rwalsh21’s BodyBlog

Ok, so I’ve got 4 weeks left until my very first competition! I’m getting excited! I started tanning a few weeks ago and I can’t believe the difference a little color makes! So far I seem to be leaning out pretty nicely….starting to see some much anticipated detail in my muscles - especially my quads.

 I’ve modified my workouts slightly. I lift M, W, & Fri for about 45 mins and do cardio on T, Th, Sat/Sun for about 45 mins. Mondays I work my chest, back and abs; Wednesdays I do Legs and abs; and Fridays I do bis, tris and shoulders. So far it seems to be working as I’m dropping bodyfat and maintaining my muscle mass. I just don’t want to come in lean but with stringy muscles! So far, though, I still have nice round muscle bellies.

4 weeks and counting! Here we go!

Okay, so um, yeah it’s been a while since my last post! Lol 

Over the last few months I’ve done a lot of reading and found a diet and workout program that not only worked really well for me, but that I also enjoyed. 

In the last 3 months I’ve lost 13 lbs of fat and gained 1 lb of muscle. I’ve still got a way to go and the next 4 months are not going to be easy but I’m getting there! 

My competition is about 17 weeks away so it’s countdown time! I’ve started practicing my posing everyday and it’s coming along. I’ll try and do better about updating my page and keeping y’all in the loop. Happy New Year everyone!

I started keeping a journal in the forums instead of blogging every week. I’ll still keep updating the blog, though. So, here’s how things have gone since the last blog:

I started using Chuck Rudolph’s "Cut Diet" and, so far, I really like it. I was having trouble getting all the calories in before and now this helps me get at least 1900 cals everyday. It’s pretty rigid, though, not a whole lot of flexibility in meals so we’ll see how that goes after a few weeks.

 Also, I’ve decided to change from training for a fitness competition to training for a bodybuilding competition (light or medium weight). The more I learn, the more I think I would be better suited for the bodybuilding competition vs fitness/figure.

That’s all for now……….gotta run!

Ok, so week one is over and already I’ve lost 1% of bodyfat! I will admit, though, I was disappointed with the scale - I didn’t lose a single pound. But, as I’m learning, it’s not just the number on the scale that matters. As I said, I had lost 1% of my bodyfat and also a few inches overall, which is evidence of healthy progress.

Getting my workouts in everyday wasn’t really as difficult as I thought it would be. I’ve always enjoyed weight training, so that was no surprise to me. What did surprise me, though, is that I’m enjoying running more and more. The first few days I was pretty sore but I worked through it and now it’s not so bad. And, I’ve received several comments on my arms. My favorite was my wide-eyed 5-year-old exclaiming, "Whoa!"

During the week, my diet went through an evolutionary process. I began the week eating 4 meals a day, taking in about 1500 cals. Now, I’ve increased to 1700 - 1800 cals split up between 5 - 6 meals. I started using fitday.com to track my macros and began increasing my protein (it previously was around 20%). I wasn’t hungry during the day but I made myself eat every 2-3 hours and now my body has been trained to be eating that often.

So now I’m excited to see what week two’s results will be! Until then, have a great week!

Okay, so I’ve been working out for a few weeks now and haven’t really gotten very far. Although I did lose a few inches in my trouble spots, my overall BF% only went down .1% and my weight didn’t change at all. A little frustrating, I must say. So I did some more researching and reading and realized I really didn’t have clear, precise goals, or a plan for how to reach those goals and how to deal with the setbacks I’m going to encounter. So, I sat down with a pencil and paper and went to work.

First, I wrote out, in detail, my ultimate long-term goal. "I will be 125 lbs of lean muscle with 7-8% bodyfat and I will healthfully achieve this goal in 9 months (just in time for my first competition)." Then, I broke that ultimate goal down into 3 stages: Stage One - by the end of 3 months I will be 140 lbs of lean muscle with 20% bodyfat or less; Stage Two - by the end of 6 months I will be 130 lbs of lean muscle with 13% bodyfat or less; and Stage Three - by competition I will be 125 lbs of lean muscle with 7-8% bodyfat.

Then, I broke down how I will achieve each goal marker with 1) diet and 2) exercise. So, for stage one, my main goal is fat loss. I will focus on muscle definition in the latter stage of stage two and stage three but, for now, I’ve got to get rid of the fat so I can see the muscles!

So here is how Stage One - Week One is going: As far as diet, I’m concentrating on eating 4 meals a day, so that I’m eating every 3 to 4 hours. I’ve never been a big breakfast eater but I will drink a protein shake in the morning with 2 scoops of whey protein and a piece of fruit. For lunch (about 3 hours later) I have 4 - 6 oz of chicken or fish and 2-3 hours later I have either a portion of mixed vegetables, a salad, or a small baked sweet potato. For supper, I have another serving of chicken or fish with vegetables and either a sweet potato or a serving of basmati rice. To squelch my sweet tooth, I discovered that chewing a piece of Orbitz sugar-free gum satisfies the craving. Plus, throughout the course of the day I drink about 70 - 80 oz of water at a minimum.

For excercise I’m doing 6 days of cardio. Monday through Thursday I run for 2 miles (for week one) and on Fridays and Saturdays as my reward for running (which I dislike) I go biking for 20 - 30 minutes. Because I’m focusing mainly on fat loss at this stage, I am only lifting 3 days a week. Mondays and Fridays I work my lower body and abs with 1-2 exercises per body part. Wednesdays I work my upperbody and abs with 1-2 exercises per body part.

This week has not been easy (and it’s only just begun) however I know the reward in the end will be worth the discipline now. So next week I’ll post the plan for Stage One - Week Two, and the results from Week One. Again, I’m brand-new to all of this so if anybody has some suggestions or ways to "tweak" this plan to see better results, I love to hear them, as always. Till next time, have a great and productive week!

Rashelle

So I am extremely new at all this. I did weight training in high school and college but it was sport specific. Now I am seriously contemplating competing in an actual body-building competition. I have no real experience in this area so I’m kinda going by trial and error. If anybody has any good tips, workouts, etc. I’m all ears!

 Anywho, this blog will kinda serve as my training journal, too. I’ll be posting different things I’m doing regarding nutrition and training. Again, no real idea what to do - just going off articles and such that I’ve read - so any advice will be welcomed. So, yeah, I guess that’s all for today.