New Rules of Lifting (for Women) Group - Part 2

scarletleavy

Do you guys mostly follow the diet plan in the book? I've been eating at maintenance calories for awhile now and not really tracking so closely what I'm eating. I eat very healthy, with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, etc so I think I'll be fine to just continue what I'm doing right now.

baisleac

Do you guys mostly follow the diet plan in the book? I've been eating at maintenance calories for awhile now and not really tracking so closely what I'm eating. I eat very healthy, with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, etc so I think I'll be fine to just continue what I'm doing right now.

I try for a 200-250 cal deficit, but I have a BodyBugg for my exact daily burn. Otherwise, I'd probably follow the book closer... and it's a good thing. The book's calculations are a lot closer than MFPs.

AnaNotBanana

On the original thread I saw someone mention that the book suggests you bump up your weights when the number of reps change. I've been bumping up my weights each workout, usually by 2.5-5 lbs. Is anyone else bumping ther weights up each workout? Also I was super sore the first week but am rarely sore now. Is it just because my body is use to the exercises or because I need to bump up my weights.

baisleac

On the original thread I saw someone mention that the book suggests you bump up your weights when the number of reps change. I've been bumping up my weights each workout, usually by 2.5-5 lbs. Is anyone else bumping their weights up each workout? Also I was super sore the first week but am rarely sore now. Is it just because my body is use to the exercises or because I need to bump up my weights.

It could be either, actually. If you feel up to it, try bumping your weights up a little more. Not being able to finish the last rep or two of the last set is not a bad thing.

julslea

I just ordered this book and can't wait to read it and put it into action.

neela31

So should I use the 1500 number? I am afraid to raise my cals. However I have to say I find that when I am sticking to 1100-1200 cals I am hungry a lot. I am trying to eat cleaner/more healthy but I am having a hard time finding foods that will fill me up longer than a couple of hours.

Definitely eat more. You will find the workouts REALLY hard to get through if you don't eat enough.

bbygrl5

I haven't read through all of the posts of this group, just the first few, but I would LOVE to join this group, if it's not too late. I haven't started the workouts yet. I still need to finish the book in the next day or two. I really feel like support would be very helpful.

meribethd

Meribeth, I find that the workouts (including cardio) all take me a solid hour to complete. I am still pro-cardio though so that is including a good 20 to 30 minute stint of eliptical/treadmill/etc. If a 60 minute chunk is too tricky to include in your schedule (I get that for sure!) I'd choose to split the weights and cardio up. I've had good luck doing cardio in the morning before anything else (read: breakfast) and then doing weights later in the afternoon/early evening. These days though, I have a good hour to hour an half of uninterrupted gym time as long as I get my butt out of bed by 5 am.

Thank you! Yes, I just did the first workout in stage 3 and it took an hour. I think if I know this and plan for it, it will be okay. But that's a great idea, to split up weights and cardio if necessary.

Phew. I am beat. That matrix was hard! I think I'm going to hurt tomorrow.

meribethd

So should I use the 1500 number? I am afraid to raise my cals. However I have to say I find that when I am sticking to 1100-1200 cals I am hungry a lot. I am trying to eat cleaner/more healthy but I am having a hard time finding foods that will fill me up longer than a couple of hours.

yes!! 1500 is even on the low end for a lot of people. On days I lift I eat around 2000 calories.

idauria

I did my first workout this morning! It went by pretty quickly. I even did some intervals on the elliptical afterwards. I am currently on my 4th "meal" of the day. Instead of having 3 meals and 2 snacks I basically have 5 or 6 mini meals since they all tend to be 300 cals or less. My stomach likes it that way. I reset my cals here to 1500 and I added in the 245 cals I burned this morning so it obviously bumped my to 1745. Should I be eating that much? I don't even think I can eat that many cals!

yanicka

Do you mind if I join. I am starting NROLFW tomorrow !!!!! Very excited.

baisleac

I did my first workout this morning! It went by pretty quickly. I even did some intervals on the elliptical afterwards. I am currently on my 4th "meal" of the day. Instead of having 3 meals and 2 snacks I basically have 5 or 6 mini meals since they all tend to be 300 cals or less. My stomach likes it that way. I reset my cals here to 1500 and I added in the 245 cals I burned this morning so it obviously bumped my to 1745. Should I be eating that much? I don't even think I can eat that many cals!

It's not too hard to eat that many. Check out my diary if you like. I average 1800+ calories per day. Hard to tell what your base calories should be without knowing what your height/weight (or lean body mass), and pre-exercise lifestyle are.

idauria

I am 4'10" and currently weight 96 lbs. All the BMI calcs say I am 20% body fat. While I might not have a lot of weight to lose I do have a lot of belly and hip fat that needs to go. I am no stranger to exercising but amt that I do seems to have any effect. The conclusion that I came to is that I really need to focus on what I am eating. So I am now really trying to eat clean and increase my protein. I had one shake this morning post workout and another one now as a snack. I'll eat a regular dinner in a few hours. I bet I won't be anywhere near 1700 at the end of the day unless I really eat a lot tonight.

baisleac

I am 4'10" and currently weight 96 lbs. All the BMI calcs say I am 20% body fat. While I might not have a lot of weight to lose I do have a lot of belly and hip fat that needs to go. I am no stranger to exercising but amt that I do seems to have any effect. The conclusion that I came to is that I really need to focus on what I am eating. So I am now really trying to eat clean and increase my protein. I had one shake this morning post workout and another one now as a snack. I'll eat a regular dinner in a few hours. I bet I won't be anywhere near 1700 at the end of the day unless I really eat a lot tonight.

My opinion:

Most of the online BMR calculators are giving you around 1200 cal/day BMR, which even a sedentary lifestyle would give you maintenance calories of 1440 PLUS exercise calories. If you're working on body composition only (not trying to lose weight, just body fat), I would eat all those exercise calories.

edit to add: And don't forget as your BF% goes down, your Lean Body Mass goes up and so does your metabolism (provided your weight is staying the same)

neela31

I did my first workout this morning! It went by pretty quickly. I even did some intervals on the elliptical afterwards. I am currently on my 4th "meal" of the day. Instead of having 3 meals and 2 snacks I basically have 5 or 6 mini meals since they all tend to be 300 cals or less. My stomach likes it that way. I reset my cals here to 1500 and I added in the 245 cals I burned this morning so it obviously bumped my to 1745. Should I be eating that much? I don't even think I can eat that many cals!

Have a protein shake after your workout to get those extra calories in. That's what the book says to do.

neela31

I finished my last workout in Stage one of the 2 sets. I'll be moving onto 3 sets, 10 reps! How much longer did the 3 sets take you than doing just 2 sets?

idauria

So forgive my ignorance, there is a difference between losing weight and body fat? I always assumed that I'd have to drop another 5 pounds or so to see the look I desire. So if my weight isn't a problem and I do in fact want to shed fat, then eating my cals, especially on workout days is beneficial?

Is it ok to have more than one protein shake a day to get my protein needs in? Otherwise I don't think I can reach my goals. Also, I just picked up EAS 100% whey protein powder(at BJs) without even researching it. Is that a decent brand?

neela31

So forgive my ignorance, there is a difference between losing weight and body fat? I always assumed that I'd have to drop another 5 pounds or so to see the look I desire. So if my weight isn't a problem and I do in fact want to shed fat, then eating my cals, especially on workout days is beneficial?

Is it ok to have more than one protein shake a day to get my protein needs in? Otherwise I don't think I can reach my goals. Also, I just picked up EAS 100% whey protein powder(at BJs) without even researching it. Is that a decent brand?

There is a HUGE difference in losing weight and body fat. You can lose body fat and you may never see a drop on the scale because of the weight you gain from muscle mass. I've finally stopped trying to lose weight and am focusing on lowering my body fat. If you can't get enough protein from your regular foods, definitely drink more shakes. I had two shakes today! I just get sick of chicken.

idauria

Thank you for that neela! I guess I have always been focused on making the numbers on the scale go down. Honestly I have been frustrated because even though I have been exercising(doing JM dvds every day) the fat just isn't moving! After reading lots of posts on here about the benefits of weight training, and this program in particular, I decided to give it a shot. Of course I am also committed to eating healthier and cleaner, which I know is the real culprit behind the belly fat and why I can't lose it. It's just so hard for me to give up chocolate.

neela31

I can't give up my sweet treats. It's soooo hard. I'm trying to limit them, but that's hard too!

Niveous

Oh, I was so excited to see this thread in the Recent Posts! Do you all mind if I join you? :flowerforyou:

I'm not new to weightlifting, in fact I've been doing it throughout my entire weight loss journey so far... but I literally just started NROL on Saturday because I wanted something a little more structured and varied. I will be doing my second workout today as well.

baisleac

I just want to add to neela's post, that yes you can definitely lose body fat without losing weight... although some of it will be increased glycogen (muscle fuel) not actual muscle.

In the last 7 weeks I've only "lost" 3.2 lbs on the scale, but I've also gained just over 2 lbs of lean body mass (mostly glycogen storage at this stage)... which means I've lost just over 5lbs of body fat. (progress photos here: http://nrowfizs.blogspot.com/p/progress-photos.html)

idauria

I just want to add to neela's post, that yes you can definitely lose body fat without losing weight... although some of it will be increased glycogen (muscle fuel) not actual muscle.

In the last 7 weeks I've only "lost" 3.2 lbs on the scale, but I've also gained just over 2 lbs of lean body mass (mostly glycogen storage at this stage)... which means I've lost just over 5lbs of body fat. (progress photos here: http://nrowfizs.blogspot.com/p/progress-photos.html)

Yeah, what I really want is a lean physique. I don't care if my weight stays the same or even goes up if I look good and I don't have the dreaded muffin top anymore! Here's to muscles!

yanicka

I am so not sure how many calories I need to eat.

I am 37y/o 4'11''

124.6 pounds

BF well that one is hard to say. between 26 and 28%

I work in front of the computer all day.

Hummm what else?

can you help?

AnaNotBanana

I finished my last workout in Stage one of the 2 sets. I'll be moving onto 3 sets, 10 reps! How much longer did the 3 sets take you than doing just 2 sets?

I just moved into the three sets also I found that it doesn't take that much longer. Maybe 40 minutes as opposed to 30 minutes. And after my first 3 set workout B I was sore!! Not like the first week but I'm definitely feeling it. Those shoulder presses kicked my butt!!

agthorn

Yeah, what I really want is a lean physique. I don't care if my weight stays the same or even goes up if I look good and I don't have the dreaded muffin top anymore! Here's to muscles!

I'm so glad to hear you say this. I hate reading all the posts that say "I'm losing inches but the scale's not moving, what am I doing wrong???" And I'm always thinking "If you look better and feel better, why do you care what the scale says?"

tolygal

bump - I hope to be back to this full time in a couple of weeks - my shoulders are really starting to feel better (not 100% yet, but getting there). This thread is moving fast now, I have a lot to catch up on!

AnaNotBanana

Welcome to all the new people that want to join!! I can say that after 3 complete weeks going on 4 that this program is awesome!!! I took pictures and measurements at the beginning and will do it again after I complete Phase 1. I've already noticed a difference in the way my clothes fit and how I look. I haven't noticed a huge jump on the scale either way but that's probably because I've had trouble staying on the wagon during the weekends with my eating. If anyone has any helpful hints, links, tips, etc. please feel free to post!!

This helped me with the form on the prone jackknife:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y03dkaK1O0&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

idauria

Yeah, what I really want is a lean physique. I don't care if my weight stays the same or even goes up if I look good and I don't have the dreaded muffin top anymore! Here's to muscles!

I'm so glad to hear you say this. I hate reading all the posts that say "I'm losing inches but the scale's not moving, what am I doing wrong???" And I'm always thinking "If you look better and feel better, why do you care what the scale says?"

I have always been kind of obsessed about what the scale says but am learning that the numbers don't tell the whole story. By all accounts according to my weight I am not fat and my family thinks I am crazy, but even though my weight has stayed about the same I can tell that I have accumulated more fat around my middle. So my goal is to trim that down. I hope that by lifting weights I can increase my metabolism and shed the fat. Isn't that what we all want anyway?

agthorn

Yeah, what I really want is a lean physique. I don't care if my weight stays the same or even goes up if I look good and I don't have the dreaded muffin top anymore! Here's to muscles!

I'm so glad to hear you say this. I hate reading all the posts that say "I'm losing inches but the scale's not moving, what am I doing wrong???" And I'm always thinking "If you look better and feel better, why do you care what the scale says?"

I have always been kind of obsessed about what the scale says but am learning that the numbers don't tell the whole story. By all accounts according to my weight I am not fat and my family thinks I am crazy, but even though my weight has stayed about the same I can tell that I have accumulated more fat around my middle. So my goal is to trim that down. I hope that by lifting weights I can increase my metabolism and shed the fat. Isn't that what we all want anyway?

Oh I completely understand; technically I've never been outside the "healthy" BMI range for my height but I do NOT look good at 149. My mid-section is usually okay but I tend to carry weight in my butt and my hips/thighs.

For what it's worth, I don't look that great at 117 either (my lowest adult weight) even though that's also considered "healthy."