118 Jan/Feb 2018 oxygenmag.com.au
ELEVEN WEEKS
OUT
I start to see results. Not only did I see results,
but I started to feel different in my skin. Lifting
weights has always
made me feel strong
and empowered,
but seeing my body
physically change
during prep made me
feel more confident. I
took more care in how
I dressed in the gym.
I started to think ‘this
is working’ ... ‘this is
possible’ ... ‘I have a
real shot at being on
stage and being lean,
like everyone else’.
I began to trust
the process. Even though the confidence I had
gained was a good thing, looking back and
reflecting on it, that was the moment in prep
when I stepped away from my reason for
competing and got caught up in the
physical results I was seeing.
I shifted mindset and
placed the bar even higher.
I wanted it more than
ever for myself —
simply to be as lean
as possible. I threw
myself even deeper
into prep. My sole
focus every day
was training and
cardio.TEN
WEEKS
OUT
My foot completely breaks and
snaps off again! My first thought
was never has my foot broken twice
within two weeks and I have been wearing
prosthetic legs all my life. Once again, my mind
went into overdrive, spiralling down a line of
questions. Why me? Why now? Is this even
worth it?
I took a mental pause. I thought that as
much as this is stressful and not something I
want to have happened, the fact was that it had
happened and I was going to deal with it.
This was just one more thing on the list that
made my prep different from the rest, but it
didn’t have to define how I felt. I chose to once
again keep moving forward.SEVEN
WEEKS OUT
The countdown is on. At this point in prep,
like many others I was starting to become
physically and mentally exhausted. My chronic
pain was elevated and I had lost enough weight
that my prosthetic legs were too big for me,
adding more discomfort and pain.
Every training session around this point in
prep became difficult. I would go into the gym
knowing that I would have to push through my
workout and ignore the level of pain I was in.FIVE WEEKS
OUT
I was starting to think about what I would
look like on stage. I had my bikini and I was
feeling really great — except my prosthetic
legs had become big for me and they covered
most of my leg.
That’s when I had the idea to try and get
new prosthetic legs with a better design that
showed off more of my leg. Most girls have
shoes on their to-do list: I had new prosthetic
legs on the agenda.
It’s a process that usually takes longer than
I had left to go in prep and is something that
puts my body through stress, which I didn’t
need more of considering how much pain
and exhaustion I was already in. This thought
didn’t stop me though. I contacted a prosthetist
and enquired about how much a new set of
prosthetic legs would cost me. I was quoted
$15,000. I didn’t have that kind of money and,
once again, felt like a roadblock had occurred.
A few weeks prior to this, a friend had told“I WAS BORN
WITHOUT HANDS
AND FEET AND LIVE
WITH CHRONIC
PAIN, BUT I MADE A
PROMISE TO MYSELF
THAT NO MATTERWHAT, I WOULD GET
UP ON THAT STAGE.”