hskriver Member

For me, getting over the fear pretty much required a "fake it til you make it" strategy. Before my first ever lifting session, I watched lots of videos to make sure I understood what the moves were supposed to look like. I was starting with squats and had no idea what a squat rack was so I watched videos that showed how to…

Have you changed anything about your exercise routine in the last week (either working out longer, at a higher intensity, or trying a new type of exercise?) I've noticed when I ramp up my exercise intensity, I can also get a boost in hunger levels. Another factor could be time of the month. I've noticed that during parts…

I would highly recommend checking out Nia Shanks' Beginning Strength Training Guide. She's got a lot of great information for someone just starting out and she also has a lot of great programs that you can purchase once you're ready to progress more. I use her programs and absolutely love them. Here's a link:…

It can be really challenging to get started with lifting initially because of the soreness. However, the soreness will go down with time. There are also ways to help reduce the soreness when you first started. For instance, if you are starting a program that calls for 4 sets of each lift, then start out only doing 2 sets…

I am currently training for my second marathon and lift 3 times a week. I currently follow a program by Nia Shanks (my third by her) and I love it. My workouts focus on bigger lifts like squats, deadlifts, push-ups, chin-ups, etc and usually take about 45 minutes. I have done NROL4W in the past, but quit as the stages…

There is a popular saying that "abs are made in the kitchen" and it is very true. You need to lower your body fat to really see your abs and honestly it may be hard to see them depending on where you are genetically disposed to store fat. For myself, I never do any direct core work. I focus on compound lifts that engage…

Definitely agree that you should lower the weight until you perfect your form. However, another thing to focus on early on is making sure the bar is high enough. Deadlifts are supposed to be done with the bar raised as much as it would be with 45 pound plates on it (about mid-shin for me). If the bar is too low, then it…

Thanks for the advice everyone! I think I'm going to skip the half. This is only my second marathon, so I'm not quite sure I'm comfortable enough making changes to my plan and I don't want to risk losing that recovery week. I also don't think it's worth a $70 race fee if I do anything less than race it.

I would also recommend checking out Nia Shank's website (http://www.niashanks.com). She has a lot of information about weight lifting and lots of different programs you can purchase. I used to do NROL4W, but recently switched to her free beginning strength training guide and love it…

Thanks for the recommendations everyone and the link to DC Rainmaker - I hadn't heard of that site before. I did try resetting my Nike, but the screen is just dead. I went with the Garmin Forerunner 220 and am actually pretty excited about some of the features. The custom workouts in particular look really awesome. The…

I haven't experience fatigue quite like what you are describing, but I will say that I always struggle with the planks. My arms just can't support me by the end of a tough workout. I'm going to try some different things out with my arm positioning to see if that helps. My initial thoughts about what could be causing…

I just had an NRV last night. My 8.5 mile run brought me 2 new accomplishments. It was the most I've ever run on a weekday and it brought me to 32 total miles for the week, which is the most I've ran in a single week before. I didn't even hit 30/week before my first marathon and I've maxed out at 20/week before my previous…

I'm moving into Stage 4 on Sunday and was just curious how to decide how many sets to do. The book doesn't give any guidance on why to do 2 vs 3 sets. I'm tempted to just do 2 because of time (and I don't think I can do three 120 second planks), but feel like I should do 3 to gain the most strength. How did others decide…

Completed my last workout for Stage 3 today! Excited to move into Stage 4 on Sunday. I didn't see as many increases in my weights this stage as I had seen in Stages 1 & 2. I think part of it is because so many of the weights started low and it was hard to bounce up in the 5 lb increments my gym has. I did try to increase…

I recently read the book "Racing Weight" by Matt Fitzgerald and it has really impacted the way I think about food and how to go about losing weight. The book is targeted for endurance athletes and stresses the importance of making sure you are making the best choices to help your running performance. He focuses on…

I sent a friend request. If you look at my dairy for the last few months, you'll see that I've been a bit all over the place as I'm still experimenting to figure out what calorie level/types of food works for me. I eat a lot (I'm pretty much constantly hungry lol) and try to get around 150g of protein. I'm primarily a…

Haha! That's pretty much the same thought progression I had the first time I tried the BWM too. Normal BW squats/lunges feel like nothing at this point, but those jumps really put a different kind of strain on your muscles. That's a really nice time - mine was a little over 4 minutes to start. Congrats on the new muscle!…

To complete the Body Weight Matrix you do: 24 squats 24 lunges (alternating legs, so 12 lunges with each leg) 24 lunge jumps (12 each leg) - same as the normal lunges except you jump on your way up and switch legs midair and go straight into the next lunge 24 squat jumps - go down into a squat, then jump up and go…

Losing 1 inch off each thigh sounds like progress to me :smile: (I know I would be ecstatic if I saw that type of decrease myself!). But like others have said, it does take some time for your body to change and your weight loss may not be fast.

I am currently following the New Rules of Lifting for Women program and I absolutely love it. Currently, I only lift twice a week, but was doing it 3 times a week when I was in the early stages of the program. I had to cut down to 2 times a week because the weight workouts increase in duration as you move through the…

Yes, you did it correctly. The Stage 1 workouts go by pretty quickly and 30 minutes sounds about right if you're able to move straight through it. Once you move on to the later stages, the workouts will get longer. Stage 2 for me is taking closer to an hour.

I'm currently training for a marathon and doing new rules. I was able to manage lifting 3x a week during stage 1 without feeling a negative impact on my training. However, I just started Stage 2 and am cutting back to lifting 2x a week since the workouts take longer and my running is increasing in intensity. This seems to…

I just started training for my first marathon, so i'm trying to figure this out for myself as well. I've been doing the New Rules of Lifting for Women over the last month and have been able to fit it in pretty well with my running. I usually lift and run on the same day (lift first, then run) and try to have a full day of…

I just finished workout B3 today and had a very similar feeling - definitely still worked hard, but it did not kick my butt nearly as bad as the first 2 times I did each workout. I've still been incorporating running each week after my lifting sessions and haven't had problems with doing that. In fact, I ran a lot faster…

I've struggled a lot with shin splints in the past and had to take over a year and a half off with running hoping that they would go away. I went to the doctor and did physical therapy for several months, but they would never go away. Even without running/other exercise, I would still feel pain in my day to day life. The…

I just started NROL4W yesterday and I really enjoyed the first exercise. I think the book is very well-written and provides a lot of information behind what each move does for your body and why you should do it.

I've had issues in the past with my blood sugar levels dropping throughout the day. One thing that really helped me was focusing on the quality of my carbs (not trying to lower my overall carbs). I tend to look at the Glycemic Index of foods and try to eat low GI foods and it helps a lot. One of my favorite breakfasts that…

I love the band Pendulum, especially their song "The Vulture".

I'm similar in that I can't have exactly the same thing each day, but during the work week I rotate a few different things for my breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Dinner is always variable. Breakfast - Cottage Cheese w/Nutella, PB, or Almond butter and a banana or apple - Oat Bran and Flaxseed Meal with greek yogurt and…

Carbs are an important part of your diet and you should be get about 50-55% of your calories each day from carbs. As long as you are in that range, you should be fine eating as much oatmeal as you want. Oatmeal is a good, complex type of carbs that is really healthy.