My Personal Trainer, God

Well, well, it's Wednesday! 3 more days! Ahhh! I'm so so so excited and pumped up!!! It's funny, because I have been stressed, anxious, scared and tired for the past few weeks, but this week (of all weeks, too, being peak week!) I feel PHENOMENAL, ENERGETIC, FEARLESS and CONFIDENT! I'm in such an amazing, joyous mental-state with a positive attitude about the competition on Saturday! I think being only ***ONE*** pound away from my goal weight, plus buying those four new pairs of jeans the other day, have really made me realize that I'VE ALREADY WON THIS!!!

Each morning this week I wake up feeling excited to count down the days. My morning cardio workouts have been AWESOME and I pass the time talking to God and praising Him for allowing me the health, stamina and support to train for this. He is my Rock and it's only through His grace that I've persevered through this. I can't tell you how many times throughout these past few months that I've gotten choked up while working out, just because I'm so grateful to God for all the blessings in my life. Truly, there are times my heart feels like it will explode with love, gratitude and praise for how far God has taken me on this journey. All glory and honor goes to Him. I know, I know, God isn't personally spoon feeding me my meals/macros or moving my feet like a puppet as I burn all these calories in the gym. However, His Spirit is what truly "moves me" throughout the day, and without that inertia, I sure the heck wouldn't be where I am today. No doubt.

I started on this journey with God as my "Personal Trainer" and that has been the single reason why I've been able to accomplish my goal. Trust me folks, I've tried it on my own since high school and never even came close to achieving what I have in terms of a healthy body weight. Yes, eating clean, strength training and cardio will get you a great body, but I'm talking about more than just the outside. Everything about my life is better. I'm much more energetic, positive, joyful and self-confident. I feel I treat others better because I've learned to treat myself better. I am strong and passionate about life in general and all the possibilities that await me. I have the desire to 'pay it forward' and help others change their lives, too.

Whether or not I return home Saturday night with a medal or trophy really doesn't matter. (I mean that, too, by the way.) At the end of the day, whether the judges like my physique or not isn't really the issue. You know why? Because *I* like my physique. What matters the most is that I can wake up the next morning (around 10am, of course!), open my eyes and say, "We did it!" With God, my husband, family and friends cheering me on, I will have accomplished my goal. And, I will share my accomplishments with you, too, because each comment or e-mail has encouraged me more than I could ever say!

Well, I just ate my pre-workout protein shake + two brown rice cakes and think I've given my body ample time to fuel up for my Chest/Tris/Ab workout today. I'm still hittin' the gym hard this week, but I'll be taking a week off from lifting all next week to recover and rest. I think it will be hard not to lift, because I love it so much, and I know I'll be tempted to go, but I know it's best for my body since I haven't taken a strength-training break since May. Actually, I'll be visiting family in Ohio next week anyway, so I guess that will make it easier to "KEEP OUT" of the gym and force myself to rest. (Though, if I take my running shoes, they can't hold me down and keep me from running. I'll probably still do a daily morning jog/sprint workout so that I won't feel too bad after eating yummy food on Thanksgiving;)

Love ya lots!

Talia:)