All about the Bikini Preppin'

Wow, just looking back and I haven't blogged at all since April!  I am so sorry I have been MIA on you guys.  I still am keeping up with daily updates, tips and support on my Facebook page UNLEASH YOUR POTENTIAL but I haven't had the time to write an update or blog for you guys.  I will get back to being active here for you but I've been very busy and consumed by my latest project/challenge.

I've been super focused on my bikini prep for the Beachbody Classic.  This event is held in Nashville on July 29th, prejudging is done on the 28th for the top 10, but everyone that shows up and tries out will walk the stage at the main show.

This show will feature many divisions of competitions.  Here's the 4 different divisions:

 
I'm always up for a challenge and I really was curious what it takes for someone to get stage-lean and transform their body for competitions.  So, when I saw this opportunity come up, I wanted to give it a shot.  I have always been a little curious about this process, and I think it will be a great way to sort of round out my journey with Beachbody.  Plus I will be in Nashville with my team, coach friends and fit community for support, the ones that have been with me for the past two years.  

Why did I feel like completely stepping outside of my comfort zone and do this?

For me, this is not about getting skinny and strutting on stage and for anyone that has ever done this, this is not a competition with anyone else but yourself.  This is ALL about proving to myself I can do it.  I wanted to prove to myself that I could stick to a food plan. Stick to a workout schedule, and get through something even though there will be tough days, obstacles and excuses in my way each day. It  is not at all easy at this point. It really is not about the destination, it's about the journey along the way and learning to overcome things.  I am learning so much about nutrition, what it takes to put on and build lean muscle, and I'm also learning so much about myself.

May -- Beginning photo

I started prepping for this specific event back in May.  This show is all about showcasing your results.  I have been doing a variety of programs since committing to at home workouts so here are the programs I decided to work into my workout plan to prep for this show:

I'm doing the following for cardio:
21 Day Fix - cardio fix
21 Day Fix Extreme - cardio fix extreme
Insanity Max 30 - Friday fight, sweat intervals

I'm using the following for weight training:
Body Beast

While I wished weight loss was all about the workouts, that is only half of it.  That's the easy part, believe it or not.  The real work is in your nutrition and that is why I have kept drinking Shakeology (vegan chocolate) each and every day,  I have a trainer prepping my meal plan for the week so that that task is off my plate, I am prepping meals every 2-3 days, and I'm making sure I eat every 2.5-3 hours, bringing my food along with me everywhere. You cannot build lean muscle and lose body fat unless you are putting the right foods into your body to support that.  You cannot build lean muscle on pasta, and breads, your body has got to have the right ratio of macros (protein, healthy fats, carbs) in order to build and lean out.   


4 weeks away from big day
 

Here is what a typical day of food looks like :

Breakfast-- 5 egg whites
Snack  -- 4 oz ground turkey, 1 tbsp. almond oil, green beans
Lunch -- 4 oz chicken, sweet potato, zucchini
Snack -- 4 oz tilapia, asparagus, flax oil
Dinner -- Chicken, rice, zucchini
Snack -- Shake

I was able to have one cheat meal a week and that meal was so thought out and planned.  I would usually leave it for Saturday night and I would make sure it was on a date with my hubby, I didn't waste it on a bagel in the drive through.

Very very clean, very very simple foods, and while it was extremely hard to stick to this the first two weeks, I soon started to get into a rhythm of cooking the same foods an there was never any guess work to it.  It really made it easy to stick to something that was so foolproof and so simple. 

Along with the meal plan I am also taking lot of vitamins/supplements:

Shakeology for daily nutrition

Fish oils for amino acids

Vitamin C

Vitamin D

Vitamin E

Multivitamin

Beachbody Recovery after workouts to support new muscle growth and prevent breakdown

Beachbody Recharge to prevent muscle soreness

BCAA's to help with building lean muscle 

Glutamine to help keep stores up and prevent muscle breakdown

So the countdown continues to the big day.  I will post as much as I can about this experience so I can share with you everything that goes into this.

If you have any questions, you can get a hold of me off my Facebook Page Unleash Your Potential

Thank you for all of your support if you've been following me so far.  It truly means a lot and you guys keep me going through this whole process.  Thank you so much <3