urbanmommy’s BodyBlog

I can’t believe it’s been a whole year since I was named "Ms. October" at my gym. And what an amazing year it has been! I set very specific goals for myself over the next year. My first goal was to become a certified Personal Fitness Trainer. The second goal was to compete in an NPC Figure Competition; and third goal was to see my face in a fitness magazine.

In November 2007, I began studying for my personal training certification; and in January 2008, I became an AFAA certified Personal Fitness Trainer. By April 2008, I was training my first client. Around that same time, I began training for my first figure competition, and on June 14th, I walked across the stage at the Kina Elyassi NPC Natural East Coast Tournament of Champions held at the University of D.C., and took 2nd place in the Figure Masters division. I also placed 3rd in the Figure Open Short Class. After being bitten by the competition bug, I competed in my next figure show, the Lenda Murray NPC Bodybuilding and Figure Championships, held at Chrysler Hall in Norfolk on August 16th and placed 2nd in the Figure Open Short Class. During my contest preparations, I continued to train clients and led a great group of ladies during "The Great Loss Challenge," my gym’s version of "The Biggest Loser." My heart goes out to each of my clients who put up with me while I was carb depleting! My strict contest diet and hard training schedule, however, made me even more determined to lead a successful team, and I believe each lady walked away with a wealth of information that will last for a lifetime.

What’s in store for the next year? This month, I plan to set up my own company. By January 2009, I will receive my Specialist in Performance Nutrition certification through ISSA and will offer online personal fitness training and nutrition consultations. My website will be up and running by the end of 2008. I will continue training clients and teaching classes at my gym. This month, I look forward to leading another team during the fall "Great Loss Challenge." On the figure competition side, I’ll be competing in my 3rd figure competition on November 8th, the VA State Bodybuilding and Figure Championships which will be held at ODU. My long term goal in figure is to gain my IFBB Pro Figure Card. And I’m still looking forward to the day when I see myself in a fitness magazine.

I’ve truly been blessed. After years and years of struggling to transform my own body, I finally found the formula that works. It’s not in a pill and it’s not in starvation diets. Transformation happens when we renew our minds and think differently about nutrition and exercise. It’s only through eating clean and training smart that we can finally overcome our plateaus and change our bodies.

Be patient. Be consistent. Be positive.

 I have been training a "Biggest Loser" team at my gym for the past 6 weeks.  What a journey!!  And what a challenge!  My team is learning so much about their bodies and their minds, how much they can really take and what it takes to transform their bodies.

 I wrote this blog for them and I wanted to post it here.  Perhaps it will encourage you, too.

Are you fed up?  Have you reached a point in your weight loss journey where your body has stopped changing?  Well, I feel ya!  You may think that since I’m at my goal weight, everything is great and life can’t get any better! NOT! Maintaining our weight loss can be just as difficult as losing weight. I’m finding that out, BIGTIME! During the weight loss portion of our journey, we are learning and establishing our new habits: planning out our meals, establishing a good workout plan, doing good things for ourselves, etc. The lifestyle changes are finding their way into our heart and minds.

Maintenance is when those lifestyle changes are tested. "Did I really want to get here? Was I just playing a game with myself? Have a learned anything along the way?"

For me, gang, there’s no turning back. I’m in tears right now as I think about how my life has changed over the last year. My entire thought process is different! God has brought me to a place of absolute and complete change of mind…and I thank Him DAILY!

But plateaus happen. Has it happen to you? It happens to me. We are making changes in our habits and our bodies are changing along with them. But then, everything stops. Our weight doesn’t move. Our inch loss is stagnant. Our motivation is dropping. What do we do??
 

1.  Go back to what I know is true. How’s my diet? 80% of the time, if my body is not making changes, my diet is to blame. Somewhere along the way, I’m sneaking too many "cheat meals" or not writing things down. I’m not getting enough protein or good fats (getting my carbs in is NEVER a problem!). So I’m stepping back and going back to measuring and journaling my meals. YOU HAVE TO EAT TO LOSE! But it can’t just be any ole thing…learn about nutrition and find out how to fuel that fat-burning machine of yours!!

2. Weight Training: If you aren’t doing this, WHY NOT? Unless you have some health issues such as pulled muscles or joint pain being treated by a doctor, YOU CAN WEIGHT TRAIN! Ok, I’m off my soap box….you know I’m crazy about lifting. If you are lifting, are you really REALLY challenging yourself? I admit, the last few weeks, I have not been kickin’ it like I should. Grab your workout journal (you have one, right?), and write down every exercise you perform. It’s important to hit every major muscle to really maximize your fat loss. This week, I’m going to lift a little heavier and make sure that last rep is ……EWWWW….TOUGH!! I want to be struggling with that last one…really feeling it. Also, how long has it been since you’ve changed your workout? If I go longer than 4 weeks on the same workout, my body gets very bored and won’t do a thing! SWITCH IT UP!!

3. Proper form: Admit it…we don’t always know how to lift properly. Last year, a trainer taught me how to use proper form for every exercise, and I’m forever grateful to him! Even if you’ve been lifting for a while, try this. Watch your form. Really think about the muscle you are working that day. SQUEEEEEEZE at the top of the exercise, and go SLOOOOOW!! Weight training is about slow, controlled movements. Even if you are doing circuit training, you still want each exercise to be slow and controlled. Circuit training is simply keeping your rests between sets at a minimum. Ask for help!!

4. Cardio: Are you overdoing it? Yes, you can do too much cardio. I’m gonna get shot down here, but I am living proof of this fact. You can burn off that beautiful muscle that you are working so hard to show off!! I do NO MORE than 4 cardio sessions a week: 2 HIIT sessions, and 2 moderate intensity sessions. Even my mod sessions last no longer than 50 minutes. HIIT is about 25-30 minutes. I’m not against doing cardio, but I know with my own body that the more cardio I do, the more munchies I have and the more muscle that gets burned.  Whatever you choose to do, just keep it in check. Which leads to my NEXT plateau buster….

5. Rest: AHHHH….this is something I never do. But I did it yesterday and I feel great!! I’m giving myself 1-2 days a week of doing nothing physical. Oh, I might do a light yoga class (no power yoga), or slowly walk my dog, etc. But nothing strenous. Muscles need to recover! When we lift weights and perform cardio sessions, our muscles are actually tearing. It’s during the rest periods when they repair and rebuild. And that’s really the most important part of exercise: REPAIR! So, I’m making sure I put 24-48 hours in between my workouts. I may do upper body and lower body back-to-back, but I’m working different muscles. I won’t do upper body again for another couple of days.

6. Reconnecting with our Spiritual person: We are all spiritual beings, no matter what religion or belief system we follow. God made us and created us to be spirit-filled people! I’m going to spend time getting acquainted with that part of me that no one sees. I have a few issues pending that are weighing heavy on my heart…who else but my creator can really understand what I need? Reconnect and lift your spirits!!

</a>” align=”middle” />Have you ever dreamed a dream and actually had it come true? 

I HAVE!!!! 

On Saturday, I walked out onto the stage at the University Of D.C. and competed in the NPC East Coast Natural Tournament of Champions. 

ME!!!  Me….the girl who couldn’t do 5 minutes on the stair master.  Me….the girl who never got a date in high school.  Me…the girl who fought and fought with her weight and bad body image.

And not only did I compete…BUT I PLACED!! 

I competed in 2 divisions:  Figure Masters (over 35) and Figure Open Short Class (under 5′4″).  In the Figure Masters, I placed 2nd.  In the Figure Open, I placed 3rd!!

Can you believe it?  I’m still in awe.  But I’m not really in awe over winning the trophies.  Yeah, that was amazing and unbelievable.  The real moment hit me when I was backstage with all the other competitors.  As I’m walking around in my bikini, having my make-up done, and pumping up before the show, I watched people.  It dawned on me that I was here!!!!!!!  It was NOT just a story I read about in Oxygen or other fitness mags.  IT WAS HAPPENING TO ME!! 

Then the real kicker.  The announcement:  “ALL ATHLETES TO THE PRE-SHOW MEETING.” 

Athletes?  Oh, they must mean the competitors….

Wait…I’m a competitor.  OMGosh….I’m an athlete!!!  

I began to think back to all my years of struggling with my weight, wanting so badly to just tuck my shirt into my jeans and wear a belt!   Instead, I hid behind the big shirts and the oversized swimsuits.  And now, God has allowed me to enjoy His blessings!  I now am able to reap the benefits of clean eating and smart training. 

It will take me several days to give you all the details of my experience.  Check back on my figure competition blog and you’ll get all the info you  need.  I will say this:  I’ve never been so scared and so excited at the time!  It was thrilling and frightening. 

I’ve definitely been bitten by the “Competition Bug.”  And I’m ready to do it all again for my competition in August.  8 weeks from now, I’ll try for a 1st place finish.

Thank you all so much for your comments, and emails.  I’m sorry if I haven’t replied to you yet…I will really try to get back to everyone to thank you personally!!

I took my trophies to my “Biggest Loser” team meeting last night.  (Yes, I am a Trainer/Coach for a Biggest Loser team at my gym.  I’m having a blast, and I know my team is learning so much.)  I sat my trophies right beside me and gave a little “Pep talk.”  My team heard all about my own struggles with food and exercise.  Here’s a little of what I said:

“You can’t tell me I don’t understand your excuses.  I’ve been there.  I love to eat!  I don’t always like to exercise.  But I made a decision over a year ago that I would change my mindset and transform my body, and there’s no turning back.  I want my story to inspire you and challenge you.  Are you willing to make that same commitment?  Will this be the beginning of your story?”

Dreams do come true!!!  MAKE IT COUNT!!!

I receive dozens of emails every week from people, asking me questions about my fitness journey.  So many people want to know how I’ve been able to reach my goals and maintain them.  Specifically, I am asked most often, “How do you stay motivated?  How do you remain consistent with your diet and exercise plan?  And how long should I expect to wait before I see results?”

That last question gets asked a lot.  We are a society of quick fixes, aren’t we?  We want a transformed body now, not tomorrow or next week or next month or next year.  Wouldn’t it be convenient if there was a Body Transformation Drive-Thru?  You pull up to the window, and place your order:

"Yes, I’d like 1 six-pack of abs, 2 tight inner thighs, 2 non-jiggly arms, and 1 round rear-end please."

"Ok.  Will that be all?"

"Oh, yes.  And 1 Diet Coke."

"Sounds good.  That will be $1.65 for the Diet Coke and 3 months to 1 year on the rest of your order."

You drive away, frustrated and determined to find faster service.  But is there such a place?  Sure there is.  Well, kinda.  You could go to the Quick Fix places that promise a dramatic weight loss while you sleep; or you could go the starvation route and finally reach that number on the scale that you’ve been struggling to hit.  But then what happens?  You reach the number but your body hasn’t transformed itself.  And your mind hasn’t been renewed either.  You still feel the same way about food and exercise as you did before!  Consequently, you have spent time and money reaching your “goal weight,”  when in reality, all you did was lower your metabolism and distort your thinking.

For the last 6 weeks, I’ve been training for my first figure competition.  And with 6 weeks left before the show, I’ve faced all kinds of inner demons:  mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual demons.  Major doubts have entered my mind; at times all I can see is the overweight woman I used to be.   I hear things like, “What do you think you are doing?  You can’t compete against them!  You don’t belong up there!  They are just going to laugh at you.  Just give up now and go back to your nice, comfortable life.”  Then I realize, my life wasn’t nice and comfortable.  No doubt my life was easier before I started eating clean and training smart.  I could eat anywhere and anything, and exercise was just a passing thought, never a plan of attack.  Now that I have learned how to feed and train my body, I never want to return to my former way of life.  NEVER!  So, I have to ask myself:  “How bad do you want it?”

You may be thinking that I don’t understand your situation.  Standing up on a stage in 4-inch heels and a teeny-tiny bikini is not on your agenda.  But you know what?  IT DOESN’T MATTER!!  Your goals may be different from mine, but the issues we have to face are very much the same. We both have to face those moments of frustration when our bodies are not responding to the work we are putting in.  We both have to change our habits and change our way of thinking. We both have to be PATIENT!!!

 “Be patient.” Not something you or I want to hear, but it’s the truth.  Webster’s Online Dictionary defines Patience as  “the capacity of enduring hardship or inconvenience without complaint.”  Oooohhhh….that’s good!!   And it brings me back to my question:  “How bad do you want it?”  Are we willing to endure hardships and inconveniences to finally reach our goals?  Do we really want to be healthy and strong?  Do we want to live longer and set an example for our children and grandchildren?  

And are we willing to do all that….without complaining?  OH, MAN!!  I don’t know about you, but I just had an “AHA Moment!”  When I start saying phrases like, “This scale won’t move,” or “I screwed up again at dinner,” or “I’ll never look like her,” my body hears it.  My mind isn’t the only one that hears the negativity, but my body hears it, too.  And it digests it and sends it straight to my fat stores.  You think I’m exaggerating, but it’s true.  Research proves that when we speak positive words to a plant, the plant thrives.  Do you think your body is any different? 

I know I’ve been chasing a wild tangent here, so let me sum up:  How bad do you want it?  Bad enough that you are willing to try something new?  Bad enough that you are willing to clean up your diet and make your workouts more intense?  Bad enough that you are willing to change your habits at home, at work, and at play?  Bad enough that you are willing to change your attitude about what it means to be healthy and fit?   What if it takes 3 months to transform your body?  What if it takes 3 years to transform your body?  Is that OK with you? 

Change will not happen overnite because your mindset does not change overnite.  But the good news is…..IT CAN HAPPEN!! 

Be patient.  Be consistent.  Be positive.  

For the last few months, I’ve pondered how my life has changed; not just the changes in my body, but changes in the way I eat, the way I train, the way I view myself, and the way I think. EVERYTHING has changed. Here’s just a few major issues that are no longer issues for me. Maybe you will see something in this list that hits home for you.

1. The scale. That crazy thing that sits on our bathroom floor has the amazing ability to change moods. Have you noticed? I used to weigh in once a week at Weight Watchers, and if the number on the scale was down, I left that meeting and ate everything in sight. You are probably not like that at all; but that is how I used to do things. I figured I had one more week to weigh in, so why not binge a little now! On the other hand, if the number on the scale was up, I felt like crap. Nothing went right the rest of the day; I was a fat girl with nothing to offer anybody but a pretty smile and a shoulder to cry on. All because of a stupid machine.

No more, people!! And it’s not just because I have reached my goal. Yeah, I knew you were thinking that ("look at her…she’s at goal and she’s telling us not to look at the scale. Really, who is this chick anyways?!") . I’m telling you this because I’m sick and tired of being controlled by a number that means very little. Of course, our weight is important and I try to weigh myself once every few weeks just to keep myself in check. But the most important things to me are my fat to muscle ratio, my waist to hip ratio, my overall inch loss, my new found energy, and my new found strength. Aren’t those really what we are after?

The first thing my new client told me was he wanted to lose about 15 lbs. No problem. But I surprised him when I came back with this question: "What if you actually gained 5 pounds, but lost 3 inches in your waist? Which is more important to you?" Hummm….I think you know his answer. He probably has a pair of jeans he’d love to put on; and that’s his motivation.

I weigh myself only to get a number I can work with. If the number has gone up, I look at my inch loss or bodyfat % and realize I have probably gained some muscle. If my weight is up as well as my inches, then I need to reevaluate my diet and training program. New way of thinking #1.

2. Spot-reducing. Typical senario: Lady walks into a gym. She has no plan, no log with a training program on it for her to follow, no real thoughts on what she wants to do. All she knows is she wants a flatter stomach, a smaller waist, arms that don’t wave back at her, and thighs that don’t jiggle.

She gets on the treadmill and walks, at a leisurely pace, hands firmly grasping the handles. 30 minutes go by and she’s barely breaking a sweat, but she’s accomplished something. Now, it’s time for the "toning." She doesn’t want to be a bodybuilder; she just wants to look "firm." Sure, Ok. The first thing: her abs. She does 25 crunches. Next issue she wants to take care of is her waist. One time she saw someone doing side-bends; that seems right to her, so she grabs 2 dumbbells and bends side-to-side, about 20 times. Arms: she doesn’t care about her biceps (what woman wants big biceps?, she says to herself.) She grabs a dumbbell and pumps out a few tricep extensions above her head. Not doing enough to really feel the burn, but it’s something. Finally, her thighs. Inner thighs are her real issue, so she jumps on the Abductor/Adductor machines and slams out bunches of reps. The more the better, right? She ends with a few reps on the leg extension and leg curl machines, and she’s outta there.

Sound familiar? Most people have no clue what to do when they walk into a gym! After spending a year training my whole body, I have learned that my body doesn’t transform itself piece-by-piece, bodypart by bodypart. Spot-reducing is IMPOSSIBLE!! It’s all or nothing. I’ve learned how very, very smart my body is. It will burn fat if I work the ENTIRE BODY! Big muscles burn the most fat, so I make sure I really work the big guys: chest, back, shoulders, quads, hamstrings, and glutes. I still include triceps and biceps, but those are little guys, and I only work them cause it’s fun and makes for a more complete training session. And Cardio? Well, it’s short and sweet for me. I have a new love affair with High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). So cool how something so quick and intense can produce such amazing results!! I call it my "20-minute miracle." New way of thinking #2.

3. Diet. I won’t bore you anymore with how my view on food has changed. You can read my page and past blogs for that info. I’ll just emphasize how much my body loves good, clean food!! It responds well to eating 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat. Give or take. My abs look great when I eat well; my energy is high and the bloat in my stomach is almost non-existent. Who could ask for more? Food is more than pleasurable; food serves a purpose. It makes me lean, strong, fit, energetic, and happy! New way of thinking #3.

Gosh…I can’t believe all the stuff we can learn, through trial and error. We try one thing and that doesn’t work, so we switch our mindset and say, "Hey! Let’s try something new! Something I’ve never thought of!"

So free your mind this week and try something new.

Before I go into the "How To’s" of getting a hangover (without the use of alcohol), I should explain how I got myself into this situation in the first place.

In my previous blogs, I explained in great detail how I will be competing in my first ever figure competition. If you are not familiar with figure competitions, let me sum up the judging criteria: the tightest body, wearing the tightest bikini wins. Ok…there’s a lot more to winning than that (there’s the walk and the pose and the smile and many other factors involved). But basically, you’ve got to have a hard body. And to get that hard body, one must have a diet that is pretty near perfect.

Last week, my trainers outlined my competition diet for me. Many of you know how fanatical I am about my diet. Nutrition is very important to me. I’ve spent the last 6+ months perfecting my 6 small meals a day menu, planning it out every nite, getting a protein and a carb at every meal. By building up a great deal of lean body mass, I am able to eat around 1800 calories per day and maintain my weight and body fat %. Not bad!!

Imagine my shock when my trainers handed me a diet with 5 meals that equal around 1250 calories. What??????

Stay with me here. 1200 calories is the minimum number of calories a woman should eat just to breathe. Throw in weight training and cardio activity and you are looking at 1500 calories minimum needed. So, why would they do this? The purpose is to burn as much fat as possible while maintaining all my hard earned muscle.

In order to keep my sanity, they have allowed me one cheat day a week. Let me explain my "cheat day" as it was explained to me. If it isn’t nailed down, you can eat it. Indulge all day , if I must. "Really?" I asked them. "Yep. You’ve got to! You will go mad if you had to eat so little and workout so hard and not give your body a jump start once a week to indulge."

So, if you average out my weekly calories, including my cheat day, I am easily getting the same number of calories I normally eat. Ok…enough of the explaining. Here’s how I got my "hangover."

Sundays have been declared as "Kim’s Cheat Day." And I was so excited about yesterday! I’m visiting my MIL’s for Easter/Spring Break, and she is quite a cook. I wanted to enjoy it all!! I went to bed on Saturday nite, dreaming of Sunday morning. Beside my bed, I placed a peanut butter chocolate Easter Egg. My first splurge of the day. Why get out of bed to eat?, I said to myself. As soon as I wake up in the morning, I’ll start my cheat day.

I woke up at 4:30 in the flippin’ a.m.!!! And I couldn’t go back to sleep. I grabbed that egg and in 5 seconds, the foil was off and the egg was on my tongue. HALLEUJAH!! JOY!! RAPTURE!! ABSOLUTE PLEASURE!!

Breakfast came soon after: 2 slices of toast, 2 HEAPING tablespoons of peanut butter (not my healthy power PB, folks…the bad PB! ), and a sliced banana. My lovely PB/Banana sandwich. And my coffee? Oh, man. I CAN HAVE CREAMER!!!! I swear, half my coffee mug was creamer and half was coffee.

And so the feast began. I was out of control! The kids’ Easter baskets, so sweetly decorated and filled with peanut M&M’s….sorry, Kids. M&M’s are Mommy’s fav! Down they go. I can’t tell you how many of those crazy things I ate yesterday. And I just kept going:

Pork Rinds, crackers, chips, ham, deviled eggs, pizza, bacon (lots of bacon!), 4% milk, cookies, pies, cakes, some little cinnamon twisty things that were the bomb!, etc…..

At 1:30 p.m., I had to stop. My stomach was beyond sick. I laid down and took a quick nap. But not too long! It was still my cheat day, afterall.

The above list of forbidden foods got eaten again…and again.

At 9:00 p.m., I said "Enough."

And then, the pains began. You could not pay me a million bucks to look at my gastrointestinal system. I have never felt that kind of pain in my stomach…EVER! The nausea, the heartburn, the body aches, the headache. Ugh…

I woke up at 7:00 a.m. this morning with a headache that can not be explained. The body aches, the dizziness, the inability to make a fist…oh my.! This sugar/carb/fat-induced hangover surpasses anything that alcohol can produce. And believe me: I’ve had my share of alcohol hangovers. Those pale in comparison.

As I sat down to my tiny bowl of oatmeal, 1 scoop of protein powder, 1/2 banana, and black coffee, I was elated. Sick and sore, but elated. The simplicity of my 1250 calorie days was like an answer to prayer. I now understand why my trainers encouraged me to indulge. It proves a very strong point: you will want to stick to this diet 6 days a week. And you won’t cry about it anymore.

So, when Sunday rolls around again, no more binges. No more insane hunting for the closest junk food. I’ll be smart and enjoy my small, carefully portioned out cheat foods.

But I’ll keep my Zantac close at hand…just in case.

My training/posing session last night was amazing! OMGosh…It was my first night of working out with these trainers, and I had no idea what I was getting in to.

From 8:00-9:00, we trained legs. Remember that this is an old gym, and the equipment is old. But it works! His philosophy is that you don’t need fancy, new stuff to get the job done. And boy was he right!

We started with hamstrings: 4 sets of lying leg curls (pyramid-style, where the weight is increased each set but the reps are decreased); then 3 super-sets of standing ham curls (one leg at a time) and lying glute presses (also one leg at a time). My left leg is slightly smaller than my right, which is common. Since I’m right handed, that makes sense. So by focusing on one leg at a time, he is able to even out my look. How amazing is that!!

Next were Quads: 3 sets of leg extensions, 15 reps @ 45 lbs; 3 sets of free barbell squats, 10 reps @ 75 lbs (wt includes the bar); then 3 super-sets of vertical hack squats, 10 reps @ 50 lbs., and pulley lunges, each leg 10 reps @45 lbs.

There may have been one more exercise in there; I can’t remember. But it was the hardest leg workout I’ve ever done!! I’d never done vertical hack squats or pulley lunges before. Gosh I wish we had that vertical squat machine and lying leg curl machine at my gym!

While I’m working out, I noticed a couple working out there. They are obviously bodybuilders in training and know what they are doing. My trainer talked with them off and on. I later found out that they are pro-bodybuilders and are training for an August 16th show, the next show I’m doing. He brought the lady, Lisa, over several times to watch me do leg extensions. "Look at her quads, Lisa! Nice, huh?" Lisa smiled and agreed. Pretty cool.

They didn’t give me specific exercises to do; however, they want me to split my routines into muscle groups: Chest and biceps, Back/hams/calves, Shoulders and Triceps, and Quads and calves. I think I’m working calves twice because I’m trying to even them out. I also forgot to ask about cardio, but my guess is, they want me to continue what I’m doing. That’s 2 HIIT sessions and 1 45 minute moderate cardio session per week.

After the workout, my female trainer took me back to the locker room to try on her show suits. They were so freakin’ tight, I couldn’t believe it!! But she said A) I will be smaller for the show and B) the suits are supposed to be tight. Both suits are a deep royal blue with sequins. Very pretty with my hair and skin tone. And then with the heels? Oh, My. I forgot to take pics but I will next time. I PROMISE!!

My trainers and both bodybuilders are watching me pose. Thankfully, I remembered a lot of the things that he taught me from last week. I remembered the legs and how to get them to "pop out." I have to focus on not bending my elbows so much in my front pose and really stick my chest and rear out. My lower back is extremely sore today. The male bodybuilder suggested that I think of flexing from the ground up. When he said that, I immediately tightened up the quads, hams, and glutes while in the rear facing pose. I heard an "OOOHHHH…" from the crowd; I guess I did something right. They all said as soon as I did that, my glutes went extremely round and my hamstrings popped out. WOW!!

They all agreed: I look best in the 2-piece; although my abs, IMO, looked pretty icky. They didn’t think so, so I guess that’s what matters. They love my walk on and off stage and the smile is working, too.

As I’m changing out of the suits, I hear them talking about me. The male bodybuilder said, "She’s tighter than most gals are 6 weeks out from a show! And she’s got 11 weeks! She’s only gonna get better." After I walked out, he repeated that to me personally, and I was very appreciative.

How cool is it that I am part of this "bodybuilding/figure/fitness" community now? ME!! Little ‘ole me is really doing this!! And I’m actually very competitive looking! God is so good and deserves every bit of praise!!!!

Finally, I got my diet. It’s gonna be interesting, to say the least. My female trainer said, "If it isn’t on this paper, you don’t put it in your mouth." No variations from it. Imagine how cheap our grocery bill is gonna be!! (Except for the kids food, but they are easy).

But the good news is, she ordered me to have one cheat day, once a week. And by a "cheat day," she means ALL DAY CHEATING! Eat as much as you want…anything you want. I can do these cheat days until about 6 weeks out; then it will go to a one hour cheat. That means I can eat as much as I can in 1 hour. It’s quite humorous, she said, to try to eat so much food in one hour. But when you eat so little and are so restricted the rest of the week, you DREAM of those cheat days. Finally, about 3-4 weeks out, there is absolutely NO CHEATING!

Needless to say, I had a difficult time sleeping last night. I’m so excited…I’m actually posing while lying in bed. Had my first charlie-horse last night, too. OUCH!! Those things KILL!!

My first posing session with my comp trainers was absolutely one of the most thrilling moments of my life! I found myself in tears as I’m driving home…all those years I spent hidden behind a layer of fat and sadness; and here I am preparing to show off my body to the world! Very emotional for me.

Let me give you an idea the kind of trainers I’m working with. My posing session started at 9:00 p.m. At 9:45p.m, they were going to have a "Leg Party." Not for me, but for some of the gym’s long-time patrons. Essentially, each person has to do as many deep squats and lunges as possible; if they stop or don’t go low enough, they have to drink a shot of Ouzo. They are very unconventional and real…and I LOVE THEM!! They know their stuff and know how to make someone win. Nothing illegal going on, don’t get me wrong; it’s just very "Old-school" style of training. That’s why I’m hiring them!

Ok…so I arrive at 8:45 p.m., full make-up, hair straightened, shiny bellyring and cute earrings; bikini and heels in tow. The gym is very small and not the cleanest place in the world; it’s not dirty, just old. It’s been around since the 1960’s, I believe, so there’s some great history here! I can actually feel the presence of past bodybuilders and figure competitors! The ladies locker room consists of a set of lockers, a built-in stand-up shower, a wall of mirrors, and a tanning bed. It’s a "one person" locker room, believe me. The gym closes at 10:00 p.m. This amazed me…on a friday nite? Do these people have anything else better to do than workout on a friday nite? Ahhh, yes. I forgot: the Leg Party. So, before I get in my suit, I sit and chat with the trainers a bit; we discuss my goals and dreams and the fact that I HAVE to do this. I explained how I’ve never been fit before; how I’ve dreamed of competing and looking like a fitness competitor…just once in my life! I told them how I want all Moms to see that this can be done!! But I also mentioned the areas of my body that I was concerned about: my glutes don’t feel tight enough; my lower abs just won’t flatten out; the loose skin that seemed to come from nowhere, etc. When I say that I’m "concerned" about these areas, I don’t want you to think that I’m unhappy with my body. People…I am thrilled and very blessed with how my body has transformed! I finally LOVE THE SKIN I’M IN!! But for a competition, one has to get nit-picky, you know? It just goes with the territory.

The time had come, and the female trainer points me to the "locker room," and asks me to get dressed. The suit I’m using for this preliminary posing session is a simple string bikini: blue/turquoise, triangle top, bottoms that tie on sides. After a few minutes, she comes in and "manipulates" the strings so it looks kinda like a competition suit. In case you aren’t familiar with competitions, the two piece suit criss-crosses in the back; the sides of the bottom come up very high on the hips, which is great for a shorty like me (makes the legs look really long!). She is fantastic….and I feel very comfortable with her. She yells out for the other trainer to dim the lights in the gym and I walk out with her. She escorts me to the middle of the gym. Sidenote: there are still a couple of guys working out, and amazingly enough, I wasn’t embarrassed at all. Of course they stopped working out to watch me, and I really appreciated that. They are competitors, too, and their input was very helpful!

Here’s where the magic happens. I’m standing right under some low-spot lights. My trainers are standing about 100 feet away from me, scanning me. He then puts me in my "relaxed front pose." :0) What a crock…there’s nothing "relaxing" about any of these poses…they are intense! I can’t describe yet what I did, because I can’t remember. Thankfully, I’ve got 12 weeks to perfect it. She showed me how to stand where my lats are spread (lower back muscles) and the shoulders are up and out just a bit. One foot is slightly in front of the other, knees slightly bent and flexed out just a bit. They took me through all the basic poses: relaxed front; each quarter turn to the side; and the relaxed back. Then, they took me through some "free style" poses that show off my features best. I’m watching myself in the mirror and my heart is just doing flips! THAT’S ME!!! I’ve never seen my body look like that before! They were able to bring out all the hardwork I’ve put into my body and I COULD SEE IT!!! A small mirror is brought in so I could see my back pose…OMG!!! THE V-SHAPE!! I’VE GOT IT!! And the glutes? With the arching of the back, my glutes looked amazing!! They both said my glutes are just where they need to be. The miracle of good posing.

He then decided to challenge me a bit. He told me I could either go for "figure" or "bodybuilding." When he put me in a basic "bodybuilder’s pose," I couldn’t believe the way my body looked! I’m still entering as a figure contestant, but it’s very flattering to know I could do both.

And now..the lightbulb moment. My lower abs. This is the only area of my body that needs a little help. And you know what he said: NO MORE AB WORK!! Excuse me? "Kim, you are not allowed to do anymore ab work: no crunches, no leg raises, nothing." What? Isn’t that how I get my lower abs to flatten? Nope. He said I’ve added too much muscle to my lower abs; thus the reason for the roundness of the lower abs and the thickness around my waist. With a clean comp diet and basic weight training (minus core work), the thickness should go away. How amazing is that? Did you know you could over work your abs? Oh, and I’m not allowed to do too much cardio either.

I’ll post later about my exact workout, but the main focus will be to maintain as much muscle as possible; too much cardio could strip my muscle, and I don’t want that. While I’m posing, they are giving me major kudos. And please understand: they don’t give kudos away! If I wasn’t competition material, they would say so. After the session is complete, he told me he was "pleasantly surprised" by my physique, and that I should definitely enter the June 7th show; then I should go for the big one on August 16th. He also said, not only will I look good on stage, but if my posing looks good, I should place well, too!

And so it begins! My journey to competition. Monday begins the 12-week training of ultra clean eating, smart training, and intense posing sessions. They already have suits that they think will fit me perfectly (there’s a savings of about $250!).

GERONIMO!!!!!!!!!!!

One year ago today, I made the decision to transform my body and my life! And, just between you and me…My goal has been met!

 As I look back over the past year, I am amazed, humbled, overwhelmed, and shocked! Yes…SHOCKED!! Do you know how long I’ve waited for this? Of course you know, because you’ve been there too! More than once over the last year, I felt the urge to throw in the towel. Motivation comes and goes…I’ve had good days and I’ve had bad days…some REALLY bad days. Some days I didn’t want to get up and eat something clean and go to the gym. But here’s the kicker: it was working through those bad days that made all the difference for me.

 You see, it’s easy for me to workout and eat right when I’m feeling motivated! Don’t you feel that way? I wake up, look at myself in the mirror, step on the scale (grrrr…), and like what was happening. Those days, it’s easy to stick with a plan. But, Lord help me on my bad days. GOODNESS GRACIOUS! When I was feeling low because the scale wasn’t moving (grrrr…) or my clothes weren’t getting loose fast enough or I ate like crap the day before…yeah, those were bad days. And those are the days when it is even more important for me to make it happen! If I can work through those tough days, I know I can succeed at ANYTHING!!

God has brought me to a remarkable place. He has allowed me to transform my body and my mind. He has brought into my life hundreds of amazing friends (that’s you!) who encourage me and motivate me! He has shown His power to me over and over and over again. I can not help but thank Him and give Him all the praise!

I cried a bucket of tears last night. They were tears of humility and tears of joy. My truest desire is that I can, in some small way, encourage you to let go of all that is hindering you and press on! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: MAKE EVERY MOMENT COUNT!!

Go stand in front of the mirror. Look at yourself and say this: "I am a beautiful creation. My body is a temple and it deserves nothing but the best. Today will be full of challenges and I am ready for them. If I mess up, I will deal with it and I will move on. Because God is in control and He has my life in His hands."

Your body is a temple. Train accordingly. (taken from a Life Fitness ad.)

Just got back from the gym…had a rockin’ Back/Biceps/Abs workout. Yeah…I’m burnin’…

While I’m cooling down on the treadmill, I noticed 2 young ladies walk into the gym. They are laughing their cute little laughs, lookin’ all "Fly" in their workout gear. You know the types. They pick out their magazines to read and casually step up on the treadmills beside me.

Unbeknownst to them, I’m watching. No sweat. No breathing in and out from the mouth (which means their heartrates are not up there). No incline. Just gossip time. For about 20 minutes.

Now, I shouldn’t be so critical. Because that was me most of my workout life. I never pushed myself. Never thought it mattered. "I’ve got this gym membership and I’m doing my little routine. That should give me results." WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!!

DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME!! Why do that to yourself?? Do you want to change your body? Do you want to get more energy and give your heart a challenge? Or are you going to continue down the same path…

Please, my friends…I BEG you! MAKE EVERY MOMENT COUNT! If you’ve got 1 hour, 3-4 times a week, then make that hour the absolute best workout of your life!! Go into that workout with a plan in mind…know exactly what you want to accomplish. Lift a little heavier today? Run instead of walk? Up the intensity a fraction? YES!!

Disclaimer: I should remind you that if you have not been on a regular exercise program before, please talk to your doctor. You don’t want to go full force into something only to mess up your body. Invest in a trainer for a few sessions to get your baseline figures (find out where your target heartrate should be; learn how to use dumbbells or machines, etc.).

Do I sound mad?! Well, in a way, I am. I’m mad because I didn’t start this type of exercise sooner. I’m mad at myself for not figuring this out years ago. And I don’t want my friends to lose any time, when your transformation is waiting for you…right around the corner.

Make it count!!!