Hyla Conrad 2012 Figure Nationals
By: Hyla Conrad
So I competed in the 2012 NPC Nationals in Atlanta, GA. Did I win? No. Did I place top 10? No. Does it matter in the long run? No. My Nationals experience was a great one, yes I had an accident (I will describe later) that probably hindered my success, but does it matter now? Nope. Did I handle the accident as best I could? Yep. Does that matter? You bet it does. That is what competing is about; handling the experiences we are given in a positive and grateful way, and that is just what I did.
My trip to Atlanta started off on a foggy Thursday morning, and I thought to myself, “ I can’t see the road ahead of me, how ironic.” I couldn’t predict how the National show was going to turn out; I had never even been to one! I had no clue what it was going to be like, but what I could do is follow the directions that were provided for the competitors. You would be surprised how easy things are when you follow directions. I checked in on time, it was very quick since it was on a rolling schedule and you could check in any time on Thursday between 1-9pm. Then I had an entire day, Friday, to wait. Yes I had to wait; pre-judging wasn’t until Saturday morning. So I watched some movies in my room, while my husband stirred, and sometimes complained about being bored. (He is very active, and loves to be outdoors, so I could only imagine how he felt.) But I was very grateful for his patience and his support through this entire weekend. I steered clear of social networks and the Internet for fear of becoming sidetracked of what really mattered, which was my mental ability to handle this. Physically, I was where I was going to be; there was nothing I could do to change anything at this point. But mentally, I stayed positive knowing that was the only way I was going to get through the weekend. Saturday came, I went to the figure meeting where 200 figure competitors all piled in a room and waited to get their official numbers. Largest show to date, and everyone looked super tight and fit in their baggy sweats. Somewhat intimating, but like I said physically I was where I was going to be so no use worrying about others, or myself because I couldn’t change it.
After the meeting I sat outside the ballroom where the show was being held. Waiting for my time to head backstage because the backstage area wasn’t big enough to hold all of us at once, I sat with my I pod listening to classical music to keep my thoughts calm. My time came to go backstage, pump up, and get ready to step onstage and show off my confidence and physique. I was excited, but somewhat calmer than I usually am. Then, the accident happened during the start of my pump up. Lat pull downs, with a resistance band, lets just say they aren’t my friends. The resistance band somehow came loose and snapped right back into my face! I sat on the floor, face numb, and eyes watering, wondering how this happened. First thing I said to myself, “ Take a deep breath and stay calm.” So I did, no reason to get upset, it wasn’t going to help me. No tears of pain, just tears from my eye swelling up. On top of the swelling I had a gash on my fore head. There was nothing I could do to “fix” this. I pressed on, covered up the bleeding gash, ripped off my false lashes, and tried my best to keep the swelling down and keep my vision. So needless to say, no pump up, no stage prep, only trying to keep my vision so I could see! What a mess! Yes everyone, this is what I will remember about my first National Show-PAIN! But seriously, the one thing I will remember is the feeling that I belonged onstage. I belong with those women; I qualified to be there just like everyone else. How amazing is it that! I can now say, I competed at the 2012 NPC National Show. My journey has just begun, and I cannot express my excitement for 2013, it’s going to be another great year!
