A Wine Drinker Jumping into Paleo

[Trewest]

So I did actually start yesterday, I just didn't know this challenge existed until today.

 

Brief Stats: 28, Femal, 5'7, 204 lbs

SPECIFIC- make my diet 90% Paleo and stick to it. Follow Erin Stern's Elite fitness program for 1 month.

Measurable- weight loss goal is 5 lbs loss in 1 month (if not more) following new lifestyle matrix

Attainable- yes, eating healthy and following a program are things I can do, and 5 pounds loss isn't unrealistic

Realistic- well yeah, especially for me

TIMELY- well, I'm going to take it a month at a time and see what needs tweaking. So yeah, 4 weeks unless I experience a massive need to alter sooner

 

The TLDR section:

During university my weight crept up to 230 lbs. For a 5’7 female that was not a great feeling, and even if it was mostly due to an illness, I knew I needed to fix that. Cue the montage of several years’ worth of fumbling through fitness routines. Cardio Kickboxing was a hoot and got the ball rolling, or at least the sweat dripping a little. Boot camps were fun and got my endurance level up to stellar but I was still fat. Parkour taught me to trust my body and helped me learn to just do instead of thinking, but I was still fat. The problem? My nutrition SUCKED. I was long past the days of a medium pizza and 2 litre bottle of pop, but I was still not handling my nutrition well. Part of that was simply because I did not enjoy cooking. I’m lazy. I was also at the time eating a lot with people who still ate like we were teenagers.

Then I got my hands on a copy of 90X and it sat on my shelf for 2 YEARS. I’d gotten my weight down to 197 by this point but it wasn’t budging even though I had run a half marathon. So I signed up for a Tough Mudder, because being skinny wasn’t motivating me enough but not wanting to die was PERFECTLY motivating. I then also decided ‘why not save my money and drop the boot camp, and give this P90X thing a try’. At this point in my life I had moved in with my then time boyfriend (the husband now ) and he was supportive of my working out and trying to eat healthy. I started to track my calories and somewhere along the line I screwed up my calorie count BIG TIME. I was only eating 1500 a day. Not good. The weight came off, and I was seeing minute strength gains. I got down to 170 lbs by the end of P90X (I dropped some bad health habits during this time too) but the weight loss stalled after that. So a friend of mine gave me a copy of Insanity to try. I was two months until the Tough Mudder, and the Insanity was exactly 2 months long and I figured, I should improve my cardio. But by this time the under eating was catching up with me and I had headaches DAILY. Thankfully the online coach I had gotten into contact to walked me through the proper way to figure out my daily caloric needs and I upped myself to 1800 a day. The headaches disappeared, I had a LOT more energy and strength. I got down to 162 lbs the day before the Tough Mudder, and then I ran that sucker. It was glorious.

But after all that careful discipline and drive to succeed, I had hit my goal and tripped over my own metaphorical feet. I didn’t know what to do next. I liked 162 lbs, but I was still flabby and with extra body fat. So I bought Body Beast, a strength training DVD set because I kept hearing how strength training is the best way to increase strength and lose body fat. I had the endurance I wanted (though I am by no means FAST, I will get the job done) but some of the obstacles in the Mudder showed me that I was still weak in many areas. So I switched to trying to eat like a strength trainer and doing the workouts.

I put on nearly 20 pounds by the end of it though. Some of it was gorgeous, sexy muscles, but far too much of it was ooey, gooey fat. I was back at 185 pounds and I had no clue how to get strength and lose weight. So I doubled up my programs. I did Body Beast AND Insanity. But my weight just kept where it was. When I went through the second Tough Mudder, my strength was better but still not where I wanted it, and I was much heavier than I had been for the first one. And then my boyfriend proposed and I knew I had to get wedding dress ready. Only I had a year and a half do I didn’t really have a fire lit under my ass to get me into it properly yet. So I meandered through workouts and started to eat portion sizes that were way outside of what I actually needed. When I ran my third Tough Mudder I was somewhere between 190-180 pounds.

Now here’s funny little side story. I found my dream dress pretty quick, and we ordered it for a size I could fit into without much worry. But I said what apparently EVERY SINGLE BRIDE TO BE SAYS ‘Oh, I plan on losing weight’. The lovely lady helping me into and out of dresses even managed to not laugh or roll her eyes at me.

So I figured ‘I’ve been here before, I know what to do now’. I wanted to lose weight again, but the healthy way this time. So I kept my calories to 1800 but cut way down on the breads and pastas and rice, as they seemed to be where I struggled. I also cut down on drinking, which is hard when you’re a part of a Wine Tasting society. But that combined with another few rounds of Insanity, Body Beast and P90X got me into my wedding dress with a few inches to spare. Small problem that, as now my dress was a bit too big and it was 3 days before my wedding. So my mom’s solution? She stuffed me full of bread for the next three days. Yep. I fit into my dress rather perfectly, and it hid my stomach rolls well enough.

But after the wedding? I relaxed. My weight had already gone to about 190 lbs with the whole wedding thing, and eating at restaurants with family/friends/in celebration. But after the wedding, I lost that drive again, the need to beat a goal. I was vaguely training to pass the RCMP’s PARE test, but I still didn’t have a screaming motivation for some reason. After I ran a practice PARE and knew I could pass it, I decided to take some time off of working out because I had officially given up on trying. I was half assing my half assing. So I stopped working out, didn’t worry about food and just focused on trying to get my head straight.

And that brings us to the New Year. 2015, my year to get things straightened out right? I got back into working out with a hybrid of P90X, Combat, Insanity and Body Beast. I was avoiding the dreaded ‘burnout’ that had happened when I tried to do it all at once and this time I thought I had it in the bag. But my starting weight was 202 lbs and it only went up. Two months of hardcore exercise and I hit 207 lbs last week. Colour me so not impressed that I COULD SPIT.

Once again, I was failing myself because of the nutrition side of things. I was still eating like a much bigger person, and had gotten into an ugly habit of drinking far too much wine and beer on far too regular occasions.

So I did research for the last few weeks and finally paid attention to what my body was telling me. I needed to stop being an idiot. Tossing out the breads, pastas and rice had done me a world of good, so why had I let them back in? Because I was used to them and they were easy. But I had heard of a nutrition guideline called Paleo eating, or Primal to some, and it sounded damn good. I love meat, and I am more than willing to trade bread for bacon. Sounds terrible I know but at least I’m honest. I KNOW it’s not going to be bacon galore, but I can enjoy it without guilt now at least. I also decided that it was time to get out of my comfort zone fitness wise. P90X, Insanity and Body Beast are still there if I want to go back to them but I need to shake things up and scare my body into action. So I found a routine by Erin Stern from BodyBuilding.com and am going to give it a go.

I spent 6 1/5 hours this past weekend cooking Paleo approved food stuffs for the husband and I, enough food for the whole week. I am going to be using my workplace gym that has the equipment I need. Everything is set up for me to succeed. I just need to pull up my big girl panties and give it all I have.

[Merrin]

You've come a long way and tried a lot of really different things, and accordingly, have gotten different results. That's really excellent, honestly. Each of those things worked for you in some way, but proved to you over and over again that fitness is nothing without good food. I too have a weakness for bread and pasta, and it's just like you said: they're easy to cook, easy to have on hand, easy to prepare (I miss sandwiches. A lot.) Picking out a day to cook well for the week is a PERFECT starting point. It's also really nice that your spouse has joined you with healthy eating. Those friends that eat like teenagers are sabotage, whether they mean to do so or not.

 

It seems like you've learned how to take care of yourself, nutrition wise and exercise wise. I know you can give it all you've got. I secretly suspect your big girl panties are Supergirl panties. Get on out and crush it!

[Trewest]

You've come a long way and tried a lot of really different things, and accordingly, have gotten different results. That's really excellent, honestly. Each of those things worked for you in some way, but proved to you over and over again that fitness is nothing without good food. I too have a weakness for bread and pasta, and it's just like you said: they're easy to cook, easy to have on hand, easy to prepare (I miss sandwiches. A lot.) Picking out a day to cook well for the week is a PERFECT starting point. It's also really nice that your spouse has joined you with healthy eating. Those friends that eat like teenagers are sabotage, whether they mean to do so or not.

 

It seems like you've learned how to take care of yourself, nutrition wise and exercise wise. I know you can give it all you've got. I secretly suspect your big girl panties are Supergirl panties. Get on out and crush it!

Thanks for the feedback, and yes I think they are Supergirl panties

I am lucky that my husband is onboard with this, though mainly I think he realized that it was either climb onto the cart or get dragged along behind it. I tend to do the bulk of the cooking regardless, so he ends up eating a lot of the same things I eat. Only he needs more of it. He's over a half a foot taller than I am

So far my surprise favourite fast snack with Paleo style eating are the spicy tuna cakes I've learned on how to make. Not too fishy tasting, but definitely keep me full.

[Trewest]

Day One: Monday February 23

My food list for the day:

5:20 am –Shakeology (yes I know it is not Paleo, but it’s my version of a liquid multivitamin so shut up)

8:45 am – Spicy Tuna Cakes (courtesy of nomnompaleo.com) and a black coffee courtesy of my workplace cafeteria because sweet lord I’m freezing cold.

12:00 pm- Beef and Bacon Mini Meatloaf (2 pucks) with a baby spinach and cherry tomato salad.

3:00 pm WORKOUT!

Today my workout is Shoulders and Arms

Apparently supposed to be just under 16 minutes. (Note: it took me 55 minutes between having to wait for equipment, setting the equipment up and changing out weights as necessary. How it took so long I will not understand because I wasn’t taking extended breaks. But there it is folks, my 16 minute workout took me almost an hour).

Warm up: 5 Minutes of walking, jogging or jump rope

(I chose jogging on the treadmill)

Push Jerk- 1 warm up set, 4 sets of 5 reps

(Lots of fun on this one, at around 55 lbs total and I can increase it next time)

Standing Dumbell Upright Rows- 1 warm up set, 4 sets of 10 reps *rest 60-90 seconds between sets

(I didn’t do the long rests between sets as I like up rights. I used 20 lbs per hand and can increase that the next time through for sure)

Cable rear delt flyes-  4 sets of 10 reps

(I don’t have the right machine at work for this, so I used a resistance band instead. The big black ones that are I think 20 lbs, I need to check)

Front cable raises- 4 sets of 10 resps *rest 30-60 seconds between sets

(these were hard, not only am I not used to them, but I am not strong that way. I have the cable on 5 lbs and STRUGGLED. I had to take a midset break on more than one round)

Skull crushers- 4 sets of 10 reps

(these I am familiar with and rather like. I used the EZ curl bar and added 20 lbs to it for 30 lbs. The next round I THOUGHT I added another 5 lbs but actually added 10. That was hard. But I can likely do the 40 lbs all the way through next time)

Drag Curls – 4 sets of 10 reps *rest 45-60 seconds between sets

(also known as the awkward scrape your boobs with the bar bicep curl. I used the same weight as I did for the skull crusher and will go up in the weight for it next time)

Plank pull up- 3 sets to failure

(these were weird. Apparently my wrists REALLY don’t like twisting that way, and I probably used far more leg in it than I should have. Ooops. I increased by 1 every round though)

Diamond pushups- 3 sets to failure *rest 45-60 seconds between sets

(these were done on my knees, not even going to lie. I can do like, 2 in a row off of my toes. On my knees I can do 15 before I get all trembly.)

Plank – 1 minute

(this I actually managed to do. There was breath control, there was trembling, there was sweat dripping. But it got done)

Side bridge – 1 minute each side

(yeah no, I did not make it to a minute each side. Desperately need to work on these)

Isometric V-up -30 seconds

(Also known as boat pose from yoga. Ironically, I didn’t have all that much trouble with this pose)

Ab roller- 20 reps

(these were done on my knees too. And they were still hard to complete. Gotta love the feeling of being super weak)

4:15- ate my homemade fruit and nut bar. Yummmmmmmmmmmmm

6:30- at the aunt and uncle –in-law’s for dinner. Luckily they made cabbage rolls, mashed potatoes and carrots. Not perfectly Paleo, but damn close. I was glad.

[Trewest]

Day two: Tuesday February 24

5:20 am –Shakeology

9:00- spicy tuna cakes

12:00- Italian sausage pizza (but still Paleo, because the crust is made out of almond meal and almond butter and FAILED SO BADLY. Just… Ugh. I followed the instructions perfectly and got an oatmeal consistency for the ‘dough’, and the directions said to knead the dough. It wasn’t dough though, so like any good baker, I added more flour. Yeah…. No. It glued itself to the tray and did not come off. *sigh*)

And herring pieces, with cherry tomatoes

3:00 WORKOUT

Plyometrics and Legs

(I suspected it wass going to kick my ass and take no mercy, lo and behold I was right)

Apparently just under 18 minutes (but now I know to expect it to take longer)

Warm Up:

5 minutes of walking, jogging or rope jumping

Line jumps: 10 reps

(these are box jumps people, I expected hysterical failure and tripping and was honestly surprised when I didn’t absolutely fail. Of course, the gym doesn’t have knee high boxes so I used 2 stacked step up platforms, but still. Baby steps are better than no steps)

180 jumps: 10 reps

(not actually 180 jumps, it means the degrees. Jump up, spin in the air, land facing ass backwards and don’t trip on myself. I did pretty damn good with these and never got too dizzy)

Tuck jumps: 10 reps

(high knee jumps, what fun. I occasionally knee my boob during these!)

Depth jumps: 10 reps

(start on a box, jump down off of it, and back up onto a different box. It sounds so easy on paper, I had too much forward momentum on several occasions and just went off the other side of the box. Into a wall.)

Dynamic step ups: 10 reps each leg

(I had 60 lbs for these and that DEFINITELY made it hard to do 10 simple step ups.)

Barbell squats: 5 sets of 10, superset

(This was the first time I used what I think is called a Smith machine. The first set I did lighter just to get used to the machine and movement, after that I added weight and tried to use good form. It still felt weird but I think I’ll adapt. Using 70lbs)

Good mornings: 3 sets of 10

(basically the swan dive from sun salutations in yoga, only add a power bar across your shoulders. KEEP YOUR MUSCLES ENGAGED OR DOOM HAPPENS. I used 2 ‘lady bars’ to get 24 lbs and found it way too light but the powerbar was in use so I grabbed dumbells. It turned it into a deadlift more than a good morning, but still… 40 lbs)

Standing calf raises: 3 sets of 20 super set

(I can pretty much do these until the cows come home. Of course adding an extra 40 lbs made it a little more taxing.

Reverse hyperextension: 3 set of 15

(like a backwards leg extension. Stomach pressed against support, push legs straight up until superman pose achieved. I ended up on a machine for this and could only do 5 lbs of resistance [curl in to the butt not straight up] and had to take mid set breaks to even make it through)

Leg extensions: 3 sets of 10

(Apparently I have good quads. I was at 45 lbs for these and know I can go up to heavier next time. Of course I had jelly legs at the end of all that but still. Success!)

5:00- stew for dinner, with spinach and cherry tomato salad. Potentially some Italian sausage thrown in too to add necessary calories. Also used anchovy sauce on the salad. Note to self: don’t do that again. GROSS.

[Trewest]

I'll be posting daily whenever possible. Just because it'll help keep me accountable.

[Merrin]

There's an American proverb: Let go or be dragged. So, he could've dug in his heels and not wanted to 'let go' of the current lifestyle, but like you said, he's attached to the cart. Ha!

 

Spicy tuna cakes sound good. I'll look into those for a dinner option.

 

And your 1-minute plank is impressive as hell to me. Are you on your forearms or your hands?

[Trewest]

There's an American proverb: Let go or be dragged. So, he could've dug in his heels and not wanted to 'let go' of the current lifestyle, but like you said, he's attached to the cart. Ha!

 

Spicy tuna cakes sound good. I'll look into those for a dinner option.

 

And your 1-minute plank is impressive as hell to me. Are you on your forearms or your hands?

 

The recipe is from nomnompaleo.com, they're delicious (I used a whole jalapeno instead of just a tablespoon though, as we love spicy!)

 

I do the plank on my hands, though sometimes I'll go chatarunga on them to try and scare the crap out of my body. Also, when I do them at home my cats LOVE to go lie under my belly, which is rather motivating.

[Trewest]

Day Three

5:20 Shakeology

9:00 mushroom quiches

10:30 homemade fruit and nut bar

12:00 mini beef and bacon meatloaf, spicy tuna cakes, spinach and cherry tomato salad

Cardio and Core (or optional rest day)

I am not resting today.

Walking: 5 MIN

(by now I have gotten used to using a treadmill again. Not my favourite thing but I’d rather do that than try to run outside where I will inevitably hurt myself on a patch of ice)

Intervals: 30 MIN of intervals based on feel and fitness level

(I chose intervals on the treadmill. And oh sweet spaghetti monster I dislike treadmills. My ankle was tight and bugging me [i torn the ligament in it when I was 17] and I kept having to take quick ‘hop offs’ to shake it loose, but I did the minute slow minute fast with incline for the entire 30 minutes )

Walking: 5 MIN

(this part felt stupidly easy after the intervals, and I should have stretched afterwards. A fact I am paying for today)

Cable Crunches: 30 reps

*knee below a high pulley with the rope attachment, grasp rope and lower until hands are placed next to your face [smell that lovely odeur of gym equipment] flex your hips slightly and allow the weight to hyperextend the lower back [starting position!] Keep hips stationary [they don’t lie, watch them] flex the waist while contracting abs and get elbows towards the middle of the thighs. Control the reverse

(Apparently I ROCK at these. I did them with 55 lbs of weight and it was enough to make me think I might be able to go heavier next time)

Wood Choppers: 15 reps each side

*hold a weight, go diagonal across body from opposite foot to above shoulder

(I did 35 lbs each side and these were tough. I think I made the movement too much in my shoulders/arms and not enough in my core, but I still felt it in my core)

Roman Chair Leg Raises: 20 reps

(I call it the Captain’s chair. Basically a self-suspended hold with legs going straight up in front of you. I was a sweaty mess by this point which made it a challenge to hold myself up)

Roman Chair Side ups: 20 reps per side

(tilty time! These are easy for me so I shall likely add weights the next time. )

I NEED TO REMEMBER TO STRECH.

5:30-Paleo beef bourgeon and not so Paleo rice noodles.

My husband cooked the dinner last night and I chose to eat it, so although it wasn’t Paleo, I’m not too bent out of shape over it. I even have that for lunch today. Because I needed the left overs

[Leigh]

Have you tried using spaghetti squash instead of noodles/pasta? It's freakishly easy to cook and you can eat it hot or cold makes for a fairly cheap paleo alternative for 'pasta night'

[Trewest]

Have you tried using spaghetti squash instead of noodles/pasta? It's freakishly easy to cook and you can eat it hot or cold makes for a fairly cheap paleo alternative for 'pasta night'

My mother in-law has taught me how to do it (i.e meaning I helped scrape the squashoodles out of it after she cooked it) so that's a good idea, thanks My hubby just really likes to bulk out his food and tends to try and 'feed me up'. After my calorie fiasco a while back (I accidentally only ate 1500 a day for 3 months) he's always worried about me under eating again. I have some insecurities and flirted with a bout of depression not too long ago and he's trying to help make sure I don't develop an eating disorder. I was on the verge of it but I'm hoping that I've gotten the hang of proper healthy eating now.

[Trewest]

Day Four

5:20- Shakeology

9:00- mushroom quiches

10:30- fruit and nut bar

12:00- beef bourgeon and vermicelli noodles, spinach and cherry tomato salad

2:30- WORKOUT

Back, apparently supposed to be 13:32, I know it’s going to take longer because I plan to STRETCH

Warm up:

Walking- 5 Min

(STRETCH FOR THE LOVE OF PAINFREE LEGS)

One Arm Dumbbell Row- 4 sets of 10 reps each side

(I am familiar with this beauty and rocked out the 30 lbs each side for it, and will likely hop that number up next time)

Dumbbell Pull over- 4 sets of 10 reps

(Oh baby does this make me feel sexy. Not sure why but this move is one of my favourites, and I hauled 30 lbs for it. Might try heavier next time, but it was not exactly easy as superset with the previous workout)

Single-arm Incline Dumbbell Rows – 4 sets of 10 reps each arm

(I didn’t expect these to be as hard as they were, I was hauling my by now familiar 30 lbs but I had to really watch my form on the last couple because it got tough. Especially since this is a super set with the next move)

Close-grip Lat Pull downs- 4 sets of 10 reps

(another move that makes me feel dead sexy. I was hauling 75 lbs for this one but it wasn’t easy. There were a couple of midset breaks)

Wide-grip Lat Pull downs- 4 sets of 10 reps

(I kept to my 75 lbs for this one and once again had to take a few midset breaks but I was determined to pull through it. It was another superset move with the next move, which just adds to the difficulty level)

Face Pull- 4 sets of 10 reps

* Facing a high pulley with a rope or dual handles attached, pull the weight directly towards your face, separating your hands as you do so. Keep your upper arms parallel to the ground

 (Gotta admit, I was WTF with the name of this one and had to look it up. I dropped to 45 lbs on this one because we don’t have a pulley at convinent face height. I think with the pulley I used it turned more into a row maneuver but it felt killer)

One arm Lat Pull down – 3 sets of 8 reps each arm

(This move… this was the last one and it was tough. I was at 35 lbs for all but one set where I dropped it to 25. I had to take mid set breaks and the last rep each time was killer. But I see how good this is going to make me look later, I can feel it)

MOTHERFRELLING STRETCH!

Also, tonight is Karaoke night with my husband. He sings like Andre Pavarotti, I sing like Donald Duck. A good time is had by all, but it ends at like, 1 am or later sometimes. So I might be a wee bit sleep deprived. I fell asleep last night at 8:30ish on the couch, woke up at 10:15 pm to go to bed and slept right through to 5:10 am. Not bad for an insomniac who used to get 4-5 hours max.

Dinner was steak fajitas with LOTS of veggies, and a coffee because we were up until 1:16 am singing. Great times.

[Trewest]

Day Five

**** I got to bed at past 1:16 this morning. I wake up at 5 am. It’s going to make for an interesting day

5:20- Shakeology (I forgot to note, this is the time I take my morning supplements too: CLA, L-Carnitine, Garcinia Cambogia and fish oil)

9:00- 2 eggs and 2 piece of peppercorn bacon, baked and a black coffee

10:30- fruit and nut bar

12:00- beef bourgeon left overs with a spinach salad and cherry tomatoes no vermicelli this time

2:15- energy and endurance formula (because I am sleep deprived this should help me activate before my workout so I avoid injury)

2:30- WORKOUT

Chest and Shoulders (another “15 minute†workout that’ll take me like 55 minutes)

Warm up

Walking- 5 min

Dumbbell Bench press- 4 sets of 8 reps

(I love this move,  was rocking 35 lbs each hand for it and could go heavier next time)

Seated Dumbbell Military press- 4 sets of 8 reps

(I kept the 35 lbs each hand for this and the last moves of each set killed me)

Incline Dumbbell Flyes- 3 sets of 10 reps

(I lowered my weights down to 25 lbs each hand and could have gone heavier)

Front Incline Dumbbell Raise- 3 sets of 10 reps

(felt weak as hell for these.  Had to drop the weight all the way down to 12 lbs per hand)

Incline Dumbbell Press- 3 sets of 10

(used my 30 lbs each hand and could definitely have gone heavier)

Side Lateral Raise- 3 sets of 10 reps

(another weak one for me 12 lbs each hand)

Decline pushups- 3 sets to failure

(I used those step up raisers,  2 stacked and did 10 push ups each set)

Ab Roller- 20 reps

(on my knees)

Swiss Ball Roll ups- 15 reps

(kind of fun)

Swiss ball crunches- 30 reps

(REALLY FUN)

Toe touches- 30 reps

(really not fun.  By now I felt like hell)

8:00- chicken dumplings with homemade spicy dip.  Also my night round of suppliments.  

[Trewest]

Day 6

8 am Shakeology and suppliments

10 am WORKOUT

Just realized that those times were for the video length not the ETA for the exercise itself. Yes I can be dumb.

Warm up

5 min bike ride

Skip A- traditional skipping move 20 meters

Skip B- like a low kick while skipping 20 meters

Mummy kick skip 20 meters

High knees 20 meters

Bike sprints- 10 minutes alternating from 30 sec hard core 1 min lighter

(This was hard and I'm going to have to work up to 30/30 split)

5 min cool down bike ride

Also spent the day cooking Paleo style with the husband. Admittedly had way to much white wine too.

[Trewest]

Day Seven

REST DAY!

Well, physically anything I did wasn't in the gym. Instead it was out in the snow with a three year old nephew the size of a five year old. Apparently I have no trouble picking him up and hauling him around but according to everyone else he's heavy to carry. Kid's super tall too. Makes sense since his dad is 6'9 and his mom is 5'10.

Emotionally...yesterday was the pits. I'm ok but I got to witness one of those family blow ups that occurs sometimes. It was awkward to say the least. But I was there to help my husband so at least there's that right?

[Mr_Willes]

You've got a fan, i'm gonna stick around here for a while I think you are doing great!

[Trewest]

You've got a fan, i'm gonna stick around here for a while I think you are doing great!

Why thankies Glad to have a fan. It's nice to feel the support from fellow nerders.

[Trewest]

Day Eight

Week TWO!

I'M DOWN TO 203 LBS! I've lost a pound in a week while still increasing strength gains YAHOO!

 

5:20- Shakeology and supplements (fish oil, CLA, L-Carnitine and Garcinia Cambogia)

9:00- Paleo Scone! (homemade, oh yeah baby!)

12:00- Homemade roasted chicken with paleo vegetable gravy

3:00- WORKOUT

Shoulders and Arms

(Like a silly bint, I forgot my running shoes at home. Luckily a friend in the gym is close in size to me and let me borrow her shoes since she was done. Outside of the ick factor it worked out great)

Warm up:

Walking- 5 min

Push jerk- 1 warm up set, 4 sets of 10 reps

(Really getting the hang of these. Now that I’m more familiar with the motions I was able to up my weight on them, I started at 55 lbs for a 10 rep set to warm up, then hit 65 lbs for 5 rep sets for the rest)

Standing dumbbell upright rows- 1 warm up set, 4 sets of 10 reps

(I went heavy on these at 60 lbs and really had to control my form all through it, but I managed to get it done. Tough but proud)

Cable rear-delt flyes- 4 sets of 10 reps

(I’m trying to find ways of doing these without machines, so I end up looping a resistance band over a chin up bar. And it works, holy crap! I use the 20 lb resistance band, stand a ways back from it and control all through the move. My shoulders feel it for sure)

Front cable raises- 4 sets of 10 reps

(Another one I’ve found a way to do without the cable machine, I use a dumbbell instead. First set was 15 lbs and I found that too light and went up to 20 lbs)

Skull crushers- 4 sets of 10 reps

(Since I’m familiar with this move I grabbed 40 lbs and rocked it out. Not easy, but never took out my own face either so there you go)

Drag curls- 4 sets of 10 reps

(Ah the boobs-get-in-the-way curl, not my favourite. Instead of killing my girls with the ez curl bar, I grabbed 20 lbs dumbbells in each hand and did the move with those. Felt much harder because I couldn’t compensate, and my boobs thanked me for not squashing them with a bar. Win all around)

Plank pull up- 3 sets to failure

(I found a use for the smith machine! I set the bar to a good height off the floor and used that to pull up plank. I did, 6,7,8,6. Not easy moves on me yet but I am building up)

Diamond push up- 3 sets to failure

(Pushing hard in everything else so far left me a little tanked out for the last few exercises. I had to do these on my knees, 16, 15,15,15)

Plank- 1 minute

(I held it for about 50 seconds this time, and I held my breath like an idiot for part of it. Wonder if that’s correlated?)

Side bridge- 1 minute each side

(I toppled over at 16 seconds on both of these. GOTTA work on stability and core strength for sure)

Isometric v-up- 30 seconds

(This wasn’t so bad this week. I watched a round of poker while I was holding it.)

Ab roller- 20 reps

(I didn’t get to this one this time as the area I do it in was filled with a fitness class, excuses excuses)

4:00- spicy tuna cakes for snacking

7:50- ground beef with jalapenos, onions and spinach for dinner.  Ate late because the husband was logging all day and didn’t get home until this time

[Merrin]

You are one HELL of a warrior, lady! It's great that you can improvise various workouts in a way that still works for you, and you end up feeling it afterwards. None of my workouts affect the ladies, so I'm glad to not have that problem, haha. Good on you for the weight loss! 1 pound is totally safe and standard,, and considering you're making killer gains, that's awesome.

 

And...paleo...scone? As in...paleo...sweets? Because this...this is bad. For me. Very bad to know such things.

[Trewest]

You are one HELL of a warrior, lady! It's great that you can improvise various workouts in a way that still works for you, and you end up feeling it afterwards. None of my workouts affect the ladies, so I'm glad to not have that problem, haha. Good on you for the weight loss! 1 pound is totally safe and standard,, and considering you're making killer gains, that's awesome.

 

And...paleo...scone? As in...paleo...sweets? Because this...this is bad. For me. Very bad to know such things.

Paleo scone:

1 egg

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup unprocessed sugar

1 1/2 cup almond flour

1 tsp vanilla

6 oz frozen berries ( I used black and rasp)

1 tsp baking powder

Heat oven to 350. Line baking pan with parchment paper, sprinkle baking powder over that. In mixing bowl add egg, sugar, coconut oil and almond flour and blend until combined. Add berries and mix. Press Bayer into pan and bake 35-40 min. Take over the world one delicious scone at a time. Makes 4 good sized ones, around 235 calories each.

[Jezaraen]

Day 6

8 am Shakeology and suppliments

10 am WORKOUT

Just realized that those times were for the video length not the ETA for the exercise itself. Yes I can be dumb.

Warm up

5 min bike ride

Skip A- traditional skipping move 20 meters

Skip B- like a low kick while skipping 20 meters

Mummy kick skip 20 meters

High knees 20 meters

Bike sprints- 10 minutes alternating from 30 sec hard core 1 min lighter

(This was hard and I'm going to have to work up to 30/30 split)

5 min cool down bike ride

Also spent the day cooking Paleo style with the husband. Admittedly had way to much white wine too.

 

Story of my life re. cooking and to much wine. But it's great that you and the hubby can cook together. My kitchen is pretty small so we have a system where whoever cooks the other cleans. I'm just lucky he's willing to eat mostly paleo as well.

 

Seems like your first week is going well!! Keep it up

[Jezaraen]

Whoops it posted twice ha ha

[Trewest]

Story of my life re. cooking and to much wine. But it's great that you and the hubby can cook together. My kitchen is pretty small so we have a system where whoever cooks the other cleans. I'm just lucky he's willing to eat mostly paleo as well.

 

Seems like your first week is going well!! Keep it up

I get the best of both worlds; I come up with the meal plans and grocery lists, he loves to do the food prep and cooking. My job is to stand there and tell him the next step. So far so good!

[Trewest]

Double post dance!

[Merrin]

Take over the world one delicious scone at a time.

 

I kind of love you a little right now for this. The Sprouts near me has almond flour for cheap. I know what I'm doing my next morning off. By unprocessed sugar, do you use the grain/crystal/darker stuff?