My first figure competition part 2

Hi there! I'm back with the continuation of my first figure competition experience. I need to get better about documenting my journey in here!

So let's pick up where I left off.. I covered packing last time. I'm going to start chronologically starting with Friday night, before show day. 

My show was out of town, so my friend, Julie, and I drove the 3 hours to Omaha. Arrived, checked in to the hotel and then headed to the competitor check in. I would say this is when the nerves really kicked in. It was all very very real! Being there with all the other competitors really made me feel, anxious. Really that's the best way to describe it.

I really didn't know what to expect having never done this before.  There was a lot of people there.  Thankfully my posing coach was there with a bikini competitor she was training so I knew at least one other person.  I'm not really an extrovert. So although a lot of people make a lot of new friends at these type of events, I'm not the type to just go talk new people.  That's one reason I brought Julie, so I wasn't just there by myself.

At the check in I received my number, Tank top from the show and the promoter gave us some information about how the show was scheduled and when to show up etc.  Then we left.

Since I was going to be putting tanner on, we had to prepare the hotel room so I didn't stain anything. I had my own dark colored sheets and had brought my own pillow with a dark pillow case.  I wrapped plastic wrap around the seat and lid of the toilet as it can soak up the color from your tan.

Next, I laid out everything I needed for the following day. Then double and triple checked that I had everything. 

Then we began applying my tan.  I used Jan Tana and I think it went on pretty well.  I'm pretty pale and it's amazing how you paint it one and boom, you're brown!  We actually painted 1/2 my body first just because we were so amazed at how it instantly tanned me.  I'd say it took about 45 minutes or so to completely cover me. Later we discovered bigger applicators would be faster (So next time I know).

After it was applied I waited for about 30 minutes or so for it to dry before putting on some dark colored clothes for bed. 

By this time it was probably near 11 pm.  I was a bit hyped up and had trouble winding down to sleep. 

To be continued...

4 weeks to go!

It's been several weeks since I did a show update.  I've been working away.  We made diet changes doing a Keto/traditional split cycle.. almost like extreme carb cycling, 2 weeks low following by 2 weeks moderate/high.  I just finished the first week of moderate/high carbs. I missed my carbs.  I'm avoiding breads/pastas, sticking with oats, sweet potato, corn, and green things (green beans, celery, cucumbers etc)

The hardest part by far is getting enough sleep.  I didn't realize how important sleep was and it's SO SO hard for me to get everything done and still get 8 hours. As I type this I have about 30 minutes to get to sleep to get 8 and I don't have my food planned out for tomorrow at all!  I pride myself on being pretty organized and getting everything done. This process will test you mentally, physically and emotionally.  It's stressful.  There are a LOT of things to do. I have a busy life already and this adds a lot to it.  I really enjoy pushing myself in the gym.  I think the most difficult part for me is really planning all the food. Planning it all and prepping all my meals, it's time consuming. It's absolutely worth it, but I think I need to have a little less variety.  Some is nice but too much is just more work.

Continued.. When I typed the above it was almost a week ago. Juggling contest prep and family is no easy task. I'm sure I will get the hang of it with each additional show but for now it's pretty tough. This takes a lot of commitment. I will say though, going through this process has proved to me that you CAN do anything you set your mind to.  A few years ago I "couldn't" find time to get in a workout or prep a meal. I lived off fast food and watched TV for hours a day. This has truly showed me that it's all about choices and priorities. I've come a long way.. I have a long way to go. But I'm getting closer everyday.  4 weeks to show 1.. 6 weeks to show 2.  It's going to get harder from here, but I'm ready to soak it all in.  

5 week out posing practice 

Weight loss and Nutrition

Probably one of the most common questions I get is, "What do you eat?" (or "What should I eat to lose weight?")  Well the answer is actually really simple, I eat everything, in moderation. Truth is I didn't have my nutrition totally figured out during the majority of my weight loss.  I was keeping myself at a deficit (if I was diligent about tracking my food). So I lost weight.  However when I found IIFYM (If it fits your macros aka flexible dieting) I had much better success and the results came a lot quicker.  Because I was eating a deficit but also a balanced diet.  I personally have a HUGE sweet tooth so I do treat myself to the occasional "bad" treat. But it's all good if it's done in moderation.  If you're eating on plan 90-95% of the time 1 candy isn't going to set you back.

Anyway, I thought I would do a few posts on nutrition and how to lose weight while still eating normal food.  That being said, I don't eat out often. Mainly because I follow my macros strictly (It's really necessary when trying to get stage ready lean) and I need to know EXACTLY what I am putting in my body.  I do have the occasional meal out but I keep it to a minimum right now.

So my husband did a big costco run this weekend and I took some pictures of the fridge, freezer, pantry and fruit/veggie bowls so I could kind of summarize the "staple" items I always have.
I do not eat the exact same thing day to day.  If you follow me on  www.myfitnesspal.com (user name JenniBeanxo ) you'll see that.  All my meals are pretty similar day to day, but rarely exactly the same.  But I do have basic foods you'll always see (chicken, egg whites, green beans/broccoli etc)

So.. let's go to the pictures shall we?

Ok so it's all pretty normal stuff. Fruits (I limit to 1 a day or less), veggies (sweet potato, white potato, celery, asparagus, bell peppers etc), egg white, eggs, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, almond milk, lean meats (chicken, turkey, lean ground beef), natural nut butters .. Not pictured, whole wheat bread, wheat pasta. Which are also added in very sparingly right now.

Of course there are 3 other people that live in my house (note the toddler photo bomb in the last pic). So there are things in there that I don't eat. Also I'm trying to get incredibly lean for a show so for an overall healthy and fit physique you could still be a little more flexible than I am right now. 

7 weeks out and Diet info

Hello everyone!

It's been a while.. where does the time go??  I've been super busy working and hitting the gym. We've been doing a lot of decision making.  So I posted about a month back that we decided to delay our original "debut" show date.  We hoped the extra time would help with my conditioning (leaning out for the stage)  It's still been REALLY slow coming on the fat loss and progress.  We have been carb cycling but I still haven't had much success.  This week we are starting a keto diet. Half way through Day 1.. I'm not as hungry as I thought I'd be. However, my meals have been pretty interesting. Switching from high protein to high fat has really been difficult.  I think I'm getting a better handle on it. I even found some flax meal muffin and pizza crust recipes I'm going to try out. (will post them if they are edible!) :)

So, I wanted to post a little bit more about my diet. Now keep in mind if you're not cutting for a show you probably don't have to be SO strict but I've had a lot of people comment on how lean I'm getting and ask me what I've been doing.  So carb cycling. The last several weeks we have been carb cycling. I started with 6 low and 1 high day, and we moved to 3 low days, 1 high, 2 low, 1 high rotation. I prepare 99% of my own food. Even on my high carb days I rarely went out to eat because you really can't be sure what you're getting. I think I had some decent progress doing carb cycling. I count all carbs (even veggies) I guess a lot of people don't.. I'm not sure if it would have been more effective to get more starchy carbs and feed my metabolism that way?? BUT...

We are getting into super crunch time here and my legs especially have a way to go. We are going Keto.  I also started tracking my macros and water more diligently with my weight fluctuations so we can track changes more effectively.  This whole process is a lot of trial and error. There is no right or wrong way to do this.. ok, there are probably a LOT of wrong ways, but different things work for different people. This is the first time we are doing this so it going to be a HUGE learning experience. I've already learned a lot and we still have so far to go.  I'm going to post below a few examples of what I ate on different low and high carb days.  You can follow me on myfitnesspal (Username: Jennibeanxo ) to see what I'm eating everyday.  (but please don't follow it blindly, it's based on my height, weight, goals and activity level)  I've also started to track ALL my cardio with my Polar watch too. Because those machines and even the myfitnesspal estimates are not accurate to each individual.

Low carb day 

High carb day:

Just a note.. I kept my fats relatively low and protein high. This isn't typically how carb cycling works. Protein stays consistent and fats and carbs cycle (one high, the other low). This might be why I didn't see the results I hoped for. I think when I try again in the future I'll have a better handle on the process. It's all a lot of trial and error. The key is to stick with it and continue to make adjustments. 

What I ate today. High carb day.

Hello there fitfam. So a little update. I've been hard at work (at my job and the gym) things are progressing slowly. I am carb cycling currently. Today is a refeed/high carb day so here's what I ate. 

Meal 1 

I made baked French toast with 1 egg, 2 egg whites and the wheat bread. 

Meal 2

Meal 3

Ok. I got a little hungry and forgot to take a picture. But this meal is pretty self explanatory. :) 

Meal 4 

 

I think I've posted the truffle recipe on my Instagram.. I intend to post more recipes here for easier access. If you want to

See this one (or any others) comment below and I'll add it to my list. 

Meal 5 

Meal 6 

And meal 7 (the Casein logged in with meal 6.. My fitness pal only has 6 meals) 

Casein pudding. 

To recap, I eat every 2-3 hours. The casein pudding I ate right before bed. I'm also putting my daily totals below so you can see how it all adds up at the end of the day.  I'm wrapping up my super busy time at work so I plan on posting a lot more often. If you have questions or things you'd like to see. Leave me a comment. 

11 weeks out again

Figure Competition Prep Update!!

OK first.. I need to get a better way to take my progress pictures.. I'll work on that this week :)

No, you are not experiencing Deja Vu.  We are 11 weeks out.. (Actually 10 weeks 5 days or something.. but yes.. we have more time). Originally my trainer and I discussed doing a show in April.  That was our goal. Well as time progressed and my body is slowly losing fat we have reevaluated our plan and decided that the April show is not ideal for my first show. For a couple reasons. 1. It's a HUGE show and upon discussion with another coach/competitor it was recommended that it's not an ideal first show. 

I definitely want to enjoy this experience and that means feeling prepared and not being overwhelmed during the show. We decided what had been our "back up" show would be a better first show for me. 

The other reason 2. Since I am progressing a bit slower than we would like the April show was more stress on us both.

Again we want to enjoy this and perhaps continue competing for a while to come so killing myself trying to drip 10-15 pounds in 7 weeks was just not the game plan either of us thought would be the best. 

So we are now focused on the Heartland Classic May 23rd. That's goal 1.  In addition to that show. We also will be competing at Muscle Mayhem June 6th.  These are 2 different organizations so we can get a feel for each one and determine where we want to go from there.  

One thing I want to stress is that it's hard to plan weight loss. Believe me.. I am a planner.. I have spreadsheets and charts outlined with how I thought this process should go.  Sometimes your body has other plans. When you ask your body to do something it's never done before.. well, it doesn't always comply. As much as I really hate to report to all my supporters that I just wasn't going to be ready to compete when I originally wanted to, I know this is a temporary setback.

I will keep going. I will still compete and I will look amazing on stage.  I'm far from perfect. (And still will be when I compete) But, I will look the best I have ever looked.  I will be leaner than I have ever been. I will enjoy the experience and hopefully inspire you to do something outside of your comfort zone. Go for something you've always wanted to do.  Nothing is off limits. It's never too late to chase your dreams. Things don't always go according to plan.. so change the plan. 

 Keep moving forward! 

BCAA gummy recipe

Happy Monday everyone. 

So I'll post this update with more details in another post but we've switched shows and I am just under 11 weeks out from the stage! That means 11 more weeks of prep and reduced calories.. actually 13.. but again that's another post.  So last week I messed with my meal times.. It was a horrible idea! I was saving carbs for post workout (I had been carb loading in the morning previously).  So I stretched out the time between my meals earlier in the day and there were a few days were I was STARVING between meals.  

One day I ate a handful of giant mints.. which turned out to be about 30g of carbs total! yikes! So I decided to look around for some alternatives for snacking between meals. (besides gum which also has sugars and piece after piece can add up during the day) 

So I had seen a few posts about BCAA gummies. So I looked into them a little more. I really had no idea they had no added sugar and it was just gelatin which is protein.  I used watermelon flavored BCAA powder and they are yummy! They were pretty easy to make too. I have plastic molds so I dusted them with cornstarch but still had to fight a bit to get the gummies out. I think I will use silicone next time as I think it's a little easier.  I don't have small silicone molds but I think I can just dice up the gummies into pieces once they have set.  So here's the recipe

Ingredients:
1 scoop BCAAs ( I used watermelon Rescue)

1/2 cup water

3 envelopes unflavored gelatin (3 tablespoons)

Procedures:

Mix the above ingredients together and let sit a few minutes

Heat mixture until gelatin is dissolved.

Pour into molds 

Freeze for 20 minutes

This made a lot of gummies. I didn't do a macro breakdown per gummy cause they weren't the same size (because my molds were different) but for the entire recipe the macros are:

Fat: Zero

Carbs: Zero

Protein: 24g 

Casein protein truffles

Hi Everyone,

I am seriously the worst at keeping up with things! Really I am an accountant first (that's what pays the bills) and we are in the midst of busy season. Meaning I Work, Eat, Train, Sleep. I am having trouble finding time for much else. Of course EAT is one of the things I MUST do.. And I really enjoy that too. :)  So of course with eating comes cooking/preparing.  So I have a couple recipes I've tried that I want to share.  The one today is Casein protein truffles.  

If you are like me, you love chocolate.  Does anyone not love chocolate?! But clearly having a box of Russell Stovers or a bag of mini Reece's PB cups is not in the plan right now. Sooooooooooo.. I improvise.  Luckily there are some genious people in the world who create and share recipes for those of us that are a bit challenged in the kitchen. And this one is adapted from Proteinpow.com is already a favorite.  I've made them twice this week.  (and drooled over her website for days and days)  

So first these are a snap to make.. if you can mix, and roll "dough" you've got the necessary skills. Did I mention I am challenged in the kitchen? :) If I can make it, a 5 year old can.. but seriously, you could make the kids make these for you.. if you trust they won't eat them. 

Ingredients: 

1 scoop Casein Protein (I used chocolate of course but any flavor would work)

1/2 tablespoon of coconut flour (I might have used a touch more)

2-4 tablespoons of almond milk (or milk of choice)  

about a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder for coating the truffles

(at Proteinpow.com they dip these in dark chocolate.. so that's an option too)

I started with 2 tablespoons of milk, mixed and then added a bit more until you get a consistency which will form a ball but isn't TOO wet. (if you add too much milk, add a little more Casein or coconut flour) 

Procedure:

1. Add dry ingredients to a bowl

2. Add almond milk

3. Mix

4. Form into 4-5 balls. I did 4 as you can see below

5. Roll the balls in cocoa powder

6. Chill in the fridge 20 minutes or so.

7. Enjoy the deliciousness!

(if you wanted to dip these in chocolate, I would chill after step 4, melt the chocolate, then dip and chill again to set the chocolate)

I made these before work and brought them as my afternoon snack/pre-workout so my plating is phenomenal.   Ninja turtle containers, hell yeah!!  (Yay 80s kids!!) .. But for the record my husband bought these ok. :) 

Macros for the WHOLE recipe using cocoa powder

Calories: 160

Fat: 2.5g

Carbs: 10g (2.5g of fiber, 5g of sugar)

Protein: 25g

Chest Day

Upper body training for girls is miserable.  At least at first it is.  I was a gymnast.. not a great one.. but still I used to be pretty fit once upon a time (and I'm working on getting back there)  But even in my peak physical condition. I never had a ton of upper body strength. I'd like to think I am decently strong per my weight, but I remember when I first started really lifting weights, I couldn't lift a lot. Especially doing chest, or arm exercises.  I train chest at least once a week. (Only once a week in my current training regimen) and below are some of the key exercises I think all girls should do.  Also keep in mind when doing most of these exercises you should really push the chest out in order to isolate it. My trainer is happy to stop me and make me reset when my form gets sloppy and my shoulders start helping out. It's really a bit awkward, but the form is important to work the target muscle!

A little info (from my trainer) the pectoralis major is only 1 muscle. So hitting it from different angles doesn't hit different "parts" of the Pec. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do different angles. Just be aware, it's just a different way to work the same muscle.

So what are my go to exercises? I've included these below. I usually to some variations of these every chest day (pictures are from Jefit an app I use for exercise ideas if I want to switch things up) 

1. Push up 

These are great for beginners or advanced athletes. You can vary these to your fitness level (from knees on the ground to elevated feet or plyo push ups) just be sure your body remains in a straight line. I do anywhere from 2-4 sets of 10 usually. 

2. Bench press 

Really this is getting to become one of my favorite lifts. I don't think you can do these and not feel like a beast. If you don't have a spotter you can do these with dumb bells or on a smith machine. Or just know your limit (I never really use a spotter and I go last set pretty much to failure.) just use good sense when lifting. I do 4 sets of 10-12.  

3. Chest flies 

These are one of my favorite too cause I love the stretch you get while you do them. I do these flat and inclined. I do 4 sets of 15. 

4. Pec Dec 

Ok. This picture calls this butterfly. It's similar to the chest fly but it's on a machine vs free weight. Remember to press those shoulder blades back and stick that chest out. I usually do 4 sets of 12-15 and I often "super set" 5 half reps at the end of each set for a torturous burn!! 

5. Cable cross over

This is another one I really feel the burn on. And another I have to really focus on keeping the chest out so I isolate my pecs. I usually do 3-4 sets of 15-20 

So there you have some essential chest exercises (in my opinion) I do each of these at least every other week if not weekly. 

A couple tips. Weights should challenge you while still allowing good form. Those last few reps should burn and ideally you should pretty much fail if you tried 1 more rep. I generally add weight to each set. 

Happy lifting.  

Still at it..

Yikes. Where have I been? It's been weeks since I posted! I've been hard at work. (Literally) I am in public accounting and it's busy season. I've still been hitting the gym, counting macros, meal prepping. All that fun stuff! So let's see. Here's we are, closing in on 9 weeks out from my target. We just did progress measurements and well.. There wasn't much progress. *heavy sigh*. This isn't easy. For anyone. I consider myself a pretty hardworking and dedicated person. I'm not going to say I've never cheated or missed my macros but I follow that 90/10 rule. I lift heavy. And yet my body fat seems like it really wants to stick around. I'm frustrated. I'm even a little pissed off. (Can you be pissed off at your own body fat??) 

We are making some adjustments to my diet and training. If we don't see some major change in the next 4 weeks.. Well my first planned show will no longer be an option. It's painful to admit that. In part I feel like I am failing. But you never really fail until you give up. And that's just not happening. This is important to me and I will compete this year. I'll also be a little better at posting in here. I wanted to document this journey.. So I better do that! The good the bad and the ugly. If it happens, it shall be written. I'm going to post up some of my recent pictures. I've still been taking progress shots weekly. I've selected a bikini to use so it will make them more easily comparable now. I've dated the pictures instead of using weeks since my show date is a big uncertain. If you have things you want to know or see during this process leave a comment. I'll be doing some short videos and recipes on my Instagram (and maybe longer videos if I can post here). I may eventually get a youtube.. We will see

Will post again on Saturday after I take my next set of pictures and talk about my new diet and training. If not sooner. I'm going to try to get in here more often and jot down my thoughts as I go through this process. 

 

13 weeks out... Maybe

This isn't the post I wanted to be posted right now. We did measurements this week after a month and my body fat only dropped 0.5%. It's not at all what we were hoping for. I was diligent with my diet, in fact I was too diligent. No cheats for 3 weeks and my progress halted. At this point we are still working toward the show in April but we also have a back up plan for one 4 weeks after that. So here is my 13 week/possibly 17 week photo.

 I've been doing a ton of research on diet and HIIT cardio and prep. Reading anything and everything I can find. I wish there was a one size fits all plan that I could follow so I know I'm doing the right things but life doesn't work like that. Everyone is different and so the experiment continues trying to see what my body needs to take my fat loss to the next level. Quitting is not an option I will keep pushing forward

Resisting temptation

So we are 15 weeks out today. I'll post my progress picture at the end of this post. A huge part of this process is sticking to your nutrition plan and resisting temptation. First let me say I have a HUGE sweet tooth. I love candy, pastries, chocolate. I might be part Elf (candy, candy canes, candy corn and syrup) I also enjoy baking. I've honestly quit baking because along with baking comes eating. Eventually I plan on making healthier yet still delicious baked goods. For now, I try not to tempt myself. It's not easy. I don't live alone. I have 2 kids and a husband who aren't preparing for a figure competition. There are cookies and frozen pizzas in my house. Today my husband made grilled cheese for him and the kids for lunch and they smelled AMAZING. It's no exaggeration to say I am tempted to deviate on a daily basis. It's a struggle to say no. Here are a few pointers to dealing with temptations.

1. Find healthy alternatives to your cravings. 

Fruit is a great alternative to other sweets. Just be mindful that fruit has sugar too so stick to a serving. 

2. Gum 

I chew gum often. I eat when I am bored. So chewing the gum keeps mouth busy and my stomach quiet. 

3. Eat frequent small healthy meals during the day. 

If you've eaten something recently you will be less likely to be tempted by evil naughty sweets that want to derail your progress. 

4. Give in, a little. 

If you're craving chocolate have a small piece. And choose dark chocolate over milk chocolate. But 1 Hershey kiss or 1 small peanut butter cup might help take the edge off. Just beware of this option if you're likely to go back for more. I sometimes keep some mini size candy bars or Hershey kisses in the freezer for a treat. But this takes will power. 

The most important though is 

5. Be prepared 

Plan ahead. Prep your meals and have them ready to go. Snacks too. It's so much easier to eat healthy when it's right there. It's easy for me to avoid eating out at work when my snacks and lunch are easy to grab and go in the morning. 

And finally 

6. Indulge. 

Be smart. Plan your cheat. Make sure it's worth it. If you follow your plan all week. One reasonable treat will not distroy your progress. 

I stuck to my plan all week and brought my own dinner to my nieces birthday party so I could have this amazing ice cream cake. It was delicious. 

It's good to cheat occasionally. Your body can't continue at a calorie deficit indefinitely. Just don't let that cheat turn into a daily habit. Try not to go nuts with your cheat either. I didn't have the same food as everyone else at the party AND cake. Just cake. So I can stay on track.  

Also, if you aren't preparing for some kind of competition. Don't be too hard on yourself. 90% healthy eating and 10% indulging is a good rule to follow when living a healthy lifestyle. You don't need to miss out on fun or family gatherings to live healthy. You just need to make smart choices and plan ahead.

So here's my update pic. 15 weeks to go! A little less fluffy than last week. ;) 

16 weeks out

So.. Part of why I started this blog was to document my journey to the stage. As with many things in life we look back and wish we would've done more. I wish I had more thoroughly documented my whole weight loss journey. I can't go back, only forward. So, here we go.

Here I sit. 16 weeks out. Not exactly where I had hoped to be at this point but closer than I was before. 

I'm at about 25% body fat. A little fluffy from the holidays. (not too bad though) My trainers goal for me for my show is 12-14%. I have a long was to go. This is only the beginning.  This process will test me mentally as well as physically. We are officially in crunch time. I'm not sure how often I will post regarding my show. I will be taking photos weekly to track my progress and will likely post most of them.
This whole experience will be a learning one. I plan on soaking it all in so I can come out stronger and wiser on the other side. I'm excited to see the changes that happen over the next 16 weeks.