026 - The Health Movement Podcast - Sam Koop Part 2 - How to Balance Motherhood, Fitness, and Bikini Competition Success

[00:00:04] All right, everybody. Welcome back to another episode of the Health Movement Podcast. Derek, I am a certified personal trainer and a teacher of over 20 years. Tim cannot join us this evening, unfortunately, but we do have a special guest. And when I say special guest, I know I always introduce shows like that. But this one is our first special guest and our first returning guest. So we're very, very happy to have her back.

[00:00:33] But before I introduce her, I just want to say that we're not doctors. So before you change any programming, change your diet, start new exercise programs, please consult your physician. But without any further ado, here is Sam Koop back with us. Sam Koop Thank you so much for having me again. Tim Thank you for joining us. Last time you were on, you talked a great deal about training mothers pre and postnatal. And it was honestly a wealth of information that I did not know.

[00:01:02] Sam Koop I'm not ashamed to admit that. It's obvious you're an expert in what you do. But you also talked a little bit about a passion of yours or something that you put a lot of time and effort into. And that's the Bikini Athletic Fitness Competition. I get the... Sam Koop Yes. Sam Koop Yes. Okay. And you went down to the FMG International Worlds in Mexico in December, which I believe you're from... Sam Koop Yes.

[00:01:31] Sam Koop Are you from the Chicago area, if I remember correctly? Sam Koop Yes. From the Chicago area. Sam Koop And we're in Massachusetts. So Mexico in December ended November sounds fabulous. Sam Koop It was nice. We got hit with a lot of rain. Sam Koop Oh, that's unfortunate. Sam Koop It's okay. I take that. Sam Koop It's better than a blizzard or a lot of snow. Sam Koop It's very true.

[00:01:55] Sam Koop All right. So I thought with talking with you that it would be good to kind of go through that piece of things with you. And I know people were curious as to how it went and kind of your prep, your training and everything that leads up to it. So I don't know where the best place for you to start off is, but I'm going to throw it to you and see where it goes.

[00:02:18] Sam Koop I did both start at the beginning. I didn't start competing until two years ago. I always said I never was going to. I joked all the time. I was like, I'm constantly competing. But with myself, you'll never see me get on stage. I lied.

[00:02:36] Sam Koop I'm extremely internally competitive individual. And I was seeing so much success in my own transformations. And it kind of just fell hand in hand with clientele and finding my own rhythm and making my physique just a little bit better, just a little bit better and just a little bit better. Sort of naturally fell into that.

[00:03:01] Sam Koop I had a goal originally of just trying to top my physique with every child. I wanted to be able to put my photos up and say, I only got better after you did. Sam Koop And just in case people didn't get to hear the first episode you were on, you're a mother of three and you're 30. Is that correct? Sam Koop Yeah. Actually, my birthday is in like a week. I'll be 31. Sam Koop Oh, nice. Nice. Well, happy birthday if we don't hear from you by then.

[00:03:30] Sam Koop But all right. So 31, about to be 30. I don't want to age you too quickly there. Sam Koop It's okay. It's okay. It's nice. I think my kids did that. Sam Koop Yes. Yeah, they do that pretty quickly to you. Sam Koop It started sooner than most pros and cons. Sam Koop But yeah, I wanted to put each one side by side and be able to say, I only got a better physique after each one.

[00:03:50] Sam Koop And then after the third, I started accomplishing a little bit more than I had anticipated. And it started off as a joke that I was going to go and get on stage. And then it became real. And we're like, oh crap, this is actually happening. Sam Koop How did that, was that your idea to hop on stage? Or did somebody push you into that or kind of encourage you?

[00:04:12] Sam Koop I would say it was a combination of the two. I started having that competitive itch where I was like, I think I could actually win one of these. And my coach that I work with for myself and my goals, he's been pushing me since like day one because he thought I'd be really good at it. And I was like, never going to do that. Never.

[00:04:34] Sam Koop And then sure enough, I sort of fell in love with being a former competitive dancer. So being on stage was not, I wasn't shy to that. Sam Koop Yes. Sam Koop And I think I relived a little bit of something that I was missing from my former competitive days and all of a sudden had a new goal. I wanted to win. Sam Koop There's nothing wrong. I mean, we can't rest on our laurels at age 30 or 45 or however old you are.

[00:05:01] Sam Koop You've got to set new goals all the time and try to push yourself to achieve it. So that's awesome. Sam Koop So that was a few years ago when you first started? Sam Koop Yes. Yeah. I found a piece of myself that I was missing again when I finally got back on stage and started competing, both from a performance standpoint as well as competitive standpoint. And the first one was a whirlwind.

[00:05:26] Sam Koop At the time, I was working 60 hours in person a week with clients. I had 60 sessions a week. On the slow end, it was 50 if people were out of town. Sam Koop And then I have my three kids, obviously. One of them's a competitive dancer, so her schedule is kind of all over the place. Sam Koop They were also at two different schools, so we were doing two different drop-offs and pick-ups. Sam Koop And I was training for that first show. So I look back at it and I'm like, wow, I don't really know how I did that because I don't have the strength to do that now.

[00:05:57] Sam Koop I think I was running off adrenaline because I'm not really sure how that was possible, but somehow made it happen. Sam Koop And looking back on it then, I did really well. I won that one. Sam Koop But I look at my photos the way I look now compared to then, and I was like, oh, I don't like the way I look at that. Sam Koop Disappointed in myself that I did win that one. Sam Koop No, you've got to start somewhere, and you won at the beginning. That's a good place to start.

[00:06:25] Sam Koop It's true, but I'm just, it's part of the progress. I look at my way now, I'm like, okay, I look 10 times better now than I did going into that one. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop But it's funny with each picture. I like that, though. I want to be able to put them side by side. And in my words, I'm like slightly disgusted by the old photos. Like, oh, he did that. Sam Koop That's awesome. Sam Koop That's awesome. And you did.

[00:06:47] Sam Koop That's the thrill for me. I like the, I am very internally competitive. It's not so much even with everybody that's on the stage. It's very me, myself, and I want to top that last goal that I had. Sam Koop I think at the end of the day, that's who you have to compete with. You're just trying to be able to compete with. Sam Koop That's a good idea. You're just trying to be able to compete with. You're just trying to compete with. You're just trying to compete with. Sam Koop Absolutely.

[00:07:10] Sam Koop That's an awesome way to look at it. You mentioned your competitive dancing and getting on stage. And I've seen a couple competitions. I've had friends that do it. It's not getting up there and just flexing. Like, that's not, like, there's a lot of movement, poses, and just the fluidity of everything that also is a big part of it. Sam Koop It is.

[00:07:39] Sam Koop So I'm sure your dance background definitely helped in that regard.

[00:08:01] Sam Koop I'm sure that. And I laugh because realistically, I wasn't as strict that time around as I was this time. But for me, and I guess for any parent, realistically, who's trying to lose weight at all, I have a hard time with deprivation. If I feel like I'm not allowed to have something, I want it more. It's a significant problem with that. I have a huge sweet tooth. Ginormous sweet tooth.

[00:08:25] Sam Koop I remember the very first time I prepped, I called my coach crying because I was emotional that I couldn't have something. And I literally am just bawling. And he answers the phone and he's like, Sam, I have enough emotional women in my life. I don't need you to. Sam Koop It's probably the response for you. Like, I don't have time for this crap. Get over it. Sam Koop It's like, that might have been the eye opener I need to. We did much better this year.

[00:08:53] Sam Koop Well, it's the first time you're doing it too. You don't know what to expect. And like, you're not the only one who when you when you deprive yourself of food, or you're not eating what you're used to, that's gonna have an effect on you. Sam Koop Absolutely. And I haven't had that such a strict feeling in such a long time. So even for my clients, I'm like, that was a bit of an eye opener because I haven't felt that way in a while. So it was relatable and multiple.

[00:09:17] Sam Koop But this year, we did much better with that. And I competed twice this year. I got second both times, hoping for maybe a first this upcoming. Sam Koop We went back and forth a little bit after this most recent show in your competitive side kind of came through on that one. Sam Koop I know. Sam Koop It's tough, though, because you don't get on stage to come in second, like you want to win. And I appreciate that so much. But

[00:09:46] Sam Koop You also don't want to discount all the work you put into it and everything you did accomplish. But I do get wanting to win, though. Sam Koop I get, yeah, I get very internally angry. Not at anyone else. Those girls are gorgeous. Judges were great. The experience was lovely. The show was awesome. But myself, I always come lost and upset that I could have done better. You know, the former dancer in me is like, second is the hard place to lose.

[00:10:13] Sam Koop Now, do you know, like looking back at it? Like, is there something you could have done differently? Or do you have to target a different area that maybe some symmetry? Or is there something specific, you know, you need to work on for the next one? If there is the next one?

[00:10:30] Sam Koop Yeah, the answer is yes. I actually always have known what it was. I did Dallas, a Dallas competition in July. Yeah, it was July. I got second in that one. And that was my first experience going on stage as a pro. I really didn't know what to expect. And that category as well was something I had not competed in before. No one actually had that was new. So I was not really sure what to expect and what they were looking for exactly.

[00:10:57] Sam Koop But once I got the feedback for that show, I knew exactly what I needed to do for November. And I made in such a short period of time, I am very surprised with myself and how I was able to significantly harden my legs because that was I knew that was going to be the number one critique because I needed to come in a harder, more size to realistically. But I knew that in that timeframe, I wasn't gonna be able to bulk a lot.

[00:11:24] Sam Koop But I definitely came in a lot harder than I did the first time. Sam Koop When was the Dallas one? Sam Koop That was in July. Sam Koop I had about 17 weeks in between the two. Sam Koop That's not Sam Koop So it wasn't a lot. Sam Koop But I am very impressed with my photos because I did shock myself at how much I was able to accomplish in that time period. It looked a lot better the second time around. Even some of the judges, they were there or they had seen me. They had just been there in the audience the first time around. Sam Koop Yeah.

[00:11:54] Sam Koop And they were like, it was unbelievable the amount you accomplished in that time period. So I was thrilled with that. I know that I need to gain a little bit more size. So we're going into a lovely bulking season currently. Sam Koop Is this gonna be a dirty bulking or a controlled bulking? Sam Koop You know, we're trying our best with the holidays. Made it a little bit of fit.

[00:12:18] Sam Koop You know what I found? I have a little bit of a sweet tooth too. And we put out a newsletter for this. Oh, if you don't have the newsletter, you can hop over to healthmovement.us. There's a pop up there. You can sign up for the newsletter. You can find us on YouTube, Health Movement Podcast. And again, at the website. I always forget to do that. So I'm trying to be better. But anyway, in the newsletter, I talked about a protein ice cream. Do you have an ice cream maker?

[00:12:45] Sam Koop I got the Ninja Creamy for Christmas and I haven't used it yet. Sam Koop I have. I've been saving recipes for like, no joke, my husband makes fun of me because I've sent him literally for like six to eight months, just like recipe after recipe after recipe. Sam Koop I have it now. I have it now. Sam Koop All right. Here's a simple, simple one. Really? Fair Life Milk. Are you familiar with that?

[00:13:09] Sam Koop Do you like a cup of that? A scoop of chocolate protein powder? You do a PB Fit, a scoop of PB Fit in there as well. And then a little bit of sugar-free pudding mix, the instant pudding mix. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop Like 10 grams. It's a life. Sam Koop No, I'm very excited. And actually, I'm very excited as well because First Form uses their clear protein powder to make sorbet. Sam Koop Oh.

[00:13:37] Sam Koop And they have so many flavors. That would be such good sorbet flavors. I'm like, we're going to get to work pretty soon. Sam Koop The only thing is you've got to throw yours in the freezer like a day before you want it. Sam Koop Yes. It's going to be like meal prep container of ice cream. Sam Koop Yeah. All right. All right. Sam Koop 100%. Sam Koop As long as you give it a go. That's my new thing and I have been shouting it from the rooftops because it- Sam Koop No, that'll be me. Sam Koop That will be me. Sam Koop It's good. Sam Koop It's good. And you can get 40, 45,000.

[00:14:06] Sam Koop It's good. And you can get 45 grams of protein into this serving, which is awesome. Sam Koop Yeah. It is. It is. I'm excited to try that. It's been sitting on my counter. My daughter has had multiple dance competitions in the last two weeks. We've been very focused on that end. Sam Koop All right. I'll give you that. Sam Koop We get a little bit of a break until her national next month. So that's going to be my next project. Sam Koop Okay. Sam Koop It's protein. Sam Koop All right. So you're bulking now. How long is that going to last?

[00:14:36] Sam Koop When's the next competition? Sam Koop We're thinking either October, November. Maybe bulk. Sam Koop Oh, okay. So then that gives you a lot of good time to- Sam Koop To have a good slow bulk and then time to- Sam Koop Which I haven't had in ages. So hopefully that's exactly what I need to put on what I need to put on for that next show. Sam Koop That's great. And where's that one located?

[00:15:04] Sam Koop So the one that I'm- Sam Koop Oh, you said there might be two. Sam Koop 99% sure that I'm going to be doing will be Vegas. Sam Koop Oh, nice. Sam Koop And we are debating one international one and I am looking at Dubai. Sam Koop Wow. That would be- I've never been actually to either. Vegas, I've obviously heard that that's a blast, but Dubai sounds incredible. That would be an experience.

[00:15:30] Sam Koop That's the one that I am thinking we might add in there. Sam Koop Yeah. Can you- how far ahead of time do you have to sign up for that? Sam Koop You technically can sign up until I think the week before. Sam Koop So you could see how the first one goes and if you feel good, just be like, we're going. Sam Koop But I'm a planner, so I'll probably know well in advance if that's what I'm going to do.

[00:15:56] Sam Koop Okay. Okay. All right. So you've got that, the bulk phase now. What's it look like for you just in general preparing for a show? How far out do you go? Like 16, 20 weeks usually? Sam Koop So my coach and I will kind of decide based off of how my figure is looking in that moment. I'm assuming right now that we're going to bulk up until spring is over early summer.

[00:16:26] Sam Koop And I would say probably right at the end of spring or beginning of summer is when we're going to start the cut. Sam Koop I usually have to do a slow cut. I drop weight very, very, very quickly. That's the easy part for me that I've learned now. Sam Koop All the women hate you for saying that, but that's okay. Sam Koop It's actually the opposite. Sam Koop So what it's funny, everyone always thinks that losing weight is the hardest part. But once people have been through the true bulk and cut phases, 99% of us women are like,

[00:16:56] no, the bulk is the hard part. We can't eat enough food. I feel disgusting 24-7 because of how much food I'm just trying to eat. And then also you got to watch yourself in the mirror, get larger and be happy with it. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop It's not as rewarding. Sam Koop Delayed gratification. You have to know the purpose of it. Sam Koop Exactly. It's a necessary evil that washing, and that's something I struggle with because I worked so hard to lose all that baby weight and tone and look like I never had a kid.

[00:17:23] Sam Koop And then all of a sudden you start doing this and you're like, your definition is going away. You're getting larger. The scale is going up. It's emotionally draining. And then it's hard as well because I just physically can't get in enough food. Sam Koop Although we always say whole foods are the better option, supplementation for some of us is just necessary. Sam Koop And that's definitely the thing for me. I can't get in enough food physically. I would get sick.

[00:17:48] Sam Koop That's what I hear listening to Chris Evans and these guys in the Marvel movies and they try to put on weight and they're like, it's awful. Sam Koop It's awful. Sam Koop The amount of chicken that you have. And he's like, every hour or two a guy's coming by with another plate of chicken. He's like, I don't want to eat that stuff. Sam Koop Yeah. You start looking at food and you're disgusted. You don't want to eat it. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop Yeah.

[00:18:11] Sam Koop I mean, you know, not that it's not hard for men to. It absolutely is. But females, most of us just don't have the capacity that men do when it comes to fueling their system. I mean, generally, it's harder for us to get that physical amount of protein and food. And if we feel bloated and disgusting, our hormones get in the way and that affects things. But, you know, I thought that cutting was the hardest part the first time I ever did it. And I was like, this is miserable. I can have anything.

[00:18:41] Sam Koop I was going to say. I was super moody. But I saw him walk up the stairs. We might have to call him over here for a minute to get that. Sam Koop You'd be more than happy to come and talk about that. Sam Koop But the bulking phase is definitely significantly more challenging from an internal and external point. You just have to get so comfortable with watching yourself get larger. Sam Koop All the stuff you worked to change. Sam Koop Everything that you worked to change.

[00:19:09] Sam Koop But I imagine the bulking, it's a lot of muscle, too. It's not like you're eating McDonald's and all that stuff. Sam Koop Yeah, no. Sam Koop No. So at least you're packing on a lot of the weight that you need. Sam Koop There's definitely some gratification in watching your muscles get larger. But at the same time, with that always comes a little bit of body fat. Sam Koop Yeah.

[00:19:33] Sam Koop And the audition might not be as hard. I mean, I get like the second I laugh because the second I start bulking and some people laugh at me for this. But it's true because I have the photos to prove it. I get my cellulite back almost immediately. Sam Koop The second I start bulking, it's like, well, there's everything I worked so hard to get rid of. Sam Koop But you're doing it now in the winter and in the spring. So it's, you know, it's true. It's fine. Sam Koop Get rid of it and you'll be good.

[00:20:01] Sam Koop Exactly. So it's, I will say, I think that the bulking phase is 10 times harder for me and some of my clients who are now experiencing it for the first time have been saying the same thing. Sam Koop When you experience that, it's so hard to get your mind to twist and turn into a completely different goal. Sam Koop I've got to think, though, your gym numbers must skyrocket. Sam Koop I mean, yes, there are a bunch of benefits. Sam Koop The way you can move has got to be significant.

[00:20:26] Sam Koop Yeah. So say your strength gets better, your sleep gets better. Usually our hormones are more balanced, typically. Sam Koop You know, mood swings tend to be less, but there's definitely some benefits to being in that bulking season. But it can be mentally draining for a lot of my clients, especially the ones who have never fully entered one before. And now they have to get comfortable with watching that scale go up.

[00:20:49] Sam Koop What do you up your calories to, like compared to what you normally have? Not like a cut. If you're on a normal day, around how many calories would you normally take in? Sam Koop Roughly. Sam Koop Roughly. Sam Koop Roughly. Obviously, you know, as my weight changes, those calories change, it'll change pretty direct, drastically depending on where I'm at. But right now we are roughly around 22. Sam Koop Okay. Sam Koop 23. 22, 20. Sam Koop And what's the bulk go up to?

[00:21:19] Sam Koop That will depend. Usually my coach and I, every few weeks, kind of just put those side by side and be like, okay, what do we have to adjust? Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop And I'm usually taking his recommendations on what he thinks I need to change because, you know, sometimes we look at our own photos and we don't think the same way that we do when we're looking at our clients' photos. Sam Koop Yes. Yes. Sam Koop It's a different feeling. Sam Koop So I trust his input and I listen to him. And a lot of times he actually won't even tell me the numbers. He gives me my program.

[00:21:48] He's like, that's what you need to do. Sam Koop That's probably better, actually. Sam Koop It's probably better because you're not thinking about it. Sam Koop But I'm definitely a numbers girl and I try to put everything into logistics and organize. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop But he definitely usually tries to prepare me away from that because I do tend to get a little over obsessive making sure that I'm doing it right.

[00:22:08] Sam Koop But right now it was a flow reverse diet coming from how low I was coming out of the show in November, creeping myself back up. And I didn't do the best at it. I was, you know, right when I got out of it, you know, Thanksgiving was the week of or right after. And then you had Christmas and all the holiday parties. So I will say my stomach was not happy with me. Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop It was not happy from like some alcohol to things I haven't eaten in months.

[00:22:37] My digestive system just stuck. Sam Koop Oh, I imagine. Yeah. It's like, Sam, what the hell are you doing to us? Sam Koop Yeah. Sam Koop It's great. Sam Koop So it was a gradual increase. I started eating at maintenance first to kind of just get myself back into a rhythm of having food again and then slowly have been increasing it since. So we're getting more comfortable now. At least I'm not having the ridiculous pain that I quit. Sam Koop That's good. That's good. Now, how long do you have like a goal in mind?

[00:23:07] Are you just going to keep doing this till you like stop enjoying it? Sam Koop When it comes to competing overall? Sam Koop Is there an end goal like this is what I want to accomplish when I'm all said and done? Sam Koop And when it comes to the end goal, I mean, for one, I definitely want to win at least one because I'm this close every time. We're going to get her.

[00:23:34] Sam Koop Yes, yes, we are. Sam Koop That's good.

[00:24:04] Sam Koop Now, we had a guest on Jay Riggins a couple episodes ago and he is doing something similar as you, but he's got the Mr. Olympia goal in mind. Sam Koop Is there something similar in the women's world? Sam Koop Oh, yeah, absolutely. Sam Koop Absolutely. Sam Koop That's much bigger.

[00:24:30] Sam Koop That would love me to say that that is my goal because that is something he would love me to say. Sam Koop We're not pushing you in that direction. I'm still fairly new into the whole competitive world. And this is a federation that I had a lot of fun with and made me feel like I was performing again. Yes. I felt like that satisfied something that I felt like I was missing back from my former competitive days.

[00:25:01] But we have spoken about potentially looking into the federation, such as NPC. So we'll see where that takes us. But for now, I'm enjoying what I'm doing and experimenting. That's good. That's good. Now, I noticed there were a lot, and maybe it's just because we had just met, so I'm noticing more. Is there more of a modeling piece to this now, too?

[00:25:31] There is, for sure, which is something I also really, really enjoy. That's probably my favorite part of it all. Because I started fitness modeling professionally after I had my third. I did some modeling beforehand, but not like I did afterwards. And I'm signed by a great agency. We've had some great experiences. My kids were in one commercial with me. That was torturous.

[00:26:00] Oh, never mind. Fun, but torturous. Good looking back on, maybe? Fun looking back on, but in the process when you're trying to film a commercial with a toddler. I was going to ask you, how old were they at the time? At the time, they were, oh, my baby was like, baby, baby. They didn't want him in the commercial because he was so little. So I think my son was like, 18, 3, and 4. Okay.

[00:26:30] And my daughter would have been like, 6th. Okay. She would have been about 6th. So yeah, we did that. And my son is also very devilish, for lack of a better term. So, you know, director's like, go this way. He's like, go the opposite. Go the other way, yeah. Complete opposite. Yes. You're trying so hard not to scream in front of the camera.

[00:27:00] Especially because it's rolling and they'll catch it all. Yeah. Yeah. So I've done quite a few fun things on my own, but although that was a great experience with them, I'm not super eager to do that again anytime soon. Maybe when they're in their teens or something, when they can listen to drugs. Maybe. Yeah. But I will say from this federation, I like that. I've got to work with a lot of awesome, highly accredited photographers that are very well known.

[00:27:28] And created a good name in the industry with them. And I've had some amazing work done by all of them. My portfolio is a lot larger than it was before I started with this federation. I'm very grateful. That's awesome. That's awesome. That's awesome. I saw one of the things you had posted where you were talking about the difficulty in getting the good shot when the waves kept crashing on you and everything. It looked like you were handling it well, though.

[00:27:57] You had a smile on your face. That one we joked about we were in the middle of a cyclone. The sirens were going off. Oh. And it was downpouring. We'd catch pockets where it would kind of lighten up. Yeah. But I was like, well, I guess we're going to push through it. Was it at least warm, I hope? Oh, it was warm. I would say the rain was a little chilly, but it was warm. But the red flags were up for the waves, so they didn't want people in the water. But I barely, I barely was in the water. Oh, yeah.

[00:28:27] But definitely it almost took me a couple of times. It was like, we're going to fight through it. That's awesome. That's awesome. So it seems like this has opened up a lot of avenues for you. Is there anything else that's percolating in your mind that you might want to take this to? Aside from modeling and the fitness competitions? I will say I like the community that it's built.

[00:28:53] And I've met a lot more, both moms and not just women in general, who have come to me for advice and tips and tricks when it comes to going into pregnancy or coming out of pregnancy. And just being able to create that community where I have more people to communicate with has been amazing. Huge blessing.

[00:29:21] I started this to help people, and I feel like that broadcasted me a little bit more to be able to help more people. And I'm very, very grateful for that. That's an awesome way to look at it. So would you ever want to get on stage in front of people and not perform, but talk and teach people in large audiences? I absolutely would. I wouldn't say I'm the best speaker. You come across very well-spoken. I don't think that's an issue.

[00:29:51] Maybe on stage it's different. I don't know. But you know what you're talking about. That comes across. I'm a good fake it to you, make it kind of person. If I want to do it, I'll make it happen. And then afterwards, people are like, oh, you did so good. I'm like, really? Because I'm like dying inside. I feel like that's how most people are, but they just hide it really, really well. Yeah. I would say I'm usually good at hiding it. I'm definitely a big fake it to you, make it kind of person. That's good. That's good. I was going through some of your stuff, and there were a couple quotes.

[00:30:21] Can I pick your brain on some of these? Because honestly, I was just going down the list. I'm like, that's a good one. That's another good one. So it's going to seem like I took the easy way to just pick the first couple, but they are all good. But one thing, and I love this one, the fastest way to build your dream body is stop looking for the fastest way. Yes. I can't tell you how many times I have clients who come in and, I mean, we all want that easy fix, that fast fix.

[00:30:51] Naturally, I would if I could. Absolutely. But it's hard to train people not to think about the next fad diet, the next fad workout plan, whether it be this new style of group fitness or intermittent fasting, all these other different options. And they'll try it. The problem is there is a few things happening.

[00:31:19] One, if they do see results, usually it's not because they're losing what they think they're losing and then it's also isn't sustainable and you don't keep the results. People need to stop thinking so much about how can I get this so fast as to how can I get this and maintain it? And teaching my clients that those habits, those short and long-term habits that will

[00:31:44] all add up to getting you the results that you want and keep them there is what I strive to do. And I think like, yes, we want it quickly and we want it just done, but it's so much more rewarding when it's a long grind and you're like, damn, that sucked, but I did it. And, and it, you know, and then when you go to try something new or something different,

[00:32:11] you already know you've gone through a really tough experience before and you found your way through it. So you've built that confidence in yourself. And I think it just makes it that much better. Oh, absolutely. And I will say that I think that it travels into other aspects of life. I was nowhere near as even mentally and emotionally strong as I was before I started bodybuilding. I think even if someone didn't want to necessarily go the competitive route or be this crazy bodybuilder,

[00:32:37] just overall health and longevity, you'll notice that, you know, as your body gets stronger, you get stronger mentally too. Like even when things surprise me or things happen in life, I, my coping, my problems are a lot better than they used to be. So I think that just makes you overall a stronger person in general. Well, even if you think about the simple thing of like you build more muscle, your, your, your heart works better, the blood pumps better. So oxygen's being delivered to your brain much more quickly than if, you know, everything

[00:33:07] isn't working the way it is. So cognitively you're better. You're going to sleep better. Like everything gets better. Um, it would be great if you could just snap your fingers and have it happen. If only. Yeah. I got a show tomorrow. Bam. Done. All right. I'm ready to go. But. Oh, that'd be the life. And again, though, when, when I see somebody who I know is in good shape, like there, there's a level of respect I have. Cause I know that it's one of the few things in life.

[00:33:34] There isn't a side, uh, like a shortcut to like, you have to be consistent. You have to follow like a plan. You've got to just do it over and over and over again and do it. Well, um, I was at my son's basketball game tonight and I'm in the stands and I hope this doesn't come across as I'm, I'm making fun of anybody at all. Cause I'm really not. But I was looking at the number of people in their forties, fifties and up who had trouble walking up the bleachers.

[00:34:02] And I'm just thinking like that, that's just not, not a way I want to live. Um, and uh, oh, we lost Sam for a second. Um, I'm going to keep recording until she hops back on. What was that? 34 minutes. There you are. Oh, there we are. I lost you for a second. No, no, no. That's all right. But no. Yeah. No, absolutely.

[00:34:31] I mean, one of my clients once came in and I asked her what her goal was. Now she was 74 at the time. I've been working with her a couple of years now, but her goal at the time was to lift her 35 pound of kitty litter and put it into her car or 35 pound of kitty litter into her back of her car from the store. So I was like, well, that's a good goal. We can do that. It was like that applicable functional goal. I think is what a lot of people forget about that. We can create a better quality of life longterm. Yeah.

[00:35:02] Things like being able to bend over and tie your shoes without having to pick up their grandchildren or not just being nervous you're going to fall up and down the stairs. Yes. Yeah. All that stuff. So, yes, I love that one. Another one. Oh, I can barely read my own writing here. That's bad. I'll go to this one. I'm going to have to pause this. Let me write down so I can. Okay. 35, 25. Okay.

[00:35:31] I'll cut that. Oh, okay. Don't be a first, be a first rate version of yourself instead of a second rate version of somebody else. That one I loved. And so it's actually, I can't take all the credit. That was Judy Garland. Oh, Judy Garland. That's okay. That's okay. You're giving credit. Judy Garland. What made you connect? But I love that.

[00:35:58] I love that quote because constantly now, not just to me, but I do get a lot of clients that do come to me because they want to look like me. That's what brings them to me in the first place. And I say, what's your goal? They're like, that. That's my goal. I'm like, awesome. That's a great goal to have. But I think a lot of times, you know, people spend all this time scrolling on Instagram or any social media or just even real life saying, like, I want to look like that person. I want to look like that person. I want to look like that person. But you are not them.

[00:36:27] You might not gain muscle the way they gain muscle. You might not lose fat the way they lose fat. But you can be the best possible version of you that we can make it. But start with the picture of you and trying to talk each and every one of those instead of looking at someone else and think, I want to accomplish that. Yeah, I like that. And I think it hit me differently.

[00:36:50] Personally, I'm just thinking my teaching background and I see kids because they're getting into adolescence and you can see them change and morph to fit the group. Oh, absolutely. And you see them unhappy. And the happiest kids are the ones who just don't care. They're just themselves. And honestly, they're the most popular ones. And it's not because they're cool.

[00:37:16] It's just people appreciate somebody who knows who they are. They're confident in that. And they just, they're like you said, the best version, the first rate version of yourself. Absolutely. Of who you actually are. So I think getting that message out there is huge. Stop trying to be other people. There's only one Sam Coop. So you can't be her, but you can be the best version of yourself. My daughter's pretty close. She's getting closer and closer every day.

[00:37:44] I think one Sam Coop is probably plenty for your husband there. I don't know if he can do number two, too. He would agree. And then I'll just, I'll throw one more out there and then I don't want to keep you all night. But if you don't change your habits, you're not going to have a new year. You're just going to have another year. That one I love, too, obviously, because I read it to you. But that one, where'd that one come from?

[00:38:10] Actually, that is one that one of my coaches said to me a long time ago that's been in the back of my brain ever since college. But especially when you have the year roll around and clients come in or even the existing clients are like, OK, now I want to get back on top of my goals. Awesome. But sometimes people are looking too far ahead. Like you have to set smaller goals, more achievable goals, smart goals. Yes.

[00:38:40] And plan for those. Like celebrate every little victory and be happy with watching those small goals happen. And don't focus on the fact that you haven't achieved that long goal, that long term goal yet. Yeah. Because people focus so much on that and they want it to happen so fast. So they get very disappointed, discouraged, and they give up. And they stop looking and start or stop seeing those small ones they've already accomplished.

[00:39:09] And they're not taking those into appreciation enough. Yeah. Yeah. Or you see people like, I've been to the gym every day for a month and I've only lost three pounds. You're like, that's awesome. Like three pounds? You do that for a year, you're down almost 40 pounds. Exactly. Like you said, you've got to appreciate those small victories along the way. And understand it's not linear. You're not going to be constant.

[00:39:36] Like things come up and it just, some days are just different. You know, you do everything the same. You wake up and you put on a pound and you're like, well, what the hell happened? But that just happens. But you know, you do it consistently for long enough, then you're going to get where you want to go if you're on the right path there. Absolutely. I think that's where the good coaching comes in. Like the people who come to see you and you go to a coach yourself.

[00:40:02] Like that, that's, I think really refreshing for people to hear is, you know, you're getting on stage, you're competing with the goal in mind of winning, but you can't do it on, like you need, you need help too. Like it's okay to ask for help. It's okay to have guidance. Like that's the best way to get some places to work with people who have been there and who know what they're doing. Definitely.

[00:40:29] And I think a lot of people, and I think this is more of the guys, our ego gets in the way where you don't want to ask for help. You don't want to like, you're at the gym. You don't, you know, you just want to do your own thing and you want to grab as much weight as you can and throw that around. And you expect that's the way to do it when, you know, in retrospect, you're not putting on as much muscle as you could. You're probably going to hurt yourself. It's going to set you back.

[00:40:55] And then it just, then depression sets in because you're frustrated with how it's going. And, you know, that's when the emotional rollercoaster starts. So, yeah, I think having help is, is, is a really important thing there. Is there anything else, like anything else you wanted to share with people about what's coming up for you? Are there, I know you've got the show in November or October.

[00:41:23] Is there anything else people can see that you're doing? Anywhere people can find you? I mean, other than my Instagram, usually when things pop up, I'm posting them on there. I try to be as open about my journey as I possibly can because I think that sometimes that is relatable to other people and that they can use my information, the things that I've struggled with, the things that have worked for me as tools, resources.

[00:41:51] But other than my shows and taking it day by day, we're trying to... Dance recitals and everything else. Get some new heights. Yes. And see what else we can achieve. I'm hoping to do a lot more modeling gigs this year, but we'll, we'll see what God blesses us with. Yeah, that's good. And what I do have a goal for you that needs to be accomplished within the next week. You need to make your ice cream.

[00:42:19] You need to make your ice cream and let me know how that. Good. I will. I will post it. I will tag you in it. We'll see how it is. I appreciate that. I appreciate it. Oh, and one thing I did, I meant to say that I wanted to commend you on. And as you handle comments, people leave you. So there are tons of positives and there are way more positives than negatives. But the negative ones are, some people are just jerks. And you handle it with such class.

[00:42:45] Like it's really impressive because I'm sure you want to go off on some of them sometimes. Oh, for sure. And don't get me wrong. Definitely. Sometimes I have. And I had so much, so much social media anxiety going on to Instagram. And I really didn't start until last year, beginning of last year. That's my New Year's goal. I thought, you are going to post every day. You're going to hurt. How embarrassing. Water. I get so worked up and so nervous.

[00:43:13] And, you know, they, you know, my husband, my family, my friends are like, Sam, calm down. So you don't know the person. They're probably trolls that are purposely trying to say these things in order to get to people. And that's true. But I'm, I guess I was raised with the golden rule embedded in me more than anything. If you're not going to say anything, don't say anything at all. Like I see things I don't like on Instagram and that's fine. It rolls past. But some people can't do that.

[00:43:42] And I think a lot of people are discouraged from sharing their stories or trying to start a social media page or be vocal about any of their experiences because they're scared of judgment off of social media. And that makes me really upset. And I definitely don't always handle it very well. I get emotional when people are that mean. And some people have been pretty mean. But I've grown in learning that, you know, you have to laugh at it. You have to.

[00:44:11] So I've started making, you know, videos when people post some really interesting ones. I like when you. And a lot of those when people like it could be a troll or a bot. But a lot of it. It could be. Comes from insecurities people have about themselves. So they. Absolutely. Grow it at somebody else. Absolutely. And I try to vocalize that just so that other people notice like, hey, even someone like that I admire as much as some people have told they admire me. She gets comments like these too. So it's. Yeah. You know, it's not just me.

[00:44:41] I think it's good for people to see that, you know, everybody, you know, everybody's dealing with that. And I don't know, it would be a heck of a lot better place if people would just support everybody and be happy for the hard work that they put in. There's a guy on too. I don't know. I think that his tag's losing it with Nick or something like that.

[00:45:02] And he's probably about 350 pounds now, but he's down from 600 and he's been, you know, I can't even think of the word. He's been chronicling it. I'll go with that one, but that's not at all what I was trying to say. But he'll throw up the comments too that people make sometimes. And he's lost half his weight already. Half his weight. Working his tail off. Yes. You know, I just, I think the more.

[00:45:32] It's an incredible. Everybody out there in regard, if it's five pounds and somebody's lost that. Yeah. And that's difficult. That's incredible. Yes. Yeah. Or even, you know, they got their quads juiced up for a show and they didn't think they could. Like, that's awesome. Exactly. Yeah. All right. So, I think we'll leave everybody with that. Let's spread a little positivity and love out there. Be kind. Yeah. So, how about everybody just goes out and leave a positive comment.

[00:46:02] You don't even have to know it. Just anything you see, leave something positive for somebody. We can do that. All right. Sam, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. It's been a pleasure. And we'd love to have you back on after Dubai. If you decide to do that, we would love to have you back on. That will be a cool one. Awesome. Awesome. Thank you so much, Sam. Thank you. Thank you so much. You have a great night. You too. You too. Thank you.