Rachael graduated from UCLA in December 2010 with a degree in International Development Studies. She is currently working towards admission to nursing school, where she hopes to obtain both a Bachelors of Science in Nursing as well as a Masters of Science in Nursing.
Rachael is also preparing for her first Figure competition and will share her journey along the way, including her goals, aspirations and struggles.
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When one’s will power upholds throughout times of temptation, the feeling of accomplishment is indescribable. This past weekend, I reunited with my two best friends from college in Washington D.C. for a weekend of fun and freedom. My goals for the weekend were...
I will be jumping on a red-eye flight to Washington D.C. to visit two of my best friends from UCLA. This may not seem like a challenge since it has become easier to maintain a healthy lifestyle while traveling and vacationing.
This is when things begin to get difficult. Eight weeks until the competition, and it’s time to begin the cutting process. Stepping into my 8-week check-in, I was unsure of where my results would be. With the huge let down at my 10-week check-in, I didn’t want to get my hopes up about my progress.
In order to compete in a fitness competition, the gym becomes an imperative part of one’s “journey to the stage.” I love going to the gym. It is where I feel the strongest, the most beautiful and the most confident. However, it is also where, at times, I feel the most self-conscious.
At 12-weeks, I weighed in at 125.4lbs with an 11.2% body fat percentage. When I stepped on that scale at 10-weeks out, I weighed in at 131.8lbs—that’s a 6-pound gain in a matter of two weeks! To say I was shocked is an understatement.
Slowly, I am getting all the pieces together for the May 3rd “deadline.” I have rented a beautiful suit from one of my wonderful teammates, and my competition shoes arrived in the mail. The suit is the easy part. It is simply a high cut, bedazzled bikini—nothing that will make me feel too uncomfortable.
I LOVE food. I subscribe to all the magazines, read all of the blogs, collect cookbooks from all genres, and explore new foods and techniques in the kitchen. The “foodie” culture and the fitness competitor lifestyle do not necessarily go hand in hand—and that is why I sometimes feel like I’m living a double life.
Within this journey, few things are more vital than an incredible support system. And while it may seem that support is easy to come by when embarking on a journey of health and fitness, this challenge that I have decided to embrace comes as quite controversial to some.
Today was the first test to see whether or not I can actually make it through the next 14 weeks. Today I started my nutrition plan, my new workout routine, AND I had a massive midterm in anatomy and physiology.
15 weeks.That’s it. That is all the time I have to turn my mediocre body into a flawless, tanned and toned physique. Oh no, that’s not intimidating, that’s not terrifying...
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