Thread: Seeking advice...Please help

Originally Posted by Gymgirl130

Should I switch to distilled water as well?

You don't really need to worry about that. Its old school and you're not doing Bodybuilding so you don't need to be 6% bodyfat.

If you wanted to use an OTC diuretic like Dandelion root, you can do that as well. Use it as on the bottle. No need to get aggressive with it.

Some quick notes for stage:
- if you experience cramping at all, keep a salt shaker or some sodium packets with you, or even a small bag of potato chips to get some sodium in your mouth. That will promote water in your system -cramping comes from electrolyte imbalance. I'd also suggest bring a bottle of Pedialyte with you and sip on that intermingled w/ your water on show day. Also helps keep electrolytes in balance.

I wouldn't expect a big deal, but you never know on show day, and cramping can suck balls if it happens.

Originally Posted by Gymgirl130

3/18/2012

Last Week!! I am so excited and ready to be done this has been such a long journey. I have been dieting for 20 weeks with no cheats no alcohol and boy has it been rough. I think for next time I will hire a coach, but I am so proud of myself I am finally stepping on stage!

Diet-

Meal 1- 1 C spinach, 2 egg whites, 4 oz tilapia, 1 serving oats
Meal 2- 1 can tuna, 1 C spinach, 1 serving oats,2 egg whites
Meal 3- 8oz white fish, 1/2 C brown rice
Meal 4- 8 oz tilapia, 4 egg whites, 1/4 C brown rice
Meal 5- 1 can tuna, 1 C spinach, 4 egg whites
Totals- 1311cals, 18.1g fat, 102.1g carbs, 181.4g pro

Rest day today

New game plan: (kind of what I have been doing)
For my carbs I will have a higher carb day today which is Sunday then,
Monday- low carb
Tuesday- no carb
Wed- low carb
Thurs- higher carb
Friday high carbs (not going passed 100g)
Then Friday night and Saturday morning I will have a small high fat/high carb meal. Saturday I will eat light and small throughout the day while doing sips of water. As far as water goes I will have a gallon all week up until Friday, then Friday consume 3L, and do sips on Saturday.

Work outs

Sunday: Rest
Monday: Chest/Shoulders/Tris/abs w/ 20 min of cardio (lighter than normal)
Tuesday: Legs w/ 20 min of cardio (lighter than normal)
Wed: Back/Bi/Abs w/ 20 min of cardio (lighter than normal)
Thursday: Light circuit hitting all major muscle groups
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Show day!!

So when you're lifting, you're not eating to gain muscle mass and obviously you have no time left to worry about that anymore. The rest of this week is all about burning up glycogen. That just means light weight / high rep. Be very careful so you don't hurt yourself trying to lift heavy - you're depleted at this point, as you go no carb, you're dumping water so you have less "lube" in your joints to support anything more than just burning up remaining glycogen. I'd also suggest watching how you look on Thurs - Fri in terms of whether or not you look flat or filled out (again w/ the caveat that these days you don't need to be peeled for Figure) - its all about a good balanced look. The carbs will help fill you out after the carb depletion earlier this week. If you feel you are still looking flat, then eat more carbs. Don't get sloppy w/ it, but the whole point is hit the stage looking your best. Carbs take 24-36 hrs to fill you out, so keep that in mind w/ your target day being Saturday.

From personal experience, I like to eat small amounts over the course of Fri - Sat, esp Sat so nothing upsets my stomach or makes me feel off.

And Fri & Sat - stay off your feet if you can, keep your legs propped up & relaxed. Thurs, keep the training light and very specifically on circuit training and very specifically only to burn up glycogen. Don't do much either. Your legs still need time for the water to settle - when you're doing cardio, tanning, etc. it takes a few days for the circulating fluids to settle down. And work on your posing. I know the tell you to not flex for figure but I still think doing anything continues to keep your mind paying attention to how you look, esp now that you're whittled down to very much what you'll look like on stage. You can make sure everything looks great and your best angles, and it kinda continues to help your conditioning specifically in the way you want to present everything.

Rock it!

3/21/2012

Back/bis/abs

Lat pull downs
40/15 3X

cable row
55/12 3X

DB row
25/10 3X

Back Ext
15 3X

Ez bar curl 20lbs
21s 3X

Alternate Hammer DB curl
10/20 3X

Leg raises on bench 15 3X
HS crunches 15 3X

Thurs- 3/22/2012

Vertical traction
20/25
30/25

Seated machine row
30/25
30/25

Bench
45/50

Shoulder DB press
10/20
10/20

DB curl
7.5/25
7.5/25

reverse grip pull downs
20/25
20/25

Leg press
60/25
40/25

leg ext
20/25
20/25

leg curl
20/25
20/25

leg curl
20/25
20/25

seated calves
toes in/25
toes out/25
toes straight/25

3/23/2012

Rest

Diet has just been small proportions of brown rice and egg whites split through out the day. Tonight I plan on having something small that is high fat/high carb maybe a sandwich.
One more day way excited!!

Originally Posted by sassy69

So when you're lifting, you're not eating to gain muscle mass and obviously you have no time left to worry about that anymore. The rest of this week is all about burning up glycogen. That just means light weight / high rep. Be very careful so you don't hurt yourself trying to lift heavy - you're depleted at this point, as you go no carb, you're dumping water so you have less "lube" in your joints to support anything more than just burning up remaining glycogen. I'd also suggest watching how you look on Thurs - Fri in terms of whether or not you look flat or filled out (again w/ the caveat that these days you don't need to be peeled for Figure) - its all about a good balanced look. The carbs will help fill you out after the carb depletion earlier this week. If you feel you are still looking flat, then eat more carbs. Don't get sloppy w/ it, but the whole point is hit the stage looking your best. Carbs take 24-36 hrs to fill you out, so keep that in mind w/ your target day being Saturday.

From personal experience, I like to eat small amounts over the course of Fri - Sat, esp Sat so nothing upsets my stomach or makes me feel off.

And Fri & Sat - stay off your feet if you can, keep your legs propped up & relaxed. Thurs, keep the training light and very specifically on circuit training and very specifically only to burn up glycogen. Don't do much either. Your legs still need time for the water to settle - when you're doing cardio, tanning, etc. it takes a few days for the circulating fluids to settle down. And work on your posing. I know the tell you to not flex for figure but I still think doing anything continues to keep your mind paying attention to how you look, esp now that you're whittled down to very much what you'll look like on stage. You can make sure everything looks great and your best angles, and it kinda continues to help your conditioning specifically in the way you want to present everything.

Rock it!

Thanks Sassy for the tips that helps a lot. I have been getting cramps so I'll be sure to have pedialyte handy. You have been a great help through these last couple weeks I appreciate your help, I don't know what I would have done with out it. Thank you!!

Yes, Sassy you have been very helpful. Thank you for all the generous advice and useful tips. Tomorrow is the big day!

Good luck tomorrow!!

Good luck today! Just have fun and wear a smile in whatever you do today!

^^^ GREAT! How did you place and what did you think of the whole experience?

Originally Posted by sassy69

^^^ GREAT! How did you place and what did you think of the whole experience?

^^^^^^^^^This, how was it?

Oh my gosh it was the best experience of my life!! I loved it and I am for sure doing it aging in October. I didn't place but I definitely looked better than some that did place! I was so worried that I didn't look good, I was stressing out for nothing. The only thing I need help with is my posing so I am going to hire a posing coach for next time. Back stage everyone had their own coach and I was just watching and learning. It did feel good that I did everything myself but I think if I had some kind of support backstage I wouldn't of been so nervous. What a relief, now I know what to do. I did beige all day Sunday and still recovering lol. I am taking this week off from working out but keeping with the diet. I am not as strict but it is all healthy and more variety. I am up to 1800 calories and I am going to stay there for a while just to see how my body recovers. Monday I will be lifting heavy! I will post more picture too.

Great to hear, congrats on following through!!!!

More pics

Originally Posted by Gymgirl130

Oh my gosh it was the best experience of my life!! I loved it and I am for sure doing it aging in October. I didn't place but I definitely looked better than some that did place! I was so worried that I didn't look good, I was stressing out for nothing. The only thing I need help with is my posing so I am going to hire a posing coach for next time. Back stage everyone had their own coach and I was just watching and learning. It did feel good that I did everything myself but I think if I had some kind of support backstage I wouldn't of been so nervous. What a relief, now I know what to do. I did beige all day Sunday and still recovering lol. I am taking this week off from working out but keeping with the diet. I am not as strict but it is all healthy and more variety. I am up to 1800 calories and I am going to stay there for a while just to see how my body recovers. Monday I will be lifting heavy! I will post more picture too.

This is AWESOME! The first thing is you're a winner for just getting out there! If it was easy, everyone would do it. Its not, so be very proud of yourself. There's also a lot to be said for getting your first show out of the way - the mindfuck that comes w/ just not knowing what to expect can be daunting in & of itself. Now that you have an idea of what's going on, you can focus on yourself and not be distracted by fear of the unknown. It takes some pressure off, but also adds pressure now that you know what's going on. I'm not sure what you experienced in terms of "support people" backstage. In my experience, unless that particular show offers "backstage / coach passes" (for a fee - just like buying another ticket), they usually only allow competitors backstage. Depending on the venue, there might be an area near "backstage" but not literally back stage where noncompetitors can go. FWIW, don't expect to have support people with you backstage for exactly the reason I mentioned. What I have found is the expeditors and other competitors are great support themselves. But by the time you've gotten that far, there's really no one else who can "bring it" except you anyway. Don't feel like you were operating shorthanded!

Aside from all the actual prep, by the time you get on stage, esp for categories other than bodybuilding where the focus is mostly on your physique and less on your stage presence, your posing & your confidence / presentation / delivery are critical. With all due respect to the competitors, the criteria for women's competition is becoming so limited that there is precious little EXCEPT your presentation on stage to set you apart. So, while some people may be born to walk the cat walk, it generally just comes w/ time spent. Just getting through your first show gives you a big leap in understanding what is needed and what to work on for the next one. The confidence will be there & you can really get comfortable w/ your whole presentation on stage. The next time you get up there should be that much more enjoyable. If you can look like you're having as much fun ON STAGe as you did back stage or before/after the show, you're golden!


As far as post show, don't be surprised if you feel a little bit of depression - not so much biochemically speaking, but rather just the complete anti-climax of coming off a show prep. Its hard to go from balls-to-the-wall-omg-x-days-until-my-show!!!!!! to "normal". So just relax and as you noted, ease back into your maintenance diet to reduce physical rebound from the whole thing. If you feel the need to keep some of the same structure in your schedule as pre-show, go ahead & hit the gym. But otherwise just relax & enjoy your pix!

Originally Posted by Gymgirl130

More pics

Absolutely stellar! At the risk of coming across as a creepy old guy, you started out smokin' and finished utterly blazing hot! Good job!

Gymgirl, congratulations for the many accomplishments; redesigning your body, getting on stage and showing your hard work to the masses, busting arse with a tough diet, having the courage to follow through to achieve your goal.......

.

I walked away with a lot of healthy information from this thread. I want to thank you for having the courage to let this play out IMF.

Good luck to you with future shows.

Originally Posted by sassy69

This is AWESOME! The first thing is you're a winner for just getting out there! If it was easy, everyone would do it. Its not, so be very proud of yourself. There's also a lot to be said for getting your first show out of the way - the mindfuck that comes w/ just not knowing what to expect can be daunting in & of itself. Now that you have an idea of what's going on, you can focus on yourself and not be distracted by fear of the unknown. It takes some pressure off, but also adds pressure now that you know what's going on. I'm not sure what you experienced in terms of "support people" backstage. In my experience, unless that particular show offers "backstage / coach passes" (for a fee - just like buying another ticket), they usually only allow competitors backstage. Depending on the venue, there might be an area near "backstage" but not literally back stage where noncompetitors can go. FWIW, don't expect to have support people with you backstage for exactly the reason I mentioned. What I have found is the expeditors and other competitors are great support themselves. But by the time you've gotten that far, there's really no one else who can "bring it" except you anyway. Don't feel like you were operating shorthanded!

Aside from all the actual prep, by the time you get on stage, esp for categories other than bodybuilding where the focus is mostly on your physique and less on your stage presence, your posing & your confidence / presentation / delivery are critical. With all due respect to the competitors, the criteria for women's competition is becoming so limited that there is precious little EXCEPT your presentation on stage to set you apart. So, while some people may be born to walk the cat walk, it generally just comes w/ time spent. Just getting through your first show gives you a big leap in understanding what is needed and what to work on for the next one. The confidence will be there & you can really get comfortable w/ your whole presentation on stage. The next time you get up there should be that much more enjoyable. If you can look like you're having as much fun ON STAGe as you did back stage or before/after the show, you're golden!


As far as post show, don't be surprised if you feel a little bit of depression - not so much biochemically speaking, but rather just the complete anti-climax of coming off a show prep. Its hard to go from balls-to-the-wall-omg-x-days-until-my-show!!!!!! to "normal". So just relax and as you noted, ease back into your maintenance diet to reduce physical rebound from the whole thing. If you feel the need to keep some of the same structure in your schedule as pre-show, go ahead & hit the gym. But otherwise just relax & enjoy your pix!

Thanks sassy! yeah I didn't want to pay extra to have someone to come back stage with me, but next time I think it will be good for me just to help with tan/oil ect. I defiantly needed more practice. Back stage I was feeling confident and had a little routine and all of a sudden when I walked in front of the judges it all went out the window. I froze and forgot what I was suppose to do! I know as I do more shows it will come more natural. I was trying to tell my self to calm down and trying not to shake but I am glad I did it and it was a big relief when I was through.
Now, I am trying to stick with a diet, I am feeling a little depressed but I think I was just because I pigged out after and got really bloated. I think I am just going to continue to look even better. I now know what it takes and excited to see where I can take my body. I am definitely enjoying my pictures and ready to hit the gym!!

Originally Posted by Zaphod

Absolutely stellar! At the risk of coming across as a creepy old guy, you started out smokin' and finished utterly blazing hot! Good job!

Originally Posted by triplstep

Gymgirl, congratulations for the many accomplishments; redesigning your body, getting on stage and showing your hard work to the masses, busting arse with a tough diet, having the courage to follow through to achieve your goal.......

.

I walked away with a lot of healthy information from this thread. I want to thank you for having the courage to let this play out IMF.

Good luck to you with future shows.

Thanks Guys!! All of the complements really helped me stay motivated and I really appreciate it. Look forward to my next thread, contest prep for October!!