Call for Inspiration!

Hey LadyLifters... time to step up and share!
Let us know of your ongoing goals and triumphs, large or small. Give us a one sentence bullet or a nice elaborate summary of all that you have set your sights on and achieved this summer.
I will post my focus as soon as I get a moment to sit and type it out...
I am looking forward to hearing from my friends in Heidelberg, Carlisle and in Yongsan... It's time to start sharing and supporting one another:-)
Love, Tracey

The Finch Wedding

The wedding of Denise to Kevin was spectacular and to be in attendance was such a privilege!
Mom and I enjoyed seeing Denise and being able to chat on Friday afternoon before rehearsal. We traveled to the church to practice and then on to the Bella Vista Restaurant for a fantastic meal with family and friends of the bride and groom. What a wonderful time it was to chat with John and Kathy, Diane and Dwight, Diane and Bill, Katie and Passak just to name a few of the loving family members that celebrated together.
Wedding Day Sunday began for me with a 40 minute run through the Cabot Industrial Park in Mansfield and then prep to get to Aunt Mabel and Uncle Buck's house by 11am. Once Mom and I arrived at Diane's, we walked in on ladies doing hair and make up for the masses. When the photographer arrived at 12:30pm the bride and bridal party were all finishing the last of readying for the ceremony. After 1 hour of photos and the limo arrived to escort the bride to the Sacred Heart Church. Mom and I cruised in just ahead of the bride... The ceremony was beautiful! The music choices were perfect and Father Dave officiated with genuine sincerity. I read the first scripture reading and what an honor it was... the bride and groom recited their vows and were pronounced huband and wife. The ceremony was complete. We all traveled to Narragansett RI to attend the reception. It was exceptionally beautiful weather... just what Denise had prayed for. The party was a blast and it was so great to be able to share Team Finch's special day! Thanks Denise and Kevin!

In Our First Home...

Mom and I cruised into Mansfield Massachusetts and settled in at the Holiday Inn Cabot Industrial Park Complex. Dave and I started out 26 years ago in our first apartment just blocks away. Dave's days at Northeastern University and mine at Eye-Deal Vision Center seem like just yesterday as we drove around and re-acclimated to the town that has changed little in the last 2 and a half decades.
In the afternoon we hooked up with Denise and made our way to the Sacred Heart Church for rehearsal. It was a wonderful celebration of meeting new people and getting to see old friends.
Last night we enjoyed as the wedding party dined at the Bella Vista Restaurant, sharing wonderful food, friendship and joy over Denise and Kevin's special wedding day!
The gals returned to the hotel for a bit of girl talk and then lights out to get a good night's rest before the big day:-)

I will be back tomorrow with Denise and Kevin's wedding pictures....
Tracey

With Ben and Carly in Albany

Hi LadyLifters!
We pulled into Albany last night and had dinner at the Western Diner with Ben and Carly. After a trip to Hollywood Movie to rent and then relax and watch "The Kingdom", we retired at midnight. This morning on rising leisurely~ Mom, Carly and I completed a nice workout in the fitness room at the apartment complex. Now the kids are challenging the Rock Band game as a duo... Ben on electric guitar~ Carly on vocals! Eventually we will go out to the campus so I can walk around the existing and currently-being-built NanoScale Science and Engineering Facility and the Mathematics Building where both Ben and Carly will spend the next 5 to 7 years working toward their PhD's at the State University of New York at Albany. I really want to have that mental picture of where they will be living and working so while we are so far apart, my memory will serve to reduce the distance between us.

I took photos of the SUNY Albany campus and we will head off to North Attleboro Ma. tomorrow...

Love,
Tracey

The Night Show - Part II

We all headed back to the hotel during intermission to do nails and get bling for the night show. My new blue posing suit would make its debut!
At 3pm we left to drive back to the Victory Theater for the 4pm mandatory competitors group photograph and meeting. Once we were cleared by the promoters, it was back to the dressing room with Mary T to prep and then off to the pump up room to practice my choreographed routine a few more times before going on stage to perform it. I waited in the wings as Katie Holmes went first. I could see her performance and she was splendid! A 27 year veteran of the stage... competitive bodybuilder since the age of 20. To meet and chat with the likes of Pro's Vaughn Twigger and Victoria Thomas... individuals I had only read about in Natural Bodybuilding and Fitness Magazine sure was a treat. I was given the opportunity to meet people with a similar deep passion for the sport and I always love that about competing. Amanda McDonald was a wonderful lady and a very special person.... I enjoyed getting to know her, learning about her life and what brought her to bodybuilding! As always, the experience was special and I learned so much about the business of competitive bodybuilding and about myself as a person. It is about being strong enough to make it to competition day and not let anything or anyone sway your mindset or determination. I placed last in my class but as I was told by a dear friend... "Trace, you were a winner no matter where you placed officially because you stood tall on that stage and gave it everything you had. The rest of us were vicariously living through you and in awe of your accomplishment!!" Dave and the kids blogged in support and sent pictures that brought tears of joy to my eyes.
With every show I do, it still amazes me how truly blessed I am with the support of all my friends and family who understand my crazy love of the sport of bodybuilding!
WNBF Mid-America... my first professional show. How good it feels to say that!! Laura ran out to get a bouquet of 'victory' flowers and my support team presented them to me as we exited the theater. Before we left... on last thing had to happen... we took the trademark group photo as we all flexed together. I cherish that photo from every competition as a wonderful memento.
As I poured over the 600+ photos that Dave and Mary T took, I instantly had my sights set on specific goals and I am focusing on them with each and every workout. I will train and drive to improve my overall physique with a definitive concentration on my back and ham/glute tie-in plus overall stage presence. I will step out onto that stage again in 2 years and hopefully improve my placement in the eyes of the judges. It is all about focusing on the goal... and as you know~ this ladylifter must always have a goal!!
Thanks to all who journeyed with me to Evansville.... You ROCK!!!

Part 1-Blow by Blow as a Pro...

Hey Ladylifters!!
I would like to share the details that preceded the prejudging at 9am and the night show performance at 5pm on Saturday . It was a wild day that began at 3:30am. I slept for 2 hours and then woke to begin the day with a light meal of 3oz cold sirloin steak and equally cold 1/2 cup of white rice (yuck!... even by my unpicky standards).

At 4:30am, after a light resistance band upper body workout and light cardio (10 minute) treadmill walk. We drove the 4 miles to the Executive Inn host hotel to get a 3rd and 4th coat of tanning solution from Elise Firestone. It is so bizarre to think I was standing in a pop-up tent at 5:30am with only a plastic hair bonnet while her spray gun took me from a lighter shade of pale to beyond dark. I stood in the corner of the hotel room while Elise gave me coat after coat of Jan Tana... as guys and gals were standing only feet from me in their equally wonderful birthday suits drying in front of the fans. It was a circuit of spraying and drying that we all willfully shared to gain the competition tan that would show off our muscle groups in favorable light on stage only hours from now. It is rather amazing how modesty is lost for the greater good of the goal:-)
At 7:45am, I walked the block to the Victory Theater and our competitors briefing.

After a 30 minute briefing, at 8:30 pm, we were in the dressing room. Mary T's coat of Ultra Glaze, a 15 minute pump up and then we were on-stage for prejudging.
An unbelievably grueling 25 minutes of quarter turns and mandatory poses later... the heavyweight females were dripping with sweat and totally spent as we left the stage. For perspective, my longest prejudging round as an amateur was 5 minutes long.

Laura, Dave, Mary T, Mom and I stayed to watch a few more of the other weight classes then we regrouped to return to the Fairfield Inn to eat, recharge, change posing outfits and prep for the night show at 5pm.

I will return to chronical the night show
... so stay tuned!
Always,
Tracey

We are in Corning NY

Hey LLF Gang,
Mom and I drove the 8 hours from Mary T's house in Centerville, Ohio to Dave's parents house in Corning today.
After an early morning meeting and some grocery shopping, we prepared dinner and relaxed with Mom, Dad and Beth on the back porch in a nice cool evening breeze. At 8pm, I knew it was time to hit the gym so I took Mom and Mom with me and we had a great evening workout at the Corning Y. At the conclusion of a kick-butt lower body lifting session, I joined my workout partners in the trip home to a cup of decaf and a wind-down to bedtime. Tomorrow we are on the road again... on to Albany to see "the kids".... Ben and Carly in their new 'grad' apartment:-)

Love to all,
Tracey

I am ALIVE and Well!

Dear LadyLifters,
My apologies for not being able to update you all immediately after the show...
We finished the day by celebrating until midnight with Dave's sister Laura and her husband Dave along with Mom and Mary T. I was so adrenaline pumped that I couldnt unwind...
We returned to the hotel at about midnight and to my dismay the internet at the hotel was down... I couldn't connect with you all and I was mortified!!

Yesterday we had to check out and drive the 4.5 hours back to Dayton to Mary's house and unload and re-pitch our tent at her house.
After a 4 mile run with my dearest running partner, Mary T and a walk with my one in a million Mom... we settled into some breakfast, coffee and then spent the time to review the 600+ photos that both Mary T and Dave snapped during the prejudging and night show.

In a quick Clif Notes Update since I want to spend the time detailing the events of Saturday in a follow on blog with photos... I just want you all to know that my first pro experience was spectacular! I competed with 15 other female bodybuilders (10 heavy/5 light) and eventhough I didn't place in the top 5 (a learning experience for me since unlike the amateurs where we all return to the stage for the presentation of awards.... in the pros, backstage during intermission, they call out the top 5 and the rest must email for their placement from 6th place on down...) I do not know where I placed until I am notified of my results. But rest assured that I had the most incredible time meeting and making new friends and especially being able to compete for the first time in the pro ranks. Now that I have accomplished this goal, I have "new" goals and areas that I want to train and focus on based on all that I saw and compared myself to in the photos. So I take away such pride in knowing that the quality of the bodybuilders I stood next to on-stage was top-notch... and I had such great fun being out there with them. My local family supported me and to my surprise, presented me with flowers at the end of the evening and my far away family of fans sent emails of love and pride. I am so thankful to all ...I am a blessed woman!

I leave you with a few photos from my 90 second Night Show routine which opened to the theme of Get Smart and then rocked to Madonna and Justin Timberlake's 4 Minutes!

I will be back with more photos and competition details...

Love to All,
Tracey

Proud to be a Ladylifter

Tracey, You make me so proud to be a Ladylifter!!! I carry my clipboard proudly. I love seeing how proud your family is of you. I can't wait for the pictures of the show...I'm sure they'll be fabulous. Because I'm in the states for a month or so, I went to the gym with our son...really bad experience with one of those trainers who make it very difficult for novices to be comfortable in a gym. If not for my experience with Ladylifters I'd never attempt the "gym scene" again. So when the general manager of the facility asked me how I enjoyed my first workout in his gym, I shared my experience with you versus my experience with "Charles, the 'see how strong I am and how weak you are' trainer." I told him I would only be comfortable recommending his gym to my friends if I could assure them of a more positive, encouraging experience. He seemed to appreciate the input.

Fortunately, Alan had a great experience with his personal trainer and is looking forward to beginning a great journey to better health with him on Tuesday. (BTW, I shared this positive information with the manager also.)

Thank you for making the gym a comfortable place for ladies. Thank you for training and inspiring so many to a higher level of wellness. Thank you for the confidence to return to the gym even after "Charles."

See you in Seoul...at the gym,
Sue

Big Seoul Fans !!!

Two of Tracey's biggest fans show their support from across the globe!
Go Mom, YOU ROCK!

Love,
   Dave, Jessica and Zack

I Passed With Flying Colors!!

Friday morning began with at 4am sit up straight, wide awake, lets go workout, kind of start.
Mom Mary T and I navigated the 1.1 miles to Bob's (Awesome) Gym... 24 hour facility. We each had a fantastic early morning workout and then returned to raid the breakfast bar of hard boiled eggs and coffee:-)

A shower and full body shave to prep for the tanning session to come later in the day was the task at hand. At 10 am we headed toward the Executive Inn Hotel where the polygraph and urinalysis was to take place. My adrenaline and nerves kicked in as they always do.... what if there is a false positive and I am disqualified and banned from competing for 7 years? It just kept racing thru my mind... until I grabbed hold of it and tossed it to the side like an old rag doll. Enough already, lets do this and move on was my mindset...

I signed in and gave my contribution for the urinalysis labs and then weighed in at 134.7... forever a heavyweight ~ confirmed once again:-) FYI: 118 and below is a lightweight. Yep, I think the last time I saw 118 was in the 7th grade!

On to the polygraph room... all I could think was to keep my mind clear, answer honestly with no sweaty palms... not sure why I though that would make a difference but I had to dwell on something that didn't have me biting my nails down to the cuticles:-)

Two iterations thru of 10 questions like:
Is your name Tracey?
Have you ever taken and failed a polygraph test in the past?
Have you ever taken any of the substances on the WNBF documented banned substance list since Aug 1, 2001?
Have you ever taken anabolic steriods?
Have you taken any drugs to assist you in deceiving or illegally passing this polygraph test?
Do you think I am going to ask you a question that you cannot answer ?
Are you a natural bodybuilder??
And on he went... thank goodness he didn't ask me to guess his weight... I was never good at those carnival games so I would have failed miserably.

After 25 minutes... he unhooked my apparatus and said, "You are all set and good luck tomorrow!"

What a relief to have that done and over with!

So this evening holds a competitors meeting and my tanning session to get nice and dark~dark~dark.... to really show off the muscle definition and symmetry. Wahoo!!

More from Indiana tomorrow on competition day...

Love,
Trace

We Have Set Camp in Evansville

Cruised into Evansville today at 4pm… and quickly realized that this town is a whole lot bigger than imagined. I am not sure why I thought it would be a smaller country town but it is far from that. We checked into the Fairfield Inn, unloaded our tons of bags and then promptly headed out to the Logan's Roadhouse for dinner. Mom and Mary T had sirloin and tilapia respectively (both looked fabulous!) I had my tuna with a side of greens and veggies.

After our meal we took a trip to Lowe's to haul a refrigerator back to our room since all of my competition day food was on hotel ice. So instead of fussing with all of that, we just lugged the fridge back thru 2 parking lots to the hotel, plugged it in and loaded it full of hard boiled eggs, chicken, rice, sweet potatoes and sirloin steak. Rather funny sight to see (...so my Mom and T said) as I carried the box on my back while a line of cars leaving the lot stopped to watch the female bodybuilder tote the fridge with her two best friends not far behind :-)

Polygraph testing, competitors mandatory meeting and a tanning appt on tap for tomorrow. This is too much fun for one person to have so I am sharing with you all~
Love,

Tracey