Updates....

**Check out the updated pricing and program offers in the "Become my next successful client" section
I'm now offering detailed, individual nutrition programming for those in and out of the Hillsboro area.

** I wrapped up the last chapter of my competition blog www.agirlbattletested.blogspot.com. If you've been following me or brand new to it, I'd love to hear your feedback. It'd help me determine if I continue to blog thru the next show prep.

** OH there are so many articles and videos I need to post on here! I'll catch up, I swear! Make sure that you opt-in on the subscription to receive notifications when new content goes up!

***** Big shout-out to my foreign readers! Blogger lets me see in which countries I have readers and it's been really cool to find out that people all over the world stumble upon this page. Leave me a message or comment and say "Hi!"

Articles You May Have Missed...

I posted these on my Facebook group months ago, be sure to add yourself to the group so that you aren't missing the discussion!
Note: I'm not reposting all the linked videos and pictures, just articles.

July-September

Is Your Ab Workout Hurting Your Back?  -Click-
The Final Nail in the Cardio Coffin  -Click-
Can't Turn This!  -Click-
All About Microwave Cooking  -Click-
All About Nutrition and Gut Health  -Click-
Turkey Flaxseed Muffins  -Click-
The Hierarchy of Fat Loss  -Click-
All About Cortisol  -Click-
Binge Eating and Craving Control (audio)  -Click-
Favorite Gourmet Nutrition Recipes -Click-
Super Shake  -Click-
High Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Fat Loss  -Click-
Effect of High Intensity Intermittent Exercise on Body Composition of Overweight Males  -Click-

Oregon Ironman Update

Well, I was putting-off doing this post until the pictures from the show were online.... but it's been a month now, and I've seen nothing. So... I'll upload a couple personal ones and my video for those interested.

Ironman was a really fun expirience for me. I felt my best, was way more collected than I was at my first show and was excited about what I was bringing to the stage this time. Much closer to what I wanted to present for the bikini division.
This was the show I had set out to do when I first started working with my coach, Kristi, in December. Such a long journey! But I really focused so hard after the expirience of Emerald Cup. I wanted another tiara!!

Unfortunately though, it wasn't meant to be this time. And it was easy for me to see that I was up against some super tough competition! Those girls looked great, however, too small for what I'd like to look like. So what does that mean for my competitions in the future? Many agree that I have more of a "Figure" look. And so that's an obvious switch for me. I was on the fence about where I wanted to compete when I first sat down with Kristi. She had suggested starting with Bikini and then making a decision after that.

So here are a few pics I have as well as a VIDEO. I'm fine with 8th place, it was a little bit of a let down to not make top 5 again, but I still got on that stage!! No failure in that!

with my coach, Kristi Tauti

on the far left, tough class of very fit ladies!

my personal intro time

You Should Be Following This Show

Secret Eaters, available weekly on youtube. Another great show uploaded by one of my favorite users, Ermmtv. This person also provides all 5 seasons of one of my favorite shows, Supersize Vs Superskinny, which I have often linked to on my blog.

Watch Episode one
Watch Episode two

Emerald Cup!!

 

The First One is Done! I made it!!
see my facebook photo album of the journey

For those of you who have been following the blog, I have finally achieved a goal that I've kept in mind for about six years. I have so much gratitude for this expirience, I'm overwhelmed. For so many times, I had wanted to give up but I kept faith in God and remembered my reasons for getting up there, which were my clients (both current and former).
One of the best parts of the day was being backstage and feeling like I had conqured something monumental. And not only that, but become an entirely new woman. One of my biggest fears is that I would get to the stage and look like someone who doesn't belong. I trained and dieted so hard with that fear in mind. That my past obesity would forever hold me back. But there I stood, amoung nearly 200 beautiful bikini women, and I felt like I fit in. I felt like I had worked hard enough, and I finally fit in. Everything I've done for so long has been directed and focused on that short period of time that I spent on stage.
I felt great onstage. I loved the fact that I got to make new friends at the show and get closer to my teammates! Some of us got real close glueing eachothers suits on! It was so amazing, the amount of energy and support all the competitors gave each other.

Placing 5th in my divison and getting a statue really is overshadowed by the journey and expirience. I want all of my clients to have moments like this! I feel like I can conqure anything after all the time I spent dealing with my deamons and exposing my stomach for the entire internet to see!!

I can't wait for my next show in 3 1/2 weeks, the Oregon Ironman on May 19th and I invite everyone to attend. This time, I'm coming in with expirience and a bit more confidence. I hope to score another tiara!

Food Goodies: High Protein Eating

Video from my coach Kristi Tauti on how she preps her daily meals

Bikini Pro Jaime Baird's high protein cupcake recipes

love this idea! Plus, browse around, this is my favorite spot for new recipes.

Interesting to Watch for Perspective on Fat

As many of you know, I'm a big fan of Supersize Vs. Superskinny. In the latest episode, more detail is given on the health risks of thinking "well, since I'm thin, I can eat all the junk I want." I'll never look at eating sugar the same ever again... carmelized heart!
part one
part two
part three
part four

Now, contrasting the above story about eating/obesity/and gastric bypass, have a look at the following. What do you think? Do you believe in the results of the research these docters have been doing? I personally think they're getting close, but not every behavioral issue is to be blamed on genetics. But I do believe our behaviors can change our internal chemistry. For more on this, search my blog for Caroline Leaf.
part one
part two
part three

Puke, cry, pass-out or... work it!

It was a countdown in my head, monotone like Ben Stine.
One day, you have one day until you have to take your shirt off in front of everyone…. Two hours, you have two hours until you’ll only be wearing a sports bra and shorts… (By this time, mind you, I was sulking on my couch praying that if I complained enough my boyfriend would give me the out I was looking for.)
After our group competitor workout, came the voice even louder and I could feel my legs turn to lead. You have ten minutes until you’re in front of everyone…. With no shirt. Of course, I found a way to be the last girl to join the other bikini and figure ladies and waited until the last possible second to take off my shield.

For those of you unaware, I am 6.5 weeks out from my first bikini competition, the Emerald Cup. Every other week here at iPhysique, we competitors meet for Saturday Conditioning and follow with posing practice. The closer we get to show, the more our coaches ask us to reveal. And coming from a girl who a few weeks ago had to go buy a pair of shorts because I hadn’t worn them publicly since childhood, this has been no easy feat.

It was the oddest feeling, standing there, like I couldn’t decide which visceral emotion to let take over. I know some of my female clients feel intimidated working out around some of the fit women here, but please believe, my inner chubby girl has gone nowhere! Earlier last week I had to miss the mid-week posing class due to training schedule. And catching a glimpse of one of the girls’ legs (sooo much smaller than my own) caught me off-guard and I started the death-trap of comparisons.  That was Wednesday. By Thursday I had 90% thrown in the towel and fallen face-first into a jar of maple almond butter. Friday, by the help of our lovely front desk woman, Karen, I had started to come out of it. And decided to just embrace the process, mortification, mini failures, successes and all. And there is a lot of extra I was not prepared for. Thankfully, my trainer has assured me it will tighten up, but currently I have so much loose skin on my stomach, when I bend over it looks like I’m hugging a shar pei.

Nonetheless, posing practice when well, and with every stride I felt less like panicking. It really had sunk in that I was here, and I was doing this competition for a good reason.

Friday night I was back in a crummy mood and just praying that God would give me motivation again. I caught the tail-end of a sermon on the radio and the pastor was talking about Daniel and how well he lived his life set-apart. He concluded his message with the phrase “when God calls you to do something, you don’t do it halfway. You do it with excellence.” I was so struck by that, I felt renewed.  I’m sure that few people would see it the same way, but when I look at where my life has been and the events leading up to where I am today, I see a clear path that God has forged (and I say Him, because there is no way some of these were of my own choosing and I never would have figured the dots could ever connected without Him).  So at the end of conditioning, while just trying to stay dedicated to this mission, I reminded myself of what “this mission” is.

I do this for my clients and every other person who has dealt with issues of body, health, motivation, and the like. I want to show people that it doesn’t matter where you’re coming from or what you’re up against, you can get what you want and do what you want with your life. Now, growing up, my concept of what I wanted was to be a famous singer and motivate people through music and a strong message. But as time has passed, I have seen that my life has revolved around health and fitness so much more than music.

Being a trainer for me is so much more than getting people in shape. I want others to feel good in their body and embrace with vigor the life they have and how good they can make it.

Competition, for me, isn’t about having a cute bikini and feeling glamorous for a day. Because the months of strict dieting, cardio, lifting, cooking, and more cooking aren’t easy. It’s more of a mental battle for me than anything else. The above gets easy over time, just like anything else. However, the mind, staying focused on priorities, choosing to stay in a good mood despite how you feel, choosing to push yourself another mile is what makes it difficult, but so rewarding.

This prep has proven to me that despite anything, you can choose to be strong in a situation. And for people, especially women who have dealt with disordered eating and poor relationships with food, body, and exercise, this is gospel! When the world denies you, when your feelings are overwhelming, and when you absolutely melt down like I did last week; you can get back up! The choice to improve is simple, it’s the process of change that is so daunting. But you don’t have to change everything overnight. Even this competition prep is a week-by-week, day-by-day, meal-by-meal situation.

Even those super skinnies that I stand next to aren’t perfect. They’re in process of improving. We’re all human.

I’m hoping that with continued efforts on and off stage, I will be able to have a wider audience and fulfill that childhood dream of changing minds and lives.

Perception is Reality? Or, is Your Truth Leading You to an Early Grave?

Watch this episode of one of my favoritie TV shows, Supersize Vs Superskinny:
part one, part two, part three, part four
(more episodes can be found in the playlists section of Ermmtv's youtube channel)

   
   Pauline's goal is something she says she'd give anything for. And not from a place of judgment and superiority as someone living this kind of "fit life", but that part of me that remembers strongly those same feelings of longing, I watched her and thought "but are you really ready to give anything? Are you willing to face your darkness and your fears? Are you willing to step outside of your comfort zone and away from the foods you use to distract yourself from your pain?"
   It honestly did hurt to watch the small amount of Pauline's life that was shown. Although I never reached that bodyweight, the emotions are the same at any weight because it's an issue of mindset, and not BMI.

   There's a whole mess of problems that come with the modern totem of a person having "their truth", "their reality" and that truth and what's right is all relative to one's experience of life. I know that me calling this BS is verging on the theological, but you can deal for the next 3 minutes it takes to read the rest of my article.

    You watched Dr. Jessen make my point for me as he lamented over the enormous coffins and Pauline's situation. By her lifestyle, and the choices she makes, she obviously believes that she is trapped. What you believe about yourself and your life dictates every decision you make. Evident in not only Pauline’s life and what she’s creating for her son, but also for everyone taking part in the TV show. On the other hand we have Dr. Jessen, and people like myself, who have seen the other side and understand fully the implications of a person feeling like a victim of their own life, desires, longings, or; like those in my type of environment who are convinced that their physical pain is not something they have the opportunity to take complete control over.
   It’s a daily fight I have with those around me in the gym believing that age has done them in, or their body was just poorly built and their shoulders, back, whatever is just going to be dysfunctional. These are NOT crosses to bear in life. I have studied too much and help too many people who refuse to “go softly”, and instead, become their own best advocate and keep seeking answers and not just quick fixes.

   I have a tendency to encounter three groups of people. Those who seek help for their physical problems and just dealing is not good enough. These people are the real fighters and are determined to live as fully and healthily as possible. These are also very easy clients because they not only do what I ask, but are self-driven to accomplish the task at hand. On the opposite end of the spectrum, and the most frustrating are those who see what I have to offer and yet are so stuck in self-deception that they walk away. Sometimes they come around, but most of the time they just keep wasting time and money on whatever bandage gets them by. Also parallels the dieter who gives me the all-too-common line, “diet and exercise doesn’t work for me, I’m just always going to have this pooch”.
   Most people however, sit in the middle, and this is who to whom I’m addressing this article. Inspired by a client who is caught between an overbearing authority (an insurance company and the worthless BMI chart they pillar) and her own personal demons.  She must become her own best advocate or resign to live in pain. It’s her choice whether to fight for the ultimate truth and her own health or settle for physical and emotional pain she’s all-to familiar with. Where is her line in the sand? I’ve seen the incredible fighter in her that she unleashes and smashes thru barriers, and I fully believe she can get what she wants out of life in some fashion. But I can’t choose for her.

   I encourage you to take an honest look at what you settle for in life and if you’re not happy and healthy, get the answers you need! We live but once, therefore we must live with intention and ownership.

Videos From Coach Poliquin

Why Am I Always Tired?---- being aware energy beyond how much sleep you get.

Pregnancy and Nutrition-- weight training while pregnant and supplements for a smarter baby.

More Poliquin