Journey, Not A Destination

Hips are a bitch. Commuting as much as I do always knocks my right hip out of the loop more than the left.

I've been working on hip opening for the past 3 months and made very little progress. Very little. They ARE much stronger from all the.........in not-Sanskrit, I guess it's called isometric lunges ;) Hey! They LOOK good :) :seeya:

My hips always make slow progress too. And if I don't stay on top of them, they really get screwy.

I have a number of exercises that work great for my hips, I just rarely do them. Time is too damn short these days!
 
Yeah, and you're busy, too.

My hips are just not getting any more limber, grrrrrr :cuss: I try so hard, but saddle-split-efforts are.....it's not like BAD pain, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. :ack2:
 
Hiya Liz!

Unfortunately I haven't gotten around to taking pics yet. Life is unbearably hectic at the moment. Yea, I know... taking pics takes 5 seconds. I truthfully don't even know where my camera is from the move, lol.
No worries, i moved 4 months back and still trying to find things. Though i was pretty hard this time and made a point of unboxing every single box asap so they dont hang about for 3 years.
On the plus side i went to the gym and got a fitness assessment and im 'excellent' with a vo2max of 49 :D
Got a new workout to do also.
 
Good stuff Liz! You've come so far. With all the biking you do though, I'm really not all that surprised.
 
i went to the gym and got a fitness assessment and im 'excellent' with a vo2max of 49 :D

DAMN!!!!! :hurray: What an achievement! That's awesome!

HIYA, Steve :) Sat against the wall, body on the floor, legs spread in one of my yoga classes yesterday to get them open--they moved about a half inch after 5 minutes. :( Five minutes is a long time, depending! haha, especially in wall sits I imagine :D Are you a wall-sits guy?

Hope you have a good day!
 
I'm not a wall sits guy.

For hip mobility I primarily do a bunch of dynamic stretches, myofascial release and some static work.
 
Good stuff Liz! You've come so far. With all the biking you do though, I'm really not all that surprised.
You would have laughed at me today then. Havnt done any weights in about 5 months and went in to do them today.
Man i benching 6.5lb dumb bells in each arm and i could lift more, but my arms had the mega shakes on because my supporting muscles were useless :O
Watching my arms jiggling away was super funny :)
 
That's how it goes. I'm like a fawn standing on stilts when I take any appreciable time off and then return. It happens.
 
Need help, encouragement...heck, anything I can get!

Hi Steve,

I've been a member of the forums for a while but only recently became active again. I've been lurking around, looking at a lot of your posts and realize that you have a wealth of knowledge about health and fitness. I'm encouraged by so many on here who have lost the weight and kept it off and decided that it's time for me to do the same.

I've tried to read through the majority of your journal (but sheesh, there's 738 pages :eek: ) and have read nearly all of the stickes but still need some one on one encouragement. I'm hoping you can help; judging from some of your previous posts I'm counting on you to shoot it to me straight. If you're super busy though and don't want to take on another charity case :blush5: then I'll completely understand. If you can offer any advice however I'd greatly appreciate it!

Here's a bit about me:

I'm female, 22, 5'8", 192 lbs. My goal is 130-140.
I've never really struggled too much with weight, I've always been relatively thin. I began gaining weight however after I graduated high school and got a desk job. I went from eating fairly healthy home cooked meals and being faily active to zero exercise and fast food. Needless to say, the pounds packed on pretty quick. After I got married, things only got worse. My husband has always been on the "husky" side, so exercise and healthy eating never really played a large role in our every day life. (We're from the south....you can't beat that good ol' Southern food!!) Anyhow, I began doing Weight Watchers with a friend at the beginning of last year and lost about 15 lbs. I soon discovered I was pregnant, however, and stopped. I ballooned to 224 by my delivery date (due largely to preeclampsia) and had gotten back down to 190 by my 6 week appt. After that, I've made a few failed attempts at "dieting" but have pretty much resided in the 180-190 range. I'm not obese, but I'm certainly not healthy nor happy with my current physique.

On 12/1, I decided to make a change. I began doing some light cardio for about 30 minutes a day (and soon discovered I was TERRIBLY out of shape!!) and have cut down on junk food. I know I still need to maintain quite a few calories in order to lose the weight the right way but to do it eating "healthy" foods. This is the first place I become anxious; I work 50 hours a week, go to college full time, and raise a 1 yr old active little girl...I don't have time to prepare a healthy feast for 3 meals a day!! Every sample "healthy" plan I've found online always involves something that is just waaay out of my leauge in terms of time and skill. "Almond Crusted Talopia wrapped in Zuchinni" isn't something I can whip up while the little one's crying for a bottle. I need to be practical as I face this lifestyle change because that's what I'm considering it as : a lifestyle change. I no longer want to be a victim to fast food and laziness, I want to be a healthy example for my daughter. So-- what are some suggestions to healthy eating that don't involve hiring a live-in chef?

Secondly, I've never really done an exercise routine before. What kinds of things should I incorporate? This is still my first week of the change, but so far I'm doing intervals on the treadmill and doing some light weight lifting...just a few reps at a time. I gathered from your previous posts that it's important to not only do cardio but to tone (for lack of a better word) the underlying muscle so that your body can adjust and change properly with the weight loss. (At least I think that's what you meant) Anyhow, what kinds of things would you recommend for a beginner? And...can we formulate some sort of plan as I do begin to lose the weight? Something that will follow my weight loss.

Okay...I think that about covers it. Again, I really admire your opinions and your own personal success and I hope that you'll be able to offer some tips to this newbie. :blush5:

If you need more info or pics or whatever, just let me know.

Thanks in advance, Steve! And best of wishes to everyone who reads this!!
 
i'd like to bump a rant i made a while back in my diary. It's applicable to the influx of fucktards who feel the need to personally attack me for no good reason beyond their inability to think without bias.

So here goes...

God forbid i be competent in one particular area. Where is the line where one goes from being competent to being a know-it-all i ask?

I'll gladly admit that i'm borderline retarded in many areas but people like to base judgment on a very isolated facet of my life; this forum. And unfortunately for them, this forum revolves around fitness, health, and nutrition..... One particular area that, guess what.....

I'm very competent in.

It's hard for me to keep my mouth shut at times, i'll admit that too. I just want to say at times:

Here's a clue: If you don't want to be talked to sternly for being a ****ing moron, don't be a ****ing moron, or at least keep your ****ing verbal diarrhea in your idiot brain, because i don't care how much you like it: Your idiot viewpoint is not valid just because you hold it.

I love it when people prove they are moronic loudmouths with zero ability to read, let alone be reliable in assessing other people.

This is what morons do when people don't buy their bullshit. They hide behind the civility barrier, like it's a time-out zone. "well steve, at least i don't belittle other people." what kind of response is that to me telling someone their acting stupidly for starving themselves given the context of their goals?

Believe it or not, but me telling someone they're acting stupidly or their plan is stupid is not a judgement of said 'someone.' if you want hand-holding, cotton candy, and butterflies..... Go back to nursery school.

This is the real world and we are adults. As adults, we are forced to live up to our actions. Just as when a i see a guy getting behind the wheel drunk and i tell him how stupid he is being, i will tell a guy he's being stupid by trying to starve the fat off himself, as one example.

I'd like to add this to my rant. These words are spoken by a guy i truly respect:

"despite what a great many people seem to think, the internet is *not* the real world. The internet is a medium through which largely anonymous people exchange thoughts, ideas, opinions, and information.

You tend to notice that, left to their own devices, people online will tend to default to a lot of the structures and behaviors that would otherwise exist in the real world. Dominant among these, as in real life, is the idiot.

Idiot, -n. A foolish or stupid person.

Now, i tend to regard this word with a broad stroke, however, there are quite specific instances of "idiot" that pop up. The idiot is not to be mistaken for the ignorant. The ignorant simply lacks knowledge. The idiot is a different matter; the idiot is either unable or actively unwilling to possess knowledge. The ignorant can be taught. The idiot will reject your knowledge as he does not possess the ability or desire to have it.

With this in mind, my "internet persona" has been crafted with something of a hard edge, quick to become sarcastic, blunt, and generally abrasive all the way around. This is not unintentional; what is a prerequisite matter of accepted civility, all but required for simple functioning in the real world, has become virtually a handicap in the realm of thoughts. In a medium where information and idea are king, there is both a purity and a catharsis that arises from abandoning the shackles of convention and speaking one's mind. Considering the dominance of the idiot, this is all the more important, as the voice of the idiot is often a hurricane compared to the gentle breeze of the more enlightened."

big note: This is directed an no one in particular....

The interwebz is such a funny place. Anonymity fuels irrational behavior for sure. You don't get to see genius like this at work just anywhere.

At least i can be confident with regards to myself that what you see is what you get; here and in real life. If you don't like it, either turn a cheek or confront me. But the fact remains that i am happy with myself and i'm not about to change simply b/c my value system does not align with your own. That's the kind of irrationality that starts 'fires' on forums and it's a function of close-mindedness.

Sure, you can pass judgement on me. But no, you can't tell me i am right or that i am wrong. You are not me and i am not you. More importantly, you don't fucking know me or my intentions so stop pretending like you do.

There's something you don't see from me. I may act like a pompous ass at times. I may be overly blunt to prove a point. But i don't question someone in the sense of trying to change who they are as a person. It's their right to be whoever it is they want to be. Yet, this is what a select few try to do to me time and time again on the internet.

Just make sure you are mentally equipped to handle yourself with some basic reasoning and logic instead of turning into a emotional train-wreck when and if you feel like confronting me.

And remember, this is directed at no one in particular. It's an accumulation of emotion stemming from some of my experiences i've had on the internet, is all.

/rant

bumpity bump bump
 
Hi Steve,

I've been a member of the forums for a while but only recently became active again.

Glad to have ya. :)

I've been lurking around, looking at a lot of your posts and realize that you have a wealth of knowledge about health and fitness. I'm encouraged by so many on here who have lost the weight and kept it off and decided that it's time for me to do the same.

Thanks :)

And ya, it's a great community.

I've tried to read through the majority of your journal (but sheesh, there's 738 pages :eek: )

Yea, you don't want to do that! There's too much fluff in this diary to make it worth anyone's time reading. There are some gems of wisdom interspersed but hardly enough to make it worth your time.

Trust me, lol.

and have read nearly all of the stickes

That's refreshing... thanks for taking the time.

Here's a bit about me:

I'm female, 22, 5'8", 192 lbs. My goal is 130-140.

Okay, a few general thoughts first:

1. Don't get sucked into the mindset where you believe there's one right way to go about obtaining your goals. There's not. Be consistent with your efforts and they'll pay off. Many people become hesitant to act simply b/c they're unsure if what they're doing it 'right' or not. Doing something is better than nothing as long as you're not hurting yourself.

2. Losing fat is really as simple as consistently being in a caloric deficit. There's nothing fancy or magic in my mind about it. It's easy to get hung up on all the little details but at the end of the day, the foundation of fat loss is being in said deficit.

3. With that said, obviously nutrition is the primary focus when it comes to fat loss. You can't out exercise a poor diet. Various forums of exercise merely magnify the benefits your diet provides.

4. I understand your schedule. I'm insanely busy (though you'd never guess by how often I post on here!) Whipping up really tasty foods isn't something I have the privilege of doing often. For me, if I'm going to stick to a diet, it all comes down to planning. I plan everything ahead of time...

I prepare all my foods in bulk so that it's as simple as grabbing some baggies that are already weighed out and in line with my goals.

You have to ask yourself, "How involved do I want/need to make this?"

I can't answer that for you.

For some, simply cleaning up the diet and moving more is enough to take them a hell of a long way. Frankly, this might be the best approach too. It requires little thought. Clean and simple it is. Simply make smarter food choices, which is seems you have and exercise consistently. I bet good things happen.

I could really end the post there and let you come back when that stopped working. I know you're looking for more but it's the truth.

Others prefer more structure. In truth, more structure tends to give better results if said structure is tolerable to the individual. If you're tracking calories and nutrients, it's real easy to see when/where/how you're screwing up and when/where/how to adjust to move forward.

When you're winging it, it's not as easy.

Like I said, it's up to you to pick your course of action. If you read the stickies, you know how to calculate your caloric needs and set a deficit and how to set up your macronutrients.

Before moving onto exercise. Any comments about what I've stated so far?
 
First of all, thanks for replying so promptly! I appreciate the welcome.

Second, every word of what you said makes perfect sense. For some reason, in my mind I think that losing weight has to be complicated...when obviously, it's not. As long as there's a calorie deficit I'm going to lose fat. Plain and simple.

I like your idea of planning meals ahead. I'm going to try to implement this more as I get a good feel of what I can eat and what's in my calorie range.
Is it okay if I give you a sample meal plan of what I've eaten the last few days?...as dumb as this sounds, I really have a hard time knowing what's "okay" to eat. Obviously, I know that fruits and veggies are on the clean list (which sadly I don't really like, but I'm gonna try to fit them into my diet) but what about variations of things? What about restaurant meals?

Here's how I've rationed my calories lately:

Breakfast (5:45 am)
1/2 Bagel- (100 cal)
8 oz V-8 VFusion (110 cal)
*Take a Multi Vitamin and 500mg B-12

Mid Morning Snack (8:00 am)
WW String Cheese (60 cal)

Lunch (11:00 am)
Lean Cuisine of Some Form (~300-500 cal)

**Gym Time 12:30 pm-1:30 pm**

Afternoon Snack (2:00 pm)
Protein Bar (250 cal)

Dinner (Between 5:00 pm- 6:00 pm)
Whatever hubby or I cook (??500-600 cal??)
``This is where it gets tricky...this is probably my least organized meal of the day...it can range from Hamburger Helper (with venison) to homemade burritos (fat free refried beans) to boneless skinless chicken breast and mashed potatoes to spaghetti or pizza. I feel that this is the meal that I need guidance on the most (provided my above diet is "okay")


So, that about sums it up. Break it down for me...but be gentle. ;)
 
I don't like the idea of clean vs. dirty foods.

Beyond making sure calories and macros are in line with your goals.... it really comes down to eating as naturally as you can. The more processed a particular food is, the less healthy it is.

That said, I try my best to stay away from packaged food.

This does not mean you can't lose fat eating junk. You could eat nothing but chips and candy and lose fat.

But I, as well as you I'm sure, am in this for health too.

That said, I'd try your best to fit these foods into your diet as best you can:

Protein: Chicken/turkey breast, lean ground beef, top round steak, pork tenderloin, fish, cottage cheese and other dairies, eggs, protein powder

Fats (which you seem to be lacking in): Fish oil, flax oil, olive oil, safflower oil, natural peanut butter, nuts, olives, avocados

Carbs: whole wheat bread, pasta, wraps, old fashioned oats, yams, veggies, fruits, rice.

These are by no means complete lists but these are staples that I personally live and die by. It's certainly not all I eat but it's a majority.

Dinner for you is tough b/c you have to eat with your hubby. It really comes down to, as I said above, how into this to you want to start out? Simply stick to the foundational foods like those I listed above for the majority of your meals/snacks and practice portion control.

If that's not working, then dive into murkier waters. No sense muddying them now though, when you might now have to.

Balanced meals are important too. Not for fat loss but for health. I'd shoot for some protein, carbs and fats at every single meal if you can. I'd also try and eat fibrous veggies at every meal too.

I eat my veggies cold more often than not, since I'm always on the run.

Personally, I cook bulk supplies of meat twice per week. I weigh it out, bag it, and refrigerate it. I also weigh out and bag anything else that's possible like cold veggies, nuts, etc.

I also usually have a rough idea of the meals I'm going to eat plotted out on a spreadsheet so, before I leave the house for the day, I glance over the sheet and throw whatever I need into my lunch bag.

Like I said, I don't have anything magic or fancy... I'm down and dirty... do what I have to do.
 
first let me tell you how sorry i am you lost a friend. its just so sad. the world today is really getting to be a place i have trouble liking.


also...i remember the first time you were ranting :D always thought it was a nice rant :D

anyway...just wanted to let you know that i am making progress slowly in my exercises, so i added some squats and lunges to the play, as well as some dumb bells. but i really enjoy those core exercises, they're difficult for me but i appreciate the thought process i have to include in order to do them correctly :D

plus i tried a bit modified HIIT on the elliptical, managed to barely do 3 cycles the time ratio being 80:20 seconds (on the third one i was breathing heavily and had to start with cool down) but felt really good afterward lol.

the food is giving me some issues but i will make a plan over the weekend and prepare some meals for the next week to take for lunch at work.

ok that's it from me
hugs to you handsome :D
 
Progress is progress Lena, that's all you can ask for. Sounds like you're doing just fine.

Thanks for dropping in. :)
 
I don't like the idea of clean vs. dirty foods.

Beyond making sure calories and macros are in line with your goals.... it really comes down to eating as naturally as you can. The more processed a particular food is, the less healthy it is.

That said, I try my best to stay away from packaged food.

This does not mean you can't lose fat eating junk. You could eat nothing but chips and candy and lose fat.

But I, as well as you I'm sure, am in this for health too.

That said, I'd try your best to fit these foods into your diet as best you can:

Protein: Chicken/turkey breast, lean ground beef, top round steak, pork tenderloin, fish, cottage cheese and other dairies, eggs, protein powder

Fats (which you seem to be lacking in): Fish oil, flax oil, olive oil, safflower oil, natural peanut butter, nuts, olives, avocados

Carbs: whole wheat bread, pasta, wraps, old fashioned oats, yams, veggies, fruits, rice.

These are by no means complete lists but these are staples that I personally live and die by. It's certainly not all I eat but it's a majority.

Dinner for you is tough b/c you have to eat with your hubby. It really comes down to, as I said above, how into this to you want to start out? Simply stick to the foundational foods like those I listed above for the majority of your meals/snacks and practice portion control.

If that's not working, then dive into murkier waters. No sense muddying them now though, when you might now have to.

Balanced meals are important too. Not for fat loss but for health. I'd shoot for some protein, carbs and fats at every single meal if you can. I'd also try and eat fibrous veggies at every meal too.

I eat my veggies cold more often than not, since I'm always on the run.

Personally, I cook bulk supplies of meat twice per week. I weigh it out, bag it, and refrigerate it. I also weigh out and bag anything else that's possible like cold veggies, nuts, etc.

I also usually have a rough idea of the meals I'm going to eat plotted out on a spreadsheet so, before I leave the house for the day, I glance over the sheet and throw whatever I need into my lunch bag.

Like I said, I don't have anything magic or fancy... I'm down and dirty... do what I have to do.



This all sounds very doable.

I appreciate you taking the time to break things down for me. According to an online calorie calculator, with 30 minutes exercise per day I should consume 2225 calories in order to create a healthy calorie deficit and reach my goal of 130 in a "healthy, steady matter". Does this sound fairly accurate to you? If so, I need to beef up the calories a bit. Is there anything in particular that you suggest I eat more of (or less of for that matter?) Also, you mentioned fish oil; do you recommend the fish oil capsules? If so, which ones should I take (what amount of mg, etc.)?

One last thing-- as far as exercise goes, should my 30 min of cardio combined with "toning" exercises suffice for now? I try to work out on my lunch hour but I could probably add in a bit more cardio if need be.

Again, thanks a million. It's great to have someone to shoot these kind of questions at and to receive answers that I believe are accurate. (If I were to ask any of the guys at work these types of questions I'd get an array of different answers...most of which would sadly be inaccurate :rolleyes:)
 
Steve's word is gospel, all you muthafuckers! :p

Thanks for the tiny bit of advice yesterday--I enjoyed chatting :)

You should really help girls who say they have no ass and want to build one.....and/or keep what ass they have high and firm :) Start a thread!

SEEYA! :waving:
 
HEY! What an adorable Phili accent you have :beating: HOT HOT HOT! I need to fine me an East Coaster--the WORST accent for a man, IMO, is an El Eh "Valley" accent, UUUUGGGHHHH :rolleyes:
 
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