Scrambled please...

I'm about 1 egg white away from going to the bathroom and laying my own...
12 egg whites today, some tilapia, chicken, and an ungodly amount of asparagus and spinach...welcome to peak week.  I feel pretty weak, but mentally on point.  Getting through today's workout was tougher than I expected because 20 pounds felt like 30, and 30 felt like 50, and the 35's felt like Aunt Bertha was sitting on my chest.  Honestly, the entire experience was not very pleasant, but it is what it is. 

I've had many clients/friends ask me how I'm doing today...let's "go there" shall we...

I'm nervous, excited, extremely tired, eager, focused, and dealing with all sorts of thoughts that I haven't quite sorted out just yet.  Its been 5 years since I've stood on that particular stage, and I can vividly remember looking at the pictures afterward and being disappointed.  I didn't work hard enough...I didn't want it bad enough.  I was one place away from qualifying for nationals, and I knew that I didn't deserve that spot.  I am bombarded with images from that last show...like it was my moment of "falling off the bike"...and now sometimes I fear going on stage and looking the exact same...not prepared...not to my potential...simply mediocre.  Its not logical, I know, because I look so different, and so I acknowledge them and then move on.  Because its not about being fearless, but how you respond to that fear that matters.  It moves you in one direction or another...towards a greater sense of self and success or towards complacency and the mind-numbing thought of "what if".  I saw this quote the other day and it really stuck with me, it said "Whatever you fear, go there."  Here I go...

Chest/shoulders/sprints today....this will be my 6th week of sprint work...amazing my knee caps are still intact.  Despite the fact that everything felt much heavier than I'd like, it was a good workout.  Right now it is maintenance...just getting to Saturday feeling confident, hard, and ready.

Workout:
Incline DB press 4 x 10, drop set on 4th
Flat DB bench 3 x 10
DB flys 4 x 12, drop set on 4th
Push-ups to failure 2x
Seated BB shoulder press/ss lateral raises 4 x 12/15
Seated Arnold press/ss front raise partials 3 x 10/15
Sprints 25 minutes

The latest question in the Falcon house is when to start painting.  Originally, I was thinking Thursday night...now I'm thinking Wednesday.  I'm extremely pale right now, (I'm pretty sure I glow in the dark when I'm naked),...and so I'm thinking I might need at least 5 coats of paint...which takes F-O-R-E-V-E-R.  Hell, we might as well start right now. 

Alright, I've gotta cook dinner for the hubby....he's getting velveeta shells and cheese with ground turkey...that dish is like fatty-sex-goodness in your mouth.  Why do I let him eat that?  Because if he had to eat the eggs and asparagus that I just ate, the fine line of domestic violence might be crossed. 

Have a wonderful night!!  Moving forward....always moving forward...

Sweet and Sour Cat

You would think that after being able to sleep in past 4:30 and not have to rush out to work, that I would wake up refreshed and ready to roll.  Not so much.  Yes, I did sleep in until 6:30, but was rudely woken up by my cat whining for food at 5:00....then 5:30....then 5:45...by 6:30 I was ready to hand him over to the Chinese Buffet down the road.  Coffee was amazing, but 3 cups just didn't seem to do the trick.  I sat down on the couch at 10 and nearly fell asleep sitting straight up....I needed to get going with my workout before I decided that sitting on my rear was a better option....

Friday workouts are hard.  Not necessarily because the exercises are big, compound movements, but simply because my mind and body are tired and ready for some much needed rest.  I had shoulders and core today.  I dominated my shoulder workout...heavier than Monday's, which was good.  Core almost made me puke.  When I squeeze my abs as hard as I can I feel like my pancreas is going to explode out of my naval somehow.  That would be pretty sick...and yes, I would probably post it on youtube.  And then I had cardio....ah yes.  I honestly thought I would not make it through my cardio today.  My legs were DRAGGING.  The only thing that kept me going was the fact that Morven and Brian were on the treadmills beside me running like the cops were after them.  I figured that if they could run like criminals for over an hour, I could handle my 35 minutes of pain.  So I caught up on my latest news and gossip with US magazine.  Apparently Justin Bieber spent $2,000 on flowers for his girlfriend on Valentines Day and everyone thought it was so sweet.  People, he's worth MILLIONS...that's like me giving my husband an m&m....not a box...just one.  Give me a break...

Workout:
Seated shoulder press with back support  4 x 10
Arnold press/ss front DB raises 4 x 10 each
Seated lateral raises 4 x 10
Reverse crunch on bench 3 x 30 seconds
Full sit-up on BOSU 3 x 12
Oblique crunch on decline 3 x 16

I could fall asleep right now, and its only 7:45....I am DONE.  I'm about to lock that feline in the laundry room and get some good sleep tonight.  Tomorrow will be just cardio and some time with family....which is always comical.  I may also do a refeed meal either tonight (if I can stay awake), or tomorrow....my body needs it.  I will probably be bloated, but whats new?!....

Well, folks, its been real....have a great weekend!!...Down to 7 weeks!!!....ahh....

This too, shall pass...

It's 8:00 and I'm finally sitting down for dinner.  I've got my laptop on one TV tray, and my food on another...we live high class out here in Mebane.  I am tired, but not as tired as usual.  I was able to sleep in until 6:45 this morning since Brian was working for me.  Getting up at 4:30 this morning would have been comical.  I was exhausted yesterday...every time we bowed our heads to pray at church it was like the biggest tease.  Pretty sure I almost drooled once.  And when you sit on the second row sleeping is not an option.  Next week I might have to make my way to the back with the elderly folk.  They sleep like champs back there and no one says anything...like after a certain age its expected that you sleep through at least half of the sermon....and rock Velcro shoes....

The weekend was good, but very short.  I took Saturday completely off and then did 35 minutes of light cardio on Sunday.  I felt recovered and ready to roll today.  It was a mentally tough day though.  I started second guessing myself on a couple of aspects of my diet plan, and I was so frustrated by the end of the day.  There are a couple of things I am going to change, and in the end I've got to be confident that I know my body.  But the fact is, despite hours and hours in the gym, the diet will make or break you on stage.  Weak moment, just a weak moment.

Today I had shoulders, core, and biceps.  I mixed up my shoulder routine a little and found that my shoulders were definitely more tired by the end.  No barbell work, and a bigger range of motion on my shoulder press and font/lateral raises.  I wanted to curse by the end....sign of a good workout.  A couple of near-death experiences, a few grunts, and my time in the gym is complete. 

Workout:
DB shoulder press 3 x 10
Arnold press 3 x 10
High rope row 3 x 10
Lateral raises/front raises 3 x 8
Full decline sit-ups 3 x 12
Pilates heel touch 3 x 30
Alternating DB curls 3 x 10 each
Underhand bicep pull-downs 3 x 10
Alternating incline curls to failure 2x

Gonna spend quite a bit of time crunching some numbers tonight....and then to bed at a decent hour.  Tomorrow will be a full day.