Tag Archives: Clean Eating

Meal Prepping for Cheap!!

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, Weightloss, , , , , , ,

Hi friends!

Hope you all are doing well and you had a wonderful Valentine’s Day!  I know it’s been a while between posts, but I’ve been a busy girl studying for my NASM Personal Trainer test!  Can’t believe I’m finally taking it in two weeks!!

One of the biggest misconceptions I’ve seen and heard out there about meal prepping is that is expensive.  I’m here to tell you that that is so far from the truth!  If you really think about it, eating out multiple times a week at $6-10 a pop minimum quickly adds up!  Although you may not realize it, hitting up drive thrus and restaurants frequently can add up to hundreds of dollars a month.  Shane and I didn’t realize it at the time, but several years ago, both of us ate out for lunch nearly every day of the week.  You figure $15-20 for two people a day times 4-5 days a week, for 4-5 weeks a month, that equates to $250-$500 a month!  Unbelievable!!!  And that’s just lunches out, we’re not even talking dinners yet!  Not only can eating out sabotage your budget, but you have very little control over the nutrition of your food when you’re eating out, so it sabotages your fitness goals too. Here are some easy ways to make meal prepping (or preparing your meals ahead of time) cheap and easy!

  • Buy in bulk! Costco, Sam’s Club, or something similar is your friend! These warehouses typically cost $50 a year to join, but it pays for itself in savings!  Personally, I’m a Costco girl!!  You’ll see from my Instagram posts, that we’re huge fans of their chicken and egg whites!  Liquid egg-whites are an excellent source of protein, and they’re safe to drink because they’ve been pasteurized.  Costco sells 6 small cartons for 8 dollars!  That’s super cheap!  You can get chicken for about $3 a pound.  One 7-8 pound package costs about $21 dollars and will feed the two of us for a week, supplemented with maybe turkey, fish, or ground beef to mix things up.  You can catch chicken on sale at your grocery store, but the quality and price of warehouse clubs are hard to beat.  I’ll also buy boiled eggs, almond milk, Greek yogurt, oats, rice and potatoes here too.  All of the staples J  And warehouse clubs are GREAT for cleaning products and household goods too!
  • Salsa + Chicken + Crockpot= delicious chicken for days! This recipe could not be easier!  Take a small jar of salsa, about 3-4 pounds of chicken, and cook on low in your Crockpot or slow cooker for about 8 hours.  I use a spicier salsa (Joe T’s Medium is our favorite) and like to add about 4 tablespoons of low sodium taco seasoning.  Once it’s done, you shred up the chicken and you’re ready to go!  The salsa and seasoning don’t change up the macros that much, and this version of chicken is easy to serve over rice or lettuce for an easy meal.  You can also sub out Buffalo sauce for salsa.  It’ll keep in the fridge for 4-5 days.  See—cheap and easy!
  • Baked potatoes and rice—carbs are super easy and cheap to prepare ahead of time. I’ll make a cookie sheet of sweet potatoes) and a few baked potatoes (spray them with oil, sprinkle some salt, and roll in foil) and bake them all together at 450 for 90 mins.  Rice is also really simple to make ahead of time.  AND CHEAP.    
  • Frozen vegetables—personally I prefer fresh veggies, but from a nutrition standpoint, frozen is just as good! They are really inexpensive too!  Typically you can find pretty much every vegetable for $1-$2 a bag, which has several servings.  I should point out, however, that you want to make sure that you’re getting PLAIN vegetables—there are several brands that add in sauces, cheeses, and seasoning—steer clear of those!  They pack a ton of sodium and fat.  Frozen veggies are also found in bulk at your warehouse clubs!
  • Spices—Variety is the spice of life! Spices are really inexpensive—typically $3-5 for a jar—and are probably the easiest way to change up flavor profiles on protein, carbs, and vegetables.  Penzy’s Spices (penzeys.com) has an excellent assortment to choose from, and you can buy them in all different sizes!  Flavor God seasonings (www.flavorgod.com) are also delicious, low sodium options, but they are a little more expensive.  They keep for a long time, and you will get several uses out of one jar.

 I tell my clients all the time that starting out meal prepping isn’t easy.  You have to put some effort into it, and it takes PREPARATION.  You will have to get comfortable and used to eating a lot of the same foods.  It takes some time to adjust and get used to it, but I promised you’ll see the positive payoffs in your waistline, your energy levels, your stress levels, and your pocketbook!

Till next time!

-Mere

My Top 5 Tips for Losing Weight!

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, Weightloss, , , , , , ,

Happy Monday everyone!  It seems like people are always asking me how to lose weight.  Once the find out I’m a gymrat, or that I compete, or that I’m a “trainer in training”, that’s usually the first question they ask.  My answer pretty much always starts off with some form of—“it’s definitely a lifestyle” and “it matters more what you EAT the other 23 hours of your day, than what you do for the 1 hour in the gym!”.  Whether you’re looking to lose 5 pounds or 50 pounds, here are my 5 TOP TIPS for losing weight!

  • Eat out less. It goes without saying that restaurant meals have a ton of hidden calories and fat.  Although they’re delicious, those meals can pack on the pounds quick!  When you cook your own meals at home, you have so much more control over what you’re eating, and the amount you’re eating.  Plan ahead, grocery shop, and make most of your meals at home.  Try eating out for lunch just once a week instead of every day.  I promise you’ll start to lose weight, and your bank account will appreciate it too!
  • Read nutrition labels. How many calories, fat grams, sugars—the information is all right there at your finger tips. If you only pay attention to one or two of the numbers on a label, pay attention to the sugar content and carb content.  You’d be SHOCKED to see how much sugar comes in foods with a nutrition label!  Also, have you ever thought about how a lot of “whole” foods (i.e. produce, fruits, most meats, etc.) don’t really have a nutrition label, and if they do, they usually have less than 5 ingredients?
  • Avoid processed foods. I know y’all have heard me say this so many times—if it comes in a package, has a bunch of ingredients, or is anything frozen that’s not a vegetable, it’s probably not something you want to eat a lot of.  Processed foods are right up there with restaurant foods in terms of having a ton of added calories, sugars, and fats.  Their bright colored and appealing boxes, bags, cartons, and packages all cover this up, so it’s best just to avoid them or eat them in small amounts.
  • Avoid drinking your calories. Whether it’s alcohol,  a  daily 3pm Dr. Pepper,  your favorite smoothie, or your venti frappucino/latte/can’t live without it Starbucks creation, those calories are empty!  Most people don’t know how many calories are in alcoholic drinks, sodas, coffee beverages, even smoothies!  These tasty treats can pack a punch of hundreds or calories, and lots of sugar.  Just start paying attention to how often you imbibe in a high-calorie drink.  If it’s more than once a day, what can you do to change that?
  • Pay attention to portion control. This one is huge.   Challenge yourself to really pay attention to how much food you’re eating on a daily basis.  Keeping a food journal, or using a food tracking app like My Fitness Pal, will really help you see exactly what you’re taking in on a daily basis.  It’s important that you’re not getting too many calories, and also that you’re eating enough calories to really keep your metabolism burning strong.

So that’s it!  It was hard to narrow down to my Top 5, but I think this will definitely get y’all headed in the right direction!  If you would like some extra help or coaching on fitness or nutrition to help you reach your goals, I would LOVE to help you!  Feel free to message me, or email me at meredithlynchfitness@gmail.com.

Till next time!

-Mere

Life Lessons

Contest Prep, General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Makeup, Random Thoughts, and Other Things, , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’ve said this before.  There is so much a contest Prep teaches you.  There’s so much more to it than just workouts and dieting.  It teaches you about life!  There is so much mental work, dedication, and focus required to get through the journey to the stage.  You have to prioritize, juggle, make sacrifices, put in the time, and the results will come.  You have to push through the hard parts, keep pushing yourself, and get out of your comfort zone.  You have to be honest with yourself.  Are you sticking with your diet and training 100%?  Above all else, this process teaches you about ATTITUDE.  These my friends are LIFE LESSONS that I will carry with me long after any show, and in the whole scheme of things will make me a better person than any trophy ever will.

Let me share with you two interesting scenarios that came up just in the past week that threw me for a loop!  Both may sound dumb, but you girls will understand.  I have very short (a pixie cut in fact) hair.  I’ve never been a “high maintenance mane of hair” kind of girl, but I get it trimmed and colored every 4-5 weeks like clockwork.  Knowing how busy my schedule can get and how important good hair is on stage, I booked up appointments with my regular stylist for cuts and color all the way through June so I would be all set with hair from my photoshoot, which was April 3rd, all 3 shows, and all the way through our vacation to the Bahamas in June.  I had an appointment last Thursday for a much needed cut and color with my amazing stylist that would make me photoshoot ready for Sunday.  Plus I needed cute hair for my birthday the next day, right?  So I thought.  As it turned out, my usual guy was going to be out that day, and so the salon squeezed me in for a cut and color with two separate stylists.  I let both of them know there was a lot riding on this cut, and that James does such a great job that I was nervous letting them do it.  Shane’s aunt passed away last week as well and the Funeral was Saturday.  Throw in house hunting Friday afternoon, MY BIRTHDAY PARTY THAT NIGHT, family time and the service for the Funeral Saturday, if they screwed this up, I had NO TIME to get this fixed before my shoot Sunday that I had booked months ago with a very popular photographer.  And my birthday was the next day, and I had a Show in two weeks!  Long story short, by the end of my 3 hours in that salon chair, I was taken to platinum blonde and “fixed” to the worst shade of brown with blonde chunks in the most awful excuse for a pixie cut.  Shit.  I was exhausted, hungry, and this was the last thing I needed.  I still had two hours of training and cardio to do after my appointment and it was 8 o’clock at night.  I flipped—I HATED the color, but the cut was worse!  Could we fix it?!  What was I going to do?!?  On the verge of a meltdown, I left the salon Thursday night and fortunately was able to get into my usual stylist (who had dislocated his shoulder!) the next afternoon.  He worked his magic and brought me back to my usual blonde shade and (although he had to go shorter to fix it) my cut was at least manageable after he finessed it.  By Saturday afternoon I could breathe a sigh of relief.  Hair is just hair.  At the end of the day, screwed up hair is a total first world problem.  I’m not in a hospital, it’s not an emergency, it’s totally fixable.  Although, I must say that I definitely feared that my hair would fall out because of being processed three times!!!

Ugh. Awful.
Ugh. Awful.

We got through the weekend just fine.  The funeral was sad but perfect, and it was great to see our Houston family.  The photoshoot with Jay Fuertez was AMAZING and exactly what I needed to give me the extra confidence I needed to be ready to razzle dazzle at these shows.  We had so much fun!  It was the perfect celebration of all of my hard work these past few months.  I can’t wait to see how the pictures turn out, but here’s a sneak peak.  Who is this girl?!

No words. Just incredible.
No words. Just incredible.
Transforming into the Hulk!
Transforming into the Hulk!

This week, another situation presented itself.  If you don’t know anything about the suits (or bikinis) that competitors wear in shows, you should know that they take WEEKS to make.  I ordered my suit in a beautiful shade of Gunmetal Gray metallic fabric from a renowned suit designer (who is extremely well respected in the industry and a WPD Olympian herself) in January and paid $650.  I’d be all set—she did my suit last year and it was gorgeous, so why should I worry right?  She has a 12 week waiting list, and my suit was expected to arrive any day now.  We were cutting it close to show time!  The designer emailed me last week that she had started stoning it and it would be shipping soon.  I got home from the gym Tuesday night and Shane was beaming.  It had arrived!!!  I felt like a kid on Christmas.  Shane was camera ready–I opened up the package and case and pulled out my suit.  It was BLACK.  The fabric color was completely wrong and I HATED IT.  The stoning design was right, but the color was awful on me.  This wasn’t going to work.  Even Shane and my coach both said it wasn’t a good look.  My first show was 11 days away.  If the designer couldn’t fix it, I would have to wear my suit from last year, or be forced to wear this one.  Neither option was ideal and I was heartbroken.  Cue the water works and meltdown.   The SUIT is a big deal.  It’s the icing on a cake and you better love it, especially if you’ve worked this hard and paid that much for it.  After 14 weeks of Prep and I had yet to have a breakdown (even after the hair) but I barely slept that night and was a hot mess for cardio that morning.  Yep, I totally cried crocodile tears on the Stairmill.  Thank goodness I was sweaty enough that no one noticed!  I’m not a very outwardly religious person, but I will assure you that I believe that God works in mysterious ways and often in ways that we don’t always understand.  He sure was looking out for me in this situation.

I spoke with the suit designer the next morning, and this worked out even better than I could have planned.  She was extremely helpful and apologetic, and had the perfect solution.  It would be impossible for her to remake my suit before the show, but luckily she had several high-end suits that she rents out to competitors as well.  Most of them were used by IFBB Pros and are just beautiful.  I could “borrow” a brand new for-rent suit that had never been worn and wear that for the first show or two while she remade mine.  She sent me pictures of 4 GORGEOUS suits that were 2 and 3 times as expensive as mine for me to have my pick from that would fit perfectly since they were the same cut.  I would have a beautiful princess suit that would be even better than the one I had originally planned!  It was all going to be fine.  The cool part:  She had received an email from another girl the day before inquiring about my “mistake” suit that she had seen on the designer’s Instagram.  She wanted to purchase it for her suit in a couple of weeks, but with the designer’s time frame that wouldn’t be possible at all.  Guess what—she’s close to my size and will be able to buy that suit now because of what happened.  My loaner suit should be here by Saturday, just in time for my final posing class.  The gunmetal fabric I originally wanted has been discontinued as we’ve come to find out today, so I’m deciding on whether or not to just buy out the loaner suit (it’s discounted J) or just pick a different fabric color.  But it all worked out!!!  What did I learn from both of these situations?  That you cannot control everything no matter how hard you try.  You have to role with the punches.  Your attitude will make or break your happiness.  I could have been really angry and mean to the designer and yelled and screamed, but that would have done NOTHING.  Instead, I chose to believe that all things were working together for my good, and that everything happens for a reason.  The result: I will get to wear not one but two fabulous suits and another girl will get her dream suit.  Win win!  Also, in the whole scheme of things if I had worn last year’s suit or the black suit next weekend, the world wouldn’t end, and I would be fine.  Really, I would have been fine.

Pretty but not for me.
Pretty but not for me.

Life is all about road blocks.  None of us know what’s coming and things can change in a heartbeat.  As much as you control EVERYTHING in Prep—your training intensity, the cardio, your heart rate, your food intake, your supplements, EVERYTHING, there are still things and situations you can’t control.  Lou Holtz and Charles Swindoll both have said that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to what happens to you.

I couldn’t agree more.  More updates coming soon—we’re in the final stretch of this Prep!

Till next time,

-Mere

 

Best Weekend Ever!

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, , , , , , ,

So much to catch you guys up on!  Last weekend was AMAZING!!!  I had the privilege of attending Nicole Wilkins’ Phat Camp.  Best. Weekend. Ever.  In case you’ve been living under a rock and don’t know who Nicole is, she’s a 4x Ms. Figure Olympia Champ.  Basically that means she’s the best Figure competitor in the world.  Also a renowned trainer, Nicole has set the benchmark for Figure competitors worldwide, and has gained a huge following of fans that love her social media and website posts of helpful fitness and nutrition tips and videos.  A few weekends a year, she travels to cities here in the U.S. and abroad and hosts Phat Camp, a women-only fitness retreat where ladies at all fitness levels competitors and non-competitors alike can train with her, learn all about nutrition in Q&A seminars, build relationships with each other, and learn from one of the best Figure competitors in the sport of Bodybuilding.

Nicole at the 2015 Olympia
Nicole at the 2015 Olympia

I’ve looked up to Nicole since I started weightlifting a few years ago.  Her physique is INCREDIBLE, but she’s also humble, classy, smart, and down to earth.  I’m a member of her website, and have learned SO much from her!  Needless to say, I had been looking forward to meeting her at Phat Camp since the moment I found out she was coming to Dallas!  This weekend absolutely exceeded all of my expectations.  Not only was it incredible to meet Nicole in person (she said I was pretty!!!! J) but it was so inspiring to meet so many amazing women who love fitness and nutrition as much as I do!  Even though we are all at different places in our fitness journeys, we all worked out together, laughed together, and learned together all weekend long.  This weekend just confirmed for me that I really am passionate about this lifestyle, and I love seeing others become encouraged and motivated by that too. If you ever have the opportunity to attend a camp with Nicole GO!  This weekend just motivated me to push through the rest of the last few weeks of this prep and do my best at these shows!

Nicole and yours truly
Nicole and yours truly
Learning from the best!
Learning from the best!

It’s hard to believe my first show of the season is just over 3 weeks away!  HOLY COW!!!!!!!!  I’m feeling really pretty good about my conditioning, and so is my coach, which is good!  Still not where I want to be completely, but it takes YEARS to develop a muscular physique like the elite Figure pros have.  I am constantly reminding myself of that.  I should be proud of how much work I’ve put in so far and the improvements I’ve made since last year.  When I constantly compare myself to others (damn Instagram!) it really screws with my head and can be a total buzzkill.  That’s when the nerves set in.   When I focus on just MY progress, it’s much easier to feel confident and prepared for that stage.

Some autographed swag!
Some autographed swag!

Things are progressing quickly—it’s really the last 5 weeks of a prep where you see the most change.  My weight’s still staying pretty stable.  I’m at 133 and change now, from 141 when I started, so that’s good!  Energy levels are still pretty awesome, and I’m taking things day by day.  I’m still not having crazy cravings like I did last year, and I’m not a total zombie on my low-carb days- thank goodness!  I don’t feel like I’m missing out on a ton.  Sure a glass of wine and a patio, some Mexican food, and a brownie all sound pretty damn good right now, but don’t they always sound good?  As far as the game plan goes, Easter is this weekend (and Batman vs. Superman), my photo shoot with Jay Fuertez (YAY!) is next weekend (which coincidentally is also my birthday weekend) so I’m getting everything ready for that, and then it’s PEAK WEEK!  So really just two more weeks, plus the week before the show which is a piece of cake.  See, it’ll be here before I know it!

That face you make when you see "the line" down your leg!
That face you make when you see “the line” down your leg!

It’s not about winning.  I repeat.  IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT WINNING.  The show itself is a celebration of hard work, discipline, commitment, and accomplishment.  Every competitor up there has worked their ass off for their 12 seconds in the spotlight.  It takes some serious BALLS to get up there in less than a square foot of fabric!!  I have a great support group around me, and regardless of what happens at these 3 shows, I’m already a winner for getting up there.

Till next time,

-Mere

Spring Clean Your Diet!!!

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, , , , , , ,

I don’t know about you, but I love when seasons change, particularly winter into spring and summer into Fall.  My allergies might disagree, but Spring for me is a time to bring in freshness, tidiness and renewed energy.  The weather gets warmer and bikini season is right around the corner!  I thought I’d take some time this week to revisit some ideas on how to bring about freshness and “clean”-liness into your nutrition!  It’s time to shed that winter coat and get ready for Summer!

I get asked all the time by acquaintances, gymgoers, strangers, you name it, ways that they can clean up their diet and lose weight.  I’ve said it a million times—weight loss starts with nutrition!  You simply can’t out train a bad diet.  No matter how much you work out or what you’re doing in the gym, what you’re eating will make or break your progress.  You don’t have to be a bodybuilding competitor or professional athlete to take steps in the right direction towards better nutrition and health.  With Spring here, I encourage you to challenge yourself to really take inventory of what you’re eating.  How much are you eating?  How healthy are the foods you are eating?  Are you making food choices that will help you meet your overall weightloss goals?  So many of us have events (a graduation, reunion or wedding, perhaps?) or vacations, or special things coming up over the next few months—why not challenge yourself to take the next 30 or 60 days to make your health and fitness a priority so you can look and feel your best?

Here are some easy tips I thought I’d share on how you can CLEAN-UP your nutrition and diet!

  • Have a goal! But make it realistic. Maybe it’s to fit into that dress you haven’t been able to wear in a while.  Maybe it’s to feel better in a swimsuit before your cruise, or to look better in pictures with loved ones, or drop the 5 pounds you gained over the holidays.  Regardless, set a goal for yourself!
  • Make it measurable. When I first started working out and eating clean, I tried to keep track of how many times a week I stuck to my workouts.  It helped that I had paid for them ahead of time and was less likely to skip out, but I also liked seeing exactly how many times I could log a workout in my calendar over a period of time.  It’s pretty motivating!  I also logged my food in My Fitness Pal, and could see when I was within my calorie goal.  If your goal is to lose weight, keep in mind that a healthy weight to lose for most people is 1-2 pounds per week.  Anything drastic where you’re on a liquid diet, or cleanse, or quick fixes like that where you’re losing more than that are not only aren’t very healthy, but they won’t lead to LONG TERM results.
  • Don’t focus on what you CAN’T eat—a core principle of clean eating is essentially cutting out anything that’s not plant based or animal based, staying away from processed foods and sugars. Instead of moaning and groaning about the wine or cookies or cheese you “can’t” have, focus on all of the fresh, healthy options you have in front of you.  The more you think about what you’re cutting out, the more likely you’ll be to succumb to cravings.  You can still have the wine and cookies and cheese, just in MODERATION.  More on that in a later post.
  • Keep it easy. Plan to eat 5 small meals a day- Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, and a mid-afternoon and mid-morning snack.
  • Go grocery shopping! Pro-tip: If you don’t bring crap home, you won’t eat crap.  That means that the cookies, chips, candy, and junk don’t make it home with you!  Stick to the perimeter of the store, take a shopping list with you, and stock up on healthy options!
  • Log your food. Research has shown that if you hold yourself accountable to log exactly what you’re eating that it can really help motivate you keep you consistent.  Check out the My Fitness Pal app, or the Fitbook (available on Amazon).
  • Try not to eat out as much. This one is difficult. You can still have a social life and not eat out all the time!!  See if you can keep restaurant visits or takeout to once on the weekend, and once during the week.
  • Challenge yourself just to cut back on alcohol (having just 1-2 drinks per week), soda, and sugar, and to get just 3 30-minute workouts in a week. Do this for just 1 MONTH, and I promise you that you will see results!!!  These are all easy things you can do to help get your diet on the right track.

It’s not easy.  Even after years into it, I still struggle some days.  We all do.  If it were easy, everyone would be a lot “skinnier” and the obesity epidemic wouldn’t be as outrageously out of control as it is.  I can tell you that with CONSISTENCY and DEDICATION that you will finally get the results you’ve been looking for.

I’m not an expert, and I’m not a trainer, just a girl that loves nutrition and fitness and wants to help others as much as she can.  As always though, let me know if you have any questions!!

Till next time,

-Mere

The Secret is in the Routine

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, Weightloss, , , , , , ,

Hi guys!  I cannot believe I’m already halfway through this Prep!  Between working full-time, training, eating, and life, it’s been a while since I’ve updated all of you!  We posted an older entry as well, but hopefully now that things have settled down a bit I can get back in the habit of updating the blog more frequently!

The secret is definitely in the routine.  I love the structure and discipline that comes with Prep.  There is so much dedication, focus, and intention around the routine.  I still focus on taking things one day, one meal, one workout at a time.  I give each one 110% and move through each one each day, and the days slowly turn into weeks, and the results are slowly coming.  It’s such an amazing process, but the secret is definitely found in CONSISTENCY in the routine.

Everyone loves a locker room selfie!
Everyone loves a locker room selfie!

Don’t get me wrong, things are still really different this time!!!  So far so good, but man, this time just feels a lot more I guess calm??  It’s really weird.  First off– I’m slowly seeing changes week by week, but the scale has barely moved!  Coach says not to worry though, that I’m right on pace!  ….I’ll take it!  My diet hasn’t changed all that much from offseason, so the biggest difference I’ve noticed with this prep compared to last year, is that I’m not craving things nearly as much.  Honestly, it seems easier!!  I guess mainly because this has been a “lifestyle” for me for a whole additional year for me, so it’s really not a big deal.  Eating clean and eating six times a day, is just how I eat!  It’s been almost six weeks since my last cheat meal, but all I really want is a vodka soda with lime and maybe a cupcake.  Hilarious, right?  This time since I’m doing so many shows back to back, I’ve been a lot more focused on how I feel—I know now to expect low energy on my low carb days, and have structured my rest day so that it falls on a low carb day, and know to REST!!!  My energy levels so far have been pretty on point, up until this week—we upped my fasted morning cardio to 45 minutes (way more than last year! Lol!) and my low carb days, I’m only doing 25g of carbs.  A ½ cup of oats in the morning with breakfast, and that’s it for 24 hours!  On Tuesdays and Thursdays at least.  Needless to say, I’ve learned that low carb day + leg day is a shitty combo, and I won’t make that mistake again!  Also now that I’m working from home 100% of the time, it’s been a lot easier to get my cardio and training in than last time.  That’s such a blessing—Prep is hard regardless, but it would be so much harder with a demanding job and crazy schedule!!  Shane has been amazing as always, encouraging me and supporting me in this journey.  I’m so lucky to have him by my side!!  I’ve got such an incredible support system of friends and family surrounding me, that I really just want to make everyone proud and enjoy each day as much as I can.  As I write this, I’m making a mental note to focus more on this journey as an individual one, instead of constantly comparing it to last year.

Date night--he gets wings, and I get celery!
Date night–he gets wings, and I get celery!

Outside of just pushing myself in my weight training, I’ve also taken up my cardio a notch from last year, incorporating more sprints, running, and track workouts to help lean out my legs.  It’s working!  We’ve also added a topical fat burner called Vasoburn (like IcyHot without the icy) which is also really helping.  That said, though, I’ve only lost 3 pounds since I started this Prep almost 8 weeks ago!  WTF.  Again, the scale is just a number— progress pics tell so much more.  You can see in these two pictures how much difference a year has made.  I’m still up about 25 pounds from stage weight last year, so we’ll see how the next 7 weeks go!  In terms of muscle mass and added size ALONE, we know I’ve made significant changes to my physique this past year.  I’m back to training with my Coach and posing once a week, which helps me stay focused and structured with my routine.  Cardio, Eat, Work, Eat, Train, More Cardio, Eat, Sleep, Repeat.

I’ve also realized that I feel more confident in this process and myself and what I can push myself to do than I did last time.  Today at least.  It’s very easy to look on Instagram at other competitors getting ready for national level shows, or their progress pictures, etc., and become really discouraged.  I try to just remind myself to compare me to me.  That’s all I can do!  When you give your best, and work hard, and do that day in and day out, the results will come.

I wouldn't be @Lipglossandlifting without some cute lipgloss on my way to the gym, right?
I wouldn’t be @Lipglossandlifting without some cute lipgloss on my way to the gym, right?

We booked another photo shoot for two weeks before the first show, which also happens to be my 31st birthday weekend, and this time it’s with a different photographer which will be fun.   My custom suit from Tamee Marie and custom bedazzled, BEAUTIFUL shoes from the Shoe Fairy are coming soon, so the excitement is building!!

On another super exciting note, NICOLE WILKINS (a.k.a. my Figure competitor HERO/IDOL) will be here in Dallas hosting one of her Fitness Phat Camp Bootcamps March 18th – 20th and I can’t WAIT to go!!!  It will be so fun to learn from her, gain new insights into fitness and nutrition, and meet new Fit Friends!

 

Stay tuned for more frequent updates!

Till next time,

-Mere

What’s been going on….

Contest Prep, General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hi Friends!!

Hope this finds you all happy and healthy!  Can you believe the holidays are right around the corner?!  Boy they got here fast!  There’s so much to catch y’all up on since we last talked.

Shane and I went to Florida to visit Universal Studios and Disney World (our FAVORITE place!) for a week and a half last month and had an AMAZING time.  It was so nice to spend time together and enjoy ourselves.  We had a blast!  Work got super busy for me there for a few weeks, and oh, we’re still house hunting.  Throw a few social and family events in there… The days turn into weeks and boom, here we are, halfway through November!

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Luckily I’ve stayed on track with my diet and my workouts, and things have been business as usual on that end.   We’re loving our gym here in Fort Worth, and have made it to Willow Bend for bootcamp a couple of times as well, so things are good!  I’m so excited to announce though that we have a gameplan in place!  My next show will be the NPC Southwest USA Championships April 16th here in Dallas.  *inserthighpitchedsqueelhere*  I am THRILLED to finally have a goal to work towards, and to get back up on that stage!  Ideally the plan will be to do the show on the 16th, followed by another on April 30th, and depending on how things go, a final one on May 7th as well.  I will NOT be taking any post show birthday trips to New Orleans or anywhere else this time!!!  I would love to get Nationally Qualified (i.e., the next step towards getting an IFBB pro card) and then make it to nationals in the fall next year or spring 2017, depending on timing.  A lot of this will depend on how well I do in the April shows, obviously.  I’m just excited to see the results of my “offseason” work these past 8 months.  I’ve put on substantial size—my weight is roughly 25 pounds more now than my stage weight from March.  It’s hard to say how much of that is muscle, but we’re hoping for 7-10 pounds.  That would be AMAZINNNNNGGGGG!  My main goal is to be a better total package than the girl in the picture below.  I just want to come in better and stronger than I did at my last show, which has been my only show in case y’all forgot!

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Here’s the even more exciting part.  My prep will start November 30th!  Which, hello, that’s right after Thanksgiving!  That would put me 20 weeks out from the show.  Yes, it seems like a long time, but in reality it’s not.  This will give us plenty of time to take things very slow and controlled.  We don’t know how quickly or slowly I’m going to be able to cut.  My prep was SUPER EASY (from a metabolic standpoint at least!) last time, but this time is a whole new ball game, and we don’t know how I’m going to react.  I’m praying I don’t have to do oodles of fasted cardio though—please baby Jesus, not a ton of cardio….I will still have Christmas and New Year’s “off”, but I’m already mentally preparing to make the most of these next 20 weeks.   Like I’ve told y’all before, when you look at it in terms of workouts, (20 arm workouts, 40 leg workouts, 20 rest days, 20 times to work shoulders) that’s changes your perception on things and you start to see that you really need every bit of those 20 weeks.  This takes an incredible amount of discipline, dedication, and focus.  Come back as a veteran now is already a little different, but in a good way.  I can’t wait to compare progress pics from this prep with my last one.

The weekly training/ posing sessions with my coach will start back up in January, which will be awesome!  I’ve already started looking at suits—I’ll need a new once since my back’s grown so much!—and I’m super excited that my shows will be local so my friends and family can come see what this incredible sport is all about.

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I can’t wait to share this journey with all of you again!  All of your likes, comments, texts, emails, and messages really helped motivate and encourage me every day of those 12 weeks.  If I can inspire and motivate anyone on my journey, than that makes this all the sweeter.

Till next time!

-Mere

Hello from Offseason!

Contest Prep, General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’ve been so focused on sharing my fitness and healthy eating tips and tricks, that some of y’all probably forgot about how things are going for me as a Figure Competitor!

Oh man.  I AM SO READY TO GET BACK ON THAT STAGE!!!  Especially after watching the Olympia this weekend!!  That’s the Super Bowl of this sport, and all of the Figure competitors looked amazing!  As you know, my last (and only) show was six month ago in March.  I did great in that show, and was originally planning to compete again in November.  For me to be show-ready in November, I would have started prepping again in AUGUST.  Honestly, both me and my coach felt like that just wasn’t enough time for me to GROW!  All great competitors take significant time between shows to really focus on growing muscles and changing their physiques.  That’s the only way to improve!  You cannot grow muscle and stay stage lean year round.  Our bodies cannot do both at the same time.  End of story.  Theoretically speaking it takes about 3 months (12 weeks) to prep for a Contest, and 2-3 months (6-10) weeks for your body to get back to normal after being that lean after a show.

So what have I been up to since our last update?  EATING and LIFTING!!!!!   I love the freedom and strength I have in the gym.  I’ve set some amazing PRs, and have really able to focus more on training and having fun with my workouts!  You can always have fun with your training (hell, it SHOULD be fun!) but as you progress through a contest prep you definitely lose your strength and energy, and eventually just use what energy you have to just get through the workout!  My coach is very pleased with my progress—I’ve added CONSIDERABLE muscle mass, particularly in my back and shoulders.  My quads have grown as well!  It took me a few weeks to adjust to the weight gain I had from rebounding so badly after the show (classic rookie mistake!), but I’m feeling more confident in my body now.  I’m hovering around 142-143 pounds these days (I’m 5’4) and was roughly 115 on show day.  If you do the math, that’s about a 30 pound difference!  Things don’t fit like they did a few months ago, and I’m still a little “fluffier” than I’d like to be, but it’s all part of the process.   Just like in prep, I take this one day, one meal, one workout at a time.  This is a lifestyle!  I don’t feel deprived with food thanks to my weekly cheat meals.  You’re going to think I’m crazy, but I begged my coach to take some of my carbs away because I was never hungry!!  We’ll see how long that lasts!!!

I’ve also been focusing a lot on taking care of my body with preventative/ recovery measures to keep from getting injured and enable my muscles to get the most out of their training.  I’m now getting monthly sports massages in addition to my monthly chiropractic adjustments.  Massage is important because it helps your muscles grow and aids in the recovery of your muscle tissue.  Sports massages aren’t exactly relaxing, but they hurt so good!  My chiropractor helps me feel balanced and with neck and back pain I have from a car accident several years ago.  I will also be incorporating cryotherapy into my routine as well.   My training has remained mostly the same, but I am able to go HEAVY and push myself in every workout.  Legs are definitely the area I want to grow the most, and even after all this work and time, I’m still dissatisfied with how slowly they are progressing.  I’ve noticed how I’ve always sort of had “issues” with my legs, and my coach and I noticed that one of my hamstrings (my left) is definitely more developed than my right.  I was also beginning to experience stiffness and soreness in my left hip, especially after sprints or leg day.  He suggested I visit an MAT (muscle activation techniques) specialist in our gym to help facilitate better activation and utilization of my leg and hip muscles.  Believe it or not, after only a few muscle tests on my first visit, the MAT therapist said I was maybe getting 50% of my full potential out of my legs.  ONLY FIFTY PERCENT!!!!!  No wonder I’m not seeing the growth I want to.  That was also the reason for the lopsided hammies and hip pain.  My lack of muscle activation in my legs is caused by a combination of factors—muscle range of motion, genetics, strength, etc. , but the good news is that it can be fixed!  Muscle activation techniques focus on restoring BALANCE between muscles, and retraining your muscles to activate or “fire” the correct way so that they are getting the most out of training.  A lot of professional athletes get MAT training right before a game so that they can perform at their best.  Think of it like a chiropractor for your muscles.  My MAT therapist restructured my leg day workout so that I start with calves, move to hip abductor and adductor exercises, seated leg curl, and then glutes before doing any compound movements like squats, deadlifts, or leg presses.  This way my leg muscles are 100% activated and can fully “absorb” the training.  So interesting!  I’ve just started MAT, and have only had two sessions. After both sessions, I immediately  trained legs, and WOAH does it make a huge difference.  Performing certain exercises feels totally different after the MAT therapy.  It’s hard to explain, but I can already see a difference in my legs in just three weeks.  My MAT therapist also prescribed a series of hip flexor exercises and stretches to do every day that will help as well.

I have three more months of growing season, which seems like a lot; but it’s really not!  I have just 15 weeks before prep starts again.  That’s only 15 workouts per muscle group.  See, not a lot—right?!  I’m itching to pick a show date (dates haven’t been released for 2016 yet due to some changes with NPC Texas), anxious to start the countdown again, go to posing classes,  have discipline and structure, pick out a suit, and get ready to shine!  Every time I throw on my heels for check-ins with my coach, it makes me miss the anticipation of getting ready for a show!  I’m confident, though, that all of my hard work is going to pay off when I hit that stage in the spring.  I can’t wait to show off a totally different version of myself.  The best part of bodybuilding is that you are really competing against yourself.  It’s a constant, evolving process.  Just like life.

Till Next Time,

-Mere

Eat This, Not That—a Fit Girl’s Guide to Eating Out!

General Fitness, Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, Weightloss, , , , , , ,

I’m excited about this post, and I think a lot of you will be too!  Let’s face it, as much as we try to meal prep and plan our meals, sometimes we are in a pinch and need to eat a meal on the road or away from home.  Maybe you have a job that has a lot of dinners and lunches with clients that you wine and dine, or travel a lot, and that requires a lot of eating out.  I thought I’d share some of my favorite tips and tricks for making healthy choices when eating out.

I’ll preface this by saying that when you are really trying to be mindful with your nutrition, lose weight, build muscle, etc., you should avoid eating out as much as you can.  Not all restaurant meals are unhealthy, but when you eat out you cannot really control what and how much you are eating as well as you can when you prepare and cook your own meals.  With that said, we all like to get out of the house and enjoy a meal out with our friends and loved ones.  Live a little!!

Here are the parameters I try to follow when I am out (NOT ON CHEAT MEAL NIGHT!) and looking at what to order:

  • Stay away from fried anything— fried chicken is certainly delicious, but it’s not healthy!
  • Salads are a good option, but leave off the croutons and cheese if you can. They are nothing but empty calories. Stick with vinaigrette dressings and always order dressings on the side.
  • Stick with grilled lean proteins—fish, chicken, etc.
  • Avoid creamy sauces, cheese, and butter sauces. These usually add hundreds of calories.
  • Avoid pasta and rice dishes. They are chock full of of added butter and SALT and have way more carbs that you probably need.
  • Send the chips and bread back.
  • Look at menus and nutrition facts ahead of time so you are prepared and will be less tempted to order something off your “plan”.
  • You can always ask for your food to be prepared without butter or ask to have things grilled.
  • I will almost ALWAYS order a side salad instead of the rice/fries/potato option

 

I also thought I’d share some of our go-to meals we’ll order when we need to eat on the run:

Chipotle—

Order the burrito bowl with chicken, ½ as much brown rice, or no rice at all.  No beans, no cheese, no sour cream.  Pico, hot sauce, a tiny bit of corn, and lots of lettuce!  Guac on the side.

Chick-Fila—

Grilled nuggets with a side salad.  Vinaigrette dressing on the side.  Their market salad is a good option too but doesn’t have a lot of protein.

PeiWei—

Did you know you can get ANY of their bowls steamed with the sauce on the side?!  I love this option, and will get it with the spicy sauce on the side and use just a tiny bit to dip my veggies in.  Watch how much of the rice you eat, though, and order brown or white rice, but not fried rice.

Ghengis Grill—

I can almost eyeball my protein amount and can get a ton of veggies!!!  The healthier sauces are usually spicy, but try to avoid the sweeter ones to save calories.

Jason’s Deli—

The Turkey Wrap is your best option outside of the salad bar.  The soups are pretty much salt licks, and don’t even look at the nutrition facts for the sandwiches.  To save even more calories, order the wrap with no ranch dressing or on the side.

Rock Fish/ Seafood places—

Stick with grilled white fish (no butter) and grilled or steamed veggies with no butter. You can also do boiled shrimp or crab!  YUM!!!

Breakfast / Brunch—

Go with egg-white and veggie omelets or scrambles, and plain oatmeal. You can add Splenda and cinnamon to your oatmeal!  Avoid biscuits, pancakes, pastries, waffles, bacon, sausage. and pretty much all the good stuff. L  Brunch is another one of my favorite cheat meals!!

Mi Cocina/ Mexican Restaurants—

We love the Mico Rico salad from Mi Cocina!  Again, leave off the cheese and bacon but otherwise you’re pretty set.  Chicken fajitas and chicken fajita salads are probably your best choice if you can’t find grilled options on the menu.  Just watch the rice/beans/chips.

Sushi / Asian Restaurants—

Sushi is usually a pretty clean meal, especially if you’re not ordering rolls with sauces or tempura batter.  Sashimi is a great option as well.  Asian restaurants will usually give you the option to get your entrée steamed, so try that as well.

Pizza—

Seriously, just save this for a cheat meal.  Anything else will be disappointing!  If y’all have ideas on how to make restaurant pizza a clean meal, let me know, I’m all ears!!

American / Bar Restaurants—

A grilled chicken salad can be found almost anywhere, but again look at the toppings and dressing choices.  For example, most of Chili’s salads have a RIDICULOUS number of calories, but appear to be “healthy”.  I will sometimes do a grilled fish, or turkey burger as options too.

DRINKS—

Sidenote: Alcohol is almost entirely void of any nutritional value.  You want to lose weight quickly?  Cut out alcohol for two weeks and see what happens.  That said, I love the occasional cocktail, so here are my favorite “skinny” options:

  • Skinny Margarita
  • Vodka soda (NOT TONIC) with extra lime
  • Wine
  • A light beer
  • Diet Coke with vodka or Malibu and lime
  • Avoid frozen drinks, craft cocktails (those are my favorite), sweeter cocktails, and blended drinks

Stick to your guns!  It’s not easy to start or stick to a lifestyle of clean eating.  If it were, everyone would do it.  However, I can promise you that every healthy choice you make will give you more confidence and motivation to keep making more of them.  Your body will thank you and you won’t feel guilty for sabotaging all of your hard work in the gym.  Keep working hard!  Remember, I’m always listening and willing to help, so feel free to email me at Lipglossandlifting@gmail.com.  I just started a Facebook page, too, so give it a like (search for Lipgloss and Lifting)!

Till next time,

-Mere

I’m hungry…I need a snack.

Living the Fit Lifestyle, Nutrition/ Diet, Weightloss, , , , , , ,

We’ve all been there. Those 10:30am stomach gurgles when you’re starving and just can’t wait till lunch. Or worse, 3:30 or so in the afternoon when fatigue or the munchies set in and you head straight to the office vending machine. What do you need? A SNACK!

Believe it or not, snacks are just as important as your 3 square meals a day. Our bodies need fuel, and eating just three times a day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner just isn’t enough. This is particularly true if you are working out or maintaining a high activity level. Your metabolism will burn through your food supply, and you need to keep eating every 2-3 hours to keeping fueling it. More importantly, however, eating in between meals keeps your blood sugar steady, and gives you the energy you need to get through your day. I hoped in today’s post to give a brief overview of what I feel to be some downfalls for snacking habits, and provide you with a few nutritious options. Who doesn’t love a yummy snack?!

Cellucor Red Velvet Whey, literally the best tasting protein that you can buy!
Cellucor Red Velvet Whey, literally the best tasting protein that you can buy!

I read an article yesterday (and actually shared it on Facebook) from Bodyrock.tv that talked about 12 so called “healthy” foods that in actuality weren’t healthy or nutritious at all. It fascinates me how food propaganda and marketing screams “healthy” “low calorie” “low fat”, etc. everywhere you look. It should be easy to find “healthy” snacks, but if you read a label closely, these “healthy” foods are leaden with salt, chemicals, and SUGAR. A few usual culprits—granola bars, trail mixes, prepackaged snacks, flavored yogurts, and even PROTEIN DRINKS. Have you checked the label lately on a Kind bar or a Lara bar? Told you, all sugar. Even those Special K protein drinks are loaded with it! What’s a girl to do?!

If you choose wisely, there are lots of healthy snack options.
If you choose wisely, there are lots of healthy snack options.

You all have heard me talk time and time again about the importance of clean eating; eating whole foods that have as few ingredients as possible. When it comes to snacking, you should ideally aim to have one snack mid morning (in between breakfast and lunch, duh) and a second snack mid afternoon (between lunch and dinner). I also typically do a casein protein shake or egg whites as my 6th meal an hour or so before bed. Portion control is HUGE here. A snack should not be the same caloric intake as your meals. Avoid temptation to graze (or eat mindlessly) by portioning out your serving, rather than eating the food directly out of the box or container. Additionally, you should definitely incorporate protein into your snack. Some of my favorite snacks are plain Greek yogurt (flavored with crystal light drops or stevia), whey protein shakes, tuna, and ground turkey lettuce wraps. Try to avoid prepackaged snacks like chips, candy, snack mixes, cookies, etc. Essentially anything on what you’d find on what I call the “lunchbox aisle” of the grocery store. I love goldfish crackers, but they aren’t a very healthy snack choice unless you’re looking to eat a bunch of processed crap and still want to be hungry in 15 minutes. An apple or fruit is a good option, but keep in mind that it still translates as sugar to your body. A protein and fat should keep you satiated and hold you over until your next meal. Good combos include—tuna and avocado, turkey and avocado, yogurt (UNFLAVORED—there’s that darn sugar again) and almonds, you get the idea. Veggies and hummus are another great option. You could also make a dip with greek yogurt and your spices of choice for crudités. And I LOVE Quest Bars. Or hard boiled eggs! Refer back to my earlier posts about protein and fat sources if you need more ideas.

Honestly, just try to avoid foods that have more than 3 ingredients. Really. It’s that simple. If it wasn’t around when your great grandmother was, then it’s probably not real food! Remember to prepare ahead of time and bring snacks/food with you to work, school, or on the road so that you don’t have to rely on a less healthy option in a pinch. I don’t buy junk food at the grocery store so that it’s not in our home to tempt us. I don’t even crave junk food now, but in the beginning of my journey I found it was much easier to avoid it if it wasn’t in the house altogether. If I didn’t have access to plate of brownies on the counter or chips in the pantry, I wasn’t going to eat it, plain and simple.

Quest Bars are amazing. Buy them now. You won't regret it!
Quest Bars are amazing. Buy them now. You won’t regret it!

I should also mention that it is equally important to not skip snacking! If you find yourself starving between meals, you likely aren’t eating enough calories to fuel your body for your respective activity level. Also, if you’re famished come meal time, you are likely to give into cravings or over eat. We all know that can cause some serious damage. I touched earlier on how important it is to watch for added sugar in the foods that you eat. I cannot stress this enough—if you look at one thing on a label, make it the sugar content! I promise you will be surprised. If you have to eat packaged food, aim for those with a sugar content of 5g or less per serving, a low carb, and high fiber content. As you become more accustomed to eating clean foods, you will rely less and less on prepackaged items. Just remember, take it one day, one meal, one workout at a time.

Greek yogurt is a great source of protein.
Greek yogurt is a great source of protein.

I hope you all are enjoying the summer! I LOVE answering questions, so feel free to email me at lipglossandlifting@gmail.com.

Till next time,
-Mere