When you’re in the presence of the 8x Ms. Olympia, and she speaks, you do two things…. Sit still, and listen. Truly listen. Because the lessons that you will learn from her wisdom of being in the industry for 3 decades far surpasses anything you can ever imagine. To say that I am humbled, I am in awe, I am flattered, and that I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to spend a few hours with her is an understatement. I can’t descibe my gratitude.

The universe always gives you what you need, exactly when you NEED it. No sooner, no later. Always on time. The events that got us together in a 24 hour time span was totally by chance. And she acknowledged the same as well, if it’s meant to be it just is. Up to this point in prepping for my upcoming show, I had a lot of head games going on. Certain doubts started creeping into my head. Am I good enough? Am I lean enough? Am I too lean? Am I too big? What will the other girls bring, who will I be against? What the hell is going on, and WHY THE HELL AM I EVEN DOING THIS? A lot of times I try to shut those things out, but I’m human and I can’t always. The hardest thing about being on your own, training on your own is the constant battle to just trust yourself, keep your blinders on, don’t get into your head, and to just remain focused. And to focus on what’s best for you. No one else. And although for the most part, I’m very good at keeping my eyes on the prize, I’m like everyone else that I have my moments when I have felt unsure. But I’d never let down my game face, and you’d never tell. Meeting with Lenda yesterday, allayed ALL of my fears and set in me a confidence that I think I began to lose. My worrying about what “they” want (the Federation, judges, etc whoever you believe “they” to be) is no longer there. My only task at hand is to bring the absolute best that I can and focus on that. That is the amazing gift she gave to me.

We worked on my posing. I confessed that I’m completely self taught. No one has taught me the mandatories, I simply watched videos, studied pictures, tried things myself, and figured out what works best at displaying my physique. She floored me when she said that I pose better than she did her first time out in FBB! She was actually very pleased with my posing and had to make very little adjustments. One thing that I always have heard as a figure girl was DON’T FLEX! Don’t show ANY muscularity, you have too much, down play down play DOWN PLAY! So even in my posing for this division, I wasn’t displaying the fullest potential of what the shape of my body is. So we worked on being sure that I REALLY flex, I display my legs, my back, everything. The one thing that we both agreed with is that I need to bring in my legs more. That I’m still holding some bodyfat that can be dropped by the show. It’s just a little, but enough that can make a real difference in my overall conditioning. So I’ve adjusted my plan a bit to allow for the changes I need to see between now and then. And already just from what I was doing since Sunday, I’m getting tighter.





Legs are always the last LAST LAST to come in for me, so just keeping a steady eye on things, by the time the show rolls around, I should be great.

We talked about something that was very interesting. In my fear of “how far I should go” when it comes to my conditioning and how I come in, Lenda said that I need to stop worrying about that because as someone who competes naturally that the look of being lean is very different than the look of being “hard”. And although I may come in with a lean look and full muscle seperation, it’s a very different look than if I were a girl who chose to use “supplements” as a means of attaining that same look. She also said about the total package being the thing that will set competitors apart at the end of the day. A not so lean girl may win over a super lean girl because of the minute things. Maybe she has a better structure, maybe she has better stage presence. Maybe the way her SUIT fits flatters her body more and gives a better illusion on stage than the harder competitor standing next to her, and that your eye is just drawn to THAT girl. What I realized in that alone was that I really need to simply step up my game, stay focused, get the hell out of my head and bring what MY best is on the stage and live in that. She posted a video on her Facebook page yesterday that pretty much sums this up so nicely, and I think I’m going to save it and have any competitor I work with view this video. Check it out here:

 

We talked about a lot of things and some of that stuff is actually personal so I won’t share it. Let’s just say, I had a moment where I let down my guard and got emotional, I had a little cry, and she was there to relate, and that felt good. To hear she knew exactly what I was talking about, been there, and done that, and told me HOW to let go of that thing, was very reassuring…. We got video of the whole session, and she’s going to share it on her Facebook page, as well as I will on mine. I bet that they put that in there. Me boo hooing like a fucking baby lol. But hey I’m not ashamed, it’s something we all go through as competitors.

The thing that I walked away with that I hold dear is that in her I have a second set of eyes that I can now bounce things off of. I don’t need anyone to tell me how to eat, I don’t need you tell me how to train. I know these things already, and although there is ALWAYS room to grow, the basics of how the body develops is actually quite simple once you understand the science and leave the bullshit out. To have her in my corner to be able to get feedback from about what I need to adjust and to change and to develop as I grow in this sport is more than I can ever ask for, and is the perfect type of “coaching” for me. She has no agenda, and doesn’t NEED to offer any kind of advice to me, and that is a freeing thing when you find someone who is actually out for your best interest because they care.

So now, I’m refocused like never before. I wrote her an email last night thanking her for her time and wisdom. In it I said, “I woke up this morning as a competitor, I go to bed tonight as an athlete.” A completely evolved mindset. Her response: “Remember you have something that money can not buy and hard work can not produce.”

10 More Days….