This is A LONG ONE... Sunday is Q&A Day

Morning Clean Eaters One and All,

Another rainy day has greeted me here in Ontario. Must be the fall!

Looooooonnnng day yesterday as I went to see my protégé (of sorts) Janice
Farmer in her first ever competition downtown Toronto. The cameras
followed us everywhere while there. With loads of coaching she managed to
smile and the attention of the judges - placed 5th in Novice Short Masters.

I got lots of comments for Fridays post... and it seems lots of questions. I guess today will be a Q & A day. Of course, I have Friday and Saturday's eating and training for you, too.

Question for Me:
Tosca - when you are re-introducing yourself back into your "normal" clean eating, do you have to do so in any particular way? I would think your body would be in shock by the changes, what with the training and the food restrictions. Are you being monitored by a physician or I should ask in a more general way, for those who partake in competitions, do they not only have a trainer but also a physician on hand?
I know a little about competition from watching my personal trainer who is a champion and I was concerned with the process of watching him get cut and in such a short period of time...
Jennifer

Answer for You:
When I am getting back into regular eating I introduce foods slowly but surely. I remember the first time I competed my daughter had made me a chocolate cupcake for after the event. Sure enough I gobbled it up when I was done and... I felt REALLY sick! So I quickly learned to introduce more and more complex carbohydrates into my diet each day. My body doesn't pack on the pounds instantly, but it does return to its normal, healthy weight over time. I am not being monitored by a physician during this process because I'm pretty clear about what I'm doing. I don't know if other competitors use physicians. Likely they just rely on their trainers. It's not an easy thing... and we're all a little nuts, BUT the reward is great.

Question for Me:
Are we going to get any pre-competition pictures like the last one? I am dying to see your progress :)

Answer for You:
YES! I will be posting some soon.

Question for Me:
I'm a vegetarian. Can you give me few ideas regarding the lean protein. I'm planning to do cooler 1 plan for a week.

Answer for You:
In the new expanded edition of The Eat-Clean Diet I have included a list of vegetarian protein options. You can use this as a reference. Your main concern is getting a complete protein. Hemp, quinoa, and tofu are complete plant proteins. If you are a veg that eats eggs you can rely on the whites as a source of protein. Otherwise, you need to combine things like legumes in order to get the complete protein.

Question for Me:
Very important question....Will I be able to get your upcoming TV series in New Jersey? I think the W network is sxclusive to Canada, right?

Answer for You:
I don't think you'll be able to see the show in NJ. W is a Canadian network. I would recommend checking out W's website to see if they offer online viewing.

Question for Me:
Could you please answer the question on what to eat on the night shift? You are great and give us older women the great get up on go. I read you every day, because you are my age and so real to society. thank you for being their for all of us!!!!!!!!!

Answer for You:
Eat on a night shift as you would on a day shift. Treat your nighttime as daytime. Your body still needs good quality fuel in the form of lean protein and complex carbs every 2 - 3 hours. When you return home from work get a proper sleep and return to Eating Clean every 2 - 3 hours. Listen to your body. It will tell you when it's time to eat.

Question for Me:
You're such an amazing athlete!! I'd love to see your progress so far! I was also wondering, when you're done your competition could you give us all an idea of a day of normal eating for you? thanks!!

Answer for You:
Sure thing! After the comp is done I'll post some menus, but it's mainly exactly what is written in The Eat-Clean Diet.

Question for Me:
Thank you for this site it is great. What form of wheatgrass do you take. Is it liquid or powder?
Is there a brand that is best?

Answer for You:
See Wednesday October 29th's entry.

Question for Me:
Hi Tosca,
I have a question about meal times. I own a retail store, and I bring my cooler with my snacks and lunch for the day. Unfortunately, it's sometimes hard to keep the snacktimes (2-3 hours) because the store is busy at those times. If I'm running late on a snack, should I eat it anyway and just have the next meal with less time in between, or should I skip that meal and keep them spaced further apart. I guess what I'm asking is what is more important: a 2-3 hour interval between meals, or 5-6 meals per day?
Thanks!

Answer for You:
The most important thing is to keep your body out of "starvation mode". This means getting food when you are hungry. If you find you've had to skip a meal because of a busy period then eat when you get the opportunity and start again from there.

Question for Me:
Hi Tosca ... I loooove your blog. Read it nearly every day.
I have a question about preparing for a fitness competition. How early should u start preparing and focusing (3months?)? What would u focus on during the first time and what when it gets really close to the competition (gain muscle, slim down, define muscles???) ???
I´m a sports student and have to creat a training plan for a chosen sport and I choosed fitness/ bodybuilding.
Sorry for that long comment.
Thanks so much for motivating me and all the other girls / women (/and men).
Laura

Answer for You:
Take a look at the blog starting from August. This is when I started prepping for my end of September show. So 2 -3 months is a good bracket. If you're a first timer I would get a trainer who is experienced in competing ASAP. Your focus throughout your preparation is building lean muscle and getting "cut", which means losing a lot of body fat. My blog takes you through those steps so give it a read.

FRIDAY

Prebrekkie:
250 ml water with lemon juice
250 ml water with 9 ounces wheat grass

AM Training: 35 minute cardio session on treadmill doing uphill climbing and sprints

Breakfast:
¼ cup oats with 2 T wheat germ flax Salba and bee pollen each
5 hard boiled egg whites, one yolk
Black coffee
5 fish oil supplement capsules
Vitamin C
Vitamin B complex
Water

Mid AM:
Juiced veggies: 2 beets, 1 carrot, 4 celery stalks, 1 bunch frisee lettuce, 1 cucumber, 1 tomato
I drank half of this and had 5 ounces tuna

Lunch:
Grilled chicken
½ baked potato
1 cup steamed veg
1 glass water
Black coffee

Mid PM:
More juiced drink
4 egg whites
Herbal detox tea

Dinner:
Grilled chicken
1 cup steamed broccoli
½ half sweet potato
Water

PM Workout:
LEGGGGGGG DAYYYYY!
Hamstring curls until I failed! Four sets each leg, 55 pounds
Leg extensions: 4 sets, 12 reps up to 180 pounds
Squats: 3 sets, 15 reps, 100 pounds
Straight arm pullovers: in between each squat set, 15 reps with 10 pound dumbbells

Post workout and before bed:
Cal mag drink
Herbal tea
Egg whites
Sleeeeeepppp! Time to recover.

SATURDAY

Pre-breakfast:
250 ml water juice of one lemon
250 ml water 9 ounces wheat grass
Chlorella tablets
5 fish oil supplement capsules
Vitamin c
Vitamin b complex

Breakfast:
Black coffee
1/4 cup cooked oats, 2 T each wheat germ, flax, salba, bee pollen
5 egg whites

Mid AM:
Chicken breast
1/2 raw, red pepper
Water

Lunch:
Chicken breast
1 cup steamed broccoli

Mid PM:
Chicken breast
1/2 raw red pepper
Water

Dinner:
Steamed grouper
Steamed cauliflower, peppers and broccoli
Water
Black coffee

I am really feeling the energy drain now. Sometimes it is difficult to
simply walk down the street.

But that we must do as our Eat Clean team
treated us to an evening out last night. We saw the operetta, Abduction
from the Seraglio with Mozart's music. It was a late night and no training
so we have double workouts today which I will post when we do them.

Today is going to be busy too as I am under the gun to finish my current book project
and then we are going to watch Kelsey-Lynn dance at the Royal Winter Fair
this afternoon.

After that I am supposed to visit my girlfriends for our
annual Christmas gathering complete with wine and cheese - oh, yes, you
guessed it! NO wine and NO cheese for me. I will have my cooler with me all
day.

What's in my cooler today?
For every meal today I will be eating the same thing:
Turkey, edamame and tomato scramble
Brown rice
Juiced veggies: beets, radishes, 1/2 apple, bok choy, spinach, tomato
I will carry this with me and drink as needed.

Breakfast this morning was the same as yesterday. No changes although I
would kill for a banana right now!

Got to go train.

Love to you all.
Send hugs pleeeezzz.
t