sbogard08’s BodyBlog

So I competed n the OCB Pride of the Atlantic show in Richmond, VA last weekend. I didn’t do as well I I hoped, although I wasn’t surprised.  I placed 6th in Master’s and 11th in Open Short Class.  It was a VERY competitive show with many well-conditioned girls.  Going into the show, I wasn’t quite feeling ready to step on the stage.  The weeks leading up to the show were very hectic for me at work and my training was suboptimal.  Couldn’t get my cardio sessions in, which is crucial in those last weeks.  My overall conditioning was pretty good, but I know that I wasn’t at my my best.  After the show I spoke to the judges regarding how I could improve things , and most said the same……..quad sweep, abs…..  But one judge said something that completely shook my self confidence. It’s not so much what he said, but how he said it. He said that I needed to work on developing my arms and shoulders b/c my shoulders were very small compared to some of the other competitiors.  Now, that is the first time that I have heard that one. My shoulders are usually one of the first things tha tI get a compliment on.  That being said he went on and on about it as though he wanted to make sure that I understood that he did not care for my shoulders….afterall, he has been judging shows for X # of years….   So after I picked up my self esteem and drove back to Virgina Beach, I really started to question why I even put myself through all of this.  Why am I constantly beating up my body and pushing it past its limits?  Why do I spend most of my time isolated in the gym with just some iron and cardio machines, when all of my friends are hanging out and "enjoying" life.  Why do I get up at the crack of ass, even when I donot have to go to work, just so I can get a "good" workout in at the gym early enough to return later to do some cardio? Why do I eat the same 10-15 items day-in and day-out, and deprive myself of the Starbuck’s Chai Tea Latte, Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake, and Gourmet Pizza that I so dearly LOVE?  Why do I seemingly sacrifrice any and everything that could possible be a diversion from my fitness goals…including some personal relationships…….Why?  Am I crazy?  Do I just like to be tortured?  Does everything have to be a challange in my life?  Why am I doing this?  And even more, why should I keep doing it?…..The short answer….I do it because I LOVE IT!  I love pushing myself to new levels and seeing the results. I love proving to myself that I can be disciplined enough to stick to my diet.  And I love the adrenaline of competition.  And I love my shoulders because they are awesome!!!

With that being said, my self-esteem and I are one again.  And today I have officially decided that I will compete in the NPC Lynda Murray Competition here in Norfolk in August.  I have just over 12 weeks to train, and once again I will get bigger, stronger, leaner, and stay feminine in the process.  So off to do some Arnold presses b/c I’ve got to work on my shoulders (LOL!).

This entry was posted on Monday, May 25th, 2009 at 7:38 pm and is filed under Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.