Four weeks from the upcoming Saturday, I will be strutting my stuff on stage and flexing my deltoids, trapezes, triceps, rhomboids, biceps, and more.  And so the real countdown has begun.

It is hard to fathom, that only six months ago I decided to compete. For nearly six months, my focus has been eating clean, getting adequate rest, sculpting and constructing my physic through creative and consistent weight training, and an unwavering dedication to training.

Going into the stretch, besides my “regular” workout regime, 30 minutes of cardio, is a part of the mix.

No two-body types are the same, which makes it a tricky, scientific, and methodical process. Who knew? I certainly didn’t! What works for one body may not work for another body. Thankfully my friend is guiding me through this process. Honestly I’d be lost without her. Thank you AR!

Slowly my caloric intake has reduced, but nothing crazy. Amazingly, the combo of 30 minutes of cardio and slightly cutting calories is resulting in slow weight loss.

Monday is weigh-in day. Here are the earlier numbers:

√ March 31^st – 147 lb..

√ April 7^th – 145.2 lb..

√ April 14^th – 142.9 lb..

I am astonished by the quick decline! Why? Because I haven’t done anything extreme, like run 10 miles or eat less than 2000 calories on any given day. The other surprise in all of this is the redistribution of weight. Typically 147 is a big number for me, yet my clothes are fitting me differently.

Last night I was able to pull my size 8, normally fitted jeans, off without unzipping or unbuttoning them! Hubby and I laughed hysterically about that. Pretty much all of my clothes, including my undies are falling off of me.

At the end of most days, the frequency and intensity of training, working, and trying to take care of the house, leaves me feeling exhausted. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I’m out… like a light…into a deep sleep. Some nights though when I attempt to roll over, especially the days that I worked shoulders and arms, the soreness of my muscles wake me. Oh Boy!  Ouch! But I manage to fall back into my deep sleep.

To get a little R & R and “mommy-daddy time,” a few days ago, hubby and I took a break from both our schedules.

We didn’t travel far from home, but it felt like we hopped on a plane and flew south. Overnight temps on Tuesday in South Jersey plummeted some 30 degrees to a low of 34!

We rose to frost and a dusting of snow! But once I nestled into the 85 degree tropical like home for the day, the reminder of winter was a distant memory.

Relaxing and cooling it with hubby in a warm, sunny, and tropical like retreat. Nice! I know, my hair looked a hot mess, but my hair wasn’t the priority.

Did I have a meal cheat? That’s a negative!!   Absolutely not! I ate clean and I ate well. I was permitted a little fire water, so I opted for (one drink) a little Vodka with a splash of cranberry juice.

I let the bartender get carried away with the Grey Goose, but when he poured the juice (which is loaded with sugar), I hovered over him like I had a weapon. I’m sure he thought, woman, why bother! After my first sip, I thought the same. Ha! Ha!

The following day I went to CrossFit. Fran! Fran! Fran! She kicked my butt!

The WOD:  Fran x’s Duet

21-15-9

Thrusters (95/65) (75/45)

Pull-ups

Rest 2 min
 & repeat

My trainer reminds me not to over do it when I go to crossFit.

No injuries!

With that in mind, I completed the thrusters with 55 pounds; believe me, that was enough.

For the sake of time, when I did the pull ups, I rotated bands between the thin blue and green bands. Yes, I was challenged but enjoyed every minute of it. My completed WOD time: 18:09

After yesterdays back workout, my trainer reminded again to continue to switch things up. Instead of using the CYBEX Arc Trainer, which I used yesterday, I did something different that was an extremely intense cardio workout, that consisted of 20 minutes of 5 rounds of:

2 minutes – Jacob ladder (JL)

2 minutes – Running at a 6 on the treadmill

I didn’t really rest in between, I just focused on my music, tried not to think about the fire in my hamstrings and quads, and keeping JL between 85-95! Whew!! Twas a lot but fun!! Lol!!

Today was leg day.  Within the first 20 minutes, I did at least six different sets on the Smith Machine.  Mr. Smith as I like to call it, gave me an intense workout.  Lots of squats were incorporated in today’s workout, as well as, (at the end of the workout) some cool plyometric exercises–they used every ounce of my remaining energy.

I realize that today is Easter Sunday; however, we’ve opted for a quiet day.  For most of the week, hubby has been working on replacing the balusters on the steps, pulling up carpet, and adding hard wood flooring on the steps and hallway. I’m so lucky, hubby is great with his hands. His skills are all self taught and he is outstanding at what he does. Nope!  In case you’re wondering, he’s retired from his second gig as carpenter.  Lol!

Hubby’s hard work! I’m such a lucky lady!

Half way through!

Yay!! The white balusters are gone!

Today, after my workout of course, we decided to chill and watch The Bible on the History Channel.  My feet are propped up and that’s exactly where the need to be.  Rest is crucial to muscle recovery.  Tomorrow we revisit shoulders; my body is still under construction.

Happy Easter and Happy Sunday!