POST- COMPETITION

I know this post is long….. BUT I’m reallyyyyyy excited about it so please read it anyway

Here’s the run-down of Saturday:

• Wake up at 5am to shower and eat
• Spray tans (yes, again) at 6:30
• Eat again at 7
• Makeup and hair
• Rush out the door at 8:45 to almost get lost but finally make it to the athlete meeting at 9
• Eat at 9
• Show starts at 10
• Suits and jewelry on, glued into suits, oiled down in the oiling room, practice posing
• EAT 30 min out from stage
• Pump-up routine to get our muscles activated and blood flowing
• EAT AGAIN (just some candy for energy haha)
• STAGE TIME!!!!!! Comparison posing in our classes… such a workout to hold the poses for so long, you can’t relax because then you’ll stick out and everyone will look better, oh and don’t forget to smile!
• Face front, face side, back, other side, walk back and forth, keep your ribs pulled in, lengthen your waist, stretch out your legs, don’t stop smiling, get taller, eye contact with the judges, you’re not tired come on, butt out, shoulders down, elbows to the sides, don’t forget all the other steps we just went over, hold… hold… hold…
• File off stage and get back in line for T-walks
• Collapse on the couch backstage and eat a snack
• Hang out with all the other athletes, take pictures, meet some FANTASTIC people
• PRE- JUDGING OVER! Quickly pack up and back to the hotel for a nap… what a sport!
• 3:30 hurry and touch up your hair and makeup… eat again… finals start at 5!
• 4 o’clock wait for the valet to get the car………… 20 min later BACK ON THE ROAD
• 5- FINALS BEGIN (don’t forget to eat)
• Suits on, glued in, oiled up
• Pushups in your heels and suit backstage to pump up (sounds funny but very common)
• EAT SOME CARBS YOU NEED ENERGY!
• Get in line and back out on stage for a POSE-OFF… suddenly you need to think of all the possible poses you can do, and you better make them fluid, make sure your grab the judges attention, REMEMBER ALL THE STEPS FROM EARLIER, new variety, don’t be boring
• File off stage to be brought on for awards
• PLACEMENTS followed by shuffling backstage to eat an enormous cookie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• Wait for everyone to be done…. Congratulate all your new friends, more pictures (with trophies and medals this time), change, and we are OUT!
• Off to Cheesecake Factory!
• An hour wait so we sat at the open seating in the bar area for the most delicious meal EVER: salad, meat, and of course……. CHEESECAKEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!! Omg most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted…. Couldn’t even finish…. Definitely not used to this much/kind of food
• Hang out and back to the hotel with a food hangover and strangely enough ready to NOT eat like crap the next day… back on the nutrition plan!

Overall this was really SUCH a great experience. It was really cool to meet all the competitors that up until now I hadn’t really thought of as “real” people. The training through the summer was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Such mental focus and discipline, extreme dedication, and a test of mental, physical, and emotional strength. I can honestly say that I think I’m a better person from the experience, and the bond my sister, mom, and I have created this summer is incredible and life-long.

I want to put any misconceptions about body building to rest, as that is the main purpose of me writing this blog. Competing is NOT about being “sexy” but about extreme mental discipline (you read above what goes through your head while on stage) that is such a valuable skill that can be applied in any aspect of your life. I’m proud to say I’ve now done a competition and you better believe it’s on my resume!

I definitely plan on competing again and I would love to reach pro- status before I’m 25. I am so proud of myself, my sister, and my mom for our hard work this summer.

Like I said before… people with low self-esteem don’t do body building… people who do bodybuilding respect themselves, have the extreme mental focus, and work hard to look the way they do.