Garrison Personal Training

Train to Write

2012-09-24T15:23:00.001-04:00

Hey everyone! I'd like to officially announce my new writing contest, Train-to-Write, currently open for submissions as of Sept. 8th!

The purpose of this contest is to not only encourage people to train more, physically, but get them to write about their experiences more with the intent to help others. First place wins one container of Ultimate Muscle Protein (UMP) powder from Beverly International (valued at $50) and the winning story will also be posted on my blog in December 2012.

The contest runs through Saturday, Nov. 3rd and we're looking for inspirational stories above anything else. If you've never written a personal story before, now's your chance to put yourself out there and possibly get some free feedback. For more information, please visit the website for this contest at www.saragarrison.wix.com/traintowritecontest.

Good luck!

-- Sara :)

A Full Plate

2012-09-07T13:06:00.001-04:00

I know. I know. It's been awhile since I've posted... I've already heard it from a few of my friends. "When are you going to post again? I'm bored at work," and, "It's been "x" days since you've written anything. Get to work!" But you know, just like anyone else, I have a lot on my plate. I work - and I've been working - 45 to 50 hours a week at my full-time job, training 1-2 times a day, 5-6 days a week at the gym, working with my greeting card publisher to get another contract, getting my car fixed, trying to have a social life, etc, etc, etc. And, on top of that, I landed a meeting with the Editor of the Indianapolis Monthly to pitch some freelance ideas, I'm starting my first-ever writing contest about health/fitness (I'll touch more on that tomorrow) and I just got cast to be in a golf commercial next week! So, needless to say, I needed a break - and I'm glad I had one. Now, more than ever, I feel motivated to keep doing what I've been doing... and then some!

So, I haven't been the greatest eater this week. I actually decided last week to wait until March to compete again, so that IS one thing I don't have to worry about immediately. However, that does NOT mean, in any way, I'm giving up. I just need to get my other "ducks" in a row before I can give that full focus. Not only can I breathe a little and check some smaller things off of my list, I truly feel I can do a better job if I don't rush the process. Anyway, back to my point: I haven't been the best eater. But you know, once you start eating healthy and you realize how good it makes you feel, you don't mess around as much with junk food and that's exactly what happened to me. I let myself have a few cookies yesterday, a croissant this morning... and now I'm over it. LOL. My goals haven't changed and I'm not weak by any means, I just needed a break.

Last night, I went to the store and got a lot of great things: pork loin, ground turkey (99% lean), sweet potatoes, vegetables, eggs, etc. and I'm excited to set aside a few moments tonight to get everything prepped for the weekend. I do have a new "friend" in my life and we've talked about getting pasta tomorrow night and one of his favorite restaurants, but other than that, it's all lean protein, fresh produce, etc, the rest of the weekend. And you know, this is how you get over the slump of being bored with food and wanting to binge, you fill up your plate with a wide variety of things, much like daily life. I know, myself, I would get bored if I only got up each day and went to work. Instead, I'd rather "get a taste" of everything I like. So, just like my current schedule, I'm going to try to include smaller portions of 4 or 5 different items at my larger meals, i.e. half a chicken breast, half a sweet potato, a few stalks of asparagus, a spoonful of peanut butter and so on.

Just like there's no rule book stating you have to only work, eat and sleep, there's nothing stating you can only have three big items on your plate at dinner. (You also don't have to finish everything on your plate, regardless of what your mom used to tell you!) Variety is the spice of life and sometimes it takes trying a lot of different things to see what you like and also, what will motivate you to keep up your good habits. Sometimes, yes, I wish for more hours in the day, but many times, the night closes in and I'm thankful I get to go to sleep and wake up the next day (hopefully) with a brand new start. Sure, I haven't been that great at my diet the last few days, but tomorrow is another day with a whole new list of interests and responsibilities. Trust me, instead of complaining about all I have to do, I'm thankful that I have a lot of options to choose from... and that I finally started using bigger plates. :)

11 Weeks: Kentucky Muscle

2012-08-22T19:58:00.002-04:00

[Sigh] I'm stressing out. Not like I'm worrying 24/7... but I find myself all over the place this week. For Northern KY, at 11 Weeks Out, I was actually starting to feel lighter. Right now, at 11 Weeks Out from KY Muscle, I know I am lighter than last week, but I just have more ground to cover this time around. I also have a lot more on my plate. For the last show, I was working only 30 hours at the office and training a handful of clients a week. (So, in addition to my OWN training, I was jumping in with my client workouts.) For this show, I'm sitting at a desk 40 hours a week, plus 5-10 hours of overtime on the couch at home.

Regardless, I've been dieting/training for competition already for 5 weeks and I've lost 16 pounds. I now have 10-11 weeks to lose another 30 to be exactly where I want to be for stage. Worst case scenario, in my book, is that I only lose 25 pounds and come in similar to where I was the last show. Then I have another 4 months to get to my ideal by Northern KY in March. THEN I'm maintaining my weight, plus or minus 8-10 pounds, year round. I know I can't control what happens in the future - with my back, my knee, etc - but it's just too hard to hold all of that weight on my frame and it's even harder to get it off after every injury. All I can hope for is that, here on out, I keep improving, regardless of what happens... whether it's 11 weeks, 11 days or 11 years from now.

Blood, Sweat and Tears

2012-08-14T15:35:00.001-04:00

I got made fun of the other day, which is nothing new. LOL. I don't set myself up for things... It's almost as if the people around me have a sixth sense and know to ask something I don't have the answer to. For instance, I had brunch with a friend on Sunday. He's a big CrossFit buff and, in turn, major advocate of the Paleo Diet. So, while we were on the subject of nutrition, he asked me what my blood type was. What? I felt the question came out of left field. Honestly, I didn't know. "Please tell me you at least know your social security number," he poked at me. Yes, I know my social security number. I didn't, however, know my blood type. I used to know it, in high school, but hadn't thought about it in awhile, I explained. He told me I needed to look into a diet based around my blood type... AND that he hoped I never got into a car accident and needed a blood transfusion. [Sigh]

So, the whole conversation got me thinking: At what point does someone have all of the answers for you?" I say this because there's so much information out there and numerous beliefs on diet, exercise, body type, blood type, standing on your head drinking shakes and cutting water and plyometrics and so on and such. No wonder my clients were always confused when they just started their fitness journey. Heck, I've been dabbling in the industry for years and I still get paralyzed by all of the things there are to learn. I mean, it's even harder when I have conversations with my peers because I realize the majority of us have the same goal, we're all just drinking from different glasses of the Kool Aid. What ever happened to "calories in, calories out?" That's always been the simple way to start people out in my eyes. I know there's a lot more to it than that, but at what point do we make people throw their hands up and say, "Forget it. I'd rather eat pizza and play Skee-ball at Dave and Busters." Trust me, I'm open to whatever works when it comes to looking and feeling my best, but at what point do I have to close my ears and just go with my gut, to get rid of my gut?

As I mentioned in my previous post, yesterday was a really hard day for me. But after I signed out, put the laptop away and took a deep breath, I realized, at 9:30 p.m. that the day could still be salvaged. I figured if I was going to be miserable with tears streaming down my face, I was at least going to burn some fat, too. So, I changed into my workout clothes, pushed the coffee table out of the way and did 35 minutes of a kickboxing video. My poor roommate... Not only does she have to listen to the SAME video instruction over and over as she tries to relax in her room, but I'm sure it has to be depressing to hear me sniffling and sobbing, in addition to my normal huffing and puffing... Thank goodness she understands. She may not be able to relate to a super strict diet or being tired after two-a-day workouts, but she certainly can empathize with pain. Can't we all?

So, for some, the "correct" formula may be the blood and the sweat; for others, it may be the sweat and the tears. Some take what's worked for them for years; others change technique as often as they change gym clothes. The bottom line is we're all at different stages of the process and everyone has various bits of knowledge to bring to the table. Until you hear more, read more or see more than what you know already, just do what you can to get as far as you can. I think everyone, at this point, can agree that a good diet and active lifestyle get you closer to a healthy, fit body, so let that be your starting point and don't stress. Do circuit training... don't do circuit training. Lift 3xs a week... don't lift, but do yoga. Drink the Kool Aid; don't drink the Kool Aid. It's all up to you. Just like today can still be salvaged, we all still have lots to learn. No ones ever going to have all the answers for you. The best you can do is ask questions, learn what you can and take a deep breath. If all else fails, just sweat it out, cry... and be grateful for those who just let you.

Uphill, Both Ways

2012-08-13T21:06:00.003-04:00

I'd be lying if I said today was a great day. I'm feeling the weight of a lot of things coming down on me and, honestly, the fact that it's 9pm and I made it through today, makes me ecstatic...

You know those stories your parents/grandparents used to tell about walking to school, in 6 feet of snow, uphill both ways? As they're describing to you how awful they "used to have it," we all used to roll our eyes and say, "Come on. No way was it that bad!" I guarantee you if I listed all of the ways I "have it bad" right now, you would roll your eyes and say, "That's nothing!" But to me - and to all of us having a bad day - it's very real. The pain is felt; the emotions are overwhelming. The one good thing about the end of a terrible day: There's another beginning starting the next day. That is, if we're one of the lucky ones who get another day.

With that said, I'd like to say Happy Birthday to my late father who would've been 63 today if he was here with us. Two and a half years ago, sadly, he had a heart attack and passed away. If he were here now, he'd give me a pep talk - probably tell me something about history, law enforcement or Ghost Hunters on the Sci Fi channel and I'd at least feel encouraged that there was still a lot in this life left to learn... so much to be excited about... so much we still didn't understand and probably never would. You see, my dad may not have always had the warm and fuzzies, but he did always have the answers. He always knew how to do something and if he didn't, he'd do his research and get back to you. It saddens me to think that, one day, when I have children, he won't be around to teach them all of those brainy things that excited him, even up until the day he died. There are many people, in fact, that will miss out on his knowledge...

So, I'm going to suck up the bad day and move forward - not just because I'm dieting, training, prepping, etc - but because I'm a "big girl" who has to get on with her life without her Dad. Because that's what he'd want me to do. He may not have always understood my taste in men, my desire to strut around on stage in a bikini (most dads don't!) or my go-with-the-flow career choices, but he did understand what it meant to get up every day, go to work, do your best and strive to be better, smarter, stronger etc. So the next time your parent/grandparent tells you a story that makes you want to roll your eyes and get up from the table, take the time to listen because, whether you realize it or not, that day is a good day because they're there with you.

Love as often as you can, learn as much as you can... and never take any of it for granted. Walking uphill, both ways may not make any sense, but it does give you stronger legs to stand on with each and every climb.

12 Weeks: Kentucky Muscle

2012-08-11T22:47:00.000-04:00

Well, it's that time again! The countdown has begun...

For those of you just joining, I am 12 weeks out from NPC Kentucky Muscle (11/03/12). The picture you see on the left was when I was 12 weeks out from the last show I did: NPC Northern Kentucky (02/2011). The picture on the right was taken this morning (08/11/12). The reason I'm putting them side by side: When I competed at Northern KY, I kept thinking to myself, "If I'd only had 3 or so more weeks of prep, I think I could have had my midsection where I wanted it to be." The only way I'll know this time if I'm "beating" myself is to compare week to week and hope that by 3/4 weeks out, my abs will look like they did the day of the last show. If they do, I think there's a good chance I'll be where I want to be for KY Muscle.

I know right now it looks like I'm comparing apples to oranges, but I really do expect bigger changes this time around. I think even in the next few weeks, you'll see the picture on the right outshine the one on the left, for multiple reasons: 1) My diet is way more strict than it was last time, 2) I'm taking better supplements and I'm more diligent when it comes to timing of shakes, carb loads, etc and 3) I've upped my cardio, including adding more two-a-day sessions. So wish me luck! Pictures don't lie...

Work With Watcha Got

2012-08-10T16:18:00.001-04:00

What I'm about to say, I usually don't say often, but I'll say it today. Today, "I was not prepared." And I mean for anything that was going to happen in my schedule. Last night I went home, got a few things done, grocery shopped and PASSED OUT on the couch. I woke up once, at 4am, when my roommate let her dog outside, but as soon as she went back to bed, I turned on my side, hugged the US Weekly that had been laying on my chest and was out again. I hardly ever do that - fall asleep on the couch the ENTIRE night - but yesterday, after an intense lunch workout - and really, after a long week - I just couldn't move.

So I woke up this morning LATE, of course (I didn't know I was going to sleep, so I certainly didn't set an alarm!) and had 20 minutes to shower and get out the door. No time to boil eggs, bake chicken, pan sear asparagus, make coffee, etc. I just filled up a Blender Bottle with protein powder for my lunch workout, grabbed a bottled water and flew out the door. Lucky for me, I work for a company big enough to have its own cafeteria. Once I got to my office, opened my email and made sure my little part of the department was in good shape, I ran off to "hunt and gather" what I could before my large intestine devoured my small one... and before I caved in and grabbed the convenient ham, cheese and egg "Mc Muffin" at the coffee cart next door. (Man, those are good.)

Now, the hard boiled eggs at work are terrible (really dry and "packagy" tasting), but this was my punishment for slacking off, I suppose. I grabbed two containers of those (2 eggs per package), a slice of multi-grain toast, a tiny Smucker's packet of peanut butter, a banana and a plain, black coffee. Not bad for last minute. Normally I wouldn't have the peanut butter at breakfast; Normally I would somewhat enjoy the egg whites. But it was all I had, so I had to work with it. When all was said and done, my body couldn't have known that I didn't go through the motions as usual and that's what matters anyway. I think sometimes people get themselves mentally psyched out about detouring from schedule and then their day is done for. Instead, you just have to keep going.

At lunch I did a workout, as usual, and had a protein shake, as usual, but now I had to fight that crazy, concrete jungle that is a fast food drive-through to make it through the rest of the day. (Remember, when I left the house originally, I had nothing food wise.) When days like this happen, I'm always thankful for Wendy's. Not that I don't have acceptable options elsewhere. It's just Wendy's tends to work out best for me - chicken-wise, drink-wise, side-wise... Word to the wise... Just kidding. Bad fast food joke... Actually, bad joke in general. Everyone caught the sarcasm in that, right? Hmm. (Sometimes I forget I'm not in front of you making the facial expressions and hand gestures that make that stuff work.) Oh well...

Anyway, here's what I collected for $10.99: 2 Ultimate Chicken Grill Sandwiches, 1 Plain Baked Potato and 1 Diet Coke. Honestly, if you break that down, at the store I usually pay anywhere from $5-$6 for 2 chicken breasts, a dollar or so for 1 potato, a dollar-something for a small bottle of Diet Coke + tax. So, if I look at it that way, for the items I got, I really got them for the same price with the addition of, like, a $2 "convenience fee." (That's how I look at the extra cost since I wasn't prepared the night before.) Once again, I wasn't too far off track from my normal routine. Normally I wouldn't eat a baked potato; Normally I wouldn't put dijon mustard on the chicken. But I didn't have my normal marinade on there, so I held onto that little extra.

To sum all of this up, the picture you see above is how I "customized" my order, at my desk, in order to get everything I needed. On the right, my chicken is "naked" of the bun, keeping the lettuce and tomato. On the left, I got the baked potato plain and, for a few bites, I drizzled a little bit of ketchup just to break up the dryness of it. I had my Diet Coke, but I also had tons of water. The good news is that I had a fresh stash of multivitamins and Lean Out in my purse, so I didn't have to skimp on supplements. Then, at 3:30pm, when I felt weak again, I had the other piece of chicken with lettuce and tomato. Since I'm going home after work, before the gym, I'll be able to "regroup," grab another shake and get focused again.

Sometimes you're not going to have everything you need when you need it. Sometimes, you just have to work with what you've got and keep moving forward. Just like a detour on the interstate, you may have to take a road parallel to your normal route for a little while, to get around the mess, then you're back up to speed once you get back on at the next exit. Don't let one setback hold you back all day, is what I'm saying. In the whole scheme of things, it's really not that big of a deal. Besides, your body needs change - welcomes it actually - and from time to time, doing something different makes you appreciate the days that you have everything figured out, even if it's just your food. (Lord knows nothing else in my life is figured out!) Work with watcha got and what you'll get is still going to be amazing. Happy Friday Everybody! :)

Cheater Cheater, Sushi Eater

2012-08-03T15:58:00.002-04:00

I have to give myself a quick pat on the back. I am really doing well, this prep, with self control. Yes, I may complain about a lot or obsess about things I can't eat right now, but the bottom line is: I'm not giving in. Now, every Friday OR Saturday, I'll do a cheat meal, but that's standard. And, I'm not going too crazy with it. That was one thing I was TERRIBLE with when I did my first show in 2001: I "negotiated" way too much with myself. I mean, I "granted" myself two cheat DAYS and, when I say cheat day, I mean cheat day - pizza, tacos, etc. Now, at this stage of the game, I'm in tune with at least one concept: I may cry, pout, sigh, wince, whine and balk, but when it comes to cheating during training - yes, I get ONE shot each week to get it out of my system - but I still have to make it "good" in order to keep my overall goal in check.

With this said, the trend I've been on the last few weeks is grabbing ONE roll of sushi as the week comes to a close. The grocery store I go to in Indy has really good sushi, so it's actually convenient, too. My routine is that I only eat half of the roll, put the other half away and, if I still want more a couple of hours later, I go back to it. If I don't, I just toss it (gasp!) and move on. I've been working way too hard to just "eat to eat" or "cheat to cheat." As much as I can toss emotion out of the equation (and that's so hard to do!), I do it. If I do succeed in rejecting the second half of the roll then I give myself another "pack on the back" by having a drink or two if I'm out with my friends on Saturday or I'll sneak a peanut butter cup late in the day on Sunday.

Believe me, there are so many factors in my life that could "break me" right now, but I have to keep my eye on the prize. If I'm going to be sad, I'm going to cry as hard as I can, get it out and move on. If I'm going to show up for a workout, I'm going to push out as many reps as I can and build up. But when it comes to "treating" myself, I know I just have to be careful. The real "treat" will come November 3rd when I look good, feel good and show everyone else the reward you get for making sacrifices. As they say, "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels," and I agree... Except for Fridays. You see, on Friday, "Sushi trumps skinny." Because it's my one and only "cheat" shot and, yes, I'm taking it. :)

What I'm Buying... Again! (Supplements)

2012-08-02T14:04:00.004-04:00

Well, it's only been a month and I'm already through my first container of UMP (Ultimate Muscle Protein) from Beverly International. I use it at least twice a day, so it was inevitable it wouldn't last long. I must say, it's really good! The true test for me - that this protein passed - is that it blends very well in a shaker cup. That's crucial! For someone like me who has "texture" issues when I eat, if something doesn't blend well then it's definitely not going to sit well with me! UMP is the only protein I can honestly say blends without a blender. And I've tried many brands... I'm sold!

So, today I placed another order for UMP AND this time I'm trying out their "fat transport" product, Lean Out as well.

I've heard really positive things about this product. It's not a fat burner, so it won't give you the "jitters."

Here's a blurb, explaining more about it, from Beverly's website:

"Lean Out; belongs to a new category of supplements known as "fat transporters", so-named because it contains ingredients that support the extraction of fat from adipose tissue (the tissue where almost all fat is stored in the body) and its transport to tissues like the liver and muscle where it can be burned for energy. It provides a mega dose of natural occurring lipotropics (fat mobilizers), fat catalysts and related insulin stabilizing cofactors that are instrumental in the metabolism of fats. In a nutshell, the nutrients in Lean Out help your body retrieve fat out of storage and utilize it as energy."

If anyone else wants to share their opinion on either of these products, feel free to do so!

The Three-Layer "Chicken" Cake

2012-08-01T11:07:00.000-04:00

Oh my, have I had cake on the brain lately! [Sigh] It didn't help that, yesterday, I had to grab some wheat bagel thins from the bread/bakery area of the grocery store and the woman behind the counter was loading a 3-tiered chocolate cake with white, sugary icing. It was enough to break me. I was THIS close to tossing the bagels aside and saying, "Listen, I don't know who that cake is for, but I'll pay you double what they did to take it off your hands NOW." LOL. But I was good... I gave the cake one more quick glance and walked off to get more eggs. It took everything I had, once I had eggs, to not grab a box of cake mix, but that's beside the point.

So, I went home to bake my chicken and a thought hit me. You know, I can make my own "cake," even though it won't come close to tasting like chocolate, icing OR fudge. When times get rough, you just have to get creative, I thought to myself. And that's when I decided to throw together a new concept: The Three-Layer "Chicken" Cake!

It's so simple AND it's stuff I already eat. I've just changed the presentation of it. You see, I love these little square, plastic Glad containers. They fit perfectly in my cooler and they're great for portion control. All I did was 1) bake my chicken in the BBQ Soak I mentioned in a previous post and cut into small pieces, 2) heat up my Steamfresh Brown Rice and pour half of the bag onto the chicken and 3) cut up some green pepper, toss it in a skillet with pepper for about 5-6 minutes and loaded it on top... Much like icing! [Another Sigh]

Cutting out "fun" things from your diet can be a drag sometimes, but I have to admit, as I "layered" these items together last night for my lunch today, I did get a little excited to try them in a different format. I actually saw this concept in a magazine a few weeks ago where someone did this with their salad mix, toppings and dressing. Furthermore, when it comes to rice cakes, protein "goo" and candy bits, I think I may do this on the day of the competition as my "sugar rush" before the show. Still, with all of that said, even if you're not dieting strictly right now, you can still do this trick with snacks, meals and desserts just to shake things up. It may not be cake to eat, but it sure is a "piece of cake" to make. And... at least that's something! :)

Crashing From the High

2012-07-30T09:30:00.000-04:00

"I'm hurtin'..." This is what I'm thinking Saturday night in Nashville while I'm out with a group having drinks. I haven't had a significant amount of sugar in about 3 weeks and I just downed a strawberry margarita over the course of 15 minutes - without food. It wasn't the alcohol, I assure you. The drink was soooo sweet (good, but sweet!) and my body just wasn't used to it. However, it was my cheat meal and since I wasn't in the mood for a rum and diet coke, I went for the fruity stuff... and then it all went downhill.

When it first hit me, I was sitting at the table - my head started pounding and I broke out into a cold sweat. I excused myself, went to the bathroom and splashed some water on my face. After a couple minute "cooldown," I felt somewhat better, so I went back to the table. Not two minutes into conversation, I started sweating again and, believe it or not, I felt a little dizzy. So I confessed to my friend, "I think I'm going to throw up," and once again left the table. My heart was beating rapidly in my chest, I was focusing on deep breaths, and as I hovered over the sink trying to "brace myself" for the possible worst, I kept wondering if it was all worth it: diving into something so good that, ultimately, was going to make me feel terrible. This time, after some cold water on my arms and face, I went back to the table and was able to balance out. The food came, I drank a lot of water and in no time, I was back to myself.

"I'm hurtin'..." This is what I'm thinking Sunday afternoon, driving alone, back to Indiana. I haven't had that "this-person-is-amazing-for-me" feeling in a very long time and about a month ago, the last time I was in Nashville, I started feeling that for someone I reconnected with after years of not seeing them. (I rarely talk about my personal life unless it has a point, of course. And this time, like any other time it's come up in the past, I do.) Just like my body didn't know what to do with the sugar in my drink, I now don't know what to do with the excitment in my heart. This, you see, isn't just as simple as splashing water on my face for 5 minutes. This is something that's a little more complicated...

Living life "down the middle" is the safe way to go: you never get too invested; likewise, you never get too disappointed. This is my "preferred" method of operating with some things - usually with relationships and, sometimes, work. Training, writing, singing - I've always been all or nothing. I know that, in order to get big rewards, I have to take big risks. It hasn't paid off often, but when it has, it's been worth it. When it comes to the feeling I have right now for this person, a big part of me - the majority of my body - is sweating it out. Likewise, my heart is pounding and I'm bracing myself for the worst. It's all a lot for me to absorb right now. I'm training for a show, I'm working a lot of overtime and, oh yeah, I'm 300 miles away from someone I really care about.

When I "came down" from the high that I had at Northern KY 2011, I'd never felt worse in my life. That day was one of my greatest - ever - and it was hard for me to not want to relive it over and over again. I took a big risk for that teeny tiny moment; I put myself out there and had a great time. But the feeling was only temporary and I couldn't help but feel this sense of loss after that. I don't regret doing it, though. Living down the middle in every aspect of your life keeps you from really finding happiness and I don't want to miss out on true happiness. I know that. But I do have a lot to think about... The good thing about the drink "high" was that, after I crashed, I was back to normal again in no time. This "other" high, however, is throwing me all over the place, every day, all day long, and I see it affecting other areas of my life, which isn't bad if this person and I are on the same page.

The problem with being "all in" with relationships, as opposed to going to an audition or competing in a show, is that there's someone else that has to be "all in" to balance things out. I really want it all to balance out, but I have no control over someone else and what they're feeling. And that's really hard to deal with... Food, workouts, cholesterol/sugar levels: I can control all of that. With everything else, I guess I just to have to feel what I'm feeling - alternating happiness and sickness (as crazy as that sounds) - until things balance themselves out.

Sure, I could withdraw and say it's not worth it, but I would be lying to myself. I want this... just like I want to compete again; just like I want to be truly happy - not just for a day, but for at least a week or a month. Ha. :) I guess if I fail, I just have to find away to get "back to me" again. But honestly, I can't go back there again... letting relationships flow down the middle while other areas of my life are taking risks. I want more than that; I feel I deserve more than that. And I'll keep crashing until I get where I want to be... No matter how bad it hurts.

The Breakdown

2012-07-27T13:52:00.003-04:00

Image Credit: http://trainerjosh.com/nutrition/the-7-best-muscle-building-foods/

Recently I posted on Facebook that I was down 10 pounds after 2 weeks of training. After that, I received a lot of messages asking what I was doing/eating/smelling (OK the "smelling" part I added for fun) to lose that much in such a short period of time. The answer I gave everyone, no one liked. LOL. And no one does! I don't like it and I'm the one doing it! The simple answer was, "Think of all the things you don't want to do [in terms of diet and exercise] and just do them." For some, that clicked. They're now thinking, "I know I'm not doing/eating what I'm supposed to... I know what I'm supposed to do... Maybe now I'll do it." For others, I sort of feel I need to expand on that answer. Sometimes I forget - just like many trainers do - that many people are new to this whole entire process. This is why my work is never done... And I'm perfectly OK with that!

So, my post today most likely won't interest anyone who is a trainer, competitor, athlete, etc. That doesn't mean you're banned from reading onward. I'm just trying to save you time. The worst feeling as a blogger is for someone to get to the end of a post and say to themselves, "I just wasted 5 minutes of my life. I learned that stuff when I was in high school/college/sports, blah, blah, blah." In fact, for those trainers who have NO experience with the world of competition, this may actually be a good post for you, at least in regards to diet. Or, for my fellow competitors, maybe this is a way for you to see what I'm doing and make suggestions. (I know the advanced competitors usually do anyway!) I will add a disclaimer that, when it comes to specifics of any diet, no one is going to like the same things. With that said, if you like the overall diet (I should rephrase that because no one will like it), don't be scared if you see an item or two that you just can't stand. In that situation, feel free to email me and ask for a substitution. I don't believe in "stomaching" anything just because it's part of someone else's diet. The process is hard enough as it is...

This "breakdown" is going to be simple and to the point. It's a sample diet. I don't eat the same things every day and I don't always follow the same order. Just like I used to tell my clients, don't feel like you have to change everything overnight. Maybe for week one, you use "my" breakfast in place of "your" breakfast? Or maybe you're eating a "heavier" version of an item (sauce, marinade, etc) that you can swap out for my lighter option? The point of this whole breakdown is to answer your question: How am I losing weight so fast... And just so we're clear: 1) There's no magic pill, 2) I DON'T have good genetics, what-so-ever (in fact I have a thyroid disease) and 3) If you alter my program (in regards to removing a workout or throwing in a Whopper), you alter the quickness of the results. (Doesn't mean it won't happen... But it MAY not happen as fast.) Finally, if you really don't know what you're doing, please ask me questions OR invest in a Personal Trainer/Nutritionist/Mentor in your area. I don't want anyone to feel light-headed, get injured, etc.

OK, here we go:

Sample Diet/Training Schedule (Weekday)

6:00 a.m. - Wake up and drink a half bottle of water with thyroid pill

6:30 a.m. - Drink plain, black coffee (no creams, sugars, syrups, etc) while I'm getting ready

7:15 a.m. - Eat 1 Whole Hard Boiled Egg, 3 Hard Boiled Egg Whites, 1/2 Whole Wheat Bagel "Thin" (Every other day I drizzle 1 teaspoon of honey on it; Otherwise, it's plain)

10:30 a.m. - 1 Banana & either Protein Bar or Protein "Goo" (Protein powder, Peanut Butter, Honey and Water mixed into a paste and chilled); 1 Multivitamin; 1 Glucosamine

11:30 a.m. - First Cardio Session (30 Minutes - Goal: Burn between 200-300 calories)

12:15 p.m. - 1 Scoop UMP (Ultimate Muscle Protein Powder) with Water in Shaker Cup

1:00 p.m. - Grilled Chicken Breast (Water-Based Marinade) with 1 Cup Brown Rice

4:00 p.m. - Baked Tilapia (Basted with thin layer of Light Mayo and Pepper) and Broccoli

6:00 p.m. - Second Cardio Session (30-45 Min) or 30 Min. Weights + 10 Min. Cardio

6:45 p.m. - 1 Scoop Ump blended with Water

8:00 p.m. - Either Scrambled Egg/Egg Whites with a "drip" of Skim Milk & Pepper OR 1/2 Chicken Breast and Asparagus

10:30 p.m. - Sleep

Questions/Comments/Thoughts? Email me at sara_garrison@hotmail.com. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Feelin' the Burn

2012-07-26T09:08:00.000-04:00

Image Credit: http://www.angrytrainerfitness.com/

This morning I burnt myself on a flat iron. Ouch times a hundred! I HATE burns and paper cuts and, lucky for me, I was fortunate enough to get both in one week... and on the same hand. :) But I'm trying to look on the bright side... A friend of mine told me yesterday that she read in the news that a guy at a bar last weekend lit his head on fire, while he was drunk, and is now in ICU. I figure things could be a lot worse...

As much as it sucks, I'm going to have to suffer through this pain, at least until lunch because the burn gel I normally use when stuff like this happens has been expired for 2 years and the "cooling" sensation it normally provides has long worn off. In fact, if I wasn't looking at the color or consistency, I would've thought someone had put neosporin and a bandaid on it. There was so much heat! Ahhh!

So, I stopped at the grocery this morning to pick up a new tube of my normal stuff, or at least something similar, and they had nada. Sure, there was a Bactine-like spray as an option, but I needed the good, "hard" stuff - the gel. Oh well, I'm a big girl. I can handle a little bit of "heat" I'm sure...

After this happened today, I started thinking about the pain I've put myself through, in general, this week. In fact, Tuesday, you would've thought I enjoyed pain: my legs hurt sooo bad after the workouts I pushed out. In that case, feelin' the "burn" isn't such a bad thing, even though sometimes we stop ourselves just before we get to that point. Yesterday, in fact, I wasn't as aggressive with my workouts and it felt a little dull (expired, if you want to stick to the "gel" analogy)...

Saying this, my motivation for today is to realize that, just as my legs feel better after a couple of days of rest, the heat will soon escape from under the skin of my left ring finger and I'll move on to the next thing as if nothing happened at all. I want to keep this in mind the next time I want to stop a workout early - that the pain of working hard and building muscle is nothing compared to the "stupid" pain we feel when we stub a toe on a bed rail, catch a finger in a door jam or burn ourselves on a hair styling tool.

No, with this pain, you'll wake up the next day and feel stronger, look better and gain confidence... So don't be afraid to wince. Don't be afraid to sweat. Don't be afraid of the pain... just feel it and look forward to it. It's certainly better than the alternative: not feeling anything at all. And what kind of workout - or life - would that be? Feel the burn = Get stronger.

Message from Beachbody...

2012-07-25T14:24:00.002-04:00

For all of my Beachbody readers/believers/fans, I received an email today from Beachbody stating the following:

"I just wanted to touch base with you to share some exciting news. We are in the process of developing an Asylum Volume 2 Workout. This is still very fresh news... We are still unsure of an exact date for the release, but it will be available some time this Fall!

Here's the link:

http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/insanity-the-asylum-volume-2-elite-training-workout.do.

The Insanity Asylum workout is so popular, we're really excited to share Volume 2!"

If any of you still have any questions after looking at the website, let me know and I'll see if I can get some answers for you!

- Sara

Two for Two

2012-07-24T11:01:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm at the end of Week 2 and I've lost another 2 pounds. It's a good feeling because I was able to maintain the loss from last week, build some muscle AND drop some weight. I should be nervous because I'm starting at a higher weight than last prep at 15 weeks out, but I'm not. My diet is a good 15-20% more strict than last time, I'm using better products and I've upped my cardio quite a bit already. If I can just stay focused, I'm confident I'll at least look better than I did at NKY 2011. That, to me, is a victory!

Now comes the fun part. In about 3 weeks - at 12 weeks out - I'm going to start posting progression pics again. Last year, I believe I shared the final 6 weeks of prep before NKY, but on Facebook, I'd already been doing it for awhile. This year I'm going to do a side-by-side comparison of pics from last prep to this prep, week to week. Even I get excited about stuff like that because it's hard to take a look at yourself every day in the mirror and see a difference. But pictures, they don't lie! :)

So, while I'm still in the initial stages of prep, I'm wondering if anyone else is aiming for a similar goal? And, if not, would you like to? It's still not too late to do a 12-week commitment. It doesn't mean you have to compete or even do everything perfectly, it's just one way you can stay focused on the "prize." Feel free to email me with your commitments to sara_garrison@hotmail.com. Good luck!

What I'm Watching (Workout DVD)

2012-07-23T16:56:00.000-04:00

Like most people, I'm a fan of yoga. I don't do it everyday, BUT I do like it. The only problem is, I often get bored if the class/instructor is too "soft" and quiet. Many would argue this is the main purpose of yoga: to reflect and relax. I, on the other hand, like the flexibility that increases each time I do it as well as the challenges that come with holding your own body weight in various positions.

That's why I'm a HUGE fan of Jillian Michaels Yoga Meltdown. I actually picked up this DVD a couple of years ago and used it twice a week, minimum, when I was training for Northern KY (right now I'm at once a week). It's not only fun (there's movement "within" many of the poses), but Jillian doesn't make me want to snooze with her instructional tone either. In fact, she actually morphs through various personalities as the video moves along: motherly, sarcastic - serious, yet motivational. I know sometimes people shy away from "celebrity" trainers (Is she a trainer or just a pretty face?), but in my personal opinion of Jillian, I'd say she earned her "celebrity" status because she's actually really good at what she does. It's one of very few videos I would actually replace if anything ever happened to the original copy. I'll put it that way!

Now, in terms of difficulty, I'd say it's a 7 or 8 (not because of the instruction or the ability to learn everything quickly) because you really need to have at least a basic level of yoga down first, even if you choose the first workout (there are two total) on the disc. Otherwise, if you have that basic knowledge of the poses and you've done at least a month's worth - give or take - of other cardio training, you're ready to dive into this routine. All you'll need is a yoga mat, at least a few feet of moving room to each side of it and you're good to go. Let me know what you think!

My advice: For beginners, try it twice a week for two weeks then either 1) Go to three times a week at the same intensity or 2) Try workout #2 once then go back and perfect workout #1 for a few more weeks. For moderate to advanced "yogis," I would do twice a week for a week, three times a week for a week then "follow Bashira." (That will all make sense once you watch the video) OR, switch to workout #2 for the last few weeks.

Fuzzy Pants and Rainbows

2012-07-20T15:37:00.001-04:00

Ah, Precor Elliptical Crosstrainer, you fit like a glove... :)

I have these really great fleece, flare lounge pants from American Eagle, I bought last fall, that I will wear until the day that I die. (Or lose another 5 pounds, whichever comes first!) I feel like they were made just for me. You know how sometimes a clothing item will be just a little too tight in certain places or they just don't conform to your body... ever? Even after a few washes? Well, the moment I tried these things on in the store, I knew it was a match made in heaven. I mean, I can even wear them to bed now, in the summer (of course, the Roommate and I keep the place at a frozen tundra temperature, so it's not like the pants are magical or more realistically, climate controlled) and that's what I usually do - wear them to bed, at least a few times a week.

So, last night was one of those nights I pulled them out of the clean laundry and knew I would be a very happy, comfy camper. And not every night is like that, no matter how much I try to duplicate the feeling with other clothing items. The thing is, I have other lounge pants; I even have other fleece, lounge pants - but this pair is special. There's not another pair out there like them. (And, trust me, I tried to buy more after realizing how great they were and discovered they sold out quickly.) Still, just like any other scenario in life, if you get too much of a good thing, it loses its luster. Due to that, I will usually wear my AE pants for a couple of nights, switch to something different for a night or two then go back to them.

I bring up this odd topic because I also have a very specific piece of gym equipment that "forms" to my body every day at lunchtime, Monday through Friday. It's become my "routine:" 30 minutes on the Precor Elliptical Crosstrainer; Crossramp Setting - 6, Resistance - 5. Now this changes, of course, depending on how my knees are feeling, but truthfully, this is the single, best piece of equipment I've found for my knees that also burns lots of calories. (Sorry, I had no intention of rhyming there, but we'll roll with it.) For that particular setting, a 30-minute workout sheds about 275 calories and I actually have FUN while I'm doing it. You see, at a higher crossramp, you're really mimicking the motion of a Stairstepper (which I can't do the actual Stairstepper because it hurts my knees), but your feet are springing up into the negative part of the rep (the positive is pushing downward) almost as if you were pushing off of the floor in an adult version of one of those little doorway jumpers for babies. LOL. I just turn on my up-tempo music, step to the beat and before I know it, I'm done and feeling good! :)

Well, today I go to the gym at lunch and, you guessed it, none of "my" crosstrainers are available. In fact, there was this little girl (I say "little," but she was probably mid-twenties... just short, that's all) in the locker room that got dressed just ONE second ahead of me and ended up on the fifth - and last - open crosstrainer. Of course, I'm an adult so I had to just "go with it." (Pouting is rarely cute on children; NEVER attractive for adults) So, I casually walked past the row of occupied crosstrainers, as well as the girl as she was "setting up" her station, and moved on to another area: the bikes. Truth be told, I haven't spent as much time on the bikes as I need to, but it's hard to break away from the most comfortable item in your bag of tricks sometimes. (Now does the pant story make sense? LOL) But since I could see the "silver lining" in the clouds, I told myself I would "re-visit" a few gym items I've been purposely avoiding.

So after biking at a moderate speed on a spinning bike for 15 minutes, I decided to switch to the more challenging elliptical, with the moving arm levers, for 15 minutes. (It's only become challenging to me because I never use it AND because the forward motion - instead of up and down - always seems to be harder on my left knee.) Once I'd "put in my time," it was back to the locker room, where the "little" girl was already packing up her stuff and internally, I felt a tiny sense of envy. (Did I mention the crosstrainer is "my" machine?) LOL. From there on, I just went about my normal routine. I got clean, got dressed and got moving back out the door with a protein shake in one hand and a set of car keys in the other. Lunch was over and at least I did what I needed to do: Cardio, 30 minutes. It wasn't the most enjoyable lunch workout I've had, I'll admit, but at least I put in the work and that's what matters in the whole scheme of things.

I hear people say all the time that "Life isn't always Unicorns and Rainbows," and boy, isn't that the truth? In the bigger picture of my life, one lackluster workout isn't going to bring me down. But sometimes it's really easy to forget as we're going along with the "fun" or "comfy" routines that branching out and doing other things are the way to get results AND keep things fresh. Though I dread them, just like anyone else does, there WILL be days when you're at the gym and it's all business. Sure, it helps if you're having fun, but if you can't at that particular moment (whether it's because of the workout, your mood, etc), put on a blank stare and deal with it. (Notice how I didn't say "smile?" I don't expect you to be fake...) There'll be other days, and certainly, other workouts to create that "special," heart-pumping experience! The bottom line is: Don't expect the whole "get fit" process to be a happy one. Likewise, don't take for granted those times you walk in and your routine just clicks and it's over before you know it. You have to learn to take the good with the bad and accept that your future won't always bless you with fuzzy pants and rainbows. But if you're focused and deligent, you'll not only get the body you want, you may just find your "luster" as well. :)

Sara vs. Sara

2012-07-19T09:32:00.000-04:00

For the last week, I've been on this new diet (last competition diet, but way more strict) and literally, every bite counts. For breakfast, I eat in the car on my way to work. No big deal... Everything is mobile: plain, black coffee, 1 hard-boiled egg; 3 hard-boiled egg whites and a slice of plain, multi-grain toast - all within arms reach as I'm going down the road.

Now, something interesting happened this morning and it made me realize just how strong-willed I am when my focus is in the right place. First of all, I'm not used to eating hard-boiled egg YOLKS. Egg whites I'm great with. In fact, they're delicious. But I'm a person who's big on texture and food and if it doesn't "feel" right then I'm not eating it (baked beans, cottage cheese - just a couple of things you can't even pay me to eat).

So, I leave my apartment and pop in an egg white. (I never start with the whole egg. Eating one of the whites "warms up" my palate for the "main" item if you will.) Then I have this little slice of plain toast that, literally, balls up in my mouth when I take a bite because there's nothing on it to give it flavor and slide right in. Anyway, since my "system" is to always alternate items as I'm eating - because that's truly the only bit of excitement I get (Oh, this is a NEW bland thing; It's different from the OTHER bland thing I just put in my mouth!) - I now have to go back to the egg to keep this gravy train rolling. (Mmmm... Gravy...)

Well, the problem is: I'm driving. Eating and driving isn't necessarily against the law. I'm paying 100% attention to the road, so this isn't the issue. The issue is that, after I have my initial egg white, I take a bite of the toast and, Hmm... I don't know where to lay it back down because my passenger seat is packed full of crap - i.e. purse, food bag, cell phone, etc. So, I lay it inside the food bag, hoping it'll stay on top and, with the next grab, it'll be there.

Now it's time to tackle the "big boy" egg, the one with the yolk. I bite it perfectly in half because I'm hoping it only takes me two tries to get this thing down. Instantly, it's that "Oh-my-gosh, I-have-a-sock-in-my-mouth feeling and I have no choice but to chew and begin the swallowing process. This itself is a chore because 1) you're trying to chew, 2) you're trying to stop the yolk from sticking to the roof of your mouth, but you don't want it smeared all over your tongue and 3) you're not at the point yet where you can drink because water won't even penetrate through that mess until you have at least one little road to your throat paved.

So, while I'm working on the FIRST HALF of this egg, I make a couple of turns on the road - left and right - on my way to work, and the beautiful thing that is centrifugal force shifts my bag with the toast in it, wedging it down in between a cold diet coke and a Glad container with a lid that was washed this morning. Needless to say, a corner of the toast got a little soggy. Me being the kind of person to make lemonade out of lemons said to myself, "Self, you've got a soggy little piece of toast and a very dry mouth full of bee pollen. What you can do is put this all together and create a consistency near the back of your throat where everything goes down smoothly and you can have a nice big gulp of water.

Sounds good in theory, doesn't it?

Well, I work what's left of this egg to the side of my mouth and bite off the soggy end of the bread. Now I've just messed up my system. I can't bite down on the bread because it's dissolving in the front of my mouth, but I can't slurp back the bread because of the item that feels like a rubber band ball in the back of my mouth. Thank goodness no one pulled up beside me at the stop light I was at because it looked like I was choking on a field mouse - wincing and sighing and making all kinds of nose-twitching faces.

Long story short (right, right), I get through that mess, now it's time to go back to the second half of the whole egg. I look over and realize if I put the toast back down on my bag, it could get soggy again... So I put it on top of my closed purse, thinking if it shifts, it'll slide back down in the seat. Then I grab this egg, pop the rest of it in my mouth and wait. Literally, I wait a few seconds then bite down. I was over it. I mean, it's not terrible, but it's no deviled egg, that's for sure. Those are de-lic-ious.

Now, I'm feeling pretty good because the worst is over with - that is, the egg is almost down and I'm two seconds away from a big gulp of water. I finish off the egg, chug the water and reach over for the... OK... Where's the toast? Oh yeah, somewhere in between 1) driving and 2) fighting my gag reflex, the toast SLID off my purse on onto the floorboard. The floorboard... Honestly, as far as floor boards go, I have a pretty clean one; however, it's still a FLOOR BOARD... And at this point, I can't even put the five-second rule into effect because, not only has it already been down there for at least a minute or two, it's on the other side of the car. (Did I mention I was driving?)

Once I'm stopped at another light - and I have a second to stretch over - I grasp a tiny corner of this toast, yank it up into my lap and quickly get adjusted back into my seatbelt. (Yes, I wear a seatbelt. Shameless plug: Always Wear Your Seatbelt!) Once I'm driving again, I raise the toast up close to my face to examine it - nothing gooey on it, no insects; not even some good old healthy dirt. The verdict: I'm going to eat this thing. It's all I have... Not that it's the only thing that I have, but I'm on some strict calories. I need to eat every single thing I have planned for the day or I'm not going to function properly. So, I do a firm "brush off" on each side of the toast and blow across it, just for reassurance, and shove the rest of this thing in my mouth. Done. It's over. I've had breakfast and, believe it or not, I actually survived the drive to work. LOL.

I'm telling this story because 1) I come from a family of storytellers and we like to share odd, quirky things that happen to us - especially if we can make fun of ourselves and 2) It just made me realize that you can really push through a lot of obstacles if your mind is on board. Once you decide to do something, all sorts of things will get in your way, both big and small. For me, in this scenario, ingesting a little dirt was the price I was willing to pay to stay on track with my diet. The OCD in me went CRAZY, believe me, but I survived. People have eaten worse, I'm sure. The point is, don't let the little things get in your way, especially if you want to compete. It's not easy to stay on track; it's not easy to even get on track. But once you've gone that far and you've made the committment, stick to it. Whether it's you fighting the world or you just fighting, well, YOU, decide now that you're going to be the last one standing (the "you" with good intentions). And if things get dirty? Well, just brush them off, shrug it off and just keep moving. :)

Birthday Suit Up!

2012-07-18T15:34:00.000-04:00

A good "present" for your Birthday Suit! :)

So, today is my birthday and I'm the big 3-2. (Woot! Woot!) I don't feel 32, that's for sure... But as I get older, I realize it takes a little bit more "elbow" grease, if you will to maintain a good-lookin' bod. The "bod," I'm working on deligently right now, trust me! The hair? About once a month/every 5 weeks. Nails? Every couple of weeks. Massage, exfoliation, etc... Not often enough!

But there is one great (and very inexpensive) trick I learned from my pal, Marilyn Spatola, Owner of Liquid Sun Rayz: Competition Spray Tanning (based out of Cincinnati, OH) and that's this: Baking Soda fixes everything!

Now even though the link below suggests how to prep for a competition "stain" (yeah, that dark stuff you see bodybuilders rolled in the day of a show), that doesn't mean you can't repeat the process for your simple, weekly spray tan in the Mystic or VersaSpa. Or, you can follow this process to simply have super soft touchable skin, any day you feel like it:

http://www.liquidsunrayz.com/index.php/competitors/spray-tan-prep-instructions

What I did before the Northern KY show was even cheaper than my picture shown above (with the Bath and Body Works shower gel). I picked a simple Suave shower gel (alternating Cucumber Melon and Sweet Pea for variety), took one of those tiny, round, Glad containers that are good for sauces, etc, and stirred together (with my finger) a couple squirts of shower gel and a few teaspoons of Baking Soda. Then while I'm in the shower, I take a washcloth (I use a "puff" on normal days, but for this you get better results with a cloth), pour a quarter sized amount on it and start scrubbing small areas of my body at a time. If I'm in a hurry, I just focus on my knees, elbows and those "weird" areas that always seem to hold more spray tan than the rest of my body. And the purpose is to "even out" those areas and make them softer - not rub all of your skin off! :) So, be gentle... and do it kindly - but frequently - if your skin is really dry or particularly stubborn.

So, if you're tight on birthday money (or just regular, old paycheck moola!), it's not always easy to do your hair or your nails the "cheap" way. (Trust me, I like my hair a reasonable color and paying $10 for a box at the store NEVER achieves that!) But when it comes to "treating" my skin, this is always something I turn to, especially if I'm in a hurry. The other good news is that if you buy one bottle of Baking Soda, you can literally put it with ANY shower gel you want - saving you lots of money on scent-specific exfoliators. It's like a custom-made birthday suit! :)

Bonus Tip: Now, if you really want to go all out, if you have a friend who competes, what a great idea would it be, as a pre-show (or birthday) present, to get them a basket with all of the items I've mentioned: shower gel (moisturizer free), Baking Soda, Washcloth, containers and a big red/blue/pink bow tied around the instructions! (Or if it's someone really special, the bow can go on you. I won't judge... LOL)

Week One = WOne!

2012-07-17T23:20:00.002-04:00

Well, I just finished Week ONE of training for NPC KY Muscle and I feel really good, physically. I lost 7 pounds this week (most of it is water weight, but that's OK) and I'm on track to being down to the next dress size in about another week.

I'm not going to lie, I've been a wreck lately... emotionally. Of course, that's to be expected. I mean, I AM an emotional eater. But it goes way beyond that. The problem that arises with getting "off course" isn't just about gaining weight and feeling a sense of failure, it's also about growing accustomed to masking your feelings and burying them in food.

For instance, say you go through a break up on a Friday afternoon and you cry for awhile then eat pizza and sleep 12 hours into Saturday. That pizza/sleep combo becomes the "balance" to your crying and feeling heart break. Then at some point, the pizza replaces the crying and you just start eating it every Friday because Fridays are your "emotional" days.

Now, it doesn't always go down like that, I understand. I mean, sometimes you may feel alone on a Tuesday, for no good reason at all, but you still want that pizza because last time, when you ate the pizza, you didn't have to deal with your emotions - all you had to do was eat and go to bed nice and full. And sometimes you get tired of the pizza - especially if you start to link the pizza to your break up - so then it's on to Chinese Food and on and on and on...

So, I've been dealing with a lot of emotions lately, just like everyone does. The difference is, I can't go to my pizza or chocolate or Chinese food, and bury it alive - which means I have no choice but to deal with the emotions themself. That's a really hard thing to do. There's a song by Faith Hill that has been out forever, but I love it, called "When the Lights Go Down." It's about a few different people who have plenty of distractions around them during the day, but when the lights go down "and there's nothing left to be... and the truth is all you see," that's when they have to face the truth - that the party's over, or their friends turned on them or they're just laying in bed, in the dark, thinking about someone and missing them.

That's the funny thing about our minds: they can play tricks on us sometimes. They can fool us into thinking we're happy when we're eating something terrible and that we're miserable when we're on course to meeting our goals. In many ways, it's the angel/devil scenario. We want to be good, but it feels so good to be bad. So, who do you listen to? And who do you flick off of your shoulder? Honestly, the average person should find a way to make both of them comfortable because it's that balance that will keep our emotional eating at bay. Eat a slice of pizza and enjoy the flavor or the social experience. But don't sit there all night and wipe out a whole Digiorno by yourself (guilty) because you can't stand to cry it out and deal with your emotions.

And that's exactly what I've been doing: dealing with a whole mess of emotions over the past week. Crying in my car, crying in a bathroom stall at work, crying over a skillet prepping ground turkey... Don't get me wrong, if each "episode" were a weather forecast, it'd be classified as a "pop-up storm" that quickly passes or maybe a light, afternoon "shower" that doesn't come down hard and ruin your day. It is what it is. It's emotion. In many ways, depriving yourself of something you really want is almost like going into mourning. It's a loss; it's something you can't get your hands on or your mind wrapped around. So you cry. I cry. Even though I hate that feeling of the tears welling up and I try to convince myself to be strong, I've found the sooner I let it out, the quicker I can move on and start my second workout of the day or tear into some grilled chicken and brown rice. Whether you like it or not, emotion is very similar to sweating. It's going to leave your body when your body is ready for it to, not necessarily when you want it to.

You know, I once had a Figure competitor tell me that she won't even step on stage unless she knows she's going to win. Now, I understand the logic behind that - you want to put your best face (or body) forward and it's punishment, in a way, if you don't have your "best" self to present. On the other hand, one reason I'm able to keep focus during this diet/training time is because I know I'm doing the best I can, every day, every second, and my reward is stepping on stage no matter if I'm first or last. Just think how much harder the whole process would be if you did a contest prep for 12 weeks or so, knowing along the way you may not even go on stage. To me, that sounds more dis-couraging than encouraging, but that's just my opinion.

The main point I'm trying to make is this: don't be so hard on yourself the next time you need to be vulnerable. True, no one likes sobbing into a kitchen towel covered in marinade or into a dry, soft pillow just moments before you plan to go to sleep on it. But instead of masking your emotions or burying them where you think no one can find them, just let them out. The worst that can happen is that you end up crying for 5 minutes instead of 30 seconds. I mean, you can't cry forever. Trust me. You really can't. At some point it will all come out and you'll look up and see that the world just went on without you for that two, four, ten minutes and now you sincerely feel like joining it again. And that's what you should do... Whether you think you're going to get first or last place, whether you're lying in the darkness or running in the sun, experience everything you can and don't be afraid of the outcome. If you do that, you've already "WOne..."

What I'm Eating (Contest Diet)

2012-07-16T15:48:00.004-04:00

There are worse things your chicken could "soak" in... :)

When I was in Nashville last weekend, I took my friend out to Loveless Cafe because she'd never been there before (Loveless OR Nashville) and who doesn't go to Music City without stopping at Loveless Cafe??

Now, I knew it was a gamble to go there at 1pm on a Sunday, but we really only had a small window to visit a handful of places and I, at least, had to try. Sure enough, we arrived and there was an hour-and-a-half wait and we were beyond starving. So, I improvised. "Let's visit the gift shop, walk around a minute and go eat down the road," I suggested. It had been a couple of years since I'd been to the Loveless, but I knew they had some unique gifts, baking items, etc - and that stuff alone was worth the hike to the southwest side of town.

Turns out, I made a good decision. There were a lot of great biscuit mixes, jams, etc, my friend could choose from and yes, there was even something that seemed custom-made just for me: the Vinegar-Pepper BBQ Soak (pictured above).

Just take a look at the Nutrition Facts on this thing: FIVE calories, no fat, TWO grams of carbs and a whole lotta "Oh Ye-ah..." LOL. Seriously, it's not bad at all. Now, I'm a "sauce" kinda gal, so nothing compares to a good BBQ or Honey Mustard sauce, but this alternative will certainly do while I'm restricting calories.

Prepping chicken is never really hard, but for my newbies out there who don't cook (and one person, in particular, should know I'm talking to them), all you do is rinse the chicken breasts, blot them dry with a paper towel, lay them in a casserole dish, pour the "soak" over them until the bottom of the dish can't be seen, flip all the breasts completely one time so both sides are coated and bake in the oven 350 degrees for 30 minutes. (If the chicken is still pink on the inside after 30 minutes, put back in the oven for about 8-10 minutes and you should be fine.)

In conclusion, this little jar has been a lifesaver for my contest prep in the last week. In fact, if I'd known how good the flavor would be, I would've stocked up on it while I was in Nashville. I guess that means I have just one more reason to go back to Tennessee on a regular basis. By the way, if you didn't already know, my list is already very long. :)

Guest Blog: "Proper Technique Over Lbs: Why form and technique for the beginner..." by Rob Quimby

2012-07-12T10:46:00.003-04:00

Rob Quimby

Since announcing my plan to feature a guest blog, written by one of my friends, clients or colleagues, relating to fitness from their vantage point, the feedback I've received has been very positive. What readers have realized is that one point of view is not the only point of view, especially pertaining to matters of fitness. With that said, I'm excited to announce my fifteenth guest, Rob Quimby -- Certified Personal Trainer and Owner/Founder of Fitness Lifestyle Personal Training. I'm honored that he was willing to share something, in his own words, for Garrison Personal Training: The Blog. Thank you Rob!

Proper Technique Over Lbs.

Why form and technique for the beginner is much more important than heavy lbs

Go in any commercial gym and what do you see? Members lifting tons of heavy weights, and only about 5% of those people are using proper form. The most common weight training injuries are related to poor exercise technique. Proper execution in weight training is important in order to reduce chances of injury and gain maximum results. Incorrect technique can pull, rip or wrench any muscle in the human body. It can also tear delicate connective tissues in a matter of seconds. Lack of control when using barbells or dumbbells can be lethal especially when a beginner starts training.

When someone starts to build muscles, it is important to keep proper form so that tissues move in the right direction and grow correctly. There are men that have slightly deformed muscles -- crooked shoulders -- in gyms around the world, partly due to bad form where the muscles adapt to the incorrect movement and grow accordingly. Execute the brief pointers below to help insure proper weight training technique:

Start with a lower weight and make sure that the form is perfect. Progressively increase the weight until you can still press the weight without cheating. Jerking the weight will only result in potential injuries and bad muscle formation.

Bodybuilders often cheat to really burn the muscle for complete exhaustion. It is not recommended for casual trainers to cheat, therefore respect the integrity of the exercise and drop the last rep if it cannot be completed with good form. Learn how to miss a rep safely; learn when to bail out (without worrying about your ego). Too many times, at a bench press for example, guys arch their backs to press the weight in the final rep. Instead of cheating with the back, ask someone to give you a spot. A good spotter will give you the extra confidence to complete the last repetition with excellent form.

Learning how to perform the exercise is a prerequisite. Strive to become a technical perfectionist and respect the basic motion of each body part. No twisting, turning or contorting should result when pushing or pulling weight. Concentrate on the movement and feel the muscle working.

If you're distracted, preoccupied or nonchalant when working out, you're inviting injury and poor results. A regular training program should last 45 to 60 minutes. Therefore, focus on the task at hand and increase awareness of your muscle growth. It's simple; more concentration equates to more effective muscle reaction, and more muscle reaction equals to more muscle growth.

Rob is the Owner and Founder of Fitness Lifestyle Personal Training. He has been training for over thirty years - fifteen of those years as a Personal Trainer helping others reach their
goals. He has been certified by the American Council of Exercise (ACE) since 1996. Rob has been successful as a competitive bodybuilder, winning his weight class in the Mr. Cincinnati contest and placing second in his weight class at the Natural Mr. Ohio contest. This experience has helped him effectively assist clients with meal planning and supplementation. Rob has worked with people from all walks of life including new fitness enthusiasts, athletes, and competitive bodybuilders.

For more info on Sport Specific training at World Gym West Chester,

Call Rob Quimby @ 513-368-2153 (Cell) or 874-8384 (Gym) and ask for Rob.

Day One = DOne!

2012-07-11T09:31:00.001-04:00

Well, day one of competition diet/training has come and gone and honestly, I'm surprised I survived. LOL. Not because the diet is unbearable or I'm horribly out of shape or anything. It's because the day, as a whole, was stressful from all angles of life.

1) I was tired. I had been gone all weekend; I'd driven a lot to and from Tennessee.
2) I got in trouble at work. There was a miscommunication before I left work on Friday. There was a butt-chewin' "communication" when I got back yesterday! (I can joke about it today; NOT funny yesterday.)
3) I dove into my diet, head-first, with no transition. I have a terrible headache from the sugar withdrawals. (By the way, here's a decent link to info about the hot mess that is sugar addiction: http://www.livestrong.com/article/309515-can-cutting-sugar-out-of-a-diet-cause-headaches/)
4) I was a little emotional about leaving Nashville. That town, in many ways, is my home and it's hard sometimes to watch it disappear in my rearview mirror.
5) I forced myself into bed at 9pm. I'm used to staying up really late, but now with two workouts a day, that just won't fly. Still, I had no time to catch up on my DVR, so it really felt more like "time out" than "lights out."
6) Change. Change is hard and a diet and workout overhaul IS NOT easy. But, it's definitely worth it in the long run. The "short run," however, isn't as exciting. :)

Nonetheless, at the end of the day, I looked back and realized I did every little thing I was supposed to do: drank a shake after each workout, took all of my supplements, coffee - no sugar or cream, chicken, vegetable, etc, etc, and so on. And that makes me happy. I can live with everything else if that stuff is checked off of my list!

So, I'm curious... Who else is "re-booting" and going through a major change, in regards to their health? Tell me about it. Make me feel better! :)

17 Weeks Out

2012-07-08T19:18:00.001-04:00

Nashville Trip - July, 2012

So, I'm in Nashville for the weekend with a good friend of mine and it's bittersweet. On one hand, I miss this town tremendously; on the other, I realize what this town did for me and my confidence - and I'm grateful that I even had the guts to move here at all.

Nashville is a city about chasing your dreams and that's exactly what I did when I packed up my little Ford Contour back in 2007, drove to Nashville all by myself - without knowing a soul here - and pursued a singing career in a very cut-throat industry.

As I packed up my Ford SUV for the trip this weekend, I couldn't help but think about that crazy adventure I embarked on merely five years ago. Back then, my whole life - at least the bare essentials of it- fit into one, tiny compact car. Now, the whole car filled up with stuff I threw in for a simple two night stay.

I may take the component of packing lightly for granted these days, but I certainly don't do that with my experiences and life lessons. As I get ready to start contest prep for NPC KY Muscle this week, I hold dearly that feeling I got when I pulled into Nashville that cloudy day, February 2007, and my dream was right there in front of me shining brightly. I have a clean slate, a fresh start and anything is possible. It's up to me, I knew then - and I still know now - to make it happen. 17 weeks out... Here we go.

Pain Killer

2012-07-05T13:23:00.002-04:00

17 Weeks = Make It Happen

You know how, when you do something with a "bigger" goal in mind, the current frustration/inconvenience/pain you feel doesn't seem so bad? Do you ever think of a dream so important that it doesn't matter what the rest of your day looks like as long as you at least completed the steps that will get you closer to fulfilling that one, larger-than-life wish? Well, that's what preparing for a competition does for me. It gives me something to look forward to as well as small accomplishments I can touch and see along the way: feeling muscles you didn't notice the week before as you wash your shoulders in the shower; watching a pair of pants fall down off your waist that were too tight a month prior. There are so many perks to being in tip-top shape, you hardly wonder why you ever needed that Fish Fillet from McDonalds or that supersized bag of M&Ms from the store.

Yes, my back is still in pain frequently and my neck and temples are filled to the brim with tension - headaches, muscle kinks, etc - but at the end of the day, when I think about doing another show, I just can't help but get excited. That's why, when a friend of mine asked if I was doing the NPC KY Muscle show in November, I couldn't help but, at least, give it some thought. My knee-jerk response was to say NO (I mean, I'd be lucky to get back into the shape I need to be in by March, which is when the next Northern KY show is, and I really wanted to do that again.), but literally within hours, I felt that motivation creep back up again in my body. Honestly, it's the first time I've felt it since November 2010 when I whole-heartedly make the decision to do NKY 2011, so I really don't want to push that feeling aside as "wishful thinking."

So, in addition to my recent posts, my new "Creed" and my verbal declarations, I'm officially stating that I'm "in" for NPC KY Muscle 2012. You know, just saying it makes me feel great. I know I have a lot of work to do and I probably won't have the best showing, seeing as it's only 17 weeks away, but at least that's a new starting point for me - a practice run for NKY, a really good reason to forget the pain I've been in... Now, I will give this disclaimer for all of you who believe I encourage training while injured. DO NOT train while injured! :) The only reason I've decided to do this is simply because 1) My initial injuries - collar bone out of socket, hip collapse and extreme knee pain (I'm down to bone on bone with my left knee) have been resolved the best that they can over the past year (a knee replacement is the only solution for the latter issue), 2) I'm a Certified Personal Trainer who knows what exercises are acceptable for someone either presently injured OR transitioning back to heavier training after injury and 3) It's my own personal choice. I know the risks. I sign off on the risks. That's my official "waiver" to myself and to you.

With that said, wish me luck... Let's hope I "kill" it!