I believe that the goal of any legitimate health and fitness program should always be to become a lifestyle. If you think about it, most of the things that you’re doing from your diet to exercise takes effort, time, planning, and discipline. Why opt out of making healthy decisions daily, for a 30 day quick fix that will probably leave you in a worst off position then when you started your journey?
I’ve personally tried the skinny teas, DVD’s and master cleanse/detox e-books, and nothing has stuck. These were all temporary programs that only further frustrated me when trying to see major results in my body. I’m not saying that these things are bad or don’t work, but I believe that if they are not supplemented with mindful eating and maybe even a little more exercise outside of what they call for, seeing results will be minimal at best (at least for me.)
As I’m preparing for my first NPC competition, I’ve hit a few road bumps a long the way. Most recently I consumed much more sodium than I usually do throughout the day in my meals and I woke up the next day extremely bloated. I had never been that bloated my entire prep! But after me and my coach got to talking about what could have made this happen so close to show, we found that it was the new seasoning that I had picked up from the store and tried out on ALL of my meals the previous day! I was so surprised at how much water my body retained merely from adding more sodium into my diet. Since, I’ve consumed lots of water and had some pretty great sweat sessions, so my little tummy is back in business.
With that being said, I’ve made and am making some pretty drastic changes as my show day approaches. (8 days away to be exact!) But to see my body react so drastically to something that wasn’t normally a part of my meal plan was crazy. It showed me that all of these changes that I’ve been making were designed for me to live a healthy lifestyle for the rest of my life. Though I may gain a few more pounds during my off season to build some muscle and fill out a little more, my body is prepared to eat more good things. “Clean” proteins and veggies and carbs. I put “clean” in quotations because in the body building world there is no real way to define clean. Food is fuel and if used correctly you’re able to use Poptarts if you want to obtain your fitness goals. I’m very interested in IIFYM (If It Fits Your Macros) but haven’t practiced it. I simply follow the meal plan that my coach provides for me. I’ll write about this another time, though!
So if you’re thinking about competing or just getting in shape or back in shape, think of it as a lifestyle. I know you’ve probably heard this a million times, but in order to meet, obtain and sustain your goals it’s true. Having abs or your dream body isn’t going to happen because you participated in a 30 fitness challenge or crash diet. Stay consistent and the results will come!
Sincerely,
Amber
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