Final Tosca & Rita Check In

From Me:
Now just days away from my contest I am beginning to feel the "what if's?" and the "am I enough's?"  This is normal for everyone but I do feel the added complication of trying to recover from a nasty bug I picked up in Las Vegas.  UGH!  The timing is not ideal and yet I must put my game face on and prepare no matter what.  The weird thing is that I just don't feel like eating because I can't taste anything.  That may not be a bad thing but the idea is to keep the muscles full so now I find I must force myself to sit down and chew things I can't taste.  I am on litre 4 of the 7 I must drink as I write this …. hold on just have to pee … okay, all better.  I am floating in water at the moment.  Don't worry, on Friday and Saturday, there will be none!  Or very little anyway.

So how do I feel?  I am dogged about my task.  I make the list of what needs to be done, what has to be eaten and consumed otherwise and I just do it.  There is no other way.  I want badly to eat cake and cookies but I have to push those thoughts away.  No one else on stage will have eaten those things and I don't intend to blow it all now.  Still a girl needs a treat now and then right?  It's okay, that can wait until Saturday night when it is all over.

How about my stage prep?  Every day I get a little closer to the stage so I must put in the time to walk and pose in front of the mirror.  I have to remind myself that I want to look and act like me only a little more animated and filled with energy.  I can do that.  I love to address a crowd especially when I am giving seminars and workshops.  I love to wear high heels so that shouldn't be a problem either.  I am already practicing my mantra - the things I will tell myself backstage - to help me put my game face on.  There are many details to attend to before then and each day now counts heavily.  I will start with body grooming by having one final massage, dealing with hair removal and grooming (you know what I mean!), then skin exfoliation, manicure, pedicure, eyebrow shaping and body tan.  So many little things but they are not simply diva tasks.  If you want to feel confident up there in a tiny bikini you must must must prepare in every way possible.  So that is the game plan.

More to come ….
Tosca

From Coach Rita:
This is it. We are here. Tosca competes this Saturday and all of the hours of planning, dedication, hard work, food plans, wine bottles unopened, and toting around Tupperware will be judged in under 30 seconds. It seems unfair, but it is the nature of the beast.

These past 5 months have been quite the adventure.  The coach aspect of the show is always excting the week of the show. The training ended Wedndsday, and the last few days are usually about adrenaline, pampering and practicing the strutting.

As coach, I will be by Tosca's side this weekend as her supporter, her motivator and to tell her when and what to eat, drink, when to pump up and plump up her confidence right before she struts on stage.  She did all of her work over the last few months, listened and followed thropugh to a tee, and is now reaping the rewards and benefits of her new lean physique without having to race against the clock with extra hours of cardio.

She is ready.

And thank goodness she is. Battling laryngitis has put her on her back for  a few days. Her body can afford the rest, and may be a good thing at this point.  Her phone call last night was somewhat reminiscint of a horror movie - or 1-800-number-raspy, low and struggling to get the words out! I feel the same way I do when my 5 year old is sick - I wish I could be sick for her - just as I wish I could take away Tosca's pain and struggle this week and let her enjoy the process. Alas, this is not reality and each struggling moment and bump in the road make your journey that much more meaningful at the end. I know she will look back on this week and be proud of her accompplishments and stick-with-it attitude. I am sure PROUD of her, as I have been all along.  She is a fighter, and continues to prove it to me, to her family and most importantly to herself.

I will be there by her side all weekend, with my gloss, bikni bite and a some rice cakes to keep her shiny, decent and full.  This is the fun part - no more "house of pain" this week, no more "1 more rep" or "suck-it-up-tough-love-coach". But I will be there as her coach, and I will cheer on one of the most hard-working, dedicated human beings I know. I am now proud to not only call her my client, but also my dear friend.

Tosca - you have already won.

Proud, oh-so-Proud Coach C