One of the great things about athletics is its uncanny ability to inspire and foster remarkable dedication. Though sometimes are pursuits are shared collectively in a team atmosphere, other times these pursuits are individually held and drive us to make the most out of ourselves.
Often times as we sit at home on watch tremendous feats of athleticism and stories of persistence on the television, we too often say to ourselves that only the elite professional athletes are those that can achieve great success and maximize the most of their potential. However, such a cursory conclusion is in fact incorrect. Every day there are people we know, that can inspire us through their own experiences. Having my own blog, I am able to share with people many of these stories that otherwise might go unnoticed. As such, it’s my great pleasure to introduce to everyone Amie Adcock.
A graduate of Cherry Hill East and Rowan University, Amie is now a highly successful personal trainer. Once admittedly out-of-shape, Amie dedicated herself to becoming a healthy and physically fit person. During the course of her transformation, Amie acquired a wealth of knowledge with regards to the necessary steps one must take to lead a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.
Always seeking greater challenges, Amie now has set out to compete in a figure competition, which is still over a month away. I recently had an opportunity to catch up with Amie to ask her about her overall transformation and her specific training process for her upcoming competition.
BH: How did you first come to embrace such a healthy and physically active lifestyle?
AA: I was always a little on the chunky side, and gained a large amount of weight in college due to drinking, poor eating habits and a stressful schedule which put exercise on the back burner. I was constantly unhappy with my appearance, found it difficult to climb the stairs to my apartment, and developed asthma as well. When a girlfriend said, “At least you have a pretty face”, I knew it was time for action.
Here is a picture of Amie around the time she decided to dedicate herself to a life of health and fitness.
BH: How long did it take you personally to successfully adjust to such a lifestyle?
AA: It takes about a year for people to fully make fitness and nutrition a part of their lives. It took me about the same because I started the typical girl way; hours of cardio and restricting calories. It wasn’t until I incorporated Clean Eating and weight training that I really began to lose it and reshape my body. When I began to see the changes and was full of non-stop energy, I was hooked.
BH: When you began to lose weight yourself, did you always have in the back of your mind a desire to compete in a figure competition?
AA: Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I could compete. I went my whole life wishing I could have figures like the women in fitness magazines, but accepting the fact that I could never look like them. It still hasn’t quite hit me that I’m actually training for one. It probably won’t be real till I get on that stage and flex my heart out.
BH: Tell us what exactly a figure competition is?
AA: A figure competition is a physique-exhibition competition where muscle tone and symmetry, rather than muscle size, are judged. The competitors appear on stage in high-heeled shoes and a one or two-piece swimsuit in a side-by-side line that faces the judges. They go through a series of quarter-turns to the right, allowing the judges to view and compare them from all sides.
Here is a picture Amie took of herself in the midst of her training for her upcoming figure competition.
BH: What are the various judging criterion used when evaluating a competitor in such a competition?
AA: The competitors are judged for symmetry, gracefulness, confidence, conditioning, leanness, how feminine (opposed to brawny) their muscularity is, as well as skin tone, hair, make-up, and clothing.
BH: Have you competed in a figure competition before?
AA: Never!! I have butterflies in my stomach just thinking about the fact that I have less than seven weeks to go!
BH: Describe the training process involved for your upcoming competition?
AA: Competitors train for months and sometimes years before they compete, but I’ll just give you the skinny on the final twelve weeks leading up to a show.
From twelve to about eight weeks out, training consists of hitting every body part in the gym, and doing a moderate amount of cardio each day. Training can be done as many or as few days as the competitor can fit into her schedule. As long as every body part is hit, with focus on the glutes, hamstrings, quads, shoulders and abs, there is no one specific training routine. As for the diet, it must be strictly clean. Foods such as lean protein, whole grains, oatmeal, egg whites, veggies, fruit, low fat dairy and healthy fats are consumed five to six times each day. I was allowed two high-carb days, and the rest had to be low-carb. I also incorporated supplements such as a multivitamin, BCAA’s, Glutamine, a fat burner/appetite suppressant, fish oil and drank about a gallon of water each day to fuel my muscles.
From eight to four weeks out, the cutting phase begins. For me, I had to cut out nuts, all fruit except berries and grapefruit, dairy, I had to carefully measure my carbs for my high and low days, and was only allowed one serving of fruit each day.
From four weeks to competition day, it gets nuts. Carbs are restricted even more, and water intake is increased. Right before the competition, I’ll switch to sips of water only, which will basically dehydrate my body so further fat is lost, and my muscles pop. This is known as “peaking”.
And you can’t forget posing! I watched YouTube videos and worked with my coach to learn the correct way to flex my muscles on stage while turning, walking and smiling properly. That was the hardest part!
Here is a picture of Amie in heels practicing her posing posture and technique.
BH: Is there a website that provides more information about your specific competition?
AA: Yes! It’s the NPC Mid-Atlantic Natural Classic, http://www.njnpc.com/2011/2011Schedule.aspx. And you can follow my training progress, as well as receive workout and nutrition tips, by checking out my Facebook page, ‘Train With Amie’.
BH: What other pursuits are you currently undertaking involved with your training?
AA: Competition training is almost like a full-time job, so other than working out; the only other pursuit I’m going for is fitness modeling. I will be sending test shots to a couple magazines to see if they have any interest. It’s another accomplishment I’d like to have under my belt so I’m hoping I get a few nibbles!
BH: Tell us about Clean Eating Parties?
AA: Clean Eating 101 Parties are basically like Tupperware parties. I come to your house or wherever you’d like to host the party, and I teach everyone about Clean Eating, what it is, how and why it works, my story, how to save money and navigate the grocery store, and how to prepare it so you aren’t spending all week in the kitchen! When you book a party, you pick what you’d like to make, i.e. appetizer, dessert, snack…etc. I bring all the ingredients, you guys bring the wine, and I show you how to prepare a sample clean dish! Everyone gets to take food and the recipe home, and you’ll all get personal access to my Clean Eating database where I keep all my meal plans and other secrets LOL.
I always have people asking about my diet and how they can eat healthy, so I developed these parties to make it fun for people to learn the correct way to eat to lose weight, tone up and just become healthy overall. I break the rumors about it being too expensive and time-consuming as well. Check us out on Facebook under ‘Clean Eating 101 Parties’ to learn more, and my website, www.trainwithamie.com to read my personal weight-loss story and see before and after pictures!
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I want to thank Amie again for taking time out of her rigorous training to talk with me regarding her experiences. We all wish her the best of luck in the upcoming competition!
Thank you so much for interviewing me! I can’t wait to do the follow-up!!