Time to start logging! I love reading them, not sure how I will go writing them. But I'm hoping that this will make me feel more like part of the community and keep me on track.
I'm a 45 year old female trying to get some sort of shape back into my body after two children - oldest 4years (yes - I was a late starter)
I'm currently following the NROL4W program and am about halfway through stage Two and really enjoying it. I was introduced to lifting via the Body-for-life challenge - though after a few months of this, I was dyiing for a change from that routine and started looking around. So I'm doing a combination of the NROL4W, training for my first 10k run (eeek!) in early September and a weekly spinning class - which I love. I'm discovering a whole new world of internet fitness experts, the Alwyns, Lyles, Berardis, Leighs, Lous etc
I can honestly say that at 45, I'm in about the best shape I've ever been fitness-wise.
My biggest problem is food! It's not that I don't eat the right things - I just eat way too much. I'm 170lbs at 5'7" and have been trying to get rid of about 20lbs forever!!! I've tried low-carb, low-fat, weightwatchers, body-for-life, you name it and can't seem to get the weight off. So I'm going right back to basics - My nutrition plan now is to simply try and eat adequate protein, and fresh fruit and vegetables and count calories to maintain a deficit, and not worry about all the other stuff.
I work pretty consistenly at my fitness - and usually manage to get in about 4-5 activities a week (eg 2 lifting days, 1 spinning, 1-2 runs) - at certain periods I do more, and occasionally take time out. Sometimes life just gets in the way. I could be fitter, but I could be a LOT worse. But right now, I've decided that I'm not getting the benefit of the efforts I do put into fitness - as I just don't have the nutrition aspect down. I am a fit/fat person - sometimes I wish I was skinny fat - it seems like it would be easier to fix.
And so begins my ALL OUT effort to get down to 150lbs while retaining the muscles (small though they be) that I have.
NROLFW STAGE 1 Workout 1B
Deadlift 15X75#,15X88#
DB Shoulder press 15X17.5#(8kg), 15X17.5#(8kg)
WG Lat Pulldown 15X35(whatevers),15X35(whateve rs, kg?)
Lunge 15X15#(7kg),15X15#(7kg)
Swiss Ball crunch 15,15
End of Stage 1
NROLFW STAGE 1 Workout 8Afficeffice" />
Squats 8 X 105#, 8X105#,8X105#
Push Ups 8,8,8 (on floor – hands out a little –need to master tricep p-up)
Seated Row 8X35,8X35,8X35(whatevers –kg?)
Step Ups 8X22#DBs, 8X22#DBs . 8X22#DBs
Prone Jacknife 15,12,13 – but much better form than 1st workout NROLFW STAGE 1 Workout 8B
Deadlift 8X126#,8X126#,6X132#
DB Shoulder press 8x26#,8*26#,8*26#
WG Lat Pulldown 8X45,8X45,8X45(whatevers – kg)
Lunge 8X55#BB, 8X55#BB, 8X55#BB,
Swiss Ball crunch 15,15,15 holding 5kg plate above head
Hmmm - looking at it this way, I did actually make quite a bit of progress! I did the AMRAP for Workout A, but was feeling so flat that day, I could barely just lift more than 15reps of my original starting weight. I ended up skipping the B workout AMRAP.
Yay - finished stage 2! I wont be sorry to say goodbye (for a while) to those bulgarian split squats and static lunges and other awkward wobbly exercises. Though I'm sure there's probably even worse in Stage 3. I was getting used to the FSPP, it's "full-on" exertion, but sort of made me feel powerful. Another one I have never seen anyone else in my gym do.
This week I really need to get my calorie counting and eating in check.
You might want to consider weighing/tracking your food intake, to see how many calories you're getting and from where.
I agree wholeheartedly with that. The last week I've been eating normally and seem to be eating about 2000 calories most days and maintaining on that. Thanks for stopping by!!
What a week! I was hoping to lift twice this week, but it didn't happen. Partly due to the fact that I hadn't prepared a workout log for stage 3 yet and didn't photocopy the exercises.
Calorie - wise. Started out great at the beginning of the week and deteriorated into a peanut M&M binge at the movies on Friday night. Aggh! Can I pass this off as "carb cycling"?
Phase 3 - I just LOVE doing those one-armed dumbell snatches -what an excellent manoever - it felt GREAT! (maybe I'm not using enough weight?) I found the dumbellsingle arm overhead squat a bit awkward though. My arm didn't want to stay upright. I just felt a bit twisted doing this - not sure why. All the rest ok - 90sec planks are a bit of a big ask! and that BW matrix - I just felt SICK after doing it.
Running is going OK. I have this 10km run to do on the first Sunday on September as a goal. I have never in my lift run that far, so I'm hoping I can make it. It feels hard at the moment though, I'll run 5km and when I ask myself if I feel I could run 5 more - the answer is a definate no! Hopefully the training will do the job!
Just put my starting pics and stats up for the Autumn womens challenge. Also changed my avatar to something a bit more motivational.
So here are the "before" photos. Revolting!
Bad bad day today. No exercise! I even took my bag to work and planned to do it at lunchtime, but things got hectic and I missed my window. No option after work as I had to rush to an information session almost straight after - my daughter is starting school next year! I only had time to rush into home for about 15 minutes, just time to eat everything in sight! Then out to the session, then back home again to prepare for a big scary presentation that I have to give tomorrow. So much for starting strong on the challenge - tomorrow is going to be difficult too. :-(
On a positive note: I went to the supermarket and made sure I have some good things to eat for lunch tomorrow. So even if I can't workout, I'll have the cals under control.
Barbell Romanian Deadlift / Bent-over row (page 182)
6X
90lb bb
5x
90lb bb
5x
90lb bb
Partial single-leg squat (page 160)
6X
bw
6X
bw
6X
bw
Wide-grip lat pulldown (page 199)
5x
50?
5X
50?
7x
45
Back extension (page 227)
6X
22.5plate
6X
22.5plate
6X
22.5plate
YTWL (page 208)
6X
9lb db
6X
9lb db
6X
9lb db
Swiss ball crunch (page 218)
6X
22.5plate
6X
22.5plate
6X
22.5plate
Hip flexion (pages 215-217) *choose one
6X
6X
6X
Lateral flexion (pages 221-24) *choose one
6X
H4
6X
H4
6X
H4
Cobra
90
90
90
Intervals
10-Aug-08
Calories
Protein
6.5km
Haven't been tracking calories the last few days. The less said about it the better. Back to tracking tomorrow morning. Did a good bit of exercise today with the 6.5km run and also walked 5km. Lots of walking = less time for indiscriminate eating - all good.
Haven't been tracking calories the last few days. The less said about it the better. Back to tracking tomorrow morning. Did a good bit of exercise today with the 6.5km run and also walked 5km. Lots of walking = less time for indiscriminate eating - all good.
painful, but necessary, i'm afraid! looks like the exercise is working well for you. and there are a lot of terrific people here that can help with accountability if that's what you need. i find that posting my daily food for everyone to see really makes a difference in what goes into my mouth. i actually feel like i'm letting others down - silly maybe, but it does help psychologically!
painful, but necessary, i'm afraid! looks like the exercise is working well for you. and there are a lot of terrific people here that can help with accountability if that's what you need. i find that posting my daily food for everyone to see really makes a difference in what goes into my mouth. i actually feel like i'm letting others down - silly maybe, but it does help psychologically!
Hi Karen, you are right of course. The food is definately something that I have a problem with and I really need to get myself in check somehow. I feel that you are right though, if I had to publish my bad habits I might think twice.
Nuthin! Ran around after kids all day and then had a gruelling massage in the afternoon - ouchy!
Tuesday, 19 August 2008
Calories
1589
Protein
159
5.7km run - less than two weeks until the 10km. Still not sure I can make it, but feeling better on the 5km.
Good protein today and good calories - having said that - its 11pm, I am working remotely from home (darn IT work)
and I am starving!!!
Having a dilemma today. I really want to keep working through the NROL4W, but I also really need to lose fat. Theres so much info around lately which points to not doing calorie deficits and NROL4W at the same time, but having said that, I only have been lifting once a week, or sometimes twice. I don't want to give up on NROL4W, as I really want to just finish something for once. So easy to jump from program to program and diet to diet.... hmmm
NROL and NROL4W are pretty intense programs, which may cause you to eat those calories back when you refeed. If you can get your nutrition dialed in around them, then you'll be just fine I'd think.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Hi Carol, just catching up on your log. Great job on upping your protein. It was a struggle for me at first but now I think I've got it. How much of a deficit are you going for on calories?
CarolG Log - Harder Better Faster Stronger
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