VSG Maintenance Group
I LOVE my BodyMedia Fit!!!
My pecs are the easiest to grow for me. My worst is legs....very bad knees makes lifting heavy anymore almost impossible. I'm just lucky to hang on to what I've got. My biceps and triceps are quite large, but still have lots of loose skin that needs to be taken care of in the next round of plastics. Then they'll really pop. You look great!
I am a part of some interwebs post wls groups and one of the ladies was loving on her fitbit and was raving about the sleep knowing skillz of it!
Those are pretty cool printouts!!
Damnit!! I do not need another thing!! *want* but do not need!
*but wait, for the price of a 10 pound bag of whey*
No! stop! my justifier is pegging!
Those are pretty cool printouts!!
Damnit!! I do not need another thing!! *want* but do not need!
*but wait, for the price of a 10 pound bag of whey*
No! stop! my justifier is pegging!
Wow, that is cool. I'm just starting to take my first few baby steps in the lifting department, and seeing your development is so encouraging. For me, it's about strengthening my bones, but I sure wouldn't mind arms like yours either! I also cannot do a push up...can only do about 5-8 girls pushups...my legs and abs are stronger but notthing to write home about.
So this is what they have at Costco...is this everything I need?
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11596707&Ne=5000001%204000000&eCat=BC|111|2268&N=4032549%204294895961&Mo=0&No=0&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&lang=en-US
(Sorry, I don't know how tho make that a live link). Do I need the iFIT Live module?
Thanks, Mandy!
Lizanne
So this is what they have at Costco...is this everything I need?
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11596707&Ne=5000001%204000000&eCat=BC|111|2268&N=4032549%204294895961&Mo=0&No=0&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&lang=en-US
(Sorry, I don't know how tho make that a live link). Do I need the iFIT Live module?
Thanks, Mandy!
Lizanne
Hi Lizanne,
Six months ago, I couldn't even do one girl pushup, much less a full push-up. Now I can do full push-ups and sit-ups. Amazing, what resistance training can help with. Over the weekend, I went for a 4 mile walk up and down some hills (big ones) in Benicia and wasn't winded or tired at all. Training has made me stronger in all areas.
Gail
Six months ago, I couldn't even do one girl pushup, much less a full push-up. Now I can do full push-ups and sit-ups. Amazing, what resistance training can help with. Over the weekend, I went for a 4 mile walk up and down some hills (big ones) in Benicia and wasn't winded or tired at all. Training has made me stronger in all areas.
Gail
" 
Nice pics Mandy! Very impressive. I've been lifting in my class for 7 months and have a very small bicept 
. I can do quite a few push-up and sit-ups and can run 3 miles. Maybe if I cut back on the cardio and focus on the lifting I can get some muscles! I just don't think I can build them like you and Brandy, but I also haven't focused as hard on it as you have. Can you send me your lifting routine?
. I can do quite a few push-up and sit-ups and can run 3 miles. Maybe if I cut back on the cardio and focus on the lifting I can get some muscles! I just don't think I can build them like you and Brandy, but I also haven't focused as hard on it as you have. Can you send me your lifting routine? 
What is your diet like during the different phases? Do you do full body routines or body parts on specific days?
Your pictures are very impressive. You and Brandilyn are very impressive and have wonderful results. I wonder about your diet and how you get in enough calories. How much protein do you consume during the different phases? How many carbs? What about fat?
Gail
Your pictures are very impressive. You and Brandilyn are very impressive and have wonderful results. I wonder about your diet and how you get in enough calories. How much protein do you consume during the different phases? How many carbs? What about fat?
Gail
"
Hey Gail = ) You know I'm long-winded about this stuff so here goes! (as always, excuse typos - kids are talking to me as I type this - yay summer! lol)
Ok let's see...my diet...first I am going to link you to what I believe should be a weight lifter's BIBLE when it comes to nutrition and nutrient partitioning. It might be confusing at first because there is so much info, but it is KEY to good nutrition. Actually, I believe even non-weightlifters would benefit by setting up their diets this way.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981
I make sure my calories are on point, then protein, then I have wiggle room when it comes to carbs and fat. Remember that your body does not see foods....it sees macro and micro nutrients. It doesn't say "Oh no, pizza! This needs to turn into fat." It simply sees that pizza as carbs, fat and protein. Because of this, I allow myself to eat whatever I want as long as it fits in my macros. However, if macros are set up properly, it makes it impossible to live on junk food as you will see as I go on.
When cutting, it's generally agreed that protein should be on the higher side to maintain muscle mass. When bulking, protein can be lowered a bit to make room for carbs since carbs are protein sparing. I diverge a bit from the standard opinion on this board that carbs are bad or cause weight gain. (carbs are not a trigger food for me but sugar is)
Some people say when cutting to reduce cals by 500, resulting in a 1 lb per week loss. The issue with this is that lean individuals would lose more muscle mass at such a deficit. Therefore, I prefer the 10-20% recommendation. When cutting, decrease maintenance cals by 10-20%, when bulking increase maint. cals by 10-20%. That said, I still have enough fat that 1 lb a week should be ok for me. I just don't recommend that for everyone across the board.
Because I have to cut on 1500 cals or less, I find it nearly impossible to eat 150g of protein (what I should be eating) unless I just ate protein all day long. So, I aim for 130g of protein (always fall short, blah).
Right now I'm trying to cut at:
1,200 cals (I am lean enough that I will probably raise this to 1,500 cals so I lose slower and preserve my muscle mass)
130g protein
116g carb
24g fat
^ This was sort-of an experiment for me because I like how I look and perform better with more carbs. However, I find fat much more satiating (i've never been a big carb person unless it's loaded with sugar) so I've been getting more fat and fewer carbs. I just naturally lean towards protein and fat in my diet. For me, it's just easier to cut on low-carb.
When I bulk - oh lawdy. Peanut butter was my savior. I still can only eat about 2-3 oz of meat at a sitting and then I'm full for a while, but I can eat alotta peanut butter! I would just eat it by the spoonful throughout the day. People are going to hate me for saying this, but I had to actually WORK to gain weight, and even then most of what I gained was water weight from carbs.
Oh! I really wanted to mention this but was going to wait until someone started a thread about struggling to lose weight or having gained weight. Because my hunger has returned somewhat, I started doing IF (intermittent fasting) on this cut. Basically I just delay my first meal and allow myself an 8-hour feeding window. I generally eat my first meal around 1:00 pm then stop eating around 9:00pm. OMG I loooooove it. Many people on the bodybuilding board do IF. The idea is that it controls hunger and ghrelin production. I like it because I don't feel like I'm on a diet. It also helps control my natural tendency to graze. I actually think Martin recommends a longer feeding window for females (10 hours?) but don't quote me on that. Here is the link if you want more info:
http://www.leangains.com/2010/04/leangains-guide.html
^The only problem I'm having now with this is that it works almost too well. I find I have to force myself to eat or some days I fall short on my macros because it's a lot to fit in. I am probably going to change to a 10 hour feeding window to see if that helps.
Routine info in next post since your eyes are probably crossing already reading all of this. LOL
Ok let's see...my diet...first I am going to link you to what I believe should be a weight lifter's BIBLE when it comes to nutrition and nutrient partitioning. It might be confusing at first because there is so much info, but it is KEY to good nutrition. Actually, I believe even non-weightlifters would benefit by setting up their diets this way.
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121703981
I make sure my calories are on point, then protein, then I have wiggle room when it comes to carbs and fat. Remember that your body does not see foods....it sees macro and micro nutrients. It doesn't say "Oh no, pizza! This needs to turn into fat." It simply sees that pizza as carbs, fat and protein. Because of this, I allow myself to eat whatever I want as long as it fits in my macros. However, if macros are set up properly, it makes it impossible to live on junk food as you will see as I go on.
When cutting, it's generally agreed that protein should be on the higher side to maintain muscle mass. When bulking, protein can be lowered a bit to make room for carbs since carbs are protein sparing. I diverge a bit from the standard opinion on this board that carbs are bad or cause weight gain. (carbs are not a trigger food for me but sugar is)
Some people say when cutting to reduce cals by 500, resulting in a 1 lb per week loss. The issue with this is that lean individuals would lose more muscle mass at such a deficit. Therefore, I prefer the 10-20% recommendation. When cutting, decrease maintenance cals by 10-20%, when bulking increase maint. cals by 10-20%. That said, I still have enough fat that 1 lb a week should be ok for me. I just don't recommend that for everyone across the board.
Because I have to cut on 1500 cals or less, I find it nearly impossible to eat 150g of protein (what I should be eating) unless I just ate protein all day long. So, I aim for 130g of protein (always fall short, blah).
Right now I'm trying to cut at:
1,200 cals (I am lean enough that I will probably raise this to 1,500 cals so I lose slower and preserve my muscle mass)
130g protein
116g carb
24g fat
^ This was sort-of an experiment for me because I like how I look and perform better with more carbs. However, I find fat much more satiating (i've never been a big carb person unless it's loaded with sugar) so I've been getting more fat and fewer carbs. I just naturally lean towards protein and fat in my diet. For me, it's just easier to cut on low-carb.
When I bulk - oh lawdy. Peanut butter was my savior. I still can only eat about 2-3 oz of meat at a sitting and then I'm full for a while, but I can eat alotta peanut butter! I would just eat it by the spoonful throughout the day. People are going to hate me for saying this, but I had to actually WORK to gain weight, and even then most of what I gained was water weight from carbs.
Oh! I really wanted to mention this but was going to wait until someone started a thread about struggling to lose weight or having gained weight. Because my hunger has returned somewhat, I started doing IF (intermittent fasting) on this cut. Basically I just delay my first meal and allow myself an 8-hour feeding window. I generally eat my first meal around 1:00 pm then stop eating around 9:00pm. OMG I loooooove it. Many people on the bodybuilding board do IF. The idea is that it controls hunger and ghrelin production. I like it because I don't feel like I'm on a diet. It also helps control my natural tendency to graze. I actually think Martin recommends a longer feeding window for females (10 hours?) but don't quote me on that. Here is the link if you want more info:
http://www.leangains.com/2010/04/leangains-guide.html
^The only problem I'm having now with this is that it works almost too well. I find I have to force myself to eat or some days I fall short on my macros because it's a lot to fit in. I am probably going to change to a 10 hour feeding window to see if that helps.
Routine info in next post since your eyes are probably crossing already reading all of this. LOL
5'8" - 40 years old
Ok as for training...well, there's more than one way to skin a cat. However, I have some strong beliefs regardless of what routine you choose:
-Focus on compound lifts: deadlift, squats, lunges, dips, pull ups, chin ups, bench press or push ups, overhead shoulder press, rows. Spend little if any time on isolation exercises (curls, tricep kickbacks, etc.) Compound lifts works several muscles at once. For instance, dips (my all-time fav) work tris, delts and pecs.
-Only lift 3-4 times a week. Muscles grow during recovery. More frequent lifting does not equal more muscle.
-Lift heavy. Doing a million reps with pink weights is a waste of your time. Always try to move up in weights when you can. Your muscles will not grow if you don't push them to.
-Stay off of the machines as much as possible. Get to know and love dumbells and barbells. Use machines only when there is a need.
-Beginners (first two years at least) should stick to full body routines or push/pull type of splits. Avoid the: M back, bis; T chest tris; W legs; Th abs, delts. This how people who don't know what they are doing set up their routines (like I did the first two months).
Regardless of what routine you choose (assuming it's a good routine), your diet is going to determine whether you reach your goals or not. You can lift until the cows come home, but if you aren't getting enough protein or adequate calories, your muscles will not grow.
On the bodybuilding board, I spend 95% of my time in the Nutrition section. There are some brilliant people there and I've learned a lot. Check it out if you get time! bodybuilding.com
Here is a link for someroutines you can choose from:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/forumdisplay.php?f=8
-Focus on compound lifts: deadlift, squats, lunges, dips, pull ups, chin ups, bench press or push ups, overhead shoulder press, rows. Spend little if any time on isolation exercises (curls, tricep kickbacks, etc.) Compound lifts works several muscles at once. For instance, dips (my all-time fav) work tris, delts and pecs.
-Only lift 3-4 times a week. Muscles grow during recovery. More frequent lifting does not equal more muscle.
-Lift heavy. Doing a million reps with pink weights is a waste of your time. Always try to move up in weights when you can. Your muscles will not grow if you don't push them to.
-Stay off of the machines as much as possible. Get to know and love dumbells and barbells. Use machines only when there is a need.
-Beginners (first two years at least) should stick to full body routines or push/pull type of splits. Avoid the: M back, bis; T chest tris; W legs; Th abs, delts. This how people who don't know what they are doing set up their routines (like I did the first two months).
Regardless of what routine you choose (assuming it's a good routine), your diet is going to determine whether you reach your goals or not. You can lift until the cows come home, but if you aren't getting enough protein or adequate calories, your muscles will not grow.
On the bodybuilding board, I spend 95% of my time in the Nutrition section. There are some brilliant people there and I've learned a lot. Check it out if you get time! bodybuilding.com
Here is a link for someroutines you can choose from:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/forumdisplay.php?f=8
5'8" - 40 years old
