M&M's Training Journal

Training
121

A lot of women put on weight when their boyfriend moves in because they eat the same sized portions and also start eating crap that he buys (and they might not necessarily buy ordinarily - my boyfriend always bought big bags of M&Ms and crisps when he lived with me). I definitely find it easier to eat more healthily when I’m on my own (however, I also find it easier to binge eat).

Regarding that article, I agree with you. I made some niggles into permanent injuries by trying to train with them. My right shoulder will never be 100% due to some stupidity 20 years ago. I think you have to listen to your body, more so women because our hormones and energy levels are cyclical. I know when I was trying to follow Crossfit WODs 3 on 1 off I actually broke my immune system and spent 8 months battling one virus after another. I just couldn’t handle the intensity and frequency. It’s fine to push your limits but you have to know when to stop, too.

122

I think this site is great for all the articles but sometimes the articles can be a temptation too. Making us want to try the latest program. lol I figure the only reason to change the programs we are currently using is because we stopped getting results or we changed our goals.

Oh and yep to the boyfriend/husband sabotaging the eating. Oddly enough they say when a man moves in with a women his eating improves, so probably your bf is eating better now that he’s with you. lol

This may sound gross but, canned brisling (type of sardines) are a good thing to keep in the cupboard for an on the go meat. Squirt some lemon juice and sprinkle salt nom. I always buy a few every payday just in case I need them. Make sure if says brisling on the can.

Other low prep/no prep stuff
Hard boiled eggs
cottage cheese
apples or banana with peanut butter on it<–new fav snack. :slight_smile:

Maybe we should start a thread in pw with everyone’s fav easy/fast healthy foods.

123

[quote]Charlie Horse wrote:
I think this site is great for all the articles but sometimes the articles can be a temptation too. Making us want to try the latest program. lol I figure the only reason to change the programs we are currently using is because we stopped getting results or we changed our goals.

Oh and yep to the boyfriend/husband sabotaging the eating. Oddly enough they say when a man moves in with a women his eating improves, so probably your bf is eating better now that he’s with you. lol

This may sound gross but, canned brisling (type of sardines) are a good thing to keep in the cupboard for an on the go meat. Squirt some lemon juice and sprinkle salt nom. I always buy a few every payday just in case I need them. Make sure if says brisling on the can.

Other low prep/no prep stuff
Hard boiled eggs
cottage cheese
apples or banana with peanut butter on it<–new fav snack. :slight_smile:

Maybe we should start a thread in pw with everyone’s fav easy/fast healthy foods.
[/quote]

I think that sounds like a great idea. I’m going to have to try the canned brisling.

I know he is eating better with me; I’m just having trouble figuring out how to eat good, often, without spending all my time cooking or cleaning (he helps too, but it always turns into a huge project, which is why I don’t do it as much as I need to).

124

Cal- I actually stress out a lot more about how I look now that someone sees me naked all the time. We’ve been together for four years, but he’s incredibly attractive to me and I always worry that I don’t measure up, so I end up eating less when I’m eating bad foods and he’s around.

If I’m doing good on the cooking and having healthy foods always around, I eat a normal amount, but if it’s junk food like I’ve been doing I eat smaller portions. I really just need to get on top of having proteins and good carbs ready to go at all times.

125

I get you. Charlie’s right - you need to get your store cupboard essentials. Stuff liked canned fish (I have stacks of tuna in my cupboard), eggs, frozen mince (ground beef or turkey), frozen fruits and veggies, a big jar of passata (sieved tomatoes), herbs and spices and you can whip up a good meal.

I also have Thai jasmine rice (sticky white rice) and buckwheat on hand if I want carbs. I like these because they are non-gluten foods, but they are also pretty quick to cook (10 minutes or less).
I also tend to buy my vegetables pre-washed and prepped. More expensive but worth it for the no-hassle.

126

I hear you on the summer mental slow down. Some weeks I barely make it into the gym, it’s just so darn beautiful outside! But I cut myself some slack, enjoy it, and hit it harder the week after.

127

hope you find your moto soon!

My motivation is coming from not having to buy bigger sized cloths. I may not be making the body comp progress that I’d like atm, but I’m happy to maintain(for now)…

128

nlmain- The impromptu outdoor events do contribute quite a bit to the terrible diet and sometimes missed workouts. Cutting myself slack for it is hard when I see that I’m not improving as much as I should be.

Mom-in-md- Appearance is a huge motivating factor for me too. I’m sure my body composition has changed negatively because I now weigh 134 (I was 126 when I started this log) and I don’t look very trim and cut.

Another problem I’m having is sleeping. I had my first experience with genuine insomnia the other night. I mean, in the past there have been days when I’ve had to pull a couple tricks out of the bag to get to sleep (watching sitcoms, reading, drinking milk, etc) but last week after pulling all of them out, I was still unable to get close to sleep. Also, I was sweating all night long even though I wasn’t hot. I’m pretty sure it was hormones (was on my time of the month). Whatever it was, it’s not as bad this week, but I have discovered that drinking and the heat contribute to it. Also, not eating right.

So to summarize, I’m having eating and sleeping issues. The good news is, after my workout today I ate a decent amount of total daily calories for the first time in a week and groceries that will be easy to make on the spot throughout these next couple days.

Today’s workout:

A. Deadlift. was supposed to be 12, 15, and 15 reps at 145 lbs with only a minute in between. Instead, I did 145lbs for 12, 15, and then 8 reps with 2 minutes inbetween the second and third set, then a little pause followed by 7 more reps, then 1 rep for a same total volume as what I was shooting for. I was still feeling pretty sore in the bicep, tricep, and lats from the crossfit workout a couple days ago and this will probably improve pretty easily next week just by not being sore.

B. Leg curl: 85lbs x 10 reps x4 sets

C. Step up to balance w/25lb dbs 15 reps per leg for 3 sets

D. Hip extension 4 sets of 12 reps with 10 lbs

129

Well it’s official; I have some sort of flu bug.

It started out yesterday with a slightly nausious feeling and progressed into last night with extreme chills to the point that I couldn’t feel warm with three blankets and a hoodie on. Today I have a fever, can’t eat solid food, and keep getting the chills then sweating. Oh yeah, and my body feels like shit.

But I did manage to workout last night before it hit me really hard.

A. Bench press

65x10, 95x5, 105x3, 110x3, 115x2 (was really hoping for that last rep! Damnit)

B. Upright DB bench press

30lbs per handx 12 reps, 12, 10, 9

C. seated cable row

110lbs x10 reps x4 sets

gym closed at that point.

130

Sick le suck. :frowning:
Make sure to rest if you’re sick, I think of it as “lifting for life” so a little time off to get better does not a failure/slacker make. You’ll probably get over it faster if you take a break.

Good benching, I’ll be benching 95lbs for reps (my old 1RM) next week so 2 of 115 looks good to me. :smiley:

131

Thanks Charlie :slight_smile:

I was expecting today to suck given that I’ve had a fever of 100 for the past two days and consumed nothing except a few cans of chicken noodle soup and half a donut in that amount of time. Also, I couldn’t sleep again last night, probably due to too much caffiene. But todays workout was actually progress over that last one.

Front squat- 65lbsx10, 95lbsx5, 105x5, 110x5 (1 more rep than I’ve been able to do there), 115x2 (same), 125x1, 125x1 (I meant to jump up to 120, but my ability to distinguish plates was apparently nonexistant at that point.

Speed skater squats 10lb dbs per hand (10 total more lbs than last week)
four sets of 10

Cable pull-throughs
120lbsx 12 reps x 4 sets

Had to rush to the lab at that point and therefore didn’t do the farmers walk. Still, very surprised with the progress I managed to knock out after a near starvation diet and being sick. Maybe it’s true that your body lies to you.

132

Nice FS’s!

I guess I need to ‘woman up’ & start adding some weight to my skater squats too.

Glad you are feeling better.

133

Good work in here Iron! It’s always fun to see numbers going up despite being sick. Glad you’re feeling better!

134

Thanks guys! I was really surprised/excited by the progress. I’m thinking that probably the laying in bed for two days straight did something good afterall.

Also, my butt hurts (good way) today! That’s new. In the past it’s always been my quads after this workout.

135

I guess (despite the sub-optimum nutrition) it gave your muscles more time to recover. Good training, and sounds as though you’re recruiting your glutes more.

136

So today was have fun with camera in the gym day, and also, get chatted up by curious gym staff wondering how I developed muscles day. All in all the workout took twice as long as normal. I’m uploading the videos onto youtube and then will be posting them here.

Pushups- max # possible with 1 min between each set- 30, 7, 7

Decline DB Skull crusher- 17.5lbsx 10,9+1, 8+2, 7+1

Chinups- (no assistance this week. They sucked in terms of how many I can do now compared with how many I could do a year ago)

4, 3, 3, 3, 2

Overhead DB press- 20lbs dbs 15, 9, 12, 7

Preacher bicep curl-
17.5lbs- 6, 7, 3, 2

Several members of the gym staff came up to me right after the chinups and asked me what I do to get “so buff”. I started talking to them and somehow that conversation led to a tennis match between two of them and myself tomorrow. Then, the girl started following me around while I was trying to workout asking me how to reach this or that goal. I finally told her to just come workout with me tomorrow, kind of hoping that she’d get the message and that would be the end of the conversation. It’s easy to tell a guy to go away, but a girl who genuinely wants to get better in the gym?.. I can’t be mean to her! She agreed, seemed super excited, but kept following me around until the end of my bicep curls. I think maybe it’s a small town and people around these parts just don’t get gym etiquet. Anyway, tomorrow I’m now signed up for a crossfit style workout and a tennis match. lol.

137

So I’m still extremely pissed off that my boyfriend turned off the camera before I failed (I did a total of 30, he missed it by 3). Apparently he thought 27 was enough examples to check form with and didn’t quite grasp the concept that I was going for reps as well. Anyway, here it is:

138

Here’s the first set up chinups. Okay, so I noticed that I tend to pull my knees up. However, I’m not creating momentum with them; it’s just a mental thing that makes me think it’s easier. Maybe I’m inventing a new exercise. lol. Anyway, do you think it’s bad that I’m brining my knees up like this even though I’m not swinging with them?

139

Another view of the chinups. Comments? Critique?

140

Here are the overhead presses. It really helps if you turn your computer on it’s side :stuck_out_tongue:

And I’m sorry, but I find it impossible not to swear after the end of a hard set.