sore all over!!!

My parents left for Mexico on Monday, they went to visit my brother and my sister in-law for 3 months I miss them already! For some reason the grey cloud was still lingering over my head, I don't have too much energy but I've spoken to my coach and he will be putting me on a fat burner to boost me up for my work outs so I cannot wait!! This will probably happen when I'm 12 weeks out. As mentioned in my previous post I have a meal plan and a work out plan from Erin Plato. I wanted to share with you guys what my meals consist of on a daily basis and also what my work outs have been for this past week, I'm sore all over!! and its also the last Friday of February, at the end of this post I have posted my measurements, weight and pics!

Meal 1
oats(35g)
egg whites(160g) 1 whole egg

Meal 2
Post-work out shake
2 scoops of BCAA
1 scoop of Glutamine

Meal 3
chicken or fish (125g)
veggies(200g)
quinoa(75g)

Meal 4
plain yogurt (3/4 cups)
unsalted almonds(25g)
1/2 apple

Meal 5
chicken or fish(100g)
veggies(300g)
1 tbsp of Udo's oil

Meal 5 kills me with 300g of veggies lol its sooo much!!

My work outs look like this:

Day 1
chest/back
45min cardio

Day 2
shoulders
45min cardio

Day 3
Bi's & Tri's
45min cardio

Day 4
Legs/glutes
45min cardio

Day 5
Abs
45 min cardio

Day 6
45min cardio

Day 7
Rest

I'm doing good with my meals but I'm beginning to get us to working out 2 times a day. With my schedule on a weekly basis it does take a toll on me. As mentioned before, I work alternating weeks. One week I work days (9am-5:30pm) and the next week I work nights (5:30pm-1am or 2am) When I work days it excellent because I wake up do my weights and then when I get back from work in the evening I do my cardio. Nights, its a little more difficult, I get up early todo my weights and then I do my cardio before I go to work, so I get very exhausted and feel drained at work but its all worth it so no complaining!!

Here are my measurements and weight:

• BUST: 34'
• WAIST: 27 1/2'
• HIPS: 36 1/2'
• L.LEG: 20 1/2'
• R.LEG: 20 1/2'
• L.ARM: 10'
• R.LEG:10'

WEIGHT: 112LBS
FAT: 21.5%
MUSCLE: 40.2

Took these pics early this morning no work out gear yet!

where is my energy @...!!!

Its been the hardest week yet since I started. My energy levels aren't where I'd like them to be even though I'm eating and taking my vitamins, minerals and supplements. I can feel my body changing and can see it too I guess its just part of hormones and chemical levels changing. I have been doing my work outs and eating clean which I'm happy about! I also blame my low energy levels to "that time of the month" yay...not. Hopefully next week will be much better.

Nothing too exciting has happened this week for me but I do want to say this, my goal this week was to keep pushing on regardless of everything stressful and I know some of you are going thru this now. Never, ever allow these situations to take up too much room in your life, dwelling and over thinking of situations will only make us sedentary and depressed. Its important to keep pushing, facing our problems head on, find the best solution and keep moving! We are the only ones that can build our own strength mentally and physically and the only way to do that is to asses what we are doing now, if its not working for us, lets find another way to deal with the problem. In my case, I'm trying to control my moodiness which is a problem right now lol I know my boyfriend doesn't appreciate it that's for sure and I definitely do not want to hurt his feelings so, its something that I'm working on, I give myself 10 sec and tell myself "there is nothing that is going wrong unless I make it that way." Hope by next week this wave of low energy will disappear!!! Stay positive, stay focused, make appropriate changes.

Focus, Focus, Focus

Saturday I went to mom and dads house, there's nothing better than spending time with them, its by far the best time I have other than training. My parents are a great inspiration to me, they always have the right words to say, their advice is far beyond anything I could ever read about. I love how they sit and listen to everything I have to say and take in my words and always say positive things which uplift me and make me feel like I have an army behind me pushing me all the way. On another note Saturday was my cheat day. Sunday I was up by 12pm decided to sleep in, I was really tired, I did a full body work out it felt amazing had such a good pump! I've been wanting to spruce up my kickboxing cardio so, I went to walmart and picked up a pair of 5lb ankle/wrist weights, I love them!! I wear them around my ankles in the house and if I'm sitting watching TV I'll put them on my wrists and during commercial breaks I'll do some sets! I love it!

I know I mentioned before that I am doing this on my own, and I have seen amazing results which I will be sharing with you shortly. I have been in contact with a few amazing woman who have been and still train for bikini competitions not only here in Ontario but across the country including the states. I find these woman so inspirational and they have opened there experience with me which is such a blessing for me right now cause I'm the type of girl who does not leave things to the last minute, I like to take my time and because of that I always start way before hand, plus I find that I don't get as nervous if I've been preparing with a lot of time on my hands. I've enlisted the help of a bikini pro, here name is Erin Bryn Plato (https://www.facebook.com/#!/erin.plato?fref=ts) I've checked her out, spoken to her and I know I will be well prepared for JUNE!!! I cannot wait to start my meal plan and work out plan with her, the good thing is that its all online, and won't need to go to no gym, as you know I avoid gyms at all costs, it just doesn't work for me so, I will continue to train at home. As for my meals I know I'v been doing very well with the food but as I lose the fat I also need to know how much I will need to consume to keep my muscle from breaking down, and since I am not experienced in that field I know Erin will help me out. As the date approaches, my diet will change and also my water in-take will change as well, so I rather do things right rather then ruin what I've worked so hard to get in 6 months. I'M SO EXCITED!!!

Next month I will be attending a seminar for posing and also to discuss what will be expected at the competition. If you don't know, the bikini division is not only on how lean you are but also over all appearance, skin tone, sexiness etc, and this will all be discussed at the seminar and I'll definitely be sharing all the details with you!

I have to mention that January and February are passing by very quickly!!  which I love and at the same time I don't. I love it cause I can't wait for spring and summer to arrive! and I don't cause I'm trying to embrace this amazing change that's happening to me. I write everything I do and I hope to enjoy these next 4 months leading to competition day!!

Another thing I wanted to share with you, is that it can become pretty lonely being on this journey. I work out on my own, I eat on my own, I have my mood swings which no one understands (and neither do I lol), I can't go out to restaurants with friends and alcohol....well alcoholic drinks are at the bottom of the list, not that its super important right now but a glass of wine would be nice after a tough day. So how do I cope? I push thru all those feelings like a bulldozer, I open myself up on this blog, I stay connected with woman and men that are in the same mind set, I motivate others who are not and I listen to music on my Ipod and let all my frustration out when I train. I cannot stress the importance of staying on track even when the world around you is tumbling from one side to the other. Just because I motivate others and myself as well, it does not mean I have no problems. I'm very in tune with my surroundings and at times situations do effect me, I do get angry, and of course its difficult to come out of it at times. The only thing that can help me is WORKING OUT!!! when I'm in my zone I leave everything there, it does not come back with me, I let all that negative energy sweat out of my pores, I exhale all my frustration and push myself harder and harder every time! I will not give up or allow my surroundings to demolish my goals and where I'm going. I also want to thank all of the woman and men who uplift me everyday, leaving positive comments and letting me know how I am motivating them, but really, they motivate me to keep pushing, so, thank you!!

Don't give up, picture yourself where you need to be, to be the best you can be! You never know whose watching.

I know I said I would be posting progress pics at the end of the month, but I want to share with you my progress and here are some pics I took this week.

mind opener

This week I was doing lots of research on muscle gain, there is so much info out there it can be a little overwhelming! From everything I learned, the one thing that they all had in common was that EATING is the most IMPORTANT part of gaining muscle and also losing fat. You can do all the exercise you want but if your not fueling your muscles properly you end up losing muscle mass and also gaining weight in the long run.

Including protein in all of your meals will help get you the adequate amount of protein that your body needs before and after your workouts and also during the day. I wondered how much protein we should be getting and here's the formula for that:

 

your weight in lbs divided by 2.2= you'll get your weight in kg

then calculate: weight in kg x 0.08(not active) - 1.8 (very active) = protein in g/day

 (if your moderately active it would be between 0.08-1.8)





Keeping yourself hydrated during the day is also essential. I'm not one to drink much water but now that my food consumption is mostly protein I find myself drinking so much water! my body just asks for it. This week, I also started taking multivitamins and minerals and also salmon and fish oil. Just because your on a diet doesn't mean you cannot add good fats in your diet. Avocado, olive oil are just some of the foods you can add to your meal to get the fats your body still needs!

I noticed I was a little on the edge this week. Probably because my hormones and chemicals in the body are changing... I feel moody then I feel happy lol. The only time I'm absolutely in my zone is when I train. It could also be the fact that I'm not having sugar or "comfort" food. I eat every 2-3 hours and if it gets busy at work I realize I get really grumpy if I don't get to eat. I try and cheer myself up and most of the time it works but the moodiness really sneaks up on me. What helps me cheer up? FACEBOOK posts. Here are some of the posts that help me out during the day:

 

 

 

I went to the drug store and there are so many multivitamins and minerals I didn't know what most of them do for your body and this image below helped me understand what this wall of supplements meant.

 

 Reading about all this useful information this week really opened up my mind to the many different types of diets and an understanding of how the body works in terms of protein and what happens to the muscles and lean muscles when they are feed properly and when they aren't.

This bikini competition is doing a lot more to me then just changing my body. I recommend that if you do plan or are on a diet you do some research on food and what you love to eat, perhaps you may find that balance in your diet and enjoy a way of life rather then a diet!