So yesterday I went to a step aerobics class, sort of on a whim. I hadn't been to a step class since starting NROL4W (thankfully). In my previous exercise life, I diligently attended step once/week for about a year, and it never got easier, always felt like some type of torture. (Doesn't help that it isn't any fun, but hey it was a change of pace from the cardio machines, which I'm getting bored with.) Well, yesterday step felt EASY. What a nice surprise when something formerly difficult becomes a piece of cake.
Extra bonus-- I was wearing shorts and saw my legs in action in the aerobics room mirrors..... and I have identifiable, distinguishable muscles there! Hooray! Have I said lately how much I love muscles and knowing that mine exist? After I finish NROL4W, which is still a ways off, I think I want to focus on shedding some fat so I can see my muscles better; then I will try to make them bigger. It's going to be so much fun!
Of course, I have no plans of resuming attendance of aerobics classes. Every time I see those poor people suffering through them, I feel so overjoyed to be in the weight room instead.
I love step aerobics!! I have just about every Cathe step dvd there is! Unfortunately, step doesn't mesh with my current running plan, since I think doing step for cross training would kinda defeat the purpose of the cross training - too much stress on my joints!
VERY cool that it felt much easier and even cooler on the identifiable, distinguishable muscles!! WOOOOT!!
Thanks, dillytl! Step might be more fun if I could pick the music and it were actually a hiphop dance class instead.
5 B3:
BB RDL/row: 3x4 @ 80, 1x4 @ 85 (had to use a narrower grip to do 85s but got ROM)
1-leg squat: 4x4 @ 35 (getting better at these, could prob incr. weight)
wide grip lat pulldown: 1x4 @ 95, 3x4 @100
back extension: 3x5 @ 35, 1x8 @ 35 (I know I can do heavier weight, but the DBs are all the way across the gym, and I was getting tired....)
YTWL: 2x4 @ 10, 1x4 @ 8; on 4th set of 4, I used 10s on Y, T, and W, but had to switch to 8s on the L. "L" is for "Lord help me, this is f-ing hard."
Ball crunch: 4x4 w/ 14 lbs med. ball held in arms straight back (can increase)
jackknife: 4x4 pike + 4x4 tuck
side ball crunch: 4x4 w/ 6 lbs med ball held in arms straight back (can incr.)
cobra: 3x 120 seconds (these are WAY easier than planks....)
HIIT: 15 min on treadmill.
~Altogether, this workout felt much better than the pervious one, even though I got kinda tired in the middle. I've exercised every day this week, including 3 weight sessions. My calories have been on target every day, and I've only had 1 day where my micronutrient ratios were off. Hope I can keep the momentum going through the weekend. I'm not doing my cheat meal tonight-- it is going to be on Saturday b/c I am going to a BBQ at my friends' house and watching the UT v. Texas Tech football game, and I can't do BBQ and football without beer!
I looooove beer, too! We actually made a couple batches last winter and plan to make more once the weather cools off a bit. I relegate myself to drinking Beck's Light on a diet because it only has 64 calories and actually has a little flavor. Have you ever tried it? It's no Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, but it'll do in a crunch.
I looooove beer, too! We actually made a couple batches last winter and plan to make more once the weather cools off a bit. I relegate myself to drinking Beck's Light on a diet because it only has 64 calories and actually has a little flavor. Have you ever tried it? It's no Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, but it'll do in a crunch.
Y'all are also beer brewers?!? Cool! It is more the boyfriend's hobby than mine per se, but we've been brewing w/ another couple for ~2 years now (took a break when the heat set in). Managed to make a few really good beers last year-- a pilsner, a belgian, and a stout. Made a couple others that left something to be desired, but weren't bad.
I haven't tried Beck's Light. Maybe this is the weekend for it, though I'd rather start getting into the Octoberfest beers that have recently gone on the shelf......
Evie and Sally, you should head over to Stingo's/Tom's log. He is quite the beer connoisseur himself. And my birthday party on Sunday will have pizza and beer on the menu, at my request.
The fundraising organizations pretty much suggest you approach friends and neighbours. When I worked in the plant it was great, I would buy them, and give the rest to the crew for their break. I do think when I'm back into the workplace though I'm going to avoid them completely. I only remember selling oranges and grapefruit when I was in high school, and they were good (not cheap, but straight from the orchard).
Evie and Sally, you should head over to Stingo's/Tom's log. He is quite the beer connoisseur himself. And my birthday party on Sunday will have pizza and beer on the menu, at my request.
I'll have to check out his log.
Happy Birthday!
Quote:
Originally Posted by LancelotsLover
Awesome workout, Evie! The 1 leg squats especially look great, and you got your 100 lb. lat pulldown, woo-hoo!
BTW, what gym do you go to?
Thank you! I was thinking back on those lat pulldowns, and my form still leaves something to be desired-- the last one is never quite full ROM. But hey, I've still got another workout at this stage with 'em....
I go to the Gold's downtown. It's neither the best nor the worst gym I've used. But it's extremely convenient and generally a pretty friendly environment (not a meat market or a judgmental place like some gyms).
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Originally Posted by clevagirl73
Sounds like you've been having a great week, Evie! Have a good time at the BBQ
Thanks! I think I had too much fun at the BBQ-- I ate a gi-normous steak, which is unusual for me, and drank 3 beers, which is totally typical for me. Calories were WAY over for the day, but it was a good time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by realcdn
The fundraising organizations pretty much suggest you approach friends and neighbours. When I worked in the plant it was great, I would buy them, and give the rest to the crew for their break. I do think when I'm back into the workplace though I'm going to avoid them completely. I only remember selling oranges and grapefruit when I was in high school, and they were good (not cheap, but straight from the orchard).
Fresh fruit would also be good. Way better than all the corn syrup and transfat laden junk food most of them sell.
This weekend was both good and bad. Good: lots of walking; lots of house cleaning; planted the fall garden ; didn't cheat on the diet on Friday or Sunday. Bad: 4 beers and 8 oz. of steak and a slice of pizza and strawberry shortcake on Saturday, far in excess of caloric limit-- and I enjoyed every morsel of it, too.
But back on track today with 5 A4 workout:
1-arm DB snatch: 4x4 @ 30 DB 1-leg RDL: 4x4 @ 35s (OMG, this was tough!) BB bent over row: 3x4 @ 85, 1x4 @ 90 DB 1-arm overhead squat: 4x4 @ 15/30 (finally got full ROM w/o trouble) DB incline bench press: 2x4 @ 35s , 2x4 @ 30s Plank: 3x 120 sec (killed me today) Rev. Woodchop: 4x4 @ 60 BW matrix (watch battery died so couldn't time precisely; really tough today, but focused on keeping form).
Re: BB bent over row: I just read the section in Starting Strength on BB rows. I have NOT been doing these right! I didn't know you were supposed to take the bar to the floor, like in a DL, and sort of use your hips to start the motion. WOW. What a difference that made today! That one difference really allowed me to up my weight.
All in all, I really felt like I challenged myself with this workout, more so than usual. Only one more workout at this stage....
4 beers and 8 oz. of steak and a slice of pizza and strawberry shortcake on Saturday, far in excess of caloric limit-- and I enjoyed every morsel of it, too.
Since you've been to my log I know you know I'm a cat person! There are a lot of us here.
I swear, one of the reasons I lift weights is so I can lift my three monsters who pretend to be cats. I have one full-size Maine Coon (20 plus lbs), one full size Abyssinian (10 lbs), and one baby size Maine Coon (15 lbs). It can get crazy when all three want lap time.
I'm still busy being in awe of your wide-grip lat pulldown weight! Way to go! You deserved the extra calories.
Thanks! It's taken me a long time to get there, and I'm still not quite form perfect on them all, but I'm feeling good about it all the same.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Camazama
I swear, one of the reasons I lift weights is so I can lift my three monsters who pretend to be cats. I have one full-size Maine Coon (20 plus lbs), one full size Abyssinian (10 lbs), and one baby size Maine Coon (15 lbs). It can get crazy when all three want lap time.
I love Maine Coons! I've always wanted one b/c they're sooo BIG and FLUFFY! Do you show or breed yours?
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Originally Posted by stingo
Returning the visit - what beers did you have?
Hi! Thanks for visiting. I'm on a St. Arnold's Oktoberfest kick right now, so I had 3 of those. The other beer I had on Saturday was just a stupid Rolling Rock, but it was free at a free music show I attended in the afternoon, and the best beer is the one you don't have to pay for. But I'm thinking my next beer indulgence will be a different variety of Oktoberfest brew; haven't picked one yet. I like having beer to match the season. It is fun.
Great workout Evie. Despite going over your cals a bit, I think it will all balance out in the end. Thank goodness, I don't like the taste of beer. I'm already a wino...academia turns one into a drunk.
I'm so annoyed! I just had this great post written and my internet crapped out on me before I could upload it. Sum and substance: I have a weird rash that I think is viral, even though I have no other symptoms of illness. Shit hit the fan at work yesterday, and prob won't let up until about 10/10. Between these two things, I will have limited posting and minimal lifting for a couple weeks. Sucks donkey balls (thank you, hazeldazel for that wonderful expression). Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well since I won't have much time to catch up on the logs.........
Donna-- I looove wine, too. Academia and work have combined forces to make me a drunk. Thanks for your encouragement.
I looooove beer, too! We actually made a couple batches last winter and plan to make more once the weather cools off a bit. I relegate myself to drinking Beck's Light on a diet because it only has 64 calories and actually has a little flavor. Have you ever tried it? It's no Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, but it'll do in a crunch.
I looove beer. I'm limited to one a week now on my high calorie days. It's a great carb reload; I'll have a salad and protein just so I can have a beer as my "carb portion" he he....my favorites are IPAs and some ales--like Sierra Nevada.
My family has started brewing beer too...but we're not adventurous enough to do it at home. We go to a place about an hour away--very cool place--Brewbakers-- we take our three kids and make a day of it; it takes a few hours to do it so we sit around, eat the fresh baked bread and pretzels and drink beer or fresh-brewed root beer. Great family activity, huh? My 13 yo son who wants to be a chef did most of the work last time--measuring grains, tea-bagging them and such. The whole experience is a lot easier than buying all the stuff and making a mess at home. We did an IPA last time--delish--and an ale this time. For some reason the bottles have been exploding in the garage, and the whole batch is very foamy, but it tastes good; in fact it's tasting even better over time. My theory is that it's too dang hot in the garage, but my husband is kind of stubborn....
Anyway, just saying hi but got caught up in beer chatter.....
Anyway, just saying hi but got caught up in beer chatter.....
I also love beer--it 'bout kills me to drink low-carb "beers" because they taste of tonic water or seltzer--I need to choose quality over quantity, carbs and calories be damned.
Anyway, just dropping in to say hi! and hope your week improves!
Evie, where is your rash? Rashes are very hard to pin down as far as the cause. Several years ago I had one on my legs for over 12 months. It finally went away and never came back. The doctors never figured it out even with biopsies, tests for fungus, etc - they just treated the symptom. Still have Rx strength steroid ointment that I dab on for any little itch.
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Moondust The older I get, the older old gets.
Evie, where is your rash? Rashes are very hard to pin down as far as the cause. Several years ago I had one on my legs for over 12 months. It finally went away and never came back. The doctors never figured it out even with biopsies, tests for fungus, etc - they just treated the symptom. Still have Rx strength steroid ointment that I dab on for any little itch.
My face, neck, ears and back! Prob the worst possible places. I put some high-dose cortisone on it that I use for eczema (which I've only ever had on my elbows), and it seems to be clearing up. The ears are the worst. It's not especially visible or discolored, just lots of tiny bumps and feels hot and itchy. I think it is a viral rash b/c it reminds me of ones I've had w/ other viruses. Just bizzare b/c I have no symptoms of virus or allergies.
Donna-- I looove wine, too. Academia and work have combined forces to make me a drunk.
We are wine fiends here at the foodie abode, too! Hubby more so than me. He pores over all kinds of wine literature and buys stuff that is so good I can't believe it! I just sit back and enjoy his hard work.
I don't have the excuse of academia, although I did spend waaaaay too many years in post-secondary educational institutions (like eleven). If that's not enough to induce permanent myopia and a strong affinity for self-soothing indulgences, I don't know what is.
I enjoy wine as well, though beer is my usual preference. Good food, drink and company together are one of life's great pleasures.
I think you just said it all.
Rash seems to have cleared today, but now I feel crappy. I think it is allergies, hope it's not swine flu. No weights again today. I will go tomorrow after work if I'm feeling ok.
I'm attending the funeral of a family friend this afternoon.
It is more the boyfriend's hobby than mine per se, but we've been brewing w/ another couple for ~2 years now (took a break when the heat set in). Managed to make a few really good beers last year-- a pilsner, a belgian, and a stout. Made a couple others that left something to be desired, but weren't bad.
, 2x4 @ 30s
Sum and substance: I have a weird rash that I think is viral, even though I have no other symptoms of illness. Shit hit the fan at work yesterday, and prob won't let up until about 10/10. Between these two things, I will have limited posting and minimal lifting for a couple weeks. 
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