De-carb/Re-carb

Momentary lapse came on Tuesday.  For about four hours I was wondering what the hell I had been thinking.  That there was absolutely no way I was going to be ready for this show.  Why did I think I could be ready in only eight weeks when it normally take twelve?!  It did pass by Wednesday morning.  I never seriously considered giving up (and I didn't veer from my training and diet) but I definitely was questioning the whole thing.  So everyone has those moments.  I know people that are trying to lose can feel defeated.  It happens to everyone.  It is normal to question yourself but the worst thing you can do is give up.  No one ever won anything by giving up.

I've been de-carbing for the last two days.  Today I did two workouts.  The one this morning was pretty intense.  My friend Jodi and I went to the soccer field and ran sprints in various distances.  I needed her to be there because I don't think I could have done it on my own since I am so depleted.  That took about 45 minutes and then I went to the gym and focused on high reps in order to deplete glycogen even more (prepping the muscles to fill when they get those carbs back).  I performed 4 sets of 20 incline flyes with only 10 lb weights, making sure to get a burn.  Then I went to the Hammerstrength incline press machine and put a 10 lb plate on each side for 3 sets of 15.  Then I did a similar sequence for back with wide and close rows.  My second workout of the day I rode the bike for 30 minutes followed by a shoulder press tabata with 10lb weights, which was way harder then it should have been but the point was to deplete so there you go.

Food today (not much):

6 egg whites, 3 cups power greens, 1 roma tomato

6 ounces lean pork loin

Oh Yeah protein shake

1 chicken breast

1 scoop whey protein powder



I had cut out oatmeal for a couple of days but that totally screwed up my digestion, if you know what I mean, so I added it back a couple of days ago and that fixed the problem.  Today is the serious de-carb (see food diary above) so oatmeal is out again but I am making sure to load on the power greens to get more fiber.

Tomorrow is the carb up run through.  I am going to do a short workout in the morning because I am trying to peak at around 5:00pm Sunday evening which means I will focus on the carbs starting around that time on Saturday.  I bought some sweet potatoes yesterday so I am going to see how those work.

I'll let you know how it all goes! 
  .

Checked Out The Local Competition

My husband, Kevin and I went to the Washington state Ironman last weekend just to see what's up.  As I have mentioned it's been 17 years since I last competed and I wanted to know how the competitions have changed.  The women's physique division is new so there were fewer competitors, there were eight in the open category and one in masters, but the figure division had four classes plus Masters over 35.  From what I could tell the judges are liking a more muscular physique when it comes to figure but that might change now that physique has been added to the competition.  The competition that I am doing has added the physique division for the first time so it will be interesting to see how many women are entering.  I have decided to enter both the Master's Over 50 in figure and open physique so I can see where I score higher.  We only went to the prejudging which takes place in the morning.  That's were the winners are decided and then at the night show is when they actually announce who won. I was impressed at how smoothly the promoter ran the event.  Judging was supposed to run from 10:00-12:00 and from my experience in the past I figured we would be there at least until 1:00 but they stayed right on schedule.

I have been working on my posing routine for the past few days.  I need one for the night show if I am competing in the physique division.  It has to be about a minute long.  During that routine you have to show off for the audience, you don't do your routine for prejudging.  I have sort of put it together so now it's about smoothing it out.

This week I am also going to do a trial run of de-carbing and then carbing up for the show.  This is were you can screw up your entire training.  If you carb up too much then you'll hold water and look less defined on stage.  If you don't carb up enough then you'll look flat so your muscles won't look as full.  This has always been a tough part of training for me.  I retain water so easily that I have to be really, really careful about how I do it.  I have screwed it up more then once and it sucks because all your hard work goes down the drain...okay that's an exaggeration but chances of winning definitely diminish.  In the past I have carbed up too much, carbed up too late and not carbed up enough.  If I carb up the night before I look better for the night show but not prejudging and, as I mentioned before, that's when they decide the winner.  Some women even carb up the morning of.  I have learned that my body takes about 24 hours to figure out what I'm doing so my plan this weekend is to carb up 24 hours before I go in and work on my routine....in front of big mirrors....with bright lights.....and my friend Teri watching.  Some women carb up on rice or sweet potatoes or even honey and baby food (yup) but for me it will have to be straight-ole oatmeal since it seems to work well for me.  My diet is already super low in carbs so the main thing will be learning how to carb up properly.

Closing In On Week Five

The last two weeks have been pretty tough. I totally got stuck at a five pound loss for two and a half weeks. I know that I don't lose steadily but it just seemed to be taking a long time to drop and I was working so hard. For the past five days I cut my carbs to less then 30 a day and that did the trick because I dropped three more pounds as of yesterday. I also made absolutely sure that I did two-a-days for all of those five days. It sucked but it got the job done.

Yesterday I met my friend Teri at the gym and went into the group exercise room which is the brightest room I have access to, and of course it has big mirrors. We wanted to make an assessment of how I looked with about four weeks to go. It's really hard to make an assessment without being tan so I got a level 3 spray tan in the morning. I am pretty happy with the way I look overall but I still need to work on shoulders and chest but they have always been my weak areas so it wasn't a big surprise. I am training both chest and shoulders as often as I can which means as soon as they aren't sore I'm on it again. Stomach is flat but abs aren't in yet but I expected that. I need to tighten up in the glutes as well. All in all I think that another three pounds will make the difference and that's totally doable as long as I stay on it. It's going to be a tough four weeks.

Here's a sample of one of my low carb days:

8:00am
1/3 cup oatmeal
100/3/18
3 egg whites
45/10/0

12:00
8 ounces flank steak
540/80/0

2:30
1 scoop protein
120/20/4

4:00
Protein shot
130/35/1

7:00pm
8 ounces flank steak
540/80/0
Salad with ranch dressing
150/2/2

Daily totals - 1,625/230/25

Competition Prep - End Of Week Four

So I am closing in on week four's weigh in. Things are going pretty darn well. I just ordered my posing suit today and that's pretty exciting. Still can't decide whether I should compete in figure or physique but I just read the entry form again and I can actually enter both divisions which isn't a bad idea. Then I can see where I score higher and it will steer me in the right direction for future shows.

Here's my training schedule for this past week:



September 25, 2012 Tuesday

Tabatas on the treadmill

Clean and press 5X8 35lbs

3X
Side lateral raises X8 followed by rear lateral raises X8 10lbs

Eagle crunch 3X20



September 26, 2012 Wednesday

Regular run on treadmill

Incline bench press 5X8 75lbs

Crossover flyes 3X12 15's

Regular flyes 3X8 20's

Single side over head extension 3X10/s 15lbs

French press 3X10 25lbs

Dips 3X12

Bicycle X20/double crunch X3 -3X on bench

Second workout:
6:00pm - power walk 10 stellar hill repeats. This is a VERY steep hill near my house.



September 27, 2012 Thursday

30 minutes bike

Hanging row on Smith machine, 5th rung 5X8

1 arm BB 3X8/s 30lbs

Incline bicep curls 4X6-8 15lbs
*hard today

EZ bar curl, narrow grip 4X8-10 30lbs

Kick up and out on bench X10/double crunch X10 - 3X

*Triceps a little sore from yesterday's workout



September 28, 2012 Friday
(Very tired today)

30 minutes at soccer field sprinting the short end and jogging the long end

Shoulder press tabata with 10's - was super hard, had to stop often

Suitcase lifts 3X8/s 30lb BB

Wide grip upright row Olympic bar plus 10 4X8-10

Rotator cuff with cable 3X10/s

Scissor twists on bench 3X10(20)



September 29, 2012 Saturday

45 minutes on bike

Heels up on bench bridge single leg hamstrings 4X10/s

Disc quads X10/s
Figure 8 in plank for abs X10

Feet on wall stability ball crunches 3X15



September 30, 2012 Sunday

Bike for 20 minutes

Bench press 5X8 75lbs

Incline flyes 3X10

GTS pull ups 3X10 6th rung

Hanging row 3X10 on rung 11
Modified teaser 3X15

Second workout:
6:00 - ran around golf course and did surges up Cheasty (hill near my house)

Below are the two latest photos.

Training Schedule The Past Week

I am now training six days in a row with one day off a week.  Before I began contest prep I was training three days on, one day off.  I also began two-a-days yesterday and will do those three times a week until the end of September and then increase that amount to either five or six days per week depending on how I look.

My training for the past week:

Tuesday, Sept 11th

30 minutes running on the treadmill which included three tabatas.

Bench press 4X8 75lbs
Incline DB crossover flyes 3X15 15's

Hammerstrengh pull downs 4X8 70lbs
Wide machine row 3X15 30lbs

Side bends with 25lb DB 3X10

*Anterior delts still sore form two workouts ago and hamstrings are sore and tight.


Wednesday, Sept 12th

Ran hill repeats outside X10
*Chest is sore from yesterdays workout

Thursday, Sept 13th

Road bike with a couple of intervals thrown in for 30 minutes.

Wide grip upright row 5X8 with Olympic bar only
DB shoulder press 3X8 20's
Lateral raises 3X10 10's
Rear lateral raises 3X10 10's

Abs - on bench bicycle X20 followed immediately by double crunch X15 for three sets


Friday, Sept 14th

Incline bicep curls 4X8 17.5's
E-Z bar curls with close grip 3X15 20lbs

TRX tricep extensions 4X10
Bar tricep push ups 3X10

Ran 4 miles

Jackknifes 4X15


Saturday, Sept 15th

30 minutes on bike easy

BOSU lunges 3X10
On bench leg behind over and back 3X10/s
Hamstrings pelvic lift with heels on bench 4X10/s

Heels hooked under bench for abs - 4X10

*Triceps sore from Friday, biceps slightly sore.


Sunday, Sept 16th

Bench press 10/9/8/7/6/5/4/3/2/1 with 75lbs
Cross over flyes on incline bench 3X15 15's

Pull downs 4X8 82.5lbs
Wide grip hanging row rung 5 on Smith machine

Rode bike for 30 minutes with 10 minutes of intervals thrown in.


In the evening:
Ran 3 miles including intervals


I'm sure your noticed that I had one very light leg day.  My legs are not my problem, my upper body is, especially my shoulders.  As long as they are not sore I will work them as often as I can.  I don't remember the times that I work out because I often throw them in between clients so it varies.  As long as I get a good workout in I am not concerned with when I work out although I never lift at night, I have too many clients so my second cardio session will come in when I get home.

Week Two Of Contest Prep

Weigh in this morning was exactly the same as last week which is normal for me.  When I competed before I would lose nothing for two weeks then the number would drop and would stay down.  Doesn't make any sense but that's the way it is so I am expecting the same thing this time around. 

As I suspected it has been hard for me to cut out wine.  It took me about three days to do it because 'the bottle will go bad if I don't drink it'.  I'm sure you all can relate.  It works for giving up sugar or wheat too. You want to clear that stuff out of your house but you don't want to throw it all away.  It has also been hard for me to eat every two hours.  If I eat two hard boiled eggs and 1/2 cup of oatmeal at 8:00am then I'm not hungry until 12:00, which is the way it's suppose to work, right?  General diet advice is to eat a healthy breakfast because you'll be full until lunch.  I'm usually not hungry when I wake up but now I am which means that my metabolism is revving up.  I have also adjusted to eating less per meal so I am hungry every 2-3 hours.  Lots of protein and really low carbs.  I don't worry about the fat until closer to competition time.

Here's what I ate yesterday:

8:00 am 1/2 cups oatmeal with a little half and half

9:30am Muscle Milk Lite

11:30am Salad with mixed greens, 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 tablespoons of sunflower seeds and 1/8 cup of shredded cheese and balsamic vinegar dressing

1:00 2 pieces of string cheese

3:00 6 ounces of skinless roasted chicken and 20 grape tomatoes

5:30 Muscle Milk Lite

6:30 1 scoop of whey protein powder

8:30 6 ounces of lean beef

Total for day was about 2,000 calories, 186 grams protein and 53 grams of carbs.

Count Down To Competition!

 Physique and/or Figure Prep

Week one, day one.  Competition date is November 3rd and prep begins today.  Starting weight is 144.3lbs.  Not sure about my competition weight but I'm guessing around 130lb.  I'll know better in four weeks.

The photo on the left was taken at a 1995 competition, I think it was the Emerald Cup.  I know, the second one is horrible, but it is super hard to take a picture of yourself with an iPhone and I didn't have anyone around to take it for me.  And I really, really wanted to take a photo from today, the first day of prep.

It's been 16 years since my last competition and it's all coming back to me now:). First thing I need to do is make sure there is no wheat, sugar or alcohol in my diet.  The wheat part is pretty easy for me although I am not vigilant about it when I am not competing.  Also I don't really eat any sugar and definitely not on a regular basis.  Alcohol is a little harder.  I don't drink much but do enjoy a glass of wine (or two) a few times a week.

The second thing I need to do is eat 5-6 small meals a day.  This is hard for me and I will need to set a reminder on my phone.  I am used to packing my food for the day but I can forget to eat between clients, especially when I train three or four in a row.  When that happens I must have protein shakes ready to go.  I could use bars too but in about five weeks those will have to be eliminated as well because in most bars there are too many carbs in one shot and the ones that don't have many carbs taste horrible.  Competition prep isn't really about the taste of food, however if you can't choke it down there is usually another option.  I also must keep my calories up, around 2,500 so essentially five, 500 calorie meals per day.  I'll cut those calories to about 2,000 when I get closer to the competition.  And I'm sure everybody knows my diet will be high in protein, low in carbs and medium in fat. 

And the final thing is to make sure I lift heavy.  I want to keep my muscles hard and full.  If you don't use muscle you will lose it and that is especially true when you diet.  If you don't use the muscle your body will give up a little fat and a little muscle.  You'll lose weight but you won't be leaner, just smaller.

The categories for competing have changed since 1996.  The choices now are bodybuilding, physique or figure.  I am not sure where I fall between figure and physique.  I am definitely not muscular enough to compete in bodybuilding.  I wasn't even muscular enough in 1996 but I had no choice.  I didn't win very many shows back then for that reason.  I have looked at figure and physique competitors and I still can't figure out which category I would fall in.  I would prefer physique because it is closer to what I know.  I am going to go to the Ironman competition on October 6th and make an assessment of the competitors at that time then I'll go from there.  If you search on the internet both figure and physique competitors muscularity and leanness are all over the map.  I'll figure that out closer to competition time.

I will post diet and workout information at the very least weekly.  And I will keep posting workouts.  A lot of you have sent me requests for different types of workouts so I will keep writing different routines based on body weight, travel, limited time, strictally weights, etc.  If you do have requests, please let me know.  And, if you have any questions about contest prep or your thinking about competing let me know.  I would love to help you if I can.  Back when I competed it was really hard to find information but now we have many sources.  So many in face that it's hard to weed through them all.  I can try to help you figure out what will work for you.