Okay, NOW I will take this seriously.

[Autumn]

I bought NROL4W earlier this year. I read it, liked it, and got started. I figured what I needed was a solid and consistent workout regimen. Of course I did Stage 1 for two solid weeks, then took another month to complete another two weeks worth. Life got busy, the gym was always packed, of course I have a long list of excuses. I read through the workout portion of the book again today and came here to see how everyone was doing and I found a renewed conviction to log my food. I use sparkpeople.com, however I'm always second guessing portion sizes. I really should purchase a kitchen scale. I think that would help.
I have taken steps to cut out sugar and artificial sweenteners from my diet. I am also drinking more water than ever before! So now that I'm going into Stage 2 I feel a little more determined, as if I'm learning from my mistakes.
I do fear that I'll fall off the wagon again, though.
I am 27 years old. I've maintained my weight at 136 for over a year. I weigh every few weeks and it's always between 134 and 136. Which the weight sounds okay, but I'm very petite; 4'11". So, I feel my ideal weight is closer to 120. That's why I felt NROL4W would be good for me. I know not to expect changes overnight, but I'd like to see a change in the next 4 weeks, though. I started running last year and I completed 2 5ks. I started to eat less processed food and more whole foods. But nothing has changed. Measurements haven't changed, weight hasn't changed, self image is down, my face does look pudgier and I'm quite frustrated.
Like I read in another thread, for fat loss, one should pay attention to what they eat. So, I guess for the overall healthier body is a consistent/day-to-day decision. I need to be reminded of that. I think my 'cheats' here and there are holding me back from what I could be. So, basically I'm at wits end and would love for the lightbulb to go off and I start making progress.

So, that's a short one on me. I do have a point to all this... I'm looking at the illustrations for Stage 2 and I'm a little intimidated. I am usually the only woman at my gym who even shows up in the weights area. So, many days working out is a test of my will and insecurity. But I know I will feel ridiculous doing some of these. I don't have the equipment to work out at home so I need to do this in the public. How do all of you handle doing a new exercise that you're unsure of, keeping in mind that I am easily intimidated?

[missjane]

I don't let anything intimidate me! I'm in the gym to get the job done and I JUST DO IT!

Welcome!

[beach_plums]

It's important to remember that most everyone else is at the gym for the same reason as you--to work out. There are a few people here and there that are more interested in what others are doing, but that's the exception. As far as being intimidated, don't be. Just get in, workout out, and get out. Some of the exercises in stage 2 do look funny, but they're fun as all heck! I giggled through most of it and am starting stage 4 tonight, which is a repeat of 2. I'm looking forward to it!
When I'm unsure of an exercise, I mock it at home with no weight at home first. It's not the same, but it gives the general idea of the motion.

Welcome, good luck, and just get in there.

[kfisherx]

Oh yeah... I mock the exercises at home first too. It helps you to not feel too ridiculous in the gym. I think that most of us are needlessly self aware in the gym. It is silly isn't it? Don't worry with time you will feel really comfy there.

[maggieandmommy]

Like Beach Plums I do a round at home with body weight the night before just to work through the movements so that I don't have to stare at the book the whole time. (Though I usually bring the book with me the first couple of times I do the new workouts just to be safe.)

Don't worry about people staring at you. If you look really closely, you'll probably see that most people are either 1-staring at themselves in the mirror and watching their own muscles/form/whatever or 2-doing their best to avoid making eye contact with people so that they can just get through the workout. There are folks out there who'll chat or who stare, but don't let them bug you. Just try to tune them out and go for it.

Good luck! (By the way, I thought that I'd feel stupid doing some of the Stage 2 exercises, too, but after the first time or two I got over that. I felt a little awkward doing some of the one-legged ones--especially cause I lost my balance with them the first time and nearly fell over a few times--but I just laughed at myself and moved on.)

[maggieandmommy]

oh, and for the Body Weight Matrix in Stage 3, I went to the unused aerobics room because I knew I'd be sucking wind BAD and didn't want to embarrass myself! lol

[Autumn]

Thanks, everyone. I really appreciate the positive words. Hey, Maggie, I'm from Alabama too!

I'll go over the workouts at home first tonight, I do have a set of dumbbells at home.

I do have other questions... I have no clue how to eat.
I did read over the nutrition section in NROLFW, but I guess I was overwhelmed at first and skipped on to the workouts. I am ready now to get serious with my body, but I'm not sure where to start. I haven't read the best reviews on this board concerning the diet in this book. What are some good resources?

My goals right now are to increase strength and stamina, build muscle, lose fat. Other than that I don't have number goals in mind such as jean size, weight or measurement.

[chickdiver]

I started week 5 of Stage 1 yesterday. Last week during workout "A" I was doing my pushups with my feet on a stability ball. I am *never* gracefull getting off a stability ball. As I finished my last set of pushups and had a particularly embarrasing "dismount" I stood up to notice one of the other early morning regulars standing there with his mouth wide open. My first thought was "Oh how embarrasing- I must look more like an idiot than I thought!" He proceeded to stammer about how impressed he was watching me do my pushups. I stammered back a "thank you" and went on to my step ups and jacknifes.

Moral of the story: People might be watching you because they are impressed . It's really good for your motivation too!

[beach_plums]

I struggled with the food when I started, and again a few months in it. A lot of people offered up great advice, here's a summary of it with my own additions...

Alot of people seem to follow TNT. Others are eating clean (look at Tocsa Reno's books-her story is really inspirational and recipes are really good). I started eating clean about a month ago and have had so much more energy and considerably less cravings.
Plan your meals! If you're away from home often, pack lunch and snacks. Remember that you can plan treats into your meal plan as well. I know Easter was tricky for me. But, when I planned a treat, I was happy and didn't over do it.
Macro-wise, play around with it and find what works for you. I think the book recommends 40/30/30 with the 40 being carbs (anyone? feel free to correct me on this one), I'm better off with 35/35/30 with the 30 being the carbs, and only discovered that by trying different combos.
You might also try logging your food--fitday is great for this. Some people swear by it; I personally can't do it.
If you're not having a post-workout shake, add one in. This should count as a meal, and should just about bump you up to your workout day calories vs. non-workout days.
And, my personal favorite...Eat, eat eat! If you don't eat enough, you're not going to have the energy to make it through these workouts. At least not at the level that you should be working at.

[Autumn]

Originally Posted by beach_plums

I struggled with the food when I started, and again a few months in it. A lot of people offered up great advice, here's a summary of it with my own additions...

Alot of people seem to follow TNT. Others are eating clean (look at Tocsa Reno's books-her story is really inspirational and recipes are really good). I started eating clean about a month ago and have had so much more energy and considerably less cravings.
Plan your meals! If you're away from home often, pack lunch and snacks. Remember that you can plan treats into your meal plan as well. I know Easter was tricky for me. But, when I planned a treat, I was happy and didn't over do it.
Macro-wise, play around with it and find what works for you. I think the book recommends 40/30/30 with the 40 being carbs (anyone? feel free to correct me on this one), I'm better off with 35/35/30 with the 30 being the carbs, and only discovered that by trying different combos.
You might also try logging your food--fitday is great for this. Some people swear by it; I personally can't do it.
If you're not having a post-workout shake, add one in. This should count as a meal, and should just about bump you up to your workout day calories vs. non-workout days.
And, my personal favorite...Eat, eat eat! If you don't eat enough, you're not going to have the energy to make it through these workouts. At least not at the level that you should be working at.

I usually do plan my meals, mostly because I find it's cheaper that way. I always pack my lunch and snacks for work. Right now I eat 3 meals a day, one snack, I always have a PWS as well. My thoughts on food are, I know what's good and what's unhealthy. But as far as reaching goals of getting a leaner body in addition to these workouts, the combinations of protein, fat and carbs is my main issue. I tend to overthink things, and I often worry I'm eating the wrong way. Here's just an example of my average day:

breakfast - oatmeal (oats, pb, banana) cup of tea
lunch - pita sandwich w/ lettuce, turkey and a side of one of other vegetable, something sweet like a granola bar
snack - yogurt
I usually go to the gym after work, but I'd love to be able to do it in the mornings.
PWOS (water and pp)
Dinner- a white meat of some sort with at least two vegetables, toast, maybe another cup of tea or some cereal later if I'm still hungry, which I usually am.
I shoot for 64 oz of water a day.

(I'm beginning too think I overdo it on the carbs)
I do feel fueled enough to get through the workouts so far. I dont know if I could possibly eat less though...

[Cynic]

Originally Posted by Autumn

but I'm very petite; 4'11".

4'11"?

Sahweet!

Sorry, I love diminutive women. Don't mind me.

[Morondava]

Workouts:
For me, I got less embarrassed with time. And I was really embarrassed. When I first started lifting a year and a half ago, I would get into the gym the second it opened and just look around to see what was in the weight room. I started going in and doing the machines when no one was looking, and with great trepidation progressed to the free weights. It only took a workout or two to lose the fear. I was pretty comfortable quickly. It helped to do research and see that the scary folks at the gym were actually doing things that might get them hurt. I've been in a new gym for about a month, and in that time period, I haven't seen anyone use the squat rack, including the big boys.
As for the men, I find the generally leave me alone. Sometimes I get some flirtation, which I find annoying, but some other women might welcome it.
I find the gym in the AM a lot calmer. I recommend it if you can swing it. I get up between 5 and 6 to get in a workout before work.

Food:
I love hearing from other women who bring food everywhere they go! My suggestion about food is to take it one step at time. Start by counting calories, eating at maintenance. Pay attention to what keeps to satisfied for a while. Try new recipes or handy snacks. I've discovered that baby carrots, cottage cheese, and nuts all come prepackaged and make great snacks. I can also buy them all in bulk and make my own snack portions to save money.
Once you've got that down, start paying attention to protein and fat intake. I try to get my bodyweight in protein grams a day, and shot for around 60g of fat. The protein number I got from message boards, the fat from a nutritionist. If you discover that you're not getting enough, try to play with your food. Maybe add protein powder to your breakfast or eat more cc if you need protein. Or cut down the nuts if you have too much fat.
If you eventually decide to cut calories for fat loss, do so only once getting in your maintenance calories with the correct macros is easy.

[SpacecityPaula]

Originally Posted by Autumn

breakfast - oatmeal (oats, pb, banana) cup of tea At least your eating breakfast, but you need protein of some sort here.
lunch - pita sandwich w/ lettuce, turkey and a side of one of other vegetable, something sweet like a granola bar Maybe add some cheese to your sandwich here to get fat up a bit. I'd cut the granola bar - its not as healthy as you think and they are generally loaded with High Fructose Corn Syrup. Why not have an apple instead? You get the sweet and the fiber without all the artifical stuff. You could even have some peanut butter with the apple to help up your good fats if you didn't want to add cheese to the sandwich.
snack - yogurt Need some more protein and fruit. Make sure that the yogurt is plain and add your fruit in. You won't get added sugar that way.

I usually go to the gym after work, but I'd love to be able to do it in the mornings.
PWOS (water and pp)<-- need to add a carb of some sort here along with the Protein a piece of fruit would be good
Dinner- a white meat of some sort with at least two vegetables, toast, maybe another cup of tea or some cereal later if I'm still hungry, which I usually am. I'd ditch the toast and add a bit of healthy fat in here. The fat will help with your satiety and you won't have to have the cereal later on.


I shoot for 64 oz of water a day.

(I'm beginning too think I overdo it on the carbs) << I think you hit it right on the head
I do feel fueled enough to get through the workouts so far. I dont know if I could possibly eat less though...

Autumn:

You need to log your food and figure out how much of each macronutrients you're eating. Just from what you posted here, I'd say you are overdoing the carbs and don't have enough protein and fat in your diet.

Based on the info you provided - on exercise days you should be eating around 1550 calories and on non-exercise days you should be eating around 1350 calories day.

Start with the 40 30 30 ratios and tweak from there.

[beach_plums]

I agree, it looks like you're a little heavy on the carbs and low on the protein. If you really like oatmeal in the morning, try adding some protein powder to it. It's actually quite good that way. And in the evening, try cottage cheese or nuts or something like that as a snack instead of cereal. Again, the goal is to get some protein before bed instead of more carbs.
You might try logging your food to figure out where your macros and calories are, and then go from there.

[Autumn]

Originally Posted by beach_plums

I agree, it looks like you're a little heavy on the carbs and low on the protein. If you really like oatmeal in the morning, try adding some protein powder to it. It's actually quite good that way. And in the evening, try cottage cheese or nuts or something like that as a snack instead of cereal. Again, the goal is to get some protein before bed instead of more carbs.
You might try logging your food to figure out where your macros and calories are, and then go from there.

That sounds good. I will try that for a few weeks and see how things are then. I really appreciate the help.