Newbie with an ambitious goal

S

Susie

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Hi all. I've been lurking here for about two weeks now and have really enjoyed these boards. I really appreciate the brave folks who post their before/during/and after pics so I thought I'd try to be brave too and add my own *gulp*

Basically I want to go from this:

to this:
Am I asking for too much? :D

I'm pretty much what they call "skinny fat" in fitness circles-- I'm 5'8" and 125 pounds but have very little muscle tone. Actually what you see in the pictures below is me WITH a little more muscle tone than usual because I started exercising almost 4 weeks ago with a Tammilee Webb DVD and have seen some improvements.

I'm 32 years old and I figure it's high time I kick myself into gear before it all _really_ goes downhill. I've always admired women with muscular calves and I'd love to grow mine if possible. I once backpacked overseas for five weeks, carrying 20 pounds on my back everyday, and I did get some growth in my calves, but once I was back in the USofA things went back to how they were before. :/

For now I've been doing (among other things) squats, lunges and one-legged calf-raises without weights because I am such a weakling, I want to give myself time to build up strength and form before I jump into using weights. So far cardio has only been walking, but I'm leaving for a 2-week vacation in a few days and plan to swim every day and hopefully when I get back I'll join a gym to step things up.
I don't just want to look better, I want to be strong and healthy in general and also build strong bones.

I'd appreciate any exercise/workout suggestions!
 
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thanks

Hi Cynic,
Thanks for the info! To me she doesn't look anorexic thin because she appears to have a lot of musle, granted it is all on a long, thin frame. But then again she looks like she doesn't have an ounce of fat on her body and I don't need to get quite to that level. I mainly just want to gain muscle-- something I've never really had-- especially calves, and get my thighs more lean all the way up-and-down (they used to be like that, but just from being thin, not from muscle/fitness). And of course core-strengthening, nice arms and shoulders...okay everything! And I want to get in aerobic shape for all of the health benefits, improved circulation etc.

I've already seen that page you've referenced (with links to HGM etc), but thanks for linking to it again, I'll definitely go back and study it some more. I need to really sit down and figure out a routine/eating plan. For the next two weeks I'll be away on vacation and probably won't have gym access, so I'll just be doing calisthenics and of course lots of swimming! The beaches are pebble (not sand) beaches so I don't see myself taking any barefoot jogs on the beach. :p

Well I know I may not have as huge a goal as some of the people here since I don't have much weight to lose but I really want to do some serious body sculpting, so we'll see. Maybe I'll have a progress picture in a few weeks/month?
 
Susie said:
I need to really sit down and figure out a routine/eating plan. For the next two weeks.
Click to expand...

The routines are already made for you. There's probably 5-7 years worth of workout on that page. All you have to do is choose the weights.
 
Ok

cynic wrote: The routines are already made for you. There's probably 5-7 years worth of workout on that page. All you have to do is choose the weights.

That was my problem, there is a lot there to choose from! But I guess the most obvious choice is just to start with beginner's HGM. I'll just have to hunt down a gym when I get back from vacation. Kind of OT but I currently live in a foreign country where I don't totally speak the local language so checking out gyms is kind of intimidating. But I gotta do what I gotta do!
 
You know (you probably do already), you should be eating 5-8 meals a day. Take your calorie needs and divide by the number of feedings. That will be the average caloric content of each meal.
 
Thanks. I'm one of those who doesn't take in enough calories, I feel like I ate a lot today but it was only 994 calories according to Fitday, 30% fat, 40% carbs, 30% protein (that includes a whey protein shake which I recently started drinking).

I'm good about breakfast but after that it's really hit or miss, for example, here's today:
Breakfast: oatmeal with cinnamon, omelet (2 whites, one whole egg)
Snack: nectarine
Lunch: 2 pieces of bread with margarine and proscuitto, 1 red bell pepper (this was at someone's house where I was a guest).
Later: 3 apricots
1 piece of whole wheat bread with olive oil + salt
Cucumber + tomato with a little bit of vinegar and olive oil
Whey protein shake
(multivitamin + calcium supplement, I usually take fish oil capsules but I just ran out and need to buy more)
I drink a LOT of water

And that's it for today. It's not that I try NOT to eat, it's just that I don't spend my time thinking about or planning what to eat. And maybe because I don't exercise much (which is changing) my energy needs are low. Sometimes I will have an icecream or drink a beer but other than that the above is typical.

I guess I could drink another protein shake to bring the number of calories and protein up, but I hate to be too dependent on diet supplements. :/ We'll see. I'm really going to try to get on top of this when I get back in two weeks!
 
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Progress Pic

Well, this is definitely a "during"-- and I know it's not a direct kind of "after" pic since I'm in a different pose than the earlier photos, but I just wanted to post evidence of some progress-- the quad growth and definition is new, so are the calves (sad to say!). I've never had that kind of thigh shape and definition before-- that I can remember anyway.

I haven't been working my abs directly much (though I want to) but I think I see some improved defintion there. I still would like to lose a little bit of fat to get more cut like Rebecca in that pic, and of course get more muscle. I guess leaning my upper back against the wall would help too since it looks like she's doing that to stretch out her abs. Hm... ;)

P.S. If it looks like a strange pose it's because I was trying to flex my legs!
 
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WOW. :eek: For the record I didnt see anything wrong with the way you looked before starting your program. I thought you looked incredible. However your progress pic looks amazing so keep up the great work cause you are definently getting great results!! :D
 
Cynic said:
No, I think in your case, HGM is definately called for, but you could also do Art of Waterbury, Anti-bodybuilding hypertrophy I & II, The Waterbury Method.

Find those here: .
Click to expand...

i just wanted to say that the "essential reading" were so informative, likes it alot thanx

and the 12 foods article is the only thing that actually convinced me that maybe i should eat oatmeal for brakfast :)
 
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Susie, for you “to go from this:” “to this:” … you need two things:
1-a little bit of tan
2-a shooting studio
coz you are already there…
Take it easy on that incredible body of yours…no need for much muscle there; you look a lot hotter the way you are….:eek:
Working out for you is just to maintain what you already have… :D
 
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