New Rules of Lifting for Women - anyone doing this?

tolygal

Hi - I just started this week (very hopeful about it) and I'm wondering if anyone else is doing this too. I've done the first two workouts (Stage 1, excercises A and and I have to do the third one this weekend. My problem is that I go to the gym only 2 days a week (my gym is at my work, and I work from home the other three days of the week - and its too far away to drive there on the weekend). I'm not positive on how to do a couple of the workouts from home. I bought a 15 pound bar and some weights, (2 10-pounds and 2 5-pounds) and I also bought a ball so I can do most things at home. What I don't have is anything for the lat pull downs or the seated row. It tells me how to do the seated row from home but not the lat pull down - any ideas?

Also - my other problem is squats. My legs are pretty strong, I think - and my bar and weights all together at home are not heavy enough to make me feel like I'm pushing hard enough for the squats. At the gym, I can use the big stuff, but I'm not sure what to do at home. I know I can add more weights... but then I can't lift them up to my shoulders (and off) safely since I don't have the barbell rack like at the gym. Any suggestions for that? They give a couple of options for the squat (like the partial single-leg squat), but I'm not sure if I should try that now or if I'm supposed to wait for future phases for that one.

Next question - the Swiss-ball crunch - This just doesn't seem to do much for me (I'm pretty sure I'm doing it right). I tried it with a weight, and that didn't do anything either (expecially at only 2 sets of 8 reps like the programs starts you at). So I tried it with the weights above my head in the one variation it gives, and I felt that - so I'm planning to keep doing that for a while. But I wanted to mention it just in case anyone has a suggestion.

Ok - then here's the other thing - I don't feel like these workouts are enough for me. So I've been doing them, and then I've done my own interval training - either on the treadmill or the elliptical. Then I've still been going to my aerobic class (bozu and step aerobics with a little light weight work thrown in) a couple of hours after this workout. I have been skipping excercise all together the day after, but I'm wondering if you think it's okay to continue with this. I just don't feel like I'm doing enough without the extra stuff, and although I hope to be building muscle, I also want to get rid of the rest of this fat and don't want to waste any time with it! Summer is almost here!!

And most of all - I'm wondering if there is a group on here of people doing this - I'd love to get involved with it!! If there is no group (and even if there is), I'd love to get a couple of friends who are doing this!

PS - I searched and found a thread from a month ago on this topic, but I didn't see anything more recent. So sorry if I missed something - just point me in the right direction please!

oddyogi

I am not doing this specific program, but I do go to the gym 2-3 times a week and do some of the same and similar exercises in this program (that I know of). I'm kind of just doing my own routine using references from internet articles and my husband. Next payday, I'm going to purchase the Women's Health Big Book of Exercises. Has tons of great strength training exercises to do!

Sorry, I don't have any answers to any of your questions, though if you're looking for a weight lifting buddy, I'm there! I'm all about getting as strong as I can, and getting some ripped muscles to burn off some fat.

jlsAhava

What program is this? Where can I find it? I'm interested in seeing what it is.
Thanks.

Egger29

That Book is a great read and I'd highly recommend it to anyone serious about making a lifestyle change and achieving overall fitness! :-)

It's right on the money with every page and one of the top references I've used with female friends looking for training help.

You can do a bent over row with the bar and or weights instead of the lat pulls as that will give you some variety.

If you find free squats simple enough, try doing some Squat Laterals or Single Leg squats with dumbbells. (from a lunge position) I can assure you those will be killer every time!

Swiss ball crunches are made more challenging depending on how unstable you make yourself. PLAce your feet no further than 6" apart ....the walk back on the ball so it's supporting under your lower back, rather than near your shoulders. Just moving into that position requires you to maintain a deep core contraction to keep yourself stable on the ball...and that's without even starting the crunch motion.

Give it a shot!

Cheers!

tolygal

You can do a bent over row with the bar and or weights instead of the lat pulls as that will give you some variety.

If you find free squats simple enough, try doing some Squat Laterals or Single Leg squats with dumbbells. (from a lunge position) I can assure you those will be killer every time!

Swiss ball crunches are made more challenging depending on how unstable you make yourself. PLAce your feet no further than 6" apart ....the walk back on the ball so it's supporting under your lower back, rather than near your shoulders. Just moving into that position requires you to maintain a deep core contraction to keep yourself stable on the ball...and that's without even starting the crunch motion.

Thanks for the suggestions!! I've done some squat laterals before but never with heavy weights, so that would be a good place to start! The single leg squats look TOUGH!! I love it!!! I'm going to start with the lateral squats and see how that feels (when I'm at home - at the gym, I'll prob just use the barbell rack since I can put heavier weights on it). I can't wait to try what you suggested for the swiss ball crunches. I've never tried it like that before. Thanks again!!!

tolygal

What program is this? Where can I find it? I'm interested in seeing what it is.
Thanks.

I heard about the book here, I think. I rented it from the library (it took FOREVER to get to me - there was a long wait list). It made lots of sense to me and it's very straight forward and simple. I'm very interested in lifting right now (I wish I'd have started lifting from the beginning - what a mistake!). I've been trying to lift on my own, but I had no idea what I was doing, so this was a real help for me (I can't afford a personal trainer). You can find it on Amazon or Barnes and Nobel. I hope mine is here early next week, since the one from the library is now late and I'm getting charged for it every day LOL! But I refuse to return it until my copy gets here
:-)

tolygal

I'm all about getting as strong as I can, and getting some ripped muscles to burn off some fat.

Me too!! I'm sending you a friend request!!

jlsAhava

Thanks! I'll check it out!

kensky

Hey! I am! I started a thread on it not too long ago....I just started Level 2 today. So far, I've been loving it and have been pleased with the results.

kensky

Hey Tonya--

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/205238-new-rules-of-lifting-for-women-group
:flowerforyou:

kdiamond

NROLFW is a GREAT program! I've done it and seriously gained strength from it.

As for getting the weights to the "rack" position (in order to do squats)...do you know how to do a clean? If not youtube it. I usually do a clean to get my barbell to rack position. Not only are those excellent exercises for full body, they will assist you in getting the weights up to do squats.

Good luck, and if you have any questions about the program, I can always be of assistance.

seemichellerun

I start stage 7 on Monday!

sbilyeu75

If you feel like it's not enough, then you are not pushing hard enough. I'm halfway through Stage 7 right now. So here are my suggestions to your specific questions:

Lat pull down alternative. If you have resistance bands try this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4VzrKYB5Vk

For Squats, use your heavy dumbbells and go deeper. Make sure you are not leaning forward.

For the Swiss Ball crunch, check your form. I found that most of the program I had the swiss ball too low (close to my butt). I double checked the picture in the book and started doing them with the ball in the middle of my back and I was very conscience of keeping my chin towards the ceiling and trying to pull my belly button to the floor during a crunch.

When you're at the gym, make sure you have enough weight on there that you are struggling with the last couple of reps but you can still put the weights down safely.

I know, when I started, I had been lifting heavy for 9 months prior and when I started doing this program I felt like I could barely drag myself out of the gym. Even now at Stage 7, I'm supposed to be doing 4 sets and I've not been able to do more than 3 sets. I just don't have anything else left in me.

I hope this makes sense and helps.

tolygal

Hey Tonya--

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/205238-new-rules-of-lifting-for-women-group
:flowerforyou:

Awesome!!! Thanks! This looks like the thread I found earlier, but didn't read far enough to notice that people were still using it!! Yay!

tolygal

As for getting the weights to the "rack" position (in order to do squats)...do you know how to do a clean? If not youtube it. I usually do a clean to get my barbell to rack position. Not only are those excellent exercises for full body, they will assist you in getting the weights up to do squats.

Holy cow - that looks kind of scary! At least the one I watched LOL!! Thanks for the suggestions!

xraychick77

i only hear good things

tolygal

If you feel like it's not enough, then you are not pushing hard enough. I'm halfway through Stage 7 right now. So here are my suggestions to your specific questions:

Lat pull down alternative. If you have resistance bands try this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4VzrKYB5Vk

For Squats, use your heavy dumbbells and go deeper. Make sure you are not leaning forward.

For the Swiss Ball crunch, check your form. I found that most of the program I had the swiss ball too low (close to my butt). I double checked the picture in the book and started doing them with the ball in the middle of my back and I was very conscience of keeping my chin towards the ceiling and trying to pull my belly button to the floor during a crunch.

When you're at the gym, make sure you have enough weight on there that you are struggling with the last couple of reps but you can still put the weights down safely.

I know, when I started, I had been lifting heavy for 9 months prior and when I started doing this program I felt like I could barely drag myself out of the gym. Even now at Stage 7, I'm supposed to be doing 4 sets and I've not been able to do more than 3 sets. I just don't have anything else left in me.

I hope this makes sense and helps.

Thank you for all that! I'm going to give it all a shot!!

kimnmia

I just started this too! I agree that it seems too easy right now, but from going to the online forum for the book, other users agree that everyone should start from stage 1 as prescribed, no matter what their level. In the end you can vary the weight while sticking to the routine.

I have to admit that the calorie requirements seem high, especially for this site. I have a feeling I'm going to find myself over my calorie limit, especially on workout days!

Are any of you taking a post-workout meal? I bought some protein powder and I mix it with skim milk.

tolygal

That's good to know - I wonderered about that, but there are some things that I'm not good at (pushups, lat pull downs, seated rows and deadlift) because I never did those types of excercises before - well, I've done pushups, but only girly ones and I wasn't good at them. So I've been sore for sure (chest and hamstrings mostly) - but the squats and step ups and swiss ball crunch didn't seem terribly difficult for me (well, I used extra heavy weights and a slighty taller step than I was used to, so I could feel the step ups). So it's really helpful to hear of ways to get more out of them.

I use a protein shake after my workouts - but I mix it with water. I took the calorie count I got and subtracted 300 calories from it. If I read right, he said that was okay of you were trying to lose fat. I hope that doesn't mess me up. Then on my lifting days, I've been adding back 300. So, I'm eating 1500 on non-workout days and 1800 on workout days. Not much different than before except that I'm eating 300 extra calories on the days I workout (I wasn't before - I did 1500 every day). I hope it will work for me!

sunshine79

Ok - then here's the other thing - I don't feel like these workouts are enough for me. So I've been doing them, and then I've done my own interval training - either on the treadmill or the elliptical. Then I've still been going to my aerobic class (bozu and step aerobics with a little light weight work thrown in) a couple of hours after this workout. I have been skipping excercise all together the day after, but I'm wondering if you think it's okay to continue with this. I just don't feel like I'm doing enough without the extra stuff, and although I hope to be building muscle, I also want to get rid of the rest of this fat and don't want to waste any time with it! Summer is almost here!!

Well done on your amazing weight loss so far.

It seems like you are very near the end of your journey and not that much more 'weight' to lose. At this stage weight training is exactly the right thing to focus on. I'm not doing the same program as you but I do alternate weight training with interval training. With the exception of a weekly boxing class this is all I do and like you felt as though it wasn't enough. It is.

Before doing this I was working out for hours each week, spinning aerobics, long steady state cardio - all to no avail. I was stuck for 2 months, I was over training.

Four weeks ago I begun serious weight training and then added in HIIT (intervals) and finally things changed. My weight has remained pretty much the same BUT I have lost inches (which for me is more important that 'weight') and my body fat has decreased. I'm currently 148/149lbs and I want to get down to 140lbs but I'd rather be a few lbs heavier than I planned but be much leaner so I don't worry too much about the scale these days.

It does feel weird not ding as much as you're used to but trust me it really does work and it is enough.

tolygal

Thank you, Sunshine - that's exactly where I was at too. I used to do 60 minutes of steady-state cardio 5-6 days a week (either on the elliptical or on the treadmill) plus my aerobic class twice a week. I did great with that until I got down to about 148 pounds. Then I was completely stuck for like 2 months. Then I tried to take the advice from here and eat my excercise calories and add some weight training. Well, I stayed stuck for another month. Then I talked to a nutritionist and did a single personal training session and they both gave me some tips. They told me to do shorter workouts with high intensity intervals, get around 100 g of protein a day, get at least 25 g fiber and to watch my sodium (plus a few other things, but those were the major tips). In addition, the nutritionst suggested 1500 calories a day no matter what my burn was, so I stopped eating back my excercise calories (although now I am adding 300 calories for my training days). So I did that, and it was so hard to go from 60 minutes of cardio down to 20-30 minutes of cardio intervals. And I continued with weight training without any kind of plan and not really knowing what I was doing (which is what brought me to this book). Anyway, finally I dropped about 6 more pounds that next month bringing me to my current weight of 142. I hope to get to 130 or so. But like you, the number on the scale is not really all that important. It's just how much fat I still think I want to lose.

I still have lots of visible fat that I'd like to get rid of but I think between 10-15 pounds will do it - especially if I'm gaining muscle. So I'm pretty close. And I think just adding some muscle is going to really help me like what I see a lot better. It's just really hard to go from working out that much to working out "so little." Thanks again - it's good to hear from someone else who went from spending so much time on this to less and have it work!!!

Kath712

Bump for later... I got the book for Christmas, but haven't read it yet. Hoping to get started with it soon!

sunshine79

Thank you, Sunshine - that's exactly where I was at too. I used to do 60 minutes of steady-state cardio 5-6 days a week (either on the elliptical or on the treadmill) plus my aerobic class twice a week. I did great with that until I got down to about 148 pounds. Then I was completely stuck for like 2 months. Then I tried to take the advice from here and eat my excercise calories and add some weight training. Well, I stayed stuck for another month. Then I talked to a nutritionist and did a single personal training session and they both gave me some tips. They told me to do shorter workouts with high intensity intervals, get around 100 g of protein a day, get at least 25 g fiber and to watch my sodium (plus a few other things, but those were the major tips). In addition, the nutritionst suggested 1500 calories a day no matter what my burn was, so I stopped eating back my excercise calories (although now I am adding 300 calories for my training days). So I did that, and it was so hard to go from 60 minutes of cardio down to 20-30 minutes of cardio intervals. And I continued with weight training without any kind of plan and not really knowing what I was doing (which is what brought me to this book). Anyway, finally I dropped about 6 more pounds that next month bringing me to my current weight of 142. I hope to get to 130 or so. But like you, the number on the scale is not really all that important. It's just how much fat I still think I want to lose.

I still have lots of visible fat that I'd like to get rid of but I think between 10-15 pounds will do it - especially if I'm gaining muscle. So I'm pretty close. And I think just adding some muscle is going to really help me like what I see a lot better. It's just really hard to go from working out that much to working out "so little." Thanks again - it's good to hear from someone else who went from spending so much time on this to less and have it work!!!

Thanks for this info. I've come to the conclusion too that eating around 1400 cals per day regardless of workouts it the way forward. I've actually stopped wearing my HRM during workouts as I'm not concerned with calorie expenditure during workouts as with weight lifting our RMR is raised for at least 24hrs afterwards which is where the majority of our calorie burn comes from.

I also upped my protein to at least 100g per day, tried very hard to cut down on processed sugars and tried to reduce my carbs too which has really helped. I'm going to send you a friend request as I'd love to keep up with your progress and I'd love for us to be able to share any other things we learn along the way.