20 days to go – update

Just 20 days to go until the BNBF British Final. Time has flown!

In yesterday’s post, I promised an update. So, here we go:

TRAINING
No changes to my training; I’m still pushing through for as long as I’ve got the energy. My split is legs twice a week (two different sessions), back, shoulders and chest. Some of those sessions are really quite short (shoulders in particular) so, whilst I don’t get a lot of rest days, some days are less demanding than others. I’m not doing any steady-state cardio (other than walking the dog) but what I am still doing is intervals and plyometrics, usually as a second session on some (not all!) days.

DIET
My carbs are coming down slowly, whilst my protein is staying steady and my fat is, if anything, higher than it has been. Perhaps the easiest way to illustrate what kind of things I eat is to give you a “day in the life of…” I’ve never done this before! Here’s what I ate yesterday:

1) bison and veg all cooked up together using coconut oil (yes, for breakfast. So delicious!)
2) after weight training: smoothie of sweet potato (cooked then frozen), Kara coconut milk, pea protein (typically I’d use vanilla whey but I’ve now taken sweetened protein powders out of my diet)
3) chicken breast and green beans, sauteed together with seasoning and lemon rind (my latest obsession!)
4) grilled asparagus topped with egg whites (done like a poached egg – I would have had a whole poached egg if I had the fats to spare). Homemade latte using Kara coconut milk.
5) after interval training: homemade ragu sauce using Athleat‘s grass-fed beef mince (so amazing, incredibly different to any other beef mince I’ve ever had), done in the slow cooker with tomatoes and onions, over shirataki (sp?) noodles
6) egg white crepe with cinnamon, cooked in coconut oil (I’d normally add some casein powder to this, or have something like casein “icecream”, but the casein’s out at the moment due to sweeteners).

During the day I drink lots of water, a big jug of homemade juice which I make every morning (one of my secret weapons), green tea and one or two (quality) cups of coffee.

POSING
I’m posing til I pop! Once or twice a day. I always go through all the poses at least twice after every training session, and sometimes I’ll just do a posing session at home to the never-ending delight of my patient husband.

ROUTINE
I’m using the same music as I did for the BNBF qualifier but I’ve added a few new bits to it. I hope they like it!

BIKINI
Is being designed and on its way! I can’t wait to see it! 😀

PROGRESS PICS
These are a bit bright and I’m washed out – we were in an empty squash court practicing my routine – but my abs are coming in (honest!) I’m so excited about this, guys! 😀

And ones taken by me yesterday (how DO youngsters ‘these days’ take iPhone photos of themselves? I simply can’t work out how to do it…. Cousins! Give me a tutorial!)

So, 20 days to go. This time in three weeks I’ll be on my way home from Glasgow. Crazy!

I hope you’re enjoying the Bank Holiday weekend. Have you trained, raced, marshalled an event?

20 days to go – update is a post from The Fit Writer blog.

Nicola Joyce – the Fit Writer – is a freelance copywriter and journalist who writes for the sport and fitness industry. Her main website is here.