My Attempt at Balance!

I'm fairly certain that every figure competitor has struggled with finding balance while prepping for a show. Prep, often times, consumes every aspect of your life. Before you know it you have turned into a chicken-eating, protein shake guzzlin', weight lifting, focused, anti-social being!

I have worked incredibly hard to find balance as it pertains to my family but during my last prep, I realized that I was not doing a good job creating balance between prep and my social life. I became aware of the fact that it had been months since I had left the house to hang out with friends some place other than the gym! It had been forever & a day since I had gone to a restaurant with a friend  to enjoy their company & a meal on a plate and not in a plastic Ziploc container. I had sacrificed my friendships (unintentionally but it still happened!!) in pursuit of a top 5 placing and a trophy. Right around the time I decided that this needed to change, my friend Mimi sent me a text asking when she was going to see me. This was the perfect opportunity to get out of the house and spend some time with a friend I sorely missed!

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We decided that we wanted to go some place that we could wear our "fancier" clothes to and after a short text exchange, Union Public House was deemed the spot of our date :) Mimi had been to the restaurant before but I had never heard of it. A lot of new restaurants have opened in Tucson recently and I know nothing about most of them because I have been prepping for the past decade few months.

A little black dress, Jessica Simpson pumps, and a Wonder Woman clutch made out of  duct tape!

We arrived separately and found each other at the hostess' stand. The hostess asked us if we wanted to sit inside or outside on the patio and when we told her that it didn't matter to us, she seemed a bit annoyed. Uhh...sorry..I didn't realize that us letting you decide which open table to fill was an annoyance! We were sat at a table inside and promptly began chatting with each other & catching up.

Mimi told me that the Crisp Pork Belly appetizer was a must so we decided to order that along with the Pub Chips. The appetizers were tasty despite the blue cheese sauce being slightly thick & cold.

Caesar salad with shrimp

Nicoise salad 

For our entrees, I ordered a Caesar salad with shrimp and Mimi decided to go with the Nicoise salad. Thumbs up for the entrees and the booze!

Me & the radiant Mimi!

The service was not what I expected for this particular type of restaurant (we joked that the waitress was scared of me because she would practically run up to our table, ask a question, then run away) but bottom line, I was just happy to see my friend!

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Uh oh! They gave me a hard hat!!

In addition to spending more time with my friends, I am making a conscious effort to do more in terms of giving back & community service. I, along with some of my fabulous co-workers, decided to lend a hand and support Habitat for Humanity's Rainbow Build here in Tucson. Yesterday, we gathered at 6:30 am (goodness, that's early for a Saturday morning!!) and joined with other local volunteers to build a home for a local family.

The home we worked on!

Some of my wonderful co-workers!

We had a wonderful time assisting in building a home for a family that would not have been able to see their dream of home ownership come true if it had not been for the assistance of the Tucson chapter of Habitat for Humanity. At the end of the afternoon, I was exhausted and completely filthy but my heart felt so full.

Just a glimpse of what I looked like at the end of the afternoon :)

Those of us at the build could not help but share with one another how awesome it was to see members of the Tucson community join together for such an incredible cause. I know that I said more than once how I couldn't think of a better way to start my weekend!

For me, balance is about stepping outside of the "figure competitor" shell I often inhabit. It is about ignorning my set eating schedule, not worrying about cardio & workouts, not hitting a pose every time I pass by a mirror. Balance is about spending quality time with the ones I love. It is about  seeing the world that is outside of my treadmill and gym. It is about supporting and serving those in my community. I haven't quite mastered it but the balance I have found thus far feels damn good!!