Making_A_Change’s BodyBlog

with the flu! Billy left a message for me. I didn’t get it b/c I am really bad at checking my messages. But I knew that once it was 15 minutes passed, something was up and figured he was sick. He had been battling something with his sinuses for two weeks, so I guess it finally got ‘em. He wanted to reschedule for tomorrow, but I said I could wait until our next session. I worked my biceps like there was no tomorrow. I wanted to do abs but they were terribly sore. I did include alot of squats and a few sets of calf raises. I finished it off with a slow 20 minute run and a 3.5 mph walk at a 12% incline. Tomorrow, may be glute/ham day!

I was feeling so good when I got home that I made the family pancakes–real pancakes. And I had two myself. Hey, if you are going to have a treat, might as well do it right after a workout so that it can be used! It’s protein and veggies for the rest of the day for me!

I am saving biceps for tommorow. I am hoping, hoping, that Billy has drills for me tommorow. It’s challenging, but I really do enjoy the jumping rope, dodging, weaving, push-ups all that stuff. The hour flies by! Today’s workout was very close to what is the norm. I felt strong and coordinated. I am still sore, but in a way that I am used to–not in a sickening, stiff as a board way. LOL! Yes, there are days that I complain, but I’ll say it again, I really do love this lifestyle. I have been getting asked alot of questions about what I have been doing from friends and family. I think I am at the point where it looks like it is easy for me, when really everyday is a personal challenge–get up early, eat well, eat often, drink water, take supplements, drink protein shakes-repeat.

But last March, this wasn’t easy by any means. I have to admit, I was my own obstacle and had to change my mindset. These were some of my thoughts:

Excuse: I am not a ‘morning person’.

Reality: I don’t know too many people who like getting up early in the morning–much less at 5 a.m. But this seemed to be the only time that didn’t interfere with family time. And my evening workouts were usually poor because all I wanted to do after a long day of work is just eat dinner, get the little one fed and ready for bed, watch the few shows that I liked, and go to bed myself. I though people who got up before 6 a.m. were just plain nuts, but if I wanted to changed my body I was going to have to become that person. So, I began to practice–a few morning workouts and a few evening workouts–until I could get up in the morning.

Excuse: When I workout in  the evening, I end up driving around for 20-30 minutes trying to find parking.

Reality: If I went to the gym in the morning, parking would never be an issue and I wouldn’t waste any gas driving around my neighborhood and frustrated the heck out of myself wishing I had gone in the morning. Also, I would end up parking far away from our apartment and then worry about the dark walk back home. I also decided to rent one of the few spaces in front of our building which turned out to be money well spent. Now, if I do go to the gym in the evening I can park right in front of my building.

Excuse: Working out takes time away from the family.

Reality: Yes, that was an hour that I could have spent with my little one in the evening. I tried going to the gym after she went to sleep, but that meant that I would end up in the gym even later. And it felt like the day would never end! Again, working out in the early morning squashed this issue–no one is awake when I leave and everyone is usually still asleep when I return. When I workout I feel energized and have more to give to my family. It took some time to get used to, but it had to be done.

Excuse: My workday was so stressful and I am exhausted; I just can’t go to the gym tonight.

Reality: Unless I become independently wealthy or win the lottery, I am going to have to work. And I imagine I am going to be working for the next 25-30 years (becuase I love what I do). And the field of education can indeed be draining. However, working out consistently does energize me. And if I workout in the morning, I can begin the day awake and strong. There is also a sense of accomplishment knowing that I have done something that a few people have done.

Excuse: I won’t be able to eat anything.

Reality: I had to be willing to change and look at my long-term goal, not the immediate discomfort. There is so many varieties of foods–different tastes, colors, textures–and I was limiting myself to a few things. After a little bit of research and talking to people on this site, I eat MORE than most of the people I know. I think I have become a better cook, because I look for new ways to prepare my staple foods. I am always eating and can even have a few treats once in a while. My metabolism is higher than it was and I eat to fuel my workouts. I have a different relationship with food and have learned how it can affect my body. I am alot more adventurous sult, my daughter gets to experience more foods. She loves tofu!

Excuse: Eating clean/organic foods is too expensive.

Reality: Less than desireable foods typically are cheaper. That is why Burger King and McDonald’s are able to sell 2 burgers for $2. But once I became used to what a ‘real’ portion size was the things that I cooked began to last longer–I could eat the meals that I prepared over 2 or 3 meals. I also had to re-learn was a ‘meal’ was. It didn’t necessarily mean sitting down to 3 courses. It could be 1/2 a protein bar and piece of fruit on the go or a double protein shake with peanut butter or a banana blended in it. I do spend a little more on groceries because I pack my food wherever I go, but I go out alot less which saves me money in the long run.  

Excuse: I guess this is just what aging and having a baby does to your body.

Reality: Yes, aging and giving birth change your body but bodybuilding allows you to change your body and make it BETTER. When I looked at this site and saw 40, 50 and 60 year olds (with 3 and 4+ children) with the bodies of 20 year olds I no longer had an excuse–plain and simple. They did it with children and jobs, and so could I.

Last night, I ran around the lake (3 miles) and felt great! Today, I worked on my chest and abs. I threw some shoulder/squats in the mix, but not too much. My legs still feel like jello. I am going to go back to some of my older blogs and see if leg sessions with Billy always put me out of comission like this! I am now down to a dull ache and my legs feel warm. They are warmer than the rest of my body to the touch. The water retention is gone, the scale is reading 148# instead of 152#. This allowed me to see the changes in my body much easier in the gym. This is also the time that I typically notice something new. The scale is useful to me in that I can tell when I am ovulating! This can be useful when the husband and I are ready to try having another child–wait, let me see if I am carry 4 pounds of water! My mood is much improved and I spent about 1 1/2 hours in the gym for a workout that should have been an hour or maybe less. My rests were a little longer than usual b/c I really had to push myself to finish sets.

My lower abs are continuing to change before, my eyes. It’s odd. I even found a vein on my hip! I tried to capture it with the digital camera, but I couldn’t. It is exctiting to thing that I could conceivably meet my goal of ‘visible abs’. But I am going to take Maddi’s advice and enjoy the journey.

Tomorrow, I am going to do back and biceps and keep is short and sweet–1 hard hour! I am actually off next week and I am going to enjoy that! I will sleep in, workout, eat well, and read a few books! That sounds nice!

The thing that I love about blogging is the accountability to myself and what I am trying to achieve and being able to identify patterns in my body and moods. This week has been very unproductive. I had a strenuous workout with the PT on Monday, then took Tuesday off b/c the DOMS were so bad. I ended up working out Wednesday evening b/c, again, I felt exhasuted. Thursdday, I skipped my workout all together. I was feeling very unmotivated, weak, and sore. This morning, I felt like I could have slept for another 2-3 hours! And I have to have another evening workout, yet again. I think the changes are due to my period, bloating, extreme changes and the accompanying stress at work. I also notice that I tend to be extremely week after strenuous leg workouts, too. But, I have continued to eat on schedule, I know the ratios are off b/c I need to go grocery shopping.
On a positive note, I am noticing more changes in my abs. When I sit down, instead of pooching outward, I am getting a ‘crease’ of sorts, like there is alot less body fat there. That is very promising. And my legs continue to get very firm. It is an odd sensation to feel tightness/hardness and not be flexing. It is all a big experiment.

Update: Tonight, I had a great 3 mile run outside. I don’t know if it was the evening breeze or the change of scenary, but it felt great to be outside running. I had an even stride, good music, and just didn’t stop!

I was extremely sore this morning-the legs were like lead. My daughter had another sleepless night (What’s up with that? She’s 4!) so, getting up wasn’t an option this morning. But I did promise myself night cardio and I just did it. The gym was packed. All of the ellipticals were taken so I thought-What can I do that will get me out by 9 p.m.? Ah, the stairmill. I put it on level 8 and planned to do 30 minutes. Unfortunately, I left my MP3 player in my car. I drove my husband’s car because it was in our parking space and I wouldn’t have to worry about parking upon my return. It was rough. I tried to focus on what was on the TV. They had American Idol on, but you need to hear that! Some movie of the week was on another screen, but the captions weren’t big enough to read from where I was. The gym’s music wasn’t to my liking. All I could do was focus on my butt. I tried varying my steps–skipping steps, walking sideways, walking on tip toes, etc. I stretched and then went home. Nothing spectacular. I am holding quite a bit of water, now–about 4 pounds. My cravings have been crazy. I have had tastes for carbs and chocolate–no surprises there. I water should be gone my Friday or Saturday and I will be able to see where I stand. My energy is a bit low, but that will change within a few days, too.

Sunday,  I did 40 minutes on the elliptical followed by some biceps. I left my legs alone in the event that I’ll needed them for Billy’s session and lo and behold–I did. He put me through a grueling leg workout that left me sweating buckets. Sweat was literally flying off of my face–it was like a bad sitcom where they use water of something to emulate massive sweating. I was really sore for most of Monday. This morning rolled around and I had zero motivation and zero desire to work–it’s my period. With an IUD, it tends to sneak up on you sloo-oo-wly instead of just flowing. My stomach is jacked and I want chocolate. I should be good tomorrow. As a matter of fact, I can’t wait to go. If my legs are still sore, I’ll do cardio to loosen them up. But if not, I hit the back and biceps.

So, in a previous post I wrote that my husband wants to move to a neighborhood with a better public school district. It turned out that the city had NO gym to speak of. I told him I need fitness to keep me happy–my mood is better, my body is better, and it makes me happy!  The husband just presented me with the following compromise: we rent a house with garage and/or third bedroom and he will buy me a full gym. Okay, he is REALLY working hard to get me to move. He said, "…with the money that we save in tuition we could put in a full gym and you could see Billy every two weeks at your current gym." So, I am putting together a wish list and we will see what next year brings. Very shrewd move on his part….very shrewd.

My just about my entire body was sore this morning. So, I modified my plans a bit and did abs for about 40 minutes. It was the first time that I devoted an entire workout to them. It was really all I could go. I tried to do woodchopper type excercises, but my shoulders would not allow it. Man, I really put it on myself a few days ago. LOL! I also took time to do some extra long, deep stretches. By the time I left my abs were feeling nice and tight–like a girdle! As I was doing kneeling weighted crunches to the front and then the sides, I could feel muscles working that I hadn’t felt before. That was promising!

When I got home, I got my daughter ready to spend the day with one of her friends and a good friend of mine. Our daughters are three months apart. We try to stay in touch and we even used to work together. She hasn’t seen me in some time. She said, "Oh my god! I can’t stop looking at you! You look fantastic! That hard work shows!". I was almost embarrased, but I felt good. We went to a children’s museum where you can touch everything and run around. It was a fantastic day. I didn’t pack my food and just planned to eat whatever was at the museum. The museum is located in an affluent part of the Bay and that was reflected in the cafeteria’s food selection: organic 100% beef hot dogs and links, paninis with assorted grilled veggies, goat cheese, and sides of dark leafy greens, fresh chicken tamales, vegetarian chili, soy milk, Odwallas, etc. Everything was really good and very healthy. At the end of the day we went to Cold Stone for ice cream and I had a brownie sundae. Tomorrow, I think will be legs to balance out today’s cheat and because it’s about that time!

I felt like I was on something this morning! I had energy to spare, it was amazing. It could explain why I am so wiped out,now. I focused on chest and shoulders and ended my session with a few squats. My workout went something like this: chest press/flye, bb chest press; push-up/stand-up, pullover/stand; push-up to kneeling front raise, one-legged shoulder press. I did three sets or 12-15 reps. I was going all out. I can’t believe the changes that are happening right now. My lower abs seems to be shrinking my the week. This is the flattest that they have been ever-before or after my daughter. I don’t even care about the stretch marks, anymore.

I was invited to attend one day of a conference with my boss. Unfortunately, I left my cooler at work, so I had to improvise. I packed a few oranges, yogurt, a double protein shake (for two meals) and of course my protein bars. I even quickly cooked an ‘egg McMuffin’ with two eggs and a whole wheat muffin and wrapped it in foil. I managed to keep my schedule. I really have no choice; missing a meal could mean me face down on the pavement–seriously! My husband made tacos for dinner with turkey meat. I had everything except for the shell. And tonight, my new favorite treat, Muscle Milk! I beat I could make some brownies with that stuff–hmmm.

I am working a 13+ hour day and decided to get the extra hour or so of sleep. But I will be in the gym Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, for sure! I am happily sore, but I did forget to take my glucosamine last night. I am going to take it with my next meal. My meals today consist of talapia and broccoli. It’s a nice change from chicken. I am getting a hankering for beef, too! Not much to report other than I am looking snazzy in the the slacks and shirt that I found last night. I told my husband that it is weird shopping in the 6 section. There weren’t alot of clothes there. There was no end to the 10’s and 12’s, but what I was looking for was limited–new perspective.