Trudee’s BodyBlog

I had a lot on my mind this morning and don’t remember much about my workout???  It must not have been overly hard.  It was back anc biceps.  My arms are really sore as I’m typing but I must’ve been in space and hour ago.  I’m rounding the corner to my 4 year 100 pound weight loss anniversary and I’ve been reflecting on the bad turn it took for 2 years and how dark and ugly that time was.  My mind is in turmoil today over my past and I’m feeling some shame from the hiding and the secrets and the lies.  It’s just another hurdle in my journey that I need to overcome.

I’m going to take some progress pics today and compare them and I know the difference will be amazing from 2 years ago.  I did weigh myself but I’m going to do a 3 day weigh in because it fluctuates so much.  My BF was about the same but my weight was up a pound.  I’m sure my legs are still holding some water as they are still pretty sore.  I have lost about .25 inch off my midsection (though I think that’s more due to the fact of no meat).

I’m struggling with my food intake.  My running mileage has gone from about 20 miles a week to 25 and sometimes topping out at 35.  I need to eat more food.  I still hate the feeling of a lot of food in my stomach.  It makes me uncomfortable and squirminsh LOL.  I know the time has come to bump it up and stay up.  I’m having several clues like not sleeping, being tired, my body being tired and more sore, and having a harder time recovering.  Some days my weights seem heavier too.  I’m gaining weight on what I’m eating now so I hate to eat even more   This usually happens at the end of the month..I say it’s my body catching up to my workouts.  One of these days it’s going to have to now or never…move forward or stay put…recover or constantly battle.

Workout:

Back, Biceps, Abs

1 mile brisk walk

I’m paying the price for my leg circuit training workout yesterday but the price is so worth it!  I’m awesomely sore in the right places…my trouble spots   Circuit training has always been my thing in the past and it has worked for me so I’m guess I’m going back!

My legs were sore this morning but not the I can’t move sore which would suck considering I’m on my feet 90% of the day!  Today was a cardio day and I knew it may be a little tough since my legs were sore but working them again is usually what alleviates the soreness.  I’ve been reading a lot lately and most articles say running and lifting with your legs work the muscles 2 different ways so there’s no reason you can’t run after a leg day (unless of course you don’t want to or can’t move LOL).  My legs always feel better after I run the day after (that’s a lot of afters hahaha)  I have read in numerous places that it doesn’t sacrifice any muscle and so many people state.  Actually a lot of what I read on the forum turns out to be mostly hype when you actually read up on it from respectable sources.   A lot of the things on the forum seem to be like scare tactics!…I still enjoy reading some of the things but I take some and leave some.

workout

5 mile Am run  alternating between 5.5 MPH and 6MPH for 5 miles

5 mile PM trail run-I love it

WOW…I lessened my sets to 3 instead of 4 but did all the exercises circuit style and my LEGS are burning and I can barely move.  I had to climb stairs from the basement after my workout and I felt like I needed a crane.  This shows me quality over quantity.  Honestly I tend to get bored with more than 3 sets so 3 quick sets I think will work perfect for me.  I finished up with 1 mile of brisk walking on the treadmill and I feel good to go.

I just have to say AGAIN how amazing I feel being meat free.  I did have 1 small piece of popcorn chicken last night but I didn’t have that "Oh I miss this" feeling!  I haven’t really had any meat cravings either.  I’ve been experimenting with tofu.  I’m not a big fan but every once in awhile I can make it work.  With that said I have decided not to eat things I don’t like just because I’m supposed to…for example-Egg whites, I can’t stand them so I will no longer eat them LOL  I will keep them for recipes and that’s it.  No more forcing myself to eat foods that make my stomach turn LMAO.  I will eat the roasted veggies I love, I will eat what I like!  I have been substituting boca crumbles and chicken for any meat recipes I decide to make.  I have also found the tofu noodle things and will be trying those this week.  So far I am enjoying my meat free diet which is a big plus.  No bloating, no stomach issues, and I feel about 10 pounds lighter!

workout:  Leg Day

15 min brisk walking at 4 MPH

Today was an awesome cardio workout.  I started with level 2 and 3 of Cardio Max from the Biggest Loser.  When I first got it I thought dying would be a better option and now I breathe heavy but not keeling over heavy LOL.  Then I did 3 mile intervals on the treadmill.  1 mile warmup at 5.5 MPH.  1 mile hill intervals 1/4 mile at 5% then 3% then repeat.1 mile sprints .25 at 5.5MPH, .25 at 8 MPH, .25 at 6 MPH, .25 at 7MPH then a 3 min jog to finish the 35 minutes.  The sweat was flying and I was loving it!  I felt so good I even stretched after LOL (I hate stretching and yes I know I should)

This week is progress picture week and as long as I don’t pig out on sodium filled foods I should be good.  I can see a definite difference in my ab area.  I still have quite a bit of flab in my inner thighs but it has gone down some so that is progress.  My weight was down 1 pound but we all know how that goes   I will be switching my cardio and ab routines but will stick with the same split for now.  I just switched days and will switch the order of exercises and see how it goes.  I may play around with it mid-Nov if it gets to be easy which it hasn’t yet!

Workout:

AWESOME cardio

Disclaimer:  The following writing is merely my OPINION from the research, reading, and chatting with other trainers that I have done.  It is not meant to be towards one person or group, just the attitudes of the forums.  Please do not blast me into orbit

Ok I decided to go into the forums yesterday to see if I could snag a few tips or some new moves.  The attitude I picked up from there is if you aren’t there to gain massive amounts of muscle you have no business being there!!  Post after post I read said no cardio, eat 2000 calories when a person’s maintance was 1700.  Not everyone wants to gain muscle.  Some of us just want to slim down, lose some fat, and gain a sleeker body…like me LOL.  I just read an article from Tosca Reno and even she does 40 MINUTES of cardio after her routine.  Some of us need cardio to keep the fat off.  There is nothing wrong with doing 30 minutes of cardio 5 days a week.  Some people don’t need cardio and eat perfect and lift 300 pounds and……  That’s not the majority of the women today.  I don’t want to be a bodybuilder so I don’t need to eat like one.  I lost most of my weight using speed walking.  I didn’t start running until 2 years ago.  I’m not a big pile of fat because I do cardio 5-6 days a week.  I’m also not skin and bone.  I have muscle.  I lift 3 days a week which is great for the average person.  We don’t all want to be she-man (don’t get me wrong I think it’s great that some women want that and what they have achieved and I think they look great, but the look isn’t for everyone since most of us aren’t stepping on stage).  Most of us just want to be fit and healthy.  I wish the boards were more supportive on non-competitiors.  I understand it’s a bodybuilding board but it would be great if it was friendlier.  With that said I have met some AWESOME, supportive women (and men) from the boards that I enjoy visiting with.  They are motivating, supportive, and non judgemental (at least in their messages and comments LOL).  They are also honest but not harsh.  Some of the responses on the board would make me feel like an ass if they were my posts and probably scare me off.  Everyone’s goals are different.  I do 15 minutes of cardio 3 days a week, 60 minutes 2 days a week, and 1 long run a week which is about 2-2.5 hours.  I think I look good…well I did until I read the forums.  I enjoy reading most of the posts but yesterdays readings just struck a chord with me   I appreciate honesty but don’t treat people like idiots!

Ok enough of that LOL.  I had a good workout this morning.  It was chest, shoulder, tris, and abs.  I did 3 sets to failure with 30 seconds of jump roping (without a rope) in between sets.  I then walked 1 mile at 4 pmh.  My body was pretty tired and I’m not sure what is going on???  I’ve started journaling my food and I’m getting 1500-1800 calories most days so I’m not lacking food.  I’m still transitioning to vegetarianism so I have been reading a lot on energy foods.  My stomach has been doing some much better without meat.  I watched it while jumping rope and it barely jiggles so I know I have a good amount of muscle.

It’s time to be true to myself, listen to my body, and keep moving forward!

Tommorow is my Race for the Cure 5K.  I’m super excited.  It’s a huge crowd.  I’m not racing just running with a friend so I can push her.  We also decided on our first half of the summer last night.  It will be in June.  So I will have 2 (maybe a 3rd if I chicken out of the marathon) Halfs next summer and 1 full!  I do much better when I have something to train for.  I tend to eat better and treat my body better.

Today was back,biceps and Abs.  My arms are exhausted.  I love it but sometimes they feel like they are going to rip in 2.  I’m so proud of myself.  I did 3 pullups without jumping.  I stood on a short stool (so I could reach the bars) and pulled myself up 3 times.  I am getting stronger so my hard work is paying off even though I’m getting bigger and gaining weight which I still am NOT happy about.  I talked to kimm4 and asked her about switching routines and how often and she advised me to stick with a routine 12 weeks so I will be doing my split until Christmas.  I will take a week off or do light lifting before I start P90X.  I will switch some of the exercises but I’m getting GREAT results.  I looked at my back in the mirror last night and I could not believe what I saw.  It wasn’t bones sticking out everywhere it was MUSCLE.  Muscle wise I’m at where I want to be except for my legs.  I would like to lose some fat so I don’t look so squishy.

I’ve just been having a postive attitude lately and it has made a world of difference.  I can do this, I can be strong, I don’t have to be stick thin.  I wear a size 0-1, I’m still on the smaller side.  I like that I’m not exhausted physically all the time.  I like that I am eating and not constantly worrying about what I’m going to eat (although that still does consume a good amount of my time unfortunately).  It’s a very free feeling!

Workout:

Back, Bicep, Abs

I did an easy 5 miler today.  I have a race this weekend but I’m running it with a friend so I will be running just a skosh slower than I would normally so I’m not too worried about a taper.  It’s only a 5K.  Her fastest time is 36 mins but I’m hoping to bring her in 30-32 minutes.

I have to share one of my triumph moments.  I have 2 daughters that are 2 years apart and 9 times out of 10 FIGHT with each other.  I usually remain calm but sometimes I end up yelling which I HATE.  I used to feel so bad after yelling that I would have to eat something to calm down.  It wasn’t always something BAD persay but it was extra calories that I didn’t need.  Well the other day I was able to take a deep breath and grab my water and head to the computer instead of the kitchen   It’s these daily triumphs that keep me going.  It’s no longer about losing weight because to do that now I would lose muscle pretty much and I didn’t work my ass off to lose what I have.  I tracked my weight on the chart on the site and I’ve been gaining 1 pound a month.  I’m sure it’s safe to assume some of that is muscle since I’m not overeating and filling my body with crap to gain a bunch of fat.  I’m focusing on being healthier and happier.

Another exciting thing is:  I had a person approach me because her daughter wants to get in better shape with weights and running and asked her mom to talk to me and see if I would be willing to help her.  I won’t be doing any nutrition with this girl (she’s 17) just basic weights and running (which I know a lot about and have helped several other runners).  She does a lot of sports and wants to strengthen her upper body before her senior year.  She takes a weight/conditioning class in school but says the male teacher doesn’t even address the girls…just the sports guys

workout:

5 mile run  5, 5.5,6,5.5,5

Another GREAT, exhausting,productive leg day   More and more I’m loving my split.  I think I have def. decided to keep my lifting the same for another month and then I’m backing off heavy weights for a bit in Dec. because I’m going to start P90X in January and I want to be well rested and recharged so I’m ready to go.

Workout:

toe touches across my body 4 x10 reps

3 sets of twisting lunges (lunge back,turn to side squat and back front) and 1 set of back lunges

Squats with bar 4×12

Steps up 3x 10  1 set of 6

Squats touching ground  4 x 12

Hamstring curls 3×10 1×8

Plie squats 4×12

Calf raises 4×15

deadlift 3×12 1×5

jump overs 3×10 1×6

leg extensions 4×10

thigh raises on the floor both inside and out  4×15

Today was a cardio/running day.  I did a 20 minute HI DVD and then a 3 mile interval on the treadmill.  Mile 1-5.5 MPH no incline  Mile 2-5 MPH alternating 1/4 mile with 7% to 4% incline  Mile 3:  Sprint 5,6,7,8 for 1/4 each.

I’ve been doing pretty good.  I can’t believe the difference in my stomach issues with no meat!  I will be eating at Joe’s Crab Shack this weekend post race so I will indulge in some seafood and am looking forward to that.  I feel a relief to not eat meat when I didn’t really like it LOL.  I’ve been doing a lot of searching on the Internet for non-meat protein sources and I plan to search the forums to see if I can find any answers/tips or suggestions.

Workout:

Cardio DVD

3 mile run interval

Working on Nov. workout schedule

Looking over my P90X info

I’m posting my first school picture in 13 YEARS.  Staff had to have their picture taken and we got a free package LMAO

5K this weekend and I’m toying with the idea of a FULL marathon in 2010???

I have started to like my split routine.  I still miss the totally exhausted full body feeling but I like that I can still function through the day because only certain bpdy parts are fatigued!  2 more weeks and I’m supposed to switch to a front back routine but I think I may stick with the split 1 more month and just do the moves in opposite order to shake it up.

I’m happy to report that after just 1 week of less/VERY little meat and no meat over the weekend my stomach is FLAT and I’m not having the bathroom issues.  Meat just does not settle very well with my stomach.  I’m going with the flexitarian approach.  I will still eat some chicken and seafood and the occassional hamburger.  When we go out if I can’t find a suitable veg. meal I will eat chicken or seafood.  I bought some Light Soymilk and it was pretty good in cereal but I’m not a milk drinker so I don’t think I’ll buy it again just because no one else here will drink it except maybe my daughter’s in their cereal???  We raise cattle so my DH wasn’t overly thrilled when I told him about my new eating style but I explained it was for me but he could eat what he wanted, I was choosing not to.  I also had some tofu yesterday.  I don’t mind the taste but not to sure on the texture…I like my things a little on the crunchy side so I am looking for tips/suggestions with tofu.

Workout:

Chest/Shoulder/Tri’s/Abs

Ball pushup, shoulder press, dips

Bench Press, upright rows, extensions

DB Fly, Side raises, kickbacks

Pushup with side plank, shrugs, skull crushers

Front raise, close grip pushup

Arnold Press (one of my favs), front to side raises

2 sets of 25 crunches on ball  2 sets of 15 side crunches/each side on the ball  2 sets of 10  hanging knee raises