Lean Bodies - Noel Clark

Yes, we all have them.  Tomorrow starts a new year, and if you are like me…you have a list of things that you want to accomplish.  If you haven’t started one-you should.  Writing your goals down on paper is the first step in achieving what you desire.  It makes them concrete and you accountable.  Also, tell others of what you are going for this next year.  Get your friends and family involved-it is always good to have support from those that love you.  And if you have to, make mini goals to hit along the way to the big goal that you may set for yourself. 

 If you are looking to get fit this year, like so many others, remember–consistency is key.  Start a program–stay with it.  Clean up your eating–stay with it.  If you are struggling to put together your own program or are unsure about your nutrition here are two great places to look for advice:

1. http://www.leanbodiesconsulting.com/free-report-fat-loss-signup.html  This is the link to the top 10 Not-So-Obvious Fat Loss Mistakes.  This has really great information to help you achieve your fat loss resolution.

2. Go visit www.leanbodiesfitness.com  This is a training and nutrition forum for those that are beginning their journey to a leaner body as well as those that are old pros in the gym.  You can ask questions and get solid information on ways to change your physique.

I HOPE EVERYONE HAS A HAPPY AND SAFE NEW YEAR!!!

1. You carry the laundry basket up and down the stairs ONE TIME and are winded
2. You are driving in the car and feel your ‘excess’ spilling over your pants LOL
3. You find that 1/2 cup oatmeal just doesn’t seem like much after having whole cup during your bulk
4. The only jeans you can fit into are your ‘big girl jeans’ that you meant to throw out.

These are just being used as motivation for me to stick tight to my plan to drop the fat from this bulk. I know that I have made some great gains during this process and now it is time to see them

I spent the weekend at my In-laws house and let me paint a picture for everyone. Plates of fudge, peanut brittle, Christmas cookies, divinity, spiced pecans, pie, casseroles, cinnamon bread, cranberry bread and so many other deliciously homemade foods. Oh, the smells :). Why do we do this to ourselves? All of the holidays with my family are surrounded by this type of eating. Comfort food. Food that reminds me of family and friends and special gatherings. You almost feel bad not eating it. And heaven forbid, if you pass it up…you get looks like ‘What is wrong with you?’ To me this is one of the most difficult mindsets to break. That you are not enjoying the holiday without stuffing yourself with this food. I mean really, it is only once a year…(wait..Jan/Newyears, April/Easter, Birthdays, Oct/Halloween, Weddings, Nov/Thanksgiving, Dec/Christmas) that seems to add up to more than once a year. I think that it is possible to enjoy these holidays as well as these foods, but the change will have to be this all or nothing mentality that we need to break. No, I am not saying that you should not have Christmas dinner with your family, BUT I am saying that you should not eat the entire plate of fudge. I think Erik also said this as well, but plan this into your meals and don’t make this a pig fest that you end up hating yourself for putting on those excess holiday pounds.

I hope everyone enjoys their holidays

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

Well, I have finished off my bulk for the season this past weekend.  It was an overall ‘interesting’ experience.  It had it’s ups and downs.  I absolutely loved lifting heavy.  It was a challenge every week and extremely exciting to surpass my goals and expectations during this process.  Yes, it was very hard for me, but I did it. And now it is time to strip away the fat and see if all of my efforts were rewarded with some new found muscle.  My hope is that I added some much needed depth to my back and most importantly–some triceps :)  i put on about 17lbs (I think lol)  Those that know me, know that doing that was incredibley difficult for me. 

Here were some of my goals

Deadlift–Started at 215lbs and my goal was 315.  This past weekend I hit 335

Deadlift 335

Push Press

Started at 95lb and was shooting for 135.  I ended up hitting 150

Rack deadlifts

went from 245 to 350

Decline chest press

130 to 195

Dips

went from unassisted 2 (lol) to 18

Box squats up to 205

Increased my close grip tricep by 50lbs

increased my Reverse grip tricep 40lbs

These are just some of the highlights.  I look foward to seeing what is underneath

I have been getting all the downloads from the twelve days of Christmas that I blogged about the other day.  The one that Erik did was really good, if you haven’t had a chance to get it you should.  Great tips, a lot of it I think most people completely overlook while dieting.

Here is the link if you want to sign up for it.

http://www.leanbodiesconsulting.com/free-report-fat-loss-signup.html

I’m not sure whether or not you’ve already heard about this (there’s a lot of buzz going around already) but I just thought I’d let you know about the 12 days of fitness gift-giving that I’ve just signed up for.

It’s been put together by Dax Moy and Pat Rigsby who have somehow managed to persuade 250 of the world’s leading fitness experts to part with literally hundreds of video’s, audios, e-books and special reports related to just about every aspect of health and fitness you could imagine.

And it’s free!

There’s nothing to pay at all and there’s no catch whatsoever. Just sign up for the gifts at The 12 Days of Fitness and the gifts will start flowing from 10th December for a full 12 days.

I’m telling everyone I know so make sure you get on over there and do the same.

Happy holidays.

Workout was a great one.  I felt really strong.  My shoulder press went up :) What I struggled with while I was up in Canada, was a cake walk today. My tricep numbers jumped 20lbs.  But the best part of it all is that my calories are coming back down.  LOLOL  Might not seem good to most but I am really OVER this bulking thing.  Yes, it has been a blast in gym, lifting heavy and hitting great PRs, but I am ready to start getting into shape and looking fit.  Enough of the sausage arms and thick waist.  Bring on the diet

Still going up which is good. My working set of CDLs went up from 265 to 275 for 6 and then from 200 for 10 to 225 for 10. Those last few reps really killed me though. You would have thought I had just run a marathon. Makes me think of how HORRIBLE it is going to be to get back into really good cardiovascular shape again. UGH.

Lots of plans in the works for fitness related stuff going on in my life. I hope to be able to blog about some of those soon. I am talking to my girls’ school about meeting with the teachers there and getting something started for them. The more I talk to women, the more frustrated I get by all of the weight lifting and nutritional myths that they still hang on to. I really want to be able to re-educate them and hopefully get some of them to feel more comfortable in the gym. So many have come up to me expressing both embarrassment and concern about actually using the free weights in the gym. I also want so badly to show them that hours and hours of cardio is just NOT the answer for losing weight.

I have been talking to a lot of other girls that are bulking or are about to do a bulk. I have been thinking about how this would have gone if I had not had someone to kind of keep track of me or just to even bounce stuff off of that has seen and been through this as well. I am not sure that I could do a bulk on my own (heck I am not sure if I could do a bulk again ) I have needed a trainer/coach to say-is this too much weight? Are we at a point where I can diet? do you think that I have put on some size other than just nasty fat? I think that if I was doing it on my own the bulk would have lasted 2 weeks LOL. Point being, if you have the opportunity to work with someone during something like this, I would HIGHLY recommend it. The reassurance is priceless.