Making_A_Change’s BodyBlog

My legs are sore–finally. I think it’s the cardio and the additional squats and lunges. My quads and definitely tighter. This morning was chest and shoulders, followed by 20 minutes on the stairmill. I did:

• bench db press (30#); chest flyes (15#)
• db chest flye+ v-sit
• cable flyes+cable shoulder press
• bb shoulder press

I did 4-5 sets. I seem to be stuck at 30# for the chest press. I need to push for the 35#. Tonight, I am going back for cardio and will hit the shoulders a bit more. I am still doing just 30 minutes of cardio. I am choosing 3 days during the week for evening cardio and then I do Saturday and Sunday because there is more flexibility time-wise.

Today, was a carb-up day–Pureed yams all day. And I still have a serving of oats that I need to eat! I did alot better pacing my meals and I should still be eating that last meal at around 10 p.m. It’s relaly amazing. I literally eat all day!

This was the third low carb day of my carb cycle–and it was evident. Initially, I was going to skip legs and do them another day because it was clear after just 10 minutes of warming up that this session was going to be tough. But I just read an article on figureathlete.com that occasion low carb days on difficult workouts, like legs, can be a real fat burner. So, I decided to keep leg day knowing that my numbers would be low and I would probably have to do higher reps. It is fascinating. My lifts were 30-50% lower that usual–sometimes more than that! I can do 150# on the leg extention on just about any day–but today I could lift it 1 1/2 times. I did 30# and focused on squeezing the muscle at the top. I did:

-one-legged leg press/calf-press (5 count)

-leg extentions/ball cruch/good mornings

-unilateral leg curls/front squats/oblique ball crunch

-split squats

-Cardio: 25 minutes on treadmill @ 3 mph, 10-15% incline

I am increasing my carbs to 175-200 grams tomorrow. My protein will be around 40-50%, a little lower than usual. My intake over that last three days have been 60%+ so, I am not worried about the decrease. I also considered upping my calories tomorrow, But I am going to stay with the 1600 calories and log if it works. It is only the second cycle and I don’t think I can make a descent assessment until I do about 3-4 cycles. And so far, my weight is still dropping. My morning weight was: 132.8. I am extremely flat, right now and I am looking forward to the carb-up. I am doing pureed yams. I get them from Trader Joe’s and they are so dreamy. They are creamy and it’s almost dessert-like.

Oh, I am also feeling the ’strain’ of the second evening cardio session. It definitely makes the 10 minutes of warm-up a smidge more difficult. But I will adjust–and it’s working. I am aware, however, that I need to watch out for a decrease in muscle, too.
I am going to eat some oats and then get the family ready for the week.

Today’s workout was great. I’ve been getting to bed early and have been getting up early alot easier. I did lotsof drps sets and 45# db rows today:

Lat pull downs; reverse lat pull downs; bent over rows

one-armed seated rows;deadlifts + bb bicep curls (played with the counts, on 1 did one deadlift and 1 curl; on 2 did 1 dead and 2 curls, etc. It was fun and tiring. Next time, I’ll increase the deads, too.)

include bicep curls; one armed rows (I think I finally know what fatigue feels like. It felt like I, quite literally, hit a wall. I could not lift the weight, at all.)

Everything was 4 sets of 8-12 sets.
For cardio, I did the walking lat rows  that Billy showed me last Friday across the aerobic floor. I couldn’t make it all the way across the floor, which is larger than our training gym’s. I got about 3/4 of the way, had to rest, then proceed. But I liked that. I really pushed on my last set and made it. My goal is to go across and back. I also did some jump roping. And ending it all with posing practice.

I’ve also created ‘the perfect storm’ in terms of my diet. You know, when you get the macros and food just right? I fit 1600 across 8 meals and the last two work as pre and post workout meals for my evening cardio session. I finish eating at 9 p.m. and it was perfect. I am going to try and replicate it, again, today, and tweak the schedule for the weekdays, when everything is pushed up about 2 hours. I also need to play with the numbers for the high card days, which I am bumping up to  200 grams from 160 grams.

Morning weight: 132.2 and dropping.

I had a great workout today. I am back on Vasocharge and my morning weight was 134 pounds. The skin on my abs is very loose and hanging over my underwear–remember, this is a good thing! My appetite has increased. I have found myself trying to go to sleep earlier to ‘beat’ the hunger. I woke up at 1 a.m. starving, but made myself go back to sleep. I woke up before the alarm this morning and literally ran to the kitchen for oatmeal! Stretching meals to 2 1/2 much less 3 hours is really difficult.
I did:

• shoulder presses; standing tricep extensions (max 25#)
• seated tricep extensions; lateral raises
• cable tricep extension (max @ 100#);standing lat raises (20#)
• assisted and unassisted dips; pull ups (assisted)
• posing practice
• 25 minutes on the stairmill

Billy said that he took Thursday off from his own workouts and that gives him plenty of time to plan out his plan of attack. And it was, indeed, an attack on every muscle I had! Tons of circuits with lunges, squats, and walking push-ups. The workout was so challenging. But I think the exciting part is that I could do it. It was such a testament to committing to this lifestyle and being consistent. I can hardly believe that this March will be 2 years of regular training! I am so much stronger and its exhilarating! While pushing through today’s workout, I was motivated by the next show and improving.

I am not going to know what to train until tomorrow. I may end up just doing stead cardio to aleviate some soreness. I am going to do some cardio tonight. Time to hit those two-a-days–hard.

I almost forgot to add that this was the end of my first lowered carb (at or below 60 grams) cycle. Today, I carbed up with baby yellow potatoes. I did the numbers and I could have 5 of them. I also had 1/2 a cup of pureed yams, tonight. That wasn’t in the plan but I am starving and it’s not even 7 pm! I have to adjust how I distribute my meals. The end of the work day came and I was just about out of food. I need a filler–like romaine lettuce or something. My appetite could also be in overdrive because of the workout, too. After the second carb meal, I felt like I was done. I didn’t want to eat anymore. I got in 160 grams and I am going to see what that looks like in a few days. Tomorrow I cut the carbs back to 50-60 grams. It is really difficult to get below that with the oatmeal. I haven’t tried a no carb day, which could be effective.

I am trying to embrace these off days and I think I did well, today. I didn’t think about the gym. I just focused on getting my meals in and keeping the carbs at or below 60 grams. My morning weigh in was 136.8–very promising and a huge relief from the post-holiday 144 pounds. I am going to make tomorrow my moderate/high day. I had planned on doing it today, but decided not do since I was off. Tomorrow, I am going to begin the day with 1/3 cup of oats–oh, yes–and have the remainder of my carbs with my 3rd and 5th meal. I am going to map it out on fitday. I want to finish my carbs by 3 or so. I have been eating 7-8 meals per day. I find I am getting hungry at around 2 1/2 hours–so I know things are revving up.

Tomorrow is my session. I am rested and ready. I moved my off day to Thursday, because my muscles were tired, too tired, to really take advantage of the full body workouts.

I am going to start cooking.

It was a short workout today, I tried to focus on going deeper with my bar squats, so the weight wasn’t heavy. It burned. I supersetted with one-legged deadlifts. Then I did a few sets of one-legged leg presses.  also did some hamstring curls. I have been incorporating squats and lunges into my other work days and I think I was a tad bit sore/stiff from the previous leg day which was great! So, there was nothing to report here. Tomorrow is my off day as Billy is doing full body circuits with me on Friday.

It is Day 3 of my cut and I am feeling a bit better. I am splitting my fats up during the day today. And I am not feeling so fuzzy. I can’t lie, though, it’s on tomorrow–oatmeal and yams! Or basmatic rice! Around 175 grams. Mmmm. We’ll see how that goes.

This morning I woke up with the biggest headache. It had to be carb-related. I cut my low days to <60 grams. My high days are going to be around 175-200 grams every 3-4 days. I am down 2 oz. from yesterday, which tells me that this may be working. I have also been going through old journals and I started double cardio around this time. Now, this time around I have to be careful, because I would like to keep the bit of muscle that I did gain during the post-competition period. I do find myself wanted to get to bed early so that I can get that morning oatmeal. For some reason, just eating protein and veggies is tiring. You don’t feel truly satisfied and rely on the frequency of your meals and water. I am going to schedule my next carb up day on Tuesday–Inauguration Day! We are celebrating with a menu of my daughter’s creation which includes: oranges, watermelow, sushi, and cupcakes. I am all over the sushi!

I am so happy that I have begun this week on the right foot. I got to the gym at 4:35 a.m. and stayed until about 6:10. I did bb chest presses on the incline and flat bench. And some work on the cables. I integrated some squats and I feel great. I am sore from top to bottom. Tomorrow, I am going to do abs and calves. That is going to be fun! I got my final order in for my suit–I had to submit a ‘custom’ form. But, that is taken care of. I am so excited. My glutes and hamstrings are throbbing and I am so happy about that! I have some new lines that separate the quads and hamstrings and that is so exciting.I ended my weight session with 20 minutes on the upright bike. Tomorrow’s cardio is walking lunges with 25#, jumping rope, and lateral jumps.
I am low carbing it until Wednesday and carbing up on Thursday. Today was just under 60 grams of carbs. And, oh how I did want a bowl of oatmeal. Crazy. I didn’t want sweets, I just wanted a bowl of oats with 1/2 of a banana–that’s all. The cravings were low/moderate. I do know that I can’t wait to wake up at 4 a.m. tomorrow morning and get that pre- and post-workout oatmeal. I’m so excited.

I have also been getting my meals in, but it feels like I am force feeding myself. I sit there, sigh, eat, sigh, chew…repeat. It’s just chicken and veggies for the most part. And I keep fruits to a minimum. I am also trying to make sure that I keep my water up.

I felt really strong today. I did:

• bb rows (70# bb)/ bb preacher curls (rested with v-sits)
• seated one-armed rows (drop sets) (rested with oblique cruches on ball
• lat pull down (drop sets), reverse lat pull down (PB of 90# for 5 reps)
• bent over db flyes/seated bb curls
• one armed rows (45# personal best)

I stopped counting sets and was doing lots of drop sets. I ended everything with 30 minutes on the stairmill @ Level 9. I feel exhausted but great. I start back on the VasoCharge next Saturday. Tomorrow, I’ll end my workout with walking lunges and plyometrics.