The fun stuff. The sparkle.

So, of course, in order to compete, one needs an ensemble in which to appear on stage.

So, my first order of business was to find a posing suit. It looks like a swimsuit, but it is not a swimsuit. It is a posing suit.

Now, there aren't huge suppliers of such things, so after poking around with Google for a few weeks, I really didn't find much to my liking. A lot of the sites aren't really updated, or legit looking, and I have enough to worry about without ordering a suit from someone who could be one of those "You've won the Nigerian Lottery, just send us $10,000 to redeem" folk.

Additionally, this is the hugest thing I have ever done. I've never fully "celebrated" any accomplishments in my life, and that is because all of the things I accomplished, I was expected to, and expected myself to, accomplish. High school, college, grad school. No pomp and circumstance there. That's not really newsworthy in my world.

But appearing in PUBLIC, in a BIKINI, in front of a CROWD, and getting JUDGED, and receiving a SCORE, which will be PUBLISHED on the INTERNET? Geez, just appearing in public in a bikini is worthy enough of balloons, some confetti, and perhaps a cake and a party. So this big time.

And since while many ladies my age are pooling large sums of money into wedding or kid-rearing activities (no thank you for me, for both of those), this is going to be my big shindig. And I'm proud.

So, I went with the best suit designer I could find. Sylvia Tremblay, of Tremblay Designs. This designer is NO JOKE. She does suits for the pros. And since I manage my money properly, I have the cash to get the very best. So I did. I ordered the very highest level of custom-designed suit that she offers. Ah, yes, it will be a spectacle of glitter and glam, and I cannot WAIT to see what she designs for me. I also feel sort of cool, knowing that I shell out cash, a woman in Canada listens to what I'm looking for, then she goes to work, on a piece just for me. It's so couture-ish. I can't wait to see it!

The 2nd thing I needed to get, is some nice clear stiletto heels. I ended up going with the 6-inch platform slide-on. I am very comfortable in heels worth of nosebleed tickets. I spent several years managing luxury hotels in nylons, suits, and 5-inch pumps, and never sat down. So these heels aren't so much of an issue... but they are gorgeous.

As usual, I hit up the gym after work. Today was leg day, and after years of not really lifting with my legs, these are the hardest days for me when I leave the gym. After my leg workout, I hit up one of my favorite BSC cardio classes, which is half kickboxing, half high-intensity cardio blended with some sculpting. It's a sweaty mess, and I love it.

I was soo tired after work. I had to drag myself there more than usual, because I worked out hard Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, and lifted Tuesday. It took a lot of mental strength to hit up the gym today, when every bone in my body wanted to stay on the T and head home. But I was good, I dutifully disembarked at the stop near my gym, and all is well.

I had to do some self-talk to get there:
"But you'll feel great afterwards."
"You can't just skip days willy-nilly."
"Are you serious about this fitness competition? Or are you just wasting everyone's time?"
"Do you want to get on stage and be a jiggly mess?"
"You'll miss a great cardio class you always enjoy."
"People will wonder why you're not working out tonight."
"You're always tired after work, so what? So should you just never exercise, ever?"

I went, and I'm sooooooooooooo glad. GOSH I am SO GLAD I WENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The gym is the one thing in life that will never let you down. It will be there forever, whether you neglect it, forget about it, and pretend it doesn't exist. It will haunt you until you return, but you'll be so glad you did. I know I am!!