Go Shawty...its your birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!! 

What am I doing for my birthday? Well, to start--I did INTENSE cardio at 7am at the track (heart pumping out of chest. Total of 100 burpees done throughout, 20 sprints UP the stairs, 4 laps (sprint all-out the long way, walk the short turn), 30 jumps onto the lowest bleacher step, and a cool-down), and had my weekly double serving oat bran treat for breakfast (and a tablespoon of PB happened after). I plan to do an upper body circuit workout later as well. No cake, no cheats for me today. I wish I was craving something, but I'm NOT! So I'm sticking to my same exact schedule and eating plan...with an extra big can of lo-carb monster for later ;)

Anyway, I want to share a BIG secret with you today. Today, August 13th, marks 8 weeks out from my FIRST NPC BIKINI COMPETITION!! I know, I know--I've been sort of talking about this since I started prep 4 weeks ago, but haven't exactly declared it. Kind of like when a woman first finds out she is pregnant, and doesn't tell people until the second trimester--right? Okay, fine, that's my analogy!

With 8 weeks to go, I'm really settled into my routine, slowly thinking about adding intensity and volume in the cardio department so that I don't deplete my calories much more, since I'm keeping them way lower than I was before I started prep! I became more or less obsessed with bodybuilding as a sport over the course of the year, and finally decided that i HAD to be one of those girls on stage. 
I was having a hard time deciding between figure or bikini, and finally went with my heart and chose bikini. Here is the current miss bikini OLYMPIA, Nicole Nagrani--and I'm pretty sure she's MY AGE:

I thought my hourglass shape would adapt better to the bikini look, despite these HUGE muscles I've built over the past year and change...trying to tone them DOWN now. I am SO excited that I have finally come to a stable place in my life where I can diet down and manipulate my calories and workouts without having feelings of self-doubt or insecurity about my size. Throughout the winter and spring, I knew I wanted to be on stage in a bikini, but wasn't mentally ready. After losing a lot of weight and becoming a much stronger athlete and self-proclaimed gym rat, my body and mind both NEEDED a break. I trained harder than ever, but allowed myself fruits, accidental spoons of peanut butter, and didn't think twice about it because I was tearing up the gym 6 days a week.

While I still have a long way to go, I feel good about the subtle changes I've seen since I started dieting and eating the same exact thing every single day. My carbs are still moderate/high, and I am never really hungry since I eat SO much broccoli and green beans. I am committed to getting my ass on stage the HEALTHY and natural way, and ultimately want to look the best I've ever looked--not just impress some NPC judges. 

I am so fortunate to have a phenomenal support system from my amazing MOM, TINA, VAL, KELVIN, BRIT, and every single blogger/friend who reads my blog and encourages me. While a lot of people don't understand WHY anyone that is ALREADY fit would want to diet down for months to stand in front of a panel of judges in a piece of sparkly spandex, it is just something I can't wait to experience. Competing is only the tip of the iceberg in the sport of bodybuilding. There is something about the intense hours of training, pain, soreness, sweat, cold vegetables, tablespoons and food scales--overall DEDICATION, that is so rewarding. Not to mention, I plan on keeping my well-rounded schedule of pole, sprints, heavy weights, circuits, and regular cardio to get that stage body. I am not working with a coach or trainer. I'm doing this all on my own. I will give credit to Pauline Nordin (fighterdiet.com) for my contest diet, although I amended the plan due to allergies to dairy and nuts. 

I am SO happy I shared this news with my blog for my birthday. No longer a teenager, I am celebrating my 20s with no cake, just trying to build MY cake for the back pose on October 13th ;) Stay tuned for plenty of updates. Here are some photos I've taken recently. My waist is currently 25'' and hips are STILL right under 37''!! what the heck...I have 8 weeks to lose SOMETHING off them! Well, I'm not going to complain about that on my BIRTHDAY! 

I might not be celebrating my birthday like most people, but this is my passion, and I'm content with spending this day like any other, with the addition of some lovely family members joining for dinner later--where I will eat my green beans and chicken breast.

Happy birthday to me!