HALP! Heavy Lifting Made Me SUPAH Bulky!!!

Dizzle you are amazing...also if you open each image in a new tab for some reason you can see them!

How did I miss this thread yesterday . . . oh, work got in the way. *kitten*.

I lost my first 30 pounds or so by eating at a deficit and doing cardio. I ran. A lot. I went from a size 18 to a size 14 in about 8 months.

I hurt my foot last summer and had to come up with something else to keep me from going crazy(ier). Some of my awesome guy friends (and ladies) here convinced me to start lifting heavy.

I don't eat at much of a deficit anymore, if at all. I've only lost about 5 additional pounds since I started lifting but I've gone from a size 14 (last summer) to a size 10.

Here's a before pic and a some pics I've taken over the last couple months.









I still have a long way to go. Hopefully one day I'll find my f#cking abs and I'll be able to post a pic of that :happy:

I rolled, it rolled!! Yay!

Let's get back on track people. Threads like this make me wish i would've taken more (SFW) before pictures.

Before lifting(posting these scares the **** out of me, but here we go):



After(more like during) lifting:




Edit: I apologize in advance for any eye damage my blindingly white back may cause you.

Lord have mercy that *kitten*...sorry someone had to say it LOL

Dizzle you are amazing...also if you open each image in a new tab for some reason you can see them!

That is ridiculous - who has time for that?! GRRRRR STUPID PHOTOBUCKET IS STUPID!

Okay, *pouts* over. Thank you my beautiful Cranky girl.

Now this should work!!!

PHOTO BOMB ALERT! Not wanting to be a total attention *kitten* so please excuse all the pics but I think they tell a story pretty well. I posted in the first part with a before/during picture...but I had a little more time on my hands this morning. Again, I want to reiterate - I didn't follow a huge caloric deficit during this period, I started too (eating around 1500-1600) but quickly fell off track (lifting makes me hangry!). Since December I've pretty much averaged maintenance calories or maybe even higher (~2000-2200+) as I've been battling depression and funky meds. So my progress is slower than others but I want my point to be that heavy lifting has allowed me to maintain my weight while still working on body recomposition (and eating junk food, nomz!). I would have lost more fat had I ate less.
Also note - I do not do cardio unless walking my dog for .5 - one mile at a leisurely pace counts, haha!


My legs are thicker than some women would like - heck, they are thicker than I would like - but they are what I have to work with (genetics and all, as to their shape). As the fat comes off (by eating in a deficit, if I ever get that nailed into my head) they will lean out more...but for now I'm enjoying all my womanly curves but with lots more strength, power, and confidence. (These pics are the most recent - so about a year's worth of lifting.)

Ladies! A friend and I were just discussing that the term "lifting heavy" may put some off.


The idea here is to lift weights challenging for YOU. The programs that are my favorite have you start with the bar, which weighs 45 pounds. Many of you have picked up children that big, and even squatted down to pick up something you dropped while holding him... or if you don't have kids, a bag of groceries, or a backpack!

In Stronglifts, or Starting Strength you are aiming for a few sets of 5 repetitions...5....that's it...you build strength very well this way...and the next time you add 5 more pounds and give it a go.

So lifting heavy doesnt mean you have to squat 500 pounds, you just need to challenge YOUR muscles.

I hope this helps someone:flowerforyou:

I started this at 40... and my body is better than it has been since I was in my early 20's.

I LOVE what lifting has done for me...physically AND mentally.

http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/The_Starting_Strength_Novice/Beginner_Programs
http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

You guys are a bunch of haters! Leave Peeyuu alone! Skinny fat forever yo!

Now this should work!!!

PHOTO BOMB ALERT! Not wanting to be a total attention *kitten* so please excuse all the pics but I think they tell a story pretty well. I posted in the first part with a before/during picture...but I had a little more time on my hands this morning. Again, I want to reiterate - I didn't follow a huge caloric deficit during this period, I started too (eating around 1500-1600) but quickly fell off track (lifting makes me hangry!). Since December I've pretty much averaged maintenance calories or maybe even higher (~2000-2200+) as I've been battling depression and funky meds. So my progress is slower than others but I want my point to be that heavy lifting has allowed me to maintain my weight while still working on body recomposition (and eating junk food, nomz!). I would have lost more fat had I ate less.
Also note - I do not do cardio unless walking my dog for .5 - one mile at a leisurely pace counts, haha!

Before starting a heavy lifting program I weighed 175 and was pretty flabby. I'd also like to mention I was 220 lbs when I first started losing weight and I lost that weight through deficit and walking. Once I got to 180# I started more intense cardio.I had been doing Jillian Michaels 30 DS and Chalean Extreme during these photos (I started with New Rules of Lifting for Women in March 2013):

...

My legs are thicker than some women would like - heck, they are thicker than I would like - but they are what I have to work with (genetics and all, as to their shape). As the fat comes off (by eating in a deficit, if I ever get that nailed into my head) they will lean out more...but for now I'm enjoying all my womanly curves but with lots more strength, power, and confidence. (These pics are the most recent - so about a year's worth of lifting.)