5-Week Update

It seems the only time I can find a spare hour to compose a blog post these days is Saturdays! Thus, I'm sitting here in my usual well-worn spot on the couch having completed my standard Saturday morning gym sesh (shoulders & spin today), errands, dog walk, and finally enjoying my mid-afternoon snack with some hot green tea. Nothing routine about me is there? I swear every day I just get hungrier and hungrier! I highly doubt CSF is going to be increasing my starch servings from here on out but I think I could honestly polish off an entire large Domino's pizza right now. Of course, my body would probably completely shut down having not indulged in such delicacies in so long and I'd be spending the rest of the day curled up in a ball of pain. Alas, I am enjoying (I swear!) my bowl of 1/2 cup cottage cheese and 1/4 cup strawberries topped with a sprinkle of cinnamon and Nectresse.

Now 5 weeks into the CSF program, I feel like I've settled more into the routine. I was struggling with the minuscule portion sizes for a while there and disappointed with the seemingly beginner moves in some of the weight workouts but after talking to some non-CSF experts I feel much better now. I got some comforting advice from a nutritionist (also a competitor) who said that no one knows my body better than me so if I think I can handle increasing/decreasing certain food groups then I should just do it and not stress about it. Cutting down is more important closer to contest than it is at this point. Some background here: I nearly had a heart attack when I realized that 1 serving of fruit on this program is only 1/4 cup and I had been counting one fruit (apple or banana for example) as 1 serving previously. Some things just are not easily divided in such crazy portion sizes! Also, a good dozen people all confirmed my feelings that if the weight exercises are not difficult enough to feel a good burn afterward then by all means modify as necessary and don't stick to a cookie-cutter routine that is intended for the average competitor. Of course my coach will disagree on both of these points but I can see a major difference in my physique from when I started so obviously I'm doing something right!

12/22/12 Side Selfie

1/19/13 Side Selfie

So, not a major difference shown here but in my defense the lighting is bad and it's really hard to get a good pic of yourself when you are the one taking it! I wanted to show side, front, and back comparisons but I've been playing around with this program for a good 1/2 hour and I give up! Next comparison update, I'll show a different angle :)

I must admit, as much as I love the competition-prep lifestyle and feel/look better than I ever have, it's really hard to go about your normal day-to-day life when no one around you understands what you are doing! I find myself either shutting people out or just avoiding the whole fitness/nutrition conversation all together because they just don't (won't) understand no matter how many times and ways you try to explain it. VERY frustrating. It's like I'm surrounded but a bunch of haters who think I'm crazy for striving to be as fit and healthy as I possibly can. I thought that was a GOOD thing?! Anyway, I hope they all feel horrible when they see me on stage 11 weeks from now and realize that their judgements were all wrong.

This weekend should be nice and relaxing from here on out. Doing some reviewing of my ISSA CFT materials this afternoon (finished all pre-work so I just need to schedule the final exam when I feel ready), meeting up with some girlfriends for sushi dins tonight, up bright and early for a lower body weight sesh in the  morning and then I have my first posing class tomorrow afternoon. That should definitely be an interesting hour seeing as I don't yet have my suit and the stage shoes I ordered are too big so I'll be donning a bathing suit and some slutty platform dress pumps haha. I am however looking forward to seeing who shows up for the bikini division. Of course, not all competitors in my particular show will be there but at least it will give me a good idea of where my physique is compared to the other girls. I'm either going to leave feeling really good about myself or really freaking bad!  Anyway, wish me luck!

I'm going to post a new recipe into the recipe tab later on so be sure to check back in. My blog is nearing 10,000 hits which for some reason really excites me so maybe this entry will top it off! I hope all you gym rats are sticking with your new year goals. Remember, we are only 19 days into 365 so stay strong! As always, happy gymming!

Organized Chaos

Thirteen hours after waking up, I can finally breathe! What a busy Saturday it has been. Not busy in a bad way though, more so busy in the sense that I will have zero time to do anything tomorrow due to a family event so I had to pack-in all of my weekend errands and activities into today. Unfortunately that also means that I will not be able to make it into the gym tomorrow. I haven't had a real day off since Christmas and it's stressing me out already. Usually my "off days" consist of light cardio and core work, not complete don't step my foot anywhere near the gym days! Arghhh DEEP BREATH!

So anyway, this crazy Saturday of course began with my usual early morning rise, carb/protein/coffee fuel-up and hitting the gymmer for a serious weight sesh and spin class. It's funny how I have no issue with setting my alarm to wake me up in the pitch black early morning hours when it means getting to enjoy the weight room before the crowds show yet I have to mentally talk myself into getting out of bed at this very same hour when it means I'll have to get up and go to hell - oops, I mean the office.  But I digress...

Side note: The New Year's Resolutioners seem to have disappeared at an alarmingly early rate this year. I don't know if maybe they haven't fully gotten into the swing of things yet or if the average American's desire to be fit and healthy is just more pitiful than usual but there was no one in the gym this morning (other than the regular die-hards of course) and the past few days at the prime 5 o'clock hour have been pretty desolate as well!

Today I wrapped up week #4 of my competition prep. My days were a little out of sync with my program this week due to my serious jell-o legs after last Sunday's workout and then incorporating a borderline-painful run and a new elliptical HIIT drill mid-week so today I did shoulders & abs instead of the scheduled legs. I think after taking tomorrow off I will be ready to hit my legs hard again come Monday. Shoulders are by far my favourite muscle group to train. Today's routine actually took me longer than usual - nearly 90 minutes - so it was a good thing I got there so early! Here's the breakdown of my routine:

-Dumbbell Arnold presses
-MB Figure 8's
-Cable front raises
-Cable lateral raise cross-overs (I did these instead of the leaning lateral raises that were scheduled because when I did those last week they felt very awkward and I felt I had to go too light on the weight to feel anything from them)
-DB shrugs
-DB rear delt raises
-MB Russian twists
-Weighted incline crunches
-Side crunches on back extension machine

The last 2 core moves are also ones that I substituted for the scheduled sprinter sit-ups and plank tricep touches. The former which were just awkward and uncomfortable when I tried them last week and the latter which I happened to do last night in my "all about abs" supplemental routine.

Overall, today's weight routine was fantastic and I'm totally feeling it already...errr or maybe I am just feeling the intense 90 minute deep tissue massage I had today! Either way though, something is working haha. I was so energized and ready to take on spin class at 9:00 which was a darn good thing because my favourite instructor was subbing! It was a packed class with a lot of newbies who I think enjoyed it so much that many  of them were going to recommend to the front desk staff that she take over the class permanently. Crossing my fingers that something good may come of the horrible December spinning spectacle! Not only was the energy level of the class through the roof but the music was really good too. A little of Ri-Ri's "S&M" and Brett's "Talk Dirty To Me" is always a good way to start my mornings ;)

I'm sitting here trying to think of the other fitness related updates I have while trying to combat my closing eyelids. Yes, I know it's only 7:30 pm but it's been a long day! Oh, I did happen to find out about and sign myself up for 3 bikini posing classes (one each month) to help me with my stage presence (or lack thereof) come April. I feel so much better about the whole getting up in front of a crowd and strutting my scantily-clad self now that I'll have some in-person expert coaching lessons! As soon as I found out about these classes I quickly ordered my first pair or clear stripper shoes! Ummm, I mean stage shoes...but I'm sure they have multiple purposes LOL I hope they arrive before class which is next Sunday.

Any other updates will have to wait 'til next time. Going to go and plan out my meals for tomorrow so I can keep it low-cal and not have to stress about my lack of gym presence so much. 'Til next time Gym Rats, happy gymming!

 

Competition Prep - 3 Weeks In

It's another Sunday Funday here and it's been just that today -- FUN! That is, if you consider waking up early, packing in the protein & carbs, and hitting the gym for a serious lower body ass-kicking fun...which of course I do! I'm just about to wrap-up week #3 of my CSF program and can honestly say I've never felt better. After the first week of following the plan down to a "T", I must admit I was not satisfied at all. The exercises were all high-rep exercises and I was so focused on being able to get in all the required reps that I ended up going too light on the weights and thus was not working to failure or experiencing any of the muscle burn necessary in order to make the gains I need. My coach wasn't much help, just saying to "follow the program" and "go as heavy as possible"....ummm did you not just hear what I'm saying?!, I thought to myself. Therefore, in week # 2 I took matters into my own hands, increasing my weights and repping to failure (which often meant less reps than listed) and making modifications as necessary to make the most of my workouts. For example, adding-in the Bosu, SB, or MB when appropriate. At the finale of week #2 I was feeling much better and moved on to the January workouts for week #3 which I am enjoying even more. I feel like the December workouts were just disappointingly basic. I'm still making modifications as necessary but following all the exercises listed. My only complaint this time around is that there is simply not enough core work. As such, during either my one functional day a week or during my weight-free day I am doing all-core routines in order to pick up the slack. Today was my legs (and some core) day and here was the breakdown:

-Kettle bell swings

-DB alternating front lunge

-Calf raises

-DB curtsy lunge

-1 leg bridges (which I did on the bosu)

-SB Pikes (adding SB balances in between sets)

-BB squat abduction (lateral leg lifts in between squats)

-Captain's chair straight leg raises

After having done spinning yesterday, today was my steady-state cardio day so I did 30 minutes on the StairMaster  I had never been on the StairMaster before but I decided it was a necessary change in order to a) switch-up my program and trick my body with something different and b) hit my glute/upper thigh area which has a serious toning issue LOL! Needless to say, by the time I was done my workout today my ass was on fire!

I quickly snarfed down a banana and my delightfully delicious cappuccino whey shake which held me over until lunchtime when I treated myself to my favourite cheat-ish meal, sushi! I say cheat-ish because sushi itself isn't made un-clean until you insist on having your tuna with the spicy mayo which is obviously a must :)  

As far as my nutrition plan is going, it's honestly not that much different than how I was already eating. I'm hoping that as time goes on, my coach tailors it more for my individual needs though as there are some modifications I have had to make to this department as well. For example, it doesn't allow me to eat any starches after meal #3 which I think is ridiculous since I train from 5-7 Mondays-Fridays and could eat a freaking horse when I'm done in there! My guess is that the plan was made for someone who works out in the morning or mid-day. All-in-all I try to have the # of fats, carbs, and proteins listed, I just have to change up the order a bit. I'm feeling great though so I guess that's what counts! 

That's really the only update I have at the moment. I haven't done anything with maXtreme since my last photo shoot and as far as I know the website is still being built-out. Hopefully I'll have another update on that in the near future as people have been asking me a lot about it lately. I have 2 more chapters left in my ISSA CFT studying so pretty soon I'll be reviewing all of the material and preparing for the final exam! I'd rather die than go outside in this frigid weather (the sunshine is sooo deceiving) so it's the perfect time for me to make as much progress in the gym and in my studies as possible right now. My favourite Twitter hash-tag lately is #StartStrong2013 ...which I will soon have to change to #StayStrong2013 LOL. I hope all of you gym rats are making the most of your health & fitness in the new year. Feel free to comment below and share any of the changes you are or plan to make for yourself. Remember, Start Strong, Stay Strong, Finish Strong! Happy gymming :)