It's Morphing Time!

E

Emm

0
I finally decided to make a journal to help me keep on track, and also to get help. I already learned a lot just browsing the site and probably gained most of what I know to this place. Of course, there's still a lot for me to learn. Well here is a little rundown:

My goal - gain strength, get lean (loose fat, not weight), more evenly proportioned, and strengthen cardiovascular system

Age - 22
Sex - F
Height - 5'3''
Weight - 110

Overall I'm pretty small I suppose, mostly what I'd like is to change my physique. I think I'm pretty scrawny looking up top, while carrying most of my weight on the bottom, my lower body is soft and undefined (other than calves which are starting to show). My butt is a fat sack which creates much discomfort, mentally and physically. I also worry if I may have a pelvic tilt which may be cause of lower back pain. (Fortunately, I quit my desk job and began working out again which helped a lot.) I think it may benefit me to build my back and core muscles since I don't seem to have any. o.o Anyway, here is my current routine:

MWF:
Bench Press - 65lb - 4x5
Pull Ups (assisted) - 4x5
Dead lifts - 95lb - 4x5
Lunges - 20lb db's 4x12
Bent over rows (dumbell & bench) - 25lb 4x5 each arm
Stability Ball crunches - 4 x 25
Cardio on treadmill or elliptical - 20-30 min

Tuesday - rest
Thursday - 30-40 min jogging
Sat & Sunday - Not much done over the weekends except for maybe walking 30+ minutes

(Also I'm worried about my deadlift form so I may post a form check vid, I think I have good form but my lower back was kinda sore after I added heavier weights to them, but it could just be the good kind of muscle soreness?)

Example of my daily diet: (I only drink water)

8:00 Breakfast:
oatmeal + banana + small scoop of whey
or
1 egg, 1 egg white scrambled, whole wheat toast, canadian bacon

11:30 Lunch:
brown rice or ww pasta + protein (chicken, tuna, beans) + veggies

1:00-1:50 I have biology class, and I head to the gym right after from 2:00-3:30

4:00 Snack:
ww bread, 1tbs natty pb, 1/2 banana
or some kind of carb + protein
(Might start having a shake here instead)

6:00 Dinner:
Lean protein + veggies

8:00 Snack:
Cottage Cheese + fruit or a scoop of yogurt

I'm not sure if I want to eat at a surplus or a deficit, I want to loose fat, but also want to build muscle. Right now I figure I eat between 1200-1400 calories/day.

Well thats all I need to say for now, feedback is appreciated, thanks in advance! :mrright:
 
Did a few DLs just now-
 
Today was a pretty good day, was a little surprised to wake up to a bit of snow, and supposedly we're expecting a snowstorm somewhere around here.

What I did:
Bench Press - 65lb
Pullups 20 reps
Dead lifts - 95lb up to 115lb
Lunges - 45lb
B.O.Rows - 25lb
Military Press dumbell- 20lb's
Ball crunches - 120 reps
Back extensions

Still wondering about my lower back, the muscles felt weird after the extensions, I was making sure not to over arch too. Maybe it's just the feeling of them actually being used. Hopefully I can get an appointment with the doc soon just for a look see.

What I ate:
1: WW toast, scrambled eggs and Canadian bacon
2: black beans mixed with spinach, chicken, and a little tofu, piece of flat bread
3: red pear and some almonds
4: broccoli, sweet peas and tuna
5: greek yogurt and an apple
 
This forum has changed my life. I am not lean and stuff, and maxxed 100% powha, but I am fit and feel good.

Looking at your stats, I can only recommend you look at changing things up more. More cross training, play sports once a week, take up roller bladeing or riding a bike. Your body quickly adapts to programs. Also, you full body routine might get boring after a while. If you want to lose weight around you bottom, best thing is to get some Hitt going, and diet (life style change).

More cardio will help you shed the kilo's a lot quicker than the weight IMO. If you do higher reps of smaller weights, this will also help. Your lower back sounds weak, and the arc's will fix it, however it is smart to see a doctor, you could have a nerve issue, never know.

GL.
 
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Thanks for the input. I do cardio almost every day, including the days I weight train though usually for 20-40min. I try mixing it up with jump rope, jogging, elliptical, rowing, and kickboxing. I was thinking about trying out hiit sometime but I've never truly done it before. So you think I should drop a day or so of weight training and use it to focus on cardio?

Also I already made the diet change, eating whole foods, more veggies etc.
 
Whoo more snow today!

What I did:
Eliptical - 10 min
Rowing machine - 10 min
Jogging at 4.5-5mph, 30 min
Some crunches and push ups for the hell of it

What I ate:
breakfast burrito - flat bread, scrambled eggs, canadian bacon
lunch bean burrito - flat bread, black beans and rice + salsa, spinach
snack: pear + almonds
dinner: discovered the magical spaghetti squash, put it in a pan with carrots, celery, onions, garlic, and seasoned with a little bit of salt, pepper, and some dill. holy crap, tasted just like pancit! Good replacement for rice noodles. Ate this with some turkey.
snack: yogurt + apple
 
Good work^

I see you have some good breaky ideas in other posts, however the last one is not the best choice (unless this a weekly snack or something)9see below egg break down)
eggs give a lot of fat, about 1.5g saturated per egg I think, and bacon is not the best food choice.

I have found the best breakfast that works for me is natural yougurt (anything with 10g of sugar or less per serve is good, all the other 'diet' rubbish has tonnes of sugar), low sugar muesli (I use Lowan’s Swiss at the min, just find something with about 10 - 15g sugar per serve), and a handful of frozen berries. This is delicious alternative to the bacon and eggs. I am sure this ain't your daily diet, just sharing.

With the lifting, it all depends on what you want to do. It sounds like you have good positive habit going, which I think is the hardest part. Building muscle will increase your metabolism, but this wont just burn all your fat straight away, trust me, I tried.

IF you lift heaver weights for shorter reps (max 12) you will be doing hypertrophy training. This is great for building your frame, but it wont burn away your fat.

I would recommend cutting back the weights to twice per week, and when you do, hit up longer reps of less weight. This will tone you a lot better.

Sounds like you are mixing cardio up well. Add an extra day for the weights you drop.

Ride to work, or school, if you can. IF you look at my journal and scroll back about 50million pages you will see a post by Chillen with links to a wealth of information. DL each article, print it out and put it in a folder. I have learnt most of my nutrient based knowledge there.

Carido will burn fat, but if your HR is to hi you will only build cardio. I think the fat burning range is between 60-80% of your MHR. To calculate your MHR, minus your age from 220. All this is in the nutrional stickey.

Study the nut sticky (I am sure you have) and calculate your BMR http://training.fitness.com/nutrition/nutrition-101-a-32846.html

Then go to Calorie king .com and try and track your calories for a week so you can get an idea of exactly what you are putting into your body each time.

Good luck, and btw, others here know heaps more than me, they may correct me but I just thought I would share what I think I know. I still have heaps to learn though.




Note, look at yolk info


Learn More About Eggs

Nutrient Breakdown

ASSAYED NUTRIENT VALUES FOR A LARGE RAW EGG*
Based on 59 g. shell weight with 50 g. total liquid whole egg, 33.4 g. white and 16.6 g. yolk
NUTRIENT AND UNIT WHOLE WHITE YOLK
Proximate
Water 37.66 29.33 8.1
Food energy--calories. 75 17 59
Protein (N x 6.25)--g. 6.25 3.52 2.78
Total lipid--g. 5.01 -- 5.12
Total carbohydrate--g. 0.61 0.34 0.3
Ash--g. 0.47 0.21 0.29
Lipids
Fatty acids as triglycerides--g. 4.327 -- 4.428
Saturated--total 1.55 -- 1.586
8:0 Caprylic 0.002 -- 0.002
10:0 Capric 0.002 -- 0.002
12:0 Lauric 0.002 -- 0.002
14:0 Myristic 0.017 -- 0.017
16:0 Palmitic 1.113 -- 1.139
18:0 Stearic 0.392 -- 0.401
20:0 Arachidic** 0.02 -- 0.02
Monounsaturated--total 1.905 -- 1.949
14:1 Myristoleic** 0.005 -- 0.005
16:1 Palmitoleic 0.149 -- 0.152
18:1 Oleic 1.736 -- 1.776
20:1 Eicosenoic 0.014 -- 0.014
22:1 Erucic 0.002 -- 0.002
Polyunsaturated--total 0.682 -- 0.698
18:2 Linoleic 0.574 -- 0.587
18:3 Linolenic 0.017 -- 0.017
20:4 Arachidonic 0.071 -- 0.073
20:5 Eicosapentaeonic 0.002 -- 0.002
22:6 Docosahexaenoic 0.018 -- 0.019
Cholesterol--mg. 213 -- 213
Lecithin--g.** 1.15 -- 1.11
Cephalin--g.** 0.23 -- 0.219
Vitamins
A--IU 317 -- 323
D--IU** 24.5 -- 24.5
E--mg. 0.7 -- 0.7
B12--mcg. 0.5 0.07 0.52
Biotin--mcg.** 9.98 2.34 7.58
Choline--mg.** 215.06 0.42 216
Folic Acid (Folacin)--mcg 23 1 24
Inositol--mg.** 5.39 1.38 3.95
Niacin--mg (B3) 0.037 0.031 0.002
Pantothenic acid--mg 0.627 0.04 0.632
Pyridoxine (B6)--mg. 0.07 0.001 0.065
Riboflavin (B2)--mg. 0.254 0.151 0.106
Thiamine (B1)--mg. 0.031 0.002 0.028
Minerals--mg.
Calcium 25 2 23
Chlorine** 87.1 60 27.1
Copper 0.007 0.002 0.004
lodine** 0.024 0.001 0.022
Iron 0.72 0.01 0.59
Magnesium 5 4 1
Manganese 0.012 0.001 0.012
Phosphorus 89 4 81
Potassium 60 48 16
Sodium 63 55 7
Sulfur** 82 56 25
Zinc 0.55 -- 0.52
Amino Acids--g.
Alanine 0.348 0.203 0.143
Arginine 0.375 0.191 0.199
Aspartic acid 0.628 0.358 0.272
Cystine 0.145 0.091 0.05
Glutamic acid 0.816 0.467 0.353
Glycine 0.21 0.123 0.086
Histidine 0.148 0.079 0.072
Isoleucine 0.341 0.199 0.141
Leucine 0.534 0.296 0.244
Lysine 0.449 0.239 0.221
Methionine 0.195 0.121 0.069
Phenylalanine 0.332 0.205 0.119
Proline 0.249 0.137 0.116
Serine 0.465 0.242 0.238
Threonine 0.3 0.16 0.148
Tryptophan 0.076 0.043 0.033
Tyrosine 0.255 0.137 0.124
Valine 0.381 0.224 0.155
 
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I'm not too worried about the eggs as I mostly use egg whites, and the canadian bacon is a lean protein choice, 99% fat free and 30 calories for what I eat (two slices).

I've already done all the health calculations and whatnot, but thanks for the info, I'll need to check out some of that info Chillen gave to you, it seems there's always more to learn.

I'm still a bit unsure about the whole reps/sets deal. I'm doing higher weights with lower reps because I heard it was what you want to do for strength training, and it's what power lifters do. The higher reps (12+) are what you want to do to build muscle? I dunno, it's confusing. I'm on a deficit so I doubt I will get much build anyhow.

I will definitely apply more cardio in my week but I dunno if I want to drop any weight training days cause I enjoy doing it too much, I think I will just reduce it and still do WT but with an emphasis on cardio. (or maybe switch to a split routine) I think I'm gonna try going to the track and doing some hiit this weekend, as long as the weather permits.
 
I don't think you have to be afraid of eating eggs because of the sat fat. It's not bad to get some of your fat's from sats. Actually, an equal amount of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated is usually recommended.

I'm still a bit unsure about the whole reps/sets deal. I'm doing higher weights with lower reps because I heard it was what you want to do for strength training, and it's what power lifters do. The higher reps (12+) are what you want to do to build muscle? I dunno, it's confusing. I'm on a deficit so I doubt I will get much build anyhow.
Click to expand...

The general set rep rule usually goes something like this:
1-8 strength
8-12 size
12-20 endurance.

Though, you don't know if that's how it is for you. This is based on research with groups, so it's just the group average, so you can't really know what works for every individual person. Some people gain a lot of size doing low reps. Though, low reps for strength and high for endurance is a good rule of thumb, as it's pretty logical, it's mostly the size thing that's a bit variable.

You're on a deficit? I don't mean to pry, but why? Judging from the video you're pretty small as it is. You say your lower body looks a bit off, it might just be that you need some more muscle there ;)

which way is your pelvic tilt? anterior (the top of the pelvic tilting forward, making your lower back curve bigger) or posteroir (just the other way around)?
 
Thank you! That clears up a lot. I wish that was the set rule, it'd make things so much easier, too bad we all have to be unique individuals instead! :p

Why am I on a deficit? Well I don't really know. I always wondered where I should be in my calorie intake and I figured since I want to lose body fat (not neccessarily weight) I should be burning more than I'm taking in. Yes, you're probably right, I think I do need to build muscle in the lower body. It's all flabby thanks to all the sitting I did as a kid (damn videogames) Sitting the way I did probably didn't help my posture either, which is why I belive I have an anterior pelvic tilt. I thought if I can build some back muscle it might help with this.

I'm thinking about implementing some jump squats and step ups into my routine a few days a week. Mayhaps they will help.
 
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Anterior pelvic tilt is usually brought forth by too much sitting. The glutes are in a constant stretched position, making them tight, and the hip flexors are in a constant shortened position, making them tight. Step ups are good for glutes, so are lunges. You already have:
Dead lifts - 95lb - 4x5
Lunges - 20lb db's 4x1

in your routine, adding more leg work might be too much. But again, you're an individual, so it's impossible to know for sure :p

why don't I see any squats in the routine, by the way? If you have the mobility to do deep squats, those really hit the glutes!
 
I always thought egg yolks are bad, back to the curryied egg for me. Sounds like you already have a pretty solid understanding. Also what Karky said re reps.
 
Karky said:
Anterior pelvic tilt is usually brought forth by too much sitting. The glutes are in a constant stretched position, making them tight, and the hip flexors are in a constant shortened position, making them tight. Step ups are good for glutes, so are lunges. You already have:
Dead lifts - 95lb - 4x5
Lunges - 20lb db's 4x1

in your routine, adding more leg work might be too much. But again, you're an individual, so it's impossible to know for sure :p

why don't I see any squats in the routine, by the way? If you have the mobility to do deep squats, those really hit the glutes!
Click to expand...

Yeah I definitely did too much sitting, kinda hard to avoid these days with school and stuff. I had an computer drafting job in which I'd sit for 8+ hours, thankfully that's over with. As for the squats, I didn't add them in for fear of getting bigger on bottom, big muscle covered with fat= bigger mass.. Or so thats what I think, tho my thinking is probably all wrong haha. I wont build much on a deficit right? I will probably start doing them, I found a routine online that looked pretty good, I'll try it out twice a week or so:

1. Warm up with light jogging and stretches;
2. Cardio - perform rope jumping for 10 minutes as fast as you can;
3. Exercises -
Jumping Squat - 4 sets to failure
Step Ups - 3 sets to failure
Walking Lunge - 4 sets to failure
Wide Legged Squat - 2 sets to failure
4. Five minutes of rope jumping.
5. Leg stretches for five minutes.

My workout today:
Not very structured, just felt like I should be doing more back stuff so I did back extensions, cable rear pull downs and front pull downs, pullups, dips, bent over rows, 1 min. plank holds and 30 min cardio.

Food:
Bfast- Oatmeal, 1/2 banana, vanilla whey (which I don't think mixes well if whatever it's added to is too hot.)
Lunch- 1/2 turkey patty, 1/2 cup peas, 1/2 cup brown rice, banana
Snack- Fruit + almonds
Dinner- probably a bunch of veggies and some shrimp
Snack- greek yogurt cuz I'm still out of cottage cheese. Maybe I'll try making a smoothie.
 
jump roping as hard as you can for 10 min?

hahahaha how are you doing wioth that part?

that is a major assignement!

great journal so far!

Sweat Daily
FF
 
flyinfree said:
jump roping as hard as you can for 10 min?

hahahaha how are you doing wioth that part?

that is a major assignement!

great journal so far!

Sweat Daily
FF
Click to expand...

Haha I dunno I haven't tried it yet, but I do know jumping at a normal pace for 5 min kicks my ass. Should be fun, I'll find out soon enough!
:action8:
 
So I tried the aforementioned leg workout earlier today, I found out my fastest in jump roping isn't very fast, and I can't do as many jump squats as I thought I would be able to, over all a good workout I think, had me sweating nicely. Other than that I got in 30 min of walking.

Tried a shake for breakfast: 1/4 cp greek yogurt, 2/3 cp milk, 1 banana, 1tbs pb, 3 ice cubes. A little too tangy from the yogurt but not bad.
Lunch: brown rice + corn, black black bean, tomato, onion, pepper veggie mix
Snack: 8oz milk + 1/2 scoop vanilla whey
Dinner: broccoli, cauliflower, carrot mix + 1/2 can tuna
Snack: 1/2 cp cottage cheese, 1tbs peanut butter, 3 slices canadian bacon, 1/2 slice provolone cheese, and a pickle. Had to eat more than usual at this time to meet caloric needs.

Tomorrow I will do a FBW routine, plus a cardio circuit, I think I'll bring my jump rope! :) School jump ropes suck... they have the same kinds we used in elementary school.
 
Did FBW at gym, did squats instead of lunges. 30 min cardio. Legs are sore (mostly calves) from yesterdays workout. I was going to jog outside tomorrow but I think I'll walk instead to give my legs a little rest.

I decided not to do any crazy cheating in food for the next few weeks or longer, especially not with sweets. Last time I did that bad things happened. I've been paying closer attention to caloric intake as well, so when I do cheat I'll make sure it'll fit.

Breakfast- Tried a shake again but this time with just milk, pb, banana, oats and a few ice cubes.
Lunch- Brown rice pan fried with olive oil, lean ham, and a salad.
Snack- Smoothie, made with milk, cup of frozen fruit, and 1/2 scoop ON vanilla whey
Dinner- Marinated salmon and lots of spinach
Snack- Few oz of Trader Joe's greek yogurt, small amount of chicken breast, feta cheese, and grape tomatoes
 
school and sitting, tell me about it! What do you study?

As for squats and getting a big ass, I wouldn't worry too much. If your in a calorie deficit you probably won't gain a lot of muscle anyways. and it's not like your bum is gonna grow overnight, you'll have plenty of time to stop if you see it getting too big for comfort.
 
Right now I'm still undecided on a major, I'm just getting basic classes done. For a while I thought I might do something in illustration/art but since I've gotten back into fitness and stuff I've been thinking about doing something in the health field, just not sure exactly yet. I'd have to do a bit of research. My interests are all over the place!

I was wondering if I'm already on a deficit, should I be eating more on the days I workout, taking back in my calories burned? Or does it not really matter?

Log for the day:
Made today my rest day, just did 30 min of walking. My mom has also been following my lead and eating better and has started counting calories + walking at least 30min most days. Today she told me she had lost 3lb, whoo!

I ate well today, I tried a muscle milk light choco mint shake for my 3rd meal of the day, tasted pretty good, but probably something I'll only have a few times a week. I still have ON vanilla ice cream whey to finish off, then I want to try a dif flavor. For dinner I tried making some spicy chili with lean ground beef and jalapeno. Wasn't bad but was missing something, could've used more jalapeno too.

I never used to cook much but now it gives me something to do over the weekends. I like figuring out new healthy recipes that taste good and that I don't have to consider as cheats. (I'm sure my mom likes it to, less cooking for her.) Someday this week we plan on trying to make a homemade pizza, including whole wheat dough.
 
So I was reminded today that running outside is a lot harder than running on a treadmill. I did a walk/jog/run with a few sprints for 40 min with my dog, she's pretty good at keeping the pace and not pulling me along. Though she does get scared of some of the cars that pass by, kinda funny to watch a pitbull cringe at the sound of a motor.

Had a filling breakfast: Toast, boiled egg, chopped apple microwaved w/ cinnamon and topped on a kashi waffle, better than syrup.
Lunch: More of our homemade chili
Snack: 1tbs pb on bread, 1/2 apple and some tea
Snack: Muscle milk, realized I have to drink these before they expire in a few days. Reminder- check expiration dates before you buy -_- Funny how I think it's pretty tasty while my mom had a sip and thought it tasted like puke. I guess she's not used to the protein.
Dinner: Salmon, asparagus, spinach, and a few grape tomatoes
Snack: usual cottage cheese + yogurt and blueberries

Overall I think I've been doing pretty well, since I've began working out again. I think the most noticeable difference is in the calves. My abs show when I flex, but I still look rather scrawny on top. Anyhow, not much but it's a start. Next is gettin that thigh definition! :action6:
 
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