WIAW: Flashback To My Fitness Comp Days
Posted: September 21, 2011 at 6:52 amMorning! I woke up on the right side of the bed this morning and feel as chipper as a….chipmunk? Well – whatever fits that comparison is what I feel like. I guess resting up for a few days, having my weekly sister night, and getting in a good chat with Peter about a few things will help set me back on my feet. And I can’t forget the support from you all about “The Jeans” and my two new races I shared.
A Different Spin on What I Ate Wednesday – My Competition Days
The other day, when I realized I had gotten those jeans around the time of my fitness competition, I got to thinking about how much my eating has changed since those days. Peter even commented about it when we were talking yesterday, telling me just how “proud of me” he is when thinking about it all.
So, for today’s What I Ate Wednesday a la Jenn, I thought it would be fun to take a look back into my past and nab a day of my eats from the competition days. I warn you – it’s ugly.
No, really. It’s ugly. I had not a clue how to work a camera back then.
Breakfast (Pre-Workout)
- 1/3 cup (or perhaps even 1/4 cup) oatmeal cooked with cinnamon and water
- 1 scoop whey protein
- 2 tablespoons dried fruit (notice the food scale!)
Breakfast (Post-Workout)
- 1 apple chicken sausage from Trader Joes
- 1/2 cup scrambled Egg Beaters with salsa
- 1 apple sliced and spread with strawberry yogurt
- coffee with a splash of milk
Lunch
- 3 oz extra lean ground turkey with salsa and 2 tablespoons shredded cheese
- 1 cup sliced strawberries
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter (that was seriously the best part of my day)
Snack (Pre-Workout #2)
- protein shake with chocolate almond milk & whey protein powder
- Cookies & Cream flavored Luna Bar
Dinner
- 3 ounces grilled shrimp
- 1 cup canned green beans
All of these meals were taken from a post from the archives of my old competition journal. I saved them here on FFF, if you're interested in reading the original post. You can also read my Q + A post on my competition thoughts, if interested in more comp details.
I told you it was ugly! And you know what? I actually prided myself on all of that because I allowed myself a little more leeway than my previous competition diet. It feels so crazy looking back because I know that I ate that way day in and day out for about three months…while working out 2 or more hours a day basically every.single.day. Eeep!
You can imagine I was pretty cranky. I even remember yelling one night at Peter after he mentioned still being hungry from dinner. I yelled at him “You don’t even KNOW what hungry FEELS LIKE!”. Um, yeah. He probably did. Did you see the “meal” I served the poor man!? How is he still married to me?!
Now, I know people out there can happily eat a competitor style diet and one that is a lot more appealing than what I just shared. I know Naomi does it! However, I know that style is not for me. By far! I am so thankful in the ways my eating has changed since then:
I now emphasize the quality of the food over the calorie count of the food. Watery, canned green beans for dinner? No, thank you. I will take a pile of quinoa with lots of fresh veggies instead. <—new food kick
I now fuel my body so it can achieve – in races and new workouts. No longer do I go hungry, so someone else can tell me if they like it or not.
I now eat a truly satisfying dessert and not a processed bar or whey protein shake to satisfy a sweet tooth.
I now know the bliss of peanut butter and oatmeal together. And it sure makes a good morning, but it no longer is the best part of my day to taste peanut butter.
I now eat 100% for me. I sure don’t eat “perfect”. I know I have plenty of ways I could improve my eating habits (love of sugar, much?). I also know for once I finally have that balance I worked years to create. I finally eat in a way that truly satisfies me and where I don’t feel pressure to fit into any style of eating. I choose what I want to eat that I know leaves me feeling well on a whole. I’m happy to be here. And I’m also incredibly happy my picture skills have improved. That was just plain painful to look at!
- What ways have your eating habits changed in the past few years?
- Don't forget to enter the Champion Giveaway! Ends tomorrow!
I would still be hungry after that too! You have come a long way, and I’m proud of you too!
TIna, I love you but you were LOCO! That dinner looks so sad :(! I won’t lie, you looked amazing but feeling amazing is important too! I’m sure you don’t regret it–> what a huge achievement and also a huge learning experience! I used to be so anal with my eating habits too, weighing every morsel that crossed my lips. Bananas and bread were only ‘allowed once or twice a week, yogurts had to be fat free, God forbid my food contained oil, and peanut butter? good joke!
Wow Tina you have come such a long way, and I am sure glad you did! I would have been the most irritable biatchhh ever if I had eaten like that… oh wait I did at one point and I was one miserable person! Ugh I am so glad we are BOTH over that and have come so far 🙂 The best part of my day used to be my sweet potato I would have for dinner every.single.night with a container of fat-free greek yogurt…. joy.
This is a great post Tina. You really have a gift of writing in a way that reveals truth but still remains balanced and personal while still respecting other’s journeys as well. Very cool.
You are setting such a wonderful example for women to focus on…health and balance instead of starving or dieting. Your expertise needs to be out there for sure.
So thankful for your blog.
You are making me blush, Brenda!
poor little shrimp, they need more friends on that plate. But what a great way to reflect on how you’ve overcome certain eating habits. I think your 10x healthier now! I remember going through a fat free stage back in high school and to be honest, it was such crap foods. Chemicals and all. Anyone else remember the sugar free snack well kick? OYE!
I definetly have been eating more and from the source (local) more in the past couple years 🙂
That is hard core on those eats, however, I know there is a science to making your body look like that. I have definitely let go of a lot when it comes to eating. I used to eat the same thing over and over and really with not much consideration for overall nutrition. Now I am all about the nutrition and I love stepping outside of the box with my eats.
Enjoy your day Tina!
Confession – I actually like canned green beans!
Haha! I like canned peas still. 🙂
And will certainly hit up the canned green beans on occasion too.
well, it’s official…there’s no way i could do a fitness competition! i like my food too much, please and thank you 🙂 and honestly you are gorgeous no matter what, but you just look so much happier now!
This is a great post! Wow, you looked amazing btw in your comp pic, so that hard work and very little meals paid off! I think its great you did the competition because it was something obviously you wanted and you worked hard, did it, and realized, that is not something you want again ; )
I used to eat strict when I was modeling, I eat so different now, well I eat more! Modeling is fun, it was great to travel all over, meet new people, and do fun stuff, but I do not miss being over obsessive about my body and food, amen!
Love ya girl! Great Post!
Agreed. I’m so glad I did the show for the experience, but definitely learned a lot about myself in it too.
Great post. The shrimp don’t sound too bad, but those green beans are the saddest thing I’ve ever seen. Congrats on how far you’ve come!
In the last 1.5 years I have escaped snack packs and diet food and discovered real whole foods, then had a run in with over analyzing and calorie counting, and now I’m coming out on the other end. I’m finding what really works for me.
You are very inspiring. Thanks for posting.
Such an interesting post! It’s crazy to see how different you used to eat, compared to the things you eat now. I agree– quality over quantity all the way, baby!
Bless Peter’s heart! I feel that way whenever I haven’t eaten in a while and I lash out at Will over nothing. Gotta love the men who deal with our hunger swings 😀
Thank you for sharing this. I just always wonder how the competitors have much energy with all the workouts. I know protein goes a long way, but without many carbs? I definitely have a great deal of respect for the amount of dedication it takes, but also question how healthy it is. I would like to think of fitness comps as being an example of healthy and fit.
On the whole, I definitely don’t think competitions are healthy overall. They are great for challenging yourself and reaching a goal. And some can do it with great balance. But for most? Not really anything too healthy about it.
I got hungry just thinking about living off that amount of food. Congrats on getting back into those jeans in a healthier way. You look great! It’s even better to hear you feel great.
If there was ever a question before now (ha,ha) I am for sure I could never do a fitness competition. I was craving chocolate by the end of that post!
You look amazing NOW (hello, happy weight jeans!) and you’ve had 2 kids! Fingers crossed I look as good as you do (and handle all the responsibilities as gracefully) in a few years when Josh and I have little ones!
Tina I don’t know how you choked down most of that food — and I’m not talking about the green beans (I love canned green beans!) — oatmeal with a whole scoop of protein powder seriously made me gag — yuck!
My eating has changed so much over the past few years — I think of what I ate in college (and this is no exaggeration): biscuits and gravy from Hardee’s for breakfast, tortilla chips with fritos cheese sauce for lunch and taco bell for dinner — fill in the rest of the day with Red Bull and Monster drinks + tons of coffee and regular coca cola. Oh yeah and 1/2-3/4 of a pack of cigs. If I had ANY of those choices today I’d probably have to lay down from feeling sick!
It made me gag reading it again now too. LOL
Wow, that’s an interesting post! I don’t know how you had the discipline to do that day in and day out. I would’ve caved after a few days.
Wow, I could relate to this post. I’ve never done fitness competition, but I have struggled with an ED and definitely know the frustration and unhappiness of being controlled by food and calories. I am so glad to be at a point where I can actually enjoy food (real food, not fat-free/sugar-free junk) and the way it fuels and strengthens my body. It is wonderful how far you have come to living a full, happy, and healthy life. Thanks for spreading the inspiration!
I love how you tried to arrange your food so prettily to make it more appealing. The shrimp dancing around the pile of canned green beans is my favorite. So glad to see you eat such healthy food now while still managing to be a workout powerhouse!
I love that you were drinking your coffee out of an Oreo mug through all of that. 🙂
Haha! I’m surprised it didn’t make me crave Oreos like mad.
That’s incredible that is how you much you ate when you were doing such intense workouts for up to two hours a day! I love how you said you value the quality of the food now over the calorie count. I was a hardcore calorie counter awhile back and while it helped me with my portion sizes, it also became obsessive so I knew I had to stop. I now no longer count calories, but eat whole, satisfying foods and have been able to maintain my weight easily.
I really love this post and am happy that you now have a wonderful balance when it comes to food.
That picture of your dinner cracks me up – like you are trying to subconsciously make it seem more than green beans by prettying up the plate. The things we do … LOL!
Wow. What a way to live, huh? I echo what Heather said about respecting the dedication to do something like that, but it is certainly not a good way to live, by far! I do like canned green beans for some reason though (as Lee noted! LOL). My eating has changed a lot too, as I have written about, more just in terms of quality, good ratio of protein/carb and just more FUEL than random snackie things.
Wow, you have come a long way. In my restrictive eating phase, I was so cranky and hungry ALL the time. The biggest change in the past few years was breakfast. I used to eat one of those 120 calorie nutrigrain bars for breakfast, then a tiny salad for lunch…SO glad I’ve found the joy and deliciousness of a big breakfast now.
Wow, this is such an amazing post, and I am so happy for you that you have come to a place where you eat well and feel happy, healthy and satisfied now – it feels so so amazing to not be restrictive with your food and focus on quality and not cutting calories – I’ve walked a similar journey to you, struggling with restriction etc, and to find my perfect way of eating – and eating a LOT of good food – really feels incredible! <3 I love having so much energy for my life and for my loved ones now, it's a blessing that I really feel deeply <3
Thank you for this awesome WIAW – and hey from a new but already hooked reader! Yup, that would be me, lol! 😛 xyx
Can’t wait to check out your blog, Yolie!!! 🙂
Aaah 🙂 thank you Tina! <3 xyx
Wow. The meals ARE sad :(. I’ve thought about doing fitness competitions but it’s the food that gets me. At the same time I am in awe of the rigorous training you did and the commitment and focus needed during the months of training. I’m so glad that you can take pride in that accomplishment and still appreciate life (and food!) now.
I try to focus more on whole foods instead of grabbing something out of convenience.
Wow, I think I would have been a biatch bc I would have been so hungry haha. You have come such a long way! I’m slowly still learning to eat more for the quality of food and not worry so much about the quantity and calories- I just try to recognize that I feel so much better when I eat what satisfies me and what makes me feel energized!
And can I just say- I’m pretty sure that my pictures now look like your pictures did then. Perhaps I should work on that haha…maybe I would get some new readers ;).
I always thought that I’d like to do a fitness competition, but the time commitment and crazy eating habits would really make it difficult to live normally, for both me and my family.
I’m already hungry all the time with marathon training, I can’t imagine a fitness competition.
I actually think you look healthier now, than in competition. I know that was the goal body for competing, but now you look trim, fit, and womanly.
I much prefer how I look and feel now. The look for competition was specifically for show day and not to maintain, but it still was crazy getting there.
Wow, seeing it all here is really eye-opening. I can’t even imagine how hard that must have been physically but even more so emotionally. LOVE where you are right now, health and fitness-wise – you ooze healthy balance and I LOVE to see that glow on you! PS. that quinoa looks UNREAL
It’s inspiring to see how far you have come! I am glad you eat oatmeal with peanut butter now. Oatmeal alone is just plain sad:)
It is. I cannot eat oats without pb now.
Thanks for sharing this! Love to see a healthy balance. I’m trying to get there now! This is inspiring that we can make the change and we can’t be afraid of all foods!
I honestly don’t know how fitness competitor’s do it! I understandy WHY they would want to…just now HOW! Takes ALOT of self control! I honestly think you look better now than all tan and greased up! 😉
Wow, what a change in the way you eat! I can’t believe how your meals were very dairy and meat heavy before. I too have decreased the amount of animal products I eat.
I always get a kick out of looking at my old blog pictures!! I can’t believe how far i’ve come, but I still want to get better!
Great post! I love seeing the differences. Sadly, this reminds me of how ugly all my iPhone food pics are though. haha
I think iphone pics are seriously better than those!!!
Tina- Wow! Isn’t it so weird looking back on what you ate? So happy for you that you eat for health now. If I ate your competition diet I would also be a GRUMPY mama. 🙂 Ha! Congrats for getting to where you are now. I can only imagine. YOu’re an inspiration!
I would be the biggest meanie every if I had to limit my food like that…I get downright mean when I’m hungry. The results you got were amazing, that is obvious, but I’m not going to lie – I’d never be able to do it!
I’ve been focusing on eating more greens lately. Rather than intentionally cutting out the not-so-healthy I’ve been adding in the healthier options.
Random Question…what plug in do you use for the share buttons at the bottom of your post? I’d like to add one that includes Google+ and I really like yours!
It was called ShareThis. 🙂
It is so great that you have made positive changes for your health.
At the beginning of college (which was five years ago, ughhhh) I was on the drinking-’til-I-puke diet, fueled with Old El Paso tacos and fast food ice cream cones. I’m slightly healthier now.. 😉
Haha! Yea…can imagine that would do a number on your health. 😉
So enjoyed this post! Love the flashback pictures…
Inspiring! But I agree, a can of beans for dinner?! That quiona looks so much more yummy!
Tina, I really loved this post. Thanks for being so honest about what your training involved. Your accomplishment is amazing, but I’m glad that you are no longer cranky and you now get to enjoy all sorts of wonderful foods because you are such a beautiful person who’s happy blogger words are a pleasure to read.
BTW I really loved the picture of the pb heart in the oatmeal. It made me smile ear to ear 🙂
As a competitor myself, I have to say your diet looks, er…interesting? I’ve trained under two different trainers and I must say I’ve always been allowed more food that that. My diets do not revolve around processed foods, only lean proteins, a ton of fresh veggies, and high quality carbs and fats.
Love this post! So crazy that you did all that, Tina. I wouldn’t last one day 🙂
Great post Tina! Loved that you shared this since I had wondered what a day in the life of your competition days looked like. I followed a similar diet like yours during my disordered eating days. It was all about protein protein and I feared all carbs. My solace was my nightly treat of fat free frozen yogurt every.single.night. Binges would inevitably take place too. So happy those days are gone, I still have areas to improve, but in the end I’m so happy I’ve freed myself from the obsessive calorie counting, overexercising, and food rules 🙂
Btw, how did you improve your photos? Is it solely through Picasa? Or did you get a new camera since then? I’d love to know any tips!
Well from then to now – I learned some basics of photography and did get a new camera.I’m always playing around with settings to see what works best too. But Picasa is great for tweaking!
Awesome, thanks Tina!! 🙂
Wow Tina- it’s amazing how far you’ve come and how far we can all come if we just realize that food fuels our body and it can taste good too. I’ve come so far from managing portion sizes and calorie counting to just eating when and what I want. I have a ways to go, but it is really wonderful to see that progress can be made. I feel much happier too- why wouldn’t I? I’m not hungry all the time and I’m eating delicious food!
Wow, I had no idea you did that. I’ve always felt fitness competitors had eating disorders…and, I don’t mean that negatively. I mean that it is disordered habits in the book-sense and on the surface. Restricting, cutting, weighing food, obsessed with body image and looks…it’s such a fine line in that “sport” as to what is healthy or not.
I’m glad you happy now – and can enjoy real food while still looking great.
I really enjoyed this post because it exemplifies how challenging phases of life can equip us with knowledge and insight that make us more confident in our own shoes. Preparing for a competition is certainly an admirable accomplishment, and one to be so proud of! However, I think you should be more proud of inspiring us with your story—for sharing that eating and working out so that we’re “fit” to be scrutinized may not be the most satisfying way to live life. Everyone is different–just like you said–and the important thing is finding out what we REALLY want and living our lives in a way that helps us get there. For me that means a healthy balance between saying “yes” and “no” to cravings. It also means resting when I need it, but occasionally pushing my body a little when I think I can’t go push anymore.
Ground chicken with salsa and cheese is a favorite of mine…but only if it’s accompanied by guacamole and plenty of fresh tortillas! 🙂
I’ve been following you since your days on Oxygen. Seriously. And while I remember being so inspired by your comp fitness- the determination and sacrifice it took- I’m so much more inspired by you now- a healthy, fit, amazing mom of two!!
You have no idea how much this comment means to me. thank you so much Sarah. 🙂
Oh wow. Again, I feel I can relate to this and I’m crying just thinking about the mess I’m in. Gosh, I wish I could sit and talk to you for a while. I’m so lost.