Lisa's 12 week transformation

[lmlage]

I am always against new year's resolutions because I believe it's this false sense of reality. I have been working out for a long time now but my progress isn't near as good as it should be. With the recent change in my schedule, there's NO EXCUSES. I was a full time worker with a full time school schedule trying to achieve very much (not to mention I work at a mall). After looking at my finances, I realized I can afford to go to part time job which I can do so I can do better in school, but also so I can focus on training and I won't have ANY EXCUSES. Goals are extremely important and I need to have them to achieve anything.

Current Stats:
Height: 5'10
Weight: 180
Bodyfat percentage: 23%
bodytype: Mesomorph
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Everyone tells me I look great as I am, but that's if I want to be AVERAGE. the problem with that is I dont want to be! I've never really been outstanding at anything, and this is something I can control and be awesome at!!! This is a 12 week transformation guide with weekly picture posts. I hate the scale because it gets in my head, so I'll have to see how often I want to weigh in.

My goals by March 29th:
Height: 5'10
Weight: 165 (more concerned about bf %)
Bodyfat percentage: 16%

I'm not sure if this is completely realistic, but the goal needs to be hard enough for me to work hard and not procrastinate. My weaknesses are that I have family and boyfriend's family who might not be understanding to my bodybuilding efforts.
- I don't eat NEARLY enough and this is counter productive.
- I work in a mall so the temptation of unhealthy foods is there.
- I'm now 21 and drinking is a threat.

I plan on resolving this issue by making a point of eating 5-6 meals a day, and holding off on the carbohydrates in the evening so they don't convert to fat as I sleep. and as far as the mall issue is concerned, I am not going to bring my wallet into the mall with me and only use my Subway card that I can put money on and use it as I go. I think this is the best solution because subway has a great selection of foods, as well as Sunchips and natural yogurt and apples. To tackle the issue of drinking, I hate it. It has an awful effect on workout and diet, and personally I don't really enjoy the taste of it anyways.

My weightlifting goals are as follows:
- Be able to bench 145 lbs.
- Be able to squat 175
- Be able to do 30 push ups
- Be able to do 5 pull ups

Maybe these goals don't seem hard to some but they are SO hard for me. My main trouble area in my stomach.

I NEED to post in here and I NEED to put pictures up and I WILL if I want RESULTS. I hope people read this and will subscribe to help keep accountable. and if anyone needs an online fitness buddy, I'm in!!!

I'm realizing that now that I'm 21, I need to do things that I want before it's too late and I get married and have children. I really want to commit to volunteering to a humane society and I want to get my EMT certification. This is something I've ALWAYS wanted to do.

[RnR]

looks like you've already made some good progress

what's your wo plan

[lmlage]

Woke up this morning pretty determined to rock my workout. I was hesitant to go at 10 a.m. because the owner of my gym is there from 11-7 and alwaysss bothers me (I usually go WAY early in the morning or WAY late at night). I did arms today which wasn't the best because I really like having a spotter. My boyfriend is really into lifting so I'm just going to resort to lifting upper body stuff with him.

Workout:
Lifts:
Lat pull down
-8 reps of 50
- 8 reps of 65
- 4 reps of 70

Bench Press
- 5 reps of 65
- 5 reps of 65
- failure of 65 (crappy I know)

Bicep curls
- 3 sets of 8 reps of 20 lbs

I did 20 minutes of HIIT today on the treadmill. My HR was always at least 185 so I think that means I pushed it pretty hard. For abdominals I did 3 sets of 30 sec flutterkicks, 3 30 sec one legged plank, 3 sets of 128 crunches.

My meals so far since it wasn't a heavy lifting day were this:
Meal 1: slice of wheat toast with promise margarine on it
Meal 2: Post workout 48 g of whey protein mixed with water
Meal 3: 1 Subway 6 inch wheat chicken breast sub with cheese, lettuce, and light mayonnaise.
Meal 4: Whey Protein 48g and 1 bag of sun chips
Meal 6: Salad with steak, cheese, black beans and hot salsa.

Hopefully this is a good diet. Tomorrow I plan on just lifting so that will alter my eating. This weekend I'm going skiing for two days so I know that will burn me a decent amount of calories!!!

[RnR]

Originally Posted by lmlage

Woke up this morning pretty determined to rock my workout. I was hesitant to go at 10 a.m. because the owner of my gym is there from 11-7 and alwaysss bothers me (I usually go WAY early in the morning or WAY late at night). I did arms today which wasn't the best because I really like having a spotter. My boyfriend is really into lifting so I'm just going to resort to lifting upper body stuff with him.

Workout:
Lifts:
Lat pull down
-8 reps of 50
- 8 reps of 65
- 4 reps of 70

Bench Press
- 5 reps of 65
- 5 reps of 65
- failure of 65 (crappy I know)

Bicep curls
- 3 sets of 8 reps of 20 lbs

I did 20 minutes of HIIT today on the treadmill. My HR was always at least 185 so I think that means I pushed it pretty hard. For abdominals I did 3 sets of 30 sec flutterkicks, 3 30 sec one legged plank, 3 sets of 128 crunches.

My meals so far since it wasn't a heavy lifting day were this:
Meal 1: slice of wheat toast with promise margarine on it
Meal 2: Post workout 48 g of whey protein mixed with water
Meal 3: 1 Subway 6 inch wheat chicken breast sub with cheese, lettuce, and light mayonnaise.
Meal 4: Whey Protein 48g and 1 bag of sun chips
Meal 6: Salad with steak, cheese, black beans and hot salsa.

Hopefully this is a good diet. Tomorrow I plan on just lifting so that will alter my eating. This weekend I'm going skiing for two days so I know that will burn me a decent amount of calories!!!

i think i'd die if i tried to workout after meal 1, a few egg whites there would be good. as would some PWO carbs. not bad though

[lmlage]

Originally Posted by RnR

i think i'd die if i tried to workout after meal 1, a few egg whites there would be good. as would some PWO carbs. not bad though

Yeah that sounds like a good idea, thanks!

[SexyBack]

Hi there! I just wanted to wish you good luck with your goals! Your workout looks good! I agree with RnR though, I think you need some sort of protein before your workout and some carbs after for replenishing.

subbed

[lmlage]

So I had a busy weekend, a getaway mini vacation to a ski resort with my boyfriend. My eating habits weren't too awfully bad with the exception of mountain dew, but we skiied in a total of two days for 12 hours, which burns for my body weight 7200 calories. Today was back in the saddle and did upper body. My workout journal is at my boyfriends so when I pick it up I will put in my numbers. After a much deliberated decision followed by a lot of research, I have decided that I am going to bulk for 12 weeks. I really did NOT want to do this because I do not want to gain bodyfat %, but I've come to realize that through years of cardio and lifting, I haven't gotten very far. My mom and sisters have raised and taught me that stick thin is the way with to go and that weight lifting is not feminine. I've grown tired of that and realized that I want to be strong, and I want lose bodyfat and be lean. So my plan is to bulk the next 12 weeks but still eat clean as to not gain much fat. I'm finally comfortable with this decision and I've had to change my transformation goals as a result. I am drinking protein pre workout and creatine and protein post workout. I think the hardest part for me will be to avoid doing intense cardio. I love HIIT and I will miss it. I still plan on doing cardio however, just not at such an intense pace. More details to follow but right now this gal has to get some sleep to help my muscles grow

[lmlage]

I'm finding it hard to get the calories I need for the day. I am approximately 1000 calories under what I need to be eating for a bulk (about 2900).

- all natural granola bar
- reduced fat string mozzarella cheese
- activia strawberry low fat yogurt
- vitamin water
- 6 in wheat oven roasted chicken breast with extra cheese with lettuce and light mayonaise sub
- bag of sunchips harvest cheddar
- 100% all natural juice box
- one chocolate chip cookie (bad I know)
- 2 scoops of whey protein (48 g)
- 1 egg sandwich (2 slices of wheat bread, one slice of cheese)
work out:
- squats: 3 x 8 155
- calf raises seated: 8 x 110
- dumbell lunges: 2 x 8 (20)
- Seated leg press: 2 x 8 (120)
- hip abductor (outer): 8 reps of 200 max, 8 reps of 160, 8 reps of 140
- hip abductor (inner): 5 reps of 200 max, 8 reps of 190, 12 reps of 150
- extensive medicine ball ab workout

post work out:
- 2 scoops whey protein (48g)
- 1 egg sandwich (same as above, we didn't have any chicken at home )


I'm thinking that I didn't have enough protein and too much carbs. This is pretty typical for me. I'll have to add the calories up in fitday, but im pretty sure I'm under. I think I'll have some tuna tonight. good news is my lifts increased a lot since last week!!! I bought my chicken breasts, olive oil and other yummy good healthy stuff.

[SexyBack]

Adding in healthy fats will up your calories, like almonds.

I'm sort of on a bulk too, trying to gain muscle so it will be easier to lose body fat in the spring!

[lmlage]

So yesterday and today I got food poisoning. turns out those two eggs I ate on tuesday night were about a month + old, so I got salmonella poisoning. basically all I did yesterday was puke, and try to eat toast or drink sprite, and threw that up too. Today I'm feeling the same but I'm hoping to be able to do cardio and abs tonight. This definitely hinders my ability to bulk when I'm throwing up!!!

I guess it goes to show that I can't eat any food at my parents house that isn't mine, because its almost always expired!

[lmlage]

After four days of food poisoning, I'm back on track. This weekend I didn't work out (shame on me), but i didn't overindulge either. I'm getting frustrated because I hate lifting when there is a lot of people around. With everyone's new years resolutions, I expected that there would be an overflow of people but not like this. I went at midnight, expecting it to be empty since it usually is at that time, but there was like 10 people there. This isn't a huge gym by any means. Eventually everyone left but I was not happy when I walked in to see a bunch of people in there. Oh well. I did have a good work out, and my lifts have gone up so much that it is surprising me. On Friday I'm going to buy some creatine and more whey since I'm empty, but right now I'm too poor to. Today I'm going to do some cardio and abs after that. I'll post more later.

[SexyBack]

sorry you were sick. My parents are the same way! yucko!

That's crazy that there were people working out at midnight! I couldn't even imagine!

what type of creatine were you thinking about buying?

[lmlage]

Originally Posted by SexyBack

sorry you were sick. My parents are the same way! yucko!

That's crazy that there were people working out at midnight! I couldn't even imagine!

what type of creatine were you thinking about buying?

I'm not sure what kind, are you taking any?

[lmlage]

I can't believe that week 4 is fast approaching. I will post pics on Monday. I have seen gains in my legs and arms. Week 5 I will be changing things up a bit so I don't plateau. Bad news is I totally hurt my rotator cuff benching yesterday. I tried to finish my benches and my left arm didn't have any strength. I lift it about half way and pain just shoots up, so I guess I need to give my shoulder a break and focus on legs, which I'm doing tonight. I'm really glad that I get paid tomorrow so I can buy some more whey and also some creatine. I feel like I'll be on track again once that happens. People at the gym are still pissing me off because there's so many of them. I have my ipod on at all times, and get very aggravated when guys come up and talk to me. I don't come to a gym for social hour, I go there to sweat and challenge my body and mind to push the limits from my last lift. I find it so hard to focus when everyone is around me. That is why I lift at 2 in the morning. I think focus is so important. When I lift, I picture in my head what muscles are working when I lift. That kind of focus gives amazing results I think.

The other day I started running and for the first 5 minutes, I didnt understand how hard it was!!! Then I looked down at the treadmill and I was at a 6.0 incline. Hm... That makes some sense. Now I am biking instead of running. I hope this is good enough cardio because the biking I do at a hard level , and I can feel the intense burning in my lower body when I pedal. I think that is AWESOME!!!

And as far as my whole transformation goes for my 12 week program, I am not focusing on cutting or bodyfat (except to maintain and avoid gains), just gaining strength, so you won't be seeing any pictures of my stomach on there. Speaking of which, I had a dream last night where my boyfriend looked at me and said, "why is your stomach so fat? It's horrendous!" He would never say that in real life but that shows how much that bothers me. Well back to work, thanks for all who read this, I appreciate it more than you know.

Lisa

[RnR]

Damn...2am, thats some rough stuff. I remember one day at 1 am i got the sudden urge to do some squats. NEVER AGAIN!

just start yellin in the gym like these 2 and no one will bother you in the gym

http://youtube.com/watch?v=XDh6098hT...63D5E7&index=3

[lmlage]

Originally Posted by RnR

Damn...2am, thats some rough stuff. I remember one day at 1 am i got the sudden urge to do some squats. NEVER AGAIN!

just start yellin in the gym like these 2 and no one will bother you in the gym

http://youtube.com/watch?v=XDh6098hT...63D5E7&index=3

what a bunch of crazies!

[RnR]

Originally Posted by lmlage

what a bunch of crazies!

i cant get over the first 6 seconds. it gets me ROFL everytime

[lmlage]

I am struggling with bulking. I find it incredibly hard to do, because its hard to eat that much, and it's hard to eat that much and eat clean. I'm seriously contemplating that I'm just going to cut and bulk at the same time. I know that the results won't be as great as if I were to just bulk, but I can't stand not doing intense cardio, and I think that as long as I eat enough and consume a lot of protein, I should be able to do both. I'm finding that many people do not eat clean when they bulk, and they gain a lot of body fat in the process. I am struggling with that as well, because I get so tired of eating soooo much clean food, that I try to get my calories in, even if it is eating cookies. I guess advice and input would be appreciated. Good news is that I am moving to a new store in February for sales, and the store has a fridge so I can bring my food to work, instead of working in a kiosk where I can't bring anything in.

Overall I'm not sure what I want to do. Because I do want to gain in my lifts.

[MISSINGLINK]

Nice journal so far. Good Luck

[SexyBack]

Originally Posted by lmlage

I'm not sure what kind, are you taking any?

right now I'm using Universal Storm. But I have used Controlled labs Green Mag as well. both are great.

You could up your calories in many ways. Try adding healthy fats like nat peanut butter or almonds. How many calories do you figure you need for bulking and what are you intaking now?

[lmlage]

So I have been struggling on whether to cut or bulk or both. After talking with my boyfriend (who also weightlifts frequently and is bulking), I'm just going to keep the pace i'm on. I could cut and lose maybe 10-15 lbs but at what cost? So i can be skinny but flabby? thats yucky. Whats crazy is that I'm up to 180 lbs and I've had like 5 people say "wow, have you lost weight?" So I'm getting fitter and apparently this makes me look thinner.

The sucky part is that I am daily getting criticized by my mom and dad about hardcore weightlifting. My dad thinks that women should only do feminine things like: wearing a crapload of makeup, spending 2 hours on your hair, making babies and cleaning the house. My mom feels the same way except she is obsessed with being thin in the aspect that she has an eating disorder. And so does someone in my family who is close to me, as well as a bunch of my co workers. But that's not who I am and never have I been. My hair is always nice but in no means do I spend over 30 minutes on it, and I don't wear much make up at all (mostly because my boyfriend thinks I dont need any and doesn't like it when I wear much).


So my parents are ignorant and my mom thinks that i'm going to become a lesbian or something because I'm doing something "masculine", and consuming whey and soon creatine. It really pisses me off because they are so quick to judge. But I'm moving in May so that will no longer be an issue. /but the obsession with being thin is EVERYWHERE! My boyfriend told me that he doesn't like skinny women but likes strong women. That is really an encouragement, and without him, I probably would be just like a lot of people, obsessed with the number on the scale. My lifts are going up and I'll post that up here shortly.

So after a mini identity crisis this week, overall I have had a strong finish with 3 days lifting and one more tomorrow but machine weights only. I need to buy some lifting gloves so my hands don't get all blistered from the weights.

thank you for the people who read this, and best of luck to everyone in their goals!!!!

[lmlage]

So after my mini crisis I decided I'm going to stay the course and bulk, and blah blah so I've had 1 great workout this week. I got this shot yesterday called Gardasill which is given to women to prevent cervical cancer. They didnt tell me that it would hurt my arm and it would be sore for a couple days to a week until AFTER the shot. Yesterday I wanted to lift and could hardly lift my arm without it hurting. That is what it feels like right now but its getting better so I'm going right now to lift and just do legs so that will avoid the hurt a lot... i hope. otherwise my lifts are going up amazingly.

[RnR]

skinny girls suck. when i go to a steakhouse i dont order a bone, i order a t-bone. I am most attracted to women that are lean with thick legs and butt (not shredded 30 in quads though)

[lmlage]

Originally Posted by RnR

skinny girls suck. when i go to a steakhouse i dont order a bone, i order a t-bone. I am most attracted to women that are lean with thick legs and butt (not shredded 30 in quads though)

thats good to hear!! I don't know how many people feel the way you do, but I'm sure glad my boyfriend agrees! (though I don't have a butt whatsoever).

I just got done working out and it was horrible. My squat is up to 235 x 4 , but doing deadlift at 115 hurt my shoulder very bad and caused me to have bad form. And for some reason i decided to be an idiot and I went to bench 90 one time and I couldn't push back up and had to roll the bar off of my body.

I guess my shoulder needs to heal!

[lmlage]

So I am at the end of week 6, half way through my program. I want to share my progress from week 1 to week 6. these are only my main lifts that I do. Here goes:

Squats:
W1: 145x8 W6: 225x4
military press:
W1: 35x8 W6: 55x8
Hip Abductor (pushing out)
W1: 190 W6: 240x5
Hip Abductor (Pushing in)
W1: 150x8 W6: 245x5
Low row
W1: 70x8 W6: 100x8
Lat Pull
W1: 75x8 W6: 90x6
Barbell Bench Press:
W1: 20x8 W6: 25x8
Seated Leg Press
W1: 130x8 W6: 210x8
Bench Press:
W1: 65x3 W6: 90x1
Deadlift
(Only started at week3)
W3: 95x8 W6: 145x8

I started on creatine and whey and I'm ready to keep on rolling!!!

[lmlage]

so after bulking and being sick for 1 1/2 weeks, I'm deciding to cut and stop bulking. I think I'll cut for either 4 or 6 weeks, depending on results. I need to cut down to 18% bodyfat. I haven't measured my current bodyfat since the bulk, but I have a feeling it won't be good (since I've not been eating clean). And I want to see all of my work lifting pay off when the fat comes off and I can see my muscular definition. Let me know what you guys think since I dont know if I'm making the right decision.

[turgidity]

Originally Posted by lmlage

so after bulking and being sick for 1 1/2 weeks, I'm deciding to cut and stop bulking. I think I'll cut for either 4 or 6 weeks, depending on results. I need to cut down to 18% bodyfat. I haven't measured my current bodyfat since the bulk, but I have a feeling it won't be good (since I've not been eating clean). And I want to see all of my work lifting pay off when the fat comes off and I can see my muscular definition. Let me know what you guys think since I dont know if I'm making the right decision.

What really matters is that you are happy with your body. As a woman it will never be easier for you to add muscle than in your early twenties and life does not get slower. Not sure what your weight and bodyfat are right now...but doing a slow clean bulk (<1 lbs per week) followed by a clean cut is probably the best strategy. You are quite tall, so I think that it might make sense to continue bulking another ten or fifteen pounds before starting a cut for the summer in early May. That would bring you up to about 195 with a 21% bodyfat which would be a perfect time to start the cut cycle...do a 25 pound cut over six months or so and your body would be near professional bodybuilder size.

[lmlage]

Originally Posted by turgidity

What really matters is that you are happy with your body. As a woman it will never be easier for you to add muscle than in your early twenties and life does not get slower. Not sure what your weight and bodyfat are right now...but doing a slow clean bulk (<1 lbs per week) followed by a clean cut is probably the best strategy. You are quite tall, so I think that it might make sense to continue bulking another ten or fifteen pounds before starting a cut for the summer in early May. That would bring you up to about 195 with a 21% bodyfat which would be a perfect time to start the cut cycle...do a 25 pound cut over six months or so and your body would be near professional bodybuilder size.

Thats exactly what my weight and bf is right now actually! Thank you for the advice it helps to read it!!!

[getfit74]

Some nice progress on your lifts from week 1 to week 6, keep it up!