The Half Way Point

I've nearly reached the half way point for my 7-month long training regimen, leading up to competitions on Oct. 3 and 23. Therefore, I thought this would be a good time to reflect and project. Looking back at the last 3 months, I can say without a doubt that I've gained a lot of strength. No longer do demanding exercises leave me wiped out or ridiculously sore. I also have a much better command over a wider range of exercises. My trainers have expanded my knowledge to a point where I can create a very well balanced workout that doesn't duplicate anything I've done in the last week. I've also moved beyond the machines. Before I started this intense training, that's almost exclusively how I worked out, with some lunges, squats and barbell work thrown in here and there. I'm proud of the fact that now I know multiple ways to work any particular muscle. However, while all of this is nice, the key is whether I'm gaining definition. At competitions, that is the bottom line. The answer is yes, I've got some sculpture going on with my upper body. How will it compare to other competitors? I can't answer that, but I think I look like I'd belong with the others in a line up. I do realize though that it's easier to build an upper body than it is to build the lower half because of the way women retain fat down there. So when it comes to my legs, I still need to do more work. This is very high priority. The other key aspect to this body building enterprise, aside from building muscle, is losing fat. I have subtracted some, but I've got a lot more to shed. To me, this is more daunting than anything else. I know that once I reduce the amount I have, it will transform my entire look. Everything will go "ping." That's the vision I cling to. But the body needs some fat, especially for women, and bodies don't let go of it easily. The measures necessary to get down to 10 or 12% body fat are what I call draconian. Sometime toward the beginning of July, I'll need to make some dramatic changes to the already clean diet I'm maintaining. As I've been told, I'll be crabby and I'll have low energy but life will need to go on, including the training, walking the dogs daily, completing some cardio, writing my book, shopping, getting dinner on the table, etc. All that, while I feel like crap. But if the fat starts disappearing, I might be able to handle it. As I've addressed in earlier posts, I don't expect to find any sympathy anywhere, but that won't stop me from venting here on this blog. For now, as my trainers have told me, the important thing is to build muscle. So that's what my focus is, with a watchful eye on what I eat. As for what I drink, it's up to almost 50 ounces of water per day. Later, it will need to go even higher. To fully document where I'm at, a bikini shot will arrive on Monday.

One further note on posing suits

Celeste, the posing suit designer and seamstress, mentioned when I saw her yesterday that a website exists for selling old suits. Because I was curious, I checked it out and I discovered that it offers a nice, random sampling of styles and colors and a lot of buff, tanned bodies. They aren't cheap (the suits, not the bodies!), but they cost less than they would new. Anyone who's curious about the range of possibilities should check it out: www.divaexchange.com.

My Posing Suit! (grab a chair and a drink, I have lots to say)

Tonight, I drove to the home of Celeste, a lady who has a side business of sewing the most beautiful posing suits for body builders and figure competitors around the country. Obviously, most of her business is done over the internet, but I feel very fortunate that I was able to meet with her in person because I believe that this is a far superior way to pick fabrics, crystals and suit design. We got started with her choosing a suit for me to try on for sizing purposes. This caught me by surprise because - what do I know? - I thought she'd take my measurements and work off those. I even wore snug workout clothes to make that task easier. So I stepped into her bathroom to change. When I came out, she took one look at me and told me that the bottom was on backwards. Ugh! These things are so skimpy that honestly, the front doesn't look much different from the back. We discussed whether I'd stick any padding in the top and I said I definitely would since I've been told that boobs disappear when body fat is reduced. She told me she wasn't so sure I'd have that problem, that I still "have good tissue there." She asked whether I delivered any babies and was surprised to hear that, indeed, I had. So yay for my boobs. At least I have that going for me. Of course, I'm not feeling especially slender at the moment (more like a water jug really), so I just braved my way through her studying me and determining that the suit fit fine. However, as she studied the suit, I studied all the exposed parts of me. Wow, okay? After I changed out of the suit, we flipped through her fabric book with swatches. I came to this meeting with a color in mind - deep purple - but after seeing everything, I changed my mind about that. Lots of the fabrics have a glitter quality to them and I fell for one of those. Since these are costumes, meant to sparkle on stage, I thought it was a good choice. It's a shade that falls right in between pink and purple. Maybe a little raspberry-ish (like the background color, though in a few days that will change). It really excites me and I like to draw energy from color. Next we considered rhinestone patterns from a book featuring photos of suits she made. One looked pretty without being excessive, so I asked how much it was. $250. Perfect!!! I thought I was going to need to spend much more for something attractive, but, no, wrong again. Finally, we looked at a page of actual rhinestones glued to a transparency for better visibility. We decided that clear rather than colored crystals would work best. The final elements included picking Aug. 18th as my fitting date when I will hypothetically weigh less and me forking over a $60 deposit, a random amount reflecting what I had available in my wallet. To see Celeste's work, check out www.suitsbyceleste.com. She's truly an artist.

Big Shout Out

Trainer Glenn won first place in the 2010 Central Ohio Strongman competition this past weekend at Denison University near Columbus! Yay Glenn!!! He was one of 6 guys in the 175 weight class. I've been hearing about this competition for about the past month, the period during which he trained for it. What does that tell us? He was in exceptionally good shape to begin with and only needed to step it up for a month to properly condition himself to be competitive. That's nuts!! See for yourself. Watching it made my back hurt, so be warned.

Waterlogged

I selected a nice spot for the next bikini shot, but it's going to need to wait. I'm retaining way too much water for monthly female reasons, so I'm going to delay it a bit. This is rather annoying. So is the notion that I'm ever going to shed the fat that I need to. I really feel like that's something as likely to happen as me going to the moon. I mean, yes, it can be done, but it'll never be my experience. Tonight, 30 minutes on the elliptical.

Supplies

Posing coach Michelle recom-mended that I start ordering some of the things I'll need for the competition, so I took care of that a few days ago with one-click shopping on Amazon. Both orders arrived yesterday. The first item is Bikini Bite which has a roll on applicator and is essentially an adhesive that is applied to your butt so that the posing suit sticks to your posterior, preventing improper placement. In other words, ya won't need to deal with a wedgy on stage. The other order is a pair of posing shoes, a category of product that appears on stripper supply websites, something I've concluded because they're sometimes referred to as stripper shoes. They come in several styles of platform and heel height. Mega platforms are considered inappropriate thankfully (it's a tacky look, in my opinion). I narrowed it down to a 4 1/2 inch heel and a 5 inch heel. After surveying the height of my own heels, I decided that I had the best chance at achieving the elusive combination of comfort and ability to walk with the 4 1/2 inchers. I slipped them on and, despite the 1 inch platform, they're still steep. They have a fabric liner, so that should help prevent my foot from sliding. I'll need to practice walking in them, but I won't do that during any of my errand runs. I'll save it for home. Almost all of the competitors wear this style shoe for the simple reason that it offers a great look without being distracting. This isn't a fashion show, folks. That being said, everyone wears a bit of bling, so I went up to the mall and purchased a bling bracelet and matching earrings. The idea there is to add a touch of glamour (we're figure girls, not barefoot body builders!) and under stage lights, they look great. The bracelet, which is about an inch wide, features solid rows of crystals (the cheap kind, not Swarovski) with no space between them and the earrings have three dangling strands of crystals, all about 3 inches long. I can't really imagine wearing either of these accessories anywhere but in a show. One element of strategy I'll use - placement of the bracelet on my left arm, the steady one, to draw attention away from the shaky right one. Of course, it won't hide the problem, but I would be foolish to wear the bracelet on my right arm.

New plan

In response to my reaction of "Drat, now what?" concerning my latest measurements, trainer Glenn thought I could add a cardio day. I responded with the suggestion of 2 cardio days. He said I could do that but he doesn't want to see me burn myself out too far in advance since I have a solid 4 months left. With 4 days in the gym now, adding a cardio day will leave me with 2 days off instead 3. I think I can handle that. Starting Sunday night, I'll stick to this schedule for a month and see what happens. I plan to swim in the backyard pool that's just big enough for laps. I've done this every summer for the past 8 years, so I'm accustomed to the routine. If the weather doesn't cooperate, I'll use an elliptical at home. Now that I have a plan, I feel better which contrasts with the defeat I felt yesterday.

Disappointment but not surprise

My new body mass measurements:

22.5% bodyfat
25.4 lbs. of fat
87.6 lb.s lean body mass

My previous measurements were:

23% body fat
26 lbs. of fat
86.8 lbs. lean body mass

Obviously, I haven't made great progress here. I'm not sure what my next step should be either. I'll need to consult with the trainers to get some advice. I didn't expect to see terrific results this time, and this merely confirms what I've been struggling with for the last few weeks. The scale wasn't lying. I'm definitely going to need to make some adjustments.

I changed my mind

I'm going to buy my own custom posing suit. I changed my mind about renting Denise's because I'm not feeling very comfortable with depending on her, plus, I'm extremely partial to purple and hers was blue. I found a lady who lives nearby and does outstanding work on suits. I talked to her yesterday and she seems very easy to work with. I have an appointment with her next Wed. to go over the details, primarily concerning blinginess which I think will largely be a matter of cost. This isn't going to be a $1,000 job. I'm very excited about this because I think it's a better idea. I always feel good when I wear purple. On another unrelated note, the Lady Gaga cd rocks!!!!!!

Ouch

As expected, Michelle hurt me. I'm not complaining. However, I should be out walking my dogs, but that's not going to happen. My legs feel like I've run 100 miles. She had me doing some high intensity hamstring exercises, plus some quad killers. In our 90 minute session, she worked every muscle group and worked each hard, partly because neither of us could count to 50. So maybe I did 60 sometimes? We both like to chat. Anyway, she told me about her pre-competition training, about a month in advance, with Vonda Ward, the boxing sensation who works at King's Gym. They would pick an exercise and do one set....of 100!!!! Ouch. Anyway, I'm going to soak in a ultra hot bath and rejoice that tomorrow is a day off.

Funk (not the musical variety)

Posing coach and grand informant Michelle will be training me tomorrow at King's Gym in Ed's absence (he's golfing in Scotland, "the birthplace of the sport," he says). Her timing is perfect because she's all excited, bringing her high energy style to bear on my disgruntled frame. I'm disturbed by the scale which is no longing going down but back up. I'm not retaining water and I know I haven't gained two lbs. of muscle. I've been eating well, with a few cheats here and there (strawberry salsa on my turkey cuz the salsa is so amazing and the turkey is very boring; an inch of wine a few times last week with dinner when I was feeling stressed, and maybe a little too much peanut butter which solves every dull dietary element). Glenn estimates that I need 1,600 calories to maintain my weight, so if I want to lose anything, I need to go under that amount. Considering that the protein powder I take every day consumes about 200 of those calories, I don't have much margin for error. It sucks. Incorporating some cardio would help, but that's the last thing I want to do. Maybe I'm lazy but I just don't have anything left in me to devote to another activity. Bring it on, Michelle.

The iPod will be pumping!

Put away the hankies! My sad cd story has a happy ending! The Lady Gaga Remix is on its way! I just received notice that it has been shipped and should arrive sometime this coming week. I fret no more! Can't wait to give my pulse a wake up call with it!

The older men, oops, I mean gentlemen

I'm at the gym this afternoon, pulling some 10 lb. weights off of a Smith machine, then attempting to slide 45 lb. weights onto each side. It's a bit awkward to lift them because the bar is set high, so I struggle slightly, but I get one side done. Then an older man, a species from now on to be referred to as an older gentleman, comes over to me. "I know you're independent, I know you can do this, but let me help you, even though you're independent." I'm a little surprised because this suggests he has been spying on me from about 25 feet away. "That's fine, I never turn down a favor," I said. He stuck the weight on the bar and walked away as I thanked him. Now, what is it about the impulses belonging to older gentlemen? A younger guy never would have done something like that. Does a guy grow bigger balls as he ages, cuz I thought it was the other way around, hahaha. Anyway, the gym can be a lonely place sometimes and it's almost always a pleasant experience when someone makes a little small talk or offers a favor. It seems that people of a more senior generation understand that, and I, for one, am grateful.

Benchmarks

I bench pressed 90 lbs. today, something I've never tried before. I think I did 6, maybe 7 reps with Glenn spotting. We did 3 sets, each as part of a larger sequence of exercises including cleans with 22.5 lb dumbbells in each hand and step ups onto a bench that was about 1 1/2 feet high with 10 lb. dumbbells in each hand, first 10 with the right leg leading, then 10 with the left leg. I hope I burned lots of calories because even though I shouldn't pay too much attention to the scale, I do and since last week, it went up by a pound and half. This has me a bit mystified and perturbed. I'm going to do another body mass assessment with Glenn a week from today, so that will reveal what's going on, to a degree. I'll do another bikini shot, too, since another month will have gone by at that point. I'll be very curious to see if I've reached any new benchmarks.

!@#$%^&*+

I had a feeling this could happen. The Lady Gaga remix cd wasn't shipped out yesterday. Why? Here's what Barnes and Noble said in an email: "Unfortunately, we just got word that the release date for this item has been changed. We expect to ship the item soon and will email you when it is ready to leave our warehouse. If we cannot acquire the item within 30 days, we will notify you by email." I guess my heart rate will remain at idle until it arrives.

An Old Man Walks In

to the aerobics room today where I'm alone, working out with a 50 lb. barbell.

OM: Can I join you in your space here?

J: What's the password?

OM: chuckles

Later....OM is done with his free weights and ready to walk out

OM: You know, you're really wasting your time.

J: I am?

OM: Yes. You couldn't look any better.

J: Hahaha, you're too sweet.

OM turns and exits.

In Trouble with Ed

"Are you current with the posts on my blog?" I asked Ed King today when our training session started. I just wanted to know if he's aware of what went on over the weekend. "Yes, I'm current and we need to talk about that," he said with a slightly admonishing tone. Uh oh. I'm in trouble. Actually, I wasn't too terribly worried. The great thing about Ed is that I feel like he's completely on my side. He's not dogmatic, he's highly supportive and he honestly cares about his clients' success. "You can't suddenly carb deprive yourself," he said. The problem, he explained, is that I've reached a point in my training where my body is like a finely tuned machine and my metabolism works at an efficient rate that requires carbs for fuel. There's not much fat to draw from either, so there's less margin for error. "What you did is like trying to drive a car on an empty tank." Yikes! "Eat yer carbs!" is his new mantra for me. I don't know why I did that last week. I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time. Plus, I didn't think for a minute that it would have those consequences. I ate plenty of carbs before today's intense training and I did fine. I've learned from my mistake.

Carb Crash, part 2

After taking a 2 hour nap and eating some more (whole wheat orzo with prego sauce that was mixed with ground turkey, later some reduced fat cottage cheese with tomatoes, a rice cake with peanut butter, and later some salad with shaved turkey, sunflower seeds and balsamic vinegar), I started to feel better. But that wasn't until about 5 p.m. No visit to the gym. Instead, I laid in bed and watched a movie from 1977, "Looking for Mr. Goodbar." I highly don't recommend it. Plus, I had to watch it on vhs (from the library) since that's the only version ever released. It's one of those titles that comes up every now and then in things that I read, and I don't really have the patience for the book, so I thought I'd catch the movie, even though it's 2 hours and 15 min. which is a wee bit long for my attention span. It's based on the true story of a woman's sexual escapades around New York City during the early '70s, in a world infused with readily available sex and drugs. Sounds intriguing but it grew dull after about an hour and 15 minutes. Diane Keaton's performance was outstanding though and Richard Gere shows up about an hour into the movie in a part that clearly earned him his star role a few years later in "American Gigolo." So the day, while not being a complete waste, was not quite as productive as I would have liked. I'll start everything over on Monday with a training session at King's Gym.

Carb crash

I think I'm in the middle of a carb crash. I have a headache, I feel completely wiped out and I look like crap, like I need some sleep. When your body doesn't have enough carbs, your energy depletes and you're done, until you replenish. I just had a bowl of oatmeal and I'm waiting for it to have some effect. I've had this feeling once before, when I was experimenting with dietary elements, to see what I was capable of before I signed on for this bodybuilding regimen. I overdid the carb elimination and wound up in bed for most of the day. I think my present situation began yesterday when I never made it to the gym because I went out for a long lunch with a friend and had a few errands afterward and figured I'd just cover the gym today. But because I wasn't working out yesterday and burning all those calories, I restricted myself for the rest of the day and stuck with protein and veggies. My body is rebelling. So it doesn't look like I'll be going to the gym today either, unless I can put myself in turnaround.

Jennifer Aniston and Me

So I'm at a training session with Glenn and we're doing traveling lunges with two 20 lb. dumbbells (backwards and forwards), traveling wheelbarrels (he holds my feet, I walk on my hands) and several other upper and lower body exercises. Another guy is working out in the gym at the same time, jamming to his iPod (I understand) and groaning a lot from exertion (I don't quite understand cuz that's not my style). Outta nowhere, he says to me that I've got great arms, "better than Jennifer Aniston." Well, I'm no expert on Jennifer's arms so I google imaged her to find out what she's got. Now we all know. (And for those who don't know, that's not me pictured with her, of course.) I really wasn't sure what to make of the comment, but I guess she's sporting some nice guns, so I'll take it as a compliment.

Diet

I'm not a fan of "diet" being used as a verb. I like it as a noun because if one "diets," (verb) one will likely fail over time since this assumes a suspension of one style of eating and a resumption of that same style as soon as one is done "dieting." Now, if one eats a healthy diet (noun!), and one continues that healthy diet FOREVER, then the weight comes off and doesn't return. Of course, the question is, what is a healthy diet? You can eat this or that. How do you make that choice? This isn't the time or place for that info., but I know that the way I'm eating now constitutes the best choices I've ever made. The weight is coming off and I'm thrilled. So thrilled, in fact, that I've imposed my methods on my husband who needs to lose some weight. His diet (noun!) has been a wreck, and I'm working on correcting it. He's already seeing results - shedding 3 or 4 pounds - and it's been about 2 weeks. For starters, he must eat breakfast, something he routinely skipped. And I'm making him eat whole wheat pasta with tomato sauce once in a while. He's not crazy about it but too bad! Anyway, I think bodybuilders have many of the answers to the vexing and perplexing issues surrounding weight loss.

Beware

The free weights and weight machines at Urban Active should be very, very scared. I'm going to arrive, pants on fire, come May 14, ready to lift like a Caterpillar machine. Lady Gaga's remix cd is due to arrive then in the mail, ordered off the internet. It's not being carried on iTunes - WTF?? It includes 16 - SIXTEEN!!!! - tracks which might blow up my iPod!! I know that, at the very least, the music will fuel my destructive abilities, creating all kinds of chaos, including acts of superhuman power. They may need to pry me off the ceiling. All I can say is that when I press 'play,' look out, dudes. And if anyone wants to borrow the disc, just let me know. At your own peril, of course.

H20

One of the key components of the diet I'm on is the consumption of large quantities of water. The amount is determined by body weight. You take your weight in pounds, divide it by 2 and take that number and switch it to ounces. Right now, I weigh 111 lbs. which means I should be drinking a little over 50 ounces of water each day. Well, I can't say that this has ever happened. That's a bucket load of water. I'd be running to the bathroom all day and all night. Fortunately, my trainer Glenn doesn't always read these posts and probably won't know about my transgression. The reason for the water consumption is two-fold. It's purpose largely is to feed muscles because they require lots of water for proper maintenance. But the routine also serves the purpose of helping to drain yourself of water held within the skin close to a competition. The way it works is simple. The body is conditioned to process the large quantity of water on a daily basis. When the competition rolls around, you limit your water intake to just a tiny amount. Meanwhile, your body continues to process what you're holding and essentially drains it out of you. No need to sweat it out or anything like that. It happens naturally. To help with this routine, I fill up four 8 ounce bottles every morning and stick them in the fridge. By the end of the day, they need to be finished. That's 32 ounces. If I can get through that, then I refill one more for a total of 40 ounces. That's the best I've ever been able to do. On a daily basis, I've been very good about completing the 4 bottles, but I do need to confess that I get up once a night to pee. I could never go through the whole night at this rate of consumption without a bathroom break. Overall, I find it's not all that hard to drink the 32 ounces. It just takes diligence to remember and then to make it happen.

Funny thing about body builders

In my experience, I've never heard people actively involved with bodybuilding or weight training complain about pain. I suppose any complaint would fall on deaf ears because this is a choice and if you make it, why bitch about it? I'm going to bitch. Well, no, I'm not going to do that, I'm just going to be forthcoming, in the interest of full disclosure, in an effort to offer complete candor. My workout schedule continues to include sessions on Mon. and Tues., I rest Wed., then I return to the gym Thurs. and Fri. I've been using the Fri. session to really push hard because I then have the weekend to recover. This past Fri., I did 3 long sets of traveling lunges and squats with two 10 lb. dumbbells. I also did 3 sets of single leg squats (a.k.a. Bulgarian split squats) with one leg resting behind on a bench while I held 15 lb. dumbbells in each hand. That was me, emphasizing lower body work. I also did some upper body work, but none of that resulted in pain like what I'm experiencing right now in my quads and glutes. So, to avoid leaving the impression that this is all a breeze, that I trot into the gym and trot out, barely producing a sweat, I would like to reveal that I am, in fact, suffering. And often I'm dripping wet. But none of this exceeds what I can handle and there's even a perverse sense of satisfaction in it. I admit that I feel disappointed if I don't have some pain during the first and second days following a perceived tough workout. "No pain, no gain" holds true. However, the considerable muscle aches can make the weekend a little bit more challenging.