2017 was for sure a year to remember!!!
It was also one of my busiest years! Busy in the best way possible!
It is kind of overwhelming trying to remember all of the amazing moments!
I'm just going to go through the months....
January:
Tony and I did a photoshoot together.
And that was about it for that month. We just did our normal thing.
TRAIN. EAT. SLEEP.
February:
Well... It was my birthday.
Tony had a practice meet at Rab Fitness.
We also visited California at the end of the month. It was a short trip.. But any time with my family is nice! I love living in Oregon... But I definitely miss them like crazy!!!
March:
I had a practice meet. It wasn't supposed to be a practice meet, but I was invited to the US Open last minute... And I just couldn't turn that down. This practice meet ended up being one of the most stressful meets ever! I almost bombed out on bench (my favorite lift)! Plus I hurt my knee. I was able to pull it together and get my last bench. && I still won best lifter!
This meet reminded me that you have to compete for yourself. NO ONE ELSE! I went into that meet trying to impress everyone... & that took the fun out of competing.
April:
The US Open! One of the biggest powerlifting meets of the year! It was such an honor to be invited and share the platform with the strongest people in the world.
I remember being so nervous! I was worried that I was going to make a fool of myself on that stage.. But Tony was there to remind me that this is all supposed to be fun! And that my biggest goal should be to beat myself! Which I did! I had a great meet! Well... Aside from bench! I need to figure out my dang bench press!
The US Open was such a great experience though! I was able to meet some amazing people! Amazing and inspiring athletes!
Honestly, after competing... I was contemplating starting my prep for bodybuilding. I wanted to focus on getting stronger. But as you know... That thought didn't last too long.
May:
Tony and I went to Hawaii! We had the perfect vacation for US! We did everything we wanted to do!
We ate amazing food! We trained at an awesome powerlifting gym! Met amazing people! Almost died on some hikes! Swam in a waterfall. We had such a great time!!! And when we got home... Our scale knew we had a good time! Haha!
This trip reminded me that sometimes... You just have to live your life. Both Tony and I are very strict with our nutrition and training. We follow our macros. We never skip a training session... But this trip was us just "living life." And when I say that... That doesn't mean we ate like complete shit and didn't workout. We still trained. And we were still aware of what we were eating. We made sure we had protein with every meal & drank our water. We also made sure we stayed very active.
June:
This summer in Oregon was AMAZING!!! So gorgeous! It was actually really hot too.
Tony and I had to get a portable AC for the apartment.
We tried to go on a hike every week. If we weren't hiking, then we tried to go kayaking. Or rock climbing/bouldering. Something active... And preferably outside! OOO! We also went to OMSI!
I really enjoyed OMSI! It is totally a place for kids, but that's okay! There were little puzzles all over that Tony and I really enjoyed!
July:
MY SIBLINGS CAME TO VISIT!!! <3
It was so nice having these little munchkins over! We kind of killed them! LOL.
Right after picking them up from the airport... We went hiking.
We took them to the gym every day!
We took them paddle boarding.
Bouldering :)
And we also went to the movies to see Despicable Me 3.
Best believe they slept like babies. And they woke up pretty sore each day! Haha. Man do I miss them!
Another awesome thing in July... I got to watch my friend, Amber, compete in her first figure show!
I was awesome seeing her prep herself. She did it all on her own!!! CRAZY! & I'm so glad I was able to cheer her on on her big day :)
August:
Come August I started to get pretty lean. I started my contest prep about a week or two after Hawaii.
I did a couple photoshoots... Which I really enjoy doing! Huge thanks to Gino and Feed Me Fight Me for taking such awesome photos of me!!!
September:
MY PRO DEBUT!
I was so nervous for this show! I totally stressed myself out! I was worried that I wasn't going to be ready. But either way... I rocked that stage!
I don't really have any pictures from that show because I actually wasn't happy with the way I looked. I was right... I wasn't ready. But that's okay. I got great feedback from the head judge. She told me that I just need to focus on growing. I need more muscle mass. She actually told me not to try to get leaner... Just to focus on growing!
SIDE NOTE: I was literally just talking to Tony about starting a mini cut. Now after remembering what the head judge told me... I might not do the mini cut. I am going to run it all by my coach and get his opinion.
Another awesome thing about my pro debut... Is that I got to see my mom, dad, grandma Micky, and my best friend, Jason (we've been friends since kindergarten)! It makes my heart smile thinking about all of them being in the crowd to support me!
October:
My second pro show!!! And man was I ready for this one!
I brought my all time best to this show! And I could feel it!
When Tony and I left Oregon.. I looked like I've been looking... & when we got to our hotel in San Diego... It was like some kind of magic was sprinkled over me. And by me... I mean my legs! Those suckers finally decided to show up to the party! Even my coach was shocked! He asked me to take pictures in "bad" lighting just to make sure what he was seeing was actually me. Hahaha!
The biggest thing I learned from my shows was that you literally can do anything you set your mind to! And... Hard work really does pay off!
I worked my ass off for these shows. Seriously... I completely lost my booty! GONE! HAHAHA!
I also learned just how strong I am. Physically and mentally.
I've never really known what "grinding" is... But now I think I do.
I woke up at 3:40am pretty much every day! Did over an hour of cardio. Worked 12 hour days at work. Went to the gym. Then came home to do another hour of cardio. And woke up to do it all over again!
I was eating 540 calories some days. Shoot... My training days... I was only eating 640 calories... & I was still pretty strong!
I did all this because I wanted to be able to finish this prep knowing that I GAVE IT MY ALL! & I most certainly did!
Huge thanks to my coach, Justin Harris & my most amazing boyfriend, Tony! Tony supported me the entire way!
The weekend after my show... Des, Mark, and Remi came to visit!!!
Man oh man! It was so nice having them up! We all had a blast!
November:
This was a huge month!!!!
1. I went shooting for the first time. It made me quite nervous... But I enjoyed it.
2. I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner! Such a fun time! I kinda want to do it again! But kinda don't because it was a lot of work.
3. Tony and I decided that we are going to open a gym!!!!
Number three is the biggest of them all. Kind of the biggest of the whole year!!! INSANE!
Aaron is our business partner! Him and his wife are so awesome! I seriously cannot wait!!!
In the mean time... I will be working on learning as much as I can about strength training and programming. I want to be the best coach I possibly can be for my gym members!
December:
I blasted christmas music the entire month. Tony and I decorated the house. We got a awesome tree! And I totally wore a santa hat around the house every day!
I was finally able to send my family some gifts, which felt really good! And I got some amazing gifts from them.
December was a nice month. Tony and I didn't do anything crazy. Tony is getting ready for a meet... So we were just at the gym... Or getting stuff ready for our own gym.
AND TOMORROW IS 2018!
