Posts by ronna

Original Post by dbackerfan:

I agree with trainer #2 pick up the weights and lift and lift heavy.  Ignore the scale ##'s go by how your body is going to reshape.  I was lifting in 09 and really didn't push myself as hard as I should have- I joined a new gym with real squat racks and have been doing the new rules of lifting for women again and since March when I started I have gone from a size 12 to 8's and the 8's are getting loose in spots now.  I've only lost about 15 lbs on the scale, but I know my body is shaping up fantastically.  I love my shoulders now and my butt is that "shelf butt" that is the "in" thing these days.

I'm 50 5'6" and weigh between 167- 170 on average.  My goal is to get down to the so called healthy BMI but even now I wear clothes in sizes I wore when I was 25 lbs lighter.  

After I get back from my vacation in Aug I will be starting the Female Body Breakthrough and she absolutely forbids any and all steady state cardio for the first 9 weeks then only HIIT or the matrixes after that.  

The FBB also takes all wheat out of your diet.  she says the only bread you can have is ezekiel bread.  I bought some the otehr day and its pretty good and filling 

Also carb loading after waking and a lifting workout are recommended.  the protein shake while and immediately after lifting are recommended as well.  I've been using her eating plans with pretty good success.  Small meals spread out through the day and the pounds are starting to come off again after being stuck at 185 - 190 for over a year.

 

Oh, Dbackerfan, how encouraging!  I'm going to check out the items you mentioned!  "New rules of lifting for Women" sounds like a definite must for me to look into.  And FBB sounds interesting, too.  Sounds like we are in similar boats!  I'd love to be one of those people who can say I've lost XXX pounds or XXX inches or dropped from size ZZ to size XX! 

Original Post by kikt:

O.o

I'm no nutritionist, but that's looks like a damn weird diet to me. Very one sided, almost atkins. u sure that's healthy long term??

And I'm not a low cholestorol priest, I think modern day hystria benefits the pharmaceutical industry more than anybody else, but three eggs a day is a lot for a smallish woman. And if you don't buy maximum quality eggs you are eating a huge amount of crap with them (antibiotics, hormones pesticides etc. etc)

I know you wanted sports advice not food advice, but I think you might need to find the joy of cooking and eating again. Variety truly is the essece of life especially when it comes to food.

Your gym plans sounds good. But, again, after a few weeks you should change it, or do some classes in between. Keeps your body on it's toes and you off a plateau.

from what I have researched, eggs are not the "bad" food they once were thought to be!  and the positives outweigh any negatives, imo. 

I do enjoy eating and cooking and think I have plenty of variety in my life - I just happen to be one of those odd people who doesn't mind eating the same things over and over!  Not everyone can do it.  I also work at home, by myself, and often go days without interacting with "real" people - again, that's not for everyone but it works for me! I am probably the happiest I have ever been in my life, to boot! 

I plan to do strengthening - leg presses one day, overhead presses the next day, deadlift one day, etc. along wtih some kettlebell routines and HIIT - but again, I prefer to have a set regimen - variety - but structured.  Does that make sense?   

Original Post by kikt:

You do look like a woman who knows her mind :-)

I'll check ut the coconut oil. Somewhere in the depths of my brains (where all the holes are) is the idea that Coconut oil is the worst ever. I might need to update that.

I'm German. The idea of a life without whole grains or without potateos is just mindboggeling (we love our solid, dark and heavy Vollkornbrot. Someone has counted over 700 different kinds of breads and buns being sold in all of Germany. That even beats the beers) . We pick up a lot of American fad diets here, but the low carb one is the only one that never really took off. :)

I've cut down on carbs more or less automatically when I started CCing. At some point it triggered an immense craving. Took me a while to understand where the hell that came from so now I try to feed myself enough bread to not have that.

*goes to check the potatoes that are boiling away in the kitchen*

I, fortunately, did not experience any cravings after stopping any particular foods.  After 2 months, I did go back to adding 2 packets of Sweet N Low to my one cup of coffee just because I dont' care for black coffee and anyway for decades I used 3 packets per cup and had would consume a whole pot of coffee every day!  But no other sugars whatsoever except what is in fruits and some veggies.  No honey, stevia, etc.  But when I do eat any of the foods I choose to keep off-limits for me - (I am flexible enough to allow myself to indulge every now and then) I don't have any adverse reactions or cravings, etc.!  

I cut out the grains, and legumes (sugars and dairy) because of the insulin response and how that causes calories to be stored as fat.  I had been eating homemade low-fat yogurt and steel-cut oatmeal with barley, fruits and veggies and no processed foods - basically what I considered "healthy" and my trainer suggested I try cutting out the grains, dairy, sugars, legumes, etc.   Coconut oil is a healthy fat and which burns fat rather than stores as fat so I started adding that to my diet, too. 

Well, after 3 solid months of this, I STILL see no difference!  LOL.  I know my scale is not broken because I can pick up my fat cat and together we weigh about 180 or my skinny cat and together we weigh 170.  Just me, it's 160.

Now that it's been three months, I do have some cheese, and have some bread every now and then, but I do want to try to keep my carbs low.  I do consume quite a bit of protein (tuna, red meat, chicken) and lots of green leafy stuff and some berries.  I consume the fat for energy rather than carbs ... but, again am seeing no changes!  

I wouldn't mind being 160 pounds if I could just get rid of the jiggles!!

Sleep is not an issue - usually I'm asleep within minutes of turning out my lights and I average 7 hours a night. 

Job is not stressful - and I enjoy it immensely - just the increased medical bills right now I have to work extra to cover everything - once they get paid off I won't have to put in so many hours!  But at least I work at home and I CAN work more hours. Finding a new job really is out of the question in this economy and anyway I doubt I'd get paid as much anywhere else in this line of work.  I do take freqeunt breaks so it's not like Im' stuck pounding away at the computer all 76 hours!  LOL. 

I was spending 40 minutes at the eliptical when I lost those 10 pounds last year - but with the added 20 minutes commute to the gym makes a hour and I  just can't spare much more time that than.  I like going when there are the fewest people around and also when I seem to be the least productive work-wise - so I go around 1;30 in the afternoon.  I could ride my bike but it's all UPHILL coming home so I'd be walking the bike home anyway (after working out!) so that wouldn't save me much time.

My question was is there anything "wrong" with going back to the elipitcal to lose at least 10 pounds and THEN start strengthening?  I would be so happy to lose that 10 pounds again ...  

Oops.  I should have updated.  I visited my doctor in February to talk about the Merina IUD/weight gain issue.  I had her look in my chart and at the time I had the IUD inserted, I was already at 152 pounds.  So I've actually only gained 8 pounds since the Merina was placed.  Most of that weight-gain is probably age-related.  I decided to keep Merina until I have to have it removed next year. 

I am now working with a personal trainer concentrating mostly on strengthening and since May 1 have cut out grains and dairy and refined sugars from my 'diet' (i.e. Paleo 'diet') for the next 30 days to see if lowering my carbs will make a difference in weight loss, at my trainer's suggestion.  I'm still at 160 pounds but still hoping to see some reduction! 

Original Post by johnnypenso:

Do exactly what you're doing and have a healthy carb snack before you workout.  I find eating a banana and an apple, maybe a bit of cheese, some leftovers, about an hour or a bit less before a workout, really helps me get through the HIIT at the end of my workout, after the weightlifting.   I think you have too big of a space between your last meal before your workout and the end of your workout.  Also, make sure you drink lots of water while you workout because dehydration can also lead to drowsiness.

That's why I moved lunch from 11 to 12 ... I usually get to the gym by 1:30.  I have to do HIIT before anything else - I can't imagine doing my strengthening and THEN the HIIT!  LOL.  My total time at the gym is probably no more than 30 minutes but I walk to and from so that adds an additional 20 minutes to my time away from work.  It's only 1/2 mile from me and uphill all the way home so riding a bike would not be practical in my case!  Walking home from the gym becomes my "cool down" and let me tell you, it is GREAT when the temps are below freezing.  Not necessarily looking forward to walking home in the swealtering summer heat again ...  :o)

yeah, I know!  LOL.  I wish I could attach a pic here - I was just reminsicing about my aunts!  I last visited them in Japan in 2004.  But I know that two of my aunts are parital to beer so that's a big factor!  And I know they all eat white rice, not the brown rice, and quite a bit of fried foods.  The Japanese culture food-wise has lots of fast foods incorporated into it these days.  But I do know that traditionally the Japanese diet has lots of good points in it - lots of fish, soy products, etc. 

yeah, you're right about the saturated fat in cheese - I do stick to skim, nonfat milk and I also use that to make my own yogurt so I think I'm okay there - but drat about the cheese!  I have been nibbling on one 1-inch cube cut into little pieces to gnosh on during the day but I'll definitely look into veggie cheese!  Tofu and soy products are not "good" for my metabolism, according to Jillian Michaels, since I'm perimenopausal and those contain hormones that supposedly help keep my fat settling into my tummy and hips!  UGH.  But, as I said, this is quite the challenge!  I will have to play around with CC's food analysis and see if I can come up with a meal plan that is both efficient in terms of health and metabolism and satisfying to me all at the same time.  Thanks for mentioning the topics - when I get some time I'll check those out!  I know I've googled similar topics in the past but now, armed with CC's food analysis tool, I can hopefully fine-tune things.  One of my main goals is to find foods that don't cause me to be too drowsy during the day.  My job requires a great deal of concentration and I am working 12 hours a day, 5 days a week!  That's why going to the gym for an hour in the afternoon works out great for me.  I do get between 7 to 8 hours of sleep at night so I don't think the drowsies are from sleep-deprivation.  

Original Post by sybil878:

It's not your lunch, look at your breakfast and your dinner. Overall your diet is likely high in carbs. It doesn't matter what you eat right before you workout if all your meals prior are pulling you down.

The artical you read was wrong. Sorry :/

My trainer wants me to try to lean more towards the paleolithic or cave-man 'diet' - more fruits, veggies and meats - but also cut out the dairy products.  I have been eating 3 servings of dairy, i.e. nonfat yogurt, skim milk and cheese for snacks becauses osteoporosis runs in my family.  I hate to give up my oatmeal and barley in the morning - I'm a creature of habit and like ruts!  LOL. 

The article came from "Active Insider -- the monthly newsletter from Active.com, the world's most comprehensive portal for athletes of all levels"

It just seemed to make sense to me but then again I'm a novice at all this!!