"Trust the Process"
Tomorrow will be 10 weeks into my prep with 6 to go. I've been working out 7x a week for a while now (no lectures please - my coach knows what she's doing), lifting heavier, and binge watching The Bachelor and Grey's Anatomy during cardio.
There's a a saying that seems to be the mantra of competitors - "Trust the process." I've had a hard time with that to be honest. I trust my coach and I've been following her plan as prescribed. However, having never done anything like this before, I don't really know what to expect or how my body will change or when. My body fat percentage has not moved in the past 10 weeks. I am not the body composition judges want on stage, so not seeing that change start to happen yet has been difficult mentally.
I now send my coach progress pictures twice a week rather than once so that she can fine tune my plan as efficiently as possible for the last part of my prep. Today, she followed up on my last progress pictures. With 6 weeks to go, she's upped my cardio again and said that in 4 days I will start fasted cardio. She also dropped my fat and carb intake while maintaining my protein. It's cutting time! What do these new changes mean for me? First off, it means morning cardio sessions because, well, I just need to find more time in the day to accommodate the routine. It will also make the "fasted" part easier. I generally don't wake up hungry, so this shouldn't be a problem. It also means I am in need of some new low carb recipes! So if you have any suggestions, shoot me an email at agirlandagym@gmail.com. Seriously, I need options other than shrimp and egg whites.
During these past 10 weeks, I've had a lot of support and encouragement. I've had family and friends ask if they could come watch and cheer me on at the competition. My fiance has come to the gym with me almost every day that I've gone and has agreed to start morning workouts with me next week. His dinners have also suffered as we're not making lasagna or our typical meals. He's the real trooper here. My mom has told me how impressed she is and is excited to come to the competition. I've had a friend of a friend offer to loan me her competition bikini to help cut costs (competitions get pricey!). The manager of our gym expressed his excitement for me. An employee of another gym that I went to take a peek at sat down with me and gave me a TON of advice and pointers. I met a girl at Gold's who was willing to stop her posing practice to teach me a few things. My friends (hey JIll and Brittany!) have helped me meet my water quota with a friendly competition and accepted the fact that when they come over, they are on their own for food. I mean, I offered them my "healthy fried rice," but they turned it down. Another local friend joined me for a glutes class that I likely would have walked out of without her (thanks for suffering with me, Ally!). A coworker "bros out" with me about our leg days and PRs. There will be more shout outs to come in future posts, but I'll end with one to my coach, Melanie. She's built me a great program, consoled all of my concerns, and has been super encouraging throughout the process.
Expect an update next week when I'm crying during cardio :P For now, I'll leave you with my progress pictures from Sunday, March 11th.
-The Girl