Welcome to the gun show...

       "Katie! Katie! Show 'em your Most Muscular pose!!" It's hard for me to get through a workout sometimes without my husband showing me off like a proud parent bragging about their honor roll kid. But I know he wouldn't do it just to make me feel good.  He's doing it because although I'm taking time off from show prep right now, I really do look better than ever. The amount of muscle I've been able to put on over the last 4 months is amazing, and because of this I'm torn at what I should do. When I finally do start contest dieting again, inevitably my muscle gains will slow to an extent, so I really want to take advantage of this while I can.

      When I first started working out 6 years ago I really had not intention to compete. But within about a year, and after watching Cliff prepare for his first show, it became something I thought more and more possible for myself.  I loved how feminine even the top female bodybuilders were, because even as I got more comfortable with the idea of working towards that level of conditioning, taking steroids or ever being referred to as manly was the last thing I wanted.  The top pros were only 125-135lbs, and unless you're 3 feet tall, no one's going to be calling you manly at that weight.. And so I began training with even more vigor and intensity now that I really had a goal.

       Somewhere along the way my focus changed from bodybuilding to figure. Why and when I don't really know.  And for the last 3 years that's where I've been comfortable. But in just the last 6 weeks the amount of muscle my body's put on on nearly the exact same calories has been insane.  Because of this I've stayed almost as lean as I was 3 weeks ago, but the scale is now up to just under 126lbs.. Thats crazy!.. And tonight, for the first time in my lifting career, my husband told me that if my intention is still to do figure this year, then pretty soon I'm going to have to back it off, or run the risk of being .. -wait for it- TOO BIG.. Any other girl would have bitchslapped him for that, but any woman worth her salt in this industry knows that that's about the highest compliment he could have paid me.

        So as if I didn't have enough on my plate right now, now it looks as if I have some thinking to do. Do I just stick to the current plan, take another month off, and compete later this year in figure? Or is my better option -and ultimately is there more success for me in- bodybuilding?  There's definitely a small fan club out there that not so subtly suggests I opt for the latter, but I'm not the type to deviate from a plan once it's set, and I don't do well with surprises so.. looks like I've got some thinking to do maybe?.. Until then, I'm enjoying healing, being healthy, and  not being under the additional pressure of contest prepping. And for those of you out there who are in that not-so-subtle KT Wilson Bodybuilding fan club - don't let the fact that I've written this get your hopes up for this season.  While it means I'm considering it more seriously than before, it doesn't mean it's coming any sooner than previously planned.. but it is coming... eventually.;)

      Until then, make due with my latest progress picture from Superbowl Sunday's workout...