Shauna's Journey to 350+

Training
21

cbear - thanks for the advice. I just drank a liter or two of lime water while I was in an epsom salt bath. thinking of you. getting wet…by the water of course :wink:

My diet stays pretty clean all the time. My fat/protein sources are the usual: flax, EVOO, mixed nuts, PB, AB, chicken, eggs, fish, top sirloin, greek yogurt, etc. I think some of my confusion is the mixed info I hear from the different sources of AD knowledge. Are the carbs supposed to be mostly starchy?

Also, I have heard that fruit is not a good carb source for the carb-up. So, I plan on sticking to sweet potatoes, black beans, oats, brown rice, quinoa, and Ezekiel bread for the most part. I did make some whole wheat pancake this morning which is made of WW flour and whole oat flour, so not too bad. I am going out to dinner tonight which will either be Italian or Mexican, depending on if I can find a place with Whole Wheat pasta. If not, chips and salsa here I come (favorite food…EVER).

Alisa - When I was younger I did all the regular shit - ice skating, gymnastics, ballet, tae kwon do, basketball, soccer, etc., but I was young young and nothing came of it. In my early teens I did competitive swimming for about 5 years. In high school I didn’t do much, mostly focused on school and smoking pot, until my senior year when I got myself a gym membership and started doing cardio. I saw bodybuilder guys at the gym and decided to try my hand at weights. Much like today, I was usually the only girl doing any kind of strength training at the time. In college I did more endurance stuff, triathlon training, running alot, but did keep up a fair amount of weights, mostly because I wanted to be as strong as the guys; train with them because the girls with the matching gym clothes who watched MTV and liked fraternity guys sucked ass. When I met my bf Aaron over two years ago, that is when I became aware of REAL training, as he had done powerlifting and bodybuilding training for about 10 years. I was slow at first, but eventually came to love it and now it is a true lifestyle. Sorry that is a really long answer. I too wish I had been the kid in school who excelled at sports or even gave it a shot:)

talenaah - I’ll definitely be logging in my AD feelings. Hope it will be a learning experience for us both.

So I’m on the fence about how I feel about my workout today. I would say my motivation was at about 80%. I woke up sore…real sore. I knew there was no way I was going to get a full body weight workout in, so I settled on this:

20 min HIIT on the elliptical (usually do bike but need to switch it up)
warm-up/stretching/foam rolling

a random mix of: jump roping, squat jumps, walk over weighted push-ups w/ 25 plate (about 12 for each side)

the only real structured set I did was 3 circuits of:
push-ups, glute bridges, and planks which looked like this

  1. 15 BW push-ups, 10 GB/ 25 plate (5 sec hold at top), 30 sec plank w/ 25 plate
  2. 10 weighted PU/ 10 GB/ 25 plate, 30 sec plank w plate
  3. same as above

took me about 90 min, so I was pretty tired, but honestly, I didn’t feel like I really kicked my ass like I could have. Being sore and tired from my wrkt yesterday and from the week made me start to justify why I only had to do 20 min cardio (besides hating, loathing, despising cardio), why I didn’t have to do the lunges I had planned on, why I didn’t do any real ab work. But for the most part it was fine and I’ll do some SS cardio tomorrow morning.

22

Nice kitty - calicos are so pretty. I love cats but live in a tiny flat with no garden so I don’t think it would be right to keep one here.

23

[quote]shaunar25 wrote:
here is the little angel (demon at 8am).

kimba - I really hope I can do it. btw, you don’t even know how crazymindblowingamazinglyawesome it is to hear that someone wants to be bigger and weigh more. It seems like the largest portion of my life, my muscular frame has been seen as a flaw, especially by those little fuckers when I was in junior high. Your avi pic looks crazy strong. I’m going to drop by your log:)

Funny enough, I just looked at this picture when it posted, and she seriously does look scary! She is actually really cute. I try to take some video of her crazy cat antics.[/quote]

In our society, the body image of women is so completely fucked up. In our own heads, and in everyone else’s (read boyz’) heads.

Here’s the other side of that coin. Everybody around me is SURE that I’m gonna hurt my little eeny weeny teeny self with those big nasty weights. FUCK 'EM ALL!!! Seriously.

Here’s an example of fucked-up thinking. I was speaking at a conference earlier this week when the organizer, a skinny-fat chick smaller than even me who I’ve known for years but see infrequently, asked me if I had lost weight.

Answer yes, told her I’d starting lifting weights and my ass disappeared (true). She tells me that she had started doing push-ups but had stopped because her arms were getting bigger and her jackets were fitting tight. I told her to BUY NEW JACKETS.

sigh

24

you had me at “competitive swimmer.”

ok. your carbups are completely your own. include fruit, as long as its not the only or largest source of carbs in your refeed. the sources you listed sound good, along with your plans for the evening! ffs, listen to your body. if it makes you feel like shit, dont do it again!

may you have many happy tortilla chips covered with even happier salsa.

25

Hi Shauna, welcome.
For 5 6’ you have a shit ton of muscle.

About the fruit, it’s all about efficiency. Whereas starch will fill up your muscle glycogen stores first, fruit will go the liver stores. Fruit isn’t necessarily bad, if you have 24hrs to carb up, you prolly wanna get more bang for your buck.

26

Hello all…just want to start by saying how kick ass you all are and how psyched I am to be a part of this.

Now on to the food…

So I started the day yesterday as a carb-up but it definitely turned into a cheat. I was conflicted about what kind of food I wanted — brief side note - my conflict was because this is my last cheat until Thanksgiving, and notice I use the word “cheat” instead of just going out to eat because I have had plenty of clean meals out to restaurant.

Since Aaron has been trying to gain the last few weeks/months, I have been much more prone to divulging in non-diet food. However, he is now starting a cut to get down 5 lbs for a weight class, so I am pumped to have a partner in food — and I couldn’t decide between Mexican and Italian. The pivotal dilemmas we face :wink: If I went with Italian, I would have too many white carbs and seriously nowhere has WW pasta, but if I went with Mexican I would end up with too much fat and protein and still have white carbs (yes I know there are black beans, but trying to get 100 carbs in a meal just with beans would be the death of me and anyone’s nose within a 10 foot radius).

Of course Aaron parents, who we went with to dinner and who foot the bill (sweet), say they don’t care where we go but let’s go, go,go. So I settled on Italian and had a lovely dinner of bread, bruschetta, penne with marinara, and 1.5 glasses of sangiovese. Afterward though my sweet tooth got the best of me and we went to a local cafe and had bread pudding and some hot chocolate…and a few small tootsie rolls and starbursts. Later I also had a grilled cheese while watching movies.

It was good, but weirdly enough, I couldn’t enjoy these foods like I used to. My priorities have changed and honestly, I really like the Anabolic diet. It is something I can stick to. I have been bumming around in the land of other eating plans, lower calories, no wheat, no sugar, no this or that, and this one I can actually put two feet down and stay for a bit. It’s hard, but not torture.

Conclusion - a cheat, definitely a cheat. But I have no regrets, no qualms, and no craving for bread today. I did feel the sugar though when I woke up this morning. Draggin a little, but overall no real bloating or stomach issues. I’m not sure where my macros ended up, but I don’t feel like I did too much damage and now it’s clean until Thanksgiving.

Today I am still on the carb-up but clean all the way.
Oats, 1/2 banana, cinnamon, 1 TBSP PB for breakfast. Was thinking about Grape Nuts later on, since they have like 120 crabs in a tablespoon, but we shall see.

May go to the gym to get in the sauna and hot tub and do some recovery work. I probably won’t pull this upcoming week, so I will focus on some accessory movements, maybe squat, and probably bench. Nothing crazy. My back is still killing me, so I don’t want to do any further damage.

It shall be a lazy Sunday for me.

27

food porn. love it. glad you dont feel like shit this morning! grapnuts sound crazy as shit. ive never had em, but carbs like that make me a lil sick… thinking of distance runners… i think i just threw up a lil in the back of my throat.

so today sounds like good plans. i def vote for sauna and hot tubtime. make an appt with your foam roller, too!

28

Had to opt out of gym time, and instead went to Greenlake. Did a 30 min+ walk around and then some sledding.

Watching people run is funny…and I get the most amazing sense of calm and satisfaction that I don’t do that. Ha.

Shoulders, back, and hips are majorly strung out.

Does anyone else get butterflies in their stomach like they are going to hangout with their first crush when they think about going in to lift?

I think I’m in love.

Sorry I’m so ADD. Blame it on the carbs.

But seriously, running sucks.

29

I like this journal!! Helll yeah…I luvz lifting heavy sh!t!!!
What are your maxes for the DL, PB, and Squat?
And yeah…gyms should not have mirrors!! The guys I train with make me cover up the mirror with a towel when I squat. The mirrors for me are distracting and it is not useful during the lift to watch yourself.

You look solid. Great job!

30

I get the cold sweats, and the heart starts racing before I start lifting…craziness!

31

Oh, i get jitters.
You wouldn’t think you could get performance anxiety when nobody’s watching, but it’s possible.

32

[quote]shaunar25 wrote:

Does anyone else get butterflies in their stomach like they are going to hangout with their first crush when they think about going in to lift?

I think I’m in love.

[/quote]

That.

For me the anticipation is heightened because you just can’t lift every day. I only have 3 days a week to lift and I MUST MAKE THEM COUNT!

33

Good morning! Just want to start this off by saying how nice it is to know that people are reading this. I tried to start a journal elsewhere (aka “glorified porn star” athlete — cbear, I think you know what I am referring to)and instead of answering any of my questions or giving helpful advice, all I got was “good for you” or “you go girl,” which I imagine was said in that demeaning “good for you, fat girl, for trying to work out and be hot like us” kind of sentiment. Could absolutely be my own shit, but either way, was not a fan. So thanks. Yeah.

This morning I woke up feeling like I just ate carbs all weekend. Here are some things I feel about the diet and where I need to tweak it…and where I need to tweak myself:

  1. I will only do one carb-up day per cycle from now on.
  2. Eating carbs is awesome…damn it.
  3. I like eating carbs because I get like 60g of fiber.
  4. Eating carbs make me gassy.
  5. Just because I have chili does not mean I need a half a bag of tortilla chips to eat it with.
  6. I heart tortilla chips.
  7. I love how I feel when I don’t eat carbs during the week.
  8. I will now go 12 straight days on only pro/fat to jump start my body to burning fat.
  9. I ate an 18 oz sweet potato yesterday.
  10. RIP carbs :frowning:

Hanging out until this afternoon when it is gym time! Going to Seattle Strength and Power today. Prob won’t pull, but will squat, maybe bench a lil, reverse hyper, good mornings, etc. EXCITED!

And since I am on a roll with this top ten countdown thing, let me give you a few reasons why I love going to Seattle Strength and Power and why I loathe 24 Hour Fitness.

  1. The douchebags who do nothing but bicep curls and every possible variation of them EVERY workout.

  2. The older guys who eye stalks you during your entire workout, and make it completely obvious, and who are either thinking one of two thing:
    A. “That girl trains hard. Maybe I should go interrupt her during the set she is doing and make her put down her weights and take out her headphones only to say that she trains hard and I am impressed. Or maybe I’ll give her some advice on how to train.” (3 god damn fucking times).
    OR
    B. “Maybe if I stare her down enough she will want to fuck me.”

  3. The dumbfuck who asks me while I am loading the bar with plates “Are you using this?”

  4. The people who stare at themselves in the mirror the ENTIRE time.

  5. The girls who color coordinate their make-up with their running shoes and their $100 workout pants.

  6. The girls whose hair is always perfect because they never do any work to break a sweat.

  7. The girls who strut around thinking they are hot shit because they just did cardio.

  8. The personal trainers who have their clients do leg raises, crunches, and machines.

  9. The stupid fucking policies like no chalk, no gym bags, no loud noises, no actually doing any kind of real lifting because it might upset our fragile clientele. - We don’t listen to any of this shit, and since I am the only chick who lifts heavy, the only people who try to talk to me are the annoying old men I mentioned above. Bastards.

  10. Everyone in there who thinks they know anything about weight training and are happy to stay in their little bubble of bicep curls, thigh machines, exercises they read about in either SELF or SHAPE (for the ladies) or FLEX or MUSCLE AND FITNESS (for the fellas). In the end, I don’t care what the fuck you do. Just don’t bother me and my workout because your ass needs the squat rack, because as soon as you see me pile on weight, you are more than happy to go over and use the Smith Machine (worst. thing. ever.). There may be a few exceptions to the rule, but mostly everyone is cattle.

And I hate that their plates are octagonal, so you can’t really DL correctly.

Wow, that felt really good.

And long story short, Aaron and I got kicked out of the small ass Gold’s around here (which is basically a place for gay guys to pick up some ass in the locker room…not hating, just telling it how it is) because we wouldn’t stop bring out bags in the gym with us. We were the only people in there who did any legitimate workouts with correct form, like not squatting on a fucking half swiss ball, the most dangerous and pointless exercise ever, yet they would not get off our asses about our fucking bags which had belts, bands, bottles, journals, etc. So one thing turned into another, physical violence was threatened, a brawl almost ensued, and TADA, now we are at 24, the only other gym in the area. It’s a good story now, but it was all pretty fucked up.

Anyway, that’s my peace for now.

If you have reached the bottom of this page, you must really love me enough to read this novel of a post.

34

Funny!

Oh, and I heart tortilla chips too!! Some melted cheese on top or sour cream would have been awesome with that chili! mmmm…
:slight_smile:

35

oh, and I know this ‘other side,’ that you speak of…

Not too long ago, this was all one big site, with the ‘glorified porn stars,’ and all! They shoulda just let things be…

36

Octagonal plates? That’s a new one.

I have seen trainers at my gym get girls doing dumbell shoulder presses with tiny weights whilst balancing on a fucking bosu ball. It makes me want to cry.

I used to buy Self and Shape but more for entertainment than anything. I never saw the point of those routines which all had you doing two different things at once (you know, “lunge with a curl” or some other useless shit).
Hell, at least there are women here who know how to train properly. But I despair of the rest of 'em.

37

tortilla chips…something i almost refuse to give up on a permanent basis. i was going to ask if anyone had a ‘healthy’ version of them-what do you/anyone think of those brown rice chips? yes, still processed but maybe a little better than regular corn chips if’n they fit into your ‘cheat’ or whatever meal plan…

the other side-yes shauna, there are quite a few of us here that bailed on those anorexic/bulimic/food-obsessed twats that think 2 hours of cardio a day is a must to lose fat. uughh…puke.

most of them only put up their pom-poms and cheers for either a) a ‘mature’ lady who recently dropped 30 or more lbs and now wants to compete on a stage with no prior weight training experience(aka…older…i’m 36 so i’m not dissin, it’s just a trend i noticed)

or b) a new ‘competitor’ who is wondering why the fuck they gained weight after their contest after doing a shit training program to get stringy enough to get on stage.

i guess i must make disclaimer that i know there are a couple gals over there who i respect based on their knowledge and advice they provide and the other handful that are dedicated to their training but not as hardcore as ‘us’ over here… :slight_smile:

38

[quote]talenaah wrote:
tortilla chips…something i almost refuse to give up on a permanent basis. i was going to ask if anyone had a ‘healthy’ version of them-what do you/anyone think of those brown rice chips? yes, still processed but maybe a little better than regular corn chips if’n they fit into your ‘cheat’ or whatever meal plan…

the other side-yes shauna, there are quite a few of us here that bailed on those anorexic/bulimic/food-obsessed twats that think 2 hours of cardio a day is a must to lose fat. uughh…puke.

most of them only put up their pom-poms and cheers for either a) a ‘mature’ lady who recently dropped 30 or more lbs and now wants to compete on a stage with no prior weight training experience(aka…older…i’m 36 so i’m not dissin, it’s just a trend i noticed)

or b) a new ‘competitor’ who is wondering why the fuck they gained weight after their contest after doing a shit training program to get stringy enough to get on stage.

i guess i must make disclaimer that i know there are a couple gals over there who i respect based on their knowledge and advice they provide and the other handful that are dedicated to their training but not as hardcore as ‘us’ over here… :slight_smile: [/quote]

Totally. There are a few who I do admire for the work they put in and what they know. I’m not saying that it doesn’t take hardwork and discipline.

But I can’t get down with the drag queen make-up, the stripper heels, the skin cancer tanning, the highlights, the $500 suits, the hours of cardio, and above all, the FAKE BOOBS. I’m so fucking tired of fake tits, god damn it.

39

Oh man, I HATE fake titties. They look like two grapefruit halves that have been stuffed under a drumskin. I know some girls don’t like losing their boobs when they diet down but fuck, get chicken fillets if you must - they’ll always grow back after the inevitable post-contest binge anyway.
And don’t get me started on the gravy browning tan and pole dancer platforms. How those girls walk in those shoes, I have no idea.

40

Hey, leave the lunge+ curl combo out of this! :wink:

Actually I showed a girl that front squat/ press combo today and she thought it was FUN!