IFBB Pro Nancy Clark - My first pro show prep.

[Nancy Clark]

Well here we go. My first pro show prep. This is the first time I have posted a training journal, so please bare with me. Now I will give you a little background. My debut will be the Toronto Pro in June 2013. Very excited and quite nervous. I earned my pro card at the Canadian Nationals this year as the overall masters winner. I am 48 and started competing in 2009. It's been an incredible journey and I'm not done yet, not even close. My training team which consists of my husband Al and my competition prep coach Jeremy Miskinis have come up with a plan to improve some aspects of my physique. Increase the overall size of my delts and improve the outer sweep of my quads. And as always, work, work, work on my abs.
I will be training 5 days a week with no cardio at this point. But we all know how fast that can change. I will do my updates twice a week. At the Canadian Nationals I weighed in at 166 lbs, my current starting weight is 174 lbs. I have no idea where I will end up but hope to be a few pounds heavier but better conditioned.

[PFEPerformance]

I'm in ! Best of luck to you and I look forward to following your journey!

[Sunnyday]

Hi and welcome! I'll be following along. :D

[Nancy Clark]

Friday Dec 14/2012

Well I'm 1/2 way through my week of training. Completed back yesterday and sporting a few tender areas. Really trying to focus my training on my lats to get a better v taper and give the illusion of a smaller waist. Thankgod back training is my favorite. Started with 4 sets each of t-bar rows, stretchers, and then pullovers. At this point my lats were done so I then did cable rows and ended with back extensions. Feeling strong and focused. I keep a photo of a particular bodybuilder, who shall remain nameless, in my workout log. She will be competing at the Toronto pro show as well. When I feel tired or seem to be slacking off, I turn to her photo and analyze her strengths and my weaknesses and that usually does the trick. Back on track and ready to battle through anything. Food is going well. Hit and miss on the 6 hard meals a day. Usually takes me a week to get my schedule down and then its not a problem. Definately hungry so thats a good sign.

Hitting the gym today for xtra workout. This is the day that I work on my weaknesses. Quads, delts and abs. Should be fun.

Thanks for listening.

[PFEPerformance]

Quote: I keep a photo of a particular bodybuilder, who shall remain nameless, in my workout log. She will be competing at the Toronto pro show as well. When I feel tired or seem to be slacking off, I turn to her photo and analyze her strengths and my weaknesses and that usually does the trick.

I do this too!! When I'm feeling a little unmotivated and got way to much "tude" - viewing someone you see as an ideal and you aspire to is an AWESOME "TUDE" adjustment!!

[tankygirl]

Welcome!! I will be following along, it looks like we are around the same age :) my first competition was in 2009 a day after I turned 49 :) Looking forward to watching your progress xx

[Nancy Clark]

Well I have completed my first week of training prep and I survived. Had a cheat meal Saturday night and rest day on Sunday. After a cheat I always feel lethargic and crave anything with sugar. I always go up 4-5lbs after a cheat so I avoid the scale like the plague. But as usual after a few hours I feel the need to torture myself for shits and giggles and step on...Yeow..... Should have stayed off. Lol. Had leg day today and killed it. Left the gym feeling completely spent. Also was able to get all 6 meals in... I'm on track and ready to grow.....yeah baby!

[lgcanski]

Well here we go. My first pro show prep. This is the first time I have posted a training journal, so please bare with me. Now I will give you a little background. My debut will be the Toronto Pro in June 2013. Very excited and quite nervous. I earned my pro card at the Canadian Nationals this year as the overall masters winner. I am 48 and started competing in 2009. It's been an incredible journey and I'm not done yet, not even close. My training team which consists of my husband Al and my competition prep coach Jeremy Miskinis have come up with a plan to improve some aspects of my physique. Increase the overall size of my delts and improve the outer sweep of my quads. And as always, work, work, work on my abs.
I will be training 5 days a week with no cardio at this point. But we all know how fast that can change. I will do my updates twice a week. At the Canadian Nationals I weighed in at 166 lbs, my current starting weight is 174 lbs. I have no idea where I will end up but hope to be a few pounds heavier but better conditioned.

Met u canadians ...u were pretty shredded girl! Best wishes on your prep!

[bopper]

Have to agree with above post...pretty shredded...will follow along and good luck

[Nancy Clark]

Well 1 more sleep till Christmas. Training has been going well. Had some pretty tough workouts last week. Trying to stay focused with all the bad food around...yikes. Plan to have a cheat day tmrw (within reason) and then back to normal on Boxing Day. Wish me luck. Lol. Training will continue and my days of no cardio are over. I have been assigned 25 min. post workout 3 days a week. Not to bad. Anyways, wishing you all a Merry Christmas and all the best in the new year.

[Nancy Clark]

Met u canadians ...u were pretty shredded girl! Best wishes on your prep!
Thanks. I was pretty happy with my conditioning. Best to date so far. We found that my tear drop needed to be visible and cut about 5 weeks out to allow my glutes to striate. It was a great learning experience. Now I can gauge my progress for my next show. We usually start cutting 17 weeks out but may even go to 18 this time. The longer I have to take the weight off the better I look, especially in the face. Not so hollowed out and sickly looking. Lol

[IslandGirl]

Very exciting to be training for your Pro debut! Best of luck!

We are very close in age. I always say, Age is just a number.

[Nancy Clark]

Man did I have a killer training week. Legs on Wednesday almost made me cry, lol and then yesterday was arm day....ouch! Just kept telling myself "SUCK IT UP...your in a whole new ball game." Here is my workout from Wednesday.

Leg Day: Lying Leg curls: 2-3 warm up sets. 3 sets of 10, perfect form. 4th set is a drop set.
Do 10- drop weight and do 8 then drop and do another 8 and then leave the weight where it is and do another 25 partials out of the stretched position. 4 total work sets.

Banded Leg press: (Black mini bands) Put your bands on and then your plates. Do sets of 8 until you are at a weight that is a challenging 8. Once there do 3 sets of 8, no lock out. 3 total work sets

Squats: - Few warm up sets working towards a hard working weight. Once there do 4 sets of 8 with a 3 second descent to just above parallel. 4 total work sets

Leg Press: - YES AGAIN...No bands this time. Use approx 40 % Of the weight you can use to get 8 - 10 reps. Do 1 set with a minimum of 40 reps. No stopping, sled all the way down. Go to failure. I was able to do 40 before I had to stop for a second and then I carried on until I hit 52. My legs were shaking and on fire....Yeow! Had fun trying to get out of the machine after that. 1 total work set.

Dumbell stiff legged deads: - 4 sets of 8. Work the stretch on these.

That was it. I couldn't believe how wasted I was. I know I've had a good workout when I go home and crash on the couch for an hour.

[IslandGirl]

That leg workout sounds deadly! Great job!

[mpalleyne]

Hi Nancy, Killer legs workout girl!! I'm also new to this and would be following along as well. Blessings

[Nancy Clark]

Monday Jan 7, 2013
Happy New Year Everyone. May 2013 bring good fortune to you all. I am kind of happy that the season is over. To many treats around to tempt you. Not very conducive for show prep. My workouts have been going great. I am feeling very strong and very focused. I know I have to improve my delts before I can step on that pro stage. I have been doing alot of pressing and lateral movements to build the medial delt, but making sure to add in exercises that will target the front and rear delt as well. This should give me a higher and better defined cap. As far as my legs go, I like the overall development of my quads but need to have a little more on the outer sweep. I have been doing alot of leg presses with my feet placement closer together to target that area. I also have to say that I am sleeping soundly. When my head hits that pillow, its lights out. Nothing is going to wake me. Overall things are looking good. I will post a current pic on Friday with my update.

[Sunnyday]

Checking in. I'm with you...glad the holiday season and the treats are behind us. I am still in my offseason but I find I just can't train as hard without good clean food for fuel. Looking forward to seeing your progress pics. Keep hitting it hard! :)

[mrsflexgym]

Love to read how different people train different ways. Especially to see the differences in the training between catagories. Good luck!!!!

[Nancy Clark]

Jan 11,2013
Well it was check in day. Weight 182 lbs. Pretty happy with pics. Looking big and full. Cheat meal tomorrow, yee haw! It's funny when I tell people I'm bulking. They think you can eat whatever you want to put size on. I wish. I would love to be able to sit down and "bulk" with chips, pizza, and chocolate bars. Lol. They don't realize that you eat the same foods as when your cutting except in bigger quantities. I weighed 166 lbs at the Canadian Nationals so given the shorter building phase, I think I should be able to add another 2-3 lbs of lean muscle before show time. We will see. Feeling strong and focused. Bring it on!

[bopper]

Usually I am on boards as Razorsedge but name taken here at Rx so bopper is it. I made a quick post on here before to ensure I was active.

I'm other half, not better half, of Nancy and execute the gym portion of her training as we made the decision a couple years back that the diet portion was not being designed and managed in same house as we all know how women get when they diet and to be truthful, when I see her down and beat up in the last weeks I would probably cut her some slack...so...our good friend Jeremy Miskinis does all her technical prep and design and he doesn't go by the nickname of "the Wizard " for no reason and we couldn't be happier with the arrangement.

I can see exactly what is happening, when things are good and bad, and relay it to Jer and we come up with a plan but Nancy and I made the decision when we went to Jer, no matter what, he has final say. To be truthful, we have never had a situation where we have not been in agreement so the arrangement has been fool proof and "perfect".

I have to say that right now, Nancy is the strongest I have seen her and she is working with heavy loads, the highest reps etc ever as we are on a mission to make very specific improvements and make the most of our one chance for a "first impression".

This is her journal and I will jump in every now and then to add some insight from the prep side and from an "observer"...and right now she is looking big, hard and strong at 182 lbs...we have been as high as 196 in past preps but now like to stay in the 15-20 lbs from stage wt and that works way better...we have also changed our training a bit and now no longer go in the 300 plus zones. She squats and deadlifts over 300 quite handily but now we have drawn it back and let her go in the 250-285 range for both lifts but go high reps with slow negs on the squats and then rep it out on the deads and it is easier on back, joints and we have stayed injury free so it works for her..anyway, should be a fun run and we love every second of it.

[PFEPerformance]

Absolutely awesome that you work as a TEAM! LOVE that!! I don't think people realize what as science project all this is and how individually specific it can be! Looking great girl !!!! Oh .... and I'm jealous of your awesome bathroom! LOL

Keep it up!!!

[lgcanski]

Jan 11,2013
Well it was check in day. Weight 182 lbs. Pretty happy with pics. Looking big and full. Cheat meal tomorrow, yee haw! It's funny when I tell people I'm bulking. They think you can eat whatever you want to put size on. I wish. I would love to be able to sit down and "bulk" with chips, pizza, and chocolate bars. Lol. They don't realize that you eat the same foods as when your cutting except in bigger quantities. I weighed 166 lbs at the Canadian Nationals so given the shorter building phase, I think I should be able to add another 2-3 lbs of lean muscle before show time. We will see. Feeling strong and focused. Bring it on!

^^^ So true for many of us! Stay strong Nancy!

[Nancy Clark]

Jan. 21,2013

A little late with my update this week. Weigh in last Friday was 184.9. Very pleased overall. Body is starting to harden up and tighten. Didn't have a cheat meal this past Saturday and I weighed myself this morning and was 187.9. Must be holding some water because visually I look the same as I did Friday. Workouts have been "Kick Ass". Saturday was my extra day where I work on my week parts, legs and shoulders. I have started using knee wraps and I have to say they are awesome. Was able to get a personal best on our very outdated leg press machine. Very happy. Did 600 lbs for 12 reps. This after working my way up with sets of 20. I have also decided to give myself one more month to "bulk" so I am pushing my debut back to the Chicago "Wings of Strength" show in July rather then Toronto. I was really hoping to be ready for Toronto but I just don't think my improvements will be there by then. Oh well I believe things happen for a reason.

[mrsflexgym]

.....managed in same house as we all know how women get when they diet and to be truthful, when I see her down and beat up in the last weeks I would probably cut her some slack.


I dont think Ive ever heard anyone admit to this before. LOL. My husband helps guys and girls do diets for shows and has been for 5 years.... BUT he WILL NOT do mine. LOL. He said he "sees" me different cause he loves me and I need an outside opinion.
Which we have seen some couples help each other and we can see things that need to be changed that they dont see. You just dont look at your spouse the way a judge would. So Palumbo does mine and my husbands diet. My hubby will help me with workout tips here and there, but will never say a word to me about my diet.

[sce0027]

Jan. 21,2013

A little late with my update this week. Weigh in last Friday was 184.9. Very pleased overall. Body is starting to harden up and tighten. Didn't have a cheat meal this past Saturday and I weighed myself this morning and was 187.9. Must be holding some water because visually I look the same as I did Friday. Workouts have been "Kick Ass". Saturday was my extra day where I work on my week parts, legs and shoulders. I have started using knee wraps and I have to say they are awesome. Was able to get a personal best on our very outdated leg press machine. Very happy. Did 600 lbs for 12 reps. This after working my way up with sets of 20. I have also decided to give myself one more month to "bulk" so I am pushing my debut back to the Chicago "Wings of Strength" show in July rather then Toronto. I was really hoping to be ready for Toronto but I just don't think my improvements will be there by then. Oh well I believe things happen for a reason.

Hey there! Hope you don't mind me stopping by! You're physique is amazing, your training journal shows you've been working very hard for it (as expected!). Looking forward to tracking your progress, and good luck with future competitions!

[bopper]

I dont think Ive ever heard anyone admit to this before. LOL. My husband helps guys and girls do diets for shows and has been for 5 years.... BUT he WILL NOT do mine. LOL. He said he "sees" me different cause he loves me and I need an outside opinion.

So true here...we did it for 2 yrs... the off season building diet but in my opinion it just isn't as effective because like you say, it is so hard to be objective. We have a great arrangement now and it makes things way smoother at home...lol

[bopper]

This last 2 weeks in the gym have been the best she has had ever...loads are up more than ever, form is tight and things are coming together nicely.

It's a good thing when I think she looks leaner / tighter and she tells me her weight is up. I challenged her on it 3 days ago and made her get on scale and she was right.

She has bad (but good) case of "brick shithouse syndrom" going on right now...lol...hard as hell and big...heavy too and I have to keep telling her to get off me.

[Nancy Clark]

I dont think Ive ever heard anyone admit to this before. LOL. My husband helps guys and girls do diets for shows and has been for 5 years.... BUT he WILL NOT do mine. LOL. He said he "sees" me different cause he loves me and I need an outside opinion.
Which we have seen some couples help each other and we can see things that need to be changed that they dont see. You just dont look at your spouse the way a judge would. So Palumbo does mine and my husbands diet. My hubby will help me with workout tips here and there, but will never say a word to me about my diet.
Its funny how we get when we are prepping for a show. I will practice my mandatory poses in front of my husband but not my routine. Not until I have it where I want it. I don't take criticism well during the last 6 weeks. But only from him. I'm fine if my prep coach tells me I need work, but not my husband. lol

[mrsflexgym]

Its funny how we get when we are prepping for a show. I will practice my mandatory poses in front of my husband but not my routine. Not until I have it where I want it. I don't take criticism well during the last 6 weeks. But only from him. I'm fine if my prep coach tells me I need work, but not my husband. lol

I can do my posing in front of my husband and he can tell me if it looks good.... but he knows nothing about figure posing. LOL. He knows how it should look, but he cant tell me how to do it. Ive basically taught myself. I will take my pictures and then compare them to the top figure girls and see how I need to move a certain way or flex another way.
If I want to get a good laugh out of him I will "try" bb poses. LOL. He thinks its funny and its one of those things I would never let anyone else see me doing. hehe

[IslandGirl]

Looking great Nancy! Rooting for your debut in Chicago! That show is awesome!

I've been considering using knee wraps too. Esp on leg presses. I've had them for a couple of years now but hubby feels that if I have to use wraps then maybe I'm just going too heavy for my little body. My max is 9 plates aside (haven't done this weight in while) for 10-12 reps. Lately I've only done 7-8 plates as my confidence hasn't been that great. The fear sets in and I get anxiety. lol I bet your leg press machine is heavy as heck without any weight on it. One of my gyms I go to, that leg press machine needs NO weights on it! I feel it! Crazy how each one is so different.

Hope you're having a great week!

[Nancy Clark]

Jan. 28, 2013.

Spent the weekend away to visit family. Had an opportunity to try out a new gym that had all the new equipment. Wow, it was like Disneyland for bodybuilders. The gym that I train at is very basic. Lots of free weights, barbells, and benchs, but no isolation machines. Our leg equipment is very old. Heavy and not smooth by any means. Anyways, so we were totally excited to have a workout with great equip. I did legs on Friday and Arms on Sat. I am still sporting some soreness from the leg press and squats. I was able to leg press 8 plates a side for reps after working my way up. I think thats the most I have ever done. Was feeling really good when we finished and thought this was kind of weird because my legs weren't shaking....yet! Walked over to the squat rack and started working my way up to 225 lbs. By the third set my legs started to shake and that was it. Man did that feel awesome. Finished up there and decided to do some hamstrings...lying leg curls, S.L. deads, and then tried a standing leg curl machine. Lots of fun. Ran into IFBB Pro Figure athlete Maria Morrone. Had a nice chat. She has no plans to compete in the future but I am sure she is not done yet. On a past post I mentioned that I keep a photo of a fellow Pro bodybuilder in my workout journal. This is to give me inspiration when I need it. I was most likely going to compete against her at my first show. She has decided to switch to physique so I quess I can tell you her name, Fabiola Boulanger. Seems like quite a few bodybuilders are switching over. They say taking the muscle off is just as hard as putting it on. I wish her all the best.

[The Prodigy]

Jan. 21,2013

A little late with my update this week. Weigh in last Friday was 184.9. Very pleased overall. Body is starting to harden up and tighten. Didn't have a cheat meal this past Saturday and I weighed myself this morning and was 187.9. Must be holding some water because visually I look the same as I did Friday. Workouts have been "Kick Ass". Saturday was my extra day where I work on my week parts, legs and shoulders. I have started using knee wraps and I have to say they are awesome. Was able to get a personal best on our very outdated leg press machine. Very happy. Did 600 lbs for 12 reps. This after working my way up with sets of 20. I have also decided to give myself one more month to "bulk" so I am pushing my debut back to the Chicago "Wings of Strength" show in July rather then Toronto. I was really hoping to be ready for Toronto but I just don't think my improvements will be there by then. Oh well I believe things happen for a reason.

YAY! I get to watch you this year!

[bopper]

141840

Quick update...she is sitting at 184 and is harder and tighter than she was at 182...the delts are really coming up as well as good sweep on quads...things really coming together nicely...22 weeks out

[Nancy Clark]

Feb. 3, 2013. 22 weeks out of Chicago debut.

Well I have to say this has been a very interesting week. Workouts are going great. Feeling strong. Prep coach sent me some new workouts to bust my butt. I have now been granted 1 cheat meal a week. I was previously having one every two weeks since I went a little overboard at Christmas. lol Now I will get to the interesting part. My husband posted the above update photo on our FB page. This page is for our clients and anyone interested in the sport of bodybuilding. Within 10 minutes of posting the pic we received a very unkind comment from a women. Now I know that this sport is not for everyone, but if you don't admire the physique you at least have to admire the persons hard work and dedication whether its bodybuilding, physique, figure or fitness. I have seen some of these comments on other women bodybuilders sites and can not believe how nasty and malicious people, especially women, can be. I mean I get the sneers, and finger pointers when I'm out. Again mostly by women, and lets just say they usually look like they have never been to a gym or know what a healthy diet is. Well this comment opened up Pandora's box. We had 40 comments within 2 hours. All of them very supportive and positive for me and many of them blasting her for her ignorance. We couldn't believe what a hornets nest one picture could stir up. The nice thing was that I was pleasantly surprised at how many people came to bat for me and all women in the sport of bodybuilding. I would just like to say Thank you....it made my week.

[Nancy Clark]

Feb.12, 2013

Only three and a half weeks until I start cutting. Workouts are going great. Leg day yesterday and had a personal best in free standing squats. I have started to use knee wraps and what a difference this makes in my leg workouts. I worked my way up to 315 lbs and was able to do a set of 6 below parallel. I could have went even heavier but my lower back started to tweak when I would take the bar off the rack and get into position. The new workouts are ass kickers especially the arm one. Lots of supersetting. Did them on Saturday with my hubby and had such a great pump I didn't think my skin could stretch any further. My weight was 184.4 this morning even after a cheat meal on Saturday but I am looking leaner. I usually carry my excess weight around my kidneys. It's always one of the last places to go when I cut but I don't think that is going to be a problem this time. I can only compare my progress with the last time I bulked and I am currently sitting 2lbs heavier then the last time but muscle size is bigger. Who wouldn't like that. Because I check myself out everyday I don't pick up on all the changes in my body but my husband assures me that there are significant changes from last year. Food intake is going good. I eat six times a day with macros sitting at 40-45-15 for each meal except my post workout meal which is 40-65-15. I take MD's Glucose Disposal Agent three times a day. Intra workout drink consists of Karboload, VPX No Synthesize, Beta Alanine, and Citrulline Malate. Pretty sweet stuff but once your into your workout you're sure glad you have it.

[meaganhesham]

Love reading your journal and I will be there to cheer you on at the Toronto show!!!

[sce0027]

Hey, Nancy! Hope all is going well with you and your training. Looking foward to your progress and some awesome contest photos! Have a great week!

[Nancy Clark]

Feb. 18, 2013....20 weeks to Chicago Pro.
Had a great week of training. The new workouts have some different exercises and rep schemes this time so I was quite excited to see how I would do. Back is starting to look pretty thick and wide so I am a happy girl. Weight is still hanging around 185 lbs. I had a cheat meal on Saturday. I usually don't stray too far from normal on the meal part but dessert is a different matter. I am a sugar junkie. I usually eat cakes, cookies, brownies, donuts, etc but I have found that lately if I eat any baked goods usually within a couple of hours I feel like I have a 5lbs brick in my stomach. This leads to horrible gas pains, bloating and an average of 5lbs in weight gain. I correct within a couple of days so I know most of this is water. But Yuck. Since I'm not about to give up my cheat meal, god forbid, I decided to try and eat just chocolate for my cheat. Well, it worked. I can eat as much as I want, no bloat, or stomach pains and the best part is the next morning when I weigh myself, I'm lighter then before the cheat meal. Go figure. Oh and the best thing is no guilt even if I go overboard on the chocolate..... I have also attached a photo to this update. Its a photograph of some equipment, squat rack and smith machine, positioned in tandem in our gym. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this set up in a gym before. This was the owners " light bulb"moment . You can't have both pieces of equipment being used at the same time because you keep tripping over each other. Complete pain in the rear. Well I have had my rant for the day. Have a great week everyone.

[bopper]

It's his way of saying no squatting in this gym and if this is an inconvenience for the heavy lifters, good, don't want them in here....only gym in a stretch of 120 miles....what can you do???

[Nancy Clark]

Feb. 25, 2013 Weight 181.0 19 weeks to Chicago Pro.

S___T! Is all I can say about last week. As you can see by my weight something happened....boy did it ever. We come from a small community where there is only one gym in town. The owner of this facility is a JACKASS and this is being too kind. He is not a fan of bodybuilding, the facility and its atmosphere is set up for failure not success but because its the only game in town, you make due. You walk a tight rope hoping that you don't offend him or his girlfriend on any given day, or break any of his ridiculous rules and guidelines. There is very bad karma there if you believe in that stuff. Monday and Tuesday went great. Training was bang on and the owner of the gym was away so the atmosphere for a change was high energy and enthusiastic. Wed. morning rolls around and we receive an email from the owner stating that he is terminating our membership and personal training privileges immediately. We were in shock. We told him we would be at the gym by 11 and would like to speak to him regarding his allegations. We were informed that the police would be called if we step foot in his gym. Well to make a long story short, we stepped foot in his gym and the police were called. The reasons for our termination were...we are too friendly to people and turn our workouts into social events, we help members when they have questions regarding certain exercises and in his mind that is personal training therefore he should be paid, sometimes our workouts last 3 hours and that is too long. In the end it came down to he doesn't like us and he doesn't want us in his gym. We stress him out. We have paid our dues for the month of Feb. by automatic debit, so he was informed by the police that he has to allow us to continue using the gym until the end of the month. Needless to say this did not sit well with him. This definately puts a wrench in my contest prep but there is no way that I am going to let that insignificant piece of garbage sabotage my goals. We have had nothing but support from the locals in our town, people we don't even know are offering there home gyms for me to train. We have a gym 45 minutes away in another town that I can use for my heavy leg and back days. Its not an ideal situation but it will work. Now I have to try and get my weight back up. I have two weeks before I start to cut. I have gotten all my meals in except for the one day, but my metabolism is going out of control with nerves and butterflies, hence the weight drop. BUT I WILL PREVAIL.......WATCH ME!

[bopper]

I know there will be doubters that say there is no way that is the reason...100% accurate...our client base was growing, his was declining and that pretty much sums it up...so I had 2 training sessions with police standing by...Wed one officer and Fri they sent 3...they didn't want me to sruff his face in the floor...bummer but they were awesome as they know the history of owner and has happened lots in past. The glory of living rural...anyway, we will use this as further motivation as we start the dieting phase. Funny thing, the gyms in next towns (45 min each way) have called and offered their facilities as we sometimes train there and they welcome us coming in and talking to their training enthsiasts and just training there as they say it creates positive energy...who knew being helpful and friendly in town of 4000 would be detrimental...we have 4 days left in there so I'm sure this is not over yet..

[PFEPerformance]

Oh my gosh!!! I would have to EDIT my post to say what I'm really thinking.....SO sorry this is happening at such a critical time for you!

I always find it so odd when people can't see past their own greed and STUPIDITY to SEE that you are GOOD for business..... you attract people who WANT to train and learn..... HIS LOSS for SURE! Sounds like your hanging tuff and finding work arounds (though you shouldn't have to)!!! I wish you the best!!!!

GET THAT TROPHY - get a pic of you and your placing on the FRONT PAGE of your small town newspaper and mail this Ja.. A.. a copy!!!

Hang in there girl!!! I wish you the BEST!!

[Sunnyday]

Wow that is awful yet I am not surprised given the increasing number of bbing haters our culture is creating. At least the police are being cool about it. Wishing you the best as you finish out your last few days in that gym. Keep making lemonade from the lemons! :)

[Nancy Clark]

March 3, 2013 Weight 182.4 lbs 18 Weeks till Chicago.
Started my cutting diet yesterday which would be 18 weeks out from my show. We decided to give myself an extra week so that we could do a couple of test carb ups before the show. This worked really well for me at the Canadian Nationals. No surprises. I will be eating 6 meals consisting of 40 Protein, 30 Carbs, and 15 fats. Fasted cardio 4 times per week for 20 min. I have an extreme weakness for peanut butter so yesterday I made sure that there were no jars of the offending substance anywhere in the house. 1tblsp always ends up being 2 or 3 heapings tblsp. Not even for a cheat meal as once I start I can't stop.lol So now lets get going and see if I was able to make the improvements I set out to make. Thank you to all for the kind words and encouragement during my building phase.

[Nancy Clark]

March 10, 2013 Weight 180.7 lbs 17 Weeks out.
Had a pretty good week. Dropped as low as 178.6 four days after I started cutting but then rebounded back up to 180.7, phew! Can you say "hormones". Been spending alot of time on youtube looking at footage of fellow pro Cathy Lefrancois. I have always admired Cathy's physique. She packs alot of muscle on her small frame and she shows it to perfection with her posing and her routines. I have my 1 minute routine that I present to the judges already done. Just a matter of practicing it over and over again. Music is picked for my individual routine but now the fun part. Putting it together. We are off to Vancouver this Wednesday so we will have an opportunity to try out some new facilities. Yeeha!

[Nancy Clark]

146517146518March 25, 2013 Weight 177.7 15 weeks out from Chicago.
Its been two weeks since my last post. Things are on track as you can see by the photos. I started wearing my weight belt during my workouts back in November in hopes of narrowing my waist. It was extremely uncomfortable at first but now its not a problem. I do think from looking at the pics that it might be working. I find now during the day, I automatically pull my stomach in even without thinking about it. My cardio has been increased to 30 min first thing in the morning 4 x a week. Macros were increased to 45 Protein, 35 Carbs, 15 Fats. Still have a cheat meal once a week and of course its chocolate. Tweaked my lower back the other day during squats but other then that no injuries. Knee is holding up fine even during walking lunges. All in all I feel great and looking forward to another drop in weight this week. Fingers crossed.:)

[nic902]

You look fantastic already! Can't wait to watch you dial it in. Good luck on your first pro show..Very exciting :cheerleader:

[Laurie Schnelle]

you look awesome!! I will see you in Chicgao.. Keep rockin

[bopper]

147811147809147810

Things coming together nicely for Nancy as her weight holding pretty good but body fat really dropping with over 11 weeks to go...as she sheds fat she looks bigger...all on track to date.

[Nancy Clark]

May 1, 2013 Weight 174.7 10 weeks out to Chicago. Sorry, I've been M.I.A. for awhile. Things are still on track but we have had quite a few new and exciting developments in our life which have kept us very busy. I am currently doing 40 minutes of fasted cardio 5 days a week. Three of those days I do the treadmill and the other two I do outside stairs. My meals have turned around as well. I have 1 high carb day, 2 med carb days and four no carb days. So far so good. I thought the no carb days would be difficult but I feel I am less hungry and not always looking for my next meal like I do when I have carbs. Don't get me wrong, by day 3 I start to fade and find myself taking naps but thats contest dieting. I had my first cheat in 4 weeks on Monday. It was all sugar based just to see how I react. Well I started pigging out at 7pm... by 8 I was in full carb coma....8:30 sugar crash....9pm bed. lol Woke up with a carb hangover and 4lbs heavier. Today I am full and with some of the water bloat gone, looking pretty good. Tmrw should be even better as my legs were quite smooth this morning. Had a great leg and back workout Monday and Tuesday. Changed it up a bit and did some different exercises which has made me feel quite sore. Good sore though. Getting very excited. I have been practicing my mandatory poses and am currently putting together my routine. Suits are being made, contract has been sent, now just eat, sleep and train.

[The Prodigy]

you look awesome!! I will see you in Chicgao.. Keep rockin

I will see both of you in Chicago! yay!!!!!!!

[Nancy Clark]

June 12, 2013 Weight 167.5 lbs 3.5 weeks out to Chicago. Can't believe I'm just a few short weeks away from making my Pro debut. Things are right on track. Currently eating 6 meals a day. Every other day I'm allowed 15 grams of carbs with my meal. I seem to respond pretty good this way. Training has been good as I continue to try and push myself into the zone. I am very stubborn and hate to ease up, not even a little bit. Hitting hamstrings and quads twice a week as well as a little extra arms. I'm currently doing 50 minutes of fasted cardio, 7 days a week. Most of my cardio is done on the treadmill but 3 days a week I try and hit the outside stairs. There are 150 stairs and we go up and down 10 times. Great for the quads and glutes and its a nice change. I haven't been sleeping that well lately, but that goes with the territory. When I first hit the sack I'm out like a light but then 3-4 hours later I'm wide awake. Sound familiar? Hotel, tan and makeup have been booked. Haven't had time to be nervous but I'm sure that will set in soon. All in all I just want to bring my best package to date and let the chips fall where they may. Very excited to meet all the other competitors and hopefully make a few new friends.

[Nancy Clark]

Can you say Meltdown. I usually have one every contest prep. Insecurities about how I look and the changes I've made. Am I lean enough 3 weeks out? Should I be doing more cardio? You know the game. I'm so flat that I hate posing. Hubby is being very supportive as usual trying to keep me positive. The nice thing is that by the next day I'm back on track and focus but its such a roller coaster ride. You know your being ridiculous but you can't help it. Lol.

[nic902]

The last 5wks or so is when the crazy really kicks in! "I'm not lean enough..did I make enough progress" and blah blah blah! At this point, it's all a mind game and you're body is just along for the roller coaster ride. You're almost there, keep the crazy at bay and keep pushing forward!

[PFEPerformance]

The last 5wks or so is when the crazy really kicks in! "I'm not lean enough..did I make enough progress" and blah blah blah! At this point, it's all a mind game and you're body is just along for the roller coaster ride. You're almost there, keep the crazy at bay and keep pushing forward!

x 2!!!!!!!!!! CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOUR FINAL PACKAGE!!

[Bronwyn]

Just seen your name on the Chicago Pro list. Good luck in your pro debut.

[Andrealyn75]

Hello Nancy!

OMG, you look fantastic, good luck in your competition.

[The Prodigy]

June 12, 2013 Weight 167.5 lbs 3.5 weeks out to Chicago. Can't believe I'm just a few short weeks away from making my Pro debut. Things are right on track. Currently eating 6 meals a day. Every other day I'm allowed 15 grams of carbs with my meal. I seem to respond pretty good this way. Training has been good as I continue to try and push myself into the zone. I am very stubborn and hate to ease up, not even a little bit. Hitting hamstrings and quads twice a week as well as a little extra arms. I'm currently doing 50 minutes of fasted cardio, 7 days a week. Most of my cardio is done on the treadmill but 3 days a week I try and hit the outside stairs. There are 150 stairs and we go up and down 10 times. Great for the quads and glutes and its a nice change. I haven't been sleeping that well lately, but that goes with the territory. When I first hit the sack I'm out like a light but then 3-4 hours later I'm wide awake. Sound familiar? Hotel, tan and makeup have been booked. Haven't had time to be nervous but I'm sure that will set in soon. All in all I just want to bring my best package to date and let the chips fall where they may. Very excited to meet all the other competitors and hopefully make a few new friends.

Keep your head in things!!!See you soon!

[Nancy Clark]

July 2, 2013. Well it's the night before we leave for Chicago and everything is done. I have one more fasted cardio tmrw morning and then we leave. I have been on a no carb diet since last Thursday and started depletion workouts this past Saturday. Physically I think I look better then nationals so I think I accomplished my objective. Mentally I'm ready for the show. Seems like it took quite a while to get here. The competitor list has been posted with 15 women competing. I recognize some of the names but not all. Excited to meet some of the other pros that will be attending and competing. I'm a big fan of a lot of them so hopefully I don't make a fool of myself when I stare in awe. Lol. Excitement and nervousness will set in Thursday night when I finally realize where I am and what I'm about to do. It's been an unbelievable journey to this point and whatever happens Saturday I know I will have no regrets. Lets do this.

[sassy69]

Hi Nancy - looking forward to seeing you on stage! Safe travels to the Windy City!

[nic902]

Good Luck and enjoy every moment! Looking forward to seeing the final product :cheerleader:

[Granite-Dawg]

Best of Luck!!! Have Fun!! You have prepared well for your moment on stage!!

[IslandGirl]

Good luck Nancy! Have fun!

[bopper]

Well we are here and more than ready to go. After the days of depletion, we started to fill her and we are real cautious as we have had carb issues in past....but it looks like we got it this time. Filling since Wed and now really starting to come to life....around 170 lbs, both glutes totally striated, abs full and tight, legs are spot on...and some dirty looks from some other competitors especially in the tan tent when she geared down...it's been a great journey and we have absolutely no expectations other than we want to enjoy every second of this...our goal was like she said...to be better than last time and we have accomplished that. I don't get why there is a need for the stare downs from some vet athletes...everyone respects the work "everyone" has done to get to this level and there is nothing personal about this. It's not like they have to fight each other...everyone presents themselves and the judges make a decision.

That said, we will blind side some people here with her shape and conditioning and hopefully she gets the respect of the judges for her presentation...she is a totally unknown entity in the pro ranks and south of the border so anything can happen...should be interesting next day and a half...thanks to everyone that supported my girl giving her little compliments etc along the way...means a lot to her...

[sassy69]

Heeey Top Five ... first call out .... First Pro show! And huge props Nancy! LOVE your physique!

[Bronwyn]

Big congrats for great result on first PRO show.

[nic902]

Congrats Nancy! :cheerleader: Absolutely GORGEOUS!!!!!

[curvygirl]

She's a Brick! House! :) Yowza yowza yowza!
Congratulations on your pro-debut top 5 placing! Fantastic Nancy! :flowers:

[PFEPerformance]

CONGRATS GIRL!!! Such an inspiration how you let NOTHING stop you along the way!!

[Nancy Clark]

July 12, 2013. Well I'm finally starting to crash. Been running on adrenaline since last Friday. What an experience. It was awesome and couldn't be happier with my placing. The Olympia qualification list came out and my name was on it. Too cool. Not for long but at least I made it. Now time to rest. Had my picture taken with Lenda Murray, very classy lady and with fellow IFBB Pro Tina Chandler. Hope I didn't make a fool of myself while I stared in awe. We are in the process of opening our own gym so the focus will be on that over the next two months. After that I will start my prep for Toronto 2014. I sacrificed a bit of fullness at Chicago in order to come in really conditioned so I think we will find a happy medium for my next show. Other then that I think it went well. Would like to thank everyone for your support during my journey and all your positive comments. I even had a chance to meet sassy69. Thank you to the promoter Tim Gardiner, he puts on a class A show,all the sponsors who made it happen but most of all to the fans who without their support the show wouldn't be possible. Thank you

[Bronwyn]

Cool. I love Lenda. As you say she is classy and so sincere. For me she is definatelly the rolemodel in all. And no wonder you looked at Tina with awe - she is very good looking too. Anyway I think you did a great step for a rookie :) Good luck with the gym, where in British Colombia you are? I just moved to Vancouver :)

[Nancy Clark]

We live in a small resort community called Christina Lake. It is located on the border in the Kootenays. Our gym however is in the small city of Grand Forks which is 19 kms from where we live. We are hoping to make the move to town next year. We get great weather, lots of sunshine.