Gotta love it when you accidentally catch how jacked you are in the mirror. Quality
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Haha, “jacked” may be a bit of a stretch, but I did run right out and show my husband, who was able to see what I was showing him - I didn’t have to say “look! my tri!” So yes, good stuff.
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OKAY!
May 3
Weight 148.4
I had the BEST workout, though I had to skip a couple of things because of whatever is going on with my leg. Still, did full body and again increased almost ALL upper body reps or weights. So shoulders, chest, arms, and back. Fantastic. I’ve been fearful of the move from 15 to 20 lbs because it’s seemed like a big leap and I have 12s to bridge me from 10 to 15, but it went FINE. No problem at all! I mean, I was rocking some pretty bad form, but that’ll tighten up over the next couple of sessions.
Photo: I have to figure out my weightlifting life. What I think I want is for husband to say “You know what? Never mind about our beloved non-local children! They can sleep in tents when they stay over! You should completely take over the guest room and put a comprehensive weight set-up in there along with the treadmill and rower! It’s the RIGHT thing to do!”
But maybe I want to join a real gym like @unicornsandrainbows and get super jacked. Or join the expensive one with the outdoor pool and get fitness-oriented friends and a tan as well as somewhat jacked. I don’t know.
We’re going to a West Coast Swing dance class tonight at what passes in my area for a real gym, so I’ll observe the vibe. I’ve been in once before to try out their Concept2 before buying one, but I wasn’t really paying attention to anything else. I’m surprised my husband said yes to the class. Like, ASTONISHED. I don’t even know if I particularly wanted to do it when I asked! We’re both complete spazzes. But I’m excited to see what it is, and an hour of cardio will be fun (for us…not for the people we bang into, lol).
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This is the way.
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Here is my current jackedness, of which I’m actually pretty proud, minimal though I acknowledge it is. Like, on the arm holding the phone, is that forearm muscle? Did I have it already? I don’t recall any major ridges in that area before.
And I also don’t look like I’m wearing a Hollywood pregnancy prosthetic, or at least not one as far into the pregnancy as I was 5 months ago.
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Heck yes it is! Also on the arm holding the phone, is that delt coming out to play, or are you just happy to see me?
Definitely not. Abs are looking flat, love handles are gone.
And look at that bicep!
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Forget the phone, I hope you have a licence for that firearm. Awesome work.
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Haha, it IS! I even went into the bathroom after I read your post and was able to flex it! FLEX MY DELT, of all things! Showed it to the hubs, who was of course blown away (“oh, yeah, I see it”) (which is what he said re: the tricep the day before).
Meanwhile, my calves have always been a source of pride because of the running and mountain hiking, but now my tibialis are POPPING when I flex.
This is not at all my first go-round with weights, but I’ve never been this focused or intense and man, what a difference. Too, my body was always just so weirdly excellent (because I put in the work but also luck of the draw) that I didn’t pay much attention to the specifics of it. Just sort of half-assed the weights to keep toned and maintain “meh” strength and kept my attention on speed and distance and such. This is so exciting!
Just happy happy happy.
@simo74 haha, thank you!
Went to the first swing dance class last night and I had to dance with the teacher more than anyone else. I kept hearing “small steps!” “stay in your lane!” and “let him tell you what to do!” It reminds me of taking my young labrador to obedience class, she was just all energetic and gulping space and making the other dogs nervous.
We should maybe have started our dance careers with hip-hop. I’m not sure I can adapt my body to a Frank Sinatra groove. But there’s not a lot going on where I live and this was…going on…so here we are. Dancing with the teacher. Husband, who spent time as a kid with his desk beside the teacher’s for similar reasons, was pretty happy with it all. Except the dancing part, because he sucked at that, too. He just did it without accidentally making big flourishes with his free arm at the end of six steps. lol
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May 6
Weight 148.4
Took yesterday completely off and had another awesome full body workout today. Warmed up and cooled down to a cardio video that feels like it provides some dynamic stretching, and it was also a nice change of pace. Continued progression in most lifts. It takes forever, though, so I’m pondering making a more sensible 3 day schedule. I don’t know, though - I love stepping into these workouts and staying there for a bit. Today’s was more than an hour and a half with only limited cardio. Anyway, then went for a short hike with husband and dog, scrambling around on big river rocks and enjoying the sunshine and summery weather (65°).
Life is good.
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May 7
Weight 148.4
20 minutes LISS on the TM.
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I am not sure what LISS is, nor can I dance, but I love Frank Sinatra, I do prefer Dean Martin.
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Low intensity steady state, so in my case walking.
You should take a dance class, @Friedrich! Then you’ll have the same problem I do. You’ll start incorporating sprints (don’t you do a lot of 40/20?) and get in trouble with the teacher.
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Less sprints than you think. The reflex bag lately. Dance classes? I will see what my wife says? Tango maybe?
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I would love to be able to choose - I live in a rural/tourist area, so pickings are slim. It’s just four weeks, so we’ll see what pops up after.
I will say that practicing at home was weirdly romantic/sexy. Even though we only remembered half the moves and didn’t do the ones we recalled well.
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May 8
30 minutes on TM, 10 of them sprints.
May 9
Weight 148.4
Rest day. I’ll be curious to see if I have a weight drop in the morning as a result. I’ve been starting to worry that I’ve found my maintenance calories, because my weight has been consistent for quite a while now. Not sure whether to do a Hail Mary calorie drop or just accept this place for the time being and try to start adding food slowly.
I should have named this Emily’s Log of Indecision.
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@QuadQueen, given the above post, could you take a look at this and give some feedback as to whether I’ve been screwy enough to sabotage myself or whether I should hold tight or reduce calories, or what? My daily goal is 1200kcal, which clearly I don’t stay to with any consistency because I’m inclined to satisfy hunger when it seems legit. I want to be careful not to mess myself up in the long term by going too low. I’ve never had to be a big dieter, and have credited that for a healthy metabolism. Not sure I want to start now - maybe it’s better to be a little fluffy? I just don’t know. I’m honestly not sure what my goal should be wrt my weight. The overarching goal is feeling healthy and strong.
The two blank spots are my Key West trip in February and my birthday a couple of weeks ago. In both cases I ate like a slightly-restrained asshole.
There’s a recent pic a few posts up.
So, my first thought is definitely do not set a daily calorie goal under 1200. I’d say look at the week as a whole and do a 7 day average over the past few weeks (the weeks you’ve maintained) and then maybe we look at decreasing the overall average based on that number. If your daily goal is 1200, but your actual weekly average is 1800, then maybe we drop to 1600 as an average goal, or something like that. I can’t see what your daily numbers are on this graph - if I could, I’d figure it out for you!
Also, if you’d like to talk for real about all of this, just let me know and we can get on the phone soon!
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Calorie goals always confuse me - I tend to think not all calories are equal, so when I’m thinking of weight loss I’d be inclined to switch my source of calories, for instance from sugar to protein. Am I on the wrong track here?
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Not exactly, but you’re not completely on track either. Energy balance is still the principle
Whole food choices tend to be more satiating so people eat less (reduce calorie in) and the effects on digestion affect how many calories are absorbed (reduce calorie in). Whole foods also probably have higher thermic effect of food (increase calorie out) and eating whole foods tends to make people feel better and more energetic, increasing non exercise activity such as fidgeting, moving around…. (Increase calorie out)
Calorie tracking vs swapping whole foods is similar to the difference between saving money by creating an explicit budget vs making swaps at the store to cheaper items or taking full advantage of rebates/discounts.
For me personally, it is very easy for me to overeat whole foods because I’m a small person with a high appetite. For others, just swapping to whole foods is sufficient
Edit: I agree with you in that unless there is gross overeating, prioritising whole foods>>>>> just calorie tracking for health
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I am not suggesting you do this, but I recall a workout I came across in my 40s. It entailed a 3-5 minute warm up on the treadmill, running like a bat out of Hell for a mile, and then a 3-5 minute cool down. Thinking back, doing something like that in my 40s was probably not very bright.
When I saw you did 10 minutes of sprints, that is what made me think about my middle-aged stupidity.
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