Having a laugh!

I got to train Shelley today - we did back - I made her work hard, I hope she's sore tomorrow! I told her that I was 'feeling the grip' - she cheered me up by telling me about all the fantastic shopping she's doing on Ebay at the moment. I am laughing at what you can actually pick up on Ebay....I feel much better now..thank you Shelley! I'm going for 2nd breakfast tomorrow..2 RPM classes how good is that ? Bring on the oats I say!

Sunday Waffles

Today's post is a follow on from yesterday's post - Batty left an interesting comment along the lines of whether I look at a competition like a 12 Week Challenge and if I think long and hard the answer would be "no". A "12 week challenge" is open ended (there is no consequence to the end date) whereas I approach a Figure Competition as an athletic preparation with discrete phases and an end date (ie Comp day). Even though getting lean plays a big part in Figure preparation it is by no means any more important than all of the preparatory work you do in the off season. For me, the most satisfying aspect of competing has been having definite goals during each off season. Between my first and second comps, it was all about adding back and shoulder mass and this training phase for me now is all about gaining mass in my glutes and back. Mike and I have been doing a lot of corrective work - I underuse both my hamstrings and glutes - yet thanks to Mike and a whole bag of different tricks, I am feeling the DOMS love in my glutes.

I haven't decided on a definite comp date for next year - depending on what happens with Mike and where the training goes it may be April, July or October. I have to stress again that I think it's more important what you do in the off season than what you do when you are closer to stage ready.

I also must talk about stopping at a scoop of icecream. I struggle with emotional eating sometimes, I can eat out of spite, I can overeat when I'm overly hungry, tired or lonely. However, if I remain on an even keel emotionally, then having a scoop of icecream is not a trigger for me (meaning one mouthful is too many and a thousand are never enough). Get me overly tired and emotional, then I can become a different animal - just like the rest of the population.