Tag: Health

Resets, new beginnings, how to motivate yourself.

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, competition update, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, IIFYM, macros, Motivation


The sport with no finish line. Every day moves you further along, even when it seems ‘boring’ or uninspired.  It comes with time and energy..

Ahhhhh… beginnings…New beginnings!

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I’ve been doing fitness for a long, long time.. but that does not mean that it isn’t a struggle to stay motivated. Fitness ebbs and flows. It does because life does. I’ve done years where I’ve been on prep, or focused on body building shows exclusively.  I’ve had years recently that focused on mental health and learning more pole, performance. None of these things are wrong. I grew weary of being in show prep. My body was just sick of it.

So let me tell you what I have done since day one, without fail.  I have done workout, selfies and progress updates.  I have everything uploaded into drop box and I can see exactly every point of my journey.

I can see freakish lean, buffet fluffy. I can see off season perfect as well as times when I struggled in my macro journey. I can see when I was in my saddest times, the times I felt good and the times I felt really strong.

Every one of these pics are snapshots of my journey.  The good, bad and the gym hair, don’t care, ugly.

Why is this meaningful?  I look at this pic of my back when I first started getting ready for a show. This was probably back in 2012. I was so motivated to do my first show. It’s all I thought about. I’m sure it bored everyone around me. I thought I looked awesome and I was getting better and better. Motivation and adrenaline level 3000.
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Time passed. Shows came and went.. I probably felt less motivated and had to focus more on strategy for subsequent shows.  It became habit and skill.  But.. I probably beat myself up plenty because I didn’t look IG ready all the time. I probably said negative things in my head about being too this or too that and not good enough. I’m sure of it.
That’s really normal for me.

But…as it turns out..some changes happened.

I probably work up one day around that time and felt bad about myself. I probably allowed my negative self talk to focus in on the things I didn’t like about myself.
But I made gains. I made progress.  It’s real.. because I often forget to look up or see how far I’ve come. I’m always digging into why I’m not perfect or 100 percent better. /

There is no finish line though. There is progress. I need to focus more on that!
Progress pics tell our story!

Think of your progress pics, in the same way you track your lifts, and your macros. It’s information!

If you don’t know how to take good progress pics.. go here

NEW GOALS!
I decided to produce my own show in 2020 and I’m very excited to put a new transformation into play. I’ve been working very hard for 2 years on my CPTSD.

I want to touch on that for just a second. Not every day is good.  There is a lot of fatigue and some days it’s hard to do much.  I think this is a really nice goal for me to put some energy into this show and creating something I have never seen before.

I am about 23 weeks out from that and have decided to make a new physique shape for my show. Something I’ve never done before.  It’s a great challenge. I’ve picked out my wardrobe for the show so it has to be spot on.

I spent yesterday digging through years of progress pics. I decided that I do have more skills, more muscle, more knowledge, more information than any of those days before. I’m capable of digging in and creating a new improved process to get to my next set of goals. My journey in pics showed me so much and inspired me to remember where I came from.

My point of this blog is to just give you some real life.. not every fitness guru is showing you the reality of what being fit is. It does flow and sometimes it’s hard. Sometimes health and life issues get in the way. Sometimes we are on fire and sometimes we are not motivated.  We have to figure out how to create the life we want and still achieve our dreams.  I love the idea of always documenting our journey.  It takes very little time, but it’s so powerful to see changes!!

If you need help getting your plan set up.. please check out my site or reach out to me. My page is http://www.sleekbodyonline.com

WEIGHT LOSS HACK: STOP LABELING YOUR EATING STYLE

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, coaching, fat loss, fiber, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, IIFYM, macros, Motivation, Prepping not starving, progress, weight loss

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The culture of diets is as hostile as the cult of fitness.  There is a mentality that says
“My way or the highway” .

“Keto is the only way to go. Low carb means you lose weight.”
“Eat clean to lose weight.”
“I only eat Paleo.”
“I don’t eat any sugar, ever. It will kill you.”

So may people go from one style to another style in search of the holy grail eating but they foil themselves because.. these things are NOT sustainable.

If you have fat to lose you will do so by being in a calorie deficit. That could be by
 burning calories, or in taking less calories.

The style of eating you do over all is not what makes you lose weight.

So listen,  I can understand wanting to  jump on a band wagon for lightning fast results.
I understand the desire to grasp at magic bullets, or extremes but let’s start here.

If these things (diets) were fool proof, we would not have an alarming obesity rate world wide.

But let’s get back to you.. I want to help you feel better about your food choices so let’s give up the labels.

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When you are thinking about all the food you ‘cannot’ have.

By nature, the restriction of food groups could trigger binges.
Have you ever told yourself, “No more sugar.” 
What is it you crave the most while on your new plan?  Sugar.
When we restrict ourselves from certain food groups, we are essentially, white knuckling our eating.  There’s no peace, there is militant, discipline and on the other side, failure if things don’t go as planned.

Keto: restricts carbs.
Paleo restricts Grains
Clean restricts “processed” food.
Competition Bro diet: No fruit, dairy, processed food.. good grief.

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By nature, restrictive diets limit food groups and therefore micro nutrition suffers.
When you are restricting veggies and fiber your body notices.  When you are restricting fruit, you miss out on the glorious nutrition of vibrant colors and sources of vitamins!
When you restrict all sugar, you have to remove pretty much everything fun because even frozen yogurt has lactose which is technically sugar.  Bummer.
Dairy can be a great source of protein!
Are you willing to let your overall nutrition suffer so you can  sit at the back of the bus with all the ‘bros?’

WHEN BRO DIETS MAKE YOU ILL

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By nature, labeling our eating style sets us up for failure and it’s not necessary.

This is the big one:   The eating disorder, Orthorexia comes to mind here. The clean eater, is terrified of eating anything ‘not clean’ or things that are processed.  What we typically see with the clean eater is frequent binges of ‘non clean things’ .  So basically, it’s not sustainable.

“I only eat clean, until I’m face down in a bucket of icing or doing late night at Denny’s after the bar.”

“I eat clean, gluten free.. but I love this craft beer and I drink Whey protein”
Both are clearly processed.  So it’s only clean because you made up that it is.

There is NO such thing as clean. Even blueberries are processed.

Why there is no such thing as clean
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We often see the ‘clean eater’ purchasing large amounts of “clean” food for binges.
“I can’t help it. At night I ate 5 RX bars. I feel so bad about myself”
“I can’t stop eating almonds from Trader Joes, they are clean but I can’t lose my belly fat”

IIFYM/FLEXIBLE DIETING/MACRO COUNTING
The problem with labels is.. what difference does it make?  You could stop labeling your eating style and follow IIFYM which could be done any way you like.

With IIFYM we are simply counting
Protein P
Fat F
Carbs C
and the micro nutrient Fiber.

All food has macros. All food.  You can find that information on the label or look up nutrition on sites like FatSecret.com
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We set your macros for physique goals .. whatever that is.  Then we eat them and stop when we are done.  We are not locked into to one style of food and each day we could enjoy variety as long as we are hitting our macros.  That mean..

The style of food that we like.. is how we should eat.

Your macros are not dependent on clean food, paleo or zero sugar, but you could eat them any way  YOU like.

If you find Dairy upsets your stomach but egg whites are ok.. that’s good!  You can choose your own adventure!
If you like a snack treat now and again and it keeps you from feeling deprived, you can certainly work that into your plan without it being detrimental to your physique goals.

If your doctor has asked you to limit gluten or keep your fats at a certain level.. that’s ok too. You can eat for your body, your health and your own likes!  You never have to eat food you don’t like.

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I like lower carb though.. I just do.

IIFYM doesnt’ mean you can’t eat toward your style.  Use your carbs for fueling your workouts and to get your fiber and veggie/fruit requirements.  You are not required to eat poptarts or high carb snacks. But you could.. if they fit your macros.

If you feel better on no grains, you can certainly make that work too.

If you don’t want sugar foods, or snack treats in your life because they trigger you. Maybe you feel better when you don’t eat food like that.. Maybe you just enjoy whole fresh fruits and veggies.. totally fine too.  It’s all about YOU.

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When you let go of labels, you have no fear of mistakes. You simply figure out how YOU enjoy eating and tweak to hit your macro/micro nutrient goals!!

There is much freedom in the ability to be consistent and live without the restrictions that diet labels give.  Being consistent is how you reach your physique goals.

Do you need help with macros or workouts?? Head over to my site LEARNIIFYM.COM

Roo Ferrigno eats her macros every day.
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How I stay motivated on my plan

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, Competitor secrets, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, IIFYM, macros, Motivation, off season, weight loss

MOTIVATION
Motivation! Do you ever start your fitness plan only to find yourself ‘lacking the motivation’ to continue?

Do you ever see the hard core motivation quotes that basically tell you
“Just Freaking DO IT”
“YOU NEED DISCIPLINE”.

What do you do when motivation fades?  Because it does!   Here’s what we do.. we go with what we know.  We do this, even when we know it doesn’t work.   We quit and tell ourselves.. We just can’t do it.

I have lots of tools to help you find your own path.  If you want to check out my other blog with lots of ideas.. you can go here. 

In this blog, I’m going to share how I stay motivated.


HERE’S WHAT  KNOW ABOUT MYSELF
I have an intense need for security and learning. Those are my top two ‘basic needs’. In my projects.. I use this to help me stay on track.

Do you know your basic needs? Game changer.. go here and figure it out!  

WORKOUT MOTIVATION

When I wake up each day, I scroll my IG feed for other fitness/pole friends. I am truly motivated by people who are already up and killing it. So don’t call narcissist on anyone who is doing gym selfies. I’m the person who gets hyped when I see happy people at the gym. I see new moves, new ideas and love to see if that’s something I can learn or follow leads to new information!!

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This girl is a huge motivator!

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Always, pay attention to the Rock!

 

CENTERING MYSELF AND MY DAY
 I spend a few minutes centering myself with the #spiritualawakening  . I need to focus each day on positives and healing and moving forward.  This is self care.

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WORKOUT GEAR

I like clothes. I choose my outfits and I go the the gym feeling good. I don’t schlep. It hurts my workout game.

SECURITY/RITUAL
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I have a ritual in the AM. I have my amazing prep pancakes because my hubs makes them for me. I smell them and we say “that smells like 1st place.. hahahahah”

I have 2 containers of oats under my prep table at all times. Those are security oats. We will NOT run out of oats.

HACKS
 My project/prep.. is only 18 hours. It only lasts for the hours I’m awake. I can do 18 hours easily. When I wake up the next day, I repeat what I did yesterday or tweak what I needed to change. I never get mad when I mess up because, I can readjust and go again tomorrow. There is not “fail” there is only learning/adjusting/tweaking.

One thing I do not do, EVER. Not allowed.

I do not make decisions about my day while I am lying in bed. If I want to skip the gym I only allow myself to make that decision after I get up and have a shower or coffee. Do I skip the gym? Yep.. Sometimes, my body needs recovery. Sometimes I can rearrange and do it later. My day is in my control but it’s NOT a knee jerk reaction to being “sleepy, crabby or unmotivated”.

One thing that happens to clients is they constantly throw the baby out with the bathwater. Oh.. I messed up well.. screw it.. I failed.. I’m out.. done.. I’ll find something new to do next week. I’ll try this and that.. but they dont’ NEEEEEEEED something new. They need to be consistent!!

Consistency is not for sale.


Everything we want is waiting for us.. but we have to discover how to motivate ourselves each day to check off the boxes we need to. Soon we have strung together many, many days of success and we are reaching our goals.

How do you stay motivated?

Here’s a picture of Mango and I. We know you can do it!
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How to stay motivated on your fitness plan

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Challenge, fat loss, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, macros, Motivation, weight loss

 

I posted the Rock’s Instagram so you can click through, follow and get motivated.

When a client begins a new program, they are on fire. They head out and buy new gear and get all their ducks in a row. They immerse down in it ready to slay dragons on their way to  their new physique.

That works for a while until they loose their steam. Getting up early is a chore. They begin to fall into old habits and soon their motivation is gone.

What has also happened here is yet another time they have not been successful in their journey.  😦

I wanted to do a blog on motivation but I cannot offer the secrets to staying motivated until I tell you the actual truth.  If you are frequent reader of my blog, you’ll hear the same tone resonate.  Consistency wins over perfection. Starting and stopping is the opposite of consistency but we sure do find ourselves in that predicament way to often.

Here’s the hard fact: Motivation fades. Discipline is the way change happens.

If you find yourself dropping off a program after a certain amount of time,  then let’s explore some ways to help you push through that trouble spot.

If you ask the body builder sect, they will tell you to Just F’n do it. Yep. I totally hear that. I totally agree with that. I totally think that some people don’t really know how to do that!!
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Here are some of the reasons people start a program.

“My doctor told me to lose weight or I will be facing a health crisis.”
“I need to lose weight so I can have the surgery I need.”
“I need to lose weight or I will be put on medicine for my blood pressure”
“I am told to work out 3 days a week for my health issues.”

When I get this from a client, they already have the motivation to make a change. Wouldn’t you say?  You would be surprised how little health issues motivate people.
It’s shocking.

When we talk to them about why they drop off the plan, they use reasons (excuses) like “I just can’t get the food. I can’t find the time. It’s not a good time.”

Motivation for health isn’t enough.  This person needs discipline to make this happen.

I want to help my clients to reach their goals and no amount of barking about their health seems to matter. They need tools in their tool box to help create new habits.
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GOALS:
“A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envisions, plans and commits to achieve”

Things I hear from clients
“I want to lose weight.”
“I want to get back in my smaller clothes”
“I want to eat better and be healthy.”

The most successful clients are ones that do not set arbitrary goals like these but more  specific/realistic ones.

“I’d like to be one size smaller by Christmas”
“I’d like to be wearing my favorite dress again by Easter.”
“I’d like to learn to manage my stress eating.”

We also see them do much better when we set long term goals and short term goals.

“Overall, I need to lose 100 pounds but in the next 90 days, my goal is to train
4x per week and lose two dress sizes. “

What has been so helpful for my program and clients is we set up 3 month plans.  We have a goal, a start day and end day.  We then assess, look over what we have learned and begin that process again. It’s not wrong to also set rewards for the end of the challenge. Make it non- food based !!

Challenges
I like to incorporate Challenges into their plan so they are working progressively each week on improvement!  You don’t need the 200 squats a day challenge. Progressive challenges are attainable and provide positive reinforcement!!

CAT-MEME
Plan of action:  
To achieve our goals, we are going to be very successful if we are accountable!
My clients use our app to track their progress, workouts and can see an actual spreadsheet of improvements.  They can check in their workouts and get achievements for their efforts.  Apps like My Fitness Pal or even your Fit Bit are there for the accountability factor!!  Tracking your food is simple on the apps so you always know you are on point.  No food is eaten without being tracked!!  Accountability !

Many clients say they loose steam because are too busy to workout or do their food. Everything seems to go to the back burner.  I ask them to book their classes /workouts like it is an important business meeting.   One of the things I love about the apps is that you can put your workouts on the calendar and it will signal you if you miss one.  Our app syncs with My Fitness Pal so I can see my clients daily food intake!!
Accountability is one of the things clients tell me they need the most.  Using tools to help with this is a fantastic way to move forward!

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Vision board:
This is fantastic.  Vision boards are great for any goals/projects you have set up.  I love this board from one of our athletes.  She hit the mark on positive text and images for her project!!  I recommend this for you too!!

A workout /program buddy or support group.
Having support on your journey is fantastic and actually will help you succeed more than going at it alone.  I have found that posting my goals in public or sharing my journey on my social media is very helpful for me.

Many people set up fitness journey accounts on Instagram so those who like to can follow it.  I find a lot of inspiration from others who are also on their journey.

Our dear client on her fitness journey!14183885-1363590546987638-9165857793060093686-n_1_orig

For me, posting progress, or selfies and telling of my successes and struggles may help someone feel motivated but it’s more for my personal growth. I’ve been able to see trends in my progress as well as just overall accountability to my goal.  Personally, I’m going to finish a project if I share it publically.

Facebook has lots of groups or challenges you can join. Our clients have access to our fitness group and  macros boards. We can talk about concerns or get new ideas. It’s fun to post personal records and Non scale victories when others are cheering for you.

What I have found is that clients who refuse to be a part of a group fall off faster than those who are part of a community.  There is a lot to be said for surrounding yourself with like minded people.
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Don’t stand up your friend. If you need a workout buddy, you can set that up at your gym or in a group.  Seek this out!!   If your buddy is online only, you can share your accountability posts by sending gym selfies so they know you went.  The two of you could set your own parameters to help keep you motivated and on track!!

Instagram: I have found that I’m super motivated by my fitness friends and people like The Rock. I always set my alarm for 10 min before I’m going to get up and scroll through my fitness feed for inspiration.  I love seeing others training and doing well. It energizes me.  I love looking at cute workout clothes and thinking of what I want to wear that day. You may not feel motivated by those things but there is something you can explore to help you set the pace for the day.

If you set up a fitness account for Insta, only follow fitness accounts. Nothing annoys me more than baby pics on my fitness feed.  I can load my personal friends accounts on my main account. When I am looking for inspiration, I want to keep my feed focused

What do you do to to stay disciplined/motivated?
This is Bun. He is motivating you with his mind.
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Do you need help with your plan? Would you like to be a client and reach your goals!! I can help you! You can find me at http://www.sleekbodyfitness.com
Our coaches do online, in studio and competition training!!

Life Hack: How to take Next Level Progress photos

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, macros, weight loss

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NOTE: IF YOU ARE MY CLIENT and are sent here.. please use this amazing tutorial to fix your pics in Trainerize.  Please do not upload them until they are spot on. Please and thank you!! 🙂  AGAIN.. please read this.. the whole thing. Your coach will thank you.

No more selfies in the mirror!! GAH..
If you are on Team Sleek Body or Sleek Bikini Team  you will need to follow this protocol.

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So listen, I’m a selfie queen  but I’m also a very busy coach. I do client checks ins all day and when I get crappy check in pictures it slows down everyone’s progress.

Even if you just take progress pictures for yourself or for your FB group, I’m going to teach you how to do the next level version so you can be a BOSS!
I have progress pics weekly from the last 5 years. I can look back and see how my body has changed. Even if I don’t   see results right now, boy, you sure can see them  as time passes.

By doing it with this technique, you will always be able to grab them and do a quick side by  side!!

Reasons your check in  pictures should be good.
1. All mirrors are not created equal. Some mirrors can make you look way leaner and that will throw off your coach’s plan!!
2. If you aren’t doing full body, head to toe with shoes, you are not showing your coach what the judges see!!
3. If you are lifestyle client and your pics are cut off, camera pointing down, foggy bathroom, can’t get the back view with the mirror.. you will slow your coach down.
4. Sleepy spouses don’t care about camera angles. We don’t need to bother them to help us. Let’s don’t ask our kiddos. Let’s don’t act like we can’t work our own phones.  I promise…we have this!!

Show your coach your new photo skills!!    If you are just shooting your own progress pics you will be so glad you learned this hack!

What I require from my lifestyle and bikini/figure athletes
Full body pictures, head to toes. Faces can be cut off for lifestyle.
Competitors are in heels and in their  poses.

I also require a posing video from my prepping girls.  This is much more accurate than mirror selfies!! So this method is simple because you will already have your video!

OK.. here we go..
So think about your pictures. I’m not hating on this lady but I return check in pics like this.
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You can see progress but she could do better for herself and her coach. If she were posting this on, say her “fascia blaster” community she would get good feedback but this has some problems.  I care about stuff like this because we work hard so let’s fix it and really see what’s going on.

1. The left side is HUGE compared to the other side. Things that are close to the camera look bigger.
2. You can’t see her thighs on the right side. You could switch the order of the pictures and tell everyone you did some magic booty grow tea to sell some product!  We can’t see what’s happening so we need the full body and we need them both to be the same size!!

I expect this level of pictures from my clients so this is how it looks. Coach Lauren is perfect on her check ins every time.

LAURENPOSE
Lifestyle
Dani has two front poses you could use.

Here is exactly how you can do this quickly and easily so your pictures are always next level bomb!

Use a tripod or stack some shoe boxes on the dresser( we call this the South Side Tripod).
2. Set your phone to “CAMERA/VIDEO” and reverse the camera so you can see yourself in the screen.
3. Begin filming and walk way back so your full body is in the screen. If you can’t see your feet, back up. Back that train up. Trust me.
4. Hold your poses for a few seconds each. Do front, back and both sides.
5. Press STOP and go to your gallery so you can view the video.
6. Press PLAY then hit the ‘PAUSE’ . You will see a scroll on the bottom.
7. Begin to slowly scroll until you find the perfect shot.
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8.Touch the screen to make the scroll vanish and Screen Capture that picture!
You can also use the pinch method to expand your physique to fill the whole screen!! Please!! If you have a lot of ceiling in your pictures.. fix it!  You are my priority, so I need to see you fill the whole screen including your high heels!
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When you do your side by sides in your collage app you will have the same poses and can make both sides symmetrical.
This is what I see. So I need these to be the same so I can scroll and see where changes need to be made.
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ATHLETES: YOUR HEELS MUST BE IN THE PICTURE

Pro Tips:
1.Make sure your camera is not low and pointing up at you. Have it level for amazing results.
2. Wear the exact same thing in your pictures each time.
3. Shoot at the same time each week. My clients do their pics upon waking and after they use the rest room. They are at their dry weight which can help us  keep the conditions somewhat consistent each time they shoot.
4. Lighting should be the same too if at all possible.

Benefits:This is going to save you the heart ache of having your guy have to get up early and take your pics.  He doesn’t care about the quality but you can make sure it looks exactly right.

Many of our clients are shorter than their guys so we end up with cameras pointing down, feet and legs cut off.  We are wicked smart.. we totally have this!

16521689_1540162439330447_1388117194_nThis is baby Iggy aka Bun Bun. He is very good at his poses.

I know you are working so hard!!  Keep pushing.
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IIFYM, Dwayne The Rock Johnson and Pancakes

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn coaching, dessert, donuts, flex, Flexible Dieting, food prep, Health and fitness information, IIFYM, macro counting, macros, Motivation, off season, Prepping not starving, weight loss

therock
Congratulations to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson for being chosen as People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive.

Note: This is also win for the ladies who like a little beefcake, that’s for sure. 🙂

The Rock is a fitness icon!  He is an athlete and  clearly he lifts!
Not only is he a super positive force in his career, he knows how to eat for his physique goals.

One thing we can all be sure of he has his food correct !!

Plus, he likes pancakes.

Pancakes!
After he finished filming “Hercules” The Rock held an epic cheat day! On this day he whipped up his famous pancakes and ate 12 of them!
I love this picture because in our world of IIFYM, we call this a ‘carb up’ or refeed.

When a person has dieted for a while, a few things happen.  
1. The person gets weary of the diet. Even on IIFYM the fact that we are on a hard cut means we are eating less.
2. Our bodies can become adapted to the lower calories/macros.

A simple carb up or re-feed or in this case.. cheat day will help in both those scenarios.
So while “The Rock” called this an epic cheat day, he still utilized the concepts of body building and IIFYM.  He is eating with purpose!

YOU CAN LEARN EVEN MORE ABOUT RE-FEEDS HERE

In our program, carb ups or re-feeds are given to clients with specific instructions. It’s not a random cheat day or binge day, just so you know.

The Rock is a huge dude so 12 pancakes fits his macros. Most of us, ladies.. not so much. That’s why we tailor our carb ups for our clients so they have the best results.

If It Fits Your Macros is amazing because it’s all about the YOU.  You can carb up on things YOU like. I like Fro-yo and Cinnamon Toast Crunch!  Our clients have a lot of fun when it comes to their re-feed!

If you would like to know more about IIFYM and learn the secrets of success, please check us out on LEARNIIFYM.COM  We will teach you online!!  We will work with you to help you reach your physique goals!
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Drama! Don’t call me a “clean eater.”

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn competition update, Flexible Dieting, macro counting, progress, showtime

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This past weekend was my show in Chicago. I want to preface this post by saying, I dislike drama. I don’t like to focus on the negative but I will today just to clarify my position.
I built my reputation on being healthy and balanced!

Read on:

This weekend a competitor/coach was doing a live feed and pointed her camera at me.
She said something to the effect of “She’s 51. You don’t look like this unless you eat clean.”

My hubs did NOT like that. He said “She’s not a clean eater”.
Then came the “Well. she has to or maybe you just see the bad stuff she eats ” comment.
I needed to just let that go, because it wasn’t the time or place.
I did stand up for myself and said “My nutrition is on point”.

 I am passionately NOT a clean eater. Clean eating did NOTHING for me.

Clean eating from my competition coaches.
7 small meals spaced 2-3 hours apart of turkey chicken fish and spinach or green beans.
I got 2 eye diseases from one bro prep because my  HDL (good cholesterol) was so low my doctor demanded I quit my competition prep.  My immune system was wrecked.

I lost 35 % of the vision in my eye. But hey.. I eat clean.

Clean eating gave me an intense fear of food and led me into terrible cycles of restrict binge.  I was obsessed.

Clean eating gave me zero balance!

IIFYM takes a bad rap in the bodybuilding community for the under educated. This woman is just another  who really doesn’t understand that all food has macro nutrients.  Old school prepping is based on old science.  We look to  new studies for IIFYM and it’s very nutritionally sound. My nutrition is balanced because that is incredibly important to me.
In fact, I learn from the best in the industry every single day and we use science!

But.. you may be surprised to know that the basics of IIFYM require minimums of
fruits, veggies and fiber along with meeting protein, carbs and fat goals.
By nature, IIFYM is more balanced and nutritionally sound than ‘clean eating’ alone.

If you follow my blog, you know how I eat. I eat well. My off seasons are full of wonderful, food that makes me happy. I eat with my family and do not carry Tupperware to functions.

I used to.

I don’t pretend that suffering in my show prep makes me a better athlete.
I don’t post pictures of 30 containers of broccoli and tilapia to show how bad ass I am.

I used to.

I am 100% committed to show how flexible dieting does work for lifestyle and competitors.
I am committed to helping others understand that clean eating is not sustainable and we are our best and most successful when we can choose consistency over perfection.

Oh.. and  yes.. you  may know that I eat very nutrient dense foods in my last weeks because it’s hard to fit other things in.  Show prep is tough so my food is locked down but it’s still flexible and I still like it. I would never step on stage again if I had to eat chicken 6x a day. I would quit the first day.  Truth.
me

I am 51 years old and I hold my own. I like the way I look. This may sound terrible, but if someone else doesn’t like my physique, I really don’t care. I work to be the best I can be with what I have to work with. I know I have work to do on my physique. My goals are to get better each year. This year, my goal was to bring a better package than last year and also to be more in tune with my health and micro nutrition.  Oh.. and  I didn’t look better on a clean eating/bro  diet. I didn’t.  (age 47/49 were bro prep)
I actually didn’t.

I am a better athlete not because I suffered with my food, but because I am  in tune with what my body needs.

If you want to know.. here’s how I look the way I do at 51.
Hard work in the gym.
Water.
No sun.
Skin care
IIFYM.

I look better with solid nutrition, inner peace, joy in my food, and freedom from food fears.
I look better without deprivation, starvation, blindly following old science with nothing to back it up.
I look better because I wake up each day with choices and goals.
I look better because I don’t beat my self up for eating cookies . I eat what I like.

I look better because I’m balanced.  I look better because I’m happy and I won’t be an example of anything less.

Here’s some hardware.
First place bikini masters, 2nd place Glamour and top 5 in the bikini open.  #IIFYM
14925477_1422697721076920_1606753999465565149_n

8 weeks out updates

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Clean Recipes, Competitor secrets, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, IIFYM, macro counting, shop it up, Supplements

IMG_0557
Almost..8 weeks out.
I use my blog to show benchmarks in my training/progress. I don’t send pics to coaches  since I’m self coached but I still do weekly pics.  I have been busting my booty this week. I ‘almost’ had a cold but found my way out of that so that’s good.
IMG_0559
This is 11 weeks and 8 weeks out. I’m feeling good. Umm.. a zillion miles to go though!

One thing I’m noticing is my recovery time is not super fast. I am not going to say it’s being 50,  but I’m trying to be mindful of that. I am still busting it so hard but as of yet haven’t resorted to endless  time on the cardio equipment daily.  I get some in and will be adding more, but my airdyne bike is keeping me on point.
In my studio, I have a lot of my team cutting for weddings, shows and just because it’s time!  The workouts we are doing are on point to keep us progressing to the end.

Cold: Immune system: abby
I am using thieves oil every single day.  The product I use is DoTerra On guard.  I was feeling terrible
and started a gargle swish thing with a few drops of this. My cold was gone in 1 day. You can use it for
so much but I am determined to stay well this prep.  You can search Pinterest for more on OnGuard
You can get it here from my guru friend, Abby
Remember the other blog post about colds and flu??

New product:
gnc
I LOVE this product.  I am using this as a thermagenic (fat burner) and my creatine. This product has
Dandelion root for water retention.  I feel really good on this one.  You have to drink it before, during and after your workouts. I do 2 scoops for 5g creatine.  It does have CLA so I’m pulling my Abcuts. Be sure to count  5g of fat for this product.   I just supplement around this with my others to meet my needs.

It’s a weird grainy texture. You might not like it but I got used to is after the first day.
I don’t work for GNC. They don’t give me anything. They have a return policy though…

Changes:
I’m not changing macros just yet because what I’m doing is working. My goal is to keep as much food as I can for as long as I can.  I’m using a little more egg white this week to switch it up. Lots of pancakes, mug cakes.

Last night I had a boat load of macros to eat so I ate this
cookie
I modified the hell out of this recipe. No agave. The base of this is
Chick peas. I used peanut butter with no sugar added. I counted
out sixteen 60% cacao unsweetened  chips for the recipe.
The recipe also  has coconut flour, protein powder, and  almond milk.  I loved it.
I hit my macros and everything on this was squeaky clean!!

The rest of my day was perfect. Veggies, lean protein  whole foods.

I’ve been ending my days with a little too many macros left over so I’m trying really hard
this week to go to bed with only protein left.  I feel better. I think I sleep better.

Being on Bro-preps with M6 as egg whites or chicken  was tough.  Now, I try to have
some great food during the day so I don’t mind the egg white pancake as my last.

I’m sure some Negative Nancy- Mr. Boss Around  will fly in here and debate that meal timing does or doesn’t matter and there’s probably some material to back that up. Don’t care.. If it bothers me, it bothers me.
Some of my clients tell me, it matters or it doesn’t matter.  My meal timing is now intuitive on this cut.  Too many carbs before sleep bothers me.   I go to bed at 7pm. lol

Except for pre-post workout, my ish is tight! I eat with purpose!

Here’s a picture of my kitty, Tatu Baby. She’s my smushy!
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Enjoy your day!

IIFYM: You are doing it wrong

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Bikini Contest Prep, Competitor secrets, fiber, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, IIFYM, macro counting
Stop eating food you hate.
Stop eating food you hate.

This week I have seen so many competitors posting about doing IIFYM and eating food they hate because their coach said so.

“Can someone please tell me how to fix chicken so I don’t gag and have to drink water to get it down.  My coach has me on chicken 5 meals a day”  That was on an IIFYM Competitor forum.

Why are you eating food you hate?

I saw two meal plans from coaches that ‘said’ they were IIFYM but had only 3 protein sources to chose from. Guess which ones..
Turkey.. yep
Chicken…yep
Fish.. yep

I saw non competitors posting on IIFYM boards about being sick and tired of eating broccoli, or whatever.

Let’s start with the basics of IIFYM.

1.  If you are on IIFYM: Flexible Dieting, NO food is off limits.

2. You will be counting Protein, Carbohydrates, Fats and the micronutrient, Fiber in grams.

3. You must eat your macros daily and those are configured properly for health and based on body, your activity level, and goals by someone who understands how to do it properly. More on that later.

4. You must hit them daily +/- 5g  including your fiber.

Competitors: You are doing it wrong if you have a coach who
>gives you random numbers or cookie cutter macros /PDF that everyone gets.  Macro numbers are based on a scientific formula.
SCIENCE!
science

> gives you a list of options for your food choices.  Remember, no food is off limits.  That’s not IIFYM.
“You can eat what you want as long as it’s on this list of 5 things”

I saw a menu this week that had

“Post workout you can have 2 plain rice cakes and 1 table spoon of jelly.”

Macros for that are:
27 carbs
1g protein
0 fat
0 fiber

Why not have a banana?
1 med banana
27 carbs
1g protein
0 fat
3g fiber
You got some fiber! Whoo hoo.

You are doing it wrong if you have a coach who
>tells you things you CANNOT eat. Nothing but  Walden farms salad dressing and plain salsa  for condiments is NOT IIFYM.
No fruit allowed. No dairy (protein much?)  Basically.. you should just hit your numbers.
Caveat, I’m not going to say that there are not circumstances  in prep that call for you to make adjustments as you near your show. For the most part, you should be eating .Good coaches will help you with IIFYM . My IIFYM coach gave me suggestions for high carb day of Skinny pop or Skinny Cow.  Sometimes, in prep we will have to tighten things up a lot but   at 12 weeks out, if you limited to tilapia and asparagus, you are seriously bumming!
Which you already know!

Flexible Dieting in 1979?? WHAT?  READ THIS!

I love this. 1979 YO
I love this. 1979 YO  He used Flexible dieting and He won the Olympia!

You are doing it wrong if you have a coach who
>does not have a fiber number for you to hit.  Red flag.

>has your fats below 20% of your daily intake.  I said it. Health first!
Sports Nutrition tells us that you should NEVER go below  20% not even on the crash diets.  Fats are important to your hormones and brain function.  One egg yolk a day for 12 weeks  is NOT the only fat you need.  Show prep or not.  It’s not healthy!

>is flat out starving you and giving you hours of cardio . (I threw that in because WTH?  You should not be ‘starving’ on IIFYM because you can use volume foods and make them fit!

What about non competitors?

You are doing it wrong if you are freaking out over your macro tracker. If you can’t figure out what to replace one food with and it stresses you out.  If you are out of egg whites, eat greek yogurt. Make your food fit. Namaste! It takes a few weeks to get a groove. Keep trying.

You are doing it wrong if you are eating the same 5 things every day.
Sports Nutrition 101 says we need at least 35 different foods per week.   Two Quest bars and 2 salads every day  is NOT healthy.  Eat a variety of  food that makes you happy and make it fit!

You  are doing it wrong ( and this makes me so mad) if you take the numbers you are given and “cut them in half” or cut out a whole nutrient group so you will “get thin”.    This thinspo mentality is
horrific and damaging to our bodies.  Calling it IIFYM and starving is NOT ok.

You are doing it wrong if you are dragging Tupperware to restaurants still.  (Competitors in prep are excluded here).
You can make a plan using the site Fatsecret.com. They list all the macros for resturants! Or just look at the actual restaurants website for their nutritional information.  If you are going to  get Mexican food, you can probably figure out, what’s in a burrito and  get a solid count.  I take my mini scale with me, but I’m competing. Just sayin.

You are doing it wrong if you “leave out whole groups of food”.
You seriously won’t die, if you “drink” some calories.  I know, I used to feel differently.  Seriously, if you have a Flat White and make it fit.. you will be fine. Are you happy? Did you enjoy it? Good!

You are doing it wrong if you refuse to track and just “eyeball” your portions.  As a coach, I see this and it’s usually followed by  “IIFYM” doesn’t work. Well..   If you are beginning on IIFYM you need to measure everything on your scale in grams. Not half cups or tablespoons in your silverware drawer.  You will learn to do intuitive dieting later  but you must first get serious about knowing portion sizes.  Weigh your peanut butter so you really know what 2 Table spoons (32g) looks like.  Mind blown.  I lost 5 pounds when I used the scale instead of relying on that table spoon measurement!

If you have not tracked everything correctly, how will your coach/trainer know what to tweak. Everyone is different. This is data. 😉

eyes up! Weigh it properly for success!
eyes up! Weigh it properly for success!

You are doing it wrong if you have dangling macros and you don’t eat them because you think you will lose weight faster.  Remember how we talked about your body starving and holding on to fat? Eat your food. Food is good.

You are doing it wrong if you have dangling macros and you don’t eat them because you don’t know what to eat.  How do you not know what to eat? Eat what you like.

TOM

THE BIG “NO!”
You are for sure doing it wrong if you have to ask a public forum
“I have 10 carbs, 4 fat grams and 23 grams of protein, what should I eat?”
Stop doing that.   Learn about Flex bowls. (Blog post is here)
Asking other people what you should eat is ridiculous.  If you really are so unable to fathom what to eat, go to Ripped Recipes.com and
put in your dangling macros and figure it out.

Smart girls tips to being successful resolutioners

On By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Health and fitness information, Motivation

Every January, a gazillion people rush the doors of gyms everywhere. These people are  called New Year’s Resolutioners.  Every year, 2-6 weeks later, many of these resolutioners quit and become a statistic in the game of fitness.

If you are thinking that this is going to be your year to get fit, I am going to tell you exactly how to be a success and not a NYR statistic.

TIPS
 Start Now.   It’s just a few weeks before the new year. However, letting everything go because you are starting in January could result in an extra 7-10 pounds through the holidays.  Even doing some workouts will help keep pounds from creeping up during party season.   Another great reason to begin now, is that you  can start the new year with a few pounds lost!  That’s motivation!

Ok.. so you want to  wait until January to show up.

1.Make a plan:

Smart girls have a plan of action!
Smart girls have a plan of action!

Make a plan based on your goals. Start with specific short term goals.
WRITE IT DOWN!
Example: I will be 1 size smaller by  Valentine’s day.
An arbitrary goal such as “I want to lose weight” is not the way to go!
Small, achievable goals will always win.

How will you execute this plan?
Be specific on how you will do this.
Write it down!
 “I will go to the gym 4x a week after work”

How will you execute that plan?
“I will schedule my workouts like meetings.”
or
“I will get up early before the kids go to school for my workouts.”

Stick to your plan no matter what. Your goals are important! And for you moms out there with a busy schedule, remember this.
“If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.”

Create a habit by creating a visual.
It takes 21 days to create a new habit.
Set your self up for success by creating a visual to get you through your first 21 days.  I, myself, use a spread sheet to track my progress.
This visual was created by one of my clients! It’s awesome!

My client created this awesome visual.
My client created this awesome visual. Yep, it says no drinking for 21 days.  Here’s a secret, that will REALLY help!

TIP: Selfies: Start your program with selfies!
Everyone needs to take some rockin selfies so you can see your body changing.  If you don’t know how to do it, check out my tutorial.
Set up your selfie day each week. I always shoot on Friday. It’s not right after the weekend! I am accountable each week and look forward to seeing changes.

Yes, I take them too. I have to be accountable!
Yes, I take them too. I have to be accountable!

TIP:  Work on only 1 day at a time.
I’m telling you from my own personal experience, long term goals are overwhelming. I am very focused on what successes I can have today.
If I don’t get something right today, it’s ok.  I will try again tomorrow.
Soon, I have strung together many successful days and THAT  is how you get to your goal. 

TIP: Stop trying to be so perfect all the time.

You don't even have to try!
You don’t even have to try!


Getting in shape is not about being perfect all the time, it’s about being consistent.
I have seen clients do great for 6 weeks and one slip up derails them for 6 months. They throw the baby out with the bath water over one ‘misstep’.  Well.. there are no missteps. This is your life. You are eating food, eating well and taking care of your body.  Count your successes and stop adding up your failures.  You can have, exactly what you want, but you have to stop beating yourself up if you can’t be perfect.

TIP: Stop punishing yourself
I just saw a thread on FB from a girl who created all kinds of punishments for herself for when she strayed from her meal plan.  That is just so wrong!
Food is NOT bad. Exercise is NOT punishment.  If you are so inflexible with your meal plan, that you willingly punish yourself for straying, you must change your mindset. Negative reinforcement will NOT help you be successful. Please, do not start down this road!

911:  what if you feel like giving up?

No Results:Not seeing immediate results can be a huge frustration for people starting a new program. For fat loss, you should not set up to lose more than 1 pound a week.  Setting your goals up properly will help you keep your head in the game. If you are looking for starvation, low carb or otherwise immediate results, you are going to rebound and regain more weight.  So put that out of your head. Namaste. This time you are on a path to solid weight loss with real sustainable results. Slow and steady wins this race.

Time excuses are real, but you have to problem solve them out the same way you do any other problems.  If your sink needs fixing, you will for sure problem solve that. So why would you let something get in the way of your health?

Other Excuses: Stop finding them, stop allowing them to be the reason you don’t get what you want.  If you have small children, find a gym with child care.  If you have too many things going on to train, you are out of sync with your health.  There are people who are just as busy as you who find time to train. Find some balance!  Ask for help, problem solve and get what you want. You can do this!