All I Ever Really Wanted....

Throughout my fit journey, I have received amazing support from most of the people in my life. I’ve surprised, and even wowed people, with my goals, changes, and what I’ve accomplished so far, There are a couple of key people in my life that are failing to support me. I wanted to blog about this because it is important to understand that even if you don’t have support from the people closest to you, you can still move on and succeed. You can still reach your goals!

I have had one of the worst days getting bad news, three-fold, today. One of those bad news topics come straight from the people I have been looking so hard to please and get support from all of my life. Actually, it's happened over time. Something else happened today that brought me back and I realized they just don't support me at all. They don’t understand my goals. They think it’s ok to exercise and eat right but they don’t understand my biggest goal - to, one day, compete in a bodybuilding contest. Knowing the way they think, I’m sure they think "steroids" and other ridiculous things. That is a stereotype of most bodybuilders. These people that inspire me have dedicated their lives to natural bodybuilding. I can't say it enough. It is a lifestyle and I want that for myself. It’s a very tough goal to reach. You really have to have the discipline and desire to get there. I’m working my way there. It’s a process but slowly I will get there. One day at a time. Nothing easy lasts. And nothing that will last is easy. I want a lifetime of good health. This is not a phase. I am educating myself on everything I possibly can about eating right, proper exercise form, etc. I’m reading every personal story from bodybuilding/fitness veterans I’m inspired by. I have never been so interested in something in my entire life. To have certain people in my life not support my goals and dreams really hurts me. It’s disappointing, frustrating, and heartbreaking.

Right before Thanksgiving, I sat down at dinner talking to these individuals about what I wanted to do. They were negative and told me I shouldn’t become a competitor. I was heated. I wanted to drop my fork and walk right out the door. Who says that? Who tells me to aim lower than the goal I have set for myself? Who tells me I can’t? This was the last thing I expected from these people. That’s just more fuel to my fire! I may be one of the laziest people when it comes to being active but I’m making changes to get away from that lazy life. I am growing out of it. Health is very important to me. I have seen too many people in my life be diagnosed and pass away from horrible cancers and disease….all of which can possibly be avoided if they lived their lives differently, ate differently, and exercised. I learned of a friend I grew up with having cancer today, too. Very tough for me to process right now with the bad day I’m having.

All of my life, I was allowed to quit things when it got rough. At 3 years old, I quit ballet because I got stage fright. At 11 years old, I quit girl scouts because I didn’t think I fit in. In my 20s, I quit art school. Art school was my dream! Most things I started, I never finished. No one made me believe I could do anything I put my mind to.

By now, you’re wondering who these unsupportive people are. I will keep that information to myself. I will let you put the unsupportive figures in your own life into those spots of my story. What I want every person who reads this to know is:

1.    Don’t crush someone’s dream and tell them they can’t do something. This will only push the person away from you.

2.    You CAN reach your goals no matter how far they are out of reach! A little work each day will get you there!

With support from these people in my life, or not, I WILL reach my goals. The only person that can stop me is myself and I’m not ready to give up!

D'Anna

Unilateral workouts

I have this problem and I can see it only becoming a bigger deal when I decide to compete later on as symmetry is very important. This problem seems to be quite common. Mainly because many people don’t know what the eff they’re doing – yep, I’m one of those people!

I have disproportionate muscle growth. I am not getting the same results on both sides of my body when it comes to muscle growth. My left side is growing differently than the right. I, first, noticed it in my legs (quads) and now I’m seeing it in my arms. The measuring tape reflects they’re the same size, however. It seems my left side is leaner, or smaller, than the right side. I see more muscle growth on the left, I think. It’s really weird for me. I have never had an injury to either side of my body. I do however, have poor posture. I find myself leaning to the right (my dominant side) quite a bit. I don’t know if any friends or family would notice the symmetrical error but if I plan to compete one day, the judges will definitely notice. Better to learn to correct it now. I'm trying to learn the different mucles in the leg so I can target the problem area and focus on correcting it.

I was advised to do unilateral exercises from someone who is considered an expert in the field, Bodybuilding.com sponsored Sean Sarantos. He told me exercises like lunges were great. Unilateral exercises permit the body to focus on one specific muscle contracting at a time rather than bilateral (both arms/legs) movements.

So when I workout now, I try to focus on the movement and form. I love squats, which are a bilateral exercise, but I make sure to do unilateral squats as well.

3 recommendations from Hugo Rivera’s website, www.hugorivera.net:

1. Practice perfect form: By ensuring proper form not only you ensure that the targeted muscles are the ones doing the work but also that both sides are putting an equal amount of force as the movement is performed, thus preventing imbalances.

2. Concentrate on activating the muscles of the weak side: When performing the movement, really concentrate on using and squeezing the muscles of your weak side to move the weight. This extra concentration will ensure that your dominant side is not the one doing the work.

3. Perform extra sets of unilateral movements to only target the underdeveloped area: Doing a few extra sets that solely focus on your weak side will teach the body to better activate the muscle fibers of that side.

(http://www.hugorivera.net/natural-bodybuilding-disproportionate-muscle-growth.html)

Water Powerrrrrrrr!

Water is essential to sustain life. (Duh!) Water makes up about 60% of your body weight. It regulates the body’s temperature; carries nutrients to all of your vital organs and other tissue; it keeps the joints lubricated; and helps with the body’s plumbing to flush toxins and other unnecessary waste out of the body.

When you’re working out, it is even more important to stay hydrated. I remember, in boot camp, the MTIs (military training instructors) always made us drink water. We carried a water canteen on our belt. I was so sick of water by the end of each day. Had we not drank enough water, we surely would have passed out because the training was exhausting at times.

Dehydration is very common. I bet you are dehydrated right now. Feeling tired? Sluggish? Thirsty? Yep! You are dehydrated! Go drink some water!

A good way to monitor your fluid intake is to check your urine. Sounds silly but you know you check out what’s in there anyway! Admit it – you do! Your output should be plentiful and colorless or light yellow. You will not see me without a bottle of water in my hand or nearby. I love water! I pee about 20 times a day because I’m constantly drinking water. It’s pretty annoying to have to run to a bathroom every hour but who cares! I get a few more extra steps walking to and from the bathroom because of it.

Keep in mind why being hydrated is so important! Drinking water gets rid of toxins and you know what else it’s great for? Weight loss! Fat stores toxins. Toxins sounds pretty appealing – don’t they? Not eating a “clean” diet will allow your body to store these toxins and, in turn, you gain weight and become “fat”.  Don’t pay attention to the scale. If you are constantly weighing yourself and your weight is fluctuating, it is probably because of fluid retention or loss. Somewhere there is a balance. Just make sure you keep up with your water as you’re exercising and throughout your day, even if you don’t work out.

Water comes in different forms but you want to look for the purest form. Stay away from sodas, juices, anything with added sugar. Milk, low-sodium broths, herbal teas and 100% fruit/vegetable juice are other alternatives to just plain water.

I calculated my intake to 79.5 ounces or 2.4 liters per day using this hydration calculator: http://nutrition.about.com/library/blwatercalculator.htm

I have a 64 oz water jug I use daily. You can get water from eating food sources like fruits and vegetables too.

Don’t drink all the water at one time. Spread it out during the day. Believe it or not, water intoxication is a real condition, although somewhat rare. Athletes are most at risk due to the loss or dilution of electrolytes when working out. Your kidneys can tolerate 15 liters of water a day. As long as you drink slowly, you are unlikely to suffer from water intoxication.

Water can become really boring so I will share what I do with my water. I love love love loooooooooooooove fruit-infused water! I found the idea on another blog months ago. I can't remember the name of the blog now. It was called "spa water" on the blog. You can buy fresh fruit or frozen. I use several glass mason jars so I could have different flavors to pick from to keep my taste buds entertained.

Directions:

1. Add the fruit into the glass jar or pitcher. Not a lot. Maybe a quarter full.

2. Take a wooden spoon and mash the fruit a little bit to get the juice flowing and then fill the rest with filtered water. If using fresh fruit, add ice before adding water.

3. Replace lid and refridgerate for 8 hours or over night.

4. If you don't like fruit pulp in your water, use a small kitchen mesh strainer or a strainer lid (usually sold in the mason jar section of the grocery store).

Some of my fave flavors are:

·         Orange

·         Lemon (with agave nectar)

·         Citrus - orange, lime, lemon

·         Blackberry

·         Strawberry

·         Pineapple

·         Cucumber/lemon

*The only fruit that won't work is bananas.

You can add herbs in as well like sage or mint. Reuse the fruit for no more than 3-4 days.

Couple of quick notes:

·         If you are concerned about your fluid intake, consult with your doctor.

·         Drink a glass (8oz) of water with each meal and between each meal. Drinking a glass of water before eating is a good way to feel full and will keep you from over-eating.

·         Drink water before, during, and after a workout.

D’Anna
xo


One last thing.......

“Weight loss” is NOT the same thing as “fat loss”!

I add a lot of people on Facebook for motivation reasons – people who want to get healthy (not experts in anyway) and bodybuilding athletes /pros. With saving all these fit friends comes a vast amount of knowledge. However, some of these people post some wacky stuff. Some are just ridiculous. You can pinpoint who doesn’t know much about becoming healthy.

I watched a video today where this guy was telling his audience not to be so upset with all the new people in the gym in the next couple weeks. (I won’t be because I’m still new too.) The guy, also, talked about how there are so many personal trainers and other people that know nothing about training and they’re the first ones to judge a “New Year’s resolutioner”. Really, if you’re in the gym and you’re judging other people negatively, you’re done with your workout – go home. Now, if you see a person who is doing an exercise wrong, where they could possibly hurt themselves, then you should say something to help them. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted someone to show me what to do in the gym as a newbie. I had no one to help since I would go after midnight. I know I do a lot of things wrong and no one corrects me. I had a boyfriend who went to the gym with me one day and had the nerve to tell me after I was done working out that I was doing my triceps extensions wrong…and he still never told me how to do it. People, if you know how to do an exercise and someone is doing it wrong, help them! GEEZ! (FYI – that guy is my “ex” now!)

Skinny fat or Fat Skinny? I chose neither. HA! There is no difference. I don’t want to be “skinny”. Been there, done that. People thought I was anorexic and I ate a lot! I just didn’t have any muscle. A healthy body has some muscle. Something I have learned since my journey started back in May was that doing too much cardio will keep you from maintaining the muscle mass you worked so hard to get. Depending on your goals for your own body, anymore cardio after 45 min-1 hour is considered excessive and your body will start to use muscle (or fat, whatever your body feels like using) as energy. The best way to optimize muscle gain/maintenance is not to overdo the cardio. And if you are only doing cardio, stop it! If you really want to lose weight, adjust your caloric intake, do at least 30 minutes on the treadmill and lift weights. If you eat clean and you lift weights, you will build muscle. You can do your much-loved cardio – just keep it under an hour. After a while and with clean eating, your metabolism takes over and the muscle will burn the fat itself, even when you’re not working out. A person, who does more than an hour of cardio, is going for just being skinny. That is, if they are in fact burning more calories than taking in. Otherwise, they won’t see much of a difference.

My goal is to lose fat mass and gain muscle. My ideal body fat would be less than 20%. I’d like to be around 120-125 lbs. (I’m 5’2.) If I decided to compete, then obviously those numbers would drop a little bit.  I’ve got a ways to go.

The minimum amount of fat necessary for basic physical health is 10-13% for women, and 2-5% for men. Don’t take that wrong though. That is not what an average healthy person should have. It is only for what amount of fat a person needs to maintain life. AccuFitness came out with a chart for body fat %. For a person my age (32), it is considered “ideal” to be between 21-26% body fat. I’m pretty sure I’m a few percentages above that without working out so I have some work to do.

Many people will think it’s about dieting and end up doing those fad diets. Fad diets do NOT work! They are temporary fixes and why would you want weight loss to be temporary? Most people will gain the weight they lost after they stop the fad diet and some will gain even more weight, leaving them back where they started. There is nothing “temporary” about becoming healthy and fit. It’s a lifestyle and you have to commit to exercise and changing your diet (what you eat daily) for the rest of your life.

Here are some other things I’ve learned:

1.      Eat that protein! If you eat enough protein, your body will burn the fat and spare the muscle. 1 gram per lb of body weight per day, if you’re wondering.

2.      Lift weights. More muscle = more fat burned.

3.      Your body loves muscle! That’s why it will burn fat more efficiently when you do have more muscle. It wants to get rid of the fat! I’m not wrong on this! Get fatter and see how your body and organs start to function for you!

4.      Weights before cardio. It’s better to use most of your energy lifting weights. You really don’t need much for cardio anyway. You will burn more calories this way as well.

5.      Train one body part a day. You need a couple days in between to recover that muscle.

6.      Eat 5-6 small meals a day, equally spaced apart. I eat every 3 hours. This will include a pre/post workout shake or meal.

7.      Get enough sleep. 7-8 hours is what I need.

8.      Drink water! Flush all that crap out of your body! LOL I pee 20 times a day but I feel so much better if I’m hydrated. I like to drink fruit-infused water. I’ll blog about it soon.

9.      Seek professional help. It’s not a bad thing. Ask a certified personal trainer/training coach. FYI, I’m not an expert. You don’t have to ask me or take my advice on anything.

D'Anna
xo

Oh Deer! New Year! New Workout!

(written on NYE)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hope you all are having a wonderful time as I sit writing this blog at work. LOL I am working at the hospital until midnight. Just my luck. I always have the worst luck on New Years. Couldn't get today off because I was too slow at requesting it. :( So sad. But it's just as well. I always have bad luck on New Years.

Last year, coming home from a friend's house in Boerne which was less than 15 minutes away, I hit a deer 5 minutes into my drive back to my place. It was so upsetting to me. I felt so bad for the deer. She actually ran back and forth and then into my car wheel well on the driver's side. I tried to honk but it didn't work. They say you should do that so they'll run away. Usually, it works. The people in the car behind me stopped and comforted me until the cops came. I was pitch dark out except for car lights. When two cop cars came, one cop came and took a report from me and the other one ended up having to shoot her. I guess when they approached her she wouldn't get up. She was just sitting there. It looked like she was ok but she wasn't. I don't know what they do with the animal's body after they shoot them but the cop disappeared quick. I never looked to see if she was still there. I just tried to stop crying so I could drive and left as soon as they let me. I'll remember her every year! RIP deer! :( There's my sappy bad-luck-on-New-Years story.

So tonight at work. I'll be going upstairs to my favorite ward to drink and toast (with a non-alcoholic grape beverage) to the New Year at 11pm to bring in the New Year as it hits our country first (on the east coast). We decided 11 would be the best time since we are hoping to be out the hospital doors before the clock strikes midnight. HOPING! LOL

Ok so onto what my blog is supposed to be about! My fit journey has brightened up a bit! Courtesy of a coach from down undah! I didn't think I would win but I posted on her page for her contest to win a free weekly personalized workout plan. She is Australia's Carla Britten. I tell ya, I have looked high and low, and now looking for real help all the way across a couple of ponds! Let's see what she can do to help me out for a little bit. :)

D'Anna
xo