Mutterings of a GrumpasaurusBex

[PixieLandGirl]

It's a 10kg training bar /w 2 5kg rubber plates.

The lads are using the standard 20kg bars but the ladies are being kept on the training bar for now. Which with my shoulder & knee issues likely makes perfect sense for me to continue to do so for a while. At least I can keep working on technique if nothing else.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

This week has been extra tough. I switched on to night shifts Thurs 19th Sep (28hour long day) and my Thurs PT this week I felt awful. After about 5mins I just felt like I had zero energy in the tank. I made it through though .. just about. Cardio is getting there slowly and I was 2.5lbs down at weigh in on Mon. If I can keep the w/loss up then I should be able to hit the targets set before me.

It feels weird eating 4-5 meals a day but I'm starting to get used to that too.

Still I should switch back to my normal working hours around Wed next week. The PT will also be changing a bit and deadlifts and some of the Olympic lifting will start to be incorporated into it.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

PT is going well, incorporated the hang clean & hang snatch into it. 8lbs down in 3 weeks.

Transitioning back off nights thankfully, so hoping to get my home training back into the mix too as it's just not been possible with having zero energy the last two weeks.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Went to my old gym today, mainly to get my ass in there seeing as I'm paying monthly for it. Went for my one rep max for deadlifts and reached 95/97kg (we're not sure if it was the 20/22 bar). Pretty happy with how it went, but looking back I should have started heavier than 30kg

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Good, very good although I'm sore, stiff and achy today in the lower back.

I think I should be able to hit 100kg next time with using the over/under grip and by not wasting energy placing the bar back down and just letting it drop.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

So on Friday, I decided to man up and see a new physiotherapist for my outer knee pain & it was a much better experience than before ... no tears ... huzzah!

Findings:

• Muscular imbalance
• Walk is slightly off (I think she said my legs turn in ever so slightly)
• IT Band is like concrete
• Hyperextension in the legs
• Quads are overly tight
• Weak hamstrings
• Weak glutes
• Weak outer hip muscle (can't remember the exact name)
• Knee joint itself is all good

So it turns out that my quads are activating before they will let my hamstrings or glutes do any of the work. Similarly when I DL my lower back muscles are doing more work than they probably should be doing.

I've been given some exercises to try and help get things on the mend but the physoi lady does recon that with the state the muscles are in at the moment it's going to take some time.

I've now got a foam roller (ouchy) and 5 floor/stretching exercises to work on. Plus I've been advised that DLs are probably the best thing for me right now & I should try to do them (unweighted if needed) twice a week. Once standard DLs & the other Romanian DLs.

It's good to know finally what is causing the pain & have something to work on to correct it. The in-balance could have manifested a long time ago, but with only really getting active this year it's only now become apparent.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

I've been neglecting my log but I thought I'd try to get back to it. I'd generally stuck to just the PT two times a week but the diet had sort of died on it's feet for the last couple of months of 2013. Nothing too crazy, I put on a couple of lbs and then stayed at that weight ... but of course Christmas hit and I gained another 4lbs . I realized that the recommended food plan from my PT just was too difficult for me to stick to because I'm such a fussy eater. It meant that I hated nearly every meal and was forcing myself to eat things that I don't particularly like and it proved to be something I couldn't maintain.

2nd Jan hit and I decided I do the thing I hate the most and start logging my food to try and check what carbs, fat and protein I was intaking. I then failed to log for 3 days and gave myself a kick in the rear and truly started on the 6th.

2nd Jan → 9th Jan = -5lbs

Training 8th Jan
I did this as a complex with a 90sec break in between sets.

Warm-Up sets/reps
• DL - 1 x 5 @ 30kg
• OHP - 1 x 5 @ 15kg
• GM - 1 x 5 @ 15kg

Lifts
• DL - 5 x 3 @ 65kg
• OHP - 5 x 5 @ 20kg
• GM - 5 x 5 @ 20kg

 

[PixieLandGirl]

I used a macro calc to determine the values that I can use for a guide to aid in making sure I'm eating the right balance of things for a slow cut. Which I'll tweak each week as needed based on my weigh in.

6th Jan
• Cals - target + 7
• Protein - target + 22
• Carbs - target - 28
• Fat - target

7th Jan
• Cals - target + 18
• Protein - target + 2
• Carbs - target + 3
• Fat - target + 4

8th Jan
• Cals - target - 261
• Protein - target - 22
• Carbs - target - 23
• Fat - target - 16

Example 8th Jan

Spoiler

Meal 1
• Cellucor Shake - 2 scoop
— Was running super late after an awful night of not being able to sleep very well.

Meal 2
• Tuna /w a twist - Tomato & Herb
• Ryvita original x2

Meal 3
• Sirloin beef stir-fry
• Chinese style stir-fry bowl
• Soy (low salt)
• Chilli flakes, garlic & beef stock
• Olive oil
• Medium egg noodles - 1 portion

Meal 4
• Protein cake/cookie
— Cellucor
— Hazelnut milk
— Fat free yogurt
— Baking powder
— Vanilla extract

Meal 5
• Tuna /w a twist - Tomato & Herb

I placed my order with the local butcher which I can pick up tomorrow which means I can get chicken back on the menu.

Cool!Are you still doing the Olympic lifting?

I'm not at the moment it was only a 5 week class. Whilst I really enjoyed starting to learn the techniques, I need to focus on the weight loss as my primary goal and once that is achieved move focus to strength & potentially pick up the Olympic lifting again.

One wonders if my back now hurts because of this.....

Any info on the stuff your doing to rectify? Or is it all in the post at the top?

 

[PixieLandGirl]

I appear to have read two posts incorrectly, ignore me

That's ok then .. I thought I was losing the plot again!

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Ahhh I see. Easy mistake to make

 

[PixieLandGirl]

What is this heresey? Olympic lifts are awesome for weightloss!

Ha! But I need more hours in the day .. and possibly more money for classes.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

First PT session of the year completed. My weaker shoulder felt like something made of lead at the end but it's eased up again now.

10 reps of each with a min break in between the 3 sets.
OHP, into BOR, into upright row and finishing with DLs.

Then onto bicep curls, reverse grip curls and finishing on upright rows.

Finishing the session with weighted punches, upward weighted punches (I can't recall the name used for this) and then t-bars (weights behind the head and extend arms outward until parallel with the ground).

As it was the first session back it was also weigh in day and the PT was surprised to see that I was down from the last weigh in before Christmas.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Upright rows? With a bar?

NOT good for your shoulder. Swap them out for front raises or face pulls... or at least swap the bar out for dumbells...

Aye, when I train at the gym myself I usually go single arm d-bell rows on a bench. For PT I just do what I'm told until either my weak shoulder, IT band or lower back say 'no more, no more!!!' .

I did shrugs once but they seemed pointless so I didn't bother with them again - It didn't help that my grip didn't feel very secure either. For arms/shoulders/chest days I just stuck to the d-bell rows, OHP, lateral raises, lat pull-downs, flyes, bench press, curls etc.

Once the PT stops I'll sort a plan out for my own training & then go from there. The money I save on PT I could likely put to a class instead.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

In a couple of weeks I'll start planning out a training routine & then I'll let you guys make suggestions on how to improve it. I'll prob head to the gym 2-3 times a week or 2 times & a class of some kind.

I also need to start working on slowly incorporating leg exercises back in, without aggravating the IT band too much in one go. The foam roller has been helping .. even if I swear it's secretly trying to kill me .

Next weigh-in is Thurs - so far I'm on track for the W/loss goal of 3lb per week.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

3lb is a lot if not factoring in water loss! How much do you weigh currently, and at what height?

I weigh far, far to much to put numbers next to especially as I'm 5ft.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Weight is but a number, some people weigh far more than you'd expect them to, and others less.

Indeedy, I'd estimate I should be able to cut another 38-45lbs. Although I will ultimately use dress size as more of an indication than actual lbs.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

Yes certainly don't go worrying about weight, you're in good company here. Take Morba for instance; his name has actually become a new measurement of weight.

Lol

A tape measure is much better than the scales for that sort of stuff, but yeah, don't get hung up on your weight, as long as things are fitting and you feel right, that's the most important part.

If I was to drop to my "recommended" weight, or the weight my GP suggested, I'd look worse than Christian Bale in Machinist

Oh gosh yes, I know ideal BMI weight for my height is about 6-9 stone ... nope, nope, nope, N-O-P-E!. I'd be happy back at a size 10 .. I like to have some curves and not look like I'll break in a gust of wind.

 

[PixieLandGirl]

PT tonight @ 9PM and after a terrible week of not being able to sleep it may kill me off .

Weigh In - 9th Jan → 16th Jan = -3lbs