flex friday: bye bye bodybuilding

wow, this post has been a long time coming. i’m sure you can figure out the topic of this flex friday just from the title, but today i’ll be sharing why i’m giving up bodybuilding for good. honestly, i thought i’d be competing in bodybuilding shows for the next couple of years, but it’s funny how god has different plans in mind.

after my last show in april of 2016 i was crazy determined to compete again and prep harder to prove the judges wrong. i took the summer as my off-season to work with my new training and diet coaches to put on some more muscle in “problem” areas, and started prep for my first NPC show in late january. but about five weeks into my prep i called it quits. it was honestly one of the hardest, yet BEST, things i have ever done. i’m not a quitter. i never have been. if i quit i feel like i failed, and this competitive gal is not down to lose/fail. but like i said earlier, god had a different plan.

during my last prep i had so many life changes…yanno, like a boyfriend, a puppy, new house, new job…and trying to juggle a FULL course load. basically the exact opposite of the ideal contest prep situation. so i decided that i needed to hold off on prepping for my own sanity. i also decided i liked yummy food and wine WAY TOO MUCH on date nights.

but other than boys, puppies and yummy food, there is much more to why i’m saying farewell. i noticed it was taking a great toll on my mental state. i was constantly ab-checking in the mirror, getting mad at myself for not being leaner and wishing my physique was like that of the girls i looked up to. i was never satisfied. unfortunately, this negative mental state didn’t end when prep did. being very open and honest, i am just now beginning to be okay with my “not-super-lean” physique. being body positive is HARD, especially in the world we live in today. teddy roosevelt says it best, “comparison is the thief of joy.” i know i’m not alone when it comes to this struggle…am i right? i find that i compare myself to other girls even though i know i shouldn’t because most of the time it’s unrealistic.

FORTUNATELY, as you learn to love your body those comparisons start to fade, overall health becomes priority, and the confidence boost is unreal!!

so that’s why i’m saying bye bye to bodybuilding, because i am learning to love myself.

LOVE YOURSELF, BABE. YOU ARE PERFECT!!