lotta stats and undies mugshots

1/19/14
End of week 3
hardcore hottie challenge booya!

my goals: build as much muscle as possible in 12 weeks, learn to eat healthfully without processed foods and refined sugars, and stop measuring my worth by the fucking scale.

LIFTING -- WEIGHT STATS

Day 1 lifting routine:

*3x10 of bodyweight push ups on toes- it's not a struggle now.  i do them slowly, but could increase the difficulty somehow now a bit with these.

*tri pushdown - 50 wt., 3x10

*lat raises - 10 wt., 3x10

*calf raises-smith machine  75 wt on each side., 3x10

*goblet squat- 50 wt., 3x10

*weighted lunge - a curvy bar which weighs 25 pounds with 15 wt on each side. 3x10

*plank - 1st 2:00, 2nd 1:15, 3rd 1:00 minute, 3x to failure

*decline bench sit ups- dot 1 steepest it goes with body weight.  i will add a plate on my belly next week, 3x15

 Day 2 lifting routine: 

*db row - 30 wt., 3x10

*db pullover - 30 first set, 25 2nd and 3rd set, 3x10

*bicep curls - 15 wt. and did 20 wt. for the last 5 of the set- very hard., 3x10

*rear delt db flys- 10 wt.  the gym has no 12's.  i would increase to 12 if they were available but 15 is too much, 3x10

*rack pulls- 185 wt. w/35 bar plus 75 wt on ea side. ouch on my hands- getting some nice calluses.  3x10

*bulgarian split squat- with curvy bar only.  next week 5 pound plate on each side of the bar. 3x10

*cable rotation -wt. 20, 3x10

*lying hip raises on bench- body wt. need to increase the difficulty. 3x10

 Day 3 lifting routine:

*incline db bench - 25 wt, 3x10

*db flys- 15 wt. , 3x10

*straight arm pulldown- 50 wt. 3x10, dot 1

*cable curls-  50 wt, dot 19, 3.x10

*db plie squat-  50 wt., 3x11. need to increase difficulty or do more regular squats daily

*back extensions- body wt. dot 6, 3x11

*toe press-   90 wt 1st set, 130 wt 2nd set, 170 wt 3rd set/4th set.  4x10

*russian twists- w/ 25 wt plate. 15 reps, 20 reps, 15 reps. 

I've increased weight in nearly every exercise over the three weeks. My very hardest exercises are rack pulls since I've been botching them by lifting 185 pounds total instead of 75 pounds total, and dumbbell flys with 15 pounders. Today, I hugged that garbage can on my flys 30 times and struggled with proper form the last 5 reps of each set. 

now for my measurements:  

1/19/14

weight 150.4 (down .4 pounds)
chest 38.25 (up 1.25 inches)
arm 11.4 (up .4 inches)
waist 29 (down 1.75 inches)
hips 39.25 (up .25 inches)
thigh 23.5 (up .75 inches)
calf 14.5 (same)
measured right bicep flexed for the first time=12.13 inches

so i haven't had input from my trainer yet about my progress, oh WAIT YES I DID!!  and this is it: 

"Wowza HUGE difference Greta. You are looking JACKED."

so today i'm feeling pretty good about what i've accomplished in 3 weeks (plus a week of learning prior to starting the total program on january 1).  

1. i learned to measure food and assess macro content.  i learned to plan and eat foods throughout a day to meet my prescribed macronutrient allotments.  i learned how to convert ounces into grams and vice versa which is a large pain in the ass. 

2. i learned to identify clean foods and notice the different ingredients in foods which i should eat/which are clean and foods i should avoid/make an informed choice about eating.  

3. i learned three lifting routines with 8 exercises apiece which were almost all new moves for me to learn.  and i increased weights when i needed to, by feel.  so i learned how to assess when to increase the difficulty so i am getting the most out of each movement in my time at the gym.

4. i learned to keep off the scale.  and i learned that i have a really fucked up relationship with my weight and the scale and that i need to change my mentals so i am not measuring my worth by the number on the scale.  

fixing the way i think about my body and my weight and my worth will take time and retraining my brain, and i'm confident that over the next 9 weeks i will be getting closer and closer to meeting my goals.   i have a really great shot at achieving them!   

now for my progress pictures:  the top row is from the first day of the challenge 1/1/14.  the bottom row is from today 1/19/14 for my end of week 3 check in.  

so, ya, there's me in my undies.  whatevs.

I'm hitting my macros +/- 10 grams most every day.   It hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be to eat 155 grams of protein, I just shovel in the meat, eggs, cheese and I'm not grossed out at all. I've become an elk steak and turkey eater, shocking!


 

eggs and chicken sausage for brekkie

a few days breakfast and snacks for the 730-430 time frame at work 

a delicious clean meal prepared by alan, lovingly and perfectly macro-y

bacon'ed green beans- alan is a genius!

if i could have calculated this graph BEFORE yesterday my percentages would have been spot on or 1-2%age points off only.  but whatever, yesterday i ate a bunch of fat (good fat though), a whole lotta fat, and well so there it is.  i am very proud of how close i am to my macro goals already 3 weeks in.  overall, i struggle keeping the fat at 75 grams per day, but i'm doing well hitting 225 carbs and 155 protein pretty closely each day.  

this is showing my last 7 days of macros eaten. i'm only concerned with fat, carb, protein grams.  you can see i'm in the red on fat, but i'm oh so close on carb and protein.  score!!  i'm feeling like this is the best i need to do to meet the goals i have set for this challenge.  i do not intend to be rigidly strict with myself in nutrition, i couldn't enjoy that.  i can, however, and have, enjoyed this last week of eating.  i'm feeling good and looking good.  

some workouts from this week:

tough.  that's all i will say.  very tough.

i was holding a 50 pound weight doing goblet squats.  yep, i'd say this program is working just fine!!   (my arms do not look like this in rest, but give me 50 pounds and this happens!!!)  :)

weighted lunges.  i was really struggling here, i will take off 5 pounds on each side next week.  this was too much for 3 sets of 10 reps. per leg.  i plan to be back up to this level in 2 weeks though!!

 

rack pulls are giving me some blisters so i considered gloves and my bad ass trainer MEG said nope, you grow those calluses and lotion up half hour prior to lifting so they don't tear during lifts.   i'm officially scared of her, and in awe of her simultaneously.

I AM FEELING GREAT!  

but i keep in mind:

that's why i don't wear them!