Week 3: Team T & E: Uneven Fat Loss & The Time Crunch

Coach: Tammy Strome

E is in full swing now; she already lost 5 lbs! We filmed some video footage of her this past Saturday and a trained eye could see she was losing some of her upper body fat already.

That’s fat loss for ya! It never comes off evenly, and it’s most noticeable  first in the areas where you have the least fat cells, such as the face, arms, lower legs etc. Women generally carry more and larger fat cells in the hips, thighs and lower abdomen.

I’m sure you’ve seen this frustrating phenomenon in your own fat-loss quest. You’re becoming leaner everywhere except that one spot. Maybe it’s your butt…or your stomach. Don’t worry. Persist long enough and it’ll happen.

I’m so proud to see E getting into her groove. She’s following through with the morning cardio and training and it shows. We cut her carbs a bit and bumped up the cardio. Sometime near the end of this week, I will finally have a chance to post her training and diet.

This week I focused on talking to E about the importance of not over-scheduling her life. E is super motivated, which is great. In her enthusiasm, though, she’s trying to jam her cardio and training into time frames that aren’t realistic and she ends up getting tired. If she continues doing this, the stress may halt fat loss and even cause her to lose muscle.

So…I suggested she take a second look at her schedule. Perhaps she could go to the gym at 6 or 6:30 am instead of 5:30 am so she could get more sleep? I also suggested she might have more energy for training by doing whatever she needs to do to support this—even if it means taking a nap or eating another meal. Cramming everything in with all the other work and life responsibilities is bound to be challenging, but we all need breathing room.

Next week will be our big four-week update. We’ll be sharing new pictures and measurements. Soon, we’ll also be sharing a video update. Exciting stuff!

My Thursday post this week will be called “Bodybuilding is Dead!” In it, I’m going to share some exciting information about how the term “bodybuilding” is no longer an accurate catch-all label for this sport. If you’ve ever been curious about where your unique body shape might fit in if you ever decide to compete, be sure to check it out.

Yours in health,

Tammy

Client: Eftihia (E)

I’ve survived the first two weeks, I’m another week closer to June 18 and, already, I’m down 5 lbs. Yeah!

But before I get into things, thanks for all your motivating comments on this website! Your kind words and support give me the energy to keep going. More and more I believe family and friends are everything in this world, and we should all support each other as we go after our dreams. (On that note, one of my friends came to the gym with me at 4 am to keep me company while I sweated out whatever I ate the night before. That’s going above and beyond friend duty!)

Sometimes it’s difficult for me to pay attention to every single thing all the time during contest prep. And I’m amazed at just how different this prep period feels than the last two I went through.

1. My First Time Preparing for a Competition

The first time I did all this it was, well, my FIRST TIME! I was excited to be eating on a regular schedule. I’d attempted dieting on my own and was feeling tired and strung out until Tammy sorted out my diet. Besides, first times for everything are always exciting—first time posing, first body suit, first pair of clear heels, first show…and my first time seeing all my hard work acknowledged both on and off stage!

2. My Second Time Preparing for a Competition

The second time was especially difficult, just based on the short time between shows. While I found the morning cardio easy, the training was hard. Sparing muscle, energy and my sanity was difficult.

3. My Third Time Preparing for a Competition

This time, for the life of me, waking up every morning is my biggest challenge. The food, the workouts, even my JOB seems easy compared to the sound of my alarm!

*Sigh*

Alas, I still drag myself out of bed and get myself to the gym with GUSTO! The only thing that really sucked this past week was dealing with daylight savings time. Monday morning felt like 3 am!

Another weird thing I’m feeling this week is “squishy.” Yes, you read that right; I said “SQUISHY!” Fortunately I’ve experienced this before, while training for my first show. Back then I thought it meant I was losing muscle.

“Nope,” Tammy said. “You’re losing fat.”

Because I was losing water and fat fairly quickly, she explained, I would feel “kind of squishy” until my skin tightened up.  It happens fast!!!

This week I also noticed water and fat loss in my arms, which is awesome. The fun part of this process is that, as the fat drops away, new muscles pop out. I can finally see the new shape of my shoulders, biceps and triceps!

Psst. Wanna know a secret?

I aspire to have arms like Tammy’s. So, during my off-season, when I felt like I wanted to give up on a set or drop the weights, I closed my eyes and said…

“Failure cannot cope with persistence.”

And kept going!

When you train alone it’s easy to drop the weight or not complete a set.

“Sure” you tell yourself, “no one will know.” But I WILL! When I step on that stage, I can’t compare myself to others, but I have to know I did the best I could. I can’t expect perfection from myself, but I can strive to achieve it.

It doesn’t matter if I win a trophy or not, but I need to know that I busted my BUTT, strutted my STUFF on stage and smiled through it. Then and only then will I walk away a champion…with or without the trophy.

Yes, this sport is tough. It’ll test every aspect of who you are–your ability to complete, commit, adhere and persevere! So if you can go from point A (the first week) and end at point Z (show day) and manage all the hiccups in between (B-Y), then you don’t need a trophy.

Or that’s what I tell myself. For me, the fact that I get to compete on stage with so many wonderful, strong, determined women means so much more than winning!

I look forward to, perhaps, seeing some of you up there with me in future competitions! Or just hearing about your own journeys to fitness in the comments section…