Committed to The Cause

I worked biceps, tris and chest.  Not my favorite body parts, so I have a little trouble really getting into it.  Then again, I am working these areas on the machines as opposed to the free weights which I’d rather do, but again that’s in testosterone zone…  I really need to get over it!  Anyhow, I also did 1 1/2 of cardio which felt good.  Everyone complains that they hate cardio, why?  Def weights are more fun, but if you’re doing the right cardio that can be fun as well.  I hate the treadmill, you will never catch me on the treadmill, not even for a 2 minute warmup.  Forget that!  Totally boring, snore…  But I’ll tackle everything else and I do 30 minutes on each, increasing intensity every time.   I even do HITT on the cardio equipment and I get an amazing workout.  Try it, you’ll like it!  Also, had my body measurements taken today.  Not fun, but had to be done.  And no I’m not sharing these with anybody.  It’s a pretty traumatic experience…hahahaha!  Which is why I cannot share, I need time to heal from this.

No, not at the gym, on bodyblog!    Ok, so Wednesday was leg day….  Ok, on Tuesday I finally worked out a bit with a trainer because I have not been training my back - bad I know.  I was a little embarrassed at how weak this area is.  I know how important strengthening the core is so there’s really no excuse, except that I was a little intimidated by, again, onlookers in the "testosterone zone"!  hahaha!  A lot of the equipment that I need to workout the back is in that area!  Oh, well…get over it, right?  It was a good workout, I just need to do my back days early in the morning when I don’t feel so self-conscious in the jungle gym.  Thursday, I really kicked up the cardio, did an hour and a half of that.  Friday, I took off.  I have not had a break since last Saturday.

at least for the next 4 weeks, which will not be easy at all!  I don’t know about anyone else, but I place way too much emphasis on the numbers that pop up on the scale and to my detriment, I weigh myself like every 2 days which is really bad…psychologically speaking.  Regardless of the changes and  improvement that I’ve made over the last month, the numbers on that scale always send me reeling and it just really messes me up.  So as hard as this is for me, I am putting it away in a place where I can’t get to it easily, because this is just absurd at this point.  I’m going to focus on how I feel, how the clothes fit and measurements, which again will not be easy, but I will at least get rid of the terrible mind trips that I put myself through.  We’ll see what happens!

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Wishing everyone a Happy and Safe 4th of July!

Today was leg day.  What a great workout!  Really felt the burn today.  Felt like I could go on forever, but I held back because I know I would regret it in the morning.  I have thick legs and there was a time when I truly detested them, but thanks to the likes of the Beyonce’s and the JLo’s of the world, I have a newfound love and appreciation for them.  My vision of sexy legs always came from society’s definition of what sexy legs should look like and I never felt that my legs would live up to that standard, but now I see how wrong I was.  Legs come in all shapes and sizes and can be and are beautiful no matter what ethnicity, color or size they come in, (by size I mean tall, short, stocky).  So I am on my quest for my sexy, thick legs, I don’t care who likes them or not!  LOL!  Anyway:

Training:

Seated Leg Press - 70 to 90 lbs - 4 sets/10-15 reps

Inner thigh - 50 -60lbs - 4 sets/10-20 reps

Outer thigh - 50 lbs - 4 sets/ 10-15 reps

Leg Ext - 30-45 lbs - 4 sets/10-15 reps

Butt Blaster - 30-50 lbs 4 sets/15-25 reps

Calves - 70-90 lbs 4 sets/25 reps

Stairmaster - 20 minutes - level 4

That’s it for now.

I finally worked out my arms this week.  Seems like I’ve been focusing more on legs and cardio and I can still feel the pain from Wednesday’s leg workout, but not as bad as it was yesterday.  Did really well on the weights, but could only do 25 minutes of intense cardio as opposed to my usual 1 hour session.  No doubt it has to do with the fact that I only had a bowl of cereal this morning at 8:30 a.m. and worked out at 1 p.m. with nothing else to eat until 3 p.m.  Not good, I know.  I find it hard to stick to my meal plan on the weekends because I’m not confined to a schedule the way I am during the week.  You get up when you want to, eat when you want and workout when you want to on the weekends as opposed to weekdays, when your days are very structured.  At least that’s the way it is for me.  It’s 4:20 now and have no idea how I’m going to cram another 700 calories into my day without it have adverse effects.  Maybe I’ll just stick to veggies and protein shakes.  I don’t know.  Well tomorrow is leg day again.  Can’t wait!!!  I love leg day!

Ahhh made you look!  LOL!  I see all these gorgeous bodies on here but only the ladies get really into the photo thing - some photos are border line pornographic, but whose complaining, right?!?!?!  hahaha!  My thing is that I’d like to see the guys on here with the really hot bods post up so hot booty and leg shots.  So far I have only found a few who really put it out there.  So come on guys, let’s see those butts and legs!  LOL!  I mean the chest, arms, abs are all hot, but what about the rest of ya???  Send me a PM if you fall under this category.  Let the games begin!!!!

Finally back in an actual gym and training has never felt better.  Did legs today, fully expect to be completely sore tomorrow.  Getting out of bed alone, will prove to be challenging.  I should probably invest in a walker for the day after legs.  Kidding!    My diet has been really clean and the calories steady around 1300 a day.  I’m a little concerned that I’ve only dropped 7 lbs in the last month, since I’ve been eating this way all along.  I’ve considered the possibility that perhaps I am not eating enough, but that always makes me nervous, to think that I should actually be eating more.  Hmmmmm…..  I welcome any and all input in this regard.  I do eat a little more on days that I have a lot of cardio and a more intense weight session.  We’ll see how it goes the next few weeks.

Finally got back in the gym this week.  A real gym!  I had been working out at home and doing my thing, but the intensity just wasn’t there for me, which I really need in order to stay focused.  I just wasn’t feeling challenged with what I was doing at home, even though I push myself to the point of exhaustion, it isn’t the same as hitting the gym.  I think it’s all about the atmosphere as well, everyone is really pumped up and hitting it hard and it gives you that extra push you need.  Needless to say, I’m really sore, I might have overdone it just a bit, but it’s a good feeling.  Still feels a bit intimidating, but once I plug in my iPOD, I get lost in my music and forget that I’m in a room full of people trying to accomplish the same goals or better themselves.  You almost have to take on the attitude of, "so what if they’re looking at me", otherwise you’ll never attain your goals.  I saw people in that gym yesterday, who have so much more to achieve than I do and my heart just went out to them because even though my goal is much smaller than their’s, it’s still difficult and challenging and at times seems like you’re never going to reach the finish line.  Then I thought to myself, wow my obstacles are so much smaller than others who will no doubt take years to attain their goals and it really helped me put it in perspective.  I can do this!  And it’s not going to take me years, the way it would others.   So, no more excuses…time to step it up!   And for those of you who will take a bit longer to get there, don’t quit until you do…

I miss Caramel Macchiatto’s from Starbucks and the major buzz it gives me.  I’ve basically given up coffee, because it requires cream and sugar and I’m not replacing it with processed substitutes, so I’ll just go without!  I miss buffalo wings and french fries.  I really miss HAPPY HOUR!  Gone are the days of Friday night Apple Martinis…

But what I really miss the most is walking into the room and turning heads, I really miss laying on the beach in a 2 piece suit, I miss wearing tank tops and shorts and I really miss shopping for small, nice fitting clothes.  Even more than that, I miss my self-esteem, feeling sexy and having dates.

I remember when I was younger and much smaller how I dreaded being approached or gawked at merely because of my physical appearance.  I always felt there is so much more to me than my appearance.  Unfortunately, we can’t have it all and people will almost always sum you up based on your appearance.  However, now that I know who I am both inside and out, I want to go back to a time when I felt good about myself and had the confidence to walk into a room without feeling bad about the way I looked.  If you want to stare based on my appearance alone, I can live with that now, because I know who I really am and that’s all that matters.
Therefore, I will continue on this journey.  They say the first 2 weeks are the hardest and they certainly have been.  I hope to go on a little stronger, harder and even more determined because I want that Beach Body back!

One day at a time, one day at a time. (repeat) <—–my daily mantra these days!