A Quarter of the Way Complete!

By Amy Pelz “I hated every minute of training, but I said, “Don’t quit.  Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.”-Muhammad Ali As I’m headed into my 8 week point, everything is starting to get a bit out of focus again.  I thought I had it all figured out.  I had a 3 percent drop …

Crunch Time!

By Amy Pelz So, I’m down to the final 12 weeks and feeling the effects of a low calorie restrictive diet. The upside of it though is that I’m seeing lots of changes in the way that my body looks and feels. The downside is that I’m having trouble thinking clearly and at times I’m extremely moody. From the moment …

Let the Countdown Officially Begin!

By Amy Pelz Yesterday it all became a little more real for the first time since I decided to compete. I signed up! It’s confirmed. A dream became a reality all in a matter of a few clicks. To be honest, I thought this would be an enormous amount of work, but what I signed up for is just plain …

Working Through the Pain

By Amy Pelz A few weeks ago, I spent an hour and a half doing legs in the gym.  Usually when I hurt my back, I can feel it immediately.  This time was different though.  The pain came about when I was trying on clothes days later.  Scary stuff.  Not knowing that I even did it scared me even more. …

Onward Progress!

  By Amy Pelz The holidays are right around the corner which means that there will be temptation everywhere I turn. With the amount of progress I’ve made in the past month though, I don’t think getting through them will be that big of a challenge for me. Since my last update, I’ve gained 3 pounds of muscle and my …

Relying on Good Habit

By Amy Pelz When I took the challenge of training for this figure competition, all sorts of positive thoughts swirled through my head leading up to the end result.  Thinking about the process as a whole ignited some pretty amazing, empowering thoughts.  But actually, in retrospect, getting down to the everyday nitty gritty of it has been somewhat grueling.  Every …

Month 2-Figure Training

By Amy Pelz This past month has been based on finalizing which competition to compete in and also establishing my splits for every week. I’ve began writing everything down. Everything I eat is recorded. Every rep and weight I use in the gym is recorded. Now that I know when I’ll be competing, it’s serious business from here on out. …

A Cause Worth Running For

By Shannon Flanagan – CPT   Sam struggled with cystic fibrosis all of his life. He was diagnosed at 9 months and was told he would most likely not live to see his 16th birthday. Cystic Fibrosis is a genetic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system. The body produces abnormally thick mucus that coats the walls of the …

The Road To My First Competition

By Amy Pelz A few weeks ago, I made the decision to do the unthinkable: To compete in a fitness competition! The thought to me is exhilarating. There is no better time than right now for me because I don’t really have any other major commitments in my life. Making the decision to do it was the first step in …