RUNnin' DOWN A Dream

Four weeks out. My entire body aches right now. The best way I can describe it is to compare it to the complete lack of physical strength you experience at a certain stage of the flu. This has been a rough week for me. At the start of the week I found myself ending my weight sessions before they were complete because I literally did not have the energy to finish them. It wasn't even a matter of "digging deep" to find the energy as some competitors told me to do. It literally wasn't there to dig for. I chalked it up to my lack of allowed carbs in my nutrition plan and complained to my coach about this as well as the "too skinny" comments I had gotten from a couple gym regulars late last week. Luckily she agreed and told me to increase my carbs ever so slightly this week. Of course I did, and actually I'm not as starving right now as I was a week ago. However, a couple of days ago the exhaustion I was feeling went from hunger/mental exhaustion to muscle/joint exhaustion. Way worse in my opinion. I honestly don't know if it's from over-training, carb-depleting, time-of-the-month (TMI?), or maybe I am battling the onset of a sickness which is highly possible since I work in a germ-infested nightmare 8-5 every day. My guess is it's a combination of all four. You know it's bad when I actually allow myself to take a day off. Today was that day. Well, sort of. I did show up at World's after work but only for a light cardio/stretch sesh. Back & chest was on the original agenda today and that was simply not happening.

I've also found myself more easily irritable than normal (not possible, eh?! LOL) and forcibly holding back some much-needed temper tantrums on a regular basis. Work people annoy me. Gym-goers annoy me (mostly the former PF ones though LOL). Slow drivers annoy me. Random pedestrians and passers-by on the street annoy me. My neighbors annoy me. Even Mugsy annoys me. Poor guy :(  I'd like to think I will get to bed early tonight and wake up refreshed but honestly I've been sleeping 8-10 hours a night and it doesn't make any difference. Basically I'm a mental and physical mess right now. This about sums it up...

Well, at least I know I'm not the only one who feels this way! I found this funny on a friend's Facebook page the other day and had to share it. Underneath the caption another friend joked that there should be a bodybuilder support group. This is not a bad idea at all! If I put myself through this torture again I am soooo starting one up! Speaking of bodybuilding, I have to say, I hate using that word. It's true, what I am doing is a form of bodybuilding but I feel like every time people ask me what I'm training for and I say a "bodybuilding competition", they take a step back to look at me, scrunch up their faces, and in their politest way possible tell me that I don't look like a bodybuilder. I get what they are saying but to me this is a huge insult. So, for all of you who still just don't get it, here is a clear breakdown of the major physique categories:

Get it now??? Hopefully I look somewhat like the bikini girl on the left 4 weeks from now. Well, minus the boobs anyway LOL! Anyway, that is my rant for the night. Just having a really off week. I have some fun things planned this weekend including another posing class and some cross-country skiing so hopefully come Monday I'll be back to normal both mentally and physically. On my way to work this morning in my run-down channel-surfing daze I stopped on Tom Petty's "Runnin' Down a Dream". The lyrics couldn't be more perfect:

I felt so good like anything was possible

I hit cruise control and rubbed my eyes

The last three days the rain was un-stoppable

It was always cold, no sunshine

Yeah runnin' down a dream

That never would come to me

Workin' on a mystery, goin' wherever it leads

Runnin' down a dream

I rolled on as the sky grew dark

I put the pedal down to make some time

There's something good waitin' down this road

I'm pickin' up whatever's mine