You've not read my log have you? lol I'm all for balancing out fitness and fun. Beer being one of the fun things.
Of course I have!! You've helped me feel more confident that a weight loss plan that includes beer can still be effective. After reading TNT & Precision Nutrition they've just got me so down on alcohol. I've missed good beer, damn it. It makes me happy.
We're going to Quebec city in a couple of weeks & I'm hoping to make a trip down to Unibroue (2.5 hours away). It's exciting!
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Of course I have!! You've helped me feel more confident that a weight loss plan that includes beer can still be effective. After reading TNT & Precision Nutrition they've just got me so down on alcohol. I've missed good beer, damn it. It makes me happy.
We're going to Quebec city in a couple of weeks & I'm hoping to make a trip down to Unibroue (2.5 hours away). It's exciting!
Oooh Unibroue! Nice! I've not had one of their offerings in a while.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Yeah, I'm looking forward to it; hopefully we can go. They don't have a lot of info on their website, but the Quebec tourist board says they do tours...
Stage 6 last night was fun - and short! I'm not sure if I should add more to do as I'm trying to keep my workouts to an hour long each.
Stage 6 - Workout A1
Negative Chin-Up
3xbw
These were too easy so I'm going to have to add weight next time.
Underhand-grip Lat Pulldown
1x2x100
4x2x105
5x2x110
Barbell Split Squat
3x10x65
Push Up
3x10
Did these with my feet raised on a 9" step
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
B: omelet w/veggies & natural ham
S: string cheese
L: salad and beef patty
S1: 4 strawberries & 1/2 cup cottage cheese
S2: protein ball
D: italian sausage & sauce over whole grain rotini, and a salad
I probably won't have a snack tonight. I'm pretty full...
ETA: I would love a beer... but I don't want to go outside (stormy) and I can hold out till friday... I'd really love a pint of Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA right now. It's been too long.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
We went out for beers last night. I had an Ommegang Witte and we split a bottle of McChouffe. Man that stuff is good. I plan to buy stingo's The Beer Diet book when it's published.
My little experiment: I weighed myself this morning to see what my stats are after drinking, vs tomorrow morning when I haven't had anything to drink & ate healthy food. I was 147.6 this morning (vs 146 last sunday) and 29.5% body fat. I can't remember if I've ever been below 30% bf on the scale in the morning, so we'll see if it's still there tomorrow.
I'm getting a decent increase in vascularity in my arms, and especially in my hands. More & more veins are popping above the skin level in my forearms and there are a couple that should start to appear in my biceps. So that's pretty cool
Rode the stationary bike yesterday. Did 5 intervals. On my first three, I rode it at level 12 for ~35 seconds, standing up. Then down to level 8 sitting down for the remaining time. I didn't finish my 3rd interval that way; got to 45 seconds and went down to level 5 to recover. My last 2 intervals were levels 8/5 hi/lo. Then I did ss on level 5 (55rpm) until my workout lasted 35 minutes. I was tired.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
DM - there is NO WAY you are 30% (or even 29%) bf!!!!
I measure bf for a living, and trust me, you are low 20's at most... Not that you can't use your scale for trending, but for some reason I just noticed your number and... no way!!!
Yeah, I have no idea what it is! I don't really care that much, I just like watching the number go down from my point of reference (when I started exercising in January, it was 34.5%). I figure I'm probably around 25% body fat or so. Maybe +/- 2%. If Leah is 22%, I figure I'm a bit higher than her - she's leaner than I am.
Thanks for the positive comments - I should have clarified in my post that i know the number's likely off.
On another positive note, I ordered a summer cardigan online in a size M (from ann taylor loft) and when I got it, I was swimming in it. So I guess I know to order a size S from now on... which seems so weird to me. My brain says I'M TOO BIG TO BE A SMALL.... and VANITY SIZING IS OUT OF CONTROL! I tried on a M cardigan at Target yesterday & it was also too big.
It's nice to fit into an S but let's be realistic here... I can't possibly be a size S at 5'6" and 146 pounds. What on earth do people who are 5'4" and 120 pounds wear?!!
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
And, I agree with you....looking at Leah is a great way to judge since we know her BF is now accurate. I'm with you....I think we are both around 25-26%. I may be a bit higher.
I do hate Vanity sizing in some ways... but I have to admit it feels GOOD (kinda like when the scale is nice for no good reason)!
I tried on size 4 Levi shorts yesterday - because they only had 4 or 14's left (I usually wear a 6 and sometimes they are snug so I get mad ) and they were good/loose-ish fitting. Guess who bought 'em ! I'm such a sucker for vanity sizing, even when I KNOW it's vanity .
Hey, why not enjoy it even if I KNOW it's not necessarily accurate, right? If the scale can lie to me and make or break my day (even though I SHOULDN'T let it), why not let a bonus size 4 make me smile for a moment . I can still use my "real" clothes to measure progress...
If the scale can lie to me and make or break my day (even though I SHOULDN'T let it), why not let a bonus size 4 make me smile for a moment .
I'm going to remember this!
I ended up buying a cardigan at The Gap (this one: Shop clothes for women, men, maternity, baby, and kids at gap.com. | Gap in black) and bought it in a size small. The M was just a tad baggy on me around the back/torso and since the S fit JUST right, I went ahead & bought it. If it had been labeled a medium, I would have bought it; I shouldn't let the S tag make me think I'm buying something too small and am going to walk around with people thinking "OMG her top is WAY too small on her, who does she think she's fooling???"
They were everywhere! Everywhere I went & asked for a black cardigan, ALL the stores only had cropped ones. Now... can I tell you how stupid those look on a long torso? (about as stupid as the picture in the link above.) They make you look like you have a little girl's sweater on, they emphasize your belly, and make your hips look really long and big.
It's like the capris that go to the middle of the calf, the fattest part of your lower leg. They make your legs look big, emphasize your hips, and are not flattering at all.
It was super-cute and very summery - would have been great with the cardigan & sandals for work. BUT OH NO. The bodice was way too short, the boob-area ended on the underside of my breasts (on the slope, not underneath them) and the waistline was way too high and the skirt ended about 4" above my knees. It was obviously way too short... kind of sad about that as it was really cute. And now that my stomach doesn't fold over into rolls when I sit down, I feel comfortable wearing dresses. The downside is that they're so expensive....
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
I can't wear ANY of those shirts that have a defined bottom-of-the-boobs area (as I am 5'2" with an over-abundance of boobage)... I either fall out the top trying to pull it down, or it hits mid-boob and looks ridiculous.
Funny thing is when I was at the mall, I saw quite a few women wearing those tops - with them fitting horribly - boob part ending halfway across their boobs, etc... did they even look in a mirror? Hmmmmm...
My little experiment: I weighed myself this morning to see what my stats are after drinking, vs tomorrow morning when I haven't had anything to drink & ate healthy food. I was 147.6 this morning (vs 146 last sunday) and 29.5% body fat. I can't remember if I've ever been below 30% bf on the scale in the morning, so we'll see if it's still there tomorrow.
Ta-daaa! I weighed in at 146.6 and 29.5% body fat. I can tell my upper arms have less fat on them (YESS!! FINALLY!!) so I know I've been losing fat. I don't care about the weight gain. Half a pound is so variable, it could be gone tomorrow and back the next day. Eventually I'd like to be down to around 140, but i'm not in a hurry anymore.
So, according to my scale, I've decreased my body fat % by 5 whole points since the beginning of the year. Hurrah!
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
I can't wear ANY of those shirts that have a defined bottom-of-the-boobs area (as I am 5'2" with an over-abundance of boobage)... I either fall out the top trying to pull it down, or it hits mid-boob and looks ridiculous.
I hear you. It's hard to find shirts that criss-cross in the front AND fit boob-wise. I have a really cute top that I've owned for years that does that and I don't fill it out anymore I got it at Ann Taylor and like to wear it to work but now the top of it is saggy and it looks ridiculous.
I'm excited, though, that now my breasts are small & perky enough for me to be able to wear shirts that have shelf bras in them! I had a dividend from REI and spent some of it on this top: Life is good Tech Harmony Tank - Women's - '07 Closeout from REI-OUTLET.com I bought it in the chocolate color. I LOVE tank tops & could live in them all summer long if work didn't have a ban on them. I also got the Shiny Toy Guns tank that missjane recommended. With the 2 tanks I bought at the gap a few weeks ago, I'm all set for the summer. Yay! Maybe if I have guts enough, when the swimmies go on clearance mid-summer, I'll buy myself a couple of cute bikini tops & wear them as shirts on the weekend when I do yardwork, etc.
Today I'm going to take all of my "too big for me now" clothes & put them in a tote for storage. I have a bunch of (nice) work slacks that are several inches too big in the waist that look stupid when I wear them (saggy crotch, anyone?). Into the tote they go. Hopefully several years will pass and I still won't be able to wear them and I'll decide to give them away. But I don't want to give them away yet... just in case.
I probably should anyway, as a decisive vow to myself never to be that fat around my waist again. For some reason, I still don't feel confident enough that I'll never again be 155 and 30% body fat. I should, though. This is supposed to be a life-long thing, taking care of my health and fitness...
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Chants "Throw them out, throw them out!" I do the same thing and hang onto clothes, except the opposite. I have too many that I refuse to throw away, for that magical time when I "have lost weight".
The last rep in each of those last two sets almost made it all the way up to the top, but didn't quite get there all the way. Next time!
Good Morning (instead of back extension)
2x8x100
My last 2 reps were pretty lame on these so I'll probably be at 100 for a while
Reverse Crunch
2x10
And now, for the grand finale (drum roll please....) I finished my workout with a full chin-up!!
It was very exciting. I wanted to see if I could, just to see, so I hopped up onto the bar, hung there for a few seconds, legs dangling, and pulled.... and pulled.... I stopped when my nose was about level with the bar and I thought, "I can't stop now!!" so I kept pulling, and got my chin well over that bar.
That was the highlight of my week so far.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
It was very exciting. I wanted to see if I could, just to see, so I hopped up onto the bar, hung there for a few seconds, legs dangling, and pulled.... and pulled.... I stopped when my nose was about level with the bar and I thought, "I can't stop now!!" so I kept pulling, and got my chin well over that bar.
I was telling a coworker of mine about it, that I was so excited, and that it reminded me of those stupid Presidential Fitness tests we had to do, and the girls had to hold their chins above the bar for as long as they could. I always got the worst time in my class and this felt like retribution. I really am sloughing off this old persona that has entrapped me for years & years. I'm not fat, I'm not weak, and I'm not a pussy.
Gaining strength really is liberating.
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Wow DM! Nice work on the chin up. It is also my goal to get one in stage 6. I totally remember the presidential fitness test. In a strange coincidence, my DH and I both never got the award because of the flexed arm hang/chin up. We were awesome at everything else. Man I hated hanging on that bar while the whole class stood there and stared at you.
Re: beer. For better or worse, about two weeks ago a cute little specialty beer shop opened oh about 3 blocks from my house. (Conveniently located next to one of the best thai food places of all time) We stopped in last weekend and it was great! Tons of microbrews, belgians, local specialties, etc. Why now small beer shop owner? Why must you taunt me with your cute shop?
Tons of microbrews, belgians, local specialties, etc. Why now small beer shop owner? Why must you taunt me with your cute shop?
That made me LOL - that'd be torture, knowing that some wonderful beers were in such close proximity. Whereabouts do you live (city)?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bytsi
That should be your new signature quote
Done.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stingo
I'd say a full chin-up deserves a beer. Congrats.
I wholeheartedly agree! Our company picnic is today (at an amusement park!!) and I'm sure there'll be beer. I think the meal (dinner) is BBQ too, so I'm going to be in heaven - rollercoasters, beer, and BBQ. AND a go-cart derby in the evening. KICKASS. Hopefully the rain will subside... it's stormy outside this morning
__________________
"If 'toning' is the goal, strength is the method." ~ Mark Rippetoe
Well I'm not sure if you get Lancaster Brewing's beers out there, but if you see their Milk Stout, give it a try. I put a sixtel of it on tap last Saturday and it's delicious.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
You've helped me feel more confident that a weight loss plan that includes beer can still be effective. After reading TNT & Precision Nutrition they've just got me so down on alcohol. I've missed good beer, damn it. It makes me happy. 
! I'm such a sucker for vanity sizing, even when I KNOW it's vanity 
.
Linear Mode
