Lean Bodies - Noel Clark

This has become such a huge issue to me.  I sit and watch people in my gym that have the WORST form possible.  I have definitely learned that form can make a huge difference in your lifts.  Just last night, Elizabeth and I were riding the stationary bikes and just people watching.  I can’t even begin to tell you the things that we saw.  There was someone on the elliptical in front of us that was..I don’t even know if I can describe it…sort of dancing on the machine.  No she wasn’t listen to music and she stayed on that sucker for FOREVER.  We also saw this guy doing this row type thing and just slinging himself all over the place.  I sit there and wonder why.  Form is so very important and so few people (at least in my gym) are any good at it.  Not to mention all of the RETARDED advice “personal trainers” at some of these gyms give out.  I have been helping out my daughter’s teacher and she told me today about this guy at the gym that put her in this machine for triceps.  I asked her why she didn’t use the cables and she said that the trainer told her that was old school that this ‘machine’ was better.  So he got her in it and then she said it hurt her elbows Then another person told her that you should never squat all the way down-bad for your knees.  grrrr

Form matters…find someone that KNOWS and have them teach you.  I needed it and it has made a huge difference for me.

So I came off about a two break and am back in the gym hard and heavy. One of my concerns of dieting was that I would lose some strength but it turns out that my body needed a little bit of time to recover. I will say, training has been the most taxing that I have ever done so my body has definitely taken well to the change. I went back into the gym with a game plan yesterday and did Decline Hammer. I left off with this just before my break at 170 and hit a new PR of 190. This is great for me because chest has been one of my biggest weaknesses. A 20lb increase after time away was a great way to start. I also went up in my triceps exercise. The other lifts are new so I have nothing to compare them to. Then today I went in and hit some more PRs with my Rack deads as well as my bicep curls. I am curling 80lbs now. As for Racks, I did 315 for 6 (did 300 for 5 two weeks ago) and then hit 275 for 10 (previously 265). I was definitely spent leaving there today. Again, I got to add some new stuff which is always fun and great for a new challenge.

I have to say though, that I am looking very forward for the end of this year. I am tired of carrying this extra weight. I am ready to get lean again. It has been a blast lifting and I will make the most out of these last few weeks but welcome the time when I can actually look like I am in shape again

We had a great Thanksgiving. Yes, I stuffed myself. We have had a ton of fun here at the Lakehouse. I think we will be getting back on schedule now. Erik and I have been working on my plan. Not sure if I am going to go back up or not. Might try to get away eating around maintenance. I am not wanting to put all the weight back on We are still trying to figure it all out though. In the meantime we have been having fun in the gym, just trying to hit some PRs and doing some of the lifts that we like the most. We will be heading back to Atlanta today or tomorrow. The big Auburn vs Alabama game is tomorrow night and we made sure Laura and Erik have their Auburn gear They WILL be cheering with us…I think that Laura is going to be in shock LOL

HOPE EVERYONE HAD A GREAT TURKEY DAY

So I cut my diet a wee bit short LOL I took advantage of having Erik in town to hit the gym hard a little bit early. I ended up hitting a PR on push press of 150 I was worried that my lifts would take a hit while dieting but i guess not. I was also able to bench a plate (135lbs) for the first time. I do realize that it isn’t great especially since I can overhead press more I will just keeping working on it. I am excited to get back to lifting hard and heavy and the food isn’t too bad either. I could leave the fat gain though. I only have about 6 weeks to give it all I’ve got and I am going to try to make the most of this time.

Bring on the Turkey and Pie:)

So with Thanksgiving coming up next week, the baking started yesterday. I had to make my daughter’s class mini pumpkin pies and mini pumpkin loaves. 18 of each. I know that this is jus the beginning too because next is Christmas and I just tend to bake for gifts and for the girl’s classes. This is the difficult time for me, as I am guessing it is for many others, to stay on plan. And hearing someone say, well, just work it into your plan. Uh hello, like 1 piece of Christmas fudge or 2 pieces of Reese’s Peanut Butter Bark is going to cut it for me LOL. If I was going to ‘fit’ it into my plan I would have to cut out all other protein, carbs and fat It just doesn’t work for me that way. Erik, was telling me this time around (as apposed to last year) that I needed to not nibble as I bake. Now some people may be great at this but, this is hard LOL. Popping a few spiced pecans here, a pinch of Crack there, a taste of brownie–I mean this really starts to add up. I was talking to a friend yesterday and she was telling me how she was hungry and just was going to get a pinch of extra chicken. When she went to get it she thought…I want to measure it to see what this ‘pinch’ is and it turned out to be 1 oz lol … We laughed because this is exactly my point. 1 pinch here 1 pinch there and you have now blown your caloric deficit and are now eating at or above maintenance. That is why people tend to gain so much weight during the holidays. They think that little extra won’t hurt them, only it isn’t a little. So I am going to try to stay focused on not nibbling my way into this holiday season

I got my oats yesterday :)  They never tasted so good.  Eating a lot of carbs yesterday, I felt so tired, but it was nice to feel full.  Calories back down today and then for another 6 days after that.  I am doing higher rep stuff in the gym today, which never bothered me before, but now, well, not as much fun.  What I have really noticed is that my cardiovascular conditioning is not so hot.  I think that is going to be difficult to get back into when I start dieting at the beginning of the year.  I hate that feeling when you go running and you are just sucking wind.  I don’t look forward to that. 

Not that this is news to anyone, but going from a ton of calories to not very many–ouch. Lifts are still pretty strong but they take so much out of me. I am looking forward to tomorrow … oatmeal here I come. Then it is back down till Thanksgiving. I am hoping this will make me a bit more comfortable during my last phase of my bulk. I am trying to get an appointment with another ART doctor. My neck has really been bugging me and I know that I need to get this straight before lifting hard in the gym again.

First week of dieting down :)  I am officially hungry   I knew that I would be, but this week has been a great week and I am starting to feel a bit better.  Not like I am about to explode    Like I have said before I am dieting hard up until Thanksgiving and then back on till the first of the year.  I started to think today…oh no, what if after all this weight gain, what if i can’t take it all back off?  I was talking to Erik about it and he tried to remind me that we have done this before and we can do it again.  I guess just not being able to see any sign of my poor abs makes me wonder lol.  If I am brave enough…I will post some pics when I start to diet for my shows in january.  EEEEK that would be scary!

7 days of dieting..loss of 6 lbs….yes, water and glycogen, but hopefully a few good pounds of fat as well.

This is day four of the dieting off a bit of this fat I have put on from the bulk.   I am hoping that at the end of this 2 week diet that I will be ok with packing it all back on again   I feel really good, haven’t been hungry till today.  But I will have no trouble sticking to my diet.  :)  Had a pretty good workout today other than my benching…that did not make me too happy.  But my working sets for push press are at 125 which feels good.  I also did my RDLs at 225.  All in all it has been a pretty good 4 days-yes, i know, it has only been 4 days but I don’t think that I will struggle with this at all  

Here was my lovely experience at the gym yesterday.

I get to the gym yesterday and end up talking to one of the trainers that I actually like (she is a Bodybuilder-knows her stuff)  and we were talking about show prep and bulking and all that.  We discussed the mental aspect of all this and how bulking, for both of us, seems to be very difficult.  Now, as I have said in the past, my gym isn’t some hardcore bodybuilder’s gym.  We have very few women that even lift weights there and I don’t believe I have ever seen them use things like the cage for squats or deadlifts or any compound movements.  We then started talking about how people at the gym didn’t really get that: bulking vs dieting-thing.  She then tells me that someone in the gym asked her about me and why I was not in the same shape as before.  (ugh!) Of course she tried to explain, but seems like this guy didn’t get it.  He just assumed I was ‘letting myself go.’  Ok, so that conversation ends and I go to start my work-out.  Here is where it gets even better.  A guy is walking by me, who I have no idea who he is, and makes the crappiest comment.  He says to me “Seems like you haven’t been working out too hard lately (snicker snicker)  now you are no better than the rest of us.”     I was so floored I just stood there.  Now for those that know me well, know that I would not stand there and take that.  But, I had no come back.  I can’t believe the things that some people will actually say to someone else.  I sat there and just really was thinking about the things that had been said now about me.  I know that it shouldn’t bother me, but getting comments like those two are hard.  I know come next year when I lean back out and have made the gains that I worked so hard for during this bulk, I will be happy, but right now- not so much.