maruby95 Member

Thanks SS! This is helpful. I am not opposed to a bulk- just want to wait a couple of months. Believe me, you won't miss it when I decide to do it. I'm sure I'll be on here freaking out and whining about getting fat :0. In the meantime, I like the SL idea. I think I'll start wth the program as written and if recovery…

Actually- no. I failed to account for the bar in my squat number. So with the bar I'm doing about 36kg. Still pretty lame, but more than the goblet squats. I actually think I could do more weight in the goblets, but I find my grip becomes the problem.

Yes, mainly squats. And I'd say DL come in second place.

Hi SS- Yes, I have considered a slow bulk, but really just wanted to wait until fall (long bikini season around here :0). As for SL or something similar- I actually was doing the 3 main compound lifts 3 days a week when I first started lifting, and that worked fine. But as the intensity increased, I found I wasn't fully…

This is why I love you guys- the voice(s) of reason :).

Thank you, Sara. I do know that I won't do much re-comping on a deficit, so I'm not really sure why I said that. I guess I just know myself well enough to know that in general, I will err on the side of under vs overeating. However, I am generally hungrier on lifting days anyway, so it may work out ok as long as I feed the…

What is cranberry apple butter and where can I get it?? Yum!!!! Oh, and yes to ice cream :).

@amanda_gent- I had a feeling you would be able to relate :). I think the only answer here is a real bulk (it keeps coming back to that, doesn't it?!), which will have to wait until fall. Or maybe a time machine to make us younger. Hmmmm.... For now: I move, I lift, I eat, I move some more. Rinse and repeat. Thanks for…

Thanks for this story! I have a couple of questions: first, what is your activity level and with what sorts of exercise? Do you lift? And how much/ often? The reason I ask is that I am 5'3" and 17-18% BF. Katch-Mac also gives me 1200 or even a little less as my BMR. I use a Fitbit which gives me an average of 1700 cals…

So, this may not aply to you at all, but I have GERD (acid reflux) and my primary symptom is feeling very hungry starting about 15-20 min after I eat- even when I eat a full meal than includes plenty of protein and healthy fats. It almost feels like my stomach is about to growl, but it never does. I actually feel more…

By static do you mean you do the same weight for each set?

Sarah- I was hoping to start the Wendler 5/3/1 on Monday, so I've been doing my math :). But I'm running into a problem. The smallest free wieght increment at my gym is 2 kg, which makes it basically impossible to make these small changes between 75% and 80% and 85% etc. Have you found this to be a challenge?

At first glance I really like it! Thanks for the link. I'm going to have to read through it well and then I'll probably have questions :). Thanks so much for this!!!

I'm in the same boat too! Looking for more definition, but for me, at 17-18% BF I think maybe bulking is my only option. And I'm not really willing to do that going into summer :0. So I might work on maintenance and strength gains for now and then bulk in the fall. Am watching this thread very carefully for more input....

OMG this thread is making me cry. My family takes great pride in audibly farting (at home of course. Well...mostly), so it's certainly not rare. But I am known for "larfing"- farting from laughing. Comes out like machine gun fire. Which of course is funny. Which makes me laugh. Which leads to more larfing...you get the…

@oldernotwiser- you made me LOL! You are hilarious. And I'm sorry for your loss...:(.

Just an update here: today was bench today and it went beautifully! Watched the videos (thanks Sara!), got my form right, and was easily able to increase my weight today! Yeah! I even asked a random guy to spot me on my heaviest working set and it really helped- not sure if it was his encouragement, being watched, or being…

So glad you talked to your doctor! I was coming in to say that your description/ symptoms was exactly how I felt when I was overtraining. Took 2 weeks off- back to normal. I think people can underestimate how bad overtraining (especially while eating in the deficit) can make you feel. Hope you feel better quickly!

This is great advise, guys. I think I'll just have to suck it up and ask for a spot. That should be pretty amusing since 99.9% of the time I'm the only woman in there, and 100% of the time I'm the only woman using free wights on any kind ;). I like the dumbbell press idea, too, although I would hate to have to drop them…

This is super helpful stuff! I think I've been naturally re-feeding this weekend. Absolutely cannot get enough carbs, but I'm ending up at about maintenance cals for the day. I'm curious to see what will happen energy wise in the gym this week and scale wise later in the week.

Nope. No spotter. And yes I have gotten myself stuck under the bar before. Rather embarrassing. What about using a smith machine? I think that's what it's called anyway. The bar is on rail and you can rack it by just twisting the bar. Would that mess up my form?

Yes I agree that form is my problem. Just watched the videos...very helpful. Thanks! I'll start working on improving my bench but keep the push ups as well. Thanks for the info!

Check out http://rippedbody.jp/reverse-pyramid-training/ I just started it and like it so far. Good luck!

Me too? ????

OK. Take 2. Sorry- first time posting pix. These are all flexed. Just for comparison, these were taken last March at about the same size, but 5ish lbs less. Height 5'3.5", weight in first pix 105, in second set about 100 (can't exactly remember) thx!

ok...just kidding. Gotta try that again.

Sorry- one more question. How long do people usually bulk for? 8 weeks? 12? less? What if I did 4 weeks at bulk followed by 4 weeks at cut and repeat- is that ridiculous? I'd really like to be cutting and not bulking in swimsuit season (which starts about April or May where I am). Or maybe a 6 week bulk followed by a 6…

Thank you for this. What you say about being able to maintain it is a very valid point. No, I don't just want to get there for a couple of weeks. I a looking for something sustainable. And I only picked 16% as a guess on what I would need to be to be able to see some definition. Nothing magic about that number for me. I do…

OK. First, I'm sorry I haven't responded before now. I don't live in the US and am therefore in a different time zone. I have been lifting about 18 months. I have used various different lifting programs, but am currently using a full body one I found on bb.com 3x/week. It focuses on compound lifts 3 sets of about 10 reps…

Thanks, Amanda! I do enjoy my exercise very much, but I'm a very goal oriented person, so I am always working towards something :). That being said, while I feel much stronger and very fit, I still feel 'softer' than I would like. Maybe I am chasing an impossible ideal, but I don't think so. Just want to see some more of…