Operation Look Like A Goddess

[ledove]

Originally Posted by stingo

I think it says in NROL4W that women go all out in the gym (no strangers to tough workouts), just that the work is usually cardio-only.

I think once women know what all-out is and that they can do it, then they'll do it. But I pass the gym on the way to TKD and can see the girls on the cardio machines. I'd be surprised if any of them ever broke a sweat. Or perspired. Or glistened. Or whatever it is other women do. I sweat.

We scare a lot of girls in the beginning of TKD when we show them how to do pushups on their knuckles. Knee pushups aren't allowed. Once they get past the thought of the pain and get in a few practice sessions, they're great and usually adapt quicker than the boys. They're also usually hesitant when we start sparring, but they get over that rather quickly, too.

Originally Posted by missjane

I have found the myo-tape measuring tape to really help with accuracy in measurements. Check it out!

Oo, fun gadgets! That would also fix the awkwardness of trying to measure my own arms, which for some reason I can never do gracefully--or in a single try.

[DirtyMartini]

Originally Posted by ledove

Yes, 2A1 is brutal. It looks so innocent on paper. And everyone says "B" is the beast? Oh, fun!

yeah, I'm brushing up on the exercises right now to remember how to do them and my glutes are saying OH NO YOU DON'T reading about the bulgarian split squat and reverse lunge. I'm excited about the cuban snatch though :p

I love that we're all so excited about brutal workouts.

Me too. Actually kind of makes me wish I had a group of "fitness friends" here in the area...

[ledove]

At TKD last night, I was talking to one of the guys who lifts a lot. We had talked about NROLFW a few weeks ago; he was at first surprised that I was so enthusiastic about heavy weights, squats, & deads because most girls aren't, but he did agree that those are the best things to do for girls, too.

So last night I was telling him about the Front Squat/Push Press and how much fun it was and how sore I was from it and that I loved these. (He's done them and agreed that they're great.) Then he told me that those type of lifts--anything Olympic-related, really--is not allowed in the university gym. Nothing with an overhead lift component or anything with a clean or snatch component is allowed.

I guess I can understand. There's a greater chance of idiots trying to show off and hurting themselves. (I nearly threw my bar at the ceiling a couple of times on Monday.) He said he's been in that gym, and that it's mostly guys showing off with weights and not actually working out.

(Last night when I walked by, there must have been something riveting on the TVs: no one--guys, girls, no one--was moving faster than 1mph on any cardio equipment. I was walking faster than their legs were moving. One guy was just sitting on the bike, not peddling, and staring at the TV.)

But now I'm really glad I bought my power rack and can do everything at home. I nearly skipped the rack to go to that gym. That would have been bad.

I'm excited about the cuban snatch though

I told the guy at TKD about these, too, and he said that the shoulder rotation makes these brutal. We also talked about BSS. He said they used to do them at the end of a workout as a finisher. Ow!

[MuscleMom23]

Is there someone AT the university gym at all time in authority? Maybe they won't allow it because there is no one there to supervise?

That's a bummer about the lifts, but I can see young guys doing that.

[ledove]

Originally Posted by ledove

...he was at first surprised that I was so enthusiastic about heavy weights, squats, & deads because most girls aren't, but he did agree that those are the best things to do for girls, too.

I just realized: he probably shouldn't have been so surprised that I'd like heavy weights--the girls in the TKD club aren't always the daintiest girls around. We like kicking butt and being buff and out-doing the guys.

Originally Posted by MuscleMom23

Is there someone AT the university gym at all time in authority? Maybe they won't allow it because there is no one there to supervise?

That's a bummer about the lifts, but I can see young guys doing that.

Probably not anyone there. I don't know that anyone there would know how to do it themselves. There are several gyms around town, and those lifts might be allowed there. Still, I'm glad that for now I can do everything I need to do at home. When I get up to needing more weights or equipment than I can reasonably get at home, then I might look in to going to one of the gyms.

There's a "Women in the Gym" seminar/something on flyers around that building. The subtitle is something like "We can do it, too." It's a girls-only night in the gym weight room, and it says they'll have trainers there to answer questions. (The picture is of a blurred out girl holding out a tiny pink dumbbell, though.)

Maybe I should stop by and ask about Olympic lifts. Or "Can you check my deadlift/squat form?" "So on these Bulgarian Split Squats..." "When doing Tabatas..." "What shoes should I get for lifting?" Poor trainers, they might not know what hit them...

(Only problem is it's the same night as Stage 2, A3, and I dunno that I'll be able to drive after that--and if they won't let me do my FSPP in the gym, then I'll get a late start on that workout.)

[MuscleMom23]

Originally Posted by ledove

Maybe I should stop by and ask about Olympic lifts. Or "Can you check my deadlift/squat form?" "So on these Bulgarian Split Squats..." "When doing Tabatas..." "What shoes should I get for lifting?" Poor trainers, they might not know what hit them...

LOL Your'e mean LOL! The trainers at my gym blink a bunch of times when I ask them things, but then they come around. It is like did SHE just ask me that?

[ledove]

Originally Posted by DirtyMartini

Me too. Actually kind of makes me wish I had a group of "fitness friends" here in the area...

All I have are friends who kick me in the head if I drop my guard. And my college roommate, now 3 hrs away, who I used to drag out running; now she loves to run and I don't. Doh. (I gave her a copy of NROLFW last weekend.)

Originally Posted by MuscleMom23

LOL Your'e mean LOL! The trainers at my gym blink a bunch of times when I ask them things, but then they come around. It is like did SHE just ask me that?

Hehe. I'm really starting to think about going--I can move my workouts around next week. And I'll have lots and lots of questions to make them blink

[ledove]

Stage 2, B1

Wide Grip DL*: (1x10x20lbs, 1x5x40lbs) 2x10x50lbs

*I don't have a box to stand on, but I have small plates. Bottom of the bar was at the top of my socks, so about 2 inches (max) from the top of my food. Definitely noticed the difference.

Bulgarian Split Squat*: 2x10xbw!
Underhand Pulldown: 2x10x50lbs

*What in the world is this thing?!! I started with weights and had to drop them every few reps--this is hard! (So, of course, in some bizarre way, I like them.) I finally ended up doing them in the power cage, resting my back foot on the safety bar on one side and using the upright bars on the other side to balance. Very focused on the working muscles and didn't use my arms except to prevent sideways falling.

Reverse Lunge + Reach*: 2x10x10-lb DBs
DB Cuban snatch**: 2x10x5-lb DBs

*At first, I couldn't figure out if this was working anything... And then I walked over to do the Cuban and my lats starting talking to me Wowzers. These things pack a punch, too.

**I'm glad I listened to everyone and used Barbie weights (except they're blue). It doesn't feel or seem like any big deal and then suddenly you can't lift 5 pounds...

Swiss Ball Crunch: 2x10x10lbs
Reverse Crunch: 2x10
Flexion #1: 2x10

All the single-leg movements (esp. the BSSes) put me behind on time, so I did each superset without any rest. The theme for this workout repeats: the flexion looks painless, and maybe it's just that you're tired after everything else, but oh my goodness! It looks like a Barbie move, but it's not easy by the end

Prone Cobra: 2x90s

HIIT: 3x(1m/2m), 1x(30s/2m)

Headed out right after the workout. Supposed to be x5, but I couldn't make it. I haven't run in a while, and definitely haven't sprinted for a looong time.

[ledove]

Oh, the foods from the last 3 days:

Today: 30% fat, 34.7% carbs, 35.3% protein
Tuesday: 37.8% fat, 22.6% carbs, 39.6% protein
Monday: 21.3% fat, 30.4% carbs, 48.2% protein

Today: Someone else's leftover pizza was involved.
Tuesday: The only protein for dinner was meatballs.
Monday: Didn't eat nearly enough foods, but couldn't eat any more than 1560 cals.

Okay, really sleepy now. Still need a shower. Ugh, that takes effort...

[ledove]

Stage2, A2

(Oops, forgot to post this on Friday or Sat.)

FSPP: (1x10xOH/bw, 1x10x20lbs) 1x8x40lbs, 1x5x35lbs, 1x5x30lbs, 1x2x30lbs*

Step Ups: 2x10x10lbs each
DB 1-pt Row: 1x10x20lbs each, 1x10x10lbs each

Static Lunge: 2x10x10lbs each
Pushups: 2x10

Plank: 2x60s
Woodchop (Swiss ball): 2x10x10lbs

*I think I was just being wimpy. I think I was anticipating the "thrust" part too much and not focusing on the front squat and holding too much weight on my wrists. Anyway, fix it next time.

[ledove]

Stage 2, B2

Meeting scheduled during my second snack Before 3 is too early, and it was supposed to be a short meeting. Nope, went extra long, an hour and a half. So running a little low.

Wide-grip Deadlift: (1x10x20lbs, 1x10x40lbs) 2x10x60lbs
BSS: 2x10x10-lb DBs*
Underhand Pulldowns: 1x8x60lbs, 1x2x50lbs; 1x5x55lb, 1x3x50lbs
Reverse Lunge + Reach: 2x10x10-lb DB
Cuban: 2x10x5-lb DB
Swiss Ball Crunch: 2x10x10lb (overhead)
Reverse Crunch: 2x10
Flexion #1: 2x10
Prone Cobra: 2x60s

HIIT: running: 1x(1min/2min), 1x(45s/2min)
Seriously, adding this after the workout is insane. But I have no other time to do it, really. I pushed on that second one, but at about 40s it was only a slow (painful) jog. Meh.

*(Finally added weight!) Also got a cramp in my left glute/upper hamstring (??) during the first set of these. Same thing I had in TKD a few weeks ago. Ow!!! There's no real good way to stretch that. Went a few seconds over on my rest trying to work it out, then just ignored it and went on. It finally worked itself out. Weirdness. I has it.

[ledove]

I have no energy for HIIT after Workout B. (It also didn't help that last night Spring went to bed early, and the weather was cold and windy.) So I don't think I'm really getting the benefit of it, except that I'm even more wiped out after sprinting down the street and back. All I get is "kick cough," that nasty hacking cough you get when you've been sucking wind too much. (We call it "kick cough" at TKD because it usually shows up right after sparring; everyone's coughing by the end of the night.)

I think I'm going to move the HIIT so it's not right after workout B. Either the next night (before TKD) or the next morning (Sat. morning). I would like to do the whole 15 minutes, at least. I feel like I could make it if I could rest a little first and maybe have an in-between shake, but it's nearly dark already by the time I finish lifting so there's no time to recover. Waiting would also mean I'm sprinting closer to bedtime, and I already have enough trouble falling asleep after workout B with the little HIIT I'm currently doing. So, moving it. (Oo, that means extra PWO shakes, right? Whee!)

[Kirjava]

Hey Leslie! I found that workout b was just too loooonnng for a good HITT session afterwards, so I have been doing them on alternate days. Even though I find it really hard to not do cardio when I go to the gym. It's like I feel a gravitational pull towards the cardio machines.....must....burn....c alories.

I don't think a HITT workout calls for a PWO shake, but I'd be happy to be corrected on that! I thought the shakes were for repairing the torn muscle fibres for lifting?

[MuscleMom23]

Originally Posted by Kirjava

Hey Leslie! I found that workout b was just too loooonnng for a good HITT session afterwards, so I have been doing them on alternate days. Even though I find it really hard to not do cardio when I go to the gym. It's like I feel a gravitational pull towards the cardio machines.....must....burn....c alories.

I don't think a HITT workout calls for a PWO shake, but I'd be happy to be corrected on that! I thought the shakes were for repairing the torn muscle fibres for lifting?

You know I don't think they said you can't do cardio, just that it wasn't needed in the amounts people used to think was necessary. Last month I was doing cardio between workouts.

Now that HIIT has come along, who wants a death wish ya know?

[Kirjava]

Originally Posted by MuscleMom23

You know I don't think they said you can't do cardio, just that it wasn't needed in the amounts people used to think was necessary. Last month I was doing cardio between workouts.

Now that HIIT has come along, who wants a death wish ya know?

Yes, I used to be a cardio drone so I'm having a hard time stepping it back a notch.
But HITT really slams me! I just still feel like I'm "cheating" being done my cardio in 20min!