gymrat0226’s BodyBlog

What I’ve been doing to save alot of time cooking is doing everything in batches.  On Sunday I cook up a whole bunch of boneless chicken breasts.  I chop them up cube size and stir fry them in pam with adobe seasoning, garlic powder and a little chipotle seasoning.  I weigh 3 oz portions in baggies and freeze them.  Sometimes I stir in some black beans with salsa and a little low fat cottage cheese or I just eat it plain with some beans.  When I open a can of black beans I measure out 1/4 cup and freeze them in snack bags.  Since I’m cooking for a family and I don’t eat what they eat I substitute meat.  We eat the same things on certain days of the week and two days of the week we switch it up.  So on Monday (fried chicken day) I bar-b-q chicken breasts and eat that and freeze the rest.  Hamburger Wednesday, I make turkey burgers for myself and freeze two.  I use one for the next days dinner (spaghetti Thursday) and crumble it in some stewed tomatoes for my portion.

I know chicken and turkey sounds pretty boring but there’s so many different ways you can eat it.  You just learn to be creative.  And you really don’t need to eat any carbs besides oatmeal and beans because all that protein fills you up.  Freezing stuff ahead is so convenient because you just grab a baggy and you’re good to go.  And it really does taste the same to me.  Some people say it doesn’t but I disagree.

I’m off to the gym now to do back.  I’m getting alot stronger every week.  I actually have a cold right now.  I’ve had it for two days and thought it was allergies.  But now I have a bit of a cough.  It’s taking me down though.  I’ve never had a cold that was this, I guess you would say non existent.  I guess with all the supplements and proper diet my body is able to keep my head above water because it has not effected my workouts whatsoever.

Haven’t posted anything lately.  I’ve been busy with the kids and had company last weekend.  Everything’s breaking down in my house so I’m a little stressed right now.  Not to mention it’s been hotter than Haiti here and our air conditioner broke…can you say CRANKY!!!  I had a few good increases in lifting last week.  I went up to 145lb squats for 5 reps, put 2-45lb plates a side on the Hammer Strength low row for 6 reps (my back is finally getting stronger) and finally lifted a 60lb barbell for bicep curls 4 reps and 25lb dumbell for bicep side curls (I think I made this up myself but it isolates your bicep.  I stand and use a pole or bench and hold the dumbell to my side, palms facing up and basically your doing a bicep curl from the side.  One day I’ll do a video…lol).  I’m not stressing about my weight so much anymore because I can see my body taking on a transformation.  My core is looking real solid now and I feel like I don’t even have to suck it in to look good anymore.  I can feel my abs and they’re starting to pop out.  My old ass is starting to lift up.  I think gravity is your worst enemy.  My diet is starting to get old.  I feel nauseas alot and I think it’s because I’ve been eating the same food for a long time.  I tried different dishes because the smell is getting in the plastic and when I open it at work that’s when I get that awful feeling.  So I went and bought hard plastic Rubbermaid dishes that don’t hold the smell.  It’s time to start searching for new recipes.  It’s easy to fall into the same pattern of eating because you’re always in a hurry.  So that’s it for now.  I’ll try to do post the cooking and freezing tips over the next few days.

I eat between 1200-1500 calories a day, most days is around 1300 but on days that I train legs and back I eat a little more carbs.  I try to eat a ratio of 15/30/55 (F/C/P) and I keep track of my food on gyminee.com (it’s only $5/mth and you only have to sign up for 3 months…it’s a really great website).  Sunday is my cheat day and it started out an all day cheat day but my body doesn’t feel good so I only have a cheat meal and a bowl of ice cream for my cheat.
7:00 a.m.   Protein Shake w/L-Glutamine
8:00 a.m.    1/4 c (dry) oatmeal with some sweetener (sometimes I add tbsp of raisins on my high carb day)
2 CLA, 2 Bumble Bee Fish oil capsules
10:30 a.m. Protein Shake w/L-Glutamine
12:30 p.m. 4-5 oz of chicken, 1/4 cup of beans (pink beans stewed with goya seasoning)
2 CLA, 2 Bumble Bee Fish oil capsules
3:00 p.m.    protein bar
6:00 p.m.    5-6 oz chicken, salad, 1/4 cup of beans
2 CLA, 2 Bumble Bee Fish oil capsules
Pre-workout creatine (1/2 hour before)
9:30 p.m. post workout protein shake with a small banana and L-Glutamine
I started out eat 1500 calories a day and after a few weeks you adjust to your diet and eat less.  I never feel hungry and most of the time I have to force myself to eat.  I eat chicken most days and never get tired of it because there are so many way to eat chicken.  Wednesday is burger day so I make turkey burgers and freeze 4 for lunches and dinners to switch out the turkey.  Thursday is spaghetti night and I have one of the turkey burgers I made and crumble it up in some stewed tomatoes and I have 1 oz (measured dry) of whole wheat pasta.  Once a week I eat lean beef and once a week I eat pork tenderloin.  All of my carbs come from oatmeal beans and one banana a day.  Absolutely no bread!!!  I am a bread lover and trust me when you do it eat it you will feel like crap after.  Not mentally but physically.  It makes you tired and lazy.  Once or twice a week I’ll have a tortilla (low carb, high fibre) with chicken (seasoned with chipotle), 1/2 container of low fat cottage cheese and salsa.

So that’s it…pretty boring but you really get used to it and I never get tired of it. It takes a few weeks for your body to get used to it but if you make sure you eat at least every 3-3 1/2 hrs you won’t get hungry.  And don’t forget to drink lots of water.  I’ll post some cooking and freezing tips later on.

Well I finally got the courage to post some progress pics.  I can finally see a difference now.  I have to stop taking pictures so often because it’s very discouraging when you don’t see results when you’re busting hump everyday.  This has actually been a pretty easy journey so far because I already have the experience when it comes to weight lifting, what works for me and what doesn’t.  My whole problem was my diet.  I ate whatever I wanted because I had no goals and figured I workout everyday I should be allowed to eat what I want….NOT!!!  I was a closet junk food junkie.  I used to buy gummy candy and hide it in my drawers and eat them everyday after working out at the gym.  I was eating fried foods, way too many carbs, no supplements….pretty much just poisoning my body.  I was working out for nothing.  Not to mention I used to smoke!!!  Yes…it’s one of my deepest, darkest secrets.  I quit about 10 years ago and when my husband died in 2005 I started about 2 months later.  It wasn’t until September 2007 that I quit again.  I was never a heavy smoker (about 6 a day) but what a nasty habit!!!

Since I started Body For Life 6 weeks ago I realized that too many carbs and junk make me tired and lazy!!!  I found this out on my cheat days.  So now my cheat days aren’t so "cheatin’" anymore because I physically don’t feel good when I put bad food in my body.   I also found that I have taste buds.  I have to admit my diet is very bland.  I stopped using salt and use Adobo Seasoning and other spices instead.  I water down my low fat dressing.  I don’t like alot of dressing on my salad anyhow so that’s fine with me.  So now it’s really hard to cheat because alot of junk food is very salty and it doesn’t taste good to me anymore.

Here’s my progress so far:  I lost 9 lbs., I’m not 100% sure on the bodyfat because I measured the wrong places in the beginning but I’m going to say about 4-5% bodyfat loss, my strength has increased by over 35%, total body measurement loss of 5"

I still have almost 6 weeks left and I’m really excited because my stepkids are leaving next weekend for the summer and I can really step up my training and be more focused for the last month.  I’m not out to win Body For Life (although it would be nice), I would say this is a motivational tool for me more than anything….to go onto bigger and better things.

Didn’t workout yesterday because my uncle stopped in to visit all the way from Toronto.  Felt good to have someone from home come visit me.  My first official visitor.

Today I did biceps/triceps.  I had a pretty good workout considering I had a HUGE blowout when I came home from work.  Sick of being the slave of the house.  Gotta lay down the rules!!!  Anyhow, I didn’t increase the weight but increased the reps.  When I do 40lb barbell curls they feel so easy now.  I’m up to 8 reps with 50lbs.  I can’t wait to pick up that 60lb barbell and put those little boys to shame.   Triceps dips are coming real easy now too.  Time to dip a little lower…  Managed to squeeze in 30 min of cardio.  Had to hurry home to do my final programming exam.  Yay!!!  I’m officially finished both classes.   I ordered my ACE Personal Trainer study materials today.  Just about broke the bank…$430…I hate giving up that much money at once!  Well, it’ll go to very good use.  I can’t wait to start studying.  I think I’m a school-aholic….

Had a pretty good workout considering I forgot to take my creatine.  That’s what’s been helping to increase my strength.  I didn’t realize until I was almost finished my workout when I couldn’t go heavier on Hammer Strength machine shoulder presses.  I was pissed.  I hate when I can’t increase my weight each week.  I feel like I’ve taken a week off because of all the homework I had last week.  It’s such a relief now to be finally finished.  I’m never taking two classes at once again, it’s just too much trying to work, go to the gym and look after a family of five.  I also managed to get in 35 min of cardio today which makes me feel alot better.  I’m going for a run after I’m finished here…about 4 miles.  Have to try out my new Ecco Receptor running shoes.  They’re the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever had.  Here’s my shoulder/ab workout:

Dumbell Side Lat Raises:
12lbs x 12 reps
15lbs x 12 reps
20lbs x 12 reps
20lbs x 12 reps (5 weeks ago my max was 15lbsx10reps)
Hammer Strength Shoulder Presses:
70lbs x 12 reps
80lbs x 12 reps
90lbs x 11 reps
100lbs x 7 reps
110lbs x 3 reps (5 weeks ago my max was 75lbsx6reps)
Straight Bar Front Lat Raises (superset with rear delt bent over flyes):
20lbs x 12 reps
30lbs x 12 reps
30lbs x 12 reps
Rear Delt Bent over Flyes
15lbs x 3 reps (3 sets-superset)
Decline Bench Abs
30 reps
25lbs x 20 reps
25lbs x 20 reps
Cable Rope Crunches:
100lbs x 20 reps
110lbs x 16 reps
120lbs x 12 reps
110lbs x 20 reps
Cable Side Bends:
60lbs x 16 reps
70lbs x 12 reps
70lbs x 16 reps
Cardio:  35 min on elliptical
Run 4 miles
My maxes have increased alot in the past 5 weeks.  35lbs more on the shoulder press and 5lbs on side lat raises.   Now that school is done and the kids are leaving for the summer it’s time to kick things into high gear because when I go home in July I don’t want people to recognize me.

I had a really crappy workout tonight.  I was so tired because I’ve been up late every night this week and I’ve only been getting 5-6 hrs sleep a night.  I increases my squats, I’m up to 125lbs, 6 reps.  Everything else stayed the same.  I didn’t even do cardio I was so tired.  Tonight I’m going to get a full nights sleep and have a great shoulder workout tomorrow.

This week has been very hectic for me.  It’s the end of the semester for me and I’m taking two courses.  I have a website that is due Friday night that I’m frantically trying to finish up as I’m writing this and a final exam in programming next Tuesday.  I have company coming from out of town next weekend one of them being the "ex-wife" who I’ve never met and really don’t want to meet so that is seriously stressing me out.  Because I’ve been going to school and working my ass off at the gym every night I haven’t had much time to get the yard fixed up so I spent most of the weekend doing that and homework.  Have to suck it up and back off the training for a week.  So I took Monday off to get caught up on my homework and managed to squeeze in a chest & ab workout (increased bench press to 110lbs) and 30 min of cardio, took Tuesday off, Wednesday did a bicep/back/ab workout (did more reps but didn’t increase my weight), no cardio.  Today, I’m taking off again because I have to upload this website tomorrow and it HAS to be perfect.  My biggest problem is I’m a perfectionist and I’ll stay up all night until it’s perfect.  Tomorrow I’m in the gym to do a heavy leg workout and hopefully some cardio depending on how I feel.  Next week it’s open waters for me!!!!  No more school and I’m going to seriously bust my ass at the gym.  I’ll probably get a few extra cardio workouts in this weekend.  Veins are starting to pop out all over the place and I’m real excited about that because I’ve never seen that in my lifetime.  I’m very proud of myself for sticking this out for so long.  I’m finally accomplishing my goals…

Monday - Triceps & Abs

Monday I worked out on base.  I really don’t like working out there anymore because it’s not motivating for me.  I also had a headache so alot of cardio was out of the question.  I felt pretty strong but did a short workout.  I’m up to 3 sets of 12 dips now and Tricep pushdowns up to 55 lbs.  Only ran for 20 minutes but it was full out run so not too bad

Tuesday - Glutes & Calves
Felt really good today, wasn’t tired at all.  Had a really good glute workout and got in 35 minutes of cardio.  My husband insists on coming with me now because maybe he thinks something is up…weird…kind of hard to squeeze in an affair showing the results that I have.  Anyhow, I feel that he’s holding me back from my workouts.  I like to go alone and work at my own pace and leave when I’m done.  He ended up waiting 15 min downstairs for me but I wanted to do more cardio.  Oh well, next week he’ll just have to wait longer.  He’s working out 2x a day on Monday and Tuesday which is totally insane at 53 yrs old.  Not like he’s 20 anymore.

Wednesday - Chest & Abs

Today was really weird.  It seemed like I had no strength.  Can’t remember if I switched my workout around last week because I was alot stronger.  I always do flyes first before I do anything but I think I’m going to have to lower the weight because it’s tiring me out in the beginning.  I did 4 sets 20/25/30/35 at 10 and 12 reps.  A little much for a warmup.  I’ll try doing cable flyes to warm up next week.  I got to chest press and really didn’t feel that I could do 95 lbs this time but I still got 6 in and then I refused to give up and did 4 of 100lbs. one more than last week but I just felt that it was harder.  Same with the Hammer Strength upper chest machine, last week I went up to 90lb and this week I was only able to do 80lbs.  Did some 110 lb. cable crunches and cable side bends for obliques.

Thursday

Decided that I would take a day off from strength training since I has such a crappy day yesterday to see if I can lift a little more tomorrow for my leg day.  So I just went in and did 50 min of cardio and burned 590 cals.  Today was really exciting for me because for the first time in my entire life I see two veins in my left arm.  Not sure why the left because I’m right handed and usually stronger on the right.  Anyhow, I have a small vein popping up on my left shoulder and my bicep….success!!!!  Finally!!!!  I feel a huge accomplishment.  Oh…and I finally lost a pound.  Now down to 126lbs. I haven’t lost anything in almost 2 weeks since I started taking creatine but I’ve still been losing inches.  Lost another 1/2" off my leg (the problem area) in the past week!  I’m starting to look smaller.  I don’t want to be too much smaller because I don’t want to have to buy a whole new wardrobe, I just want to be very lean but I think I’m going to end up looking a little skinny…not what I want.  Skinny is gross.  Okay…that’s it…peace out…

One more thing…I went for a tan today because traditionally May 1st is when I start my base tan for the summer.  Note to self, when they tell you to go in for 10 minutes…only go for 7…burnt to a crisp…I look like a freakin’ lobster and everyone was staring at me at the gym and I know it was because I looked like a retard…