Pack It In!

I'm working on packing my show bag (or should I say luggage?!?!) for Saturday....I usually pack more than I need but I believe it's better to have more than you need versus less!

I think what you take with you backstage really comes down to a matter of preference but here are some places you can go to view lists of what you need or see what other competitors bring with them.

• Siouxcountry's thread entitled "Packing List for Figure Competition" - what I love about this thread is that it's not a set list. The list has expanded over time as members of the board add to it!

• The Fabulous Becca over at A Blog?! Srsly?! is competing this weekend so she wrote her "Over-Packers Anonymous" post about what she takes with her backstage.

• One of my fave ladies Donloree of Bikini or Bust compiled her own list of must-haves in her "A Touch of OCD Never Hurt!" post

It looks like I'm going on a trip!

Here's some of what you will find in my backstage bag......

• Wig
• Extra set of yoga pants & jacket
• Dixie cups (to pee in!)
• Jewelry
• First aid kit (you never know when someone might need a band-aid or alcohol wipe!)
• Tampons
• Bobby pins
• Bikini Bite
• Jan Tana Hi Def glaze & hand towel 
• Safety pins
• ipod & headphones
• books & magazines
• E600 glue & baggie of extra stones
• Listerine 

I also take a yoga mat, pillow, and blanket so I can lay down and rest...it's nice to have a comfy place to rest while you're waiting for your turn on stage!!

With that said, I need to stop blogging & start packing! :)

Midpoint Check-In!!

I'm freaking out about how the show is thisclose to being here! The week is really flying by!!!!

On Saturday night, Tom & I wrote out a schedule for this week with what show stuff needed to be done on what particular day. Yesterday's schedule included a morning cardio session, full body workout, shaving, packing my show bag, and an evening cardio session. I was able to get everything done except the packing of my show bag....cross your fingers that it gets done tonight! If not, it will definitely need to happen tomorrow.

Yesterday's workout was a great one despite feeling really weak! Tommy always puts together the best workouts for me - I'm really lucky to be able to have him "throw something together" for me when needed!
And while I didn't lift as heavy as I would have liked, I still got a pretty awesome pump as you can see from the picture below. Holla if you like biceps & vascularity :)

I checked in with The Boss this morning to make sure that the changes that need to be taking place are actually happening. Laugh at me if you want to but I don't feel like I'm tightening up quite as much as I should...there's still a couple of days for the prep gods to transform my physique so keep your fingers crossed...lol!

The Boss emailed and said that everything is progressing nicely but I need make sure that I'm not flexing too tightly in my front pose when I hit the stage on Saturday. If you've been paying attention, A LOT of the girls that are getting top placings at shows do not have what might be considered "striated" legs. So I'm not going to flex as hard in my front pose so that I don't get marked down.

I have one more workout and one more cardio session today and then REST for the remainder of the week. Tanner application starts tonight....Tom's excited about that....me - not so much....lol!!!

Enjoy your hump day!!!

New Release Tuesday

Here's the deal - I'm not really a fan of country music - something about the "twang" in a lot of the songs that I just can't stand :)

BUT....Rascal Flatts is one of my brother's favorite bands so every time I hear them, I think of my baby brother livin' it up in L.A. and I miss him just a little bit more!

So this week's new release is in honor of my brother Jonathan (who, by the way, will be 24 on Friday!)!

Enjoy!

Two Words For Ya -

PEAK WEEK!!!

That's right....it's that time again....holy crap.....give me a minute while I run to the bathroom to throw up :)

Before I get into the torture fun that will be taking place this week, I want to talk about Team Universe that took place yesterday. Interesting judging....not sure I really understand what they're looking for at the national shows (or local shows...lol!) but there were definitely some great competitors that rocked the stage!

Shout-out to Kari of Figure Girl World who competed yesterday! I have followed her prep for the past 20 weeks and she poured her sweat, heart, and tears into getting ready for this show. I can't wait to follow her on her next show "journey"!

Do you recognize the suit on this competitor?!?!? My suit made its first (and hopefully not its last!) appearance on the national stage! This is my friend Jenny Scott who also competed yesterday at Team Universe! She took me under her wing at my first show and we have been in contact ever since. Her next show is Nationals in November and I can't wait to see how she does!

Guess what?!?!!? A friend of Tom's and I won her pro card last night!!!! So incredible! Amber has been competing in figure for less than a year. We both competed for the first time last July - she in bikini and I in figure. I told her backstage at that show that she should NOT be doing bikini and figure was where she needed to be! It's amazing what can happen in a year, isn't it??? She, along with Jenny, are trained by the incredible folks at AZ Pro Physiques!

And back to little ol' me :)

Here's what things looked like yesterday....

My menu  for this week will remain pretty much the same as it has been until the latter part of the week. I'm upping my water consumption a bit so that should make more visits to the bathroom! Not really much to report at this point....The Boss will keep an eye on how my body is changing over the course of the week and make adjustments as needed. I've been told about a couple of things I need to change in my posing so I'll be working on that and hopefully, I nail it before Saturday!

Oh....and let me just say this....I know it's going to be a GREAT week because I went to Kohl's yesterday and I saved DOUBLE what I spent....how do you like them apples??? :)

Here's A Thought....

Cardio sessions are often the time when a million thoughts are going through my brain....some of them are important things like reminding myself to put out the recycling bin by the curb or schedule my bikini wax (eek!!)....others are just random and at times, ridiculous! With that being said, here are 10 of my random thoughts from this morning's cardio session!

1) I wonder if Erin Stern thinks to herself, "Damn! I'm amazing!"

2) Why the f@#k is it so humid outside?!?!?

3) Eww!! There's the neighbor's icky cat!

4) I hope my wig doesn't fall off during my quarter turns.....

5) Why is this hour of cardio taking so long?!?!

6) Ok...I'm starting to smell my own funk...nasty....

7) Damn, I wish Chelsea was doing the show :(

8) What if I don't place? That would suck to be the hometown loser.....

9) Seriously, I need to shower....I smell like trash....

10) Oh thank God!! Cardio session #1 is OVER!!! 

Yes, I know - I'm a wacko :)

New Release Tuesday

This week's new release is for the gangsta side of my personality....yes, even librarians can be gangsta...lol :)

Two things I should warn you about...1) there is profanity in this song so if you like your music g-rated, you may want to pass on this one 2) Rick Ross has his jacket open in portions of this video...view at your own risk!

Public Service Announcement

This 4th of July when you're standing at the table staring at ridiculous amount of food that is screaming at you to put it on your plate, just remember: