Monthly Archives: July 2016

3 Weeks down, and 9 to go!

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I am officially 3 full weeks into my competition prep and finally seeing some physical changes.  My total weight loss is 4lbs and I have have lost some inches in the waist and thighs.  I  do weekly check-ins with my coach and do not weigh myself daily.  The goal is to lose body fat and not muscle so I only shoot to lose 1.5 – 3lbs per week.  So far I am on track and loving the results.  This prep is different from my last two because I switched coaches.  The main difference is the diet and amount of cardio I am doing.  I love, love, love food and prefer variety.  This plan is slowly cutting all my variety out and I will eventually be eating the same thing every day.  It also has me doing five 45 minute cardio sessions per week and I hate cardio.  Good thing Beachbody just release Country Heat and I can get my cardio in by dancing!  I am okay with the changes though because my goal is to beat the person I was before and come in leaner and stronger.  To do that you have to step it up a notch and challenge yourself.  You cannot spell CHALLENGE without CHANGE.

The past week has been a little bit challenging with the diet because we have been traveling.  I spend 3 days in Indianapolis for my son’s AAU basketball tournament and had to watch my boys eat out each night.  I packed most of my food and traveled with a huge cooler.  We booked a hotel that had a gym and continental breakfast.  I went with plain oatmeal and a scoop of protein powder each morning.  Currently I am in Nashville for the annual Beachbody Summit.  My friend that I am traveling with is also in competition prep so we packed a huge cooker of cut up veggies for the road trip and did short workouts at each rest stop along the way. (I will post links below!)  Yesterday we hit up Whole Foods and stocked up on healthy groceries.  I brought half of my meals with me and had my yummy pumpkin protein pancakes for breakfast the last two days.  The condo has an amazing gym and this trip is going pretty well.  We walked a lot, went shopping, had pool time, etc.  No alcohol or partying on Broadway for us.

Here is my 3 week transformation photos and some links to all the quick workouts we did on the road trip!

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3 weeks of prep and down 4lbs.  Camera angle was a little off but I am liking the reduction in my waist and thighs. 

Pumpkin Protein Pancakes – Bikini Competitor Approved!

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As my competition approaches I have to start cutting out a lot of foods from my diet which includes dairy, Greek yogurt and bananas (just to name a few). Most of my protein pancake recipes call for smashed banana or plain Greek Yogurt.  I had the choice to give up my favorite breakfast for 10 weeks or get creative in the kitchen; I chose to get creative.  I substituted pure pumpkin for the smashed banana and added some pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon to give them a new twist.  These are amazing and meet my morning macro needs.  Top them with some Walden Farms chocolate syrup and you are all set for your day!

What you need:

  • 1 Cup Kodiak Cakes Pancake Mix
  • 2 scoops vanilla whey protein
  • 1-2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 6-8 packets of Stevia
  • 1 cup all natural canned pumpkin
  • 1 cup liquid egg whites or 5 egg whites
  • 1 – 1 1/2 cups water

Directions:

  1. Mix all dry ingredients well
  2. Add wet ingredients and mix well (batter may be too thick so add additional water until you get to the desired consistency)
  3. Pour on pre-heated griddle (~1/4 cup per pancake)

Nutrition Facts per Pancake (makes 16 pancakes):

53 Calories, 6.4g Carbs, 6.6 g Protein and .5 g Fat

I eat 4 pancakes at a time to equal: 213 Calories, 26 g Carbs, 27 g Protein and 4 g Fat

Zucchini Bread Protein Muffins – Bikini Competition Diet Approved!

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Summer is in full swing and my garden is bursting with fresh veggies.  One vegetable I can’t get enough of is  fresh zucchini.  There are so many things you can do with this vegetable!  Today I had a sweet tooth (just like every other day of my life) so I made a healthy, and bikini competition prep approved, recipe for breakfast.  These muffins are not only delicious, they are high in fiber, packed with protein and contain lots of healthy vitamins and nutrients such as Vitamin A, Manganese and Vitamin C (just to name a few). To ensure I am getting enough healthy fat in my diet I threw in some Chia Seeds which are packed with Omega 3-fatty acids and tons of micro-nutrients.

So yes ladies and gents, you can eat zucchini bread for breakfast and still lose weight.

What you need:

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  • 2 medium zucchinis, pealed and shredded
  • 1 whole egg
  • 5 egg whites or 5 servings of liquid egg whites
  • 1 tsp pure almond extract
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesause
  • 2 cups rolled oats blended into flour (160g)
  • 3 scoops vanilla whey protein powder
  • 1-2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 6-8 packets of Stevia
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • dash of salt
  • Crushed Walnuts (optional)

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Instructions: 

  1. Mix shredded zucchini with all wet ingredients and set aside
  2. Mix all dry ingredients
  3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well
  4. Divide batter into 20 lined baking cups and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 25 minutes or until done in center. (I use parchment paper baking cups.  All others seem to stick)

Makes 20 Muffins

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Nutrition Facts per Muffin (to get these I create a recipe in myfitnesspal and manually upload ingredients while making them)

73 Calories, 8.5 g Carbs, 7.1 g Protein, 1.5 g Fat

zuchinni muffins

And so it begins

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It’s official, I am preparing  for my third bikini competition. Monday was the official start day  and I’m not going lie, I was kind of dreading it.  We had a great 4th of July weekend on our new boat and I enjoyed the freedom of snacking and having a cocktail.  I laid awake Sunday night thinking about all the things I had to give up.  No more eating out with the family, no more red wine with dinner, no more cocktails on the river, no more snacks in between meals, no more variety, and the list goes on.  I’m working with a new trainer for this show and the nutrition plan is a lot less flexible.  I made this decision because I wanted to take my body to the next level and see how far I can go on stage. I was very excited to get started initially but as Monday got closer I kind of started feeling a heavy weight on my chest.  I only focused on all the things I couldn’t have.

Well, Monday came and Monday went.  I successfully killed my workout and stuck to my nutrition plan. Tuesday came and went. I exceeded my calorie intake by about 200 but my macros weren’t too far off so overall I’ll call it a win.  I also killed a double workout. Wednesday morning came and I jumped up out of bed at 3:53 AM before my 4:10 AM alarm. I had energy and I was excited it to start my day with a 5 AM workout. At the gym I killed legs with a friend and they did an hour of spin. I was filled with energy and powered through the whole class dripping in sweat.

It only took three days for me to remember why I do this over and over. Removing all the crap from my diet and structuring the timing of my food around my workouts does wonderful things to me both physically and mentally.  I have already noticed changes in my body on the outside but more importantly on the inside. My arms are more defined, my stomach is flatter, I have more energy, I am sleeping much better and not waking during the night, my digestion is more regular, and the list goes on.

My perspective has done 180 degree switch since Sunday. Instead of focusing on everything I have to give up I am start looking at all the things I have to gain. I’ve gained more energy, better sleep, leaner body, and more confidence. I am finishing date three of my 12 week plan and I am so excited to see what is to come.  I close my eyes at night feeling strong and accomplished and I do not lay in bed worrying about things I have to lose. I look forward to each day in the new things I have to gain. I set a goal and I have every intention of completing it.

This is me in the off season.  I continue to workout regularly just like competition prep but my diet is not as restrictive. I am 10-15lbs over stage weight.  My current weight is 148 and I am 5’6″.