Tuesday, August 7, 2012

One of those days

Not every day is a walk in the park. Not every day do I have the strength to keep motivated as soon as my eyes open up in the morning.  Some times I just have to fake it till I make it. 

Last night I had things on my mind that kept me awake all night. That made it all to easy to skip cardio this morning. That really sucks because I has an awesome streak going.  Streak broken. Now, I sit here bummed out that I let myself down. For breakfast, after my eggs and oatmeal, I started to fall off the wagon.  A spoon of peanut butter and a spoon of cottage cheese.  Yea, not as bad as a slice if cake or pizza, but still not good.  Clearly it is "emotional eating". 
So what am I going to do about it? Pack my lunch and walk out of the kitchen. Blog to keep my hands busy and spend today re-evaluating things around me.  I've always preached about weeding out the negativity and only holding on to what makes you feel good about yourself.

Going to work with my meals packed, workouts clothes, shoes, a goal and my blog. 

Fake it till I make it, right?

Monday, August 6, 2012

90lbs down

Finally!!! I have lost 90 pounds.   (168lbs but shhhhh... don't tell anyone.)

I know, I know... It is not always important to rely on the numbers on the scale to determine your success.  It is however great to see it work in your favor.  Generally, I depend on my progress photos but this last set was less then impressive.  It meant a lot to me to have my efforts show up on the scale this time around.  It seems like that is the way my body is working lately.  Drop inches, maintain weight.  Then in 4 weeks, drop weight and maintain size.  Hmmm... let me bookmark this blog entry so that I can reread this the next time I am about to throw my camera through a window.



When I hit an my 80 pound loss, Xavy had me head to the rack to lift an 80 pound dumbbell.  I could barely lift it.  It was the single most shocking discovery of this whole process.  The ability to feel in your hands what you have achieved.  Wow!  Tonight, I plan on trying to do the same but while I am sitting here in my glory, I am going to google some comparisons for fun.

-Kate Middleton or  Demi Moore (post split with Ashton), duct taped to my ass.
Oh even better...
-one newborn calf

Here are some weight comparisons for you.  It is quite interesting and can be funny also. But, definitely gives ya some perspective.

1 pound = a Guinea Pig
1.5 pounds = a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts
2 pounds = a rack of baby back ribs
3 pounds = an average human brain
4 pounds = an ostrich egg
5 pounds = a Chihuahua
6 pounds = a human’s skin
7.5 pounds = an average newborn
8 pounds = a human head
10 pounds= chemical additives an American consumes each year
11 pounds = an average housecat
12 pounds = a Bald Eagle
15 pounds = 10 dozen large eggs
16 pounds = a sperm whale’s brain
20 pounds = an automobile tire
23 pounds = amount of pizza an average American eats in a year
24 pounds = a 3-gallon tub of super premium ice cream
25 pounds = an average 2 year old
30 pounds = amount of cheese an average American eats in a year
33 pounds = a cinder block
36 pounds = a mid-size microwave
40 pounds = a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg
44 pounds = an elephant’s heart
50 pounds = a small bale of hay
55 pounds = a 5000 BTU air conditioner
60 pounds = an elephant’s penis (yep, weights more than his heart!)
66 pounds = fats and oils an average American eats in a year
70 pounds = an Irish Setter
77 pounds = a gold brick
80 pounds = the World’s Largest Ball of Tape
90 pounds = a newborn calf
100 pounds = a 2 month old horse
111 pounds = red meat an average American eats in a year
117 pounds = an average fashion model (and she’s 5’11”)
118 pounds = the complete Encyclopedia Britannica
120 pounds = amount of trash you throw away in a month
130 pounds = a newborn giraffe
138 pounds = potatoes an average American eats in a year
140 pounds = refined sugar an average American eats in a year
144 pounds = an average adult woman (and she’s 5’4”)
150 pounds = the complete Oxford English Dictionary
187 pounds = an average adult man
200 pounds = 2 Bloodhounds
235 pounds = Arnold Schwarzenegger
300 pounds = an average football lineman
400 pounds = a Welsh pony

Friday, August 3, 2012

The "little" things

Today I browsing good ol' Facebook when I came across some pretty funny stuff.  We judge our progress by the scale and how deep of a breath or a squat we can do in our unintentional skinny jeans.  Sometimes it's really the small stuff that makes the difference.

Here are a few that were shared today:

·Shaving, this one was from me.  I used to dread shaving my legs. It took FOREVER!!!! Now, having lost nearly 90lbs.... its a sinch. I had a lot of surface area to cover. It was mowing a 20 acre farm with a push mower.  By the time I was done, I had to take a break and relather because I had broken a sweat.  Yea, that's why all the men I dated were in the Military.  I only needed to shave once a month.  By the time my thighs were getting a 5 o'clock shadow, leave was over and I was in the clear.

·Heather beat mine and she is too right. Painting your toenails. I was cracking up reading her comment about now much nicer her toes looked when she could bend over to paint them and breathe.

·Ms. Mommy's Downsizing had one goal that I can proudly relate to having just shopped at Victora Secret.  Her goal was to have PINK embroidered across her booty and with room to spare on each side.  So funny. 

(By the way... Mommy's Downsizing, what is your name? Lol )

Anyone else care to share? 

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Nutella or Doritos?

I just ate a handful of Doritos.  (First time in about 17-18 weeks).  Then, I washed them down with RedBull Zero.  Needless to say, I was eating cleaner BEFORE I took the "Eating Clean Challenge".  But... at least with the zero sugar and zero carb Redbull, I will have the energy to work off the Doritos.


Knowing that I can still enjoy one of the unhealthy foods that I love at some point each week will make the fact that I am on a new meal plan less of a punishment or a chore and more about living a new, healthy lifestyle that can still be fun. Getting depressed or lacking motivation to stick to a healthy diet and exercise plan can cause you to stray off of your healthy lifestyle regimen. Even just taking one measly week off of your diet and exercise routine can undo a month's worth of work to lose weight and build endurance in your body. Rewarding yourself and not being so hard on yourself can help give you the focus and determination you need to succeed during the rest of the week.

So, I could have had a whole bag of Doritos. Hell, I could have had a jar of Nutella with it. It was my decision to take this cheat because I earned it all week. Instead, I am going moderately because I know that I can have another cheat next week. No biggy! What did I do with the rest of the bag of Doritos you ask? *Evil laugh* I gave them to my boss. Lol.

Disaster averted


... and the "Good Friend" award goes to, Lori Adams!!!!  
*applause*  

Clearly this man is not missing out on leg day. 
(Or any other day for that matter.)


Xavier Ramirez: 12 weeks out

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Addicted

Day # 76 without Nutella. Just saying...
      
                                

Cup Check


Xavy's adorable brother came to visit him last week and I was lucky enough not only to have met him but to have been able to train with him. It was then that I learned what the term, "cup check" was all about. I have never heard the term before last week.  What that refers to is a comment or action that someone uses to confirm someones gender.  Makes perfect sense I guess.

For the last few months, I have only trained next to Xavy.  I know what weights he lifts and how he trains so I set my goals based on him.  The free weight area to most of the females in the gym is like an uncharted island.  Maybe its the hot guys, maybe its the smelly guys, possibly it is the intimidation of the weights or even the mirrors.  Either way, there are only a few women that have been "man" enough to set foot on that side of the gym.  When Alicia was still training at our club, I had not yet made it to what I assumed her level was.  Talk about a beast in the gym.  That chick is solid!  I strive to be like her when I grow up.  That leaves me on the island of testosterone all alone now.  The good thing is that I really don't know what the "average" woman lifts on "average".  The bad thing is that I really don't know what the "average" woman lifts on "average".  haha.  All I can do is try to keep up with my peers, regardless of gender.   My training partner happens to be a male bodybuilder.  What does that mean?  I life heavy as $hit every single day. No where near as heavy he does but not so far away either.  When I started this journey, I had not given the amount of weight that I lift or the appearance of my muscles any thought.  I just wanted a smaller ass. I didn't have any clue how naturally as strong I was.  Xavy said a few times in awe that I was lifting dude weight, but part of me thought he was just encouraging me.  Last night, I waited for the firefighter next to me to finish his set of bicep curls so that I could take my turn- with the same weight.  The poor guy walked over to another machine with his tail between his legs. lol.

So back to the whole "cup check" incident...  Xavy had been teasing his brother that he had better get his butt in shape because his training partner, a girl, might be able to out-lift him.  His brother's laughed it off saying he would have to do a cup check it that was the case.

He didn't even see it coming...

Now, let me preface this by saying that at no point did I out-lift him.  I did however match him pound for pound a few times.  Probably a few times too many for that Ramirez ego that both of those men have.  I was giving it 125%.  I was having a blast!  Because I pushed him, he in turn pushed Xavy.  All of us KILLED IT that night in the gym.  I don't think that there was a plate in the gym that had not been touched. The whole time, we cracked up at each other and all had a really great workout.  If it wasn't for the pushup bra being all the proof that I needed that I was a female, I would have probably indeed endured the now famous, "cup check".  In my defense, the push-up bra, although inappropriate in the gym, was necessary.  I have got NOTHING left!  Xavy has bigger boobs then I do now.

I may not have many females on my Island of Testosterone, (the free weight area), but I have great friends that respect me for the "athlete" that I am.   I go in, I go hard and and keep up.  It may not be the most feminine hobby that I have but damn it makes me feel pretty awesome.

My max, that I remember (so far):
-results not typical, lol-

Leg Extensions: 3 sets of 15 @ 160lbs
Leg Press, (High and Wide): 2 sets of 15 @ 733lbs
Push-ups: 4sets of 50
Seated Bicep Curls: 2 sets of 15 @ 25lbs
Dumbbell Concentrations: 4 sets of 15 @ 30lbs
Rope Pushdown: 2 sets of 20 @ 42.5lbs
Tbar Row: 1 set of 12 @ 95lbs