March Check-in&Chat - Green beer to fuel your lifts!
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My skull crushers actually almost became a skull crusher tonight. Darn weak triceps. Thankfully hubby was spotting. It really was a fun workout though.
I've hit myself in the head a few times with these! Not hard enough to cut or bruise, but still a little embarrassing if done around people.
I was a two-a-day weigher for the first part of my weight loss. I have been pretty good about once a week, but I'm starting to get tired of seeing the same 2 lbs go up and down so I think I will just put the darn scale away for a bit and go with the tape measure if I need any reassurance. I'm trying to eat at maintenance for a little bit while I decide if I want to try a bulk cycle.
Gesneramor - It's okay to be a geek
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Don't worry auddii you're in good company, I weigh every day, usually twice a day as well. But then I drop it in a spreadsheet, calculate a 7-day average, and let it be. Generally speaking, my 7 day average never goes up, it either stays steady or goes down, and I like looking at things that way.
[Then I do a graph of my 7-day moving average weight and calories... Oh :blushing: probably more than anyone here wants to know. I'm a geek. IRL I am a tax accountant, does it show? :bigsmile: ]
Anyways, I agree that weights are addictive like that, they are a lot more fun than cardio. Although, I love to sit down and read a book for half an hour, and I have no problem at all doing that at the gym on a recumbent bike
My fractional's came yesterday
I am completely excited, because I am doing OHP/DL today (repeating them because I did two BP/PR days by accident) and I can't wait to pop them on and actually finish a set of 5X5 OHP with something other than the empty bar. I promise not to mention how pathetic it will look to have an empty bar and two teensy fractional weights on it ROFL
(edited for spelling)
I actually like your idea. May even try it myself. I'm a list kind of person and very detailed oriented. And spreadsheets, I have a secret crush on them lol. My inner geek showing through.0 -
Today, I turned off my 5 am alarm and went back to sleep. Normally, when I deviate from my schedule, that is the end of it, no workout.
Today, I left my 4 year old with the 12 and 10 year old for an hour (OK, an hour an 20 minutes) and went to the gym. It is only about six blocks from home and we're in a small town.
So, 30 minutes of cardio, then lifting.
Still stuck on 140 with squats, but form is improving nicely. Weirdly though, it was WAY harder today than Wednesday. I was under my daily calories by 1000+ calories the last few days though, so that may have had something to do with it.
70 for OHP. I managed the whole 5 sets, but I had to wait longer than my usual 60 seconds between sets to get there.
160 on Deadlift! And it wasn't too bad. I swear unloading the DL bar afterward is almost harder than the lift itself. The gym is carpeted and the plates stick on the carpeting and it is awkward.
I feel strong, but I'm also incredibly fat and having trouble with the scale not moving. Also, I only seem to be gaining muscle in my legs and arms, everywhere else, it is covered by fat and I'm having a hard time not changing my daily calories to an insanely low number just to see the scale move. I seem to be losing in ideosyncratic places, my lower belly (4 c-sections make that really bad), legs, back, but nothing that makes clothing or the usual measurements move much.
So, someone talk me out of the scale trap. Please.0 -
I weigh once a month, first thing in the morning, butt-nekkid. Pick a day, hide the scale until then, and then stick to it. It's been liberating to not focus on the little fluctuations.
Ges, I use my fractionals all the time and I've never gotten a second look from the other peeps in he gym. You'll love them!!0 -
Don't worry auddii you're in good company, I weigh every day, usually twice a day as well. But then I drop it in a spreadsheet, calculate a 7-day average, and let it be. Generally speaking, my 7 day average never goes up, it either stays steady or goes down, and I like looking at things that way.
[Then I do a graph of my 7-day moving average weight and calories... Oh :blushing: probably more than anyone here wants to know. I'm a geek. IRL I am a tax accountant, does it show? :bigsmile: ]
Anyways, I agree that weights are addictive like that, they are a lot more fun than cardio. Although, I love to sit down and read a book for half an hour, and I have no problem at all doing that at the gym on a recumbent bike
My fractional's came yesterday I am completely excited, because I am doing OHP/DL today (repeating them because I did two BP/PR days by accident) and I can't wait to pop them on and actually finish a set of 5X5 OHP with something other than the empty bar. I promise not to mention how pathetic it will look to have an empty bar and two teensy fractional weights on it ROFL
(edited for spelling)
I actually like your idea. May even try it myself. I'm a list kind of person and very detailed oriented. And spreadsheets, I have a secret crush on them lol. My inner geek showing through.
I wish MFP provided those sorts of stats. I'm slightly too undisciplined to log my weight in Strong Lifts, MFP AND a spreadsheet.
I also weigh every day, mostly so I get a sense of how much I fluctuate (2.5lbs from yesterday am to today. WTF?) so if I see a raise on weigh-in day, I know whether it's in my normal bounds of fluctation or not.0 -
I think it's a great idea to switch up the routine and actually many of the groups I follow and magazines I read recommend the same thing. I think that consistency is good but consistency will really only stick if you don't get super bored with what you're doing! It's for that reason that I keep all of my Oxygen magazines....they truly have some routines that are great to throw in to just switch things up.
I've also been considering going to a 3x5/3x8 hybrid type of program.....not because I'm really bored by 3x5 but because I'm finding that my progress is really starting to suffer since I've gone back to 1800 calories/day. I really feel like I need to stick with the 1800 for awhile longer though simply to use it as a baseline.
I'm still giving it some thought, but something has to give! I've been doing some light interval cardio after lifting and yoga on non-lifting days.....but yoga like Jillian Michaels yoga meldown or Bob Harper yoga for the warrior type stuff.....sometime more relaxing, flexibility yoga but usually true workout type. I don't want to give up any of it :laugh:
I didn't log yesterday and I might not today either and I totally feel like I need a refeed :grumble: Oh well....keep on keepin on right?!
On the bright side, I actually bought a couple of 2 piece bathing suits that I didn't 100% cringe at and I also bought a pair of denim shorts for summer.....haven't done that in a darn long while :blushing:0 -
Today, I turned off my 5 am alarm and went back to sleep. Normally, when I deviate from my schedule, that is the end of it, no workout.
Today, I left my 4 year old with the 12 and 10 year old for an hour (OK, an hour an 20 minutes) and went to the gym. It is only about six blocks from home and we're in a small town.
So, 30 minutes of cardio, then lifting.
Still stuck on 140 with squats, but form is improving nicely. Weirdly though, it was WAY harder today than Wednesday. I was under my daily calories by 1000+ calories the last few days though, so that may have had something to do with it.
70 for OHP. I managed the whole 5 sets, but I had to wait longer than my usual 60 seconds between sets to get there.
160 on Deadlift! And it wasn't too bad. I swear unloading the DL bar afterward is almost harder than the lift itself. The gym is carpeted and the plates stick on the carpeting and it is awkward.
I feel strong, but I'm also incredibly fat and having trouble with the scale not moving. Also, I only seem to be gaining muscle in my legs and arms, everywhere else, it is covered by fat and I'm having a hard time not changing my daily calories to an insanely low number just to see the scale move. I seem to be losing in ideosyncratic places, my lower belly (4 c-sections make that really bad), legs, back, but nothing that makes clothing or the usual measurements move much.
So, someone talk me out of the scale trap. Please.
1. Those are some amazing numbers and you should be proud of yourself for your hard work.
2. I wish I could talk you out of weighing yourself but I weigh myself about twice a day and just shake my head and move on. It's just habit. My weight is coming down and my body is changing. So is yours. I mean jeez woman, 45 lbs lost? That's awesome. Don't be so hard on yourself. If I read your goal ticker correctly, you're a third of the way there.
Why do we always gotta beat ourselves up for no reason when in fact, we're awesome?
I decided I'ma put power cleans in place of rows on Tues and Sat and do DL once a week on Wed. See where that lands me. I woke up with that on my brain and right now I'm all kinds of pleased with myself.
(I still need help :huh: )0 -
I feel strong, but I'm also incredibly fat and having trouble with the scale not moving. Also, I only seem to be gaining muscle in my legs and arms, everywhere else, it is covered by fat and I'm having a hard time not changing my daily calories to an insanely low number just to see the scale move. I seem to be losing in ideosyncratic places, my lower belly (4 c-sections make that really bad), legs, back, but nothing that makes clothing or the usual measurements move much.
So, someone talk me out of the scale trap. Please.
Yeah, I hear you. I've lost fat from the inside tops of my knees. Yep, *that* problem area was really at the top of my list of where I want to lose my fat first!
Oh yeah and over my collarbones. Boy, they were really getting in the way when I tried on clothes 
Oh, and if it makes you feel any better, and at the risk of this being TMI, my lower belly is included in my hip measurement, so if I was losing from there I'd be tickled about it LOLOLOL
I believe that if you eat at a deficit for the activity you are doing, you will lose weight. If the activity you are doing is strength training, you will tend to mostly lose fat and you will keep your muscles. But! ONLY if you eat enough protein and fats so that your body has the building blocks it needs to repair and maintain the muscle/lean mass. I believe that cutting calories too low is detrimental to retaining muscle. And then once you lose your muscle it is very hard to get it back. You gotta bulk and cut and do this and that and it's a slow process. Very much easier to just keep it in the first place!
I also believe that the fat will come off of where it wants to no matter what we wish for it to do instead. And the only way for it to come off of the places that don't seem to budge is to be patient and stay the course, because of course eventually it will come off and it will feel like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon! :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:0 -
I wish MFP provided those sorts of stats. I'm slightly too undisciplined to log my weight in Strong Lifts, MFP AND a spreadsheet.
Actually !!!!!!
Go here: http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/#.UVW0PhyTgph
Plug in your data and export it to Excel.
I did it with my food diary and it totally works. I was able to pull averages for everything!!!! /glee
I haven't figured out how to export my weight from MFP so I just put it in a spreadsheet where I track all my numbers once a month for the sake of seeing an overall trend.
OCD weightlifting geeks, unite! :flowerforyou:
Ahh! They coulda just called it triceps presses. I know what those are, but I'm old school. :laugh:
Skull crushers does have that coolness factor to it tho.0 -
I wish MFP provided those sorts of stats. I'm slightly too undisciplined to log my weight in Strong Lifts, MFP AND a spreadsheet.
Actually !!!!!!
Go here: http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/#.UVW0PhyTgph
Plug in your data and export it to Excel.
ermahgerd! :::Kisses Dani on both cheeks and runs off to start exporting:::0 -
Im 3 pages behind but taggi g new thread0
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I wish MFP provided those sorts of stats. I'm slightly too undisciplined to log my weight in Strong Lifts, MFP AND a spreadsheet.
Actually !!!!!!
Go here: http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/#.UVW0PhyTgph
Plug in your data and export it to Excel.
ermahgerd! :::Kisses Dani on both cheeks and runs off to start exporting:::
I agree!!! It generated data in like 30 seconds what it took me an hour to do by hand...0 -
I wish MFP provided those sorts of stats. I'm slightly too undisciplined to log my weight in Strong Lifts, MFP AND a spreadsheet.
Actually !!!!!!
Go here: http://www.designbyvh.com/myfitnesspal-export-data/#.UVW0PhyTgph
Plug in your data and export it to Excel.
I did it with my food diary and it totally works. I was able to pull averages for everything!!!! /glee
I haven't figured out how to export my weight from MFP so I just put it in a spreadsheet where I track all my numbers once a month for the sake of seeing an overall trend.
OCD weightlifting geeks, unite! :flowerforyou:
Ahh! They coulda just called it triceps presses. I know what those are, but I'm old school. :laugh:
Skull crushers does have that coolness factor to it tho.
You are my new nerd crush! lol. Can't wait to get home to try it out.
And skull crushers is much more bad *kitten* than lying triceps press. :glasses:0 -
I feel strong, but I'm also incredibly fat and having trouble with the scale not moving. Also, I only seem to be gaining muscle in my legs and arms, everywhere else, it is covered by fat and I'm having a hard time not changing my daily calories to an insanely low number just to see the scale move. I seem to be losing in ideosyncratic places, my lower belly (4 c-sections make that really bad), legs, back, but nothing that makes clothing or the usual measurements move much.
Gaining muscle meaning you see yourself with more definition there? Its pretty common for fat to come off the lower legs and shoulders before it moves from anywhere else. I have fairly significant (relatively) blobs of fat sitting on my upper inner thighs and my lower belly, but on my upper belly you can see my rib cage and a line down the middle of my abs (which disappears into fat).
If you're seeing visual definition changes, you're making good progress. How long has it been now since you saw your scale weight change?0 -
Today, I turned off my 5 am alarm and went back to sleep. Normally, when I deviate from my schedule, that is the end of it, no workout.
Today, I left my 4 year old with the 12 and 10 year old for an hour (OK, an hour an 20 minutes) and went to the gym. It is only about six blocks from home and we're in a small town.
So, 30 minutes of cardio, then lifting.
Still stuck on 140 with squats, but form is improving nicely. Weirdly though, it was WAY harder today than Wednesday. I was under my daily calories by 1000+ calories the last few days though, so that may have had something to do with it.
70 for OHP. I managed the whole 5 sets, but I had to wait longer than my usual 60 seconds between sets to get there.
160 on Deadlift! And it wasn't too bad. I swear unloading the DL bar afterward is almost harder than the lift itself. The gym is carpeted and the plates stick on the carpeting and it is awkward.
I feel strong, but I'm also incredibly fat and having trouble with the scale not moving. Also, I only seem to be gaining muscle in my legs and arms, everywhere else, it is covered by fat and I'm having a hard time not changing my daily calories to an insanely low number just to see the scale move. I seem to be losing in ideosyncratic places, my lower belly (4 c-sections make that really bad), legs, back, but nothing that makes clothing or the usual measurements move much.
So, someone talk me out of the scale trap. Please.
1. You have already lost 45lbs. Awesome job!
2. You are creating a healthier life for you and your kids! What a great example to set for your children.
3. We live in an instant gratification kind of world and are used to getting things RIGHT NOW and when the scale isn't budging and our bodies aren't progressing we get really frustrated, at least I know I do! Especially when I have been working hard.
4. Throw the darn thing out the window. I hate how it's like for some reason we need validation from the stupid scale and I'm horrible about it even though I'm getting a little better. Seriously you deadlifted an average sized person today! You OHP my 2 dogs combined. I say that is total awesomeness!
5. Anddddd we always see ourselves worse than the world does. I know with my progress pics, I feel like I look the same in them all with no changes even though my tape measure says different.
I just keep telling myself that even though the scale hasn't moved I'm slowly replacing my fat with muscle.
Hang in there! I think your doing great!0 -
Its pretty common for fat to come off the lower legs and shoulders before it moves from anywhere else.
It's so annoying but so true. I need to take pictures of my shoulders because I don't really having any flexing ones, and that's where I'm starting to see some definition. Teeny bit of my triceps showing through too. Little on my calfs. Stomach? Still looks like crap.0 -
Thanks so much...went to do grocery shopping and came back to just what I needed to feel better!
Dani...I'm amazed by my numbers some days. I started this about 12 weeks ago at 60 for squats, 45 OHP, and 80 DL and I've made serious progress.
Weighing doesn't usually bug me so much, but every so often, I get in a 'mood' and it really makes me nuts that nothing is moving.
My husband calls us the "microwave society", we want everything done right this second. He's right about me for sure, patience is not my strong suit in any way, but I'm working on it!
Ges: At least I'm not the only one losing from odd places. I can see where the inside of knees and collarbones would totally be the first place you'd want to lose from! :laugh:
Tameko: I'm seeing MUCH more definition in my arms, shoulders and legs. I've never in my life had visible muscles before, anywhere. Husband says my butt is significantly smaller and tighter, but then, I don't see it as often as he does! The scale hasn't moved in at least six weeks, beyond an expected daily fluctuation of about 2-4 pounds, largely dependent on my salt/water ratio for the day.
Even when I have a weekend where I eat way too much of the wrong things, I stay within that range.
Soosanna: You are totally right on all counts. I guess what I really need is to work on patience.
So, my to do list:
1. Work on patience
2. Make sign that reminds me that my fat is being replaced (displaced?) by muscle.
Again, thanks to all of you!0 -
glwerth, I don't know if you saw my post on here a couple of days ago, but it was basically a link to my blog...I had some pics on there from last June and from this March. I weigh the same, but the difference in my body composition is amazing. When you get out of the mindset that it's not about the number...but how your body is changing, it's totally liberating!! (I know it's hard to ditch the scale though...which is why I literally HIDE mine until the first of the month.)
Oh, and TAKE PICTURES! I hated pic day when I first started doing it (last November) but it's pretty cool going back and seeing the small changes that happen month-by-month.0 -
(I know it's hard to ditch the scale though...which is why I literally HIDE mine until the first of the month.)
I'm sloooowly inching my way to doing exactly that.
Right now my scale is between my bedroom and the shower, so it's just pure habit to step on it repeatedly for no reason whatsoever.
Decades-old habits can be really hard to break even if it's just a mental game out of fear of cutting the umbilical cord and somehow blowing up like a balloon because your crutch is gone.0 -
(I know it's hard to ditch the scale though...which is why I literally HIDE mine until the first of the month.)
I'm sloooowly inching my way to doing exactly that.
Right now my scale is between my bedroom and the shower, so it's just pure habit to step on it repeatedly for no reason whatsoever.
Decades-old habits can be really hard to break even if it's just a mental game out of fear of cutting the umbilical cord and somehow blowing up like a balloon because your crutch is gone.
Do you have a guest bath/second bath? I keep mine in there. So its not an automatic thing for me, I have to go down the hall and do it -which I used to do ANYWAY but since we currently have someone renting a room from us I don't like to walk around my house naked (or in underwear) to use the scale, so that's a pretty good deterrent. (we're kicking him out soon though so we'll see what happens - I miss walking around my house naked dammit!)
Its pretty great to break with the scale. I am much happier.0
