Flexible Dieting After 3 Months

It's now been three months that I have "eschewed" the traditional bodybuilders diet, and I could not be happier! I look......good.....don't you think? 

The photo above was taken Monday evening, after training hamstrings with Roy at BodyComp Gym, it is always a brutal workout these days, I don't  mean "brutal" as in bad, I mean, I am pushing myself as hard as I possibly can. I know I am improving and getting stronger, not only can I tell by how I feel, but the weights go up, every time. 

Roy and I stick to 2 or 3 exercises at the most, heavy weight and long rest periods (for the most part, some are shorter for smaller muscle groups). On Monday nights we target the hamstrings (which of course hits my glutes too); we do the laying leg curl and then a single leg back extension (with heavy weight) on the Glute Ham Raise. Roy remarked that I had improved, he tracks every single rep and time from every workout, I increased my reps! As with most of my other training, I will repeat my workout on my own, and I will increase the weight. Hamstrings have a slight modification though as we need to hit all the areas so on Thursdays I will do standing leg curl on my own, then the single leg back extensions on the Glute Ham Raise.

The picture above was last Friday as we trained shoulders, my chest is looking ripped and my deltoids are getting rounder, I am pleased with the progress.

So what have I changed besides the eating? I am taking a couple new supplements, Alpha Lipoic Acid pre and post training, and glucosamine, that's all that is new in the arsenal.

I actually discontinued several things I was taking, after I read about their lack of effectiveness on the website examine.com it's a great site to learn about supplements from an independent third party! I purchased the $29.00 membership and feel it was well worth it considering how much mis- information is out there regarding supplements.

Below is a little .gif of my pictures that I sent to my nutrition coach, Layne Norton today. It's funny, I am eating over 2000 calories a day (up over 500 a day from late July) and I have...ahem....lost weight! In these pictures, which were taken in the middle of the day, I am 125 pounds, but in the morning lately upon waking, I am 124!

In my last few posts I believe I discussed how hard it was to "believe", to "let go" and to "trust" this process, for so many years I was following the crowd of "chicken breast/broccoli/brown rice" eaters.....no more!

I still love brown rice and eat it almost everyday, but I also eat bread, English muffins, yams, quinoa, fruit, lots of fruit, yogurt (oh you didn't know those last two were carbs huh?) In my diet, there is no such thing as "starch" or non starch, it's all carbs! Some meals when I want a lot of food I will eat a huge plate of vegetables to make my carb numbers, but other times when I don't want a lot (like right before lifting) I will have some warmed mashed yams and cinnamon and a yogurt with my whey protein drink.

My new favorite yogurt! I love all of their "bite" flavors, but this is by far the best! This is mint with dark chocolate chips. 100 calories.

Below is Friday again, the legs have certainly filled out haven't they? The secret? Food. Good food, sufficient food, more food, real food. David and I go out regularly now, and I eat right off the menu. Sure, I have to sometimes choose very carefully, but I still eat at restaurants. I am a normal person (as normal as I can get). 

Lifting these days has been very satisfying, the extra calories give me the physical and mental energy required to keep up the rigorous training (I still train once a day four days a week and twice a day three days a week). The "diet" is allowing me to very slowly add muscle and drop fat, the magic trick everyone is seeking! I really could just stay right here where I am, but alas, Layne has increased calories again this week....


And the glutes again, getting rounder and more prominent, but not from the sides! 

Ah, and an update on the feet- You may (or may not) recall that I was being treated for Plantar Fasciitis, a very painful inflammation of the foot, I had it in both feet. I wore night splints for 25 nights (I chucked them the last 3, I couldn't stand it any longer); I iced and rolled them on lacrosse balls daily; and I took powerful anti-inflammatories. I went back to the Podiatrist, my right foot is great- but the left is not 100% healed. He said a cortisone shot would probably be more painful than the relief it would give me, especially since I was 95% healed, so he has sent me off to Physical Therapy for 6 weeks! I haven't started yet, but hope to next week. 

For those of you who may have an unhealthy relationship with food, I highly suggest you start to consider "Flexible Dieting" or "IIFYM" (If It Fits Your Macro's). Find a reputable coach who can help you establish your macro's or go to a great site called IIFYM.com that is full of useful information for the do-it-yourselfers! 

Feel free to email me if you have questions about it, and join me on Google+, I have been having a lot of fun posting there these days!

My Relationship with Food and Training

My life seems to now revolve solely around weight training and eating, seriously. I go to work and then all my time after (and before) is devoted to calculating my marco nutrients, training and sleeping.

I love it, I am spending all of my free time doing exactly what I love. It's been almost 11 weeks that I have been working with Layne Norton for my nutrition and cardio; I never knew how much food can make or break a physique.

All of these pictures were taken in the last two weeks weeks. I am at 125.5 pounds, lean and eating a great deal of food.

I have eaten "healthy" for years, but the timing of the foods and selecting the proper macro nutrients for the specific activity or time of day is essential and I have learned just how important this is. Not only to try to add lean mass, but to maintain a low bodyfat percentage.

I used to eat the same old thing at every meal: for example  4 ounces lean protein, some starch early or vegetables later, a very small amount of fat with each meal, but it was a very little amount. I  got lean, I got ripped, I got bored.

I have been eating so many foods now that I never thought I could, and I am still very lean, I actually still weigh less than when I started with Layne and I am eating approximately 500 calories a day more. Above is a French Toast breakfast I made, sourdough toast dipped in egg whites, cinnamon and vanilla; the remaining egg whites, scrambled; one whole egg; fresh kiwi and mango and some calorie free syrup and jam (use VERY sparingly, they can cause bloating and gas due to the artificial sweeteners).

As you can see in the picture below, my glutes have really grown, and the hamstrings and quads are getting bigger. 

 My delts and arms look amazing, although I still try to grow them bigger every week.

Food, it seems, is always a battle for competitors, and most of them tend to under eat - they are afraid of getting fat. Once you see yourself lean and ripped, it's very difficult (mentally), to allow yourself to get back to a "normal" weight, even then, what most competitors consider "normal" is still much leaner than the average woman considers normal. Yes, the rest of the world thinks we are crazy.

My obsession now seems to be the fact that I am eating so much, I am constantly verifying that it is correct.  I am responsible for my diet- Layne does not tell me what to eat, that is entirely my decision. He tells me the macros- how much carbohydrate, protein, fat and fiber to have each day. 

Sometimes it is so good, I cannot believe I calculated it correctly, and by the way I look, it appears I have been doing an excellent job at it. It's interesting,  I seem to see "flexible dieting" and "IIFYM" everywhere these days, but I'm not sure if it's because I am paying attention to those things, or there is an increased number of people changing to a more civilized way of dieting. 

So far, three people from my gym and two friends have contacted Layne about working with him, based completely on seeing what I eat, how happy I am, and what my physique looks like. Unfortunately he has not been able to take on more clients at this time, but things can change any day so if you are interested, I would check out his website and contact him.

Pasta, I eat pasta and I am not fat!

What am I planning now? I finally, finally feel that I can go out and eat at a restaurant and do a good job of calculating my macros; I am eating dinner with David every night that I am not training with Roy at BodyComp Gym (those nights I get home late so I just have a shake, banana and toast usually), and while we eat the same foods, I will eat a different ratio of the foods than he will;  I am lifting and getting bigger! Lately shirts I have been wearing are tight, uncomfortable tight,  and when I look at myself, I do a double take, I see the changes, I like the changes. 

I don't have any plans right now, and that is very, very unusual for me. I am happy, very content in what I am doing and where I am in life right now. I love waking up early everyday, I hop on my scale to check my weight (I never had one before, and it's one of the things I took from my father's house after he passed away, so I say hi to Dad everyday!). I go to the gym and lift heavy and enthusiastically.

I train with Roy at BodyComp Gym three days a week after work, those are the highlight of my week. We don't do the silly little things I see so many women with their trainers do, like stand on a bosu ball while flapping my arms about, or lift teeny tiny weights to "tone", or do hundreds of bodyweight exercises.  In the pursuit of "bootie, brawn and awesome deltoids", I know two more women who have started training with Roy, he's the man who is responsible for my physique and I wouldn't trade him for anyone! He has some openings, give him a call!

We lift heavy, and hard, and long. Sometimes I sweat and my feet are not even moving! 

I do have a plan in that I am staying the course, eating on target, changing my body composition very slowly but very dramatically and spending all my free time doing what I love - training.

Off season just might be my best season!

A New Diet with Dr. Layne Norton

It’s been a while since I wrote, no I didn’t fall apart after the death of my father, and on the contrary, I am doing really well.  We had been preparing for his death for some time, it was not a surprise, and although that does not make it any easier, it brought closure to his constant treatments and pain.

I just happen to be really busy! I have a crazy hectic life. I work full time; have a husband and a son in college. Weekends are consumed with household duties, food preparation, laundry, etc. and I try to have some fun! To top it off, my job at the University is busiest in July, August and September.

Since 2009 I have dealt with four deaths of loved ones, and each time I take some time to reexamine my own life and it prompts me to make some changes.  The first, with my mother‘s death in 2009 is when I started to learn about proper nutrition and how much it affected my physique.  I’ve learned an awful lot since then, not just about food and nutrition, but about myself. I then lost my mother in law and a friend I took care of as she died of cancer, her husband had kicked her out of her home for being a burden to him.

After my father died, I thought about my life, at the age of 52 I really have so much to be thankful for, and I am very happy but pieces were just not quite fitting as nicely as I wanted them to.

I have a passion in my nutrition, health and weight training, I never feel going to the gym is a burden, in fact sometimes I go to bed earlier just to get the day over with so I can get up sooner and go train. I belong in the gym.

When I decided to switch to Women’s Physique, my trainer, Roy Ganju,  was more than excited; he too enjoys the challenge of sculpting my body as much as I do. He is very knowledgeable, patient and great fun to train with. Of all the trainers I have worked with, he is by far the best as far as I am concerned and he constantly reads to educate himself on the latest information regarding training. He has been successful in helping me to add muscle, change the shape of my body and we constantly strive to achieve the look I want. I wouldn’t train with anyone else!

Training is a huge piece of building a physique, and you should seriously consider a trainer if you are doing it on your own. If you live in the San Jose, California area, look up my trainer, you can see what a great job he has done. Contact Roy at his website or send him a friend request on Facebook.

What I realized was lacking was my experiences with food.

I have essentially been on a diet since 2009. Sure, when I’m not competing I am not as strict, but I have always been concerned with maintaining a really low bodyfat, yet I wanted to gain muscle. Not an easy task. Your body needs the proper nutrients and calories to add muscle, and if you want to stay lean you can’t be eating a ton of calories. I felt stuck.

When my mother died in 2009 I hired a nutritionist, it was my first step to learning about my diet. I had no thought of competing, I just wanted to take my physique to the next level, and I did, I did very quickly. We only had a few appointments, she taught me the basics and I was off running on my own.  After that I always did my own diet, learning what worked as I went along.

In 2011 I paid for a one time competition diet from a well known Pro Women’s Physique competitor, it worked like a charm and I stuck to it. The problem was, I pretty much stuck to it year round. When not competing I just added in a bit here and there, but for the most part stuck to the same boring foods over and over. I would go out with David and Cooper on occasion, but each time was rather stressful to me. I felt I couldn’t just eat what I wanted, and it turned what should be an enjoyable evening into a stressful one.

I never worked with a “diet coach”, I know many friends and competitors who do, but honestly I have questioned their credentials and their knowledge on more than one occasion. I also think we should learn ourselves, and these coaches would just tell their clients what to do and most would blindly do it, without asking why or questioning odd sounding instructions.

I know one competitor whose coach told her she couldn’t eat tomatoes. I asked her if she asked why. His response to her was “Most gals I know can’t lose fat till they cut out tomatoes”.

Right.  Run I say, run away from stuff like this.

Now if he had said something like “tomatoes are high in natural sugars and carbohydrates, so limit them” THAT might make some sense, but he didn’t.

I guess they will need to go to their coaches the rest of their lives if they don’t learn the “why”.

I am probably a pain in the ass to anyone I work with because I want to know why and why not. Some people like this and some don’t, if they can’t work with me then they need to tell me that.

After my father died, I decided I really wanted to focus on my nutrition, and add some muscle;  that meant getting a little bigger, I prepared myself.  I knew I was floundering and needed guidance; I needed to learn more so I took the plunge and contacted the person I feel has the most credible credentials and knowledge out in cyberspace.

Dr. Layne Norton

If you are not familiar with him, he is known for his expertise in Natural Bodybuilding (drug free). He has a BS in Biochemistry from Eckerd College with honors, a PhD in Nutritional Sciences with honors from the University of Illinois and his thesis title was “Leucine is a critical factor determining protein quantity and quality to initiate muscle protein synthesis”.

In other words, he knows what he is doing; it ain’t “Bro Science”

I contacted him and explained I wanted to add muscle, I am not trying to lose fat, and I want to add size. I think I may have corresponded with an assistant first, and they seemed to almost be interviewing me! I passed the test and then after more discussion we agreed on a nine month program. I chose nine months because that was a reasonable amount of time and would allow me to then work with him on a competition diet to compete again in late Spring of 2014.

I shake my head when I hear women say they “add muscle fast” or they “don’t want to get bulky” so they only do cardio. I bust my butt to add muscle, and when you compare me to the average fit chick, yes, I carry a lot. But when you compare me to the average Physique competitor, I am small.

Layne said I would gain some weight and wanted to make sure I was OK with that. Really no, I am not, but I am, it’s hard to explain. I know I need to, but it will be a mental struggle to “get fat”.  Just how fat and how big? David was a little scared at first; he already thinks I am very muscular. I asked Layne if five pounds of muscle might be a reasonable amount to gain in nine months.  I won’t quote him, but basically it’s not, not in his opinion for a woman who is well trained (not a newbie) and one who is not taking anabolics.  Sure, I could stick a bunch of drugs in my body and gain muscle that way, but then I wouldn’t need to work with Layne would I? I am not taking the easy way; I am taking the smart way. I also want to be able to look myself in the eye and maintain my self respect. I want to earn it.

Below is a comparison, the left just before I started with Layne and on the right 4 weeks later. My shoulders are rounder and lats wider, stomach is flatter and tighter.

So, if adding five pounds of lean mass will be difficult, and I can really only add a couple, the total weight gain should be quite minimal, about what your average “cookie eater”  gains at Christmas I suppose!

The diet is much more intense than I ever experienced before. In the past, it was easy; I ate the same thing over and over and over. I could prepare my meals with my eyes closed.

Now, now I can eat almost anything I want, as long as I meet my macros (and for those of you unfamiliar, that is the term for macro-nutrients: Carbohydrate, protein, fat and we add fiber in here too). Meeting means not under, and not over, it means right on target to the number of grams at every meal.

It’s been a challenge as it requires me to think! Ha ha ha. And I have choices! So many that I haven’t yet experienced all the food I have been missing for so long. Sometimes, my meal is so good; I go to the macro tracker on my phone and check it three and four times to ensure I created the meal correctly. Then I go over to my spreadsheet and double check that too (yes I have spreadsheets).

I check in with Layne every week, and he adjusts the diet ever so slightly, my calories have been inching up weekly, the food getting more and more, and my excitement is growing. I wait every Tuesday to hear what the rest of the week will bring me, how did I progress? Am I on track? It’s all so exciting to me.  

I want more fat! I love fat. I can eat chicken THIGH now. I love chicken thigh.

My glutes, which have always been rather prominent and round are even harder and rounder! The picture on the left was taken just before I started with Layne and the one on the right is 4 weeks later. A guy at work has even started calling me "fire hydrant butt". I thought it odd and asked him why and his response was "It's as hard as a fire hydrant". Hmmm... OK, I'll take it!

How do I feel? I feel free. I feel like a whole new world has opened for me. I never had an eating disorder, I never weighed less than 118 pounds (at a competition) and at my heaviest I was 142 pounds at the age of 38, but I developed an unhealthy attitude about my food. Sure, I still believe it is fuel, but it should be pleasurable fuel.  Eating the same thing day after day, fearing that one wrong food will wreak havoc in your body is not healthy, physically or mentally.

Layne embraces a term known as IIFYM (If It Fits Your Macros). That means, in a nutshell, meet the requirements as established and then don’t worry so much about how you do, just get there. Some take the winding road, and some take the highway, but they all arrive at the same destination, eventually.

I know many who “embrace” this a bit too enthusiastically, potato chips, candy and ice cream should be eaten only on occasion, making them fit into your macros on a daily basis will leave you hungry, most likely not meeting fiber or nutritional needs and your physique will not look as good as it should nor will it perform optimally. I have had two pieces of dark chocolate (9 grams each) and four glasses of wine (all planned and fit into the days macros).

How do I look? Really good! In fact, better than I have in ages. My muscles are full, I look healthy, my belly fat is gone and I have energy. Several people have asked when my competition is (and I am not dieting for one) and the other day, I walked into the kitchen naked and David looked at me and said “You look great! Isn’t there a competition you can enter soon?”

“No- I replied. I mean, yes, there is, but I will not, I have a plan, and I’m sticking to it.”

Feeling Confident

I have always marveled at how a woman's confidence level increases the more she lifts weights.  And I do mean weights not cardio. You will see a dramatic difference in your body when you start on a weight lifting regime, you will not see the same thing with cardio. 

I have seen it in many friends, I have seen it in myself. My "transformation" took place a very long tine ago. It wasn't overnight, it wasn't for an event, it was for....

LIFE

I was never super heavy, but I could be something more, something attractive, sexy, strong, fit and healthy. That's what I wanted, and that's what I got.

I have been watching my friend Sakura change, in such a short period of time. I say short because although it has been anything but short to her, the progress she has made in the last several months is amazing. She looks younger, happier, and more confident. You will see lots of pictures of the two of us, we will be almost inseparable at the competition. I will go on first, and she will go on later in the Figure division. But I will be watching like a mother hen, watching on the closed circuit TV in the pump up room, ready to hug her when she comes off stage.

My friend "R" from Courtside just emailed me to wish me luck at the competition. She and I don't see each other much any longer since I changed gyms, we both work full time, have families and very busy lives. But when we first met, she had just recently started training and we became fast friends talking about our diets and food all the time. She made an amazing transformation, people even started asking her if she was going to start competing! Today she told me she is ready to take the test to become a Certified Personal Trainer! 

I speak to women all the time who want to make changes in the right direction, and they all feel somewhat lost at first, unsure of what to do, who to turn to. It can be very overwhelming indeed. Everyone is an expert right?  So they ask me. 

Even some men at the gym will ask me about diet and training. The interesting thing to me is this, the men all seem to understand very quickly that it's the diet that will make or break you; it's the women who think it's the training. 

The men lift in the gym, although many don't necessarily lift properly or heavy enough, but they are there lifting, so they get it. They know that if they cleaned up their diet, they will get ripped.

Most women seem to focus on cardio, they think they are eating healthy and all they need to do is a whole lot of cardio and avoid weights. They seem to think that lifting weights makes you big and bulky. I lift weights as heavy as I possibly can, and while some people might say I am big, I am certainly not bulky. I am lean as can be.

I encourage you to seek out anyone who looks the way you want to, make friends, get to know them. They will not always have time to give you everything you need to succeed, but remember that each bit of knowledge is that much more than you had previously. 

So many people have connected with me through my blog, I often wonder how they are doing, how is the program going. Some email me frequently, and others pop in with updates every few months or so. I do like hearing how it's going. 

Confidence comes when you feel good about yourself, when you feel successful and happy. If you lack confidence in yourself, go out and get some! Seek out a trainer who has like minded goals, someone positive to help you. Hire a Nutritionist, it's not a life time commitment, it can be a few sessions just as I had. Join a gym, start slowly, then proceed with gusto! Join a group, I once belonged to a marathon training group called San Jose Fit, we ran together almost everyday, I really got to know my running team and looked forward to it every time we met.

Read, read, read! I have more books on training an nutrition that you can imagine. I go back to them over and over again.

Visualize yourself as the physical being you want to be, believe in yourself.

“Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.” 

― Mahatma Gandhi

Feed Me Fit

Food makes you feel good doesn't it?  Food is one of the greatest needs for all humans; according to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, so that we can reach a higher state, if you do not have food you really cannot even think about doing anything else. Food just makes you feel good inside and out. If we are just talking basics needs, you don't need much, Prison Loaf will do (yes I made it).

But we all want more, we want healthy food that is easy and quick to prepare and that tastes great. It's not all that easy for some people though. Then for those of us who want to get lean and ripped, or even just lean, it's a whole different ballgame.

You need to eat the right foods, healthy choices, feed the magnificent machine called "your body" what it needs to function properly. That doesn’t mean bland and boring food and it doesn’t mean the same old thing over and over.

Maggie Shih of Feed Me Fit spent two hours in my kitchen on Sunday and made three very simple, healthy and incredibly tasty dishes. Dishes that I can make, you can make, and everyone would eat and not know how healthy they were, seriously. I wrote about her previously, you should read that post first if you have not yet read it.

No salt was used, very little oil (olive oil spray) and no refined starches.

We met in the same way I meet so many people, I emailed a complete stranger! That’s how I have made connections with so many wonderful people in my life, and how I even found my favorite vacation destination in Mexico- 16 years ago, Hacienda Eden (I still go back every year).

I was searching for a gift for Roy, his birthday is coming up and cooking lessons might be in order! Maggie is a Certified Fitness Chef. She spends most of her time at her customer’s homes preparing food, typically in advance so they can pop it in the refrigerator or the freezer, or both. She will even shop for the food too if that’s requested. In addition, she offers cooking classes for individuals or small groups for those who want to learn to do it on their own.

Maggie knew I am prepping for a competition so my food had to be light and low calorie, but she wanted to show me some other dishes too, so we had a range of things on Sunday.

She pulled up in her car and toted all her things effortlessly into my kitchen and made herself right at home, she was comfortable in the kitchen, I could tell. I have a big kitchen, actually my favorite room in the house and there is lots of room to move around.

She started with an egg dish "egg in a ring" and it was so simple yet wonderful; I cannot believe I never thought of it! 

Yellow bell pepper, egg and seasonings (no salt) and a few slices of avocado. 

We asked David to be a taster and he ate half (I ate the other).

Next Maggie moved on to a staple on my diet, tilapia. I eat tilapia almost every day; it is a mild, firm white fish, inexpensive and plentiful. It takes on the flavors of anything you season or cook it with, so it is versatile. Most tilapia is farmed; you will not find "wild" tilapia around here. I caution you to check the origin of your tilapia and try to only buy that farmed in the USA, with South America being a second choice. Tilapia raised in Taiwan and China will be raised in water where there is no lead control, the groundwater is polluted and the fish are too. (Did you know that’s why we started selling unleaded gasoline? The lead in the gas was causing birth defects in our children! They don’t worry about the lead in China unfortunately); in addition, the feed used and the cleanliness of the pens are questionable in these countries, your health is not worth the few cents savings the cheap and muddy tasting fish you will be eating. If you buy it at a market where it is laid out on a tray and not in a package, just ask where it is from, by law they must have tags showing the origin of all fish.

The dilled tilapia was moist and flavorful, I get so used to baking a big tray of it that I forget that my healthy food can also be wonderfully flavorful and moist, if I just put a few more minutes into it. Maggie served kale on the side, seasoned with garlic powder, yum! Here again I caution you about the origin of your kale, it is #11 on the top 15 fruits and vegetables that have extreme pesticide usage- meaning that it is one of the foods you MUST buy organic!

David bravely took a bit of the tilapia, he isn’t a fan at all, but he actually liked it. 

After Maggie left we talked and he said "No offense, but her food just doesn’t taste like your bland diet food, I mean it has flavor."….right, well it did and he was right, but when I am cranking out my food, in between working a full time job, training 7 days a week, and most of them twice a day, it does take a bit of the "joy" out of cooking and trying to make it all more palatable. I eat for fuel right now. I am a machine!

The last dish was stupendous, but not something I would eat on a competition diet. Off the diet- sure I would, so now I just had a few bites and left the rest to David. I took half of it to Roy too; he had it for dinner on Monday night!

A smoky bacon loaded sweet potato! A paleo dish (for those who follow that diet), that can be enjoyed by anyone. 

The "chili" was made with bacon, ground turkey, and vegetables. I am not a real bacon fan, I have a hard time moving past the copious amounts of fat in it, but this was good, really good! Maggie said you can easily cut most of the fat out too!

David tried the loaded potato, and he tried it again. He loved it. It was time for me to eat, and I had several bites of the dishes Maggie cooked, but I am lean and ready early, so I can stand some extra calories right now, in fact I dropped too low and panicked a bit, so I was ready for a full meal.

As she packed up and I walked her to the car, she said "eat the tilapia!" I ate the whole thing and the kale (I love kale and eat it several times a week).

I came in to find that David had devoured the potato and topping…almost, he didn’t eat all the sweet potato and since I needed some starch, I ate it!

I packaged up the rest of the "chili" that was in the pot and set half aside for David and the other half to take to Roy.

I left the house right after Maggie did, so I could head back to Gold’s Gym, I was off for round two of cardio and posing. When I came home, I would start cooking my food, more tilapia, sweet potatoes, chicken and vegetables.

I know first hand, that when people start a new fitness regime, the area that causes them the most stress, and will usually make them fall short of reaching their goal, is the food prep. They usually have no idea what to prepare, how to prepare it, how to make it taste good and they usually don't have the hours and hours it takes every week to do it. I spend several hours a couple times a week just making my food since I eat 6 times a day! 

You cannot out-train a bad diet. 

When I returned home for the gym, there was a house full of guests, all sitting in the backyard having wine and pizza (a Sunday ritual around here now), Virginia came into the kitchen and said David was raving about "some egg McMuffin with no muffin". He told her how good it was and didn’t taste anything like "Kristy’s diet food"…..hmmm I think he was talking about the "egg in a ring"

Contact Maggie at Feed Me Fit if you are interested in food prep or cooking classes, she says some people get a group of friends together at their home, and they all split the cost of the cooking class. Then, if you like, she can prepare meals for a week or so just until you get an idea of proportion and dishes and then she sets you free to experiment on your own.

She also has a Facebook Page where you can stay connected, learn about special events and check out her dishes. 

All opinions expressed are mine alone. I have not received remuneration for this post or content. 

Abs Are Made In The Kitchen (Feed Me Fit)

“Abs are made in the kitchen”

We have all heard this right? It’s true.  I am a firm believer in this. You can train as consistently and hard as possible, be spot on with every bit of your training and still never achieve the results you want if your diet is not right. And those crunches? They aren’t going to help if you have a layer of fat over the muscles.

Above are my abs two weeks ago, below a week ago. Further below was Thursday (the evening before this posted).

I have just recently launched into my "6 pack ab" goal, never before have I attempted such a lofty goal! I asked Roy what to do and he advised that I do  Garhammer Raises, a lot more difficult than they look, here is a video of them:

I do these at home with my pull up attachment in the doorway of my son's room! Then comes Swiss ball crunches, lowering my back over the ball all the way down so my head almost touches the ground, then slowly up. I hold a very small 5 pound dumbbell at the back of my head. I do these at home in my guest room. My abs are burning after the Garhammer raises, the crunches really are difficult then. 

And lastly, crunches on the Glute Ham raise, again all the way down so there is a stretch in the abs, and slowly pull up using only the abs. 

I trained for years and never truly saw the physique I was yearning for until I started to consider my diet as important as my training. The two go hand in hand; they need each other so that you, as a whole can be complete.

I learned to eat properly first by hiring a nutritionist (who also happened to have been a Figure competitor previously), then I started reading every book on nutrition I could find.  After that it was all trial and error, finding what worked right for my body.

Your diet will change according to your goals. A  Powerlifter certainly will not eat the same as a Gymnast, who will not eat the same as a Sprinter. So you need to first have a good idea of your goals and what you are trying to create.

Many people really struggle with this, I find that interesting as I have absolutely no problem with this. First, cooking was my hobby before I started to seriously train. I can taste almost any dish at a restaurant and re-create it on my own. I often ask the wait staff about ingredients and express my interest, I have been invited back into the kitchen to watch and speak with the chef more times than I can recall.  I even won the “Build A Better Burger “contest in the Western United States many years ago! This is one big reason why my family isn’t always so keen on my competitions, all my wonderful “restaurant creations” get kicked to the curb when I am in competition mode. 

Even when dieting I seem to feel fairly satisfied with my diet; I still manage to create interesting and varied foods while adhering to a clean and nutrition diet.

But, for those of you who struggle, or don’t have time to cook, there is hope and flavor!

Feed Me Fit

Maggie Shih is the chef/proprietor of this service. She will plan and cook your meals so you don’t have to!  

Maggie is a Personal Trainer & Certified Fitness Chef who works with her clients to determine nutritional needs and will shop, cook and deliver meals all created specifically for you.   Maggie will even collaborate with your own personal trainer to discuss dietary needs if you prefer! 

Never heard of a Certified Fitness Chef? It is indeed a real designation!  Maggie is certified through the Spencer Institute, it is a NESTA (National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association) designation. 

I haven’t tried Maggies cooking yet, but I am very interested in learning more and I will soon. One of my attractions to the fitness industry (besides all of the beautiful bodies) is the passion that everyone has about their hobbies, interest and professions. It’s not an easy one; you must pour your heart and soul into it to be successful. Meeting others with the same passions and sharing experiences is a joy to me.

She and I have been trying to get together so I can see some of her creations first hand, and because of our demanding schedules, it keeps moving; but now it looks like we will be meeting at my home on Sunday where she will whip up some meals so I can give you a firsthand report.  I will be posting a blog with lots of pictures and reviews from our morning together.

In the meantime, she will be joining other health and wellness professionals at the San Jose Nutrishop, during a sponsored “wellness night” on Monday, March 25, 2013 from 4-7pm. You can stop by and sample some of her goodies, meet her and learn more about her services (since you cannot come into my kitchen on Sunday!) 

I will not be able to attend the Nutrishop wellness night because Roy and I will be training my hamstrings at the same time, and my training always comes first!

If you stop by, be sure to tell Maggie I sent you!

Look for my report on our morning of cooking next week. Check out Feed Me Fit on Facebook or Feed Me Fit website for more information.

Nutrishop South San Jose 

117 Bernal Road #10 San Jose, CA. 95119

I have not received any compensation or remuneration for this review, all views are my own.