Things get tough sometimes, you drive forward. You allow yourself experiences without being demeaning, and you do a better job next time, or the next time, or the time after that. But you don't give up and you don't sell yourself short. We are meant to learn, we are meant to grow, we are meant to reach as far and as deep as we can until we become the person we are capable of being. Our potential expands every single day, regardless of how big those little bumps in the road can feel sometimes.

Renee Primeau

Now I understand the low energy the past couple of days.... a very far off the schedule incoming period. Thanks Mother Nature! Irregular menstrual cycles are very common during contest prep and sometimes won't come at all depending on the female and how far along in prep they are.

Some may experience no change at all, an increase in the severity of pre-menstrual symptoms, or completely different symptoms all together from the off season. Off season I don't often experience many symptoms, but during show prep and the couple of months following I will experience them in different ways. Previously the really big one was water retention. This time it wasn't very much at all, so maybe this could  mean everything is more level this time around. It's really interesting how much hormonal changes can affect everything. 

My thoughts definitely take on a "sharper edge" and feelings of being a little irritable and anxious are definitely there. It can be pretty funny if you pay attention to the way your thoughts and feelings can change. As long as you can see that it's not you, it's your hormones, then you won't react to whatever amount of craziness is going on inside of you and you're okay :) 

A really awesome thing is this means it's red meat time! The second day in and the last day I'll have ground sirloin at a night time meal with all of it's deliciousness. It helps restore iron levels and is really great to help balance your hormones.

Time for bed :) Good night!

This week I'm feeling a bit run down so that means battery re-charge time :) I'm packing up my gigantor cooler and going to hang out with my family this Sunday. It always helps just being with them and I definitely feel very energized from all of the laughter. 

Get to know what feels good to you, what makes you feel re-balanced, re-set, re-energized whatever you want to call it and whenever you start to feel like you could use to bit of boost, go back to that place. Whether it be a book you like to read, going for a walk, hanging out in a certain place, laughing, watching a movie, whatever it is, let yourself do it. Everyone has down times. When you learn what brings you back up, you'll be even stronger than you were before. 

Speaking with Steph today, the meal plan is staying the same (yesss) and cardio has now been switched almost entirely to anaerobic (low incline sprints, high incline sprints, step mill intervals, or hybrid cardio). I love these types of sessions :)

Cardio is done each morning with weights in the afternoon. On non-weight training days (every 3rd day) cardio is also done in the afternoon. The only day steady state will be done (elyptical or high incline walking) will be on leg days and for the evening session on double cardio days. 

Bed time:) Have a great night.

Take care of yourself, be fantastic, be content with what you can create and what you are. Everything that you are, not just what you can see. If life happens and we can't train anymore, we get hurt and have to start over, something happens to our appearance, when our youthful abilities fade, we can then realize we're not diminished at all and life can go on. You're more valuable than what can be seen. Enjoy it but know there's a lot more to you. Let yourself know that. Beauty is only skin deep and having the most beautiful appearance won't really have a place in elderly years. But kindness certainly will. Wisdom will. Learning all we can now and allowing ourselves growth in all ways will. It's important not to be so caught up in what can be developed in the mirror that all worth beyond that is forgotten. Your potential runs way deeper than what's on the surface. Don't miss out on how much you have to offer.

Renee Primeau

Hello there! More anaerobic and hybrid (anaerobic/steady state combined) cardio has been added to the training plan. This is nice because it definitely doesn't get boring and you really feel like you're challenging yourself. This morning incline walking, walk/sprints and high incline sprints were combined into a 40 minute session. This = extreme sweaty awesomeness. It feels awesome when things start to get a bit tougher and you really push. This is also where rest and recovery becomes even more important. Bed time is 9PM to get up at 5AM, no excuses and extra care is taken to stretch and relax.

This weekend was visit number 2 to Dr. Kersten for Contemporary Medical Accupuncture and, once again, it helped a lot. More points in my back were targeted in low back, rhomboids and traps, as well as hands and feet. Immediately after I felt so much calmer and relaxed. Some adjustments were made and we went over stretching and techniques to prevent injuries. That night I slept like a log for 9 hours and woke up feeling amazing. This will be a continuing part of this prep. Check out www.drkersten.com for more information on his services. A great site for further information on acupuncture is www.yinyanghouse.com. 

Lynsey is a very dedicated, motivated Woman. She loves training, she loves learning and looks to improve in any way she can. Already keeping logs of her training sessions, meals, energy levels as well as shedding quite a bit of body fat on her own, Lynsey expresses how ready she feels to take things to the next level....right onto the Figure stage. She is also a single mother of a very fun 10 year old boy and maintains a fulltime work schedule. Lynsey makes no excuses when it comes to her fitness. 

Beginning to meet with Lynsey last week, at 16 weeks from the show gives a great opportunity to get to know how she will react to meal plan and training changes. Lynsey reported feeling cravings and feeling tired throughout the day as well as not sleeping very well at night. She would always make time to workout, working really hard but expressed feelings of low energy during workouts. With these things in mind, we then had a look at Lynsey's daily life eg: wake times, training, meals, daily activities, sleep times and quality of sleep. Like a sponge, she has picked up tons of weight loss information and typical ways to get "shredded."

Unfortunately, although these things may help to strip away body fat for a short term goal, some of these methods are not the healthiest and may not leave you feeling very good. You can also lose a lot of hard earned muscle and may deal with some harsh things later on such as fatigue, hormonal issues, excess "rebound" (weight gain), etc.

A couple of the methods she had previously picked up were performing empty stomach cardio on fat burners in the morning, and had cut her carbohydrate intake down to almost none. We have changed this to no use of fat burners, morning cardio performed 3 times a week after BCAA/glutamine intake and a meal which includes a serving of protein and a healthy fat. Her caloric intake has been increased a lot (including carbs). Lynsey and I met yesterday and she reported feeling more rested, more energy throughout the day, no crashes, no cravings and is beginning to sleep more soundly throughout the night. 

Lynsey is amazing. She deserves to feel good while making these changes. She also needs energy to work, play with her son and to enjoy life. We will reassess shortly and keep you posted :)

Lifestyle changes should be healthy and beneficial to your life. Yes things will get a bit more challenging when the goal is to further increase fat loss for a "stage ready look", but it can be an easier transition and it can be made easier on you by making healthier choices. 

Be careful with yourself, this is the only body you've got!

HI there! At just over 7 weeks out I feel really good. It's wierd, I'm still lifting the same amount of weight as I can in the off season and my calories are still pretty high compared to all previous preps, but I'm still getting leaner??

It's really cool how it just takes finding that plan that works for you. This plan might really be it and it's exciting. Cravings have lessened a lot which is great. One of the days last week (Saturday) they were ridiculously strong and I had an extra 30g of carbs (from oats) and some delicious peanut butter chocolate flavoured protein powder. I felt kind of guilty since we planned a "no cheat" prep and since that was not on the plan I would consider it a cheat. But the next day I was leaner and felt so awesome. That was also when the cravings lessened. I told Steph and she laughed at me for thinking that was a bad cheat and said sometimes your body just needs it. | guess that's a good thing :). So far this prep does not feel too difficult, it's true some of the training would not be on my list of really fun things to do and I would be lying if I said it wasn't a bit challenging, but it's a good challenge. It actually feels good and my energy is backed up by excitement. Just like it was when I started :)  I think this is how it should be, and it's great that so far things are going this way. Really, what's the point in doing something that takes 3-4 months to prepare for if you're going to be stressed out the whole time? Once it stops being fun, it's break time and time to revisit why the choice to do this has been made to begin with. This familiar feeling of enjoyment and being so excited gives a huge sense of reassurance that the little extra time off was the best decision ever. If I ever feel like I need it again I will never hesitate, this is more than worth it :)  

Here is a really cool quote by an unknown author:

"Everything will be alright in the end and if it's not alright, it's not the end."

Have a great night!

The contest preps for awesome clients Sam Casey, Meaghan Terzis and Lynsey Noseworthy have started! 

Sam Casey is 8 weeks out from UFE Spring Bash, Male Fitness Model Division- April 10th in Mississauga

Meaghan Terzis is 10 weeks out from OPA Festival City Championships, Bikini Model division- April 24th in Stratford Ontario.

Lynsey is 16 weeks out from her first show ever! UFE Show Down, Figure Division- June 5th in London, Ontario.

These guys are very hard working, dedicated individuals and are doing an amazing job! More on Lynsey's preparation to come soon :)

Measurements from 11 weeks out and 8 weeks out (this morning):

11 weeks out (Jan 22/10)     8 weeks out(Feb 13/10)

Weight: 145lbs                        Weight: 145lbs

Chest: 36.5"                            Chest: 35.75"

Bicep: 11.5"                             Bicep: 11.25"

Waist: 27.25"                           Waist: 26.75"

Hips: 36.5"                               Hips: 36"

Thigh: 21.5"                             Thigh: 21.25"

Scale weight hasn't changed but since measurements have, and it's so all over the place, that's fine. Body fat % is now approx 10-11%. 

These numbers won't be checked again for 2 -3 weeks. Next week Steph and I will be getting together so she can have a look and see how things are going.