Mama Said Knock You Out - Rixatrix's Training Log

[GinnyLou]

Looking good, girl!

I'm glad I have these forums and can talk to people with like minds.

Oh yeah! I totally agree. I am another one who would go with option 2, if I were you. I am also trying to lose fat, as well. I can relate. The HIIT I am doing, seems to be working. I guess I'll find out for sure when I measure this weekend.

Keep up the good work!

[rixatrix]

Workout B7 - 8x3
Deadlifts - 85/85/95* (up from 75!)
Shoulder press - 22.5s
WG Lat pulldown - 80/80/80**
Lunges (static - twisted my knee last time) - 17.5s
12 Hanging leg lifts, 2 sets rev. crunches (12, 15) My swiss ball was gone. =o(

I have a lot of stories from the gym today.

*I asked this volunteer trainer guy who helps people with exercises to help me with my deadlift. I've been doing "Stiff-legged deadlifts" aka Romanian deadlifts. I wanted to learn how to do a "regular" aka bent-knee deadlift. He showed me, but man, could that guy talk! Took him like fifteen minutes of blabbing. I'm a quick study. And generally hate authority, so even though I asked him to explain, I just sat there squirming while he treated me like a toddler. But now I know!

**This big, beefy biker-looking guy - you know the type...orange bandanna, barrel chest, super-baritone voice - saw me doing the wide-grip lat pulldowns, and asked me, "You're lifting 80 lbs? I train guys who can't lift that much." And I was just like, "Man, your boys need to beef it up." He was amused. He was all, "Good for you." And I was just like, "Thanks for noticing little ol' me." Because really, 80 lbs on a lat pulldown? That's nothing if I want to do a chin up. But score one for the women.

Also, all the swiss balls were mysteriously missing this morning. So I suffered through a set of hanging leg lifts, then decided I would puke up my banana if I kept up at that pace. No, I'm kidding. I'm sure my banana was long digested by then. I did a couple sets of reverse crunches, and man, could I feel em. But still, I was all excited with my 15lb dumbbell to do some more swiss ball crunches.

I'm feeling REALLY good despite not seeing the scale go down. Well, it is going down because I just started cutting calories this week. I dropped a couple pounds of water yesterday, which I'm thankful for. And it's a few days before my lady time, so I'm probably still holding water...which could mean that once this bloat clears out, I'll net a fat loss by the end of the week.

My postworkout shake is my new favorite thing. I'm using Strawberry Designer Whey. Yummy! Just like being a kid again. Only it keeps me from hobbling around like a jackass the day after weight lifting.

I've been drinking a lot of tea. I used to have a sugar-free vanilla latte every day...which isn't too bad, but that's 100 calories in milk I can easily replace with pretty much 0 calories in tea. And I'm not going to lie, I keep dark chocolate in my desk at work. But I still maintain a square a day after lunch (50 cals) is ten times better than having a sweet tooth that sabotages me later in the day. And yes, I can stick to a square a day. I divert with my stash of tea. Earl Grey Lavender. Mmm.

I'm so on an endorphin high right now.

[marygrace]

Wow, 80 lbs for the lat pulldown IS impressive! I can do 60, but my whole body starts twitching uncontrollably.

Dark chocolate is great to keep on hand if you can manage to not eat the entire bar at once. It's great that you reckognize everyone needs a little treat now and again.

[rixatrix]

Originally Posted by marygrace

Wow, 80 lbs for the lat pulldown IS impressive! I can do 60, but my whole body starts twitching uncontrollably.

Dark chocolate is great to keep on hand if you can manage to not eat the entire bar at once. It's great that you reckognize everyone needs a little treat now and again.

Well, gosh, thank you. =o)

I was just reading a bunch of articles at F-heit.com (following a link to a Rachel Cosgrove article) written by this one woman who bashes the chocolate, saying you can get your "antioxidants" elsewhere, and arguing that it's basically a gateway drug. And that if you want to lose body fat, you can't have that stuff lying around.

Well, I think it's crap. Mostly crap. I don't keep it at my house, because we ALL want something sweet at night or when we're bored in front of the TV. But at the office, it's tucked in a drawer, and when I get cranky or stressed or PMSsy or feel like I just need a very small treat, I'll break off a square at eat it. One square. And I've proven to myself I can stop at one square, at least at work.

And this small indulgence is part of life. I wouldn't want to live in a world where I can't trust myself with one square of chocolate. The small pleasures are what make life worth living. It's much easier to cut out the big things when you know you can have one small pleasure. And it makes you realize what other small pleasures you enjoy - for instance, since I've started lifting hard, I realize I love to take a long, super-hot shower right after. Very relaxing. Not so great for the environment, but I'm going to let myself have that indulgence too. Like I said, the little things keep you going when you've given up everything else for your goals.

[MuscleMom23]

OMG I bet that lady is no fun. No chocolate what? It's not like crack or anything. At least that dark is not. I can't have milk chocolate around.

I had a chocolate attack yesterday (TOM) and I could not eat more than 3 squares, it is like eh, I am done.

If it makes keeping on track easier? I say go for it! It's the best thing I did!

[stephanie932]

Originally Posted by rixatrix

And I'm not going to lie, I keep dark chocolate in my desk at work. But I still maintain a square a day after lunch (50 cals) is ten times better than having a sweet tooth that sabotages me later in the day. And yes, I can stick to a square a day. I divert with my stash of tea. Earl Grey Lavender. Mmm.

Your chocolate reminds me of me! I get my fix though by having one of those Fiber One chocolate oat bars. I love those things and I figure the 9g. of fiber gets me to my 25g. a day which is good. I get in my "tea moods" once in awhile but I'm a true coffee girl at heart.

I loved your "biker guy" story from today. That's so awesome! I also love seeing how strong you are getting. I think it's because I'm starting at almost the same spots you did......so, it sort of let's me gauge what's ahead!

Keep up the good work!

[rixatrix]

Originally Posted by stephanie932

I love those things and I figure the 9g. of fiber gets me to my 25g. a day which is good.

Oh goodness, I have to share this with SOMEONE - with the addition of my homemade chili for lunch this week (which is just lean turkey and black, kidney, and northern beans) I've been between 45-50 grams of fiber a day. Can you believe it?! It's nuts! (Yeah, I've been eating those, too.)

Every day I look at my meal tracking at the fiber line and I'm like, "Wow, that's a LOT of fiber."

[MuscleMom23]

IT IS a lot of fiber but easy to get if you eat right LOL! Need no fiber supps over here either LOL!

[rixatrix]

I planned to do HIIT today. Woke up this morning with bad cramps. Got up at my normal time for HIIT days (6am) and took an Excedrin, but by the time I started feeling human, it was too late to work out. No problem, I thought, I'll do them this afternoon. By 2:00 at work, my eyes were focusing funny and my head was pounding.

Did you know 75% of migraine sufferers are women? Can you guess why?

Despite a dumptruck's worth of drugs and enough water to fill all Great Lakes, my headache persists. I'll probably be in bed by 7:30. Hopefully tomorrow I'll wake up and feel fine...or it's TWO Excedrin before I hit the weights in the morning.

I've been eating great this week. Averaging 2200 calories on lifting days, just under 1800 on non-lifting days.

Just a moment ago, my super-sweet neighbor, Russell, brought me some homemade chocolate chip cookies. He's always baking, and sometimes he brings me some. I left him some Lucky Charms Treats last weekend, along with a recipe for pretzels he had asked for, so it was sweet of him to bring my tupperware back full of cookies.

Amazingly, despite this migraine headache, cramps and a general feeling of crankiness, I'm not at all tempted to dive into the cookies. My first thought was, "How sweet! I'll take these to work tomorrow."

There are PLENTY of strapping young men to absorb the calorie impact of these cookies - no need to take it out on my thighs! And it really is the thought that counts - Russell wanted to do something nice for me, and the gesture itself was more than enough.

I don't know if it's because I'm eating more than I usually would when trying to lose fat, or because my mind is in a good place in regards to my goals and behaviors, but I'm feeling really good about tucking those cookies away in the kitchen without a second thought. I grabbed my water bottle instead. And right now, I may help myself to that last 1/2 cup of fresh strawberries in the fridge.

[kfisherx]

I think it has to do with feeding your body properly (getting the right amounts of the right macros). My friend and I are also finding this to be true. None of us crave those high GI type of carb foods anymore. We get everything we need in our daily food supply and the cravings have all but stopped.

My team went to this bitch'n Mexican restaurant yesterday and I have to admit that the chips and salsa were calling to me but I held off. That was the first time though in ages that I had a craving at all. Then we brought in this big cake that looked really good but that wasn't too hard to resist. It is amazing how many opportunities we have to resist eating like crap.

[marygrace]

I don't know if it's because I'm eating more than I usually would when trying to lose fat, or because my mind is in a good place in regards to my goals and behaviors, but I'm feeling really good about tucking those cookies away in the kitchen without a second thought. I grabbed my water bottle instead. And right now, I may help myself to that last 1/2 cup of fresh strawberries in the fridge.

I feel similar. I feel like since I got on this program and really got my priorities in order, its easy to say no to junk. Before, I used to try to rationalize why I should have cookies or whatever after dinner, but now I'm of the mindset that there is no rationalization, and I'm not going to make any progress by lying to myself and saying that the cookies are okay. It probably also helps that even though I'm eating clean, I don't feel like I am restricted calorically. So if I'm still hungry after dinner, I'll have something that will help my body get stronger and healthier, and not feel bad about it. I still look forward to my weekly sweet treat, and since it is a once-weekly, planned thing, I don't feel the need to rationalize. All I have to do is enjoy it!

With all of that said, however, anyone who thinks one or two squares of chocolate a day is going to kill you needs to have some fun! Personally, I never approach chocolate as a means to get more antioxidants, that's what fruits and vegetables are for, it just tastes good!

[rixatrix]

Weigh-in:
This week - 189.6 @ 29% bf = 54.98 fat, 134.62 lean
Last week - 191.2 @ 29.6% bf = 56.60 fat, 134.60 lean

Jan 24th - 192.8 @ 32% bf = 61.5 fat, 131.3 lean

Change - This Week: -1.62 fat, +.02 lean
Change - TOTAL: -6.52 fat, + 3.32 lean

Whew. It's hard work crunching numbers.

These are not bad. They really aren't.
I just can't get pictures of me doing cartwheels down the beach in a little red bikini out of my head. Which means I'm going to have to keep tweaking.

Avg. Cals This Week - 2,015
Avg. Protein This Week - 147
Thanks, Fitday PC.

Workout A8! - 8x3 (Goodbye, Stage 1 Workout A!)
Squats - 85, 85, 90
Push ups - 8, 8, 8 - hands and toes (I'm getting lower...)
Seated Row - 85, 85, 85
Step Ups - 25/22.5 (first set, grip gave out.) Switched to higher step, did BW for two sets. Step came up to the top of my knee. Old step was mid-calf.
Reverse Crunch - 15, 15, 15

[dillytl]

Originally Posted by rixatrix

Weigh-in:
This week - 189.6 @ 29% bf = 54.98 fat, 134.62 lean
Last week - 191.2 @ 29.6% bf = 56.60 fat, 134.60 lean

Jan 24th - 192.8 @ 32% bf = 61.5 fat, 131.3 lean

Change - This Week: -1.62 fat, +.02 lean
Change - TOTAL: -6.52 fat, + 3.32 lean

Those are some great results!!!!!
NICE WORK!!!

[rixatrix]

Originally Posted by dillytl

Those are some great results!!!!!
NICE WORK!!!

Thank you! I sort of surprised myself with those numbers.

[MuscleMom23]

I always wondered about the volume of fat vs muscle. I have seen pics but I would really like to know. Like 5 lbs of fat is 16 cubic inches and Muscle is like 2 LOL! It would make the number crunching so much nicer...

OH BTW great job!