tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49647271422066724342024-03-04T20:53:04.282-08:00I'm Beautiful Me: My Journey to a Healthy Mind and BodyIn April 2012, I completed my first Bikini Competition to help jump start my physique overhaul. I had been unhappy for several years with my body and it was impacting many things in my life. Achieving this goal has been amazing, yet my journey doesn't stop with the competition. 2012 is the year that I will reach my physique and fitness goals, so my blog with take you through the rest of my journey.~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-16378205602933518252012-07-27T18:29:00.002-07:002012-08-08T06:33:34.902-07:00Defining SuccessSuccess - what is it? Sometimes I wonder how it should be defined.... Do I define it, does someone else or does society??? I think I define success for myself and only myself and this is a belief that has been starting to emerge. I mean I have always believed it but until recently I realized that I have been trying to live up to other peoples standards and doing things because others think it would be a good move for me or I have a fear of displeasing someone. Don't get me wrong, those feelings haven't completely left but I am finally starting to figure out what I want. <br />
<br />
I started this journey to get a better body - be more fit, feel and look sexier and along the way to gaining increased confidence and self esteem and personal acceptance, I have started to find Amanda aka Mandy. Yes I said it, I found Mandy (who I have always been known as up until I was about 16 or so). I am really starting to get connected to who I was meant and destined to be however got lost along the way. Don't get me wrong, I am happy with where I am at - I love my boyfriend, my friends, my family, my life and anything I am not happy scratch that satisfied with, I am working on a plan to change. I feel like I am finally waking up from holding myself back and being a victim of my past without even knowing it.<br />
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As all of you know, we recently returned home from a long vacation (3 weeks) - we came back early because we bought to trucks in Washington to rebuild and sell (old trucks - 48 & 51 Chevys). Anyways, one that trip I went through a lot of different things. First I found out that I bring entirely too much stuff and that I over estimate my time and what I can do while I am gone, its just me and something that I can now work on because I could have definitely saved some space in the truck. Second, I appreciate Kirk and love him more every day, He is truly a special man and someone I look forward to growing old with. We are really starting to make our dreams come true and our communication and support of each other is growing stronger and stronger with every conversation and day we are together. Thirdly, accepting people the way they are instead of the way I want them to be, which is part of the victim role. I did some real "work" on my emotional baggage while I was in WA seeing my dad about my relationship with my dad and that has really opened me up to seeing things different. Coincidence or destiny?? I think it was destined for me to do the work while I was visiting him, it really helped me appreciate who my father is as a man. Fourthly - I really try to do too many things and even with vacation and my blog - I was so hopeful about what I could actually accomplish and I have to admit that I had a very difficult time doing everything I wanted to do in my last blog, especially the fitness piece. Fifth and probably most important, it is important to be in the moment and enjoy where you are at in the world and who you are spending your time with. Sometimes just being is more important that doing.<br />
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So back to where I started, "Success." Before I left on vacation for almost a month, I weighed 178.6, which is much higher than my competition weight of 160, weight is just a number and relative, not the definition of success, I have. My coach and I talked about nutrition being the key for me (she must know me better than I know myself sometimes - didn't workout nearly as much as I planned or wanted to which I was fine with). She recommended that my level for success is coming home after the vacation weighing within 5 pounds of when I left, come one I was gonna be gone a month. I was hopeful I would lose 10 pounds while on vacation(what was I thinking??? Lofty goals, but I really accepted that learning to manage my nutrition and being within 5 pounds after a month was perfectly acceptable and probably more realistic.) We talked about me taking my measurements weekly, so I could have some measurable feedback about my progress and also what types of foods I should be focused on eating. Remember, we were going on a road trip for a month and we would be staying in various hotels and other peoples homes, so I would have little control over certain things and would be completely out of my comfort zone. We agreed that I would stay away from starchy carbs for the most part (come on I was on vacation... I wanted a bite here and there, so I stole them from Kirk's plate). I focused on eating protein, veggies, fruit, and fat, yes I said fat. So eggs and caon with fruit was a perfect morning meal. Ranch or blue cheese dressings on my salad was fine because I didn't eat the bread or have croutons and I always loaded up with protein. Many times I ordered chicken with two sides of veggies for dinner and you know what, IT WORKED!!!! I am proud to say after 3 weeks of vacation, eating out pretty much every meal, I came home and weighed in at 178.4, which is .2 pounds LESS THAN what I was when I left!!!!!!!!!! How amazing is that!!!! What a feeling of accomplishment, that I made sure I shared with whoever would listen, finally I feel like I have learned how I can eat for life and not feel deprived or like a failure..<br />
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So again back to Success. Success, means all kinds of things including just staying the same, learning new skills, finding balance or challenging yourself to find something that works. I found success on vacation and now that I am home there is no stopping me. I can enjoy many of the same things others around me like - I have just figured out a variation that works for me. Success is about you and only you!! Not your significant other, parents, children, friends, family members, co-workers or clients, Success is about you. I found success in realizing that I can master my nutrition and for the first time ever I came home from vacation lighter. All by figuring out what works for me. In doing this, I think both Kirk and I realized that we can both enjoy what we want or that I can eat a "Special way" and he can still eat how he wants. And that is perfectly okay. Since we have been home, I have been cooking healthy food but serving it slightly different - I make very lean Sloppy Joe's with a homemade sauce, Kirk eats it on a bun and I topped it on grilled zucchini. We both loved it!! I feel good and he feels good.<br />
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What does all this mean for you?? Well start thinking about how you measure success. Then ask yourself, why do I measure it that way?? Is it coming from me and what I want for myself and my life or is this someone else's expectation or desire for me? Once you start figuring out the answers to these questions you will be able to find more success and maybe even more satisfaction in what you are doing in your life. <br />
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Remember, Success has many meanings and identifying the one that is right for you is personal. Comparing yourself to someone else's standards including societies, or sometimes even your own only sets you up for disappointment and frustration and feeling like a failure. With all of that, my challenge for you is to start to identify how you measure your success. Explore what it looks like and why it looks like that. And one final question to ask is "Is this my measure or someone else's?" Trust yourself and find your definition of success, one that makes you feel confident and satisfied with who you are.<br />
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<br /></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-31364575856592074722012-07-08T22:26:00.000-07:002012-07-08T22:26:37.062-07:00Summary of Our First week of Vacation<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">So as
many of you know – Kirk and I have taken one month off and are on
vacation. We have now been officially
been gone a week and I wanted to share some of what I have been struggling
with, found success with and basically how it has been going.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">I
decided to plan food for this trip, which I think has made a huge difference
overall. We brought a big cooler and
filled it with water, other drinks, and food.
The food I packed for the trip was mostly healthy clean food so I wouldn’t
be tempted by hunger at our fuel stops.
In the cooler, there was beef jerky, think thin protein bars, almonds,
grapefruit, cherries, unsalted peanuts, organic trail mix, lunch meat, cheese,
lettuce leaves for lettuce wraps, and so much more healthy food. I have to admit it was a success!!! Not only did it help me stay on track, it
helped my man. Instead of buying junk
food we were able to have a roadside lunch that healthy and inexpensive. I was never tempted to get anything from the
local fuel store and in fact we never really went inside of them except when we wanted coffee. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">My food
planning also has worked out for snacks and lunches since we have been in one
of my favorite places, Coos Bay, OR. To
my surprise Kirk has really enjoyed the lettuce wraps. However, we have been eating out as well and
eating with family friends. This has
offered me some challenge. When planning
with my coach we agreed that I would do protein, veggies, fruits, and healthy
fats; and that I would stay away from starchy carbs like bread, pasta,
potatoes, etc. I have to admit for the
most part I have been able to do this.
It has offered me challenges where there aren’t substitutions, so what I
have done is just ordered my food without potatoes or allowed Kirk to eat them
if he wanted them. Although I admit I
have had a bite here and there of some of my favorites from his plate, biscuits
and gravy, blueberry pancakes, etc. and I also have made choices on when to indulge
a little more on my own plate. This
though is something I have to watch and make sure I really want it and that is
it for the week, which has been hard. So
this is something I am still working on perfecting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">For
workouts, I decided that there are many things I can do that don’t require
weights (although I love my weights and wish I could have them at the
beach). I brought my workout log book, a
couple bands, my plyo workouts (which take up no space other than what is needed in my head), and the idea of walking/running on the beach with my dog. So far I have done lots more walking than
anything else, which is fine because part of my plan is recovery time and
walking on the beach with Kirk and our dogs is definitely recovery time. I did get two “real” workouts in this past week – 500 walking lunges
and a 20 minute plyo workout. I will try
to pick up the workouts this next week - increase to 4-5 days. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">I
mentioned the recovery time/activities.
This is an important piece of fat loss without it losing fat becomes
more difficult and all the workouts and healthy nutrition can be undermined by
unmanaged stress. And recently I have
had a lot of major stress with work. I
had been trying to manage it but truth be told I feel overwhelmed and
completely helpless at work. Enough work
talk, though I am on vacation and don’t want to think about that place. What is important about this piece is that I
am finally taking the time to recover and rejuvenate by slowing down the pace,
enjoying the ocean views and ocean water as it wash over my feet. It is the Northwest Coast – so the ocean is
pretty darn cold and the temp outside has been maybe a high of 67 which for you
who live in AZ know – that is like our winter. Needless to say - we haven't been swimming in it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">The last
thing I planned to do to help keep myself in line was to measure myself every
week. This will help keep things in
perspective about what I am doing. I was
planning on bringing my scale but I didn’t do it, for a couple reasons. Kirk
thought I was crazy and said “you’re on vacation.” I talked to him about my goals and what I
wanted to be able to do and that I want my vacation to be a healthy one not one
I regret and undo all the work I have already done, plus it’s not like we are
leaving for a weekend. We are planning
to be gone a whole month. So I settled
with something I thought was reasonable and that I talked with my coach about –
a measuring tape. This is small easy to
carry and would help me see where I was at with my body. I am happy to say that although my
measurements have been up since I stopped training for the competition, they
were down when I measured yesterday from when I measured before we left and
this makes me feel great!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">With all
the above said here is what I am going to work on this week and also the things
you can do as well when you go on vacation:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>1)
Continue to order food that is basically protein and veggies only (order double
veggies when possible)</u> – Stay AWAY from starchy carbs. Bring in my own fruit to eat if they don’t
offer a substitute for starchy carbs. We
have found Denny’s is a great option and very accessible when traveling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>2) Limit
bites of Kirks food </u>– only one nicely sized bite if it is something I am really
craving – otherwise I will steer clear of it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>3) Allow
myself one cheat meal a week</u> – however on that day I need to make sure I do a
workout. No excuses. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>4)
Workout 4-5 times per week – even if it is only 15 minutes </u>– I need to be doing
something to keep my muscle tone and help burn fat. No more excuses. The other day I did a 20 minute workout when
Kirk was getting ready & watching tv.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>5) Continue
recovery walks and activities</u> with Kirk and the dogs. Remember vacation is supposed to be fun and
enjoyable. Treasure the moments and soak
them in. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;"><u>6)
Measure my body once weekly and email my coach with progress.</u> If you are working with a coach it is
important to continue to be in communication with them, so he/she can continue
to support you and your goals. Also this
keeps you focused on your goals even though you are on vacation. Just because vacation is here doesn’t mean
you forget about what you want. My focus
is still present and I am using this is another opportunity to challenge myself
and learn how to manage temptations as well as grow stronger and more
focused. (My hope is that I lose a
little while on vacation but if I just stay the same I will be incredibly
happy).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif;">Overall
on vacation it is important to recover from stress and rejuvenate
yourself. Be thoughtful of your choices
and plan when you can. I have been able
to eat pretty much anywhere we have gone just by staying committed to what I am
choosing to eat. Short quick workouts
keep you moving in the right direction without taking up too much time and some
days my workout has consisted of running on the beach with my dogs and hiking
up to an amazing waterfall (Raven & I sprinted up hill and ran downhill to
both of them for a short distance). The
point is to make it work for you without feeling an increase in stress by doing
it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #990000;">Remember you always
have a choice even when on vacation, so choose it wisely and you won’t be
disappointed when you return.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #990000;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Book Antiqua', serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #990000;"><br /></span></span></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-28825616529719608722012-06-11T09:06:00.000-07:002012-06-11T09:06:48.392-07:00Vacation vs. Healthy Me/You: Be Healthy & Still Enjoy Yourself<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
recently went on vacation with my boyfriend and a couple of our friends. We stayed in a place where we had a kitchen,
visited another friend and also spent some time riding dirt bikes. I found many challenges to sticking with my
healthy plan. I find it especially
difficult when I travel with others to maintain my healthy habits. This is something that I think many of us
struggle with when we get out of our normal routine and have less control of
where we eat. I found that even in
traveling to a place where we had a kitchen the people around me wanted to go
out to eat. Sometimes eating out makes
me nervous because there are temptations depending on where we go and no matter
where you go there will be temptations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">This
trip was no different I definitely was faced with temptations and some I was
able to do well with and others I struggled with, which helps me understand
that I still am growing and learning new skills. The first place we went I tried to eat well
but it was hard because they have the best biscuits and gravy and we rarely go
there, so I had a few bits of my boyfriends. (Which was better than eating a
full plate of my own). Then we ended up
at a bar for dinner one night, I have able to order a chicken sandwich hold the
bread, coleslaw (their salad bar was closed) and a potato (which was only a
half of potato). Not too bad, however I
did have some beers. The next day I was
able to start fresh with a good breakfast however as they day continued on
choices became harder and again I spent another night having some drinks (this was
a theme of the whole weekend – do well in the morning and increasing struggle
throughout the day and into the evening).
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">All
and all I did alright, I wasn’t great but I didn’t though caution to the wind. I did work out a couple time during the trip
and it felt great to be able to do that.
I did come back about 5 pounds heavier and then struggled to get it
off. However what was different about
this trip is that I was more aware of my choices and paid more attention to how
my body was reacting to the less than healthy food choices. I couldn’t help but notice I felt bloated,
experienced more gas (yes increase in farting.</span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">), and felt less
energetic. These things helped me
understand how my food choices impacted my body and my body was telling me hey
I don’t like how this food makes me feel.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
learned six major things that I am going to work on the next trip and you can
implement as well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I always have
control over my choices and so do you</span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> (even if I don’t have a kitchen, I can
make healthy choices where ever I go).
It is my choice to have a beer, glass of wine or glass of water. No one was pressuring me to drink and what to
drink. If you want to drink, it is wise
to choose something that you drink a little slower, that way you don’t pack on
the extra calories. For me this means
that I will try to choose wine over beer. This also applies to food – no one
makes you choose the hamburger and fries, you can always choose a salad with
the dressing on the side, drip your fork into the dressing and then add your
salad to the fork. Just make sure your
salad has some healthy protein. Stay
away from fried stuff if you can.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Workouts are always
possible when on vacation</span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">. There are lots
of things you can do that don’t require weights or machines. This is also a nice change of pace for your
body it requires your muscles to do something different, which is always
good. One thing you can do before you go
is plan out what you would like to do, and keep simple and less than 30
minutes. It can be a plyo workout, a
sprint session (you don’t need to be at a track to do sprints – just pick two
points a good distance apart and then sprint one way, walk back the other way),
or even try doing 500 walking lunges (I know crazy but always an option – it should
take you less than 30 minutes depending on your fitness level). There are lots of things to do so just find
something that you enjoy!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Plan ahead. Take the snacks and food that you can eat.</span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Where you go may not have what you need so if
you can take it pack it!! That way there
will not be any questions or excuses of why you couldn’t do it. Then if you don’t eat what you brought, it is
only about a choice you made versus, the excuse of well I couldn’t find
it. Easy things to pack are protein
bars, almonds, grapefruits, and apples. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Choose water as
your primary drink.</span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Yes its vacation and you will likely indulge
in more drinks, more eating out (which also means more sodium intake) and more
things that you might not normally do.
Drinking as much water as possible a minimum of 8 glasses but preferable
12 glasses or as close to a gallon as possible, will help flush out the sodium and
keep you hydrated. Both of these are important for your body to be running at
optimal levels. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Have an eating
strategy and give yourself one to two cheat meals </span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">(depending on how
long you are on vacation.) I know when I
am on vacation I choose foods that I normally wouldn’t eat food with creamy
sauces, pastas, alcohol and dessert. However if I eat like that every day I
will be sabotaging my hard work. To help
limit self sabotage, give yourself permission to have a cheat meal or two and
eat anything you want. (try to keep it max two cheat meals per week, so if
vacation is less than a week – limit it to one cheat meal). The other nights
try to stick with a lean protein and veggies, especially in the evening. Swap out the rice or potatoes for an extra
side of veggies. You will feel better in
the morning not only physically but also mentally because you won’t be saying
to yourself “why did I do that….I can’t believe I did that….what was I thinking…
now I have ruined everything….Oh I did it again, I am horrible….I can’t do
anything right what is wrong with me.”
These statements don’t help you at all so give yourself permission for a
cheat and the rest of the time make healthy choices.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";">6.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Practice awareness
of your choices and only make a choice for right now.</span></u><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Much of the above
suggestions rely on your ability to be aware of your choices and to make each
choice in the moment. Remember it is important
not to give away all your future choices (this will create more self sabotage) and
you can enjoy things in moderation.
Moderation is not “Oh I am on vacation therefore I can through caution
to the wind and eat whatever I want because I only do it once a year.” Moderation is making choices about where and
when you will indulge and doing it because you want to not because you are on
vacation. If you do the latter you might
feel worse about yourself and your choices later, especially when you get home
and reality slaps you in the face. It is
okay to indulge but awareness of your choices is a critical component of the
equation to being healthy and happy. Without awareness it is harder to reach
your goals and stay on track. When you
are aware of your choices and plan out your indulges, you will in turn be
kinder to yourself and kindness to yourself is a necessity to sticking with
your healthy choices. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">On
your next vacation or even this coming weekend (this could be applied to
weekends too) try to follow these six suggestions and see what happens. Note how you feel about yourself both
physically and mentally. You might be
surprised that you don’t feel deprived and you don’t feel bad about your
choices when you return home. Remember
give yourself grace, this is a journey not a destination and we are continuously
growing and learning. Use each vacation
as an opportunity to practice making the healthiest choices for you. The more you practice the better you get,
even the best athletes have to practice every day. Remember you can do anything you put your
mind too with awareness and control over your choices!! Good luck and let me know how your next
vacation or weekend is after trying these 6 suggestions!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-45927441224542907422012-04-24T22:43:00.004-07:002012-04-24T22:43:53.103-07:00Now What....So Now What.... is one of the questions I have been struggling with however I know what. The what is the upcoming photo shoot in June where I will get to meet the other amazing women in the coaching program with my coach Jill. However even though I know the what, I still am asking now what. <br />
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Last week was incredibly challenging - mentally. After the competition, I was on a competition high, "no one and nothing can stop me!!" However after that wore off, I have struggling refocusing. Mainly it has been incorporating new foods, normal foods back into my nutrition plan. I feel like I have gone a little bit hog wild. I have been able to justify my behavior by saying things like "I deserve this, it is okay I am allowed to have some cheat meals or little indulges" but that is not serving me well. It is hurting me and a form of self-sabotage. I knew I would gain some weight back after the competition it is inevitable because I was dehydrating so once I put water back into my diet 5 pounds was going to come back, but then I added about another 5 more following my birthday. Which is still great, especially when I was able to by a size 6 pair of jeans, even if they were from Old Navy the tag says 6. However, with that said I am fearful of back sliding and find myself struggling to maintain a balanced meal plan - one day I do great and then I blow it or I do great part of the day but then eat candy from work or a slice of pizza with dinner when I ordered soup and salad. </div>
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One thing that I am realizing is that I was very dedicated to my competition plan, and I only realized that because I am noticing my behavior now. I don't think I thought I was being that diligent but I was. I wasn't having candy and eating pizza, when we went out to eat I was able to order the healthiest thing on the menu. Its weird because I think right now I miss my competition meal plan - not necessarily the rigid dedication to it but I miss some of the meals, I miss the energy I got from eating the clean food, I miss the stevia sweetened green tea which I though of as my special treat. I just miss how good I felt eating on that plan. My new post-competition plan is good and I like it but there are some things missing, like oat bran with stevia and cinnamon. I know I am weird but oddly enough those foods became comforts and sources of excitement. </div>
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Figuring out how to get that fire back it important, the NOW WHAT? do I do after the competition. I am excited about the photo shoot but I don't know why it doesn't drive more excitement into me when I think about eating clean. I just don't know what to do without going back on a competition plan and that is not a solution to the issue, that is a band-aid and eventually I am going to have to face this issue head on, so I might as well do it now. Luckily, in my most recent email to my coach, I shared my struggles and requested guidance. However ultimately it is up to me because she has already given me a post-competition meal plan that is good and I like, but there is just something missing and that might be the feeling of focusing on a goal. I think that I am not looking at the photo shoot the same as the competition and this is something that I might not ever be able to do but acknowledging it is important so I can work on it. I am planning on competing in another competition however I would love to move into Figure instead of bikini and to do that I know I have to really focus on lifting heavy and eating clean and the sooner I figure out this mental issue of self sabotage the sooner I will be on track to build for Figure. I just don't want to be "now what" after the next competition. </div>
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As I write this blog, I continue to ask myself <u style="font-weight: bold;">Now What???</u> I think the "Now What" is to get back to my original goal of obtaining my optimal physique and to start taking steps for achieving a physique muscular, tone and fit enough to compete again in November. Starting now and finding balance will help get me closer to that goal and also help me manage the "Now What" when I am done. I wonder if I should be treating the photo shoot like a competition. Should I follow a stricter plan however allowing one cheat meal a week instead of little indulges. I think I might be happier with myself and my choices if I continue to make the ones that get me to my goal instead of the ones that come more natural (my bad habits). Sometimes old habits die hard but they must die when they are no longer serving me in a healthy way.<br />
<br />
This is my week to figure out a plan that I can work with for the next several months and work through negative choices that don't serve me. It will be important for me to figure out what I like from my competition plan and incorporate it with my post-competition plan. Talking with my coach and exploring self sabotage will be crucial as well as talking about coming of the post-competition high and getting advice about how to manage it and move forward without moving backwards. So to wrap it up (since it's my bedtime), the first thing I will do is get up in the morning and workout, when I get home I will look at my different plans and see what I can come up with and then review that along with how I am feeling with my coach. After that I will need to continue to blog about my challenges and success, focus on my goal and create stops and spaces for breathing and reflecting. I have to remember these two things as well<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #a64d79;">1) Be kind to myself </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: #a64d79;"> 2) Trust the process. </span></b> </div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-15291187338228767982012-04-14T22:57:00.000-07:002012-04-14T22:57:28.471-07:00Post Competition Review: First Battle with Old HabitsToday is officially one week post bikini competition for me and it has been great. I did gain about five pounds after the competition but I am still happy with that because it is probably all water weight plus it was that time of month, you women know what I mean. The week started out strong and I really tried to watch my choices, allowing myself some small indulges but countering them with healthy choices. However, yesterday and today, I really battled with old habits. I now understand the saying "old habits die hard" better today. I wasn't under stress the past two days, however, I didn't plan well, so for me that meant I didn't make the best choices, plus I had the mind set of "it's okay to indulge a little bit," "I deserve it because I worked so hard," and "everyone else is doing it, so its okay." I will be happy when these thoughts don't come so naturally.<div><br />
</div><div>So here is the full confession for my week: </div><div><br />
</div><div>~Monday, I went to the gym, did my workouts and felt great, followed my plan about 85% and enjoyed a special treat but it was small and I savored it. </div><div>~Tuesday - slept in and missed morning workout however went to the gym at night, ate well probably about 90% on my plan, still enjoyed a little indulging but well controlled. </div><div>~Wednesday - again hit the gym but missed the cardio since I slept in (I really stayed up too late the night before) ate pretty well overall and tonight I looked forward to my cheat me - I ordered a huge (I mean huge) burrito from one of our favorite Mexican place - it was a Machaca Burrito with Rice, Beans and Cheese inside enchilada style with sour cream.... It tasted so amazing and I almost finished it I really tired too but I didn't. It actually made me feel sick, bloated and tired for the rest of the night. I didn't feel myself the rest of the night and again stayed up too late. </div><div>~Thursday comes - I made it to the gym but only for part of my cardio session since I slept in again, ate well for the day but enjoyed a small slice of pizza before I went to my evening workout (I teach cardio kickboxing twice a week and do martial arts twice a week). Tried to get to bed early but in bed again late but this time super late. </div><div>~Friday came, woke up late, went to the gym but missed cardio because I needed to get home. Morning meal went great and then it was downhill from there, missed snacks, had a chimichanga with jalapeno cream cheese, rice and black beans with chips and salsa with a mango margarita. When dinner came I had hot wings to start and split them with my boyfriend well it was like a 70-30 split and I was on the 70 end. Then I ordered a grilled chicken salad but it had bacon and cheese on it with ranch - so bad but balsamic didn't sound good right then. I didn't eat most of the bacon or cheese and hardly touched the ranch. After that I had some drinks probably about 4 but, I remembered to drink lots of water. </div><div>~Saturday, I woke up (we camped over night and it was so cold because it rained where we were), had coffee (added a little plain creamer) and ordered breakfast where we were, they had two choices, I chose the breakfast burrito - not great, in fact it tasted horrible. I drank water and we came home. I missed most all my snacks however had a few almonds. We did some errands and when we got hungry we went to one of my favorite pizza and wing places (such a horrible choice but it tasted so yummy). We ordered pizza with ham and pineapple and hot wings. I had two slices of pizza and about 16 of the 20 wings (I love wings way more than my boyfriend). I kinda justified this because tonight was supposed to be a cheat meal. I drank water but missed today's workout. When we got home, we took a nap and I felt bloated and yucky. We woke up a couple hours ago and I still feel bloated and yucky, since I was hungry I made a good choice - 10 almonds and a small orange and small grapefruit with more water to help cleanse/detox my body. This is my previous pattern, work hard all week to just to sabotage myself on the weekends. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Being so honest about my week is hard because part of me feels like a failure to have fallen right back into those bad habits but these two days do not represent what happened the whole week. I made it to the gym everyday except today and I already knew that I wouldn't be able to workout today because we were going to a camping event, so I decided ahead of time I would move my Saturday workout to Sunday (which is my 36th Birthday so how great will it be to get my butt out of bed and workout, I think that is better than sleeping in). In my weight workouts, I was able to increase my free weights from 15 pounds and 10 pounds for my ME workout to 20 pounds (squat press, lunge curls, and push up rows) and 15 for squat side raises. This felt awesome because I am stronger than I think I am most of the time. What was even more awesome about this two is that I was able to do 4.5 sets of my ME Circuit in 20 minutes, so if I keep this up I will likely have to increase the weights again in a week or two or maybe I will just change the workout plan. Also, I weighed 167.2 on Monday after the show and Friday I weighed 167 in the morning - so I was able to keep my weight steady all week. My measurements were very close to my pre-competition measurements too. I am not so focused on weight - oh forgot to mention that my body fat percentage was done since the competition too, feels great!!</div><div><br />
</div><div>I am still very motivated to continue my journey and this struggle the past couple days has taught me that it is still important for me to be planning and getting back into the right mindset. Which is about making healthy choices regardless of what others are doing and remembering there is no "Free day". I think it also helped me understand, that I do not like the way I feel right now, my body feels gross and bloated and I worked to damn hard to let me old ways of sabotaging my success come back. I will persevere and conquer this, because I am now aware of what is happening and I don't want this and I have a great support system. I want to continue to feel confident and proud of myself and my choices. </div><div><br />
</div><div>It feels awesome to come back and have people that I know or who know of me through my boyfriend and other friends, contact me about helping them reach their goals. So it is really important to me to stay focused and not lose sight of all my goals and also not undo what progress I have made, because it was a lot of hard work. I had some great friends get me amazing gifts after the competition and my training client wrote me a beautiful card. I have also had lots of people tell me how amazed they are that I was able to stay focused on my dream and actually compete in the Bikini Competition. I actually had a friend recently tell me that he didn't think I would be able to do it when I told him I was going to do it but he quietly kept that to himself and when I did it and he saw my progress, he acknowledged that he was blown away and I had knocked it out of the park. Friday night another one of our friends, told me he was secretly following my journey (I had no idea he was) but he was so impressed at how I had done and how far I had come since he last saw me. He spent probably 10-15 minutes of our dinner just talking about my progress, then another friend also acknowledged my accomplishment and told me he had also been following my journey and was also impressed. It felt amazing and in fact as I am typing it now, I am feeling that energy come back and start to fuel me. Last night it was also cool that one of my boyfriends old friends who we rarely see comment on how amazing I look (he had no idea I had done a competition) but he was just shocked at how much I had changed and said something like I have never looked this good. Another person said if they hadn't been following me, they wouldn't have even known who I was because I look so different. </div><div><br />
</div><div>It was nice to hear all those positive comments and I want to keep those mentally at the front of my mind when I start to make decisions. I am in the process of making a sustainable plan but that doesn't give me the right to do two days of free for all eating and drinking - I guess I was kinda on a controlled binge....if there is even such a thing. Not eating so much I throw up but just eating whatever I want because I want it type binge. This whole recap brings me to this thought:</div><div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="color: #990000; font-size: x-large;">Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. ~ Confucious</span></u></i></b></div><div><br />
</div><div>With this in mind, my choices Friday and today have been a time I have fallen, but I was able to understand what was happening and acknowledged that I was having thoughts that justified my choices, once I really reflected and woke up from my nap, I made healthier choices. Tomorrow will be another time for me to rise and make healthier choices that will help create my balanced lifestyle. Tomorrow I will be 36 and I want to start the day off right so I will do a morning workout since I took Saturday off and then my boyfriend and I will head to this amazing place called The Farm for breakfast where they grow all their own food - I will make a healthy choice for breakfast but before we leave the house I will make sure that I have plenty of water to take with me and some snacks in case we are out of the house for longer than I expect. Plus I am going back to implementing a bedtime of 10pm - I can no longer stay up until midnight and get up and workout - my body has become accustomed to sleep and I understand how important it is on a physical level. I will also make sure that I have what I need for the week for me to continue to make the choices that are in line with my goals and help me move towards them. My goals right now are to 1) Continue to become fitter, healthier, stronger and leaner 2) Create a healthy balanced lifestyle 3) Compete in another Bikini or maybe my first figure competition November 3, 2012. 4) Get ready for my next stop on my journey - professional photo shoot June 22, 2012 in North Carolina that my coach is setting up and I am hoping that I might get to meet some of the other ladies in the Best of You Coaching Club while I am there. 5) Creating a workable plan for my three week vacation in July, so that when we are on the road, I am making healthy choices and getting a good workout.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I know that I can continue this journey strong and focused and I accept that every once in a while I will be tested, which is how I will grow and these challenges give me the opportunity to exercise newly formed mental muscles and I need them to grow and get stronger. Something that I have always believed in is this "if you are not satisfied with where you are at right now, make the choices that get you to where you want to be." I am happy with where I am right now because I am so much different from where I was 30 pounds ago and even more so 50 pounds ago, but this is not the end of my journey, I still have more body fat to lose and more body change to make happen. I still have more to learn about myself so I can help others. I am truly proud of myself regardless of my errors and I become stronger because I have made and learned from them. One final thought:</div><div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u>Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help a man with the wrong mental attitude. ~ Thomas Jefferson</u></i></b></span></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-62122496751807204512012-04-10T23:58:00.000-07:002012-04-10T23:58:14.667-07:00Competition Insights and Reflections<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysYh91UShDMuihlCkx0Evur7z7kx0U9cTYgpudSaFugtqOTqWDSG-MjtEdLmKFE-ExjFxmqAX7wnTpL-YVB5kXpg_yzSwnLQ08A1AybMQvX9-NDdJNgs7_WOXhQuemH1PfgYH7rrZaWeN/s1600/MD+Pic+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhysYh91UShDMuihlCkx0Evur7z7kx0U9cTYgpudSaFugtqOTqWDSG-MjtEdLmKFE-ExjFxmqAX7wnTpL-YVB5kXpg_yzSwnLQ08A1AybMQvX9-NDdJNgs7_WOXhQuemH1PfgYH7rrZaWeN/s200/MD+Pic+1.JPG" width="132" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs8J1NURQYKrR46S2elsQi6EX9NChRqTC_Bzottts69yxahWs5hZ8ybpgZgDtGbnTn3LZEDO9hDXRC4dGBgrwP-dASx5EUvdrrPOdpZ96PuaA2KJGu-JfpW2m0IR2WxAT-GQHSlKX8pfEn/s1600/MD+Pic+7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs8J1NURQYKrR46S2elsQi6EX9NChRqTC_Bzottts69yxahWs5hZ8ybpgZgDtGbnTn3LZEDO9hDXRC4dGBgrwP-dASx5EUvdrrPOdpZ96PuaA2KJGu-JfpW2m0IR2WxAT-GQHSlKX8pfEn/s200/MD+Pic+7.JPG" width="132" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcJbSEfIuoONZuqtDVPEMS6LE42r35S7GMJtEgZqD-tUSv2B6dF9Fyj_ZsJD3CsFUrMe_V_vos11aqRAFUss70n-1vx45QueP4Aoe3XEw01VI-EknH0JgIL1-p6VUpToFYBCyAkIetxi-_/s1600/MD+Pic+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcJbSEfIuoONZuqtDVPEMS6LE42r35S7GMJtEgZqD-tUSv2B6dF9Fyj_ZsJD3CsFUrMe_V_vos11aqRAFUss70n-1vx45QueP4Aoe3XEw01VI-EknH0JgIL1-p6VUpToFYBCyAkIetxi-_/s200/MD+Pic+4.JPG" width="132" /></a></div><br />
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<br />
My first Bikini Competition was Saturday April 7, 2012 and above are some of my pictures from the stage. I had an awesome time. It was amazing and I felt so confident. I was very happy that I got to share my experience with my friends and my boyfriend! <br />
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I learned a lot of things during the competition. First it is a lot harder than it looks. Posing on stage in the right sequence, slow yet fast enough, and with the right attitude, charisma and peppy personality that the judges are looking for, all while fighting off your nerves. Oh and don't forget to smile, that is so important. Then if you remember and make it through all that, next you have to pose while waiting for all the other girls to do their thing. It is a lot to do and boy can a girls back get sore trying to hold some poses. Wait forgot to say that you have to remember not to slouch, stand up tall and sexy, yet graceful and elegant. <br />
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The whole experience was surreal at times. We went to check in on Friday night and luckily went early and we were done quickly. Luckily I got to compete with one of my friends and we were standing next to each other, it was awesome! I loved being able to share the experience with two of my friends. I really looked to them for guidance since they both had competed before. Next we the competitors meeting before prejudging where they provided us the information we needed for the competition. Basically the outline of the day and evening. After that it was getting ready for prejudging and a lot of waiting. During that time we took time to talk, watch the other competitors and prepare ourselves for our walk on stage. While I was talking to my friend Stephanie, she shared with me that she had gotten sick about 3 weeks before the competition and wasn't going to compete however our friend Brandi shared with her my blog. She told me that as she was reading it, I became her inspiration for competing and that is the only reason she was at this competition because of me and my story motivating her. Brandi acknowledged the same thing. That was so humbling and I wanted to cry, but Steph reminded me I wasn't wearing waterproof mascara or eye liner. I think I am still in a little bit of a shock that I was motivating them, I was looking up to them and they were in turn looking for inspiration and motivation.<br />
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As many of you know I created a progression collage, to keep with me in case I started to get doubtful of my worthiness to be there, in case I started to compare myself to other women. I did create it and I actually found a picture from 2009 when I was like 215 pounds. I added it to my collage, I still can't believe that was actually me. I don't even look like the same person! What I found there was I didn't even really need it. I only looked at it a couple of times, and mostly to show other people my progress. It was amazing to me how I felt included, no one looked at me funny or talked behind my back or whispered as I walked by. Both women and men alike were nice, social and mostly concerned about themselves and their friends. The people that I knew and that I met told me how great I looked. I ended up hearing stories about other women also losing 20 plus pounds to compete. Another thing I noticed as I looked around at everyone, was that most all the women had some time of wiggle, jiggle or stretch mark or something they were concerned about. I actually heard one beautiful lady talk about her butt and how it isn't that great but its hers and she working it. Mind you I thought it was pretty amazing. So everyone of them had their own insecurities but that didn't stop them from competing.<br />
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As we watched some of the other competitors, I saw a women who was in the Master's Class looking very fit and sexy come out on stage and do her poses. As I was watching her I happened to notice that she had the worst stomach stretch marks I had ever seen on a woman (however she definitely had tight and toned abs), and this is something I know from my friends with children, many of them are self conscious about. But as I watched her, I wasn't drawn to them, I was drawn away from them, by her confidence, her smile and her overwhelming inner beauty. I thought, how amazing that this woman is to be able to have so much inner strength and self confidence that she is not letting something on the outside of her body hold her back. I found so much power in watching her and I wish that every woman I knew had the confidence she had. She stood tall and strong, proud of who she was regardless of other peoples perceptions because that's all they are anyways, someone else's perception, which we don't need to ingest or take on, because that's that persons shit.<br />
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I felt very normal and it was weird that I didn't get nervous until I was just about to walk on stage for the first time, only because I kind of expected to be a little nervous, but instead it felt natural probably from all the visualization that my coach had me do. As I walked on to stage I had so many things running through my head of what to do and what to remember, smile, pose, look at the judges, etc. oh and have fun - most importantly. While I was on stage posing, I heard my boyfriend cheering for me, probably because he yelled "Poohpotch" which for some reason is his nickname for me. I saw my friend Brandi cheering me on and both those things helped me feel good and confident on stage, that I was just as deserving to be there as the next competitor. <br />
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I was invigorated with positive power and energized by the whole experience. Again something that I wish every woman I know could experience (even if she doesn't want to do bikini competition). As we took pictures backstage, I found that when I reviewed them I couldn't believe how great I looked and that truly I wasn't much bigger than my friends. I didn't look like a lard ass (which I don't believe about myself but was concerned those negative thoughts would try to derail me), in fact I felt like I looked incredibly sexy. (In fact, after seeing some of the pictures of me from the back, I started to thing those things but I was able to get those out of my head once I remember what my journey has been and that I am the sexist, fittest, strongest, healthiest, and thinnest me) <br />
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During the break between prejudging and finals, my boyfriend told me he couldn't remember when I looked so sexy, so good and that he thought in that moment, that was the sexist and most beautiful I had ever looked. I think he was right not because of what I looked like on the outside but because I had the inner beauty glow beaming through my skin, confidence and inner strength pumping through my veins, and the feeling of success pumping my heart and filling my lungs with every breathe I took. Achieving a goal that I had set for years, agreed 1000% with me and it showed. I definitely glowed and I think I am still glowing, :o)<br />
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I felt proud of myself and my accomplishment of a significant goal for myself. I still feel very proud of myself and I am so looking forward to competing again in 6 months. I can't wait to see what I can do in the next six months....maybe figure instead of bikini, but I will make that decision in about 4 months. For now, I am going to enjoy the current feelings of celebration and success that are present in my mind and body. I will continue to regain some balance and start creating a sustainable lifestyle which includes fitness and healthy nutrition. Because competition mode is very difficult personally and on your relationships. I will continue to workout six days a week but only once per day for now and continue my fat loss and body change journey. <br />
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I want to be the best me I can. I also want to help other women achieve this feeling and make the changes they want in their lives. One thing that I didn't expect when I started this blog or through about when I decided to share my story was how it would motivate and inspire other women. I feel honored that some of them have sought me out to help them achieve their goals. What is ironic in a way, is that I am inspired by hearing that I have inspired and am inspiring others. As I have completed this journey, I had no idea how far my story would read or how it would impact others, I did it in the beginning to hold myself accountable and to get support to continue through my journey to the stage. But yet my journey does not end at the stage, the stage was just my first stop along my journey. <b><i><span style="color: #660000;">And as Bruce Lee said "Remember, success is a journey not a destination. Have faith in your ability. You will do just fine."</span></i></b> And that I did, just fine!! I had no expectations of winning and even if I placed last in my division, it doesn't matter because I am now a bikini competitor and I have achieve a goal that has been on my goal list for more than five years. I was a winner before I walked into prejudging and I am a winner now!!<br />
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I want to leave you with one last thought - this was a magnet a dear friend gave me because she was so proud of my perseverance and dedication to my goal of competing:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: #660000;">What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson</span></i></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: #660000;"><br />
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</span></i></b></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-77487534448970155682012-04-02T22:34:00.000-07:002012-04-02T22:34:55.530-07:00Final Countdown to the Competition StageOnly five days left until the competition and it has been a good yet challenging week. My exercises have changed and so has my food. Although I think I am doing well, I am battling cheats everyday especially when I am at work. I have faced some thoughts of self doubt and struggled to get them out of my head. Last week I had a very difficult day mentally and it was important for me to work through that. Self doubt and over expectation came up from behind and tried to derail me. I started to think that I could have done better, I hadn't done enough, I didn't look as good as I wanted to, I was starting to think about how fat and full of cellulite I would look on stage and that my bikini fit too tight. All these thoughts were starting to mess with me briefly but I was able to get them under control and process how far I have come. <br />
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To rid myself of these evil demons (which do come back sometimes), I started to think about my behavior a year ago and what I weighed, how I looked and how I felt physically and emotionally. I thought about my desire to "want" to do a figure/bikini competition but never failing to make any more progress than to put it on a list of things to do this year and it would of course get rolled over to the next year. Well not this year, this year before I turn 36 I will have competed in a bikini competition, I have lost almost 50 pounds since I weighed my heaviest and since I decided to compete and after the holidays, I have lost 25 pounds of those. I have also lost over 6% body fat, which is so important. I have changed many habits, actually truly working out several times a week, previously I just went to Kempo which was great because it helped me lose 12-15 pounds but then I hit a plateau. I started working out here and there and when I did great I would make progress, but as soon as I stopped it would come back. I also had a difficult time keeping my nutrition clean even 70% of the time because in one week I would do great the first three-five days and then sabotage myself on the weekend. Now I am able to follow a competition meal plan, which I might say, is definitely harder than a "normal" healthy meal plan. I also cut drinking and to be honest, I like this, I wake up refreshed and don't have to spend a whole day recovering or two from a hang over. And even though I have battled with cheating, I have come a long way from my habits before. <br />
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I feel physically and mentally stronger and healthier. Before I started training for the competition I had terrible knee pain and was diagnosed with mild medial osteoarthritis in both my knees. Most my patella hurt (which is pain the goes vertical in the middle of your knee). Now I am able to do 500 walking lunges in 20 minutes with no knee pain and 6 sets of a Plyometric workout in 20 minutes, and do track sprints - 100 meters. Funny story about the track sprints, the last time I was doing them a friend was with me and when we got to the track there was the college track team practicing. We still got to use the track but of course had to move to the outside of the track. So as I was sprinting one of my 100 meters, when I do to the end one of the girls training said "you are inspiring me." I said thank you but thought to myself "wow me inspiring her....that is awesome and totally empowering. Here I am not very fast compared to them, but I was actually inspiring her." I am very proud of that moment and that moment only came because I decided to compete in this bikini competition and because I hired an awesome coach who sent me out to do track sprints. Which I have to say I absolutely love and will keep it as part of my weekly workout. <br />
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Another way I have recently keep those evil demons out of my head was go through my closet and try things on. It is funny because I have another whole bag of things that fall off me, so that makes two full garbage bags for me to donate. I still have a bunch of clothes that are too big but I can still pull off wearing them for a another month (I hope). This year I will to ask people for money or gift cards to go shopping with for my birthday. Some clothes I got from a friend when she lost a lot of weight and some things went from being to small to being to big, I never got to wear them at the just right stage but hey I am good this that. I know before too long I will have cycled though all my clothes. Which is weird because I am the type of girl that keeps clothes for a long time at least five years and I have some from seven years ago. But again this shows me that I have made considerable progress.<br />
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At last to keep focused on my progress I have a progression college that I look at almost daily and it is so weird because I look at my pictures and I feel like I stare at them for hours (but it's probably like 5-10 minutes - ok 30 max but usually that is when I am sending an update to my coach and comparing the new ones to the old ones). I can't get over how much my body has changed and how I can pull off wearing the bikini I am on stage and I believe "I will rock the stage in my sexy body, that I slaved over." Its funny a friend was telling me about showing her daughter who is like 5 or 6 my last blog with the progression pictures while she was eating (I think) and her daughter stopped, her jaw dropped and she said "how can that even be the same person?" Kids say things that are so honest and innocent and it amazes me how right she is. I am not that person but I have grown because I was that person. I know what it is like to strive to reach a goal, fall down, get back up, fall again, get back up and face every challenge head on. I am not physically the same and I am not mentally the same - I am stronger, fitter, healthier and capable of whatever I put my mind too.<br />
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Five days left and I will be walking across the stage. Luckily I will be doing it with my friend and I thank you every day that I get closer to my goal because without her event invite to the 2nd Annual Jay Cutler Desert Classic, I probably would still be doing the same thing expecting a different result, which is basically the definition of insanity. I am so blessed to have a great support system, from my boyfriend, to my coach, to my friends and family and everyone on Facebook who likes my posts or comments on them. It means a lot to me and keeps me motivated that you all care enough to follow my progress. I haven't been able to blog and share as much as I wanted to but I have continued to do it, to hold myself accountable and to be true to my word. In the book the Four Agreements - the first agreement is "Be Impeccable to Your Word" - I have tried to do this through my journey and I think it is working.<br />
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The final prepping moments are here, hotel booked - done, haircut - done, makeup run though - done but will do again, workouts and food prepping still to do. Nails, spray tan and pedicure still to do. Packing - still to do. I have some last minute things to do but overall I feel confident, I know I have done enough and that what I have done has been good enough. I will glide across the stage with grace and confidence as I show off my sexy body that I worked and sacrificed for.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I know that I wont be the skinniest girl or the fittest girl, but </span></u></i></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">I am the skinniest, fittest, and sexist me </span></span></u></i></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="color: #741b47; font-size: large;">and that is what competing is about. </span></span></u></i></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">COMPETING SELF AGAINST SELF, OLD vs. NEW. </span></u></i></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></u></i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiku4AyU5bRvjiTYikH7WL4fKtSJY740NlA5XrQ_Y87msgw6eO_AuNqcrpcOFy-1qSn5e3c71ZKAu0F4CLygnFhh8zxbbUuUsA9zPtV0n-jK65fQ8MPlyLB9LsIxPFrmUgy-mdavrySsfcH/s1600/Excellence+is+a+habit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiku4AyU5bRvjiTYikH7WL4fKtSJY740NlA5XrQ_Y87msgw6eO_AuNqcrpcOFy-1qSn5e3c71ZKAu0F4CLygnFhh8zxbbUuUsA9zPtV0n-jK65fQ8MPlyLB9LsIxPFrmUgy-mdavrySsfcH/s320/Excellence+is+a+habit.jpg" width="282" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nT069BofT49fhebGkzXPJPB6usUAUsqGQoED8Ep6EarU2MxQ_mnDWSvCnNTJIQeW1Un23TM8wMnIph8eyuhExZmzHJiEf9wwl2xgmeg7TlaE7Vml6h-IqNasUlp4fJOc4bIjH-PqEuIG/s1600/Compete+with+yourself.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9nT069BofT49fhebGkzXPJPB6usUAUsqGQoED8Ep6EarU2MxQ_mnDWSvCnNTJIQeW1Un23TM8wMnIph8eyuhExZmzHJiEf9wwl2xgmeg7TlaE7Vml6h-IqNasUlp4fJOc4bIjH-PqEuIG/s320/Compete+with+yourself.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPVksFtXopgmD1IjS9w4yauRiXrE0QTUIuznlG_RkC3cOk6xBsFE86KNKaWEsdQg7kOi4VFt-9-HIfnG6ImE1uF1hcvPYA5iJdiTBP6_HRucJ5R_xJXXRB3oO2YyLsglz_jHtxfizvbPq/s1600/Regret+what+you+dont+do.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPVksFtXopgmD1IjS9w4yauRiXrE0QTUIuznlG_RkC3cOk6xBsFE86KNKaWEsdQg7kOi4VFt-9-HIfnG6ImE1uF1hcvPYA5iJdiTBP6_HRucJ5R_xJXXRB3oO2YyLsglz_jHtxfizvbPq/s320/Regret+what+you+dont+do.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</span></u></i></b></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-76905333923059184412012-03-22T23:05:00.001-07:002012-03-22T23:05:23.966-07:00Progress Update Only 15 Days LeftIt has been several weeks since I posted, I believe 5 in fact. I have been so busy between training, working, talking with my coach, and being a relationship that I haven't had the time to update my blog. There are lots of finishing steps that I have to attend to in addition to all my workouts and meal planning. This week I got my shoes and my suit and I was so excited to see if it even fit. Once I got over the shock of how small it was I put it on and guess what, it fit!!! Of course I had to take pictures and I was beaming with happiness when I saw my photos. I can't believe how far I have come, so I wanted to share it with through through pictures. I told my coach that I am going to make a college of these pictures to take with me to the show so just in case I start to engage in negative self talk or self doubt, I can have a visual reference of how far I have come. Plus I still have two weeks prep for competition and now I am down to the wire. <br />
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Only things left to do are 1) Practice my poses and stage presence 2) watch videos on bikini competitions as research and reference for how I should own the stage 3) haircut with quick course in easy styling 4) Get my nails done and of course a pedicure 5) Keep Tanning and Spray tan just before show 6) Get waxed just before show 7) Become a natural in my shoes 8) Continue following my nutrition and fitness plans 9) Buy makeup and learn how to apply it for the show since I only wear tinted moisturizer these days and of course most importantly 10) Register for the show - something I was hoping to do last week but I am hoping to do this week. I will continue to try to update my blog more often and share some of my reflections of my journey.<br />
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Again as always your feedback and support are always appreciated. So without further ado here is my progress over the last year and of course since December 2011, when I decided to compete.<br />
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As they say "A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZm2eM-CdRMhG8VG5LXT1Rc9eaVm5EqFzA1FHp2heUH8jSDvt4Jd2EPHghm-RZVgbyjDTSenBFm6xKHcPK9lhKv7cjKvI-V8tBDxJ7f3jTCNPSTrtTFtGixpDeUbmG-g2FLwV_sd3OXjGQ/s1600/Feb+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZm2eM-CdRMhG8VG5LXT1Rc9eaVm5EqFzA1FHp2heUH8jSDvt4Jd2EPHghm-RZVgbyjDTSenBFm6xKHcPK9lhKv7cjKvI-V8tBDxJ7f3jTCNPSTrtTFtGixpDeUbmG-g2FLwV_sd3OXjGQ/s320/Feb+2011.jpg" width="114" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">February 2011 </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguOU4ShK3jCeQJ2GZc4YGuX2DIg81OsRTdG0XcLr6lMkd_CwVuIckjXr13mrsMddM2r8djeWUpT5jKw9POihX4cweTb6RacKm70EZcU2IEqSalAaiCJ9MjJLC3g38rtqsApFL3TuaVmhdx/s1600/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguOU4ShK3jCeQJ2GZc4YGuX2DIg81OsRTdG0XcLr6lMkd_CwVuIckjXr13mrsMddM2r8djeWUpT5jKw9POihX4cweTb6RacKm70EZcU2IEqSalAaiCJ9MjJLC3g38rtqsApFL3TuaVmhdx/s320/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">May 2011</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoK0GezE_jLGUsTsJrXw5N2BrbmRmJhyphenhyphen543Yq-GcJhSYROGKHX1nJw_ehBn3ZD7V_rLAyd2G8xWstGnsb8lxBljgyGXBpx9KoOpHteFejvSUqAXiVTgCusoGr2QFXqJ29kzQUs_JA4OE78/s1600/Front+Pose.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoK0GezE_jLGUsTsJrXw5N2BrbmRmJhyphenhyphen543Yq-GcJhSYROGKHX1nJw_ehBn3ZD7V_rLAyd2G8xWstGnsb8lxBljgyGXBpx9KoOpHteFejvSUqAXiVTgCusoGr2QFXqJ29kzQUs_JA4OE78/s320/Front+Pose.JPG" width="178" /></a> </td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">March 21, 2012</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZZxo7Do0xp1gtExAxrF1XJ3HVtaL09SLs4t_249foYbSkZNnVkFoB5I1hl5JSADwF9AJW1LsPL7GZFDGrtq0lRW-Y958Ii9Iin4mUxJQtMX9-WHOCCQs1Imm6HncLh4tXHulkSIAXiFf/s1600/PC160485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZZxo7Do0xp1gtExAxrF1XJ3HVtaL09SLs4t_249foYbSkZNnVkFoB5I1hl5JSADwF9AJW1LsPL7GZFDGrtq0lRW-Y958Ii9Iin4mUxJQtMX9-WHOCCQs1Imm6HncLh4tXHulkSIAXiFf/s320/PC160485.JPG" width="184" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">December 2011<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrwIfWfjspxHP7oZXWuOKuThna2kVj83pqi2NOwtHgVyXIX__KpGero9wglU5sKucXanTJRwSUKY3XBt_N_hRDKqE07YqLTv3Lq39bNHBddWafspol2WIWQNuP9V7BNTYfz1vGiy0IUDF/s1600/Front+Pose.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrwIfWfjspxHP7oZXWuOKuThna2kVj83pqi2NOwtHgVyXIX__KpGero9wglU5sKucXanTJRwSUKY3XBt_N_hRDKqE07YqLTv3Lq39bNHBddWafspol2WIWQNuP9V7BNTYfz1vGiy0IUDF/s320/Front+Pose.JPG" width="192" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">February 19, 2012</td></tr>
</tbody></table>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-65948532807996568432012-02-20T17:36:00.000-08:002012-02-20T17:36:00.794-08:0047 days and CountingThere is less than 7 weeks until the figure competition and I still have a long ways to go - although I continue to make considerable progress and here are my most recent stats:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2_mIx4dgKAHlkvznD1i-VVTQBiS4-13TKTdCcQXbY9_mnMuqpFCfugFWqcwgolP_hXMYcaukEWatXZGZDUaatwhL1fOU1UrRERYsHL_vCFl-xYDy2oS5XKOF6TO-msxRKyp34ISKoKdy/s1600/Back+Pose+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2_mIx4dgKAHlkvznD1i-VVTQBiS4-13TKTdCcQXbY9_mnMuqpFCfugFWqcwgolP_hXMYcaukEWatXZGZDUaatwhL1fOU1UrRERYsHL_vCFl-xYDy2oS5XKOF6TO-msxRKyp34ISKoKdy/s320/Back+Pose+2.JPG" width="177" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2_mIx4dgKAHlkvznD1i-VVTQBiS4-13TKTdCcQXbY9_mnMuqpFCfugFWqcwgolP_hXMYcaukEWatXZGZDUaatwhL1fOU1UrRERYsHL_vCFl-xYDy2oS5XKOF6TO-msxRKyp34ISKoKdy/s1600/Back+Pose+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8Yrb3io7rRH5zQni5eQ6NL7WuNMuNaFSCVHobCQIJv1Gq-J5diecOHtJZgya14Kx46ql_j5pRjqDqEkrditmkDGajLnsBH0tvDT5UI2eSoUJb6vOT1ESDoMYiWBOkm7vsPJdylwXg8QO/s1600/Front+Pose.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8Yrb3io7rRH5zQni5eQ6NL7WuNMuNaFSCVHobCQIJv1Gq-J5diecOHtJZgya14Kx46ql_j5pRjqDqEkrditmkDGajLnsBH0tvDT5UI2eSoUJb6vOT1ESDoMYiWBOkm7vsPJdylwXg8QO/s320/Front+Pose.JPG" width="192" /></a><br />
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Weight - 176<br />
Body Fat - 27.4%<br />
N. Waist 30.5"<br />
Belly Button 32"<br />
High Hips 38.75"<br />
Full Hips 40.5"<br />
R/L Thigh 26.25"<br />
R. Calf 15.25"<br />
L. Calf 15"<br />
R. Arm 12.5"<br />
L. Arm 12.25"<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjZLbYQUa_mzbVUzqs8qU003aw8RAv4ZO0DVJkGyupGCXivRgq5TQFtvl8JmahTUpnkhRQKV5uW2WpQX8KCkZKMD52EZ-2BLB2XzT0Msv4YGluO0Y9Qg0tv5iZYe3pc8r_ssc3SgQg_yRs/s1600/Left+SIde.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWUJZbX0JZ_Kcqvkga1Ig0tuwHlbyQkCpg-85P8H_BMWv89WEvG8UViQzQzjbbtVNy-Z4vA3fJL0VWVfWqYklXOX_uq4yPKbXFXj5tFpNJSVtS6_BRifDrhOcxYigIlIg_wOv2V81zC5Z/s1600/Right+Side.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWUJZbX0JZ_Kcqvkga1Ig0tuwHlbyQkCpg-85P8H_BMWv89WEvG8UViQzQzjbbtVNy-Z4vA3fJL0VWVfWqYklXOX_uq4yPKbXFXj5tFpNJSVtS6_BRifDrhOcxYigIlIg_wOv2V81zC5Z/s320/Right+Side.JPG" width="116" /></a><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjZLbYQUa_mzbVUzqs8qU003aw8RAv4ZO0DVJkGyupGCXivRgq5TQFtvl8JmahTUpnkhRQKV5uW2WpQX8KCkZKMD52EZ-2BLB2XzT0Msv4YGluO0Y9Qg0tv5iZYe3pc8r_ssc3SgQg_yRs/s320/Left+SIde.JPG" width="99" /></div> In just the last week I have lost 3.75" across my body. I can see my muscle definition coming out more. I know I am making progress and I feel great about it. I was able to put on a pair of Maui Built shorts Kirk bought me which were a size 11 Juniors, so that felt great. <br />
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I still have a long journey ahead of me but at the same time I can see the finish line which is good because the amount of discipline it takes to reach this goal is challenging and difficult to sustain at times. <br />
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I appreciate everyone's support and again encourage you to let me know what differences you see. Thank you :o)<br />
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~ Amanda~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-16138189404893177312012-02-20T17:16:00.000-08:002012-02-20T17:16:27.058-08:00Sharing a Part of My Personal Insight Journal<div class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">2/20/12 – Continuation of Reflections from Lori Harder’s Coaching Call<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Part of the discussion about having to work for what you want and how to stay focused once you decide and commit to a goal. Lori reflected that once you commit to a goal that it is important that you keep going in order to reach your results and that you will reach your goal as long as you don’t quit. I decided a long time ago that it was important for me to become healthier and to lose weight/fat and become more fit. I got up to between 212-215 which was super unhealthy. I didn’t feel good, I had no energy and my self esteem was low. I decided that it was time to make a change and slowly but surely I would lose weight/fat and look between. I trained with marital arts and I really loved it. I made the decision to get a regular gym membership to be able to visit the gym more since the boxing gym was a little ways away and open limited hours. I definitely saw results however I would lose – stay – lose – stay and then become distracted – fall back then lose – stay. I finally decided with the help of a health coach through my insurance that I needed a goal to focus on and then Brandi set me a notice about the Jay Cutler Desert Classic Bikini/Figure Competition and so I decided that I would compete. This was something that I had been wanting to do for a while and now I am in the process of training for the competition. I have been working with my coach for about a month and I have less than 7 weeks to prepare for the show. I have had many challenges along the way and one thing that came out of Lori Harder’s call was that you may have to “RE-ROUTE UNTIL YOU GET THERE.” This speaks to me now because I have continued to struggle with being consistent, eating all my meals, drinking a gallon of water, hitting all my workouts and NOT cheating. It has been hard. I have had to rethink a lot of things, including how to meet all of the expectations for myself, work and my relationship. I just had to sit down again and think about how to make things more flexible and easy for me to do. There are only 7 weeks left and that is good and hard at the same time. Good because I have a deadline ahead of me and hard because it doesn’t leave me much room for error. I have made great progress however, I know that if I could be more consistent and more focused, I can make even greater progress than I am now. Don’t get me wrong I am doing a great thing and I have done a lot since I decided to compete in fact I lost 3.75” off my body which is great when you consider where I was in May. I can’t give up now no matter how much I want cheese, pizza, pasta, cheese, and whatever else I am craving in the morning. I know that I can do this and I am almost there. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I believe in myself, I have faith, I can see my goal, I will keep going and I will keep growing!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Another point that came out of our group coaching call was – Insecurity. We all deal with it and guess what it never goes away and that is from a woman who seems to have it all. She expressed that one of the major reasons insecurity doesn’t go away is because we are constantly growing and striving to grow. Growth has many challenges and insecurity is a huge one – Can I do this? What if everyone looks better, What if I fall, I bet I will look like a big fat tub of lard, I have big thighs, is this cellulite ever going away? What do I do if everyone laughs at me? What if no one cheers for me? What if they boo me off stage – how humiliating will that be?? What if I……<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I could keep going on about what insecurities run through my head throughout the day but I keep reminding myself that I am running my own race and I am competing with where I was a year ago in Hawaii. I weighed 200 pounds and thought I looked great and you know what I did compared to the me one year/6 months before that. I am consistently improving and growing and I encounter insecurity even with training. Am I doing this exercise right, why are those people looking at me, what do people thinks when they see me, I don’t have the strength to do this, am I sure I can do this – it seems so hard and on and on and on. I have to push those voices out of my head – I can’t listen to insecurity and hogwash like that because I can do anything I want. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A key strategy for dealing with insecurity is FAITH. Now I know we have all heard this before and believe me this is not about religion it is having faith in your abilities. If you believe it can happen, think about all the things we didn’t have 100 years ago that we have now or even 25 years ago (i.e. cell phones with the internet). Lori explained that it is important to “Envision yourself at your end goal. Push out negative thoughts.” I ask, “If you can imagine yourself at your end goal then how can you get there? “ “How will you be able to push out negative thoughts if you can’t see yourself succeeding at your goals?” What is the reason for your inability to see yourself succeed?” There could be a million reasons and sometimes it is because we are not committed to the goal at hand or that we haven’t made it a priority. “What is stopping you from success?? Is it you?”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> When I started this journey I had a lot of self doubt and insecurities, so I started telling myself 10 positive things about myself three times a day and forced myself to write them down for like four days. I was determined to write 10 different things down every day and guess what I DID. I ended up writing over 40 positive things about me and my ability to achieve my goals. (I read this in an Oxygen Magazine). It really helped me put things into perspective – I have a ton more positive things than negative ones to focus on. I enjoyed this process because it forced me to really think about myself. This is another way to deal with insecurity – FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE THINGS ABOUT YOURSELF<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am beautiful<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am powerful<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I make a difference in the lives of families affected by violence<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am a great girlfriend<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am a wonderful friend<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I have achieved many goals<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I have the discipline and focus required to achieve my goals<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I have overcome tragedy and loss<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I prove every day that I am capable of doing anything I want<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am strong<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Gratitude and helping others were also things that seemed to be important in our coaching call. I feel that it is important to be thankful to those who help you succeed. I don’t think that we are capable of success 100% by ourselves. There are people who support us, believe in our ideas, mentor us, provide us guidance, and purchase what we sell. I could not grow as a therapist if I didn’t have clients who continued to come back to see me. It is important to recognize that people help us achieve our goals and we need to be thankful. Right now my focus is on the competition and I am thankful for the following: My boyfriend, my coach, my friends, my family, anyone who reads my blog, the gyms for being open when I want to go, the local college for allowing public use of their track and the people at the stores who answer my questions when I need help finding the things I need to be able to fuel my body appropriately. All these people help me succeed at my goal, even though I have the drive to do it myself – it takes support to achieve success. In regards to helping others, my goal is to be able to help other women reach their goals. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Wow – I have reflected a lot and as I was looking at the notes I took there are still four more pages. That phone call was packed with so much information and I didn’t even realize it until right now as I am processing. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Another aspect of our coaching call explored – Define what you want and why. Setting the goal is not the only important thing. Why you want to achieve it is just as important as the goal if not more important. So why compete in a figure competition, why get healthier? Well for me part of it has to do with getting back to the root of who I am, getting toxic relationships and people out of my body and proving to myself that I can accomplish a fitness goal that probably less than 1% of the population even consider doing. I want to be healthy and strong so I can live as long as possible in a “healthy” way – physically and emotionally. That is why I have decided to do what I am doing. Also I want to be a positive role model to others who want to do it but don’t have the inner strength to do it alone. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lori said the why should be so crystal clear that you can’t live without achieving your goal and that there is no other option but the goal. Right now this is how I feel about competing in the figure/bikini competition and not just that just continuing to work on my physique and health/fitness beyond the competition. I have to succeed at this to create a better now and future for myself and my family (Kirk, Raven & Ava). I can see myself succeeding and many times that is how I make it through a workout. I focus on what I will look like when I walk across the stage and how I will feel having accomplished this goal. It is funny because as I am working out visualizing these things to get me through – I can’t help but to smile and give myself a high-five for achieving my goal and hearing my friends and family cheer for me. I even envision myself making top 10 (hey a girl can dream – it is possible) and if I don’t who cares, I still achieved my goal, which is to compete in a figure/bikini competition. Plain and simple – JUST COMPETE.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Our coaching call also took us self knowledge. We reflected on what are the practices that increase self-knowledge. These are four questions for you to ponder to help you become more aware of yourself. 1) When do I feel most like myself? 2) What am I doing when I love myself the most 3) When do I feel great and happy? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here are my answers to those questions 1) I feel most like myself when I am at the gym being active and teaching/training at the boxing gym. I also feel like myself when I am helping people explore and problem solve on a deeper emotional level. 2) When I love myself to most….well right now it is when I am pushing myself beyond my limits physically, so again – when I am working out and training and seeing the results of what I am doing. 3) I feel great and happy when I have just finished an awesome workout and did more than I thought I could at the beginning. I also feel great and happy when I make my boyfriend smile and laugh. Another time I feel great and happy is when I help a family who is struggling with trauma and I can actually see them make progress towards resolving things. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lori left us with some thoughts before answering questions we had and they were insightful 1) Putting yourself out there will scare you 2) You were created to touch different people 3) Stick with what your heart is telling you.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In thinking about these three thoughts – I remember how I came to the decision to do a blog about my journey and wrestled with my fears about posting pictures of myself as I progressed. It was hard to decide but at the same time made the most sense. If I wanted to help people in the future, it would be important that they had a clear understanding of my story and that would be best documented through pictures and a blog. It definitely scares me but at the same time people have praised me for having such courage and isn’t courage being able to face your fears, not the absence of fear. Second, my blog and journey will hopefully touch and motivate others with their goals. It doesn’t matter if they are health and fitness or not but just for people to continue to believe in themselves. Third, my heart continually focuses on helping others but also confirms that the best way to do this is by first taking good care of myself. I talk with all the parents I work with about the importance of good self care; therefore I feel in my heart that it is my responsibility to reflect that though my practice and my life. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Finally in the call I sought out guidance on how to manage all life when training for a figure competition and Lori’s response resonated with me. She shared that first plan head because that is important to succeed, next forgive yourself – you will make mistakes, trust the process and your coach, pay attention to your family and make sure you communication with them about why this is important to you, and most importantly remain balanced and BE NICE.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Kirk and I have had a couple bumpy weeks and a lot of it has to do with my decision to do this competition. It takes me away from my other responsibilities. We have recently been able to have some good conversations and since then he has been able to be more supportive and I continue to try to be empathic to his perspective and I try to BE NICE when he is irritating me. It helps to know there is only 7 weeks left until the competition. I know that once we make it through this we will be a stronger couple. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Finally the last part of this phone call that really helped me gain insight about my experience was this:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Dream – Act – Fix<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s a process – you can tweak as you go<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s a learning process – about yourself and how to do things better<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Footlight MT Light"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Footlight MT Light";">-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t Regret Your Mistakes – if you don’t make them how will you learn an become better.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Footlight MT Light","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><br />
</o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: 'Footlight MT Light', serif;">I hope you enjoyed reading this excerpt from my personal journal, I feel that sometimes I don't share enough of my personal insight process. Thank you again for supporting me on my journey. </span></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-84223646945973487752012-02-06T21:21:00.000-08:002012-02-06T21:21:23.006-08:00One more week down - 9 more to go - First Stop is within sightI have been pretty focused and committed to my goal of competing in a figure competition in April. Although nine weeks seems like a good amount of time, I feel like it is right around the corner. I have been struggling with many things including figuring out how to manage all of my commitments and get all my workouts in. I was doing really great with getting all my workouts in until today when I over slept because I stayed up two hours to late, I didn't even hear my alarm clock, which is shocking. I guess that means my body is really needing at least 7 hours of sleep. Tonight I am headed back to bed at the normal time because I definitely have to get up early to workout. <br />
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I have a confession - yesterday I ate a handful of potato chips and to be honest they tasted pretty good. I know I was cheating but I just couldn't overcome the urge. So I gave myself permission to have a couple as long as I got right back on my plan. I am proud to say that today I did just that but I need to work on eating nuts when I am not supposed to - I just love walnuts so they are hard for me to have - I actually put them in the cabinet so I don't see them very often. This has helped a little.<br />
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Overall in my plan I think I have done well and my results have been great. Here are my new pictures and measurements - if you look at the other blogs I am sure you can see the difference in my body - I know I can. I am also excited to say that I am only two pounds away from where I was when I met my wonderful boyfriend. (Side note, I am very lucky to have such an awesome and supportive man be part of my life. I don't know that I thank him enough or tell him how much I appreciate him, so I think I will text him even though he is in the other room playing video games with a friend.)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDzdQTvB8v1OrR08oR0s5NUnqU0Wr8bD0RBf5KR2M6c1v_WHFT9gfzAYtYl4-w77IiPQwFQOFUOjTdF4Yz9bRGMMzdXXlLJ6cvDXFeOo0C-hRTLFT2AHE71EfTOsFde0B-tqrybbDeWbWW/s1600/Left+Side.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDzdQTvB8v1OrR08oR0s5NUnqU0Wr8bD0RBf5KR2M6c1v_WHFT9gfzAYtYl4-w77IiPQwFQOFUOjTdF4Yz9bRGMMzdXXlLJ6cvDXFeOo0C-hRTLFT2AHE71EfTOsFde0B-tqrybbDeWbWW/s320/Left+Side.JPG" width="131" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAbNVoJiPCczqFet6s4_88AuUeZspLiGcVzFHTWxZqj4HYjil1FB5gl59eQ0mQyxamPJfq2cAYzoYtGjFJJHSAzSggrzwwgMLC_YXtWQV1Sfw19n1QObMk0ZQs0nBpPSMM-Eg9CBq8oqcP/s1600/Right+Side.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAbNVoJiPCczqFet6s4_88AuUeZspLiGcVzFHTWxZqj4HYjil1FB5gl59eQ0mQyxamPJfq2cAYzoYtGjFJJHSAzSggrzwwgMLC_YXtWQV1Sfw19n1QObMk0ZQs0nBpPSMM-Eg9CBq8oqcP/s320/Right+Side.JPG" width="123" /></a><br />
Weight 177<br />
Body Fat down 28.3 % (loss of 1.6%)<br />
Chest 38.5"<br />
Natural Waist 31.25"<br />
Belly Button 33"<br />
Full Hips 41.25"<br />
High Hips 39.5" (I think)<br />
Right/Left Thigh 26.75" each leg<br />
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I am definitely noticing less cellulite in my legs and that my butt looks tighter and lifted. I also notice more ab definition and more toned muscle throughout my body but especially my arms. I have noticed many other things as well that have changed, although you can't see them physically, my endurance has increased, my strength has improved, my stamina has increased and I can physically do things I didn't think were possible for me like sprint at an 8.0 on the treadmill for 60 seconds and a 9.0 for 30 seconds. I am also able to mentally push myself for just a few more seconds each time I work out. This is the keep to increasing my ability to achieve beyond what I think I am capable - I tell myself - just five more seconds, two more seconds, one more second, and pretty soon I have gone 10 more seconds that I thought I was previously capable of doing which keeps increasing my ability to go farther. <br />
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I still have a ways to go before the show but the important thing is that I continue to make progress towards my goal and everyday I get one step closer and one step stronger. I know that the show is a stop on my journey to a healthy me and that no matter how much I do, I may not feel like I did enough for the show and that is okay because this is a process and journey about my self discovery and personal accomplishment. I have have a great support system and I know that they will help me get through this journey. I trust my coach and I trust the process (which is something I learned from Lori Harder from my first group coaching call with my coach - Jill Coleman). I know that she knows what she is doing and that she wants me to succeed as much as I want to. I am excited to be challenging myself in ways I never have. I am completely excited to keep seeing how far I can go with my fitness and I hope that I motivate other people, not only to reach their fitness goals but to reach any goal they have been putting off. <br />
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Thank you everyone for your continued support. You all are amazing people and I appreciate all of you. <br />
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Defeat is a state of mind: no one is ever defeated until defeat has been accepted as a reality. To me, defeat in anything is merely temporary, and its punishment is but an urge for me to exert greater effort to achieve my goal. Defeat simply tells me that something is wrong in my doing; it is a path leading to success and truth ~ Bruce Lee Wisdom.~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-87285436883541247262012-02-01T20:49:00.000-08:002012-02-01T20:49:37.480-08:009.5 Weeks to CompetitionAs my trainer, Jill, said to me in her email "Its Go Time!" Sunday I started a new nutrition plan she created and since then I have been doing fairly well considering I have to:<br />
~ Drink One Gallon of Water per Day<br />
~ Drink 16oz green tea daily (ok well I can only drink 8 if I want but she prefers more)<br />
~ NO SALT on anything<br />
~ NO SUGAR<br />
~ NO DAIRY<br />
~ NO CHEATING, or I am only cheating myself<br />
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Given all this I am doing well and haven't felt like cheating yet, well unless you consider eating a few extra walnuts when I am not scheduled to but I can honestly report I haven't cheated in any other way. Good news is I have lost like 4 pounds in a couple of days - mostly water weight I am sure but still I should be below 180 by the end of the week. I have also been doing well with my workouts although I have been more tired which could be because I have changed up my workouts and my diet has changed, lots less carbs (only sweet potato, brown rice and oat bran).<br />
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I will be posting new photos this weekend because I have to take new measurements and photos this weekend to send to my trainer. This is something that I have to do every week until my competition. <br />
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I am keeping this post short because I have to get to bed and I am not feeling that well - too much congestion, yucky. See you this weekend.~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-6975703065060672382012-01-19T17:43:00.000-08:002012-01-19T17:43:30.639-08:00Update for First MonthI started my goal and this blog one month ago and I have been trying to focus on it and figure out how to make it part of my normal life. Truth be told this has been a struggle especially through the holidays. As with most people I have gained a few pounds which have been difficult to take off partly because I got sick and partly because my nutrition and fitness haven't been consistent. Consistency is my biggest challenge to achieving my fitness goal. I haven't been consistent and life has distracted me. I know this may sound grim to some of you but it is the truth and the reality of why I haven't made any real progress in the past month. I took new pictures and to be honest with you, I do not see any signs of physical progress from by physique except I look tanner but no true visual changes. Here are the pictures to prove it:<div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDF1eVTwo_JvzCAo_yIS-WWY4BkncvlsE7BjhOFKLRE7OHsmwyKTChX5GWWWqYTn-I_WGWj1SPPlJEROAuEgnRSTbB6e_qK2OAErmpeLBOi5hXwYHkWwg9oInDAqbD18g0vKTfLqvRahZH/s1600/P1160492.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDF1eVTwo_JvzCAo_yIS-WWY4BkncvlsE7BjhOFKLRE7OHsmwyKTChX5GWWWqYTn-I_WGWj1SPPlJEROAuEgnRSTbB6e_qK2OAErmpeLBOi5hXwYHkWwg9oInDAqbD18g0vKTfLqvRahZH/s320/P1160492.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One Month</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9t690iKQk46Op2D03aRBiUIYIt7fHfrvtFP8Uu9K76mhzMMGYiD__JGLSPbcnQ7E_OZrK1NH9JHTIwFngObKBFZyzUF15FbTy_xkaucLVhVfpx_QWMRWvwE69laGIMnyJ70m2iS9aBfii/s1600/PC160485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9t690iKQk46Op2D03aRBiUIYIt7fHfrvtFP8Uu9K76mhzMMGYiD__JGLSPbcnQ7E_OZrK1NH9JHTIwFngObKBFZyzUF15FbTy_xkaucLVhVfpx_QWMRWvwE69laGIMnyJ70m2iS9aBfii/s320/PC160485.JPG" width="184" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starting Point</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
I can't tell much of a different between the two except maybe the angle of the picture<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6asujv5Pl0plfsvWVZditZK8oMw5az6Y5aaac95pqKpsz092IMG2ibjcBmTD5Xg4v5lGf60ugEtZWZbN-ysK8wIMa9WNO5qBBIBn5v5M8OIHzeafZmQw9dzqPBcsEOTpeWTChakUQuWss/s1600/PC160486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6asujv5Pl0plfsvWVZditZK8oMw5az6Y5aaac95pqKpsz092IMG2ibjcBmTD5Xg4v5lGf60ugEtZWZbN-ysK8wIMa9WNO5qBBIBn5v5M8OIHzeafZmQw9dzqPBcsEOTpeWTChakUQuWss/s320/PC160486.JPG" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starting Point<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXa7VmU3QBqzOA8AlM5UZ8wIlNNMSZhoWtdiS53fiv_4d4vSXeHyVMp9kmpVCSPRSJF3O7Jynfm4H7EA5XyKlbSV7qA6Zr4ZWYhOG8mSjIYpmxRQgsteacc3zH3n79cCQAv7BV1M6qYwr/s1600/P1160504.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXa7VmU3QBqzOA8AlM5UZ8wIlNNMSZhoWtdiS53fiv_4d4vSXeHyVMp9kmpVCSPRSJF3O7Jynfm4H7EA5XyKlbSV7qA6Zr4ZWYhOG8mSjIYpmxRQgsteacc3zH3n79cCQAv7BV1M6qYwr/s320/P1160504.JPG" width="186" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">One Month</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Again I have a hard time telling the difference but I do think my legs are starting to look a little less dimpled but it could also have to do with the lighting and there could be a slight bit more muscle tone in my shoulders and back.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0o-25G5DlSTm4FwKK7U5PRE-eR5B2NleG4LHI2tWVdEc0a6TUVQeC6Pbfjut1Eu5ZWLX3unQJPf8Ib7L5RWKClIrm0veBLs2RWr_avopDptw1qalefNqrSAXZU6XAwq6rbAQl0ns1Lif2/s1600/PC160488.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0o-25G5DlSTm4FwKK7U5PRE-eR5B2NleG4LHI2tWVdEc0a6TUVQeC6Pbfjut1Eu5ZWLX3unQJPf8Ib7L5RWKClIrm0veBLs2RWr_avopDptw1qalefNqrSAXZU6XAwq6rbAQl0ns1Lif2/s320/PC160488.JPG" width="116" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starting point</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiojDW3desDyuR4u4MI5WWDqc0bjljbaTzzo2lR8nkVthXpdE4Rt3THMrGjn-mfWxfZlipnzudXcyzkjQx-vtF7QVReIGiXQaUHayVnHh7uOAqNTk401mMJm9wt6jqQPm6SYRwrF8VyqDp/s1600/P1160509.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiojDW3desDyuR4u4MI5WWDqc0bjljbaTzzo2lR8nkVthXpdE4Rt3THMrGjn-mfWxfZlipnzudXcyzkjQx-vtF7QVReIGiXQaUHayVnHh7uOAqNTk401mMJm9wt6jqQPm6SYRwrF8VyqDp/s320/P1160509.JPG" width="174" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One Month</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZNc6xbLL-CSXh6DqfgH-S9Wa1YdpSoZ1QglBK8YbDB4W4jxFNSYnRPvbpAOkN5RnxsROqamkfI7UPeLMY3US1gCmdhTC7J73DRHQk8GAJ7dVnu-f6UaxcM-o3qYVh9YBhbSRxg-_HUjk/s1600/P1160500.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZNc6xbLL-CSXh6DqfgH-S9Wa1YdpSoZ1QglBK8YbDB4W4jxFNSYnRPvbpAOkN5RnxsROqamkfI7UPeLMY3US1gCmdhTC7J73DRHQk8GAJ7dVnu-f6UaxcM-o3qYVh9YBhbSRxg-_HUjk/s320/P1160500.JPG" width="142" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One Month</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjn6Mk-pkZvPNPG8_FmVx2hyphenhyphenHILNdLw9CUYCl70Nn690UWAoX61o2CLP1ipVGfXyiLN3mbdqvKy-PEoai0QzkBWCU2FhPsALkXDmntsO1GmPaVs20_CDmTanroulR5TLezxb_kf3JbAaCg/s320/PC160489.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="113" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starting Point</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjn6Mk-pkZvPNPG8_FmVx2hyphenhyphenHILNdLw9CUYCl70Nn690UWAoX61o2CLP1ipVGfXyiLN3mbdqvKy-PEoai0QzkBWCU2FhPsALkXDmntsO1GmPaVs20_CDmTanroulR5TLezxb_kf3JbAaCg/s1600/PC160489.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>Here I can see that I am standing taller more confident and my butt may be lifted up a bit/tighter. I also might have leaner legs, but again hard to tell. There may be a slight improvement in my legs.<br />
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</div><div>If you see anything I don't in the above pictures please let me know :)</div><div><br />
</div><div>With all the challenges I have had, I am glad to report that I am still working towards my goal and I have to remember this is a process and as they say "Rome wasn't built in a day." So changing my physique is a lifestyle change that not only impacts me but the people around me. Sometimes I feel that I am learning to walk - I am making progress but boy have I had my fare share of falls and some have been harder than others. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Not so I sound do gloom and doom or too critical of myself. I have made some really good progress including working on eating better every day, reading The Metabolic Effect Diet book (which I highly recommend), working out daily and now starting to get up on my own to work out in the morning, figuring out how to get into bed early to get enough sleep, engaged in a coaching program with my health insurance and I have also started a coaching program for the next year with Jill Coleman at <a href="http://www.jillfit.com/">www.jillfit.com</a> which I am excited about. Being involved in the coaching program will help me continue to make long lasting progress beyond just the figure competition. Her program isn't just about the physical aspects of being healthy but also the mental ones as well. It is ironic in a way that I have started paying more attention and focus on the mind body connection and I found her. </div><div><br />
</div><div>I am also still planning on competing. The competition is only 79 days away and I have a lot of fat to lose but it is still doable with increased focus and discipline. The most important thing is that I am learning about myself and challenging myself to grow in ways I have never done before, therefore it is important for me to be able to make changes that I will be able to stick with for life and that will increase the positive aspects of my relationship with myself and my partner, Kirk. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Today's thought to ponder: </div><div><br />
</div><div>"The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will." ~ Vince Lombardi</div><div><br />
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</div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-13834543005824427782012-01-15T19:48:00.000-08:002012-01-15T19:48:34.368-08:00Thoughts from Yoga for 2012<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">Forget safety. Live where you fear to live.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">Destroy your reputation. Be notorious.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">I have tried prudent planning long enough.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">From now on, I’ll be mad. - Rumi (Bewilderment)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">I have started taking Yin Yoga and it is wonderful. Stretches are held for long periods of time which helps the connective tissue and lots of other things. During my 3rd class with a new instructor, she the above part of a poem by Rumi. This really sat with me because as I thought about my goals for 2012, I realize that part of me is being safe by staying where I am. But also that I have picked a goal that seems to be the definition of living in fear. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Deciding to compete means that I am being risky and trying to live in fear. By setting this goal I am forced to face my fears and overcome my challenges with living healthy and reaching my fitness potential and optimal physique. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Recently I have been debating on continuing to try to achieve this goal and I have to remember this is a process and I am going to struggle periodically with making the changes to achieve this goal because it forces me to be in an unfamiliar place and I have been comfortable to long. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Bitstream Charter', serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">It was helpful for me to tell this to one of my coaches and she was able to help me reflect on what my actual goal was and remind me about that I am doing this to learn more about myself and reach an overall goal - so this is a learning process. </span></span><br />
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</span></span>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-88142138337191199062012-01-09T21:22:00.000-08:002012-01-09T21:22:05.234-08:00Refocusing and Getting Back on TrackSo it has been a while since I posted on my blog. Lots of things have happened including the holidays. It has been a struggle so far in 2012 to recover from everything that happened during the holidays (friends staying with us unexpectedly, I got sick, Kirk switched his job which means no more getting up early to get him off to work). With all these things happening I lost focus of my goal, however now I am refocusing on it. <br />
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Part of my struggle has been trying to figure out if I really want to compete in the figure competition. I have 88 days left and I feel like I have gotten no where from where I started. I know I tend to be my own worst critic and many times are very hard on myself, so I am trying to acknowledge all the positive things that I am doing to reach my goals, because if I lose that of that, I am likely not going to reach my goal. <br />
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Here is what I have done so far:<br />
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1) I started yoga over the holidays which has been a great thing and I like it a lot, it seems to help calm me and adds a relaxation element to my high intensity work outs. <br />
2) I also applied to be part of a Coaching Program with Jill Coleman and got accepted, so I am excited work with her over the next year to reach my goals. <br />
3) I stopped drinking alcohol. In fact, this past weekend I did not have even on drink when we were out and I felt great. It was the first weekend in a long time that I lost weight instead of gained.<br />
4) I started reading The Metabolic Effect Diet and it is a great book. With this book, I am starting to re-exam my workouts and tightening up my diet by looking at how I eat differently.<br />
5) I started adding sprints into my cardio workout to help increase my lean muscle mass and improve my "fat-burning" potential. <br />
6) I started writing my blog again.<br />
7) I prepared my food for the next day in advance. <br />
8) I am on track to be in bed by 10:30 which will be great, so I can wake up and work out. <br />
<br />
These things are something I celebrate and I am excited to be back on track. I have to remember that this is my journey and there will be obstacles in my which will sometimes lead me astray and it is part of my journey to learn how to identify distractions in order to save time. April and the figure competition is only part of my journey.~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-68122144016864163222011-12-21T22:04:00.000-08:002011-12-21T22:11:47.375-08:00The First Set of HurdlesTraining to compete in a Figure Competition is like running the hurdles, sometimes you might hit the hurdle and fall down, but its what you do after you fall that decides what happens next. Get back up and finish or quit and give up because you are too far behind??<br />
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So as this week starts I am encountering different struggles. This past weekend we hosted a Christmas Party for our family and friends. Since we did it potluck style you can only imaging how many desserts we had. I overindulged all weekend and I have struggled to get back on track. This tells me that having cheat days makes it hard for me to get back on track when left overs are sitting in front of me. <br />
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Even though the first week was hard to get to the gym, this week I am sore and struggling with the lack of sleep. I think last night was the maybe the second night I got more than 7 hours of sleep. I feel exhausted this week physically and even a little mentally although I am still focused and passionate about my choice. My exhaustion could be from a variety of factors including working out twice a day or maybe not eating the right foods or even not getting enough sleep for multiple days or a combination of all these things. <br />
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<b><u>MY PROPOSED SOLUTIONS</u></b><br />
<b><u><br />
</u></b><br />
With these challenges the second week, I have to look at how to I best set myself up for the next week and salvage this one as much as possible (since I have been having a few cookies and sweets here and there...hard to admit but important to be honest and accountable for my actions). So I have decided to do the following things:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Put all the cookies and sweets in Kirk's shop so they are not in the house. I know he will eat them but he will be mad if I just throw them out since he is a sweetaholic. After they are gone, he won't have as easy access to them. </li>
<li>Drink lots of water, more than I planned to help flush my system</li>
<li>Continue to workout this week with some minor increases (including yoga). </li>
<li>Next week - clean out the kitchen - remove all food that I choose not to eat while I am training and whatever Kirk wants to keep, it will be put in the shop fridge. This will make it harder for me to be tempted and if I am in there eating it one Kirk will see me or two I will be sneaking around when no one is looking and at that point I have a problem. I also might donate some non-perishable food that has to be cooked because I will not be eating it for several months at least. Limiting access is important.</li>
<li>Write a meal plan that is simple and I can stick with everyday, because as of December 26, 2011 I plan on tightening up my nutrition and then planning for January.</li>
<li>Stock up on foods that I can have including lots of veggies</li>
<li>Post my meal plan and workout routine - to help keep me focused and share with you what I am eating and how I am working out.</li>
<li>Post pictures again in one month to see the changes. - This is important for accountability.</li>
</ul><div><b><u>SUMMARY</u></b></div><div><br />
</div><div>Struggles are hard but should not be seen as a derailing of my overall plan. What it means is that right now I am not doing everything I need to and even if I was, there will still be struggles. Working towards a goal has challenges and without those struggles and speed bumps, you cannot truly appreciate your success and what you have earned. Part of growing is experiencing challenges and dealing with things that are hard and difficult. Some days putting your head in the sand or even sleeping in seems like a viable option but how can I achieve my goal if I don't experience growth pains???? How do I truly know what I am capable of if I don't face the challenges and overcome them??? Part of my journey is to face my personal challenges and beat them up and down, but leave them behind me, so I can reach my personal potential. The only person I harm but letting my struggles and challenges overcome me, is me. So even though this week is hard and I am so exhausted, I worked out twice everyday this week and I am gonna get up tomorrow and do it again. Achieving my goals and reaching my personal best my focus and my passion. </div><div><br />
</div><div>I choose to get back up and finish the race. I choose to use my hurdles as a means to grow stronger and fight harder for my goals. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Two of my favorite quotes </div><div><br />
</div><div>~ Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which, in prosperous circumstances, would have lain dormant. ~ Horace</div><div><br />
</div><div>~ If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves. ~ Thomas Edison</div><div><br />
</div><div>Its time for me to astound myself and use talents I didn't know I had!!</div><div><br />
</div><div> </div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-31797636751608377702011-12-18T22:12:00.000-08:002011-12-19T10:29:31.880-08:00First Week ReviewOne week down, sixteen more to go. 16 weeks seems like such a short and long time all at once. This week has been full of successes and challenges. I feel great after my first week completed. Here is my review:<br />
<br />
Challenges:<br />
<br />
First, I have struggled with getting more than five hours of sleep most nights. Which I know is something that I will remedy as I can't maintain my road to being healthy and fit without enough sleep at least 7 hours. Second was my eating/nutrition. Most of the week I did well however once Friday came my schedule was different and this was difficult for me to to adjust to, I ate horribly and then continued my free day all weekend. This is something I will figure out this month because it is important for me to have a structured schedule for food outside of my work week. This has been one of my constant struggles undoing what I have done during the week in one weekend.<br />
<br />
Successes:<br />
<br />
My main success this week was completing all my workouts. I didn't always make it to the gym at the time I wanted but I made it!!! This is quite an accomplishment for me. My workouts felt great and I wasn't really sore. During my massage tonight, my massage therapist told me she can definitely tell that my muscles are getting more toned and balanced. This week's massage was so much less painful than my one three weeks ago, so I am definitely doing something right. Also, this past week I haven't really experienced any patellar knee pain. Another thing I was able to do this week was take my starting measurements and before pictures. I can't get over how much my body has changed since our trip to Hawaii. I feel very proud of myself for reshaping my body. Additionally, I also emailed the contact people about entering the competition. They emailed me back advising that the information will be posted soon on www.jaycutler.com. I will be checking the website periodically to get registered. <br />
<br />
Overall I count this first week as a success given that I am creating a new routine. This second week I am going to repeat my first week with a few additions - I plan on attending one yoga class and hiking this weekend twice. I think it will be much easier this coming weekend that it was this weekend since we had a Christmas Party. I am also going to keep tightening up my nutrition. <br />
<br />
I know that I will experience challenges and struggles and I welcome the opportunity to conquer whatever comes up. I plan on maintaining some balance between pushing myself and paying attention to what my body tells me so I don't suffer an injury while I am training for the Figure Competition in April.<br />
<br />
In talking to many of my friends about starting this blog and choosing to compete, the common theme that I have heard is that I have a lot of courage and dedication to do this. It is interesting since today I had some Chinese food and with that a fortune cookie. I want to leave you with what my fortune read:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Courage is the mastery of fear, not the absence of fear</i></b></div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-44177439298951620642011-12-16T13:29:00.000-08:002011-12-16T13:29:28.395-08:00Starting LinePart of starting on a fitness journey includes looking at your current situation. For me that includes taking pictures of myself (front, back and sides) as well as documenting my weight and taking my measurements. Since I believe this, here is my starting point:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcVki7Ds54-_Rb6K7OvCrVcmz3EcodW-1uUsq-uN6OqH6M6heEGJoI4k15Oekpta7-qe4YxydQ0udqi_fVrU5noUk1Zp_tUYg1N1qyiZW2kfZ82fu4Y5P_CC5elsI-UJlU2UFv_PZ5ku/s1600/PC160485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcVki7Ds54-_Rb6K7OvCrVcmz3EcodW-1uUsq-uN6OqH6M6heEGJoI4k15Oekpta7-qe4YxydQ0udqi_fVrU5noUk1Zp_tUYg1N1qyiZW2kfZ82fu4Y5P_CC5elsI-UJlU2UFv_PZ5ku/s400/PC160485.JPG" width="230" /></a></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXmP3eGrxXDy_kANHc8HUKWUi1VlghrY53vhmsHkp42sUkniG7DTZ7qK3hWG1xhy3aHyEFkozAKY7FxHO7jtWapT2_fsng5p9lGD3ehlHXB2jmpEK3N4cvARpCyJc0gFNCJ_y9jcJt92RP/s1600/PC160488.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXmP3eGrxXDy_kANHc8HUKWUi1VlghrY53vhmsHkp42sUkniG7DTZ7qK3hWG1xhy3aHyEFkozAKY7FxHO7jtWapT2_fsng5p9lGD3ehlHXB2jmpEK3N4cvARpCyJc0gFNCJ_y9jcJt92RP/s400/PC160488.JPG" width="145" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRR-RSZJILarSJbxYwglCSeKe4OxV5fLd9fF3aG2uQNNG92htHF8674rU9Uz3DgWM6IEF_hGo7qsJxPFXT7Cp-FWlsfpCT7AKF-21ok-z_3waUeUCwGctqQMmWTH-ydz6mJiCh_x0o6kcK/s1600/PC160486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRR-RSZJILarSJbxYwglCSeKe4OxV5fLd9fF3aG2uQNNG92htHF8674rU9Uz3DgWM6IEF_hGo7qsJxPFXT7Cp-FWlsfpCT7AKF-21ok-z_3waUeUCwGctqQMmWTH-ydz6mJiCh_x0o6kcK/s1600/PC160486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRR-RSZJILarSJbxYwglCSeKe4OxV5fLd9fF3aG2uQNNG92htHF8674rU9Uz3DgWM6IEF_hGo7qsJxPFXT7Cp-FWlsfpCT7AKF-21ok-z_3waUeUCwGctqQMmWTH-ydz6mJiCh_x0o6kcK/s400/PC160486.JPG" width="270" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">Weight: 185.8</div><div style="text-align: center;">Chest: 39.5 inches</div><div style="text-align: center;">R/L Arm: 13.5 inches</div><div style="text-align: center;">Waist: 32.5 inches</div><div style="text-align: center;">Hips: 41 inches</div><div style="text-align: center;">R/L Leg: 26.5 inches</div><div style="text-align: center;">R/L Calf: 15.5 inches</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXmP3eGrxXDy_kANHc8HUKWUi1VlghrY53vhmsHkp42sUkniG7DTZ7qK3hWG1xhy3aHyEFkozAKY7FxHO7jtWapT2_fsng5p9lGD3ehlHXB2jmpEK3N4cvARpCyJc0gFNCJ_y9jcJt92RP/s1600/PC160488.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><br />
I plan on updating my progress half way through my journey to April 7, 2012.<br />
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One thing that I noticed when looking at the pictures from today and my picture from Hawaii, I have made a lot of changes in my physique, which is awesome. My stomach looks tighter and damn I need a tan :o)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5T7upo-BpAElPG5dHJ2DIcXF95bNrBiMtj4hd5sX-LT-PhSftoUAN-o5E_-baYeXJd7w7fKjmy0NRon21y3uELQVPbpQUODXmehWgTqm_ZeyJ_5S1jzFKkM9mF7QmhnVP6w1OCe04EXTt/s1600/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5T7upo-BpAElPG5dHJ2DIcXF95bNrBiMtj4hd5sX-LT-PhSftoUAN-o5E_-baYeXJd7w7fKjmy0NRon21y3uELQVPbpQUODXmehWgTqm_ZeyJ_5S1jzFKkM9mF7QmhnVP6w1OCe04EXTt/s320/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">5/1/11 - 200+</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcVki7Ds54-_Rb6K7OvCrVcmz3EcodW-1uUsq-uN6OqH6M6heEGJoI4k15Oekpta7-qe4YxydQ0udqi_fVrU5noUk1Zp_tUYg1N1qyiZW2kfZ82fu4Y5P_CC5elsI-UJlU2UFv_PZ5ku/s1600/PC160485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifIcVki7Ds54-_Rb6K7OvCrVcmz3EcodW-1uUsq-uN6OqH6M6heEGJoI4k15Oekpta7-qe4YxydQ0udqi_fVrU5noUk1Zp_tUYg1N1qyiZW2kfZ82fu4Y5P_CC5elsI-UJlU2UFv_PZ5ku/s400/PC160485.JPG" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">12/15/11 185.8</td></tr>
</tbody></table>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4964727142206672434.post-43584913502428875542011-12-14T15:27:00.000-08:002011-12-14T15:27:36.033-08:00Deciding to CompeteMany of you know that I have been working on my health and fitness for several years. Growing up I was always thin and athletic. However things changed for me when I met someone who lets say was toxic to and for me. I gained a ton of weight over 50 pounds and my self-confidence decreased the longer I stayed in that relationship. Once I was able to end that relationship and regain control of my life, I started to get healthy inside and out. After lots of hard work I had lost about 35 pounds and kept it off for several years. <div><br />
</div><div>When I met my current boyfriend (who by the way is an amazing man, I love him so much), I was in graduate school completing two masters degrees. As many of you know that your schedule changes when you start a new relationship (well at least mine did), so unfortunately even though things in my life were great, I started to gain the weight I lost back because I didn't commit the time to the gym and healthy eating that I previously was. This was disappointing but not something I focused on right away. However for the past three years I have been focusing on my health and fitness and have lost again 26 pounds. Currently, I am only 9 pounds away from where I was when I met my boyfriend, Kirk. </div><div><br />
</div><div>My journey has been filled with struggles. I lose weight, gain some back and then stabilize, lose weight, gain it back and then stabilize, repeat. I am glad to say this past year I have lost and kept off 18-20 pounds and it feels great!! For the past several years I have been talking about wanting to compete with some of my friends. I have read Oxygen Magazine for several years and have been desiring to have a fitness model body, however I haven't pushed myself to actually do it until now.</div><div><br />
</div><div>So why now???? Well I have this awesome friend who I look up to and see as a role model for her dedication to fitness. She recently competed in a competition and I told her I wanted to do it. So when she found out about an upcoming competition, she sent me the information. Here I am presented with the perfect opportunity to walk to my talk, put my words into actions, and finally do what I have been saying is a goal of mine. In fact, every year I write a list of goals for the year and for several years one of my goals had been to compete in a figure competition. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Another reason to compete is that I am a trainer at my gym and studying to become a Certified Mind Body Fitness Coach. Conquering one of my fitness goals is important to me for that reason. Plus it will help me be a more effective trainer once I move further on my own personal journey. I will be able to help others succeed at their journey.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Finally, one of my other main reasons for choosing right now as the time to do it is to finally shed all the unwanted toxins from my previous relationship meaning the excess weight and weak self image. Although my self image has improved greatly since that relationship ended. For me shedding those extra pounds that I gain from it will be like finally getting back to who I was before I was in that damaging and toxic relationship. Not just mentally but physically too, which is important to me since who I was all through my childhood and most of high school was tied to being fit and healthy. </div><div><br />
</div><div>For me competing is about getting back to the healthy and fit me. The me who feels sexy all the time, proud of myself, confident in my ability and successful. Especially the me who is the doer not the talker. The coulda, woulda, shoulda time is over. Now it is time to "JUST DO IT!!!"</div><div><br />
</div><div>So for all these reasons I have decided to compete in a figure competition in April 2012, right before I turn 36. This is about proving to myself that I can do whatever I put my mind to and being successful in order to be able to help more people in the future meet their own health and fitness goals. </div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaUTIKgCp213IiZ-511I6uvgXmc86LYSzxOLFe2TgzV0V3z-ljgbUGsqxxNwIlAI5jJi5hkkTkM7B9KrU8xeZTRNFoBeCj6b9XscZuaEygLhVcHrtnY7ddnZYn6o90XPyKCnqiKWn1f6hy/s1600/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaUTIKgCp213IiZ-511I6uvgXmc86LYSzxOLFe2TgzV0V3z-ljgbUGsqxxNwIlAI5jJi5hkkTkM7B9KrU8xeZTRNFoBeCj6b9XscZuaEygLhVcHrtnY7ddnZYn6o90XPyKCnqiKWn1f6hy/s320/IMAG0174+-+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div>I can definitely use your support through out my journey so please continue to follow my blog. My hope is that it may also inspire some of you to achieve goals that you have wanted to but just not dedicated the time to. Thank you again and I look forward to sharing my experience with you. </div><div><br />
</div><div>The above picture is from Hawaii, May 1, 2011 - Here I weighed about 200 pounds. </div>~Amanda~http://www.blogger.com/profile/12414511817378976218noreply@blogger.com0