Week 4 is rough after a long weekend

It's always hard to go back to the gym after a holiday weekend but that is when you need it most... especially if your weekend involved lots of eating and drinking like mine. Just remember that it's okay to indulge a little during a vacation, but you shouldn't overdo it! Since most of us don't work out while we are out of town, it's important to watch what you eat. If you are going to cheat try to limit yourself to one cheat meal. Don't make the whole weekend a cheat or you'll end up feeling really gross when you finally get home.

Best part of MDW

It's been one month since I started lifting again and I must say that I am loving it. It feels great to build up weight again and see my muscles developing. How are you guys doing? Comment to let me know! I love all the feedback I get from FB and gchat, but it would be great to share with everyone else who reads. Also make sure to subscribe to my blog by hitting the follow button on the right!

Week 4

Exercise Plan

You'll notice that I do the same workout for about two weeks then I switch it up a bit. This is because I don't want my body to get too used to the same movements. I always try to keep it fresh! Visit my fitness page for this week's details.

M: Beach!
T: Off .. MDW recovery
W: Legs and Abs
Th: Back and Biceps, 45 - 60 min cardio
F: Chest and Tris, 45 - 60 min cardio
Sa: Legs
Su: Shoulders and abs, 45- 60 min cardio

Diet Plan

The hardest thing about summer is those happy hours just because it's nice outside. I know I just want to be outside and find a excuse. Instead of just going for a drink, try doing some outside activities with friends. Or if you really want to hit the rooftop for happy hour, alternate water between your drinks and try to limit yourself to two. There are a lot of empty calories in those cocktails and wouldn't you rather have some yummy food?

Remember to find me on myfitnesspal.com so see what I eat daily :)

Daily Caloric Intake: 1240, 3 meals and 2 snack a day
Protein: 93g
Fat: 34g
Carbs: 140g

Hump day TACOS!

Tacos are one of my favorite foods and I love hosting a good Taco Night ... but these aren't always the best for your waist line .. so I've made some substitutes. Today for lunch I had my faux steak tacos at only 86 cals a taco. I call them faux because I made a few substitutes:

• Romain lettuce saves on the carbs tortillas have
• Greek yogurt instead of sour cream saves on the fat and adds extra protein
• Lean steak instead of ground beef cuts down on fat (plus you know what part of the cow it came from)
•  TJ's greek yogurt guac, but normal guac is still just fine :)
•  Chili lime hot sauce instead of taco seasoning saves on sodium

Just because you are watching what you eat doesn't mean your diet consists of chicken and steamed broccoli. It's important to be creative with your  food and still enjoy it! The nutritional value and recipe can be found on my Flavor page :)

Tacos make hump day better!

Bikini season starts this weekend! ... Week 3

Memorial day weekend is just around the corner .... so what does that mean? BIKINIS! This week it's time to step it up a bit to make sure everything starts looking good. You'll notice I added in some extra legs and abs in because lets be honest .. that's all anyone looks at when you're in a bathing suit (at least for us ladies). I also decided not to rest on Sunday and start my week off early!

As you progress make sure to keep adding more weight to your routine. The key is to keep on building that strength. My rule of thumb is that you sure start feeling it (that burn) around the 6-8 rep. If you feel it before you have too much weight on and if you don't feel it at all you need more weight. Good luck this week! Please post comments/questions!

Week 3

Exercise Plan

Visit my fitness page for this week's details.

Su: Legs and Abs
M: Chest and Tris, 45 - 60 min cardio
T: Back and Biceps, 45 - 60 min cardio
W: Legs again!
Th: Shoulders and abs, 45- 60 min cardio
F: 60-90 min cardio
Sa - M: enjoying the holiday :)

Diet Plan

As the summer is approaching, I'm going to reduce my carb intake a bit to get that flat stomach again. I love carbs too much to cut them from every meal .. and well you need them to do cardio and fuel you through the day. So my rule of thumb for the next few weeks is going to be no carbs after 6pm. Let's see how well I do at this :)

Daily Caloric Intake: 1100 (net), 3 meals and 1 snack a day
Protein: 82g
Fat: 30g
Carbs: 123g

Muscle memory ... Week 2

After my first week back in the gym, I realized how much I really missed lifting weights and the satisfaction I get from it. This week have been a bit crazy because I finally moved into my new place. It's been hard to fit in all my workouts so I modified my plan a bit. If you have time for all four days of strength training this week keep the same plan as Week 1, but make sure you increase your weight. Try bumping it up in 2.5 lb increments. If it feels to heavy only do your last set with the increased weight.

Week 2

Exercise Plan

Visit my fitness page for the details on my strength training.

M: Rest
T: Chest/Tris/Back, 60 min spin class
W: Leg day
T: Shoulders/Biceps/Abs, 45-60 min cardio
F: 45-60 min Cardio
Sa: Rest
Su: low activity (yoga, hiking, or rest)

Diet

This week I switched up my typically grocery shopping. I opted to start purchasing organic dairy, cage free eggs, grass fed meats, and organic fruits and veggies (if I eat the skin). Although this definitely increased my grocery bill, I'm curious to see if it changes how much water I retain and how I feel.

Daily Caloric Intake: 1150, 3 meals and 1 snack a day
Protein: 86g
Fat: 32g
Carbs: 129g

Feeling comfortable in the weight room

Let's be honest... going into the weight room of any gym can be scary. Especially when everyone in there is some meathead looking guy or you are the only girl. I used to always worry that I would look completely ridiculous while working out and that people would laugh at me. But I overcame that by doing the tips below. Hopefully they help you out!

1. Have a plan: The key to navigating the weight room without feeling lost is to have a plan before you get there. Which muscles will you be working on? Do you need a bench? It helps to take a walk around the weight room and familiarize yourself with the equipment. You don't want to be that person who wanders around aimlessly, does a set of something on a machine that is completely purposeless and then quickly runs back to those trusty cardio machines. So PLAN :) ... this should be easy because I'm giving you my plan each week. So just follow it.
2. Be familiar with the proper form. I always feel comfortable when I know what a move is supposed to look like. I really suggest looking at videos online. Bodybuilding.com has a ton of them for every move that you can possibly imagine.
3. Wear something that you feel confident in. Confidence is really important in the weight room. If you look confident, no one will bug you and what you wear really plays into this. Make sure your outfit is covering enough that you aren't going to feel self conscious in it and it fits well enough that you don't have to make frequent adjustments to it. But other than that wear whatever you like. I personally like to see the muscles I'm working out so I usually wear a tank. And on leg days I always wear looser fitting bottoms or shorts. 
4. Find a workout buddy. Walking into a weight room won't seem nearly as intimidating if you've got a friend with you because you'll have someone to talk to and rely on. A buddy helps hold you accountable because if you know your friend is meeting you at the gym it's much harder for you to find an excuse to cancel. Plus, your buddy can help spot any form issues or teach you new exercises.
5. Plan B: Tune everyone out. This is what I do because most of the time I don't have a buddy with me. So put those head phones on and jam out to something that makes you feel bad ass. This helps you focus on your work out and play less attention to everyone else. You'll notice that the majority of people in the weight room do this because well ... most people don't really care what you are doing in there and are focused on themselves.