Friday, December 11, 2009
Half Way
I'm one workout away from the half way point! Seeing nice results in my arms, shoulders and back, but still have a few layers over what I'm guessing are abs. After 17 AbRippers, you'd think I could see some semblance of stomach muscles. An exercise of faith going forward - the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.
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Half Way!
ReplyDeleteI'm a week behind ya now due to being sick for most of week 6. So, I will be starting week 6 tomorrow, even though we have two performances of our Singing Christmas Tree and shouldn't be home until 6pm!
ReplyDeleteBTW...with you on the results Avery. I feel like my back is more defined and my arms are bigger. Legs have always been big, but my calves are definitely bigger. As for the abs, it's NOT about the ab excersizes, it's about getting the fat off that's over the top of it. I'll bet you have a monster 6-pack already, just need to melt off some of the top layer. (I need to do a LOT of melting!)
Hey all, ok, fyi--you can't spot reduce, not even in abs. So, although your abs should be getting more defined, stronger as well, it doesn't mean that a nice layer of fat isn't covering it still. (no offense..please..just facts I am stating.) Keep in mind, the calorie in/calorie out issue. And, best way to get rid of fat overall---cardio! And keep your nutrition in check. We can do many abs, but if we balance it with many pieces of homemade fudge, we are not doing ourselves any favors. :)
ReplyDeleteI personally feel stronger, but when I check out my logs, it doesn't appear that my numbers (either reps or weight) is going up. However, I will note that being I had a lousy week last week, I still completed each series, just had to double up on a lot of the days..playing catch up. So, example yesterday----I meant to do my kenpo Saturday, but again, busy busy so it didn't happen until yesterday. So, here I did lots of shoulder and arm work with kenpo, and after did chest, tri's, and shoulders...needless to say, it didn't allow for me to have any improvement. But gosh, I tell you, probably 6 weeks ago doing 2 of those in one day would've really did me in. Tired, sure, but here I am now up and ready for today! Bring it!!
ReplyDeleteI am feeling stronger overall, and it is definitely showing in the little bit of cardio I squeeze out here and there. Heck, all I have to do is think of one of Tony's workouts and go, "this is a piece of cake compared to that!"
Nutrition side though---all I can say is the holidays SUCK for dieting...EVERYWHERE I go, EVERYTHING I do has potlucks, with gobs of sweets. Pure torture people!! I wish I could just say I won't go, but these are good friends of mine and honestly, staying away from these events over food issues?? I need serious therapy!
Didn't know that spot reducing was a myth. I always thought that working certain parts reduced fat on those certain parts. Interesting. yeah - the holidays are tough. the average American gains 10-15 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years, and its hard to see results when you're surrounded by food for 30 days straight. I weighed myself for the first time since starting the program and have lost 8 lbs. I know I've gained muscle and apparently have shed some fat poundage, but feel like I have more to lose around my mid section. Is there a magic pill for that? Maybe if I stay up and watch some late night info-mercials I'll find one.
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Adam, spot fat burning is one of the more commonly heald fitness misconceptions around. Probably mostly because is seems to make sense logically. "If I work out one area extensively, I should be able to define that area specifically." True, the muscle underneath is getting stronger, etc...but the fat atop will likely still remain.
ReplyDeleteThat's why I feel bad in particular for all those women out there that want a nicer looking butt, so they do all these glut exercises, and don't realize they are actually making things worse. Because if they are not doing cardio and removing body fat IN GENERAL, then they are only increasing the size of the butt muscle and making it look bigger overall!
Steph is spot on that the ONLY way to get that ripped 6-pack look is GENERALIZED fat burning through cardio. (Granted, muscle gain increases your long-term ability to metabolize, but still, the quicker way to see results is cardio.)
As for a "magic pill" try looking into metabolism busting supplements like L-Carnitine. I know there are others, but I bought some of that in the past and have been thinking about adding it back into the mix with all this P90X stuff.
(btw...none of this info is like I'm any kind of know-it-all, or Mr. Ripped Abs, just stuff I've read or experimented with other the last few years.) :)
Hey everyone! Matt and I are still hanging in there, just not getting on here to post often, sorry! I have been doing my Shred workout every day (up to level 3 now!) and then also doing some of the P90X workouts with Matt 2-3 times a week as well. Yes, I'm kicking butt! Not losing anymore weight but seeing a HUGE change in my body, very happy with that. I'm sure the weight will come off more after the cookie eating/egg nog drinking frenzy.
ReplyDelete:) Tasha
Tasha...that's awesome!!! Well done! Jillian would be proud!
ReplyDeleteAdam, I forgot to tell you that I have lost 8 pounds too! Weighed myself this morning. Feel like my body is changing too, but I wish I was seeing a greater shift in my body fat percentage. Oh well, at least I'm moving in the RIGHT direction!!! :)
I say, if ANY of us lose weight this time of year...consider yourself a success!! ;) Seriously, this is tough...but I still keep my motto in my heart/mind..."I eat to live, not live to eat!" With that mentality, it means it's ok to nourish my body, and to give it what it needs to maintain a healty lifestyle---but not live just so I can "enjoy" food. Not let food dictate how I feel--happy, sad, etc. Honestly, I curse the one who ever introduced me to Reese's peanut butter cups!!
ReplyDeletebtw...wayyy too afraid to step on the scale!! yikes...double yikes...triple yikes...
ReplyDeleteYou are too funny, Steph!!
ReplyDeleteI was SHOCKED when I got on the scale last week and found that I didn't gain any weight during my "sick week," cause let me tell ya people...I ate whatever I wanted and whatever felt good! Comfort foods!!
I think the key is to not stress on stuff too much. We're all here, we're all fighting...it's the holidays, and we're entitled to enjoy them. But not over indulge!!
Stick with it as best you can, but don't sweat the small stuff. :)
Yeah, since I've lost some weight so far, my goal during this time is to not gain any back and if I lose more than that's awesome! Since I started my job and then I take care of kids by myself the rest of the day and night I've had to switch to night workouts and that's harder for me so I haven't been able to push myself as much since I've been so tired getting used to working outside the house again, it's been about 7 years since I did that last, whew! And it's harder being a single parent but it gives me more motivation to keep moving! I went to a friend's house yesterday and he was in shock when I was spinning his daughter and my son around and holding them out with my arms and then with my legs without struggling...that was a really good feeling because they are about 70 lbs combined...how cool is that!! So, I know that I've gained endurance and strength more than I even thought until I did that without being out of breath. And I ran around with them all thru the house, up and down stairs and wrestled for about 2 hours straight and felt totally fine, woohoo, now that's why I'm working so hard! :) It was nice to have someone else notice the results too! :)
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