Recent Posts by Kori

Kori THE TANK is what Sean started calling me after this show. :) Eric- this is the same show i won both my pro cards in-- BB AND Figure. Agreed that I am more muscular than the other girls, but TOO muscular for figure? I'm leaner than the others also. If I were on stage by myself, not being compared to the other, would you say the same thing-- that I belong in BB instead?

Mary- the above pictures were May in Des Moines when I got my pro cards.

Pictures below are from the Mid-America in August. Pro Figure. Not the best shot as it's not straight on, but you can still compare posing pretty well.

Annette- thank you. I love the posing aspect of competition. It's challenging for sure-- the side symm I struggle with more than any other. Is there one that you find more difficult than any other?

Just catching up here, ladies. Here is a front symm comparison pic to critique- the second shows the full line up.

Mary- thanks for starting this. I'm attaching a rear pose. One on stage- from an angle. One during prep.

You're right- this is one of the most difficult poses. The glutes MUST be out, but high and tight. Rather than squeezing them TOGETHER, you must squeeze them UP. It's more of an adductor contraction!

My week's big lift:

70 lb DB chest press- just once.

Chad-- thanks for posting! Mary just clued me in to your thread, and I'm glad she did. Everyone needs to take note of your struggles right now. Especially as a pro, I appreciate you putting this out there. As pros we are not infallible! We struggle as much as anyone else and strive to find that place of balance between our minds and bodies.

Something to think about: you know how you "set up" underneath the barbell before you get ready to put up some monstrous weight. You know how you "set up" your body just prior to doing some heavy deads. Your mind needs the same attention. When you wake up, you must "set up" for the day. When you are on your way to the gym, "set up" your mental game, buddy!

What are you doing this for? We need to remind ourselves constantly what we're in this game for! If your mind is IN IT, your body will follow!

Wow! To say that I'm proud I think would be an understatement. To say that I'm awestruck and feel such a tremendous sense of gratitude for the position I am in is closer but still not quite potent enough! Team K is what makes my involvement in the Diet Doc so amazing. I come into the office each morning wondering what the day will bring because each day is filled with someting different, but KNOWING that it holds something fresh and exciting, something humbling, and something that I'll walk away feeling blessed to be a part of!

I can't believe I've been in Evansville for 6 months now. The days have flown by and it's truly because I'm loving every minute! We've got a team that surpasses any other in support, compassion, programming to enhance ALL areas of health, and true, genuine friendships!

Joe- thank YOU. Let's make 2009 even better. With such a strong foundation, we can't fail. Team K-- you're an amazing group of individuals.  I'm humbled to be a part of each of your lives!

okay, you're right. :)

Lucas- thank you. Will do. I'll keep everyone posted on when we can get something started. I'd like to have something set up after the first of the year.

On another note- my bis/tris are incredibly sore today. Sean and I worked out together yesterday. Think teeth-bearing, searing tear-the-skin-off-the-bone, heavy into double drop set PAIN! :)

Abs still very sore. Sneezing, laughing...not fun. ;)

Legs tomorrow. Must come up with something STUPID....

Hi Jane. How did the party go? You know, I admire you for wanting to find a healthy balance for yourself and develop strategies for being able to monitor and eat within what you need to be at a healthy weight AND be able to go places, enjoy, and not leave with feelings of guilt. Each of us will adopt methods that fit into our lives differently, but for all of us, this requires an ability to identify what is important, what sacrifices we're willing to make, what our priorities are, and how we and those around us will be affected by all of these things. First and foremost, you can understand yourself better if you can identify how your current strategies are getting in the way of you being able to enjoy the things and people in your life that are most important to you. If your strategies aren't effective, it's time to make changes.

100%-- what does this mean?

50%-- what does this mean?

What do these look like in terms of actions, thoughts, emotions?

100% may look different between Shellie and Jane.

We have to define these for ourselves.

Joe, what's up with that no-pants behavior in your horse picture?

You thought something before you put on your shorts!

Lucas-- are you talking about Skype? Yes, it's VERY easy to use...easy to download. Do you know if it allows for video chat with multiple people? Would we all be able to see each other?

Back workout today:

Close Grip PD ss Cable Low Rope Row

Straight Arm Pulldowns

DB Rear Fly ss Incline Bench DB Row

Jordan- I hear your met rate has tanked like mine!

I can't breathe my abs are so sore from yesterday: did my ab/calf workout; abs looked like this:

MB Flat Bench Reverse Crunches: 6 sets @ 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 reps. Lie long ways on a flat bench with your butt almost hanging off the end, a MB between your legs, arms holding onto the bench above your head; lower your legs so your heels touch the floor, then come up, bring your hips off the bench for a reverse crunch.

Hanging leg raises ss oblique crunches

straight leg 20 reps, 15 on each side using the back hyper machine.

Cable rope crunches 3 sets (yo yo) so 10 moderate, 10 heavy, 6-8 moderate

oh mama!

MC- I'm 5'2"

Thanks for the description of your cardio! :) I love HILL sprints. Speed bothers my knees...but I SO enjoy hills! Tomorrow's workout will be calves and abs followed by cardio. And the cardio will be hill sprints!

Event.....thought......feeling.....behavior

Anyone ever thought about this sequence of events?.....

no pun intended! ;)

MC-- You sayin' I'm huge?!!

What's the focus of the online group sessions?

If we can get the logistics figured out, I would create some different groups- binge eating, body image, resisting temptations, accessing the power of your mind, relaxation, motivation, managing life's circumstances, coping with stress, grief and loss...to name a few. People could join based on what they feel they need to work on and challenge themselves with.

You're right about the Mental Edge thread. This was designed to be a place where we could discuss and discover. We can learn in this thread how we tend to interact with others, how we affect others, how we're affected by others, and gather varying perspectives on a myriad of issues. The discussion we ended up having with the "caveman" hypothesis I thought was great- intriguing! And it got a lot of people thinking. That is exactly what I'd like for that thread to continue being about.

Char- the homework....usually more complicated and challenging than cleaning out the cupboards. Not that that couldn't be a project as part of the hw, but the hw I give is usually a bit more time-intensive and ongoing.. ;) 

MC- you're right. We're on similar macros. How tall are you?

Tell me about your treadmill sprints and squat jumps too. Do you sprint then hop off and do squat jumps? Then get on and walk to recover, then do it again?

I've found that during my off season water is more difficult to get in. Well, I take that back...I don't prioritize it like I was when I was dieting. Today I filled 4 nalgenes and took them to work and sat them on my desk and told myself to drink them all before the end of the day. I get so busy that if I just have one bottle I won't go into the kitchen to fill it up! Sounds dumb, but I've developed MY solution!

I will look forward to seeing the results of your homework, MC. I've asked others to do something similar of late. Some of my clients here in Evansville actually....they are finding it quite challenging.

Do you know what your training split is going to look like?

Been a couple days...I think! Every hour of every day is running together at this point!

Nothing noteable in my workouts. My neck has been bothering me- I'm positive it's due to my old left shoulder injury....was seeing the chiro before I moved and was feeling A LOT better, but hadn't seen anyone for about 5 months. So today I had my first appt. in Evansville. On the road to recovery again. Looking forward to Friday's back workout- my favorite body part to train after legs! No heavy deads, but I'll be sure to post it when I get through it!

My macros- not as high as I'd like them to be: 120-140/175-200/40-50. If you haven't hit elephant status now, Michele, it's not likely! How much cardio are you doing? I've never done such infrequent cardio- 2x per week! If it makes the diet easier next time though, I'll stick with it.

The group sessions for online clients-- need to figure out computing logistics. It's something I've wanted to do since I got here! I need to be able to see everyone- if we just do conference type calls, all we'll hear are voices, and it could get really confusing!

Ha! You're great Michele! Thank you for holding me accountable!

What have I worked on today?

1. Legs: squats ss with hack squats; I-Go You-Go Ham Curls with Sean (was not a heavy day as I did heavy deads on Saturday); working on wiping out negative thinking regarding my body

2. Counseling clients: lots of cognitive/behavioral work going on; working with one girl who is a binge eater and has never thought about what she thinks about...interesting eh?

3. Getting sponsorship for our show- if anyone knows anyone who would like to be involved in our show, please give me names and contact info!

4. Putting together ideas for my weight loss support group and getting things ironed out so I can advertise it

5. I really want to get a support group going for everyone who isn't here in Evansville too... For everyone on the forums who would like to be involved, but I'm still trying to figure out how that would work. Funda?

6. working on a holiday promotion for the Diet Doc

7. put some online training programs together

8. group training and personal training

You didn't want to know all that did you, Michele?! ;)

Good to hear from you, MC!! Can't wait to see the pics!

Your description of the show was reminiscent of what I remember from my NPC days. Gets incredibly frustrating!

We'll wait patiently for pictures!

As Sean has traversed this last diet over these past couple months I have seen a tremendous departure from his "caveman" philosophy. Since starting this thread and all of us railing on him about taking a more balanced approach, not being so black and white, and reviewing for himself what his priorities are in light of the competition, his desire to find a girl, and his goal of "healthy perspective," he HAS taken steps in that direction. I see them on a daily basis. Joe- I agree with you. Sean decides what's worthwhile. Sean sets his priorities according to what he deems important in the here and now AND in the future.  If he sits and thinks about where he wants to be in five years in the relationship arena, and he comes to the conclusion that his current path is leading him down the road to monkdom and loneliness, than if he REALLY wants someone to share his life with, he'll take the steps necessary to change that course.  It would be impossible to put a list together of everything/everyone that we devote our time and attention to and then divide by 100% to achieve balance. ;) It's certainly NOT impossible to stay grounded enough (and learn how to be more grouned and centered) to be aware of our needs, to be aware of the needs of others, and to take stock of how our priorities are fluid and need an approach of flexibility.

Craig- this IS a great discussion, and I appreciate you initiating it. There are a lot of questions regarding disordered eating, and no one should be embarrassed to ask them! They are real and pervasive, especially within the bodybuilding community. Many of us may be suffering with some form of them, but because we're bodybuilders we may erroneously believe that what we're doing is okay. Bingeing-- not okay. Purging-- not okay...whether you're using laxatives, exercise, or actually making yourself throw up.

In your case, Craig, you recognized...and fairly eary on (I remember you talking about some things in our group) what was getting in the way of your relationship and your ability to function. Many get locked into that behavior, feel that it MUST be done in order to compete, and that is not realistic thinking. I'm proud of you for taking the steps to "reel it in" and identify for healthy ways of approaching this sport in the midst of a family!

Hey there anti-steriods.  Good to have you on the boards!

So had a not-so-successful deadlift yesterday. Had planned on going "heavy." Was out late the night before. Been feeling --since my exam-- just like I do after a show. A bit down, depressed, that let-down, emotional feeling. Weight that I'd lifted easily before felt really freakin' heavy. So I proceeded  up to 295 then dropped the weight to do a million reps at 225. All I needed was to feel it, and my lats are incredibly sore today. Humble pie. I ate a lot of it yesterday. ;) Not sure on competing in powerlifting--it still sounds attractive, but my primary focus is "B.A." I"m going to brand it into my Inzer I tell you!

Wayne- at these meets everyone has to do all 3 lifts, right?

Hey MC! We're all anxiously awaiting the results of your competition this weekend. All I want to hear is that you had a blast and are coming out of the season ready to kick some serious butt in your off-season "building" phase! You went into this show with great confidence and a physique difficult to ignore!!

Enjoy this day and a bit more of your healthy foods! It's time to grow, girly!

Wayne-- not helping...on both fronts. You know how competitive I am. And SEAN knows how competitive I am. We went to the powerlifting meet specifically because I was interested in seeing if I could be competitive in that sport. I think I could. And I had one of the guys here who coaches powerlifters in a PL gym in town tell me that my DL is "world class." Can't say I wasn't excited about that! Now, I do have serious concerns about getting injured, and I DO have plans of winning another figure title next season, God willing. I did NOT know that we could compete TOGETHER. Now you've got the gears turning again! Tell me more. WHat would we need to do?

Butterflies happen for me before a leg workout that I know is going to be truly stupid. It's ONLY the stupid workouts that I look forward to!

Liz-- yes, I will be presenting at Nancy's camp. I am planning a lecture on emotional/binge eating. :) Looking forward to meeting you!

As per Sean's email-- hence the reason we have the McCauley Squat, folks!