Melinda F’s BodyBlog

Well I awoke for my first 5am workout this morning, I wasnt tired, I was actually really looking forward to it, worked out on my own and gotta say that I missed my workout partner aka hubby. I did my chest but could’nt lift as heavy without a spotter.

barbell press………………..15kgs x 3 sets x 10 reps

incline press………………….12kgs x 3 sets x 10 reps

dumbell press………………..10kgs each x 10 reps x 3 sets

dumbell flyes………………….8kgs x 10 reps x 3 sets

cable crunches…………………50kgs x 10 reps x 4 sets

side bend on extension machine with 10 kg plate………..3 sets x 12 reps each side.

I also ran for 15minutes, can you believe I even managed to fit cardio in! Yeah if you work out alone there is alot more time to fit in more, all in all, this was an hours workout and I was back home in time to get the kids ready for school, do breakfast and their lunches!

The only thing that didnt go so well was eating so early, I had a whey and all bran, the bran didnt feel so good and during my workout I felt a bit nauseas, so I’m not sure what to do here, maybe I should get a protein with some carbs in it for the morning.

So that was the start to my morning, you can be sure I’ll try to get some extra rest tonight to compensate for awaking so early.

Have a great day!

I have to change my workout times from now on, have to workout at 5am every morniing in order to fit this in, realise that this is just not working for my business, heck I tried to make it work but those 2 hours I’m away in the morning are really affecting my targets at the office.

I did a quick 40 minute workout this morning for shoulders:-

military press…………….12kgs x 15 reps x 3 sets

seated lateral raises…………6kgs x 10 reps x 3 sets

dumbell shoulder press……..7kgs each x 10 reps x 3 sets

front raises……….6kgs eachx 10 reps x 3 sets

bent over laterals……….7kgs x 8 reps, 6kgs x 10 reps x 2 sets.

upright rows…………20kgs x 10 repsx3sets.

seated calf raises………..45kgs x 12 reps, 50kg x 10repsx2sets.

Well that was it, moved pretty fast thro it all, hope it was good enough, sometimes you only have a certain amount of time and you gotta make do. Rather something than nothing, hey?

so have a great day, smile and choose happiness.

If theres anything I’m learning quick, its the absolute lesson that body building is a sport that requires time and dedication. I have so much I want to accomplish with regards to my fitness goals and I have a hard time accepting that this is a journey and not a destination. Sometimes I wish I could set life and its priorities aside and just focus on giving everything to my fitness goals, but I guess I have to realise that there are more important things than getting your body fat down.

I run my own business and the reason I do this is so I can give my children the future they deserve. So I dont choose to live an average lifestyle, I aim for the stars in all respects. At the end of the day, I’d love to go for a run, destress, burn some calories etc. but I also want to spend talking to my children, hearing how their day went and also cherishing the age that they’re at. I dont want to find that I missed out years from now or that they feel I never made the time to get to know them, their dreams and aspirations, I also make time for my husband who is not fitness crazy like me.

I do my weight training in the mornings, try to finish within 45 minutes, get back to my staff and get business done. I also try to make sure that I am at my kids games and dance etc. I sometimes want to wake up at 5am and do cardio but my body is tired and needs the extra rest for just 1 more hour as I try to catch up with office stuff once the kids are asleep. I am truly blessed to earn my own income but it doesnt stop the longing to just do what I want with my day.

I want it all, happy well balanced children, ripped body, happy husband, great income…….so for me the task lies in time management, I am doing what I can in the time that I have but it just doesnt seem to be enough. Does everyone feel like they wish they had more hours?  

At the end of my life I guess I’ll want to look back and see that I truly made an enormous difference in my childrens life and not that I had 6% bodyfat! Both would be nice though, so I wont stop trying!

I did my legs tody, was one of the quickest legs day I’ve had in a long time, I supersetted my exercise so I suppose time just flew by…..

Started with squats, 20kgs x 15 reps supersetted with leg curls, 10kgs x 10 reps, 30kgs x 14 reps, leg curls, 10kgsx 10 reps, 30 kgsx 14 reps, leg curls, 10kgs x 10 reps, 30kgs x 12 reps, 10kgs leg/c x 10 reps.

Supersetted leg extensions, 20kgs x 10 reps with walking lunges x 20kgs x 3 sets altogether.

Bulgarian squat - 4 sets, 12kgs x 12 reps each leg.

calves 45kgs x 10 reps x 3 sets.

I’m not feeling my euphoric self today, workout partner is not so motivated at the moment due to injury and is finishing way before me, so I kinda feel very hurried and not like I’m giving 100%. I think I’ll ty a few workouts on my own for the next few days and see how that goes. I am a firm believer that peoples energy rubs off onto each other, so a lacklustre one can be demotivating.

 

Ok yes, I mean my behind has definately gotten bigger, maybe higher is the right word, it has a certain roundness to it that it definately did not have 3 weeks ago, so my pants feel tighter around my thighs and behind but not on my waist which maybe means I put on some muscle.

Leaving that behind(ah!ah!)…….I went to gym to do my chest workout, 5 sets into my barbell press (20kgs at 6 reps) my woukout partner has an injury, hurt his shoulder and just couldnt work chest! Damn! I wsa feeling really strong this morning and was looking forward to increasing my weights, so we did bi’s and tri’s. I hate breaking a workout but I couldnt just keep working chest whilst he did nothing and I did need a spotter to do chest with me.

So heres my workout…….

barbell curl…………………23kgs, 3 sets x6reps, 20kgs, 3 sets x6 reps.

seated inline dumbell………………….6 sets, 9kgs each at 6 reps.

tried this new exercise today, moved the preacher curl stand to the cables, standing over it, did cable curls really slowly and concentrated……….20kgsx 6reps x 4 sets, 25kgsx6reps x 2sets.

skullcrushers on cables……….20kgs x 2 sets x 6 reps, 25kgs x4 sets x 6 reps.

dips with 10kg plate on lap, 20dips x 3 sets.

behing the head rope for tri’s 6 sets x6 reps x 25kgs.

that was me for today, i expect to see good results from the new bicep exercise, so will keep you informed.

As for the rear, I think I’m liking a bigger booty for now……

So heres a question if anyone cares to answer, does everyone trying to build muscle sleep 8 hours, I just cant seem to get the time, loads of stuff to do with business etc. Will it really hinder my progress, also the stimulants in superpump maybe keeping me up too, always battle with caffeine. Any thoughts?

 

I went to the gym late this evening with hubby and both kids, so 20 minutes into my ab workout, I get told my 5 year old cannot sit and watch, my 10year was swimming but  I couldnt leave the little one unattended in the pool so I abandoned the workout and did another 10 minutes and left. My little one didnt want to go to the playroom and I did not feel like dumping him there as its sunday and I feel he has a right to say what he would like to do on our family day. So I got in a tiny workout…….

So I truly believe that the week ahead is going to be an awesome one for me, I am preparing for nothing other than absolute success, business, physical, family, finances, I’m ready to receive.

 

I trained back this morning, I forgot  to warm up, pretty darn irresponsible, my training partner was in a nasty mood and it kinda always makes feel unsettled,I love the gym, when I walk in to the gym its like walking into a sweet shop, I see a million things I want to do but just select a few, if only there were more hours in the day. Anyway if you’re training with somebody, remember to be a positive influence, inspire, motivate and encourage them…

Heres my routine……….

Deadlifts (stiff leg)                   45kgs x 20 reps, 45kgs x 15 reps and 45kgs x 12 reps (sore)

Narrow grip lat pulldowns          30kgs x 6 x 3 sets, 35kgs x 6 reps, 40kgs x 6 reps x 2 sets.

cable rows                    
           35kgs x 6 reps x 3 sets, 40kgs x 3 sets x 6 reps.

dumbell rows                    
       15kgs x 6 reps x 6 sets.

standing lat pulldowns              15kgs x 6 sets x 6 reps

back extensions                 
      5kg in hand x 12 reps, body weight x 10 reps x 2 sets.

The deadlifts just killed me today, I could barely make the last few sets, but my training partner aka hubby was in a much better mood by then, must be the endorphins, so I went home and fueled up, even had a nap, fueled up, fueled up and now feel half decent.

Guys, thank you so much for always helping me out and passing on hints and tips, I really appreciate it and truly feel that I have to give every workout 100% as there are people out there who took the time to assist me even when I didnt ask! I am here to learn and grow stronger so ….thank you. 

I’m changing things up at the moment, trying to do sets of 6×6. Did my shoulders today and made them burn……

Warmed up with 12kgs of military press (15 reps), then did 6 sets of 6 reps at 15kgs.

moved unto side laterals 6 reps x 6 sets of 6kgs each.

front raises 6kgs, 6 sets of 6 reps.

bent over lateral raises 6kgs, 6×6

arnold press 8kgs 6 setsx6reps

upright rows 23kgs barbell, 6 sets, 6 reps.

shrugs 19kgs each, 6 reps, 6 sets.

I think I really worked them, tried to keep strict form and core tight.

Also took a 1km run home, I know,  not much cardio there, but hey atleast its a start!

I notice that alot of people do the push/pull method of training, chest, shoulders,triceps on one day etc. but I feel like if I tried that, how would I give 100% to each body part? Wont one be so fatigued from doing chest etc, and not be able to go heavy enough on shoulders, does anyone have any opinions on this routine as opposed to split body parts?

I’d like to try it, but dont want to stop my mass gains. I’m trying hard for size and will worry about fat burning as time goes along or just add some cardio there. If you"ve used push/pull, did your size gains diminish slightly?

I love Fridays, stay focused for the weekend, alot of my friends abandon their diets over weekends, indulge a little, but dont throw away a week of clean eating to indulge a few greedy taste buds, show them who’s boss.

So I was playing around with the kids in the pool yesterday and decided to brave a progress pic, looking at it I do feel like maybe I increased the size of my upper body a bit, having said that I have been feeling like also increased my fat percentage, I’m not sure what exactly that is but I just kinda go by the way I see it or it feels in clothes. So I guess I’m happy in size of my upper body but feel that I need to decrease the fat in my lower body. Ok so i dont want the fat but I do want more quad and calf size, do I keep with increaseing wieghts and keeping the reps around 12 or do I go lighter with higher reps…….I dont like the higher rep, lower weight equation as I feel like I’m not stimulating growth enough. I personally think I should keep with increasing the weights but add cardio to the mix, this weekend I’ll try to get some lower body pics to show what I mean.

I guess I’m a bit lazy to do cardio, but I do want lean muscle and added muscle size with fat on top, the thing with cardio is, how much enough so you cut fat and dont lose muscle size? So I’m thinking a few 20 minute HITT sessions, I also always take BCAA’s before cardio, dont wanna lose any size in muscle.

 I also think the extra carbs contributed to my muscle gains this past month but also to some extra fat due to almost no cardio. Its not that I’m too hard on myself, hubby keeps telling me I’m perfect the way I am, its just that I have an ideal in mind and thats what I’m striving for.

I’m not critical of my body, I very modestly think its beautiful, as it gave me 2 adorable angels and for that I’m blessed. If we didnt strive for better, how would we ever taste the pure flavour of success and achievement. I want to be the best me possible.

So yesterday I made this concoction of protein powders, about 3 months ago I purchased egg white powder, I didnt like the way it tasted scrambled so I put it just stopped using it and I have an enormous amount of it left. I just bought a new syntha 6 choc powder and decided I’d mix both to use up the egg white powder, well its not sooooooo good but I’m drinking it, all in the name of extra muscle.

I personally think I’m being very strict with my diet but have recently added in more red meat in to the equation, I normally stick with chicken breast and fish, egg whites, may be thats where the extra fat comes from, if you have any ideas for me, let me know…….maybe I’m on about nothing, after all its a beautiful day and my 5 year old son got his first valentines day card from a gorgeous little girl that fancies him!! How adorable is love?

I’m officially taking a rest day, body is very sore, will go back with all heart tomorrow.

Yes today was my leg day, I left my size on (creatine) at home and felt the difference, I didnt feel as strong as usual. So a couple of really big guys were hogging the barbell squat area and the only other one available was being used by a trainer not using the squat facility but getting his client to do some funny yoga stuff which he could have done in the abs section. He didnt want to move so my only option was to use the smith squat today. I started with a warm of 10kgs for 20 reps.

smith squat                 30kgs x 12reps, 40kgs x12reps x2sets, 50kgs x 12 reps.

legpress                  
    100kgsx15reps x 2 sets, 120 kgs x 14 reps.

walking lunges              24kgs x 24 reps x 3 sets

step ups                    Â
  14kgs x 20 reps x 3 sets

leg curls                   Â
 Â Â  20kgs x 10 reps x 3sets

Yeah, I wanted to crawl outta there, I never give anything less that a 100%, I always remember that someone else out there is choosing to work out harder than me so if I can increase weights or reps I always try. I think I drive my hubby crazy cause he feels that I kill him, he doesnt love body building as yet, it took a long time for him to actually start coming to gym with me, for years I ran alone or worked out by myself. I’m so happy that he finally decided to join me, theres nothing worse than knowing whats good for your body and not doing it.

The sp250 has really helped him stay motivated as well, some people have a huge inner drive(thats me for sure) and some people need stimulants to get them to gym, so I’m thankful that he is coming one way or another.I feel like I cant breathe or function if I dont work out.

So……choose happiness today.