Some Days You're Up... and Some Days You're Down

One of the questions I was asked in the last week was how do I avoid emotional/stress eating.

As I sit here staring at this blinking cursor on my screen, trying to think of the best way to answer that, the only way I can is to be completely honest and open. 

I don't avoid emotional/stress eating.

First, I'm a chick.  Now whether you're a guy or girl, or whatever the heck you think there is in between, you know one very fundamental fact about chicks: we are emotional.  We cry when God blesses us with precious little babies, when we feel confused, or when we see sappy love stories about lifelong romances between two people.  We have a protective wrath like none other when it comes to safeguarding our children and can balance checkbooks, laundry, meals and cleaning, all the while holding full-time jobs.  Yet we can't be trusted to have the same, predictable emotion every second of every day.  You hate it.  We hate it.  But hey, it is what it is... it's emotional and part of what makes us so passionate.

Now throw food into that.  And add to this equation a very strict diet regimen that doesn't allow for decadent and soothing treats such as chocolates, pancakes, macaroni or even pizza. 

Fuego Takis... one of my most favorite, unhealthy cheats.

As a chick, it's not easy.  If there are chips and salsa in front of me, I won't even hesitate to plow in.  And by plow, I literally mean plow.  Oh yah.  I'm a pig and I'm owning it.  And let's not even say what great lengths I would go to in order to indulge in some chocolate.

So what's the answer?  How do you avoid those weak moments and cheating?  For me, these basic rules work best:

1. Weekly meal prep (preparing all meals for the week ahead of time; the next blog will detail this)
2. Never go to the grocery store hungry
3. Coffee with sugar-free syrup
4. Flavored BCAAs and water
5. Trying to redirect my thoughts

It's never easy.  Anyone who has done this will tell you that overcoming your own dietary wants/cheats is the hardest thing about this.  It sucks.  It's not easy.  But it can be done.

There are so many healthy alternatives to our favorite cheats that you can usually find something that works for you.  And if you're not prepping for a fitness competition, occasional cheats are allowed and help you keep the mental focus on your goals.

Remember.... fitness and health are journeys... not destinations.

Tape and Lat Issues

There are these flat out WEIRD poses that we have to learn for the competition.  They're awkward. Strange. Uncomfortable and just not natural. But we have to do them in order to put the focus on those certain muscle groups where the judges are looking for that pronounced flair.

During one such posing practice, the judge who was coaching me kept pushing my left lat in. It was driving her nuts. She and my trainer then referred me to someone to have my lat worked on.

So today, I went for my second appointment at Airrosti.  The doctor found that the fascia around my subscapularis (and some other fancy names for muscles in that region) had pulled away from the muscles themselves.  Basically, it had pulled back like a sleeve that was scooted up, and the muscle wasn't able to fire properly during exercise.  So other surrounding muscles were overcompensating for the weaknesses there, and that attributed to my having a lowered trap and lazy lat.  Strange, right?  I mean I felt perfectly fine but my coach noticed that my symmetry was off.  Meh.

Soooo... since the days of HMOs are long gone and PPOs are starting to disappear, I have one of those corporate killer insurance plans.... High Deductible Healthcare Plan (basically, the monthly premium is ridiculous, my copays are more than those for people who don't have insurance, and I'm beginning to feel like I should be tipping the doctor too).  So after two visits, my total spent on this "lazy lat" issue is $459 and change.  Yeah... almost $460.00.  With another 1-2 visits to go, I'm not exactly excited. 

Basically, I'm paying someone to hurt my shoulder, and tell me that it's going to both look and feel better.  Man I have the wrong job.

Hopefully, this does actually help.  The real test will come when my posing coach sees me again this Saturday, after not having seen me for a month.  Crossing my fingers... just under 6 weeks til the competition!

Confessions of a Junkie

I totally love sugar.  And I miss it. I mean let's just get honest for a bit here... my hips are naturally wide because I love to ingest everything decadently sweet and delicious.  And that stuff loves to linger where the backup beepers are needed (don't judge... you know you've always wanted to race shoppers with one of those electric carts in Wal-Mart).

Now of course, I'm not allowed to have sugars on my diet now.  There are certain fake sweeteners that I can have to get by those cravings, but I've not had real sugar like I use to in a long while.

Ooh!  When I'm done with this competition, I totally want some of those chocolate-dipped marshmallows, covered in M&Ms and other delicious candies from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.  OH!!  And one of those chocolaty, caramel cheesecakes from the Cheesecake Factory... or twelve, but who's counting?  And Takis!!  I want a bag of Fuego Takis... or again, twelve bags.

Now that was a squirrel moment.

How Do You Eat That?

People are always asking me how I eat the same types of foods all the time.  And they can't understand how I can eat fish and enjoy it.  My secret is finding different ways to cook it, and switching up the veggies/carbs/spices.  I use a lot of the Mrs. Dash salt-free stuff (all the different flavors), lots of pepper, no calorie flavored cooking sprays, and Mmmmmmmmmmmm...... salsa.

Now as a chick from Texas, I love salsa.  Literally love it.  I think every guy who has ever taken me on a date to a Mexican restaurant has probably regretted it... because I'm a chips and salsa compactor.  I mean seriously. 

So when my trainer said I could have salsa, I went Amanda-style and HAD SALSA (top pic below).  I mean, that seemed legit, right?  Well apparently, it isn't.  I send him that photo, all proud of myself for eating healthy, and he about passed out. 

 

After telling me I couldn't eat that much and had to do a teeny, tiny little bit, I sent him this pic of my next meal (bottom pic).  Hahaha. 

 

But seriously.  What I found was making my own salsa (or buying the HEB freshly made, no sugars added kind) and getting it extremely hot/spicy kept me from overdoing it, and kept the flavor incredibly yummy.  And since I can currently have ketchup, I'm using the Reduced Sugar kind.  And mustard is actually not half bad, but I'm saving that for the last bit of contest prep.

 

It All Counts

Apparently, even condiments.  I mean hey, I knew some of the obvious things going into this.  But there's still so much that I don't know and am learning along the way.  Bless my trainer and his wife, Paulette, for their patience with me. 

Moment of truth: Its exhausting

So I posted a photo on Facebook that shows how my shape has changed in the last 4 months of diet and training. I was astounded at the responses I have been receiving. But what I never want is for someone to see me, see my shape now, and think they can't do it.

Left: Me now.  Right: Me 4 months ago.
Change: New mindset, new diet, new trainer, new supplements that work.

Is it easy? No. As I sit here writing this, I have tons of sweat pouring down the crease on my back were my spine is from doing fasted morning cardio. Lets be honest... I almost talked myself out of doing the cardio.  I mean I have an extremely comfortable mattress, it was 64 degrees in my house and I was snuggled up in a very plush down comforter.

But then I thought of my hips... and the times I have cheated on my diet. And my trainer's goals for me, and how he literally pours his everything into each of us, his team of athletes. And then of course my daughter, who is extremely excited about my working out and likes to be active with me.  That's when I shoved the comfy covers aside and slipped on my tennis shoes and headed for the elliptical I'd purchased on craigslist.

The Drive

When I began, I was driven by those who said I couldn't do it. I'm determined and knew they were watching and I wanted to prove them wrong. But now, I've forgotten about them. Rather it is those who love and support me who have become my drive. When I do accomplish this goal, perhaps there is someone out there who will see that they can, too.  I'm a single mom to an elementary-aged child who claims to know everything.  I have a full-time job and all the responsibilities that come with those roles in life.  And this summer, I'll be returning to school to work on completing my degree.  And then there's dating, too.

So are there obstacles?  Yep.  Do I have more than enough reasonable excuses to give as to why I shouldn't live a healthy lifestyle?  Definitely.  Are these excuses valid?  Certainly.  Do I judge anyone else in a similar situation who isn't going for these goals?  Not at all.  I know the difficulties associated with the responsibilities of life and overcoming those challenges is super hard.  But perhaps those who watch me will be able to see that their reasons that are keeping them from reaching their health goals are actually the best supporting reasons to achieve them.

Again, it's not always easy.  In fact, it most always isn't.  You have to make choices daily to put your closer to your goal and they're not always fun choices to make.  So I'm making those choices daily... counting the weeks until I reach my goal.  6 and a half weeks and counting!

New Diet, New Trainer, New Supps: Now We're On Track

Whew, so much has happened since my last post! To briefly sum it up, I am now with another trainer and he has me on a whole new diet.

Trainer: IFBB Pro Miguel Frank

Goal: Compete in Women's Figure at the Adela Garcia Classic 2014, June 21, 2014 in Austin, TX

If you follow me on Instagram, you have seen some of my progress pics and have seen the results I've been getting with my diet, training and supplements.  In the last 8 weeks that I've been training with Miguel, I have seen some dramatic changes in my shape and I'm elated.

Miguel, as most every trainer does, has his clients on a list of supplements.  The things that he recommends that we use are pretty simple, basic and natural.  However, I had a really rough experience with the supplements; I was unable to complete a workout without feeling like I was going to throw up or explode.  Couldn't even think about taking the required second round after my workout, and I didn't want my post workout meal.  I thought I'd have to forego the supplements, even though those are what help you through your workouts and all.

But then I got in touch with my brother and tried the same supplements recommended by my trainer, from Advocare, and they worked awesomely.  Plus they taste great.  So finally!!  And after a couple of months, here is what I look like now (still eight weeks til the show):

One excited chick right here!!!

So now, here I am, less than 8 weeks til the show.  Some days are more difficult and others are super easy.  The only way I stay sane is by keeping my routine. Wake up, cardio, then eat meal 1.  Drop my daughter off at school and go to work.  Eat meals 2-4 and take supps.  Workout and pickup my daughter.  Eat meals 5 and 6, go to bed.  Anything outside that routine throws me for a loop.  And any sleep less than 6 hours seems to make me get sleepy around 1-2pm the following day.

Today though, I feel on top of the world.  :)

~Amanda

Day 1: Eating... Meh...

This weekend I began my meal prep. After spending $179.96 on groceries, I realized I hadn't quite bought enough for the week's worth of food. Oh yeah, it's that bad. So out of my 7 daily meals, I still need to prep 2.5 for each day.

Bad Timing...

Plus I chose a terrible week to begin. I mean hello, it's Christmas in just two days. In fact, as I sit here tying this, there's a cup of coffee on my desk, a gift of 6 homemade cookies from a coworker and two Starbucks gift cards. My mom is bringing some white potates covered with cheese and a TON of butter to the house tomorrow night for our Johnson family Christmas... and then some. In fact, my parents don't cook a single thing without at least one stick of butter in it. (That's southern cooking for ya!)

Path Forward

So now what? Today hasn't been terrible. I've eaten pretty healthy and added a lot more protein to my diet today. It's kept me ridiculously full of course... I can't imagine how I'm going to eat 7 meals a day but I remember doing it once getting the routine down. I've certainly not stuck straight with my diet. Crossing my fingers for tomorrow, but since I am 16 weeks away from the show and these are the holidays, I don't think I'm going to be too hard on myself yet with my food intake.

New Goal: Build, Shred & Compete

Background:

I've been intrigued by and in love with fitness after experiencing the many health gains that my body went through a few years ago when I lost a lot of post-baby weight and then put on some muscle. Instead of being a cushy marshmallow that would need every skirt altered, I now have a better actual figure. No, I'm not perfect by any means at all and am still a little fluffy. But there's a shape there that I didn't have before weights.

Fast forward 'til now.

I need a new goal; a new challenge. Last year, I'd set out to compete in the Texas Shredder but gave up 5 weeks into training and diet due to various personal things. Now those reasons are gone, and I've decided to go for it.

The Competition: Texas Shredder 2014
Date: April 12, 2014
Place: Austin, TX

The Plan:

Due to a few months of not being on track, this is the time to start increasing my muscle mass. It's dwindled a bit lately. No, I'm not talking about looking like a dude, just about making sure I'm eating enough meat, egg whites, protein shakes, etc. Talked to my trainer and the official diet begins next month... at twelve weeks out.

Am I nervous? Yep.
Scared? Lil' bit.
Gonna do it? You betcha!
;)