Motivation

[the wind]

ok.... so it's only been a couple of months of 6 days a week at the gym, low carbs, creatine, reading about bb and trying to focus some mental energy on my job. how do you ladies stay motivated? some days i have the best work out and feel like i might actually make my goal of a june comp and other days that doughnut my co worker is eating about makes me loose my mind! i know ups and downs are to be expected but what helps you get through the days when it seems like there are no results and the end is almost "unattainable"? especially since my family and friends think i'm nuts and can't understand why i would do this..... any suggestions would be great!!

[MsFit]

Ahhhhh........Memories. :D Gotta take the good with the bad. My motivation was seeing small changes weekly. If you can just make it to your next quality meal instead of that donut, that's your success right there. Think short-term accomplishments when things get tought. Keep protein bars in your desk for sudden urges and fill up on water to keep full. Brushing your teeth will prevent you from wanting the wrong foods when you do crave them. You have to keep your mind foucs on what you want. Visualize.

Also, you can take that donut and smash it in her face. I know that would make me feel good. ;) :D
MsFit

[the wind]

don't tempt me.......:) thanks, the "baby steps" are hard to focus on. i try to visualize each night when i go to bed what my goal is. in my mind i look great LOL!! .......then when i wake up and go to the gym, i feel great but look the same :(....... this morning my trainer had me start learning to pose. that was embarassing..... i know it is very important to learn how to pose correctly......my trainer is a man and has competed a lot, but i wonder if there is a difference in posing styles for men and women?

it's also difficult because no one around me eats like me, trains like me....... so i feel like a little bit of an outcast......it's hard to explain to my friends and family what possesed me to do this. i think i just wanted to have control over some portion of my life. it makes me feel good to have disipline in the face of carrot cake, cookies, and BEER......sunday football is definately not the same with a diet coke and celery sticks :)......... i just tell people this is my exercise in self disipline. :) that and i'll look awsome in a swimsuit next summer!

[MsFit]

I know what you mean about an outcast. I recently moved to a small town and the gym here is a joke!

You may want to find a female in your area to cover optional poses. While men and women pose similar in the mandatory rounds, females can have some variation to make the physique appear more feminine; such as food placement, positioning of hands... But, I'm sure your male traininer can teach you the basics and foundation. If no ladies are in your area, you might want to check out www.perfectposing.com.

Keep pushing for what YOU WANT, don't let others negativity affect your progress. ~And always keep my handy donut tip in mind. ;)
MsFit

[the wind]

all the women in my gym seem very "catty" and very unapprochable. in fact my first day at the gym there was a group of women who look to be in pretty good shape, in fact i know one of them is planning on competing against me in june, i walked in and the wispering started. i think it is because i showed up with my trainer who has been working out there for a long time by himself. of course this made me very nervous.....so i proceeded to make a jackass of myself.....i was looking for a plate and walked over to the smith machine one gal was on and took her weight off her bar while she was using it and walked off with it! needless to say she was not very pleased with me. good thing i started training in the morning after that! it's funny now but at the moment i wanted to crawl in a hole! :)

i would like a female training partner though, one that understands monthly cravings! and i think it would be helpful to judge my progress against a woman rather than a man. would give me a better idea of where i need to be. maybe when they notice i'm still around in a few months they might take me more seriously and i could approach one of them for some help.