Hello hello blog world!!!!
For the last couple weeks I haven't been posting much because I didn't want to post too much about my body's changes but also because I really didn't have a ton of extra energy lying around to write, post and update. BUT the big day I had been training for was last Saturday, so I wanted to do a recap of the day and post some pics on my progress!!! Here's the start to finish of the weekend!
THURSDAY: Flying home
Thursday started off with my "last chance" workout with my coach. Yep, I might of had a 7:15am flight but I did a 5:15am workout before I flew out! I had two carry ons of important things:
1. My food! Yeah I had no idea how easy it is to take your own food on a flight. Nobody even said anything or asked me any questions. I had chicken, tilapia and asparagus in my lunch box along with all my vitamins.
2. My suits and shoes! I wanted to make sure that even IF the worst happened and they lost my luggage I would still be able to step on stage. So I had my suit, themewear and heels for both in my bag.
Yes I ate on the plane, yes I hate eating pre-cooked food in public, yes people stare at me from time to time but I was going to do what I had to do in order to feel confident on that stage.
After we arrived we needed some last minute grocery shopping, I did some food prep at my in-laws house, did a last time run, walk, lunge cardio session on the treadmill and finished the day off resting and catching up with family.
FRIDAY: Day before show
After my 20 min easy walk to warm up my day I spent time with my mom. My mom had drove in to see the show and visit with family so I spent the morning running some errands with her. I came home to rest and then I went to get my spray tan! Now let me tell you about competition spray tans- they are annoying. I swear even the littlest drop of water will create a mess! And I am not good with those types of things! So I definitely needed touch ups the next day. Then it was time to go home and get dressed for the athletes meeting and packet pick up! Now maybe I missed the memo about dressing up for the meeting but I thought with my cute dress and wedges I would look just fine but there were some athletes dressed like they were going to a club here in Vegas. Glitzed heels, tight sexy dresses and hair and makeup done up. Guess I'll know for next time (if there is a next time!) We wrote out bios, got my number - 450!!! I almost had a heart attack because they had me in the wrong category and then they couldn't find my original number and when they did my name wasn't the one on the packet so they had to make another packet and number. Let's just say I almost thought of having a small little panic attack then I remembered stress makes me hold onto water weight so a few deep breaths later it was all solved!
Then it was on to stay at my friend Jessica's house and just chill, chit chat and relax. She's one of my best friends and I don't know if I would have survived college without her and a few of our friends. I had a great night of doing what we do best when we are around each other, nothing but enjoying each others company! Then it was on to sweet dreams while Jessica and her cake building partner Ashley worked on a delicious cake for after my show! They were like cake elves!
SATURDAY: Show Day
6 am wake up call!!!! I was ready for the day and pretty nervous! I wanted to get some breakfast in even though I had an excited tummy! Then before I knew it 7am was there and it was time to get my hair going, 8am rolled around and it was time for makeup!!! During this time Jessica and the girls doing my hair and makeup kept my mind busy with chatting and asking questions about my training and before I knew it I looked in the mirror and I did not recognize myself!! That's when you know you've got an amazing team doing a fabulous job!
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| My make-up and hair done! I look a lot different without my gym attire and usual ponytail :) |
I was at the venue by 9:30 am and had already eaten two meals, nervously found a spot in the girls waiting room and put my legs up as much as possible. The more I was off my legs the better so I don't hold on to any water weight in my legs. My main goal backstage was to make sure that I realized how far I had come and not start to compare myself to other girls. It's easy to do because there is a lot of hard work on display and it's easy to realize that your abs don't look like someone else's or that someone's suit is better than yours. I knew how damaging thoughts like that can be to how I felt about myself on stage, so my goal was to worry about myself, celebrate that I have lost 43 pounds, and try not to trip on stage and remember my poses! Before I stepped on stage I got to have some peanut butter and a little extra oatmeal! I was a happy carbed up camper! Here I am before lineup!
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| Ready to do this!! LOVE my suit! Figure Suits by Jodi |
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| Here's the beginning to end of my Journey!!! 165 pounds to 120 pounds! I can't believe that I did it!!! |
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| I wore the cape as a skirt when I first came out on stage and then BAM I took it off to use as a cape |
1. The judges are a lot closer than you think, so basically you are walking on stage and looking straight down. They are super close! It kind of surprised me a little. You can see every facial expression they are making at all times. If I compete again this is one thing I will have to get better at, I made eye contact but I didn't do a great job of maintaining eye contact.
2. The amount of candy that people eat backstage. The idea is that the candy keeps you energized and somehow helps with your muscle tone appearance. Kind of strange but people start busting out the M&M's, candy corn, some cupcakes, hershey's bars, you name it! I kept to PB and oatmeal and towards the last time I stepped on stage I ate my Quest bar.
3. How nice some girls are and how not nice some girls can be. I didn't have a lot of people be rude really but I had some not be as interested in talking to me. But some of the girls I spent the most time with were really nice and it was great to talk to a group of girls who had been going through the same things I had. Meal prep, relationship stuff, workouts, not being able to think straight during peak week, and tan touch ups.
I wasn't entering this contest to win a pro card/win first place. I knew some of the girls in my division had physiques that were going to take the top spots and they had been on stage before. They didn't have callouts or move any of us around when we were on stage. There were 7 girls total in my division. They announced top 3 and after that I'm not sure how I ended up in the line up. But here's what I know, I don't care because I accomplished my goal. I trained, I changed, I got on stage and I know where I want balance in my life. I'm not the same person who started this journey and that's a great thing, because I think I'm a better person because of this.
Here's some photos from that night celebrating :) I had a burger, fries, and nachos to celebrate!!! Oh and some hella awesome cake from the cake elves Jessica and Ashley!
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| Just look at the red velvet yummy cake!!! |
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| My friend Adriana came in for the show!!! Another friend from college that I have no idea where I would be without her and Jessica!!! |
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| Nachos were more amazing than I remember! |
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| Me and the hubby!!! He's put up with my grumpy no carb, lots of exercise self! |
It was a fun weekend and now I'm enjoying tasting some sweet treats and working on getting back into a routine. I enjoy health and fitness, I enjoy how I feel when I am in shape. I'm not sure where this road will lead, but I will share what I find a long the way! 38 weeks of training and now it's up to me to build new balance into my life. It feels exciting to find new ways to make food, new workouts to create, share and enjoy and I get to choose, I get to pick. It's energizing to think of! I started this journey because when my dad passed away I realized how amazing life is, how much more there is to do and how I can't keep waiting for greatness but I have to decide to go after it myself and make it happen. My dad's smile captivated everyone he met and you could see the magic of dreams and hardwork when he smiled at you. I want those stories, I want that life and I want to someday be able to share it all with my dad. Find what inspires you, or who inspires you and don't set out to be perfect, set out to do something! Don't let small set backs keep you down, use them as experience and keep it going forward! Who knows what my next challenge will be ;)
Cheers and lots of love,
Ash
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