Bathroom BEFORE:
Bathroom AFTER:
Tag transformation
Client Apartment Transformation – Study/Vanity Area
Study Area BEFORE:
Study Area AFTER:
Client Apartment Transformation – Bedroom Area
My client’s space is small, a studio with about 700 square feet of living space. What complicated matters was the fact that her space was extremely disorganized, messy and in desperate need of cleaning. Unfortunately I don’t have true BEFORE images because I conducted the first phase cleanup before the client decided to hire me for phase two, and I wasn’t prepared to take photos during the first phase.
Bedroom Area BEFORE:
Bedroom Area AFTER:
Finding That Perfect Suit Is Like Finding The Perfect Wedding Gown…
Ever since I began competing in bodybuilding contests in 2009, I have had a fixation on suits. My fixation became a bit extreme during the time I was chasing after an IFBB Pro Card, and resulted in the purchase of a total of NINETEEN suits from 2009 through 2014!
Here is the breakdown of all the suits I bought each year:
2009:
Luli Fama off-the-rack suit – Bought through Victoria’s Secret Catalog. Wore for my first contest.
Royal blue Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at Tournament of Champions.
White and silver Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at Border States.
Black Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at NPC Nationals.
Lilac Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at Excalibur.
2010:
Slate blue hologram print Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at Emerald Cup.
Purple leopard print Fresh Peaches custom suit – Never wore this one.
Zebra print Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at Team Universe.
Tiger print Fresh Peaches custom suit – Never wore this one.
Deep blue shatterglass effect Fresh Peaches custom suit – Wore this at USA, Jr. USA, IFBB North American, NPC Nationals.
2011:
Blue Maison Lyle custom suit – Never wore this one.
Peacock custom suit made by me – Wore this at Team Universe, Master’s Nationals, IFBB North American, NPC Nationals.
2012:
Peach Tamee Marie cusstom suit – Never wore this one.
Red CJ’s Elite custom suit – Wore this at NPC Pittsburgh, Team Universe, Master’s Nationals.
Green CJ’s Elite custom suit – Wore this at IFBB North American. (I also wore this at both Pro contests I did in 2014).
2013:
Light blue CJ’s Elite custom suit – Wore this at NPC Metropolitan.
Tangerine CJ’s Elite custom suit – Wore this at Team Universe, Sac Pro.
Iris blue Jagware competition suit – Wore this at Irongames Pro.
2014:
Gold Ravish Sands custom suit – Wore this at Dennis James Classic Pro, Nor Cal Pro.
I no longer have a fixation on buying the “perfect” suit and have sold most of my suits. However, there are a few suits I will never get rid of, for various reasons:
Zebra print Fresh Peaches custom suit – This suit turned out to be great for photo shoots.
Tiger print Fresh Peaches custom suit – This suit also turned out to be great for photo shoots.
This was from IFBB North American in Cleveland, Ohio in 2012. I hadn’t seen this image until now! That was an amazing contest for me, in which I took a First Place Finish in Open Bikini C, beating out 27 other young ladies. I was 45 there!
Green CJ’s Elite custom suit – This is now my backup suit for IFBB Pro events.
Tangerine CJ’s Elite custom suit – I won my IFBB Pro Card in this suit and will never get rid of it due to its sentimental value. In addition, this is my main suit for IFBB Pro events.
I completely understand now the quest for a perfect suit can turn into an obsession! Over the years I managed to buy suits in green, various shades of blue, white, black, lilac, blue-purple, animal prints, peacock, peach, tangerine, red, and gold! Sometimes colors which look amazing on some competitors might not look as good on you, or maybe the color is perfect, but the cut isn’t quite right. I enjoyed trying out different colors and suitmakers, but I don’t think it was sensible at all for me to buy so many suits! Clearly I was a bit fickle about competition suits, hence the constant switching from one suit to another.
The entire process of selecting a suit is quite similar to the process of hunting for the perfect wedding gown. Yet even when I was searching for a wedding gown, I didn’t invest nearly as much time in that search, partially because I abhor shopping, but also because I was on a very limited budget when I shopped for a wedding gown. It was 1998 and I was in medical school, living off medical school loans, and paying for the entire wedding. What is amazing to me is that I have paid more for some competition suits than I paid for my wedding dress!
Believe it or not, I am still pondering the idea of having just “one more suit” made, but I keep pushing the idea aside because I know that would be frivolous. I know several competitors who struggle with the same suit frenzy that I have dealt with over the past eight years. Instead of spending major coin buying a bunch of different suits, you might want to consider just buying a couple of suits, one main suit and a backup suit. Your impulse may be to choose a favorite color to wear onstage, but make sure that the color/shade you choose looks good with your complexion and hair color! I have made that mistake a couple of times and ended up looking less than my best as a result. If you are indecisive, the massive selection of fabrics and connectors can be dizzying, so take your time when trying to decide on all the details. My absolute favorite suit designer is CJ’s Elite, not only because her suits always fit like a dream, but also because she has an extensive fabric and connector selection and is an amazing woman.
For those of you who want to try to save some money, a good option is to purchase used suits from a fellow competitor. I have two bikini division suits and a figure division suit for sale on my contest prep site: http://cutcurves.com/Storefront.php
Creativity Through Redecorating
I have always been a creative type, but as I have gotten older, the pragmatist in me has had a tendency to overshadow my creative side. As a result, I very rarely embark on creative projects these days, despite the fact that I always feel a pull towards anything creative, whether it be drawing, suit design, writing, or DIY home projects.
I am currently involved in a complete apartment reorganization and redecoration project which has enabled me to use my creative energy. It has been a challenge coming up with themes and color stories for the various rooms. Though the place is tiny, the to-do list is daunting because I need to maximize the use of limited space on a very small budget. These limitations make it impossible to buy new items of furniture, so I must instead repair and redecorate existing pieces which lack character. Paint, decals, stencils and fabric will be utilized in clever ways in order to add color and character to the space.
It has been a blast figuring out what my client loves in terms of color and design elements, and though her tastes are different from mine, I know that I will create a living space which she will be thrilled to come home to. Stay tuned for the transformation photos once everything is completed!
Making Regular Exercise A Priority
I freely admit that I chuckle to myself whenever I hear people say that they wish they had the discipline to work out on a consistent basis. It’s not that I am insensitive to the rigors of busy schedules, because I spend my days running from place to place, multitasking and barreling through tons of tasks, errands and responsibilities. But I set aside about two hours per day, six days per week, to go to the gym, and I train HARD and HEAVY every time. The main reason why I am so consistent about hitting the gym consistently is that it is a priority, as important as brushing my teeth and showering on a daily basis. As a matter of fact, I look forward to my gym sessions as a way to begin each day, which is why Sunday, my rest day, is a bit rough for me and throws me off my usual daily pattern of waking up and heading straight to the gym.
Perhaps you are one of those people who believes that there isn’t time to work out, and you continue to allow your schedule to annihilate any chance of working out. The thing is, if you actually made working out a MUST instead of something to fit into your schedule as it allowed, you would find a way to get your butt to the gym and follow a plan. I have definitely noticed that people who want to reach certain fitness goals are much more successful in reaching them when they follow a specific regimen which provides guidance and structure. Making promises to yourself like, “I will go to the gym on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 6 am to 7:30 am”, or “I will drive straight to the gym after work every day” can be a great start to adding discipline and consistency, but you need to follow through and hold yourself accountable.
I am not kidding when I say that you need to put your workouts into your schedule! Enter your workouts on your iPhone or your Google calendar so that you have the time blocked out in your schedule. Don’t allow other things to interfere with the time you have allotted for exercise either, because when you do that, you reinforce the idea that exercise is not that important and can be pushed off. Those of us who are committed to a fitness way of life don’t allow life’s little hiccups to interfere with our gym time. It’s that simple.
Red CJ’s Elite Suit For Sale…Great Price
This beautiful suit gave me a lot of good luck, with a first place finish and an overall at NPC Pittsburgh and a fourth place finish at NPC Masters Nationals. This is a $1,300 suit!
As time went on I added about $150 worth of Swarovski crystals to the suit to make it pop more onstage, with the result being a dense crystal scatter. The cups will fit a full D cup and the bottoms will fit someone who wears a size zero. When I competed in this suit I was 114 to 116 lbs., 32 inch hips, 35 inch booty. However, I also currently fit in this suit, and am 121 lbs., with a 36-1/2 booty.
PRICE: $250
Women’s Health & Fitness: Relationship-Based Solutions For Female Clientele Of Any Age
Please click on this link to read the original blog submission for the month of May in which I was a featured contributor:
http://us9.campaign-archive2.com/?u=2a517c301526ee432715a7f55&id=a975e73eed&e=fe80cede46
Many women can often be intimidated by health club or gym environments for a multitude of reasons. Women who don’t have a clue how to use unfamiliar exercise machines may find the experience of navigating through a whole collection of them rather terrifying.
As if that isn’t enough, some women question their ability to perform exercises with the necessary degree of coordination, balance and strength. Other women may hold onto the common misconception that lifting weights will make them extremely muscular and masculine, so they will shy away from free weights and weight machines, opting instead for more aerobic style activities. What is remarkable is that once these women are educated on the importance of regular exercise and proper nutrition, they experience profound health benefits which impact every aspect of their lives.
Gym owners who are willing to make an effort to address the unique concerns of women have a wonderful opportunity to build trust in their female clients, while also potentially increasing revenue by offering classes, training packages, classes, supplements and apparel which are designed for women.
If one-on-one training is offered at your facility, make sure to develop a group of trainers which can motivate female clients and address their unique concerns without making them feel inadequate or overwhelmed. Women also tend to have more questions about how to eat healthy, and often practice chronic caloric restriction which their bodies eventually adapt to, making it more difficult to drop those last few pounds, so it also makes sense to offer nutritional advice or refer female clients out to a dietician or nutritionist who is affiliated with your facility. Once the clients begin to experience physical and mental transformations, they become great cheerleaders for the gyms in which they train.
On a personal note, I am a proponent of weight training and supportive nutrition, especially in older individuals. One of the cruel consequences of aging is that a progressive loss of muscle occurs, beginning as early as one’s 20’s. I explain to clients that resistance training and an increase in protein intake are both critical for combating the insidious deflation of muscle and sagging skin which are the dreaded signs of advancing age.
It is important to make clients aware of the fact that resistance training will increase muscle-fiber diameter and overall strength, as well as naturally boost growth hormone and testosterone levels in the body.
Such hormonal and metabolic boosts can be incredible blessings for a menopausal woman who has been riding the unpredictable and often uncomfortable wave of hormonal decline, which is fraught with hot flashes, mood swings and, insomnia.
Basically, it is never too late to begin strength training!
For more information on age-related muscle loss in older women, please read my feature article in the September 2014 issue of Muscle & Body Magazine.
These Otomix Leggings Look Great!
These leggings are reversible, so you can wear them with the zipper in the front or in the back. They are incredibly comfortable and can be worn for workouts, but I love wearing these with a cute top and boots for a night out! They fit so well and look fantastic.
Regular price is $24 but they are on sale now for $16.88.
Style L333 Black
Call Otomix at 1-800-597-5425 FREE to order.
Progress Pictures Of One Of My Clients
I had recently gotten an email from this client, lamenting what she felt was a lack of progress after ten months. Since she has a significant medical issue, I have been extremely cautious with her nutrition and supplements. Thankfully, she has had no issues with weight training, so I have been more aggressive with her lifting regimen. Upon receiving her email, I pulled up her baseline images from last summer, and WOW. I am very impressed by her progress and so proud of her! The images on the left are from mid-June of last year, and the ones on the right are from April of this year.
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