karinsway’s BodyBlog

I often wonder if I might make more progress if I had some one to help me crank out that last rep I always stick on. I also wonder if with out a partner will I even be able to accomplish my goals. It gets so hard sometimes to go to the gym night after night and only get so far. I am dedicated though. No matter how I feel I get my ass there, I can be exahusted ,depressed, STRESSED to the max and a big part of me just wants to go to bed….but I presevere. I go….I sweat…I lift…I leave. Man I wish I had a partner to work out with.

After eating clean and working out consistantly I have lost a good ammout of weight. I went from 40% to 20 % BF and I am seeing muscle begin to develop. Funny thing is I am getting some opposing reactions from friends and family. Some say I am too skinny and I should not lose any more weight. Others say they should get married and divorced so they could lose weight too. My dad who is so sweet tells me I always looked good. My problem is I want to lose some more BF and put on some muscle I achieved a great feat by losing 50 LBS but I want to see the scale go down another 10 lbs.But I have begun to sabotage my efforts ever since my trip to Colorado ended…(where I was either going to go hungry or eat what was presented to me). I have been back for a week and I do not know if I am just trying to recuperate or if I have  lost it…I can not get back to my clean eating plan, I am struggling. So I keep getting these negative messages and my diet is off whack..and I need a boost to jump start my next 7 week training stretch. School starts back up after that and I will be in maintance mode then because I will be a very busy girl again. Anybody have any tips or just a kind word to get me in the groove again?

Ok I just found out I am accepted to chaperone a trip to Colorado, I will be gone for a week. Here is my problem.  Food!!! I wont have controll of what is served at the camp. I will make good choices but, I need some good ideas of what I can take on the road to keep my energy up(we are driving straight through) and not set me back. Any recipies for protien cookies or bars or muffins? It has to travel well and last too. Tips welcome.

Today I had the opportunity to see what else has changed in the last 7 weeks. 7 weeks ago I went through some fitness testing. You know push ups ,crunches,BP,resting heart rate and a 3 min step test. Well let me say the improvements are awesome in 7 weeks I lost 5 lbs,resting HR wet down from 75 to 71, My heart rate after the 3 min step test went down from 148 to 96. Dang…that is soooo cool my heart is workin better. My BP went from 133/74 to 114/74. I improved the ammount of pushups I could to by 5,and crunches by 19.  People do not forget about the FACT that health benifits DO come when you consistantly workout and eat right. It is not just about how your body looks although it is a great side effect.

It dawned on me this morning while I was out for my run that most people are willing to accept what is happening to them as they age. Speaking to my supervisor yesterday about my weight loss (50lbs now) I mentioned the idea of wearing a bikini on stage in a fintess and figure comp. (I know I am not ready yet) but she quickly jumped and said that after having children there is no way she could wear one anywhere else than her back yard (we are about the same age).She suggested that this is true for all and that you just have to accept that your body will always be in poor shape after children.

This got me. I know I do not have to accept just letting my body go. Now do not get me wrong I know how easy it is to happen (been there done that) but my desire for something more for myself never left. I was there though, I listend to my doc tell me it was part of my age to slow down, gain fat and feel tired all the time. I listened to my head as I kept thinking I am 40 now and it is going to be soooo hard to lose fat. I believed the lies but I had to learn not to accept them. Fat is fat. You can burn it off. Muscle is muscle, it can adapt and grow stronger if you challenge it right. There is no reason to accept the natural changes in your body as you age. You only slow down because YOU slowed down. You are in controll, of how much you move , what you put in your body and how you choose to think about aging.

Now do not mistake this next comment because I am motivated by MY desire to change, not to change FOR ANYONE. My desire is in me. But after that conversation with my supervisor I want to smash her ideas about what normal aging is and get my body to the next level just to show her and others who think like her that it is possible to have a firm body and a flat tummy and feel great well after having children and beyond your 40’s. So I am off to the next level…I am looking forward to my next body fat measurements in a coupple of weeks and I am looking into supplemtation and changing up my training and moving forward. Any tips will be welcomed. I wonder how far I can go? I believe the choice is up to me.

I have found that I can not stand the thought of missing a day. This week at pilates our instructor had us do a cardio session first…well I felt great..I ran it while the rest of the students walked it. I love the sweat dripping ..my face flushed, breathing hard, and feeling the muscles workin. Yesterday it was too nice out to stay in to workout. I had to get on my bike, I rode just under twenty miles. But today…I had to work..my gym closes at 4 on Saturday and I have yet to sweat. I need it,I already feel crappy today. I need to get out and burn it off, kill the stress and get the high I need. When did this turn around happen? When did this journey turn to be the biggest thing that brings me pure joy in a day? Is it the relief I get? Is it the way I feel after? Is the the accomplishment? Either way, I love to sweat.

Well here I am I stepped on the scale the other day and thought about my total weight loss. Now I have been counting off and on…first it was 18 last summer…then hey guess what 22 since then…then I just realized…49 lbs gone…what a trip. I just saw some old co workers the ones who made fun of me for my funny food (funny because it wasnt Taco Bell or McD’s) and for takin a walk around the campus till it was time to punch in again, and most did not recognize me….then they ask "how did you do it"implying they might do it too…but you know the minute you begin to tell them it was eating clean every 3-4 hours and working out CONSISTANTLY well they just shut down nobody wants to put the work in….well as for me it is back and bicep night tonight about 8:30

I have had a long day..out to class at 7 AM..off to work at 1…back to the gym for cardio and pilates…workin the core..Got some tips from my instructor…suggested I only lose 1 lb a week to keep from losing muscle…I know I have seen some tone come back just want the stuff covering the muscle to go…..Hey ..I stood up to my dad, who I know loves me, but he made me meatloaf, instant mashed potatos and like 1/4cup ( if even)of broccoli….I declined and made my own dinner with apologies of course. They just do not understand me. Well I got to get out of here and do some research for an assignment.

Well I had to do an AM workout today due to my work schedule. I started with a warm up on the tredmill and moved to working legs today. I wish I was not as timid to do the exercises I want to do. I started with leg extensions and moved to leg curls then when the machine I was working on became occupied I went to leg presses …but I had not finished with my ext/curls. I got in a warm up set and two sets after that. I need to stop being so worried about what people think and go for it. I wish I had a partner to work with. Anyway after that I went and did walking lunges till failure…ab curls and planks, and I finished my legs with some standing calf raises. I wrapped it all up with some steady state cardio on the tredmill at a 4.o incline…I just did not have much more in me. So…any coments about my workout? Also I went in after having 2 cups of coffee and I only ate some cottage cheese before I left . My workout was at 8 Am ended at 9. Well I have to go eat. Please any tips would be great,or a "way to go" I’ll take anything

I have been looking at the transformations for inspiration for a while. I need to know if my desires are possible at my age. I want to see transformations of women over 40 who have been able to lose the fat and build muscle for the type of figure I desire. I need so much info on training and diet and supplementation I can’t do it alone. I am a student in the physical therapist assistant program and I am busy but I feel that if I get some things right during this time, when I graduate I will be able to give my full attention to my training.