And JUST Because Its Bugging Me...

Courtney West.

Please someone out there tell me that she didn't BRING it at the Arnold! I'm sorry, but I think she was looking better than Erin Stern!

And her back, oh man, was (IS!) solid!


Check out her back (far left) and Erin Stern right next to her!

 PS. Ava really needs to work on her posing. But I will give her credit that she is still in her Rookie year.

That is all. She REALLY earned better than 6th place. In a major way. Robbed, I tell you, robbed!

... Phew! Glad I got that off my chest. ;)

Self Talk

"Will this action get me closer to my goal?" This is all I have been repeating to myself lately. Anything I do, go to the gym or not go to the gym, eat that piece of cheese or not, etc etc etc. Because surprisingly, the motivation to eat well hasn't been there. I haven't gorged... But I've certainly WANTED to!

Haven't found what that missing piece to get me there is yet-
Maybe its a good dose of determination!


For a long time I lost the feeling of control, and yesterday I certainly had the feeling back... I'm trying to focus in on it and own it.
Goals are a funny thing, the process absolutely challenges your desire for it. And finds the determination when you feel like you have none.

I'm a very impatient person and perserverance is something I lack in. I suppose this is something that builds over time when striving for those goals.

Oh! Lost those 2 lbs I put on, back down to 123 lbs. I knew I would. 125 is my limit, getting past there would definitely cause some sort of reaction that would vaguely resemble freaking out in the idea of gaining more weight. Hypothetically. ;)

What kinds of self talk do you practice in order to help yourself?

Monday's workout:
10 mins stairmill for wu
Barbell Overhead: 40x8, 40x8
Front Squat: 60x4, 70x4, 70x4, 70x4, 70x4 (I can't really figure out how to lift heavy without scaring myself... possibly afraid I'll hurt myself?)
Romanian Dead Lift: 70x4, 80x4, 80x4, 80x4, 80x4
Db Snatch: 25x4, 27.5x4, 27.5x4, 27.5x4, 27.5x4
Machine Leg Curl: 60x6, 50x6
Leg Press: 3 sec descent drop sets: 250x8, 250x7, 230x8, 210x7, 170x8, 150x7, 130x8 and teardropped 110x8
Along with my pyramid: 36 wide grip pullups @ 60 lbs assisted, 72 bosu kneeling pushups, and 108 hanging leg raises
Then 30 mins steady rate treadmill
Diet: 1548 cals, 176g protein, 114g carbs, 87g fat along with 128 oz water.

100 Pushups Challenge

I started the 100 Push-Ups Training Program. Its something I've been wanting to do and could no longer find a reason to not do it. Its seriously only 3 times a week. So easy to add in to what I've already got going on athletically.

I did my exhaustion test on Sunday and to my surprise scored with 37 pushups, I guessed I'd get in 30. And honestly, when I got up, I thought to myself, "I bet I could have pumped out a few more."

So, this weekend ended up with Friday's workout:
20 mins of treadmill:
5 min @ 5.5mph
10 min HIIT @ 6-10 mph
5 min @ 5.5mph (I was kind of proud of all of this, I'm not a great runner and is something I'm working on as part of my birthday goals, which is rapidly approaching)
And my pyramid, for some reason I was just not handling so well all the weight. I did my first two at 60 and the rest of the 11 at 70 lbs assisted in reverse grip.
So: 36 reverse grip pullups, 72 pushups, and 108 bicycle situps.

Saturday was a rest day but I think cleaning all day counts for something!

Sunday I only did my first exhaustion test, which apparently you do this on every training day. Excited! :D

I'm Daring Myself

I've recently come across a blog written by Jorge Garcia, the dude who played Hurley on LOST. Since I was interested I was poking around some of his old posts and came across this:

WRITE IT DOWN
"If you want ANYTHING. Write it down.
It doesn't matter if it's something you want in your career, your relationships, your way of life. Write it down.
A lot of friends spend too much time trying to get it right before they write it down.
Screw that! Write it down. In pencil if you want.
Tomorrow you can throw that paper away and write something new down.
I was going threw old "career notebooks" and I found three separate statements:
-I want to be a part of a good ensemble television show.
-I want to book a job on location.
-I want a house in Hawaii.
So write it down. Don't sweat it. Sometimes the hardest part is just getting it out. Once you do that you are already on your way.
Good luck."
 
After reading that, I immediately scribbled this out:
 

 
Maybe I need that reminder at my desk. Amongst pictures of my family and furry babies, my overall goal. The goal was actually 17% (currently) but when I began to write 16% felt more organic, so I went with it. This crazy goal that I've strived for for over a year... So simple, so close and yet so unattainable.
 
Here's wanting. And here's hoping that writing it down is what it will take to find the inner courage to make it there.
 
That being said... I'm off to buy shoes and maybe something else that will make me feel pretty. :)

Wait for it... *BIG* Sigh! :)

Except my money tree would grow Benjamins! lol

Friday! And Payday Friday! AND Tax Return Friday! :) This girl just got paid, ya'll!

Maybe my large knot was a Money Stress Knot? Because it does feel better today. :) Last night I fell asleep during the fights on tv (Thursday night is fight night on our TV... Its the one night a week I don't think about what to watch) and Handsome put me to bed around 9 and we snessled it up (that is our word that is a mesh of "nestle" and "snuggle"... hehe!).

So, since I've spent two days off... Well, one really... for whatever reason I feel like I can't count my AM cardio... I plan to hit it hard today and get in a couple of conditioning sessions at home this weekend.

I've been struggling with feeling pretty. Does anyone else do this? I don't know if its because I have little cash money lately and am not spending anything on hair or makeup or if its that ALL my clothes are too big, but I just don't feel very pretty. What do all you girls do to feel pretty? :)

... And pushing

Nope, no reason. I'm just a geek who thinks
Anatomy humor is funny.

Diet Disclaimer: (for my readers, this will be for future reference) In the past and even recent past I've been listing out my daily nutrition. Originally this was because as a noob, I could not find any information on proper nutrition for my height, weight, gender, age and goals. I wanted mine to be available to others for who felt the same as I and happened upon my own diet. However, this has become slightly redundant for me especially as I eat the same thing over and over. If anyone happens upon my blog and would like to see my diet, please email me. J

Again. Another hard day of pushing through. Honestly, I have been just trying to get to this afternoon.

Possible injury? Very large cramp/knot in my right middle trap- feels like it is so large that it reaches through my chest and goes up my neck from Monday. Seems to have gotten worse, even. Yesterday it just felt sore. Today, it is debilitating. It almost feels like something needs to pop, or something is extremely out of alignment.How does one rid oneself of this kind of pain? Already made an appointment to see my general doc to get an order for massage as my insurance covers 20 a year. Rad! And not so rad that I'm not feeling my best for a training appointment today... Haven't decided if I need to reschedule.

Workouts:
20 mins treadmill at steady pace
65 mins weights:
Barbell Overhead Squats: 40x8, 40x8
Front Squat: 40x8, 60x4, 70x4, 80x4, 80x4
Romanian Dead Lift: 60x4, 70x4, 80x4, 80x4, 80x4
Dumbell Snatch: 22.5x4, 25x4, 27.5x4, 27.5x4, 27.5x4
Pillar Kick Back: 60x6
Machine Leg Curl: 50x6
Hip Adductor: 80x6, 80x6
Hip Abductor: 60x6, 70x6
Along with my pyramid: 36 Close Grip Pullups, 72 bosu Pushups, and 108 Hanging Leg Raises


Just another 10 mins of steady rate running for cardio... It was getting late.

Eats ended up with 1356 Calories, 142g Protein, 129g Carb, 29g Fat along with 120oz water... This was a fluke deal. When I was making dinner, I had every intention of making a casein crepe... even made the batter... and then Molly (our 20 month old Great Dane) started limping all of a sudden... And since she is a giant breed, it is common that they get pains due to bone overgrowth. So we got all panicky and worried about our baby and 6th meal just plain didn't happen. I really don't like my calories that low and would have liked some more protein after a leg workout.

Pushing



Not me...



I feel like I should feel more excited about things, but I'm just not. Having a really hard time battling through this loss of motivation... The only things I look forward to during the day are.. Wait! Time for another round of......

Quick List of Reasons to Be Alive:

1-Steam room at the end of it

2-Going home to my most favorite handsomesexywonderfulsweetstrongBUILT man

3-Casein crepe w/almond butter before bed. Who doesn't LOVE going to bed full when you've been hungry ALL day?!

4-Being able to know on the inside that I had yet another perfect (eats, water, sups, & workouts) day

Okay, I'm working on my mental status. It is hard, but I'm working on it. I'm trying to create my positive outlook that will keep me going through my days. Bringing me just another day closer to my goals.

500 am: 45 mins of stairmill with 2 mins of running
330 pm: 10 mins treadmill (okay, this *might* be just a warm up... but I gotta give myself credit where credit is due and doing just that makes me feel proud of myself)
Weights: Abs, Arms & Shoulders
Standing biceps Curl: 3@ 30x10, 7@ 20x10 (Remember: I'm working on muscle endurance)
Barbell Behind Neck Press: 3@ 30x10, 7@20x10
Bench Dip: 10 sets of 10 reps
Rear Lateral Raise: 2@ 10x10, 8@ 8x10
And my lovely pyramid @ 60 lbs assisted (wide grip)
36 pullups, 72 pushups, and 108 Bench Leg Raises

2 rowing tabatas :) And finished it off with 20 mins of steam room yoga to give my muscleys some lovin! (Ps... my biceps and traps are really sore today)

Eats... Pretty dead on:
7: 1c oatmeal, 2 egg whites + 1 egg, a clementine & coffee
10: 2 c lettuce, 1 tbsp fat free balsamic vinegarette dressing, & 3 oz chicken
1: 3 oz chicken, 1/2 c brown rice & green tea
5: 2 scps whey isolate & rice cake
730: 2 casein crepes w/2 tbsp almond butter (alright, this happened because my turkey chilli didn't turn out and I was getting to that point where I was too tired to cook and was therefore no longer hungry. And paid for it with lack of calories.)
Total: 1285 Calories, 150g Protein, 79g Carb, 41g Fat along with 104 oz water.