Here's the Beef...

[Bionic Beefcake]

I'm a member of the Nerd Fitness Academy and getting a late start - I'm a professional procrastinator and I proved no different in this case.  I decided I'd hop on in over here, too, in the hopes of increasing my accountability and circle of new friends.  

 

My name is Bela, or you can just call me Beefcake.  I'm a 37 year old single mum with two kiddos - a 13 year old son and a 17 year old daughter.  I live in SE Tennessee, though am originally from Michigan and still cling to my Yankee status.   

 

I was pretty active growing up but always felt fat, due to a large bone structure on a 5'4'' frame and always being rather muscular.  As I had my daughter at 19, my weight slowly increased over the years.  I'd gain 5 pounds one year, 10 the next.  I eventually hit my all-time high of 307 pounds.  I ended up having gastric bypass, as I was a dead gal walking, literally.  I had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, sleep apnea, IBS, arthritis in my knees, and other comorbidities.  

 

I averaged a loss of a pound a day during the first 90 days.  Lost 100 pounds by my fourth month post-op.  We were told to exercise every day, but my doctor erroneously told me I had a hernia and to not do any type of abdominal or core-strengthening exercises.  My belly was reluctant to let go of the fat, so exercise caused a lot of back strain.  Kind of damned either way. Eventually he said it didn't seem like a hernia anymore... 2 years post-op!  I wanted to strangle him, LOL.  

 

My lowest weight after the surgery was 157 pounds, but it wasn't a healthy state for me.  I wasn't eating much, I was hiking upwards of 10-15 miles a week and most of my calories were from lattes.  Stress came in (thanks, life!) and a few good things happened.  I started eating more again and focusing on bettering myself all around.  

Bad part of eating healthier again is my body freaked out (plus I grazed way too much) and I gained weight.  I am now at 186 pounds.  I also did a complete overhaul of my diet.  Due to the gastric bypass, you're medically required to eat very low-carb the rest of your life.  Unfortunately, they promote Splenda and every other chemical shitstorm, artificial "sugar-free" food out there.  I've changed to all-natural, paleo with some dairy (only grassfed/raw/non-homogenized) and the majority of my food is organic.  I'm doing well with the eating, but I know I'll do better with my weight once I am back in the gym.

 

Tomorrow is my first day going back to the gym in over a year.  I LOVE lifting... but since I've packed on 30 pounds since last year, I'm having to totally psych myself up for it.  Mostly wardrobe paranoia, if any of you can relate.      I have extremely strong legs (last year I was calf-pressing the whole stack, which I think is around 300 pounds) and leg-pressing around 275.  I need to work more on my core and my arms, but I've always had a habit of working more on what was easiest - my legs.  

 

So, that's my story.      I'm excited to make new friends here and gain some accountability in my quest to level up many more times.  I wish all of you the best.  Cheers!