Jessica’s Contest Prep: Saying Goodbye to Cheat Meals! (7 Weeks Out)

By Jessica Gilmartin

The BeautyBlog by BeautyFit

 By the time you read this, I’ll be in the last seven weeks of my contest prep before I hit the stage at the “Iron Man Naturally” on October 1. I am doing everything I absolutely should be doing at this point and starting to feel more fatigued because I am cutting macros and increasing cardio each week. This is what I signed up for and what I want to do. I am always reminding myself that the minor struggles I feel now will be greatly outweighed by the glory of walking onstage again—not to mention the incredible satisfaction I will feel after beating my previous best.

 My stats as of August 9, 2016:  I weigh 180 pounds, and my lean mass is 154 pounds, with the goal of being 168 to 170 pounds onstage.

 Current macros: protein, 180 grams a day; carbs, 160 grams; fats, 50 grams. Also, my weekly cheat meals are gone.

 Training schedule: cardio, two 20-minute sessions, six days a week; weight training, six days a week:

Monday, quads;  Tuesday, shoulders;  Wednesday, glutes (high-volume training and plyos);  Thursday, back and abs;  Friday, glutes and hammies;  Saturday, chest and arms.

I’m currently writing my own program with guidelines from my coaches.

To keep my sweet tooth at bay, I have come up with a few treats that won’t bust my macros. They are all made with BeautyRecover, BeautyFit’s branched-chain amino acid blend, which I absolutely love.

Product image Jessica

 Fruity BCAA Gelatin

2 scoops BeautyRecover (my favorite flavor for this recipe is kiwi strawberry)

1 packet plain gelatin (11 grams)

2 1/2 cups water

Place the BeautyRecover and gelatin in a big bowl. In a glass measuring cup, microwave the water for 3 minutes. When the water is heated—but not so hot it burns your fingers—add it to the bowl, and stir until it’s fully dissolved. Chill in the refrigerator overnight or until the gelatin sets.

BCAA Slushy

1 cup water

1 scoop BeautyRecover (your favorite flavor)

1 1/2 cups ice cubes

Place the water into a Magic Bullet or blender, add the BeautyRecover, and mix. Add the ice, and blend until smooth.

For an extra-special treat, I love to pop a BeautyFit tumbler into the freezer for about 30 minutes and drink my slushy from that.

Postworkout Pops

3 scoops BeautyRecover

1 1/2 cups water

4 Zipzicles*

In a blender, mix the BeautyRecover in the water until it is fully dissolved. Pour the mixture into the Zipzicles up to the top line. Freeze the pops for a minimum of 3 hours.

* Zipzicles are individual ice-pop pouches. They are available at Amazon.com and other major retailers.

The journey continues…..I’ll post another update soon! -Jessica

Also See: The Digital Muscle Training Blog!