THOUGHTS OF A FITNESS FREAK

Steam Dietary Supplement
Audience: Consumers, pharmacists

[Posted 07/29/2009] Nutracoastal Trading LLC and FDA notified healthcare professionals and consumers of a nationwide recall of the company’s dietary supplement product sold under the name Steam. Lab analysis by FDA found that the product contains sulfoaildenafil, an analog of sildenafil. Sildenafil is an active ingredient of an FDA-approved drug for erectile dysfunction (ED), making Steam an unapproved drug. The undeclared ingredient may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs such as nitroglycerin and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Additionally, the product may cause side effects, such as headaches and flushing.

The recalled product was distributed in white plastic bottles to retail stores nationwide. Customers who have this product in their possession should stop using it immediately and contact their physician if they have experienced any problems that may be related to taking this product.

Any adverse events that may be related to the use of this product should be reported to the FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online, by phone [1-800-332-1088], or by returning the postage-paid FDA Form 3500 by mail [to MedWatch, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852-9787] or fax [1-800-FDA-0178].

[7/28/2009 - Press Release - Nutracoastal Trading LLC]

Yes I am. Im back to 126lbs….good and bad, good cus I am still lean, bad because I think its all just food in my belly.  Im eating like a horse, maybe 2 horses.  I’m still not 100% after being sick, but today was much better and my cough seems to be all upper, not deep chest cough.  Couple days and I am good.

Tonight was to be abs, but I have a SLIGHT ISSUE WITH A MUSCLE STRAIN IN ONE UPPER AB DUE TO COUGHING.  iT ACTUALLY WENT INTO SPASM AND i GOT A FEW KNOTS A FEW TIMES THIS WEEK. cRAP,  hate the location of caps lock  on this laptop.  And if you see any jumbled letters, its because my lil tiny dog Sophie is jumping in my face.  She weighs all of 4 lbs….cute as anything though, cant be mad at her.

Instead I did some forarms and tris and a little back which I abandoned after a few sets of rowing thaT MADE ME COUGH.  I did some shoulder presses though.  I just didnt want to exert myselkf with anything cardio-like.  Not good to be hacking up a lung in the gym.  Not alot for tris and forearms though….not a lot of exercises for those kind of muscle groups.  Besides that the gym AC was not working or barely working so it was a little steamy in there.  Im going to take tomorrow off and go Friday night.  Also, going to go back on my sieon because I really need to boost my creatine intake.  Its legal and it really does work, my strength will go way up when I start it. 

Im sorry if I seem super critical about weight.  Im not picking on anyone, its not like I find overweight people offensive or ANYTHING of that nature…….Im just worried for them….. maybe I want to save the world  ,make a difference??? I understand food addiction is like any other addiction. But being here means we all want to change and improve ourselves…..its a start, stay with it!!!

Didn’t happen…still a little tired. I figure I just need a little more rest until Im back to the old me. As far as food, I pigged out for the past week, but honestly Im keeping with my lean and clean ways.  I like what I eat, its hot out……I don’t want pizza or crappy food anyway.  I do want one of those  soft serve ice creams though.  I have been craving one for over a week now.  Other than that, its back to my groiund turkey and brown rice kinda diet.  I am not looking to gain much before I want to be really lean again anyway. Today I am bringing to work the ground turkey with brown rice and some fresh squash a zucchini mixed with stewed tomatoes. Im out of eggs, but keep protein powder at work.  2 meals plus oatmeal should hold me over until I get home. Actually, the squash mixture is a couple meals if I dont pig out.

I think most of my weight has come back…maybe 126 today, but whats 5 lbs?  I was too lean at competition and lots of people are saying I shold do bodybuilding anyway.  Once my friend is better from his bike accident, hopefully he can train me for that.  Just posing and stuff.  Why not?  I know I will never be as jacked as some of the women I see, but hey…….we come in all sizes. 

Got to go to work.  These days I look forward to it because they have AC.  I have AC at home, but Im trying to save money to go to the Olympia in September.so I choose to sweat.

lataaaaaaa

I woke up feeling ok this morning, then right after the first sip of coffee….major dizziness and nausea.  You know thyat feeling after drinking too much kneeling in front of the porcelain god…hot flashes, sweaty upper lip wanting yer mommy……….ya that was me this morning.   Wasn’t pretty.  I stayed home because I don’t want to spread it around the office.

Now Im bored, haven’t trained in about a week.  Im getting “softie” paranoid now I think.  Not much I can do about it though.  I hoping to be back in the gym by thursday.  I have a photoshoot on saturday, kind of been slacking in that department.  I logged onto my other site and got a bunch of offers though.  Guess I better book something else.  Its just that with travel and stuff and most are TFCD’s which means no money, it ends up costing me money to do it.  Yes, you get free images for your port, but still have to eat the cost of travel.  some photographers pay though.  I get paid about $100 for an hours work, not so shabby.

I will be hanging out here all day if anyone wants to chat.

Swine flu..h1n1…whatever…..I have a temp and upper respiratory issues.  Now it seems to be a little mild compared to some illnesses I have gotten, but don’t know whast else it could be this time of year. Having recently traveled by plane…I could have picked up anything.  I suppose its probably a blessing in disguise because I have a tendency to push the envelope, even after a show.  Funny thing is I have been eating like a pig even being sick.  I have about 2 months until the Olympia and 3 weeks after that is my local figure show and was hoping to get into some heavy legs and shoulders…..we will see.

Im sorry if I rant a little much about the ways of America when it comes to food and stuff. It sometimes just makes me sad.

For the ladies…….I am currently working on some articles and evaluations of some of the skincare products sold here.  I do have a few items I really like.  Skincare is really important of course and yes, Im a little bit of a freak when it comes to my skin. No sense having a 20 something year old body if your face looks like crap . I have recently discovered DMAE, which was accidently discovered to tighten muscles under the skin of your face.  I did really like that one because its a ’serum’ and not a greasy cream.  Plus if you are tanning, whether it be spray tans or tanning bed tans….skin is taking a hit.  Ok…….thats it for now.  Im sneezing on my keyboard…….grossssss  

Swine flu..h1n1…whatever…..I have a temp and upper respiratory issues.  Now it seems to be a little mild compared to some illnesses I have gotten, but don’t know whast else it could be this time of year. Having recently traveled by plane…I could have picked up anything.  I suppose its probably a blessing in disguise because I have a tendency to push the envelope, even after a show.  Funny thing is I have been eating like a pig even being sick.  I have about 2 months until the Olympia and 3 weeks after that is my local figure show and was hoping to get into some heavy legs and shoulders…..we will see.

Im sorry if I rant a little much about the ways of America when it comes to food and stuff. It sometimes just makes me sad.

For the ladies…….I am currently working on some articles and evaluations of some of the skincare products sold here.  I do have a few items I really like.  Skincare is really important of course and yes, Im a little bit of a freak when it comes to my skin. No sense having a 20 something year old body if your face looks like crap . I have recently discovered DMAE, which was accidently discovered to tighten muscles under the skin of your face.  I did really like that one because its a ’serum’ and not a greasy cream.  Plus if you are tanning, whether it be spray tans or tanning bed tans….skin is taking a hit.  Ok…….thats it for now.  Im sneezing on my keyboard…….grossssss  

Im getting sick, trained a little last night, nothing major.  Trying to take it easy.

As for my blogs and personal opinions, I know I sound a little hard on humans sometimes.  I just wish people were more educated from an early age.  I wish  was more educated on health and nutrition from an early age.  Food in the grocery stores suck, food in convienence stores suck……yodels, doritoes, twinkies…….grab bags at $.99 suck.  Oh and freakin big gulps.  A full liter of soda to go………sucks.   Yes, food has labels, but not warnings.  Im stared at everywhere I go like a freak, like no one has ever seen a fit woman before.  there has to be someone around here besides me..female that is.   It was nice going to nationals and not being odd man out for once.

As for the whole full body plastic surgery, well I just wish it didnt have to go that far to fix the damage people do to themselves in the first place.  It really is society’s fault.  Despite the skinny models making younger girls get anorexic…teen girls have a serious problem with weight.  Many don’t seem to even care.  I covered up in highschool and I was a twig, now girls will walk around with muffin tops and belly stretch marks and even though you are supposed to love yourself….if you weigh 160 lbs at 5′2" at the age of 16, chances are you will weigh 180 at 20……then what?

It’s NOT ok to have a seriosly overweight child you know.   It’s not cute and you are giving your child a future of hardship.  We are supposed to be taking care of our children so they are happy and live a long life, not wheezing on the playground trying to climb the ladder for the slide. 

Im not a total hardass when it comes to what my kids eat, but there is no soda in my house, they drink crystal light and love it.  I have been shoved aside at the checkout line in Walmart by overweight kids going for the soda cooler..I swear. 

I am sure most bodyspace people understand as we are all trying to be healthier.  Im just frustrated.  Well gotta get to work.

Surgery fascinates me…..any surgery.  BUT this mother and daughter are having complete body tucks, lifts, implants, etc etc.  Then this 19 year old girl with a baby is having a tummy tuck and breast lift.  Yes, she has loose skin that will not fix itself, but she stands on the scale and weighs about 180 lbs and doesnt appear to be very tall…..SOOOOOOOO…..in my opinion, she should try to lose more weight before going under the knife. Now if she loses weight, stuff may droop more.  As for the mom and daughter….again, the loose skin is obviously an issue after weight loss, but DAMN…..they are being carved up like Christmas turkeys.  Its kinda scary. Its not a cure all, but these shows make it seem like it is.  I got lucky genetically with the belly skin..I know this.  I gained 50 lbs with pregnancy 4 times no matter what my diet was and each time it was harder to get the weight off.  When I was "skinny fat"  I did have loose rolls and I did think I would have gotten a tummy tuck if I had the money, but after alot of hard work, its pretty much not there anymore.  I’ve always had some sort of body dysmorphic disorder and maybe we just need to stop obsessing so much.  Yes, I still imagine that I have no butt and need it bigger and that I need bigger legs, but I have had to talk myself out of stupid stuff like a nose job and eyebrow lift cus I think I have a funky face.  Other days I think I look good.  Holy crap I look like crap in my stage pictures..ooober creepy in that light, but in person my make up was pretty damn good.

No one is perfectly beautiful, most ads are airbrushed. My honey pictures are not photoshopped at all.  I want to look human because I am human. I have stretch marks on my butt and women always ask about stretch marks on stage, trust me ladies, if you have a nice booty,no one.I mean no one……..cares if you have some little lines on you. Besides that, the tanner evens it out some. 

Some of the figure  women look great on stage, but sometimes their skin is droopy.  I did "pose" for this show as everyone did but me in my last show and I placed last, so I thought it was to be expected this time..as posing hides some skin sag….but I would prefer we had to just stand there because I probably would do better as I was pretty lean and still tight. Figure Posing has a way of hiding flaws. I think it may be better to be natural as you just stand up there and its the way you "really " look. I sometimes feel like Im in between now. Figure is "softer" sometimes, yet for some fitness modeling, they want to see the cuts and the abs, yet I am not lean enough for bodybuilding.  Im Too muscular for bikini division as well though I have seen some recent winners look more like fitness models and others more victoria’s secret types.  Im not stating this to be mean at all when I say that figure is not always about the "best body"….but if you have never been to a show  before, go see one.  See some of the women off stage and you’d be surprised.  I thought everyone would be jacked before I went to one because the posing makes it appear that way…..we arent so big afterall.  Monica Brant has an awesome body but doesnt do well in figure anymore….it doesnt mean squat really. I’d still like to have her bod even if it means not winning ever!!!

Take care you guys, back to training tomorrow.

I went in to workout, ended up doing tris and shoulders and felt really strong.  Got to be honest and t4ell you I was pressed for time yesterday, so I went to the McDonalds drive thru and INTENDED to get a salad, but OOPS….2 double cheeseburgers ended up in the bag. Sue me….its protein isnt it?

I did some heavier than the last few week sets of smith presses, db press, triceps presses, skull crushers and tricep extensions.  Then for shoulders some "lawnmower" pull on cables.  Oh and lateral raises at 20 lbs (db).  Nothing major but my strength is returning. 

I saw some of my photos from the show today, got my back pose posted as you can see.  I like it.  hey, I was probably penalized for looking a little ripped, but damn, thought my ass looked great on stage.  Can’t complain as it wasnt droopy likje I thought it was getting. 

Im a little travel weary I got to admit.  I worked aLL DAY AND NEVER REALLY HAD A DAY OF REST.  PEOPLE AT WORK ASKED "HOW WAS YOUR VACATION?".   I was like "what vacation?".  I got super tan, sat in a hotel for 3 days, couldnt even go in the pool for fear of turning green…….not exactly a vacation.  Isn’t that something you do at a beach and sip Pina Coladas and eat like a piggy?  Competing is work…addiction at it’s finest though. 

Thats about it.  I will post more photos as I get them.  Take care,

Fern

Im going to get bored very fast and no show until October.  Oddly enough Im not too bugged out about placing 12th…….could have been worse I suppose…could have been LAST.  My photos suck, face is creepy, mid pose, arms sticking out…..frankly, my bod looks JACKED up though….woo hoo!!!  I wasd the only woman there in figure from the state of CT.  thats a pretty good accomplishment.  Now, I would have liked top 5, but a win would have put me out of competing anyway.  Pro cards can have a disadvantage as well.  Where is a Masters pro going to compete around here?  I know of one pro masters show in NJ and I am not ready to do one show a year yet as I am having too much fun.  I still have 2 more shows to go, possibly 3.  I also know I don’t need to diet at all to compete in figure.  Especially masters where most women are not 99lbs it seems..more like denser muscle I suppose.  I would like to see my back shots and the comparisons, but they are not posted and I am psyched about the herbiceps.com shoot.

The ride home was uneventful except we took 2 small planes, tyhe second smaller than the first with a freakin propeller.  I was fine, flying doesnt bother me, but my daughter in the seat behind me…..she said **** effin **** a few times during turbulence and at one point was saying "Im freakin out, Im going to die"  heheeee, it was funny….Im giggling right now!!! 

Im thinking of doing Team U in NY in September, we’ll see.  That would be open class though.  I plan on going to the Olympia as well that month, so its one or the other…….cant do both.

Thanks for everyones well wishes.  It was quite the experience!!