Three Weeks Out till Women's Physique Competition

Yes, I am still here! Busy, busy, busy! When I post this it will really be only two weeks from my competition, but I just got around to doing this. It's been a fast and furious few months in preparation of my first Women's Physique competition, I almost feel like it's my very first show, but it's not, I should be calm and collected, but the thought of this new REAL posing and a dance/posing routine to music is starting to make me a bit anxious. 

I spend as much time as possible practicing my posing, videoing it and critiquing myself. There is always room for improvement. Luckily I have some awesome people nudging me along and checking in now and again. It's exciting that my friend Sakura Barrientos and I will be sharing a room the night before. We have our tans scheduled together and we can talk and laugh all evening long. Usually I am all by myself, posting pictures on Facebook of my cheesecake that I am eating, which drives all the other competitors absolutely crazy! I get lean, super lean and that's my "secret" to filling out the night before. That  along with a huge baked potato and steak. Then I eat the same thing in the morning. The fun is just about to begin.....

I have maintained my weight higher than usual on purpose. In these pictures I am 124 pounds, but as I write this I am at 122 and have been for almost a week. I will drop only a little bit more and hopefully, will look perfect once I dehydrate. That will make the skin tight and hard looking, it already looks thin. In fact, Wednesday night as I sat attempting to breathe (after Roy had me doing squats with a whopping 162 1/2 pounds!!!!), he looked at me and said "Your skin on your arms and chest is paper thin" yes, it looks white, translucent, delicate and....thin now. The only part left is the abs and upper hip area a bit, but it will go shortly.

I have not curtailed my lifting, at least not intentionally. No weights have been lowered, but Thursday at 5:00 a.m. as I trained hamstrings and lower back on my own, I felt so fatigued, that at times I wanted to crumple to the ground and just cry.

Then I thought of my dad who has been struggling with real fatigue, brought on by his Acute Myeloid Leukemia (bone marrow cancer). His will not go away when he rests or eats a cheeseburger, mine will. It made me cry a bit thinking how selfish I was being and reminded myself that I hate whiners. I pushed on and finished my training, at the dictated reps and weights. I know I was making a lot of noise as I performed set after set of back extensions on the Glute Ham Raise, while holding a 50 pound dumbbell to my chest, people were looking, but I didn't care, I never do.

I have been training two, and sometimes (often) three times a day. I don't do a long bout of cardio, the 20 minutes on the stairmill or treadmill has turned to 30 minutes. Then the stairs at work, usually 3 times a week, but not for long, I don't have the energy to run up and down, and jump rope for more than 20 minutes.

So any free time I have is spent grocery shopping, preparing food, eating or sleeping. That's about it. 

And there is the lifting, the part I love, every single day, sometimes twice a day just to fit it all in. My shoulder training has changed a bit and I have added in cables to round everything out. So on Tuesdays I have to go back to the gym after work to finish up shoulders. Then on Fridays after I train shoulders with Roy, I eat and make sure I have fuel, then it's back into Gold's to finish on my own. It's not a good idea to train for a long extended period of time, just like fasted cardio - you are just making your muscle eat itself all up!

My suit bottoms should be back to me Saturday, so Sunday I have to take some video of myself posing in my suit. It does make a difference and I haven't had it this whole time, so I am only guessing how I will look. I sent it back to Celeste Harsa of Suits by Celeste who made my suit for me because....my glutes have changed. They have gotten bigger (this is a good thing) and more muscular, so when I lost bodyfat they pretty much stayed bigger than usual. My suit did not care for that, it wanted to be a permanent wedgie and those are forbidden in the rules! The funny thing is, most of the suits look like wedgies anyway!

So I have been wearing some "boyshort" undies when I pose. It doesn't seem to bother anyone and allows me to see my body better.

I am also very fortunate to belong to a gym where so many people support me. It's almost all men, there are very few gals at the gym (who lift) first thing in the morning. But they're all encouraging, tell me how great I look, offer advice and are generally fun guys to be around. 

Below is a video of my posing, if you are an email subscriber you will need to click on the blog link at the top to go directly to the blog to view this (that means you dad!)

A Woman Belongs In The Weight Room

A lot has been going on in my life. I am sure everyone has just as much going on in their lives as I do, but we all handle it differently don't we? I think as I get closer to a competition, my focus becomes laser sharp, I concentrate on the task at hand and I start operating on auto pilot. I pretty much do one thing and one thing alone, I have to.

I have so much to do because I am training twice a day, every day. That means every single morning I am at the gym when it opens (5am on weekdays, 6am on weekends). Then two weeknights a week I train with Roy, and on Fridays at noon. The other weeknights I am on my treadmill at home or back at Gold's to train shoulders, or do some cardio, and on weekend afternoons I schlep back to the gym for posing, routine practice and cardio.

Weekends are jam packed with food shopping, cooking, weighing and packaging. And then since you cannot cook all the food for a week, it gets done again in the middle of the week.

All my supplements need to be re-stocked into the daily containers for the week, I have five different ones, pre training, post, lunch, dinner, bed. 

And don't forget that little thing that seems to suck up most of my time, it's called a full time job. Yes indeed, a lot of people do all this, don't have a job and still say they don't have enough time!

It's almost like having a child again. The "thing" needs constant attention. But just like a child, I love it. Absolutely love it!

I thought that after my son left home I would have so much extra time, and somehow I seem to fill it right up! Just gotta figure out how to get out of working full time and then I would have enough time in my day!

I feel so at home in the gym, especially this one, Gold's in Campbell. It's big and open, huge high ceilings, lots of old equipment and all the free weights and benches I could possibly want. There are three cable crossovers, two dual cables, a Glute Ham Raise and five squat racks; five!  The only thing it is missing is a sled and a full set of kettlebells. I know so many of the people by name and they are all welcoming, encouraging and fun to joke with.

I love when some of the guys will come up to me and say things like "You didn't look like this a while ago, what's going on?!" Then I have to explain the competitions and "the process", and it all starts clicking in their heads why I am so intense in the gym, I am on a mission.

People ask "how can you do that?" or "How do you find the time?" and my thought is how can I not? I believe we all find the time to do what we really want in life, we MAKE the time.

It's my passion in life. I have found it and I am lucky.

My body starts changing considerably the last few weeks. These were taken on Saturday, April 6, 2013, 5 weeks from the competition. The body fat has really dropped quite a bit, and I don't have much more to lose, maybe one pound at most. I never really had much to lose anyway, but a small amount makes a huge difference on a small person.

I had hydrostatic testing done again, the day these pictures were taken. I am at 7.1% which means I have lost a pound of bodyfat and I actually gained 1/2 pound of lean mass. This is great news as it is so easy to lose muscle when dieting, it's actually my biggest fear. I have a whopping 8.85 pounds of fat on my entire body. I like to concentrate on the lean mass though, I am almost all muscle, 117.15 pounds of it.

Here is the latest test:

My training has changed a bit now, I am doing higher reps with lower weights, targeting the shoulders. Everything else is about the same, it's just rounding out the shoulder area so I actually have to split my training into two workouts each of the two days I train them. I cannot fit it all in at once, and it is not good to work that long without rest and fuell anyway, so Tuesdays I do half the workout before work, then back to the gym after work to do the rest. Fridays I train shoulders with Roy, then eat and head back to my gym to finish off with the cables on my own again.

I have had some feedback from Michelle Brent, IFBB Pro about my posing and have made changes, she has been a great help. Below is a video of the latest mandatory poses, and we chatted again after she saw this about a few tweaks I will be incorporating.

I have a few pangs of anxiety here and there, but for the most part I am excited and looking forward to the event, to the day where I finally get to see my finished product, have fun with all the friends who will be competing along side me and then celebrate with friends and family afterward.

Moving into the Physique division has been an exciting change for me. I prefer more muscle and less bodyfat than what a Figure competitior carries, it suits me as a person. I like how I look.

Having attainable goals are often something people only have in their work lives, and few people actually have measurable goals established in their personal lives. I find that by have goals like this for myself, I have a better sense of direction, purpose and fulfillment in my life.

Not everyone needs to compete, it's a difficult process to go through and it's not for the thin skinned or whiners, but for those looking for an amazing way to interact with a lot of other like minded people who have a passion for training, it's a great way to prove to yourself just how wonderful you really are. 

Train hard!

Women's Physique Posing Routine

On May, 11, 2013, I will be competing in my first Women’s Physique competition.  As you are aware, if you have been reading my blog, I am not new to competitions at all, but this division is new to the world of Bodybuilding and new to me.

The physical criteria is different between all the divisions, although to the untrained eye, many can look quite similar. The main difference for me was the posing.  In Figure there are “quarter turns” and then “model poses”, I had those down, and they were easy. Physique requires similar “quarter turns” although these are performed with every part of your body flexed (unlike Figure) and are slightly more exaggerated to showcase the added muscle the competitors have. In addition, there are “bodybuilding mandatory poses” that differ in that the hands are left open and not clenched into fists, so the end result is a much more fluid and feminine look. The competitor must have one foot in the “toes pointed, heel off the ground” position in each of these poses. Again, this creates a softer look when comparing it to a Bodybuilder.

Last, Physique requires a “Posing routine” set to custom mixed music that each competitor will select, and create.

Many of the women who moved into this new division came from Bodybuilding backgrounds, so they have an advantage in that they already knew the mandatory poses and had performed a posing routine at the evening finals before.

I first wanted to move to Physique because I tended to carry more muscle than Figure competitors, and did not like the new “softer” (higher bodyfat) look that the division moved to. I like to be very lean and I feel I look best leaner than most people like to be.

My last competition was May of 2012, I decided to take a year off so my family could enjoy a summer without me being on a strict diet, and so I could concentrate on adding some additional muscle to my frame. The adding muscle part proved to be harder than I had imagined. A natural athlete cannot add as much muscle mass as one who takes androgenic drugs, but my decision is to remain natural, so I shall always be a bit behind the curve in that department, and I am perfectly happy that way.

I quickly realized that proper posing was a vital component to learn and started posing with Kristy Enos every other week. We concentrated only on the posing, not the routine. She was a fantastic teacher and I would not be where I am today without her.

The mandatory poses are what the competitors are judged on, the posing routine is not what will decide the placement, and it’s more of a treat for the audience to see the beautiful bodies move to music. So I didn’t worry too much about the routine at the start.

Once I had the posing down, and was no longer working with Kristy, I launched into it. I quickly learned this was not something I could do on my own. Why? I am a great dancer, I love dancing, why couldn’t I do it on my own?

Because it’s basically bodybuilding poses set to music. I just learned the darn poses; they aren’t second nature to me like dancing to music I love, moving my body the way it feels good. The routine had to be purposeful, choreographed and show the muscle groups that I have worked hard to build.

I knew it didn’t matter to the judges what I did, or how I looked, but I think it comes down to personal ethics. I want to do my best, even if it doesn’t count. It’s what you do when no one is looking that proves the kind of person you are, do you help someone and perhaps don’t take credit? Do you do a kind deed without thought of repayment?  Or do you only do what needs to be done just to ensure you get ahead in life?

I decided I needed to hire a professional, someone who could choreograph a routine for me, someone who had a lot of experience.  I had some fairly specific criteria: 1) They had to have been in Bodybuilding a long time (experience); 2) They had to actually offer this as a regular business, I didn’t just want some competitor to throw something together and say they choreographed a routine for me; 3) I had to like their personality.

#3 is interesting, how would I determine that? Well I like a fun loving, energetic and positive person. I can tell from Facebook and pictures what kind of person they are. A whiner or a Prima Donna? I have no room in my life for that.

I found my gal and I contacted her.

IFBB Pro Bodybuilder Michelle Brent

Michelle has been a bodybuilder for 20 years.  She certainly fits #1! And I saw her deliver other routines, she fit #2. And #3? Well if she still lived on the West Coast we would tear up the town together! (She is from Monterey, California)

Michelle and I connected on Facebook and we chatted a bit. I explained that I was a newbie so I needed something basic. I also expressed that music was important to me, I didn’t like all the painfully slow songs that so many competitors used.  She said she could design a routine that would be suitable for a less experienced competitor like me.

I finally found some music I thought might work, something that made me want to move yet could possibly work with bodybuilding poses and I sent it to Michelle for her advice. She liked it and said go for it!  She then recommended a fellow who could mix the music, JSinn of Masterminds Productions and once he finished my music, she would choreograph my routine.

All of this requires a lot of trust. I am a very trusting person. I will always trust you until you give me a reason not to, I have rarely been disappointed.

I paid Michelle’s fee through her PayPal account for her other business Michelle’s Magic Morsels (I haven’t had the pleasure of trying these yet, but they are cookies made with whey protein and egg whites!);  and a couple weeks later she then emailed  a video of herself performing the routine. 

David saw it and remarked “Damn she looks like she is having fun!” and she does, that’s what makes it all so special. It’s about the enjoyment of it all, the experience. She said I could contact her with any questions, gave me some tips and encouragement and then rest was up to me.

She and I chat once in a while; she checks in and asks how I am doing. I go to the gym and practice every Friday afternoon after training, and on Saturday and Sunday for about 45 minutes to an hour.  I get a lot of smiles, and questions, men walk by and waive or give me a thumbs up, people stand at the door and watch.  They are very curious as it’s not every day you see something like this, Bodybuilding for women is becoming a dying art, and Physique is in its infancy, so there are not too many of us! It’s important to feel comfortable performing in front of strangers so doing this with an audience is a plus no matter how uncomfortable it may seem at first.

I have changed a couple things; just slight placement of my hands or arm movements, the beauty of this is it changes according to each person’s personality.

You can hear my music that JSinn mixed, it is the pink triangle on the right side of the main blog page, under the woman snapping the whip, (it has a watermark sound to protect the mix). I cannot show you the routine as I haven't performed it yet! You have to wait for the competition.

Could I have done this without spending the money on a routine? Probably. Would I have felt comfortable and excited about it? No. I am glad I did it, I feel great heading into this! As you can see by these pictures, taken 8 weeks out, my physique is on point, I look good. My posing is fine, I know the required moves. It's now just more practice on the routine and I have plenty of time.

I am having fun! 

A lot of it this time around. I think I have the diet down so it's not rough for me, (I am sure I will go through my small meltdowns here and there though); I no longer have those painful 5 inch heels required for Figure (I sent them to my friend Sakura); I love how my physique has changed, it looks different, more muscular and healthy; I get to train as hard and lift as heavy as I want; and I am enjoying my posing and dancing!

Remember: Girls Just Want To Have Fun?

One word of advice is that you should not wait till the last few weeks. I started posing with Kristy about 9 months before my competition, and I got my routine 4 months ahead. Give yourself time, stress causes your body to produce cortisol!

Contact Michelle if you are interested. You can reach her via Facebook or email her at michellesmagicmorsels@yahoo.com                                              

Women's Physique Competition in 9 weeks

Life has been quite busy these days. I realize that only my closest friends and family really know that I have a competition coming up soon. 10 weeks when these were taken, 9 weeks now! 

To the average person that's a long time - like two and  a half months! But to a competitor, that's just around the corner.

It means time to buckle down and stick to the diet, be religious with cardio, weigh myself everyday, scrutinize my physique, practice posing and now...now, I need to add in the routine!

Actually, many competitors have been doing the "diet" thing for many, many weeks. I actually went on vacation to Mexico and enjoyed lots of great food and drinks, at a time when most competitors would be on a hard diet. I stay lean year round so I can do that.

I have actually been humming along quite nicely  I enjoy the routine, the structure. I do well with that. Don't get me wrong, I love to be spontaneous (as long as I have all my food prepped and gym time scheduled!) LOL!

I find it all very interesting to see how different individuals handle the preparation for a competition and all of the added steps that go along with it. Everyone handles it differently based on their own personalities and their comfort zone. Of course, it also depends on if this is their first competition or they are a veteran. (Notice my deltoids in the picture below - those are what they call "striations", almost like groves or lines running down the muscle you can see just underneath the skin). 

I was scared as hell the first time, and I always get nervous as I lead up to it each time now, but I have an unusual sense of calm this time.

I don’t tend to be a reactionary person in life anyway, nor do I get freaked out over things, as David always says “You NEVER worry about anything! I have to worry for both of us!” ha ha 

I am a planner - I hired a posing coach since Physique was all so new and I wanted to feel comfortable. She did a great job, gave me many tips and feedback (good and bad); but I am no longer posing with her. I learned a lot but needed to venture out on my own. I am a person who likes to learn how to do something, not have it done for me. I do practice on my own almost everyday. I feel comfortable, very comfortable and in fact, am having quite the time posing in the gym these days!

I have been quite happy with how my physique has changed in the last year. I stayed lean, maybe too lean, so that is making my diet very, very easy. I didn’t say it was fun, but it is easy (there is a big difference).

Last night I finished cardio (my treadmill in the guestroom) and then took a nice long shower. I walked into the kitchen naked (and I think I opened the refrigerator and just looked at the homemade almond butter), and David says “You are looking pretty awesome you know! Before when you did Figure you used to look all (then he scrunches all up and makes himself look skinny and drawn). Now you look all (he hunkers down, holds his arms out from his sides and makes himself look short and bulky).

I think he was trying to say I look fuller, more muscular and healthier. I do like the look better myself!

I have reached the stage where I honestly feel it is the journey and not the destination. Getting up on the stage on May 11 will not alter my life, it won’t really change anything, and it isn’t the start of something. It’s an event that I am working towards right now, a goal with an ending date, and like any other event, I will enjoy it and move on when it is done.

I enjoy the weight training and staying lean and healthy, so I haven’t made many changes to prep for this.  I have stopped snacking, stopped eating out at restaurants, cut out my occasional wine or sparkling wine and added in cardio.  If I had started at a very high body fat percentage (I was at 7.8% 15 weeks out from my competition), then I would be singing a much different tune, but I remained lean and so I’s more mental that anything right now.

I have already starting thinking after the competition! I want to sit down and scientifically work out my diet so that I can gain but not bulk. There is no reason in this day and age, with the knowledge we have regarding nutrition and training that anyone needs to gain a lot of weight to add muscle. Yes, you need to have a calorie surplus and will gain bodyfat, but no one should turn into a hippo “off season” unless they just want to get fat and eat without being responsible about it all.

I have the competition diet down, and frankly the off season diet down too, I think I still tend to eat a bit less starch than I should to gain properly, so that will be the next goal.

But I am jumping ahead, I still need to drop a little fat, but not quite yet. So I am sticking to the diet, doing my cardio and lifting as heavy as I can.  I will reassess each week.

But back to the posing....I hit these poses in the locker room and always have my phone or camera. The other women no longer look at my quizzically  Competitors stare at themselves, a lot!  Many people think it's vanity but it's not, it's constant self doubt, constant anxiety, constant worry that you ate something at the wrong time, or you ate the wrong meal, or even (god forbid!) missed a meal and your whole being will crumble.

Posing is very, very important. Of course, the physique comes first, but once all those beautiful bodies are up there, what separates them? The posing. I can stand relaxed and look like a normal, regular woman, but if I hold my lats out, pump my chest up, bring my shoulders up and pull in the abs, all of a sudden, I am amazon woman! 

The posing is important to show off the muscles, the definition. 

Practicing the posing also ensures you learn to hold the poses, often a judging panel will make you hold them for quite some time, you need to get used to it.

If you plan to compete, I cannot stress how much you need to practice- I started six months prior I think, I know people who will start six weeks before their show.

Soon, the "routine"!

What is Women's Physique?

My last competition was May of 2012, and it was in the division of Figure. I am moving to Physique. I have worked hard, I have eaten well, slept as much as possible and stayed as lean as possible while still growing. So what is it all about anyway? What is Physique?

I have a video or a Vblog (email readers must navigate to the blog link at the top to view this). It is my longest so far, just over 8 minutes, but you can hear me explain first hand my journey to Physique.

The NPC guidelines state that Women's Physique competitors should have the overall aesthetics and look that is found in Figure with a little more overall muscularity. When it was first introduced a couple years ago I was intrigued and immediately wanted to do it, but I decided to wait and watch what the other women looked like, and which "look" was being awarded by the judges. 

At first most of the women looked like Bodybuilders, I think many Bodybuilders decided to move "down", perhaps because they couldn't add the size necessary for Bodybuilding, or they didn't want to get that big. I didn't think I could compete against them, so I waited. More and more bigger Figure gals started competing in the division, now this was more to my liking and along the lines of my own physique!

After my last competition I made the plunge. I explain it in my Vlog. 

My shoulders  look big and round, I have always had great shoulders and they are my pride and joy.  I look a little "bigger" than most of my friends who are Figure competitors, Physique is the place for me. I also tend to be leaner than most, so this is a plus. While they don't want competitors as lean as Bodybuilders, they can be slightly leaner than Figure.

It's not Bodybuilding, not in any way. If a Women's Physique competitor gets too big, they will be told to move to Bodybuilding or reduce their size.  

Women's Physique is another avenue for me (and other women) to display my hard work and showcase my stunning physique.  For me, it's a way to set a goal, so I have a date and a time, a plan, something to push me just a bit harder each day. It's easy to become complacent, to become bored of the routine. By competing, I keep myself sharp and on my toes all the time. It's that feeling "I can just stay in bed and sleep longer" that quickly dissipates when you then realize sleeping in could make or break the difference between first and second place. 

Please take the time to watch my Vblog below.

Women's Physique Posing Routine Music

I have finally selected music for my posing routine! It's been a very difficult decision, and the funny thing is, whatever I do really has no bearing on my score or placement really! The routine is simply entertainment for the audience, thanking them for sitting through the long and (sometimes) very boring day or evening of judging.

These pictures were taken 16 weeks out from my next competition, I have just stated cardio and...a modified diet. I don't have a lot to lose!

The routine is part of the excitement of Women's Physique for me though. I love to dance, I love to move, and just being able to do my own thing, instead of "quarter turn to the right" over and over will be fun and rewarding.

I have competed exclusively in Figure, its where I belonged when I started, in fact, the division of  Physique did not exist when I started and Bikini began my first year competing, in fact, at my first competition was a woman competing in Bikini who went on to become the very first Bikini pro! She looked great and really seemed to set the bar, but Bikini got softer and softer. I never would compete in Bikini, it's not for me. I don't have the physique nor am I comfortable with the posing (and I have friends who compete in Bikini, so I will end my comments here).

As Bikini expanded, the look for Figure changed, it became "softer" and I liked looking "harder". I also grew and developed my physique more, and basically made myself too muscular for Figure. At least, that is the feedback I received from the judges and other competitors. That's great news to me, I like a more muscular look and it suites me better, I have wider shoulders and narrow hips. I worked hard to add more muscle, eating right, letting myself get a little "big" in between competitions, but never fat. 

My last competition was May of 2012, and although I placed first in my category, when I asked for feedback from the head judge, she said:

" You are too hard, striated and separated for both figure and physique. You have the size to transition into women's physique if you wanted. If you want to stay in figure then you need to soften the look and bring your muscle size down some. The new criteria for either division is a softer look. No striation and no hard/deep separation. The difference in the figure and woman's physique is size. Physique competitors can have more muscle but must maintain a softer feminine look. It is not woman's bodybuilding.”

No one could have said anything better to me! As a natural athlete (drug free), to be told I am too hard, striated and separated, especially for a woman of 51 is quite an accomplishment. It shows a lot of dedication to diet and training, rest and recovery.

Picking my music has been tough because being on stage is a very scary event for me, so I needed something I was completely comfortable with. Much of the advice I received said to pick something "feminine and slow", but I am not a particularly "feminine" woman and I never do anything slowly! So why would I start with this. I decided to forgo the advice and picked what I liked, something that I felt I could move to and enjoy. 

I was referred to JSinn at MasterMindz Productions, and put my trust in him. I was glad I did, just as I have experienced most of my life, trusting others is always the right decision. I sent him the song and asked "what next"? He said just to tell him the length, where to start and where to end and he would do his magic and he would cut out "the swears". The rules state that the music cannot have profanity or explicit content  and there were a couple problems, this song had some swear words, and the entire song is about nasty sex! The more I thought about it though, I realized that all music seems to be about sex doesn't it? Either wanting sex, having had sex, wishing they were having sex, talking about sex, or breaking up with someone they already had sex with! I decided to move ahead with the song.

He pushed me to make a decision, don't wait! I made it, emailed him and he quickly emailed me right back. He told me I couldn't do what I wanted. I didn't understand and I tried to explain. "I like the chorus, so I need you to start here so I can have some of the chorus and some of the other part". He explained that I need an intro, a middle and an outro.

JSinn sent my music right away, with a watermark (his voice over) so I could listen and let him know my thoughts. And what were they? I was dancing the happy dance! I loved it! I never could have imagined it this way, he took bits and pieces, cut them and spliced them (I guess that's' the lingo) and created a smooth song with a lead in (intro) and the middle and a definite end!

I have known a few people who did their own, but at what cost? JSinn's prices were amazingly affordable,  I had thought it would have been much more expensive, but I was wrong. And, he was great fun to work with too, he's got quite the personality, but then he's an artist so that makes sense huh? Why would I work so hard dieting, training, calculating, paying entry fees and going through all the emotional ups and downs of competing just to save a few bucks on my music? The place to save money is on a hotel room (share one) not on the important stuff. 

I have inserted a YouTube of the original song I liked, remember that I have only 60 seconds to perform my routine, so it's not long! JSinn started in with some of the intro, then the chorus and the real end, its fabulous! Keep in mind this version has his "watermark" on it (MasterMindz over and over) for copyright protection.

I could only add this as a widget on the main blog page, so just look for the hot pink arrow right under the woman with the snapping whip on the right hand side! You can hear his fantastic version of the there.

Email readers will need to navigate directly to the blog- the blue Ready In 5 Weeks link at the top to view the video).

Shoot JSinn and email, check out his Facebook page, and talk with him before you make a big mistake with your routine and music! 

Now...I can start practicing the routine!

I attempted to add an MP3 player to my blog, but after a week of reading and setting up accounts to host my files, I was unsuccessful and very frustrated. So.....I will have to write another post when I finally figure it all out. Any techies out there who can help me, please do so!

I set up a Dropbox account and copied the files into the public folder, but nothing! If you want to hear his magic just email me and I can send the file to you!

Posing and Physique Changes

I realize these pictures are slightly blurry, I had a very hard time flexing, posing and pointing my phone in the right direction! But I want to show how my physique is changing, and how the posing is coming along.

I have been doing well at adding mass and maintaining a fairly lean physique. I fluctuate up and down a few pounds here and there, but for the most part I have been adhering to my regular diet with one or two "normal" dinners a week. "Normal" is food my family eats......

I am definitely bigger, that's clear to everyone around me and to myself, I am the hardest one to convince! I told Roy that recently I was in a meeting at work, and for the first time in my life I felt almost like a freak. I looked around and noticed that my arms were bigger than anyone else's in the room, male or female. I was muscular, none of them were. I felt odd, but then I realized I work damn hard to look like this and I am proud of my physique, and it quickly passed. I picked up my pen, flexed a little and thought of my training later that night. LOL!

The upper body looks great- better than ever actually! In these photos my arms are pumped up, this was taken after training Biceps and Triceps on Sunday morning. The previous day was Back day and the day before was Shoulders, so the upper body had three days of hard and heavy training.

I have been working with Kristy Enos for posing and she has been amazing - she is a wealth of knowledge. She started in Bodybuilding, so was well versed with posing prior to when she switched to Women's Physique. 

She has helped me to find the poses that work best with my body, for instance, I will be using this pose (with arms raised up) for my double biceps front pose. I have such a great wide back and V-taper that having the legs both out creates a great shape, and the illusion that my quads are bigger than they actually are.

This pose can be done many different ways, but at least one foot must never be flat in all of the poses, hence the reason I am on my tip-toes. Most competitors seem to favor the one foot flat, and one on tip-toe, I plan to look different.

Kristy has taught me that in Bodybuilding and Physique, you think "bottom up", meaning the first thing that moves is your feet, in a smooth and flowing manner, and the rest of the body follows. This is not at all like figure where the posing is much easier, much, much easier.

Posing is very, very important in this sport, more so than what people realize. Yeah, Everyone on the stage has a rockin body right? (well most of the people), so what makes the difference? What makes one competitor stand out from the other? Stage presence and posing. You need to look comfortable, confident, and like you are enjoying the experience. It's tough, especially if you aren't particularly comfortable standing in front of strangers nearly naked! But that's where the confidence comes into play. The confidence that comes from working hard training and eating right day after day after day. The confidence that comes from watching yourself grow and improve.

I think these photos also demonstrate what a great job Roy Ganju has been doing with my overall training program, and now my arm and shoulder training, they look fabulous to me! Big, full, round and well proportioned. Legs had to have a bit of a break due to injuries, but the month long rest may prove to be just what I needed to kick start the growth. My long term goal has been to increase the size of my quads, and I have, but I had a slight set back so now these little legs are ready to work hard!

Saturday, September 22, I believe I get to start squatting again, so that means re-thinking my training split all over again.  I don't want to stop training the arms, so I will need to go back to some of my two a day lifting splits. Typically on the days I lift with Roy after work, I only do cardio (and train calves) in the morning. I will need to start throwing in some additional lifting mornings then,  and that's OK since I am not trying to drop any weight right now, so I really don't want to do a lot of cardio. I still run my stairs and jump rope at lunch, so I am set  I think.

Whether or not you plan to compete, I think you can see that the training program I am on has been making dramatic changes, and it's the type of weight training anyone can consider, just for the aesthetic appeal alone. You don't have to compete, it's great just to look ripped!

Bare Fruit Apple Chip Giveaway

As so many of my stories start....I got an email the other day....It was from  Bare Fruit Snacks and this is what they said:

Hello from Bare Fruit Snacks. We noticed you have a great following and would like to send you some snacks to try.

Bare Fruit Apple Chips are super healthy, low in calorie, gluten and dairy free, fat free and high in fiber. Actually, they are just apples in a crunchy, tasty form.

If you like them, we would love to offer a special deal to your readers. Please let us know if this is something you are interested in.

Well,  I said yes, of course I said yes! And the next thing I know, I had an Amazon.com order on the way, and it arrived in just a couple days.

I have told you how much I love presents right? Even when I am expecting them! You have to be careful around my house, anyone standing around gets a camera thrust in their hands! Cooper was the poor victim today.

I opened my box, not quite sure what would be in there and it was a big, huge bag of Cinnamon Apple Chips! These should be interesting!

I ripped open the bag and popped one in my mouth. I liked them very much! Great crunch, wonderful apple flavor and just a hint of cinnamon. I can eat these!

I had David try them, he liked them and then it was time for Cooper. He tried them, said they were really good and sat down to read the ingredients (what a kid huh?) You can see I was in the middle of assembling my lunches for the next day...

Yes, Cooper agreed. These are good and I have found him snagging the bag out of the cabinet more than a couple times now! Just what is the nutritional value? A serving is 24 grams and it contains 58 calories, 16 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber and 14 grams sugar. Yes, they are high in sugar- they are fruit- all fruit is high in sugar! But if you are going to snack, choose your snacks wisely. You can snack on these or on trans-fat laden potato chips, it should be a no-brainer!


These have a great crispy texture, something I miss these days. I have been munching on a few here and there too!

The ingredients? Organic apples and organic cinnamon. Nothing else. Nice for a change huh?

So what special offer will the Bare Fruit Snacks people have for my readers? It's a great deal! They want me to host a give-away, and they will give an entire CASE of snacks to the winner of my contest! Woo-Hoo what a great prize huh?


I decide what the contest is, nice huh? So what's the deal and how do you enter?


The contest is this:


Tell me what song and artist I should use to perform my Women's Physique Posing Routine (the dance routine, not the mandatory poses). I want something upbeat, fast paced and fun. I am not really a slow, classical music kinda gal.


I decide on the winner after I review all the suggestions!


How do you enter?


1) Visit Bare Fruit Snacks on Facebook and "like" their page. (You can also find coupons on their page).


2) "Like" my Athlete page on Facebook  (button on the right, near the top of the post) or follow me on Twitter (button above Facebook "Like").


3) Leave your suggested song either here as a comment on my blog, tweet me or leave a comment on my Facebook post. Links and videos are even more fun if you can manage that too.


I do know that some of my readers are not on Facebook, and that's OK, if you are one of them just remind me in the comment you leave along with your suggested song.


The contest will run until Thursday, July 26 at midnight (Pacific Standard Time). I then will review all the suggestions and I will name a winner the following weekend.  And, if you send a picture of yourself, I will post that too.


Winner will be shipped one case of Bare Fruit snacks directly from the company.


Below is a fun short video of IFBB Pro Physique competitor Tracy Bodner posing at the 2011 NPC Colorado Rocky Mountain - she was having a great time putting on a show for the audience . Although the music is too slow for me, it gives you a flavor of how Physique can be fun and oh so different and much more entertaining than watching women standing there in those 5 inch high heels! (Notice the heels come off!)


I thoroughly enjoy watching Tracy, she is one of the most entertaining Women's Physique competitors out there. She brings personality and an obvious love of the sport to her performances.


Email subscribers will need to navigate to the blog to see this, crank up the speakers!





Good luck, I look forward to all of your suggestions and I will download the music onto my ipod and try my routine and report back!

Back Training and Posing

Yes, I am still planning on competing in Women's Physique. I haven't talked about it much but it's there, on my mind every single day and every moment when I am in the gym. 


This picture was taken Sunday morning after training Back and Biceps, looking good huh? 128 pounds, big, muscular and not too much bodyfat....I am 10 pounds over my competition weight from May 5, 2012 and my legs are looking better than they ever have, ever.


I had some wine Saturday, I sat in the backyard with Mark, Virginia, David and Cooper. We talked and watched Sophie try to catch non-existant butterflies with the net David gave her. I went to bed early though, by 9:00 lights out, I planned a heavy lifting day.


I felt really good when I woke up, full of energy and ready to go. As usual on Sundays, I didn't set my alarm, I still hopped out of bed at 5:10 a.m.


At the gym I started with chin ups, then moved over to low rows, heavy. I like the low row at Gold's Gym, it's on the floor and old and beastly, there are two side by side. 110 pounds and I use the wide handle grip for three sets of 10 then the triangle handle grip. 


More chin ups, then the lat pull down, 100 pounds, three sets of 9 with the wide grip and then three sets with the triangle.


More chin ups then over to Bent Over Single Arm Dumbbell Row. 55 pounds, three sets of 10 on each side.



I finished with Barbell Bicep Curls and Reverse Bicep curls and some Facepulls.


I felt great, very strong and full of energy. I decided to practice my posing a bit. There is only one room to do this at Gold's Gym, the yoga and group instruction room. There were two men in there, but that's a good thing, it is really important to practice when people are around, you need to get comfortable posing in front of strangers.


Below is a short video of IFBB Pro Tracy Bodner, check out her routine, I love it!


Email subscribers will need to navigate directly to the blog to view this.






I decided I would try to incorporate some dancing into the mandatory poses, so I turned on some upbeat music and just started dancing around the room, hitting a pose here and there, I am sure the two guys thought I was a nutcase, but who cares what they thought? 


I actually hit on some music that was perfect, I was able to move and dance and hit the poses and it all flowed quite well. The only problem is the music is Madonna, and she can really dance, not sure if I want to be up there comparing myself to her! Watch the following video and you can see and hear what I was moving to for my routine, which, by the way is starting to blossom! 


Email readers will need to navigate directly to the blog to view this video.