New York Pro Fitness Wrap Up

Hi Everyone-

Well another show has come and gone.  With this the New York pro was this past weekend.

I placed 12th.

Am I disappointed - yes.  Will I get over it - yes.  This is part of the sport.  Some days the judges like you and other days they don't.    When you are competing in a sport that has subjective criteria like this you always have to take the highs with the lows and good with bad.  But I will pick myself back up, dust myself off, and try again.  There are always more shows around the corner.

When competing you work hard.  Really hard. For an extended period of time, and for some, myself included, I would do most of the preparations anyways. The diet, the training - the routine, and the body aches I would probably skip over -- but I am sure you get my point.  I am finding year after year the routine is still really hard.  And it can be nice to just go out and do a routine and not have to worry about whether or not you 'hit' it perfectly.  To just go out there and enjoy.  In essence - this would be considered 'coasting'.  Am I coasting - probably.  I like competing, but it is what I do - but it is also nice to just go to the show and compete without competing.  And I think this is what I did in New York.  I was there competing, as a participant, but I definitely was not present or a contender on this day.  My mind kept wondering all weekend.   I would see kids, and just want to be home with my son.  I really did not want to be 'in that moment' and it showed.  There are times when you want to compete, and this was not a weekend that I wanted to be competing.

I feel like that who weekend I was being complacent in my work ethic, and really just wanted to 'get it all over with'.  The statement that I hear many times during the weekend of the show from girls who spend much time getting ready for this moment, and then somehow I was that statement.  I am disappointed in myself for thinking this way.

I feel that sometimes I need a low moment to realize how to be 'great' in other moments.  It is a balance for me.  I do have these times that I want to be 'great' and other times where I just want to be home in my comfy pants, eating chocolate, relaxing and being able to eat whatever whenever I want rather than by a specific point in time.  To just 'be'.   Just because I compete quite a bit, does not mean I don't truly love a lazy day as well.

Can I just 'be' while getting ready for a show?  But it does require more discipline.  I also need to be motivated by something else other than placings in order to compete.  Like a personal challenge to be the best.  I can put my head into any show - however, my heart only goes in certain moments.    I tend to be more motivated to do well for myself if my heart is in the moment not just my head.

I find that with my change in career my focus has drifted to that as I get so much more out of my clients and seeing their success than my own.  I am on a different path in my choice of profession, and decisions need to be made.

For instance, I need to decide what to do with my job for the following school year - my teaching job - go back, ask for another leave of absence, or quit.  My mind may have been on this topic rather than in the task at hand - such as my routine or the weekend competing in NY.  My attitude was definitely not myself that weekend.    Even considering the idea of 'quitting' just seems to go against who I am as a person.  However, my happiness is important, and so is quality of life.  I remember days with my teaching job where I had to motivate myself to get out of bed to get to work teaching everyday - and now I don't mind getting up at 4am to train clients.  But when you do 'what you love', it never feels like work.  Training others does not feel like work.

I loved being in New York but perhaps not at that moment.  Those other things that go on around us, even for a moment, can throw us, and make us into people who we are not normally.

So now I have to decide what moment I want to create for myself in the future.

With that being said, Toronto pro is the next IFBB fitness pro show on the horizon.  Will I be there - probably, it is already on my radar.

A.

New York Pro - April 8-10th (this weekend)

Hi Everyone -
Here it is - another show in the horizon.  It is Friday the night before the NY City Pro event.  It will be held  tomorrow Saturday April 9th - starting around 10am at the Tribecca Performing Arts Center.  You can see more information here.  The physique round is in the morning with the routines at the night show.

I have been trying to hold the line since the Arnold.  I find it easier to just hold the the line than get into shape. However, if you had asked me 3 weeks ago I would have a different answer I am sure.  I feel this way not as the end is here, however, on Monday I was hungry! (and my clients knew I was hungry)
Routine I have not changed much - a few moves to make it more 'fly' but the theme is the same.  4 weeks is not enough time for a new routine and I was thinking of going backwards to an old one but again, impressing it on my memory is hard now as my thoughts are elsewhere so I have a hard time focussing.  Keeping the same routine with a few minor changes I can handle, an overhaul - not in 4 weeks and a full work/home schedule.

Since the Arnold I have been non stop busy.  And loving it.  I started personal training back in June just to test the waters and see if this would be something that I could do for a living.  I never knew.  I just never knew.  All my friends knew - but somehow I did not.  My mom knew.  My co-workers - fellow teachers knew but how come I did not know.  I think I am just very stubborn and once I get an idea in my head it is all over - there is no changing my mind until the goal is accomplished.   Although there is much to lean personal training is where I was supposed to be all my life.  Now I feel as though I spent quite a bit of time in the wrong place and need to 'fast track' my learning to become an awesomely superior personal trainer.  It will take time, long days, and a lot of reading but I am excited for the next 10 years - (they say that is how long it takes to become an expert - so I am guessing with all my fitness experience I can maybe scale it back to 7-8 years but I digress).

Now I have to make a bigger decision - the time has come to decide what to do for next year - for the school year. School is not even out for a teacher after March Break you start planning for the next year.  I know what I need to do but doing it does not make the decision easier.   Everyone tells me the right thing to do but I have a hard time with change.  I remember when we bought our house with a garage, and I would for weeks (even in the cold) still park the car outside as the change of moving the car inside the house was very difficult for me.
Growing up we never had a garage - anyways....change is tough in any form.

So leaving my job - and starting (or continuing) a new one is one of those major life changes that can throw your stress levels soaring, and your sleep out the window. But with this change I feel less stress and sleep more - so it must be the right decision - again not easier but right.

Besides my work life, this weekend - yes back to competing - my goals - rock the routine and come in shape.  A top 3 or qualification for the Olympia would really be icing on the cake (hmmm icing).

A friend of mine will be coming down and I am very excited to have someone in my corner.  It should be a good show and if you have seen the listing of competitors - here it is - and follow any updates on Siouxcountry.com

Talk soon,


“There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right direction”

A.