Outdoor Girl Pre-Pre Contest Prep :)

[Outdoor Girl]

I have to admit it's a little intimidating posting in here, there are some incredible physiques and I really am just a newbie. But I want to do a contest, maybe 1-2 years out, and my time in the gym (and kitchen) really needs to count.

So my background...growing up I was obsessed with bodybuilding and wanted to somehow be involved in sports as a career. Arnold was a hero, and of course I knew of Franco, Corey, Bev, Rachel, etc. I got Muscle and Fitness, watched Pumping Iron 1 and 2, used Joe Weider's whey protein powder. I spent time in the gym, but didn't know of anyone serious about lifting and didn't have a clue how to train properly. Life then took me in other directions but fitness (if not weights) was always there in different ways at different times.

In 2005 I was pretty out of shape due to a very demanding career and sick of it. I started slowly, doing full body workouts and cardio. Over time my exercise routine and diet improved. I actually got quite into running for two years, for one of those years I did a number of races - starting with a 6.5 mile run to a full fledged 26.2 mile marathon. After the marathon I couldn't really run again - for me the experience was a bit of a let down. I didn't feel the elation of finishing the race, achieving this pretty demanding goal. I was just glad to be done running, and really haven't run since.

I met my boyfriend, a personal trainer who has competed in bodybuilding. I had endless questions on training and he helped me to finally learn how to lift properly. I hit the weights hard but didn't take any breaks on body parts and, burned out, last summer couldn't bring myself to the gym at all. By fall none of my clothes fit anymore so I started back up again. I didn't diet to lose weight, didn't even count calories. I fed myself based on how I felt but concentrated on lifting hard to put on some upper body muscle - definitely an area of mine that needs improvement.

Currently I am six weeks into a cut. I am trying to take it slowly so I don't lose any of my new muscle. I need to lower my body fat to assess my weak areas and symmetry and be closer to where I'd need to be at before starting an actual pre-contest diet. As of today I'm at about 23% body fat. The cut has been successful so far - my goal has been to lose about 1lb-1.5lbs a week. I've lost 7.5 in six weeks.


June 2009 - Starting Out

For me this is about health and achieving a desired physique. I eat mostly organic and all-natural. I don't have artificial sweeteners or processed sugars, and eat very clean although I struggle to get protein, especially with some limitations I have. Right now my major protein sources are scrambled eggs, chicken breast, tilapia, salmon, and Optimum Nutrition Any Whey.

My average daily calories expended usually works out to 2,300, my diet usually provides about 1,900. My macros are roughly 35% protein, 35% carbs, 30% fat (majority from good fat sources). I train in a five day split, chest, back, day off, delts, arms, legs, day off. I struggle to get cardio in and need to be better about that.

Well, that's it in a nutshell. I can't log on much during the week but I'll post what I can on weekends.

[Whomper107]

Glad to have you here with us! That's quite a history you have, but it sounds like you are on the right track to make some good progress. I look forward to seeing what you will accomplish with another year or two of work, you seem to have a great base to work with for your cut.

[TheUnderdog]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

I have to admit it's a little intimidating posting in here, there are some incredible physiques and I really am just a newbie. But I want to do a contest, maybe 1-2 years out, and my time in the gym (and kitchen) really needs to count.

So my background...growing up I was obsessed with bodybuilding and wanted to somehow be involved in sports as a career. Arnold was a hero, and of course I knew of Franco, Corey, Bev, Rachel, etc. I got Muscle and Fitness, watched Pumping Iron 1 and 2, used Joe Weider's whey protein powder. I spent time in the gym, but didn't know of anyone serious about lifting and didn't have a clue how to train properly. Life then took me in other directions but fitness (if not weights) was always there in different ways at different times.

In 2005 I was pretty out of shape due to a very demanding career and sick of it. I started slowly, doing full body workouts and cardio. Over time my exercise routine and diet improved. I actually got quite into running for two years, for one of those years I did a number of races - starting with a 6.5 mile run to a full fledged 26.2 mile marathon. After the marathon I couldn't really run again - for me the experience was a bit of a let down. I didn't feel the elation of finishing the race, achieving this pretty demanding goal. I was just glad to be done running, and really haven't run since.

I met my boyfriend, a personal trainer who has competed in bodybuilding. I had endless questions on training and he helped me to finally learn how to lift properly. I hit the weights hard but didn't take any breaks on body parts and, burned out, last summer couldn't bring myself to the gym at all. By fall none of my clothes fit anymore so I started back up again. I didn't diet to lose weight, didn't even count calories. I fed myself based on how I felt but concentrated on lifting hard to put on some upper body muscle - definitely an area of mine that needs improvement.

Currently I am six weeks into a cut. I am trying to take it slowly so I don't lose any of my new muscle. I need to lower my body fat to assess my weak areas and symmetry and be closer to where I'd need to be at before starting an actual pre-contest diet. As of today I'm at about 23% body fat. The cut has been successful so far - my goal has been to lose about 1lb-1.5lbs a week. I've lost 7.5 in six weeks.


June 2009 - Starting Out

For me this is about health and achieving a desired physique. I eat mostly organic and all-natural. I don't have artificial sweeteners or processed sugars, and eat very clean although I struggle to get protein, especially with some limitations I have. Right now my major protein sources are scrambled eggs, chicken breast, tilapia, salmon, and Optimum Nutrition Any Whey.

My average daily calories expended usually works out to 2,300, my diet usually provides about 1,900. My macros are roughly 35% protein, 35% carbs, 30% fat (majority from good fat sources). I train in a five day split, chest, back, day off, delts, arms, legs, day off. I struggle to get cardio in and need to be better about that.

Well, that's it in a nutshell. I can't log on much during the week but I'll post what I can on weekends.

great intro....I will be following along! I really think eating organic and natural makes a difference. those are some good protein sources you have there. nothing wrong with chicken, eggs, and fish!!! I hear you about the running...I had a goal to do the marathons...but realized along the line that I really didn't enjoy running so it wasn't where I should be investing time.

How long are you going to cut for? have you decided to definitely compete?

nice start!

[Outdoor Girl]

Originally Posted by Whomper107

Glad to have you here with us! That's quite a history you have, but it sounds like you are on the right track to make some good progress. I look forward to seeing what you will accomplish with another year or two of work, you seem to have a great base to work with for your cut.

Thanks so much for posting! I see so many changes month-to-month, I am very excited to see what I can do in a year or two.

Originally Posted by TheUnderdog

great intro....I will be following along! I really think eating organic and natural makes a difference. those are some good protein sources you have there. nothing wrong with chicken, eggs, and fish!!! I hear you about the running...I had a goal to do the marathons...but realized along the line that I really didn't enjoy running so it wasn't where I should be investing time.

How long are you going to cut for? have you decided to definitely compete?

nice start!

Hi again! Yes, I am very careful about my food sources, especially stuff I eat a lot of. It's expensive but worth it to me to avoid additives and all that other stuff. Eggs, chicken, and milk are organic to stay away from added hormones and antibiotics. I do notice a difference.

Originally I planned a 12-week cut to get just under 20% body fat. I could achieve it on schedule, or I may need a little bit more time. It's a slow cut so honestly my workouts don't suffer too much - strength and energy are generally really good. At most I may need to add 2-4 more weeks. At that point I'll assess where I'm at and determine where to go from there.

Do a show? I have every intention of doing so, I am pretty committed. To stay on track I plan my meals days in advance, bring food with me, all of that fun stuff. I get up at 4am almost every morning which means I have to go to sleep at 8pm. I'm sure people here know all about that but most everyone else in my life thinks it's a little nuts. I am grateful my boyfriend understands and supports me 100%, because it does have a bit of an impact on my lifestyle.

[Outdoor Girl]

So, my workouts for the past week. Sometimes I do 12 reps, but more often than not I up the weights so I'll fail 4-10 reps.

Chest
Flat dumbbell press 4 sets
Flat barbell press 3 sets
Incline flyes 3 sets
Machine press 2 sets

Back
Assisted pullups 4 sets
Bent over barbell rows 4 sets
Pulldowns 4 sets
Close grip (v bar) pulldowns 4 sets
Deadlifts 3 sets

Delts
Smith press 4 sets
Dumbbell press 4 sets
Dumbbell lateral raises 4 sets
Front raises 4 sets
Reverse flyes 4 sets

Arms
Seated curls 3 sets
Concentration curls 3 sets
EZ bar curls (close) 3 sets
EZ bar curls (wide) 3 sets
Tricep cable pushdowns 4 sets
"Cable skull crushers" 4 sets (not sure what these are really called)
Reverse tricep pushdowns 4 sets

Legs
Squats 4 sets
SLDLs 4 sets
Split squats 4 sets
Leg press 4 sets
Standing calf raises 4 sets
Leg curls 3 sets
Leg extensions 3 sets

Workouts this week were good, got decent soreness in each body part for about three days after each. I have some 12-week breaks coming up and some routines to change soon. Day off tomorrow!

[Whomper107]

Glad to see a girl whose not scared to go a little heavy in the 4-10 rep range. If you've never tried them, you should give DB pullovers a shot on your back day - they're a pretty unique movement that I've never been able to simulate with rows or pulldowns.

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you? Also, what are your thoughts on Stevia (since you follow a mostly natural/organic diet)?

[TheUnderdog]

good excercise variation. Leg day looks intense! Stevia is a wonderful thing to me....although sometimes it does taste a bit funny on some stuff....there is a variation of stevia called Purevia....what do you think of that stuff? it tastes phenomenal...I will try to find a link to it...

[Outdoor Girl]

Originally Posted by Whomper107

Glad to see a girl whose not scared to go a little heavy in the 4-10 rep range. If you've never tried them, you should give DB pullovers a shot on your back day - they're a pretty unique movement that I've never been able to simulate with rows or pulldowns.

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you? Also, what are your thoughts on Stevia (since you follow a mostly natural/organic diet)?

I love failing at fewer reps, although I might do a drop set after that initial failure to keep it going. When I started trying to put more upper body muscle on it took a while to get out of the habit of automatically counting to 12. I will definitely give pullovers a try! I like to change up my workouts to keep my body from adapting.

Feel free to ask my weight but not my age, LOL.

Originally Posted by TheUnderdog

good excercise variation. Leg day looks intense! Stevia is a wonderful thing to me....although sometimes it does taste a bit funny on some stuff....there is a variation of stevia called Purevia....what do you think of that stuff? it tastes phenomenal...I will try to find a link to it...

Leg day is crazy, I have to do it on weekends because it can be hard to function afterwards for a while.

I avoid sweeteners in general. I used to be a sugar addict and to help with my diet/lifestyle change which started in 2005 I quit sweets completely. It's sort of drastic but honestly I don't really feel like I'm missing out and it helps me keep my diet in check (I don't eat sweets so I don't crave them). I might have honey on very rare occasion, which I consider to be very natural and not refined to an unnaturally condensed state like processed sugar.

Don't know much about Stevia or Purevia. These questions got me interested and I'm not sure how valid the internet sources are that I found but it would seem that very small amounts of Stevia is okay and Purevia is pretty new. From WebMD: "The FDA has not approved whole-leaf stevia or stevia extracts as food ingredients in the past because of concerns about their safety, including effects on blood sugar and reproductive, cardiovascular, and renal systems." Another site said it impacts absorption of carbohydrates and can disrupt the conversion of food into energy within cells. But I don't think that report was very recent, it could well be outdated information.

Generally I don't like to try stuff that hasn't been around for ages and is therefore pretty well understood. Since my diet is pretty natural most of what I eat has been around for a long time anyway.

[Outdoor Girl]

Oh...forgot to mention that I got a great deal on five pounds of lean ground turkey. Anyone have any good (and simple) recipes? Other than wraps I'm not sure what else to do with it.

[bbqwizard]

Hi OutdoorGirl! Great story! you're here and that is the first step for sure. We are all here to help each other achieve our physique goal's, whatever they may be. I noticed your post's in Mike's thread and your questions about the cut diet. I think you owe it to yourself to email derek at Teamscivation.com he will set you up with a diet that will fit your need's.

Anyway, Good luck! and I'll be here to help if you need anything

[bbqwizard]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

Oh...forgot to mention that I got a great deal on five pounds of lean ground turkey. Anyone have any good (and simple) recipes? Other than wraps I'm not sure what else to do with it.

Not knowing your current diet, here is something quick and simple.

Brown the meat in a skillet. add Chili powder, onion powder, granulated garlic, cumin, black pepper, oregano. Now you have Southwestern turkey. Things to add: tomatoes, peppers, green onions, black beans, etc. Put 'X' amount of mix into lettuce wraps or High fiber tortillas. Of course you could add skim Mexican cheese and other thing's like FF sour cream and quacamole, depending all on your macros.

[Outdoor Girl]

Wow, that sounds perfect! And you just reminded me of a fantastic meal I had at a restaurant in Houston that used lettuce wraps, it works very well but I never thought to do it myself. THANK YOU!!!

[Whomper107]

You could also make quesadillas with it, I put the recipe up in Cronos' thread about a week ago if you're interested. Turkey chili is pretty good too.

[Barn01]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

Oh...forgot to mention that I got a great deal on five pounds of lean ground turkey. Anyone have any good (and simple) recipes? Other than wraps I'm not sure what else to do with it.

Damn that's a lot of sets ... how long are you in the gym for at a time?

As for the ground turkey. Spice it up with a little Nando's hot, peri peri sauce knead it all together, divide it into 1/4lb patties and toss em on the BBQ. I eat double burgers so that I get the right protein to carb ratio for dieting. (1 bun)

I do this with 96% lean ground beef and eat about 1lbs/day.

[nic902]

Hey girl! I love reading all the prep journals here, but it will be awesome to have a womans journey to follow

Good Luck...I cant wait to watch your progress!!

[Outdoor Girl]

Originally Posted by Whomper107

You could also make quesadillas with it, I put the recipe up in Cronos' thread about a week ago if you're interested. Turkey chili is pretty good too.

Quesadillas...the magic word. I'll definitely be looking that up! I am a huge fan of Mexican and southwestern foods. I've made turkey chili before, I'm having a hard time finding the right amount of chili pepper. I have some incredible chipotle pepper but am scared to use too much. Any rule of thumb, pepper to meat ratio?

Originally Posted by Barn01

Damn that's a lot of sets ... how long are you in the gym for at a time?

As for the ground turkey. Spice it up with a little Nando's hot, peri peri sauce knead it all together, divide it into 1/4lb patties and toss em on the BBQ. I eat double burgers so that I get the right protein to carb ratio for dieting. (1 bun)

I do this with 96% lean ground beef and eat about 1lbs/day.

Thanks! I'll have to try that. I don't have an outdoor grill at home but I do have a Foreman grill which I love to use.

My workouts can go from 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes or so, excluding cardio. Part of that is that I wait way too long between sets because I want to lift heavy and seem to need more recovery time. I'm working on that, keeping the weights and volume the same but tightening up the time.

Originally Posted by nic902

Hey girl! I love reading all the prep journals here, but it will be awesome to have a womans journey to follow

Good Luck...I cant wait to watch your progress!!

Thanks very much for posting!


So....I took the BB.com body type test and I scored as a mesomorph. Not sure what that means about how I should eat or train but I love learning about this stuff so I'll be looking into it.

Today is a day off, which is good because my arms are a bit sore from two days ago and legs are already sore from yesterday. There's not a body part that I don't like working out because right now I'm trying to build up everything. I'm working especially hard on shoulders because I feel they are lagging, I put some size on my arms and my delts look a bit smaller in comparison. My previous routines were not helping much but with Smith and dumbbell presses, heavy, I feel like it's helping a lot.

[MuscleMom]

Best of luck with your goals! Most importantly have fun!!

You are looking great so far! Looking forward to your journey

[MuscleMom]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

Oh...forgot to mention that I got a great deal on five pounds of lean ground turkey. Anyone have any good (and simple) recipes? Other than wraps I'm not sure what else to do with it.

Check out the Jennio site...lots of good recipes.
http://www.jennieo.com/

[TheUnderdog]

Originally Posted by MuscleMom

Check out the Jennio site...lots of good recipes.
http://www.jennieo.com/

^^^^^^
This lady right here has posted some outstanding recipes on this site!

hmmm ground turkey....I once made some delicious lettuce wraps with ground turkey and black beans.....gonna have to search for the recipe.

If you are a mesomorph than that is great! To me its the ideal body type for building a fitness physique.

[MuscleMom]

Originally Posted by TheUnderdog

^^^^^^
This lady right here has posted some outstanding recipes on this site!

hmmm ground turkey....I once made some delicious lettuce wraps with ground turkey and black beans.....gonna have to search for the recipe.

If you are a mesomorph than that is great! To me its the ideal body type for building a fitness physique.

Aww thanks Your idea sounds yummy!!

[Outdoor Girl]

Originally Posted by MuscleMom

Best of luck with your goals! Most importantly have fun!!

You are looking great so far! Looking forward to your journey

Thanks very much! And thanks for the link to the meal ideas, I am looking forward to expanding my diet (which is currently quite boring)!

[Outdoor Girl]

Today I worked out shoulders, and other than presses I feel that my shoulder workout is lacking. It's hard for me to find effective side and rear delt exercises, I have rotator cuff issues I need to be careful about but generally my form feels sloppy and ineffective on shoulders.

Anyone know if it's beneficial to use higher reps on shoulders, at least sometimes, to build muscle size and strength? I'm also interested in front/side/rear delt exercises that effectively isolate the muscle and am open to suggestions. Or, if there are very effective compound exercises I'm interested in those, too. I just need help! LOL. THANKS!

[Whomper107]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

Today I worked out shoulders, and other than presses I feel that my shoulder workout is lacking. It's hard for me to find effective side and rear delt exercises, I have rotator cuff issues I need to be careful about but generally my form feels sloppy and ineffective on shoulders.

Anyone know if it's beneficial to use higher reps on shoulders, at least sometimes, to build muscle size and strength? I'm also interested in front/side/rear delt exercises that effectively isolate the muscle and am open to suggestions. Or, if there are very effective compound exercises I'm interested in those, too. I just need help! LOL. THANKS!

One of the best shoulder exercises I have found is the dumbbell snatch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRA_8jrlT3U

I have a hard time hitting my shoulders very well without them!

Do you do much rotator cuff isolation work?

[push_it]

Hey. Awsome looking goals, workouts and diet! When you do decide to compete I bet you will do amazingly.

I am currently 9 days out from my first show While I am scared, I am also very excited. I have been working hard (lots of cardio lol) and am sure it will be a great experience no matter how I place.

I saw you were talking about Stevia. I use to use Splenda but found that it really hurt my stomach. I decided to switch and give Stevia a try. I love the stuff! It's a bit more expensive but I have no trouble with it and it tastes great!

[nic902]

Originally Posted by Outdoor Girl

Today I worked out shoulders, and other than presses I feel that my shoulder workout is lacking. It's hard for me to find effective side and rear delt exercises, I have rotator cuff issues I need to be careful about but generally my form feels sloppy and ineffective on shoulders.

Anyone know if it's beneficial to use higher reps on shoulders, at least sometimes, to build muscle size and strength? I'm also interested in front/side/rear delt exercises that effectively isolate the muscle and am open to suggestions. Or, if there are very effective compound exercises I'm interested in those, too. I just need help! LOL. THANKS!

I love training shoulders...its one of my favorite days! I like seated presses, lateral raise, front raise, upright rows, rear delt raises. Some sets are super heavy (6-8 reps) and some I superset higher reps (10-12) and I mix up using DB or BB.

Originally Posted by push_it

Hey. Awsome looking goals, workouts and diet! When you do decide to compete I bet you will do amazingly.

I am currently 9 days out from my first show While I am scared, I am also very excited. I have been working hard (lots of cardio lol) and am sure it will be a great experience no matter how I place.

I saw you were talking about Stevia. I use to use Splenda but found that it really hurt my stomach. I decided to switch and give Stevia a try. I love the stuff! It's a bit more expensive but I have no trouble with it and it tastes great!

Hey girl, Just want to drop ya a line and wish you luck...its so exciting!! Enjoy the experience and have a blast

[Outdoor Girl]

Originally Posted by Whomper107

One of the best shoulder exercises I have found is the dumbbell snatch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRA_8jrlT3U

I have a hard time hitting my shoulders very well without them!

Do you do much rotator cuff isolation work?

Hey, thanks for the link! I love learning about new exercises. As to rotator cuff work - I have a rehab program that I am okay at following when they hurt, not so good about when they aren't bad. LOL...I need to get better about that.

Originally Posted by push_it

I am currently 9 days out from my first show While I am scared, I am also very excited. I have been working hard (lots of cardio lol) and am sure it will be a great experience no matter how I place!

That is SO EXCITING! Thanks for posting and for the encouragement! I visited your journal, am very excited to follow along. GOOD LUCK with your first comp!

Originally Posted by nic902

I love training shoulders...its one of my favorite days! I like seated presses, lateral raise, front raise, upright rows, rear delt raises. Some sets are super heavy (6-8 reps) and some I superset higher reps (10-12) and I mix up using DB or BB.

Thanks for the delt info! Do you do barbell upright rows? I do a cable variation sometimes. My arm and wrist angles make it very difficult to do work with straight bars so I often have to do cable variations with angled bars.

[Outdoor Girl]

I can't usually get on the boards during the week because I can't view from work.

Someone here encouraged me to list my weights lifted, not sure the proper format because my reps vary from set to set based on failure. If there's a better format please let me know.

Chest
Flat dumbbell press 12@25# / 8@40# / 7@40# / 9@35#
Barbell flat press 10@75# / 9@75# / 8@75#
Incline flyes 12@15# / 12@20# / 12@20#
Machine press 12@50# / 10@50#
(40 minutes)

Delts
Smith press* 12@55# / 9@65# / 7@65# / 6@65#
Dumbbell press 8@25# / 7@25# / 6@25# / 10@20#
Machine side lateral raise 12@30# / 12@40# / 12@40# / 12@40#
Cable upright rows 12@50# / 12@60# / 12@60# / 12@60#
Reverse dumbbell flyes 12@8# / 12@8# / 12@8# / 12@8#
(60 min)

* The Smith machine is counterbalanced and I think the Olympic bar is offset by 30#, so the net weight is 15#? I usually add that 15# to my weight, is that the correct thing to do?

My diet is pretty messed up right now, still low on protein, haven't been planning my meals properly, and I haven't been very disciplined about water. I am feeling a little burned out so I think I'm going to let it slide until the end of the holiday weekend and try to get re-energized for coming back. Some of it is from stress, which is gonna happen so I need to learn to deal with it in a way that keeps me productive.

Time for another body fat measurement and maybe some more progress pics soon. I notice differences all the time, subtle but one day I might see a front delt in just the right light or see nice forearm development when I'm at the gym doing arms. Still so far to go, but it's good to notice some slight improvements - it's encouraging.

[mivi320]

In for the ride!

Off to a great start, good luck Outdoor Girl

[xtralean]

Great start keep up the hard work!

[Cronos1247]

Great detail in your log, the work outs are looking great! Any time frame your looking to be in contest shape by?

Whomper has some awesome recipes, I highly recommend the mcmuffins!