Got what it takes?

Don't be fooled and think that this is an easy path to choose. I knew when I decided to get "stage" ready that it would take everything I had in me to get there.

Today is one of those days - totally exhausted! People ask me at work if I'm okay - I find myself a little edgy with everyone - why? It is because today I am wiped out! I was at the gym until 7:30pm last night then had to run to grocery store to get more produce for dinner and I had to prep the next 2 days of food for work. All that means late getting to bed and then up at 5:30 to be at the gym at 6am for another training session - because of my work schedule and my trainers it just works that way on Wednesday nights and then early Thursday mornings and let me just say - WOW- I am so wiped out. So that huge crazy on top of the world smile and attitude has just cracked a little and I just need some rest. I thought I would share this because it is all not just yeah gym then home and rest - there are so many other things going on and sometimes I just wanna scream too!!!

It crosses your mind - why am I doing this - and God I need some help here - and there isn't a day that goes by that something on my body isn't hurting - like why the hell go through that - the answer is - because once I get to my goal it will SO BE WORTH ALL OF THIS. Oh and tomorrow and leg day - someone should probably just kill me now :( LOL!

I have what it takes and it will take everything I have - how about u?

Believe in Yourself



Happy Monday! (aka - back and bicep day -lol!)

What a great day! I guess I always hear so many people say how they hate Mondays and blah blah and I just think it is all the way you look at things. Here was my outlook today - yeah its not a rest day - you see Sundays are my 'NO GYM" day and I need the break but I like the gym so I look forward to Mondays because I get back to lifting. I work just like everyone else and was up at 5:30am to get ready for a long day training people all week then gym right after work and home to make dinner and laundry etc - and then just do it all over again tomorrow. I have no idea where or why I have changed and became so "ok" or "happy" in all of it, but I have. I have learned to accept it and embrace what life has or throws at me.

So here we are with a picture of my fortune that I got tonight from my daughter. My parents took my youngest daughter out for Chinese food (yummy - I miss Chinese food -lol) and they brought me and my other daughter a fortune cookie home. We love to get fortune cookies - we laugh our butts off always saying that your fortune means so much and that you are suppose to hear whatever it is. So my daughter opens hers and the look on her face was incredible - she had tears a little - she needed to hear what her fortune had said. She had a bad week with a boyfriend who took her friend to the prom and not her after much drama - and anyways her fortune simply said this "YOU ARE PRETTY" and that was exactly what my 15 year old needed at that moment.

I opened my fortune after her all excited - threw out the cookie even though I like them - and mine was the picture above - Believe in yourself as it will bring you strength to overcome any obstacles- WOW! AMAZING - I had to share this with everyone right away. It is SOOOOOOO true. Just believe and anything is possible and I have been overcoming obstacles lately one by one. This little cookie with a message was just a reminder and it made me smile. I hope you all get that message loud and clear....

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF !!!

Cravings

GUM!

This is the secret to surviving the urge to put something in your mouth. GUM! It seems like I may have a problem here but, whenever I crave something sweet or I am just bored, I chew gym. In fact as I sit here right now I am chewing.

I was a runner prior to all this bodybuilding training. I always had to have a piece of gum in my mouth whenever I ran. It helped me for some reason, I didn't need to drink water so I could run without carrying a bottle. I still chew gum at the gym now -in fact- if I forget my gum, I will go back out to the car to get it - lol - #obsessed!

I have really found that it helps with cravings. If I need that sweet fix, bang - sweet gum it is and there are ALOT of gums out there. I only buy sugar-free gum and I have found that I like the Extra Fruit Sensations ones the best - sweet watermelon - taking first place. It seems to hold the flavour longer and doesn't get all hard to chew like some of them - I need a gum that can handle at least my lift session before I throw it out. Hope this helps anyone who is looking for something to take a bit of the edge off. I have a few more tricks but I'll save those for another day :)

Find Yourself!

What an amazing day! Today was the Oil Slick Challenge in Petrolia. It's a fitness challenge that has teams of 4 competing around different stations. Today myself and my 2 daughters volunteered. What a great day. It was so much fun meeting new people and members I have seen at the club but never knew their names. It is amazing when u just put yourself out there what happens.

I also got to meet and spend some time with a IFBB Pro who has competed for 15 years and has her own show now. WOW - what an awesome lady and what an inspiration. I left there today again feeling I was on the right path and people are just put on your path along the way. I feel energized and alive today - maybe just another little "kick" saying your going to do this and nothing is gonna stop u!

Once you find yourself and what it is you are going to accomplish - nothing can stop you :)

Just breathe !

Ever wonder if you are on the right path? I think that everyone who has faith knows that you are exactly where u are suppose to be at this very moment. We sometimes need to remind ourselves of this and just get quiet enough inside to know it!                                                                          I have been meeting new people these days and have quite the gym group going - the trainers and staff and even some fellow workout people. I find myself drawn to them some more than others and I am sure this is because we all share a common interest - a love and appreciation for the gym. When you surround yourself with "like" people those other people in your life seem to fade a little and maybe that is normal. I have been putting myself out there and making myself available for new adventures - something very new for me is that I am volunteering at my gym for a large fitness event they are hosting - I am not really sure I have ever openly volunteered for anything before - however this feels normal to me and getting up early on a Saturday morning to help out all day - awesome! To be honest I would have never given up a Saturday morning or anytime for that matter - being so busy all the time but something is different now- am I still busy? Oh my - I'm more busy now than ever, however my priorities have changed and things are just different and helping out people and community seems so important and I'm glad to be doing it.

I definitely believe, I am where I need to be!

So I just breathe and know it to be true!

Absolute Exhaustion

Getting to that next level takes everything you have in you!

Friday is my leg day and let me tell you, I was still sore from last week just a bit. I was scared going in. It was a beautiful day and I even changed my session time to go in at 4 to try and enjoy a little sunshine. I think now that maybe I was avoiding leg day a little bit - lol.

I can't even put into words what type of pain I was feeling after the first leg exercise ( leg curls) - wow - we really pushed it. Then it was time for the leg press - I was screaming inside - the weight seemed so heavy like I was moving a building - I wanted to swear and yell and phew my first set was over - only 2 more sets to go. So i went through that agony another 2 sets and really I think I was defeating myself in my head. My leg- inner thigh was on fire, not sure if I strained something or not but I still carried on. Now we move right on to dumb bell lunges - oh ya - crying :( All I can say is - burning burning burning - someone kill me right now- picture this - I am sweating up a storm - legs feel like they are bleeding inside, inner thigh has something strange happening and I have 3 sets of 30 to complete. The last set - I took a deep breathe squeezed the dumbbells hard, my hands hurt, my legs hurt and I just focused and at that moment of ABSOLUTE EXHAUSTION, I finished the lunges, dropped the weights, thought I might cry a little and moved on to ......

The next level

Keep pushing hard - u can defeat yourself ;)

Diet vs meal plan

My goals have brought me to a place where I have had a meal plan created for me and tweeked so that I can reach that goal.

Is it a diet?

I would have to say "NO" because here is the difference. A diet you start and then stop eventually and usually cut out carbs or eat less or count calories or count points - I think u get my point here - I am eating better than I have in my entire life. I feel better and once you get disciplined and prep food its not all that hard to follow.

I am eating protein (lean meats) and eggs - also protein shakes pre and post workout. Lots of fresh veggies and a little fruit. I have carbs such as Ezekiel bread, sweet potatoes, beans, rice, gluten free pasta, quinoa carefully placed during the day. It is a very simple meal plan and it is working. I have chosen to quit drinking because why would I put in all this effort and just drink it away. I read this statement last week that said " YOU ARE EITHER IN OR YOUR NOT", so when u make a huge leap to follow a program like this then u can't be in just half way or in this week and take a week off or eat however u want and drink like a fish. That is like someone quitting smoking and having a few smokes here and there and whenever they crave one - well HELLO - u haven't fully committed have u! We all may have a cheat meal here and there or that odd drink but my point is that u give it ALL or you are not really serious or ready. So I have heard a few times in the last few days - how long are u gonna stay on this diet - I just smile and say its not a diet - I just choose not to eat that food anymore. This is my choice! 

Here's to everyone out there who gets it - who works just as hard at the gym as they do on their food consumption and to everyone else -

Enjoy your Big Mac :)

Pain

Pain won't last forever but holy shit the last 2 days have been brutal.

Today is Sunday - aka - rest day and this new program phase is really intense. I was a little sore during the week then Thursday came with shoulders and calves - so needless to say my calves hurt like hell on Friday and guess what Friday is? Yep LEG DAY - OK, I whined and cried my way through it- I'm not even kidding when I say whined and whimpered like a little kid - oh and that was only after the 3rd exercise and 3 more to go. I was in pain before, during, and after. I knew that wasn't a good sign for what was to come.

So Saturday I hit the gym for my cardio interval training and core - by the way  my core is still burning from Wednesday's core workout. I am sure u can see where this is all going - straight down hill. I finish my interval cardio, legs are on fire and I am screaming inside. Then comes more core work and my abs are bleeding on the inside I'm thinking. I finish and guess what -------- I survived but had a full day ahead of me with the girls and moving new furniture in my place, etc. At this point after the workout and I get home, I can't even walk downstairs to do laundry without being in extreme pain every single stair. My girls feel so bad that they are bending to get things for me and going to get the laundry just so I don't walk downstairs with tears in my eyes. I finish my evening with a hot bath in Epsom salts in hopes that would help - not really :(

Today I wake up, can barely get out of my bed - wow - I thought yesterday was bad. I find it amazing that after a year of running and some weight training that now with this program I could hurt so intensely. So I don't think I will forget Mother's Day this year because I had so much to do and was in pain every step of the way.

These are just a few of the joys of wanting something so bad - at any cost. It all starts again tomorrow :)

Pain is only temporary!

Lifting = Happy

So today after a week off the weights and resting my muscles I am back at it - heavy and hard ! Oh and it made me very happy. New program for the next 6 weeks and I can tell already its tough but it will be so rewarding.

Today was back & biceps and I felt weak after my 2nd exercise then realized that I was wiped out from the first one that everything after that seemed so hard and almost impossible. It is funny how that happens. By the end, it hurt to pick up my water bottle -lol- and I felt kinda out of shape or weak, but during my cardio (30 minutes) I once again felt on top of the world. I felt strong and alive and most of all HAPPY!

It is a crazy feeling and I am happy to be back to lifting again. I said it, me the cardio running freak would rather lift now than anything else. It's amazing how it makes you feel.

So if I'm lifting - I'm happy !

Meant for greatness

You will overcome!

What a weekend I had - no gym because of my resting week and I had already been the 4 times I was allowed to go and do cardio. So Friday night huge party night in my town - it happens on the first Friday of every month. I stayed home - in bed by 10 - it really kinda bothered me. I could have gone out and not drank and not have eaten anything but I just decided to stay put. However until Friday night I was doing very well with food. No cravings - really its been easy. Then it hit me - all I wanted was junk - anything - chips, popcorn, cookies, cakes - icecream - it was all I could think about - it drove me nuts until I finally just went to bed to make it stop. I think I was bored and when I am not busy I wanted to eat. I'm sure I wasn't even hungry but that is how easy you can sabotage your goals. Saturday I kept very busy had a friend over - awesome night - didn't crave any crap and today I was so busy outside that I just followed the plan and it hasn't even crossed my mind to cheat. I know I can have that cheat meal here and there but I still haven't caved. I just want to be sure that I am on track and if I really want something then I will but not out of boredom and not all the time. I know that it will take longer if I was to just keep doing that so I choose not to.

So this weekend I struggled a little and I overcame it - yahoo!
We are meant to be great!