Sooooo.... my second-year competitive girls competed today in a higher and WAY more challenging level than last year. Wow - there was some great gymnastics being done today. The good news is, we are NOT in over our heads!!! Some small errors all around today, but overall the girls did great. They went out and were aggressive with their routines, and compared to this time last year - they are doing some amazing things!

 

This level is less restrictive with difficulty, so there are some skills that we are working on that really separated the top girls. We have to be persistent. I will never put a skill in a routine that isn't ready, so these girls have to keep at it this year in order to get these skills 'routine-ready'. This level will be a 2-4 year process, so it's important to keep their morale high for this year. The emphasis is definitely on good, clean gymnastics until they are ready to incorporate more skills. They look good... but we can look better!!!

 

It's all a process!

Just finished up at two of my girls' first real gymnastics competition - ever!!! They were awesome - the goal of the first competition is always to set the standard for the rest of the year and gain the 'competition' experience they will need for the bigger meets later on. They did just that. Both Kendall and Madison, who competed today, have come such a long way this year and did extremely well in terms of the quality of routines they displayed and their overall presentation.

 

Madison is in the younger category and won the beam event and also got a medal on floor. She's very clean and tight. She's very intelligent which makes her very cautious, so we have struggled to get over fears and have the skills she has, but you would never have known it today, which is exactly what we were going for. A fourth place finish all around definitely makes her a top contender in her category this year. We still have some tricks in the bag we have yet to show!!!

 

Kendall is in an older category, and man - it's a TOUGH class!!! They revised the entire system of gymnastics this year including the scoring, so there is a large mix of kids that could either compete at this level or the next one up. There's a lot of gymnasts that are staying in the lower level for now as they are probably still acquiring the higher level of difficulty on the side to move up. It's a tough choice for coaches because you want to challenge the kids, but you also don't want them to compete in a level where they are training competition routines below the level they are capable of. Lots of girls who competed against my 'Big Three' from last year decided to stay this level, which made the level of competition today very high and very competitive.

 

The higher level that I put my second-year girls in compete on Sunday... stay tuned for that report!!! And please remember the goal is to challenge them! They'll hold their own I am sure, but it's going to be stiff compeititon by the looks of things so far!!!

 

Anyways, Kendall was awesome. Truly one of the hardest working kids I have seen in my life. You literally have to tell her to stop repeating something in training, because she will go and go and go. I love that. She has great 'presence' as well - which I think is a strength of all of my girls, respectively. She's been working hard in the gym for some 'soon-to-be' skills as well. As soon as we have those ready, she should increase her placing significantly.

 

I'm proud of them - they are great girls and really showed their focus and determination today. I am excited and relieved at the same time, as I now have a better idea of what to expect from them and from the competition. Another group of the same level from our club who work under coach Sarah competed for the first time as well today and looked awesome!!! I see them in training, but it was great to see them in a competition setting - pulling it all together. All of the girls in the younger category placed on at least one event which is fantastic and another little girl in the same boat as Kendall did some great looking routines as well today, looking good in a very tough class!!!

 

That's the Day One report!! Day Two will be Sunday. Stay Tuned!!! And Good Luck to all of the girls competing this weekend!!!

Five weeks now until I compete. I am always uneasy and anxious at this point.... the numbers on the scale are starting to come down... but I will still panic until the day of the show. That's just me.

 

The competitor list is up - 15 girls in Fitness Tall - I am the only Canadian competing in Fitness...

 

Seeing the list made everything so final. Martha has been kicking my butt in training, so that part is going to be great. The diet is do-able - especially now... I just have to wait it out.

 

And not get SO freaked out about the scale...

 

Freaking out leads to self-sabotage - something I am trying to avoid this year.

 

 

 

I don't know if it's the relief of getting my body back on track or what, but I had an awesome and motivating day today!

 

It started with Martha's Bootcamp - and she does not misuse the word... she kicked our butts! This girl loves her plyo exercises... and I better start loving them too as I am going to start training with Martha twice a week on top of doing her diet and programs the rest of the week. I'm excited, it's such a difference to have someone there to tell you what to do, supervise you, and push you to do more. I'm a trainer with a trainer for a reason... I believe in it and I know that no matter how much you know or how motivated you may be - you always do more for somebody else!!!

 

Then I had my Fitness and Figure Seminar and it was great! Now that the season is kicking off, I know who's serious about it and I am excited to see what these girls are capable of. A phenomenal group of girls today as well - hard workers too! One of the great things about what I do is the people I meet along the way. These seminars and my job in general have just led me to get to know some pretty amazing people. I love it!!!

 

Then... because I couldn't stop there, I went to Hot Yoga with my girls Sarah and Steph. It was a tough one today... I should have brought my camera, it was the first time I've seen Sarah sweat! Ha ha! It was good though, my body needed it. I love things that get so intense that you fight with your mind not to quit during them... afterwards when you persevere through it and DON'T give up, it's so much more rewarding.

 

Tonight I get to prep food, prepare some diets and programs for people (I love doing that stuff!) and maybe I will watch a movie and go to sleep early. I am looking forward to my night!!! THAT'S how you can tell I am deep into my training! Usually I would miss going out partying!

Okay, so a minor setback was resolved this week. For whatever reason (no sleep?) my thyroid is under producing a hormone, that makes me sure if I hadn't been dieting, I would weigh about 250 lbs. No joke. The good news is that it can probably work it's way back to normal eventually... and in the meantime, there's a prescription with my name on it.

 

I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and now I have six weeks to get where I need to be. Let the games begin... there is NO option to not compete.

 

And my apologies for my competitive, low patience for excuses mode. But not really. I am frustrated with people and their wanting results and change, but not doing the work to get it. If you make the choice not to put the effort in, eat a certain way, or live a certain way, expect to get the results of THOSE choices. Sorry, complaining and having good intentions doesn't cut it. Do it or don't. 

Wow - I can't believe it's the 14th already... time flies when you need more of it!!!

 

Soooo... it was a sad day for us today, we had to give up our dog and I am having a hard time with it. She has a stomach disorder and needs to be somewhere where she can continuously be an outdoor / indoor type dog with lots of room to keep her digestion process all in whack. She also is on a special diet and unfortunately we don't have the space to provide her with the running room she needs. The breeders have a property that is ideal and six other dogs to run around with. It's a better situation for her and her health, but at the same time it's very sad. I felt like we were giving up on her, so it took me a long time to even accept that this would be the better option for her. She has been sick for a while, and no matter what we have done, she hasn't gotten better.

 

Anyways, that's the situation. Sad, but life goes on.

 

What else??? At the gym - it's January... what can I say??? I have a weight loss program that's beginning to take off. Lot's of motivated people to keep tabs on! I like it!!! The final CRITICAL Fitness and Figure seminar for my girls is on Saturday before the dieting phase begins... hope to see a good turnout. And as for me... I am fighting with my body as of right now... we'll see what the week brings, but any minute of sleep I can take from here on in - I am taking. Or so I say.

 

I need to be in bed now.

And it's a relief...

 

I hate waiting on other people, even though I know it is necessary to be PATIENT sometimes! It's a virtue I am working on... Today my good friend Mel came over as she will be accompanying me to the Arnold Classic in March and we booked our flights and hotel. I find booking to always have it's glitches - we didn't get into any of the host hotels - but all in all it looks good so far!

 

There may be more girls attending - including my trainer, but it's a costly little trip if you're just going from here for the heck of it. At least we have something and the flights look pretty open, so if more people are coming out, then that is cool. I just need to know I have a place to stay that is in Columbus.

 

And PS - I LOVE the 'courteous' hotel staff I spoke to on the phone today. Competency and Customer Service... I thought it was part of the hospitality industry.

Two blog entries in less than 12 hours! Am I cool or what???

 

Happy New Years to everyone! I hope everyone had an enjoyable evening. Taso and I started off at the Roadhouse for their 'White' party - we definitely dressed the part in head to toe white, and it gave me a reason to wear my wedding dress for the second time this year!!! Who else can say they were able to that? Just a reminder - my wedding dress was not a 'gown', just a white strapless cocktail dress. Perfect for tonight's party! Taso was technically working, but we hung out until midnight together. 

 

My hair looked great - hey - it doesn't happen often, so when it does I'll say it! We took lots of pictures. The we headed to Taso's new project, the restaurant Blink. Him and Chris tell me this is going to provide for our retirement, so here's hoping!!! The place looked great. And a rare occurence, because both these boys have been in the industry for so long, they've put together a top-notch staff. Wow, a place in Calgary with great staff during the labour-shortage! There might actually be a thing called 'service' at this joint!

 

Next stop for me was the old Chophouse. I used to work there and a lot of my good friends are still there. We had a dance party for three - Kate, Kelli, and I. It was a blast - I love those girls!!!

 

Bu we can't forget - I'm dieting. That meant not a drop of anything tonight besides Diet Coke. For the best though, when I party it's 'Go hard or go home' so the sobriety aspect was a plus when I could go as I pleased and cruise through the checkstops with a clear conscience.

 

Not even a drop of champagne at midnight!

 

I call this part of my life: Discipline.