But, it is easier for you. Isn’t it?
I don’t blame people; when you see someone on stage shining on bronze tan, the sparkling crystals of an emerald bikini, and gracefully moving on heels showcasing a body to be envied by the old Greek goddess, you think she’s a superhero.
The kind of result reserved for a fine specimen gifted by genetics, lots of spare time and a gym to live in for life—all lies.
The truth is I’m a regular human, and the results you see today came from a work that started in 2009. Yes, 13 years of experience where I went through the most uncomfortable and more or less painful preparations to finally learned how to get it right… or at least I’m more confident with the knowledge I acquired.
Arnolds UK? Completely against the odds
It looks like it happened overnight.
But let me be an open book for you and share my deepest emotions because I also experienced fear and a lack of confidence.
If you have known me for a while, you might notice I’m smiling more often. And probably you thought I wasn’t friendly or approachable before because I used to hide my smile.
The thing is, I broke my front teeth two times. First when I was about 9 years old and then 22 years old. I got it fixed. However, the teeth started to change colour massively, leaving me with a non-aesthetic look and plenty of insecurities.
Adding this chapter to my bag of non-pleasant memories from my adolescence is more than fair. Plus, it’s luggage years after when I didn’t feel pretty or good enough. Kids can be very hurtful.
You agree that we always want to look our best, but the main reason to get surgery in November 2021 was when I started getting migraines and headaches “out of nowhere” to learn afterwards it was a cyst that almost reached the sinuses.
This surgery resulted in no training for about one month and a half to avoid raising my blood pressure. Then when I was feeling better, I travelled back home to spend time with my family for Christmas.
We lost a family member at the beginning of November, so it was essential to have quality time together. We cannot tell about the pain of losing someone until we experience it alone. This time it hit me hard, made me question many things about life, and drowned me in depression.
Trying to put my act together cost me three whole months where I didn’t do much weight training.
I prioritised my family and worked very hard to get crystal clear the vision of my business: Crusher’s Lifestyle.
But like you, I also have these crazy ideas in the back of my head. My dream for many years has been competing at the Arnold’s; let’s not even start with becoming a PRO athlete.
So I started considering it as a remote possibility to make it happen.
Do you know what has been my “secret weapon”? Consistency.
I know it sounds cliché, but when you nail all that hard work and nurture your body daily, it pays you off to achieve any health and body goals.
I decided to get back on track and tidy up my food (meaning eating to perform while enjoying 20% of soul food 😉 ). Another secret I’m about to disclose. I’ve indulged one too many times.
Yes, that’s self-sabotage.
I’m very confident in helping my Crushers to make remarkable changes. But, preparing myself to perform in a fitness competition, it’s an entirely different reality.
I tried working with someone to keep me on track, but I was punished several times instead of receiving support. It seems my choices weren’t good enough. Even when doing things very well, this approach doesn’t push me to do better.
I’m not a fan of reverse psychology; it’s not how I treat my client and not how I want to be treated.
So, I wore my lady boss hat and promised I would be accountable for my check-ins. My partner got a fair share of details about my eating disorders, insecurities, thoughts, and “BS”. With his supportive yet constructive criticism, I could keep myself in line.
I’m Nika, and I’m forever sick
It’s not funny, but my body has been under lots of pressure from different stressors that have repeatedly fallen into sickness. The most frustrating part is when not even health professionals can tell you what’s up.
Hello July, and 4 weeks into prep. So here I am, stopping from training and my goals to take care of my body and stay home for 12 days under antibiotics.
And just when I felt ready to return to the grind, another malicious virus took over the second week of August (now 8 weeks out from my competition). So again, based on the results from a blood test, I needed to improve my vitamin and supplement intake to get healthier and restart my preparation—one more time.
During the last week of August, I wondered how my progress was going. Like you, my reader, I look at myself every day in the mirror and think absolutely nothing has changed. But as I prescribe my clients, photos’ power to document progress is a game changer.
I found my pics from the last time I competed; the progress looked unbelievably good, even after all the hurdles you have read.
I felt competitive and worth it to be in that stage.
What I’ve learned in this journey
During previous preparations, I was obsessed with doing everything to perfection and punishing myself every time I got off the rail. You know, that battle with baked sweets and chocolates.
I was there before, trying to outrun my terrible choices to keep myself competitive.
I finally found balance. Yes, I’m an athlete, but I’m also Nika, coach, businesswoman, friend, partner, and a more important identity than my defined muscles.
This time, I trained less.
Listen to my body more.
Smile more.
And I rested when my body needed to rest.
And I kept around me the right people—my true supporters.
My body is so tuned and happy that even at my leanest, I got my period one day before stepping on stage. (More drama to this story).
While preparing for the final phase, I experienced a carb load the standard way before, ending up flat on the stage and then looking full the second and third day after a competition. So this time, I loaded on chocolate, candy and pizza 😛 … IT WORKED, WONDERS!!!
I placed 3rd in both the figure novice and tall categories.
To continue after Success at Arnold’s, I returned home full of hope and driven to compete for Olympia India. Life had other plans. I got sick again and ended up in bed eating hearty foods for 6 days plus staying at home for 10. AMAZING.
Knowing I had little time to improve, my self-doubt grew, and stress was over the roof. Finally, I reminded myself I’d been doing this for so long, and I knew I was ready to display my love and passion for fitness on show day.
I’ve prepared my fitness routine in a heartbeat, in the middle of the gym (no studio, no mirrors). Then I flew to India. And the following story, you know. I finally earned THE IFBB PRO card.
I want to take this space to thank my friends and family, who always stood by my side. My partner and no1 fan who supports me like nobody else in the world. My sponsor, Zero Fat Restaurant, believed in me since the 1st day; Olympia Gym in Al Ain and the IFBB Federation for recognising me as a PRO athlete.
My final thoughts – it’s the obstacles
This journey had the most obstacles ever, but I’ve kept going.
Don’t give up. It always gets complicated, but you can handle it if you convince yourself you can do it.
There’s no such thing as readiness. You will give yourself all the excuses why you can’t start/continue something to find later on; you were letting your procrastinator inside get controlled by your fears and insecurities.
Go for it. I mean, what is the worst that can happen? 😉