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Cali's Road to the big 4-0
- Thread starter caligirl85
- Start date
*ebony*
New member
I agree with Donna.
you know when its so dark out and you making a trip somewhere and the only lights are the headlight from your car to guide you, and you can only see the next few feet on the road. you cant see the end of road to your destination but if you keep driving another 20 feet will be illuminated and then the next and before you know it your there. if you hit a little rock or bump, no biggie, you'll still get to your destination if you just keep driving, no need to stop on that dark road halfway and fret about a little bump. Just blast some music and keep on rolling and you'll be there before you know it!
figurechamp
New member
Time for an update since it's been a few days.
Even though this update won't sound very positive, it really is. So keep that in mind when reading.
The last few days have had some unexpected personal and physical challenges and I haven't been in the gym in 3 days. It seems like when it rains, it pours and I've just been pretty fatigued from yet more stress.
That being said, it's helped me to really evaluate where I'm at in terms of goals, which is what this 4 week period was all about. I won't make a final decision until next weekend, at the end of the 4 weeks, but I am leaning towards not starting the official contest prep on Jan 21. If I did, it would be 22 weeks out and I'd have to kick in to heavy duty prep mode and I honestly do not feel that I'm 100% there yet. I can smile and do all the "ra ra" cheering but reality is a little bit different. Prep, in my opinion, is something you need to be totally committed to....ya gotta be there 110% mentally and it involves a lot of sacrifice in the other areas of your life. My life has been so unsettled and stressful in the last 8 months and I honestly just don't think I have it in me to put myself right back into a stressful situation! A different stress but stress still the same and I'd be kidding myself if I said I wouldn't be chronically stressed hitting prep in a week. I need a month or two of just calmness and peace and the ability to focus on myself without running myself ragged.
There is a beauty to the sport, though, and that is that the stage will always be there.
Like I said, I'll decide for sure in another week but that is where I'm leaning. I'm going to continue to diet and train and keep moving in that direction but I still want the flexibility that will allow me adequate rest, guilt free if I miss a meal or a cardio session and I need to continue to build up my training regimen and strength. So...the goal has changed only in the sense of the timeline and urgency. And....if I still want to compete, I can hit prep mode in April or May and be in a much better position to start it. Hopefully, life will have settled down, I'll be in better shape physically and ready to hit it really hard.
I'm still gonna look good for the big 40th though. That is not an option!!
Sigh. You have no idea how much better I feel after reading this.
I'm a big old stress ball too. My husband has been unemployed for eight months and we're trying to start our own business but we keep getting doors shut in our faces. Add to that, I went back to work this week and I'm not a big fan of my job.
By nature, I'm an emotional eater. I wouldn't say I binge or even overeat, but I also don't often deny a craving, within limitation of course. On day 7, I wanted to give in to that craving. I didn't though. And today, I wanted waffle fries bc I could smell them in the air while walking across campus. Grrrrr!!! I still didn't cave.
Life is hard. Dieting is harder.
I am gonna push it til the end of the month and then reassess. I like having the goal of the competition. It gives me something to train for and it does inspire me. And I've been so public about entering this contest to keep me accountable to it. So I'll see what I look like at the end of January. If I'm not happy with the progress, I'll set a new goal.
So I talked all about myself here in order to relay this most important point: I totally feel ya, girl.
I know exactly what you're talking about and I'm so glad there's someone else out there that "gets it" too. I'm glad to know you've made peace with your goals. That is one thing-well, another thing, actually lol- that I'm still grappling with.
Thanks Donna! I'm actually feeling a great sense of peace about it and that's how I always know the decision is a good one. I'm determined to get there but was putting too much pressure on myself to get there too fast. I'll definitely be rocking it for the 40th! That I am excited about!!
Thanks Ebony. I love the analogy and it's so true. Just a bump in the road! I think there are times when it's just better to enjoy the journey.
Sigh. You have no idea how much better I feel after reading this.
I'm a big old stress ball too. My husband has been unemployed for eight months and we're trying to start our own business but we keep getting doors shut in our faces. Add to that, I went back to work this week and I'm not a big fan of my job.
By nature, I'm an emotional eater. I wouldn't say I binge or even overeat, but I also don't often deny a craving, within limitation of course. On day 7, I wanted to give in to that craving. I didn't though. And today, I wanted waffle fries bc I could smell them in the air while walking across campus. Grrrrr!!! I still didn't cave.
Life is hard. Dieting is harder.
So I'll see what I look like at the end of January. If I'm not happy with the progress, I'll set a new goal.
So I talked all about myself here in order to relay this most important point: I totally feel ya, girl.
I'm glad to know you've made peace with your goals. That is one thing-well, another thing, actually lol- that I'm still grappling with.
A big hug for ya FC! I really feel for you with you and your hubby and trying to create opportunities, health issues etc.
I'm probably about 95% sure but I know that feeling of being inspired and excited by the competition goal too. And then I think...am I really ready to jump into daily double cardio? plus weights? plus strict meal planning? I haven't even written up my diet from last week yet! LOL
I've learned to give it a few days when making those types of decisions. So I like your idea of pushing forward to month end and then seeing how you're feeling. Keep going and see how life unfolds for you over the next couple of weeks. But...if you really feel like it's not the right time, don't be too hard on yourself or feel worried about what others think. Unless someone has walked that road, they just don't know, and they don't have to walk in your shoes.
I figure...I can go slower now, finish clearing my backyard of crap, so to speak, and be in a much better position to start a prep in a few months. I'd like to get a good majority of my weight off before May and then still prep at a decent pace for October.
That's the tentative plan now anyway! You know us women..it'll change 8 times in the next 24 hours! LOL
I had a great workout tonight and felt like a million bucks leaving the gym. I'll post up my workout tomorrow but trained chest and got in some cardio and stretching from the doc. I actually tried out the bench dips and the push ups the doc told me to do. I felt a slight tweak in my tricep on the 5th dip so didn't do anymore of those but made it through 3 sets of 10 pushups off the smith machine bar. He told me to use the bar or a bosu ball. I think I could have done more dips but had that fear and didn't want to push it. It's a starting place and a real confidence booster in terms of where my healing is at.
I'm off to bed and boy am I gonna sleep tonight!
Sleep well my EF girls and guys and more updates and random gym thoughts tomorrow.
I'm off to bed and boy am I gonna sleep tonight!
Sleep well my EF girls and guys and more updates and random gym thoughts tomorrow.
