After a long hiatus from this blog, due to too many things going on, I’ve decided I need to start blogging again (finally), if only it’s a couple of lines every day. I’m now four weeks away from my second figure competition and in full prep mode. I’ve learned a lot of things along the way, I’m training harder, dieting harder and all around researching more and testing different things out so to maximize my results. It’s hard to believe that in about 10 days, it has been 2 years since I started weight training. I couldn’t imagine life without it now, I’m addicted to it – it’s great to see the progress, but it’s also trying when things don’t exactly go as planned, or as fast as I’d like them to.

This time around, my coach is Dana Linn Bailey, she’s an IFBB pro competitor in the new Physique division and has an amazing body. She has given me a diet and training plan which I love, and my body is really responding to. She believes in hard training, many sets and exercises.  I send her progress photos through email weekly, along with my measurements, and she adjusts the training/diet accordingly. Right now my diet is not very different from what it used to be, as I’ve always been very strict, following the FD.  I will have my usual egg whites and oatmeal in the morning, followed by a mid morning meal, lunch, later afternoon snack and dinner, mostly consisting of 5 oz of lean  protein (ground turkey/chicken/beef, bison, chicken breast, white fish) and a couple of cups of cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, green beans, asparagus, spinach, kale, cauliflower, brussels sprouts or swiss chard.  I get to have about two servings of raw nuts and also some non fat cottage cheese with applesauce (unsweetened).

The last week before my show I will go through a “dry out” phase, which I didn’t do the last time I competed. Basically, egg whites are out because of the sodium, and so is whey –  I will basically have NO sodium starting the Monday before my show. THIS WILL BE THE TOUGHEST TEST!! Imagine me, a chef used to season my food heavily, not allowed to salt my food?!? I will probably want to just gag instead of eating.  Anyway, what I will tell myself is “It’s only a week, it’s only a week!!” and power through it 🙂

Training wise, I’m now focusing on capping off my shoulders/rounding them off and adding some size here. I train back and shoulders twice a week now, as well as legs (hams/glutes one day, and quads the other). I do cardio six times a week, so I am pretty much living at the gym, but have found that I don’t mind, and love it!

I will post some progress photos starting next week, when I will have less than a month to go… Oh, and I’m doing the World Championships in Tribeca, NYC on November 12th – INBF is the federation. I’ve been contemplating doing the OCB show in White Plains on the same day, but I sent in my entry form to the INBF and think I will stick with that…. Regardless, november 12th it is!!