Moving forward

Often after lifting I go to sleep easily but don't stay there, and that was the case last night and this morning. As I was up at 5am, I decided to take 6am Spin. It was cooler outside then in, for the first time in six months or so YAY! That was fine, I came home and was able to get a few hours of sleep as work was slow.

Tomorrow I will warm up with the one mile walk/ run. 4mph on the walking minutes and 5.1 for the running. It was strangely fun and more interesting then rowing or elliptical. If my shoulder starts to bug I will add five mins of rowing back, it helps.

With squats I'll warm up with sets of five to work sets of 3x3x 120. Dumbbell bench press with the 30 lb dumbbells, 3x6x 30, then one-handed 3x6x 30. Power cleans, 5x3x 65 and then possible 2x5x 95 Romanian deadlifts.

Recovery: Aiming for yoga tomorrow morning, home behaving myself tonight and tomorrow night, Rest day Friday.

Jumping!

Last night i took a mixed cardio/ weights class mostly as a chance to socialize with one of my gym buddies who hasn't been around in a while. Being aware of the idea that training with weights, especially barbells, makes one heavy and slow, I didn't know what to expect. Well, I did have an idea, so for the weights part of the class I choose the heaviest dumbbells offered, 7 and 8 lbs (the 7 lb ones were purple too!) and our multi-rep sets were not a problem. The surprise was during cardio. I was jumping, effortlessly and high, it seriously felt like i could do that all day, and this was after taking a Spin class immediately before. Love using Spin as a warmup. It was amazing. There was even the little exercise girl in the front doing everything just so, who ended up gassing out ha-ha-ha. To give an idea, I sport D-cups, so not the body type one expects to have an easy time leaping about but there you go.

Next training session tonight or tomorrow will be jump squats (my new best friend) 1x10xbar, 2x8x55, 2x8x60. Overhead press, going for 65lbs here, 3x5x65. Power cleans 3x5x80.

I just had to do it.

Even though yesterday was a scheduled light squat day, I had to try and go for 105. It went 3x3x105, 2x4x105 being spotted. The spot didn't work out so well, I get too distracted, but the squats were good if not numerous and I plan to fix that next heavy squat day. Tomorrow, I will jump squat 1x10xbar, 3x10x55. Bench 3x5x75, dumbell bench 30lb DBs 3x4, one-hand DBs 3x5x25. Then deadlift 1x5x145. This will be Weds night which means I will take the abs/core class first.
Other then that, the gym has been fun. I met two new people, a guy named Danny who's teenage daughters come in a goof around, but not for too long, and a huge Russian named Ben who looks like he knows what he is doing. Wish I was better at understanding accents. Spending time with my niece has given me the ability to have decent conversations with 5 year olds, so maybe I will get used to the accent in a similar way via repeated exposure.

Also, a lady who I often see at Spin class mentioned that she wasn't getting the results she wanted from Spinning, so I invited her to lift with me afterward. About my height and somewhat softer, medium build, I thought she would love the results in a couple of months. Well, she took one look at the squat rack and barbell, stammered something about not being able to do it and practically ran out of the place. So much for my potential partner. Sheesh, I told her we would start with just the bar, there is even a lighter bar that I used when starting. That was kind of weird. Oh well.

So, tomorrow, abs, jump squats, bench, and deads. Today, Spin.

Up all night= poofy tummy

So there is something to this whole 'taking care of yourself' thing. Yesterday was highly unusual, I wasn't hungry! Ok, there was a breakfast steak involved that probably had a lot to do with it, but for the rest of the day I just didn't feel like eating. That could wait until later. However, I was visiting my sister and sick niece and about 7:30 the little one took a turn for the worse. Her breathing was so heavy, fast and labored. It was the way one breathes after a particularly hard sprint interval- but did not get better. My sister and I agreed she needed to go to the hospital. Ahh the hospital. It is a good one and they saw us right away, but even with attentive care we were there until 12:30am. The important thing is we left with a little girl who was breathing clearly.

The unimportant thing was that I did not eat or drink anything after the big breakfast for the rest of the day, which ironically resulted in a huge bloated belly. Sometimes I think winning the body game is impossible- Hello! No food and my belly is BIGGER!?!? Anyway, after a couple of bottles of water and 4 oz of ham- half pita I felt more normal and after a while went to bed.

Now, today I am scheduled to train, squat, bench, dead. I hope this won't be a wasted workout. Edited to addGood workout, Squatted 80 lbs on my last set and held form. Deadlifted 100 lbs for a full set. After that my right shoulder blade was feeling a little wonky so I pulled back on bench press weight to 65 lbs, can't have everything and I read (or skimmed) Rippetoe's in-depth analysis on deadlifts. According to him, one's lats esp near the shoulderblades are used hardcore on the deadlift so it makes sense I would feel it there after working the deads harder then usual. Also, today they were real deads, not pulls.

Endorphins!

Insomnia has been stalking me lately- but I laugh in it's face and just rearrange my schedule- Ha Ha! Being up before the alarm has its advantages, making it to three 6am Spin classes is one (three?) of them. Since Spinning had become relatively easy for me, I decided to treat it as the warm-up before lifting. This time, I brought an extra T-shirt for modesty. The early cardio shook the cobwebs out of my sleep-deprived mind and got the blood flowing enough for a solid finish to my first week of lifting on the Starting Strength program.

Today was squats, bench, dead. Squats are solid at 65 lbs, all the reps on the program are 5 rep sets after a warm-up set or two. Bench was also 65, and deads/ pulls are 95- going for 100 or more next week. I can't wait to have all three at 135- that's the big girl plates. However, I will wait, or take my time at least as being smart with progression will avoid injuries caused by pushing too fast. The exercise high afterward is a great surprise when it comes too.

Fashion! Remember me scoffing at the six item only clothing diet? Well Jean Chatsky the money gal from the Today show did it for the past 60 days, and guess what? She did tons of laundry. I get wanting to slow one's consumption down, as a person who regularly goes thru her closet to purge, I see exactly what I wasted money on on a regular basis. That said, doing that much laundry wastes resources too, especially when one already has a closet stocked with more then six items. A buying freeze for a year or at least a season makes a lot more sense to me. Shopping is therapy though, so here are six items on my fantasy Amazon shopping trip. What are yours?

Nothing is happening! Oh yes it is.

Hey, well I know there are physical differences being brought about by consistent training but some people who know what I am doing are unimpressed by my progress. If the gadget on the infomercial caused those ladies to lose 10 pounds and 12 inches in one week why don't I get one of those instead of all this weightlifting and cardio. First of all, that infomercial is bullshit. Secondly, this. Stuff is happening, more dramatic stuff then the less fat arms and more pronounced collarbone, not that both of those things aren't awesome. So don't worry about me, I'm having a blast and getting truly healthier by the day. I love that Advanced Spin Class is now what my 'easy' work-out day consists of :-)
Back to the weights next week and the new program is going to consist of three major compound lifts (four or five sets) per session. That squat rack better be ready.

4am blog post

Sleeping through the night seemed like a strong possibility earlier but it didn't happen. It is raining alot which is nice (being inside and all) and the little cat is sleeping on the floor here keeping me company. Deload week has started! I didn't work out at all this past weekend, and in the boot-camp class today, instead of being pleasantly rested and stronger then ever, I was dragging. That is okay tho, gave it the best I had. Progressing to real push-ups is on the list, today one of the class members had her gym bag on the floor in such a way that I didn't have room to stretch out fully to even try to full-length push-ups, and when I relocated to where there was space we were done by the time I started. She is such a sour-puss too, ugh. So that class begins with 12 high intensity intervals interspersed by explosive movements and push-ups, and the second half is circuit training. My quads were shot out after the first half and I suspect running on an incline is to blame but hopefully they are recovering to be stronger.
In my quest for uninterupted sleep, I put cat-food in each bowl right before going to bed (the first time). Just before I began writing this Spooky stretched and wandered out of the room. How much do I want to bet that he is currently eating all of that food and both cats are going to wake me up at 5am to feed them again anyway?

Week Four

Starting the last week in my first cycle of lifting like a guy. So far, absolutely no bulky muscles. My arms have leaned out a bit, still bigger then I would like but the roundness to them is gone which is good. Posture is better, and my legs, which had some weird sagginess happening above my knees, are back to looking normal and toned. My lower back is stronger too, now I can Spin with perfect form throughout the whole class- meaning all legs no hips bouncing. It's hard to explain if you haven't done it. Also, I ran an interval at 8 miles per hour Saturday in the Ultimate Fitness class- personal best!

I'm looking forward to the deload week. That is very little lifting, just the weights in the Ultimate Challenge class, and lots of cardio. Then I'm going to pick a different program of lifting, so far it is between Rippetoes Starting Strength or the one laid out in the New Rules of Lifting. I have two weeks to decide on that. This week I am focusing on improving my form on bench presses and squats with the goal of a 95 lb deadlift to top off the week.

Breaking the rules!

Yep, I did what is warned about repeatedly on the bodybuilder forum. I 'tweaked' my routine. The routine I selected is a basic four day split, two upper body and two lower. The thing is, two of the routines could be combined to make a full-body without sacrificing exercises, making it a three day a week split, which is easier to manage. So, instead of splitting up deadlift and pull-up days, I'm doing them in the same workout. Speaking of pull-ups, they are hard! With the assist machine I am pulling up between 65 and 70 pounds, which is a lot less then my weight. On the other hand, that is also what I am deadlifting, so maybe I'm not as unbalanced as it seems. So, the tweaked day starts with the biggest muscle groups, deadlifts, leg press, then pull-ups and dips, then abs and lower back. More good deadlift news- no back issues!

Went to the mall today and happily discovered the various versions of Pink fragrance are on sale for $20.00. I found on not too flowery one, Hope, and now have a pretty brand new perfume on. I also hit Dillards for a new pair of Crocs, but the newer ones don't seem to be as well-made as they were before, so passed on those and visited Rack Room shoes. Here I found a pair of Adidas flip-flops that fit well and look good, $19.00 so sold to the lady in blue.

Getting toned and no soreness today!

Last week when I did squats and straight-legged deadlifts w/ the barbell I was sore as hell for days afterward, which did not make me all eager to repeat the experience. Hang out on the bodybuilder forums long enough and you will read how vital squats and deads are to overall strength, and my desire to become stronger combined with that of not spending all day in the gym working every isolated muscle and there I was again, in the squat rack. Careful with form and using light weights, today my hamstrings feel strong but no pain, so yay! Today I am taking a break day from lifting and taking an interval treadmill class which will be challenging as running is not my thing. High intensity interval training is the way to go from what I read, so there I will be.

Enough with the exercise, lets talk food. Last week or so I re-discovered resealable bags of frozen salmon and scallops at the store and picked up one of each. Best purchase ever! I shoved the scallops in the back of the freezer, not sure what to do with them, and used the salmon fillets as an alternative protein source whenever I just couldn't face another can of tune. Scallops, I discovered, are great for breakfast. I have added a half-cup to an omelet and today, faced with a pretty bare refrigerator, found the last of the bag of scallops, cooked them in a saute pan with some already-cooked bacon (another great thing) and the last of a bag of spinach. I cut a plum tomato and put half a slice of chedder cheese in half of a whole-wheat pita along with the sauteed scallops, bacon and spinach- and damn that was a yummy breakfast.

Week two of lifting weights

Today I deadlifted and discovered that I am not very strong. I put 50 lbs on the barbell at first thinking that 95 lbs should be an easy lift, umm no, did that about two poorly formed times and went down in weights each set after that. The right side of my lower back feels like, hmm something is different here, but not too drastically bad. Here is hoping it stays that way or better, this evening I plan to take the late Spin class to rev up my circulation and also because it's been a while and the instructor is good. My other fav instructor teaches at 6am tomorrow so plan to take that one too and see how it goes as far as lifting. My biceps are feeling pumped today so tomorrow may be an off day as far as lifting goes. Another decision as far as the schedule goes, is instead of doing two weeks focusing on weights and two on cardio is now the plan calls for four weights focusing on weights and one on cardio. This is based on information I've read on muscle growth and the time it actually takes. Also, since I like cardio it isn't hard for me to want to do it on my off days or later in the day after lifting.

So, at the beginning of week 2 lifting, this wek and two more to go then cardio week- that will feel like a vacation! Look what I found on Youtube, ok now I have to get strong.

Dang those weights were heavy!

After taking three days off from working out- which, along with a birthday party featuring awesome food and cake made me feel pretty pudgy today, it was time to start Phase II, weightlifting. Holy Moly that was a hard workout. I did ten minutes on the rowing machine to warm up my upper body and then there were only six exercises on the workout I got from Bodybuilders.com. So, I thought it would be easy. Well, six exercises involving 4 sets of each is a lot. The workout started with compound exercises, bench press and bent-over rows. I started with a warm-up set using just the barbell; it weighs 45 lbs. Then progressed 5 pounds each set by set up to 75 pounds. The rows are supposed to be barbell rows but I wasn't sure where to do them so I used dumbbells instead, starting with 15 pounds and going up to 25- but not able to complete 8 reps. By the time I got to the last two exercises on the list- tricep presses and bicep curls I was weak- but I did as many as I could and worked to failure. 'Failure' is good in strength terms, you have to go there to gain any. Once home I could barely lift my arms to wash my hair in the shower. Plan for tomorrow- Spin in the am, then lift for lower body.

Fitness, anyone?

Here is a little secret about me. I don't like Summer. Yes I realize that makes me practically inhuman but cool weather and wind make me feel alive in every cell. Hot humid days do the opposite. That said, it's deep in the summer now and I needed a project. When the shorts I pulled out of the bedroom drawer were a good three inches from meeting at the waist the project was clear. It is time to get in shape. I get the magazines and pay attention to the latest fitness news, for example, the recent news that middle-aged women need to exercise for an hour a day to prevent obesity. Simple enough right?

Nope, browse through some more fitness websites and they say that much steady exercise will just leave you at a minimal level of fitness and bursts of high-intensity cardio and strength-training make a person fit. One thing most agreed on is that one cannot effectively burn fat and build muscle at the same time. Exactly what I want to do. Bummer!

Here is the program. Two weeks focusing on cardio, sometimes two sessions a day including high-intensity interval training and bodyweight exercises in order to blast as much fat during the exercise sessions as possible. Also, some research indicates that high-intensity interval training causes the body to continue burning fat after the workout. Probably while you are sitting quietly after the shower trying to get back to feelin normal in my experience. Then two weeks focusing on strength-training and including at least three cardio sessions weekly in order to build more muscle to boost the metabolism and stay as vital as possible. I plan to be one of those active old people.

It is the end of the first two cardio weeks and I am so glad! Who would have thought I would be itching to pick up something heavy and actually a little over the Spin room? Now I just have to decide when to start lifting, over the weekend or wait until Monday. Also- the shorts button, not totally comfortably yet but three pounds later gives me hope. After cycling through twice, two months, it will be time to re-evaluate and possibly tweak the program. Now, what is your Summer project?

Are two blogs better then one?

In this case, not really. I opted to allow Google to put ads on the new blog only to discover that I had this one (forgotten I admit). So, this is the blog that I will focus on using in my networking experiment. In other news, my Adsense account had $0.00 in it! Jeez, even with only the one blog entry you would think someone would click on a link or two. Ah well we will see how it goes with regular postings, the kind I am always nagging clients to keep up with, and Twitter should help too.

   After two days inside in front of the computer I took a much needed break to take a run thru the park today and even though I wasn't the most enthusiastic about it at first, once in the cool sunny air it was amazing. After three miles up and downhill I didn't even feel too guilty about the yummy brownie afterwards. Note to myself and everyone- get away from the computer and try to go outside for a while every day. Life needs to be well-rounded and the new study that says women need an hour of exercise  Exercise study link to maintain our weight without dieting is probably, and unfortunately, right on.