Illness during training

With only about 5 weeks to go, I am pressing on each day. At this point, keeping momentum is the key. I always have a rough week at 6 weeks out and usually again at 2 weeks out. I think that is due to the fact this is where I cut out the real cheat meals and the "mommy" juice. (wine, appletinis). My physique is only one part to competing. Booking hotel, photo shoots, hair appointments, getting my formal, learning to walk in my formal lol, getting my t shirts printed, selling my t shirts, posing posing posing. And the list goes on and on. Throw work and now a short little live fitness segment on a local news station every Friday and I am surely on my way to insanity.

In the midst of all this, I got sick and was out for two days. Being sick reminded me about an article I wrote some time ago. I thought I would re-post it. It explains why as competitors we tend to get sick. Remember I wrote the following in 2011.





I feel as if I have spent the last week a bit under the weather or taking care of others who were. Last week's weigh in showed another pound down. That was good considering I missed two days in the gym. This week I have not made it to the gym at all. I did do a workout (pretty intense) on Monday here at home. However, I have been sick since then. So what's going on? You would think that by eating healthy I would be more immune to illnesses. This dilemma actually sparked my attention around Christmas. I got to thinking and realized that anytime I was training for a show, I always ended up with a cold towards the last six weeks of training. This confused me. I happened onto another blog of a competitor who experienced the same thing. After reading what she came up with and doing some research of my own, I think I may have figured out what is going on. First of all, diseases and illnesses cannot exist in an alkaline body. At least, that is the presumption. Most of us, because of our diets, maintain a body which is acidic most of the time. My diet is expecially susceptible to this. Why? Because animal proteins are acidic and what am I eating? Chicken, eggs, and fish. Even my coffee causes me to be acidic. Even if your body is in the "healthy" range regarding pH, (mine was 6.5), it is not alkaline. 6.5 actually leans more to the acidic side. So how can you know what your pH is? Well, you can either buy urine test sticks or saliva sticks. I just happened to have the urine sticks, but saliva sticks would be more accurate I would think, because it tests the activity of the digestive enzymes of the body. If testing your urine, it should be acidic when you first get up in the morning. This represents good kidney function. But, throughout the day you want to see that change.
 How can you keep your body alkaline? First of all you can eat more vegetables and less of the foods I have mentioned above. Then what does that leave? Not much. Apparently, we need to become vegetarians.  You can add fresh lemon juice to your water. Sounds like you would want to avoid this, but that isn't true. Fresh lemon juice can actually help keep your acidity down. There are also supplements to help. There are very knowledgeable  people with an expertise of herbs and supplements that can help. I will continue to do research on this and see what I come up with. I recommend you do the same. Let me know what you find out.


Note: 4/18/13 Today I now know that I should be taking a good Coral Calcium. This will keep your body more alkaline, making you less susceptible to illness. 

Thought I would throw a progress pic in. This is last weekend at 6 weeks out.

Prep time

Wow! The last month has been a bit of a whirlwind. Since making the decision to switch over to the WBFF I have been extremely busy preparing for my show on May 25th in Kansas City. I made a trip to Oklahoma to meet my team in person for the first time and learned more about everything. I came back pumped and ready to SHOW! If you are thinking about doing a show, here is a typical week of preparing. 
I did all this since last Friday (it is Wednesday night as I write this). I picked out a formal, decided on shoes, blinged out my bikini, (looks awesome), scheduled alterations for tomorrow, sold more ads for the back of my t-shirts, made improvements to my t-shirt design, and started collected money from those who committed to purchasing an ad. All this while still being a mom and wife and doing the everyday things that we moms do. Let's not forget my workouts and posing practice mixed in with all that. It is spring break for my kids this week so I have chosen not to work this week at my RN job. I have also committed to just hanging out with the kids and not stressing about everything I need to be doing. Thankfully, I will have a little break tomorrow as they are with my mom.
 I wanted to share some pictures of my weekend with the girls. We had a fun photo shoot. I will share the final pictures when we get them. I will also be posting, in the next couple of days, more progress pictures. This weekend will be 10 weeks out.

I am the third from the front left above.

Below: Goofing around after our posing clinic.

January 2013 progress...

Today is the first day I took pictures to track my progress for the 2013 season. I was very disappointed in the results and a bit frustrated too. My goal was to maintain around 14-15% and no higher. Somewhere in the last couple of months, I have crept up to almost 16%. Not a big deal to the average person, but to a competitor that one percent is going to be a problem.

The problem here is that I am preparing for a photo shoot on March 3rd. I do not need to be "show" ready, but I do need to be leaner. And for me that means I need to be below 12% because that is when my cellulite goes away. YES, I have cellulite. It plagues me like it does most women. I embrace it now in everyday life and live with it, but I am not embracing the idea of looking at it in a photo...even if it can be airbrushed out. I will still know it was there.

I have been dieting the last two weeks a bit stricter, allowing only one cheat meal per week. So why did I not lose? I have to be honest with myself and lately I have not. My hormones have been out of whack for quite some time now and I have complained about it but have not done anything about, until yesterday that is. I am now seeing a doctor who was very concerned about me and my current symptoms. Labs, a biopsy, and more tests next week will rule out anything serious. I will start a new medication tomorrow that I hope will give me some relief and maybe allow my body to return to normal. Well, lets me honest, this is probably "normal" for someone my age. Getting older just SUCKS!

If your hormones are not regulated it can have a huge impact on weight loss. I am certain I will have all this "fixed" in a couple of months, but until then I may find it to be quite the struggle. I have to have patience but be diligent about my training and not give in to "getting down" over it. Believe me, I just wanted to come home and eat a bag of chips when I saw no change. Instead, I just ate what I was supposed to and said, next week will be better. 

If you are struggling with weight loss or meeting your goals, I encourage you to hang in there. It happens to all of us at different times. You can't win if you don't finish so see it thru.

Follow me on Facebook: 

 www.facebook.com/CandaceHarmonBikiniCompetitor

Decision made...goals set

I finally made my decision to switch from the NPC and go with the WBFF. In doing this, I also decide to join a great group of women...Team BSH (Bling, Sweat, and Heels). I don't think I could have picked out a better name. It kind of describes me to a T. This group of women are like a support group. They offer encouragement, advice, and are there for those "off" days that we all have. I am just trying to get to know them thru facebook and chats and can't wait until I can meet them in person. I will be sharing more about my team as I begin my count down to my first WBFF show on May 25th in Kansas City. Follow me on facebook at the link below. 


www.facebook.com/CandaceHarmonBikiniCompetitor

The WBFF

It's taken me a little time, but here is some information and my opinion of the WBFF and what it has to offer.  My research comes from watching numerous videos, looking at photos, and talking with promoters and competitors in this organization. Remember, I am unbiased here and have never competed in or known anyone personally that competed in this organization. I hope I got all the information correct and apologize if I missed something.

I will start off by saying it was hard researching this organization. There are some videos but I never knew if I was watching the Diva fitness model or the diva bikini models. I'm not sure if I am even getting the names right. Anyway, I am going to try and clear some of this up. I have been following a promoter and his wife on facebook for some time now. One thing I noticed was how helpful they seemed to be with competitors. Very encouraging. In fact I spoke with them both. Randy and Lisa Sandberg are their names and you can look them up on facebook. They are very nice people with a love for the sport and their organization. I gained so much knowledge about the organization from them. Randy and I spoke mainly about the WBFF itself as an organization. It started in Canada in 2007 (if I remember correctly) and came to the US in 2010. Paul and Allison Dillett are the brilliant minds behind this organization. It seems as if they do a lot to promote their competitors as well...and what competitor wouldn't want that. If you promote your people, they will promote you. What a great two way street. They give the competitors plenty of time on stage to showcase their physique as well as their personality. They are looking for a great physique as well as marketability.

Below is the judging criterion for the Female Diva Fitness Model directly cut and pasted from their official site. This competitor will have more muscle tone than Diva Bikini Model. Lisa Sandberg explained it this way...the fitness model would have muscle tone like that of the figure girls in the NPC.

Female Diva Fitness Model:

• Bikini round
• Theme wear round

Female Diva Fitness Model Attire Expectations:

Theme wear Round: As a WBFF Fitness Model we require female competitors to bring a creative , and glamorous theme wear to the stage. Different ideas may be, Carnival theme, Vegas Show Girls, Victoria Secret glamour, this round should not become confused with a sportswear theme round. This is definitely a very creative and glamorous round for the female delegates to display their physical beauty and conditioning.

Diva Fitness Bikini Suit

Any color pattern and style. As it is conservatively presentable. Thong style or any other inappropriate swimwear is absolutely not allowed.

·  Round #1: Themewear round, prejudging show (example: Victoria Secret style themewear must compliment the competitors physique. See above suggestions )

·  Round #2: Swimsuit bikini round

·  
40%- Overall Marketability
40%-Physique
20%- Stage Presence, Poise, Confidence


Diva Bikini Model Criteria:
The Diva Bikini Model is primarily a beauty contest. Competitors are judged upon their overall beauty and body shape and tone. This competition consists of two rounds, bikini round, and evening gown round
Female Diva Bikini Model Attire Expectations:
Bikini Suit
Swimsuit Competition:
Attention is focused on beauty of face, figure, physical fitness, and the confidence with which each contestant carries herself.
Any color pattern and style. As it is conservatively presentable. Thong style or any other inappropriate swimwear is absolutly not allowed.

Evening Gown: The following are guidelines and expectations set forth by the WBFF. Each delegate wears a gown she has chosen for herself. Attention is focused on each contestant’s overall appearance, self-confidence, sense of style and the beauty she brings to the gown of her choice.
Long gown length that falls below ankles. Any style, fabric, beads and sequins is fine. It is suggested that the female competitor chooses a gown that best shows their personality but also very a gown that is fashionable and couture. Too much patterning is not advised.

Round #1: Bikini Round two piece any style that best compliments your physique
Round #2: Evening Gown Round- Gown must be classy form fitted and long , any style

I believe the breakdown in scoring is the same as in the diva fitness model.

One thing I really like is that you can qualify for your pro card in the 35+ division. Unfortunately, they don't offer a masters class at the pro level.

Here are some comments I have heard before regarding the WBFF and my comments to them. 

1. I heard its easy to get your pro card. Not true. The Dilletts reserve the right to hand out a pro card to anyone they believe can compete at their pro level. That means if 2nd and 3rd looked good enough for their pro division, they may offer them their pro card. By the same token, if the show is not as competitive as they would like and they don't think the winner is ready to compete at their pro level, then they won't offer one to her. I think this is a great way to build your pro team in the growing years. Remember when the NPC first brought out bikini? Anyone could compete at the national level for their pro card that first and maybe second year. As long as politics and favoritism don't influence their decision (and why would they want it to? They want the best to represent them.) then this could work.

2. It's not as competitive as the NPC and IFBB- I would disagree here as well. Both the IFBB and the WBFF have pros that have graced the covers of magazines. However, in the IFBB the pros are usually signed with FMG talent who primarily do business with Muscle fitness Hers due to their relationship with the head guy. I don't think I really need to name names here. I have seen many of the WBFF pros on the covers (and several times each) of a variety of different magazines. My point is, that is hogwash. If I were to earn my pro card with the WBFF, I would be competing against models that have graced the cover of Oxygen magazine 5 times. (And that's just one example) I'm not saying the pros in the IFBB don’t look great, cause they all do, I'm just saying so do the pros in the WBFF.

One thing I do like about the WBFF is the girls don't look cookie cutter to me. They each bring a different unique physique to the stage. That is probably the one thing I disliked most about the IFBB. The girls look great, but they all look the same to me...and I find that boring.

3. It's more expensive to compete in the WBFF. That may be true. You will have a bikini as well as either a costume or an evening gown. That can cost you some dough if you don't know how to shop like a bargain hunter.

I was pleasantly surprised by the information I gained about this organization. So much so, that I am rethinking my plans for this year's competition season. Check in with me because I will be making my decision this week.

My review of Muscle Mania/Bikini Universe

After competing at Jr. National's this summer I have been toying with the idea of competing in another organization. I did some research on line and came across the INBA, the WBFF, and the Bikini Universe (Muscle Mania). It seems as if the closest one to the NPC and IFBB is the WBFF. But for some reason I was interested in finding out more about the Bikini Universe. I spoke with a local competitor and drilled her with one question after another. I then decided I wanted to go watch a show. I ended up choosing the Space City in Houston. This was a beginner show and I needed to keep that in mind when watching.

As far as the way the show was ran, it was great. They had two hosts for the morning show, which I really liked. We got to hear what the judges were looking for and we also heard about each contestant. I enjoy that. These competitors have worked so hard and it's nice when we can learn a little about them.

There was every physique imaginable, all which looked pretty good. Of course I was drawn to the more athletic look instead of just the thin, in shape look. The judges must have agreed because my pick won. Judging is quite different from the NPC as well. First of all, they actually have judging criteria. If you are in bikini then your "looks" play a role. If you are in figure you are only judged from the neck down. Each criterion is scored 1-15 or whatever the promoter or judge decides prior to show beginning. So if they think you are gorgeous you will score a 15. If they are scoring your muscle tone it is the same way. You are basically being scored against yourself. The judges did not talk amongst themselves and there did not seem to be scoring during the line-up itself. That seemed to be more just for show. Below is the judging criteria from their website.

MS. BIKINI JUDGING CRITERIA

Themed Sportswear Round – 50% of Score

· Poise & Presence – 33%

· Sports Wear Selection – 33%

· Appearance – 33%

You have a chance to show your modeling talents and your creativity. Just like in the swimsuit round you will be asked to walk from one side of the stage to the other performing quarter turns at a specific point outlined on stage. The themed apparel you select should best represent your character, personality, athletic interests and/or any other appearance you’re comfortable wearing. Just make sure it compliments your body. Work your magic – before you go on stage relax, enjoy your presentation and remember to smile.

Contestants must provide a brief description of their outfit in the Themed Sportswear Round. This is an opportunity for contestants to get creative with their costume and also mention the clothing sponsor, if any. No offensive costumes will be allowed (see through tops, etc.)

Swimsuit Round – 50%

· Body Condition – 33%

· Facial Beauty – 33%

· Appearance – 33%

Judges will analyze body shape, tone, symmetry, complexion, poise presentation and overall condition. Also, they will be looking for fit, toned feminine body that display proper conditioning. Contestants will be judged individually and in group comparisons. Facial beauty will be judged during this round as well. Posing in an overly sexual or manner including bending over in a reverse position, moves indicative of a stripper or other provocative body positions and/or movements will result in a deduction of points at the discretion of the head judge. In the Bikini Round, Contestants must wear a two-piece, bikini swimsuit and high heel shoes. If a contestant is competing in both the Fitness America and Ms. Bikini America, she does not need to wear a different swimsuit in each event. G-String or thong type swimsuits are not allowed. Contestants whom have a muscular appearance and/or walk and generally carry themselves in a masculine manner will be negatively scored by the judges.

Judges & Officials

Please note that the Ms. Bikini America is judged by commercial photographers, fashion designers, cosmetologists, fitness magazine editors, beauty pageant experts and other mainstream orientated professionals. No bodybuilders, coaches or personal trainers will be empanelled.

 

There are different divisions as well. There is the Bikini Model division. This division has club wear, bikini, and costume. Bikini division does costume and bikini. Figure has 2 piece and athletic wear. That's a lot to take in and can get confusing. Most of the girls crossed over in model and either bikini or figure. Model seemed to be a more athletic physique which I liked; probably even more so than the bikini division.

They pride themselves on being "tasteful". These are not my words. They have a huge problem with the way the NPC poses. I think it is the wide stance back pose they oppose the most. I would have to agree with them on this. I did that pose in 2011 and changed in 2012 because it just didn't feel right for me. However, the costumes raised my eyebrows a bit. You think the NPC stance is trashy, but you have the girls parade in, and let's be honest about this, a naughty Halloween costume or stripper outfit. I know that sounds negative, and that is not my intention. Just making a point. They were very tasteful in their modeling of these outfits and quite frankly, I think the physiques (as different as they each were) were showcased exceptionally well with these costumes. Verdict: I liked it.

I was not able to stay for the night show and that's when they compete in their bikinis. However, looking at photos the bikini bottoms are a bit more conservative, but the NPC style of suits are allowed. Well, many of them anyway.

They do have measures in place to prevent politics from running rampant in this organization. First of all, there are different judges for each show. That helps ensure that favoritism does not form between judges and competitors. Many of the judges are from local media and from fitness magazines and such. In the NPC most of the judges are males. This particular show, in the am, had all females except for one male and they were spaced apart from one another. Once the competitor was scored, the cards were picked up and tabulated in the computer.

From what some competitors told me and from what I have read, there is a media day. This gives the organization a chance to promote itself as well as give some of the competitors their own exposure. I really liked this. It's not just about the organization, even though we know it is, but they do promote their competitors even at a beginner level. I have personally never seen this in the NPC.

There is drug testing in this organization. I believe it is urine tested. This impacts more of the bodybuilders and figure competitors more so than the bikini competitors where size is not necessary. This organization does have pro levels for bodybuilders and figure competitors but not bikini.

All in all, I am impressed. While it is a much smaller organization and does not have the prestige like the NPC and IFBB it is a great way to compete. I am planning on competing in this organization next May in Galveston.

 

Next on my list to investigate: The WBFF

 

Off Season Training

Well, summer is gone. My boys are back in school and I am hitting the gym harder than ever in the off-season. OFF SEASON, is there such a thing? Not for a competitor. We are always trying to up ourselves. Six weeks ago I met with my trainer and established my goal for the next few months. My last show was in June and since then my body fat has gone from 9% at show time to 14.5%. That's pretty good. I want to put on another 5 - 8 lbs of lean body mass with the primary focus being on increasing the size of my legs. After the first 6 weeks I managed to put on 3 lbs of muscle and lost a percent of body fat. My weight is up to 120lbs.

This is pretty amazing to me because I remember in 2008 and 2010 I stepped on stage at 102lbs. Today I have 105lbs of lean body mass, weigh 120lbs, and am 13.5% body fat. I no longer worry about that dreadful number being a negative thing. My goal for next year is to have 108-110 LBM.

If you have been following me for any length of time or have read some of my other posts, you will recall I am debating about remaining an NPC athlete or participating in another organization. I recently went and watch a local Bikini Universe show (part of the Muscle Mania organization) and my next blog will document my observations and opinions on what I saw.

As always, I welcome any feedback and/or questions.