FOOD EXPERIENCE

I am told by friends and work colleagues that it's not too long now, and once it is all over I'll be able to eat whatever I like. True and not true. What I am most looking forward to is getting back to my diet regime, much like the one I had with Sue (Ideal Bodies Online). Of course I'll look forward to my special treat (one meal) after comp. I plan to have a nice brekky on the beach with Perry and my sister.

What is not true is that I can't eat whatever I like. Not immediately and though the temptation might be there to stuff a dozen loaves of raisin bread or boston buns, I can't. Not after. Due to me being on a strict or hard clean diet for so long my system won't cope foods that are high in salt, sugars and fats. It'll make me ill. I would spend ages explaining this to people that soon their faces go blank. I guess I don't really blame them, but it was so frustrating. Now I don't say anything except ... yeah, I can't wait to eat what I like ... it's much easier.

BOUNCING BACK

It's a gorgeous day and there's a spring in my walk. I'm feeling buzzed and the brain's functioning well. So far so good.

My friend Dave is back from China and I'm really glad. He was full of questions about my training and wellbeing and he's never short of compliments and best wishes. Thanks a lot Dude! See you in the gym.

It was a good session at the gym last night. I hammered my bi's 'til they burst and I felt an awesome squeeze on my shoulders. I love the look of my shoulders (thanks Matt). I finished the night with a half hour on the treddy and then the stairmaster. I think I napped a couple of times on the stairs. God I was sssooo tired.

This morning I had a good run from the gym, up Grandview Drive then back to the gym. I sssoo love the morning weather and the views from Grandview are spectacular. It's legs tonight then the bike, then dinner then SLEEP! I gotta get some SLEEP!

That's pretty much all folks. Have a good night.

Oh, thanks Aldeen for the DVD. Awesome stuff!

SOME STUFF

So, I can't sleep (see below) and now I have knots in my stomach. My mental state is warped and my energy level's are low. I woke up with a headache and thought of every reason under the sun not to get out and run. Instead I dragged Perry to come walk with me on the beach. We high tailed it for 35 minutes. We only walked 3.5 kms, guess it was better than nothing. Oh and it rained and rained! Great! (sarcastic).

My cycles begun and I'm bloated! I feel spongy, uurrgggh! My bosses are away today so I'm wearing my daggy (drab) track pants to work. They're comfortable and it hides my stomach bulge. Perry thinks my pants are four sizes too big and it sags in the behind. He keeps quiet when I put them on. I think that's wise. Best not to say too much to me, not during my cycle. Remember? ... Mental state? ... Twisted!

So my headaches gone, cool! God, I just looked in the mirror ... cripes I'm wearing clown pants! I'm so lucky there's not many people here. I'll sneak out after everyone has gone.

Hope all is good with everyone else!

SLEEP DEPRIVATION

It's hard to sleep. Damn hard. It's hard to imagine a sleep in on the weekends. No more Sunday am runs! Hooray, I can't wait!

Ok, things done so far:

• Friday PT with Matt. My bi's were GI-normous! Think I saw some good stuff on my tri's. I believe this is the first session I've ever felt nauseous. I can't remember when exactly but I do remember thinking if we don't stop I'm gonna pass out. That would be my first time!
• Nails, makeup, eyelashes, colour, lights! Wooohoo, Anita and I went makeup shopping. Awesome colours. I'm gonna be oh so sparkley!
• Finalised accommodation in Brisbane. My sister Parani will be arriving Friday night and bunking in with me, Lorraine and the comp girls.
• Second to last dress rehearsal yesterday. We are looking mighty fine! Lorraine did a gorgeous job on my bikini. Bewdiful. Lorraine says I'm coming down, that made me feel good. Guess I can only do the best I can.

Things to do:

• Book hair colour.
• Book hair removal. Ouch!
• Book spray tan.
• Pose practice, practice, practice.
• Cardio, cardio, cardio.

Have a good week everyone.

POSITIVE THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

DRESS REHEARSAL

Sometimes I look like this after my last meal!









It's dress rehearsal at pose class and everyone is looking damn fine! Is it me, but do the bikinis make you feel like you're wearing nothing at all? I find it alittle unusual. Guess I'll get use to it, just like the shoes. And speaking of shoes ... how well are we strutting? Bloody fantastic! I think we should be posing on ice! Ah ... naah, just kidding.

There's less than three weeks to comp and I'm feeling excited, tired, exhausted, brain dead and all that. To get me through the final weeks Lorraine's put together a dance DVD to spice up my cardio. I'm looking forward to it. It makes a change from running the backstreets and hills of Coolum. I get the DVD this afternoon.

A person who is looking exceptionally stunning these days is my friend and co-competitor Penny. With a naturally awesome lean physique I've been priviledged to see her build materialize from great to outstanding. Combined with a massive improvement to her posing and flow-like dance, she has the package worthy of a State or National placing. I can't wait 'til comp day! Her friends and family are going to be mighty surprised!

Happy training everyone!

LOW CARBS

If the truth be known I'm not a huge fan of chocolate. I'd re-write this to say:

If Only Men Were As Satisfying As

Hot Raisin Toast with Butter!

(or a Boston Bun or a Fresh Crusty French bread)

Can you tell I'm incredibly low on carbs?

Here's a typical low carb day ...

• Walked into my gym yesterday and anounced "good morning!" It was 5pm!
• Locking a bunch of students out of the office when I had walked in and accidently locked the door behind me.
• Tried unsuccessfully to flush the toilet at the gym. Realised I was pressing the light switch. Daahh!

NOVICE DIVISION

Good morning. I received an email from Chris and so far 11 competitors in the figure novice have entered, therefore the group will be split into height. I believe the maximum is 9 competitors as Chris says judging is difficult if there's more than 9. Hope this info helps everyone.
___

The attendance at Lorraine's pose class was small yesterday. Just myself, Penny and Cheryl turned up. Usually there's at least six to eight girls. Practising with a small group is often better than a large class. We get quality tutoring from Lorraine, almost like a one and one session for the price of a group.

I was disppointed to see I hadn't leaned down further from the week before :( These last weeks I have to up the antes beginning with 55 mins cardio this morning and every morning as well as 35 min cardio every night. I have only 1 portion of carb a day (1/2 cup of oats) and my calorie intake has decreased as well. I was recommended thermogen intensifiers a long time ago but they made me queezy and I felt very unwell. I stopped taking the stuff immediately.

Has anyone out there increased the intake of coffee or diet coke? Not that I am but I know of others who regularly take 6 or more cups of coffee to curb hunger pains between meals or to keep going through the day and when they're training. I'm not a huge consumer of coffee but I could if I wanted to. I figure I felt ill with the intensifiers because of the high quantity of caffine in the tablets. Any comments anyone?
___

Oh by the way, I've decided not to compete in the ANB. The prep for INBA is just so damn hard. Check on me at the end of the week ... I will probably change my mind, again!
___

And finally, I stole this from Michelle's blog. I love it ...

Courage is not about the strength to go on

It's going on when you don't have the strength

God give me strength!!

WRAP UP FOR ANOTHER WEEK

It's the end of another week. Yippee! Here's the highlights:

Lorraine's pose class on Sunday. New venue. Bigger space. Another competitor. More guests. Lots of hard work.

• Chests and back session with Matt. My "wings" are huge! Feeling DOMS. Matt now calls me Bat Girl!

Now swimming two mornings a week. Monday great. Incorporated 500m sprints. Felt good, slept like a rock. Swam this morning, 80 laps - 2 kms! 50 minutes. Great stuff. Tonight I'll sleep like a rock.

Watching the Qld ANB 2005 DVD. Picked up a lot of good moves and practicing my dance.

Things coming up:

• Legs and cardio tonight
• 50 min cardio tomorrow morning
• Visit Di and replan diet
• Bi's/tri's and shoulders tomorrow afternoon
• 30 min cardio tomorrow night
• Pose practice Sunday. Discuss our group accommodation and finalise makeup and hair plans

Stay strong everyone! Have a great weekend.

TIMES ARE BUSIER

I'm reading Deb's latest post (Tuesday 5 September, 2006) and how right she is! We are all extremely busy! I've never been consumed by a huge project as this. Where do the hours go? Well for me, it's like this:

• 5.30am alarm, rise at 5.40am
• gulp L-Glutamine and L-Carnitine
• drink water
• 50 minute cardio
• 10 minute abs
• cook and eat breakfast
• gulp multivitamin, calcium, iron, antioxidant tablets
• pack my 5 meals for the day
• shower and change
• go to work
• end work
• gulp L-Glutamine and L-Carnitine
• go to gym and do 1 hour weight train
• 30 min cardio
• 7pm get home
• gulp L-Glutamine and Amino acid
• prep meal for next day
• cook and eat dinner
• watch tv
• sleep

And did mention the 30 or so visits to the toilet?

To keep track of my diet I decided to stay away from social events til after comp. I'm not normally anti-social but it's best to avoid temptation. And another thing, my energy levels go up and down that sometimes I don't want to talk to people, including Perry. I think it's best to live like a hermit for the next few weeks.

I've not heard anyone talk about this (I wonder if Penny and I are the only persons who discuss it) but this sport is hugely expensive! Why? Well there's my personal training sessions, pose consultations and weekly pose classes, Di's nutritional consultation, endless powders (protein, amino, l-glutamine, l-carnitine etc), gym fees, contest bikini, shoes, jewellery, federation registrations, competition entry fees, accommodation (at the venue), time off work (final week of comp), transportation, makeup artist fees, hairdresser fees, and finally food! I make no bones about it, at times it's been a worry for Perry and me.

Nevertheless I am soldiering on! Only four weeks and 3 days? Excellent!!

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL BODY BUILDING

It's official, I've decided to compete in the ANB Qld Championships on Saturday 14 October, 2006. After realising there is only one week difference in the major comps I was convinced not to miss the opportunity. Plus, if I made the INBA Nationals (that's a big IF everyone) I couldn't make it because I'm in Thailand in November. I only have October to do all the comps. Make sense?



I am tracking well. I've experienced no bad episodes.

Big thanks to Di and her massive support and guidance towards my final weeks. With her wedding in less than a week and her work with myself, Penny and the other girls, as well as her personal training, I don't know how she does it! Di, I am feeling very strong, hard and confident. Thanks a million! Thanks Deb for your concerns. I am looking forward to meeting you in October. You're a gem.

Happy training everyone.