Tag bodybuilding

‘Tis The Season – How To Stay Lean During The Holidays

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Last year I posted a little blurb about off-season maintenance which I think deserves a re-post.  This is especially appropriate since I recently made homemade (unclean) fudge and plan to make it again.  Keep in mind that you can still indulge in these little cheats as long as you keep the rest of your meals clean.  If you do this, you can absolutely maintain a good degree of leanness throughout the holiday season.

There are a few tricks to minimize the amount of bad foods which you may be tempted to devour.  You can consume a small amount of lean protein right before you have a carb cheat.  This will slow down digestion so that the carbs aren’t stored as readily.  Another trick is to drink a glass of water before you indulge in a decadent treat.  This will help to fill you up so you consume less food afterward.  When you are aware that you will be at a function in which tempting foods will be around, make sure your meals beforehand are kept clean and that you you eat every 2-1/2 to 3 hours to ensure that you won’t be ravenous come party time.  One of the worst things you can do is skip meals beforehand in hopes that the caloric deficit will balance out the overindulgence later.  All this does is squash your metabolism and increase your chance of overeating.

As long as you eat clean the remainder of the time, you should be able to stay within a few pounds of your maintenance weight if you do not compete, or within a few pounds of competition weight if you do compete.  Case in point:  I have been eating clean the vast majority of the time, with rare cheats here and there.  Though I was not in contest prep mode for NPC Nationals on November 9th and 10th, I weighed in that week at 117 pounds which is one pound over my competition weight, and had a waist measurement of 22.75 inches.  Last week, I had pizza twice but kept all other meals clean, and was able to maintain my weight at 117 lbs. with a 23 inch waist measurement.  The last thing I want to do is to unravel the results of all the hard work I have invested and continue to invest into my physique.  I did not skip any meals when I had these fun foods but just continued on my usual clean food path.

Some of you may be wondering what the cleanest choices are when you are at the holiday banquet.  Though this reflects the common holiday foods which are rather calorie dense, here are some of the better choices out of the bunch:

  • Roast turkey breast
  • Green beans without butter
  • Mashed potatoes made with whipped butter and Greek yogurt instead of milk and regular butter
  • Pumpkin Pie

Some of you may also be wondering what I am planning on cooking and eating, so here is my Thanksgiving menu:

  •  16 pound turkey
  • my secret stuffing recipe which has lots of goodies in it but is relatively low in fat and calories compared to other exotic stuffing recipes
  • mashed potatoes made with light butter and Greek yogurt
  • creamed spinach
  • my homemade fudge
  • whole cranberry-mandarin orange relish
  • turkey gravy
  • rolls
  • wine
  • store-bought chocolate pecan pie (which I probably won’t eat)

Obviously there are some items on my menu that fall outside of my “clean food guidelines”, but since the holidays only come once a year, and since I am only cooking one holiday feast which will be served on one day, I have no qualms about it.   This is the time during which we should count our blessings and spend quality time with the people we love without getting anxious about what we are eating.  However, this does not mean you have free license to go nuts on bad foods for the next month!  If you end up indulging in other foods, don’t beat yourself up.  Instead, enjoy the feast and resume healthy eating the next day.  Happy holidays!

Always a Bridesmaid, Never a Bride…

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I have now competed in thirteen pro-qualifying NPC/IFBB Bodybuilding contests since 2009, yet I have not attained the IFBB Professional Status that I have been chasing after.  I am not going to deny my frustration and despondency over this fact, because I have worked so hard at every aspect of competing and have improved dramatically with each event.  However, I have had a number of people ask me why I would continue competing if I have not been successful in reaching my goal by now.  I have also been asked why I want that Pro Card so badly.  Some individuals have gone as far as to suggest that I switch organizations, which is something I will NEVER do.

Let me put it in plain terms:  I have set IFBB Pro Status as a personal goal, and it dangles before me like a carrot.  Yes, I have made more sacrifices than you could imagine in order to compete, and yes, I have scratched my head wondering why I have gone up for four National-level Overall comparisons and have been passed up for a Pro slot every time.  But I will NOT be deterred or discouraged from continuing to compete.  When I train as hard as I do, I notice continued improvements in my physique which are a direct slap in the face to the aging process.  I LIKE chasing after goals and will not give up just because this particular goal continues to elude me.  Perhaps it hasn’t been my time, the stars and planets were not aligned properly, or I just wasn’t the right flavor for the judges’ eyes that day.  Whatever the case, I love competing, which is why I have already begun formulating my strategy and show schedule for 2013.

IFBB North American, 2012

I will definitely return to the stage next year.  Watch out, world!

A Bikini Athlete’s Favorite Ab Exercise

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I admit that abdominals are my favorite of all the body regions to train and have been for my entire adult life.  In fact I cannot think of a single time that I balked when it was time in my training split to work my abs.  This makes designating a particular abdominal exercise as my favorite especially challenging for me, since I consider very move to be a valuable component of an abdominal routine.

After having evaluated the level of motivation I have during each abdominal exercise, I have determined that my top abdominal move is the decline bench crunch.  If you have not performed this exercise before (and yes, I realize that many of you are already familiar with this move), I would highly recommend that you incorporate decline bench crunches into your routine.  Decline bench crunches are excellent at targeting the rectus abdominis and hip flexors due to the increased range of hip flexion which occurs on a decline bench.

Adjust a decline bench so that it is at a 30 to 45 degree angle (the more advanced you are, the greater the angle you can use).  Sit on bench with your feet hooked under the rollers and lie back on the pad with your arms folded across your chest.  Exhale as you bring your head, shoulders and back off the pad, coming to a full sit up position, then return slowly to start position.  You can perform 12 to 20 reps per set, 3 to 5 sets, but I will admit that when I do decline bench crunches, I perform 5 to 6 sets of 30 reps.  If you crave an extra challenge, extend your arms overhead while you perform this move.

Decline bench crunches can also be performed with a twisting motion at the top of the move, recruiting the obliques and serratus anterior.

Those of you who are really looking to punch up this exercise can perform a weighted variation of this move in which you hold a dumbbell behind your head, hold a plate on your chest, or pull on a cable during the exercise.

After incorporating decline bench crunches into your training split, don’t be surprised if people begin noticing your washboard abs!

From half-Asian No-ass-at-all to major booty!

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The first image is from my very first competition in July 2009 when I knew nothing about how to prep for a show. The second image is from May of 2012.

Finally got a butt!

This was my 16th competition over four years. I have worked very hard to transform my physique from “average” to “DAMN!”. All the hard work was work it!

My flat Asian booty...

This was from my first competition…boy was I clueless about how to prep for a show!

It is possible to reshape your booty!

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I never would have believed that I could have transformed my naturally less-than-bulbous half-Japanese glutes into the perky backside I have now if I had not seen the gradual metamorphosis over the last eighteen months.  I first began to notice the changes in my backside when my jeans, booty shorts and skirts all began to fit much more snugly.  Yet I wasn’t aware of how much of a change had occurred until I put on a gown I had purchased some years ago which had always made me look as if I had a moderate case of “noassatall”.  When I donned this gown, my rear end projected so deliciously that I finally realized how much my body had changed.

People constantly ask me if it is possible to combat the ravages of gravity and the aging process and perk up a saggy set of glutes.  My response is an enthusiastic and affirmative one.  So the next question is invariably, “What exercises can I do to make this happen?”  As I prepare a response to this question, I realize that many of you who are reading this may not like what I have to say.  Essentially, if you are serious about performing magic on your booty, be prepared for a lot, and I do mean a LOT, of lunges, deadlifts, deep squats and one of my personal favorites, cable kickbacks.  Better yet, stack these exercises with plyometric moves such as jump squats to really recruit this often neglected area.  Then enjoy the butt building which ensues.

Why I Love Competing

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A lot of people have asked me why I compete.  After all, it’s costly, it requires extreme discipline, and when I keep missing those IFBB Pro Card slots, I admit that I get despondent.  Truth be told, I had no inkling when I stepped onstage in July 2009 for my first competition that I would become afflicted with the mad desire to continue competing.

First of all, it pushes me to improve myself, not just physically but mentally and spiritually.  It gives me a specific goal to attain every few months.  It also enables me to be in an environment in which I am surrounded by like-minded individuals who are driven, more than a little obsessive-compulsive, and passionate about inspiring others to pursue optimal fitness.  What’s more, these individuals are beautiful to look at!

The thrill of stepping onstage wearing a well-cut bikini, blingy jewelry, and having my makeup done and my hair coiffed is unbeatable.  I get to do a reveal, an unveiling of all the hard work I had put in during the weeks leading up to a competition in hopes that it will be rewarded.  I don’t necessarily need the reward or the approval of the judges, but I want it.

So say what you will about the sacrifice and the expense of competing.  Until you have stepped on that bodybuilding stage and gotten bitten by the bug, you will not fully understand the exhilaration that comes with being a competitor.  There isn’t anything I have done in my life that quite approaches that high, and I have done a lot in my life, including performing and competing in a beauty pageant and obtaining a medical degree.

Hope that clears up the confusion surrounding why I continue to compete.

Welcome to my Blog!

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It took two years for me to launch this, but at least it has finally come to fruition.  Please check in regularly as I will post on a myriad of topics, such as exercise, contest prep, skincare, injectable fillers, nutrition and recipes, supplementation, suit design, modeling and whatever other topics my fans suggest.  I am very receptive to feedback and welcome suggestions!