Makin' it Happen - One Meal and One Workout at a Time

Powerful.  Strong.  Driven.  Motivated.  Grateful.  Clear headed.  Bad ass.

These are the words that come to mind when I examine how I feel about my journey in fitness. The road I'm traveling has become straight and I can see a long way down the road. The side streets have disappeared, there are no forks or obstacles in the road.  These things (obstacles, etc.) do not exist for me.  I do not accept them nor will I acknowledge them.  Oh, I know they are there.  Obstacles are like the guy in the grocery store that stares you down while you are shopping; you know he is there but he just is not important enough to warrant you expending any of your precious energy on his dorkiness.  

For the next 20.5 weeks I will be a machine, perfectly tuned and maintained for optimum performance.  I will not eat anything or do anything that will not move me closer to my goal of bringing my best to my first figure competition.  I will take one step at a time because I know that if I skip a step and try to run, I will trip and fall.  

I've had an amazing workout (today's is still to come), my food is prepped for the week and I am rested and energized.

Healthy ingredients ready to fuel my success!  YUM!

Happy Tuesday, dear reader!

    

Final Case Study Recap - Week Twelve is Complete

That's a wrap, folks!

I made it!  I successfully completed the 12 week Recipe For Fitness Case Study!  It was a fantastic experience and I can't thank Chelle and Tab enough for the things they taught me and they support they gave me.  It was truly a life changing experience.  You can read my final journal entry here:  http://www.recipeforfitness.com/transformation/carleneH.html.  Just scroll down to the bottom of the page, the entries are in chronological order.  Here are my progress pics and final stats:

    Final Stats:

• Chest:  34.5
• Waist:  27.5
• Quad:  18
• Bicep:  10.25
• Calf:  12
• Hips:  30

I realized very quickly that I needed to have a talk with myself and remember who I'm really doing this whole thing for.  Ultimately, it's for me.  I had completely shifted my drive and ambition to pleasing my trainer and nutritionist and took it off myself.  It was so much easier that way, it took the focus off me and it became like having a dream job.  I had a responsibility to uphold and nothing was going to stop me.  In my opinion, that doesn't really require a lot of self discipline.  It's really just about doing what's right.  Now that I'm back to doing it just for me, I have to practice self discipline.  If this is what I want (to compete) there are certain nonnegotiable things I must do to get it.  


And so here I go!  For the next seven weeks I will:

• consume 1800 calories per day at a macro ratio of 40/30/30
• do NO cardio
• continue to build a strong foundation suitable for stage
• tell myself every morning that there is a method to the madness
• be grateful for my health and strive to be an example to those who want to get healthy too
• work on blogging more often and share my journey with all of you

See you soon!

Happy Wednesday, dear reader!

 

Nutritional supplement know how: A series on supplements to educate and inform

Nutritional supplement know how: A series on supplements to educate and inform

Fitness Case Study - Week Eleven Recap

What Doesn't Kill Me Makes me Stronger!

I have one more week to soak up all the knowledge I can in this Fitness Case Study.  One more week.  What an incredible experience this has been.  What an honor to have been chosen, what a victory to have survived.  I made it!  I completely changed my life, the way I train, the way I eat, the way I think... in three months!  I am not the same woman I was when I started this adventure.  I am braver, stronger and better because of the journey I have been on.

You know, a lot of times, when people make a drastic life change, we hear things like, "Never look back" or "That's all in the past" but I'm not so sure that's how I feel.  I want to look back.  I want to remember where I was just one year ago.  I was fat, unhappy and hopeless.  It's true that those things are in my past but they are also an important part of who I am now.  I can't shut away the girl I used to be, she's a part of who I am.  She's evolved into a strong, confident woman who knows what she wants and is willing to work hard to get it.  

I have never worked so hard for anything in my life.  I have gone from being someone who could barely get out of bed to take her kiddos to school, to someone who gets up at 3:20am, eats her first meal, showers & dresses and gets to the gym by 4:30am so she can get her workout finished before her kiddos even wake up in the morning.  I've graduated from diet Mtn. Dew and chocolate and moved on to whole foods and whey for my sustenance.

I still get teary when I think about this being my last week with the girls.  But you know what? They've done such an awesome job with me that, even though I'm sad, I know I'm gonna' be alright.  I can figure macros, I can do a workout plan, I can do this.  This is what it was all about... the transformation.  I've been molded into a fitness machine.  I've been taught well and now it's time for me to spread my wings and leave the nest.  Besides, I know that if I fall, they'll be right there to pick me up and set me right.  

I want to leave you today with some lyrics from one of my favorite songs on my workout playlist.  They're from Stronger by Kelly Clarkson.  In reality, the song is about a romantic relationship coming to an end.  However, if I remove the anger and the romance, a lot of the sentiment in this song holds true for where I'm at in my life right now.  It's a time of transition, time for me to do it on my own.  This will not kill me... it will only make me stronger.  Better. A winner.  A CHAMPION!

 What doesn't kill you makes you stronger

stand a little tallerdoesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone.
What doesn't kill you makes a fighterFootsteps even lighterdoesn't mean I'm over cause your gone.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, strongerJust me, myself and IWhat doesn't kill you makes you strongerStand a little taller Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone

Thanks to you I got a new thing startedThanks to you I'm not the broken heartedThanks to you I'm finally thinking 'bout me

What doesn't kill you makes you strongerStand a little tallerDoesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone
What doesn't kill you makes a fighterFootsteps even lighter....

Stand a little tallerDoesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone.

Read more: KELLY CLARKSON - STRONGER LYRICS http://www.metrolyrics.com/stronger-lyrics-kelly-clarkson.html#ixzz1lc6nUPkm 

Copied from MetroLyrics.com    

Happy Monday, dear reader!