Eight Days Out

Eight days out. Yes now I am counting down from single digits. The past two weeks have been an ultimate struggle... to do anything. My co-workers, friends and family have described me as "tired." However (if I had the energy to argue), tired is an under statement. I have been utterly exhausted with no ability to concentrate or grasp simple concepts due to the low body fat and lower carb diet. I think at some point your body just can't take it any more, and that's when you really have to push yourself. I truly under estimated the  mental capability that was required in order to prepare for my first show. When you are physically exhausted, that is when you have to rely on your mind to get through just one more day. This is also when you need to rely on your support network. I have found solitude in talking to my mother, my boyfriend John, my friend Christina, my trainer Kyle, other competitors and friends. But I honestly think my biggest support has come from Christina. My friend and fellow competitor. We are going through the exact same thing at the exact same time, so we can relate to each other in a way that no one else can even begin to understand. It gets me through the day just knowing I am not the only person going through the struggle of dieting and constantly feeling like I got hit by a truck. These things are normal! (for us anyway). I truly cannot express my gratitude for her support and friendship.

It's an amazing experience to push yourself to your maximum limit because it's so uncommon. Many individuals would have given up, but I am so proud to say that I did not. Throughout my downfalls and my difficult days, I kept on trucking.

As I pondered last night about when I first started training back in May, I had a muffin top, a ghetto butt, and a back filled with acne. Now I stand tall and proud to show off my smooth sculpted back and rounded shoulders, my plump and very toned bottom, and my solid calves. I have not only spent gruelling hours in the gym training hard, I have also worked hard outside the gym by preparing my meals daily and dragging tupperware around with me for five whole months to achieve this body. This has been far from easy. Throughout all of this training, cooking, dieting, crying, sweating, and dragging my butt, I can honestly say that I can't wait for my next show! Sounds  crazy after all this hard work but in the end I love it! I think only a fellow competitor can truly understand the self satisfaction you get from doing a show(s). Yes, I will enter a solid off season, but in the spring I will come back stronger than ever having a better hold on my diet, nailing my poses and having brought up the weaker points on my body.

Time to enter the last week... Carb depletion time.

Just keep smiling :-)