Roxie Beckles
Erik Ledin is hands down THE MAN when it comes to effective and healthy contest prep.
As someone who has been a fitness professional for well over a decade, it was important for me to work with a coach who not only cares about their clients, but also knows their stuff inside and out. I can say that Erik has more than exceeded my expectations and has helped me to reach levels beyond my wildest dreams. When you come from a place of knowing your own body and the things that work/don’t work for it, it’s a scary thing to allow someone else to take the reigns, let alone someone you’ve never met face to face. With all of the things you hear about the craziness that’s contest prep, I’ll admit I was nervous. I hired Erik to help me to bring my absolute best package to the stage for my 2011 season, which included my National Level debut at Team Universe. For me, my biggest pitfall was keeping on my diet, I knew I needed someone to keep me 100% accountable. Like my own clients, I needed someone to answer to. And Erik was absolutely the answer I needed.
After only 6 weeks on our plan, I was able to take the stage with poise and confidence. I knew I had a winning body, and I ended taking 1st in my class at the NPC California State Championships. With even more guidance, I feel very confident going into Team Universe knowing that at this present moment, there’s nothing more I could have done to bring my best. My nutritional plan with Erik was FILLING, it was coherent. It was 100% individual and based upon my own likes/dislikes , and most importantly it was realistic. I don’t think there was ever once a time when I felt like I was starving myself, or playing the martyr role of “who can suffer the most” while prepping for a show. The most beautiful thing was the final week leading into my show. No hokus pokus, no tricks, no sodium loading/depleting. None of that complex stuff, yet I still came in beautifully, and my mind was SANE. I also noticed how the urge to go crazy and binge on everything I couldn’t have during my prep just wasn’t there. This is a very important thing to note because for me, and that reason, there was absolutely NO rebound post training. So I was able to take time off, and enjoy life a little before prepping for my next show (a mere 6 weeks away).
I can honestly say that having Erik in my corner was one of the smartest moves I’ve made as a competitor looking to turn pro. The lesson learned for me is that even if you know your stuff, even if you know your body, it’s essential to have someone IN YOUR CORNER, who sees eye to eye with you, who is also an intelligent objective coach guiding you to levels that may be harder to reach on your own. No man (or woman) is an island, and in order to succeed those behind you must be of excellent quality, and expect that same quality from you. Thanks Coach for being so amazing!
– Roxie Beckles, Los Angeles, CA
