Daily Check-in and Chat

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  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    There you are jamaicanlady! Figured you've been busy. Grats on the progress! I suck at single leg stuff but making progress. I need to foam roll more and loosen up!

    Ended my bulk a little early. I gained way too fast (14 lbs in almost 12 weeks)and a lot of hormonal issues were progressively getting worse with my higher carb intake. I think I started with a lil more body fat than I should have as well.

    I've been averaging 2 lower body workouts a week (and 2 upper) so not fully adhering to the suggested SC schedule. I'm thinking of switching to a 3 day full body soon using the Strong Curve template. The booty still needs lots of work and could really use that 3rd day.

    Citrus - fantastic progress! *doing the happy booty dance for you*

    freckles - hi, I've seen ya around the forums, nice to see ya here!

    The rest of you lovely ladies - keep on thrusting! :wink:

    Thanks for the welcome GiGi! So glad to meet another lady bulker. Curious - how much over TDEE did you eat for your bulk? I'm eating 200 over and am gaining about 1\2 a pound a week so far. I'm hoping to make it at least to 12 weeks and if I can go longer I most definetly will. Great job on your bulk, you may feel that you gained too fast but at least you ensured that you gained some muscle. How much are you going to cut down to?

    I just finished Workout C of the advanced program for weeks 1-4. I really am starting to like SC more and more and not missing my old program as much. I also had my hubby take pics that will hopefully act as my before shots. Might take a while to build up the courage to actually post them in the progress thread here. I still don't like what I see, but I guess that's the point of before pics. :laugh:

    Alright I'm off to bed. Keep up the good work ladies!
  • GiGiBeans
    GiGiBeans Posts: 1,062 Member
    Hiya freckles! Glad SC is working for you. Posting pics with my sexy cellulite showing is pretty humbling I tell you. Gotta laugh when friends on my feed think I must have buns of steel by now. I think Brett has said expect it to take 6 months to 2 years depending where ya started.

    I added 250 cals a week, increased carbs from 20/25% to 40/45% so I gained a lot of water fast. I retain water like a human sponge, no joke. I've gained THIRTY lbs in 2 days several times in my life when I was on IV fluid and it took months to get rid of it all. I figure 5 lbs minimum of this gain is water. I was 140 when I started my bulk, I figure I'll cut to somewhere around there. The # is only slightly important because less weight definitely feels a lot better on my old knees but am going to rely more on the mirror and how my clothes fit.
  • mpeery8
    mpeery8 Posts: 8
    jamaicanlady- My knee pain went away for now, thank goodness. Glad you aren't having issues anymore either!

    Gigi- I feel you about wanting to end the bulk early. I'm feeling fluffy and can't wait to cut. Plus I'm getting bored with having to eat all the time.

    Well I'm 2/3 the way through now. Excited to start week 9 today. Things are looking a little more lifted but I know I have a lot of work to do since I started with a flat butt. Hoping after 6 months of the program I will have a little something going on. Only 3 more weeks until I start my cut. Better get my ice cream in now :p
  • dandelion39
    dandelion39 Posts: 514 Member
    Hi all,
    Hope you're doing well! Not much to report here--the Norovirus is coursing through my house, so I haven't gotten to the gym much this week, which is frustrating. Hoping to go tomorrow and Saturday, so I'll at least have 3 workouts. I'm so ready for spring and fresh air to come!
    Amanda
  • karinefitness
    karinefitness Posts: 336 Member
    Glad I found this ground...

    How many times a week are you doing the SC workouts? I see the template is Workout A, Workout B, Workout C and then Workout A again for 4 workouts weekly (at first I thought it was 3x week). I find the workouts quite taxing right now and I'm not sure I can do 4 full body workouts right now... I'll probably get used to it I guess.

    I may alternate between 3 and 4 workouts depending on the week. I also have a dance class 1x a week and would like to start yoga... Maybe 3 workouts would be better :/
  • GiGiBeans
    GiGiBeans Posts: 1,062 Member
    Hi karine!

    I try to get 2 - 3 in a week. I wish I could do 3-4, I'm sure my progress would be much better, but I am progressing. Sometimes I'll just do a few sets of bodyweight bridges with iso-holds between workouts.

    Might be my age or that my job sometimes is physically tiring, but I need longer recovery times or I feel too burnt out.
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    Glad I found this ground...

    How many times a week are you doing the SC workouts? I see the template is Workout A, Workout B, Workout C and then Workout A again for 4 workouts weekly (at first I thought it was 3x week). I find the workouts quite taxing right now and I'm not sure I can do 4 full body workouts right now... I'll probably get used to it I guess.

    I may alternate between 3 and 4 workouts depending on the week. I also have a dance class 1x a week and would like to start yoga... Maybe 3 workouts would be better :/

    I actually emailed Bret about this a couple of weeks ago because my prior program had me working out 4 times a week. Rather than do A, B, C, and then A again in the same week, he suggested doing the follwing:


    "...I think a better option, based on what I've experimented with in a few of my clients, is to do the following as a fourth day:

    3 sets of hip thrusts
    2 sets of any single leg exercise
    3 sets of any lateral band exercise

    This way you don't overdo things and have plenty of energy for the following week."

    Personally I'm sticking to just doing A, B, and C right now because after doing the workouts I was like......holy crap, this is HARD! :)
  • karinefitness
    karinefitness Posts: 336 Member
    Glad I found this ground...

    How many times a week are you doing the SC workouts? I see the template is Workout A, Workout B, Workout C and then Workout A again for 4 workouts weekly (at first I thought it was 3x week). I find the workouts quite taxing right now and I'm not sure I can do 4 full body workouts right now... I'll probably get used to it I guess.

    I may alternate between 3 and 4 workouts depending on the week. I also have a dance class 1x a week and would like to start yoga... Maybe 3 workouts would be better :/

    I actually emailed Bret about this a couple of weeks ago because my prior program had me working out 4 times a week. Rather than do A, B, C, and then A again in the same week, he suggested doing the follwing:


    "...I think a better option, based on what I've experimented with in a few of my clients, is to do the following as a fourth day:

    3 sets of hip thrusts
    2 sets of any single leg exercise
    3 sets of any lateral band exercise

    This way you don't overdo things and have plenty of energy for the following week."

    Personally I'm sticking to just doing A, B, and C right now because after doing the workouts I was like......holy crap, this is HARD! :)

    Oh!! thank you for the info!! If I do a 4th day I'll go with what Bret suggests and probably add some arms/shoulders exercices as well.
  • dandelion39
    dandelion39 Posts: 514 Member
    Thanks for posting Bret's suggestion, Freckles. That's a really good idea. Though, I struggle more in just getting to the gym more than 4x a week than recovering from the workouts--I think I've only done 4x once since I started the program--usually I just do 3 and *maybe* manage a short cardio treadmill session on an off day.

    Nice to "meet" you Karine!
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
    Zercher squats are no joke. I started week 9 today and ouch! I only did 85 lbs and my forearms felt like they were going to fall off LOL
  • dandelion39
    dandelion39 Posts: 514 Member
    Hmmmm I've never even heard of Zercher squats! Now I'm dreading them :)

    Finished week six today and took my progress pictures. I'm not going to post them because they really show no progress, though I did lose a miniscule amount of weight and my measurements decreased a teensy bit (but could just be how I tightened the tape measure...I never really trust the measurements). I wasn't surprised because I've been totally inconsistent with my diet and haven't been doing any cardio in addition to the SC program. So, my goal for the next two weeks is to track every day, stop the carb-fest I've been indulging in, and add at least 1 run or tabata session per week to the 3-4 SC sessions. Then, maybe I'll have a decent pictorial update to share...

    Hope you all are having a great week!
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    Hmmmm I've never even heard of Zercher squats! Now I'm dreading them :)

    Finished week six today and took my progress pictures. I'm not going to post them because they really show no progress, though I did lose a miniscule amount of weight and my measurements decreased a teensy bit (but could just be how I tightened the tape measure...I never really trust the measurements). I wasn't surprised because I've been totally inconsistent with my diet and haven't been doing any cardio in addition to the SC program. So, my goal for the next two weeks is to track every day, stop the carb-fest I've been indulging in, and add at least 1 run or tabata session per week to the 3-4 SC sessions. Then, maybe I'll have a decent pictorial update to share...

    Hope you all are having a great week!

    Sounds like a great plan! Let us know how it goes! I'm about to finish up Week 4 of of the Advanced program. Kind of excited to switch things up next week. This workout is perfect for me because I get bored so quickly and this way I won't lose motivation with new exercises to keep me happy!

    As a side note, I squatted 100 lbs on Saturday!!! I've been frustrated in the past because I have weak lower body lifts. I can basically bench almost as much as I squat - haha. So getting to 100 lbs is HUGE for me. :):):)
  • karinefitness
    karinefitness Posts: 336 Member


    Sounds like a great plan! Let us know how it goes! I'm about to finish up Week 4 of of the Advanced program. Kind of excited to switch things up next week. This workout is perfect for me because I get bored so quickly and this way I won't lose motivation with new exercises to keep me happy!

    As a side note, I squatted 100 lbs on Saturday!!! I've been frustrated in the past because I have weak lower body lifts. I can basically bench almost as much as I squat - haha. So getting to 100 lbs is HUGE for me. :):):)

    Yay for PR!!! It's crazy you can bench just as much... I don't currently bench press but when I used to I think my max was around 70 pounds!!!
  • dandelion39
    dandelion39 Posts: 514 Member
    That's great on the squat PR! I'm like Karine, much stronger on the lower body...I only bench 75 3x5, and that's hard. I'm nowhere near being able to do unassisted pull-ups :(
  • aubyshortcake
    aubyshortcake Posts: 796 Member
    great job ladies! lol, my bench is 17.5 pound dumbbells in each hand and that's hard lol :x
  • karinefitness
    karinefitness Posts: 336 Member
    Hmmmm I've never even heard of Zercher squats! Now I'm dreading them :)


    Totally random but last night I had a dream where I had to do a Zercher squat and didn't know how to do it! I think I'm dreading them as well!!
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    Hmmmm I've never even heard of Zercher squats! Now I'm dreading them :)


    Totally random but last night I had a dream where I had to do a Zercher squat and didn't know how to do it! I think I'm dreading them as well!!

    HAHA! Crazy. I haven't tried Zercher's yet, but I've done front squats before and HATED them. HATED! But I did them anyway because my program called for it at the time. I'm starting Weeks 5-8 next week so I won't have to do them quite yet. Can wait to do bench again though, oh how I've missed it!
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    great job ladies! lol, my bench is 17.5 pound dumbbells in each hand and that's hard lol :x

    No worries Auby! Doing dumbbell bench is a lot harder than barbell. Last time I benched with the barbell (over a month ago) I was doing 90 lbs. But last night doing incline dumbbell bench I did 26 lbs for each dumbbell. It has something to do with the isolation movement used with dumbbells that makes it a lot harder to increase weight.
  • aubyshortcake
    aubyshortcake Posts: 796 Member
    great job ladies! lol, my bench is 17.5 pound dumbbells in each hand and that's hard lol :x

    No worries Auby! Doing dumbbell bench is a lot harder than barbell. Last time I benched with the barbell (over a month ago) I was doing 90 lbs. But last night doing incline dumbbell bench I did 26 lbs for each dumbbell. It has something to do with the isolation movement used with dumbbells that makes it a lot harder to increase weight.

    Really, i never knew that, good to know! :)
  • __freckles__
    __freckles__ Posts: 1,238 Member
    great job ladies! lol, my bench is 17.5 pound dumbbells in each hand and that's hard lol :x

    No worries Auby! Doing dumbbell bench is a lot harder than barbell. Last time I benched with the barbell (over a month ago) I was doing 90 lbs. But last night doing incline dumbbell bench I did 26 lbs for each dumbbell. It has something to do with the isolation movement used with dumbbells that makes it a lot harder to increase weight.

    Really, i never knew that, good to know! :)

    :) Have you tried bench pressing with just the bar? That's where I started. I bet you could a couple reps!