Feeling funny?

This is my WORST problem and I have a real bad time trying to NOT feel
weird with a smaller body. You reminded me of a very imporant thing!!
This is ,I THINK, ONE reason why I can't stick to my program. I keep
starting and I stop after losing a pant size. I lost a really good
amount of weight (over 85 lbs) several years ago but since gaining
some of this back I can't keep at my WOE/WOL longer than a few weeks.
Thanks for this "feeling Funny' thread ! WOW! I've woke up and I SEE
what I'm doing!! I get afraid to be tis outsider at work plus with my
sisters. This is a big problem for me. WE CAN DO THIS! Strength really
does come in numbers! I'm going to keep at this Weight-loss !!

glo

On Wed, 15 Oct 2003 14:01:27 -0700, "determined"
wrote:

I haven't been using the gravitron, but I do seated cable rows, I think they
work "about" the same muscles,

A much better simulation for chins/pull-ups is the lat pulldown, if
you don't have an assisted pull-up machine. Chins and pull-ups
primarily target the lats. Seated rows exercise the overall back, but
perhaps emphasize the rhomboids and traps more.

and I row 75 lbs. I'm guessing that I could
chin that much too, if I tried.

Maybe -- quite possibly more. The rows won't tell you much about what
you can chin, though.

My current workout is entirely made up of
free weight squats, bench, DL's, and seated cable rows. I only have 30 min
for a workout, so I do this 3 x per week on my lunch break. I can squat 95,
bench 65, dl 95 and seated cable row 75.

Let's see. Currently -- at far from my strongest -- I can probably
squat around 185, bench 115, and deadlift 180-200 or so. My maxes,
when I was heavier and didn't have an injured shoulder, are 240 squat,
185 bench, 275 deadlift. I never do deadlifts now, so don't know what
I'd really do as a max if I worked up to it a bit. I hope to get back
to a much better bench if I can ever get my shoulder healed.

My goal is to squat with those two
big wheels on the barbell! (uh, that's 135, right?),

Um, yeah, that would be 135 :-). You can get there, I'm sure. Do you
squat below parallel?

bench 85, and do an unassisted pull up.

I really want to be able to do an unassisted pull-up, also. Currently
I can do a couple with 50 lbs. of assistance (so I'm lifting 127 lbs.
of my bodyweight) -- maybe one with 40. Because you're pretty light,
that's probably an attainable goal for you -- more likely than for me.
But I strongly recommend you start doing lat pulls, and assisted
pull-ups if you have a machine for them. Your current training won't
ever get you to a pull-up. Also, do pull-up negatives: get yourself
up to the bar somehow -- by standing on something, jumping up, or
getting someone to lift you -- then hang if you can, then lower
yourself slowly. I can't hang yet, but can come down pretty much in
control. Do several of these once or twice a week.

I do 2 weeks of high weight low reps, then 2 weeks of
low weight high reps. Not hst, not really sure what it is. But I enjoy
it...

Enjoying it is the main thing.

Chris

On 15 Oct 2003 18:12:19 -0400, Wendy wrote:

determined wrote:
My goal is to squat with those two
big wheels on the barbell! (uh, that's 135, right?)

Right. I typically put two medium sized ones on - that's 95. :-) But I
worry too much about form and dumping the bar and knees and stuff when I
go heavy. I don't mind doing it at lower weights - and I often do, but I
don't push my quads with the squats just because of the form and fear
factors.

I do 2 weeks of high weight low reps, then 2 weeks of
low weight high reps. Not hst, not really sure what it is. But I enjoy
it...

"Energy for Women" calls it "periodization". There's an article about
itin this month's magazine. I get it by subscription and I actually read
it. :-)


Typically periodization involves a few more phases than just high-low.
You'd maybe do a cycle for, say, 6-10 weeks. You'd start with a weight
you can do for 10-12 reps, then each week add a little weight and
reduce the number of reps. The idea would be that the last week or
two you'd be trying a weight you haven't been able to do before
starting the program.

Then you'd take a few weeks break -- either take off lifting
altogether or stick to light weights -- then repeat when you want to.

But people use the term "periodization" more loosely as well, just to
mean any sort of routine that is divided into distinct periods in
which you vary some aspect of your training.

Chris

"Jayjay" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 15 Oct 2003 15:17:29 -0500, "Julianne"
wrote:


I am 100 percent convinced that I wouldn't have a single ounce of extra
weight if I never ate when I wasn't hungry.


with all the negatives in that sentence, I'm lost. That whole
double-negative makes a positive thing...
:-)

That ain't no double negative

j

Chris Braun wrote:
Also, do pull-up negatives: get yourself
up to the bar somehow -- by standing on something, jumping up, or
getting someone to lift you -- then hang if you can, then lower
yourself slowly. I can't hang yet, but can come down pretty much in
control. Do several of these once or twice a week.

I discovered the Gravitron is a great place to do negatives. It's got
that step to help me get up there and I set the weight to a weight that
will keep me from dropping like a stone and essentially get a slightly
assisted negative. (When I did them on the hanging ab thing I just
dropped straight down yanking out my arm pits.)

Now, we should take this to another thread 'cuz it's not nice to Beeswing
to make her read all these weight-lifting posts. :-)

Wendy

Jayjay wrote:
On 15 Oct 2003 13:12:59 -0400, Wendy wrote:

If I followed BFL for a year, I'd have a body to die for.

Yes, all the winners of the contest are people who had maybe 15 pounds to
lose: they lost 15, gained 5 of muscle and made proportionaly HUGE changes
to their physiques. I lose 15, gain 5 LBM and I drop from a size 22 to a
20 and am still in cow territory.

You, on the other hand - had alot more weight to lose. 1 yr won't get
perfection. How many years did it take to put that weight on and get
to the size you were?

I'm content for it to take as long as it takes, but the problem is the
growing awareness that NO AMOUNT of years will get to perfection. I think
that's the gyp part: I get a lot of the benefits of having lost lard, but
I won't get the benefits that accrue to people who attain Babedom.

I'm being a bit silly because I was never in model territory: I'm stockily
built - think Russian swimmer - and I'll always be gigantic compared to
you - even if I got down to 23% body fat (my goal) I'd be 170 pounds. But
I always thought the "best me I can be" would be pretty damn good. Now
I'm realizing it'll never be a body to be proud of.

No offense - but I hate to see you so frustrated. I think you have
some unreal expectations. But, ya know we love you anyway. :-)

I need some new expectations. And I also need to get off-line before
hords of people descend on me telling me I'd better change my meds 'cuz I
sound so crabby, LOL!

Wendy
244/193/170

In article ,
wrote:

But I strongly recommend you start doing lat pulls, and assisted
pull-ups if you have a machine for them. Your current training won't
ever get you to a pull-up. Also, do pull-up negatives: get yourself
up to the bar somehow -- by standing on something, jumping up, or
getting someone to lift you -- then hang if you can, then lower
yourself slowly. I can't hang yet, but can come down pretty much in
control. Do several of these once or twice a week.

I do 2 weeks of high weight low reps, then 2 weeks of
low weight high reps. Not hst, not really sure what it is. But I enjoy
it...

Enjoying it is the main thing.

Chris


On "back and bi" days I do both unassisted pull-ups and dips, and
alternate bentover rows and lat pulldowns, as my back (which is already
broad) was looking huuge. I started at 60lbs of assist on the pull-ups,
and worked my way down from there, over a course of about six months.

In fact, I was a little timid about doing an unassisted pull-up at the
gym--in case I failed--so I first tried it on the monkey bars at the
kids playground. I can now do three reps of five, but usually stick to
two sets of four wide-grip parallel chins, and two sets of five dips.

Chris--I notice there a lot of difference between the types of grips
used and the ease of doing chins--is there a grip you prefer?

Amy

On 16 Oct 2003 09:46:48 -0400, Wendy wrote:

I discovered the Gravitron is a great place to do negatives. It's got
that step to help me get up there and I set the weight to a weight that
will keep me from dropping like a stone and essentially get a slightly
assisted negative. (When I did them on the hanging ab thing I just
dropped straight down yanking out my arm pits.)

The Gravitron -- or other assisted pull-up machine -- is great for
negatives. It's good to work up to trying to do them without
assistance, though. But you're right, if you just drop straight down
it isn't doing much for you.

Now, we should take this to another thread 'cuz it's not nice to Beeswing
to make her read all these weight-lifting posts. :-)

Nah, but maybe it's good for her :-).

Chris

On Thu, 16 Oct 2003 10:23:33 -0400, A Ross
wrote:

Chris--I notice there a lot of difference between the types of grips
used and the ease of doing chins--is there a grip you prefer?

Yes, the grip makes a big difference in how easy it is. Because I'm
favoring a shoulder injury right now, I use what's easiest on my
shoulder: underhand grip on the bar, and parallel grip on the pull-up
machine.

Optimally, you should work with different grips, as each uses your
muscles slightly differently.

Chris

On 16 Oct 2003 10:03:33 -0400, Wendy wrote:

Jayjay wrote:
On 15 Oct 2003 13:12:59 -0400, Wendy wrote:

If I followed BFL for a year, I'd have a body to die for.

Yes, all the winners of the contest are people who had maybe 15 pounds to
lose: they lost 15, gained 5 of muscle and made proportionaly HUGE changes
to their physiques. I lose 15, gain 5 LBM and I drop from a size 22 to a
20 and am still in cow territory.

That's the thing though - you aren't in cow territory any more!!!
Maybe sheep - but not cow. jk. :-)


I'm content for it to take as long as it takes, but the problem is the
growing awareness that NO AMOUNT of years will get to perfection. I think
that's the gyp part: I get a lot of the benefits of having lost lard, but
I won't get the benefits that accrue to people who attain Babedom.

Babedom takes genetics. And Babedom fades w/ years unless you have a
good plastic surgeon to keep you in babedom. And then that ps has to
be GOOD!!! Otherwise you end up looking like some of those
hollyweird people who just look hideous (melanie griffth comes to
mind).


I need some new expectations. And I also need to get off-line before
hords of people descend on me telling me I'd better change my meds 'cuz I
sound so crabby, LOL!

HA! You wanna see crabby, you shoulda been a fly on the wall at my
house last night when I was trying to make some wedding plans with BF.