Hello!
My food was pretty boring today so I opted out of posting it. However, I decided to do a bit of a different post! Lately people (in real life actually) have been asking me how I got into lifting. A lot of people at the gym have been asking if I was ever into sports when I was younger. (I guess the two usually go hand in hand?) Anyway, the answer is when I was younger, I did NOTHING. I never passed the mile run in P.E in high school. I was a straight A student, never got in trouble, but I actually got in trouble a couple times in PE for not participating! Ha!
So what led me into lifting/working out.. well, first I went about it the wrong way. I thought I was “fat” and needed to lose weight. So, when I first started out I went on a really stupid low calorie diet and did a workout dvd here and there. Nothing crazy. Then as time passed I eventually joined a gym.. I wanted to try out pilates. But like most girls, I was brainwashed into thinking cardio is what would let me be “skinny” or at least look the way I wanted. So, in came the cardio! I was doing it 6 days a week, usually 45 minutes to an hour. I did little bits of weights here and there, but I never lifted heavy (I thought my legs would bulk up?) and always did it after cardio because I believed cardio was more important.
So, long story short, this continued for a long time. But although I was losing weight, I never looked the way I wanted. I thought that the less calories, the better. (NOTE: I was never anorexic, but I just assumed I didn’t need many calories.. I was eating about 1200-1400 a day.) At my lowest weight, I still was unhappy with my body.
So, I started reading and researching. I found bodybuilding.com and it was like a whole new light was shed. I realized that no matter how much weight I lost, it wasn’t going to give me the body I wanted. The problem was not that I had fat, but the problem was I didn’t have enough muscle. And I really thought I had muscle but now looking back I realized I didn’t have any muscle to work with. Girls- if you just keep dieting without lifting, you will be “skinny fat” or just look small but with no definition- that is what happened to me.
So with reluctance, I started lifting heavy weights and eating more. Jessica was actually one of the first people to help me out! I was still doing cardio at this point, but not nearly as much as I was. Then Kristina started helping me out! She gave me a nice kick in the butt to drop the cardio and keep up the heavy lifting. She started critiquing my workouts and giving me feedback on my diet. Finally, I went for it- I dropped the cardio and put all my energy into lifting and eating.
Honestly, I couldn’t be happier! I’ve put on a decent amount of muscle, and have still managed to stay very lean. (Not sure why… but I’ll take it!). I’ve now realized you don’t have to do cardio to stay lean (that is, if your diet is good.) I think lifting saved my body, my mind, and even my social life!
Reasons why I love lifting:
- I can eat a heck of a lot more just to maintain my weight! I’m eating nearly 800 calories more than I was back when I was a cardio-a-holic.
- I love the way I look- I still fit in my clothes that I was wearing at my smallest weight, but I look better than I did when I weighed 10 pounds less
- This is not to brag.. I’m actually really shy and modest but I just have to throw this out there.. I haven’t been hit on this much in years. Seriously. Like all of a sudden I’m getting a bunch of “your hot” remarks among other ones…
- My abs are finally starting to show..
- I can enjoy treats every now and then without worrying- hey, these extra cals will go towards muscle building!
- The workouts are intense, but I love it because I also get to rest all of the time. Lift, rest, repeat. It’s pretty great! I actually burn more calories lifting than I do with cardio according to my heart rate monitor
- I love feeling strong and I love when I get new personal records. It’s a way for me to challenge myself. I couldn’t challenge myself with cardio besides trying to go an extra minute on a machine or something like that. And I like the challenge!
- It’s pretty humorous to see the people at the gym watch me lift! Most of them are probably thinking, “what the heck is that little girl doing with that 135 pound bar?” Haha!
- I’ve made a ton of friends, through the internet and in real life thanks to lifting.
- It’s a wonderful stress reliever. If I’m mad or stressed, pumping a little iron cures all!
- It’s raised my confidence A TON. I’ve never had that great of a self esteem, but currently I am as confident as I can be.
- It’s wonderful for disease prevention.
Lastly, it is FUN! It has become a passion and a hobby for me. I never lift because I feel like I have to. I do it because I love it, and of course for all the bulleted reasons above. 
For those of you who love your cardio, that is totally fine and I admire you for that! But for those of you who only do cardio because you think you have to, I encourage you to take the leap into lifting. I promise you won’t be sorry!
For those of you who read through all of that, thanks! Ha! I’ll leave you with my workout since we are on the subject… Hams/Glutes/Calves today:
All Regular Sets (1 minute rest):
- Stiff Leg Deadlift - Warm up with 95 pounds, 1 set of 12; 135 pounds, 5 sets of 10, 9, 8, 8, 8 <-increased reps
- Barbell Lunges (I used the Smith today for a change)- 125 pounds, 4 sets of 12 on each leg
- Cable Stiff Leg Deadlift- 120 pounds, 4 sets of 8, 8, 7, 6
- One-Leg Squat on Free Motion Squat Machine- 60 pounds per leg, 4 sets of 8 <-lowered the weight and went below parallel
- 45 Degree Leg Press – 340 pounds of added plates (does not include weight of sled)- 4 sets of 10, 10, 8, 8
- Glute Pushback- 90 pounds, 3 sets of 10 on each leg
- Narrow Stance (knees, feet together) Squat (I went below parallel)- 80 pounds, 3 sets of 10
- Calf Press on 45 Degree Leg Press- 140 pounds, 4 sets of 20
- Standing Calf Raises (I used the Smith)- 100 pounds, 4 sets of 20
Foam Rolling/Stretching
Total Time: 1 hour 33 minutes (with foam roller) Calories Burned: 582 Max HR: 177
Let me hear your thoughts!
Bye!
Hello!
My food was pretty boring today so I opted out of posting it. However, I decided to do a bit of a different post! Lately people (in real life actually) have been asking me how I got into lifting. A lot of people at the gym have been asking if I was ever into sports when I was younger. (I guess the two usually go hand in hand?) Anyway, the answer is when I was younger, I did NOTHING. I never passed the mile run in P.E in high school. I was a straight A student, never got in trouble, but I actually got in trouble a couple times in PE for not participating! Ha!
So what led me into lifting/working out.. well, first I went about it the wrong way. I thought I was “fat” and needed to lose weight. So, when I first started out I went on a really stupid low calorie diet and did a workout dvd here and there. Nothing crazy. Then as time passed I eventually joined a gym.. I wanted to try out pilates. But like most girls, I was brainwashed into thinking cardio is what would let me be “skinny” or at least look the way I wanted. So, in came the cardio! I was doing it 6 days a week, usually 45 minutes to an hour. I did little bits of weights here and there, but I never lifted heavy (I thought my legs would bulk up?) and always did it after cardio because I believed cardio was more important.
So, long story short, this continued for a long time. But although I was losing weight, I never looked the way I wanted. I thought that the less calories, the better. (NOTE: I was never anorexic, but I just assumed I didn’t need many calories.. I was eating about 1200-1400 a day.) At my lowest weight, I still was unhappy with my body.
So, I started reading and researching. I found bodybuilding.com and it was like a whole new light was shed. I realized that no matter how much weight I lost, it wasn’t going to give me the body I wanted. The problem was not that I had fat, but the problem was I didn’t have enough muscle. And I really thought I had muscle but now looking back I realized I didn’t have any muscle to work with. Girls- if you just keep dieting without lifting, you will be “skinny fat” or just look small but with no definition- that is what happened to me.
So with reluctance, I started lifting heavy weights and eating more. Jessica was actually one of the first people to help me out! I was still doing cardio at this point, but not nearly as much as I was. Then Kristina started helping me out! She gave me a nice kick in the butt to drop the cardio and keep up the heavy lifting. She started critiquing my workouts and giving me feedback on my diet. Finally, I went for it- I dropped the cardio and put all my energy into lifting and eating.
Honestly, I couldn’t be happier! I’ve put on a decent amount of muscle, and have still managed to stay very lean. (Not sure why… but I’ll take it!). I’ve now realized you don’t have to do cardio to stay lean (that is, if your diet is good.) I think lifting saved my body, my mind, and even my social life!
Reasons why I love lifting:
Lastly, it is FUN! It has become a passion and a hobby for me. I never lift because I feel like I have to. I do it because I love it, and of course for all the bulleted reasons above.
For those of you who love your cardio, that is totally fine and I admire you for that! But for those of you who only do cardio because you think you have to, I encourage you to take the leap into lifting. I promise you won’t be sorry!
For those of you who read through all of that, thanks! Ha! I’ll leave you with my workout since we are on the subject… Hams/Glutes/Calves today:
All Regular Sets (1 minute rest):
Foam Rolling/Stretching
Total Time: 1 hour 33 minutes (with foam roller) Calories Burned: 582 Max HR: 177
Let me hear your thoughts!
Bye!
