IFBB Bikini Pro and cover model Jessica Putnam sheds some light on what it’s like to be married to a competitor and prepping for the Arnold stage. Check out what Jess aka “snowflake” has to say.
For those of you who may not know, I am married to IFBB Pro bodybuilder, Peter Putnam. A common question I get asked is “what is it like being married to a competitor?” and “Does being married to a competitor make it easier or harder to prepare for a show?”.
The answer to that is, I LOVE that we get to live the same lifestyle! We are each others biggest cheerleaders, each other’s support system, cardio buddies etc.. Peter and I usually map out our shows where we are both prepping around the same time frame or even prepping for the same show.
As I stated in my first blog, this is the first time I will be competing in the Arnold Classic… and this really is the first time I am having to prep for a show while Peter is in his off season.
Its not like we go completely crazy eating whatever we want in the off season, but we do enjoy making homemade, clean, “healthy” cheat meals. Those that diet for shows know what I mean by this-we just like to try out different recipes and make them as healthy as possible. I like to do a turkey meatloaf, stuffed grilled chicken with goat cheese etc., just meals that you wouldn’t see on your contest prep diet. So, at times during my prep I get a little bummed because I feel I’m missing out on time for Peter and I to enjoy being “normal”.
I am SO incredibly thankful, though, that my hubby is not the type of bodybuilder that eats a ton of junk food. He is extremely disciplined and eats very clean year round. He is more of the type A personality. Myself, on the other hand, I could have a tendency to want to eat a few more goodies :), so this REALLY helps me out! He helps keep me focused and on track. We balance each other out : ). In the end, it works out great because I don’t have to sit and watch him stuff his face with all of those forbidden foods.
We do get to enjoy going out to eat together because we have quite a few restaurants in town that know how we prepare our foods for shows and they will make it clean for us! We will still make some of those clean “healthy” cheat meals but I may not be able to eat a few of the foods, but sitting down to a meal with my hubby is what really matters! Not whats on my plate!
I also remind myself that this is temporary, and again, that I am blessed to be invited to compete in such a prestigious show! Suck it up and quit complaining Jess! I’m also very excited because my birthday is Monday March 7th! Great timing, huh?! I get to celebrate my birthday with a nice glass of wine…yes, I said wine, and not cake 😉 ( for those of you that know me, you know I love my wine 🙂 ). So the weeks of dieting and having to avoid some of the foods I really enjoy, will be even more worth it!
Thanks for reading! Stay Fit and God bless!
Jess
I have attached a pic of Peter and I’s March cover of Ironman magazine. If you are a friend of mine on facebook please post a creative picture with our cover on my wall! I am running a contest through Feb.! The best pic with our cover will receive an Optimum Nutrition goodie bag! You can even post a link to it here under my blog if you aren’t on FB or tweet it to me @JessFit.
Follow along with Jessica on Twitter @JessFit and on her Facebook Page.
