15 Weeks of Bikini Prep?!

I have just completed 15 weeks of a bikini prep program. No competition but all the work to get to one. Let’s say, I started full force with great success and came crawling through mud to the end. Wow, did I learn SO much! Pros and Cons! I cannot wait to share these things with you. As always, it may look different for each one of you. All our bodies are SO different and circumstances/lifestyles – so what I needed, wanted, experienced is all from my perspective and not through others. I’d love to hear what you have learned if you have done one before. 

First, I wanted to start with my why and motivation. For years I have pushed hard in the exercise realm and also ate well. But I noticed I was missing some key components to getting “ripped.” I wanted to prove to myself that getting my body fat % below 15% was possible and doable without a gym membership. I also was totally ready to grow as a personal trainer and nutrition coach. I wanted to experience the process so I can coach my own clients with empathy, understanding, and vision. 

Next in the process. You start at a moderate but low calorie amount. Foods are mainly one ingredient foods with some exceptions. No sugar, no dairy, no gluten. Pairings of foods are placed together to give you the most bang for your pound. Every week there are subtractions or replacements to your feeds so you eat less but your body adapts because they are well placed adjustments. Exercise runs the opposite course – five one-hour sessions to six two- to three-hour sessions a week. 

Alright, without further ado, my list. I have been pondering on this for about 5 weeks now as I came dragging into the homestretch. They are in no particular order and definitely aren’t exclusive to all of my thoughts. 

• The same insecurities I had 18 pounds ago are the same insecurities I have now. 
• Eating whole, one ingredient foods make me feel the best
• I am emotionally connected to food
• I am socially connected to food
• There was a point where my body rejected more programming and I needed to pull back for a while and reset.
• My mental health is almost MORE important than my physical health. Without good mental health, anything good I pursue didn’t matter. 
• Eating one ingredient foods and ridding my body of sugar, gluten, and dairy changed three things drastically that weren’t my size – my acne is all but gone, my hormones were in a better balance range, my mental health is DEPENDANT on whole, one ingredient foods
• You need a good coach to guide you and talk you off of the wall at times
• You need serious accountability to make serious changes
• This world is obese because of added sugars and too little protein
• What you learn about yourself is WAY more important than the results at the end
• Even a small step forward is a BIG win! 
• I wanted to throw the towel in multiple times and I am SO thankful that I gritted up and tried again – because 80% or even 50% or even 30% is better than 0%
• Different goals require different nutrition and exercise programs —- too many women try to do everything ALL at once. Example: I had a client text me to see if I could coach her while she 1) lost weight 2) built 10 lbs of muscle 3) trained for a triathlon 4) wanted to intuitively eat. Yikes! We do better when we pick one or we’ll be knocking heads with the cross points of our goals. 
• Supplementation is a must with a cutting diet
• Timing in your eating is IMPERATIVE to keeping muscle and not crashing mid-day. 
• You can do anything!!!
• Because of this program, I have revamped parts of my nutrition coaching in what I have learned and am implementing it to be a better coach for you. 
• If you don’t eat right, you won’t see change. I swear nutrition is 90% of the equation to body change. 
• Get a coach! Nuff said there!
• Food can be ritualistic and there’s definitely a FOMO in certain ritual situations (like my birthday) when you don’t eat what everyone else is eating and what you look forward to so much. 
• I love allowing myself a treat on Sunday’s. It keeps me sane. 
• Sugar makes me feel SO junky and slow and bloated and all the wrong things. 
• But my body craves sugar if I am not eating the right kinds of foods at the right times. 
• When you lose enough weight to change clothes sizes, it is really strange and difficult to fork up the money to purchase new stuff. 
• Sometimes weight drops don’t lead to clothing size drops. Don’t go there with expectations. 
• When you lose a bunch of weight, there is a fear of gaining it all back every single time you eat or shop for a new clothing size or get close to finishing your program.
• You can’t possibly maintain a super low weight on a restricted diet without injuring your hormones or body in general. 
• To achieve an extremely low body fat %, it will take complete sacrifice of all else. Between meal prep, recovery, and gym time, it is hours of each day. Too many women want the body but aren’t willing or can’t do 3 hours a day, 6 days a week in the gym. 
• My body can’t eat cake and cut weight at the same time. 
• It is always about trusting the process and hanging onto your coach’s knowledge
• There is an end to every season – from the actual program and challenge it was to even the weight I ended with, it is all temporary and the only thing certain is change. 
• Peanut Butter is king!
• My body craves nuts and peanut butter when I am in a calorie deficit – like cannot stop thinking about anything in that realm. 
• This is a lifestyle I’d like to continue in – I truly was eating the right foods, just in a deficit. So now, I get to keep eating them in, but more!!!
• You can fuel your body super efficiently with whole, one ingredient food. 
• It is all about finding volume foods and spices to liven and fill you. 
• There is always an event or an excuse. There just is. 
• Foods during low hormone phases vs high hormone phases tasted and pleased/disgusted differently.
• Two hours in the gym plus little caloric intake wipes you out. YOU MUST REST and rest MORE. 

So here are some before and after photos – honestly, I can’t see much change in myself but I FEEL better and have had others notice a difference. I guess it is all the eye of the beholder and sometimes we have to hold onto how others see us if we cannot see that change and know there is one.

Hopefully you have gained some insight into all the thoughts (even contradicting ones) of a rigorous program. There is a right season to everything, just not all at once. That is why I NEVER give my clients the same program as anyone else and NEVER try to achieve too many goals at one time. Everything is thought out to where the client is at and the circumstances they are in and where they want to be. Time, accountability, and consistency in anything is key and that is what I, as your coach, can do for you.

If you’d like to take a 12 week nutrition coaching course, do a bikini prep program, or get some amazing personal, personal training, reach out via the Contact Us link in the Train menu up top. I’d love to coach with you.

Overall, would I do the program again? Yes, I would, and I am planning on it already – I know there is more progress I can make. Would I make some changes in how the program is set up and given? Yes, I would. Was I perfect in keeping with my guidelines? Nope, I definitely had fails, but we have to be honest in our mortal bodies. Can I be a better coach because of this? Yes, I can and have already implemented some of the process to dos into my coaching to get better results for my clients.

***We do not claim to be a doctor or anything of the like. This document is for educational and journaling purposes only. Any action taken by the reader is their sole responsibility and should be done with discretion. No claim can be made against Adagio FIT or its employees. If you ever have any questions, take them to your primary care doctor.***