CRUNCH TIME

It is exactly 5 five days away from competition time!

I seem to have caught some bug/run down over the last few days. All my bones and muscles ache, especially my back and hips. I feel so tired, drowsy and weak. My body jumps from cold to clammy. I have shooting pains in my stomach and it sounds like a bubbly pot about to overflow. All I feel like doing is lying down. It’s so strange because I have felt fine the whole way through, kept up with nutrition, supplements, training. No one around me is sick. The most frustrating aspect is being so close to the finish line and not feeling 100%. Two days now of “rest” (i.e. non training) is highly annoying. Today is the third day of this bizarre mystery illness and feeling much better than I did on Saturday (no stomach pains, more energy but little strength). Thought I could meet my Coach Ben, for our scheduled training session. Within 5 minutes he told me to see a doctor, then go home and rest. That’s making me even crazier and more upset as I’ve invested so much into this, my heart and soul over the last 12 weeks. I’m determined to fight whatever this is and bring my A game to the stage!

Resting did give me time to reflect on the preparation and how my personal journey had evolved. I remembered why I started, which was to achieve a mentally and physically challenging fitness goals in 2014. I remembered fearing certain training days, not having much confidence and being filled with anxiety about being on stage. Now I actually love training legs as I could see that every repetition I did, every set completed, weight pushed helped me achieve such positive results. It’s not easy but I love the sense of accomplishment, proving to myself that I can do this. I attended meditation workshops on anxiety, went to posing classes and made it a habit to practice posing for 10-15minutes every work day at lunchtime for the last 3 weeks. There is no better way to gain confidence, other than through regular practise. In April 2012, Social Psychologist Amy Cuddy presented an excellent Ted Talk on how body language shapes who you are “our bodies change our minds….and our minds change our behaviour….and our behaviour changes our outcomes”. Cuddy talked a lot about ‘power poses’ and how practising them for 2 minutes before a stressful event (in her example, practising the poses in a toilet cubicle before a job interview) affects how others see us but also changes how we see ourselves. Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc

Lastly, I have a new-found respect for natural bodybuilders and natural sports models! It requires such strict discipline, determination, organisation and efficient time-management. It’s almost like another full-time job and affects every part of your life. It’s still another 5 days for me but I already feel like a winner to have made it this far. I have never been more intently focused on anything else in my entire life. A friend sent me this YouTube to have a chuckle when I feeling really sick. It’s a conversation between a guy training for a bodybuilding competition and his wife. There is absolutely no malice or disrespect intended. Just some light humour. Enjoy: http://youtu.be/6CrLECXeBBQ

Take aways:

1)  Listen to your body. If it’s asking for a rest, do so. We’re not robots and need to   respond to our body’s cues (whether subtle or blatantly obvious in my case).

2)  Retain your humour at the end of the day. Give your all and trust that the universe has your best intentions at heart.

Like my page and share your thoughts/experiences: www.facebook.com/pages/Larissas-Fitness-Model-competition-journey/636630246397074

Please also visit my Yoga Mat Bag website, called “Just Add Colour” https://www.facebook.com/JustAddColourYogaMatBags My mum and I make customised and unique yoga/Pilates mat bags by hand, at home with rare and exquisite fabrics. I have written a range of articles covering various themes such as “Flex for Better Sex” and “Increase Strength by Integrating Yoga”. Many more articles and themes to come over next few weeks such as “Stability and Supple Spines: Yoga for Dance” & “Deepen Connections through Couples Yoga”. Like our page to stay tuned with the updates. Thank you.