Resistance training isn’t just about muscles.
*TRIGGER WARNING* I will be discussing bodies, body image and dieting.
Quick Intro and disclaimers.
I am a dietitian who believes in body neutrality. The way our bodies look does not define who we are morally or health wise. I’d rather focus on what the body can do right now and I recognize that is a privilege as someone who has never been in a larger body.
A good article that dives deeper here.
I believe in behavior change tools to optimize our nutrition because my goal for my clients/patients is that they are nourished. How that happens can look different for everyone because I consider culture, access, affordability, and time. It is important to understand our genes play a determining role for many of us therefore health is subjective as some conditions are out of our control.
Lastly, intentional weight loss is not something I promote for health but rather open to discuss the why if that is the first thought of being healthy. Also as someone who understands fat loss is needed to see muscle and loves seeing muscle on myself that does not mean others view fat loss the same way.
First my story to resistance training then science.
It’s January 2014 and I just got back from spending three months in Colombia with my family. I still had four months left of deployment. Colombia was warm figuratively and literally and now I am in Fort Riley, Kansas cold and feeling sad. My husband is still deployed and I need to move all our things from storage into our new place. Two amazing women ( L and D) are currently in my life. They get me through my funk and remind me of my capabilities. They also get me to go to the gym. Not for aesthetic reasons but for mental reasons. L had been through a deployment already so she understood and had made it to the other side. D was going through the same deployment with me with a 7 year old and baby. L didn’t have kids like me so we had the time to go the gym all the time. She showed me the ropes and believed in me when I didn’t.
I considered myself a total gym rat and chased the pump.
Lets just say by the time my partner got back in April I was going to the gym 5x a week, had a workout plan, and was building muscle. Unknowingly of the science, benefits, and nutrition that came along with it. I just knew my stamina was up, I felt strong, and yes the gains were coming through. I could see the definition forming in my legs and back ( my two favorite parts of the body). NOTE: genes play a role on how fast you build muscle as well. My consistency at the gym made me a regular and one day a trainer asked me, “are you training for a competition?” I had no idea what he was talking about so he explained he meant a bodybuilding competition.
Although the history of bodybuilding comes from building strength and demonstrating that strength by performing different tasks. Now it’s a posing and flexing competition to compare bodies. You can win 1st-4th place based on the criteria of the competition. After asking all the questions I signed up for a natural athletes one which had the following levels : Bikini, figure, physique, and bodybuilding. More on this here.
Image Credit women’s bodybuilding: http://npcnewsonline.com/2017-npc-usa-womens-overall-winners-photos-gallery-bikini-figure-physique-bodybuilding/370015/
The trainer had done a few competitions in the past and agreed to train me. Let me preface I just held my biology degree at this point and was not at all educated on nutrition.
I already enjoyed going to the gym but having such a specific goal made it even that much more worthwhile. Basically, I fell more in love resistance training and getting strong. There was no diet expect eating enough protein to help with muscle growth. And then I entered the leaning out phase. This is when you begin to watch your intake and enter a calorie deficit. A calorie deficit is decreasing your calorie intake in order to lose fat. Some people refer to this as being toned and make it a goal but you cannot look toned without first building muscle and then shedding the fat to show said muscle.
Yes, being in a calorie deficit is also weight loss and my goal was to decrease my body fat percentage. I did not weigh myself but instead took pictures posing while flexing to see how my muscles looked. Being in a calorie deficit is done in a very meticulous way and can be a slippery slope to disordered eating without the proper guidance and information. The trainer was very adamant on reminding me that I had to eat enough or I was going to lose my hard earned muscle.
I remember my breast getting smaller, hair falling out a bit. and missed periods a couple of months before the competition. Decreasing body fat percentage too low (varies per person) can cause all of this. Women and/or people with vaginas need fat so our hormones can carry out their functions. This is why a calorie deficit needs to be well guided if you are going to do these kind of competitions.
I did not enjoy this part but the pursuit to reach the goal kept me going as well as knowing this was all temporary. This was my first push to begin learning more about nutrition and its affect on the body. I also began to read articles on resistance training and long-term benefits especially for women.
After training for 8 months I competed April 2015 in the bikini level with no expectation of placing but experiencing. I even had to do a lie detection test since it was a natural competition to prove I did not take any enhancing drugs. I placed 3rd and gained a whole new understanding of what the human body can do. Shout out to another amazing lady and friend S who supported me throughout that journey. D came to see me compete as well.
I would not recommend this career or hobby to everyone but it is something I found to respect (natural athletes) for the commitment you must have to build muscle.
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