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idauria
Posts: 1,037 Member
I have been thinking about where to go after I finish this program. Then I remembered I have a book called The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises. It has every conceivable exercise for every body part plus several workout plans plus guidelines to make your own workout routine. It also has a nutrition guide(they recommend low carb). I think I am going to go back to doing circuit style training. I just can't do these 90 minute plus workouts anymore. I rather get in and get out, plus I like the benefit of extra calorie burn with circuit training. I am going to stick with major body muscles but I am also going to add in biceps. I haven't come up with an exact routine yet but I'm going to re-read the book first.
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I've been thinking about this, too, and I'm considering doing the Stronglifts 5x5 program (Scroll to the bottom of this page: http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/), because it's focused on only 3 compound moves, 3 times a week. I really like the squats and deadlifts, and the compound moves work everything else in concert, so I won't feel like any muscles have been missed.0
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Hmmm, please don't leave this thread, though!! I think newbies, like me, can REALLY use the guidance of women who have been through the program.
What were your results on the NROL4W program? Are you STRONG, now? Chiselled??0 -
I have heard about stronglifts 5x5. I even went to the website but I couldn't find the workouts anywhere. It seems you have to sign up in order to get them? I'm still interested in possibly doing this.
I'm definitely not chiseled but stronger. I still have my belly but truthfully I wasn't as clean as I should have with my diet. I can definitely tell that my legs are harder and my arms and shoulders have nice definition. But I am not as pleased with the results as I thought I'd be. But this is not a magic pill and I really need to be more focused on my diet, which I am now that the holidays are over. I've gone back to eating low carb/no sugar. I'll see if this helps to reduce the belly pooch. I won't leave the board. I'll always be here to answer questions and help the newbies!0 -
I have been thinking about where to go after I finish this program. Then I remembered I have a book called The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises. It has every conceivable exercise for every body part plus several workout plans plus guidelines to make your own workout routine. It also has a nutrition guide(they recommend low carb). I think I am going to go back to doing circuit style training. I just can't do these 90 minute plus workouts anymore. I rather get in and get out, plus I like the benefit of extra calorie burn with circuit training. I am going to stick with major body muscles but I am also going to add in biceps. I haven't come up with an exact routine yet but I'm going to re-read the book first.
We have the Men's version of the same book-and everything in it is the same but the models.:) It's a great book! I was thinking to check out the New Rules of Lifting for Abs after I'm done with this one-I have one workout left in stage 4, so I still have some ways to go. Good luck in your search and let us know how it goes!0 -
I have heard about stronglifts 5x5. I even went to the website but I couldn't find the workouts anywhere. It seems you have to sign up in order to get them? I'm still interested in possibly doing this.
There isn't a whole lot to it -
StrongLifts 5x5 Workout A
Squat 5x5
Bench Press 5x5
Overhead Press 5x5
StrongLifts 5x5 Workout B
Squat 5x5
Barbell Rows 5x5
Deadlift 1x5
For each workout you try to increase weight by 5 pounds. There's a free guide (that I haven't downloaded yet) that goes into more details and has workout tracking sheets and things. I don't know how intensely I'll go at it - I just want to maintain the strength I'm gaining here while I focus my energy on cutting weight. I latched on to this because it seems simple to follow and the owrkouts are relatively short.0 -
I ended up signing up on the website and downloaded the guide and the spreadsheets. The principle looks pretty simple. I'm not looking to squat or deadlift 500 lbs, lol, but I suppose my starting point would be a lot lower than a man who's starting this program. My hubby actually might do this with he as he's decided he needs to get back into shape.I have heard about stronglifts 5x5. I even went to the website but I couldn't find the workouts anywhere. It seems you have to sign up in order to get them? I'm still interested in possibly doing this.
There isn't a whole lot to it -
StrongLifts 5x5 Workout A
Squat 5x5
Bench Press 5x5
Overhead Press 5x5
StrongLifts 5x5 Workout B
Squat 5x5
Barbell Rows 5x5
Deadlift 1x5
For each workout you try to increase weight by 5 pounds. There's a free guide (that I haven't downloaded yet) that goes into more details and has workout tracking sheets and things. I don't know how intensely I'll go at it - I just want to maintain the strength I'm gaining here while I focus my energy on cutting weight. I latched on to this because it seems simple to follow and the owrkouts are relatively short.0 -
I have no desire to lift 500 pounds either, I just want a simple workout. I'll increase weight only when it starts to feel easy. After this is over I have to get back into cardio training because there are some runs I'd like to do this spring that I am, at the moment, in absolutely no shape for. I've had knee trouble for a while thanks to degenerative arthritis, and I've had to use the elliptical to do the HIIT portions of NOLFW the last few times. My goal is to ease back into regular running again, if I can. I miss running!0
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I think the 5 x 5 program sounds very good...
And, you know what, idauria?? Maybe this program did MORE for you than you could imagine - if it moved your husband to start getting into better shape, that's GOT to be BIG ONE in the "WIN" column, I'd say!! Yay for you - you must be good "motivation" - and yay for him for doing it.
I don't want to lift 500 lbs., either, but I think continuing to get stronger and stronger, even in 2 lb. increments, is BIG DEAL.
What you have accomplished *is* a BIG DEAL. It is!! I think it is!!0 -
I think the 5 x 5 program sounds very good...
And, you know what, idauria?? Maybe this program did MORE for you than you could imagine - if it moved your husband to start getting into better shape, that's GOT to be BIG ONE in the "WIN" column, I'd say!! Yay for you - you must be good "motivation" - and yay for him for doing it.
I don't want to lift 500 lbs., either, but I think continuing to get stronger and stronger, even in 2 lb. increments, is BIG DEAL.
What you have accomplished *is* a BIG DEAL. It is!! I think it is!!
Thanks for the encouragement! Motivating my husband back into working out is a big deal. He used to be more into it than I am now but one day decided he really didn't enjoy working out(this also has to do with chronic back pain and the arthritis that he has). I am glad he wants to be healthier.
As for me, I am greatly discouraged because I just can not get my stomach down. I increase cals I decrease cals but nothing changes. I think day to day I eat pretty well. I cheat on weekends mostly but get right back to it on Mondays. My cheats aren't even that bad. I don't care what the scale says, I feel fat. I hate that my stomach still hangs over my jeans a little. Everyone I know thinks I am insane to think that I'm fat but I can't help it. I hate what I see in the mirror. Sometimes I wish I could just get some lipo.0 -
Stronglifts sounds a lot like the program set up by Starting Strength--a barbell basics training guide by Mark Rippetoe. Again, it focuses on compound lifting, which is the part of NROLFW I enjoyed the most. Has anyone else considered doing Jamie Eason's 12-week program through BodyBuilding.com? I saw it a while back and thought it looked decent but if I remember correctly she relies on a lot of machines.
I am entering stage 4 of NROLFW next week. I am definitely stronger and 10 lbs lighter but then I'm not following the diet plan either. I am eating at a deficit and trying to retain muscle mass while losing weight.0 -
Stronglifts sounds a lot like the program set up by Starting Strength--a barbell basics training guide by Mark Rippetoe. Again, it focuses on compound lifting, which is the part of NROLFW I enjoyed the most. Has anyone else considered doing Jamie Eason's 12-week program through BodyBuilding.com? I saw it a while back and thought it looked decent but if I remember correctly she relies on a lot of machines.
I am entering stage 4 of NROLFW next week. I am definitely stronger and 10 lbs lighter but then I'm not following the diet plan either. I am eating at a deficit and trying to retain muscle mass while losing weight.
I took a look at Jamie Eason's program but I would need to go to the gym for most of it. Since I work out at home I'm going to keep looking at other programs. I found Mark Rippetoe's website about starting strength but it looks like you have to buy the book in order to see the workouts. I rather not spend more money right now. I don't think I'm going to do stronglifts either. I think I am going back to workouts from the book The Big Book of Exercises for Women(put out by Men's Health). There are many routines in there. I'm going to stick with the lifting heavy principle though.0 -
Thanks for the encouragement! Motivating my husband back into working out is a big deal. He used to be more into it than I am now but one day decided he really didn't enjoy working out(this also has to do with chronic back pain and the arthritis that he has). I am glad he wants to be healthier.
As for me, I am greatly discouraged because I just can not get my stomach down. I increase cals I decrease cals but nothing changes. I think day to day I eat pretty well. I cheat on weekends mostly but get right back to it on Mondays. My cheats aren't even that bad. I don't care what the scale says, I feel fat. I hate that my stomach still hangs over my jeans a little. Everyone I know thinks I am insane to think that I'm fat but I can't help it. I hate what I see in the mirror. Sometimes I wish I could just get some lipo.
Idauria, you obvisouly seem like your very fit already and definitely don't have much to lose. To combat your little tummy pouch, have you ever tried changing *what* you eat? A girlfriend of mine who has always been a runner and very thin, was having the same problem. One day on vacation she got really sick and went to a doctor and found out she had a gluten intolerance. She had been eating it for so long with no major symptoms and didn't realize it was affecting her so much. Now that she's cut it out of her diet, her tummy is perfectly flat. Of course there are hundreds of factors, but it's worth investigating and playing around with the types of foods to see if it makes a difference.
Personally I've noticed that when I cut processed carbs I can see my abs more and my stomach's flatter, I think because I'm less bloated. Anyways, just a thought.0 -
Thank you for your advice. I am currently on a low carb diet. I eat little processed foods and I've cut out grains too. We'll see how it goes once I've really been sticking to it for a while. I also wonder about my calorie intake. I always assumed that less was better but now that I am lifting I am supposed to eat more. I am afraid to increase to what the book has for me because I want to lose fat more than I want to gain muscle. I am disappointed in the results(or the lack thereof) of this program. I feel like I work out hard and have nothing to show for it. It's weird because I am more obsessed about this now than at any point in my life. But this whole thing is making me crazy!0
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I feel ya, sometimes I feel like I'm obsessive compulsive while I'm making my dinner and entering every ingredient and then carrying around my NRoL4W book and constantly reviewing the exercises and plans.
Since you were already fit, your definitely going to be slower to see results that some some others. My body doesn't really *look* different yet, but it does *feel* different. When my boyfriend was rubbing my shoulders the other night he even commented that the muscles in my upper back feel firmer. I know you're not so concerned with gaining muscle, but once you do, all that extra muscle will help to gobble up all the extra fat you want to lose by increasing your metabolism.
I've always been an athlete in some form, very active, and what most people would call "thin" but never was able to get the body I wanted until I started lifting. I always thought my thighs were a little jiggly and my stomach had a pooch. Two years ago I started lifting with a trainer and got leaner, sexier legs and a flatter tummy.
Keeping sticking to the program and the low carb diet, eventually you'll see progress. Oh, and harness all that "crazy" energy you're feeling at the gym
And I'm editing this to include that when I started with the trainer before, I did decrease cals (wasn't counting exactly but definitely went down a lot) and after about two months I just went back to regular eating and was able to maintain for quite a while. I attribute it to the fact that my metabolism got faster because my muscles were bigger (even though I looked thinner), if that makes sense.0 -
I think that you need to eat more, idauria. Which must be tough to do if you are already low-carb and no grains. (I'm finding it quite tough to eat "maintenance calories", myself).
Have you thought about the Rachel Cosgrove "The Female Body Breakthrough" book? I know you aren't interested in investing money on it, just now, so maybe you can find something her:
https://members.rachelcosgrove.com/members/login.cfm?hpage=forum/openforum.cfm?forum=1
I'm not happy reading that you weren't seeing the results you wanted out of NROL4W....I'm not happy reading that AT ALL!
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I think that you need to eat more, idauria. Which must be tough to do if you are already low-carb and no grains. (I'm finding it quite tough to eat "maintenance calories", myself).
Have you thought about the Rachel Cosgrove "The Female Body Breakthrough" book? I know you aren't interested in investing money on it, just now, so maybe you can find something her:
https://members.rachelcosgrove.com/members/login.cfm?hpage=forum/openforum.cfm?forum=1
I'm not happy reading that you weren't seeing the results you wanted out of NROL4W....I'm not happy reading that AT ALL!
I'm sorry! I definitely don't want to get you down because I'm not where I want to be at this point in my journey. Everyone is different. Maybe I do need to increase cals. Honestly I wasn't eating that great from thanksgiving until christmas(I was doing well during the week but it seemed like every weekend there was an excuse to eat food and dessert and I have lousy willpower). So I am trying really hard to get back to good eating. I haven't heard of that book you're recommending but I'll check it out. Thanks!0 -
Hubs and I are doing a self-designed program that's kind of a combo of Stronglifts and NROL. NROLFW got too boring after Stage 1.
Our current program is Weights A, Cardio, Rest, Weights B, Cardio, Rest, repeat for 8 weeks.
Weights A:
Barbell Deadlift - 5x5
Barbell Bench Press - 5x5
Short Bridge - 5x10 (unweighted)
Pendlay Row - 5x5
Weighted Exercise Ball Crunch - 5x10
Weights B:
Barbell Squat - 5x5
Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press - 5x5
Body Weight Lunge - 5x10 (husband is doing weighted, my left knee isn't up to that yet)
alternating with pull ups
Pull-Up - 5x how many can we do (I'm at 2 per alternating with negatives, hubs at 4or 5 per)
alternating with lunges
Plank - 2x how long we can last0 -
That's very interesting, Zombie.
Tell me:
1. are you seeing results in lost inches?
2. how do you end up moving your weights up?
3. your program has you only doing weight-lifting 2 x per week, is that true? (or 5 times in 2 weeks)
I'm sad to read that NROL4W got boring after Stage 1....I am still in Stage 1.
I am hoping, once I'm done the program, to move onto something where I'm working lower body one day and upper body the next, etc. with appropriate HIIT and rest days in between. These "whole body" work-outs are tough on too many body parts at once, for me, lol.0 -
1. Just restarted on the 1st after a 3 month break, so no results yet. (Measure and weight once per month).
2. Weights move up in 5 lb increments if the lift is too easy. (2 - 2.5 lb plates).
3. For this first round, yes. After the first 8 weeks of "break in" is complete the schedule will shift to Weights, Cardio, Weights, Cardio, Rest, repeat for another 8 weeks, then a Parkour workout of the day for a month, the back to W/C/W/C/R, repeat. Which will work out to 6 strength sessions per two weeks.
You get used to the full body workouts which can be good cardio, as well as great for strength. I remember the 1st two weeks of Stage 1 was a constant state of OMG I HURT every time I sat down or stood up. LOL. I hadn't lifted in several years when we started NROLFW.0 -
Did any of you check the New Rules for Abs? Is anyone going to try it? I'm checking it out, but still don't know what I'll do after this one.0
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After finishing the last stage of NROLFW two weeks ago, I bought and skimmed through the New Rules of Lifting for Abs, and it looked so confusing and complex that I decided to put that off and just re-start NROLFW. I still consider myself a beginner and my goal is to build strength and muscle, and I think NROLFW will keep me more focused on that.0
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I only started (or restarted to be more accurrate) stage 1 last week but I'm thinking I might just repeat NROLF4W once I finish or d the strong lifts. If I stay on schedule I will finish some time in June/July time frame and at that point I think I will be training for my first marathon (haven't decided yet if I'm ready for that). I guess I will see how I feel after going through this once.0
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Thanks, girls! I have been looking at the NROL for Abs, but don't know yet. I still have a lot of time to think about it. I'm interested to see what other people will do after this one.0
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Don't forget, "The New Rules of Lifting for Life" will be available April 1, 2012!! So, you might just need a filler program for Feb/Mar and then you could try that one!0
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Yay, may be I'll just weight to see what the new book is all about. Thanks for reminding me!0
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Lou Schuler (sometimes) posts on the JP Fitness forum. He DID post earlier this week on his new book:
http://www.jpfitness.com/showthread.php?t=494800 -
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Thanks for the encouragement! Motivating my husband back into working out is a big deal. He used to be more into it than I am now but one day decided he really didn't enjoy working out(this also has to do with chronic back pain and the arthritis that he has). I am glad he wants to be healthier.
As for me, I am greatly discouraged because I just can not get my stomach down. I increase cals I decrease cals but nothing changes. I think day to day I eat pretty well. I cheat on weekends mostly but get right back to it on Mondays. My cheats aren't even that bad. I don't care what the scale says, I feel fat. I hate that my stomach still hangs over my jeans a little. Everyone I know thinks I am insane to think that I'm fat but I can't help it. I hate what I see in the mirror. Sometimes I wish I could just get some lipo.
idauria, I don't know if this is your issue or not but have you been checked for diastasis recti? It's a separation of the stomach muscles and can cause you to look like you're pregnant from the belly pooching out. It's very common for women post pregnancy but also years beyond if they've never been diagnosed and rehabbed. Me can get it as well so even if you've never been pregnant it could still be an issue. If you google it you will see lots of info and there are self tests you can do. I won't attempt to describe them here because there are some very good websites that do it far better than I could. I hope you can figure out what the issue is and move beyond the frustration!0 -
Thanks for the encouragement! Motivating my husband back into working out is a big deal. He used to be more into it than I am now but one day decided he really didn't enjoy working out(this also has to do with chronic back pain and the arthritis that he has). I am glad he wants to be healthier.
As for me, I am greatly discouraged because I just can not get my stomach down. I increase cals I decrease cals but nothing changes. I think day to day I eat pretty well. I cheat on weekends mostly but get right back to it on Mondays. My cheats aren't even that bad. I don't care what the scale says, I feel fat. I hate that my stomach still hangs over my jeans a little. Everyone I know thinks I am insane to think that I'm fat but I can't help it. I hate what I see in the mirror. Sometimes I wish I could just get some lipo.
idauria, I don't know if this is your issue or not but have you been checked for diastasis recti? It's a separation of the stomach muscles and can cause you to look like you're pregnant from the belly pooching out. It's very common for women post pregnancy but also years beyond if they've never been diagnosed and rehabbed. Me can get it as well so even if you've never been pregnant it could still be an issue. If you google it you will see lots of info and there are self tests you can do. I won't attempt to describe them here because there are some very good websites that do it far better than I could. I hope you can figure out what the issue is and move beyond the frustration!
I never heard of diastisis recti so no, I haven't been checked for it. Sounds interesting though. That could be my problem but I doubt it. I never had a flat tummy even before I had my kids. I really don't think there are any medical issues other than lack of heavy exercise. I am coming to terms with the fact that I will probably never have a flat stomach unless I do endless cardio and really be strict with my diet. While I have been doing pretty well with diet, I can't be totally strict. I allow myself cheats on the weekend so I don't binge during the week. Also, I don't have the time or strength to do lots of cardio, although I am now incorporating intervals on my elliptical on my non-weight training days. So maybe there's hope yet! Thanks for the info, I really appreciate it!0 -
I just got my book. After reading this thread and a few others I'm beginnign to think it may not be for me. I just read it has 90 minute workouts? I can't fit that in anywhere! How many days a week? I consistantly workout 5-6 days a week for 60 minutes from 5-6 am then the kids have to get up then I babysit all day, then homework, dinner and extra curricular acttivities. I already do 60 minutes not sure I can get in aother 30 though. :ohwell: Kinda sad because I was really excited about getting this book. I also wont go to a gym and do this in my basement but our weights dont go up to 500 lbs.0
This discussion has been closed.