5 months ago I made the conscious decision to compete in a bikini competition. I did this thinking it would be the best way for me to understand all my clients who struggle when starting out with losing weight or becoming fit. I signed up for my first competition (3 weeks left and it's here now) back in May. I started training in June (while on temporary duty to Omaha NE) then traveled back to Germany to out-process Stuttgart and move to Spokane WA. Looking back now I don't know what I was thinking but it obviously wasn't that this is going to be super difficult being homeless (not really homeless just without my own stuff or the tools for meal prep) and that there would be little stress. Truth is my stress was more from worrying about failing at this then moving. I started to obsess about how I couldn't spend 3+ hours a day in the gym as a single mom, new to a
job that I was learning, and living in a hotel. I started to gain weight even though I was paining close attention to what I was eating (not always being able to eat as much as my trainer needed me to). I hired someone to assist me more with my nutrition so I could figure out a better way to meet the goals (which helped and I lost 3lbs in a week) but I still wasn't able to always make it into the gym like I should. Then one more I woke up and remembered I wasn't doing this to win an award or trophy but to better be able to relate to clients and that's where my stress went down. Don't get my wrong I want to do my best and look good on that stage but I also know that I am doing the absolute best with the situation I am in and that at the end I am a winner for even going through with the whole process...