Breaking In

It has been about three weeks now since I officially began training for competition. I truly had hoped to journal more at this point. But, breaking into life of competition has been an adjustment for me and my family, for sure.

The first week and a half was pretty hard. Outside of taking care of my kids I felt like my life was centered around diet and workouts. My body was tired and sore from increase in training (weights & cardio) and the depletion of calories. Don't misunderstand, I eat constantly. In fact I eat six to seven times depending on the day. The diet in itself has taken a lot of planning and organizing. Preparing meals for each day takes a lot of work. Then there is fitting those meals in between transporting my kids back and forth to school (remember my two different pick up times) and my work outs. It has been a challenge. I started out preparing all my meals in the evenings for the next day but that was exhausting. This left little time with my family and more time in the kitchen than I wanted. Then I got a bit of a handle on the process by cooking most of my food on Sunday and dividing my meals in storage containers for the week. I am now able to pull out the meals I need each day, pack them into my cooler in the morning and head out the door. Easy Peasy, lemon squeezie! No room for cheating! 

I've tried to make it as little change as possible for my kids, but for my husband it has meant a little extra help. OK that is saying it modestly, he has helped A LOT! He has been super supportive and a true blessing to this whole process. He helps me prepare my food and helps with the kids when I need to fit in a workout. He always asks, "What can I do?" I would not be able to do this without him! 

On the subject of "breaking in" the news, I find that reactions from family and friends have been interesting. Several times I got the question,
Are gonna get ALL those muscles? 
Well yes, that is kind of the point of the competition. 
Am I going to become She Hulk in the next six weeks? 
Well no, that would be a slight misconception there! I assure you that this would be far from reality (for me at least). Training naturally (meaning no drug enhancement) that just won't happen. 
Over all my family and friends have been supportive. Some I will call "my groupies', those promising to come to the competition waiving signs and cheer from the audience. 
Then there are my "Facebook fans" my most overwhelming reactions of all! Early on I struggled with sharing my news and progress on Facebook. As a Christian woman I was worried that many would think it was immodest or about vanity. But, stepping out of my box (because after all that is what this is all about) I did share a few posts on Facebook. Here is one of my posts.
   

God is "dragging" me out of my box on this journey of mine! I had a hard time with the vulnerability of taking photos of my progress but I am also amazed by the result! It seems a bit surreal! I am discovering how amazing these bodies God gave us really are! For the sake of modesty this is all I am ready to post right now! 

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I could not believe the support I received on Facebook.  I had so many encouraging comments in support of what I was doing. And most of all I was amazed that church friends who had seen the post were asking me abut the competition. 

But really I feel God is using this opportunity to stretch me to bring me out of my box (my comfort zone) and help inspire others. I do not expect it to be an easy journey (and it hasn't been) but it has been an amazing one so far. As my lifestyle, diet, and body continue to change over the next several weeks I hope you will support me too. Even if it is nothing more that prayer through this journey!


"I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me." Philippians 4:13 AMP


Philippians 4:13 has been my life verse. Though not the version I have memorized I love how it uses the words "Christ Who empowers me". I constantly have to remind myself that He is the one who empowers me, especially when I feel weak! I need to remember this when I am not feeling confident or when I don't feel I have the physical strength. And I am taking it one day at a time. 


I would love to hear your comments here as well. Do you struggle with confidence or worry about what people think? I'd love to hear how you deal with your struggle or maybe how God is dealing with you. 


Thank you for joining in my journey to competition I know there will be much more to share!