Our Best Asset

As I stood in GNC, staring down the protein powders trying unsuccessfully to decide which flavor to try, I overheard a rather large woman talking to the rather large (as always) muscley GNC sales associate. "I do everything right, I eat right, exercise, and drink plenty of water. I just can't seem to get rid of this fat." Politely, this man suggested  a thermogenic for her to add to her regimen. She agreed, paid, and smiled on her way out the door.

Being in contest prep, I sat there blankly staring at the protein powders now for three reasons:
1- Because I was tired and carb depleted and couldn't quite focus on any one thing. :)
2- Still trying to decide on a new flavor.
3- Wondering how honest this woman was being.

Facts.
Drinking water? Who lies about that? No one. Clearly, not the issue.
Exercise? She's probably walking or something. That counts.
Eating right? I wonder...

I thought back to my own experiences in losing weight. Then suddenly I remembered a similar experience I had going in to GNC and asking the Big Muscley GNC Guy about products. I remember in my head thinking "Please GNC Guy, give me a lovely magical product that will cause me to lose all this fat without having to put in any much work" but saying almost the exact same thing the woman I saw. I remember exactly what product I bought. And I remember how I felt walking out of that store. Even more vividly, I remember what I thought to myself walking out of the store "SWEET!"

And I think we all know, the dumb thermo did not take off all my fat without having to work. No, I put in time intensive labor into the body I have right now.

Years later, I would discover my best asset.

Not an ass, an asset, people! Geez! But seriously, I do love how my butt is shaping right now. ;)

Honesty.

I'm 11 weeks out from the Night of Champions and my first steps onto the figure stage. While I couldn't be more excited, I'm also EXTREMELY full. Consuming over a pound of meat and almost 5 cups of veggies daily is difficult (with little output... high protein causes... slow digestive system lol). Having to force feed the large volume of food (calories is not the issue) down, has caused me to be sick. Last night, I got very sick off of trying to finish more meat and ended up vomiting. Once my 8pm meal came, I made an executive decision and added a tbsp of pb to my casein shake... sometimes making sure you get enough calories is the important thing. Technically a cheat, even if it wasn't a horrible binge.

This morning I began composing an email to my trainer. An update email. I started out.. "Things are going good..." WAIT a cotton-pickin-minute. Things weren't just good.

I stopped typing. And thought about that moment in my early weight loss days. My greatest asset at the time, was not buying a thermogenic that obviously did not change my life. It was the moment I became honest with myself. I was not eating right, nor was I even eating well. I wasn't exercising. My intention was there, drive was not. The moment I realized that, was the moment I realized I have the ability to change my actions.

The ability to be honest with yourself, first and foremost, is your greatest asset. Don't kid yourself and think that you can stick to an hour of cardio in the morning and an hour of cardio at night, 6 days a week if you haven't been active up to this point. Don't kid yourself (And HURT yourself) and go on a 1000 calorie diet. The only person you are fooling is yourself, and that doesn't ever go far.

Be honest. Make real changes. Make changes that you know you can stick to day in and day out. Go on a walk with your honey instead of killer cardio that won't make you want to do it tomorrow. Start eating more veggies over chips. You will appreciate your own honesty with yourself later. Promise!
Would my trainer really have known if I didn't eat all of every meal? Or had a tbsp of peanut butter? Probably not. I re-started my email to my trainer:

Subject Line: Confession :) Its not that bad...

The reality is, I need to know where my flaws are so they can be fixed. And my trainer needs to know what my issues are, so we can find a way around them. Honesty is the best policy! ;)


PS- I went with Optimum Nutrition's Extreme Milk Chocolate Whey Isolate. It is really Delicious! Reminds me of Cocoa Puffs. :) Which at this point in my prep, sounds awesome.