I DID IT!! My experience competing in a Fitness Competition (Bikini Class) was such a surreal feeling to finally be on the stage after months of preparing  for the NPC Formulation1 Classic! I feel so blessed to have experienced this and to have done so well for my first show. I placed 1st in Novice and 3rd in Open in my height class- making my NATIONALLY QUALIFIED!  I feel like I could write a book on my journey, but I will spare you the lengthy details and hit the highlights!
What I did: Got on stage in front of hundreds of people (thousands via the internet) in a tiny bikini to flaunt my physique!! (SCARY!)
Why I did it: Challenge myself physically and mentally. To get in the best shape of my life. To look and feel fabulous! I wanted to be more than just thin, but to be strong and have more muscle, because I like the way it looks.

I also wanted to inspire people. The past several years, when I needed fitness motivation, I would follow people on Instagram whose bodies I admired. Not beat myself up for not looking like them, but simply to follow their journey and realize that they were not necessarily gifted with a fabulous body naturally but had to work hard for it. Although I don’t expect everyone who reads this to compete in a show, I hope that my fitness journey can inspire someone else to work towards and reach their goals.

What it took: EVERYTHING I HAD!! AND MORE! This journey has been one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life! Not just physically, but mentally! The little amount of food I took in and the enormous amount time spent doing cardio towards the end, was exhausting in every way.

What I personally did to achieve this feat has been a long journey. Technically, I have been preparing for several years now since I began lifting weights, but I have been in a straight fat loss mode for the past 7 months. I have watched what I ate and tracked practically every gram or ounce of food I put in my body EVERYDAY in My Fitness Pal (with the exception of a week-long vacation this summer). I didn’t get cheat meals or cheat days, but a handful of times I got a “refeed day” where I got to double the amount of carbs I ate that day (A little piece of heaven in the form of pasta)! I started off with 3- 30 minute sessions of cardio and ended up doing to over an hour a day. I also lifted weights 6 days a week. This resulted in putting muscle on (especially in my arms and shoulders) and losing 25 pounds!

What I learned:

• I learned SO much about myself. I learned that I am stronger than I thought I was. I also learned that I am weaker than I thought I was. Sound crazy?! Well, yes, I definitely felt like crazy at times! I had high highs and low lows. I was faced every day to make a decision to push my body past my comfort level or to quit. Every day I choose to keep going, but it wasn’t easy.
  I believe that the way you are in one area of your life is often the way you are in all areas. If I can be disciplined in my body or outward appearance I can also be discipline with my inner self. By focusing on the outward, I have learned a lot about mastering my inner thoughts, emotions, and personality.
• I learned so much about my body. Getting on stage is tough and it is not for everyone. The first time I tried on that tiny bikini, my mouth almost dropped to the floor and I thought “Oh No, that is not going to work!” I am very conservative, so I really had to get out of my comfort zone for this one!! But I had to change my perspective of the representation of the human body since they are judging me based primarily on my physique.
  It is much like the beauty pageant I did in high school (Miss Texas Teen USA), except now I’m stronger! Regardless of the results, I have learned to love my body in whatever shape that it is in and be confident with who I am.
• Flexible dieting is great, but it is still dieting. For those of you who don’t know what IIFYM (If It Fits Your Macros) is, it is what my diet plan has been the past year. You can basically eat anything as long as it fits within your given carbs, protein, and fats for the day. But you have to meet a fiber goal too, so I end up each 80% “good stuff” and 20% whatever I want. This has made the process manageable and has kept me sane (most of the time). However, to lose weight your calories “in” have to less than your calories “out” and you will be hungry! And I’ve learned that that is OK when you are trying to lose fat, and part of the process. But I am very thankful for IFFYM, that I was still able to have peanut butter, salt, sauces, tortillas, jello, diet soda, and yes, occasionally wine. However, I ate mostly whole grains, lean meats, and lots of veggies throughout my prep to keep me fuller longer! Either route you take, if you want results, you have to work hard and it will be tough!
  

  From my shoot!

  My online coach for the past 8 months has been amazing and nothing but encouraging. I trusted him through the long process and it definitely paid off! http://www.majorgainzfitness.com

• This is an expensive sport! Online coaching, NPC Card/Competition Entry, Makeup, Tanning, Suit, Posing, Beauty Prep came out to be a lot of $$$. This doesn’t include supplements, food, or my personal photoshoot*. I knew it was going to be expensive sport going into it, but I don’t believe that should ever stop someone from achieving a dream that they have! *I did a personal photoshoot just for fun and to “document” my progress- see photo to the left- http://www.audraoden.com.
  

  He was so proud of me!

• Family is what it’s all about. And my husband, Cole, has put up with A LOT. You can imagine the craziness I put him through going through my own emotional mood swings and the time I spent away from him in the gym! He handled it like a trooper and was nothing but supportive. Thank you baby! As much as I love focusing on fitness, nothing takes the place of family and spending time with them.
• Trust in God in all things. I really needed Him for this experience! I need him not just for the big things in life, but the everyday things. The every minute things. Like God I am so HANGRY (sooo hungry you are getting angry) right now, please help me to still be kind to my family!

Post Competition:

It has been almost 1 month since my competition. I took one day off to eat whatever I wanted and then got right back on track prepping my food and tracking my macros. But now thankfully it’s a lot more calories! But it was still very tough for me as I was still hungry and had so many cravings, but I am happy I did it this way so that I can slowly put weight back on as to not ruin my metabolism and focus on primarily building muscle. I have been able to enjoy several sweet treats (any kind of chocolate – my favorite) and a glass (or two) of wine with my husband.

I have gotten on a new training plan that focuses on the “big three” (bench press, squats and deadlifts) that I do 3 times a week and the smaller muscle groups my other 2 training days. And the best part- no cardio! I love the extra energy I now have in the gym and I’m enjoy hitting the weights hard again and getting stronger! I’m going to enjoy my “offseason” and will potentially compete again sometime next year.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!