Conner McKinley - Age 18 Bodybuilding
This journey preparing for my first bodybuilding competition has been amazing and has allowed me to learn so much about the sport and the dedication it requires. Coming into the competition I was unsure if I had enough time to prepare my body for being competition ready but over the course of three months Coach Diane mentally and physically prepared me for my first competition.
In the beginning of September Coach Diane taught me a lot about nutrition and how our goal was to transform my body fat percentage from 16% down to 6% over the time frame of 3 months. She worked with me on creating a food plan based on the evaluation of my body at the time. We continued tomeet once a week in order to make sure my body was making the necessary progress in order to meet our goals. Several times throughout the week we would touch base in order to make sure my diet didn’t interfere with my day to day routine as well as my academics in school. Coach Diane provided dietary guidance and she would happily meet with me at my gym in order to help me with my workout plans that she provided, to help clarify an exercise.
As the day of the competition came closer it required more intensity and dedication from me. Coach Diane’s support and personal experience in competing encouraged me and taught me about on stage performance. The weeks leading up to the competition she worked with me on creating a routine to show my hard work and dedication to the judges and crowd, and she taught me about the proper posture of posing and how to work the stage better than my competitors. On the day of the competition she encouraged me by telling me that although we prepared for this day, it wasn’t about the outcome of the competition, it was about the obstacles I overcame in order to reach my goals. Although I had already felt as if I had won because of my experience of reaching my goal through hard work and dedication, I ended up winning 1st place in the lightweight division.
Preparing for this competition required a lot of hard work and dedication and I couldn’t have done it alone without the support and guidance of my awesome coach. This has been an amazing experience and memory I won’t forget.
Conner M.