Scard to start liftng ... show me your before and afters!

Check out http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/977538/halp-heavy-lifting-made-me-supah-bulky/p43 The women here inspired me to start lifting over a year ago and I haven't regretted it since. I love what it's done for my body. I don't have before and after since I'm not done but I can say give it a try! The only cardio I do now is a 2 mile walk a day.

^ WOW great results!

what are you afraid of in RE to lifting? i would recommend reading New Rules of Lifting for Women...even if you don't do the actual program (which is a fairly decent beginner program), it will explain a lot of things and alleviate a lot of your fears and concerns.

in RE to how much cardio to do, etc...this is where separating fitness goals from weight management goals is beneficial. there's no secret formula here...it really is just based on your goals.

for example, at the moment, I only lift 2x weekly as I'm getting ready for a couple of cycling endurance events and spending a lot of time on the bike and cross training with some running...lots of cardio. in the winter I tend to spend more time in the weight room and reduce cardio because I prefer my cardio to be outside on my bike and nice days for riding are harder to come by...I usually make sure I get in at least 3 hours of cardio per week though, just for general cardiovascular health as well as maintaining my fitness base to some extent.

DStroyNKonker wrote: »

If seeing the before and after of @Kellyann isn't motivation enough... I don't know what else is....

Wow, thank you all for your kind words!

You look great @kellyann!

@MissMissle, I have pics on my profile but never made a choice to start lifting. I was always resistance workouts even if it was light weights and bands in Jazzercise. I guess I got lucky in that the very first gym I joined way back in the day when they showed me around it included the machines. I got into lifting heavy when I was at a point where i had the most weight to lose and joined a women's only gym and a couple of the classes they offered included weights and being that it was a lady's only gym that inspired to start using the weight room there and been a fan ever since. I'm glad I started because I know my body composition would have been different had I waited to lose and then decided to lift weights. Now I mix it up with bootcamp style classes, boxing and lifting. I'm not one of those people that hates cardio.

I know the feeling. I'm always sooo inspired by the women who post their heaving lifting results. I even started training with a trainer back in July to help me. But I still think I'm doing more resistance training and cardio work than anything else. I haven't seen much progress in the weight department (maybe about a 5 lb loss), but everyone has noticed a difference in my physique. So that is encouraging! I wish I could just focus more on heavy lifting though.

It IS a little intimidating to walk into the free weight area and not have a class of people dividing attention! I was nervous, too, but I didn't want to be a flabby version of myself at a lower weight. Keeping as much muscle as you can, by challenging those muscles, gives you a nice and tight end result. I posted progress pics on another thread, but I'm dead in the middle of my weight loss so it's not an OMG comparison...YET.

I lost a bunch of inches in those first few months of losing 30ish lbs. It was fantastic and getting into my old clothes again was great motivation. I'm still seeing measurement changes, just not so dramatic. I have 30ish more to lose. I lift 2x a week, yoga 2x, and I'm trying to get motivated to integrate some cardio. I've never been an "I love going to the gym!" person, but I really look forward to my workouts and might get a bit grumpy when I have to miss I love being strong, SO MUCH.

There are a lot of beginner programs to choose from on the net and in books. I chose a pretty simple one that covers the bases and has an app to keep track. It's adaptable, as well. Educate yourself, pick a program, and get strong.

Here's a good thread for that:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1120789/females-only-lifting-weight-training-results/p1

and

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/977538/halp-heavy-lifting-made-me-supah-bulky/p1

Hey guys I weight 340 pounds right now and I can't afford a gym membership. I have some ankle weights and 5 pounds weights!!!! What should I do, should I focus on more cardio now!!!* I do have a treadmill and the gazelle machine and a stationary bike!!!! Please help I am losing inches slowly, but I need better results!!!!!! Suggestions!!!!

Ddonna82 wrote: »

Hey guys I weight 340 pounds right now and I can't afford a gym membership. I have some ankle weights and 5 pounds weights!!!! What should I do, should I focus on more cardio now!!!* I do have a treadmill and the gazelle machine and a stationary bike!!!! Please help I am losing inches slowly, but I need better results!!!!!! Suggestions!!!!

Focus on counting calories now. Incorporate work on the treadmill or bike slowly if you enjoy it. A good balanced exercise plan should include cardio and strength training. I've always considered them complementary. Throw the Gazelle in the trash or sell it, if you can rope in another sucker. Those things are basically useless. For strength training, I'd start with bodyweight exercises. It's amazing the kind of results you can get from a good bodyweight plan.

@MissMissle don't worry about anyone but yourself. Everyone in the weight room is focused on their goals/workout/form to really expend to energy "judging" others. Lifting if done incorrectly can result in significant injuries, hence my prior statement. I lift at a non gender specific gym and it's the best decision I made. I'm pretty competitive and when I see someone else in the weight room it makes me up my game for that workout. The best compliment I got was from a male powerlifter when I hit a 225# deadlift. He told me I should compete in powerlifting. Shortly after that I hurt my hip and have been sidelined but I'm back in the gym doing my thing again.

Cardio wise I don't really do a lot in the gym (5-10 minutes tops) but I have a dog that gets really squirrely if she doesn't get a walk, so I get a few miles in a day that way.

The best advice I can give you is to just get in there and do it. First focus on your form, bad form gets you no results and a greater chance for injury. You can find all sorts of videos on YouTube if a trainer isn't an option. Once you have form down and are making progress in your program add MORE protein and fiber to your diet, if you don't you will be hungry all the dang time and up the chance of binging because those levels are low. Lastly, don't compare your "Chapter 1" to someone else's "Chapter 20 (for example)." Trust the process and you'll get to your "Chapter 20" soon enough.

LadyKT wrote: »

KellyAnn1286 wrote: »

I was scared myself for a long time but don't be scared, lifting is fun! As far as cardio, I rarely do cardio specific stuff but do crossfit workouts several times a week week which frequently include HIIT type cardio. I run maybe once a week or whenever the mood strikes.

Wow you look amazing!!! What is your diet like?

Thank you! I eat around 2000 calories with a 35-35-30 (p-c-f) macro split. About 85% usually consists of meats, fruits, veggies, legumes, nuts and full fat dairy, the other 15% consists of whatever I want (I eat icecream almost every day lately). I don't really eat any wheat products because I'm intolerant and it makes me feel like trash but I do on occasion.