kjrosenb’s BodyBlog

I haven’t been on bodyspace in several months now.  I got married the end of July and felt GREAT about my body.  In the past 3 months I feel like I have made some poor changes to my body.  I am fearing the scale so I have no idea in poundage I have gained, but I do notice that my clothes are feeling tighter.  I have continued training with both weights and cardio, but my eating has been worse and I have skipped many workouts in the past 3 months.  It has all caught up with me and I am feeling a big fat ZERO in self esteem.  I need some encouragement because I feel like I have failed!  I really feel disappointed in myself.

Would anyone be willing to help me with diet/training advice?  I feel like I need a rough plan as far as diet and exercise goes to get back into shape.  I need something new and fresh.  If anyone would give me some tips, I’d really appreciate it.  Thanks!  My main goal is to cut fat from my frame.  I am happy with my muscle, but not opposed to adding more (except I want to keep lean thighs since I carry a lot of fat there already). 

Thanks!  I feel very discouraged.

I don’t know why, but I feel tired today.  I’m a bit sore in my legs and butt, but I’m not sure why either.  Tuesday was legs day….maybe I’m just still sore from then.  I need to get going to the gym here in a bit.  Today is upper body + cardio day.

Here’s what my workout will look like:  (All the weights increase as I progress through sets)

* Dumbbell chest press: 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 12)

* Dumbbell flyes: 1 set (12)

* Shoulder press: 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 12)

* Front raises: 1 set (12)

* Lat pulldown: 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 12)

* Seated row: 1 set (12)

* Rope tricep pushdowns: 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 12)

* Overhead tricep extensions: 1 set (12)

* Bicep curls (bar/cable machine): 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 12)

* Single-arm curls (cable machine): 1 set (12)

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CARDIO: 45-60 minutes:

**40 minutes elliptical trainer

**15 minutes arc trainer

**5 minutes stationary upright bike

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OK, now it’s off I go!  Have a wonderful day!

Wow, in 31 days, I officially be a married woman!  I am SO EXCITED!!  Eric and I have been together for almost 3 1/2 years, and he is my best friend.  He has been so supportive of my fitness/health lifestyle.  He did not used to workout, but in the past 6+ months, he has been lifting very regularly and is looking very good himself!  I am so proud of him!!

Anyway, I haven’t written a post in a few weeks.  I think my confidence level is now shooting through the roof!  I’m on the 8th week of Body-for-Life….which according to other sources, is typically the week when changes can really be noticed.  Well, I have noticed a lot of positive changes in my physique!!  I feel AMAZING, and am so happy that I have continued to lift heavy!  I have been really faithful to my workouts and pretty clean with my eating.  A new "treat" that I absolutely LOVE are "Pure Protein" bars.  The peanut butter one is 190 calories with 20 grams of protein.  I never feel deprived of sweets now because these bars have chocolate and protein…..YUMMY!!!  Who knew that eating healthy could taste so great!  Also, Eric and I have been grilling out a lot lately because it’s summertime.  Lots of delicious grilled chicken breasts!

OK, enough for now.  Thanks for taking time to invest in my life!  We’re all in this together!!!  Don’t forget that you are NOT alone in this journey.  We all have struggles, and we all sometimes want to quit….but hang in there!!  It will be worth it!  (That is my motivational speech for the day!)

I haven’t logged onto BB.com for a while now because I’ve been so busy!!  The past couple of weeks have been so hectic since my sister and I moved out of our college apartment.  So…now I am finally able to relax again and spend some time on the internet!    Yay!!

Some of my friends have been complimenting my physique lately.  It is nice when people start to notice.  My best friend Elizabeth the other day was like, "Whoa, Katy, you have some intense muscles going on!"  That felt good.  It made me realize that all of the hard work and dedication really does pay off.

YUMMMM….muscles are so pretty!

Earlier today I was exhausted and didn’t exactly feel like working out.  I knew I needed to, but just one of those days where it seems like a chore, you know?

Well, I was on this website and saw so many beautiful physiques and amazing transformations…this pumped me up and made me excited for my workout!

Needless to say, I had a fantastic workout today and the credit goes to all of you people who are out there everyday working hard to reach your goals.  We’re all in this together!

I took the American College of Sports Medicine exam this morning (the Health and Fitness Instructor one, which is personal training + special populations…4 year degree required to take it).  I studied like crazy for the exam, and it was HARD!  Never in my life have I taken 3 HOURS AND 20 MINUTES to take a test!  But good thing I did, because I passed!!  I am now ACSM certified!  I feel really great about it.  SO EXCITED!  Now it’s time to celebrate with a rockin’ workout!

Now that I’ve graduated, I have a bit more free time.  I’m getting married in July and then moving to Colorado in August.  So meanwhile, I’m just working some hours at the campus gym.  It’s sort of like a transitioning phase since I can’t get my "real job" yet since I’m moving in 2 months.  So, there are some days I do not work at all and other days where I do work but have too much free time.  I never thought that free time could be a bad thing….until recently!  There were a few days last week where my eating went OUT OF CONTROL!  I feel like I lost sight of my goals and my extreme boredom and lack of productive things to do messed up my mind and sent me on a few binges.  I feel really awful about it, but I’ve picked up my head and said NO MORE!  (There were no progress pictures last week because of my binge eating.)  I did continue to workout, but we all know that diet plays a HUGE role.  So, here I am, confessing publicly that I MESSED UP royaly last week with food (I’m talking stuffing my face with dreamsicles, fudge rounds, and anything else I could get my hands on….VERY hard to admit, but true.)  If you’re wondering why I have all of those junk food items where I live, it is because I currently live with my sister (who is skinny, doesn’t exercise, and eats junk food…really high metabolism, ugh!).  What is even worse is that I had to go to the store and BUY BACK all of the food that I ate since it didn’t belong to me in the first place.  I have so many regrets.  BUT!!  NOW!!  I AM FOCUSED!!

I’m sure a lot of people can relate to this.  It seems like when life presents you with too much free time, food seems to call your name…  I’m taking control of my life again.  I’m so happy this site exists.  It is such a motivator.  Plus, I just started receiving the magazine Oxygen.  WOW!!  I am impressed.  I have been getting Shape and Self…but now I realize that those aren’t "real" fitness magazines.  Oxygen is AMAZING!

I now have my diploma!  Yay!  It feels good!  Now the next chapter of life will begin!

My graduation is on Saturday!  How exciting!  I am going to walk because it’d be a shame not to.  I mean, come on, I’ve put in 4 years of hard work…I want some pictures of me in a cap and gown walking across the stage.  I don’t understand why people pass up on that experience!

Our semester grades were posted today.  Get this: I got a 4.0 GPA this semester!!  I am thrilled!  I usually get A’s and B’s, but I finally managed to get all A’s at once.  Talk about finishing college with a bang!  I’m very proud of myself.

Workouts have been good lately.  I’ve noticed I’m a bit more tired than usual though while doing cardio.  I think it’s because I’ve been working the opening shift at work now that school is done (I have to wake up at 4:45 am!).  I need to go to bed a bit earlier so I can get closer to 8 hours of sleep in per night. 

So I bought the book Body for Life.  I’ve always heard about it…so I finally decided that I should look into it.  I did the upper body workout from the book yesterday, and I was SO SORE!  I think that it’s going to help me kick it up a notch.  What I don’t like about the book is the lack of cardio.  Doing 20 minutes of HIIT cardio 3 days a week is hardly anything compared to what I’m used to doing.  I’m afraid that if I cut back to that then I will not see progress….  Any advice?  I typically do 60 minutes of cardio 6 days per week now.  I usually do intervals, but not quite HIIT.  I did HIIT yesterday after lifting heavy, and BOY WAS IT HARD!  I guess my biggest concern is…should I cut back on my cardio?  I’m afraid that I won’t lose as much fat if I cut back!

The weather is finally becoming summer-like.  My sis and I spent some time on the sun deck at our apartment pool yesterday.  I’m so glad that summer is almost here!! 

I’m graduating soon.  It is final exams week.  I have only one more exam left EVER!!  It’s a good feeling.  Tomorrow night by 9pm school will be a part of my past. 

My workouts have been great.  Last week I had a day or two where I messed up my diet (with some Reeses), so I hadn’t weighed myself in a while.  I decided to go for it this morning and I was 121 lbs!  Yay…very good.  I feel like my body is a lot firmer than before.  It’s amazing how quickly the body can change when you start lifting heavy!  I feel great and my confidence is high!

Well, I should get back to the studying.  Blehhh!  I need to make some dinner though first: chicken breast and broccoli!  I LOVE CHICKEN AND I LOVE BROCCOLI!