sleeping, drinking nyquil, sleeping, eating, bathroom, nyquil sleeping, repeat for 7 days, I finally got better enough to go to the gym. Those 7 days in bed were miserable! Missing school, work, and the gym nearly killed me.

After my illness, I got back to the gym and worked hard to get to about 17.2% body fat (according to some*). Which means, I'm right where I need to be to be competitive at the show in 13 DAYS! My April goal is to finish training for this show with everything I've got, and keep it up for the last part of April to compete in the May NGA show as well! Wish me luck. These goals will be tough!

ps I just got my show suit today! I am soooooo excited :)

The Ides of March

I successfully lost 4% body fat last month. I went up to the U to get the bodpod test done. It's an air displacement test that measures body fat percentage. It's considered the most accurate. I weighed 148 (after eating 4 meals) and my body fat percentage was 18.2%, down from 22-24% (depending on which pinch you believe to be accurate). I was ECSTATIC! I still can't believe it.

THEN, disaster struck again. I got sick within like ten minutes on March 4th and didn't leave my bed, except to go to urgent care, until Wednesday. I went to work on Wednesday, and then climbed back into my bed until this morning. It has been a ROUGH week. I am super vulnerable and emotional when I'm sick, especially being couped up in a studio apartment. So...I ate a BUNCH of shit I shouldn't have. I'm talking pizza, milkshakes, mini eggs, beer, cookies. BAD! I gained a few pounds and lost my six pack in bed this week.

SO, mid-March goals are as follows:

DON'T GIVE UP ON THE SHOW! I'm 5 weeks out tomorrow, and I have a LOT of work to do to catch up after this off-week. I am doing the show no matter what! I will just have to jump on 2 a day cardio next week to make up for the gains. Boooooo. But, I can do it!

EAT CLEAN. No more cheating. Not even a little. Not even an extra finger dip of Adam's natural peanut butter.

5 DAYS CARDIO. I am only doing 3 days of cardio currently. Bumping this up for the last 5 weeks is going to be necessary at this point.

HOMEWORK! I'm behind. I must get caught up.

I am going to stop there with the goals before I overwhelm myself. Awwwww, life. Such a roller coaster ride. Here I come, rest of March.

February, Oh February!

I have been on top of the world. Gym time has been awesome, and I haven't missed a workout. I've been following my meal plan to the T. School is going incredibly well. I haven't missed a single class. I've been consistent with the positive changes in my life. UNTIL....INJURY STRUCK! Damnit.

My February goal was to drop 4% body fat. However, stress induced muscle spasms in my rhomboid muscles (between the shoulder blades), and possibly a muscle tear in that area has got me in bed for the next 3 days. Doctor ordered no school, work, or GYM! Ahhhhhhhhh! I have been crying, mostly about the gym, since I left urgent care. My Dad does CT scans, MRI's, x-rays, and other imaging for a living, as a radiologist. So, if by tomorrow I'm not feeling the muscle spasms getting better, I'm making a trip to Idaho.

My new February goal? To LET MYSELF REST until Monday, February 13th, and THEN lost 4% body fat by March 5th. Overall, my goal is still to compete in the NGA Northern States Bodybuilding show on April 14th, the bikini division. But if this injury doesn't heal up nicely, I may have to shoot for the October show instead.

Overall, I am happy. I've made so many positive changes. I feel like for the first time in my adult life I am "getting my shit together." And let me just tell you, it feels soooo much better than being a mess :)

New Year.

2012 has brought with it an energy that I haven't felt in a long time: peace. My life has gotten significantly better with the change of the year. I am filled with excitement for life and motivation to achieve goals. I began school again on January 9th. I'm working at a salon that I love. I am treating my body well for the first time in years. I've found so much renewal in removing the negative people, places, and things that were weighing me down last year.

This year is a breathe of fresh air. Rather than screw it up by making resolutions that I won't keep, I've decided to make this year the year that I focus on me. Focus. Dedication. Motivation. Commitment. Each month, I will set a new monthly goal that is achievable and keep track of my progress monthly. At the end of 2012, I will look back and review my overall progress. Just typing it makes me happy. My January goal was to do 10 squats on a medicine ball. I have already reached it, and am doing 3 sets of 20. That felt amazing.

I am also setting a goal for the first half of the year, and then in June I will be setting a goal for the last half of the year. From now until mid 2012, I am focusing on going to the gym and training for my fitness show in April. But I'm not stopping there! I'll be training all year. The show is just a goal to push toward, after which, I plan on maintaining my gym and healthy eating habits because I have NEVER felt better.

Life got better the moment I decided to actively pursue the betterment of my self. Each day is my best. Nothing holds me back anymore. I am filled with an energy that strengthens me everyday. I am, finally, happy.

Happy New Year. New Me. New Blog. New Focus.