I move out next weekend. That’s another reason I’m not sure where I want to take my training. Big moves lead to big life style changes and what I want right now may not be what I want after a couple months out there. It’s a tough place right now where I have to decide if I want to give up my cute little fit body and go for bigger and stronger. I know a lot of women on these boards chose the latter but I won’t know for sure until I move and figure out where I’m going with all of this. I’d be interested to hear how other women made this decision.
I’m still figuring out what I want goal-wise for myself as well.
It is a tough decision, but the answer isn’t black and white and involves something deeper.
Maybe deep down I feel like I still have some slimming down to do before I change my goals. Maybe you’re not completely happy with where you are now, which is preventing you from taking a drastic step in your training.
I don’t know, food for thought.
[quote]rcfromdb wrote:
http://bobbiskai.blogspot.com/2010/07/fall10bb2-2.html
Back, abs, forearms and 133 deja…[/quote]
hot damn!!! atta girl. now can ya keep it there? ;+)
Yeah, make those sorts of decisions after you land in the new place and settle in.
For me, there is no contest. Cute little fit body is where its at for me. I’m just not interested in a bigger physique at this point in my life, so I doubt I’ve got any helpful input for you.
and at the other end of the spectrum I’m carrying a little extra padding to grow stronger. I want to hit a few PR targets withing my lifetime.
there is no right answer but what will rock your boat.
Random notes:
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So I took a shot at bulking and hit about 136-137 which is the heaviest I’ve ever been. I really couldn’t mentally handle the fat gain. My clothes didn’t fit and I just generally felt unattractive.
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Also, I just looked through one of the women with muscle threads and can honestly say I don’t want to look like 90% of those women.
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I went running with a friend yesterday for 20 minutes and it was very difficult. I’m not even at what I would consider to be average cardio shape.
So the debate continues but the arguments are mounting to stay small and work other angles than size/strength.
[quote]rcfromdb wrote:
Random notes:
-
So I took a shot at bulking and hit about 136-137 which is the heaviest I’ve ever been. I really couldn’t mentally handle the fat gain. My clothes didn’t fit and I just generally felt unattractive.
-
Also, I just looked through one of the women with muscle threads and can honestly say I don’t want to look like 90% of those women.
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I went running with a friend yesterday for 20 minutes and it was very difficult. I’m not even at what I would consider to be average cardio shape.
So the debate continues but the arguments are mounting to stay small and work other angles than size/strength.
[/quote]
I know how you feel. I am still trying to find where I want to be.
But I think it’s okay to be changing goals. At least for me personally, the primary goal is fitness and waffling about how to achieve the fitness is just a detail.
rcfromdb,
I personally don’t think you need to sacrifice any size or strength for staying in shape/lean. What I would do in your position is to add 10 minutes of metabolic activity to the end of your lifting, 2-3x per week depending on how much you want. Ideally, you would have access to a sled or prowler and just hammer away at that for 10 mins. If not, you can basically just do bodyweight circuits, explosive stuff, etc. Here’s an example that I stole from Thib (this kicked my ass yesterday):
A1. Power clean from the hang 3 reps
15 sec. rest
A2. Vertical jumps 5 reps
15 sec. rest
A3. Sprint 40 yards
15 sec. rest
A4. Plyo push ups 5 reps
- Perform as many circuits as you can in 10 minutes.
And I’m assuming you know what to do with your diet.
Deb: You are looking perfectly fit as always, what kind of goals do you have now?
Andy: Thank you for giving me a new circuit to try. The issue for me isn’t one of being fat or lean. It’s an issue of femininity v. size/strength. I think every woman who takes lifting as seriously as we here in the PW forum, has, or will have to at some point draw a line in the sand and say “that’s it, this is where I still feel happy as a woman and that’s as far as I want to go.” Right now I am trying to decide if I am ready to draw my line and head in another direction. I don’t feel I’ll be able to fully answer this question until I am settled in to my new home and have a established a new circle of influence.
I see what you’re saying. In the end, there’s a compromise you have to make, and I think you’ll find that soon enough. It seems like a logical solution would be to push for PRs all the time, but keep your diet in check by limiting how many overall calories you are taking in (sort of like training as a powerlifter in a weight class). I doubt you have a problem with getting too strong, just too big, right?
You can always switch to the Dark Side (Olympic Weightlifting), where the style of lifting can only take size gains so far but you get strong as f***! 
Joking aside, here are a couple sites where I think the women have ideal physiques. But it’s what you think, not what I think, after all.
cathletics.com/wod/index.php?show=month&year=2010&monthname=January
How long did it take you to get to 136-137?
Andy: I personally would feel too large if I looked like the woman in the picture you posted. I do enjoy Oly lifting and hope to find a place in San Diego where I can get back into it.
Mom: It took me probably 6 weeks to go from 128 to 136. Now I’m about 131.
I’m glad to see that my feelings about getting hyooge are not completely unwarranted - and the fact that you, Bobbi, take this into consideration puts my mind at ease.
Granted you’ve been bulking, so you’re gained noticeable size, which is different than me just being slightly paranoid.
I’m interested to see what you do - I like your physique. It portrays a kind of athleticism akin to what i imagine I would want to be like (i.e explosive strength - you can take that any way you want). I do want to be faster and stronger and I wonder if that means I might have to get “bigger”…
too much writing? sorry!
Ha, thanks masch. Yea I’m pretty happy with how I look now. The arguments are leaning pretty hard to the more well rounded training i.e. run/swim/bike/play sports and lift a few times a week. I don’t see my frame as being as useful in my other activities “functional” or attractive at a much higher weight at this time and there will be so many other things to do.
I do want to be in better condition and I don’t want to be in pain from tendonitis and other lifting injuries. I don’t want to be so blown out from lifting that I have no energy to kayak, mountain bike, surf, rock climb or do the other things that I like to do.
And I wouldn’t say that you have to get bigger. Explosive power has a lot more to do with your nervous system and the type of fibers that you have than how big your muscles are 
That woman is clearly getting some…ahem…help if ya know what I mean, to support that size. You have to remember a lot of “muscle women” are taking stuff. As a clean trainee, I don’t think you have to worry too too much about getting hyoooge. My max squat has gone from 135 to 240 in the past year and a half with my other lifts going up proportionately and I really haven’t gotten any bigger, very minimal hypertrophy, only more developed. I also really don’t think bulking is necessary to make strength gains especially as a smallish women when your max strength/size isn’t anywhere near that of a larger man who may have a justified bulking phase…eh that’s just my two cets. You look freakin hot anyway, whatever you decide to do…and I know hammering away with heavy weights and low reps forever can get boring, I just had to make a case for the heavy weights.
[quote]owlie wrote:
That woman is clearly getting some…ahem…help if ya know what I mean, to support that size. You have to remember a lot of “muscle women” are taking stuff. As a clean trainee, I don’t think you have to worry too too much about getting hyoooge. My max squat has gone from 135 to 240 in the past year and a half with my other lifts going up proportionately and I really haven’t gotten any bigger, very minimal hypertrophy, only more developed. I also really don’t think bulking is necessary to make strength gains especially as a smallish women when your max strength/size isn’t anywhere near that of a larger man who may have a justified bulking phase…eh that’s just my two cets. You look freakin hot anyway, whatever you decide to do…and I know hammering away with heavy weights and low reps forever can get boring, I just had to make a case for the heavy weights.[/quote]
Agreed. I have been losing weight and gaining strength for years, and most especially in the last year, when I really started to be able to put up some numbers that don’t completely embarrass me. 
At 125-130ish I wouldn’t consider myself huge, but I haven’t found that to impede my strength gains at all, and lifting big(ger) weights has only increased my weight loss (and it feels damn good). I see women at my local gym that scare me (and kinda make me a little jealous of their huge muscles) … but I lift way more than them… ergo, the pounds you lift has little to do with your size, and vice versa, as long as you leave your hormones alone and don’t eat crap. (Or at least that’s what I tell myself so I believe that one day I can have a 500lb squat and DL) Don’t rain on my parade; it’s gonna happen.
haha I think it’s getting a bit off track. I am fully aware that one can be strong without being huge. I’ve pulled and squatted 2xbw as a skinny chick. What I personally am deciding is what I want to dedicate myself to, and, after 7 years in this heavy game if I still want this, or, if I want to go in another direction.
At one point I too wanted to pull huge weights and be obnoxiously strong but after doing the work and the time and the tendonitis and the contrast baths and the roller and the chiro and the massages and the mental wear and tear of the power game I have realized that I want a life outside of the gym. I’m trying to run a company. I’m trying to develop my relationships.
I’m trying to take classes and take up new hobbies and become a more well rounded person. At this point to move to the next level would take a time and energy commitment that I am no longer willing to give.
Another SIDE note was that I was starting to feel a bit masculine OR fat, depending on the day, haha, and I enjoy the look of my tight, smaller physique best
And I do appreciate everyone’s opinions and input. It’s interesting to see the reasoning behind other women’s goals.