It may be difficult for many people to understand why someone would want to embark on a three-month-long regimen of intense cardio and weight training for several hours a day – every day – coupled with a very strict diet.
But for Denise Roberts, Lynn MacEachern and Kelly MacLeod, body building is a welcome challenge.
“I always said I would never do it,” said Roberts, who calls Pine Tree home and is competing for the first time. “Never say never.”
After being approached by a few gym members, she thought: “I might as well jump in with both feet first.”
The three women will hit the stage today (Saturday) in Halifax, competing in the 2015 East Coast Classic.
Training for a body building competition is rigorous, so Roberts’s schedule included 5:30 a.m. workouts before she started work at 9. “It’s very demanding of your time. You have to make sure you have the time to do it.”
She said part of her reasoning for getting involved is to push her body “to see how good of shape I can get in and see how far I’ve come. It’s a huge personal journey for me.”
For MacLeod, an instructor at Good Life, the competition will be her fourth. She participates for several reasons. “It’s nice to set a goal every few years to keep myself in check,” she said. “I don’t play sports – I don’t run, and I’m at the gym anyway.”
MacLeod teaches fitness, weight training and mixed martial arts classes, and believes it’s important to have a goal, with the bodybuilding training differing from her regular fitness classes – using heavier weights and doing fewer repetitions to build size.
“If you don’t challenge yourself, you become stagnant and bored and you don’t feel quite so good about yourself.”
She also enjoys the thrill of being onstage. “You know people are cheering you on and are proud of you. It’s a fantastic feeling. When I come off stage, I think I’ve got to do this again.”
MacLeod, who lives in New Glasgow, said while the training takes time away from her three children, she hopes she’s also being a good role model for them. “It shows them that when you put the time in and work hard, you can accomplish just about anything.”
MacEachern is another first-time body builder, who after watching MacLeod get ready for some of her previous competitions, always wondered if she could do it. Now that her children are older, she’s able to invest the time.
“It’s been fun. When they did it, I really wanted to be a part of it. I love lifting weights – it’s always been that way.”
She said her motivation comes from wanting to feel the best she can and wanting to be in the best shape of her life. “I’m at the gym all the time – so why not set a goal?”
The three women work out together and encourage each other. “Kelly is my inspiration for sure. If it wasn’t for Kelly, I wouldn’t be here,” said MacEachern.
The entire process wasn’t as tough as she had imagined, but said that she missed spending time with her family and that the dieting was sometimes difficult. Specific kinds of foods have to be eaten, and closer to competition day, the diet consists almost entirely of protein with very few carbohydrates. “The protein is to help build muscles,” said MacLeod.
The idea is to burn more fat so muscle definition is more pronounced. “There’s a science to it. You have to eat at certain times for recovery and when getting ready for a workout.”
Courtesy of: The News