Knowlege is power...

 Oh my god.  This time around is SO much harder then the last time.  New competition date is June 22nd and it is going slowly.  Ounce by ounce and a lot more tired.  Not sure what's going on but it's been super frustrating.  I bought an Escali  Scale that measures weight, fat and body water. Bio-impedance measuring is just one of the many ways to test body fat and there is a margin for error of 2% either side of the reading but you can do it at home and the cost is very low compared to other methods.  You should use it at the same time every day, which your probably already doing if you are monitoring your weight (obviously essential when prepping for a contest).  It measures hydration as well so if you use it every morning your hydration would pretty much be the same every day.  Testing in the evening would be a little tougher because hydration levels are more likely to change on a regular basis.  Really the main reason to use a scale with bio-impedance capabilities is that it gives you another way to monitor and, as the title of this post says, knowledge is power.  The more you know the better you can plan your competition prep.

The other thing I bought is an Orbi Tape.  It is a measuring tape that lets you measure yourself.  I don't know why but I think this is the coolest thing ever.  It makes it so you don't have to fumble to get a good reading on your own body.  Ready  more about it at the link above.  It's super cheap too.

People ask me about supplements all the time too.  I use straight forward whey protein that mixes easily.  I do not like to spend a lot of money on anything so I don't want all the wonder stuff that some companies add.  It should have a high protein/low carb count per serving.  I also take calcium, vitamin D, fish oil, flax seed capsules and a muti vitamin but I have to confess that I am not very good about taking them every day.

Simple rules to follow whether your preparing for a competition or not.  Protein, veggies and monitor, monitor, monitor in every way you can - weight, body fat and measuring.

One Week Behind

As the title of this post says I am a week behind so the Emerald Cup is out.  I might be able to catch up but it's too much of a risk, especially for a show that big.  Also deadline to register is tomorrow and I don't want to lose my 100 bucks.

If I lose weight any faster I will sacrifice muscle.  That's what I did last time and I swore not to do it again.  I am on track again meaning I've got my stress under control. My daughter has been released to return to gymnastics so her recovery is moving right along.  There are a couple shows coming up that I could enter as well.  One is the Oregon Ironman on May 18th which is plenty of time.  The only trouble is that it is in Lincoln City, Oregon.  A beautiful town on the Oregon coast but a 5+ hour drive from Seattle.  The next one close to Seattle is June 22nd which is better then next fall but will also be a serious balancing act since it's too soon to relax my competition prep but too far to go hard.  Deadline to register for the Oregon Ironman is May 18th so I have a couple of weeks to decide.  It may make a good little family vacation.

The other thing is I have a photo session coming up on May 24th.  I need new physique shots for my website and marketing purposes.  The Oregon Ironman would be perfectly timed for that but again, it's quite a drive just to compete.

So I'll continue as if I am going to do the Ironman because of the photo shoot.  I still have time to think about what I am going to do as far as actually competing.

Here's my nutrition count for one day.  This is a lower calorie day for me.  I usually hover around 1,500.

8:00am
6 ounces tuna
210/48/0
Lite mayo
100/0/4
Red bell pepper
25/0/3

1:30pm
8 ounces ground beef
450/72/0
Mixed greens
50/2/1
.5 red bell pepper
25/0/3
Oil and vinegar
70/1/4

7:00pm
.5 cups almonds
300/9/7

1,230/130/22

High Protein/High Fat

I have about four weeks before the competition and to bump myself off a plateau I went back to the high protein/high fat diet that really worked for me twenty years ago.  I did it for about a week and it bumped me down a few pounds.  The higher fat diets do not work for everyone.  If you don't know what works for you then I suggest that you try three different diets, doing each one for a week and see how you feel and if you lose any fat.  The first diet to try is the high protein/modified carb diet, which was the first one I did this time around so you can check back a couple posts to see what that consists of.  The second one is lean protein/low carb and that is your typical protein and veggie diet, with maybe some oatmeal added in the morning.  The third one to try is high protein/high fat.  This is what a typical day looks like on that kind of diet:

8:00am
1.5 scoops whey protein
2 tablespoons peanut butter

11:00am
1.5 cans of tuna mixed with 2 tablespoons mayo
Large green salad with 2 tablespoons oil and vinegar dressing*
.5 cups nuts

2:00pm
8 ounces of steak
7-8 brussel sprouts* tossed in olive oil and roasted

5:00pm
8 ounces chicken (either white or dark)
.5 cups nuts
1 cup stir fried cabbage*

8:30pm
8 ounces grilled fish
Large green salad with 2 tablespoons oil and vinegar dressing*
.5 cups nuts

* you can eat as much green veggies as you want.

Again, the best way to find out what works for you is to experiment.  Don't be afraid of eating more fat.  Fat doesn't make you fat, sugar and refined carbohydrates do.  They fatten cows quickly by feeding them high glucose foods, not by feeding them fat.

So much better now...

 After switching back to low carb I am where I want to be in this next round of competition prep.  I will be honest, if I feel I am not ready to compete in five weeks then I won't.  The Emerald Cup is the biggest competition in the northwest and I want to represent on stage.  If I don't look better then last time then I won't do it.

Here's my current typical day of eating:

8:00am
1 cup of cantaloupe
1 scoop of whey protein

11:00am
1 can of tuna mixed with 2 tablespoons of light mayo
1 red bell pepper

1:30pm
Oh Yeah protein drink (I love these!)

5:30pm
6 ounces of pork or chicken
1 cup stir fried veggies (mostly cabbage)

8:30pm
6 ounces steak
Mixed salad greens with oil and vinegar dressing

1,540/207/30
This is a lower calorie day for me.  I range between 1,500-1,800 on a regular basis.  The protein is high, I know.  I just work better that way.  You may work better with more carbs.  I have been occasionally eating a little brown rice and I stir fry my veggies in oil.  When I crave a little something extra I eat an Adkins bar.  They are calculated by net carbs (total carbs - fiber - sugar alcohols, all which don't impact blood sugar) although it worries me because I never count impact carbs, I count ALL the carbs.

Still lifting heavy.  Some programs want you to change to lighter weights and higher reps for the last four weeks but I don't think I'll do that.  I need the shoulder mass, which isn't very much now and counts for a lot when competing.

Back To Low Carb

So the higher carb diet was not working.  I switched back to low carb and lost 3 lbs.  It's not really about weight loss, it's about fat loss, but weight loss is a good indicator that you are going in the right direction.  The higher carb diet was definitely not a high carb diet.  It was around 70-100 grams of carbs a day but my body just does not work well with even that amount.  I need to diet on 50 grams or less.  Competition prep is tough, especially the first time out.  I made a lot of mistakes my first round of competition prep 20 years ago.  You have to be willing to experiment to see what works.

The traditional weight lifting program is working really well.  Strength has increased every other week so I am staying strong (not losing any muscle mass).  That was one of my mistakes last time toward the end of competition prep.  I didn't eat enough and I doubled my cardio which was not smart.  As I mentioned a few posts back I was afraid that I was not going to be able to lose the weight like I did 20 years ago....because I am now 20 years older and statistically it is harder to lose weight the older you are.  I was wrong.  As long as you stay properly hydrated, get enough rest between workouts and eat enough protein you won't sacrifice hard earned muscle in order to lose weight.  Again, it's about fat loss, not weight loss.  I needed to really track how much weight I was lifting every workout and do the traditional three or four exercises per body part during one workout.  When I shed a couple more pounds then I can make an assessment but I think my shoulders already look better then they did last competition.



Here's a look at the diet I was doing a couple of weeks ago:

1/3 cup oatmeal
1 scoop whey protein

3 ounces chicken breast
1 cup cantaloupe

3 ounces chicken breast
1/2 cup brown rice

3 ounces steak
2 cups lettuce with 2 tablespoon oil and vinegar dressing
1/2 red bell pepper

3 ounces steak
1/2 cup sweet potatoes

3 ounces chicken breast
2 cups sauteed kale

3 ounces steak
2 cups lettuce with 2 tablespoons oil and vinegar dressing
1/2 red bell pepper

Basically eating every two hours, which is very hard to do.


What I am eating now:

1/3 cup oatmeal
1 scoop whey protein

6 ounces steak

5-6 ounces chicken
2 cups lettuce with 2 tablespoons oil and vinegar dressing
1/2 red bell pepper

1 small can albacore tuna
2 tablespoons light mayo
1/2 red bell pepper

6 ounces steak
2 cups chard


I shoot for 175-200 grams of protein a day, 50 or less of carbs and I don't count fat grams.  Again, you have to find out what works for you.  You may be just fine with a higher carb diet but over the years I have found that the majority of women have a hard time losing weight unless they cut the amount of carbs that they eat.

Contest Prep- New Plan

I am now solidly into contest prep/round 2.2.  I am doing a slightly different route this time.  Instead of just keeping my carbohydrates low I am also eating 6-7 meals a day.  Those meals consist of 3-4 ounces of protein plus either a carb or vegies.  The first three meals of the day are protein/carb and the last four are protein/vegie.  My carb choices are 1/2 cup of brown rice, 1/3 cup of oatmeal or 3 ounces sweet potato.  Veggies are pretty much anything that is green and are essentially unlimited.  It has been going very well. 

My pre-competition training routine is different this time around as well.  I have returned to my old bodybuilding ways (just like with the diet) and am doing a four day split.  Biceps/triceps, chest/shoulders, back/hamstrings, shoulders/quads (abs every workout).  Same exercises for each workout making sure I increase the weight (or at least attempt to increase the weight) every other workout.  For example for chest I am doing bench press 3X10, one arm incline DB chest press 3X10 and flat bench flyes 3X10.  Every third time I do that workout I add weight to the bar and/or pick up heavier dumbbells.  I am also changing my cardio.  5 days a week of lower end cardio 30-45mins.  That is SO old school bodybuilder but it works as long as you lift heavy.  Oh, and no 2-a-days.  At my first gym there were three pieces of cardio equipment - one bike, one treadmill and one elliptical.  That gym was in a basement with no windows. We had a couple of cable machines, a couple squat racks, benches, etc and a ton of weights.  It was a great place.  You don't need anything fancy to get the job done.

Now I am going to go prep my food for the next few days.  I have purchased a lot of little food storage containers so that I can divide everything up and just grab it and go.  Seven meals a day, two containers per meal means I have to stack up 14 containers.  My frig looks ridiculous.

Sometimes You Do Need To Quit

2013 started out with a bang.....in a bad way.  On New Year's Eve our van blew up on the freeway and needed a new engine.  We were without it for over two weeks.  During that time I drove our second car.  About a week into the repair the front left tire blew....once again on the freeway.  Then two days later our dryer broke.  And then about a week later my daughter Ellie (a Level 5 gymnast) broke her knee cap in half horizontally right across the middle during gymnastics' practice.  At that point I decided that this was not a good time to be training for a competition.  I often didn't have the energy to workout.  We only had one car between the six of us (two adults and four kids) and everybody had to be different places at the same time so going to the gym was not an option.  My kid's always come first, no matter what.

Ellie was at home bed-ridden for ten days after the accident before she had surgery to repair her patella.  She was home for another week after the surgery.  She has only been attending school half days up to this point but she is going back full time as of tomorrow.  She is finally able to get around without too much trouble although her knee aches by the end of the day, especially on her sport's therapy days.

So I have picked a competition in May because now that all of those fires have essentially been put out and I need to change my focus back to something that I want to do, which is compete again.  The competition is only nine weeks away but I am ready to go again and I don't want to wait until the next one which is in July.

I am going back to my old-school roots.  I am going to follow a very traditional weight lifting program.  What that means is I am going to choose three or four exercises per body part and stay with those exercises for the next two months and I will try to increase the weight every other workout so that I lift to failure.  It will be important for me to have a spotter for a few of my training sessions because I will want to really push to failure and that is pretty much impossible to do without a spotter on exercises like the bench press.

As for my diet the plan is pretty much the same as before except that I am going to be militant about eating every two hours throughout the day.  I am also going to add sweet potatoes back into my diet.

So that's the plan....let's hope we are done with all the drama for a while:)