I did it!

My big bikini competition was this past weekend... it was a great experience trying out bikini division and ontario physique association for the first time!  Here's a little re-cap of my experience... Friday night I went for my tan with Absolute Touch at HUF Boxing Gym.  They had set up in the basement of the gym with a waiting area, multi-stations for spraying, and an area for drying infront of fans.  After getting sprayed, I joined all the other naked ladies drying off and made some new friends as we stood infront of fans until Pam told us we were dry enough to get dressed! A lot of people assumed I was doing Figure (not bikini) which made me a little nervous as I am a bit muscular for bikini, but maybe not enough for figure... tough call...  I almost registered for both categories just to see what would be best for me.  Next I jetted over to registration at Port Credit Secondary School (in the cafeteria).  I arrived to a huge snaking line and a very full room!  Got in line, registered, ordered photos, bought tickets, etc.  And then it was time for the athlete's meeting which went over everything we needed to know including who the judges were, posing guidelines, timelines, etc.  Went home, tried to get some sleep, but had a millions things to do like sew my hair extensions and put the final details on my bikini!  The next morning I got up bright and early to get ready, pack all my food for the day, and be ready for my hair stylist who was coming at 6:30 to do my hair! Once hair was done, and my mom had arrived, we said goodbye to my husband and son (who had his very first Tae Kwon Do tournament this same day!) and took the bus to the venue.  Hung around a while, got into my bikini, and then got a second spray tan and my make-up done.  Lots more waiting around as my division was last in the pre-judging show... sooooooo thankful my mom was with me the whole time backstage - we had fun talking, taking silly pics, and people-watching.  Finally it was my time to take the stage... I was in Bikini Tall division and I was one of the shortest :O Our category was the biggest I think with about 20 competitors - we could literally barely all fit on the stage at the same time!  We did our posing and walking, then got split into smaller groups for comparisons.  I wasn't sure how I had done with my posing as bikini posing (as opposed to figure or fitness) is so new to me, but after seeing a video my mom got from it, I felt a lot better - I didn't look like a total spazz - phew!  Since my house was so close to the venue, me and my mom took the bus home and hung out there for about an hour before heading back for the finals.  Backstage atmosphere is always so much more chilled-out in the evening portion of the competition. Bikini was in the middle of the night show so we didn't have as much time to wait, but still enough time for me to get very hungry, thirsty, and worry about my bikini bite stoppping holding my tiny bikini bum down on my cheeks (LOL).  My husband and a few friends were in the audience for the night show so it was a little more scary!  We also got to do our single walks and poses here which I was a little stressed about.  That went fine, but then they did our front and back poses and walks all together as one big group that totally didn't fit on the stage and two of us were basically off stage/behind a podium/then behind a curtain so that was a littly sucky for my friends who had come to see me!  I didn't make top five this time, but it was a very big tough group!  I will know my actual placing once OPA posts the full results on their site sometime soon!  Once I got outta there, I was totally ready to eat some pizza, shower my tan off, and go out to party with my friends at my very favourite salsa club, El Rancho!  Everyone thought I would be too tired to go out after this big day, but I was READY!!!!  It was a fun night out! 

All in all, a great experience... I feel I brought my very best package and was more prepared than ever, which has a lot to do with my totally awesome coach PJ Braun who designed my meal plans, workouts, and held me accountable by looking at my progress pics every week and giving me feedback and motivation!  I also want to thank my incredible mom who encouraged and supported me so much through this whole process eventhough she thinks these competitions are a little crazy (lol!) and spent the whole day and night backstage putting up with me and my zany ways!  Also my husband and son for being there for me day in and day out through this whole process.  And of course my amazing hair stylist, Thomas Kaub and Absolute Touch for the incredible tanning and makeup services!

What's next? After my weekend of sinful eating, I am back onto clean eats and will be back at my beloved gym tomorrow (I've missed it!) as I have a photo shoot with Paul Buceta (a dream come true) for the Miss CHIN Bikini Competition that I am very excited to have gotten into after interviewing for it last week!  Then I will be competing in the Oxygen Model Search at the Toronto Pro Super Show and then the actual Miss CHIN Bikini Competition will be at the end of June!  Very excited about my spring and summer!!!

One Week Out!!!

I'm officially one week out from my first Bikini competition with the Ontario Physique Association!!!  Feeling great and getting totally excited to try out this association and category!  Just working on all the last week beauty details and stuff now, and of course, planning the after-party!!! Check out my vlog to see what I've been up to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY687I3vF8o

Competition Details:

OPA's O'BRIEN LUCHKA MISSISSAUGA CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sat. May 11, 2013
Port Credit Secondary School
Mississauga, ON

www.luchkaobrienclassic.net

Jillian Michaels Comes to T.O!!!

So super-excited that Jillian Michaels is gonna be coming to Toronto for her Maximize Your Life Tour!!!  I absolutely love Jillian's  tough-love atttitude on The Biggest Loser and listen to her podcast every week to hear all her thoughts, ideas, and advice on fitness matters as well as all other aspects of life!  Imagine. Believe. Achieve. These three words lay at the core of Jillian’s message, which is so very close to my own (I remember back a while ago a few of my 12-weekers actually used to jokingly call me Jillian when I would be really getting them to dig deep and finish off a tough set - lol! AWESOME!)  So, as soon as I heard she is putting on a two-hour show, touring with it, and there was a stop in Toronto I knew I had to go! 

The show is described as helping to awaken you to reignite your passion, define your goals and live in your authentic truth.  Sounds exciting!  Who's coming with me May 21??? More info and tickets at http://bit.ly/15RYLr4  Woo-hoo!!!

 

my rant for today: don't be so picky people!

 

Saw this image on someone's Facebook wall (originally from http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151305807845088&set=a.10150772520780088.727054.777280087&type=1#!/pages/The-Social-Deviants/244088568967537) and it reminded me of a blog post I've been meaning to write for a little while now...

 I find it's usually unfit and/or overweight people who have the most pickinesses with what they eat...  They're vegan, gluten-free, only eat organic produce, worry about preservatives and sodium, etc.  These are all valid concerns and I have no issues with being aware of all these issues.  The problem is, I can't take these people too seriously when I know as they are trying to avoid a little extra sodium that might be in a light salad dressing I recommend, they are going and binging on twinkies and chips (they don't seem to worry about the bad stuff in those products!)  I find it very weird that a very overweight person can tell me with a straight face that they try not to eat whole eggs because they have too much fat and cholesterol!

If you are very unfit you should start your healthy eating by just generally being more healthy - adding lots of lean protein, vegetables, healthy fats, and some healthy carbs and keeping proportions in check.  As you get more and more healthy and deep into a fitness lifestyle, you can for sure delve deeper and deeper into all the little intricacies of nutrition and exercise.  But if you are a beginner, make sure to get a good grounding before you start confusing your mind with all these little details and before you arbitrarily start cutting whole food groups out of your diet, becoming a vegan, or 'hating' oatmeal or cottage cheese.  Oh, the last statememnt reminds me of another point - when I do food plans for clients I always ask which foods they do and do not want on their food plan.  Oatmeal and cottage cheese (two wonder foods in my mind) are often the most 'hated'... and I will often ask them about it further as these are staples in my diet usually and they have barely even given them a chance and usually are not all that open to trying them.  So, another point I'd like to make is to stay open to new ideas - don't assume you hate something (especially if you've never tried it!)  Try oatmeal with different combinations of stuff in it for example - I don't love instant oatmeal, but have found steel cut oats to be an awesome way to start my day!  I certainly don't like them on their own - I have had to experiment to find what makes me like them... for me, it's a few raisins, tons of cinnamon, and a spoonful of either flax seeds, hemp hearts, or all-bran!  You could try yogurt, honey, no sugar syrup, applesauce, nut butter, fruit, etc. Cottage cheese can be blended in a blender with herbs and spices to make a tasty protein dipping sauce for veggies, or you can add fruit to it for a nice protein-packed dessert! Get creative and try different things to see what you like, before you jump to the conclusion that you hate a food! And remember, if you say or feel you hate a food, you will hate a food - so keep a positive mindset!

Anyways back to all the picky unfit peeps - try to keep it simple at the start - eat clean foods every 3 - 4 hours, keep watch on portion sizes, and get lots of exercise.  It will work! You will lose weight and get fit if you're consistent and stay with it... don't think that you aren't losing weight because you are eating beef or not taking a million supplements - it's usually because you aren't totally following the plan properly and having cheats all over the place!  If you're super-worried about hormones, preservatives, etc.  Be super-super-worried about eating those Cheetos and Coca-Colas!