Christmas in January?!?

I have just been plugging along trying to eat as clean as possible through the holidays. Some days are better then others and I am actually looking forward to the 14 week mark (Dec, 26!) when I have no choice other then to eat clean. I want to take the best package possible to the Natural Canadians and can't be messing around!

Christmas actually hasn't been too hectic or stressful as I have postponed it until January!

Anyone working in the fitness industry knows that things come to a grinding halt in December. Many believe they are far too 'busy' to make it in for their workouts or can't justify the cost when they have gifts to buy. I have found this difficult in the past while working at a club but am feeling it more now that I am self employed. For that reason the kids and I decided to delay Christmas until January when the rush hits!

 Luckily they are old enough to understand and realize they get enough gifts from others that it won't feel like Santa didn't come. Although I felt a little guilty at first I am now kind of excited about it. I will be able to buy them more now, won't have to worry about fighting the crowds and will most likely get better deals! We are even going to keep the tree up and stuff the stockings again!

Tyler has asked for a netbook so I am hoping to take advantage of the boxing day sale at Best Buy. Taryn wanted Uggs but she is rethinking that. I asked my parents and brother not to buy me anything as I can't afford to reciprocate. I would rather just enjoy the day with them, thats's what it's all about anyway right?

Here are some pics of Christmas past. 3 years ago instead of gifts the kids and I went

to NYC and if you ask me that was the best idea ever. Memories last a lifetime, gifts do not.

 This photo was taken at the Disney Store on 5th Ave :)

Here we are at FAO Schwarz!

And skating at Rockefeller Center!

Athlete of the Month...Woot!

This month I am featured on my trainer Mindi O'Brien's blog!

Check it out here...

Mindi’s website

Off Season Struggles

I made it through last week on track, Monday until Friday afternoon that is. It all fell apart when I decided to bake the kids some banana bread and banana cake on the day that I was allowed to have a cheat. I ate WAY more cake then was necessary and even took it out of the freezer and ate more that was not quite frozen yet. The problem was the kids took off to their dads for the weekend and refused to take it with them :S Thats when I thought putting it in the freezer would be a good solution...NOT! It may takes even better partially frozen...not good! After that debacle I had plans to meet a girlfriend for drink and apps. My plan was just to have a few nibbles but again probably had more then necessary. 

I wrote that first paragraph at the beginning of the week and ran out of time so saved it as a draft. Just reading over it now I am sad to sat that it hasn't got much better :( It seems like every day is a struggle right now and I know that I am at the point where if I don't smarten up I am going to pay the price.

 I got dressed to go out to dinner last night and my jeans that I bought pre comp were so tight it was uncomfortable :( They are my first pair of Sevens and the only jeans that fit me right now, or used to anyway. Well, there is also the pair I stole from my daughter but they are uncomfortable now too!  So...I got undressed & cancelled my dinner plans. I wasn't hungry and didn't want to put myself in another situation where I may overeat. I know how wrong this was. Off season is short and I should be able to enjoy it by socializing with so many friends that I 'ignore' when training..

 Right now I am sitting at the weight I consider reasonable for off season & those jeans are tight but I can still get them on and if I wear them long enough they do seem to loosen up. If I can lose a few pounds or even stay right where I am I should be okay. That is why I NEED to get a handle on this now...it has only been 3 weeks since my last show and I still have 4 to go before I start dieting again.

Sooo here we go again....today is a new day and a new week. I WILL eat clean until Friday. Then if I so choose to have my clean Friday cheat I will enjoy it guilt free!

I think I am going to try those jeans on every day to keep me on track. Good plan?

One Year as a Team O'Brien Girl

It was exactly one year ago today that I decided to go ahead and pursue one of my  life goals to compete in figure.

I had just returned from Amsterdam where I ran my 4th marathon and decided to contact Team O'Brien.  Marathons were good for goal setting and travelling but it was time for a change. Time to tackle a new goal!

I was at a wedding in September when I heard that Mindi had a studio in Burlington and was quite excited about the possible opportunity to work with thee Mindi O. I met with Mindi and Dennis on November 20, 2008 and haven't looked back since. 

These took these photos...

Pretty scary!!!

But after 4- 5 months of following Dennis' nutrition and Mindi's training programs I stepped on stage like this...

I left that first show with 2 trophies and the opportunity to move on to level 2.

The 2nd show was planned for September so I had a bit of an off season. There were some bumps in the road and I wasn't focused on my training but lessons were learned and I came back even more determined to succeed at the level 2 show in Ottawa in November.

Again I left with 2 wins!

And qualified to move onto level 3 ...Provincials!!!

I can't thank Mindi and Dennis enough for helping me to reach one of my life goals. I always said I wanted to do 'one show' ...and here I am 1 year and 4 wins later :)

 They are an amazing team of fitness professionals! So amazing in fact that I have since gave up my job at a fitness club and have joined them in working at their studio :)

It's funny how much can change in a year... I walked into that studio for the first time one year ago and now I have my own key!

Thanks again guys....looking forward to another year!!

Post Comp Week

Last week I was living in post comp hell...the little guy to the right best describes how I felt! With a week to 'relax' from dieting and no workouts to do I felt totally off again. I am hoping with every show I do this will get better. The plan was to have cheats Saturday after the show and Sunday. I can even say that I didn't go too crazy on these days. I arrived home late Sunday night and had an early client Monday morning. Therefore there was no time to prepare anything. Groceries had not been bought, food had not been cooked, etc...then when I went into work and Dennis told me not to worry about dieting this week and to relax. I knew I was in trouble. This girl obvi hasn't learned how to eat relaxed yet! If anyone has any tips I would love to hear them!

 After a few clients I went to Costco with the intention to stock up on chicken. I left with chicken and a box of fresh cookies, the 'chocolate lovers pack' even :S One of my most fav treats is the white chocolate macadamia nut cookie and there was a whole row of them!

The rest of the week kinda went like that, start every day with good intentions and plenty of prepped food but blow it somewhere along the way. I would think, well this is my only week to relax so I better eat it now. Soooo wrong....I know. The whole week I felt tired, sluggish, grumpy and almost fluish . I was puffy and bloated and couldn't even enjoy my victories.

The good news is that week came to an end and come Monday morning I was right back on track.This is an improvement from show #1 where it lasted about 8 weeks! It helped to have a yummy new off season to follow...I am ENJOYING my clean food again :)

It also help to know that come Friday and Saturday night I am allowed 'clean cheats'. Mindi was quite clear that those cheats will not be dessert of any kind. I know this is better for me as I have learned that once I indulge my sweet tooth I can't seem to stop. Once I get the sugar out of my system it is pretty easy for me to stay on track. If am going to cheat, or want to, at that point it is normally fats like nuts or nut butters. During the prep for my first comp I had to take the walnuts right out of my diet because I couldn't have them in the house!

Workouts have been going well this week. I am doing a 5 day split w 45 minutes of cardio on each of those days. Saturday I will go to 'Leg Camp' for an extra blast.  

My next show is April 3 which is only 19 weeks away. We are thinking that I need about 14 weeks of prep so that means my off season comes to an end December 26...looks like my last clean cheat may be Christmas day! Pretty good timing I must say.

The Night Show

After the pre-judging wrapped up my daughter, her friend Angie, my brother and myself headed back to the hotel. I forgot to mention in the previous post that my awesome little brother made the 6 hour trek to Ottawa by himself after work Friday so he could be there to support me! Sorry Ryan! I can't thank him enough and I am thinking it is about time I got my butt to some of his motocross races dontcha think? We may have  also made a lil pit stop at the liquor store to get a few bevies to celebrate after the show ;)


I munched on some more dry oatmeal (yum?) and got in about a 90 minute cat nap. I awoke groggy and in the need of Starbucks! The girls had just returned from a mini tour of downtown Ottawa and I sent them out for a grande americano (black of course). I didn't realize until the next day but the hotel Starbucks had closed and they went in search of another one that stayed open longer. They apparently told the barista that I needed it REALLY bad! LOL...I found this out the next day when we hit up the same Starbucks :) Gotta love em!


I sipped on my americano as I touched up my tan and the girls tried to fix my hair ( damn extensions! My hair needs to grow FAST) I wish I would have realized how important hair is in competing when I chopped it all off about a year ago! Then it was back to the venue...the crew dropped me off and then headed off to Pizza Pizza...what? At least they didn't do it before they dropped me off I suppose!


So backstage I go where Mindi touched up my makeup, glazed me & bit my bum again ;)


A quick pump up and the masters short class hit the stage. They brought  the 10 of us out, had us do our quarter turns and then sent us backstage. They then called out the 3rd place winner...not me. The 2nd place winner...not me. At this point you never know whether this is good or bad...then the first place winner...ME! Yeah! We got photos taken with these HUGE trophies and were awarded medals. Then we went backstage and handed the trophies back so they could be used in the photos for the next class :) My daughter was quite disappointed that the trophy was not coming home with us... although I think we may have had trouble fitting it in the car with us 3 girls anyway! I don't have any personal photos of this because my daughter decided to make a video  which I will upload when I figure out how!


Then came the masters tall class. While they were doing their thing I switched my numbers and got ready to hit the stage with the level 2's. Again they brought all height classes out together...the 9 of us did our quarter turns and were sent backstage. Then they called out the 3rd place winner..not me. The 2nd place winner...ME! Sooooo happy! We did some photos and the 3rd place winner and myself were sent off while the overall winner was awarded some prizes and had more photos taken.


Then it was backstage again where all us girls shared our goodies. I have to say I really love this sport and am impressed by how nice everyone is to each other. There were hugs all around and everyone congratulated each other on a job well done. Even though we are competing against one another on the stage you would never know it by the interactions backstage and in the dressing room. We all know how much dedication it takes to get there and there is a mutual respect.


Now was the long awaited time for celebration and for that we (Myself, Ryan, Taryn, Angie. my fellow competitor Erica, her brother and Mom) chose the Lonestar Grill...after a LOOOONNNGG wait we finally got a table and were served nachos and salsa. Erica and decided to share a plate of nachos and a share plate which consisted of taquitos, quesdilla spinach dip and flat bread. Yum!! I may have also washed it down with a mango margarita :)   


With a full belly I headed back to the hotel to have a very overdue shower and return to my normal colour! I then threw on my jammies and my brother joined us for a cocktail. After 1.5 I was sound asleep! Not quite the party girl I used to be!


I am off to work now but will post soon on 'Post Comp Week'. 

Arrival and Pre-Judging

Sorry for the delay in blogging but my daughter had all the pics on her camera and we were having trouble connecting!

The weekend began like this... I awoke VERY early Friday morning anxious and ready to start my day but had to wait around for my hair appointment at 9:30 :( The girls and I finished packing, (discovered my son had ate all 24 of my green grapes!), loaded up the car and were on the road to Burlington by 8 am. We dropped the car off at at Canadian Tire for an oil change and hiked it across the parking lot to the Burlington Mall where I was getting my hair done.

Here I am waiting with extensions in hand. I believe this is about the time that my darling daughter informed me that my 2 spray tans had resulted in me looking like an 'Oompa Loompa' (sp?)..and.judging from this photo I would say she is right...oh my!

Here is Sam working his magic. After the first show I told him that I don't want it too curly as it results in a huge mess for me to deal with in the morning but he seems to have trouble leaving it straight...aarrgh.

Anyhow here is the finished product. The girls took some photos so we would know how to fix it after a nights sleep. I was assuming at that point that I would actually sleep!

Now we are off to pick up the car and hit the road...

 We hit the road about 12:15 which should have put us in Ottawa shortly after 5 pm. This would work out well because registration was from 5-8 pm followed by  an athletes meeting at 8:30 pm. We were making great time and should have arrived about 4:30 or earlier until we missed the cut off to Ottawa! As we were approaching the 416 that said 'to Ottawa' I asked my daughter/navigator  (who was talking on the phone) if I should take it....she snapped back "NO! We take the 417!" in her lovely teenage voice and I listened :S

After about 45 minutes without seeing anymore Ottawa signs and plenty of Cornwall signs I decided something was wrong and fired up my blackberry GPS which promptly told us to get off the highway and make our way to the 417. We listened and followed plenty of VERY slow drivers through backroads on our way to the 417. I make have sworn a few times at this point ;)

We arrived in Ottawa around 6:30 and made our way to registration. We then found our hotel, had a bite to eat, threw on some tan and headed back for the meeting. Once again...we were lost and made it to the meeting a few minutes late...

The parking lot was full and this was the only spot I could find! Obviously the principal wasn't going to be there on a Friday night but the girls found this funny enough to be photo worthy.

Back to the hotel to apply another coat of tan and hit the hay. I needed to recruit my daughter and her friend to help get the spots I couldn't reach :S Poor girls!!.Taryn informed me that for all this trauma I had the choice of years of therapy or a REALLY nice present from Ottawa. She insisted that I would be getting off easy with the present as years of therapy would be much pricier :) Can't blame the girl really...can't say I would have been eager to rub brown goop all over my naked Moms butt and back at the age of 16!

After the tan tried I practiced my poses...

We watched a bit of tv and I took 2 'sleep- ease' to make sure I got a good nights sleep. Didn't work...at 2 am I took another one...didn't work...at 4 am I decided I may as well get up eat & apply some more tan. I brewed some coffee, ate my cold steak and sweet potato, got my tan on and waited to call a cab.

While I waited I reviewed the program...

And tried to get my abs to come out...

About 6:30 am I made my way down to the lobby, found a cab and was off to see Mindi at her hotel where she did my makeup.

Mindi and Dennis were a tremendous help and support this weekend and definitely went above and beyond what should be expected from a coaching team. While Mindi worked on my make up Dennis found and made me some oatmeal (very dry according to Mindi's orders;)) I threw my suit on and we were off to the venue.

A quick make up touch up, glaze, posing run through, pump and we hit the stage. I had 2 numbers to keep track of for each of the classes I was in...first up was Masters Short in which there were 10 girls. I couldn't figure out where I stood according to call outs. I was actually was feeling a bit discouraged as I didn't make first call outs as far as I could tell. Apparently I was in a shadow and got overlooked at first..this always seems to happen to me. Then they go..oh crap...look at her...haha. I need to try to avoid this in the future as it messes with my head!

Then came level 2. This was strange because they brought all height classes out together. They thought that because there were only 9 of us that it would be more competitive that way and would avoid bringing several small classes out. I get the concept but it left us even more confused by the call outs. The poor judges were judging overall as well as the individual height classes for advancement to the provincials.

Pre- judging wrapped up and Erica and I had a seat in the audience  and watched Mindi's question and answer session, and prodded Dennis with questions about how he thought we did. He was just as confused as we were and he is a judge!

I this point I realized  my body was finally ready for sleep and headed back to the hotel for a catnap.

Ottawa Bound!

I awoke at 5 am this morning STARVING and ready to get at my carton of egg whites! I would have loved to sleep longer as I didn't get to bed until after midnight and have a long drive ahead of me but my body was just not cooperating. Oh well, hopefully I can crash early tonight at the hotel!

I have all my food packed up,  just have to finish packing my clothes and should be ready to go. Finding 'normal' as in' non workout clothes' was rather tricky as everything I tried on practically fell off of me. My skinny jeans don't look so skinny anymore...haha. I guess it has been a while since I've had the opportunity to wear something other then workout gear...between training myself and others it seems there is little opportunity to get 'dressed up' in jeans :) Don't get me wrong..I have NO problem spending my life in lululemon I just often find that when it is time to wear something else either it no longer fits or my daughter has decided that it now belongs to her and I have to go on a hunt!

I went for a couple of spray tans yesterday to spare my daughter a few coats of the Jan Tana as I am sure she will not be thrilled to be painting her Mom :S I also got my brows , nails and toes done...thanks Kara!! This morning I have a hair appointment where Sam will touch up my colour and put in my hair extensions...while he is doing this I am hoping my car will be getting its oil changed as I ran out of time to do that yesterday. Once all of that is done we are OTTAWA bound! It should take about 5 hours if all goes well. Travelling with me will be my 16 year old daughter Taryn and her friend Angie. Taryn is quite camera happy as most 16 yr olds are these days so I just have LOTS of pics to post of our journey.

I am feeling good and ready for this show. Need a little more practice on my lat spread as I seem to be having trouble opening up my back but other then that should be good to go! Pre- Judging is at 9 and the night show is at 6 pm which is kind of nice. I am not sure how to post  blog updates from my phone but will try to  do so through twitter and facebook.

Happy Halloween!

This pic made me laugh....although there are no worries of me drinking and flying anywhere tonight as I am one week out from Ottawa & Eastern Ontario Physique Championships!!!

I am feeling good and ready to rock the stage :) A little different from the show 6 weeks back right? It's amazing what a little focus and determination can do for the mind and body!

So..like I said I will not be doing any drinking or celebrating tonight but my 16 year old is throwing a Halloween Party and I fear there may be some mischief going on there :S I am quite worried actually...what do dozens of teenagers do at a party if not drink? And if they do, what do I do about it??? I am so not ready for these teenage years!!!! Help!!!

I am back after another rather LONG hiatus...sorry! Things got a little crazy around here and while I always make time to read your blogs actually blogging myself seems too daunting :S

I did the NATURAL ONTARIO'S on September 19 and had a disappointing finish. I came 3rd in my height class (out of 3) and 7th of 9 in the Masters class. This was only my 2nd show and in my first show I came first so it was quite an awakening.

Here is a photo from the Naturals's...you can see that my abs didn't come in as they did in April and my legs are still WAY too big, I won't even provide you with a rear view but that was definitely an issue as well!
Looking back now I can see where I went wrong...I started dieting at 12 weeks and then had surgery at 11 weeks that took me longer to recover from then expected and didn't get my training and diet back on track until the 9 week mark. For the April show I started dieting at 16 weeks so already I was 7 weeks behind! From that point on that I had the attititude that I 'might' do the show. I knew I was behind and rather then use that as motivation to haul ass I just kept using it as an excuse to bail.

When I would ask Mindi if she thought I would be ready she would say "That is up to you. You have to work hard and focus." She even went as far as to say "Stop texting between sets!"...this part actually made me laugh because she doesn't work out at my club so that meant somebody had ratted on me! Too funny!

At the time I never quite understood what she meant and was rather frustrated and discouraged...I WAS doing the work, I WAS following the diet... I WAS putting in the time. But thats's just it..I was putting in the time but not the effort. My heart wasn't in it, I wasn't focused and my workouts and body suffered.

Although that placing was hard to take I am still glad I did the show. I think it was a lesson I had to learn and I will NOT that that happen again. My head is in the game I am focused and ready for November 7...Ottawa here I come!

Go Mindi!!!!!!

My trainer, the amazing 'Mindi O' is competing in her 6th FITNESS OLYMPIA today! Good Luck girl!! We are all thinking about you today!

The Day has Come!!!

It is finally here...the OPA Ontario Natural Championships have arrived!! Tan is almost complete, hair extensions are in & I will be out the door for make up right shortly. Woke up hungry and eager to get at my steak, potato & avocado breakie!!

Will post more later, hopefully with good news and lots of pics!!

A 40th Anniversary & a Weigh in

These are my lovely parents at their 40th anniversary party. I think I am about as photogenic as my Dad unfortunately! We always end up with this goofy smile on our faces that does not look natural at all! He's being silly there but the real one is not far off!

And here is the yummy cake that I did not even get to sample.I had the wonderful job of dishing it out and kept finding myself about to lick the icing off my fingers....then I would catch myself and be like...."Whoa! I can't do that!" I did free a nice big corner piece for later though ;)

On another note I asked for the trim to be mauve...does that look mauve to you ??? That was the great debate...to me it looks like white on white which I found odd my some thought there may be a slight hint of mauve in there.

All in all it was a lovely evening with about 50 of there closest family and friends. Heck, anyone who can be married to the same person for 40 years deserves a party don't they?? I didn't even make 10...I can't even begin to imagine 40!

Back to me :)...

I weighed yesterday and this is where I am sitting at 2 weeks out;

Weight - 126.2 (down 2.8)

Fat % - 16.9 (up 1.3)

Fat Mass - 21.4 (up 1.2)

FFM - 104.8 (down 4)

Looks like weight is down in muscle and fat is up a little bit. I am not going to be too concerned with that as I am appearing leaner and those scales can be off at times.

Correct?? I'm not getting fatter & losing my muscle right??!!??

14 days!

I am just about to head to the club for some posing practice with one of my team mates. As soon as my tilapia is finished cooking that is!

I seem to be at the stage in my training where every waking minute is consumed by prep. Last night I had to head to a new gym to get my last cardio session in because my gym was closed by the time I was ready to do it. My parents are having a 40th Anniversary party today and I had to be over there getting things ready...my Mom pretends to support me but secretly is not a fan and thinks my priorities could be better. This she chooses to share with my children when I am not around. Gotta love mothers don't ya? Anywho...I just knew I would not be popular if I tried to book it to get to my gym before it closed.


So I finished my 2nd hour on the stepmill shortly after 10 pm and then had to hit a 24 hr grocery store because I realized I was out of tilapia and asparagus. Got home around 11pm, had a shower, went to bed and got up to do it all again.

Today is the actual party so I have to get my posing, cardio, lunges done and then get helping. Still not sure how I am going to get my 2nd cardio in when the party starts at 3 pm :S May have to squeeze it in tomorrow...is that a bad idea on rest day??

I am going to weigh today so I will post stats tomorrow and give a party update as well! Hope everyone has a fantastic long weekend!!

200 Lunges...What?!?

Had another posing practice last night. Seems many of us are a little behind as Mindi kept asking "Are you doing your cardio? All of it? Do more!". Luckily I wasn't one of those people but I did get assigned 200 walking lunges a day in addition to my already 2 hours on the stepmill...oy! My own fault really, I asked about my cardio before I left and was told everything was coming along nicely but to add the lunges to bring in the leg/glute area some more.

Ah well, it's only 2 weeks right?

Apparently I am not getting out of this show so I guess I better start getting organized. Need hair, nail, tan, makeup appointments :S Going to be a busy and expensive couple weeks! Stay tuned...

3 Weeks, A Gala & a Weigh in

Well...here I am 3 weeks out from this show and finally (hopefully) have my head in the game. This prep has been a rocky road for me...all along the way I had it in my head that I may just skip this one.

I had surgery at 11 weeks which left me unable to do cardio or legs until week 9, then at 7 weeks Mindi told me I was behind and needed to step it up which really sent me for a loop. I know this was to meant to motivate and get me focused but for some reason it had the opposite effect on me... it made me want to skip this show all together. This reminds me that people are motivated in different ways and this is something I need to keep in mind when training my own clients. That same week I was given a 'verbal written' at work for not hitting my sales goal for the first time in 4 years. Apparently that was meant to motivate me too!! But once again...wrong tactic...it left me looking at other employment options!

Even with all these doubts I kept plugging along as they continued to increase my cardio & take away my carbs in hopes of getting this body on track. Then came week 4 which included our annual AWARDS GALA. Its always a good time and since I figured it would probably be my last one I may as well enjoy it. By enjoy it I mean drink :O I struggled with whether or not to write about this because I know Mindi reads my blog sometimes but decided that if I can't be honest on here then what is the point?? This is the story of my journey...the highs and lows!! So I drank, boy did I drink!!! My theory was that I probably wasn't going to do the show anyway and I would take my chances and deal if the consequences later.

This photo makes me laugh because it all started out so well...I sat there eating my salad with tilapia and avocado while the others munched out on a spread of Jack Astors appetizers!!

So my plan was to stick with my food but have a few drinks with calorie free mix...along with a few shots of clear tequila ( this is advice from Jillian Micheal's and skinny girl Bethenny Frankel btw...I did my research ;)) The night sort of went like that although there may have been a beer or 2 thrown in there that were bought for me :O.

Yup, there is some of the beer evidence! This is me with my awesome team of co-workers who I am going to miss very much...I will just have to continue to work out at the club I guess!

It was a fun filled night and when I awoke at 7:30 am I was starving...I made my way to the other girls room and proceeded to wake them all up so I could get my egg white, spinach, lean beef combo out of their fridge...I ate that and then went back to sleep until 9:30 am. This is when I woke up to the sound of the mini bar calling me :O I gave in to some nuts and chocolate and went back to this sleep ( at this point I was figuring I was kinda screwed anyway so I may as well throw it all in)...then the girls called to let me know they were ready to head out to our annual morning after breakfast at Richtree and I thought wth? Why stop now?? So off I went...

Here I am with the ladies putting down some french toast...unfortunately ( or fortunately?) it didn't stay down long...shortly after this photo was taken I was on my way to the bathroom :S

The rest of the day was spent shopping on Bloor and Queen streets ( mostly at Lulu) and then haeded home . This is when I finally felt ablt to eat again and thought I was as well finish off this impromtu "cheat day" with my children!

So there is my true confession...Mindi if you are reading...sorry!

I went to work on Tuesday and weighed in exactly the same as before the weekend.On Saturday I did the body comp scale these are the results I got:

Weight - 129 (down 1.9)

BF % - 15.6 (down 3.7)

Fat Mass - 20.2 (down 5)

FFM -108.8 ( up 3)

Everyone has been commenting this week on how much my body is changing all of a sudden (especially in the last week...WHAT??!!??) And Mindi has informed me that I am ABSOLUTELY doing this show..so there its is...the good, the bad and the ugly.

I will keep you posted and try not to go MIA when I am off my game from now on. We are are stuggling with the same issues and there is no point trying to hide it right?

Hot!!!

This is where I want to be right now...

Lying on the beach in Port Dover. We have been trying to get there all summer and it seems every time we plan to go it rains :(

My daughter had an orthodontist appointment this morning so I drug her to work with me at 6am (She got up at 4 am!!!) so I could get a few clients in before heading off to her appointment. We then planned to spend the afternoon at this beach but once again Mother Nature had other ideas. So...we substituted with Walmart to get some school supplies! Now we are home, the skies are clear, it is hotter then heck, and she is sleeping. Oh well...I still have weights and cardio #2 to do so I will head to the gym shortly.

Things seem to be going a little better with the prep. Still not sure if I am 'on track' but I am def making gains. I weighed yesterday and these were my stats;

Weight - 129.8 (down 1)

Fat % - 17.1 (down 1.3)

Fat Mass - 22.2 (down 1.8)

FFM - 107.6 (up .8)

I will keep plugging along for now but if I don't feel that I am ready in the next couple weeks I will pull out and focus on the next show in October. Until then...thanks for all the encouragement!

6 weeks and Frustrated

So here I am 6 weeks out and still behind schedule!!! Aaaahhhh!!! This pic above is exactly how I have been feeling for the last 24 hours, except add a few tears. Wah! This is not typical behaviour of me to whine and feel sorry for myself like this and I don't like it one bit. I was actually considering throwing it all in yesterday and going home to sit on my couch with a tub of ice cream. It's a darn good thing I had people waiting for me at the stairs after posing practice because who knows what could have happened otherwise :S

Here's my current stats:

The old ones are from 11 weeks before my surgery. I have been afraid to get back on until now!

Weight: 130.8 (down 3)

Fat % - 18.4 (down 2 %)

Fat Mass - 24 (down 3.2)

FFM - 106.8 (up .2)

From what I can find for the last show I was weighing in at; 119.4, 13.9% bf (16.6 fat mass).

So I guess this is what I need to strive for or better.

8 lbs of fat loss in 6 weeks???

From the looks of my new diet & cardio program it's a definite possibility.

Will keep you posted!

Finally a Nice Weekend :)

What a relief it has been to have a few nice days without any rain. And on a weekend too! My weekend didn't start out the greatest as Friday was the last day of July and being behind in my goals left me at work quite late at night prospecting. I didn't manage to get what I needed to done (or even close) but it's my first time that I haven't hit since I started working there 3.5 years ago and all my hard work month end seems to have set me up for a pretty solid August.

I was on my way home after 10 pm when I realized I was out of egg whites which I needed for 2 of my meals on Saturday. Everything was closed ( I live in the boonies) except Shoppers and I was lucky enough to find them there. The clerk said they just started carrying them! I get home, wash my face, put my pj's on & hop into bed only to remember that I am out of crystal light that I need for my morning shake...uuggh. It now only consists of a whole avocado & a scoop of protein so I'm pretty certain that I won't be able to drink it alone. Up I get & back to Shoppers I go...I swear the lady thought I was nuts!

Saturday I wake up bright and early & begin to prepare my shake and while cutting the avocado I slice right into my hand. It was quite deep and bleeding a lot so I figure I better call my Dad to let him know in case I need stitches & a ride to the hospital. While talking to him I decide that the bleeding has slowed and I should be okay but I will call if anything changes. I wrap it all up & go on with my morning...prepping my shake (which I had to throw out after all that because my blender sucks and decided the avocado wasn't ripe enough to blend), and eating my oatmeal. Sitting at the computer reading blogs is precisely what I was doing when my parents came busting through my front door. Apparently they had been trying to call my house (battery dead) and my cell ( ringer off) and when I didn't answer assumed I had passed out. They made a mad dash from a town over to check on me at 7 am on a Saturday morning only to find me eating oatmeal & drinking a coffee! Gotta love the rents, no matter how old we get they still worry about us :)

The rest of the day consisted of clients, posing practice and errands. At practice Mindi informed me that I am behind schedule and we need to step it up :S This we decided will be done by two a days on the stepmill. I knew this would come sooner or later and I also know that's what works for me but damn I hate that thing! I asked if I could do 'real' stairs as an alternative and she said yes :) I actually find them harder but it is so nice to be outside. So that's what I did today...a half hours of plyos at the club with a gf followed by 7 rounds (2030)of stairs. Next week we're going to do plyos outside as well.

So that's the update...diet is dead on, workouts are being stepped up and I am feeling good :)

7 weeks to go!!

8 Weeks Already???

Wow! This prep is flying by and I am just now feeling like I am on track and have my head in the right place :S I started out great at the 12 weeks mark but then I had surgery and it all fell apart. I had varicose vein ligation surgery and from what I understood was supposed to be quite simple. I had actually planned to be back into work at 7 am the next morning and resume my regular workouts on Monday (the surgery was Thursday!). I was sadly mistaken as I was unable to move from my couch until Monday morning at which point and went into work but only lasted 1/2 a day. I worked 1/2 days Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and finally a full day on Friday. I struggled through my upper body workouts but had to skip the cardio and legs. This was unfortunate because the was the week I was to start my cardio twice a day :S Spending the weekend on the couch was also not very good for the diet because I went from not eating at all for a couple of days (anesthetic) to eating whatever was convenient because I was unable to stand long enough to prepare my proper diet food.

Anywho...the good news is that when I went in for my follow up this past Monday the kind doctor removed the tensor bandage (which was wrapped tightly from my hip to my toes)...the dressings, and the stitches and sent me on my way :) :) :) It was like as soon as that dang tensor came off and removed some of the pressure I felt 100% better. I went right back to work and hopped on the bike for a 45 minute cardio session! As soon as I did that my mood improved and I was back in the game. It's really quite funny how much exercise effects our lives. That week without being able to do my proper workouts and my diet not on track I was miserable!

This past week has been good, I got in all of my cardio and weight workouts and stuck to the diet 100%. I know this is how EVERY week has to be from here on in and I am ready!

11 Weeks and Crazy Scales

So here I am 11 weeks out and excited to hop on the scale and see what progress I have made during this week of clean eating. By clean eating I mean no crap because although I did stick to my diet foods I am guilty of having extra portions. I know I need to get a handle on this but in my head it was a LOT better then what I have been up to and I still have 11 weeks. The biggest problem was that I was forced to buy Vanilla yogurt instead of plain which I have learned is not an option as I enjoy the sweetness too much. A couple of days I would go back for seconds (maybe even 3rds :S) of the yogurt, cottage cheese, berry combo. Keep in mind that my diet says a 1/4 c. of each so it's easy to see how these calories could have added up.

Anywho...all in all I felt it was a pretty good week so when I hopped on that scale I was SHOCKED to see the following;

Weight - 133.8 (down .8)

Fat % - 20.4 (up 2.7)

Fat Mass - 27.2 (up 3.4)

FFM - 106.6 (down 4.2)

Could this be true??? I know I couldn't possibly have lost 4.2 lbs of muscle and gained 2.7 lbs of fat in a week but now the problem is I don't know which reading is more accurate...arrrggh! Maybe I really did do more damage then what the previous reading showed! I am going to try my best not to hop on it every day this week and just hold out until Saturday when it's time to weigh again. Boy that thing can sure mess with your head!

Workouts were great last week :) I am glad I decided to take the previous week off as I came back fresh and have been dealing with some wicked doms ( especially in the legs!). I am going to start my week today which would normally be my rest day because I am having surgery on Thursday and unsure what I will be capable of after that. They say you can resume 'normal' activities right away but not clear on what defines normal. Standing all day slinging dumbbell's & weight plates followed by a 45 minute stair climb and intense leg workout? I think not.

Today is shoulders and triceps followed by 45 minutes on the bike although I am thinking if saving the bike for later in the week. I may need something easier after the surgery. After that I am training a good friend and then hitting the driving range with her.

I love Sundays!!

Happy Canada Day!

I enjoyed my first ever sober "Black Top Hop" last night and it wasn't so bad. The 'Hop" is thee event of the year in Caledonia and is attended by thousands. It is always the day before Canada Day and a huge drunkfest. I knew this year would be a whole new experience sans the alcohol but I went anyway because I told myself that I would not sacrifice my summer because of my diet. And...I think this is the first Canada Day in several years that I have not spent on my couch...I actually worked today! I was still a little tired because I didn't get home until 12:30 and had to get up at 6:30 am but at least the day wasn't a write off. That is one thing I learned over the last couple months when I did choose to drink. For a couple of hours of fun you pay for it for at least 3 days. The following day would be a total waste and then my workouts would suffer all week. So not worth it!

12 Weeks Out at Last

Saturday marked the 12 week out point and the start of my diet. The funny thing was it couldn't come soon enough and I have been relieved to have to be on plan again. It's a strange feeling, even though I was telling myself on stay on up until this point for some reason something else was telling me to go for it because I wouldn't see that food again for another 5 months. This first 'off season' has definitley been a struggle for me and I can only hope that the next time will be easier.

I braved the scale on Saturday ( even after a steak and wine dinner Friday night - thanks Adena!) and this is what I am dealing with:

Weight - 134.6
Fat % - 17.7
Fat Mass - 23.8
FFM - 110.8

On April 9 , about 3 weeks pre-contest I was:

Weight - 127
Fat % - 15.8
Fat Mass - 20
FFM - 107

So it looks like I am dealing with 3.8 lbs of fat gain which isn't really as bad as I thought so long as the body comp scale is correct. It sure feels and looks like more then that to me but who really knows!

I decided to take last week off of training bercause I was feeling run down (likely because of all the crappy food!) and because I knew it would be hard core from her on in so today it begins!! I will be doing Shoulders, Triceps and Cardio ( 45 minutes on the bike - steady state) Not fun that I have to start this on 3 hours sleep but that seems to be how Mondays are - aarrrggh! Why is it that when we need sleep the most are body refuses? Anywho...onward ans upward...I will post soon with how things are coming along!

The Week thus Far...

I decided not to weigh on Monday because I had my last "cheat day" on Sunday and didn't feel it would give a very accurate reading. So....today is the day! When I go into work I will hop on that body comp scale and face the cold hard truth...eek!

I have been a lot better with the eating the last couple of days but am still struggling a bit as I know I don't have to be 'spot on' until the 14 week mark. Yesterday for example, I went to a gf's place between clients to shower and have my lunch...when I got there it was after my cardio and time for my meal (which I had with me btw) when I noticed breakfast pitas and pb on her counter :O I LOVE those things and haven't had them in about 6 months, so i proceeded to sacrifice my asparagus and chicken for pitas and pb followed by handful of cashews that were also out on her counter! These are things that I know I can't do during comp prep and am praying to have my focus back soon!

As far as the workouts go the last couple days have been pretty good even though I have been fighting a stupid cold.

Monday June 1

Weights: Shoulders and Triceps
Cardio :45 minutes on the stepmill. I usually do the manual program and start at 75 spm and work my way up to 100/110 depending on the day but I decided to try the interval program instead. I set the 'easy' part at 80 spm and the 'work' at 90 spm. I enjoyed it and burned about 450 calories ( I rarely hit that with the manual program, it was normally around 420) so I was really happy with that :)

Tuesday June 2

Weights:Back and Abs
Cardio :45 minutes on stepmill. Interval program at 85 easy and 95 work for the first 35 minutes. 90/100 for next 5 and finished at 95/105. Burned about 460.

Will try to post with the weigh-in tonight. All depends if my teenagers will let me near the computer!

Tomorrow it Begins Again!

After a little over a month and WAY too many treats I have had enough and am ready to get back at it. I am going to use this blog to keep myself accountable by posting meals, workouts, weekly weigh-ins and body comps. It's way too easy to fall off and oh so hard to get back on again. I knew I was in trouble as soon as I had that first bite of a butter tart after my show!

My next show is the Ontario Naturals on September 19 followed by London and Western
Ontario Championships (Level 2) on November 21. That gives me almost 16 weeks of prep for the first show and then another 8 until the Level 2 event. As long as the body cooperates after all this cheating and I can stay focused I should be able to make some pretty impressive gains by then.

I will post tomorrow with my weigh in results...I'm SCARED!!!!

The Aftermath

This is what I found when I got in my car to head home...just a few stragglers left to be picked up :)

Party Time!

I would like to wish my daughter Taryn a Happy 16th Birthday! We are going to celebrate by having a 21 hour long party with 60 children! That's right, it starts today at 4 pm today and ends tomorrow at 1 pm!! Thankfully Grandma & Grandpa have a pool, hot tub and a nice big yard to hold all the tents. Wish me luck, I should be in for an interesting 24 hrs...I will post tomorrow with the outcome :)

Post Comp Week!!

I think I have made it through the post comp madness but oh what a ride it was! This is something that I was not warned about and wow did it take me by surprise! After 5 months of planning every detail of my life (grocery shopping, meal prep, workouts, work schedule, social outings, family time, etc..) around this one particular event it came and went in a matter of hours leaving me totally lost. All of a sudden I didn't know what to eat, didn't have a workout plan & had all this extra time on my hands! Not a good scene at all! Having been warned about the dreaded 'rebound' I had my treats on Saturday evening and Sunday and had planned to get back on track on Monday.I found a diet from a few weeks back and decided to go with that because I was afraid to add carbs back in too quickly. Everyday started out well but somewhere along the way a temptation would pop up & I would think to myself...'I could have that if I wanted to. After all I'm not dieting anymore' and I would cave! One day it was Valentine's chocolates in the freezer, another it was pizza & creamsicles...gross! It was like in that one day I lost all my willpower, without that goal to strive for all my efforts seemed pointless. I know this is ridiculous and that if I were to start eating like that again I would blow up and undo everything I spent 5 months working so hard for. All the sacrifices I made and all the hours in the gym and on the stepmill would be for nothing. Well, not NOTHING as I did walk away with 2 trophies :)...but you know what I mean. In 6 weeks I will start prepping for a show in September and I would hate to think that I would have to start completely fresh again.

So what do other figure girls do? How do we find the balance in the off season? The balance somwhere beteween 100% clean eating & eat everything in sight because we can...I have 6 weeks before I'm back to 100% and other then a trip to Vegas next week I think I have a plan. Here it is...I will follow my 'off season' diet (which I have as off Friday) with a cheat meal on the weekend. I only earn that cheat if I have ate clean all week & got all my workouts in. Sound like a plan? I will keep you posted!

Overall...we are the First place winners of each category. The girl on the far right beat me in the Masters class and also took the Overall.



2nd place - Masters (over 35). This was a big class...13 people I believe.



My best buddy Jared & I



Team O'Brien Girls minus Lucy ( Lucy competed in Body Building). This is Nancy who placed 2nd in the short class and our wonderful trainer Mindi O'Brien!



Mindi O and I!



Me with my 1st place trophy :) Woooohooooo!!!!!



First Place - Medium Height Class!



Getting all pretty for the night show! Thanks Kara!



Dresing room shot.



The Glam Squad :)



My Lil bro and I :)





2 piece round, Masters division.







2 piece round. Masters division.



Holding the 'model' pose at the back of the stage while the others do thier thing.