EPISODE 30, PART 1 - VIDEO DIARY 3 WEEKS TO SHOW DAY - MY FIRST BIKINI COMP OVER 50'S

Here is a slightly different kind of video/podcast today for Connected and Confident!

If you have ever doubted yourself, or wanted to deeply challenge yourself, and you wanted to get to know yourself better and understand what you are made of… then you might really enjoy this! As some of you might know if you follow my social channels, in October 2022 I competed in the ICN Body Building Competition in the Over 50’s Bikini Competition! What you won’t know is that I kept a video diary for the last 3 weeks of preparation, taking you through all the trials and tribulations of getting stage ready while living a normal life and trying to keep it all together both mentally, physically, spiritually and professionally!!

Believe me, there were many challenges, and I documented them all in a bid to remind myself what it might be like when I go through it all again for competition next year, but also to hopefully inspire, motivate, educate and even entertain anybody that is interested in what the journey was like for a very normal, middle-aged woman to get ready for a competition like this.

PART 1 – 3 WEEKS TO GO! MY FIRST ICN BIKINI PREP OVER 50’S

PART 2 – PEAK WEEK! ONLY 1 WEEK OUT FROM SHOW DAY

PART 3 -  ICN BIKINI OVER 50’S – SHOW DAY!

Please note… I am not a world class athlete! I am very normal and decided to do this competition on a whim back when I was 49. Initially I thought I was going to run a marathon in Europe to commemorate my 50^th birthday in May. I actually started training for that and quickly realised I would do more harm to my body than good running that distance (I had done a half marathon at 45, but a full marathon at 50 was just pushing it too much!)

I watched a girlfriend transform her body in a body building competition and I was hooked! That would be my personal challenge. Little did I know the world was heading into Covid lockdown, that it was a whole lot more commitment and work than I could imagine, and it would challenge me in every way, from my self confidence, to self worth, setting boundaries with people so I could get to training regularly, and learning to dismiss criticism from the people closest to me, and just get on with the job and know that what I was doing was for me, and nobody else. Probably the first time in my life I had ever taken such a self-focused direction on anything!

So please enjoy the series. Some of it is hard for me to watch back as I remember how difficult some days were. I was hungry, fatigued, effected by mood swings, dealing with frayed relationships, and feeling very alone at times. But it was all worth it and I can honestly say that the show day was one of the best experiences of my life.

If you are thinking about doing one of these competitions, I highly recommend it. It will not be easy, but it will be an amazing journey. I highly recommend my coach, Emma Bowman from Adelaide, South Australia. And I also invite you to watch the next podcast Episode 31 – WHAT I LEARNED FROM BODY BUILDING VS BUILDING & MARKETING A BUSINESS. The similarities between the two are incredibly similar.

Hope you enjoy the series, and if you do, please share with a friend or colleague that might really benefit from this information. And don’t forget to like and subscribe to the YouTube channel. 

CHECK OUT MELISSA'S PODCAST CONNECTED & CONFIDENT
https://open.spotify.com/show/3qjDygWEcmx7shv6cy7Fln