First bikini competition - can I begin prep 10 weeks out?

Hi, all. I'm new to Bodybuilding.com, but I love the forums so far! I appreciate any help in advance.

I would like to sign up for my first novice bikini competition in late May. I would start training earlier; however, my husband and I are taking a belated honeymoon cruise in early March. We never were able to take one due to relocating for work and starting new jobs. Needless to say, I don't think I could realistically train and eat clean on a cruise, and I want to enjoy my week of fun! I plan to start prep the day after the cruise, which would give me approximately 10 weeks to train.

I am currently around 5'5" and 122 lbs. I weight train and do cardio 4x/week and eat clean probably 70% of the time. However, there is a lot of room for improvement in both my diet and training, and I believe my body would respond well to 10 weeks of prep.

I would like honest thoughts/opinions. I am willing to give this my all, but if I need more time, I could set a new goal date. I'm just incredibly motivated to do this and there's a show only one hour away in May.

*I don't have any pictures on hand right now but I could take some if that would help.

welcome to BB.com .. Get pics up!

I say go for it 10 weeks or leaving everything in the gym & Strict diet and supplements and it can be done. Goodluck!

[QUOTE=rowza;1020730873]welcome to BB.com .. Get pics up!

I say go for it 10 weeks or leaving everything in the gym & Strict diet and supplements and it can be done. Goodluck![/QUOTE]

Thank you for the quick response! I've decided I'm going to keep cleaning up my diet and step up my training at the gym before the cruise and then really hit it hard when the 10 week prep begins. I'm confident in what I can do in that amount of time. I've been lifting consistently for about 2 1/2 years, so I'm not worried about needing to put on much muscle in that time period.

I plan to have my husband take some pre-contest photos this weekend. Will post when I can.

If anyone else has any thoughts on this, let me know. I'm so excited to join this community and see the changes in my body!

[QUOTE=missmarjorie;1020665773]Hi, all. I'm new to Bodybuilding.com, but I love the forums so far! I appreciate any help in advance.

I would like to sign up for my first novice bikini competition in late May. I would start training earlier; however, my husband and I are taking a belated honeymoon cruise in early March. We never were able to take one due to relocating for work and starting new jobs. Needless to say, I don't think I could realistically train and eat clean on a cruise, and I want to enjoy my week of fun! I plan to start prep the day after the cruise, which would give me approximately 10 weeks to train.

I am currently around 5'5" and 122 lbs. I weight train and do cardio 4x/week and eat clean probably 70% of the time. However, there is a lot of room for improvement in both my diet and training, and I believe my body would respond well to 10 weeks of prep.

I would like honest thoughts/opinions. I am willing to give this my all, but if I need more time, I could set a new goal date. I'm just incredibly motivated to do this and there's a show only one hour away in May.

*I don't have any pictures on hand right now but I could take some if that would help.[/QUOTE]


I would start now if you want to be competitive. 95% of the people in your competition eat clean 99% of the time and don't take weeks off. I know it can be tough!

Here is what I do when cutting...Lear to love the word NO! Be empowered by your choices and control.

Every time I say no to something I shouldn't be eating/drinking, I just feel like I have FULL control of my body and mind. I also know I am one step up on everyone else that is partaking in bad choices!

I'm not saying you can't have fun and go crazy on vacations...I think you just picked an inconvenient time to Honeymoon AND do a bikini comp!

Which one do you want more? That is the ultimate question and something you will have to decide.

GET IT HOW YOU WANT TO LIVE IT. GOOD LUCK!!!!! Have an awesome honeymoon!

[QUOTE=missmarjorie;1021863923]Thank you for the quick response! I've decided I'm going to keep cleaning up my diet and step up my training at the gym before the cruise and then really hit it hard when the 10 week prep begins. I'm confident in what I can do in that amount of time. I've been lifting consistently for about 2 1/2 years, so I'm not worried about needing to put on much muscle in that time period.

I plan to have my husband take some pre-contest photos this weekend. Will post when I can.

If anyone else has any thoughts on this, let me know. I'm so excited to join this community and see the changes in my body![/QUOTE]

Post up some progress pics so people can give you better feedback. Right now people are giving you a basic idea, but it's impossible when we have no idea what you look like now.

Have a wonderful honeymoon! :)

[QUOTE=iownaniroc;1021908593]I would start now if you want to be competitive. 95% of the people in your competition eat clean 99% of the time and don't take weeks off. I know it can be tough!

Here is what I do when cutting...Lear to love the word NO! Be empowered by your choices and control.

Every time I say no to something I shouldn't be eating/drinking, I just feel like I have FULL control of my body and mind. I also know I am one step up on everyone else that is partaking in bad choices!

I'm not saying you can't have fun and go crazy on vacations...I think you just picked an inconvenient time to Honeymoon AND do a bikini comp!

Which one do you want more? That is the ultimate question and something you will have to decide.

GET IT HOW YOU WANT TO LIVE IT. GOOD LUCK!!!!! Have an awesome honeymoon![/QUOTE]

Thank you for the feedback and great advice! Oddly enough, I decided today that I am going to start training now. I figure if I start eating 99% clean now, I'll be at a better place for the prep after the honeymoon. I definitely didn't mean to imply that I was going to go too crazy on the cruise; I'm going to eat as clean as possible but indulge a little bit. :)

Honestly, we planned the cruise a long time ago... and recently I've become so motivated to compete! I'm sad they came at the same time, but I'm going to make it work! I'm going to be posting current pics on Saturday so you guys can provide more objective feedback. Thanks again. It's so appreciated!

[QUOTE=kimm4;1021945383]Post up some progress pics so people can give you better feedback. Right now people are giving you a basic idea, but it's impossible when we have no idea what you look like now.

Have a wonderful honeymoon! :)[/QUOTE]

Thank you! Everyone here is so friendly. :) I am going to have my husband take pictures of me tomorrow or Friday night. If you have the time, check back - I'll post some soon and I'd love some objective feedback!

I agree with the others, we have no idea what you look like. 5'5" and 122 could be shredded and lean or it could be thin and soft.

In my honest opinion I do not feel 10 weeks is enough time to build a clean base of muscle and while maintaing control over your bf%. But then again my only experience is biased to my own trial and errors. I have seen some miraculous transformations in that amount of time and I have also seen some sad crash and burns. I recommend seeking professional advice as far as nutrition considering the time frame you chose will be hard on your body.

best of luck.