mullet_massacre

thank you! This is a huge help. I'll look into that. The little dictator loves to be worn around the house but it definitely halts some kinds of productivity so a no bake option isn't something I've thought if that would be perfect!

So after falling off the wagon for a long time, I started to get more active during my pregnancy. Then preeclampsia set in. :( it halted all exercise and I gained 45 lbs ar the end of it all. Now I have a beautiful baby boy and a terrible self image. Along with terrible self esteem. I'm trying to be careful with how I lose weight so my milk supply doesn't dry up but I'm at a loss as to how. Has anyone else run into this? How did you keep your supply up while being active?

A NEW CHALLENGE I joined the last one late by 2 weeks so I begin again! Things have been well stressful lately. I took a week off of the gym out of pure frustration. I know it takes a while and I'm probably being impatient but I haven't seen any results. Not a pound, not an inch. Very discouraged. The only comfort I can take is that I am lifting heavier. I have noticed Im stronger and my quality of life has improved. My last quest was a little ambitious so I'm scaling back a bit Main Goal BIKINI BODY READY! This is a mental thing more than physical. I have never been comfortable enough in my own body to wear a bikini but this summer that changes! I have reverted to my favourite push/pull days but expanded it to upper body and lower body as well Life Quest SKYDIVING Save up the last 100$ needed for skydiving on my birthday! My birthday isn't till August but I'd rather have the money set aside sooner than later Diet Quest CONTINUE DIET TRANSITION Hardest part of this for me is the lack of control I have over my kitchen. Its something I struggle with because I have no say in what groceries are bought, or whats cooked for meals. I've tried buying my own food but it always gets eaten on me. Im trying a different approach. Side Quest Side Quest 100$ ON MY LINE OF CREDIT Im slowly starting to pay this beast off. I'm using tips to save up for skydiving. I can use a little income to pay this thing off. HANDSTAND I WILL do a handstand. I've been bringing my planks more vertical but my lower back is so weak I have to pace myself. Realistically I may not be able to do it this challenge either but I have to try TATTOO Figure out what my cover up will be about. If I save money from tips for it great if not I just want to figure out the design. SMOKING Yes I'm still smoking barely but still. My roommates smoke in the house making this the hardest thing for me to stop. When not around my roommates I have no problems whatsoever.

Very nice! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ahaha hahhahaha unfortunately prairie you are correct! Nm I'm in dartmouth Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Where are my maritimers at???

After talking to a few people I've decided that figure competitions aren't for me. I love how empowering they are and I love the idea of really throwing myself into the training but it really boils down to money. I just don't have the funds to spend on the trainer, the tanning, the swimsuit, registration.... all of it is super pricy. Doesn't mean I wont train on my own and maybe I'll revisit the idea next year

I've taken to doing incline pushups with a bosu ball! The incline is perfect and now I can do 6 with perfect form. Im still working at it but my lower back is doing a lot better! Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

Just saw this Nuala! Thanks for the support! Im slowly getting closer to doing a wall handstand but I don't think I'll have it by the end. Doesn't matter though Im closer now than I was 3 weeks ago! Who knows what the next 3 weeks will bring I go home to my parents this weekend. This will be the first time I see my sisters since I started going to the gym and Im realllllly hoping they see a difference because although Im definitely stronger my measurements haven't changed. Its discouraging but I wont stop. I broke up with my fella a week ago and its honestly heartless but not that sad, it just wasn't working. Guy turned out to be a knob. My stomach couldn't be happier. I've hit my first plateau and I'm looking to see where I can adjust to break through it. I've adjusted my workout and increased my weights, FINALLY starting barbell training yesterday! It's so empowering! I've been waiting for this for the past two months and I'm wondering why I waited! Quitting smoking is mostly going well! I have had a few slip ups but its definitely getting a lot easier. The nicoderm patch is taking the edge off when its not eating through my skin :/ Overall I'm very happy

I definitely will! I'll have to check out t nation. I loved their article on yoga that works well with powerlifting. I incorporated it into my stretching thanks for pointing me in a direction. I'll even post my findings Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Theres a fitness competition I'm interested in and I've been humming and hawwing on whether or not to train for it. Its still months away but I want to get started now if I'm going for it. I've never been confident enough to try for anything like this before. For me this is about facing my fears, gaining confidence, trying something new and giving myself a long term goal to work towards. I've heard all the negative things one can possibly say about the fitness models "They aren't healthy! They're too muscular! They dehydrate themselves before the competition! I heard those girls have their body fat percentage is in the single digits! RAWR RAWR RAWR!" My question is... Does anyone know much about preparing for them? Are they really THAT unsafe? All commentary, positive or negative in regards to female or male competitions are appreciated. I'd like to make an educated argument when I speak to my family about this. I need them to know Im making safe and healthy decisions. Even if someone could point me in the right direction for info....? http://www.nsabba.com/index.shtml

New circuit includes 20 weighted squats 20 walking lunges 15 jump ups 5 assisted pull ups 10 dips 10 incline push ups 45 sec plank. 2 run throughs. I still skate for at least an hour 3 times a week. LS is training for a 5 k marathon and I have her doing interval running twice a week in addition to 2 circuits twice a week. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Things have not gone as expected in this past week. I'm doing ok with the not eating out since fella and I are no longer together, not that I can afford ito eat out but I digress. My carb intake is higher than expected and I'm having trouble getting my protein. Quitting smoking is harder than expected. I did really good for a week and then my roommates came home. I find it really difficult to not ask for a cigarette/go out and buy a pack when they're sitting in front of me chain smoking talking about how awesome it is to smoke. I asked for assistance with my push up form in another thread and so I scaled back my planks a bit. Although I'm still at them daily and I have noticed I'm getting there. A completely unexpected turn of events happened! My little sister who as stated above has been a huge detractor had reached out to me to ask for help losing weight. For autonomy's sake I'll call her LS. LS is my height and twice my weight so to help her out I've changed my workout to something she can do as well. We share results and times of the new circuit I created as a way to motivate each other from afar. Were also changing our diets together. She and Big Poppa have a running bet. Loser pays winner 2$ per pound lost. Fingers crossed this sticks for her. I'm now trying to set an example for LS by doing. It's like my motivation has changed totally. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was going to wait to do my first 6 week challenge with the rest but the timing is just too good to pass up. I may get to see my family once a month, because its slow at work I cant afford to go down this month. In 6 weeks my mom and my sister, my biggest detractors, are going to join me to go see Stars on Ice April 25.... 6 weeks from yesterday. I've been active 6 days a week for the past 6 weeks and although I have been seeing results I hadn't changed my eating habits at all. My six challenge is to keep me on track. Main Quest; - Create and stick to a paleo meal plan! I have been seeing a new fella and we eat out a lot. Its been messing with my stomach and my results. He's been incredibly supportive about my training and understands this is a part of it - Handstand! I've been working at this for a few days now with a wall plank, my lower back has no stability so this has been a challange. Im hoping to be able to do a wall handstand by the end - Dutch waltz! This ice dance holds a special place in my heart. I'd love to surprise my mother with this the next time we go skating -Try Zumba! Skating is closing after Aprtil 15th till July! I decided to replace it with something cardio-y. I've always wanted to try Zumba? Side Quest; - Meet with Danny for a personal training session - Pick up preworkout - learn 1 new paleo recipe a week Life Quest; - Cross one item off of birthday bucket list (QUITTING SMOKING) Already 5 days in. Look Ma! No PATCH

How do I fix this? My back has always been a problem, from bad posture to malformed muscles due to repetitive movement injuries. I have been working on strengthening my back for better quality of life. Push ups are part of that. Although I can see that my form is wrong I don't know how to correct it :/ sorry for the link, cant figure out how to embed and the file is too big to attach

Question! I've been doing modified push ups for about 2 months now and I find them too easy. However when I try regular push ups I can only do like 4 before I collapse. Is there an in between push up I can try? Or an easier way of getting into the form? Help please

Did round 2 of both push and pull increasing both my dumb bell and kettlebell weight to 25 lbs. 6 weeks ago when I started going to the gym, 10 lbs was heavy! I still think I can lift heavier but Im having problems with my weighted lunges. Im going to try switching up the order in which I do things so its not such a strain on my lower body. Also switched out both plank and side plank for a wall plank. Even on rest days Im doing a wall plank, goal is to be able to do a wall handstand within the next 3 weeks. I've been adding swimming into the mix more often and I'm still skating 3 days a week on my rest days. Skating is over April 15th however so I've been toying with what to replace it with. Maybe jogging?

SO! Went with the Push workout today. this included; - assisted tricep dips - 6 reps x 3 sets - push ups - 5 - weighted squats - 6 reps x 3 sets - 20 lb kettlebell - weighted lunges - 6 reps x 3 sets, each leg - 15 lb kettlebell - side plank - 45 sec x 3 sets - each side I was going to add hanging leg raises instead of the bicycle crunches but there was someone using the equipment and this workout is pretty leg intensive as it is so I skipped it and hopped in the sauna instead. After I could hardly make it up the stairs to go to my car tonight! I was convinced I hurt my back on the 6th trying the dumbbell clean but it seemed ok today during my work out. All in all a really good day AND officially 24 hours smoke free Taking it one day at a time but the patch helps more than I realized. Skating in the morning and Pull workout on tuesday. Im going to practice my form tomorrow for the romanian deadlifts and the dumbbell clean. I will also increase my weights to 20 lb on wednesday and see if I can deal with the weight.

Day 1! I tried out my pull workout today. I modified it slightly to account for the fact that I have no clue how to use a barbell. Today's workout looked like this Pull - assisted pull ups - 6 reps x 3 sets - bent over rows - 6 reps x 3 sets - 15 lbs - single leg romanian deadlift - 6 reps x 3 sets - 15 lbs - dumbbell clean - 6 reps x 3 sets - 15 lbs - plank - 45 sec x 3 sets - hanging leg raises (roman chair) - 6 reps x 3 sets I was really happy with my workout today with a few exceptions. I fell on the ice yesterday and hurt my leg so I tried not to push the romanian deadlifts so I didn't aggravate my injury. I couldn't do the third set of pull ups. Simply not strong enough just yet but I did do 2 of my last set. Next time I'll go for 3 I can't for the life of me get the form down for the dumbbell clean. youtube only gets me so far. I think I need someone to stand there and correct my form so I know how it feels. Other than that it was a great workout and I feel awesome about continuing with this until I get strong enough to work with heavier weights/barbells. Im going skating tomorrow for an hour and a half and then Ill hit the weights again sunday

So to start, when I first joined this site I was all short term intensity. I started seeing results and got lazy. Long story short I made a move and reshaped my thinking to long term consistency. I joined a gym and have been going to the gym 3 times a week, skating 3 times a week and throwing in a swim twice a week but thats just for fun I've made it no secret to my friends and family that nerd fitness's own Staci is my hero and inspiration. What she said about not being held back by her body really stuck with me and I've made it my reasoning for making and staying with my own journey. I want to see what I'm truly capable of and I never want my body to scream no when my mind says yes. My first day I was totally unprepared. I had no plan of what I wanted to do so I just went through the circuit. I was totally disappointed in my workout. The machines took away a lot of the challenge and I was left unsatisfied and feeling like I didn't make the most of the time I had spent there so I went home and modified the advanced circuit posted on nerd fitness to fit my own level and a few weeks in I found that it was too easy. Even though I look back through my journal and think now that that routine doesn't really work for me it was necessary to discover what I AM looking for in a workout. I want something that I can increase in difficulty not reps. I cannot and will not spend more than 45 minutes working out including warm up and cool down. I've spent the last month training to get to the point where I can begin barbell training. My new routine includes push days and pull days. I do 6 exercises each day and alternate each one between my 3 days a week. (ABA or BAB depending on the week) Im seeking opinions on if these two routines seem balanced before I dive in Push days - tricep dips - 6 reps x 3 sets - push ups - 10 - weighted squats - 6 reps x 3 sets - lunges - 15 - side plank - 45 sec x 3 sets - bicycle crunch - 6 reps x 3 sets Pull days - pull ups - 6 reps x 3 sets - bent over rows - 6 reps x 3 sets - deadlift - 6 reps x 3 sets - power clean - 6 reps x 3 sets - plank - 45 sec x 3 sets - hanging leg raises (roman chair) - 6 reps x 3 sets Thanks in advance

Dartmouth NS,

week one update Im thinking about changing my approach. I was doing the Beginner Body Weight workout. I was quickly noticing a difference. To the point where I had to get creative with my weights to make them heavy enough (dumbbells in a bag since I'm too poor to buy heavier ones) I switched things up to work on pull muscles one day and push muscles the next. I've been avoiding it though because Im not sweating when I work out now I feel like if Im not drenched in sweat I'm not getting the most out of my workouts. So I'm switching back to what I was doing since it was working. On a positive note Im seeing an increase in my flexibility! I'm having trouble transitioning between modified pushups and regular pushups. Im in that phase where I can do modified pushups consecutively and without too much difficulty but I collapse the the first try of a real push up. Im hoping to be able to do at least 1 by the next update. I've been going for runs sporadically but I refuse to fully commit to them until I get my strength work out under control. I think its too much too soon. I'm afraid to repeat mistakes of the past where I'm all gung ho for 2 weeks then I revert because I cant keep up with all these changes I make. My diet is less than stellar. Im poor and I dislike cooking. I can cook its all the extra stuff that comes with it like dishes. And this new fella I've been seeing isn't helping. Don't get me wrong! I like him a lot and he's funny and easy to talk to. He treats me very well and I just ADORE his dog. She's so sweet! We have been seeing each other for a month on monday (HOLY CROW time flies) so theres a bit of an adjustment to my lifestyle. I eat well unless Im with him and even then I try to make good decisions. I was raised to eat what was put in front of me so darn it I do it! So to reiterate the good and bad; The bad: - not seeing results with my current workout - I hate waiting 2 minutes between sets, I always get sidetracked by internets or dishes :/ - Diet's poopy - Running is not on a regular enough basis The good: - my stretching is improving, I can go 2 inches deeper into a stretch than when I first started - My squats are out of control! I went from loathing them to LOVING them! Seriously my favorite part of the workout now, I do them whenever I can! - I increased my plank time from 20 seconds to 50 seconds. Im so close to the minute mark! - I have recognized that what I'm doing isn't working for me and I'm changing it instead of giving up - Not worrying about my diet since I'm not focusing on that right now - Same with running, I know Ill get there (next challenge?) - I'm still far more active than I used to be! With the help of this community I have finally realized that its not an overnight thing. Its a journey. Link didn't just wake up and go slay Ganon. He gathered what he needed, got stronger, got better tools and made his way there. The good outweighs the bad and overall I'm still a happier, healthier person.

First time poster Currently it's 430 am and I lay on the couch at a friends house unable to sleep. I'm in a transition period in my life. I graduated with my hairdressing license 1 year ago and in 3 weeks I turn 24. I broke up with my boyfriend 2 months ago. As of this moment I feel completely independent for the first time in my adult life. It terrifies me. When I hopped on the scale shortly after CI_Mc (name changed for anonymity) I weighed 130 lbs. It was the smallest I had been the entire 2 and a half years we were together. I always used the excuse "I'm not in shape because he won't work out with me". In 2 months I gained 10 lbs. It made me realize I had to stop using him as an excuse and take responsibility for my own body. While talking to my friends Adonis, Shutterbug, HollowLegs, MasterChef and InnerMirror I realized just how uneducated I was when it came to nutrition and exercise. I had been doing it all wrong this entire time. InnerMirror introduced me to the idea of eating paleo and through my research of the safety of what I assumed incorrectly was just another fad diet I found this community. I've been lurking and obsessively reading this website for almost a month waiting patiently for this new challenge so I can begin my journey. I've got my kokiri sword and my deku shield in hand. I've talked to Mido. He's no longer in my way. It's time to start my quest. My ultimate goal is to be strong. There's no specifics after that. Yet. I've broken my 6 week challenge into 2 halves. Before birthday and after birthday. At the end of my 6 weeks I want to be able to do 1 pull up and 1 chin up. My birthday present is going to be a pull-up bar so I'm spending the next 3 weeks training to be able to use said pull up bar. After I turn 24 I will be training to do my first pull up/chin up. Adonis is a fantastic friend whom I will be using as a source of inspiration/information. 3 weeks ago I started the beginner body workout and I have since modified it to my liking. I'm using this thread as a sort of diary to track my progress or ask questions. It's a mobile way to remain accountable. My side quest is going to be to hit commission. Hitting commission means that I will have a bigger income. I'm so close! There's not much I can actively do about that but I have 3 pay periods to attempt to rebook clients and it always starts to pick up in the fall. Bonus side quest is to pay 200$ off of my student line of credit. So recap; Main quest -accomplish 1 pull up -accomplish 1 chin up Side quest -hit commission Bonus! Pay 200$ off line of credit