Never 2 Late 2 Chase the Dream (it's better than liposuction)
Intro:
Okay so here I am starting a log per the suggestion of a few fine members. I really don't know at all what I am doing. I am 44-years old and a total cardio-queen. I have been running and biking and that sort of thing since I was 18. I did go through physical training in both the US Army and the USMC but I always hated anything but the running.
Despite being a professional athlete for my tours in the military, I have always stored fat around my middle. I remember in my late 20's when my 2 girls where very young I dreamed one day to take care of this issue. I knew about body building and trainers and that sort of thing at a high level and I knew I could do very well as I have a ton of testosterone in my body. Like many dreams when one is young and poor I did not find either the time or money to make this a reality. My only focus in those years was raising my children (I was a single mom) and climbing the ladder so I could afford to give them opportunities that I did not have.
Fast forward to today... I am a senior Program Manager at the world's largest chip set company. My children are both out of the house and also out of college (in other words out of my pocket). At 23 and 25 years of age, they are highly functioning and wonderful adults. At this point in my life I quite literally have it all including that pocket of fat that I have had for all my life no matter how much I worked out. One day while standing in front of the mirror I had a mind to get liposuction to that area and get rid of it once and for all.
This year I suffered a hamstring inujury and it got very chronic due to my stubborn will to push through it. After almost 1 year of pain and therapy I am through this injury. It was a challenging year for me but I made the best of it. I began changing my lifestyle in this year and eating more regularly and lost 40 pounds despite not being able to do as much cardio as I like. Also because of this injury I was turned onto the fact that I must balance my cardio with strength training. Since I hate the whole concept of surgery and since strength training is probably better (albeit more expensive and harder) than liposuction I decided to enlist the help of a professional and dive into the waters of the other side of the gym.
So day 1 with the trainer... I brought in my 2 weeks of diet/exercise logs and showed up at the right time. My trainer started our session by doing measurements of my body parts and also doing fat measurements. Now here is where I fear I failed. He informed me that my body fat was at 31% still. I could simply not believe that number. I still am struggling with how a person with a BMI of 23 can be such a fattie. So after 20 or so minutes of working out we went to the couches and discussed diet. His eyes went right to all my little mis-doings of the past two weeks. Cheese pizza one night for dinner and french toast for breakfast on the day after Thanksgiving. He crossed off all the things that are no longer on my diet such as cheeses and replaced them with other things such as cottage cheese. He increased my overall protein intake and also adjusted when I get the protein. He left the overall calories alone for now and claimed that we were starting with these small changes and more will be worked in as time goes on. He said it could take around 6 or more weeks to hone in the diet. I felt sort of bummed after that consult as I thought I was doing pretty well with the food thing. I am definately getting an education already.
The workout was relatively simple and I am not sore at all today and even did a good deal of jumping rope last night at home on my own. That said I did get a bit sweaty at one point. I did jumping rope and push ups and ab exercises. I could not do the one ab exercise so I have to figure that one out at some point. I have learned through this already that I hate jumping rope. I feel so stupid when trying to do it. I can do like 4 of them in a row before getting hung up. It isn't an exercise at all for me except in humiliation. I think that the jump rope and I will have to learn to get along though 'cause this trainer likes it for some reason.
The trainer shook my hand as I left and promised me that was the last easy day I will have in my near future. I am actually looking forward to the next session with a bit of hesitation of course. It really isn't so much fun so far...
That first day we did
swedish ball pike ups - 2x15
Hanging ab leg lifts (not sure what this is called but you hang and lift your legs up as high as you can and then drop them all slowly) 2x15
V-situps... I could not do many of these and I forgot how many I did
burpies (I think that is what they are called) 2x15
jump rope 3x2 min sets
assisted pull ups (100 pound assist) 2x15
pushups 2x15
another set up assisted pull ups
He said he was going to not do anything to my legs as my hamstring was a bit strained that day. We only had 20 minutes to workout due to all the body comp measurement stuff
Session 2 with the trainer: I learned today what "skinny fat" is and about the difference in loosing weight and being fit. I have heard that term "skinny fat" before but never fully comprehended it until now. It is someone who is within their weight range for their height but with lots of fat and generally not fit. Not only did I learn what that term was but I am accepting the fact that I wear that lable. My trainer says he doesn't like lables but we had a long and serious talk today about how that happens or rather how it was that I got myself into this mess. He made sure several times to point out that I was fully responsible for the place I was in. He also made sure that I acknowledged the good work I had done given my hamstring injury. He is kind of a cool guy in that way and balances things fairly nicely for me.
Today's workout was pretty tough. I pushed harder than I would ever push myself. At one point after he let me get up from an exercise I had to lean against the wall to keep myself upright as I panted from breath. I glared at him then because I was really hating him and the program. He just shrugged his shoulders and said, "If it was easy everyone would be fit". I had to laugh then even though I was in pain.
This really sucks on a lot of levels but a part of me is also loving it. I am enjoying the soreness in my muscles and also the good feeling I get after the workout.
I have several homework assignments from my trainer today. He increased my protein intake to 150 on Tuesday. The good news is that after a day of doing this my body core got warmer. I found today that I am not shivering all day long. The bad news is that increasing the protein like that makes me really full. I was only able to get 900 calories in on Tuesday and 1011 in yesterday. My trainer sort of flipped out about that and said that there is no way that will work and he did not care how I did it but I had to get those calories up to 1400 ASAP and keep them there. (He indicated that number would be increasing at some point) He suggested I eat more meals if I had to or sucked down shakes and power bars. The other homework I got was to start incorporating my PT exercises from my hamstring into my cardio and other workouts and he wants me to figure out my Resting Heart Rate.
Finally and oddly he wants me to decrease the intensity of my cardio workouts. He said something about me starving my body for a long time and doing really intense cardio workouts will only eat the muscle. He wants me to wait until I have some time with more cals and more protein before I go back to serious cardio workouts. He says no more than 160 HR for now.
Okay so that is it for now. I would NEVER have come to these radical suggestions or it would have taken a very long time to come to them. If this stuff actually works this trainer will have earned his salary and then some. Okay now I have to go and eat again.....
Today's workout
hip abductors with weights 2x20 (this is specifically for hamstring injury)
Mountain climbers 40 on each side
Jumping jacks 2 min
Mountain climbers 5 on each side then push up 8 reps x 3
Jumping jacks in between all of the mountain climber sets
Hanging ab work 3x15
After doing this we went to this long line on the floor. I had to walk this line like a tightrope and push up on my calf at each step. Then on the return I had to do squats all the way down making sure to keep the toes up and go down deep. I did this 4 times up and down the line.
Today's BIG Milestones: So far the hardest thing about this program has been adjusting the diet. I am dissapointed in how hard this is because I came into this thinking this was going to be super easy. I generally don't like to eat or like food so "dieting" is easy for me. Imagine my surprise thati dieting for me means to eat more and eat even when I am not even remotely hungry. Even so with great effort I have been managing now for most of this week to get my 150 grams or protein, my 1400 cals and my gallon of water.
Today as I am in the kitchen making up acceptable foods for the upcoming week I felt this sudden illness. I was weak and my stomach ached and my head was fuzzy. I remarked to my friend that something was not right and that I had somehow screwed up my diet. I looked at the clock and noted that I was beyond my meal time. So I whipped up a few chicken tortillas with yogurt and tomato and ate them. About 10 minutes after that I felt fine again. In fact I felt strong and ready to roar. That's when it occurred to me that this strange feeling that I had was hunger. For as long as I can remember I have been a poor eater. I have been starving myself if you will. As a result I have never in my life had the low suger/crash thing that I see my friends go through when they get hungry. I had never undertood that at all in fact. Today I felt it. I got hungry!! Later this evening after our trip to the gym I felt it again only this time I recognized it earlier and fed myself before I felt ill. I think this means my metabolism is starting to work. I am beyond thrilled.
The second major milestone happened to me in the gym today. Besides the fact that I am a complete idiot when it comes to working out, I also know that I have NEVER been able to actually push myself when it came to that sort of exercise. I will run all day long with my HR in a 180 zone but ask me to do 4 pushups and I won't do it. Last week I did 3 sets of 8 push ups with mountain climbers in front of my trainer but when I tried this at the gym yesterday I could only do 2 sets of 4. I just don't have it in me to push where I need to push.
Today after doing 30 min on the elliptical and 30 on the treadmill (all while staying at 165 or under) I decided to try a few exercises on my own again. I ended up doing 3 sets of swedish pike ups x 10 and 3x15 sets of hanging ab leg lifts. This actually pushed me pretty hard. I then went to the assisted pull up machine and set it for 60 pounds. I did 2x10 sets of pull ups and then did 2x10 dips. I then turned around and did it again. By the time I got the final dip in I grunted like an old man but pushed it through. I totally wasted my tricep. So I do have it in me to push myself. I just have to make it a paradigm!!
Welcome to the training logs! You're on the right track. You'll start to love pushing yourself once you see the results of weight training...then you'll never go back
I was a cardio queen, so I can relate. Hang in there and you'll do GREAT! Not only is it fun to start adding muscle, it's great to be STRONG! You can apply that same rush from running to lifting.
Yay! I'm so glad you started a log. Looks like you're off to a great start. Your trainer sounds like he knows what he's doing and has you on the right track.
Great log! I know just what you mean about learning about nutrition for the first time. It seems like I've always been dieting and trying to lose weight since I was a teenager and all I paid attention to was calories. I avoided protein like the plague and ate a bunch of carby junk all the time.
A couple years ago I went to weight watchers and lost 50 pounds. I would eat stuff like a bag of diet popcorn for dinner because it only had 200 calories. After that I got my body fat measured at my gym and they said it was 26 or 27% and I should try to lose around 10 pounds of fat. I was really discouraged because I was the thinnest I'd ever been in my life and I didn't see how I was going to lose anymore.
Since then I've learned a lot about weight training and nutrition and I am working on changing my body composition and getting stronger rather than losing pounds.
It sounds like you are really on the right track. Good luck with your goals and thanks for sharing your experiences with us.
Thanks to all of you for the welcome. I look forward to this journey made better by your support. Today is a rest day for me. I have back-to-back meetings at work with a hard deadline on Wed and then I run a guitar society meeting tonight. I won't see my ranch again until 10:00 or so PM.
I am taking off for 2 hours though to run into town and have some accupunture done to my hamstring.
Yes I was in both but it was a LONG time ago. I got out after I came back from the "Storm" in 1991. I am much older now and much more of a pussy. Even so my trainer told me during his phone screen that the application was impressive and I would probably fit well into his program. It serves me well in his program too. When he is in my face getting that last rep out of me it feels just like boot camp again. I am not intimidated by this rather I know to keep my mouth shut and focus to give just a little bit more. We work well together in that way.
And YES that 20 minutes did kick my butt as well as the next 60 minute session. I haven't touched a weight yet except to push my own body fat around but that is already more than enough for this newbie.
Yeah, it can take a bit to mentally get around pushing yourself on your workouts. You'll find little tricks to help you get through. Some things I do.
Take note of 'halfway' points. "I'm halfway through my reps for this set", "I'm halfway through my sets", "I'm halfway through my workout". I find it helps to know I have less to go than I've already done.
Count reps remaining in my head. If I'm doing sets of 12, then at 9 I "only have 3 to go, 2 to go, 1 to go". It seems silly to stop when you only have a few reps remaining.
Of course there are times even tricks like that dont work, and you just have to close your eyes, grit your teeth and get them done 1 rep at a time and try to shut out the pain.
Good luck with it all, sounds like you're off to a good start .
Good job on starting the training log! Off to a great start already it seems. Ben's halfway comment is interesting for me because I find that makes me "punk out" if I am thinking I am halfway there or just one more. I tend to "focus" on the number and not how many are left. I found that if I got to the goal - say 8 reps, I would die on the 8th rep, but if I was just counting and not shooting for 8, I would be more likely to get the 9th 0r 10th rep in, which would be telling me to up that weight next workout. Anyway, everyone thinks differently and you should just focus on what helps you.
Cheers
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Peter
After all, diamonds are a girl's best friend…
My trainer counts reps like Ben suggests. He tells me when I am at the half and then somewhere beyond that he will count down. Oddly I don't really like the countdown either. I prefer to just count straight up. It almost feels like he is adding reps for me for some reason. I can't say why it just is harder for me. That said, it all sucks and it is all hard so I just keep my mouth shut and focus for the last one. I hope that by the time my 12 week training period is over that I will have adopted good workout paradigms and will actually like this work too. It is already starting to creep into my gym workouts so I have high hope.
Goodness this forum moves quickly. I hadn't posted in 12 hours and I was buried on the 2nd page. I love this place.
Today was my third session with the trainer. I never know exactly what to expect when I go in except that I will be challenged. I am getting the rhythm that he is doing I think. After I warm up, we start up with easy stuff and then go to high intesity (heart rate pumping stuff) and then we go to challenging weights sorts of things. I am going to start reading some of these other programs and see if they follow that same sort of flow...
Anyway...
Today we did exercises on the stairs. The gym is on the 2nd floor so we ran up and jogged down a few times. Let's see I think I did that 10 times or so at a moderate pace. He had me do 2 and 3 steps alternately and then stopped me from doing 3 when he saw me favor my injured hamstring. Once I was good and tired from doing the stairs he went inside and grabbed dumbells (I think they were 15 pounds) and put them in my hands and had me do 10 more.
After this we went inside and we started ab work. 15x3 of the hanging ab (what the heck are those called?) things. This is where you support yourself on your elbows and your body hangs and you bring your legs up to your chest. I never find these all that challenging actually so I suspect I am not doing them right. I have a hard time holding the last one but it doesn't burn.
Then he decided to hit my arms and shoulders. He said that I will get a good overall body workout in the first sessions. He had me do 10 pushups on an incline and then followed by 10 pull ups. The pulls were assisted and they really hurt. Geesh I hate pull ups but I am determined to one day do them on my own if it kills me. We did 10 pushups and 10 pullups 3 times.
Once that was done I actually got to touch my first weight. He put me on the incline bench for incline presses. I did the first set of 10 with just the bar and then he put little plates on and I did 2 more sets. I pussed out on the last set though and he did most of the work of that set. After that was done I was in total pain in my biceps and shoulders. They just felt spent. He said that I should ice those parts for 20 min when I get a chance today.
Then I took a run around the block and came back.
My last torture was with little 5 pounder dumbells. I had to pull them straight up in front of me and drop them, then take them to my sides and pull them up again. I did this 15x3 times.
After this we looked at my diet log and exercise log for the week. Wrt exercise he said he expected me to be in the gym no less than 4 times and no more than 6 times besides the times I am visiting him. He limited my cardio to 60 min at HR of 165 or less.
With respect to diet, he informed me that I was not getting enough vegetables or carbs and that I was no longer permitted to eat pickles en mass due to the sodium. I love pickles man. First he takes away my pizza and then the diet coke and now this!!!! He told me to cut back my protein because I had revved it up to 200 grams. See last week he said he didn't care HOW I got the calories in and now he changes his story. He says for the amount of cals I am getting that 200 grams is too high for now. So I need to figure out how to make this between 130-150. He also wants me to be careful that I am getting carbs and he suggested that I learn to like brown rice. Oh yeah and he wants me to put serving sizes down for everything as well from now on. He claims that it will take several weeks for us to figure out the right diet.
Yeah, thats a good way to work out a diet. A lot of people jump into trying to follow something 100% from day 1. Instead adjusting 1 or 2 things per week makes it much easier to adjust to.
The hanging knee things. The equipment is called a roman chair. If you bring your knees up to your chest its called a hanging knee raise. You can also keep your legs straight and bring them up in front of you and thats called a hanging leg raise. You can also do them by hanging off a chinup bar instead. All those help make them more challenging.
I have a love/hate relationship with chinups. I really seem to hate doing them. I seem to struggle to 'push through' with them like I can most other exercises. On the other hand, they're just about the best upper body exercise you can do and the results make them all worthwhile.
Thanks for the explanation. I feel so stupid about all of this stuff right now but I know it will get better with the weeks. God, you guys have some amazing training logs on here. I am overwhelmed beyond belief.
My trainer says everyone hates pull ups but there really isn't a better exercise for that muscle set. (Translate: I gotta do it anyway)
Thanks Mahler. I am pouring through your log and am in complete awe. Right now my sites are just in getting through this 12 weeks and I am dedicated to making these very productive. My hope is that once 12 weeks are finished I am "hooked" both because it feels good and because I have some sort of results that I can see.
I went to the gym again tonight to do cardio. I did my 60 minutes of slow workout and then did the Roman Chair again (thanks for the name of that thing) and then did more pull ups. I probably should not have done that 2x in one day but I am not going to let the pull up bar get the best of me.
Now I have to go ice body parts. I think tomorrow I will be in some pain.
One day when I was a younger woman I saw an older woman walking down the street. She had pure white hair and the body of a 20-year old. No it was better than most 20-year old bodies. Her clothes were styling. Her jeans form fitting as well as her shirt. To top it off she wore the smile of a woman who had it all. I remember saying to myself right then and there that one day when my hair is white I too will work to become an inpiration for those who follow me...
Today when I looked in the mirror at the gym I did not feel guilt and shame at all the fat I know I carry. I felt inspired by this memory and by the path that I am on.
Spin class = 1 hour (I had that baby pegged all the way today)
assisted pull ups (only 50 pounds of assist today) - 10x1
Hanging knee raise 15x3
I was not sore at all today. I will still ice those parts that I can feel per instruction. Tomorrow I face my trainer again.
My body feels strong right now and I think I finally got the diet thing worked out. I was able to get all my cals, just the right amount of protein and all my water in without suppliments.
Good work getting that assist down. Unassisted will come soon enough!
You might consider some stretch bands. You can use them on a regular chinup bar and for other exercises, too. Plus, they put you into a more natural (read closer to normal) pullup or chinup position.
After you can do a full one, you can still use them to get to multiples.
I think I know what a stretch band is but cannot imagine how I would use them on a pull up bar. Do I tie them to my body somehow and the bar? Sorry for being so dense. This is all still very new to me.
Good job getting into the swing of things and sticking to a tough looking program.
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We don't know all the answers. If we knew all the answers we'd be bored, wouldn't we? We keep looking, searching, trying to get more knowledge. Jack LaLanne
Welcome Karla ... your story is great and your dedication to change your life is inspiring! You will learn to LOVE the weights ... I am a total addict and I used to be a cardio-bunny too ...
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Life's a Journey ... Enjoy the Ride!
My trainer asked me how I felt. I told him I was fine. I then confessed to slight soreness on the day of training but nothing really after that and besides I worked out in the gym the night of my training as well as the next day. His comment was to say that was great. He said to have hussle and no soreness is the best way to be while in a training program.
Okay let's see now...
Swedish Pike-ups 3x15
another exercise I don't know the name of: I had a wheel with a handle and I leaned on it and pushed out while straightening my legs. 3x15
I alternated the above two exercises
Then we walked over and I got handed two 15 pound dumbells and I had to press them up over my head and touch them. I had to focus on keeping weight in my heels and keeping my head up when I got tired. 1x15, 1x12, 1x10
I used a machine for the next one. I faced away from it and had two handles attached to ropes in my hands (the ropes where attached to weights but I am not sure how much). My job was to press the handles together in front of me keeping my elbows at a slightly bent angle. On this one I could really see my arm muscles working in the mirror. 3x15
Then we went to this funny looking piece of equipment and I put my quads on the designated pad and hooked my feet under the bars so that my body was hanging off the other side. I was looking at the floor. I was handed a 10 pound medicine ball and my job was to bend all the way to the waist and then come up as high as I could arching my back. This is like the swan movement in Pilates. I actually got a cramp in my hamstring from doing that one but it went away pretty quickly. 3x15
He finished me off (quite literally actually) with push ups from one of those inverted 1/2 swedish ball things. (I swear I will learn the nomenclature one day. I told ya'll I wasn't ready to start a log yet) I did 3x10 of these but kept dropping my knees on the last sets. I was just wasted in my shoulders and arms.
It felt good. I think I am starting to sort of like this stuff.
Welcome Karla ... your story is great and your dedication to change your life is inspiring! You will learn to LOVE the weights ... I am a total addict and I used to be a cardio-bunny too ...
Hey thanks for the welcome! I am so inspired by all the chicks on this forum who are really doing work. You guys are my heros. I also love your avitar and have to get a t-shirt like that for one of my training sessions.
In the ballys gym on my own tonight. My plan was to do my hour of cardio and then cut out to a Holiday party. At 30 minutes of cardio all I could think about was working out. I ditched the last 30 minutes of cardio and worked out for nearly a full hour. Guys this is such a paradigm switch for me that I surprised myself. The truth is that I am really starting to like this stuff. I did so much and just exhausted my muscles so many times. One time my biceps were so wasted that I could hardly put the stupid dumbells back on the rack. I was the only girl in that part of the gym with all these beefy men. I was told that there is a girl's gym somewhere in this ballys but I am thinking who wants to work out and look at a bunch of girls? I mean if I have to wait for 30 seconds in between sets I might as well have something to look at. Besides I bet they have pink dumbells in there.
Tonight I did
Hanging ab raises 3x15
Swedish pike ups 1x15, 2x10
Dumbell overhead press 15 lbs 2x15,1x10
bicep curls 20 lbs 2x15, 1x10
seated row 50 lbs 2x15, 1x10
I then did all my hamstring strengthening exercises with small weights (still in rehab there)
In the sauna after the workout I had veins popping out all over my hands, feet and my neck and shoulders. It was really freaky.
One thing I am wondering about.... I push myself and my trainer pushes me until I cannot do another rep. My muscles just simply won't work like I have some sort of brain to muscle disfunction. Generally after a good hard workout I am a bit sore and I ice where it is sore. So far the next day though I have almost zero pain or soreness. I am wondering if this means I have more to give if I just suck it up and do it?
Soreness is not an indicator of a good or bad workout or whether you had more to give. It is usually caused by a dramatic change in a routine or a large increase in weights or volumes.
Another cause is thought to be slow eccentric movements (slow lowering, negative pullups, chins, or dips, etc.). BSS and lunges tend to cause me some soreness when I have a heavier weight. I think it's because you have to lower slowly so you don't collapse at the end!
It doesn't sound like you have more to give, judging from the description of your workouts. Giving TOO much can be a problem for recovery, too. Especially if you're in a caloric deficit.
Thanks Roland for the answer... I am pretty sure that I am in a calorie deficit right now because I am dropping weight so it is good to know that plays a big part here. I fully expect that my calories will be going up shortly.
Also since I am not really lifting anything heavy right now and basically just working on form that probably plays a part here too. I am sure I will feel more as I get better form and more weight.
I didn't think it was a matter of trying or heart. I feel like I basically know how to do that. On Saturdays I go to the gym with my friend who has been lifting for 20 plus years. He is a BIG guy and is super strong. Three weeks ago he was doing leg presses and I was doing cardio. It was my first day in the gym. So I get off my cardio machine and ask him what he is doing and he tells me. Then he teases me and asks if I want to try it. Of course I do... So I get settled in and push. I tried again. I couldn't push the plate. The guys laughed at me and so I got mad and pushed harder. I thought my intestines were going to pop but I pushed that plate. I then brought them slowly back and did it again. My friend was then upset with me then because I pushed so hard with a hamstring injury and as a newbie and with bad form. Nobody was laughing at me after that though. I don't have a lot of size and I am not really naturally athletic but I have heart by God.
I overheard my friend at the bar the other night telling people that I pressed 600 pounds on my first day in the gym...
Never 2 Late 2 Chase the Dream (it's better than liposuction)
So after 20 or so minutes of working out we went to the couches and discussed diet. His eyes went right to all my little mis-doings of the past two weeks. Cheese pizza one night for dinner and french toast for breakfast on the day after Thanksgiving. He crossed off all the things that are no longer on my diet such as cheeses and replaced them with other things such as cottage cheese. He increased my overall protein intake and also adjusted when I get the protein. He left the overall calories alone for now and claimed that we were starting with these small changes and more will be worked in as time goes on. He said it could take around 6 or more weeks to hone in the diet. I felt sort of bummed after that consult as I thought I was doing pretty well with the food thing. I am definately getting an education already. 
Even so my trainer told me during his phone screen that the application was impressive and I would probably fit well into his program. It serves me well in his program too. When he is in my face getting that last rep out of me it feels just like boot camp again. I am not intimidated by this rather I know to keep my mouth shut and focus to give just a little bit more. We work well together in that way.
First he takes away my pizza and then the diet coke and now this!!!! He told me to cut back my protein because I had revved it up to 200 grams. See last week he said he didn't care HOW I got the calories in and now he changes his story. 
He says for the amount of cals I am getting that 200 grams is too high for now. So I need to figure out how to make this between 130-150. He also wants me to be careful that I am getting carbs and he suggested that I learn to like brown rice. Oh yeah and he wants me to put serving sizes down for everything as well from now on. He claims that it will take several weeks for us to figure out the right diet.
Linear Mode
