Fit 2 Superhero: October 2015

Sunday, October 11, 2015

Day 7 Week 5 - Fighting through and perspective.

This week has been a bit of a tough one... I've been really stressed out thanks to everyone at work really pushing my nerves with off color jokes, gossiping worse than I've ever seen, and starting to have sexist undertones while talking to me. I don't deal well with that sort of stress so I started applying for new jobs and have an interview tomorrow afternoon. In addition on Thursday I had my weigh in and I had only lost 5 lbs and .2% body fat since my first weigh in so of course I was really upset about that. On Friday though my wonderful trainer Tony put my results into perspective and told me that I had lost the most weight out of the women in the gym doing the challenge and the second overall which lifted my spirits a lot because I was really feeling defeated.

I've finally also started to notice other changes. My tops have been fitting looser and I think my lower belly pooch is slowly going away which is great news!! I also have the interview tomorrow which I really hope goes well because I would be working full time which means I could save money and pay off my student loans much faster!

So moral of my week is:
Don't give up because you think you're leagues behind everyone because you might just be running far ahead of everyone!

I also made a nifty little graphic for my blog because I have been practicing my logo skills more and more lately. I would say that it is quite fitting.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Day3 Week 5- Supplements that I take

Some people have been asking me about what kind of supplements that I take , other than my multi vitamin and fish oil which seem standard for everyone, so I figured I would do a post about them. This is not a 'Take these amazing products!' post but these are what seem to be working for me.

First off everyone who lift's favorite: Protein!

Because I am mildly lactose intolerant I have to take Whey Protein Isolates because I hate the taste of plant proteins, they are grainy and taste fake. The two that I have tried so far are Iso-100 and Iso-gen. My favorite one is the Iso-100 that I got a Discount Sports Nutrition because it is smooth, mixes really really well and it comes in a lot of delicious flavors! I feel like it's far more effective than the iso-gen that I was recommended at Wholesale Nutrition. Iso-gen is alright flavor wise, it smells far better than it tastes and it doesn't mix well and is a bot grainy. I have read reports online recently that it isn't as pure of an isolate as the Iso-100. Once I am halfway through this bucket I will be getting more of the Iso-100 and probably stick to that.

Iso 100

Calories- 110

Total Fat- 0 g

Total Carbs- 1 g

Protein- 25 g

Iso Gen

Calories-110

Total Fat- 1 g

Total Carbs- 1 g

Protein- 25 g

Ok Second Supplement: Pre-Workout

Amino Energy

Calories- 5

Total Carbs- 2 g

Ok I was sold on Amino-Energy from day one. The Green apple on the right side of the picture tastes like a green apple Jolly-rancher. I'm not sensitive to caffeine so I can't tell you how it will effect you but I would be careful if you are sensitive and stick to two scoops. The good news is that the caffeine is from green tea and it has a lot of the essential Amino acids that you need. They say that you can use this as a morning drink, pre-workout, post workout recovery,and an afternoon pick me up. I only take it as a pre-workout or a morning drink if I'm not feeling coffee that morning. The Fruit Fusion is delicious too it sort of tastes familiar and I think it may be Gummy worms? It's not quite fruit punch but it is very candy like.

Extras

Glutamine perfect for post workout! Especially if you are strength training. Glutamine is an amino acid that assists your body by helping repair the muscle quicker and make it bigger and stronger. It's naturally occurring in things like beef, chicken, eggs, beans, and beets so you don't have to take a supplement for it if you eat enough of these things but if you are like me and on a lower calorie diet it is really difficult to get all you need in your diet. I feel so much better the next day when I remember to take it after a workout.

L-Carnitine L-Tartate This is another amino acid, it helps with fat loss and muscle gain. L-Carnitine is an old tried and true body building and weight loss product that was only overthrown by stimulant weight loss pills in the 80's and 90's but has come back to the spotlight again now that we all know how bad those stimulant drugs are for us. I started using this only a few weeks ago and I have been seeing more results than I had been which is great. I can feel my muscles in my stomach more. I have also seen that this supplement may help with Type II Diabetes but please talk to your doctor before using it for this reason.

Okay okay these aren't supplements but I typically use these to cover up the very tart taste of the L-Carnitine L-Tartate powder. They are naturally flavored and low in calorie which makes them delicious.

~Elizabeth

Monday, October 5, 2015

Day 1 Week 5 - Learning and growing.

Today I am feeling a little bit more confident about my progress. Parts of me do feel firmer, my bum is perkier, and overall I am getting stronger. I hope that this trend continues for the next 7 weeks which I think it should as long as I keep on track especially during Halloween season which is filled with sweets, alcohol, and pie.

I'm not sure how far exactly I want to go with my fitness journey but of course it won't stop at the end of this 12 week challenge with Gold's Gym. I'm pretty competitive so I don't know if I want to push for a chiseled body or if I want to push more for strength. Either way I choose I will continue to choose fitness which I hope I can maintain once I go back to pursuing my dreams which are currently on hold as I pay off student loans and hone my skills.

I highly suggest to my friends who are still in college get active while you can when you can. I made so many excuses while at school on why I don't need to work out or keep a healthy diet. It's too hard. I'm too busy. I'm tired. I have to study. I have to crew. I'm too poor. I love food too much. These are just some of the excuses that I had but what I did with the time that I had left over I was at home on the computer or watching TV snuggled up in my bed being sedentary. Sure I was sort of active during the day running up and down the stairs searching for my professor Lloyd or walking around campus or opting to park further away rather than parking closer or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Those choices let me maintain my weight and encouraged my unhealthy obsession with processed foods, sweet tea, and diet soda. Now I realize that I could have pre-prepped my meals on the weekends and chosen to take the extra few minutes in the morning to make and eat breakfast. It's all about little choices that build you into a strong and powerful human being.

Lifting gives me mental and physical strength. The mental strength to overcome an enormous pressure and obstacles that I sometimes feel like I cannot fight through. The physical strength to fight new pressures and obstacles that are larger than those that came before them.

New exercise that I love Cable Squat Rows
Learn how to do them here.

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Day 7 Week 4 -

This week has been pretty busy and tough which is why I haven't posted yet this week. I have been struggling pretty hard with my body image because I feel like I should be seeing some sort of difference in my body but I suppose the 'It takes 4 weeks for you to see the change, 8 weeks for friends and family, and 12 for the rest of the world' isn't always true. I do feel better and my butt is a little perkier but it's not very noticeable unless I have a side by side picture. I have have no change to my measurements or my weight. I had lost 3 lbs at one point but it went right back on which is really disappointing. I'm not sure if I am just replacing my fat with a lot of muscle but that seems very unlikely... I do have 'half way point' weigh in next week with my body fat percentage. Hoping for good news...

Week 4 ---->Week 3 ---->Week 2

While I have been stressed out about that We also got a major rush job on Wednesday where I had to stay until 7 when I typically only stay until 12. It was really really aggravating BUT I still went to the gym! It was crazy busy at the gym and most of the equipment down stairs was pretty much out of the question so I just did an hour on the treadmill with an interval routine that I created. the 15 minute intervals are what I typically use as a warm up or my early morning cardio that is usually 15-30 minutes.

Hopefully this week wont be quite as crazy but I have stuck to working out 6 days a week for at least 1 hour a day and keeping fairly close to my macros which is great but I am still not seeing as much progress as I feel that I should be seeing.