Stage 1
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Completed 4B tonight.
I changed up my deadlift form and it seems a lot more intense. Guess I'm finally do it right!
Also, for my lunges, I dropped my weight back to 30 total pounds and went WAY lower. It made all the difference, EXCEPT now I could barely walk up the steps when I got home!
lesson learned... don't sacrifice weight increase for form and don't be afraid to go backwards if you think it will help. I know it has helped me to be 'better'...0 -
Hi ladies, I fnally made it to the gym with my hubby for my 6B workout. I sucked at the deadlifts with the olympic bar. I've been doing these with 40lb dumbells (I'm pretty weak and tiny only 5'2")...so the bar alone was easy at first, so I increased the weight to 55. I did good the first set. The second and third were horrible. I found it difficult to balance the bar and I couldn't hold on to the bar after the 7th rep. It was so thick around my small hands couldn't keep the grip. I got frustrated and only made it to 5 on my 3rd set.
I think I need to practice on my form at a lower weight since I've never lifted a bar before in my life. Or maybe I should just continue this stage with a dumbell.0 -
I finished Workout B8 on Tuesday. Here's the run-down on where I started & ended up
DEADLIFT: 45 lb. bar --> 95 lb. (bar + 20 lb. ea. side)
DUMBBELL SHOULDER PRESS: 20 lb. --> 40 lb. (10 lb./hand --> 20 lb./hand)
This makes me very nervous for whether I'll be able to do the front squat/push press with a 45 lb. bar in Stage 2!
WIDE-GRIP LAT PULLDOWN: 40 lb.* --> 80 lb.
*On my first set, 40 lb. was a little too easy, so I bumped up to 55 lb. for my 2nd set.
LUNGE: 20 lb. --> 25 lb.
I'm really not a fan of these. Maybe 10 lb./hand was too much to start, but I kept switching bet. 10 & 12.5 lb./hand for all 8 workouts. In the beginning though, I maybe should have started lighter (7.5 lb./hand?), but I think over the 8 workouts, my form improved, and I was able to do all 3 sets in Workout 8 with 12.5 lb./hand.
SWISS BALL CRUNCH: 2 sets/8 reps (no weight) --> 3 sets/15 reps (10 lb. plate on chest).
After I do AMRAPs of these on Sat. May 26, I'll be an official Stage 1 graduate!
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Just did 5A - my first foray into 3 sets....
squats 70 on smith
rows 90
step ups 27lbs per hand
push ups - 2 sets floor, last set on 3rd bottom rung of smith machine.
Prone jacknife - 3 sets of 12 baby!!
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Done my first two workouts! Ran after the first one, intending to run after tomorrow's one. I could definitely do with increasing my endurance, so I feel like this is a really good way to go. I have a familiar soreness to my muscles but I know it will get better! I'm sooooo excited!0
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Here are my results from Stage 1... looking forward to Stage 2 next week!
Start: April 9
End: May 23
Workout A
Squats – 20 (10 DB) > 75 (oly bar + 30)
Push Ups – 45 degree angle > 30 degree angle
Seated Row – 20 >60
Step Ups – 20 (10 DB) > 50 (25 kettlebells)
Prone Jackknife – 8 > 15 slow ones!
Workout B
Dead Lift – 45 (Olympic bar only) > 105
Dumbbell shoulder press – 10 (5 DB) > 30 (15 DB)… really feel this in my right shoulder where I have an injury from 20 years ago! Couldn’t push more weight than that on right side.
Pulldown – 30 > 60
Lunges – 10 (5DB each hand) > 40 (20 kettlebells)
Swiss Ball crunch – 8 without weight > 15 with 20 weight on chest
height - 5'8"
weight – 163.6 > 162.8 (went up to 166 after a few weeks and came back down last week)
hips – 42 > 41
waist – 33 > 31
thighs – 24.5 > 24
chest – 37.5 > 36.5
bicep – 12 > 12 (but I can see the muscle if I look carefully!)
I'm hoping to lose a bit of weight (or body fat at least). At the beginning I ate when I was hungry and didn't give myself a hard time for eating more than I would have usually. After 2 weeks of that I was able to have enough energy for lifting and restricting my intake. Really worked hard on getting enough protein. I'm trying to eat 1800 cals a day and I'm now adding back in some moderate cardio exercises twice a week (run or cycle for 30-45 minutes).
See you in Stage 2!0 -
Finished with Stage 1 using dumbbells - I'm happy with my results. On to stage 20
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Last Stage 1B workout today:
Final results (going from my 2nd week numbers to now):
Deadlift: 75 to 150 lbs.
DB Shoulder Press: 40 to 60 lbs. (could only do 7 reps, but I'm counting it)
Lat Pulldown: 75 to 110 lbs.
Lunge: holding two 20 lb. dumbbells to two 35 lb.
DBs Swiss Ball Crunch: holding a 15 lb. weight to 75 lb. weight.
Still doing static lunges since my knee gets wonky, but I'm happy with the improvements.0 -
Hello all! I just finished 2A this morning. Awesome progress I'm seeing in all of you!0
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So I did 5A today. When I was getting the weights ready for my squats I accidentally looked at my B workout log (at the deadlifts, 105 lbs) instead of my A workout log (squats, 75 lbs) and I squatted 105 lbs 3x10 today! I figured it out after I was done with all three sets.... I was wondering why it felt SO incredibly difficult!
Holy awesomeness! I'm right at about 75 lb squats (did 1 x 10 @ 75 and then 2 X 10 @ 80 today). I'd love to "accidentally" add 25 lbs to my squat. Goes to show that you can do more than you think you can!0 -
Off today and pretty darn sore in my quads from 5a yesterday. Managed to get my step up higher but still at 40 lbs. It seemed right. Also managed to crank out 28 push ups in my 3 sets. FULL BODY on the floor push ups.. I'm super stoked about that too. My gym is closed on Monday for the holiday, so I HAVE to get in my workout tomorrow for 5b.
The thought of hitting the gym tomorrow is so NOT appealing. Hopefully I will feel differently tomorrow!
By the way, even though I'm keeping close track of my calories and 'should be losing' 1 pound a week, I have managed to lose only a little more than 1 pound this month. I KNOW you all say the scale is NOT important, which I can 'get',but it still matters to me. I'm really crossing my fingers that when I do my body fat and measurements tomorrow that I DO see some improvements. If not, I'm really considering going back to my distance running and dropping the rest of the weight I have to lose before going any further down this road! Please keep good thoughts for me tomorrow!0 -
Off today and pretty darn sore in my quads from 5a yesterday. Managed to get my step up higher but still at 40 lbs. It seemed right. Also managed to crank out 28 push ups in my 3 sets. FULL BODY on the floor push ups.. I'm super stoked about that too. My gym is closed on Monday for the holiday, so I HAVE to get in my workout tomorrow for 5b.
The thought of hitting the gym tomorrow is so NOT appealing. Hopefully I will feel differently tomorrow!
By the way, even though I'm keeping close track of my calories and 'should be losing' 1 pound a week, I have managed to lose only a little more than 1 pound this month. I KNOW you all say the scale is NOT important, which I can 'get',but it still matters to me. I'm really crossing my fingers that when I do my body fat and measurements tomorrow that I DO see some improvements. If not, I'm really considering going back to my distance running and dropping the rest of the weight I have to lose before going any further down this road! Please keep good thoughts for me tomorrow!
Congrats on the floor push ups! That's awesome!
And in regards to losing weight vs lifting weight...I don't think there's a right answer here. I ink you just have to decide what your goal is. And what the best method is to getting there. If you are truly still in weight loss mode, then going back to cardio may be the answer. If you are ready to shape your body, then it's time for weights. Only you can answer that. I do think you can lose and still lift, I think it just takes a longer time and a lot of patience. Good luck on your measurements and your decision. 0 -
Off today and pretty darn sore in my quads from 5a yesterday. Managed to get my step up higher but still at 40 lbs. It seemed right. Also managed to crank out 28 push ups in my 3 sets. FULL BODY on the floor push ups.. I'm super stoked about that too. My gym is closed on Monday for the holiday, so I HAVE to get in my workout tomorrow for 5b.
The thought of hitting the gym tomorrow is so NOT appealing. Hopefully I will feel differently tomorrow!
By the way, even though I'm keeping close track of my calories and 'should be losing' 1 pound a week, I have managed to lose only a little more than 1 pound this month. I KNOW you all say the scale is NOT important, which I can 'get',but it still matters to me. I'm really crossing my fingers that when I do my body fat and measurements tomorrow that I DO see some improvements. If not, I'm really considering going back to my distance running and dropping the rest of the weight I have to lose before going any further down this road! Please keep good thoughts for me tomorrow!
Congrats on the floor push ups! That's awesome!
And in regards to losing weight vs lifting weight...I don't think there's a right answer here. I ink you just have to decide what your goal is. And what the best method is to getting there. If you are truly still in weight loss mode, then going back to cardio may be the answer. If you are ready to shape your body, then it's time for weights. Only you can answer that. I do think you can lose and still lift, I think it just takes a longer time and a lot of patience. Good luck on your measurements and your decision.
Thanks! I'm heading to the gym shortly!0 -
Did 4a today and disappointed with the squats. I am only lifting 30kg and thought I would be on way more than that now. First time i have tried 30kgs too last workout i was on 25kgs Most people on here are lifting twice this amount in stage 1. Am I just a weakling?
I feel if I go higher I will not be keeping form. I don't squat very low either but that's the best I can do at the moment.0 -
Did 4a today and disappointed with the squats. I am only lifting 30kg and thought I would be on way more than that now. First time i have tried 30kgs too last workout i was on 25kgs Most people on here are lifting twice this amount in stage 1. Am I just a weakling?
I feel if I go higher I will not be keeping form. I don't squat very low either but that's the best I can do at the moment.
There is NOTHING wrong with doing the weights that help you best with form. Keep it up! You are no weakling!!! I actually backed the weights completely off my squats bar to get my form better. YOU KNOW what is working for you. Keep it up!0 -
Ok.. Reporting Time.. I'm super excited. Result: I will CONTINUE to lift and try to get in a bit more cardio!
Here's what I found after 1 month (more or less) of NR..
(inches)
Bust - 40.5 > 39
Waist - 34.75 > 33.75
Hips - 38.5 > 37
Thigh - 22.5 >21
Body Fat 36.9% > 34.5%
Fat Mass 57.2 > 51.8 pounds
Weight 154.8 > 150.2 pounds.
I'll give you the lift progress once I get to my AMRAP in a few weeks.0 -
I started Stage 1 last week. Today, I did the 2nd "A" workout. I'm sticking with just body weight squats for now because my form is not fabulous (ok, and I'm scared of the squat rack). I'm also using the swiss ball for my push ups. I will eventually get to pushups on the ground, but I'm not there yet. The prone jackknife pike is giving me fits - but it sounds like it does to everyone. I am slowly working the ball out closer to my toes. I'm training for a half - marathon, so I'm trying to balance the two. Luckily, I'm still on shorter runs for that right now, so it's not much of an issue. Glad I found a spot where there's lots of information.0
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Yay, I did my second go of stage 1 5A (the last one I stopped in the middle since I did something dumb and hurt my knee).
I kept my squats and step ups where the were, but I could have increased them if not for knee worries. Increased my row (yay!) and lowered my pushups (yay!).
I'm really tired of people leaving their weights on the powerrack, though. I'm always looking around searching for the guy doing powersets, but it just makes me look like a gym pervert staring at everyone making eye contact and trying to assess whether they were possibly doing squats.
I think I'm just going to start racking up my own weights and if someone comes to stop me, so be it.0 -
I started Stage 1 last week. Today, I did the 2nd "A" workout. I'm sticking with just body weight squats for now because my form is not fabulous (ok, and I'm scared of the squat rack). I'm also using the swiss ball for my push ups. I will eventually get to pushups on the ground, but I'm not there yet. The prone jackknife pike is giving me fits - but it sounds like it does to everyone. I am slowly working the ball out closer to my toes. I'm training for a half - marathon, so I'm trying to balance the two. Luckily, I'm still on shorter runs for that right now, so it's not much of an issue. Glad I found a spot where there's lots of information.
Awesome job! When you are ready to use the squat rack, just ask a person at the gym to check your form. Also, there are some AMAZING videos on the right form that may get you in the right place too! Once you get there, you will be just fine. promise!
I was also training for a half when I started. I found I actually got FASTER with the increased leg strength. You will have to let me know if you see that too!0 -
Yay, I did my second go of stage 1 5A (the last one I stopped in the middle since I did something dumb and hurt my knee).
I kept my squats and step ups where the were, but I could have increased them if not for knee worries. Increased my row (yay!) and lowered my pushups (yay!).
I'm really tired of people leaving their weights on the powerrack, though. I'm always looking around searching for the guy doing powersets, but it just makes me look like a gym pervert staring at everyone making eye contact and trying to assess whether they were possibly doing squats.
I think I'm just going to start racking up my own weights and if someone comes to stop me, so be it.
We are both at the same place. 5B about killed me today, but I guess that helps me know I am doing it right!
Also, I HATE how the dudes are too lazy to take their weights off the power racks. I will actually track someone down to unload it if I have too! If I can't find the dude, I mention it to the worker at the gym so that he can keep an eye out and bust the jerk the next time he sees it. I make sure he knows I am unhappy! lol.. it is the principle of the thing for me!0
