Post Comp Blues and my journey to wellness

There is countless information, articles, blogs, 'fitspiration' around about people and their fitness/bodybuilding journeys. People, just like me, starting their own blog and Facebook page documenting their progress to the stage- it's very motivational and creates a sense of belonging into the bodybuilding community, which is so wonderful.

Low body fat levels, dry looking for stage.
NOT maintainable for everyday life.

But after competing, after the hype, they just go silent, as I have. No more progress or motivational posts or they find another fitness community to belong to or another life journey; I am the first to put my hand up guilty of doing this.

I competed in June, 3 months ago now. I've had some ups and a lot of downs as well. I started trying to eat normally again in the first couple of weeks after and had a couple of binges on all the things I denied myself of while I was on my strict competition diet. Of course I gained weight, it wouldn't be healthy for me to maintain the level of leaness I reached on stage. However, that weight gain with a sense of feeling lost after competing... "what do I do with my life now" I decided I will just start prepping myself for the next season- That way I had to stick to my diet, lose weight again and re-create my journey. This was a big mistake- I couldn't even stick to a normal eating plan let alone diet again- I started binge eating and it became more and more frequent, which added to my stress and fear of blowing out. I became ashamed of my body and did not want to be seen of fear of being judged. It became a mental game at that point- what will people think of me? Why don't I have any self control? Will people think I'm fat? Why can't I eat normal? Why can't I just look how I did before competing?  

After opening up about my struggles and speaking with other compeitiors I have discovered that my experience is all too common. The process can be damaging to your body image and there is very limited information, education and support about what to expect post-comp and how to handle these issues!
It is not something a lot of people want to admit to or want others to know they are going through, but it is nothing to be ashamed about, there are so many of us all in the same boat!
"I want to share my experience, at the risk of being judged by others, if this post helps just one other girl it'll be totally worth it :)"

Return to wellness! Girls night out with my beautiful friend Thuy

With all this in mind, here is what to expect after your first competition:

1) Sorry to burst your bubble, but you will and NEED to gain weight to return to health. Being at such a low percentage body fat is not normal or healthy.
Re-feeding and adding weight back on slowly is ideal. Slowly introuducing foods and increasing your calorie intake to give your metabolism time to adjust.

2) Slowly decrease the intensity of your workouts- Once again it's all about allowing your body to adjust. The same as you slowly cut you calories down and increased cardio leading up to your competition, you now need to do the same, but in reverse.

3) Have a post-comp eating plan and coach to support you. This is where many coaches lack and often the competitor is left feeling lost and alone and not knowing what to do. Personally, I have started talking to numerous professionals to help me; my first meeting with Michael Johnson and I left with a new attitude- click the following link for his contact details: http://themojomaster.com.au/index.php/blog

4) Learn to love your body, block out the 'mean girl' if your head.
My self worth became defined by how lean I was! I got back to a healthy weight, but still thought I was fat (By the way, I am not out the woods with this one yet, I am still practicing self love everyday)

Everyones experience is different, balance is of extreme importance. There is so much more that makes you beautiful than how lean you are. Your bodyfat levels do NOT define you- there is so much more to life and so many wonderful things to enjoy other than obsessing over your body, food and calories :D

So am I anti- fitness competitions now!? Most definitely not. I just had a bad experience post-comp and I will compete again because I love the sport- I am just that bit more prepared now!
But for now I am enjoying hanging out with my Girlfriends, partner and family. I am also looking forward to having some fun entering swimwear competition (Miss V8- 21st September).

Being me!

Hope this sheds a little light on the unspoken issues of post-comp, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions/recommendations etc jennableakleyfitness@hotmail.com

Love always

Jenna xxx