FitNisJnky’s BodyBlog

Hi BB community,

I just wanted to let you know that yes, I’m still alive, and I’ve kinda found a temporary new home…check out my blog: http://workoutandnutrition.blogspot.com/

As a graphic designer, this just serves me better. I love having more space and flexibility to my posts. Don’t get me wrong. I love it here and will definitely keep my account, but I just like the space. I’m still working out and have been posting my recent workouts. Come by and see me! I could use some comments and people encouraging me regularly!

-Steph

I have been working out for the past few weeks, doing entirely just weight training. I’ve been doing full-body workouts. And finally, I can tell that I am getting stronger. I am now back into the "gym mode" tonight will be my first night back of just doing cardio. I’ve been on a Mon., Wed., Fri., weight training schedule. The cardio has been secondary. If I can sneak in a long walk with hubby and the pooch, than I am grateful.

We’re still trying to conceive. So every month is pretty much just "wait and see." It’s really thrown me off track. I no longer consume caffeine, nor dairy, nor gluten. I’ve come to realize that I have dairy and gluten allergies. Also, cutting the dairy has helped to stop my migraines. I also read somewhere that it alters a woman’s hormones. So whatever I can do to make myself more comfortable during this "wait and see" period, helps. I am taking a pre-natal pill just in case

I’m just overly tired because I work a full-time contract job, and I am also in the process of launching my own company. I’ve started hiring people, and hope to hire more to do the work for me when I go on maternity leave…But again..that is a "wait and see" process as well…All this preperation. Jeez, if I could just tell this little baby how badly we want it, I might be able to coax it out of heaven.

Only a half hour more to go, and then I duke it out with the stair-climber. Tonight, I am targeting a half hour on the stair-climbing beast.

Hello BB world.
It’s been a long while since I’ve posted here. Not sure where to start. Still not pregnant yet, and that’s not for lack of trying. I’m starting to wonder if I hit this 30-something plateau..We’re still trying but it’s been about 6 months. I don’t want to be on fertility meds, cause, well, that’s just not how I roll. If it takes a few more years, I’m prepared to wait. Hopefully it won’t come to that.
I haven’t really been weight-lifting lately. Although I’ve been really meaning to get back into it. I feel so good when I do. I’ve been really into biking lately. I went to the UK for a stint, and came back a total biking addict. (My sister lives and hour outside of London, and get me hooked) The reason for the trip to UK was to do a ceiling mural. I’ve started painting again, and I’m loving it. I’m really trying to find my center. And it feels like cardio, and artistic expression really ground me. The biking, I’ve decided to do 2x’s per week or more if I can. I’m biking to work which is 18 miles round trip. So by the end of the week, I’m totally pooped out.

I know the weight lifting will only help my endurance, so next week, I am going to come up with a plan of attack. I really missed this community. I guess trying to conceive, and not being successful at it, sort of hurt me in a place I cannot explain. I guess the desire to be a mother, really sort of made me turn inwards. I have so many friends that conceive at the drop of a pin. That it’s made me really reevaluate what I want out of life.

So…sorry such a novel. Just wanted to let you guys know that I’m alive, doing well. And I’m back in the game.

So this weekend, my diet went to hell in a hand basket. I guess being around my friends that don’t care about their diets so much has an influence on me. I also missed my workouts on Fri. and Sat..

I’ve been fighting a cold this week, and have had hardly enough engery to even stay awake. I haven’t worked out because I am not sure if I have what it takes to power through a workout, let alone get anyone else sick…Also, I’ve been working much more than normal. It feels like just when I have a handle on things related to diet/fitness, everything else just goes to shit. Why is this? I’ve noticed that I’ve been fighting for balance for a long time…<sigh> Back to work…

This week, I have to say, I am rather impressed with my own efforts. I set my eye on the prize, and I have been very disciplined and focused on getting there. I lost 3.5 lbs, and I have been eating extremely clean. (which has been really challenging for me in the past.) I’ve consistently stuck to my workouts, even when I had no energy or was burned out from work to go to the gym. Today and tomorrow’s workouts are still ahead of me, but just the high from knowing that I’ve accomplished something this week, will definitely fuel me through them. A few posts ago, I detailed the full body workout I’ve been doing, so here’s a weekly recap.

Monday = full body strength training workout

Tuesday = 45 min. of cardio

Wednesday = Full body workout

Thursday = 45 min. of cardio

Friday (today) = full body workout

Saturday = 60 min. of cardio

Sat. might be a little challenging since I have to work in the morning and I do have some time set aside for the gal pals too. I can’t wait!! So I know I will need to make up for the wine that I drink on Sat. with a total calorie burning cardio workout that day.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Tonight was a great gym night. I managed to get through my little agenda from earlier. The only thing I didn’t have time for were the extra tricep push downs, which I would’ve loved to do, but was on a time crunch with work.

I am going to be sore tomorrow

Thank you so much for the nice words of encouragement everyone! You really helped fuel me through my last workout on Friday. Today, is another full body workout, and I am really looking forward to it. I’ve started dieting again, just to shed some excess water weight right now. My ultimate goal is to be 20 lbs lighter before we conceive, but if that doesn’t happen, I will be happy with -10. I’ve started the South Beach diet for the next 2 weeks, because that’s helped in the past, and it’s kept me really disciplined and on track. Very low GI foods no sugar, and no carbs. I can do this…..Two weeks after this, I will cycle fruits back in, and after that whole grains, etc. This is the workout that I did last week, and I’m slowly starting to get a little stronger. Now that my diet is in check, I expect to see results soon. It somehow always works out that way
Here’s whats on my agenda for tonight:

10 min. warm up
Legs:
Walking lunges w/ dumbells (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs)
squats w/ dumbells (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20lbs)
calves - standing machine..not sure on the weight yet..(3 sets)
Hip abductor raises (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs)  - if there’s time

Chest:
incline chest press (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs) - or heavier if I can manage it

Arms:
Bicep curls (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs)
Tricep dips (body weight only)
Tricep pushdowns (if there’s time) not sure on the weight yet..

Shoulders:
dumbell lateral raises (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 7.5, 8, 10 lbs) - still working on getting stronger at these
dumbell shoulder press (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs)
shrugs (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs) - is this considered this shoulders, or arms? need to strengthen my neck area…

Back:
Lateral pull down (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 60, 70, 70 lbs) - or more if I can manage - this is still a little hard right now
stiff legged deadlift (15, 12, 10 (reps) x 15, 17.5, 20 lbs)

Abs:
ball crunches  (3 sets of 25) w/ medicine ball if it’s available
oblique ball crunches (3 sets of 25)  w/ medicine ball if its available
hanging leg raise (on chair thing) (3 sets of 25)
Wish me luck!

After trying to conceive for the past three months, I am deciding to get back to my normal schedule..Enduring the disappointment, the waiting, the not being able to really tell anyone, and the upside-down and inside-out treatment my diet and workout regimens have been tolerating, I think I need to get back to what makes me feel good. And right now, I could stand to lose some weight, and get some muscle back. For two weeks, I’ve been back into weight training, doing full body workouts, which have felt great. I just haven’t been logging anything on here, which I think I’ll start doing, just for my own satisfaction.

I really miss the support so many of you have offered on this site. And if my husband and I Weren’t trying to have a baby right now, I’d be on this site all the time. Somehow, my motivation just fell off the map. My diet (for conceiving purposes only) has included an array of foods, I wouldn’t normally embelish in, such as carbs, fat, and tons and tons of fruits and veggies. I’ve had my share of protein too. Now that I am feeling rather plump and a little bummed out from hearing about my big fat negative test results today, I think it’s high time I get my butt back into the gym.

So, it’s been a while..I hate starting my posts like that. but it truly has been a while since I’ve blogged. So many up’s and down’s, anxieties, and unknowns that are flying about for me right now. I have been working out, but unfortunately have reverted to my old ways of clinging to cardio. I realize that it’s important to continue weight-training even while trying to conceive. Which is what I am going to do. I did one weight-training day last week, and paid a hefty price in terms of soreness. My strength has gone by the wayside, and my weight has increased. I am still working on cleaning up my diet and really expanding my workouts to include a little bit of everything.

It dawned on me a few weeks ago, that I don’t know how to eat for two. I’ve always done low-carb, high-protein, low-sugar, or no sugar diets. Then I swing in the completely opposite extreme and totally indulge when under stress, in a very ugly way. So…I’ve tried to eat carbs again (whole grain), in moderation of course. It’s been really weird. I’m not pregnant yet, but expect to be soon. I’ve successfully cut out caffeine which wasn’t totally necessary, but it’s given me peace of mind, I drink sparingly, and will cut it completely when I do become pregnant. Eating in a more balanced way has thrown off my weight a little. I’ve put on about 4 lbs. Which during normal circumstances (weight-training / cardio ) and carb cycling would come off in a matter of days. I guess what I’m getting at, is that I am trying to be more consistent and balanced, in every aspect of my life right now. I’m even getting more sleep.  But what was "normal" before totally contradicts everything that I’ve read. And trust me, I read A LOT. Studies, books, online articles, etc. The amount of fiber, and carbs that I am expected to eat, when I do become preggers is astronomical. In fact, it’s made me really anxious, and a little freaked out.
I guess most of my life, I’ve struggled with diet. It’s something that’s been ingrained in me since I was young. "To look good, you must be thin." I guess I’ve been brainwashed. Now, I just want to look toned, and be healthy. I don’t strive for super-model waif-like thinness, although deep down, I sometimes wish I was. I never will be, and I’m okay with that…. I never expected motherhood to bring out my worst demons. I’m so confused and a little nervous that eating healthier has added some extra pound to my frame. I can’t even imagine what pregnancy will do…Are there any mothers out there that had fit pregnancies, and continued to workout with weights, and did cardio despite all of the crappy studies that have been done? My doctor almost had a heart attack when I told him that I wanted to keep weight-training. He basically told me to work on my arms, upper body, and calves..WTF? I will look like a toned-arm/calf beach ball..NOOOOO.
I tried doing my normal step class at a more controlled pace, which was damn near impossible. I did it because I thought I might be preggers, but I wasn’t. I felt like an idiot.I want to go full force, but need to start practicing restraint, I guess. I would feel like such a jerk if I did it knowing I was preggers and pushed my body too hard. But really, after all these years of pushing too hard, what is sorta hard?
Sorry for the negative post, I’m just a bit out of sorts right now…I need to figure out fact from fiction, and in a hurry.

Not preggers. Just incredibly out of whack, and trying to let my system get back to normal. Now I have no excuse to hit the weights HARD. Still, I can’t say that I’m not bummed…Maybe better luck next time..