J3 Life: Renee’s Pro Card Journey Volume 3

I know you’ve heard from John about what it was like coaching me for Wellness, but today you’re getting a special treat and hearing from me (Renee)! We are currently one week post North Americans and I’m still trying to process everything that happened over the course of the last few weeks, so bear with me as I tell you this story. We flew out to South Carolina for Jr. USA on Wed, August 26th from this date on it’s a blur. Everything happened so quickly that my mind hasn’t had a chance to fully grasp the series of events that took place.

The First National Show
If you kept up with Johns previous articles you know that Jr. USA was my first national show. I wish I could say I was going into this show with 100% confidence and enthusiasm but that was far from the case. For the past week leading up to this show I had been dealing with tightness in my spinal erectors which made it difficult to perform my normal posing and training. On top of that I had a rib out of place which I had adjusted the day before we flew out. Ever had a rib out of place? Not fun. Needless to say, physically I wasn’t feeling my best, mentally I wasn’t on my A game either. Decrease in motivation, irritability and an overall poor outlook on everything. Regardless of how I was feeling I was ready to take the stage and give it my all.

I walked away from Jr. USA with a respectable 3rd place, but this is not what we set out to accomplish. I would be lying if I said we got straight to work to conquer North Americans a mere six days later. I honestly let my emotions and how I was feeling physically get the best of me. I called it quits after I stepped off of the Jr. USA stage and decided I did not want to continue on to yet another national show. John being the amazing coach/husband that he is didn’t argue with my decision but gently planted a seed in my mind to not give up just yet. By the next day this seed sprouted, and I agreed to continue on to North Americans for one more shot at the Pro card before calling it quits for the season. Call us crazy but we booked our flights straight to Pittsburgh and we were on our way!

The Second National Show
Going into North Americans I started to feel a bit better physically and mentally. I found myself starting to just enjoy the process again, which I had lost somewhere along the way going into Jr. USA. I started to feel grateful for the opportunity to hit two national shows despite the struggles that 2020 brought. You’ve heard it a million times, but mindset is truly everything. Of course, we all want to win right? This is a competition after all. But stepping back and finding gratitude for the privilege to compete and reminding myself of how far I’ve come since setting out on my journey gave me a renewed mentality.

Knowing what my feedback was from my previous show we needed to make some changes. So, we switched up my posing to tone down my upper body and accentuate my lower body. We also changed my hair to volume and curls for a more feminine look and to further take away from my upper body. Changing my entire posing routine two days out from my show was difficult because posing isn’t my strong suit to begin with. John helped me practice and this man surprisingly does a beautiful Wellness posing presentation for a 212 bodybuilder, lol. So much flow and grace.

Show day came quick! The hardest part was having John drop me off at the venue knowing he wouldn’t be able to sit in the audience and cheer me on. I knew he would be back at the hotel watching. Due to COVID 19 restrictions this show was run very different than your typical show. The venue was in a tent about a block away from the host hotel, the only people allowed to attend were competitors, staff, judges and limited media. Despite all the restrictions this show was run very smoothly, professionally and QUICK. Prejudging and Finals were back to back, so I had one shot to give my all on that stage!

Announcing the Champ!
It was go time. My class was walked out on stage for comparisons, we immediately came back for our individual presentations, then we were lined up for call outs. I heard my number ‘1222’ called out, I was in the first call out! Face front, quarter turn, quarter turn, quarter turn, face front, ‘1222’ switch with ‘586’. Suddenly I was dead center in the first call out and held there until we were walked off stage. After taking some sips of water and trying to gather my thoughts we were called back to the stage for finals. The moment of truth.

First callouts were lined up and awards were being called, 5th place, 4th place, 3rd place…. 2nd place, my name still hadn’t been called. Did this mean I was 1st? Did this mean I was officially an IFBB PRO?! Then the announcement came, “1ST Place and your new IFBB PRO, Renee Jewett!” I did it! I really did it!

The best part of all of this was being able to see John for the first time after winning. With a smile on his face and tears in his eyes I could tell just how proud of me he was. We set out to accomplish this goal as soon as they announced Wellness was coming to the US so to have all our hard work come to fruition was an indescribable moment. This journey was not easy, but everything unfolded exactly as it was meant to. Be strong and steadfast in your vision. With enough fortitude you can manifest your dreams.

Train Hard!
Renee Jewett, IFBB Pro