time to work...

Today, we (Team M2 Fitness) are officially 27 days out from the Los Angeles Bodybuilding and Figure Championships. That pretty much means about 22 more days of insane training and feeling of death. Why only 22? Generally, the last 5 days or so are used to let the body recover from the stress put on it during these last 16-20 weeks, and use food to repair any damage done. This enables us to present the best package when we have to hit that stage.

During this entire journey, there have been numerous breakdowns, excuses, and all kinds of bumps for not only me, but the rest of the team. While waiting for my hard boiled eggs to cook (LOL), I decided to put some out there.

Genetics

We are never going to look the way we want to. There is a reason that people excel in what they do (i.e. professional athletes, CEO's, etc), and our bodies are no different. My coach had this example, in regards to the most recent topic in sports, Kobe Bryant. Will you ever be Kobe Bryant? Even if you were 6'7", do you have a chance to be Kobe? Why are some 6'7" people the most clumsy people on earth, yet Kobe has the athleticism and agility of someone much shorter than he is? You could probably practice basketball for 10 hours a day, or even twice as much as Kobe, but you will probably never be as good as Kobe, or Lebron for that matter. Likewise, our bodies are the same way. We have have different structures and some of us have it better than others. Do you think that Oprah, with all her crazy diets, could ever look like Beyonce? I seriously doubt it. haha

In bodybuilding, some are blessed with wider clavicles, small waists, and huge muscle bellies. They are built to succeed. But how many people are actually like that? Very few. The rest of us, we have to bust our butts to make it APPEAR like we have those traits. No one is perfect, and that statement cannot be any more true in this sport. The ideal bodybuilder weighs a lot more than he looks (i.e. 200 lbs looks like 250 lbs). Figure girls, the exact opposite. You want to weigh less than you actually appear. But figure girls don't have to make weight? Exactly! But, women have this infatuation with how much they weigh translates to how they look physically. Don't even let me try to explain it. And any female who denies it, is full of it. Trust me. Figure is about presenting a physique that shows the "model" aka small frame with a bit of athleticism and muscularity. Not so much that it is overpowering, but enough to show that, 'Hey, I train my ass of in the gym too!"

Excuses
We all have them. The best thing about this sport is you have no one to blame, except yourself. You are accountable for it all, 24 hours a day.

Attitude
Frustration. Grumpiness. Fatigue. Irritability. All of these things easily come into play. It is extremely hard to maintain a smile and positive attitude through all of this. Yes, I am extremely guilty of being an asshole, jerk, whatever you want to call it. I can't help it. I am up at 3:45 daily doing cardio, eating next to nothing, Mon-Thurs. By Tuesday night, it all catches up to me. I am exhausted, hungry, and not in the mood for a lot of things. What I have to remember is that I am not being forced to do this, but I chose to do this myself. I try not to take it out on other people, but sometimes people also need to watch their mouths around me. Not everyone wants to hear your criticism, dieting or not.

OK, eggs are cooked. Time to eat then train.