Food Prep Made Fun!

My coach, Jeff, had a pretty kicka$$ bootcamp on Saturday.  There's a trainer, Josh, that's been helping him with his team and had posted about a leg workout for Saturday.  I decided that I would blast my upper body on Friday night since I knew I probably wouldn't be able to walk after the leg workout on Saturday.  Great plan, right?  Well, it would have been had my workout been with Josh.  It wasn't.  I walked in almost 10 minutes late to the bootcamp because I got caught behind a funeral procession.  I could have let it annoy me, but instead I reminded myself to be thankful that I wasn't one of the cars in that line.  Anyway, I walked in and P says to me "you missed push-ups till you drop as our warm-up!".  Jeff took that as a great idea and had us start off our circuit with push-ups...till I dropped.  I surprised myself (remember that upper body workout about 18 hours prior?) and busted out 30 "big girl" push-ups.  *pats back*

Right now, if you were to look inside my pantry, you'd see almost every single Mrs. Dash that is made.  There's a Southwest version that's not too shabby.  However, what I've been jonesing for are tacos.  I love Tex-Mex and there's not a lot (other than fajita meat) that goes along with my bikini prep meal plan.  Go figure. ;)  With me slowly saying bye-bye to starchy carbs, I need to find ways to keep my brain and taste buds satisfied.  Enter "Homemade {Salt-Free} Taco Seasoning" from the blog Olives n Wine.  I loved the idea of homemade and salt-free.  This way I know exactly what is going into my food.  Her recipe: click here calls for sugar, but I omitted that.  I also tweaked it adding 1 tsp of Chipotle Chili Powder in with the regular Chili Powder (still a total of 8 tsp). 

I followed the rest of what her recipes called for and the decided to add in 1 tsp of Cilantro at the end, just because I'm a rebel like that.  It turned out SO GOOD!!!  Flavor explosion of spicy with each bite.  If you want it less spicy, cut back on the Cayenne.  I added 2 Tbsp of the mix (that is being stored in that little Gladware container) to my pound of lean ground turkey.  De-lish.  It looked like taco meat and smelled like taco meat, so I was very happy when it tasted like taco meat.  I ate it solo with my green veggies and sweet potato, but plan to put it on top of greens for a taco-like salad.  

Try it and let me know your thoughts and what you do to make it "yours"!  

  

 

OKC Grand Prix - 9 weeks and counting!

When I met with Jeff last, we discussed future shows. I knew at the time that I wasn't ready to be done for the season. He mentioned me trying to get ready for Texas State in October and possibly Oklahoma City Grand Prix at the end of October. He said, "let's shoot for Texas State, see how you are, and make a decision then." That sounded good to me. I even asked him to give me a new menu to hold me over until he had my new plan ready. Let's just say I haven't quite gotten back into a routine yet. My intentions were there...are still there...but my mind just wasn't ready.

Why do we self-sabotage? I know that I don't feel well when I eat crap, so why do I do it? I know that cheeseburgers aren't going to give me more muscle and donuts aren't going to help me burn fat...so why does my mind want them...constantly?! After letting myself gain almost 15lbs back from contest weight, I decided not only was it time to get real, but it was time to get real real quick. I have to hold myself accountable. That's the only downside to not working with a trainer in the gym. What helps me stay accountable is writing. Even if no one reads this, me taking the time to write down my feelings and intentions keeps my mind right. The other biggie is getting back into a routine. I had written about my routines or habits at one point. I need to get back into the groove with them. Cooking larger quantities, grocery shopping on my specific day that I used to, hitting up the gym around the same time...etc etc etc.

Ugh. That reminds me, my workouts have gotten a lot harder. It's like my last group of exercises was the minors and now I've stepped up to the bigs. The first leg program was killer. So much so, that today is the first day since Thursday that I'm not sore. I even had to split it up the day I did it. I only got through the 125 jump squats and 1 set of 50 lunges before my body wanted to stop. At that point, I hopped on the elliptical and chatted with a gym buddy for 30 minutes. Later that night, I was back up there...I even had Shane time me when I did my sprints. I'm not sure exactly what got me, but I had some serious soreness. Needless to say, that sidelined me for the rest of the week. I got my yoga in, but didn't lift again.

I have gone to bed every night for the last 4 days saying, "ok, back on track tomorrow." and have yet to stay on track. I think it's the "I'll start my diet tomorrow" syndrome. I know way too many people that do that...and now, myself included. Well, tomorrow IS when I will be back on track. I have my day planned out in my mind and have even prepped food for tomorrow. Part of what will make it easier is Shane is starting his meal plan that Jeff wrote for him tomorrow. I took a look at it, and it's legit. I'm a little jealous of his 2 allotted cheat meals, but then again, he's not trying to get on stage in 9 weeks.

I can do this. I know I can, and maybe that's why I've been slacking. Well, no more slacking. Tomorrow starts Tricia's road to a first place victory!! I think I can, I think I can, I know I can, I know I can!

It's tiiiime!

Shane starts back with classes tomorrow, all my teacher friends have their students back tomorrow, and as I sit here tonight thinking about what to write about, I can't help but feel like tomorrow is MY first day of school. I start back up with contest prep tomorrow for my next show and haven't been in the gym in what feels like forever. I have butterflies! Mostly because I have gotten to know a lot of people at the gym being there everyday. It's only been about 10 days, but feels more like 30! Crazy how a little time off can really mess with you.

To get more stage-time and practice, Jeff suggested I compete in the Texas State show in October. After taking this past week off completely, I'm ready to get back into the groove. Jeff sent me my plan which included my food and revised workouts. In order to put more muscle on, I need to increase volume. This means more reps and more weight. Shane and I totaled up my leg workout...it's insane. It's around 450 reps total. My legs get tired just thinking about that. Thank goodness for Jack3d and glutamine!!

I know that it will all pay off, but leg workouts are not my fave. They're tiring. I just have to think about how awesome my booty is going to look...legging all fall/winter!! Haha!! This next show will be fun since I already know what I'm in for. It won't be as big as Europa...and supposedly not as political. I think with the amount of time I have before the show, I will be able to put on some good muscle and have a little better look. It will all be in prep for my first NATIONAL show next summer-possibly in Chicago! Who wants to come with??

Thinking about it all gets me excited. The workouts may be rough, but I know I can do them. I just need to make a good play list and get mentally prepared for the next 8 weeks. I need to remind myself to just take it one day, one workout, one meal at a time. Luckily, I get a cheat meal for the moment on the weekends. We have one more reservation for restaurant week that I didn't really want to miss! Haha! Well, it's time for bed. Gotta rest up for my busy day tomorrow!

Food Bender

Lunch today marked the end of my weekend...almost week long...bender. I knew things were getting bad when after feeling like crap all day from food the day before, I decided to eat Wendy's for dinner. It really didn't even taste good, but I kept eating it. What was wrong with me?! When Zoe made her sign for "want" and pointed to my french fries (yah, I got a combo) I quickly hid them. Why was it ok for me to eat it, but not her? Everything I had eaten for months prior, I was happy to share...except for the end when I needed and wanted every little ounce of food that was on my plate.

I met with my coach, Jeff, today to talk and plan my next show. Despite how hard it seemed sometimes, I really enjoyed the whole process. I want to do more. I want to compete in at least one national show. Just to see where it could go. Most national shows are out of state and it would be a fun reason to jet off for the weekend. Jeff asked me some different questions about how I was feeling and what I thought of the show. I shrugged at how I was feeling. "I'm ready to be back on a plan. I didn't know what to do when I didn't have to follow a certain routine." He laughed at me saying that I didn't know what to eat for breakfast on Monday morning. Shane had told me, "whatever you want babe." I just knew I didn't want egg whites.

Jeff said the hardest part for competitors is the post-show time. Transition is hard for just about everyone, no matter what they're transitioning to or from. Add food to that, and you're setting yourself up for one crazy ride. I'm still recovering from my bender. Stomachache, headache, lack of energy...the list goes on. I just can't help but think, "did I always feel like this?" I don't think I did, but I definitely didn't feel as good as I did when I was eating clean. I'm ready to get back into the gym (haven't set foot in it since Thursday) and get back into my food groove. I have some muscle to put on in the next two months and am ready to kick some butt!!

My next comp is going to be either Texas State or a show in Oklahoma...or both! I will know that for this next one, A candy bar or A cookie will suffice for my post-show "binge". No need for entire packages...my stomach and body will thank me. :) Now it's time for lunch: mixed greens salad with water packed tuna and basalmic dressing. Yum!

No More Cheats

I got my revised meal plan tonight from Jeff. Not bad, doing another carb cycle again. Last time, it produced some amazing results combined with my increased cardio, so I'm looking forward to it.

At the bottom of the plan, where it normally says what "cheats" I'm allowed, it just said, "NO MORE CHEATS". Boo. I knew this day was looming. It's better that way anyway, it's not like my cheats were really cheats. I was allowed 1 cheat meal on the weekend when we first started. It could be anything I wanted. Anything. Then, it got cut back to 1 clean cheat meal on the weekend. A clean cheat meal consisted of fish or chicken made my someone else along with steamed or grilled veggies made by someone else. I could also have sugarfree/no sugar added froyo...which I savored.

Zoe and I went to Target tonight to pick up a few things for the week. I knew I needed to go tonight before I was too deep into my week. I know I need to stay focused and even told Shane tonight that he would probably need to be the grocery shopper for the next 18 days. It's not so much that I don't trust myself, it's more that I just don't want to see or think about the bad stuff. I do, however, have a running list of things I must have in my goodie bag for post-show pigout. Oreos, anything made by Little Debbie, BREAD...the list has the possibility of becoming endless.

I did receive a tip at this week's posing class: bring a bag of digestive enzymes, Tums/Rolaids, and anything else that might help my tummy from feeling like a bomb went off in it when I do decide to eat "unclean". Right now, I'm debating between a burger, fries, and milkshake from Twisted Root; a feast of salad, endless amount of breadsticks, and pasta from Olive Garden or Maggiano's; or a complete mexican fiesta from MiCo or Uncle Julio's. Maybe I'll hit up all of the above...just which one is first... ;)

Since it is now down to the nitty gritty, I'll warn you in advance that the tone of my blogs might change. You may notice a bit of grumpiness and this is to be expected. I'm starting to get hungry and have been tired for weeks...but this too shall pass! I have been able to handle much more than this, so I know I can do it. Gotta keep that end goal in mind!!!

I'm just a poser.

Today was Saturday, which means only one thing....posing class with Jeff!

When I think back to that first posing class, I remember feeling super nervous and super intimidated. The girls were all so fit and made it look so easy. Thankfully, I had scheduled a one-on-one session with Jeff earlier in the week so I could get a feel for what I would be doing. I wouldn't think I'd need to be taught how to walk, stand, and smile...but I did. I had to learn how to exaggerate my hips without looking akward and make it, as Jeff said, "look like you have booty coming from every direction". Sounds funny doesn't it? But, I guess there isn't anything much girlier that a perky, round booty.

Two of my four workouts revolve around my butt. You know how I said that a cute outfit makes all the difference? Well, on booty days, that's especially true! If you were to be a fly on the wall next to me at the gym, you'd laugh as you watched me try to nonchalantly catch glances of my backside. Hey, if I'm going to spend hours working on it, I want to make sure I'm seeing my hard work pay off!! Lunges, squats, jump squats, jump lunges, smith machine squats, smith machine lunges, leg press, and repeat. On any given leg days, I'll do about 500 reps of leg/butt exercises. Most of which are with weight anywhere from 10lb dumbbells for my plyos (anything jumping) to 85lbs for smith machine squats and 130lbs (+ or -) for leg press.

Now that I have my suit, I have that much more of a reminder that my booty is going to be on display for all to see in 3 WEEKS! Eek! On that note, I need to eat my egg whites, swallow down some glutamine, and hit the sheets.

I need a 26 hour day...

I got home from the gym at 10:15pm. Yup, that's right. I'm at an hour of cardio 6 days/week plus my 4 lift days. Tonight all I had time to squeeze in was cardio. That means upper body tomorrow, yay! :)

Before I hit up the elliptical, I headed to the yoga room to practice my posing. My 5" lucite heels have a new home in my gym bag so I can practice anytime, anywhere! I'm feeling more and more confident strutting my stuff as I see my body transform. It's all in the hips! I keep Jeff's words in my head..."you gotta make it look like you have booty from all directions, it's all about the booty". It's funny to me that so many women work to make their butt smaller and here I am busting mine to make it grow! I have J-Lo envy at the moment. Brook tanned me up earlier today, so my legs looked awesome! Thanks Brook!!!

I had planned on walking Arbor Hills with Zoe earlier today, but when I saw that the temperature was 101, I changed my mind. So, ipod in hand, I trekked it up to the gym. Thankfully, the elliptical has not only a TV on it, but sits in front of 4 big screens. I tend to get bored on the elliptical to I did half there then hopped over to the spin bike. The slightly insane Brian Wilson managed to keep me distracted with his ESPY penguin get-up...that man is an odd duck.

So, now, it's egg-white time washed down with some glutamine and then off to dreamland! Sleep well my friends, tomorrow is another day to achieve your dreams!

30 days and counting...

See those pictures? The first one is from a few days ago (black top), the second was back in April (teal top).

The countdown to my first NPC show has started. I'm now 30 days out from the Europa Supershow Dallas where I'll be competing in the bikini division.

I've been working with Jeff Dwelle of Dwelle Athletics and am a "Bikini Rockstar". Jeff is awesome, he knows his stuff and has been tweaking my program for few months. It's getting closer and more intense as I continue to try and drop body fat. Gotta love tilapia! ;)

My goal is to not just walk on that stage, but own it and hear my name in the first call-out...putting me in the top 5!! I've wanted to do a show for over 5 years and have just now set my mind to do it. Why not? I'm practically a stay-at-home mom with a 1 year old and turn 30 this year. Yikes!

I ordered my bikini from www.crystallinibikini.com, Ellen was awesome and answered alllll of my millions of questions. Hey, the bikini was expensive for how teeny it is, I wanted to make sure I got it right! Jessie Hamilton will be doing my make-up and I'll be getting my hair done at Salon 2222...extensions and all! I must say, I'm pretty excited to have long flowing locks!

So now, all that's left to keep working my booty off and pose pose pose! I'll be keeping you all posted on my progress over the next month, wish me luck!

Want to come support me? Please?! Check out www.visionstarinc.com for info on the Dallas Europa Supershow. August 12th is prelims, 13th is finals. Hope to see you there!