17 Days Out and Have HIT THE WALL...

[PumpyFunk]

Mad respect and props to all of guys who have done shows, and continue to do them. I feel like absolute crrraaap right now, and I'm only 17 DAYS OUT! I'm almost there, but I just have the most tired, anxious, and beyond hunger emotions. I know it's typical, but until you actually experience it, it is pure HELL. Props to ALL of you that have excelled at this, because it is by far the most challenging thing physically and emotionally that I have ever done. Period. Sooooooooo hungry.

[tuxedoman34]

bro stay motivated..........I'm assuming you're in condition for being on stage so there's not much to change from now until then. Try to visualize being on stage and people cheering for you and the excitement that goes on. You have about 2 more weeks of training and then the peak week. So keep going hard, good luck on your show and enjoy your time afterwards.


I'm in the same boat. I am 7 weeks out and I personally hate dieting and doing cardio so preps are very difficult for me......but its a test. When you complete it you feel rewarded and satisfied with yourself. If you want to win, you have to do what ever it takes even if it means suffering.

[IronMom]

Ahhh, you're almost there! It's like childbirth, over time you forget about the pain and you'll want to do it again. LOL.

Gosh, when you say 17 days, it scares me. I'm doing the same show. I read your thread and got nervous. I JUST created my routine last night. I'm ready to get on with life. I want to have a good time at the show.

Keep your mind on your goal, keep busy. Keep practicing and stay the course.

[AlwaysTryin]

Mad respect and props to all of guys who have done shows, and continue to do them. I feel like absolute crrraaap right now, and I'm only 17 DAYS OUT! I'm almost there, but I just have the most tired, anxious, and beyond hunger emotions. I know it's typical, but until you actually experience it, it is pure HELL. Props to ALL of you that have excelled at this, because it is by far the most challenging thing physically and emotionally that I have ever done. Period. Sooooooooo hungry.

It happens!

It gets to a point you just want to give up and quit however that's where the mental strength comes in! Just think how small a time 17 days is out of your whole prep!

Almost there and the pleasure it will bring to you knowing what you achieved will be worth it!

[Barn01]

Preping was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life. The mental and physical stresses are real and I learned more about myself in the last few weeks than I did over the 3 months before that (they weren't easy either). Everyone that sees me now and what i've done in such a short time just assumes it's easy for me. I'm human like everyone else and before bodybuilding I was your avg joe lifter in the gym. Never once dieted in my life. The pain you feel now is something you need to push through. If you can push through and finish this to the end you will feel soooooo good about yourself afterwards. I like to think that to do well on stage you have to take yourself to a place where nobody else up there wanted to go.

Good luck. A couple more weeks and you're home free. The food will always be there TRUST ME!

[alex a]

Hang tough! I often wonder why i have put myself through this torture so many times.

15 shows in 9 years... and not one year off to be just a fan and enjoy the shows...

And for some reason i love the suffering and torture. I diet hard. I keep trying to beat my personal best condition each time i compete. I have never backed out of a show or gotten injured.

I often wonder .....what its like to be a "regular" person? and just live life.. But then i realize...... this is who i am..

And bro to you and all the other competitors dieting right now......

Hang in their and keep your eye on the prize at the end. It may be just a trophy..... but its a lifetime of memories. You young guys.... the teens on board.. Training and preparing hard builds character.

If you can make it through this, most likely you can suffer through college and Lifes other challenges and delayed rewards..

Competing hard is something you should be proud of. Give it your best effort and you can never say that you didnt try hard enough.. or that you didnt do all you could.

I wish you all the best!

[Dallas_15]

Hang tough! I often wonder why i have put myself through this torture so many times.

15 shows in 9 years... and not one year off to be just a fan and enjoy the shows...

And for some reason i love the suffering and torture. I diet hard. I keep trying to beat my personal best condition each time i compete. I have never backed out of a show or gotten injured.

I often wonder .....what its like to be a "regular" person? and just live life.. But then i realize...... this is who i am..

And bro to you and all the other competitors dieting right now......

Hang in their and keep your eye on the prize at the end. It may be just a trophy..... but its a lifetime of memories. You young guys.... the teens on board.. Training and preparing hard builds character.

If you can make it through this, most likely you can suffer through college and Lifes other challenges and delayed rewards..

Competing hard is something you should be proud of. Give it your best effort and you can never say that you didnt try hard enough.. or that you didnt do all you could.

I wish you all the best!

I feel like lifting weightss after that lol - was really motivating! im 6 weeks out and cant wait!!! - I think these boards keep me sane to, especially with posts like that! :D

[ErickStevens]

Keep pushing.

[IronMan2010]

The last 3 weeks off prep are crazy tough on the mind bro. Just keep your eyes on the prize, and im sure all will be worth it come showtime!

[surfergirl36]

Thanks Alex and Barn...great words that I needed to hear too! :)

[MAX.MAREK]

Hang tough! I often wonder why i have put myself through this torture so many times.

15 shows in 9 years... and not one year off to be just a fan and enjoy the shows...

And for some reason i love the suffering and torture. I diet hard. I keep trying to beat my personal best condition each time i compete. I have never backed out of a show or gotten injured.

I often wonder .....what its like to be a "regular" person? and just live life.. But then i realize...... this is who i am..

And bro to you and all the other competitors dieting right now......

Hang in their and keep your eye on the prize at the end. It may be just a trophy..... but its a lifetime of memories. You young guys.... the teens on board.. Training and preparing hard builds character.

If you can make it through this, most likely you can suffer through college and Lifes other challenges and delayed rewards..

Competing hard is something you should be proud of. Give it your best effort and you can never say that you didnt try hard enough.. or that you didnt do all you could.

I wish you all the best!

SOOOO feel the same way! kudos!!!

[kfairhurst]

Your so close, why give up now?! Push through it and prove to yourself that you can do anything. I used to have low self esteem until I competed and managed to push through it. Gained so much confidence because only a small percentage of us actually are strong enough mentally to handle it, we are the elite! You can do this!

[fitcopforlife]

That's what I am talking about right there, these guys in here will fire you up. If this didn't help you push through nothing will.

[PumpyFunk]

Thank you all for your kind words and motivational advice. I really needed it! It's so cool of all of you take the time to speak your mind and offer such inpirational and motivational advice as I hit the stretch run. It feels tremendous to be a part of such a tightnit, and supportive community. Much appreciation guys!!!

[PumpyFunk]

Preping was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life. The mental and physical stresses are real and I learned more about myself in the last few weeks than I did over the 3 months before that (they weren't easy either). Everyone that sees me now and what i've done in such a short time just assumes it's easy for me. I'm human like everyone else and before bodybuilding I was your avg joe lifter in the gym. Never once dieted in my life. The pain you feel now is something you need to push through. If you can push through and finish this to the end you will feel soooooo good about yourself afterwards. I like to think that to do well on stage you have to take yourself to a place where nobody else up there wanted to go.

Good luck. A couple more weeks and you're home free. The food will always be there TRUST ME!

Thank you very much my friend.

[woofman81]

Look forward to sharing the stage with you man. I think we'll both be pretty nervous seeing as it's our first time competing.

I'm getting excited though as well. I've always wanted to do a show, but always feared the idea of getting up on stage, posing, wearing a speedo, etc.

We're almost there man. Stick with the training and dieting and you'll do great!!

[PumpyFunk]

Look forward to sharing the stage with you man. I think we'll both be pretty nervous seeing as it's our first time competing.

I'm getting excited though as well. I've always wanted to do a show, but always feared the idea of getting up on stage, posing, wearing a speedo, etc.

We're almost there man. Stick with the training and dieting and you'll do great!!

Thank you very much. Looking forward to sharing the stage with you as well. Not as nervous as I imagined I would be (too tired to be!), but I guarentee you I will be tHe week leading up to it. Ha ha! You look great. You will do even better. Stretch run!!! Hollaaaaaaaa! I just posted on our contest prep page.......Check out my post-contest grub list. A little crazy, but my stomach says give it to me!!!!

[figurejess]

I just did my first show this past weekend and all I can say is that all the hard work in the gym, the dieting, the crazy schedules, the taking your food with you everywhere you go, dealing with people who just don't get what you do, the rest of life you have to deal with while doing this..work, school, relationships..

it is ALL TOTALLY WORTH IT!

the last week was rough..each time i had to go to the gym, and eat a meal, and hell just walking, took major effort..moreso mentally than physically...your mind starts to get the better of you...and my mantra became..."Don't think, just do."

and that's what i did to make it...and leaned on my trainers, but really, just dig down deep and you will see you have that strength to carry you thru to the stage and beyond..

best of luck!!!

[stunna54960]

Mad respect and props to all of guys who have done shows, and continue to do them. I feel like absolute crrraaap right now, and I'm only 17 DAYS OUT! I'm almost there, but I just have the most tired, anxious, and beyond hunger emotions. I know it's typical, but until you actually experience it, it is pure HELL. Props to ALL of you that have excelled at this, because it is by far the most challenging thing physically and emotionally that I have ever done. Period. Sooooooooo hungry.

Pump, a cheat MEAL (not DAY!) may be in order. Have your favorite sandwich with dessert or treat yourself to something you haven't had in a really long time. Just don't go overboard and do a little extra cardio this week and you'll be golden.

[GetCarved]

Hang tough! I often wonder why i have put myself through this torture so many times.

15 shows in 9 years... and not one year off to be just a fan and enjoy the shows...

And for some reason i love the suffering and torture. I diet hard. I keep trying to beat my personal best condition each time i compete. I have never backed out of a show or gotten injured.

I often wonder .....what its like to be a "regular" person? and just live life.. But then i realize...... this is who i am..

And bro to you and all the other competitors dieting right now......

Hang in their and keep your eye on the prize at the end. It may be just a trophy..... but its a lifetime of memories. You young guys.... the teens on board.. Training and preparing hard builds character.

If you can make it through this, most likely you can suffer through college and Lifes other challenges and delayed rewards..

Competing hard is something you should be proud of. Give it your best effort and you can never say that you didnt try hard enough.. or that you didnt do all you could.

I wish you all the best!

This is indeed a great post.

[alex a]

I give you all big props for doing what 99% of people that workout daily in most gyms across the nation have never done .

All of you who have........ should be proud of yourself......... and all those that plan on competing.. Stick to your goals and dreams and make it a journey of a lifetime. We all get so caught up on trying to impress everyone else.. Make yourself proud.

And remember the process ....not just the product . The process is a daily reward.. the product is the prize at the end...

We bust our asses day in and day out doing what some people would think is "crazy" but we thrive on it.. We love to deprive ourself, suffer and sacrifice... but trust me.. its all worth it..

For those of you who are in the middle of your prep I know the feeling your going through and its a combination of deprivation and gratification... Its all going to be worth it.. Kick it up a notch! when it gets grueling hard at the end here... take it to the next level.... You will be proud that you did...

[AlwaysTryin]

You look great. You will do even better.

Don't look at others. I am sure you both look great and will both do well.

One of the worst things you can do is look at others as your mind plays games and makes you doubt yourself.

They will be looking at you thinking the same thing and vice versa.

Just remember you are out there for you and to do your best!

[Barn01]

Don't look at others. I am sure you both look great and will both do well.

One of the worst things you can do is look at others as your mind plays games and makes you doubt yourself.

They will be looking at you thinking the same thing and vice versa.

Just remember you are out there for you and to do your best!

I disagree, I think looking at possible competition allows you to assess yourself. I would have had no idea how lean I needed to be to win if I didn't study pics of past winners for my comps.

[AlwaysTryin]

I disagree, I think looking at possible competition allows you to assess yourself. I would have had no idea how lean I needed to be to win if I didn't study pics of past winners for my comps.

Past competitors yes

but why scare yourself before your first comp looking at current competitors when everyone is their own worse enemy?

[Barn01]

Past competitors yes

but why scare yourself before your first comp looking at current competitors when everyone is their own worse enemy?

What's the difference? Past or present ... you're either in the hunt where it's up the judges or you know before hand you didn't do the work required to bring home the hardware, therefore you can still put in a better effort before the show and not get blown away THINKING you were ready.

If all you want to do is stand on stage to say you did it then why prep at all?

IMO it's always better in most situation in life to know what you're up against before you go up against it.

[AlwaysTryin]

Fair enough :-) I'm by no means experienced, I just remember my first comp as a junior I stressed myself out backstage etc looking at others getting worried and thinking I looked like nothing compared to them only to win, not to mention seeing pictures of them pre comp weeks before etc

just made me stress more :-) guess that's why everyone is different

[Barn01]

Fair enough :-) I'm by no means experienced, I just remember my first comp as a junior I stressed myself out backstage etc looking at others getting worried and thinking I looked like nothing compared to them only to win, not to mention seeing pictures of them pre comp weeks before etc

just made me stress more :-) guess that's why everyone is different

You stressed out because you DIDN'T look at either yourself or what your competition might look like BEFORE you got backstage. Once you're backstage you know it's too late to change anything, hence your stress. That's why if you take pics of yourself during your prep and compare them to previous winners you should have a pretty good idea where you'll stand when you get there.

As you do more shows and more cuts you don't need to do this. You KNOW what it takes to place.

I remember there was a junior at my last show that was standing in line behind me, totally stressed out listening to everything I was saying to my friends and watching how I played around with my clothes and the weight on the scale. He was all worried that everyone would see what he looked like because he had to take his clothes off for the weigh in and told me that I was playing mind games with him and stuff. His nervousness was only because he didn't know what he needed to look like to do well. Any experienced person knows that if you're already standing there then it's too late to worry. You brought what you brought all you can do is hope nobody brought something better. So that's why I have fun at that point. No point in wasting energy over things you can't change.

[K8Stop]

I feel like lifting weightss after that lol - was really motivating! im 6 weeks out and cant wait!!! - I think these boards keep me sane to, especially with posts like that! :D

yeah, that's my coach :)

[AlwaysTryin]

You stressed out because you DIDN'T look at either yourself or what your competition might look like BEFORE you got backstage. Once you're backstage you know it's too late to change anything, hence your stress.


Huh, think you missed the bit in my post where I said "not to mention seeing pics weeks before" or I wasn't clear enough :-)

I saw pics of the competitors weeks before on here and saw them back stage.

Hope that's clearer. Just guess mental games play in my head more than other competitors and I psych myself out

[AlwaysTryin]

Ps the smiles are included as I'm trying to signify there is no sarcasm meant at all etc as it's hard to portray on the Internet

Having a serious discussion :-)

[firmgrrrl]

Hope you're feeling better Pumpy! Doing the same show as you and we're all behind ya!

[PumpyFunk]

Hope you're feeling better Pumpy! Doing the same show as you and we're all behind ya!

Thank you for your kind words....I appreciate it. 12 DAYS.......

[Milone79]

Hey Bro...read your thread ...my deadline is also Aug. 28th...not doing a show...just a photo shoot but I have been dieting since end of March and feeling your pain...sometimes I just feel like quitting all this madness and scarfing down an extra large pizza...then I remember my goal and all the hard work I put in up until this point and it motivates me to push on...remember 12 days is a drop in the bucket when you will look back on your life one day...stay strong...your suffering will be rewarded.

[woofman81]

Thank you for your kind words....I appreciate it. 12 DAYS.......

Ugh, don't remind me lol!

[PumpyFunk]

Hey Bro...read your thread ...my deadline is also Aug. 28th...not doing a show...just a photo shoot but I have been dieting since end of March and feeling your pain...sometimes I just feel like quitting all this madness and scarfing down an extra large pizza...then I remember my goal and all the hard work I put in up until this point and it motivates me to push on...remember 12 days is a drop in the bucket when you will look back on your life one day...stay strong...your suffering will be rewarded.

Appreciate it my friend. I'm hangin in there. Best of luck with your photo shoot, and enjoy some great food when your done!

[Milone79]

Appreciate it my friend. I'm hangin in there. Best of luck with your photo shoot, and enjoy some great food when your done!
Ohh the post meal will be EPIC!!! lol no pizza since my B-Day (May 7th) there will be a pizza party the likes of which nobody has ever seen before!!! lol

Stay focused man...time flies by but glory is forever!!!!