Evogen Nutrition by Hany Rambod Competition

So at the beginning of last week Mike came across the supplement company Evogen Nutrition on facebook and noticed they were doing a Bikini Model/Athlete Search/Competition and told me to enter. It was a pretty simply competition where you post a photo of you in a bikini (I used the photo John Lathrop took at the ABA competition) and you get as many people to like their page and vote for you by liking your photo. I am NEVER good at any popularity contests only because I just feel like if you put in the work things will happen for themselves. But in this case I got a pretty awesome response at the start of the competition and decided to spread the word on Facebook, and my fabulous friends/family/friends of jumped on and supported me. I got a great response and by the end of the competition I had 138 votes putting me in first. The prize for this weekly competition is a Feature on the Evogen Nutrition Website  and a supplement stack. Even better at the end of the 12 week competition they are doing, they will take all 12 of the winners and have voting again, the next winner will get to be their next Sponsored Athlete! That is huge, they are a great supplement company, started by Jay Cutlers trainer/nutrition guru Hany Rambod. So exciting!! If anything the feature is a huge deal for me! My ultimate goal is to be a sponsored athlete and eventual IFBB Pro, but it is a slow process of getting to the size I want to be to compete again!

My training has been going very well, I have been eating a TON of food (all good stuff I swear), sometimes more than I can handle, but it is really necessary because of how high my metabolism is. I am incorporating more healthy fats/carbs, as well as  red meats! Woohoo!
Can only go up from here!!!
Less than a month until we go to Las Vegas for the Mr. Olympia Show and Convention! So excited for that!

Here are some progress photos and a shot of all the bikini diva tall class competitors and trophies!

<3
Danielle

Competition Update &Pictures

Hey guys!!

Here is the results from the show!!  http://www.naturalolympia.com/2011NatNA_ContestResults.html

So I didn't get a chance since Thursday to update! My show was on Saturday, it was a very long day indeed!
Friday night we headed to Bolingbrook to get my competition spray tan by Whitnie from Bella Bronze, sbe did a fabulous job on my color! I then registered and talked to a few people and eventually ran into Murrel Hall, my PE teacher from Elementary School. He is 70 years old and just got his pro card! He looks incredible!!  Here are some pictures of him!
We then headed to my aunts in Oswego, got there a little after 9 and ate some food. My friend Alicia Harris came over to help me out with some final walking/posing for the show. She is incredibly sweet and so helpful! I couldn't have had the confidence on stage with out her guidance! Finally got to bed around 1230am and woke up around 6am to eat my first meal and get ready. I had makeup with Megan Melone at 650am and we had Athlete check in at 9am. I did my own hair which actually turned out fine. Prejudging started a bit late, but that is okay!

Prejudging was at 11am and the late show was at 6pm, ultimately we got done closer to 2pm and headed back to Oswego to recoop, eat, and redo my hair! Then back for the show at 5pm to get a new coat of color and she put this great shimmer bronzer on top of my color! Late show went by pretty quick and before we knew it, they were announcing the placings. Finally the bikini tall overall came up, I felt pretty good about my performance but definitely wasn't sure what to expect. I ended up placing 4th in the Tall overall, I got a trophy! Pretty cool. Definitely not what I expected, but I am thankful for the experience. I really loved prepping for this show, and even though at times it was incredibly frustrating, it was such a great learning process. I met a ton of incredible people within Illinois Bodybuilding and definitely would love to build some great relationships and keep building and learning. I want to compete again soon but will be focusing on bulking for the next few months!  I was really happy with how I looked at the competition but absolutely know that I need to be at least 10lbs heavier to get to where I want to be!

The great part of all is I am so blessed so have great friends, boyfriend, and family that are super supportive of my life goals and were able to come out and cheer me on. I wouldn't have done so well without all of them!! :)

So that brings me to the next step, I get to increase my calories by about 500 calories and will be eating more carbs/protein (I love food, so this won't be a problem for me) AND I am training on the same program my boyfriend is, which helps build overall strength and hypertrophy. I jumped in his training yesterday and today and feel it will be very beneficial to stick with it. Here is a layout of what we did today and yesterday!

Sunday-Back & Shoulders
(Back)
 1-back power exercise- bent over rows (3x10) at 65% ten rep max
2-dumbell rows- 3 sets of  10-2reps
3- rack chins- 3 sets of 10-15 reps
4- close grip cable pull downs-2 sets 12-15reps
5-weighted hangs-holding for 60 secs at a time (eventually adding weight until you can't hang for 60 secs anymore) I had a hard time with these as my grip isn't where I'd like it to be.

(Shoulders)
1-Shoulder Power-Military Press 3 sets of 10 reps at 65% ten rep max
2-dumbell side lat raises 3 sets of 10-12reps
3-machine laterals 2 sets of 12-15reps
4th- bent over dumbell laterals 2 sets of 12-15

This week is going to be easy as it will help with keeping a pump, building strength, but still recovering without using too much weight. It is preparing for the coming weeks of training.

Monday: Lower Body
70% normal 5 rep max x 4 sets
1-Quad Power exercise-squat @ 80 lbs
2 Leg Extensions- 2 sets of 15-20
3 Ham Power Exercise-Stiff Leg Dead lifts @ 70
4 Standing Calf Raises-4 sets of 6-10reps
5 Seated Calf Raises 3 sets of 10-12 reps


So far its going well, excited to eat potatoes and steak and all things delicious but still "clean."

Here are some pictures from the competition!! :)

Long Day-Great day

Productive and positive day. Mike and I both had the day off, and of course the great boyfriend he is, he drove me around to help make errand running a lot faster (gosh I need a car.) We got a ton of stuff done, even went to the gym AND went to the fitness store to get a power lifting belt and some odds and ends. We had a little fun, so I thought I would share some funny pictures!

Also side night, I am craving Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza, I can't wait to have a delicious slice (or 2) on Saturday night, with a salad of course! 

 

That is all for now!!! :) 

<3 

Danielle

So close I can taste it!

I have decided I am going to update each day until the show, it really helps me feel calm about everything. I have always gotten so nervous before anything big I do, this is no exception.

Monday and Tuesday were my higher carb days, now I am slowly tapering them until the show so I fill out as best as possible. I don't want to look too flat or too cut so I won't know until Saturday what I really need to take in.

I had a really good upper body work out yesterday, this week is much different than my regular training schedule. Typically I am doing a split-routine so I can really isolate the major muscle groups and focus on hypertrophy (or increasing muscle growth.) It has really worked great for my glutes/back. I will be starting a new approach for my upper body after Saturday. As for this week I just have my major leg day (Monday), upper body (Tuesday), and for today I will be focusing on a total body pump. I won't hit any weights Thursday or Friday, maybe only do some Stairmaster tomorrow to help my glutes/hams recover and some pump up stuff.

As for today, I had my solid balanced Protein/Carb/Fat breakfast with my normal supplements and now sipping on some Apple Cider Vinegar. My cold or allergies are still lingering but I am hanging in there. Not feeling too shabby this morning. Gotta go get MORE chicken and eggs for Mike and I. I can't wait to eat more red meat again! Yay for steak!!

I can really see the difference in leanness from last week to this week. Taking pictures often really does show your exact progress. It is really great. I will post some of those post competition so I can share my bodys transformation just from dieting so well and lifting heavy!

Have a great day! Today is my bartending shift, so it'll be a later night than I prefer :-/

<3
Danielle

Monday-Last leg day

Happy Monday! What a long long day it has been! But I couldn't be happier, leg day=high carb day=me happy dance.

Still have a slight cold, it is mostly just a sore scratchy throat at night and runny nose all day. Hope my immunity booster helps!! Doesn't help with getting a solid nights sleep though, yikes!

Woke up early, got my hair retouched by my roomie DeAndre, he even gave me some sassy curls! You know you gotta have cute hair for leg day. :-)  Headed home to feed my cats, hopped on the train, and gulped down my last preworkout for the week!

Usually on leg day I like to train at Quads Gym, but since I was cutting it close for time I trained at David Barton Gym where I work. I had by far the best leg workout, at least for a long while. I just felt the rage and passion to do my best so I can come out looking my best. Focused on doing a lot of single-leg exercises to really target the glutes/hamstrings. Of course always finished off with my favorite stiff legged deadlift-with dumbells to give myself a challenge, and alternating single leg. Good challenge, I love the pump and energy I get after a good workout. I'd definitely have to say glutes/hamstrings/lats are my favorite muscles to train, I love being strong!

Weigh in-I weighed myself this morning and I am down to 108.5lbs. That is incredibly lean and a little lighter than I would like to be idealy, but for this point in the game not much more I can do to add mass. I hope my leanness does not hurt me in the end. Overal, I am really happy with how I look. Last summer at this point I weighed 123 and had no idea my glutes could be this round, or my abs could ever look like this. So I am proud no matter what!

Almost finished here at work, got an early morning shoot at Krista K-going tanning, working, then working out, home, sleep, repeat!!!

<3
Danielle

6 days out!!!

It is almost here! My show is so close I can taste it. I have been planning this for so many months now it seems, but it started to fall into place best when I got all the things I need for next Saturday. It feels so real now. I truly wish I would have started this blog sooner, so I could have shared my full experience.

This whole process has been challenging to say the least but really great as well. I have learned a lot about myself and can only begin to describe how my full body strength has increased. My biggest challenge has been/still is developing my upper body, especially my delts. I have such a small frame and an incredibly high metabolism. It is almost as if my body doesn't want to absorb the protein, carbs, fats, supplements, etc. I guess that is the exciting part about this whole thing. It is like a science experiment every day. I get to learn how to train my body, how to sculpt my muscles/shape, and have the knowledge of how diet plays a HUGE role in the whole process.

Tomorrow, and the days leading up to my competition will be the true test. Mike is helping me plan out my diet and make sure everything happens accordingly. My diet will play a big part in how I look on Saturday. I don't want to come out looking too flat or stringy. I am already very lean at about 9.5% body fat right now (maybe lower.) So I have to make sure to eat to fill my muscles out properly. Then everything will be up to my stage performance and confidence. I am fighting off either a small cold or allergies right now so I hope I can get rid of it soon. Being this low in body fat and working as hard as I do in the gym can be really deplete your immune system. Thanks to my endless supply of supplements (thanks Mike and GNC) I think I can win this battle!

In this game, it seems like knowledge is your greatest trainer. If you educate yourself about this industry, and really truly have a passion for your goals, you will succeed. Maybe not right away, but with determination, hard work, and support you can go pretty far. You just have to make it happen, and not let small things distract you from the bigger picture. My bigger picture: Success and overall happiness.

What does success and happiness really entail? It all depends on every individual. My goals in life career specifically are; utilize my NASM personal training certification to help others achieve their goals and overall health & wellness (preventative health care), I want to go back to school to gain more knowledge about Exercise Science and Nutrition, continue modeling, and ultimately become a bikini pro athlete. I would love to combine my love and passion for fitness/heatlh with my modeling goals to really educate people about achieving your life goals. And of course share these great life lessons with someone really spectacular!

In the end, no matter how well I do in this competition, I plan to try and add some size post competition and compete again in the spring!

Til then!

<3
Danielle Maddox