IIFYM : Secrets to Staying on Plan While You Travel

On December 27, 2018December 27, 2018 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, coaching, fat loss, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, IIFYM, macro counting, macros, Motivation, weight loss

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Guest Blogger today is Sleek Body Coach Tracy Collins.

When it comes to sticking to your macros while traveling—it doesn’t have to be a struggle… it is what you make it! Don’t let “ but..I travel” be an excuse!

Plan ahead
Before you leave, make the decision made about what foods you are not willing to bend on!

Think about how many meals you will need to pack per day. If you are traveling for business, chances are you know the name of the restaurant that you will be dining at. Pull the menu up online ahead and decide what you are going to have as your meal, or call ahead and explain you have special dietary needs. Don’t feel embarrassed, or ashamed! We have goals and we are sticking to them! Trust me, your guests will respect your decision.. heck they may thank you because now they don’t feel pressured to eat something that’s not on their typical menu!

You can stick closely to the types of food you are typically eating at home. Look for the hidden fats and ask them to be removed from your food.. example: filet, ask them to cook with no oil or butter, veggies ask them to be steamed, or no oil. Salads, really read the ingredients and review everything that it contains… think about your macros… if you don’t want it, ask them to remove it!
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Alcohol

Do you know how to accurately track alcohol?

We all know the secret to this…and I have to admit, I’m not afraid to just stick with water and lemon, or a diet soda…However you know your macros. Go in with a plan! Remember, You don’t have to take your clothes off to have a good time!

I most always bring a packets of oatmeal and make a protein shake as my pre-workout meal. If additional carbs are needed, I pack some dried blueberries or cranberries or other fruit. Most workout facilities have fresh apples available, (but don’t count on that).

My post workout meal is usually a shake and oatmeal again if a restaurant isn’t available. Starbucks has those turkey egg white sandwiches that are Divine! (There seems to always be one close to or in the hotel)

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Really, there are so many options and I’m always up for a challenge to myself. How can I make what’s available to me work! It’s like a game of survival… Could you do it?

The Hotel
Search for hotels that offer a mini-fridge and a microwave in the room. Most will bring one to your room at no additional charge or there is a community microwave is available. (However, the Kuerig in the room is easily manipulated to my oatmeal warmer). If I had to choose between the two, I would pick a fridge.

My co-workers know when we travel a gym is super important to me, so we always check it out online before we go or search for nearby full size gyms. Obviously, a hotel most times does not offer the same equipment.

If you need additional items or want something specific, plan to make a trip to a nearby grocery store.
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What to Bring?
All food is safe to bring on an airplane, it’s how you pack it that matters. TIP: if you have a suitcase that you are checking, pack your food in a insulated lunch box with an ice pack! It will be fine!

In you carry on bag, pack an empty shaker cup, use this as your water cup throughout the day… you will also get through TSA with it being empty. Once through security, fill it up at a water fountain, or most restaurants are happy to fill it for you with ice water. (I always go in showing a few bucks in my hand)

Snacks: nuts, protein bars, carrots, hummus, rice cakes, almond butter (individual packets are available) lunch meat, protein powder, jerky, apples and other favorites of yours. (Yogurt is subject to the liquid TSA rules, but is available heavily throughout most airports)

In summary, don’t stress or worry, do your best.. and learn from each trip that you take!

Coach Tracy has openings for coaching!! Check her out here

Secrets to Successful Travels for Athletes

On August 30, 2018August 30, 2018 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, Competitor secrets, Flexible Dieting, food prep, Gym time, HOW TO, macros, off season

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Ok, so listen there are a few things we hear from new athletes when they are in prep/offseason.

“I don’t know what to do, I’m traveling”
“I can’t travel or do anything with my family while I’m in prep.”

Traveling is super overwhelming simply because most of our preps are 12-16 weeks long! It’s nearly impossible to assume that nothing is going to come up during that time.

Prep is not a social death sentence.

Strategies: If you are on IIFYM your life will be so much easier than our Bro-plan sisters.
There are so many options for travel and eating well on the road.

TSA: OY.. that’s tricky. I put everything in my suitcase so I don’t even bother with frozen chicken breasts and a six pack cooler. That’s so old school and unnecessary any more.
If you ‘must’ bring your chicken breasts with you, freeze them. I never found any of this valuable. I don’t like eating thawing food. I’d rather just buy deli chicken. But, feel free to exercise your beast mode mentality and take it with!!

86ccb143-5c3c-4fef-ab97-1d6d321e49aa_1.7c58da4f95de8cd4ab0e0e0c32155324 — I get these at Walmart. I can put them in my carry on and I can eat them cold. I’m ok with that. Just add water. 20g P and 34 C.

How I do it:
1. Pack dry stuff in single serve packets in your suit case. Example: Oatmeal packets
whey isolate in small zip lock bags. Label them with the macros!! Remember to bring a few blender bottles and your scale!
2. Keep Protein bars, like Quest bars in my carry on or purse for hunger emergencies.
3. When I get to my destination, head to Walmart for supplies. I buy deli turkey and cottage cheese for protein. I also pick up cutlery because I forgot to bring it. You can also get some from your hotel restaurant or the lady at the deli counter at Walmart will give you some. I know her. lol
4. Veggies. I always book my hotel room with a microwave so I get the veggies that steam in the bag or are in serving plates.

Restaurants: Our team does not eat in restaurants in prep. I have brought my own food to many restaurants. The reasoning is.. you don’t know what the chef is putting on your food. They may not tell you that they spray that buttery spray on your chicken breast and that is lots of fat.

When I’m in prep, if I can’t see how it’s made, I don’t eat it.

Caveats: A bowl of lettuce or raw veggies. I’ve done that. Fruit.. ok. I’m good there. I carry my scale.
Truth bomb: 12 weeks out vs 4 weeks out.. my macros are considerable different.
There is no room to have extra macros unaccounted for as I near the finish line.

Strategies for eating:
Fueling my workouts is my number one priority. Getting my protein /fiber /veggies is next in line. I might save back carbs and some of my fats for ‘unknowns’ . I’m going to hit my macros like a boss but I’m a huge fan of carb cycling for my life. If I have more carbs on a day I’m walking around more.. so be it.
Also, I know that sometimes, it’s hard to get all your food in and no one wants to be back at the hotel after an all day meeting having 6 protein shakes to hit your numbers.
When you are at Walmart pick up Protein Water to drink during the day!!

Hotels:

There are actually good hotel options for athletes!! Our Coach Ashley, recommends
Extended Stay America.
“Stay at Extended Stay America if there is one – you will have a full kitchen…and generally the cost is super cheap so companies usually don’t have an issue with reimbursement for them.”

I’ve also stayed at Marriot Courtyard which also has a full kitchen.

If you don’t need a full kitchen, I recommend Marriot suites! They always have a fridge and Microwave.

When I was in Las Vegas I booked through Fun Jet this lovely condo!
It’s the Hilton Grand Resorts on the strip. It had a grocery store in the lower level
and a Starbucks. These hotels are all over the world. Just Google #Hilton Grand Resorts!!

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Workouts:
One recommendation is to join a chain gym that you can use while on the road.
Gold’s Gym or Lifetime are good choices.
I will tell you that if you try to buy a week pass you will pay massive fees.
We wanted few day pass to LVAC and it was 100 dollars.

Since we now can Uber around, it’s worth it if you need a gym that surpasses your hotel gym.

With Hotels like Marriot, we typically see a nice gym but in NYC.. NOPE!! It’s a tiny room with a mat. Be sure to navigate your potential workout facility before you go.

fitness-center--v11682409-1280 — Hard Rock Las Vegas. Yep. I got this.

I always travel with bands just in case.

I also do my track on parking lots.

What are your travel secrets?

Moving from IIFYM into Intuitive Dieting part 1:

On September 22, 2017November 12, 2018 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, Clean Recipes, competition update, Competitor secrets, flex, Flexible Dieting, food prep, macro counting, macros, Motivation, off season, Prepping not starving

Progressions through my journey. I’m getting better every year.

It’s been a while since I posted an update on my training/dieting. I finished my show season in June and have reversed dieted back up to over 2000 calories a day. I will not have another bikini competition until I take the stage at UFE Mayhem 2019.

I am training for plenty of pole show cases, and two competitions in 2019.

So let me back track a bit. I want to show you a progression of my flexible dieting journey. Part two will explain my current use of IIFYM for my competition.

Binge/Restrict 2012
I spent the bulk of my life in a binge restrict pattern. I was knee deep in the Tosca Reno EAT CLEAN movement but never measured servings. I refused to eat sugar because it was the devil (according to the Skinny Bitches movement). I was deep in orthorexia but still binged until I made myself sick. Cookies, cakes, whole pies, then returned to a restricted plan with full intentions of redeeming myself. I know I choose to compete in a competition partially because I knew I could lock myself down to get rid of these binges. This is the first time I admitted that.

When I began my competition journey in late 2012, I was basically starving myself. Nutrition was tough for me because of my patterns of binging. ;(
This is how I looked on my first day of bikini competition training. Yes.. I was lifting, doing massive cardio but not getting enough nutrition to fuel the work I was doing. My coach told me “you are starving”. I agree.

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Bro plan: Restrict. 2013/2014
I started immediately on low carb bro plan but.. I also started eating more protein and I began to look better. My nutrition was improving too because I was consistently eating 12 cups of spinach each day. My vitamins were on point and I was fueling my workouts.
I was focused and did well until I binged out. I had terrible derails that lasted for days.
My coach told me 8 weeks out from my first show, that one more derail would keep me off stage. Well. I handled that just fine. Placed 2nd and ate an entire pound of birthday cake fudge in the car on the way to the restaurant.

I had no reverse diets either. It was a hot mess. I did Bro hard core off and on.
I got very sick from the lack of nutrition my coaches gave me. I resorted back to my binges in the off season and then I would grab my old show diets and use those. It makes me so sad to say that. I never fixed one thing. I only proved to myself that I had an iron will until I fell apart and that was NOT going to be ok for me any longer.

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Jan 2013 and June 2014. I began IIFYM post show Nanbf in July 2014.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. I asked my coach during 2014 prep for swaps and was told I wouldn’t look right on stage if I swapped out my protein or carbs. I don’t believe that is true. I was going to make this happen and end this nightmare of binge/restrict. I fired her and began this part of my journey.

I want to say to you, if you are still with me.. all of the things I experienced above made me a better athlete and a better coach. I’m not mad about this journey. I’m here to learn and grow. I’m leaving behind those old ideas and people who won’t use science!!

IIFYM: The First year with IIFYM was interesting. I set a goal to learn to find out what triggered me and my binges. I found out!!! Then I fixed it. Sometimes it was baby steps but it was information. I still believed in ‘clean’ food but I added in small sugar treats until I started to get mad when my veggies got in the way of my snacks. 😦 Read more about that here
I worked very hard my first year to decrease binges by eating foods that made me happy.
I still believed some food was “bad”. I made huge strides in my physique and my happiness. I would go 6 months without a binge. This was great. Here’s how that looked. I had almost 18 months between shows and I prepped myself for UFE Halloween Mayhem 2015. I did not binge in prep. I did however have 2 months post show that I lost my way. I’m just being honest. I pulled it together and set new goals for 2016.
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IIFYM Flexible Prep: 2016
For my second full year of IIFYM I wanted to take my nutrition to the next level. I had done so well curtailing my binges and I was very confident in my ability to master flexible dieting. I paid mind to eating food that made my body run great, I focused on my fruits and veggies and variety. I began to let go of the “bad ” food concept and allowed myself to eat foods that were previously off limits. Amazingly, I didn’t get fat, I didn’t lose my way. I began to understand that I could fuse lots of great food into my plan as long as I was eating my daily nutrition requirements!! YESSS.

That journey was seriously incredible. I focused in on micro nutrition as well as my macros. I began to understand more about my body than I had ever dreamed. I wanted to know!! Yes… old habits die hard. I still found myself wanting to have treats (albeit “clean”) to help me stay out of that binge territory. I know what works for me!! I made it work. I want to show you this picture because this was all about fueling for my build from just doing a basic cookie cutter bro plan. Yes.. time had passed but let’s be honest.. I started this at 47 so three years isn’t’ that long.

Eat lift slay for a booty. I ate more carbs than ever!

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Halloween Mayhem October 2016 I became a UFE Elite Athlete. I loved my package and I loved my prep. It was an amazing learning experience. I ate so many amazing foods in my prep and came in with my favorite package!!

2017
I competed right away again in June of 2017 and I loved my package but this prep was harder on my body and I had to dig deeper to get lean enough. I basically did 42 weeks of prep in 1 year. I would never do that again!! That’s not what my body wants at all.
It was still a great prep and I ate beautifully as I got ready for stage.
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After Fury in June 2017 my next step was to reverse diet and then begin my training for the Pole Sport Organization Gateway competition in December.

Intuitive dieting: What is it?
The goal of our team with clients is to teach them the progression of flexible dieting so they can learn to be truly flexible. That means they can begin to use their knowledge to eat for their goals without being tied to a scale and tracker. This comes with time and practice.

To be effective a client would understand and manage your macros in their head. I know I have to reach 150-180g P each day. I need 25g min of fiber and 500g veggies min. I know my minimum fat intake should be about 40g so I just eat and add this in my head. I’m using visuals and my scale as well as nutritional information on lables.

When would a person use this? I started using intuitive dieting loosely post show 2017. It was magical. I was spot on because, trust me.. I’ve seen 5 ounces of chicken breast more than I’d like to admit. I often use it when I”m traveling or eating out. Most restaurants have nutrition on their websites. It’s handy!

Who should use this? Only people who have a clear understanding of their body, macros and feel committed to hitting all their micros/macros!!

Do you do it daily? Maybe.. I might do it on a day then use my tracker. I started gingerly and progressed. I’m very tied to MYNETDIARY tracker. It’s a safety blanket for me. However.. being able to start this process is a huge step for me.

Here I go!! Part two is here.

Fit Girl Food Hacks

On June 30, 2017 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, dessert, fat loss, flex, Flexible Dieting, food prep, HOW TO, IIFYM, macro counting, macros

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I’m going right in and tell you a few hacks that can save your life. Ok.. probably not really but you may like them.

STARBUCKS double shot:
Ask for either a dopio or Quad (4 shots omg) over coffee ice.
Add either Sugar free vanilla syrup or a splenda packet.
Add either coconut milk or almond milk or skim.
BOOM.. The drink that keeps giving. The coffee ice is like “second drink”

Muscle Eggs
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Muscle Eggs is super popular among the fit girl set. I liked it when I purchased it. But.. I had a couple issues. First of all.. the containers are huge and barely fit in my fridge. I had to keep the other ones frozen and that was tough because of all the halo top in my freezer. No room. So there is that.

They are pricey which is fine because they taste great.. but I got bored!

Hack. I made my own.
Start at Costco or Sams and buy pourable egg whites by the case. They are between 6-8 bucks for a whole case of 6 boxes. That’s a lot of egg whites.
You can use any sugar free coffee syrup for and mix with your whites. You will have lots of flavor choices and won’t be stuck with one gallon of the same.

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You can drink Muscle Eggs and you can also drink pourable whites with coffee syrup. You can mix them into your protein shake to make it creamy. You can make pancakes or mug cakes too. You can go to MuscleEggs.com and use their recipes with your own concoctions!!

You can search for “Sugar Free Coffee syrup” and get lots of options.
You can also find them at stores like
Bed Bath And Beyond
Home Goods
Marshals
TJ Maxx
World Market always has a good selection.
Amazon is for sure going to have what you want!

Party time:
Order this and never look back.
Jordan’s Skinny Mixes are Zero macros. That’s P:-0 C0 F0
They are great! They are fun and exciting! So if you have to be Faux Drinking, you can make this happen with club soda and some garnishes! Take the macros for your hooch but at least you will be feeling sassy!

You can search Jordan’s Skinny Mixers online to find them.
Bed Bath And Beyond has lots of amazing Jordan’s Skinny products

Baby Iggy is not on macros but he’s super happy!!
❤

IIFYM 101: HOW TO GET 35 DIFFERENT FOODS A WEEK.

On June 5, 2017June 5, 2017 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, bikini team, bro swaps, food prep, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, IIFYM, macros, meal prep, Motivation, Prepping not starving

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Are you a creature of habit? Do you eat the exact same thing every day? Did your coach give you a plan with a total of 6 items on it? Are you struggling to incorporate variety into your meals because you “just don’t know what to eat?”

This blog will help you.

Sports nutrition 101 tells us that we need to eat 35 different foods a week. Our team of athletes and lifestyle clients follows this goal.
This is important simply because, variety allows us to get micro nutrients from lots of different sources.

I have spoken openly about my Bro diet plan and how it made me very sick. You can read more about that here. I was eating a ‘totally clean’ competition diet of
turkey
chicken
fish.
egg whites
oats
ezekial bread
brown rice
sweet pot
spinach

I had 12 cups of spinach on my plan each day.
I hated my meal plan. As I got closer to my show, my calories were very low and I had 6-7 meals a day of tilapia and spinach.

That is about 9 different foods and entire food groups are missing from this plan.
There is zero nutrition coming from beautiful fruits and other veggies. I could have had other options and still reached my goal. I would have felt better and had more energy. I certainly didn’t look better on this plan than I do on a variety of food. That’s a fact.

If you are on a “bro plan” but want to learn how to get variety.. click here

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Nutrition should be a priority no matter what plan you are on.
It astounds me that intelligent people accept this style of eating when “dieting”. If you were told to give your kiddo this food 6x a day, you wouldn’t. Kids need better nutrition. They need their calcium and fruits and veggies. How dare someone recommend this.
When did we lose our sensibilities!! Let’s eat some beautiful food! Stop removing total food groups! You don’t need to!!

How can I increase my variety to get to 35 different foods a week?

DON’T OVERTHINK IT.
Eat simply. If you are in the mood for black berries, eat them. Have an apple on another day. Eating the rainbow is a perfect way to increase your variety easily.

DON’T SHOP FOR 35 DIFFERENT FOODS
You don’t need to do that!! Just start with what you like, and add to it.
We use challenges like “Taco Tuesday” and “Waffle Wednesday” to help our clients get creative and increase their variety. Both of those meals can be created with lots of variety! It’s easy to find yourself with 15-20 different foods a day on those days!!
Think of the toppings, the ingredients. If you want fish tacos, great? Do you want a taco salad? Or waffles with Halo top and chocolate sauce.. Or perhaps you just want Waffles with blueberries!

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Hack: My Net Diary tracks your food amounts!!

You can see the number of foods you have eaten each day! Cool. MyNetDiary Pro is bomb!

If you need a macro plan or want to learn more about IIFYM you can work with us at LEARNIIFYM.COM

IIFYM 101: How to Get Protein like a boss

On March 28, 2017May 18, 2020 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Bikini Contest Prep, Clean Recipes, coaching, fat loss, flex, Flexible Dieting, food prep, Health and fitness information, HOW TO, IIFYM, macro counting, macros, meal prep, Prepping not starving

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If you are just begining your IIFYM/Flexible Dieting Journey you may be surprised to see how much protein you are going to need to eat each day. In fact, most of my new clients come to me eating very little protein so it looks daunting to try to hit those protein goals!

The question I get the most is “How can I hit my protein goals with out going over fats and carbs?”

Protein is very important to our physique goals!! We need protein to build muscle and we all know that muscle is the fountain of youth! In a fat loss plan, we eat protein to help us maintain the muscle we have!! Protein also helps you feel full!!

Protein 101: Basic Sources
Meat Lean cuts to keep fat down. Skinless white meat is lower in fat.
Chicken
Turkey
Pork
Beef
Fish
Other Seafood (shrimp, scallops)
Dairy
Milk, Chocolate milk (great post workout)
Sour cream
Greek Yogurt
Cheese
Laughing cow cheese is fun!
Cottage cheese (add to your pancakes to add a fluffy texture)
Greek Yogurt Cream Cheese
Halo top Ice cream (I had to add that)
Eggs
Egg whites (buy the pour-able kind)

Legumes
Beans and legumes have some protein but the carb profile is higher, but if you can make it fit.. could be an option.

Whey
Whey protein or Isolate : you can cook with this!!
Lenny and Larry’s cookies (low protein profile but worthy)
Kodiak protein pancake mix (Target)
Protein Bars like Quest or B-Up bars (check your local Supplement store for variety)
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Peach Protein Cupcakes with Raspberry Lemon icing.. I tossed this in for you just for fun. Here’s that recipe. P:11 C:11 F2 for each cuppie.

Protip: Aim for protein first, Carbs second and fats last.
If you aim for hitting your protein goals first, you won’t be left at the end of the day with 120g to eat!!
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Protein hack: You could split your protein goals up by meal.
Mary Jo has 160g protein per day. She likes to eat 5 meals a day. Each meal could contain 32g protein per meal.
100g of shrimp is 28g of protein!!

Hidden protein

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Many foods you enjoy each day will have protein in them!! These amounts will help get you to your goals. Track that food!! Let’s see whatcha got!!

“I don’t like eggs or egg whites.”
Ok.. I hear you. I don’t care for egg whites on their own either, but I do love Crepes, Pancakes and French toast which are all made with egg whites /egg.

This is my Birthday Cake crepe. The recipe is here
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Here’s a Banana Protein Pancake!!!
Protein pudding is boss.. This is at Walmart, Sup stores, Amazon.
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Oh Hey.. let’s make Fish Tacos! The shells are La Tiara (4 carbs per taco shell)
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Hack: Start tracking your normal eating. Look at it like a puzzle. Are you lacking in protein but way over in fatty/carby foods? Let’s start working on ways to tweak your normal eating!
How can you add more protein in and hit your other macros on point?

Ideas:
RippedRecipes.com will help you find some fun ideas that are NOT boring.

This Blog!! Search Protein and you will see all my ideas!!

This is Roo Ferrigno. She is very sure of her protein intake and likes to judge mine.
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I know you are working hard! Don’t give up. If you need macros or help.. connect with me on
LearnIIFYM.com

Prepping not starving: The Monte Cristo Sandwich

On February 4, 2017 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn bikini competition secrets, Bikini competitor secrets, Bikini Contest Prep, bikini team, Clean Recipes, Flexible Dieting, food prep, IIFYM, macro counting, macros, meal prep, Prepping not starving, weight loss

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The mister has been binge watching “Top Chef” so my prep has gone to level 3000.
This sandwich is the bomb and the macros are fierce! Seriously, you can use whatever you want to make your own to fit your macros but this was one I had for Brekkie!! It’s a good pre workout too.

2 slices 97/3 Ham
1 slices FF turkey
100 calorie english muffin
1 slice FF cheese

1/2 egg whites
Splash of vanilla

Mix egg whites and vanilla together
beat it until it is frothy

Drop the muffins into the mixture and let it soak up the eggs.
Fry the bacon and turkey in a pan with some cooking spray.
Remove from the pan.

Put the muffins in the pan and pour the rest of the mixture on top.
Flip them over then put the turkey and ham and cheese on the muffin.
Close it like a sandwich. cover the pan so the cheese melts.
Serve with syrup and jelly or powdered sugar if you have the carbs.

Your macros will vary but you can make it fit, even with some

I know you are working hard on your prep!! Keep going!

IIFYM, Dwayne The Rock Johnson and Pancakes

On November 15, 2016November 15, 2016 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

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!

Drama! Don’t call me a “clean eater.”

On October 31, 2016October 31, 2016 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.

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
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Micronutrients matter: Fruits and veggies

On June 5, 2016March 31, 2017 By Bikini Competitor TracyHIn Bikini Contest Prep, Clean Recipes, Flexible Dieting, Health and fitness information, macro counting, macros, meal prep1 Comment

veg
I love fruit!! Eat the rainbow.

You all know in my Bro Preps, I wasn’t allowed any fruit. The common belief is that fruit is full of sugar and “you won’t look right”. I practice IIFYM and I do eat fruit. I measure every bit of it and make it fit.

In the past, I got very sick in my bro preps. My nutrition was off because I had very little variety in my food. In fact, only eating spinach created a lot of health problems for me.

In the last 2 years, I have focused on my health in both prep and off season.
I also follow solid sports nutrition and get at least 35 different foods per week.
My food tracker, MyNetDiary keeps a running total of this for you.
This year, I am very much fine tuning my food to not just hit my macros but my micro nutrients as well.

Micronutrients, as opposed to macronutrients (protein, carbohydrates and fat), are comprised of vitamins and minerals which are required in small quantities to ensure normal metabolism, growth and physical well-being.

Simply put from Bodybuilding.com
Athletes should eat between 3-5 servings of fruit and 5-10 servings over veggies! I’ve seen very few clients eating that much! I work toward 300-500g of veggies each day. I can’t imagine how a bro prep would accommodate those numbers, especially for bikini girls starting off at next to no carbs to begin with.

This is something I feel really passionate about. Fine tuning my plan to include the fruits, veggies I need!!

I have incorporated in the Juice Plus Trio.

One of the things I love about my trio is I can get micros from fruits and veggies I would normally not enjoy eating. I don’t like beets at all! But beets have benefits! Many times in prep I don’t have extra carbs so I may not get my full servings of fruit. The trio will give me the nutrients without the carbs. I have always used a green powder but I actually like this better.

I ordered my trio and this is how it came.

My kid loves these too. They taste really good too. Children can get these free from Juice Plus.

My trio. These are capsules.

I have always taken great supplements so I’m super excited to incorporate these.
Several of my clients have done their prep with the trio and done beautifully. I believe nutrition counts!!

On a side note: Because I purchased the trio, my kid was able to be enrolled in the Children’s Health Study. He gets the gummy versions free. We will fill out a form quarterly with info about his school attendance and how often he has been sick. He loves them.

If you would like to know more about the children’s health study here is that info

If you would like to learn more about the trio or gummies, click here

IIFYM BIKINI BOSS TRACY

Tag: nutrition