On a side note...

 I know it has been a while...  I can't believe how crazy busy I have been!  I am falling behind on everything, including balancing my checkbook and paying my bills!  I told myself no blog posts until I got myself caught up with real world stuff!

10 days out!
Current weight:  123.2 lbs
Current bf%:  unknown.  Jon took measurements last Friday, but I never heard back what it was.  I am not worried about it, because it is just a number.  The last reading I had was in the 12% range a few weeks ago.

Overall, things are going well.  I have been very dedicated to my meal plans even though they have become more strict as the show date gets closer.  I find myself spending lots of time on Pinterest looking at all the foods that I can't have right now (mostly while I am doing cardio!).  I look and pin healthy stuff too...  but there are just so many yummy desserts out there to try!  It has made me think a lot about what I want to have for my post-competition treats/snacks, etc.  I am not sure yet how many days 'off plan' I will have after this first show (I will have 6 weeks until the next one), but I keep telling myself that I don't want to over do it.  The things I crave most right now are peanut butter, Dave's Killer bread, Stacy's pita chips and fruit.  I miss my protein smoothies and of course will add in more oatmeal for as long as I can!  Some treats I plan on having post show...  Kashi Go-Lean Crunch, animal crackers from the bulk bin at Winco, maybe some redvines and lets not forget a few of the peanut butter tasty kakes I have in the freezer that I have been saving since last Christmas (thanks to a friend from Pensylvania for sending them over!)!  Ok...  enough talk about food, I am already hungry!

Since I was already training for this competition, I thought I would go ahead and enter the Bodybuilding.com 100k Transformation challenge.  This was the challenge that really kick-started things for Lance and I last year and so I wanted to enter it again.  I had met so many great people on bodyspace during the challenge and it was nice to have the extra motivation.  I entered on Jan 26th and below are my 12-week transformation pictures (end date April 20th) that I submitted for the challenge.  I am so happy with the changes that I was able to make with the guidance of Jon & Shawna.

100k Transformation Challenge - Front

100k Transformation Challenge - Side

100k Transformation Challenge - Back

Here is a link to my Transformation Essay on Bodyspace.

I feel like I am still continuing to make some progress.  At 2 weeks out, I got a cheat meal (specific:  restaurant burger and fries) and although I was full and felt very tight, I decided to see if I could still get my workout in.  Holy pump!  I had veins popping out all over the place!  I didn't do any abs that night, because I literally couldn't crunch without being in pain (lol) but I got in a great back/shoulder workout...  Also, I liked this cheat meal much better then my last, which was "Eat a pizza".  Yep, that is right.  A WHOLE pizza!  I had picked myself up a Little Cesaer's Hot N Ready pizza but couldn't quite finish it myself.  Trinity helped me with a couple slices.  I had the worst food hangover after that night.  A headache for two days and had to train with Shawna when I still felt stuffed and bloated!


Cheat meal + pre-workout + back/shoulder workout = PUMP!
14 days out

My main focus at this point is to get through these last 10 days...  stay focused on my meals, get all my cardio and workouts in and bring the best ME that I can bring to the stage.  We got a preliminary roster and the bikini class is huge!  Six different classes and around 10 girls in each class!  Looks like class 'F' for me, with all the tall girls!  As usual...  Lance has been amazing and understanding with all my late evenings from working out and still continues to prep all my food for me the next day.  It is such a relief to know that I can come home, package everything up and then RELAX!  There just isn't enough time in the day right now to do it all and I am so greatful for him and his support.  Work has really picked up and gotten busy and so I am a little worried about increased stress levels, but I am just doing my best to take everything in stride and only do what I can.  I will get through this!

First show...  Here I come!

Another exciting moment this week...  I got to try on and pose in my competition suit for the first time!  Here is a sneak peak at it...  Nicol is adding some stones to the fabric to really make it stand out and sparkle!  Putting that suit on really helped me realize that it is all coming together.  I was so worried about my butt!  I think it will all look good come show day! :)



Love the color and can't wait to see the final product!

No matter my placing, I am so excited to finally be at the final countdown to do this show.  It has been a lot of hard work and I am very proud and surprised at just what I was capable of doing and staying committed to this.  I have had a pretty long prep (started at 18 weeks out) and will continue another 6 weeks after this first show before the Reno show.  I will definitely be ready to start eating more food and working on adding some more muscle.  I haven't made the final decision if I will stick with bikini or try to transition into figure...  We will see how the off-season goes and how well I am able to show my 'sass' with posing in bikini! :)

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who has been supporting and encouraging me through this whole process!  I wanted to be able to do this and still be 'me' in the end.  I know I have changed, but my heart is still the same.  I have taken this time to really focus on myself and give it the attention that it needs.  I haven't disappeared forever.  Hopefully, I have picked up some good habits along the way, for a healthier and happier LIFESTYLE and not just a temporary contest prep.  I love the fitness industry and don't plan on exiting it anytime soon, just hope to get back a little normalcy here in a couple of months!

With that...  Here's to Empire Classic, Spokane, WA and then on to NPC Nevada Championships, Reno, NV where I will make my best attempt to qualify for USA's in Vegas (July).

Here we go! :)