To the Max

Hi ya'll!

Posting has been my last priority with the craziness of moving (again, this time permanently-at least for a year), high workload + overtime, contest prep for my IFBB PRO debut (coming up in 1 WEEK!!), and even a little fun: my sister and brother visited for my birthday and a trip the Vancouver, WA to appear for a Max Muscle store opening.

Here's a little photo re-cap of the highlights of the last few weeks:

My sister's visit :) ♥ ♥
She's my other half, the shorter, dark-haired, free-spirit version of me!

On the ferris wheel in Seattle

My honey boo boo and I in Seatle

My next post will most likely be after my IFBB Pro Debut in St. Louis on Sept 15th, please pray for these last few days of prep and for my time at the competition! Your support really encourages and motivates me :)

Follow my show path here: Ruthie Harrison Bikini Athlete Fan Page

Until next time... blessings,
Ruthie


PS - A special shout out to my paw paw who turned 63 today. Happy Birthday Daddy!!

 

~Wordy Wednesday~

Gah, so much to say today!!

I think I need another me to blog for me when I'm too busy to post about all the fun times, training progress, random cool stuff and upcoming events while I'm out living it all. I hate how time flies when you're having fun! Any takers for the job :p ?

What I am really loving lately is all the girl time I've had this week! Even though my biking plans with Danielle fell through (poor thing was sooo overbooked on her b-day, I completely understand!) I still had a ton of good girl-time. First there was a movie with Kinjal, then hiking with Leana, and church with Kim, Alyssa and Natasha, plus more girl time at the gym. Yeya :)

The last day of my internship at PSNS is TODAY(!) but hanging out with my friends really took the loneliness and anxiety out of my last few days in Washington. It also helped me conquer the stress I was feeling about future competition and modeling.

Why was I stressed? Well, several Facebook "friends" decided to share their opinions on my lifestyle... in a very aggresive way. This is old news now; since then I have saught counsel from my Christian friends, my mom, my fellow competitiors, and the Man Upstairs Himself... But still, I was really shook up about this topic. Here goes: One of my Facebook "friends" gave me advice on 'following Godly principles' of modesty and women's roles in the world, and on not 'pursuing joy of the world' by chasing my dreams of going Pro and of being a fitness model someday; citing some good points on how women do have a responsibility to not purposefully (key word) induce lustful thoughts from men, and how we should strive to not fulfill wordly desires of our own (he was of the opinion that I cannot compete and model while still pleasing God. But I beg to differ! Watch me honor God in this pursuit; you don't have to believe in me, JESUS already does and that's enough for me.) I guess he is entitled to his opinion and he says he is trying to look out for me, so I appreciate the thought, but not the methods (come-on, don't tell me I don't have spiritual/scriptural back-up for my views. I DO.)

I'm a crier, so this took a lot outa me at first, but then I ATTACKED that negativity with positivity! I was blindsided by his harsh assumptions/ judgements and overbearing opinions, but after the storm always comes a rainbow and that's where I am now. Never to look back! I am soooo amped up about training, keeping 100% on my diet plan, chasing my dreams, giving every day my best effort towards the end goal, working extra hard to keep God at the center, reading my Bible more, rooting out the un-Godly 'food worship' I had goin' on, and really doing an all around RESET and REFRESH. Praising Jesus all the way!

Thanks hater ;)

My girls (gotta give it to the girls on this one) also help me blast past my issues with disordered eating and make it through the last 3 days without giving into night eating even once!! Thank you Jesus for using your daughters as conduits of your power to help their sista out :) I felt so powerless to end the cycle of eating in the middle of the night and wrestling with guilt the next day, plus I was really starting to develop very unhealthy issues with eating anything at all. So much garbage was piling up in my mind (and in my stomach too unfortunately, due to those middle of the night binges) but since coming out in the open about my struggles and bringing in the backup - accountability partner, Leana, the Holy Spirit, and "Go To Scripts" from the "Made To Crave Book" (thank you Kim!)- I feel like I hit the emotional "refresh" button!! Now instead of obsessioning over a losing battle of will and cravings, I am winning the day, day by day, to stay on track.

So with today being my last day at PSNS, I am ready to tackle some new frontiers, whatever they might be. It's goodbye to Washington, and hello to Florida! I am flying out to Bombshell Academy Team Camp tomorrow night, where I'll meet my coach and my fellow Bombshells and spend the weekend bonding, planning my competition future, and learning more tricks of the trade ;)

 Oh how far I've come since joining Team Bombshell 3 months ago!! 

Then it's home Montana for my birthday, a short weekend with family and then school starts on August 22nd. Whew! As one chapter ends, another begins!

This is the guiding verse for my life:

"Whatever you do, work at it wholeheartedly as though you were doing it for the Lord and not merely for men." Colossians 3:23

 

Until next time,

~Ruthie

 

 

 

PS - Feeling a little defeated too lately? Kinjal shared with me this video.

Keep your head up! Things will turn out in the end :)

 

 

 

Summa Time!

This post comes at ya from the first "summer" day we've had in Washington. Apparently no one told poor little Puget that it was summer a month ago! Well worth the wait though, I remeber from last year now how much I LOVE the smell of summer here. It's a mix of fresh cut grass, sweet roses and lilacs, and salty ocean breeze ... with a hint of sailor sweat (lol jk).

This photo captures the essence of summer in Seattle:

Taken at WU, can't you just smell the cherry blossom?

Summer is such a beautiful season, I think I want to live somewhere where it's like this year round :) (aka: not Montana!?) MT has a special place in my heart though, because it will always be home.

Last weekend it was still the rainy season here (boo). Kinjal and I took a trip up to Polsbo where they have the cutest little houses. The whole town is fashioned after old Dutch architecture, and there's lots of flowers. Enjoy the photos!



Raining! Kinjal and I found this cool boardwalk
that was really magical in the rain. It felt like a
secret hide-away or something :p

Kinjal hidding from the rain under the brow

Pretty little houses all in a row

The perfect neighborhood. It looks
right out of Desperate Housewives actually...

I made this rose blush by taking its picture :)

My favorite shot. I am a sucker for dew-drops! <3

It's quittin' time here at PSNS so I'm off to spend some quality time with my main man, his name is Gym ("Jim"). 

Until next time, goodnight from the shipyard

God bless,
~ Ruthie

A Little of Everything

This week had a lot of different things going on!
One thing I still need to work on is going to bed earlier, by the end of the week I am definitely feeling the effects of only 5-6hrs of sleep instead of 7-8hrs.. Hopefully this weekend I will catch up a bit. Nonetheless, it was a good week, here's a few highlights:

~ On the home-front, I am loving my house in Port Orchard. It's nice to not have carpet in the bathroom, a microwave that takes less than 10 min to make hot water, cable TV, a walk-in closet, and a washer/dryer in my house :) All things I didn't have in Butte! I am having a bit of an issue with my mail still, and the tanning (albeit free) is only open till 6pm and I usually don't get home until after 7pm because of lifting after work. But I did get to go 2 times this week so I am a happy camper!

Another cool thing about my apartment is random, adorable pets just appear from nowhere. On moving-in day a calico kitty visited my brother and I, and I found this poor parakeet in the parking lot one day after work.

Pretty little birdie

It flew away after I took the picture, and I haven't seen it since.
(which may be related to the kitty)

~ At work, I have been learning as much as possible about Noise and Vibration Diagnosis for submarine's rotary machinery. The group I work with at PSNS, the "Noise Boys" makes sure the sub stays quiet, and that the machinery is operating as efficiently and smoothly as possible (all of which are accomplished by minimizing excessive vibration). 

I got to drive our little "scooter" the other day and that was pretty cool. It's a stick shift and I haven't driven one for a while, but I still got it!

I also got to go into the sub's ballast tanks to check for any "noise deficiencies" aka: things that will rattle/clank/vibrate/make excessive noise. They're HUGE! My work-mate calls tanking "spelunking" because it's kinda like a cave in there.

We were up inside the "ballast tanks"as shown in this picture

The submarine is in dry dock (not sitting in water)
so luckily we didn't do this: Submerge!!

I really like working for the shipyard, we get to do stuff hardly anyone ever does on a daily basis! Keeps it interesting.

~ With my Team Bombshell training, I'm still grindin'! I had a good week last week but then sabotaged it at the end by WAY over eating at my cheat meal :/ I was stressed, bored, lonely, and tired which is terrible mix to add food to. Promise me you'll go for a run if you feel this way, not head for the fridge! Only bad things ensue...

But - my coach, Shannon Dey, still saw progress/improvement in my weekly progress pics so I must have come out ahead overall even with one bad day. I felt so guilty, gross (bloated and fat ugh) after cheating though I am CURED from thinking food will make me feel "comforted" when I'm having a bad day. I definitely didn't feel comfortable.
My diet and workout coach, Vanessa Campbell, gave me some good advice to "start each day fresh" and focus on doing my best in the PRESENT and forget about the past though. I had a great week for diet this week :D I didn't cheat at all!! Thank you Jesus for your strength!!

So, I am sure you're wondering if all this meticulous dieting and incessant working out is doing a body good? Well I am happy to report that I have noticed some more roundness in my booty, overall increased muscle size in my legs, and a more hourglass abs/stomach area. Oooh yeah it's workin' :) I can't wait for July 23rd when I get to compete again at the 2011 NPC Washington State Open Bikini Championships in Auburn, WA. Check out the countdown to this show here.

Speaking of my next Bikini competition....
My new competition suit got here last night!! I am soooo looking forward to rocking it! The color is much more contrasting on my skin tone than my last suit (see it here), the material is better, and cut is much more flattering I think. Of course, I will be all tanned to "hash brown" tint when I compete so the color will look different, but you get the idea.


Soooo, that's my week in review! Tonight I'll be hitting the gym to work out glutes and spend some extra time stretching and using the steam room (one of the best parts of it being the weekend) and then I'm going to make my meals for the week (which is quite the production). I think I'll watch one of the movies Kinjal assigned me to see from her "must see" list :p and drink my delicious chai tea with almond milk. So few calories, but sooo dang yummy!

Hopefully Kinjal gets home from Everett tonight and I'll have company! She works nights at the shipyard on the other side of the Puget Sound, so she stays over there all week and comes home on weekends. Last weekend we had fun shopping for our friend's birthday/bridal show gifts and painting our toes all summer-y.

You like? I did mine are coral (L),
and Kinjal's sea foam (R) 

Love and hugs to all my far off friends in MT, I miss you guys!
Anyone wanna come visit :) ?

xoxo Ruthie

~ Seattle Trip Photos ~

Ok Gang~ as promised, here's my pictures from Seattle with my brother Matthew :)

My new room

Walk in Closet!!

Matthew and I on the ferry

Check out the couple in the background :p

These kids were feeding the birds Cheetos

Burrrr!!!!!!!!!

And we're here! Seattle :)

Mr. Otter

Lol. This shirt is so Matthew :p

Massive shrimps

Pike Place flowers

GORGEOUS colors!

Hmmm, ironic. Visit Montana?

Pretty flowers

It's cool too see references to God still exist in this country!

I'm off to bed, goodnight all!


<3 Ruthie

Morning Bliss

Okay,
So I definitely made some changes recently.

In the last month I have finished my Junior year of school (with a 3.95 GPA this semester - whoop whoop!!, moved to Washington, starting an internship at the Navy Shipyard (PSNS), and starting training and dieting under Bombshell Fitness to compete in NPC Bikini shows (first one as a Bombshell is in less than 2 months!) 

I really had to adjust my daily schedule when I moved to Washington. Although I just got here on Saturday, I feel I have already gotten into the groove of things and I have a sustainable, enjoyable, and effective morning routine that sets me up for a busy day of work. You have no idea how fast the time flies from getting off work at 4:10pm to 9pm (when my head should be hitting the pillow to get enough sleep to do it all over again!) I still have some kinks to work out with stream-lining my evening hours, but I have mastered my morning!


Good morning sunshine!


I strongly believe it is important to start each day with purpose. If you don't get up and get going with intention, even on those lazy days, relaxation or vacation days, or raining days - which I'll be seeing alot of - I have learned from experience that you'll find yourself feeling tired, dull, and like you wasted a day.

If you don't have a plan, you plan to fail.


Here's how I start my day off right,
1) 3:50 am - Alarm goes off
2) 4:00 am - Dressed/Brush teeth/Grab packed backpack and food cooler
3) 4:15 am - Out the Door/ Drive to Ferry
4) 4:30 am - Ferry to PSNS/ check personal email on phone/ listen to music
5) 5:00 am - Walk to Gym/ Listen to Bible reading plan <-- The most important part of my morning as far as determining myt attitude for the rest of the day!
6) 5:15am = Gym time!! - 1 hour of cardio/FOOD!!!/Shower
7) 7:00 am - Walk to work
8) 7:10am  - Start my day's Work of learning and helping at my PSNS internship


Boom: It's "My 8 before 8" ha-ha. My morning is definitely full, but it starts me off right and it's well planned, fullfilling, and empowering.  All before 8am! 


Disclaimer: These guidelines and schedule has only been tested
in WA, there's absolutely NO GUARANTEE it will work if you 
Wake Up In Vegas...

Here's a great article on the topic of "How to Become A Morning Person" by Jaime Baird, my fellow Bombshell athlete and an amazingly inspiring woman. I totally agree with her philosophy to "Begin as you wish to continue.”

Now go "WIN THE DAY" as Jaime would say ;)

God Bless,
~ Ruthie

Weather or not it's practical, it's Fashion!

Hi friends!
Today is my second day of work at my engineering internship (click the link for more info on what the shipyard and I actually do) at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and it's going well :) I've already been out on a submarine both today and yesterday. I also got to get new "safety shoes" this year (aka steel toes) but they're surprisingly awesome lol. They're Reeboks and look a lot like this:

Not too shabby for steel toes!

Of course, I can't wear them for anything else because they weigh at least a pound each with the steel toe... but I am all about having fashionable work shoes he-he. Also, they're waterproof which is super important here in the Seattle area. I almost wore flats, but decided to wear my brown leather boots to Seattle (aka my "Obi Wan Kenobi" boots according to my brother) and was soooo glad I did because it was cold and wet all day. But I have a feeling I will be making some fashion choices while I;m here that are just that: only for the sake of an outfit's stylish properties... not s omuch that it's practical. But,
Weather or Not it's Practical, it's Fashion!


~In other WA/summer/work news:
- Saturday night @ 7pm we got here, my brother drove out with me to Port Orchard (where my summer apartment is). On Sunday we took the ferry to Seattle because he had to catch the Greyhound bus back. We had quite the adventure using my GARMIN to navigate to the station. Lesson learned = just ask someone! We went in a huge circle and had to double-back from where the silly GPS thought we should go. Ugh. We saw a lot of interesting things though and made it fun, Matthew always makes everything fun! You may remember I brought him with me to my first Bikini competition in Missoula too. Best road-trip buddy ever!

-I met my new roomie, Kinjal, in Seattle after my brother left for home and we went for a little "window shopping" at the mall... but both ended up buying something lol. I bought some tan lace up booties (for work of course) and Kinjal got a fake engagement ring to fend off the Navy boys at work. No joke, it's a very real problem to deal with Navy guys hitting on you when you're trying to work on a carrier/submarine! If they think you're engaged, problem solved :) We got our goods from Forever XXII. I love this store for cheap, trendy and well-fitting (unlike Wet Seal).

There's a lot of really cute outfits at Forever XXII, like the ones inspired from a super cheap ($13) Forever 21 floppy hat! You'll be lookin' like J-Lo or Kim Kardashian in no time :)

Here's a few more interesting fashion and outfit-idea links:
~ Making a 'party tank' fashionable
~ Hot shoes for spring (and summer)
~ Have FUN with your make-up


Okay well that's it for now, lunch break is over!
Get out there and be fashionable at work/vacation/summer school (I hope not)!

~Adios,
   Ruthie <3

PS - I'll post some pictures from the trip to Seattle  when I get them uploaded to my computer, stay tuned!

A New Home

Whoo hoo!

I have exciting news, I found an apartment for the summer :D This summer I'm going back to work at the shipyard, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS), and I'm going to live with a really cool girl I met there last summer, Kinjal. She works there full time and is just a few years older than me; we're gonna have a blast this summer!

Oh, and not only is my roommate awesome, the apartment is the BOMB!

Here's a look:

The outside
(photographed during one of the sunny days in WA)

So pretty!

It's really cool on the inside too... AND....

... It has it's own 24-7 fitness center :)
 you bet I'm excited about that!

I'll be chillin' by this little lima bean this summer

There's a theater too, with super comfortable looking chairs

Whelp, that's all for now folks! Have a great Easter weekend!